Sensation Review - 8/21/04 - part 2

[CruiseMark]

Continued from part 1:

 

Disembarkation:

 

Went very smoothly. We had our luggage out the night before (don't put it out till 9:30 or 10 according to our room steward to avoid it being hit by the linen carts). In the morning we had breakfast, then headed to our waiting area, which was the Fantasia Lounge (very comfy). We waited for about 45 minutes then they called our color. We got off the ship, found our luggage in the waiting area and caught a cab to our hotel, simple as that.

 

Misc:

 

We decide to tip the people we wanted to ourselves, rather than doing the automatic thing. I just went to the Pursers desk and asked to have them removed and they did, no questions asked. We liked giving it directly to the people who gave us great service and to thank them personally.

 

Our girls thought the teen facilities left a lot to be desired. The "Teen Club" was one very small room with a couple of video games in it. Some of the activities that they advertised never happened as not enough showed up. The teen counselor was great though. The girls loved the disco and just exploring the ship as much as anything. Despite the lack of stuff, they still had a great time.

 

No rough seas at all, despite the storms in the area. The ship was very stable. My wife was very worried as she's prone to motion sickness, but we never had to use any of our treatments.

 

Bingo on Carnival is a total rip-off. On Princess or RCI you play multiple games on your cards. This was only true on some of the games that Carnival plays. For instance, the first night bingo is $10 or 3 cards for $20. Little did I know, that even though the session was scheduled for 45 minutes, they only played ONE straight line game of bingo. That's it! Most of that time was pushing the card sales or other games. The entire game actually lasted about 2 minutes. Other sessions were similar, although there was one that I didn't attend that supposedly played 7 games. I don't know how much that cost though.

 

 

Summary:

 

I tried to be very fair and honest with my review. Despiite a couple minor nits, we had a great trip and loved this cruise. It was a fantastic value for the dollar and was a great introduction to cruising for my family. The ship is in great shape, the crew was very friendly and we had two great port stops. What more could you ask for?

[Bunkie103]

Thanks Mark, nice review. We sail with the Saints and sinners on Oct 23rd, so I was hoping for a recent Sensation review.

[BDL]

Thank you for that great review - we'll be on her October 11th, so this was great to see. Paradise beach sounds wonderful - I like shade and my traveling companions love the sun, so I'll be looking for one of those umbrellas you mentioned!

Glad you had a good time!

[makayjean]

Mark...thanks for the review...we'll be cruising on her in Nov

[florida diver]

I am glad you had a good time..We sailed on the 8/7 5 day trip and had a blast!! Didi you try the coffee?? My only complaint on the entire cruise was the awful coffee. Somehow I managed to find enuff replacements (mudslide..etc) so that it was not a big deal. I loved the boast and am sory to see it leave Tampa. Hopefully the Miracle will be just as nice next year!!