Cruise Carnival by
Katherine from Roseville, CA
Sailing date: Mar 2010 Pros:
Cabo San Lucus was GREAT!
Cons:
The food.
I have sailed the Elation 3 times. I was not impressed this time. Our shower had mold stains and the food was not aa good as it has been in the past. The service on the pool deck needs improvement. I did like the information talks. Very informative and helpful.
Ship Quality They need to clean the public bathroom more frequent.
Dining/Food The food was not as good as it had been in the past sailings.
Stateroom Quality Stateroom was OK, but they need to get the mold stains off the grout.
Ship Staff Quality Most of the staff were great. There were a few that were not as nice as they should be.
Entertainment & Activities
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Spring Break Cruise by
Ruth Ann J. from Anchorage
Sailing date: Mar 2010 Pros:
The sun and the ports-of-call; the teen club was a big hit with my teenager.
Cons:
The food served in the Inspriation dining room and the very high cost of alcohol.
Overall I loved being at sea. I would have enjoyed more information re our location and speed, temps, and wildlife. The ship was a good size - not too big. The ports-of-call were great. The cruise director is like a cliche of himself and should tone it down. The cost of drinks or wine is much too expensive. I will think hard before going on a cruise again given how much over priced the alcohol is. I could have just as much fun on land without such an expense. The service is quite good.
Ship Quality The ship was kept in good shape and easy to navigate.
Dining/Food The food served in Tiffany's was quite good. The food served in the Inspiration dining room was a real disappointment. The beef was tough and overcooked, the fish was chewy and cold. I could never recommend this cruise if it was based upon the food served in the Inspiration dining room.
Stateroom Quality
Ship Staff Quality
Entertainment & Activities Some of the evening entertainment was too hokie but most was okay.
Children's Programs My daughter particpated in the Circle C Club. She really, really enjoyed the acitivites and getting to meet other teens.
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Enjoyable Cruise by
A Traveler from Vancouver, WA
Sailing date: Jan 2010 Pros:
Value for money
Cons:
Service in dining room
This ship/itinerary is specifically for quick, weekend partying to Mexico and completely met my expectations. The ship itself has seen better days but not expecting lap of luxury for this cruise.
Ship Quality
Dining/Food Some food was excellent but some food wasn't very good at all. I'm a dessert snob and their desserts were not that good.
Stateroom Quality No blow dryer or iron. Dispensers of soap/shampoo in shower not labeled
Ship Staff Quality
Entertainment & Activities
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A good value by
John B. from Portland, Or,.
Sailing date: Dec 2009 Pros:
good room attendant, well maintained ship
Cons:
entertainment & buffet food were just so-so
This was my 2nd Carnival cruise. It seems like the buffet food & entertainment quality a dropped a little since my 1st cruise. Embarkation went very quickly & smoothly.
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Dining/Food
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Ship Staff Quality
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A Wonderful Short Vacation by
Emma P. from Olympia, WA
Sailing date: Dec 2009 Pros:
The liveliness of the entire ship experience
Cons:
Limited dining choices after 10:00 PM (pizza only)
A great ship we spent our short vacation for the second time. The decor is great and festive.
Ship Quality
Dining/Food Food was great and the dining room ambiance festive. We would have preffered a smaller table, since it was just me and y husband, but we did not make any fuss of it.
Stateroom Quality The stateroom was spacious and nice. The shower only had shampoo and shower gel. There was no hair conditioner and nowhere to purchase it.
Ship Staff Quality Great, all over the ship!
Entertainment & Activities
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Memorable mom and daughter cruise by
Evelyn W from Seattle, WA
Sailing date: Aug 2009 Pros:
Dining in Imagination with a wonderful wait staff
This was my first cruise and my daughter and I had so much fun. We have great memories of the people we met and the staff were so friendly. My husband and son are excited to come with us on our next cruise.
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Collapse List of Ports
Ensenada, Mexico Not much to do at this port but walked into a few stores and bought a few shirts.
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totally spoiled us!! by
Anita P. from Boulder, CO
Sailing date: Aug 2009 Pros:
lots of food and varying fare every day, rooms were kept clean and neat several times a day. staff overall very friendly and enthusiastic. lots to do or not to do, as you felt like it.
Cons:
pool deck was crowded on sunny days and not enough deck chairs or space on deck to relax unless you got there early and saved several chairs. Pools were both small and not very warm.
This was our first cruise and we were a bit nervous and not sure what to expect, as we were traveling with 2 tweens and a teen. We were very impressed with the staff aboard the ship, from the cruise director to the wait staff and cabin steward and all in between. Food was fabulous and plentiful. Kids enjoyed the 24 hour pizzaria and ice cream, as well as evening activities with their peers. Good information on shopping, ports, and shore excursions and arrival/departures from port were given for us newbies. Ship was clean, a bit older dated, but we didn't notice much, we were too busy having fun. Overall, a wonderful experience for all the family.
Ship Quality
Dining/Food wait staff was excellent and very attentive, food was always delicious and fresh and varied..as well as plentiful.
Stateroom Quality small but clean. would h ave been nice to have a small chair in room besides bed and 3 legged stool.
Ship Staff Quality only reason this didn't get a 6 vs a 5 is due to medical care. My husband got an ear infection and was in agony...needed his ear flushed out. This is a chronic, recurring problem for him, so he knows how to deal with it. Went to ship Dr. and was given antibiotics, but dr. refused to flush out his ear, said his "regular doctor" needed to do it. When we got home, my husband spent 10 minutes and flushed it out himself and was 80% better. He was charged $200 for a "doctor" who wouldn't do a simple procedure that any nurse or layperson could have done. Ridiculous!
Otherwise, staff was 100% top notch and wonderful!!
Entertainment & Activities adult entertainment started too late for those of us with kids, who needed to be in around midnight.
Children's Programs would have preferred more supervision for 12-14 yr old group and more daytime activities while at sea. A late nite "overnite" or sleep in one nite would have been good, as we couldn't attend some of the later "adult only" shows as kids program ended at midnite and show started at 11:30 or 12.
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Cabo San Lucas, Mexico must do shore excursions...all sounded great and everyone love the ones the selected. We did sea kayak and snorkeling....must do. skip the restaurants along the dock, no matter how they try to reel you in...food is bad and expensive. better to go back to ship and eat and go back to port...tenders move folks pretty fast. bring cash and cc, no travelers checks..they don't take them. careful with water taxis...if you take one, only pay one way, not both and negotiate. We got lucky and our guy did come back for us at the appointed time, but not so with everyone.
Don't Miss: snorkeling and a day at Medano or Lovers Beach.
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Fun with friends cruise by
gr from pdx
Sailing date: Jun 2009 Pros:
Just hanging out with friends
Cons:
The boat was really dated, windows filthy, food at buffet was not too good.
Windows were filthy, but they were washing them as we left. Food not good in buffet. Boat is so dated in decor. Bathrooms around boat dirty.
Buffet , tables not cleared soon enough. Bad.... The rooms are decent and clean, bathroom was bigger than most other ships. The dancing
elation show was terrible, comedian was very good. It was a good trip,
because it was with my friends. I have cuised on Carnival, 1999, but
have been on Princess and Royal. They were far cleaner, way better food. With more fun things to do. Sorry. Just my opinion.
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Entertainment & Activities Elation dancers and singers....not good. The blue attire was terrible.
Velco was showing and they did'nt fit. Entertainment staff in there white
pants and red jackets. Way dingy looking and dated. Was it because it
was only a 3 day cruise?
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Ensenada, Mexico We had a great time. The people on the trip were great. Took a bus to town then out to the blow hole. Great job.
Don't Miss: don't stay in town
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Great staff; the rest a disappointment by
Laura C. from Seattle, WA
Sailing date: Feb 2009 Pros:
Staff friendliness
Cons:
Everything else: ship; food; destinations
Carnival has commoditized fun; we felt like walking wallets being processed through a commercial money-extraction experience. We like cruising but our next cruise will definitely be on another cruise line.
Ship Quality The ship isn't too big to negotiate, though you have to figure out your own way around. We had to ask for a map of the ship on boarding and it was too small to read. The ship decor felt to us like a second-rate Reno. Hard to avoid smokers on deck. Lots of nicks, dents, and dings everywhere. Staff work like machines to keep it clean and neat, though.
Dining/Food There was lots of food, it was just really disappointing in quality, even in the main dining room at night. High tea was disappointing (tea tasted funny, think it was the water.) If quantity matters more to you than quality when it comes to food, this is the ship for you.
Stateroom Quality The drawers stuck; there was visible mildew in the shower. The housekeeping staff did make up the cabin promptly and kept the shower dry, but I was always afraid to take my feet off the rubber mat. The decor was amazingly unattractive given that the ship was only about ten years old; it felt much older.
Ship Staff Quality Our cabin attendant and our main waiter were exceptionally personable. Loved the towel animals each night in our cabin. Some friends of ours in an inside cabin with another attendant didn't get them. These people work nonstop for about seven months in a row without any real time off; (according to ship's cruise director in a Q&A we attended.) We can't say enough about how hard they work.
Entertainment & Activities Lots of bingo, trivia, and slots challenges. The comedian was unoriginal and very unfunny; the hypnotist was okay; the onboard 'vegas style' review felt like a calculated pandering to the audience. The live band who played for the show was very good. Karaoke was fun but too many people got to sing multiple times while others never got a chance. The one time we went to Duke's piano bar it was monopolized by a small group of very loud, drunk people smoking so we passed. The library is great for a quiet respite, though the bookshelves containing books and games are only accessible for a short period of time each day.
Collapse List of Ports
Ensenada, Mexico We did the combo blowhole/winery tour. The blowhole was not inspiring and to get there we had to run a gauntlet of hugely aggressive vendors who physically blocked out path, tried to shove coupons in our hands, and begged us to visit their stalls. It really freaked many in our party out. The winery is inactive; we got a five minute "tour" of an old storage facility and then got shepherded to a tasting room for free samples. We did get off the bus in Ensenada and were able to see some of the big "fat tuesday" parade, which was cool. We had to find our own way back to the ship, which took longer than we expected. We heard from others on board who took a separate winery tour (which went to the working wineries) that they enjoyed it.
Catalina Island, California We rented a golf cart and went to the Wrigley nature preserve; it was fun. The rest of the time we shopped. Had lunch at Mi Casita, home of the giant cazuela drink which several in our party enjoyed. Food was okay, not great. Greasy fajitas, chile colorado was good.
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Carnival Elation poor vs Royal Caribean by
Dave C from Edmonton, AB
Sailing date: Jan 2009 Pros:
Cabin service was very personal and meticulous
Cons:
food like Mac & cheese at dinner and servers reaching over other guests substandard for a cruise
We had high expectations after our Alaska Cruise on Royal Caribean so when Carnival Elation served Mac & Cheese along with 2 of the 3 main courses at dinner, we were disappointed. The evening meal service lacked the friendly professional decorum we enjoyed on the previous cruise and we chose to skip dinner twice when the menu lacked anything appealing. The Chateaubriand steak was tough and more like round steak then tenderloin. Fellow diners also commented how the food and service was sub standard compared to previous cruises.
Ship Quality Older ship I thought at first...but it was only 10 years old. I found the decor tacky and out of the 70's.
Dining/Food Tenderloin more like round steak - very tough. Other food selection more like a cafeteria menu than a cruise ship.
Stateroom Quality State room was larger than previous ship and very comfortable. Service for the state room was excellent and personal.
Ship Staff Quality Food service staff sub standard. Officers scarce if seen at all. Cabin staff by far the best onboard.
Entertainment & Activities Excellent singers and dancers.
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Cabo San Lucas, Mexico The usual peddlers as soon as you got ashore. Time share sellers greeted everyone at the end of the dock.
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