Review: Ecstasy after dry dock

Just got off the first cruise after the Ecstasy Dry Dock and wanted to give a short review. To give you some background 2 middle aged moms getting away from their husbands and kids for a few days. I've cruise Royal a few times and Celebrity but this was my first Carnival. She's been on 4 Carnival cruises before. We've both been on large and small ships.

We chose this cruise purely because of location. We wanted to drive down the morning of the cruise and be back on Monday before school was out.

Here's the good, bad and, yes - unfortunately the ugly.....

First off - we might have left this cruise much more unhappy had it not been for the crew. Every single person we encountered (aside from the surly guest services woman) truly put a happy face on and wanted to make sure we had the best cruise and it really did go a long way. Even the port workers.

Day 1 - Embarkation

We got the call the night before around 8 pm that "weather" had delayed the ship out of dry dock and we needed to check in 5 hours later than planned. Bummer but now we could sleep in a little, have a late lunch in Charleston and do some shopping. We treated it like it was a port day in Charleston and had a great time. Carnival "kindly" comped us $15 per person for lunch. My lunch was a tad ($$$) over that.

Around 4:30 we headed to the ship (remember - boarding was 5 hours later) and we pulled into the parking line. Think of the worst line you've ever seen at Disney and then quadruple it. You can't tell really where you are or how much farther you have to go. We should have been tipped off that people had their cars turned off and were milling about but we were excited and just going by what the ship told us. This was the first issue we had with lack of ship communication - it became more frustrating as the week went on.

Once you are in line for parking in Charleston, you are committed. There are some green nasty porta potties if you get desperate. No one gave us any information when we entered the parking lot line. So we sat. And sat. and sat. No one giving any information. No one even really around except for 1 guy at the start of the lot that waved you in.

At 5:30 - the line started crawling. Shocked at the people who didn't have their bags tagged correctly - which held us up. And the people who after sitting there for 3 hours and still had their passport and boarding documents in the bottom of a suitcase in their trunk and held us all up. But finally, after 4 checkpoint tents, a shuttle bus, a line out the door at the check in desk, we were on the ship by 8! Yes, 3.5 hours in line to park. When we checked in there was no info given about when muster would be. No Fun times. No welcome aboard drink. No suggestion about dinner. Just get on the boat.

We quickly tossed our stuff in our room and ran to dinner - again knowing that muster was looming but we were starving.

Those waiters were truly hustling. This was not the night for a leisurely dinner. They kept us moving and I took the last bite of my melting cake as the muster alarm went off (at 9:30).

For us it was muster, unpack and then bed. We were exhausted. But our room had some surprises....

First - only 1 outlet in the whole room. Expected it but didn't want to believe it. And no hairdryer. Didn't see the steward until day 3 but we left a note politely asking for twice daily service and extra towels and it was taken care of each day.

And it took us a couple of days to figure out the air conditioning....its a green dial in the ceiling. No instructions just turn one way and it gets louder (and seemingly colder).

Ships horn blew and off we were around 11 pm or so and apparently the captain had to make up some time because we were flying over those waves....

More tomorrow.....I don't have fun times or dining menus but will happily answer questions.

Wow, sorry to read this. The Ecstasy was our first introduction to the love of cruising and still remains our favorite ship even after sailing with the Norwegian Sky 3 months ago. Can't wait to read the rest of your review!

We were up early since we had called it an early night the night before. I was off on a scouting mission to just walk around the ship - something we hadn't even done the night before.

No line at the coffee shop for my chai tea. Expected breakfast pastries there but they only had a couple of croissants - this continued to be the case for the trip - aside from the extra cost desserts in the afternoon/evening.

Then I tried to find the Serenity deck - we are moms without kids this week and we had planned to make this our home. I made laps around that ship before I finally discovered it. Go through the lovely new alchemy bar, go through the starlight lounge and out a sliding door. Disappointment when we realized there was no bar on the Serenity. But its just above at the back of the buffet. Bar waiters were few and far between and only occasionally would make the trip throughout the week. It really was more serve yourself.

Seas were pretty rough, huge swells and the wind was up so this was a cold day (many folks were taking sea sickness meds) and honestly I did not pack well. I really wish I had packed warmer clothes (ie - pants, and long sleeves) for the two sea days. I'd done a NYE cruise to the same ports years ago and it was hot. This was not.

Off to the seaday brunch - huevos rancheros were excellent. Quick service. Then back to Serenity. We wrapped ourselves in towels and made the best of it. None of the hot tubs or pools were filled and open this day. I tried to grab a drink upstairs for my friend but walking down the outside stairs with the swells with 2 drinks was nearly impossible.

For lunch we tried the new Blue Iguana Cantina. Right next to the new Guys (Where everyone else was) outside at the back of the pool deck. One line for tacos and one line for Burritos. Fun fact - guacamole is available on the burritos but not at the salsa bar. So get a taco and ask that they add some guac. Loved the tacos. Ate here all week. Took a turn through the buffet each day just to look but roast turkey and heavy things aren't a big draw. They set up a small dessert station between guys and blue iguana which was nice. The line at the pizza station and sandwich grill was just too long (and the tacos too good).

More reading on serenity. Still pretty cold in the afternoon. We didn't come to play trivia or participate in many activities - its more about the relaxing.

Elegant night. We started at the Alchemy Bar as we did every night. Gorgeous and cocktails could not be beat. Don't love their menu? - just tell them what you are in the mood for. However it must be a martini like drink...no beer, no wine served and nothing frozen. The bar itself almost looked out of place it was so updated and fresh and current as compared to the "orange 90s motif" around the ship.

Arrived for Anytime dining at 7:30 to a 30-45 min wait. We told the hostess that we'd be happy to share a table and were seated in 10 min with 2 other couples. I enjoy meeting new folks and we met up with one of the couples a few times throughout. On all the other ships I've been on - including some of the older RCL ships - the dining room has a grand feel with raised ceilings, big windows etc. This felt more like a Golden Corral.

The food was good, nothing I'd rave about but good cruise ship food. Desserts were what was the disappointment. I ate a lot of melting cake during the week and it was good but the other selections were just eh. I'm allergic to nuts so that knocked out a few for me. And everything else seemed to be pudding or a dark colored heavily gelatined pie (blueberry, blackberry - all looked the same every night).

In the evening - we started noticing something. The smoke was starting to build up. Everywhere. This was a cruise for smokers. I haven't seen that many people smoking in more than 10 years (and not e-cigs). The casino was a fog and due to the ship design, you couldn't walk down the promenade without feeling like you had smoked a pack a day. Half of one of the bars on this deck allowed smoking which was comical because it went everywhere. And I really wanted to dance one night in the nightclub but it was a closed-in space that allowed smoking and my throat started burning as soon as I walked in. Every night my hair smelled of smoke.

As the week wore on - the smoke smell was thick in the midship elevators (next to the casino) and started permeating down the cabin halls.

Unfortunately - this is a big reason I won't sail on this ship again.

A comedy show, a production show, a drink or two rounded out the night. And we were rocked to sleep. Remember those swells? Still going strong.

Doesn't sound like you had the best Ecstasy cruise so far! WE LOVE ECSTASY! She was one of our first cruises and I just cruised with my daughters for the

5th time in September. My husband and I have cruised as big as Breeze and NCL Breakaway and I'll still take Ecstasy anyday. We had a wonderful cruise out of Charleston in September and out of the 20+ cruises I have been on with Carnival the other passengers on this ship were hands down the nicest people I ever cruised with! Yeah, Charleston! Yeah, the south:)

Hope it got better!

I told hubby after Vista in November we are booking Ecstasy next spring now they she has Alchemy:D

We woke up in Nassau to sunny clear skies and warmth! Wahoo!

A quick trip up to the Blue Iguana for a breakfast burrito and then we were quickly off the ship and headed to the British Colonial Hilton. It was a nice easy beach day. Probably more of a 20 min walk by the time you get off the ship (and dependent on where you are parked) but easy nonetheless. The seating options were fantastic! Hammocks, loungers, daybeds, wicker loveseats, shade. We were there about 9:30 and had the place to ourselves. And they extended free wifi since we have HHonors status.

Bar service started around 11 and my $40 credit with purchase got me one Bahama mama, one coke and a chicken sandwich and 4 slightly cold steak fries. Food was good though.

Pool water was cool but swimmable but the ocean water was cold (though I got in up to my knees). Some folks we met on the ship went to do snuba through the ship and said the water was fine for that but at the beach it was colder. I wish there was a hot tub but wasn't.

Stayed there until 2 when it was significantly more crowded from all the ships coming in and the quiet had ceased, shopped on the way back and on board in time to watch dozens of folks slowly walk on to the ship well after the 4:30 all aboard.

We had our evening Alchemy bar stop, dinner - no line for any time tonight at 7:30. And I believe we did the show. We caught most of the shows - all were good. Royal Caribbean still steals the spotlight for near Broadway productions, IMO, but these were entertaining and plenty of room to sit (in the balcony) if you don't like to get there early.

This was my first time doing anytime dining and I did like it. Service was still fantastic. I think it depends on what kind of group you are going with. When I'm with my kids, I still prefer traditional but as a solo I like anytime. My friend and I often joined a table if there was a line and I think with more than 2 that could be difficult.

Do you recall the shows? Just wondering if they've changed since we were on the Ecstasy last year...which were the same shows as the Fantasy in 2014...

We'll be on the Ecstasy this Saturday. Can't wait.

One thing I still talk about regarding our cruise on the Ecstasy last year was the food. Some of the best food I've had period - let alone on a cruise ship. Even though the menus were substantially the same as the Fantasy a few years prior! Glad to hear the Ecstasy still has a fantastic food crew.

Love the reviews on here! Was the hot tub and pool filled up while you was on cruise? We're going end of February, can't wait! :)

Thanks for the review.

Enjoying your review. Following.

I wish our experience was much better on this cruise - I'll share it soon. I've also been waiting to see if Carnival is going to do the right thing and comp us more then $15 for the first day.

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Thank you for sharing your trip.

I had the same smoke experience on the Breeze, won't keep me from sailing the Breeze again just would like some better smoke control.

Hi apexgal, we were on this cruise with you. I have to agree the 5+ hour wait to get on board was a bit much. We also saw officers clearing tables on the Lido. Our room steward was stretched too thin, and we barely saw him. No towel animals, ever. We were never asked about once or twice room cleaning. I think it was twice maybe one day out of the five. He didn't know our names either.

You are correct about the smoke being strong. We tried to sit near the casino bar, but had to move, the smell was so overwhelming. We found the food to be adequate, but nothing special. Guys and Blue Iguana were welcomed additions, as well as Alchemy, it is beautiful.

Overall, we had a relaxing time. It was good to get away in January. Was it our favorite cruise ever? Not by a long shot. We didn't care for the Ecstasy, but will probably sail from Charleston on another ship, if it's available when we want to cruise.

Waiting to hear about the rest of your adventure. Have to agree with your assessment so far. It's spot on with ours.

A couple of comments and I'll post the next installment hopefully tonight.

They did fill the pool and hot tub on day 2 but i never saw an adult in the pool - frigid! The hot tubs were fine if you could handle a strong cool breeze when you got out - a shock to the system.

We saw the Motown show motor city - my favorite. The brits show which was good. No idea if they even did a welcome

Aboard show as communication was comical that first day. And they had hasbro one night and one afternoon as well.

We asked guest services for half of one day of cheers refund. $25. That seemed fair since we didn't get on the boat til 8 and spent an hour mustering. The only truly rude person we encountered was the guest services person who said they had already extended $15 (for lunch) and that would be it and they had extended the bar hours that night to compensate - which even if we had been interested - we never would have known because there was zero communication!

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We had held off on plans for Freeport until we judged Nassau. We weren't there for wild excursions. We just wanted a nice place to read and relax. Nassau was warm but the ocean and pool were cool and Freeport was supposed to be about 10 degrees cooler, so we opted not to do another all inclusive in Freeport but rather stay on the ship. Apparently we weren't the only one - about half the ship stayed on board.

This was the only day we saw the serenity deck full in the early morning but I was still able to nab 2 perfect spots under an umbrella at 9:30. Unfortunately by lunch, we just couldn't take the strong cold breeze (despite the full sun) anymore and we had to relocate to the more sheltered Lido. These are the tough decisions of vacation.

And then things took a turn for the irritating. Apparently dry dock wasn't complete and they added a boat load of workers. Understandable. But apparently they thought it would be a good idea to close the tequila bar and paint the walls of the ship around the pool deck. Industrial ship paint has some serious fumes. The workers had masks - but we did not. There had to be better times for painting in primary areas.

We stepped off the ship for a bit and then came back to shower. But wait - we had no hot water! And then the toilet stopped flushing. We called our steward but they weren't answering. We tried guest services but they weren't answering. At one point I heard an officer in the hallway with workers and stepped out to ask what was happening. They stared at me and walked the other way.

By now it was getting close to dinner - it had been about 2 hours and we still knew nothing - so I headed up to the spa to shower. The only person who could tell me what was happened was the ladies room spa attendant and only because there was a line of about 6-8 ladies waiting for the 2 showers. Seeing my irritated face, she immediately asked if I was from the 4th floor. Yup. Bring your own washcloth tho because they only supply towels.

I've been on other ships where the water had to be turned off, I get it. Ships have to be maintained. Those ships slipped a sheet of paper under my door to let me know when to avoid the shower. We got nothing. We learned later they had to drain the entire floor's pipes and reroute it which caused the lack of hot water. But after that the toilet water was no longer light brown!

Alchemy bar for stop 1. Amazing. Then dinner. Good but nothing that stood out.

This was country night which, given the home port, was a lot of fun as a lot of folks really livened the scene. Some good name that song trivia, then we listened to the band on board which was fantastic - I wish we had discovered them sooner (or perhaps they just got on in Freeport). We had planned to dance this night but as I said earlier the smoke was too thick.

So we had to settle for a chocolate martini in Alchemy to close out our evening. The things we have to do on vacation...

The big issue was the lack of communication from Carnival on this ship. Yes, we realize they can't make loud announcements in Charleston - but after arriving at the designated 5 hours late and they still weren't ready to take on passengers, they owe us an explanation and information on when we will board. Once boarded, when we are told we are taking off at 8 - and know that we must muster before then, they have to provide us some information on whether or not we can do dinner before or after the muster. When the pool isn't full, they should explain to us if the pool is going to be available to us during the cruise.

Carnival really failed on the communication except for the small amount of compensation they provided us. After we get a chance to talk with them in regards to that I will post a full review here, and elsewhere - of the ship, the staff, and the vacation.

After reading reviews, I have leaned never to cruise right after a dry dock. We cruised three cruises after a dry dock on the Freedom a few months ago. That was still to cutting it to close as a good bit of work was still being done. A month is now the soonest that we will consider cruising after a dry dock.

Wow! In November we are also cruising on a ship after a scheduled late February dry-dock (Sensation) in November. Surely things will be "settled" by then...

Following your review...we will be on the Ecstasy in March. Do you remember who your CD was?

Benjamin was the cd. He was great!

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Sometimes a crummy last day is just what you need to prepare you to come home. In that vain - Day 5 did not disappoint.

We woke up to a rainy cold day with rough seas. We were in pants, and sweatshirts and the boat had the air conditioning cranking! It was freezing everywhere on the ship. There was plenty of trivia and bingo and Hasbro in the mid-afternoon. It might have been nice if they added a movie in the starlight lounge (They had already played 2 one evening), but this ship did not excel in "alternate plans" when things weren't sunny and on time.

We huddled under blankets most of the day and finished up our books and packed early.

Late afternoon, our heaving rolling turned into hard rocking. The good news is - not as many folks made the final farewell dinner and we were quickly sat at a table for 6 with 2 other couples - probably our best dinner companions with the worst food. At one point we were watching our water slosh back and forth in the glasses.

Prime rib made an appearance on the menu as did Onion Soup, which was welcome given the chilly evening. The prime rib tasted like leftovers. Though the first night of it was fairly good. No one seemed to be pleased with their food this night.

After dinner we headed to the show which was a guest talent show - basically a version of bad karaoke. We stayed only to watch a few - and were laughing watching the curtain sway back and forth on stage with the ship.

We called it an early night as we weren't motion sick but didn't want any more cocktails to chance that.

We opted to do self carry. We got #25 and knew that we didn't want to wait that long to be called. We were up at 7. A quick stop in the lounge to pick up my rum (no line) and we walked off at 7:30. Hardly a line. It was 8:08 when I buckled my seatbelt after walking to the car. We opted not to have breakfast on the ship as we were ready for home.

A few overall thoughts -

I doubt I would do faster to the fun from Charleston. The only time it would have come into play would have been in the security line. By that point - those 30 minutes were nothing.

I doubt I would buy cheers again. Yes, I like the convenience and I'd easily buy it again on Celebrity, where wine flows like water. But the bar waiters on Carnival just don't come around enough for you to have more than 1 glass at dinner. And given Carnival's lack of compensation for my half a day, they more than made money on me. Rocky seas also lessoned my consumption.

I would sail out of Charleston. Such a friendly port - when the ship isn't coming out of dry dock but definitely not Ecstasy. And the main reason for that was the overwhelming smoke.

Would I sail Carnival again - probably but the ship would have to have a Blue Iguana Cantina and Alchemy Bar. I was hooked on those tacos. Tho the Guys burgers were excellent. And they really do excel at having lots of "fun" entertainment options. I'll just more carefully check the status of the smoking section.

You would love the Liberty. Sorry your experience on Ecstasy was not that good. We will be sailing her in March and I'm hoping it will be warmer and smoother seas. After reading your review I will certainly take a sweatshirt!

Thank you for sharing your experiences.

We are sailing on this ship end of February the 28th so hope it's better then. When we sailed on ship before we never had bad experience at all. We didn't go to casino so I know smoke is bad there. :cool:

Too bad you didn't enjoy your Liberty cruise. Hope the other Carnival ships can meet your expectations.

Thank you for your review.