Mardi Gras, One and done for us.

[CruizinSusan70]

4 hours ago, MikeandLinda2010 said:

When we went on her we were at full capacity. I felt the new layout of this ship really was helpful, in that, it did not feel crowded.  Others on our facebook group, on the same cruise, complained that they felt like we were packed in the ship.   Guess it is all perspective.  

 

Linda

It's all a matter of perspective just like food reviews are subjective.  We were on the MG for 2 weeks in February and again for 2 weeks around Labor Day.  The highest we had was 6000 people.  Was it crowded at times, yes, but you have to know how to deal with it.  There are multiple outlets for lunch so it never felt busy.  If the line was really long at Blue Iguana, we just went elsewhere.  The worst thing was waiting for a seat at Alchemy one night for 20 minutes.  

[soremekun]

I haven't sailed with Carnival in a few years.  However I do have two upcoming sailings on MG and one on Celebration.  I thought about booking Jubilee but don't want to fly to Texas.  I'm looking forward to checking out their new design.

 

[SRQbeachgirl]

We were on MG in June and I have doubts we will sail her again. It's a beautiful ship and we had a great time, but at one point about halfway through the cruise we both agreed the ship is just too big for us. It took forever to get from one part of the ship to another and a "quick" trip back to the cabin for something was anything but quick. 

 

We did enjoy the different food venues and for the first time ever we didn't eat in the MDR at all. We loved Rudi's and the Steakhouse. The food in the Lido Marketplace was horrible, though, and we've always liked eating there previously. It was also unorganized and way too many times we would have only two or three people in line in front of us, only to have their entire family in matching t-shirts show up and cut in line.

 

The other annoyance was that it was hard to find somewhere peaceful to sit and read in a comfortable chair where I could also see the water. I finally found the best spot at the Watering Hole on deck 8 outside the P&A and Heroes Tribute Lounge. 

 

 

[sunkey1]

Just back from our 2nd cruise on the Mardi Gras and still love the ship. It is large but we figure we're working off some of the food that we are taking in so not a big deal for us. Crew was all so friendly, dining room food was delicious, as it was at all of the venues we tried. Different strokes for different folks, that's the beauty of cruising.

[Michelle236]

So sorry to hear your experience was not a good one.  We boarded the Mardi Gras on 10/15 and I also sailed her in June.  My experience was the total opposite.  The food in the dining room was ok, but I dont ever enjoy that too much (only ate there once).  But the Pig and Anchor was amazing, the Brisket was soooo good and the mac and cheese was delicious. And I am still missing the Smoky Watermelon Margherita 😞  We ended up eating there twice and spent a great amount of time there watching sports and enjoying some drinks.  We ate at Cucina one night.  I had the Farfalle a la Pistachio, which was quite good.  And we ate at Chibang and really enjoyed it.

I dont think we ever waited more than 5/10 minutes for a drink.  Which with having 6000 people on board suprised me.

 

Dont give up on the Mardi Gras :-)

[mouche]

I was on the 10-15 sailing and my experience was great, the service, the food choices, never had to wait long for a drink. The ship is beautiful with the French Quarter being my favorite part of the ship, we use the Hub app for checking in for dinner and never waited in a line, when it said table was ready, we just walked on in and were seated right away. I can't wait to sail the Mardi Gras again, 7 nights was not long enough to enjoy all she has to offer.

[topaz123]

On 10/17/2022 at 12:36 PM, Colorado Beach Bum said:

Interesting to see how different experiences can be.  We were on the same cruise.  We had great bar tender service at all the bars we went to but admittedly, did not go to Alchemy as it was always packed. We also had great experience at Chibang and ended up going twice.  The small sides were a bit odd at Guys P&A but you could ask for as many as you wanted. Really enjoyed all the different food choices compared to other Carnival ships. Overall, we had a great time and will be going back on Mardi Gras next month. 

Had similar experience at Alchemy Bar...seems the regulars show up every night, and take over the place....hard to even get a drink,  got the impression it was some private gathering...outsiders stay out.

[CruizinSusan70]

On 10/29/2022 at 6:47 PM, SRQbeachgirl said:

We were on MG in June and I have doubts we will sail her again. It's a beautiful ship and we had a great time, but at one point about halfway through the cruise we both agreed the ship is just too big for us. It took forever to get from one part of the ship to another and a "quick" trip back to the cabin for something was anything but quick. 

 

We did enjoy the different food venues and for the first time ever we didn't eat in the MDR at all. We loved Rudi's and the Steakhouse. The food in the Lido Marketplace was horrible, though, and we've always liked eating there previously. It was also unorganized and way too many times we would have only two or three people in line in front of us, only to have their entire family in matching t-shirts show up and cut in line.

 

The other annoyance was that it was hard to find somewhere peaceful to sit and read in a comfortable chair where I could also see the water. I finally found the best spot at the Watering Hole on deck 8 outside the P&A and Heroes Tribute Lounge. 

 

 

That's why they make vanilla and chocolate.  Many Carnival cruisers that are used to ships under 135 K tons and have never taken the blinders off to sail on larger ships from RCI, NCL or MSC think that the 180 K ton MG is too big.  We have sailed on her for 28 days and have 33 currently booked on the Celebration.  It's a game changer for Carnival and brought them into the 21st century compared to the newer builds of their aforementioned competitors.  

If the MG at 180 is too big, then it's safe that you'll never cruise on RCI's Icon Class at 250 K.  But, the Icon has a much better space ratio of 7,000 passengers versus the 6,000 on the Excel Class on Carnival.

[CruizinSusan70]

On 11/2/2022 at 6:36 PM, topaz123 said:

Had similar experience at Alchemy Bar...seems the regulars show up every night, and take over the place....hard to even get a drink,  got the impression it was some private gathering...outsiders stay out.

That's the way it usually is on the newer ships.  Stake your claim on day one and be a regular or occasionally swing by and get a drink to go.

[skywalkr2]

On 10/17/2022 at 3:28 PM, cruisingguy007 said:

 

I don't think it will get much better in the future, the floating mall design seems to be all the rage these days and increasing passenger counts/capacity a major focal point. I expect the issue to only get worse moving forward, bigger ships, smaller cabins and less elbow room in public spaces.  

I'm way late to this discussion, but with these Costa ships coming in... they aren't all focused on big ships lately.

[BlerkOne]

5 hours ago, CruizinSusan70 said:

That's why they make vanilla and chocolate.  Many Carnival cruisers that are used to ships under 135 K tons and have never taken the blinders off to sail on larger ships from RCI, NCL or MSC think that the 180 K ton MG is too big.  We have sailed on her for 28 days and have 33 currently booked on the Celebration.  It's a game changer for Carnival and brought them into the 21st century compared to the newer builds of their aforementioned competitors.  

If the MG at 180 is too big, then it's safe that you'll never cruise on RCI's Icon Class at 250 K.  But, the Icon has a much better space ratio of 7,000 passengers versus the 6,000 on the Excel Class on Carnival.

Many never put blinders on. Automatically excluding ships because they don't have enough shops would seem to be putting blinders on. I don't see MG or Celebration as game changers - just a different class of ship with different features.

 

It is a safe bet I won't cruise on RCL, or at least not often, but not because of ship size. I understand than two ships can offer the same square footage per passenger, but one can have a higher space ratio simply by having more headroom.

[cruisingguy007]

2 hours ago, skywalkr2 said:

I'm way late to this discussion, but with these Costa ships coming in... they aren't all focused on big ships lately.

 

I like the two new ships coming in and I'll be sailing on the one out of LBC for sure. The design is clean and bright with a touch of chic everywhere but not pretentious, seems very well done. I'm also not against big ships, it's strictly the floating mall/barracks design. Icon of the seas is huge and I really like that concept and design (legit game changer) and hope others follow suit with more sky, sunshine, sea views, and fresh air open design. I also like connectivity of spaces vs compartmentalization and dead end design.

[SRQbeachgirl]

10 hours ago, CruizinSusan70 said:

That's why they make vanilla and chocolate.  Many Carnival cruisers that are used to ships under 135 K tons and have never taken the blinders off to sail on larger ships from RCI, NCL or MSC think that the 180 K ton MG is too big.  We have sailed on her for 28 days and have 33 currently booked on the Celebration.  It's a game changer for Carnival and brought them into the 21st century compared to the newer builds of their aforementioned competitors.  

If the MG at 180 is too big, then it's safe that you'll never cruise on RCI's Icon Class at 250 K.  But, the Icon has a much better space ratio of 7,000 passengers versus the 6,000 on the Excel Class on Carnival.

 

You're right that we probably won't sail on RCI's Icon class (we did have one booked but cancelled), though I would argue it has nothing to do with having blinders on. We like the smaller ships because we actually feel like we're at sea. The MG felt too much like an indoor shopping mall. Not nearly enough outdoor space close to the water for us and based on the deck plans of RCI's behemoths, they have even less. 

 

Fortunately there are enough ships out there that we can all find the sizes we like.

[CruizinSusan70]

6 hours ago, BlerkOne said:

Many never put blinders on. Automatically excluding ships because they don't have enough shops would seem to be putting blinders on. I don't see MG or Celebration as game changers - just a different class of ship with different features.

 

It is a safe bet I won't cruise on RCL, or at least not often, but not because of ship size. I understand than two ships can offer the same square footage per passenger, but one can have a higher space ratio simply by having more headroom.

The Excel Class is a game changer for Carnival because they finally decided to provide their customer base with a ship option that is more in line with what their competition offers.  There will always be old school Carnival cruisers that pine for the archaic Fantasy Class or love the space ratio of the Spirit Class.

If a cruiser only sails on a single line, whether that be Carnival, Royal or NCL, then they do indeed have blinders on.  It's 100% their choice, but it's like only eating vanilla ice cream for the rest of your life.  It gets monotonous after awhile. You need a scoop of a different flavor once in a while.

[CruizinSusan70]

47 minutes ago, SRQbeachgirl said:

 

You're right that we probably won't sail on RCI's Icon class (we did have one booked but cancelled), though I would argue it has nothing to do with having blinders on. We like the smaller ships because we actually feel like we're at sea. The MG felt too much like an indoor shopping mall. Not nearly enough outdoor space close to the water for us and based on the deck plans of RCI's behemoths, they have even less. 

 

Fortunately there are enough ships out there that we can all find the sizes we like.

The MG is nothing at all like an indoor shopping mall.  The vast majority of RCI's fleet is more of a mall concept with their promenades. If you actually sailed on one, you would know the difference.  Check out YouTube videos for confirmation if you'd like.  Happy sailing.

[SRQbeachgirl]

3 minutes ago, CruizinSusan70 said:

The MG is nothing at all like an indoor shopping mall.  The vast majority of RCI's fleet is more of a mall concept with their promenades. If you actually sailed on one, you would know the difference.  Check out YouTube videos for confirmation if you'd like.  Happy sailing.

 

It felt too much like an indoor mall in my opinion. You obviously feel differently and that's fine. That's one of the reasons cruising is awesome - so many choices.  

 

I've watched plenty of YouTube videos on the RCI Icon class - that's why we cancelled the cruise we had booked on RCI. We could tell it was a concept we wouldn't like.  

 

Our next cruise is on Celebrity Reflection. Much more to our liking, size-wise. 

[Joebucks]

13 hours ago, BlerkOne said:

I don't see MG or Celebration as game changers - just a different class of ship with different features.

 

I disagree. I believe these are game-changers. For me at least. As much as I've enjoyed sailing Carnival, the ships were mostly the same and the experience was losing its magic. Even the Vista class didn't feel THAT much different than Dream and Conquest class. Between the extra zones, new atrium, new lunch and included dinner, it feels to me like a rejuvenated brand. 

 

There are many that hate change. They will find a new amenity or two they don't care for, and condemn the entire ship. Meanwhile, there's plenty of new stuff people are absolutely loving.

[BlerkOne]

2 hours ago, Joebucks said:

 

I disagree. I believe these are game-changers. For me at least. As much as I've enjoyed sailing Carnival, the ships were mostly the same and the experience was losing its magic. Even the Vista class didn't feel THAT much different than Dream and Conquest class. Between the extra zones, new atrium, new lunch and included dinner, it feels to me like a rejuvenated brand. 

 

There are many that hate change. They will find a new amenity or two they don't care for, and condemn the entire ship. Meanwhile, there's plenty of new stuff people are absolutely loving.

That's fine for you. Carnival offers choice. If someone chooses to only sail on the newest, or the biggest, or whatever, it is they who are limiting their choices, not Carnival.

 

The new ships do have more stuff but I already don't use all the old stuff on the old ships.

 

I've sailed on both Ecstasy and MG this year and both without blinders. From the oldest to the newest, they all have something to offer.

[CruizinSusan70]

Thank goodness there are some cruisers that still pine for the older ships in the fleet.  They have long ago been in our rearview mirror.

From what I have seen on initial videos of the Celebration, Carnival raised the bar once again.  They tweaked a few things for the better and made some minor improvements and we're looking forward to our 33 future nights booked on her.

[Viajera7]

I sailed the MG on October 22-29 and I did it for the ship since I have been to the Caribbean ports so many times. I loved the MG. I am accustomed to the big ships on NCL and RCI and I liked them because there are more things to see and do. It doesn’t bother me to walk from one side to the other because I consider it my exercise. I like all the options that you have to eat, all the activities and trivia, Grand Central and the shows there, the many comedy shows and the theater shows too. Two things I didn’t like were that to go to the theater you only had 2 options and most of the times from the places that I was at before going there I had to go through the casino. The second one was that the laundry damaged a new blouse that I sent there because it was wrinkled. Am I-not going to sail MG again because of that? No. I want to do it again and I already booked the Celebration for Halloween next year. One that I have to clarify is that I didn’t experienced the long lines because I rarely drink and only went to the bar once to get my free Platinum drink. One of the best Virgin pina coladas that I haves had.

[JimmyTheSaint]

It's one and done for us. We sailed Nov 12-19 and while we enjoyed the cruise it's not a ship we'd be rushing back to cruise on again. I didn't find it to be a game changer, it's massive but not massively impressive, it's not a beautiful ship. It just similar to other Carnival ships but just packs more people in.

 

The dining experience in the MDR was mediocre on it's best night, some were just terrible. The worst was dinner in the Pig & Anchor Smokehouse, no flavour and served cold. The Lido Marketplace is an awful layout that can't cope with the numbers onboard. The addition of Street Eats and the Big Chicken are a big positive, they really should extend the opening hours.

 

Serenity is usually our favourite place on a ship during daytime but it's not a calm and tranquil place on Mardi Gras. It's huge and never crowded but it's incredibly noisy as it's beside the Beach Pool and the DJ blasting his music and playing his silly games, his voice booming all over Serenity.

 

We found the entertainment onboard to be a big change up compared to previous Carnival sailings. The production of the shows in the main theatre and the Centre Stage theatre were excellent. The shows in the Centre Stage were the best we've seen on a cruise. The Punchliner comedy shows were all very good, apart from one comedian.

 

Overall an enjoyable cruise but not a ship that suits how we like to cruise.