We just returned from a 7 day cruise in the Eastern Caribbean on Carnival Victory. This was our first cruise experience and we found it somewhat enjoyable but will probably not cruise again. I read many member reviews before embarkation and found them helpful so I have decided to add my experience to this site.
Embarkation... We had booked our trip several months ago through an independent travel agent. Upon arriving at the airport very early in the morning to catch our flight we were informed that our flight had been changed to a much later flight. Unfortunately our travel agent failed to inform us of this fact. We arrived in Miami 10 minutes before the cut off time of arrival at the boat. Because we arrived so late there were absolutely no lines and we were on the boat within minutes. Which was good because we were stressed and tired by the time we got there. Then we immediately had to go through the muster drill. Finally we were able to go to our room and relax. We had a balcony suite which was fabulous and well worth the extra money to wake up to the sound of the ocean every day. There was more than enough storage for everything that we brought and our room steward Maila was very attentive and friendly.
Dining... The fine dining room was great and we had fantastic service. We ate at the Lido buffet a few times and were continually let down. The lines were long and the food was not worth the wait although we did enjoy the salad bar. The 24 hour pizza and caesar salad were surprisingly good and the hamburgers and hot dogs from the Mediterranean buffet were delicious. I would definitely suggest buying a soda card because the iced tea and lemonade were not of good quality. We ordered room service all but one day for breakfast. The service was prompt and it was wonderful to be able to drink coffee and eat croissants overlooking the ocean in our suite.