There is a lot of good and bad to Carnival cruises. We went on a cruise to Yucatan peninsula/Cozumel area to explore the Mayan ruins and beaches. The ships definitely need upgrading and are looking pretty rough. Also, make sure to check your bill every night at the stations set up by the customer service desk, because I was overcharged on some of my dinner and drink tickets. It's also good to know that gratuity is already added to your bill. So if you tip 15-20% on top of your bill, they are getting double that tip. I did enjoy the movie nights by the pool and Jacuzzis. The service was pretty good for breakfast and lunch with such a high volume of people to serve. Dinner blew everything else away with great entertainment from acrobatic, exciting dancers, and food that I won't soon forget. My favorite dish was the lobster ravioli smothered in a cheesy, tomato basil sauce. There is a wide variety of food to choose from and interesting shows going on every night. I really enjoyed the comedy show and karaoke lounge. I tried the acupuncture and was happy with the professional service I received and felt very relaxed afterwards. Overall, what you receive for the price is pretty fair, and most of the staff works to make your experience enjoyable. My main issues were getting back on the boat after docking is a long process, customer service is rather slow (may be understaffed) and the ships could definitely look better. But the experience is one I won't soon forget. read more

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My husband and I went on the Carnival Conquest February 2007 during his 2 week R&R break from Iraq. It was the first cruise for the both of us so we werent really sure what to expect. We drove from Round Rock (just outside of Austin) the day of the cruise--took about 3 hours and we arrived at 11am. We parked at EZ Cruise Parking and got shuttled to the pier. Embarkation hit a small tiff because I didnt print our FunPass or have our cruise documents, but they were able to locate us in the system...phew. Being newbies on the ship, I quickly learned nothing on the ship is free! We made our way to the lido deck where we were greeted with big, tall drinks that I naively thought were free. HAHAHA! Once they asked for our room card, we learned they were $8/each. Oops! Wont make that mistake again. We got some food and explored the ship until our room was ready. We splurged for a balcony room which was nice, but we didnt use the balcony nearly as often as I thought we would (it's TOTALLY worth it for Alaska...not so much Caribbean). Our room was pretty roomie with a separate sitting area and the bathroom was tiny, but we made due. For some reason, when we went in February, there were a LOT of senior citizens aboard. Maybe it was because it's not a spring break time period or what, but whenever we went to the main dining room for breakfast or lunch, we were always the youngest ones BY FAR by 2 generations. The ports: Jamaica - Dunns River Falls. This is 2 hour bus ride each way, but our tour guide was really entertaining which made it bearable. During the drive, you do see the poor parts of Jamaica and the kids washing windshields for some money. The waterfall itself is beautiful and definitely bring your own $5 watershoes from Target or else you'll be charged $10 to buy them there. The guides were recording with a camcorder while we climbed and tried to sell it to us afterwards for $40. We refused, but after they dropped it to $30, my husband was suckered into it. A guy who was just there took a Polaroid of me and my husband and tried to sell it to us for $10. We refused and he stated that it'd be a problem for him. We never agreed to the picture in the first place since I brought my own digital camera with a waterproof case so there was no need--I had my own pics! Grand Caymen - We took the Sting Ray City, Hell & turtle farm tour. Swimming and feeding the sting rays made this port totally worth it! It's amazing how docile they are. Hell is a tourist trap and the turtle farm was rather interesting. Cozumel - I really wanted to see the ruins and my husband wanted to go horseback riding so we picked the tour that had both. Just note, this isnt the ruins tour with the grand pyramids--it's actually a ranch with LOTS of replicas and one authentic Mayan piece that was found on the land. I was disappointed and this tour was definitely more about horseback riding more than anything (which we can do back at home). My husband and I took a cruise with Norwegian to Alaska the following year and I have to say that we both like Carnival's food a lot better. The lobster was divine the 2x I had it, but now 2 years later the food could be different due to the economy. I had a friend go on the same cruise recently and they didnt like the food very much and they also werent offered the midnight gala buffet with all of the fancy chocolate diplays. During one day at sea, the waves were REALLY rough. People who had cruised for years commented that this was the WORST they had never seen the boat rock. We went to the art gallery at the aft of the ship and it rocked so much, we had to leave. Everyone was walking around the ship as if they were drunk because the boat moved so much. Our balcony door kept coming loose with the rocking which was SO annoying because wind would whistle and wake us up. Luckily, we had calm seas for the rest of the cruise. As for boat entertainment, we saw a few of the comedians and played bingo once. Some of them were hilarious! Others were kind of meh. We did go to the Vegas-type show and it was ok. We did some gambling where my husband won $700 on craps. Dembarkation was a breeze because we opted to bring our luggage off ourselves. When we got off the boat, we had sea legs for a few days, but after reflecting over our experience, we would both definitely cruise again (and have). It's a nice way to see more than one place without having to worry about transportation, lodging, cooking or cleaning. On the other hand, sometimes port visits seem not to last long enough. We're taking a 5 day cruise in July so--definitely looking forward to that! read more

Carnival Conquest Cruise - docked in Grand Cayman - Tours Near Me

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I feel like there should be no less than 5 stars for a week of floating through the Caribbean with booze & a pool. Especially with such exotic sounding ports: Montego Bay, Grand Cayman & Cozumel - oooh la la! But don't bring out your exotic shoes just yet. This ship sails from Galveston TX. That meant nothing to me other than it was only a 4 hour flight from CA. In reality, it means *total yee haw texas immersion* - I am not kidding. Even the comedians were geared up with NASCAR & redneck jokes - and this was the right crowd for it. Do you think I'm kidding? I was sitting on the lido deck, watching the reggae band when 25 people started LINE DANCING to Bob Marley. REALLY? I can't make this stuff up. The cruise itself was great. We had an interior (cheep) cabin & our kids next to us. The cabin was totally fine, as you're not in there much. We booked through Orbitz & were upgraded to move up a few decks, so were on deck 8. My only negative is the amount of smoke on this boat. We were below the casino & you can really smell the cigarettes. The food was totally fine - dinner being the best. I never expect much from a cruise menu, the typical lido deck buffet cattle lines were there. Like another passenger, we were on the cruise that had an electrical fire - which closed the dinner service. It was mayhem trying to feed all the passengers sandwiches in their fancy night clothes, and I wasn't pleased. I was surprised that the only compensation offered was an hour of free well drinks. Seems like they would have done more. The best port is Grand Cayman, go see Stingray City. That was a total highlight. The best I can say about Jamaica is the 3 story slide at Margaritaville.... our taxi driver actually pulled us over to a pharmacy & said he could get us anything we wanted without a prescription. We thanked him and passed on the offer. Cozumel was pleasant, and ad fun shopping. I'd say your best bet in Cozumel & Jamaica is to stick to snorkeling or beach parties. All in all, we'll do Carnival again. It's an inexpensive way to float through spring break & visit some interesting destinations. read more

WOW. VACATION**. Exclamation marks into infinity. Oh holy Em Gee. It really is as fantastic as people say it is. A cruise is a nice way to pop the vacation cherry, because everything is by and large already planned: eating and boarding arrangements, connections with excursions (of your choosing), other activities. We just missed the treacherous hands of a hurricane, resulting in awesome, awesome, awesome weather on all three islands: Jamaica, Grand Cayman, and Cozumel. Wow again. Day 1: Sailing Wow. We are on a ship. After a torturous hour getting on board (3,400 people? seriously?) we made it to our rooms. We had important stuff in our backpacks knowing our bags wouldn't get there until later. While people were distracted, we hit the empty hot tub and pools. Then we ran around the ship like kids in a candy store. Having identified all of the important areas, we ate up. The your-time dining worked for us; flexible hours and random seating tables were just fine. Fancy eating nights were good too and again, the meal options included something healthy. So sure, the food isn't Austin grade-A gourmet, but people: you're not going to die. This is coming from someone with a sensitive stomach. There are options at almost every meal: salad stuff with decent toppings, seasoned steamed veggies. The caprese-like sandwich at the sandwich bar is legit, and the desserts can add spare tires you didn't know you needed. This brings us to the gym: locate it. Then work out and run around some more. We took the stairs from our 2nd floor to 9, 11, wherever. Worth it. AND our room steward was 10X all kinds of awesome. We called him "E" but it was a long name that started with an I. Super sweetheart. Day 2: More sailing YAY. Still on a ship, on real vacation. Wow. The daily Carnival Fun Times page tells it like it is: every contest, fun event, and other activity is listed, and they do their best to keep you busy while you're wondering when you will get to the first island. Our favorites: Thriller dance class. Karaoke. Tea time - with some dang good scones, for real. Disco dance class. The Latin band, with - you guessed it - a fellow Dominican breaking down the drums. Bring out the chacha. AND it was Halloween. Costumes in tow, we partied with fellow shipmates like we've been friends forever. More dancing. Seaweed-colored nails. And a hairy-chest contest to write home about. Day 3: Sailing. Again. Okay, this is when we start getting stir-crazy. But it's okay because... Day 4: Jamaica. YAY. The horse-riding excursion was flipping fantastic. We hit the beach after, and the water was perfect. Sad to get back to the ship. This was our 3rd-favorite island. Day 5: Grand Cayman Cuddle up with sting rays and tell me if you don't want to take one home. They feel like portabella mushrooms and are so cute. Snorkeling with our crew (it's the Emerald Eyes excursion) was awesome. YAY vacation. Yay suntan of champions. Day 6: Cozumel. MAYAN RUINS. Holy lawd. And a beach right behind them. Take the stairs down and just like that: there's the beach. And the ruins are right above you. Wow. Most educational and favoritist island stop, no question. Day 7: Sailing Are we sailing to more vacation? We are?! No. We were not sailing towards more vacation. We sailed home and while I don't prefer the 4 days at sea over time spent on an island, it was a good way to get a taste for what was out there. Grand Cayman is high on the list for an extended visit in the future. Net: -- Hardly any kids on board in late October. -- Fun Times are kind of fun. -- We got some money back because the cruise price had dropped after we purchased. -- Excursions are awesome. -- Coming back is sad. If not for our dog we would've stayed on an island. **Disclaimer: this was my first vacation ever. That's right, kids. Visiting family in the DR to give them the clothes off your back and weekend trips are not vacation. Take this hyper-ecstatic review with a grain of sand. read more

Carnival is for the cruiser on a budget or families. The value, service and experience are much better elsewhere. Expect to be lied to or sugarcoated, dont expect things to be as advertised. LEAVING-Carnival has online registration, for a VIP line at check-in. There was no such line, empty promises. Theres a safety drill after boarding. They squish you 5-6 rows deep. With issues of claustrophobia/agoraphobia tell them immediately or you will be stuck for over an hour! Before it ended I was seconds from passing out. CABINS-the balcony is a nice space to get away from the crowds. The room was HOT and miserable! There was no air circulation, but maintenance said it was normal. CRUISERS-The abundance of complaints about the HICK patrons are funny. Its the cheapest cruise line out there, what were you expecting? The majority of the cruisers are retirees and families. Everywhere was packed. The abundance of children running around at all hours unsupervised is staggering. FOOD/DRINKS-Their food is like a lemon slice in water and saying its lemonade. The desserts in the dining room were the exception. If you have a soda/alcohol at dinner dont expect a second. The only late night option is pizza. Room service is 24 hours, more a snack not a meal. ENTERTAINMENT-Theres nothing good about the Vegas style shows, pure misery. Expect the dancers to never be in unison, forget their steps and not be talented. The comedy shows were pretty good. The trivia/bingo games were fun. SHOPPING-Carnivals shopping specialists only tell you about the shops that pay for advertising. They dangle promises of free jewelry, but the quality is out of a quarter machine. They dont tell you that its a paid advert until the end of the trip. They also tell you buy as much as you want of jewelry and alcohol and its all duty free, um NOT! You have to pay duty if you spent above $800 on jewelry and bought more than 1 liter of alcohol, blatant lie from Carnival. JAMAICA-The Canopy tour is a bunch of zip lines. Carnival recommends you take a backpack, but they make you put it in a locker for $9! DO NOT take good or white shoes, they won't recover. The bar food is really good and the Red Stripe is only $2. GRAND CAYMAN-You will find local tours for the same main places for 1/4 of Carnivals price. The Kayak Tour just paddled up and down the coast. Snorkeling was included. The shopping in Grand Cayman is the best option, Jamaica is low quality and Cozumel is overpriced. Alcohol at Tortuga is 1/2 the cost from the US. They have two Harley Davidson stores, a Hard Rock Café and Margaritaville. You can also find Cuban cigars. COZUMEL-The Coba and Tulum Ruins are 7 hours with only about 1.5 hours being the tours the rest is transport. Coba is further so it all seems rushed. The guide will say there is only shopping at their store, not true! They offer bike rentals/tricycles with a driver for only $10, very worth it. You will not expect how tired this tour will make you. You can climb the tallest Mayan ruins at Coba, but its very difficult. Tulum is more laid back tour. The ruins are on a cliff on the coast with a breeze. Tulum has more buildings but they are small. You will have time at the beach. Get a good breakfast and take water/food with you. It said "lunch" was provided, but "lunch" was a bottle of water, a bag of chips and peanuts on the bus. There are plenty of shops right by the port. They expect you to haggle. SMOKING-Its allowed in 7 places on the ship, cigars are only allowed in one bar. You have to walk through it to get across the ship. If you are sensitive to smoke you will notice it everywhere. If you are used to smoking you might not be bothered. The staff does not enforce non-smoking areas, so your fellow cruisers will take advantage. PRIZES-There are prize drawings everyday. There was a free drawing at the spa. My husband and my mother both won a massage. The drawing for a free cruise you have to pay to enter. There are a couple free drawings in the shops and then one at the end of the cruise for those who made purchases. The games or competitions on the ship offer prizes, usually a trophy of the ship. We won one of those as well. PHOTOS-They shove it at you at every opportunity. Even at dinner they come to your table and snap a picture, despite you saying no. The prices for the prints are crazy, they paper they print on is the cheapest possible. When you get home have it scanned to make a digital copy of it, because the cheap paper will fade on you within a couple years! EXTRA CHARGES-Tip charges are $10 a day. The alcohol was $8-9. The minibar was the same price plus 15% restocking fee. Sodas are $1.95 for a can, or unlimited for $6 a day. The Steakhouse is $30 a person, but you already paid for dinner! Bingo cost $10 for one card and $20 for three. The spa massages weren't worth how they were priced. You will get cell phone service on the ship, but expect international charges on your phone bill. read more

BEWARE OF CARNIVAL INSURANCE ADD ON WITHOUT CONSENT!!! April of 2014, my family and I took a 4 day Baja California cruise from the port of Long Beach to Esenada. We were so pleased with the overall experience we decided to booked a western Caribbean cruise immediately following our April cruise. May of 2014, I placed a call to Carnival Cruise line reservation center and spoke with Ricardo somewhere in Miami, FL. We discussed the possibility of another cruise in 2015, and I purchased a trip from Galveston, TX scheduled to leave on March 28th 2015. I paid a $250 deposit for the trip and AT NO TIME I AGREED TO ANY TRAVEL INSURANCE. Jan 27th, 2015, our daughter had surgery and my wife made an electronic payment from the hospital for the cruise. We later discovered a $305 travel insurance plan was ordered after the payment was made. We called the Carnival Customer Service Center to inquire about the charger and talked "BB" (customer rep) she told us, she was NOT going to remove the travel insurance because it was OUR fault we didn't check our confirmation email, therefore the insurance was added. I confronted her with initial email confirmation and it clearly shows NO INSURANCE WAS ADDED. With no end in sight we requested to speak to a supervisor transferring to "Kaeñada Martin" who also insisted it was our fault for no reading the confirmation email. This time, Kaeñada placed blame on me and insisted I was the one who called the customer service center the next day after booking our trip and ordered the insurance .. FALSE !!!! I asked her if she had any record of the conversation and she informed me Carnival Cruise Line only retains recorded conversations for 30 days how convenient! Furthermore, "Kaeñada's only solution to the problem was to downgrade our cabin to save the money, which was fraudulently added without our consent. She was not sympathetic to our issue and made no attempts to do right for a shady practice by Carnival Cruise Line. if anyone, else has experienced this same issue with Carnival please inbox me because I plan to seek legal action in the matter. Carnival is a 5.7 billion dollar company and should be ashamed about the lack of customer service provided to their customers. I will also file a complaint with the BBB. As I explained to Kaeñada it's not about the $305 Carnival stole from us , but the fact they had the opportunity to make it right and they treated us like garbage. read more

This was my families first cruise. Cruising for the first time can be overwhelming so some research ahead of time is recommended. The carnival staff immediately takes your checked luggage, so be prepared to have your boarding documents with you, as it is extremely difficult for you to access your luggage once it is in the cage. Because we were with a wedding and had priority boarding and it was pretty easy. Once on the ship anything you brought with you onboard stays with you and you can't access your room till after 1:30 pm. In general the staff are friendly and helpful. The dining staff did not necessarily live up to my expectations of service, but I don't really blame them, they are waiting on a ton of people. Some wait staff were amazing and others did not seem to care. Unfortunately, on our first elegant night of dinner at 6:00 pm, they sat us and served us our starter course, then at 6:45 pm, a water pipe blew and caused an electrical fire in the galley which shut it down for the remainder of the evening and the next morning. They did not close the dining room until 7:45 pm, so we sat there for 1 hour 45 minutes before they told us we needed to have dinner on the lido deck. When we got to the lido deck they basically had sandwiches and fruit, they were not serving their normal buffet as all of the ship was trying to get dinner, they had only one station open for pizza and one station open for cheeseburgers, so you can image how long the lines were for dinner. Breakfast the next day on the lido deck also had pretty long lines. The dining room reopened for lunch and dinner. They only compensation we received for the inconvenience is a free soda, glass of wine or champagne for dinner the evening following the shutdown of the galley. My daughter really enjoyed the teen club, however no one ever seemed to show up for the afternoon activities, so she only went there at night. They offer excursions just for teens at the various ports, however the person running the club said that she never really gets enough people to sign up, so they really do not do them, so don't count on this for your teen if this is part of your plan. Excursion review. We only went on one Carnival recommended excursion. Turtles, Turtles, and more turtles. I actually really enjoyed the excursion in Grand Cayman. The staff take you to each of their individual turtle tanks which hold turtles of the same age, from 5 months to 65 years old, they let you hold them and swim with them in their lagoon. My only complaint, 3 hours isn't long enough! (Also several people told us they just get off the boat, go to the signs where the excursions meet, and go on the same excursions as the Carnival passengers for half the price.) If you're an adventurous and outgoing person, though they have several activities onboard, there is not much to do at sea, so plan to relax, maybe catch a game of bingo or a bean bag toss competition. Now if your looking to relax and leave the need for extreme sports and adventure, this type of cruise is for you. The outer decks. There were three very small pools, you can not lap swim in any of these pools, they tend to be pretty filled with children, except of course the adult pool. Except for the sunning area near the main pool, sunning areas around the ship were extremely windy. The staterooms. We had three people in our room, we stayed in the smallest interior staterooms. They had a king bed and two beds that drop from the ceilings above the king bed. There is not much room to walk around in the room, so this type of room was really just made for sleeping, don't plan to lounge in your room because there just isn't much room. We stayed on deck 6 midship and most of the time the noise level was okay, if there was anyone in the hallway talking you could hear it, you can hear when they are vacuuming the hallway, and you can hear the music at night until about midnight (so if you're an early sleeper, bring earplugs!). The food. The food was better than I expected. As you know on a cruise the food never ends, so you can not possibly go hungry, except when the galley shuts down and the serve you sandwiches for dinner Room Service. Room service is nice if you are feeling lazy, but plan to wait for about 30-40 min after you order for your food. The entertainment. We went to one of their Vegas style shows, Point and Click. It was horrible, the show did not flow well at all, it was like random singing and dancing. The dancers timing was all off. I almost never leave in the middle of a show, however I just couldn't take it after the first couple of acts. The comedy shows were okay at best, nothing spectacular. The photo gallery. The gallery is nice. The cruise photographers will take photos of you all around the ship and they will be printed and displayed for purchase in the photo gallery. They photos are decent and nice to have, a bit costly, but you are on vacation, so expect this. read more

Sewage Smell Ruined this Experience. I guess it is acceptable to have the smell of urine in the cabins. This is true. At first I thought it was on the floor, but it was coming from the sink or toilet. One cruiser said he just puts a scent on his upper lip to mask it so he can sleep. Really? If you like the Home Town Buffet this cruise line is for you. Horrid Buffet food nearly 24 hours. I heard classier cruise lines have better food? Stick to the drinks. All this aside. You only get one afternoon on wherever you dock. Then back to the tourists and same people on your boat. If you want to experience culture get a hotel or air bnb, go out and eat and drink with the locals. Stay a few days in one spot or even a week. Experience the culture! Not just for a day then on to the next spot. Fake... Lastly. When I told carnival that my room smelled of urine. They offered me a carnival gift and $25 off my next cruise. Too funny! What horrible customer service. Never again with Carnival. Which I understand is bottom of the barrel. Maybe never cruise again? Definitely would pay more and avoid any ship associated with Circus Carnival. read more

Just returned from our 7 day cruise to Jamaica, Grand Cayman and Cozumel! First cruise and I have to say I enjoyed it all! The food was good and sometimes really good. The service from the steward of our room to our main waiters in the Monet restaurant..was just awesome! They always had fun things going on somewhere on the ship for when we were at sea. The cruise director and his crew, that were our helpers, entertainment and guides were just so much fun, very nice and even a cute one that goes by "donkey"(he's got that Australian accent). I was suprised at the wait times for getting on/off the ship..it seemed to move very smoothly and faster than I expected with almost 3000 guests on the ship. I am only giving 4 stars, because I think they need to have a better ventilation for the smoking areas...I am super sensitive to that and it was a little difficult walking through those areas. They have pretty good "vegas style" shows, comedians that are pretty funny and good shopping on the ship as well! Looking forward to going again maybe in a year or so! read more

This was my first and only cruise, so I have nothing to compare it to. I can only comment on how it made me feel. We were married aboard the Conquest in May of 2010 and the arrangements made for the service and reception were WAY BEYOND anything I could have imagined or hoped for. It was PERFECT. TRULY. We married while docked in Galveston, then set sail in the afternoon for the Bahamas for 7 days. Our cabin was lovely and immaculately clean. We had our own veranda overlooking the water, which we enjoyed every night. The only big complaint we had was the hammering in the middle of the afternoon going on nearby. We were told repairs were being done, but it made it impossible to take an afternoon nap. The restaurants and food were really good. The evening dining entertainment provided by the wait-staff rivaled what was seen in the movie, "The Polar Express." Never have I seen waiters jump up on tables and JAM to great music! The ports of call were fun, but our favorite stop was actually Key West Florida on the way home. We swam with the dolphins in Freeport, Bahamas... a bucket-list item of mine. Our memories of the cruise are very sweet. Yes, I would do it again. I look forward to my next cruise - someday. read more

If you want to buy the faster to fun, I strongly suggest you to think again! Food is so so. Thanks to the worst customer service of the Carvinal Conquest, the Faster To Fun ended up as The Slowest To Fun! We bought the faster to fun for Carribean East from Dec21-28. But on the first day, we were requested to wait in the main entry; our luggages were very late, instead of waiting for us in the room, we wait for the luggages for more than 3 hours. I went to the customer service three times. The customer service lady said they would look into it till the drill was finished. But nobody ever showed up. On the last day, we were assigned zone tag 26 and waited in the cold theatre for about 1.5 hour until my friends told us we should be the zone 1 as faster to fun! I went to customer service. The customer guy said that I stood in the faster to fun asking him why we didn't receive the service promised is the service I paid for. How Ridiculous! The supervisor lady Branke couldn't explain why we were assigned 26 instead of 1 either. She arrogantly said we were on the list but didn't know why we were assigned the zone 26, but all she could do is to record the comment. She couldn't do anything. The Faster To Fun ended up to be The Slowest To Fun! And the customer service even shows no sincere apology to us. We will never select Carnival Conquest! read more

Mrs. B, some friends, and I spent a glorious week aboard the Carnival Conquest. Our scheduled ports-of-call were Nassau then Freeport, Bahamas, and Key West, Florida. Well, Hurricane Irene had something to say about that, so we diverted to Costa Maya, Cozumel, and Progreso, Mexico. We made the switch from Daquiris to Margaritas without so much as a hiccup. We enjoyed ourselves at all 3 ports-of-call, and we were able to find some excellent Mexican beers that are not imported to the US, namely Indio and Leon, both of which are favorites of Mrs. B and me. The ship provided more than enough entertainment as well. We never had a chance to do everything that we wanted to do on the boat, so we were always playing catch-up with "What do we want to do next?" Also, the food was great and never-ending, and the service was wonderful. As I would assume with most cruises, beverages get pricey on board. I recommend investing $25 on some Rum Runners plastic flasks to get your hooch on board without any problems. We thoroughly enjoyed our much-needed vacation. read more

Carnival Conquest - 7day West Caribbean We are a family of four and this was our first and probably last cruise. For years I have heard about how wonderful a cruise is and have always had a great desire to go on a cruise. Bottomline: I spent more time in lines, getting on the boat, waiting for food, waiting to get off the boats to get on an island, and waiting to leave the boat the last day then we spend on the islands. Out of a 7 day cruise we were off the boat for about 12 hours. If you like moderately good buffet food, a room smaller then most tents, and being confined to this for 7 days you will LOVE this trip. If you have any doubts book a shorter cruise. This should NOT be your first cruise. We have a 10 year old and 13 year old who are well behaved young men. Be advised that all kids aren't like mine. Be prepared to hear kids 24x7 running in the halls, hollering, slamming cabin doors, and doing whatever it is they do at 3am. The Food: 1 star dining We got stuck with a dinner seating at 8:15pm. What family with young kids eat that late? Two of the nights were "elegant" affairs. Seriously, who wants to take dress-up clothes on a cruise? I must be in the minority on that because there were lots of people in formals, prom dresses, suits, etc. Anyway, because of the 8:15pm dinner seating and considering the two times we ate in the restaurant they had the same moderately warm food as they had at the buffet. The meals basically have the same food each breakfast, lunch or dinner. Each meal may have main meat serving that varies but basically all the other stuff is the same. I would label the food as average quality, prepared for the masses, bland, and lots of it. Breakfast is really sad. It literally is the exact same thing everyday for 7 days. I have only see scrambled eggs like that in hospitals and military installations. They make omelets fresh to order. So I ended up getting an omelet every morning. No Hot Sauce no breakfast tacos. Lunch was always a welcome time of day. At least you could get a hot dog or burgers and fries. The 24x7 pizza place is NOT 24x7. When you can get a slice it is pretty good and fresh. The Sundae Bar is a soft serve ice cream dispenser. Dinner wasn't much better than breakfast. The Cabins: 2 star rooms First and foremost small...very small. Secondly HOT...uncomfortably HOT. The AC controls on the boats do not work and the service attendants told us they dont. Someone, somewhere sets a temp and that is what everyone gets. While 82 degrees may be great for some people, for me with a sunburn 82 degress is not good for sleeping. The TVs are 19" tube TVs and have 7-9 channels depending on how many they want to give you at any given time. You can watch CNN all the time. You can watch Cartoon Network all the time but sometimes it is 100% spanish. You can watch the Carnival stations about how good their boats are 24x7 and on 3 stations! There are a couple more stations with Carnival stuff on it and there is a TNT station that works when they allow it. There is a minifridge in the room that generates heat, to keep your room warm, and where you can buy drinks at higher than normal hotel prices. Our $4500 dollars only afforded us a cabin without windows and basically two sets of bunk beds, no chair, no coach, but plently of lighting to generate more heat. People on the bottom bunks CANT see the TV that has nothing on it. Bathroom is small but functional and adequate. No storage. Pack light! What makes the room 2 stars is the service guy we had. He was the only person the boat that called us by name and really went out of his way to make sure we were comfortable. Every time we would leave the room he would come in and clean. Activities: 1 star If you want to do what they schedule you will have a great time. If you dont want to do that there is basically not much to do. Pools are too small for he number of people on the boat. Excursions: 2 stars I did one excursion it was too expensive and too short. Spent most of the time riding on a boat to and from a private beach. Beware that if you don't buy an excursion, the ports were they take you are Carnival ports. To find a non-Carnival controlled taxi may be hard and you will get no help from Carnival people. The trip is a constant nagging or pressure from Carnival people that you are having fun and you need to spend more money. There is a constant chatter on TV or PA system about buying something and hurry cause they are almost gone. Tickets were $3500 and the room bill was another $1000. They added on about $300 in tips for me. That was nice of them. To get that off your bill you have to get in the customer service line. There is constantly people taking pictures of you to sale. Casino and bars are smokey and we dont smoke and there is no place to put smoke filled clothes in your room. Self laundry is $7-$8 a load. read more

Okay, so I'm back from my vacation. I have been home for over 48 hours now and I haven't once yelled at my kids or husband. Apparently I really, really needed a vacation. The good: -24 hour pizza (but only the mushroom with goat cheese was really good) -Wency our drag queen waiter in the main dining room who donned a pink wig and danced on a tray stand during the entertainment portion of dinner - For the most part, the ship design itself. There are plenty of places and spaces for most anyone. I prefer to have quiet time for reading. Off deck 3 on either side of the ship was a very pleasant area with some lounge chairs. I used this area for reading and being alone. But if you prefer more action, there was plenty of spaces designed for that too. - Lost of competitions...battle of the sexes, sudoku, Texas trivia, scavenger hunts, etc...I am really competitive. - Service in general was super. Every time we left our room we came back to it having been tidied up. Everyone who was assigned to us knew us by name from day 1. The towel animals are cheesy but cute. - Movies on the main deck at night. Very cool to sit back on a chaise lounge and watch a movie over the night sky filled with stars and hear the sound of the ocean in the background with a cocktail in hand. - No mosquitoes. The bad: - The food. I heard raves from people who had cruised before. I found that the food was mostly hospital like. The exception was in the main dining room, but even that left something to be desired. - The drinks. Weak and expensive. A bad combination. - The elevators seemed to have a mind of their own. Sometimes you had to wait up to 15 minutes to go up. - The casino...I HATE AUTOMATIC SHUFFLERS!!! - The canned ham entertainment. My theory here is that if you had actual fun stuff to do, you would not have to try so very hard to make it fun. Suggestions - Art classes, language classes, dance classes, sunrise/sunset yoga, writers workshops, etc... The excursions: -Jamaica - Swam with Dolphins and climbed Dunns Falls (both cool as sh*t, mon and generally no problem) -Grand Cayman - The water is so clear and beautiful. I snorkeled at reef and swam with sting rays. Pretty great, but the windy weather had the ocean all churned up, but it did not effect visibility. -Cozumel - Toured the Mayan Ruins outside of Playa Del Carmen. Seas were very rough and on the ferry over, it was puke fest!!! RAD!!! The ruins themselves were very serene. Playa Del Carmen and the ruins both had the most beautiful beaches of all our destinations. Our tour guide was VERY informative and educational. Note on tours...all the tour guides are going to tell you to buy here and not buy there, etc...that the prices are high in one place vs another. This is not true exactly. They are just trying to get you to buy from their companies. All of the stuff is pretty much the same. If you want to shop, take a moment at every stop to comparison shop on your own. I did not find any of the stops that we made to have particularly good deals, but they are all in tourist traps and expect that everyone has brought cash. If you find something you like and you think it's worth what they are asking for it, then buy it. Who cares who you bought it from. It most likely just a trinket anyway. I had a decent time. It was nice to get away. 4 days would probably been a better choice than 7. The value was pretty good. I think I paid $550 for a 7 day cruise. I don't think I could have gotten hotel rooms for that price, must less all meals included (even if the meals weren't all that good.) I am not likely to take this particular cruise again, but that is more a matter of personal taste. I might try another cruise but it would have to be shorter. read more

The week long journey on Carnival Conquest was one of the most exciting and bliss filled weeks of my life. From the moment that I walked on to this 7-day West Caribbean cruise to the time that I stepped off of the boat, I felt totally spoiled, comforted, and without a care in the world. (except for when I couldn't find my luggage and frantically searched for it until it was located..ugh) I traveled with a group of 12 people for my first cruise ever and I am typically a person that hates water. The cruise departed on a Sunday in late October and took us to 3 destinations (Jamaica, Grand Cayman, and Cozumel) Once we got checked onto the boat, which was a relatively smooth process for a ship that holds 2500 people, you immediately noted the grand and illustrious nature of this ship. Everything was beautifully decorated, the staff made sure that you were taken care of, and even wanted to get to know you by name. It was almost if you were being welcomed with open arms by a big family. I spent some time exploring the ship and there was very little that this ship did not have. A spa (very pricey) and gym, a casino, sports bar, a cigar bar, a night club, two swimming pools, 24-hr food quality food service, a DAMN GOOD Steakhouse, and too much more to even try to mention. The rooms were spacious and the ship was always clean and tidy. When you were on the ship you felt like you were in a home away from home and Carnival made sure that everything you needed was right there waiting for you. One of coolest things was the amount of various activities that were going on throughout the day and in the evening on the ship. From the moment that you awoke to the time you went to sleep, which could be at 3AM, Carnival made sure that there was something for you. There were trivia tournaments, bean bag toss tournaments almost daily, free drink power hours, karaoke contest, blackjack/poker/slot tournament in the casino, bingo sessions for large cash prizes and I could go on and on. Lastly, were the shows that Carnival put on in the afternoon that were absolutely spectacular. The quality was almost as if you were in Vegas, with spectacular dancers, pyrotechnics, and amazing eye popping stunts. It was just another example of how I never felt as if I was on a cruise in the middle of the ocean. The quality of every experience and the dedication to make sure that every experience was a pleasant one, made this cruise extremely enjoyable. I had never gone on a cruise before this one and this definitely made me a big fan. Carnival Conquest was definitely for a young lively crowd and so next time I may try another cruise line to get a different experience. Overall the food on Conquest was very good but I hear that the food is even better on other cruise lines. But no matter what this was an absolutely fantastic experience and I would recommend Carnival Conquest to anyone. This was one of my most favorite vacations ever and I will be back again real soon. read more

The overall stars of this cruise is spot on right now at 3.5. It's hard to give any vacation less than 4 stars, but we had some serious issues while on board during the week of Christmas 2009. The day we embarked the previous cruise had fog and thus delayed our entrance onto the ship by about 2 hours (all of which we were trapped in line without access to bathrooms or water). Not a good start, but the Galveston staff handled it well and once we got on, we were ready to begin a great week. We decided to upgrade the room and get a nice suite with a balcony. Unfortunately when we got to the room the odor of stale grease was overwhelmingly powerful. I complained to our head steward (who was incredibly helpful all week) and he assured us that he would do what he could to eliminate the smell. We left the room for about 2 hours to return where the room had been cleaned, but the odor was still pungent. I decided to complain to the front desk. Still nothing was done after 4 hours. At this point we were ready to go to bed but didn't want to sleep in the room. We were hoping they could move us, but a rude customer service woman retorted that there were no other rooms available, and that the smell was 'normal'. If that's a normal cruise smell, I won't be cruising anymore. The next day the head customer service representative finally came to our room, noted the smell, and offered us another room in the same corridor. I thought they had no rooms as quoted by rude customer service lady the night prior. Unfortunately the room in the same corridor had the same odor, which we had already told them because the smell was in the entire corridor (about 20 rooms). He then offered us a discount on the room and a fan. It didn't help much, but we were happy that he offered us the discount since we specifically had upgraded to have a nice suite. We decided to drop the issue (since it was quite obvious they were not going to send us to another non-smelly suite) and enjoy the rest of our trip. Highlights of the ship: -the gym very nice, but quite busy the first few days. -formal dinner service was outstanding -shows and activities while on board were fun (cheesy, but fun) -wine bar bartender was awesome -Susan G Komen 1 mile walk ($10 donation) has raised like $2M for cancer research -Adult pool area was monitored for children -Lots of opportunities to take fancy pictures, albeit expensive to purchase Downfalls of the ship (aside from odor issue): -bumpy -food was pretty gross -last day at sea got boring as the activities became repetitive -bars, especially casino, were incredibly smokey I will not rush to go on another cruise, but that might just be because I am not a 'cruiser'. I would recommend this particular cruise to most on a budget who live in Texas and can drive to Galveston. Just be careful not to get a suite under the burger restaurant. read more

Short summary: I enjoyed this cruise a fair amount but wouldn't do it again. My suggestion is you gauge what type of enjoyment you like, the purpose of the cruise, the company you are keeping and the budget you have. HERDING Carnival certainly makes an effort to mitigate issues with 3000+ people on and off the ship many times during the cruise. But it's just that: lots of lines because lots of people within a relatively tiny space on the planet. Our trip consisted of a primary boarding than took less than 2 hours, two day-trip dockings (Cozumel Mexico, Roatan Honduras) and two tenders (Belize, Grand Cayman) which were totally okay, especially since we waited until 'general debarkation' occurring each around 3 hours after the initial mad rushes off the boat. Getting in/out of the main dining room was never too bad. The buffet-style eateries' lines, on the other hand, can get tiresome, and mostly not worth the wait anyway. The numerous bars' wait-time aren't bad at all. The shows' seating capacity vary from quite spacious (main showroom) to difficult (comedy club). FOOD I'm a foodie, and although the food was overall better than I thought it would be, I'll say that it's certainly not fine dining *anywhere* on the ship. Here's my advice: Go to the main dining room for both breakfast and dinner. It's really not bad and they don't mind letting you order multiple appetizers for instance. The wine list, on the other hand, is pretty bad if you know your wines. Avoid the buffets. Guy Fieri's hamburgers are really not that great because the meat patty is too thin and the bun is not special. That's a pity because the DIY topping choices were pretty good. The buffets weren't so great (I had the worst bite of potato salad ever). Omelet station is okay but greasy. The 1st time I tried the pizza, I was astonished how good it was! Beautiful crust, good quality mozzarella, very nice fresh and sweet marinara. The 2nd time... the marinara was not so great. The other problem: wait can be long because they've only got like 2 guys working the small joint. Same issue with the Fish'n Chips place. I recommend Room Service for a couple of everyday items when you just don't want to get in line: bagel w/cream cheese and smoked salmon, or chicken burrito. Overall, I can see Carnival is making an effort on food and other than the buffet, it's fun to try out dishes all over the ship. The dinners in particular have some nice choices (but avoid their non-grilled shrimp). ROOMS (section dropped due to review limit on Yelp) SERVICE Overall, we were quite pleased with the service quality. The Best: cabin maids and manager. They did a wonderful job TWICE a day (during our breakfast before lunch and turn-down after dinner. I can't say enough good things about them (Panorama Deck, cabin 1046). They certainly deserve the $84 pp service surcharge added to our bill. Most bar keeps were very pleasant, especially the main one around the pool, the Lobby, the Casino. Huge applause for the Alchemy girls and their wonderful concoctions! The not so good: The Russian bartenders around the adult pool and hot-tubs up top on Deck 11(?) need an attitude adjustment. The Guest Service desk folks could use some more training however. SHOWS & ACTIVITIES Very pleasant surprise here. The musical shows were quite entertaining with great vocals and energizing dances. The Comedy Club had some decently talented stand-up comedians but seating was generally difficult. The numerous Karaoke events were a blast, especially since our 4 kids are very musically inclined. There's Night Club dancing, bar hopping, Casino gambling (which we didn't do). The not so-good is Carnival is continuously trying to sell something, like photos or cheap cameras. PORTS OF CALL To me, personally, these are merely a way to get my feet on dry land... because there's no way any cruise tourists can honestly claim they've actually been to Mexico or Honduras by spending a half a day on some restricted-area, mostly Cruise Line owned stop on their shores. The most ridiculous was Belize where it took a 30 minute boat-ride to be dumped in a tiny casern-like mall. The best for us was Roatan where we rented an ATV and headed for a 2 hour trek through the woods and a non-touristy beach. I guess if money is no object, the numerous other excursions might prove fun. COST Unless you live near the departure port, you do not consume alcohol or even soda, do not do any excursions and do not care for at least a balcony room, which I highly recommend, and even if you remain reasonable, it's quite a bit more expensive than the 'advertised introductory' prices. Extra service charges, warranted tips and other fees abound. Put simply, to have fun and still remain reasonable (and not in a dungeon cabin) you should figure on at least $1500 per person for this 7-day cruise (additional airfare and/or transportation not included). That's really not bad unless you know how - and prefer - to travel independently without crowds read more

Carnival rocks! Customer service was amazing. Our suite was already set up with the deaf kit when we arrived (my daughter is deaf) and our room steward was the best! Wait staff was friendly and they tried hard to find something my daughter would eat (she is picky). The spa/salon was nice but they were pushy in trying to sell their products. I know that is their job but $491 for facial products?!?! Come on.....at least try to be reasonable. Carnival is definitely special needs friendly! :D read more

NO NO NO NO NO NO NO! If you are tempted to take a carnival cruise...JUST SAY NO! I had a horrible experience. I was on a cruise to Mexico when a devastating accident occurred and I was horrified by the way it was handled. Not to mention the ports are horrible if you go to Mexico. Seriously just at least avoid the Carnival Triumph at all costs read more

food was pretty good- you can request without msg...they put it in everything....FYI when in port you can not use the ATM machines which was not at all convenient in Cozumel....Staff was friendly and nice... read more

FOOD - Trip with carnival was excellent, lots of entertainments and food. Breakfast is almost same everyday but have choice for lunch and dinner. If you make a special food in the dining room they will make some delicious food just for you. Anything you want to drink you have to pay. Things look good but it can cost you anywhere from $8. Only free drink is coffee, orange juice and apple juice in the morning and for afternoon lemonade. Ocean view - Ocean view room and balcony rooms are not necessary because you hardly spent any time inside the room and if you want to save any money. But the rooms are good size and had TV. Galveston - We reached port around 1130 and there was no much crowd so we made it within an hour. We checked in our bags after taking all the necessary things with us. After we got in we went and had our lunch inside the ship because they don't allow you inside your room until 2:30 due to security reasons. Jamaica - In Jamaica I used hop on hop off bus, which will cost you $15 and it take you to 3 places. 1st place is a shopping mall but everything cost in $$. So do small shopping here, 2nd stop is Margarittaville or the Dr. cove beach. But donot go there because you have to pay $5 and anything you touch will cost you money eg: chair, umbrella, security etc... The very next door is a free beach, on the side there is a bar but beach is downstairs from there, you have to walk by the side of the building to goto beach. You don't have to buy anything from there. A life guard always watching you and if you want to rent glass boat, jet ski etc.. they have it, just negotiate the price with locals. The chairs, umbrella everything is free. At Margarittaville you can eat some food but watch your receipt. Also if you goto "shopping help counter" which is inside the casino in the ship they will give you a free coupon for margarittaville, to me every other coupon was useless. 3rd stop is craft village, If you want some handmade things buy it here. Grand Cayman - Here we took Barrier reef snorkel, Please practice snorkeling before you get in that water because I panicked and drank some water. Keep your mouth sealed and if you don't know swimming ask for a tube and that will give you extra confidence. If you didn't take the excursion inside the ship don't worry. I have seen grand cayman port offers snorkeling too for $40 also lot other tours so don't be in a hurry. All this excursions takes you to the same place because I saw all the boats in one place at the end but not sure. Cozumel - We went for X-caret excursion but to tell you the truth it is over killing. It's a good trip but a 2 day tour you are watching in 4 hours. It is a total of 7 hour trip but you get inside the place only 4 hours rest on drive to the place. If you take the trip come out of the river after 10min which will give you more time to see things. The actual ticket only cost 20 paisos but carnival charged $80. But only way to get to that place is thru boat and bus from mainland and only carnival offers that I guess. Also if you take the trip with carnival they get you out of the ship before everyone else in the line. If you are going in a big group try to find if someone else can offer for cheaper rate. Lots of people also went for "Mayan ruins" but I heard that is a 2hr bus ride. Cozumel have lot of excursions. Seminars - If you don't want to waste your time I don't see any use of going for shopping seminars which carnival offers. They will give you VIP cards for shopping it will save you lots of money. I don't think its of any use. The VIP cards give you $50 discount if you spent $5000 or things like that. I had all this and didn't make any sense once I received it. Diamonds bla bla..... each one is priced $5000 above and you get it for bla bla.... But if you are into buying and spending so much go for it.... Shopping - Carnival suggest you lots of places for shopping but I suggest look around. For eg: delsol. Buy 2 t-shirt and you get a bag free. Do you know how much those T-shirts cost you??? $25 each but it is the same quality of $5. Yes they will give you a bag free because you paid for 3 bags already thru that T-shirt. Look around and you get the same T-shirt for $15 or $12 in other stores. Remember you buy from any store, T-shirt is the same. So don't get fooled by those guys. Credit card - If you are applying for a carnival credit card inside, please make sure you need them not for the free gifts. Its worth nothing. Lots of free...... items included for applying the card but when you get it nothing is free. 10 min free browsing was one of the offer but when you go there they will ask you to buy atleast a $30 package for you to use the free 10 min. All the free items are like that or so. read more

This cruise was okay I got bored after the second day needed more to do. The food was great but not unlimited the way they say it is. I loved breakfast and being able to meet new ppl from all over. I would recommend a singles cruise if you want to meet ppl there were a lot of families there. read more

Unfortunately I can not rate the cruise itself due to the horrible experience my husband and I received at the boarding port. My husband's birth certificate was refused. It is the only birth certificate he has had for 51 years now and he has done everything in his life with it including traveling to Mexico and returning to the United States. As of right now I have not been given a straight answer from at least 4 of their employees, 2 port supervisors that day told me they have been rolling out the policy of not acceting "Hospital issued" birth certificates since April but then 2 different guest resolution speacilists have told me 2 different stories and 1 even says they have never accepted them and if 1 was it was an exception of course nobody has answered how you determine to make an exception for one guest and not another. I personally know that at least 3 other expectant guests were denied boarding that day but to be accomidating they were allowing people to have the correct birth certificates faxed in (if you had someone at home that could do that) I personally feel that is a lower level of security since a faxed copy would not show white out and imperfections if someone had a "correct" birth certificate at home I ask why wouldn't they have brought that one to begin with? When you read the paper work that Carnival sends out it is very vague and says a passport is not needed but is recommended and to bring an official birth certificate evidentally a lot of people have no reason to think these birth certificates are not official since they have done eveything in life with them, I know one declined guest said she even adopted a child through legal courts using that birth certificate and was NEVER told anything of it being a souvenior certificate issued by the hospital. Let's also remember that Carnival Cruise lines admits they used to accept these but "rolled out" no longer accepting them we just don't know exactly when. Well as if loosing $800.00 dolloars because they lead us to believe that day we would get a cruis credit (which we are now being told "NO" not our fault) we sat at the port for over 4 hours waiting for our 4 pieces of luggage to be brought to us, only to be told sorry we couldn't find it oh but wait Carnival will ship you your luggage at our cost on Thursday when the ship comes back some guests that might help but I have to back on Thursday to pick up my parents (who we were traveling with) anyway so I will pick up my luggage then "Thank you" very much for everything you have done for me. At that time they didn't even offer to drive us down to where we had to park the car and be shuttled to the boat... no we had to walk miles to our car and an officer had to unlock the parking area for us to get our car which no one offerred to refund the $50.00 we had to pay to park there which would have been fine had we been on the cruise. If that day the port supervisors would have been honest with us instead of leading us to believe a cruise credit would be issued I probably would have went ahead a cruised as a single passenger with my parents we would have much rather me cruised alone instead of completely loosing the entire $800.00 but when they lead you to believe you can take another cruise some time in the furture then I wanted to go with my husband and not use the cruise alone. I hope this helps this to not happen to someone else in the future. My suggestion is to anyone that is taking a cruise with the birth certificate as one of your required documents to question it's legal status even if you have no reason to, really what they require is an official record of vital statics more so than a birth certificate matter of fact in some states the word birth certificate will be no where on there and it will simply say record of vital statics like Texas. read more