I was prepared to NOT like the Mardi Gras due to it’s size. I much prefer the smaller ships that never seem to feel crowded. This was a memory cruise for me – paying tribute to taking a three day cruise on the original Mardi Gras with my late husband in October 1989 (a belated honeymoon for us). We never cruised again but enjoyed this one.
Stu was looking forward to the BOLT roller coaster, the specialty beer on draft, and Guy Fieri’s Pig and Anchor BBQ. He was also looking forward to getting back into scuba diving. He initially had booked five dives but by the time the cruises rolled around, he ended up with three. San Juan had been cancelled as a port on week one but had been replaced by Nassau and he grabbed an excursion there (he had dived in neither port before). He also dove in Roatan (Mahogany Bay) and Cozumel on week two.
We were a bit disappointed at the 50th Birthday Celebration aspect. Here are a few thoughts….
- While the seven ship meet-up was a cool idea, the horn battle never really happened. It was a several hour process for me as I watched from our balcony as the ships approached from that side. The captain did spin the ship around so we could see the ships on the opposing side. Stu was up higher and took a lot of photos from there.
- We did get a nice little button pin noting the 50th, they will go on our Carnival sling bags.
- We managed to snag a 50th beer mug but most other items were gone almost immediately and the few that were left in the shop weren’t anything we wanted.
- The lido was packed during the celebration – we avoided it like the plague!
- It would have been nice to have a special show, but we did get to meet John Heald (brand ambassador) again. He even remembered meeting us 5-6 years ago on a previous cruise.
Three of the seven ships…
John Heald, brand ambassador for Carnival
Some of the things we really liked were:
- Hands-free bathroom entries (hold palm close to the button and it opens/closes)
- Self-serve soda fountains – I got the Bubbles package for unlimited sodas and not having to stand and wait for bar service was a huge boon.
- In general, the decor was beautifully done and we enjoyed the French Quarter theme area.
- The Center Stage for entertainment was spectacular! We learned to get seated early. The entertainment was top notch with only two disappointments (see the entertainment blog post).
- The food was also very good with no real disappointments except for the environmental issues in Bonsai Teppanyaki (see the food blog post).
- Enough elevators most of the time although there were a few glitches (one in particular never dinged to announce its arrival, you had to watch the lights).
- It was surprisingly easy to find our way around, actually easier than on some smaller ships.
- Crew/Staff were amazing! Everyone was friendly no matter how overworked or tired they were.
- Friendliness of many of the passengers. One reason I got so little writing done was getting pulled into fascinating conversations with other folks. We met several nice couples, who we’d love to cruise with again, from these chats.
- We found another cruise director (CD) we love – Chris Williams, the Flying Scotsman. We got to enjoy him AND Lee Mason, our other favorite CD. We do realize they have nothing to do with the ship, per se, but just had to mention them.
Some of the things we weren’t so keen on:
- Decor in the main dining room was really tacky – formica topped tables looked like they belonged in a small town restaurant.
- Not enough public bathrooms!! Several were single hole only, meant for handicapped or as family restrooms. Several times I opted to go to the cabin rather than wait in line.
- We were surprised there wasn’t more shopping. Really missed the little snack/OTC meds area we’ve seen on all the other ships. Not that we needed it (we carry our own OTC stuff now), just surprised. I expected more, something special and different and was disappointed.
- There was no real comfortable place to sit and read quietly. I did okay in the Lido (buffet food) area but there have always been deck levels that were quiet and usable during the day with comfortable stuffed chairs/sofas. No library either.
- Even though we had read about upgrades, the internet wasn’t any better than any other cruise we’ve been on. In fact, there were several outages affecting multiple ships. Sigh…
- Although we experienced it in January on the Magic, we had hoped staffing would be improved. They were still short-handed, especially in the restaurant area. Everyone was working so hard but wait times could be exasperating at times.
- Impatience and rudeness from too many other passengers – while not a Carnival issue, it was sad to see and hear so many complaints from folks, mostly about little things.
So, would we cruise on the Mardi Gras (and two new Excel class sister ships, the Celebration and the Jubilee – coming soon) again? Absolutely! Due to the size, we never felt overly crowded. We learned to juggle our eating time in order to see the shows we wanted. That was the biggest advantage of doing a B2B. What we missed seeing or eating during week one, we could do during week two. Granted, we weren’t at full capacity but probably at 85-90%. I really don’t think it would feel much different at 100% (unless it was spring break or loaded with youngsters…and we don’t do that on any sized ship).
We now look forward to our transatlantic cruise on the Carnival Jubilee in October 2023 and are eagerly anticipating the announcement of what the themed area will hold!
Getting Started ~ Our Cabin ~ Entertainment ~ Food ~ Final Impressions
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