Carnival Fantasy Oct 21-26 Review

We recently returned from the October 21-26 Carnival Fantasy from Mobile. Our original itinerary was to Progreso and Cozumel. Due to a medical emergency the first night which caused us to return to Mobile, Progreso was cancelled and Cozumel was extended to an overnight stay. We were pleasantly surprised by Carnival giving us 20% of the value of that cruise off our next cruise taken prior to April 2019. Not something they needed to do but great for customer service.

A bit about ourselves. This was DH and my 17th cruise, 10th one on Carnival. We are both 51. Our last cruise was a month ago on NCL Escape, which was the best cruise we have taken in our opinion. We had greatly different expectations for sailing Carnival’s oldest and smallest ship than we did for our NCL Escape cruise. We decided to go on this cruise after searching for something to do for our 29th anniversary which was on the 21st. When looking on Carnival I saw I was getting a Casino offer which I have never seen before. I found this 5-day cruise on our anniversary in a Port Hole room for $619 total for the 2 of us. Since I had Carnival Gift Cards that I had purchased for 10-15% off on top of that, this was a deal we couldn’t pass up. I booked and paid for the cruise and our gratuities with the gift cards. We decided to rent a car and drive to the port (15 hours from our home in Michigan). We used my Hilton Honors account and stayed in Hampton Inns in Indianapolis (on the way down), Mobile(park and cruise package), and Franklin, TN (on the way back). All were good stays.

We got to the port around 10:45 and were in group 1. Embarkation was quick and easy.

Food: I have never been a fan of Carnival’s buffet and still am not. I have a hard time finding anything that interests me and somehow I think their deserts got worse. I did like the omelets, pizza, and fried shrimp on there. DH liked the Turkey Sandwich from the Deli and the burgers at guys. I have better luck in the MDR. They always have the pork chops that I like there if nothing else looks good to me. As always the food in the MDR was consistently good and the service was great except for a waitress who forgot we were there at the Sea Day Brunch.

Room: We had room M30 which is a port hole room. This was our first port hole room and I think this will be our last room without at least a balcony. I have become spoiled…especially since the last room we had on the Escape was a large angled balcony with a lounger. DH had a pinched nerve in his shoulder for all of our trip and the only time he wasn’t in pain was when he was lying down which meant he spent a lot of time in our room….which he keeps at a temp which is much too cold for me. This wouldn’t have been an issue if I had a nice balcony to go out onto. But we didn’t. I’m not a big Lido fan and the small Serenity deck was packed when it wasn’t raining. Consequently,I spent much more time in the casino on this trip than I normally do. Our room steward was great. He kept our cooler filled with ice which was nice since there were no refrigerators on the Fantasy.

Entertainment: We were on the Carnival Sunshine last year and saw the Playlist Productions for the first time. Fantasy had the same shows we saw on Sunshine. We saw Motown and the Brits and thought they were much better than when we saw them on the Sunshine. Mikey was a great CD. He had all the floors in the Atrium having a blast with the 70’s and 80’s parties after the shows. Due to DH’s shoulder we skipped the Country show. We tried 2x to see the comedians but both times it was standing room only by the time we got there so we left. Like I said earlier I spent a lot of time in the Casino while DH nursed his sore shoulder. Luckily, I spent most of that time winning. I played the slots for so long that I ended up with free drinks the last day which I have never come close to doing before. I ended up ahead of the game by $60 at the end of the cruise and went and bought myself a new Tanzanite ring with my winnings.

We arrived at Cozumel at 8 pm. We got off briefly and did a little shopping. We had planned to take a taxi to Paradise Beach the next day. Unfortunately it rained all day the next day. We ended up spending some time in the empty Serenity Deck enjoying the hot tubs as it rained. There was a slight overhang over the hot tub so we could sit in it without out drowning our faces. DH said it felt good on his shoulder so the rain may have been a good thing for us.

Over all, despite DH’s painful shoulder, we had a great time especially for the price the we paid. The ship was really rocky. DH and I are not prone to sea sickness but we did talk to a lot of people who were having issues with it. It did take me a few days to get my land legs back. There were quite a few characters on this ship. Most were from the South and they were a real friendly, laid back bunch. We got quite the laugh from the much, much older lady who had way too much to drink and had backed my DH into the corner of the elevator telling me I had to “learn to share” as she backed up against him. The look on his face was priceless…and it was a packed elevator to boot. Some memories will never be forgotten.

Appreciate the feedback. Really hard to get used to a balcony. But I too won’t pass on a great deal you got!

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Enjoyed your review.

Keith

Thanks for the report.

enjoyed your review of the fantasy trip.again thanks.

Thanks for the review.

Thanks for your review, we are sailing on her next year in a porthole, but i love porthole cabins, I can sail twice a year, if it was a balcony it would only be once a year. And trust me I need my vacations. I am sorry about your hubby's sore shoulder-I hope he is better now. And that you had a safe trip home.

Thank you for the review.

Thanks for your review, we are sailing on her next year in a porthole, but i love porthole cabins, I can sail twice a year, if it was a balcony it would only be once a year. And trust me I need my vacations. I am sorry about your hubby's sore shoulder-I hope he is better now. And that you had a safe trip home.

I think if it was back in the day when we had our kids with us and we didn't spend as much time in the room I wouldn't have minded it, just like I didn't mind the insides back then. But now that it is just DH and myself, I find that I love having the balcony. DH likes to take an afternoon nap on our cruises. Something about a ship just makes him sleepy in the middle of the day. I love being able to go out on our own balcony, close by him while he is snoozing, and just let the ocean relax me. It was really bad on this cruise since the only time his shoulder didn't hurt was when he was lying down so he spent even more time in the cabin. It would have been great if I had had the balcony option then. We made it home but it was a very painful journey for him. Still trying to talk him into seeing a doctor...stubborn man.

Great information, thank you! We are heading out at the end of next month. Quick question about something you said in your notes. There are no refrigerators in the rooms. So, if I order some bottled waters to be in our room, how do I cool them? Will I be able to get a cup of ice anywhere? Can I buy a cooler onboard? We are flying in, so bringing one would be difficult unless it is softsided. Apologies for rambling, just getting down to logistics and only second cruise in 10 years. Thanks in advance for any advice!

Thanks for your review! We are sailing this Saturday. Does Fantasy have hair dryers? Or do I need to pack one?

Thank you!

We were on the fantasy halloween and our room didnt have hair dryers. I would take one with you.

Great information, thank you! We are heading out at the end of next month. Quick question about something you said in your notes. There are no refrigerators in the rooms. So, if I order some bottled waters to be in our room, how do I cool them? Will I be able to get a cup of ice anywhere? Can I buy a cooler onboard? We are flying in, so bringing one would be difficult unless it is softsided. Apologies for rambling, just getting down to logistics and only second cruise in 10 years. Thanks in advance for any advice!

Your cabin steward will keep an ice bucket filled if you ask. You can also go to the Lido for ice, but I'd start with a request to your steward.

Perfect, thank you!!

Great information, thank you! We are heading out at the end of next month. Quick question about something you said in your notes. There are no refrigerators in the rooms. So, if I order some bottled waters to be in our room, how do I cool them? Will I be able to get a cup of ice anywhere? Can I buy a cooler onboard? We are flying in, so bringing one would be difficult unless it is softsided. Apologies for rambling, just getting down to logistics and only second cruise in 10 years. Thanks in advance for any advice!

We brought a small collapsible cooler that the room steward kept filled with ice for us.

Thanks for your review! We are sailing this Saturday. Does Fantasy have hair dryers? Or do I need to pack one?

Thank you!

No hair dryer. I brought mine with me.

The room stewards all have hair dryers. Just ask and they will get you one. Coolers cannot be bigger than 12"x12"x12'. They do have coolers available in the funshop to purchase. I have never had a problem keeping items cold in our room. The stewards are great at icing them every day.

No hair dryer. I brought mine with me.

Thank you so much! We will pack one! Better have it and not need it, than need it and not have it :D

We brought a small collapsible cooler that the room steward kept filled with ice for us.

Thanks!!