Back from Elation. Making observations & taking questions.

[wxguyinms]

I'm back home from a five-day cruise on the Elation from New Orleans to Progreso and Cozumel (12/8/14 to 12/13/14).

 

While I'm not going to do a review of this trip, I do have a few random observations and will be more than happy to answer any questions I can.

 

THE GOOD

• Shows in the main lounge: Elations has not been changed over to Playlist Productions, and the larger cast and live band made for great entertainment.
  
• Staff and crew: The Elation's staff and crew were, as a whole, the friendliest, most welcoming and most efficient I've seen on any past Carnival cruise. From cabin stewards to waiters to bartenders to guest services staff, I didn't encounter a single unpleasant worker.
  
• Ship: Overall, Elation is in good shape. Yes, there were stained carpets and scratched closet doors, but the crew works hard to keep the ship clean and presentable.
  
• Food: For the most part, the food served aboard Elation was good. I know food is subjective and not everyone will like every dish, but there was at least one appetizer, entree and dessert at each meal in the MDR that appealed to everyone in our group, and most of the dishes were good.
  

 

THE OK

• Cruise director: Steve Kniseley is entertaining and very approachable. Thanking the audience leaving a show and thanking us as we disembarked were great personal touches. I've read other reviews that mentioned Steve didn't make many announcements. Well, Carnival brass must have read those same reviews and not been pleased. The announcements were frequent and long-winded.
  
• Activities: This cruise seemed to have far fewer activities scheduled, especially during afternoons and evenings. While I could most always find something to do, a bit of variety would have been appreciated.
  

 

THE BAD

• Smoke on Promenade deck: I hope this doesn't begin a smoking debate, as it's just an observation. The smell of stale smoke is pervasive throughout the Promenade deck.
  
• Elevators: The elevators on Elation have a mind of their own. Selected floors were skipped on more than one occasion, and long waits for elevators were common. Also, I heard many passengers remark that the glass elevators need floor numbers on the button panel rather than just deck names. While not a problem for me, it was for many.
  
• Beds: My bed on Elation had, without a doubt, the most uncomfortable mattress I've ever had on a Carnival ship. It was hard and at the same time offered no support. I used to look forward to Carnival's comfy mattresses. I hope I just got a bad one this time.
  

 

OBSERVATIONS

• Elation still has the "old" pizza menu. While I know many are fans of the old pizza, I prefer the newer pizza menu. I was disappointed Elation has not made the switch.
  
• The lido buffet still has trays and larger drink cups. Both are definitely missed on the newer ships.
  
• Carnival did very little during Elation's recent dry dock that I could notice.
  
• If Carnival plans to keep the Fantasy-class ships long-term, it should consider adding a few new venues. I'd suggest Guy's Burger Joint, Blue Iguana, and an Alchemy bar would be feasible.
  

 

Again, if anyone has any questions, please ask away. I'll do my best to answer quickly and accurately.

[nydney1]

I agree with your suggestion about Guys and the Blue Iguanna.

[slybear]

We love the Elation and agree about having the best staff. Hoping to cruise her again 1/1/15 if the price drops!

[WLHyatt]

We were getting off the Elation when you were getting on and most of the points I agree with.

I will be interested to see if they do a similar amount of work (or lack thereof) on the Paradise next year.

The thing that shocked me most was the lack of maintenance in the staterooms. There seemed to be very little upkeep done to the fixtures in the rooms (including TV's and the picture in the corner was ripped off the wall at some point in our room). There were other things that we noticed all over the ship that were broken or in a state of disrepair, like one of the lights on the forward observation deck above the bridge, one (or more) of the antennas above the bridge had the cable broken off of it, and there seemed to be quite a few rust spots on the outside public areas.

If I am not mistaken Elation and Paradise are the only two that have Azipods and I wonder if they are planning to retire those before the rest of the Fantasy class ships. If that were the case then the work being done in dry dock being limited to mechanical and safety systems makes sense.

 

We loved the ship, and have booked another cruise on her for next year, but I wish the rooms had been redone similar to the Fantasy and some of the other ships of that class.

[maldenmusic]

What, if anything, did you notice about the Elation after dry dock? WE have cruised on this ship more than any other and will do so again this summer. Was hoping for a few noticeable changes but it won't make or break my cruise experience.

[winddawn]

Thanks for sharing your Elation experiences.

 

I sailed on Elation a couple weeks ago. I agree with most of your observations. I thought the staff was very friendly and helpful too. I also thought the ship was very clean. I noticed though that this ship is beat up pretty bad with lots of rust along the decks, and just a lot of scuffs and chips on everything. My cabin had cracked and missing shoe molding and a badly sagging mattress. Like you, I used to love Carnival's mattresses, but not anymore. The desk had pieces missing out of it and spill stains. I agree the Fantasy class ships could use some new venues. And Elation needs a deeper refurbishing than what it got this year. The only thing I noticed on the ship that appeared new was the carpeting.

 

I agree the smoke was bad, especially in the casino. I noticed a lot of people just hanging out in there smoking without gambling. They would just sit along the windows and smoke. I had to leave it was so thick. It appears that banning smoking on the balconies only diverted the smoke into the casino.

 

The best food I had during my last Elation cruise was during seaday brunch. I went there on both sea days and the service and food were exceptional both times.

[wxguyinms]

The only thing I could definitively see that was done during the dry dock was that carpet was replaced in many public areas. There was no new carpet in my stateroom, though.

 

From talking to some of the crew, it seems much of the work during the dry dock was in crew-only areas.

[WLHyatt]

The biggest thing I noticed that was added during dry dock was an updated crew area at the front of the ship where the hot tub stand used to be. It looks like they added a really nice seating area for the crew to rest.

We have not sailed on her before but I saw pictures from Zydecocruiser that showed the old setup at the front, and what we saw was much different.

Other than that, it looked like some tile had been replaced.

I am thinking this was mostly a mechanical and safety recertification, but the ship needs some TLC in the guest rooms and adding a couple of venues would be nice. The next drydock will need to be an extensive one, in my opinion.

[slincoln]

I'm back home from a five-day cruise on the Elation from New Orleans to Progreso and Cozumel (12/8/14 to 12/13/14).

 

 

THE OK

• Cruise director: Steve Kniseley is entertaining and very approachable. Thanking the audience leaving a show and thanking us as we disembarked were great personal touches. I've read other reviews that mentioned Steve didn't make many announcements. Well, Carnival brass must have read those same reviews and not been pleased. The announcements were frequent and long-winded.
  

 

I think he over-corrected and went way overboard. We were often getting annoyed in karaoke or trivia listening to him basically reading the entire program. I guess I'm not sure why some on the ship need every single activity recited off to them when they deliver a program to you every day, and you can find them again if you lose yours?

• Smoke on Promenade deck: I hope this doesn't begin a smoking debate, as it's just an observation. The smell of stale smoke is pervasive throughout the Promenade deck.
  
• Elevators: The elevators on Elation have a mind of their own. Selected floors were skipped on more than one occasion, and long waits for elevators were common. Also, I heard many passengers remark that the glass elevators need floor numbers on the button panel rather than just deck names. While not a problem for me, it was for many.
  
• Beds: My bed on Elation had, without a doubt, the most uncomfortable mattress I've ever had on a Carnival ship. It was hard and at the same time offered no support. I used to look forward to Carnival's comfy mattresses. I hope I just got a bad one this time.
  

 

We had the same experiences on all counts. I forgot to mention some of these in my review.

I ended up with a "funky" back a few days, probably from the bed. And it didn't seem like the smoke was being filtered very much at all near the Drama Bar.

Edited December 23, 2014 by slincoln