Wife and I have cruised twice before with Carnival. Valor in 8-09 and Destiny in 3-10. Decided to take our 3 daughters age 10, 8, and 6 with us this time and try a Fantasy class ship with Waterworks. We were pleasantly surprised at how nice this ship was and how it kept the kids entertained. Destiny last year looked old and a little run down but Imagination was in tip top shape. We could hardly tell it was older and smaller than the other ships we had been on.

Embarkation was a breeze as always. We flew into Ft Lauderdale day of and had QLS transportation waiting with a van to the terminal for $14/person. We arrived at the terminal about 1:30pm and went straight on. We kept our luggage with us so dropped it at the room and had time to eat a nice meal in the lido buffet before muster station drill. This took place in the Dynasty Lounge for us which was much nicer than standing out on deck like on Valor and Destiny. We then got to know the ship, hit the dining room and caught the "Welcome Aboard Show". Small dance show and intro from the cruise director. We had an interior cabin on the main deck with a king bed, one bunk over it, a nice sized portable bed in the corner with another bunk over that. It was a little tight when beds were all down but we could fold bunks up into wall during the day and fold up portable bed neatly into one corner. Lots of storage space and luggage fit under the bed as well. Overall the room was very clean, and the bathroom seemed bigger than on Valor or Destiny. Very nice!

Tuesday morning was Key West bright and early. 75 degrees and mostly sunny. Took the trolly from the Navy Pier into Mallory Square and walked one block to the Fury terminal for the glass bottom boat excursion. Saw lots of coral and some fish. Nice naration of the reefs history but not alot of sights to be seen. Only one small turtle and small fish. Walked around shops near Conch Train station with kids for another hour then back on board for lunch. Line to get back on ship was a little long but all the trolley's seem to arrive together and people bunch up. Liked docking right at Pier B downtown last time with Destiny much better. Left port around 1:30pm and let the kids try the pool and waterpark. Pool was kinda cold, hot tubs were nice and water park with pretty nice also. Main slide is fast! Elagent dining was nice and they even had a magician walking around entertaining the tables. The kids loved it and even I was left wondering how he did that. "Living in America" show was OK. Not the best I've seen on Carnival but very good dancers and singers, just not that interesting of a show. Make sure you get there early as balcony seats have alot of obstructions and railing is right at the level you need to look to see the performers on stage. Main floor is very nice. Read more