Just back from 5 day Destiny

[ufmurphys]

This was our first Carnival cruise. We (me, DH, DS14, DD12) have sailed Disney, RCCI, and HAL. Overall this was a good cruise. The ship was in good shape. The dining room was excellent. The ports were good (we did choose this cruise for price and the ports). But there were a couple of negatives that will most likely keep us from sailing Carnival again.

Embarkation- There process was great! We arrived at noon and were on the ship by 12:45. They were quick, friendly and efficient.

Room- We had an ocean view which we enjoyed. There was enough room for the 4 of us. It was laid out well. The beds and linens were comfortable. The bathroom did have a bad smell to it. Our room steward was good.

Lido Buffet- This was one of our biggest disappointments. The food was good. But, the way this buffet was configured it made it very hard to endure the long lines. In other buffets we have been to there have always been multiple stations of food that you could go in and out of. This buffet was one long line. You had to go through the entire buffet line even if you only wanted a sandwich or a cookie. You had to pass through every part of the buffet which made the line unbearable. The exception was the salad bar. This was on its own but the selection was very limited- no pasta, or bean salads included here- you had to go back to the long buffet line. The room had a dirty feel to it and the windows were in such bad need of cleaning it hindered the beautiful views and added to the feeling of dirtiness. The staff here was inattentive and we felt as though we were bothering them as they cleared the tables. Other cruise lines we have been on the staff would help us locate tables, carry our trays (not that I need that it was just a nice gesture) or even just visited with us. The ice cream/yogurt was very good and so was the 24 hr pizza.

Circle C (12-14yr)- This was our kids biggest disappointment and usually this is one of their favorite memories. Our son did not go back after the first night. Our daughter who made a couple of friends did attempt to give it a new chance each night but always ended up leaving early. There was only one counselor assigned to this group. She mainly sat and watched the group. She did not have any of the listed activities going. It was usually a free for all. There were a couple of big groups on this cruise and when the kids from these groups were in Circle C they “took over” the club. Any activities started deteriorated into dare or double dare- dares for kissing and other inappropriate activities, and there was a fight ( he was ejected so that was handled well). I am not saying the counselor should be “holding the hand” of 12-14 yr olds but the activities listed should be managed by her and if the kids don’t want to participate or would rather kiss and bump and grind they should be asked to do that outside of Circle C and allow the other kids to participate in the planned activities. The counselor should have had better control over the activities and Carnival should have had at least one other counselor with her. I don’t know if this is typical for Circle C or had more to do with the groups (and their behavior) that happened to be sailing on this particular cruise. Either way it will keep us from sailing with Carnival again (at least while the kids are under 18).

Dining Room- This was our favorite part of the cruise! The dining room is beautiful, the food was excellent and our wait staff was superb! Christian and Laksana made our trip a memorable one. We loved the table magician, the singing and dancing each night and the warm chocolate melting cake! I am going to attempt to make it at home but I know it won’t be the same:). I can not say enough good things about our dining experience. We were very sad to say goodbye to our new friends Christian and Laksana.

 

Ports-Half Moon Cay has the most beautiful water we have ever seen! We loved this day. We set up way down the beach where it was less crowded. We rented a clam shell but did not use it as we did not want to get out of that beautiful water. We also rented a four man paddle boat, which was exhausting, but allowed you to go out to even clearer water (if that is possible). There were plenty of drink servers up and down the beach. The buffet was good too.

Grand Turk- Another beautiful beach. We stayed at Margaritaville and enjoyed the pool and did the flow rider. Loved it! Very fun to watch too. The DJ was good and the games were entertaining.

Nassau- We spent the day at Atlantis. We rented a room at Comfort Suites. Very easy process. We thought it was worth it. The taxi ride back to the ship was much longer than the ride to Atlantis so plan for that. The traffic was really bad by the end of the day.

 

Debarkation – We did self assist and this was a breeze! We did lug our luggage on the stairs instead of waiting for the elevator but we were off the ship in minutes.

Overall we had a great time. Unfortunately the negatives for us happened to be in areas that are pretty important to us. I am happy to answer any questions and thank you for all the information I was able to gather here before our cruise.

[zqvol]

No comments about the Camp Carnival issue, but most of the newer ships have the modular buffet stations that you would prefer. If you choose Carnival again try the Spirit class ships.

[lappy22]

Thanks for your review. I have heard so many great things about Grand Turk and HMC. I can't wait to go there.

 

Your disappointment with the buffet configuration is the same complaint I had, but on Princess and RCL. I really don't like individual stations in the buffet because I never really know where the line starts at each station if there are people waiting. Do you stand to the left or to the right? There was much more of people running into each other because there was no flow to the way they are designed. I see the positives and negatives to each.

[dznymom]

Thanks for your very fair comments. It sounds like you had a good time in spite of your disappointments partly because you chose a great itinerary!

 

I have found that teen programs on lots of ships tend not to follow the scheduled events. It was always hit or miss with my guys, which impacted my overall enjoyment of each cruise. Lousy (lazy) counselors $uck and so do large rowdy groups of kids.

 

The buffets on most older ships on any line are the old cafeteria style which create backups. The newer ships on Carnival flow much better, and they have some really nice options available. Personally, I prefer the action stations on some of the other lines.

 

If you decide to give Carnival another go, definitely try one of the newer ships. Although Carnival isn't perfect, the prices and itineraries keep me happy and coming back.

[Luke gs Daddy]

What time did you get off the ship ? Did you fly ? If so where did you fly out of and what time did you arrive at the airport ?

 

We do this cruise in Nov. for the ports and of course price.

 

Thanks.

[ufmurphys]

We were on deck one and they called that deck along with deck nine first (1&9,then 2&8, etc). We live in Florida so we did not fly. They called us at 7:30 and we were off the ship by 7:45. We did not get stopped at customs. I'm not sure how long it would have taken if we waited for the elevator. They did repeat often that everyone would be off the ship no later than 9:15.

[Luke gs Daddy]

Thanks.

 

We have a flight out of FLL at 11:05. We will travel light and do self disembark. I know it is cutting it close.

 

Thanks.

[gman5613]

We was also really surprised by how dirty the windows were also on the Destiny. Some of them were so bad you could not even see much out of them. We thought we were the only ones that notice how dirty they were. The buffet lines were very long! We had a great cruised and loved the Destiny, just a few things we thought could have been better.

[S.S.Oceanlover]

did they have the big screen on the Destiny?

 

Bill

[ufmurphys]

Yes the Destiny had the big movie screen over the pool deck. I think they usually showed 2 movies each night.

[S.S.Oceanlover]

Yes the Destiny had the big movie screen over the pool deck. I think they usually showed 2 movies each night.

 

Thank you very much.

 

I hope your next cruise goes a lot better as far as the kids club and buffet goes.:)

 

Bill

[Jeans*Fanatic]

Yes the Destiny had the big movie screen over the pool deck. I think they usually showed 2 movies each night.

 

Which movies were they showing, if you can recall? I will be on her this October! yay! :D

[N2DFIRE]

I was on the Destiny and the Buffet lines started on both sides and met in the middle. Both sides usually had the same things. Most Buffet lines are the same, sometimes it's an art, just go around old grandma, who's taking to long just to get a prune. LOL