Back from the Sensation Bahamas Cruise

[joan72761]

We just got back from a very enjoyable family vacation. Carnival's last minute major change to it's itinerary had a very negative impact on our plans, but we all decided to keep a positive attitude and enjoy our time together. Altogether it was an enjoyable time and we have many precious memories that nothing will ever be able to replace. As a quick informational type review I would like to share the following:

First, we booked online to park at the parkportcanaverl lot. Worked great. There was a bit of a delay when we got there because of a bridge that was up but nothing that caused any problems. We were a group of 12 and they made sure to keep us all together which we appreciated since we didn't all arrive at the same time. They took us to the port, explained about leaving our bags with the porters and were waiting for us when we returned after our 4 day cruise. There was quite a jumble at the port waiting for different pickups but once we got through the crowds we handed over our proof of payment/pickup form and waited for our names to be called. The driver then took us right back to our car and offloaded our luggage at the trunk. Very good service.

 

We were on the Sensation before 12:30 and our cabins were already available which was nice. My hubby and I were in M-172 and found it to be very comfortable. We dropped off our stuff and went to have lunch. Most of our party had never cruised before so we had lots to share. The ship itself appeared cosmetically to be kept up, but it made a lot of loud noises that I had never heard before and at one point actually caused things to shake while we were in a hallway outside a bank of elevators, and one of the elevators was actually scary to ride on with its loud noise and rough ride. In addition having used the public bathrooms on several occasions I found it unusual if the lock on the stall actually worked and the door of the womens bathroom right outside one of the dining areas off the lido deck didn't close correctly and we were warned by another guest not to push it closed because one lady had been stuck in there until another guest came to use the facility and pulled the door open. I hope they plan to drydock it soon and do some necessary maintenance.

 

Freeport was a total waste of time. We only chose a cruise with Freeport in the itinerary because of the overnight at Nassau that was cancelled, but we decided to go to Junkaroo Beach at Freeport after reading their website. It sounded great. It cost a bit for all of us to get there but we didn't mind because several of our party wanted to go snorkeling and Junkaroo advertised snorkeling for $20.00 and they provided gear for a bit more. Unfortunately that was a line of crap. They did have snorkeling, but they wanted $35.00 pp even with our own gear. And they had no operational bathrooms, only porta potties. It was nice to have lounge chairs to lounge in for the couple of hours we stayed but otherwise their advertisement was pretty false. I would recommend nobody waste their time and money going to this particular location. We also did some shopping and a late lunch at Port Lucaya but I will definitely never again book a cruise that stops in Freeport. A total waste of my day other that the good company of my family.

Nassau was enjoyable. We wandered all over and of course hit up the straw market. Some of the wood carving vendors were very rude but everybody else we interacted with were quite nice. Because we had to be back onboard by 4:30 we couldn't do too much else and spent the evening in the casino as they didn't have too much scheduled entertainment. The comedians were pretty good and we always enjoy the adult entertainment/games but Carnival left a few too many hours of nothing. I think when they changed their itinerary they haven't yet had time to find a way to fill in the time. I had heard they no longer had a midnight buffet but they did have a mexican buffet set up at midnight on our 3rd evening. It was nothing fancy but did take me by surprise. Our final day was a sea day and it was pretty obvious that the entertainment staff was trying to find a way to entertain people. The musical entertainment left a lot to be desired and it was hot so the pool was packed and the deck loungers were too. Pretty lame in all and we ended up in the casino and the shops, not our favorite way to spend an entire sunny day but I'm sure that was part of Carnivals plan with cancelling the overnighter. Some of the stuff I did the evening before I would have done on this day if I had not already done it. I heard many people talking about being bored the final day and I wouldn't be surprised to find first time cruisers deciding cruising was too boring with this experience.

We enjoyed our cruise and our time with family. I will however never again sail on the Sensation unless the deal of the century should be offered. Too small, too limited entertainment and too many odd noises and problems. Now, I'm looking forward to my first experience with NCL when I cruise to Hawaii in December.:)

[LBumb]

nice job

[mj]

Thanks for the review. Glad you went with a positive attitude. I am truly surprised to hear about the lack of entertainment given the time you left port. Seems like they would have more entertainment.

 

 

Carnival has been changing schedules all the time, lately. They cut the time in Nassau on the Fascination awhile ago and just checked and they have cut the time on Half Moon Cay.

[Ascott318]

I booked it for Oct, as we are visiting my son and daughter -In-law in Orlando for a few days. We got a deal of the century, $159 pp and $75 each cash from the casino . I could really care less about seeing the Bahamas again . Been there about 15 times. Where can you go for that price though, I couldn't pass it up !

[MomofBoyz]

I share your disappointment on the itinerary change. We booked the Sensation again in october because it was overnight in Nassau. Now 12 to 8 on Formal night. Very disappointed and won't book it again...who knows, next up 4 hours in port.

 

Love the Sensation and I sure hope they plan some filler for that night we were to be in Nassau by October.

 

Thanks for the review!

[going to see the world]

Glad to see someone with a positive attitude :)

 

I do have to say for the price, we'll certainly sail on the Sensation again.

[Moobaby214]

The noises you heard were the natural creeks of the ship. It happens when they aren't brand new. I rather enjoy the sounds.

 

Bahamas... I'd skip them all together but people tend to love them, I don't get it. We do empty ship days while there and it is very nice!

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[J&K08]

DW and I sailed the Sensation 10/08 and enjoyed the cruising experience just not the ship or Freeport. Our first experience on the Sensation was the smell of a septic tank being drained for about 30 minutes. Freeport was a really unattractive place. Pulling into an industrial port is not very appealing. Some of Freeports problems were caused by the hurricanes in '04-'05 which decimated the island because it is not protected by reefs like Nassau which is obviously not their fault. The kayak/snorkeling excursion in Freeport we booked through Carnival was enjoyable though. Our next unpleasant experience was docking early morning in Nassau. It was probably around 6 am and DW and I were dead asleep. Suddenly the ship listed I would say 25-30 degrees to port almost throwing us out of our beds. We thought the ship was going down. I guess they made a mistake when securing the ship to the pier. I thought Nassau was pretty nice but don't have a desire to go back. DW and I are booked on the Dream 11/12 and will probably stay on the ship when we get to Nassau. The itinerary is good for a quick, cheap getaway which would be the only reason I would go again. Where else can you get food and a room for under $500 for 4-5 days?

[erewhon]

Thank you for taking time to write and post your review.

[mbtdb]

we are booked on the Sensation for Sept....makes me nervous to read bad reviews! took me 6 yrs to convience dh to go on a cruise...I sure don't want this to end bad!

[vivavegas]

Nice review! Thanks for sharing!:)

[gene g]

This will be our 6th cruise and all was great. This will be our first on the Sensation and the Bahamas. You make it sound like it's not a good place to go, but i'm sure it's not that bad and that is my two cent worth. :confused: :D

[Beth]

I agree with Op they could do without Freeport. A complete waste of time.

[joan72761]

I'm sorry if anyone thought that I disliked my cruise or disliked the Bahamas. I DID totally dislike Freeport, but I love Nassau. I love walking the straw market at Senor Frogs is awesome. I also enjoy the Pirate Museum which I did last time I was there and my daughter and her family did this time. I will go to to Nassau again, but not anytime soon. Unless of course I can get the kind of deal some of the people responding to my review got. I definitely did not get any kind of deal on the price of our cruise. But, because of the size of our party we did book far out and we were more concerned with having room for all of us at the time. And of course, we all thought we were paying for an overnight in Nassau, but that is something different all together. Anyway, as I already said, time to do some specific planning for my Hawaii cruise. December, hurry up. lol:p

[Hunwolf]

Why any cruise ship would stop in Freeport is beyond comprehension.

[bobsfamily]

Why any cruise ship would stop in Freeport is beyond comprehension.

Because on 3/4 nighters it's the only alternate to just cruising around. Key West is to far away from PC and from Charleston on a 5 night cruise it's again the only real alternative. On longer cruises you have more choices even from Charleston. Carnival and RCC do have a "private" island but HMC (Half Moon Cay) is shared by all of Carnival Corp's cruise lines so each "share" with the more expensive cruise lines getting it more often.

So that is why and except for our last stop we have always had a great time in Freeport. With the downturn in our economy the Bahamas have seen an almost complete collapse of it's tourist trade which has closed lots of stuff.