For years, my wife has been wanting to go on a cruise but I was leery due to being prone to motion sickness. After pricing other vacations I realized how affordable it would be to cruise and I needed to face some fears! We decided on Carnival due to recommendations from friends and the nearness of the Port of New Orleans. I decided a 5 day cruise would be best since there was only (1) day at sea before the first port and (1) day at sea on the way back. Embarkation was fast and easy! We arrived at the terminal at 10:30 am and was on the ship by 11:15 am. Once we got on the ship there was food already available on the Lido deck. We ate at Guy's Burger Joint and then had ice cream for dessert. We were able to access our stateroom at 1:30 pm and our luggage was waiting at the door. The worst part of the whole cruise is the safety training, which is mostly the fault of the other passengers not listening to directions. In our Muster area I was right by a speaker and it almost blew my ear off during the safety announcements.

I used the seasick "patch" and i'm glad I did. My wife, who has never had a problem with seasickness and has cruised before, admitted that the seas seemed rough. Thankfully, I never felt the first symptom of seasickness. I believe I would have without the patch. There were several other people wearing patches and it was a point of discussion with several passengers who did not know what is was used for.

On our first sea day, we had fun laying out on the Lido deck, taking in the sun and eating burgers. Guy's Burger Joint, the Deli and the Pizza Pirate is great! The buffet, not so much. Also, I was fairly disappointed with the Paris dining room food although sea day brunch was great! All of the dining and food staff were exceptional. We talked to several of them and were amazed (and concerned) about the length they stay at sea and the hours they work. They never complained and all do a great job! Read more