Carnival Radiance July 18-22: Thoughts and Tips from our first (last?) Carnival cruise

[Californian]

On 7/28/2022 at 7:41 PM, Jancruz said:

Thank you

The adult only Serenity lounge does it have to be booked ahead??

Jancruz1

The adults only Serenity area is free and it's first come first served.  There are two levels of it on the Radiance.

[Californian]

On 7/29/2022 at 10:58 AM, ABQrobin said:

Its usually on the top aft section of the ship, outdoors, no reservations.  Some larger ships have a food area there including the bar, with their own selections found just there.  We liked the Serenity on the Vista as they had a great salad bar at lunch.  

I believe the Serenity area is at the front of the ship up on top.

[Stick93]

OP welcome to carnival - behavior is optional. The honest truth is bad behavior is on all the major cruise lines but some behavior is exaggerated on Carnival. Running in the halls is a Carnival thing at 3am. Also on the SUNSHINED ships there is less common area and many more people in fewer areas as they put many more people on the ship than it’s original design. 
The spirit and dream class ships are my favorite ships of Carnival. They have better layouts and traditional theaters unlike the SUNSHINED ships. More room and common area. 
 

I still like my carnival cruises but I have ventured passed them for the most part and have found better behavior on Royal and celebrity. 

[ABQrobin]

12 hours ago, Stick93 said:

OP welcome to carnival - behavior is optional. The honest truth is bad behavior is on all the major cruise lines but some behavior is exaggerated on Carnival. Running in the halls is a Carnival thing at 3am. Also on the SUNSHINED ships there is less common area and many more people in fewer areas as they put many more people on the ship than it’s original design. 
The spirit and dream class ships are my favorite ships of Carnival. They have better layouts and traditional theaters unlike the SUNSHINED ships. More room and common area. 
 

I still like my carnival cruises but I have ventured passed them for the most part and have found better behavior on Royal and celebrity. 

Interesting.  We have done 12 Carnival cruises and the ONLY time we have seen bad behavior like cannonball jumping in the hot tubs and running in the halls in the middle of the night was during SPRING BREAK week.  Never again will be go then.  Parents on that one cruise were in casino or bar all day and night, no idea where there kids were at all.  It was pathetic.  People were complaining to staff constantly, we didn't even bother... Our friends were on a NCL the same time of year and said it was exactly the same thing.  So I really  think its more the time of year, not the cruise line.

Oh also.... the worst group of teens with the bad behavior did get in trouble, and we saw one of them halfway through the trip with a cast on her ankle, rolling down the hall on one of those knee scooters- she was part of the group always running up and down the halls knocking on doors.  Karma.

[mz-s]

I agree with what some are saying - longer cruises during the school year are a different experience than the short cruises over holidays or during Summer.

 

But a lot of it is still the same. The cabin, the food, and the crew are all mostly the same. The main difference is just the passengers you're sharing the cruise with.

[cruisingguy007]

On 7/30/2022 at 10:19 PM, CruizinSusan70 said:

Sizzler, which has been out of my area for about 35 years or more had entrees that topped out at about 8 bucks.  Fogo de Chao is about 60+ pp and I never saw valet parking at Sizzler back in the day.  Sizzler was comparable to Bonanza and Ponderosa.  I personally would choose Fogo over anything that Carnival offers and that includes their steakhouse or Rudi's Seagrill.

 

I'd choose both and wear what I want, probably shorts like I wear 98% of the year. Carnival has plenty of good choices that I like, in fact, I wish I could order dishes from different eateries to have in one sitting. Some duck from Gigis (multiple orders of that), a few dozen oysters from seafood shack shack, some prime rib, lobster and grilled shrimp from the MDR and some tuna tartare and a few lamb-chops  from the steakhouse. Yum! 

Edited August 1, 2022 by cruisingguy007

[john91498]

Just got off the Radiance last Friday. A couple observations:

 

Wasn't too happy that the BBQ place was only open for 2 hours on Embarkation day and the last sea day. Both days had very long lines.

 

Long lines during sea days for Shaq, Guy and the Cantina. Only days we were able to try them was when we were in port for Catalina and Ensenada. 

 

The process for off loading in Catalina was a nightmare. Luckily, we were in a suite and got priority boarding. I heard many complaints from people who couldn't disembark.

 

We usually eat breakfast in the buffet and my daughter's favorite breakfast item is bacon. Bacon was only available 2 out of the days. Quick tip if you want bacon, go to the MDR. We went on the days bacon was not available in the buffet and just asked for a plate of bacon for my daughter.

 

The steakhouse was booked solid for the entire trip. So, we ordered the steaks at the MDR for an additional $23. Was told they are the same steaks from the steak house, but $22 less. They were quite amazing.

 

If you're an old guy like me, don't even try the obstacle course. You're gonna die and look foolish struggling through it.

 

All in all, it was a great trip since my kids had fun. That's all that really matters...