Carnival Vista Review
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My boyfriend and I's second cruise together, and my fourth cruise overall. And boy, do we seem to have a hard time picking the winners. I wish I could leave a better review, because I was super excited for this vacation, and went into it with positive expectations.
First of all, we are Florida residents, and have the luxury of driving to Port of Miami for departure. Port of Miami is notoriously frustrating and confusing. We have been to this port three times (once for an onboard wedding, which we departed from same-day), and not once has it been simple and easy to navigate. This time, the tunnel was closed on the way in, and we had to take a 30-minute detour just to get to the cruise terminals. Be sure to budget in an extra $20/day for parking fare as well. It may seem steep if you're on a tight budget, but parking at port is much better than the alternatives; independent parking companies in Miami are good at NOT shuttling you to the port on time.
Embarkation was fairly straightforward. We had to stand outside for a while, since we arrived prior to our scheduled boarding time. But once we were through the security line, we were on the ship in no time. So keep in mind, there is no need to arrive earlier than your scheduled time; they actually have a separate line (which had no one in it) for on-time arrivals. We were not able to get into our stateroom until about an hour after boarding, so if lugging your bags around is bothersome to you, consider checking them. We didn't mind, as we only packed one bag each.
Cabin Review
Interior
Our stateroom was very comfortable, and our attendant was kind. I was told by our booking agent that certain interior rooms are larger than others, so see if you can get hold of one if you're selecting an interior cabin anyway; the size was more than enough for two people, and the bed was LARGE! A few nitpicks about the cabin... The electricity does not work unless you have your S&S card inserted in a slot by the door. As such, it's challenge to charge electronics while you're out and about. We got around this by occasionally leaving my boyfriend's S&S card in the slot and taking mine while we were out. In addition, the TV is "not an interactive TV" in the words of the Guest Services desk; even though they have HDMI inputs, you will not be able to make things function, so leave your gaming systems and Chromecast at home.
Cabin furniture included: Small fridge cabinet with shelves next to them; large wardrobe with hangers and space to hang gowns on one side, and shelves, drawers, and a safe on the other; king-sized bed; two sidetables with storage and lamps; couch; vanity with lighted mirror and drawer storage (hair dryer in drawer); stool; table. The table tended to be a nuisance, ask your stateroom attendant if it's possible to remove it. We moved it to the end of the bed so it wasn't just slamming against our shins the whole trip.
The bathroom was small, and might have been a problem if we were larger people. There are three glass shelves on either side of the sink for storing toiletries, but not much room for storing anything inside the shower. Inside the shower, there is a retractable drying line (which did nothing to help dry our wet swimsuits), and a dispenser with complimentary shampoo and body wash.
Port Reviews
Ocho Rios
Look, I am sure this island is amazing if you have something to do, but our main experience here was being hassled by locals. They will absolutely try to charge you $200 for a $5 wooden statue right outside the port, and then yell that you hate Jamaicans if you try to walk away. Save yourself some aggravation: do not go anywhere NEAR the stalls directly outside of port. The shopping district outside port was more pleasant; we ate at a little cafe (not stellar food), which had a nice view of the ship, before browsing a few shops and heading back to the boat. During our short jaunt, no less than 15 locals offered us a smoke. So... you know, if you're into that kind of thing, bring some extra cash I guess? If I had to do it over, I'd book a Dunn's River Falls or Crystal Cave excursion.
Grand Cayman (Georgetown)
There was absolutely nothing extraordinary about this port. They are a British territory, and it seems they mostly focus on high-end shopping and tourist shops. There isn't much exoticism to it; I could visit the same shops in any mall back home. We ate at the Hard Rock, hiked up and down the main drag, and headed back. The submarine excursion would have been nice here. We actually walked by where it takes off from, and it looked fun!