Louisiana & Carnival Dream
I have been on cruises previously with Royal Caribbean, P&O, Celebrity and Cunard but Carnival was totally new to me as this was the very first cruise I have been on with them.
Before joining the cruise I had heard that Carnival are fun cruises. It really was true to this.
To make it simple, Carnival is a luxury resort at sea, better than many 4* hotels I have stayed in and even some 5* hotels as the service is excellent. The staff on Carnival are a credit to the fleet, they work so hard and ensure you have an enjoyable cruise. If you want anything the turnaround is really fast.
Fun with Carnival in my own words really means you never have a reason not to smile and just be happy on board which is what going on holiday is all about. The live music was superb. I especially enjoyed the singers in the atrium when inside and when outside on lido deck the singing was also great.
You have other entertainment in the theatre/casino, not forgetting the kid’s facilities which are a massive area. Better than any kid’s entertainment I have seen in a resort and the ages are well suited to get kids of a same age together. I would say you could go on this cruise if you prefer adults only as it is not in your face with kid’s entertainment. So you have it right for everyone on board.
I often I forgot I was on a cruise as the sailing was very smooth. It was not obvious you were actually cruising and having so much on board to do you really did forget you were going to another beautiful port.
The daily newsletters had so much information about all the activities available to choose from day and night, it was almost difficult to choose what to do. By all means if you just want to relax you always had a quiet corner to go to. It had plenty of port information but it was a struggle to leave the ship as everyone I went with was having a great time.
The value for money with Carnival is ridiculous as you have so much included in the Carnival cruise price - I think the prices should be higher! One of the highlights for me was going and relaxing in the serenity area which is an adult only area perfect for me time. Most cruises charge a premium for this but with Carnival it is included in the price which is amazing value and a huge benefit to the ship.
Entertainment is brilliant with Carnival, you cannot get bored as you have everything you could possibly want and more. I love the huge TV screen on Lido deck which has movies in an evening with popcorn and you can relax on a sun lounger to watch your nightly movie. I caught a bit of Spectre before going for our evening meal.
The main dining was great with our lovely waiters who could not do enough for us. One evening someone mentioned they liked someone else's meal choice before we knew it they had bought out samples for everyone. Around the day you had lots of food choices - you could go and have pasta, Indian, deli, fast food, buffet food and more and all the food was of a good standard. We had a vegetarian and also a gluten free person in our group and no one went hungry.
We went to the Steak house a couple of times which has a cover charge of $35 US dollars and it was very impressive. I would tell my customers to do this at least once as the cover charge is so low for the food you get.
I had an outside cabin which was more spacious than other cruises I have been on. In fact when I went on Britannia last year my balcony cabin was half the size.
On board we had the chance to do the behind the scene's tour which I was lucky enough to do and I was shocked at how well everything was run behind the scenes and how clean the ship was in the areas you could not see. It was a military operation run so well and no one ever had a sad face. The staff are very happy which means everything as you always get fantastic service which enhanced the cruise experience.
I paid for the drinks package and found it to be great value on board and offered many good options. If you like cocktails and the odd drink on a night I would recommend it to anyone and straight away you know what you are spending as you get up to 15 drinks and soft drinks are unlimited. You do have to have this for everyone in the cabin.
I enjoyed it that much I am thinking about my next holiday with Carnival as they have so many good itineraries and work well if you like to do a stay and cruise especially in the Caribbean/USA.
If you want to know more please contact me so I can get the right cruise for you.