We cruised Carnival for the first time in the January school holidays, so we expected to see a lot of kids for that time of year and we did! If I cruise again, I would try to avoid the busy school holiday periods if I can.

CABIN:

We loved our cabin. Due to the time of year, it was quite expensive, around $1700 AUD per person for an inside cabin with obstructed view. I was happy that I had selected the obstructed view french door cabin. We had lots of natural light and could see the ocean/view between the life boats so that was nice. The door could be opened for fresh air, although I am not sure you are supposed to open the door. The decor is mainly creams/gold/beige and was light and clean. The beds were very comfortable and the sheets and towels were relatively new and soft. The cabin was a reasonable size and was one of the reasons I chose Carnival, as the cabins are around 185 sq feet whereas Royal Caribbean, Celebrity and Holland America ships in Australia seem quite a bit smaller. There was plenty of storage space, a hair dryer located in the drawer in the mirrored vanity area in the cabin. The bathroom was an adequate size and was very clean. It did seem a little "cheap" that the shampoo and shower gel was provided in dispensers attached to the shower wall when other lines usually provide little bottles of same, also there is no body lotion or hair conditioner at all (but not a big deal really). It was great to have the mini fridge to store our own drinks/water. I had the beer removed from the fridge to make more room. Our stateroom attendant, John and his assistant were truly amazing. They worked so hard and nothing was a problem for them. The room was always ready for us, day and night. We loved the turn down service and the little towel animals we would find when we came back to our room after dinner each night. My daughter made sure I got a photo of her with every new towel animal. I tipped my cabin steward when we first arrived and gave him more at the end of our cruise, plus some local Australian chocolate and an island gift. We felt he worked so hard, he deserved it. Read more