First family cruise on Carnival Magic....”Fun Ship” Review

[Amalyn22]

cant wait to hear about amber cove!!!! I am going in 3 weeks on the magic as well!...thanks for the detailed review thus far!

[applegam]

Following!

[Bernardo62]

Questions about the spa....

1) Was your S&S card your key to enter the spa area?

2) Did you get 20% or 40% off on treatments in the spa?

[Dreamer115]

following along, Great review so far, we are thinking of taking a cruise on Magic (first time Carnival) next year with 12 and 14 year olds. Did you see many this age on the cruise?

[Wv2nccruiser]

We were on this cruise as well. My husband and I had a great time celebrating our 30th wedding anniversary. It was his first cruise and I was really hoping that he would like it and he did. I can't wait to go on another one soon. I love seeing your perspective of the cruise. Thanks for sharing.

[Clarea]

Nice review1

[sfs2001]

Sorry about the delay in my review! Our entire household caught a flu bug and we have been down for the count! Thankfully everyone is on the mend so I will continue on with my Magic review!

 

Monday-Amber Cove port of call

 

Today was our first port of call-Amber Cove. We had gone back and forth on whether or not to do an excursion with the kiddos. We were thinking about the dolphin one or a beach day-but the beach reviews were not that great and our daughter wasn’t old enough for the dolphin swim....so we decided to just check out the free pool area and hang around the port.

 

We got up early and ate a quick breakfast before heading out of the ship to the port. There were signs about spraying yourself with bug spray before exiting the ship and there was a station there with the bug spray so we decided to do it. Not sure what the concern was and after that port we didn’t see the bug spray stations but we figured better safe than sorry.

 

We got outside the ship and took a semi long walk around the dock instead of paying someone for the bike transportation. It wasn’t too bad of a walk, but if you are not able to walk there were a ton of people with bikes to help get you to the other end of the dock. We got some really cool pictures of the ship from the outside and our son took some neat photos too.

 

You have to pass through the duty free shop to get to the pool so we checked it out for a bit. My husband was looking for a new watch and found one he liked. He decided to think about it and we went to go explore. We saw the small waterfall and the replica amber statue and took some cute pictures. Afterwards we made our way to the pool.

 

It wasn’t too crowded when we got there, although all the front chairs by the pool were taken, we were able to find a spot on the outer side. You could tell it must get pretty busy there because there were tons of chairs....like an endless amount in seemed. We decided not to pay for an umbrella because we found a spot under a tree that had a little bit of shade.

 

 

The kids had fun in the pool. We brought their own life jackets from home (which were a pain to put in the luggage and took up a ton of room) but were glad that they felt comfortable in their own jackets to swim a lot. The pool area was nice, but normally we are not big pool people on cruises. Before kids we would have liked to explore the island and spend time at the beach-but they were totally good with just swimming in the pool.

 

We ate lunch while near the pool. There were tons of servers and our food came quickly. We thought it was pretty expensive but the thought of going back to the ship to eat just felt pointless. We had some fajitas, French fries and Dominican crab for lunch and everyone was full afterwards. The food was pretty good-minus the fries-but the kids love French fries and it is vacation after all.

 

The kids checked out the splash area and saw some friends from the ship. They had a great time in that area and between the pool and the splash area they had plenty to do.

 

We saw the zip lining from overhead but didn’t check it out as the kids weren’t old enough to do it. There is also games, like basketball to play....so there’s plenty to do for children.

 

After that we went and explored the shops. It was pretty basic and not a lot to see, but I did find a store with some neat souvenirs so we bought a couple things. We also found a pharmacy, which was really helpful since our daughters ear hurt from getting water in it. Pretty reasonable cost-like 3 dollars so if you need something from the pharmacy you might want to check it out.

 

When we left my husband ended up buying the Nautica watch-he was happy, although we found out later on board that it needed a new battery....which was really upsetting since he couldn’t use it while on vacation. It was a good price, no tax but we really thought it should have come with a working battery. Next time we would make sure the battery works before buying and if not make them change it there or not buy it.

 

As a side note everyone needs to show their sign and sail cards when coming back from the duty free store. They don’t allow you to exit the store without showing your card. We saw one guy get detained and he tried to explain that someone else in his party had his card and they were up ahead. They told him he needed it to get through and when he asked to go get them himself they refused. I am not sure what ended up happening but he seemed pretty upset by it.

 

Anyway that’s all for now. I will continue later about the rest of the evening and dinner at the steak house.

 

In closing I don’t know if I would go back to Amber Cove. Sure the kids were happy swimming in the pool-but for us that’s not the reason we go on cruises. We love to explore the island and it felt like the only way to leave the port area was to pay for an excursion. We are not ones to pay for a ships excursion.....we would rather arrange our own. After all the ships excursions are generally more expensive and more crowded. Maybe had we have taken an excursion we would have felt differently about Amber Cove. Don’t get me wrong, the pool area is nice but it felt manufactured. Not the genuine Caribbean experience we usually look for. For us this port felt like a one and done type of deal. In any case it was a nice day and we were glad the kids were happy!

Edited March 29, 2018 by sfs2001

[sfs2001]

following along, Great review so far, we are thinking of taking a cruise on Magic (first time Carnival) next year with 12 and 14 year olds. Did you see many this age on the cruise?

 

 

Yes there were kids thst age on the cruise. However I think due to the time of year there weren’t as many kids as there normally is. In fact the whole ship didn’t feel super crowded and many people around commented that this wasn’t as full as it normally is. We chose to take our kids out of school so they may had something to do with the lower number of families and children onboard. I know that spring break was coming up in a few weeks for many so maybe people didn’t want to pull their kids out of class right before for a Feb cruise.

[sfs2001]

Questions about the spa....

1) Was your S&S card your key to enter the spa area?

2) Did you get 20% or 40% off on treatments in the spa?

 

Yes our sign and sail cards were our key to enter the thallasues pool area. You can bypass the front desk by taking the back elevator all the way up from the very front of the ship to deck 14. From there you just turn right and it’s literally a few feet away. If you are going to for a spa treatment you need to check in on deck 12...they keep your sign and sail card until you are done and then you get it back when you check out.

 

My husband booked the spa treatments during the Valentine’s Day 20% sale. There was a promo code he had to enter online during checkout. If you book 3 services (only specific ones) you get 10% off the first, 20% off the second and 30% off the third I believe. Although I will mention in my review later the fiasco of pre-booking and paying for the spa ahead of time. What a nightmare. This was the only hesitation that I have about booking a spa appointment ahead of time and pre-paying. What a nightmare when they chrarge you for the treatment again and what a hassle to get them to refund your money. I will talk about all that later.

[cruziJenn]

Following, enjoying your review so far! We switched our cruise from Breeze to Magic, have cruised on Breeze and Dream before and really curious about how the Magic compares to Breeze especially.

[BJs mom]

Yes our sign and sail cards were our key to enter the thallasues pool area. You can bypass the front desk by taking the back elevator all the way up from the very front of the ship to deck 14. From there you just turn right and it’s literally a few feet away. If you are going to for a spa treatment you need to check in on deck 12...they keep your sign and sail card until you are done and then you get it back when you check out.

 

My husband booked the spa treatments during the Valentine’s Day 20% sale. There was a promo code he had to enter online during checkout. If you book 3 services (only specific ones) you get 10% off the first, 20% off the second and 30% off the third I believe. Although I will mention in my review later the fiasco of pre-booking and paying for the spa ahead of time. What a nightmare. This was the only hesitation that I have about booking a spa appointment ahead of time and pre-paying. What a nightmare when they chrarge you for the treatment again and what a hassle to get them to refund your money. I will talk about all that later.

 

I agree, awful system when you already pay and then they charge you again and try to explain why they have to do it that way. Still don't understand that concept. Even with the laundry when you're platinum they put all the laundry charges on your bill and hopefully it comes off at the end. Horrible and confusing book keeping.

[Bernardo62]

Yes our sign and sail cards were our key to enter the thallasues pool area. You can bypass the front desk by taking the back elevator all the way up from the very front of the ship to deck 14. From there you just turn right and it’s literally a few feet away. If you are going to for a spa treatment you need to check in on deck 12...they keep your sign and sail card until you are done and then you get it back when you check out.

 

My husband booked the spa treatments during the Valentine’s Day 20% sale. There was a promo code he had to enter online during checkout. If you book 3 services (only specific ones) you get 10% off the first, 20% off the second and 30% off the third I believe. Although I will mention in my review later the fiasco of pre-booking and paying for the spa ahead of time. What a nightmare. This was the only hesitation that I have about booking a spa appointment ahead of time and pre-paying. What a nightmare when they chrarge you for the treatment again and what a hassle to get them to refund your money. I will talk about all that later.

 

Awesome..... wife & I are going March 2019 and have a spa cabin. Just trying to get all 411 I can. If you have anything more to add I Thank You now....

[Silent Penguin]

I can't wait to read more. I can just imagine the Italian restaurant experience. Our kids were 4, 7, and 10 the first time we took them on a cruise. The older two LOVED the kids clubs. That never changed. The last time we cruised with them, the oldest had aged out of the clubs and I don't think he had nearly as much fun.

 

I'm just sorry to know that you had a frustrating experience with the spa. Not surprised. Speaking of spa experiences on a ship, the first time I took my teenage daughter to the spa with me, I instructed her to check no for everything and say she had no health or beauty concerns. It was really hard for her to lie and say she was perfectly happy with her skin, weight, stress level, and health. But it works.

[Gallivanting Souls]

No need to apologize for being a Mother/home maker. It is one of the most demanding jobs a person could ever do and the most important job (JM.02 Cents) Being a mother is work. No quotes required. Looking fwd to the rest of your review.

 

. My husband is in the medical field and works a ton so I stay and “work” in the home

[sfs2001]

No need to apologize for being a Mother/home maker. It is one of the most demanding jobs a person could ever do and the most important job (JM.02 Cents) Being a mother is work. No quotes required. Looking fwd to the rest of your review.

 

 

Thanks. I wasn’t trying to put myself down or apologize for staying home. I just put work in quoatations because techinically I don’t have a job per say but without me staying home things wouldn’t get done. Plus I sell my children’s old clothing on Ebay when our daughter is in preschool....so that’s work. Anyway, thanks for supporting stay at home moms. I know my husband appreciates all that I do and I feel good being able to to stay home when the kids are younger because not everyone can afford to do that. This was the first year our daughter went to preschool-because we felt, just like when our son was her age, that a year of preschool would help them settle into regular school. 😉

[sfs2001]

I can't wait to read more. I can just imagine the Italian restaurant experience. Our kids were 4, 7, and 10 the first time we took them on a cruise. The older two LOVED the kids clubs. That never changed. The last time we cruised with them, the oldest had aged out of the clubs and I don't think he had nearly as much fun.

 

I'm just sorry to know that you had a frustrating experience with the spa. Not surprised. Speaking of spa experiences on a ship, the first time I took my teenage daughter to the spa with me, I instructed her to check no for everything and say she had no health or beauty concerns. It was really hard for her to lie and say she was perfectly happy with her skin, weight, stress level, and health. But it works.

 

 

Yes it was frustrating with the spa double charging. Especially because we didn’t know it would happen. It just discouraged people from pre-paying for a spa treatment when they don’t know if they will get refunded or not. There was a ton of confusion by guest services and the spa services on when and if the charges would be dropped. Plus who wants to pay twice for a service they only had once? In any case it was finally resolved but not without a lot of leg work on my part....and who honestly wants to stand at GS on the last sea day with 100 other people? Not us 😬

[sfs2001]

Awesome..... wife & I are going March 2019 and have a spa cabin. Just trying to get all 411 I can. If you have anything more to add I Thank You now....

 

We really loved the spa cabin. The location was awesome and our room Stewart was the best. My treatments were really nice, but they do really pressure you into buying products....even with the message (which surprised me) Just say you are not interested or you will think it over if you want to be nice but not buy anything. If you do like the products from Elemis then just remember what they are because you can buy them via the internet. The only other thing I reccomend is if it is really windy outside don’t go to the thalleusus pool. When we went the one night the boat was really rocking and it was super windy outside and the water from the pool was going everywhere. It was not relaxing and sort of dangerous because we were thrown all around the pool unless we were holding on. One person came in and started to get into the pool, the waves came and she pretty much fell on. My husband made sure she was ok and she was just embarrassed but decided to get out....we did too. It was crazy...so just be careful of the weather. That was the only time it was like that....but we did have a lot of rough windy weather this cruise

[beshears]

I have just started reading your review of the Magic. We are to do it soon, but going the other direction. I always like to read what people think/like about the ships I do.:)

[sfs2001]

After Amber Cove we headed back to the ship. Everyone took a shower and got changed for dinner. Tonight was the steak house and my husband and I were excited to celebrate our 10th year anniversary this past June. Our reservation was at 6 and since we had to drop the kids off to eat with the camp at 6 we had to split up. My husband got lost trying to figure out where to meet the kids club at the Lido buffet...and I was running late trying to figure out where the steak house was. Thankfully I found it, but not before getting completely lost and deciding to take off my heels (seriously walking all over trying to find a restraunt in heels was just a no-go for me) I was so glad to be wearing tights, and even though one guy made fun of me, I didn’t care because it was a lot more comfortable...lol!

 

The hubby joined me at the steak house (of course he had no problem finding that) and they asked if we were celebrating anything. We said yes our anniversary and they brought over some champagne. We ordered a glass of red wine and looked over the menu.

 

I had the lobster bisque soup and he had the French onion...both were really good and then we both had the surf and turf. The steaks were cooked perfectly and the lobster was much tastier than the one in the dining room. Afterwards we had the art at the table. It was really nice, the chef does an art project with different deserts right at the table. It was a neat experience and we left totally full. The kids stayed for a little bit at the club and we went to the spa after dinner. We picked them up and went to bed.

 

We really liked the steak house....and felt it was worth the 35 pp up charge. We would do it again in the future. Dinner did take longer than the main dining room so we were glad that the kids weren’t with us. Not that they don’t enjoy going out to eat with us, but it was nice to relax and enjoy each other for a little bit and have adult conversation without worrying whose getting bored.

 

That’s it for this day. Next up St Thomas....how did it look after the hurricanes? Plus our night on the ship.

[Dreamer115]

Hope all is ok, waiting for more of your great review

[CoasterGuy]

Nice review so far. Enjoying.

 

but telling everyone you just had sex in the therapy room of the sp that day was def too much information.

 

I bet the wife wasn't too happy with that! :')