Jamie Dixon

Age: 22
Number of Cruises: 1
Cruise Line: Carnival
Name of Ship: Sensation
Sailing Date: March 3rd, 2003
Itinerary: Western Caribbean

This was our first cruise ever; actually it was our first time flying too. I went on this cruise for spring break with a friend of mine. Some things turned out as expected and others did not. We read numerous reviews before we went and now I would like to share our experience with others.

Embarkation

We set sail from Tampa, FL on Monday, March 3, 2003. We arrived at the port around 1:30 – 2:00. Getting onto the ship was a breeze. There were a lot of people there, but the lines moved pretty fast. I suggest having the information in the booklet Carnival sends you filled out before you go on your trip. This will save you a lot of standing in line once you get there. Once we got on the ship, there was a guy standing right in the doorway telling us where to find our room. Piece of Cake!

Rooms

The rooms were pretty much what we had expected; small and a little out-of-date. However, they were clean!!! Our room was on Riviera deck # 207. This means we were at the very back of the ship on the very last level. This is not a good place to be. Whenever the boat docked or the propellers started/stopped turning, we heard loud noises. From 4:00am till 6:00am on the way back to Tampa, we heard awful noises that were impossible to sleep through.

Food/Beverages

There is definitely no shortage of food on a cruise and this was no exception. You can eat at any time of the day or night if you would like. The thing that surprised us the most is that carnival is interested in quantity, not quality! The food, though there was plenty of it, was tasteless and cool when it was supposed to be hot, and warm when it was supposed to be cold. Even the food in the dining room was not at all what we were expecting.

Alcoholic beverages on the ship were expensive, but they didn’t skimp on the alcohol and they were good sized so it all evened out. The ship specials (there is a new one everyday) were usually what we went with and were always happy with them. Bottled pop is somewhat expensive, but you can drink fountain pop for free in the Seaview Bar and Grill so we just always did that. You could purchase a pop card for around $30, but we didn’t think it was worth it when you could have fountain pop and juice for free.

Entertainment

The shows on the ship are great! Go to the comedians and be sure to check out at least one late show, they are definitely worth it! They also have Bingo several times throughout the day/night. There was a comedian/magician one night that was excellent. I wish I could remember his name cause he would be worth seeing again!

Grand Cayman

This is a very beautiful island, but you are not there long enough to even begin to be able to see the things you want to see. We were only on the island for about 3 hours by the time you tender into port and back to the ship. I would suggest just sitting at a beach and doing a little shopping. If you book a stingray tour, you may not be able to do anything else except that. Some people’s tours were cancelled because of a mix up between Carnival and the booking place. You would think they would have tours pretty uniformed for all the years they have been in business.

Cozumel

This is where I would suggest doing the majority of your shopping. Things are cheap and there is a hug variety to choose from! You are on this island almost all day so don’t worry about not getting time to do things; you have plenty of time.

Debarkation

We got back into Tampa around 7:00am. Our group was to meet in the Kaleidoscope room and we were to be the 8th group to get off the ship. We switched rooms because we were hoping to get an early flight home. We went to the room that was getting off first and got right off the ship. We had all of our luggage and were off the ship in about 3 ½ minutes. Piece of cake again!!!

Odds and Ends

The “Fun Days at Sea” are not exactly fun by Friday. You get bored of sitting in the sun and listening to talks from your ship director. We were very ready to go home after we knew we were not going to be stopping at any more islands.

The sun is totally different in that part of the world than anywhere else. Be sure to wear sunscreen even if you are a person who doesn’t burn a lot. Also, drink lots of water. That is all the motherly advice I have.

The pop that is in your room the first day you get there is not free. If you do not want to pay for it, do not drink it.

Be sure to check the sheet that displays the activity on your sail-and-sign card. Mine had an extra shore excursion charged to it that was not mine. All you have to do it take it down to the information desk and they will straighten it out for you.

Tips

Bring hangers, wrinkle release, air freshener, underwater camera, good walking shoes, something to read, CD player, lots of sunscreen (including the spray stuff for your scalp), and leave a little extra room in your luggage for the stuff you will bring home.