Panorama July 9th Review

[JillK]

It’s been a long time since I’ve written a review but I thought I’d share some thoughts on our recent Panomara cruise (July 9th sailing).

 

This was our fourth Carnival cruise and second this year. We had been cruising primarily with NCL prior to the shut down so this was going to be our kids’ first Carnival cruise. We were curious to try the brand again as our last cruise on Carnival was on the Glory in 2013.

 

Embarkation

This was a seamless experience for us. We showed up at our appointed window and only had a 10 minute wait in the first line where you clear the verifly/documentation stage. We walked through security and had another 10 minute wait to check in. We were travelling five of us in two cabins so were told to separate but because our accounts were linked for payment, hubby had to come find me to finish the second cabin check in. Our boarding group was called just as we finished checking in so we immediately proceeded to line up to get on the ship. This was a good sized line but moved smoothly. This process took about 25 minutes and voila we were on board.

 

The Ship

Panorama is a gorgeous ship filled with fantastic activities and amenities. This was my 18th cruise and we felt that this was among the top 5 cruises we have done. There are areas of the ship that we didn’t get to experience (Havana area, Family Harbor area, Serenity) but we tried our best to do everything else. The ropes course is small enough that it’s fun for those of us who aren’t daredevils and SkyRide is so much fun that everyone should try it. The decor is pleasing and the flow of the ship makes sense so I didn’t spend all week getting confused and turned around as I have on some other ships.

 

The Cabin(s)

We split our group into two cabins on Deck 9, the three boys in a balcony cabin mid-fwd and the girls in an inside mid. Hubby had a much better promo than I did in his VIFP profile so scored a better cabin at a similar price to what I paid for the inside (still not happy about that one Carnival - you clearly don’t know that *I* make the travel decisions in my family).

 

The balcony cabin was spacious for our crew where the biggest negative is that the cabin is left with the bed deployed for the duration of the cruise so during the day, the guys would have to sit on their own beds rather than having a couch to use. That sucked for our family dynamic where on a few evenings the three kids would hang out in the cabin and watch TV/play video games and hubby and I would go to a show on our own.

 

The inside cabin was cozy and met our needs. The biggest issue was that in the month’s delay between booking hubby’s cabin and ours, the cabin I had wanted to book got scooped up so that when finally booked, I just picked the next one down the hall that was the closest. This means that I didn’t look at the deck plans - big mistake. We ended up being underneath or very close to the pool. This led to a significant amount of noise bleeding into our cabin, ranging from what I would describe as water trickling all night at least two nights, to the bass from anything happening on deck (movies, music) or stomping from dancing. Often we were at those parties so it wasn’t an issue but a few nights we retired early only to be kept awake by the late night movie or a party that was still going (one night until 12:30 am even though it was scheduled to end at 11:30 for example). I didn’t realize that I would have to re-learn a lesson I thought I learnt 15 cruises ago…. Always check your cabin location on a deck map!

 

I would also say that there was a large amount of fellow passenger inconsideration that would wake us up most nights. Why people insist on speaking at above normal volume when going down the hallways at all hours of the night was surprising. There was only one night when I was able to sleep through the night without some inconsiderate jerk practically yelling as they walked down the hall in the wee hours of the morning. I’m glad you had a fun night but I’m sure you could have managed to find your way back to your cabin without waking everyone as you found your way home. Maybe try a normal speaking volume or here’s a thought… whisper when it’s 4:00 am?

 

The Food

We did a miss mash of things for our meals on this cruise. There were a lot of burgers eaten and I feel that Guy’s burgers remain the best at sea. The breakfast burritos were a huge hit as were the tacos. We did two specialties this week - first night at the steakhouse (which has become a cruise tradition - go big while we still have an appetite) and another night at the Pig & Anchor. I would highly recommend the steakhouse though we all agreed the filet minion served in the MDR on the second formal night was every bit as good as the steakhouse (shocking as I will not even touch the steak in the MDR on NCL but the kids don’t discriminate). We would not return for pay at the Pig & Anchor - the servings, while plentiful and reasonably priced were super awkward to eat (I still haven’t figured out how they expected us to eat a full rack of ribs which was tough to separate with a regular knife) and while tasty, not worth the premium. Our server also completely ghosted us after clearing our dishes so we never received a bill after waiting for half an hour for someone to come back to our table. Stick with the freebies at lunch on sea days, it’s more than enough to get the experience all without the bill.

 

Our experiences in the MDR were really good - service was the fastest we can ever remember receiving and one server in particular (whose name we didn’t catch unfortunately) was exceptional by greeting us each by name and anticipating our needs (which reminded me of the old days when you had traditional seating and the same wait staff every night.) We liked everything we ordered so we were very impressed. The Sea Day brunch is really quite excellent though we found the service in our case lacking. Definitely a must-do one day so plan for it. The buffet was good - nothing spectacular came out of this area that I tried. Good salad bar and fair breakfast offerings but nothing on par with what you get on NCL at the Garden Cafe.

 

The biggest failure that we could see was the severe limitation of food options after 10:00. This did not affect us very much as we usually weren’t looking to eat that late, but on a ship the size of the Panorama, it’s shocking that they only have the pizza place (staffed by two crew members) and the deli (staffed by three crew members) open to serve food. Those five crew members deserve a raise and a medal for putting up with the onslaught of hungry people after 10:00. They could at minimum have a portion of the buffet open with a selection of cold things that are pre-made - sandwiches, cold cuts, cheeses, chips and salsa, etc. to ease the burden. This was the one thing that made no sense to us at all.

 

The Entertainment

The Sports court was incredible. We spent lots of time here playing chess, foosball, pingpong, mini golf, billiards (had to pay for that on NCL). Such a fantastic use of space with something for everyone and it’s very clever that a portion of it is indoors for when the heat is unbearable.

 

There was a lot of comedy and we did get out to a number of shows. We didn’t go to the broadway style shows… we had our fill in March but did enjoy the game shows in the Liquid Lounge and also Ocean Plaza and really had a lot of fun at most of the deck parties. The silent disco was a big hit with our family in particular. We did the dive-in movie one night and really enjoyed it - the movies repeat during the week so it’s a matter of finding an evening that works best.

 

We were surprised by the size of the two main pools given the size of the ship. They felt undersized and at times were very crowded (body to body). We used them only on port days when we elected to stay on board. The waterworks area was an awesome place for the kids to play and for adults to cool off. I think I enjoyed it as much as the kids did. The two slides are also a lot of fun and easily accessible on port days. Line ups are significant on sea days as expected.

 

The kids were signed up for the kids clubs but the teen wasn’t interested. The boys only went twice to their respective clubs but left quickly out of “boredom.” It was the first time the boys were separated (one is 10, the other 12) so I suspect this had something to do with it. I also think they should have gone when there was an activity happening but in any case, we were just as happy to hang out with them so it wasn’t a big deal. During the welcome aboard show they said there was over 1,000 kids on our sailing and it showed in the many families aboard and especially around the pre-teen/teen club area in the evenings where it looked like there were a billion teens.

 

The Spa

After so many cruises, I finally decided to treat myself to a thermal suite pass for the week. I managed to make it there five days and thoroughly enjoyed it. I was still getting up well before my family so I was often done at the spa when the rest of my family was getting up or had been up only a short while. I was surprised that the thermal suite only had 9 heated loungers and the whirlpool is quite small but they must dole the passes out accordingly as it was never so crowded I couldn’t get a lounger. The morning we had an early debark in Cabo I had the place to myself for over an hour. I found the experience very relaxing and may have found my new favourite routine when at sea. Well worth it for $149.

 

Disembarkation

A very easy process. We had a flight before 1:30 so Carnival gave us the option of 8:30 self-walk off or luggage delivery in terminal at 9:30. When it’s just hubby and I we do self but with three sizeable bags and the kids in tow, we felt delivery in terminal would be best. Once called, the line to disembark moved very smoothly and in no time we were off the ship. The line moved well to get down to the luggage concourse where we quickly found our bags and then we zoomed through a the line for non-US citizens with no wait to clear customs (the line for US citizens was significant at this point). We had a very friendly customs agent who especially kind to our 10 year old (made him show his build a bear’s birth certificate which made him beam with pride). After that it was a quick exit to find our transportation to the airport. Overall it was about 30 minutes from getting called to leave the ship to curbside.

 

Overall

This was a fantastic cruise and a great way to introduce our kids to Carnival who are accustomed to NCL. We wouldn’t hesitate to book with Carnival again, particularly on their newer ships due to the innovations they have (Mardi Gras, I’m looking at you). The only drawback vs. NCL as their offerings are so similar is that Carnival’s loyalty program (onboard rewards) cannot compare to NCL. We are four cruise days away from Platinum with NCL where the perks really start to add up but even at the gold level the perks include discounts on shore excursions, photos, laundry and spa services whereas with Carnival we get one free bottle of water. That's it. This may push us to stick with NCL more often assuming itinerary/ship/price are comparable. That being said, Carnival did a lot of things better than NCL… embarkation/debarkation were significantly faster and easier with Carnival and Carnival was able to give me a way to limit my kids’ spending while still allowing them to be independent (it’s full spending or none with NCL which is really dumb). Overall a fantastic week at sea and one that ranks up there among the best I’ve done.

[MeganGC1983]

Thank you for the review. I’m sailing her in December. Glad your family had a great experience. 

[csm5986142]

11 minutes ago, JillK said:

I would also say that there was a large amount of fellow passenger inconsideration that would wake us up most nights. Why people insist on speaking at above normal volume when going down the hallways at all hours of the night was surprising. There was only one night when I was able to sleep through the night without some inconsiderate jerk practically yelling as they walked down the hall in the wee hours of the morning. I’m glad you had a fun night but I’m sure you could have managed to find your way back to your cabin without waking everyone as you found your way home. Maybe try a normal speaking volume or here’s a thought… whisper when it’s 4:00 am?

 

Thank you for the review - sounds like it was a great cruise overall. I am counting down the days until we board Panorama (43 to be exact 🙂).

We have been on 9 cruises in the past year and I can't agree with you more on the high number of inconsiderate passengers recently.  I have finally started booking cabins that are very far forward or aft, in hopes of not having so many people walking by our door loudly talking/laughing/yelling down the hall at all hours.  I don't know if it's just luck/timing but so far that seems to be a more quiet location.  The worst seems to be near the glass elevators (on the ships that have those).

Thanks especially for the info on the spa (anything other advice?) - due to a weird turn of events, we ended up in a spa cabin (we are totally not spa people and have never been in any ship spa before) but decided that we might as well try it out and make the best of it.

And I totally agree with you on the loyalty program. Unfortunately I think Carnival's target is new cruisers, and they make that obvious with their inferior rewards.

[greenie082756]

 @JillKThank you for sharing your experience.

We will be first time cruisers on Carnival (we are Princess cruisers) and the Panorama is

it in October for our 44th anniversary.

I am reading and watching as much as I can about the Carnival Panorama because I like to be familiar with the ship.

Again, thank you!

[JillK]

21 minutes ago, csm5986142 said:

 

Thank you for the review - sounds like it was a great cruise overall. I am counting down the days until we board Panorama (43 to be exact 🙂).

We have been on 9 cruises in the past year and I can't agree with you more on the high number of inconsiderate passengers recently.  I have finally started booking cabins that are very far forward or aft, in hopes of not having so many people walking by our door loudly talking/laughing/yelling down the hall at all hours.  I don't know if it's just luck/timing but so far that seems to be a more quiet location.  The worst seems to be near the glass elevators (on the ships that have those).

Thanks especially for the info on the spa (anything other advice?) - due to a weird turn of events, we ended up in a spa cabin (we are totally not spa people and have never been in any ship spa before) but decided that we might as well try it out and make the best of it.

And I totally agree with you on the loyalty program. Unfortunately I think Carnival's target is new cruisers, and they make that obvious with their inferior rewards.

 

Good point on location... we tend to book mid as we have a few of us prone to sea sickness. Obviously there is always some noise coming in from the hallway but this was extreme compared to all my past cruises.

 

I am not much of a spa person normally. I have had a few treatments done in the past (on Princess and Royal) but dislike the strong sales pitch to the point that I usually don't bother going at all. This was unique for me. I did speak with a few folks who had spa cabins (rocking the cozy robe) and they seemed very happy with their cabin and were enjoying the spa amenities as much as I did. I only ever went first thing in the morning but it is definitely a private experience on port days. Sea days were busier but not to the point of being able to not fully experience the various suites or get a heated lounger. A lot of couples were there enjoying it together and that would be my only regret - that hubby had to mind the kiddos and wasn't able to join me. I think it would be nice to be with someone so hopefully a cruise companion can join you! 

Edited July 22, 2022 by JillK

[JillK]

20 minutes ago, greenie082756 said:

 @JillKThank you for sharing your experience.

We will be first time cruisers on Carnival (we are Princess cruisers) and the Panorama is

it in October for our 44th anniversary.

I am reading and watching as much as I can about the Carnival Panorama because I like to be familiar with the ship.

Again, thank you!

 

I think that you will be quite pleased with the ship. It's a mature design with crisp blues and brown tones that looks modern and clean. 

 

There were lots of spaces where couples can have a lot of fun - the Havana bar if you like a latin vibe and high energy dancing, the piano bar for a singalong and a drink and of course the sanctuary during the day to avoid the kids if desired. Lots of different dining experiences on offer too so you can have your casual nights but also some fancy ones if you feel for it. 

 

There were folks from every age demographic onboard so you will find some fellow cruisers that you have things in common with. A lot of the people I spoke to were first time cruisers on the Carnival brand and a few made the comment that they had a certain expectation that wasn't realized about what Carnival would be like. Looks like the old reputation is hanging on. 

 

I hope that you have an incredible cruise in October and wish you a very happy anniversary! We are halfway behind you and celebrated our 22nd onboard. 

 

We are cruising on Princess over Christmas with our four kids (11, 12, 16 & 18) and we haven't been on the brand since 2008... I've got a lot of learning to do - especially about Ocean Medallion! 

 

 

[pc_load_letter]

Nice review. I agree on Pig and A, its a so so value and best to hit on sea days.

 

We spend our days at the back pool since the main pool area gets crowded. I feel this main pool area was a bad design choice on Carnivals part.

[mjrcruiser]

Thanks so much for your review!!  We just booked for the October 1st sailing....long overdue since we were originally booked for May 2020.

[dmcfad2]

On 7/22/2022 at 1:05 PM, pc_load_letter said:

Nice review. I agree on Pig and A, its a so so value and best to hit on sea days.

 

We spend our days at the back pool since the main pool area gets crowded. I feel this main pool area was a bad design choice on Carnivals part.

Does the back pool have any shade?

[pc_load_letter]

16 minutes ago, dmcfad2 said:

Does the back pool have any shade?

I will say "sort of". There are overhangs on each side where you can sit. The bar is also under the shade. See pics here...https://www.cruisedeckplans.com/DP/deckplans/shiptour.php?r=9666

 

If you want to search for more pics, it's the "Tides pool" area.

[dmcfad2]

1 hour ago, pc_load_letter said:

I will say "sort of". There are overhangs on each side where you can sit. The bar is also under the shade. See pics here...https://www.cruisedeckplans.com/DP/deckplans/shiptour.php?r=9666

 

If you want to search for more pics, it's the "Tides pool" area.

Perfect. Thank you!

[JillK]

21 minutes ago, dmcfad2 said:

Perfect. Thank you!

Sort of is a good answer. It was generally in full sun most of the day but they did have a smattering of umbrellas throughout the deck chair where you could find some reprieve from the sun. We only used this pool once, on our first full day around dinner time when it wasn't busy and the sun was beginning to set. Otherwise, too busy and too sunny for us.

[LaRue1975]

Thank you for the wonderful review. We are taking our daughter, grandson and son in law on Panorama October 8th. This cruise was originally scheduled on the Vista in April 2020 for my daughter’s 40th birthday, I’m so excited it’s finally happening, even more so after reading your review! 

[mcduffy1]

On 7/22/2022 at 11:35 AM, JillK said:

It’s been a long time since I’ve written a review but I thought I’d share some thoughts on our recent Panomara cruise (July 9th sailing).

 

This was our fourth Carnival cruise and second this year. We had been cruising primarily with NCL prior to the shut down so this was going to be our kids’ first Carnival cruise. We were curious to try the brand again as our last cruise on Carnival was on the Glory in 2013.

 

Embarkation

This was a seamless experience for us. We showed up at our appointed window and only had a 10 minute wait in the first line where you clear the verifly/documentation stage. We walked through security and had another 10 minute wait to check in. We were travelling five of us in two cabins so were told to separate but because our accounts were linked for payment, hubby had to come find me to finish the second cabin check in. Our boarding group was called just as we finished checking in so we immediately proceeded to line up to get on the ship. This was a good sized line but moved smoothly. This process took about 25 minutes and voila we were on board.

 

The Ship

Panorama is a gorgeous ship filled with fantastic activities and amenities. This was my 18th cruise and we felt that this was among the top 5 cruises we have done. There are areas of the ship that we didn’t get to experience (Havana area, Family Harbor area, Serenity) but we tried our best to do everything else. The ropes course is small enough that it’s fun for those of us who aren’t daredevils and SkyRide is so much fun that everyone should try it. The decor is pleasing and the flow of the ship makes sense so I didn’t spend all week getting confused and turned around as I have on some other ships.

 

The Cabin(s)

We split our group into two cabins on Deck 9, the three boys in a balcony cabin mid-fwd and the girls in an inside mid. Hubby had a much better promo than I did in his VIFP profile so scored a better cabin at a similar price to what I paid for the inside (still not happy about that one Carnival - you clearly don’t know that *I* make the travel decisions in my family).

 

The balcony cabin was spacious for our crew where the biggest negative is that the cabin is left with the bed deployed for the duration of the cruise so during the day, the guys would have to sit on their own beds rather than having a couch to use. That sucked for our family dynamic where on a few evenings the three kids would hang out in the cabin and watch TV/play video games and hubby and I would go to a show on our own.

 

The inside cabin was cozy and met our needs. The biggest issue was that in the month’s delay between booking hubby’s cabin and ours, the cabin I had wanted to book got scooped up so that when finally booked, I just picked the next one down the hall that was the closest. This means that I didn’t look at the deck plans - big mistake. We ended up being underneath or very close to the pool. This led to a significant amount of noise bleeding into our cabin, ranging from what I would describe as water trickling all night at least two nights, to the bass from anything happening on deck (movies, music) or stomping from dancing. Often we were at those parties so it wasn’t an issue but a few nights we retired early only to be kept awake by the late night movie or a party that was still going (one night until 12:30 am even though it was scheduled to end at 11:30 for example). I didn’t realize that I would have to re-learn a lesson I thought I learnt 15 cruises ago…. Always check your cabin location on a deck map!

 

I would also say that there was a large amount of fellow passenger inconsideration that would wake us up most nights. Why people insist on speaking at above normal volume when going down the hallways at all hours of the night was surprising. There was only one night when I was able to sleep through the night without some inconsiderate jerk practically yelling as they walked down the hall in the wee hours of the morning. I’m glad you had a fun night but I’m sure you could have managed to find your way back to your cabin without waking everyone as you found your way home. Maybe try a normal speaking volume or here’s a thought… whisper when it’s 4:00 am?

 

The Food

We did a miss mash of things for our meals on this cruise. There were a lot of burgers eaten and I feel that Guy’s burgers remain the best at sea. The breakfast burritos were a huge hit as were the tacos. We did two specialties this week - first night at the steakhouse (which has become a cruise tradition - go big while we still have an appetite) and another night at the Pig & Anchor. I would highly recommend the steakhouse though we all agreed the filet minion served in the MDR on the second formal night was every bit as good as the steakhouse (shocking as I will not even touch the steak in the MDR on NCL but the kids don’t discriminate). We would not return for pay at the Pig & Anchor - the servings, while plentiful and reasonably priced were super awkward to eat (I still haven’t figured out how they expected us to eat a full rack of ribs which was tough to separate with a regular knife) and while tasty, not worth the premium. Our server also completely ghosted us after clearing our dishes so we never received a bill after waiting for half an hour for someone to come back to our table. Stick with the freebies at lunch on sea days, it’s more than enough to get the experience all without the bill.

 

Our experiences in the MDR were really good - service was the fastest we can ever remember receiving and one server in particular (whose name we didn’t catch unfortunately) was exceptional by greeting us each by name and anticipating our needs (which reminded me of the old days when you had traditional seating and the same wait staff every night.) We liked everything we ordered so we were very impressed. The Sea Day brunch is really quite excellent though we found the service in our case lacking. Definitely a must-do one day so plan for it. The buffet was good - nothing spectacular came out of this area that I tried. Good salad bar and fair breakfast offerings but nothing on par with what you get on NCL at the Garden Cafe.

 

The biggest failure that we could see was the severe limitation of food options after 10:00. This did not affect us very much as we usually weren’t looking to eat that late, but on a ship the size of the Panorama, it’s shocking that they only have the pizza place (staffed by two crew members) and the deli (staffed by three crew members) open to serve food. Those five crew members deserve a raise and a medal for putting up with the onslaught of hungry people after 10:00. They could at minimum have a portion of the buffet open with a selection of cold things that are pre-made - sandwiches, cold cuts, cheeses, chips and salsa, etc. to ease the burden. This was the one thing that made no sense to us at all.

 

The Entertainment

The Sports court was incredible. We spent lots of time here playing chess, foosball, pingpong, mini golf, billiards (had to pay for that on NCL). Such a fantastic use of space with something for everyone and it’s very clever that a portion of it is indoors for when the heat is unbearable.

 

There was a lot of comedy and we did get out to a number of shows. We didn’t go to the broadway style shows… we had our fill in March but did enjoy the game shows in the Liquid Lounge and also Ocean Plaza and really had a lot of fun at most of the deck parties. The silent disco was a big hit with our family in particular. We did the dive-in movie one night and really enjoyed it - the movies repeat during the week so it’s a matter of finding an evening that works best.

 

We were surprised by the size of the two main pools given the size of the ship. They felt undersized and at times were very crowded (body to body). We used them only on port days when we elected to stay on board. The waterworks area was an awesome place for the kids to play and for adults to cool off. I think I enjoyed it as much as the kids did. The two slides are also a lot of fun and easily accessible on port days. Line ups are significant on sea days as expected.

 

The kids were signed up for the kids clubs but the teen wasn’t interested. The boys only went twice to their respective clubs but left quickly out of “boredom.” It was the first time the boys were separated (one is 10, the other 12) so I suspect this had something to do with it. I also think they should have gone when there was an activity happening but in any case, we were just as happy to hang out with them so it wasn’t a big deal. During the welcome aboard show they said there was over 1,000 kids on our sailing and it showed in the many families aboard and especially around the pre-teen/teen club area in the evenings where it looked like there were a billion teens.

 

The Spa

After so many cruises, I finally decided to treat myself to a thermal suite pass for the week. I managed to make it there five days and thoroughly enjoyed it. I was still getting up well before my family so I was often done at the spa when the rest of my family was getting up or had been up only a short while. I was surprised that the thermal suite only had 9 heated loungers and the whirlpool is quite small but they must dole the passes out accordingly as it was never so crowded I couldn’t get a lounger. The morning we had an early debark in Cabo I had the place to myself for over an hour. I found the experience very relaxing and may have found my new favourite routine when at sea. Well worth it for $149.

 

Disembarkation

A very easy process. We had a flight before 1:30 so Carnival gave us the option of 8:30 self-walk off or luggage delivery in terminal at 9:30. When it’s just hubby and I we do self but with three sizeable bags and the kids in tow, we felt delivery in terminal would be best. Once called, the line to disembark moved very smoothly and in no time we were off the ship. The line moved well to get down to the luggage concourse where we quickly found our bags and then we zoomed through a the line for non-US citizens with no wait to clear customs (the line for US citizens was significant at this point). We had a very friendly customs agent who especially kind to our 10 year old (made him show his build a bear’s birth certificate which made him beam with pride). After that it was a quick exit to find our transportation to the airport. Overall it was about 30 minutes from getting called to leave the ship to curbside.

 

Overall

This was a fantastic cruise and a great way to introduce our kids to Carnival who are accustomed to NCL. We wouldn’t hesitate to book with Carnival again, particularly on their newer ships due to the innovations they have (Mardi Gras, I’m looking at you). The only drawback vs. NCL as their offerings are so similar is that Carnival’s loyalty program (onboard rewards) cannot compare to NCL. We are four cruise days away from Platinum with NCL where the perks really start to add up but even at the gold level the perks include discounts on shore excursions, photos, laundry and spa services whereas with Carnival we get one free bottle of water. That's it. This may push us to stick with NCL more often assuming itinerary/ship/price are comparable. That being said, Carnival did a lot of things better than NCL… embarkation/debarkation were significantly faster and easier with Carnival and Carnival was able to give me a way to limit my kids’ spending while still allowing them to be independent (it’s full spending or none with NCL which is really dumb). Overall a fantastic week at sea and one that ranks up there among the best I’ve done.

Thanks for the great review 👌- we are sailing on Aug 13 & also are booked on deck 9 in a forward cabin- had been trying for one on Deck 8 but nothing was available yesterday- hoping the noise won't ruin our time...haven't been on Carnival in over 10 years- usually o NCL, HAL or Celebrity...saying prayers for a great time

[dmcfad2]

20 minutes ago, mcduffy1 said:

Thanks for the great review 👌- we are sailing on Aug 13 & also are booked on deck 9 in a forward cabin- had been trying for one on Deck 8 but nothing was available yesterday- hoping the noise won't ruin our time...haven't been on Carnival in over 10 years- usually o NCL, HAL or Celebrity...saying prayers for a great time

We are also on the August 13 sailing. We got a room on deck 8 a couple of weeks ago when we booked it last minute. We usually sail HAL. It's been a while since we were on Carnival, too.

Edited to add: I just realized you were the one who asked if I had been on the Koningsdam. I also recognize your CC name. 🙂

Edited July 25, 2022 by dmcfad2

[JillK]

14 hours ago, LaRue1975 said:

Thank you for the wonderful review. We are taking our daughter, grandson and son in law on Panorama October 8th. This cruise was originally scheduled on the Vista in April 2020 for my daughter’s 40th birthday, I’m so excited it’s finally happening, even more so after reading your review! 

 

This is a perfect ship for a multi-generation cruise. There is something for everyone and the demographic of passengers when we sailed ranged from babies to grandparents. No one will feel out of place.

 

Happy cruising!

[JillK]

 

14 hours ago, mcduffy1 said:

Thanks for the great review 👌- we are sailing on Aug 13 & also are booked on deck 9 in a forward cabin- had been trying for one on Deck 8 but nothing was available yesterday- hoping the noise won't ruin our time...haven't been on Carnival in over 10 years- usually o NCL, HAL or Celebrity...saying prayers for a great time

 

Depends how forward you are. If I had done what I usually do and meticulously studied the deck plans, it is apparent that our inside cabin (#9341) is directly in the middle of the action. I would recommend that you not worry about it and bring ear plugs just in case. It was annoying but certainly didn't impact the enjoyment of the cruise.

 

Our balcony cabin was a bit further forward (#9303) and they had no issues with noise from the deck above as they are all cabins on Deck 10 forward. That being said they were victim to the thoughtless loudmouths in the hall and my husband and two young sons were treated to multiple occasions of the couple in the cabin next to them having romantic time. Hubby told me it was happening two to three times a day and was rather lengthy. The person on the opposite side of this particular cabin had apparently had enough and one day my husband heard them yell "Just finish already!" when they were in the throws of it. Interestingly they didn't hear another peep for the rest of the cruise. Hubby found it awkward to try to explain to my 10 and 12 year olds what was happening the times they picked up on it (I think movies got blamed for a lot of it). Forgot to mention this in my first post as I didn't experience it myself. Moral of the story - the soundproofing will only stop so much! 

[mcduffy1]

4 hours ago, JillK said:

 

 

Depends how forward you are. If I had done what I usually do and meticulously studied the deck plans, it is apparent that our inside cabin (#9341) is directly in the middle of the action. I would recommend that you not worry about it and bring ear plugs just in case. It was annoying but certainly didn't impact the enjoyment of the cruise.

 

Our balcony cabin was a bit further forward (#9303) and they had no issues with noise from the deck above as they are all cabins on Deck 10 forward. That being said they were victim to the thoughtless loudmouths in the hall and my husband and two young sons were treated to multiple occasions of the couple in the cabin next to them having romantic time. Hubby told me it was happening two to three times a day and was rather lengthy. The person on the opposite side of this particular cabin had apparently had enough and one day my husband heard them yell "Just finish already!" when they were in the throws of it. Interestingly they didn't hear another peep for the rest of the cruise. Hubby found it awkward to try to explain to my 10 and 12 year olds what was happening the times they picked up on it (I think movies got blamed for a lot of it). Forgot to mention this in my first post as I didn't experience it myself. Moral of the story - the soundproofing will only stop so much! 

Oh boy that is so awkward - we are in 9229- first time in an inside cabin & hoping the location is forward enough...for the price I guess we can just bring earplugs like you suggested 🤣 Thanks for your suggestions and such a great review !