i have been on several cruises and wanted to take my daughter for her first time on a shorter cruise, destination did not matter. we went with carnival's fantasy. i didn't do much research as this was her first time and nothing for her to compare to.

the ship is small and only has one small pool and that is a big problem, especially if you like to sun all day and take a dip to cool off periodically. only a small fraction of the guests can get a lounge chair around the pool and even fewer are able to get into the pool it is so small. there are lounge chairs in other areas of the ship but no way to cool off. even the kids water park type slides in another area of the ship don't end up in a pool and there is no way for an adult to cool off there either.

that said, the rest of the ship is very nice, it's been updated and in good, newer shape. the cabin was clean and new looking, roomy, good amount of storage. we ordered free room service every morning for coffee and it was right on time and nice and hot...the food was very good all around, my daughter especially loved the 24 hour pizza as a late night snack. embarkation/debarkation smooth and speedy at all ports. for the beginning of the cruise there was a sewage type smell in the bathroom which was a turn off but it cleared up on day two. the casino, lounge, dining room all are smaller but very nicely appointed. Read more