Just got off the Fascination - Review of boat and itinerary

This was my third Carnival Cruise. I've always wanted to do this itinerary. My very first cruise was supposed to be the ol' Key West, Cozumel, St Kitts, St Maarten, St Lucia, and St Thomas, but we never went. I had been watching the latest version of the big southern carribean itinerary, and couldn't crunch the numbers to make it work. As I continued to watch it, we came across a screaming deal, I had to book it.

The Itinerary

San Juan - Stayed at the Intercontinental Hotel in Isla Verde. Beautiful hotel. Beach was fine, but comparing to most of other beaches on this cruise, it took a back seat. Rented a car and went to El Yunque for a little. Some of the trails were closed. The welcome center was closed. Lots of potholes. Still got some good pictures, and it was fun. That was my first ever rainforest trip. I was going to go to the one in Dominica instead, but that port got changed.

St Thomas/St. John - I honestly don't remember a ton about St Thomas for two reasons. First, it was the first port of 6, secondly, we went to Trunk Bay on St. John. It is quite the effort to get there, and pretty costly. There was no entrance fee, so there's that. No concessions either. It was easily my favorite beach on this vacation. The sand and water were beautiful. Even when it got "busy," it was still calm. We were the only cruise ship in the port. I did the snorkeling trail, and saw some beautiful corals, fish, and sea urchins. Also got some great pictures. That island lived up to the hype. St John is very laid-back, and very well-preserved.

Antigua - I have to admit I was a bit bummed when I first heard about this itinerary change. We were originally supposed to go to Dominica. I think maybe even the first ship to return. We went to valley church beach. Another gorgeous beach. Getting there was quite a long drive, and not as many great sights to see. On that beach was my first experience with Jerk Chicken. I probably had it 4 more times on the the cruise.

Barbados - Went to Carlisle Bay at the Harbor Lights beachfront restaurant. They had a nice facility there. They were charging $20 per person to get a lounger, umbrella, and boat ride with snorkeling. I wasn't planning on doing that this vacation, but for the price, I couldnt say no. We did not have to travel far. The shipwreck had lots of colorful fish, and the crew fed them so they came up. Another super short trip and we found turtles and sting rays. Again, the crew brought them near us, and were very friendly. Highly recommended! Walked through downtown after.

St. Lucia - For as frugal as I can get on my vacations, a Sandals day pass is always worth every penny to me. I couldn't decide which island I wanted to visit Sandals this time. Barbados was too much money. Antigua was a close choice, but we had less time at that port. St Lucia had 3 of them. From everything I read, the Grand was the best spot, but the furthest. We found the local bus and got taken up north for $2.50 a person, and walked the rest. It was a great time there. All you can eat and drink for $105 a person in a nice, exclusive space. Still though, the Sandals in Nassau is my favorite.

St. Kitts - Went to Cockleshell Beach. Wasn't my favorite beach. However, something about it and the island itself just had a different (positive)vibe to them that is tough to explain. I look forward to returning to this island again. Got to load up on $1 local beers at a gift shop before heading out, which was great. I wanted to see the monkeys in the wild, but ran out of time.

St. Maarten - They weren't lying when they said this one was still feeling the hurricane. Lots of damage everywhere. Went to Maho Beach. When I first got there, I was extremely unimpressed with it, it looked nothing like the pictures. Very small. Boy am I glad I gave it a chance. The waves were the biggest I have ever seen. They were quite fun. On a trip with so many beaches, this one gave you something different, the airport! It was cool seeing a giant plane fly at you. It was also fun to do the infamous stance behind the jet engines. Overall though, I didn't get that same feeling on this island as I did on some of the others.

Now for the boat. I must admit, when I first heard about the fantasy class, I wanted nothing to do with them. Older and smaller ships couldn't have sounded any less appealing. Overall, I really enjoyed the boat. We stayed in Deck 6 aft, and it was a great location! Everything was only about 3-4 flights staight up. Didn't have to walk crazy distances to get to anything. The Serenity area wasn't too special, but did the job. I really liked the one on the Liberty. More of the larger beds, more room, more everything. The Punchliner experience was also so much better. Percy Crews was great! Didn't have to wait outside 30 minutes before anymore. You could walk in every night at show start time, and get a decent seat. It had the Thirsty Frog self-pouring beer station which is always welcome. I finally tried Alchemy. Great cocktails! Service was great. I loved the boat more than I thought I would.

Now my biggest complaints of the boat

1.) No fridge: I really didn't like that. I'm not one to complain about the fridges they do give you sometimes. They aren't like being in the arctic, but they do the job. It was annoying trying to enjoy cold coke or wine in my room. The tiny ice buckets didn't cut it.

2.) The lido pool deck: it was the lone layout that I absolutely HATED on this boat. The stage is too big and awkwardly placed. I love the stadium-styled seating of the other boats. This one was a big miss.

3.) Lack of dive-in movies: I love these! Out of all of the places I have watched movies, nothing beats out on the open sea. I didn't realize how much I missed them until they were gone. They had a few movies in the Punchliner in the afternoon. Not even close to the same.

4.) The internet: Purchased the social package. I understand slow. This was unusable.

I had originally bought FTTF for the first time. I got it under the old price. I still cancelled it. It literally served zero purpose to me. I don't see the fuss. You can debate Cheers all you want, however I believe for this itinerary it a collosal waste unless you are not going into port. There were no sea days. I'm not trying to suck down mimosas at breakfast and wine at dinner to tell everyone I feel like I got my money's worth. I think it would have been nice if there was a sea day or 2 (no more!) Lots of people said they would make their own, but that's tough to do when you have to opportunity to walk an island you may have never seen, or may never see again. First world problems, I suppose.

For the food, I always enjoy the offerings. Out of everything, my favorites are Guy's and Blue Iguana. When I heard the Fascination was getting those, it made the choice easier. I had one too many of the breakfast burritos. However, it can be tough to squeeze on those two for lunch, especially Blue Iguana. The MDR was fine. Some dishes were better than others. I had the prime rib (twice), lobster, flat iron steak, braised short ribs, filet/short rib combo and a few others. The service was really good. We always enjoy the MDR. I was going to upgrade one of the last meals to a filet/lobster, but didn't really feel the need to at that point.

Overall, what a vacation! You can knock Carnival all you want, knock the Carribean all you want. To be able to see and do everything that we did for around $1000 total pp, you can't beat that. If I had to do it all over again, I wouldn't change much. What I would change though is avoiding the port taxis. Those fees kill you. If you go just right outside of the port, there is always a cheaper taxi. If you can take the local bus, even better. The buses are dirt cheap.

Are there bigger, newer, and more cutting-edge ships? Absolutely! For me, I got everything I needed out of this vacation. Why spend double or triple on the cruise fare? Am I really getting double the experience? Because I wouldn't be doing double the vacations if I was spending extra on pointless things. See you again later this year Carnival. Next time, I head to Half Moon. Very excited!

Thank you for your honest review. I have been considering this ship for the ports...

How was the stability / motion? I get seasick and wore the patch on the Magic with 0 issues, but I worry on an older ship it might not work?

we went to Trunk Bay on St. John. It is quite the effort to get there, and pretty costly.

Thanks so much for the review!

Why do you say it was pretty costly? I know there is taxi fare both ways, and the ferry has a cost too. Was there anything else?

We are considering renting a car on St. John. Did you do that? If not, how did you get around?

Thank you for your honest review. I have been considering this ship for the ports...

 

How was the stability / motion? I get seasick and wore the patch on the Magic with 0 issues, but I worry on an older ship it might not work?

This was my third cruise. I felt this one more than the Liberty and Victory. It wasn't every minute of every day, but I believe it was more. My girlfriend who sometimes gets motion sickness never got sick.

Thanks so much for the review!

 

Why do you say it was pretty costly? I know there is taxi fare both ways, and the ferry has a cost too. Was there anything else?

 

We are considering renting a car on St. John. Did you do that? If not, how did you get around?

It was $20 each person RT to get to the ferry by taxi. $16 each person FT for the ferry. $12 each person RT for the taxi to Trunk. $48 pp in transportation. It they charge admission, it is $5 more.

A rental car for St. John is a tough call on a port day that originated in St. Thomas. If you want to do some quick sight-seeing, I would say go for it. The island is gorgeous. Some of the pictures I got are the best. However, if you're stopping at a beach like I did, you will not have enough time to enjoy the car. Just to get to St. John took over an hour. We did the $12 RT taxi between Cruz Bay and Trunk Bay. Then we walked around Cruz Bay when we were done. I probably could have left a pinch earlier in the morning. However, we ran out of time really fast.

Thanks for your review. I found lower fares for solo cruising on Celebrity Summit a few years ago, once in December and once in January. I realize Carnival has the rep for budget pricing, but it is not true that other lines are 2 or 3 times the cost.

I found it pays to comparision shop.

Another thing I forgot to mention was the "cutbacks". Or lack of. I actually was interested in trying to new deli options because of the expanded menu. Still the old. The late night snacks were now a thing that wasn't there before. From 11:30-1, you could get a buffalo chicken sandwhich, ham sandwhich, hot dog with chili or sauerkraut, cookies, and sometimes fries. Lobster night was still here. I had one and it was very good. Yes it is small, but you can get a second. However, I paired it with a prime rib. Like I mentioned before, I also got filet mignon for free. The wait staff was great. My room always got cleaned on time. The boat was clean. Not sure where I was supposed to be angry. I'm sure someone will tell me.

Thanks for your review. I found lower fares for solo cruising on Celebrity Summit a few years ago, once in December and once in January. I realize Carnival has the rep for budget pricing, but it is not true that other lines are 2 or 3 times the cost.

 

I found it pays to comparision shop.

I got this fare for $355 a person for upper/lower (taxes and port fees included) after a VIFP offer and AMEX $100 off. I also got a $50 OBC. Like I said previously, this was a deal I couldn't pass. Even a month prior when I was watching it, that same room was about $600 pp which still isn't terrible.

Great review! I will be on Fascination July 4th (leaving from Barbados)! I agree, for what you get, you just can't beat the price. You now have me looking forward to trying Guys and Iguana!

Great review! I will be on Fascination July 4th (leaving from Barbados)! I agree, for what you get, you just can't beat the price. You now have me looking forward to trying Guys and Iguana!

This time I finally combined the guac and pico from Blue Iguana to my Guy's burger. Good stuff!

Great review and thanks for all the details. You are making me consider flying to PR, spend a night or 3 in old San Juan and sail from there. Sounds like a wonderful experience and amazing value! Glad you enjoyed!

We have been on this itinerary out of San Juan twice....once on the Liberty and once on the Fascination, balcony cabins on both (we did go to Dominica, it not Antigua) and absolutely loved it. We especially liked the Fascination. Would so like to do this itinerary again! We love old San Juan as a port!

Sent from my iPad using Forums

We've done this itinerary twice before also. It's just fantastic to wake up to a different scenery every day. Nothing like it.

Still worried about Dominica. They seem to be having a rough time. Hopefully Carnival will keep the scheduled port calls since that economy really needs a shot in the arm.

Headed out on Saturday. Really looking forward to this itinerary. Thanks for the straight up honest review. Got two Ocean view cabins for $373.00pp. Couldn't pass on it and after 13 cruises have never been to most ports!

Great review and thanks for all the details. You are making me consider flying to PR, spend a night or 3 in old San Juan and sail from there. Sounds like a wonderful experience and amazing value! Glad you enjoyed!

I probably won't fly into San Juan often going forward. The flights are long and expensive. However, in the grand scheme of things, it balanced out in the end with a cheaper cruise price. Although, I will be back for this itinerary one day :)

Thank you for your honest review. I have been considering this ship for the ports...

 

How was the stability / motion? I get seasick and wore the patch on the Magic with 0 issues, but I worry on an older ship it might not work?

We sailed on Fascination last year and actually took our patches off mid week because they had caused our eyes to dilate so we couldn't read anything and the dry mouth was horrible! The only movement we felt was pulling into port each morning. I think it was mainly when the ship was backing in. The whole ship would shake and make a lot of noise. This lasted probably about 20 minutes or so. It was my wake-up call which was okay with me because we had a balcony so I would just go outside to watch. I've done this itinerary twice. Once on Valor and once on Fascination. Love it!

Thank you for your honest review. I have been considering this ship for the ports...

 

How was the stability / motion? I get seasick and wore the patch on the Magic with 0 issues, but I worry on an older ship it might not work?

Having done this (except for the drop at Antigua) itinerary three times on two different types of ships (Conquest and Fantasy-class) I can say that motion varies but the most noticeable times are the first and last nights. This happens while you are sailing through Atlantic waters on your way to St. Thomas (or whatever islands you visit first) and after you cross the passage between Culebra an PR on the way back. Caribbean Sea waters are usually much calmer and the ship doesn't rock as much.

I have cruised during summer and Autumn seasons. Sea conditions are usually rougher during winter and early spring.

This itinerary was my first ever cruise. There was one night, on the way to Barbados, where the ship was rocking and rolling out in the Atlantic.

Barbados is so far East that you get hit by the full force of the ocean. Most of the Caribbean is pretty tame but if there's going to be any queasy night, that will be it.

Thanks for the review.

So glad you had a great experience. I am somewhat worried of stepping off of the brand new MSC Seaview in August and being disappointed with the Fascination in December, but based on what you're saying, it may in fact be a positive change: enjoying a smaller, more intimate ship, still with everything I enjoy/value. I'm glad you enjoyed the islands as well. Thanks for writing this! :D

Great review! We sail on her in September. I can't wait. Though no sea days is a little daunting.

Great review! We sail on her in September. I can't wait. Though no sea days is a little daunting.

It was a lot! You can always "make" your own sea day. It was tough to sacrifice a port. I could have sworn they aren't doing the 6 stops on this route anymore. I thought they cut out the Dominica/Antigua stop?

So glad you had a great experience. I am somewhat worried of stepping off of the brand new MSC Seaview in August and being disappointed with the Fascination in December, but based on what you're saying, it may in fact be a positive change: enjoying a smaller, more intimate ship, still with everything I enjoy/value. I'm glad you enjoyed the islands as well. Thanks for writing this! :D

It's tough to say. The Fascination definitely isn't the most cutting-edge ship. However, you spend so little time on the boat with such a crazy itinerary. I'll be honest, when I first stepped foot on the boat, and after a few hours, I was worried. Something didn't feel right. I didn't think I was going to enjoy this cruise. In the end, the ship ended up exceeding my expectations. The itinerary was fantastic. It was a great vacation that I plan on doing again. Most people I have talked to seem to want to do this itinerary again as well.

It was a lot! You can always "make" your own sea day. It was tough to sacrifice a port. I could have sworn they aren't doing the 6 stops on this route anymore. I thought they cut out the Dominica/Antigua stop?

 

 

 

 

It's tough to say. The Fascination definitely isn't the most cutting-edge ship. However, you spend so little time on the boat with such a crazy itinerary. I'll be honest, when I first stepped foot on the boat, and after a few hours, I was worried. Something didn't feel right. I didn't think I was going to enjoy this cruise. In the end, the ship ended up exceeding my expectations. The itinerary was fantastic. It was a great vacation that I plan on doing again. Most people I have talked to seem to want to do this itinerary again as well.

Yes, I see that. I too have done this itinerary before, this will be my second time doing it. The first was onboard the Carnival Liberty in March 2015. You're very right about not spending too much time on the ship. The Liberty at the time was the most beautiful ship I'd ever been on (MSC Divina has since passed it, sorry Liberty!) and I remember feeling somewhat happy St.Kitts was cancelled on my cruise, because with 4 ports and 2 sea days, I got to enjoy the ship much more. But it is a very attractive itinerary, definitely one of Carnival's best. I think it's a great value for money and visits so many beautiful islands that the ship doesn't really need to matter, since most people spend so much time off of the boat. I know even doing this itinerary as a repeat, I will certainly spend every port day off of the ship for the most part.

This was my third Carnival Cruise. I've always wanted to do this itinerary. My very first cruise was supposed to be the ol' Key West, Cozumel, St Kitts, St Maarten, St Lucia, and St Thomas, but we never went. I had been watching the latest version of the big southern carribean itinerary, and couldn't crunch the numbers to make it work. As I continued to watch it, we came across a screaming deal, I had to book it.

 

The Itinerary

 

San Juan - Stayed at the Intercontinental Hotel in Isla Verde. Beautiful hotel. Beach was fine, but comparing to most of other beaches on this cruise, it took a back seat. Rented a car and went to El Yunque for a little. Some of the trails were closed. The welcome center was closed. Lots of potholes. Still got some good pictures, and it was fun. That was my first ever rainforest trip. I was going to go to the one in Dominica instead, but that port got changed.

 

St Thomas/St. John - I honestly don't remember a ton about St Thomas for two reasons. First, it was the first port of 6, secondly, we went to Trunk Bay on St. John. It is quite the effort to get there, and pretty costly. There was no entrance fee, so there's that. No concessions either. It was easily my favorite beach on this vacation. The sand and water were beautiful. Even when it got "busy," it was still calm. We were the only cruise ship in the port. I did the snorkeling trail, and saw some beautiful corals, fish, and sea urchins. Also got some great pictures. That island lived up to the hype. St John is very laid-back, and very well-preserved.

 

Antigua - I have to admit I was a bit bummed when I first heard about this itinerary change. We were originally supposed to go to Dominica. I think maybe even the first ship to return. We went to valley church beach. Another gorgeous beach. Getting there was quite a long drive, and not as many great sights to see. On that beach was my first experience with Jerk Chicken. I probably had it 4 more times on the the cruise.

 

Barbados - Went to Carlisle Bay at the Harbor Lights beachfront restaurant. They had a nice facility there. They were charging $20 per person to get a lounger, umbrella, and boat ride with snorkeling. I wasn't planning on doing that this vacation, but for the price, I couldnt say no. We did not have to travel far. The shipwreck had lots of colorful fish, and the crew fed them so they came up. Another super short trip and we found turtles and sting rays. Again, the crew brought them near us, and were very friendly. Highly recommended! Walked through downtown after.

 

St. Lucia - For as frugal as I can get on my vacations, a Sandals day pass is always worth every penny to me. I couldn't decide which island I wanted to visit Sandals this time. Barbados was too much money. Antigua was a close choice, but we had less time at that port. St Lucia had 3 of them. From everything I read, the Grand was the best spot, but the furthest. We found the local bus and got taken up north for $2.50 a person, and walked the rest. It was a great time there. All you can eat and drink for $105 a person in a nice, exclusive space. Still though, the Sandals in Nassau is my favorite.

 

St. Kitts - Went to Cockleshell Beach. Wasn't my favorite beach. However, something about it and the island itself just had a different (positive)vibe to them that is tough to explain. I look forward to returning to this island again. Got to load up on $1 local beers at a gift shop before heading out, which was great. I wanted to see the monkeys in the wild, but ran out of time.

 

St. Maarten - They weren't lying when they said this one was still feeling the hurricane. Lots of damage everywhere. Went to Maho Beach. When I first got there, I was extremely unimpressed with it, it looked nothing like the pictures. Very small. Boy am I glad I gave it a chance. The waves were the biggest I have ever seen. They were quite fun. On a trip with so many beaches, this one gave you something different, the airport! It was cool seeing a giant plane fly at you. It was also fun to do the infamous stance behind the jet engines. Overall though, I didn't get that same feeling on this island as I did on some of the others.

 

Now for the boat. I must admit, when I first heard about the fantasy class, I wanted nothing to do with them. Older and smaller ships couldn't have sounded any less appealing. Overall, I really enjoyed the boat. We stayed in Deck 6 aft, and it was a great location! Everything was only about 3-4 flights staight up. Didn't have to walk crazy distances to get to anything. The Serenity area wasn't too special, but did the job. I really liked the one on the Liberty. More of the larger beds, more room, more everything. The Punchliner experience was also so much better. Percy Crews was great! Didn't have to wait outside 30 minutes before anymore. You could walk in every night at show start time, and get a decent seat. It had the Thirsty Frog self-pouring beer station which is always welcome. I finally tried Alchemy. Great cocktails! Service was great. I loved the boat more than I thought I would.

 

Now my biggest complaints of the boat

 

1.) No fridge: I really didn't like that. I'm not one to complain about the fridges they do give you sometimes. They aren't like being in the arctic, but they do the job. It was annoying trying to enjoy cold coke or wine in my room. The tiny ice buckets didn't cut it.

 

2.) The lido pool deck: it was the lone layout that I absolutely HATED on this boat. The stage is too big and awkwardly placed. I love the stadium-styled seating of the other boats. This one was a big miss.

 

3.) Lack of dive-in movies: I love these! Out of all of the places I have watched movies, nothing beats out on the open sea. I didn't realize how much I missed them until they were gone. They had a few movies in the Punchliner in the afternoon. Not even close to the same.

 

4.) The internet: Purchased the social package. I understand slow. This was unusable.

 

I had originally bought FTTF for the first time. I got it under the old price. I still cancelled it. It literally served zero purpose to me. I don't see the fuss. You can debate Cheers all you want, however I believe for this itinerary it a collosal waste unless you are not going into port. There were no sea days. I'm not trying to suck down mimosas at breakfast and wine at dinner to tell everyone I feel like I got my money's worth. I think it would have been nice if there was a sea day or 2 (no more!) Lots of people said they would make their own, but that's tough to do when you have to opportunity to walk an island you may have never seen, or may never see again. First world problems, I suppose.

 

For the food, I always enjoy the offerings. Out of everything, my favorites are Guy's and Blue Iguana. When I heard the Fascination was getting those, it made the choice easier. I had one too many of the breakfast burritos. However, it can be tough to squeeze on those two for lunch, especially Blue Iguana. The MDR was fine. Some dishes were better than others. I had the prime rib (twice), lobster, flat iron steak, braised short ribs, filet/short rib combo and a few others. The service was really good. We always enjoy the MDR. I was going to upgrade one of the last meals to a filet/lobster, but didn't really feel the need to at that point.

 

Overall, what a vacation! You can knock Carnival all you want, knock the Carribean all you want. To be able to see and do everything that we did for around $1000 total pp, you can't beat that. If I had to do it all over again, I wouldn't change much. What I would change though is avoiding the port taxis. Those fees kill you. If you go just right outside of the port, there is always a cheaper taxi. If you can take the local bus, even better. The buses are dirt cheap.

 

Are there bigger, newer, and more cutting-edge ships? Absolutely! For me, I got everything I needed out of this vacation. Why spend double or triple on the cruise fare? Am I really getting double the experience? Because I wouldn't be doing double the vacations if I was spending extra on pointless things. See you again later this year Carnival. Next time, I head to Half Moon. Very excited!

Thank you for the review. We are taking this cruise in June 2019. In the past we ordered bottled water for the room and kept in the fridge. Do you have any ideas what people are doing to keep the bottled water cold? I also came across a post that they have changed the deli menus. Was the menu changed on this cruise? We have sailed Legend and Glory and our teens loved the old deli menu. Thank you

Sent from my iPad using Forums

Thank you for the review. We are taking this cruise in June 2019. In the past we ordered bottled water for the room and kept in the fridge. Do you have any ideas what people are doing to keep the bottled water cold? I also came across a post that they have changed the deli menus. Was the menu changed on this cruise? We have sailed Legend and Glory and our teens loved the old deli menu. Thank you

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Forums

We just made sure that we had a fresh bucket of ice every morning from our cabin steward.

Thank you for the review. We are taking this cruise in June 2019. In the past we ordered bottled water for the room and kept in the fridge. Do you have any ideas what people are doing to keep the bottled water cold? I also came across a post that they have changed the deli menus. Was the menu changed on this cruise? We have sailed Legend and Glory and our teens loved the old deli menu. Thank you

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Forums

There are no fridges unless you have a suite. I asked my stewart to keep my ice bucket filled, and he did so everyday. I did not like not having a fridge though.

The deli was also the "old menu". Just a shot in the dark, but I don't think they changed it for the smaller ships because it wouldn't have made a beneficial change in labor.