Fresh off the Mardi Gras-thoughts & review

[kelkel2]

Fresh off the Mardi Gras here’s a few of my thoughts… sorry if this is scattered. I’ll try for it not to be.
We were in suite 14410, the room was lovely, although a bit narrow. I would have preferred the bed closer to the balcony to give more entry space into the room, but I don’t think the suites are ever set up that way. But, the extra living space with our 2 kids was perfect for our needs and totally worth the money.

 

 

 

[kelkel2]

Embarkation- was the easiest in 5 cruises I’ve ever done. It was amazingly simple. Every single employee was on the same page and great at directing you to where you needed to be. 

Debarkation- same thing. So easy. We had priority and chose to take our own luggage off. It was simple. They had the priority group split up into diamonds, platinum, suite, and FTTF. We each had our own seating areas so that they could call those groups in priority order. They had us use our luggage to save a place in line and go sit down and then when it was our turn you got up, stood by your luggage and walked off. Easiest it has ever been for us. 

Cabin Steward- this is my biggest disappointment. It was just lackluster, not bad, just meh. We met him the first day, he handed us his card and said hello. We never really saw him much other than that. Never asked us about ice (we didn’t have a bucket so we didn’t know Carnival still offered it) and never asked us our preference on day vs. night service. Now, we would have chosen day, but still. We should have been asked. When we first boarded our room was ready and we were happy about that. But we had to find someone for toilet paper for the room, we had none. Not a big deal, just something worth noticing. On one of the days we had balcony cleaning, I think it was Grand Turk day. Our room wasn’t cleaned until after 2pm and when he did, he threw away our room service we had just ordered for our son. I guess maybe we should have left a note on it? But it hadn’t been touched. Room service refused to replace it or refund for it. 

 

[kelkel2]

Dining room- the first night was fantastic, fast service, food was great. First formal night took away too long. The last night we had a server who seemed new, so I totally understand that. But they brought our kids meals out with our appetizers and it took another hour for our meals to come. It’s really hard to keep 4 year olds occupied for that long and it really makes me not want to eat in the dining room. But my son is picky and it’s the only place we can get him the pb&j he wanted without paying $6 from
room service for it. 

Another thing- when they cleaned the balconies, they left standing water on ours, there is a drain but the water didn’t seem to want to travel towards the drain. It was just sitting there. So both of my kids went out on the balcony and immediately fell. We were promised someone would come with a squeegee and take care of it, no one showed. We ended up throwing towels down. Is that the fantastic service that we were promised as suite guests?? The fact that both of my kids slipped and fell and no one even cared just irritates me so much. 

Lido- I really miss something be available between meals. Even if it’s something small. I feel like basically between 2pm-6pm there was absolutely nothing on the buffet, it was completely shut down. It’s just hard when you have little kids and are returning to the ship and that stuff isn’t available. 

Street Eats- fantastic! Huge win! We loved it. The hours were kind of strange where at one point it didn’t open until 2pm. But the food was fantastic. 

Shaq’s chicken-fantastic and a favorite for my daughter. I love that it was strategically placed near the ice cream and pool! Last day had a pretty decent line but we got through to very quickly. 

Guy’s- wonderful as usual and I like the placement/set up of this location. Lines could be long at times but we gladly got in line and we’re very happy with how fast it moved. Those guys work really hard! 

Bars- I loved all the different options! And I loved that each bar offered different menus! Tides Bar was packed and understaffed. The bar tender there was phenomenal but he’s one person. He needed a helper. The whole tide’s area seemed like a hidden gem. It was never crowded. 

ATD- we didn’t take advantage of dining in the “other” venues. But the check in on the app was awesome! We didn’t have that on our last cruise and this was a huge improvement! It seems like closer to 6pm is the best time to check in to avoid the rush, and I noticed that those who sat down close to 6 got their food at the same time as us who were seated when it opened. So save yourself the struggle and go closer to 6. There were still plenty of tables. 

Is it too much to ask for a bar near Water Works?
My kids loved it and spent hours and hours up there! My daughter kept shouting “this is the best day ever!!” 

Kids club- my kids were in penguins. Patricia and Augustin were absolautly amazing. We will remember them for a long time. I really appreciate how they made me feel like they were going to care for my kids as if they were their own. Fantastic crew. My kids came back every night with some kind of project, facepaint, craft etc that they had done! 

Overall- the Mardi Gras is probably the best cruise we’ve ever done. We were pleasantly pleased that the ship never felt crowded. Everyone seemed to be spread out and even on a sea day we never struggledu to find a lounger or a chair near water works. We loved the ship and are thrilled to have a cruise booked on the Jubilee!

Edited January 29, 2023 by kelkel2

[lazydayz]

Glad you and your family had a great cruise.  We enjoy the MG and are eagerly awaiting our turn on the Celebration.  

[we b cruzin]

Thank you for your insights and video of the suite. We will be in an Ocean Suite with a corner balcony in April. We can't wait!!!

[Palmetto Pilot]

2 hours ago, kelkel2 said:

 

Kids club- my kids were in penguins. Patricia and Augustin were absolautly amazing. We will remember them for a long time. I really appreciate how they made me feel like they were going to care for my kids as if they were their own. Fantastic crew. My kids came back every night with some kind of project, facepaint, craft etc that they had done! 

Overall- the Mardi Gras is probably the best cruise we’ve ever done. We were pleasantly pleased that the ship never felt crowded. Everyone seemed to be spread out and even on a sea day we never struggledu to find a lounger or a chair near water works. We loved the ship and are thrilled to have a cruise booked on the Jubilee!

I'm gald to know the kids club was excellent. We're sailing next week on MG with the kids and they always look forward to the kids clubs on every line we sail on. 

I am worried about feeling crowded on the ship. MG is significantly smaller than Oasis class on Royal Caribbean but just about as many passengers at double occupancy and max occupancy.

[kelkel2]

49 minutes ago, Palmetto Pilot said:

I'm gald to know the kids club was excellent. We're sailing next week on MG with the kids and they always look forward to the kids clubs on every line we sail on. 

I am worried about feeling crowded on the ship. MG is significantly smaller than Oasis class on Royal Caribbean but just about as many passengers at double occupancy and max occupancy.

Honestly, my husband and I talked about this several times that for being 107% capacity it never felt crowded. The only time I really felt the crowds was the lido buffet on a port day. It was crowded but not unreasonable. We never even had a problem getting a deck chair whenever we wanted them. 

[SoBe2010]

Did Carnival also reduced the twice a day cabin service?

[maxandmolly]

Just now, SoBe2010 said:

Did Carnival also reduced the twice a day cabin service?

Service has been once a day for quite a while now. 

[kelkel2]

20 minutes ago, SoBe2010 said:

Did Carnival also reduced the twice a day cabin service?

Yes, that’s gone with the return from covid (maybe before) 

[SoBe2010]

Thanks 

[csm5986142]

6 hours ago, kelkel2 said:

Another thing- when they cleaned the balconies, they left standing water on ours, there is a drain but the water didn’t seem to want to travel towards the drain. It was just sitting there. So both of my kids went out on the balcony and immediately fell.

 

We recently had the exact same problem on Celebration (we never fell but came close).  There was a drain in the corner of our balcony but the water did not drain properly and instead pooled right in front of our door (not only on balcony cleaning day, but we also had rain).  I would say the puddle was there for half our cruise.  Not only a slipping hazard, but annoying to track dirty water into our cabin every time we went out on the balcony.

[kelkel2]

1 hour ago, csm5986142 said:

 

We recently had the exact same problem on Celebration (we never fell but came close).  There was a drain in the corner of our balcony but the water did not drain properly and instead pooled right in front of our door (not only on balcony cleaning day, but we also had rain).  I would say the puddle was there for half our cruise.  Not only a slipping hazard, but annoying to track dirty water into our cabin every time we went out on the balcony.

This is absolutely to a T what happened to us on our balcony. I’m glad my kids didn’t get hurt falling. But if they’re going to clean the balcony they need to take the time to make sure the water is gone. I don’t mind wet, but standing water is totally different. 

[keywest1]

Thanks for the review!  We are on the 2-18-23 sailing--can't wait!!  Glad to hear your report that the ship doesn't feel crowded.  

[kelkel2]

1 minute ago, keywest1 said:

Thanks for the review!  We are on the 2-18-23 sailing--can't wait!!  Glad to hear your report that the ship doesn't feel crowded.  

We really enjoyed the ship and the cruise and both agreed it was the best one we had been on! I hope you have a great cruise! 

[dacsmom]

Thank you so much for your honest review. I am looking at a family cruise next year and am so used to booking for myself that it is difficult to know what the grandkids would like. The Mardi Gras sounds like a good option. I was looking at the family harbor But none of the sailings had a balcony option. I guess they are sold out.

[Houst]

Why do your tips more when staying in a suite if they don't do anything different? Like twice a day? Just wondering.

[RoperDK]

1 hour ago, Houst said:

Why do your tips more when staying in a suite if they don't do anything different? Like twice a day? Just wondering.

Good question.  We were also on MG in an Ocean Suite.  Just a bit larger than a balcony cabin.  No extra services at all.  If you are staying in one of the larger Excel Suites perhaps the extra cleaning required could be considered a reason for a larger tip.   

[Tom-n-Cheryl]

1 hour ago, RoperDK said:

Good question.  We were also on MG in an Ocean Suite.  Just a bit larger than a balcony cabin.  No extra services at all.  If you are staying in one of the larger Excel Suites perhaps the extra cleaning required could be considered a reason for a larger tip.   

 

Yep, if there are multiple bathrooms, Jacuzzi's on the deck, etc - then, yes, I can see a higher daily rate. In "standard" suites, it does not make sense from an additional "effort" standpoint. 

 

Most other lines with suites often have coffee makers, wet bars,  and such - so there's a little more to do there which justifies a higher gratuity.

 

Tom

[PaulMedik]

6 hours ago, Houst said:

Why do your tips more when staying in a suite if they don't do anything different? Like twice a day? Just wondering.

 

You steward has few assigned rooms and more to detail.

[Tom-n-Cheryl]

10 hours ago, PaulMedik said:

 

You steward has few assigned rooms and more to detail.

 

Paul - HEY !

 

I don't see you on here too often 🙂

 

Tom

[Palmetto Pilot]

17 hours ago, Houst said:

Why do your tips more when staying in a suite if they don't do anything different? Like twice a day? Just wondering.

I agree the Excel Suite gratuities were every expensive for what exactly? At least on Royal suite class you get twice a day service.  

[mistyinca]

Regarding the cabin steward...I think they have quietly changed the policy about asking your time preference. The past 2 cruises, we were never greeted that first day like we used to be. We kind of had to seek her out to ask about daily ice. But I think this may be by design so that people don't have the opportunity to ask about the time they service the room. We still have gotten pretty good service though.

[Tom-n-Cheryl]

5 minutes ago, mistyinca said:

Regarding the cabin steward...I think they have quietly changed the policy about asking your time preference. The past 2 cruises, we were never greeted that first day like we used to be. We kind of had to seek her out to ask about daily ice. But I think this may be by design so that people don't have the opportunity to ask about the time they service the room. We still have gotten pretty good service though.

 

I wonder if that was part of the plan all along. Cut down to once/day, but ask if there's a preference. Then, just tackle the cabins as they can (stateroom roulette). Then, down the road, they'll just store cleaning supplies in each cabin and guests can take care of things themselves... lol

 

Tom

[cheermom2four]

We are in this exact cabin Sept 2nd cruise!  Thanks for the review as this will be our first Carnival cruise as we've done 4 Disney and 1 Princess but decided to expand our cruising.