First Cruise on Carnival - Great Itinerary, So-So Ship

We normally cruise Royal. We've been wanting to see the Bahamas and like departing from Galveston because we can drive there easily, so we thought we would try Carnival. We traveled with four other families for a total of 15 people. Carnival does some things better. We liked the food, the kids club, and the entertainment were all impressive compared to Royal. The ship layout is horrible though. The buffet was disappointing and the volume of the music and PA on the pool deck made conversation impossible. Even our kids wanted to leave after the music got cranked up. Royal has better onboard ship features and activities. This ship had problems with sewage, water pressure, and air conditioning. My biggest complaint was the smoke from the casino poured out into decks 3,4 and 5 where all the activities and clubs were. My biggest compliment goes to the crew. Everyone was very nice and helpful. I was impressed that even the stage show performers seemed to enjoy interacting with the passengers. That was something I have never seen from Royal. Will probably still prefer Royal over Carnival, but might give them a try on one of their newer ships.