Having cruised many times, this was my first Carnival cruise. I chose Carnival because of my grandchildren (11 & 9), thinking they would enjoy it. It was their first cruise and even they weren't particularly impressed. The decor of the ship was ostentatious. Whoever designed it needed to be reigned in, big time. Too much pink leopard, patterns, and lights. I'm all for fun but EDIT please...not 7 different color patterns with blinking lights, cornucopias, unnecessary 3D effects. You have to go out on deck and look at the water just to reset your eyes.

The food was sub-standard, very much so in the Black Pearl restaurant. Everything looked beautiful on the plate, but things were over or underdone and fruit was CANNED...on a Caribbean cruise. Canned fruit?!? Coffee everywhere was awful. The logistics of service in the buffet dining was terrible: hectic and chaotic. Lines were always long in the 24 hour service areas (pizza, deli and grill) and you would think that because there were very few food options between mid to late afternoon, there would have been more staffing or more stations to get food. Average wait in line standing was 30+ minutes.

My daughter and granddaughters loved the double feature movies every night! The grand kids ate their weight in soft self-serve frozen yogurt which was a huge win for them. The concept of the kids camp was a great option. Read more