Russell Lee

Age: 29
Occupation: Military
Number of Cruises: 2
Cruise Line: Carnival
Ship: Sensation
Sailing Date: December 27th, 2003
Itinerary: Tampa - Grand Cayman - Cozumel - Tampa

My wife and I found this website to be tremendously useful before we set sail on the Sensation. In that spirit, here are a few comments that we would like to share. This was our second cruise with Carnival. Our first cruise was a 5-day on the Fantasy. The Fantasy looked exactly like the Sensation. Overall, we concur with most of the information that was provided in previous reviews. We enjoyed our cruise and would recommend it anyone looking for a "cheap" alternative to vacationing in the Caribbean.

Transportation: We flew into Tampa. Completely agree that taking a taxi is the best way to go. The taxi ride cost approximately $20 and was a breeze. Bring some $1's to tip the porters at the pier. They will definitely remind you if you forget!

Embarkation: Make sure you register ahead of time (> 2 days) online to receive your Fun Pass. This will save you time when you arrive during registration. We forgot to do this, and it caused us additional delays. We definitely recommend that you arrive as early as possible. We arrived at 12:00 and the lines were very small. As we waited to board, we noticed that the lines became longer and longer as departure time approached. Overall, Carnival did a good job with boarding.

Ship: Considering the ship has been in service for over 10 years, it is in pretty good shape. Just like the Fantasy, the ship is ridiculously decorated in the most cheesy 1970's colors that you can imagine. Since both of our cruises have been on essentially the same ship, we don't have a difference in opinion. The layout seems to work well. Most of the activities and bars are located on one deck. The public bathrooms are woefully inadequate for a full ship of passengers. The bathrooms often became "run down" with the high amount of traffic in the evenings. If you want a ship that exudes "elegance" then don't take Carnival. Overall, the ship was clean and met our expectations.

Rooms: We stayed in the back of the ship on U deck in U241. Our window actually faced out the rear of the ship. We specifically chose the very back based upon a number of comments that we read regarding the "noise" of kids, etc. running down the hallways. We highly recommend the back! If you don't mind walking, the back was very quiet and we were never disturbed during the trip. The size of the room was good. The room steward did a great job of keeping the room straight. We recommend you bring a clock from home. Carnival does not provide one. Also, there are a limited number of power outlets, so you might consider an adapter that transmits the one outlet to three, or a power strip of some sort. Overall, the room was good.

Dining: Kids - go for the early seating. No kids - go for the late seating. We sat at the late seating in the Ecstasy Dining Room and enjoyed it very much. There were hardly any kids, and we had a great time with our dinner guests. Don't worry about the entertainment, Carnival runs shows for both seatings. Overall, the dinners in the main dining rooms were great. We personally didn't care for the buffets served in the Seaview Bar and Grill. The Seaview tended to serve food that we were not familiar with. Most of the time, we opted for a burger and fries by the pool for lunch. The 24 hour pizza was O.K. It was much better on the Fantasy. Room service was good, and always served on time.

Cheap Vacation: Yes, a cruise is relatively cheap compared to some to the all-inclusive resorts we have stayed at in the Caribbean. But, one thing the Cruise does do is "nickel and dime" you to death! The only free drinks are water (not bottled), lemonade, apple juice, tea, and coffee. Everything else cost $$$. And, here is the kicker, cost ridiculously more than you should have to pay. $2.50 for 20 ounce Coke. That is twice what a price gouging gas station would charge! $3.25 for a beer. Etc., etc. You get the point. If you are not a person who drinks soda or alcohol, good for you. If you are, make sure your credit card balance has a high limit! You will ring up a tab quicker than you will ever possibly imagine. And, every time you order a drink, you are automatically billed a "recommended" 15% gratuity for the waiter.

Ports of Call: Since I am a scuba diver, the ports were excellent. The diving at Grand Cayman and Cozumel was spectacular. I used both of the dive excursions through Carnival instead of trying to do it on my own. Using Carnival's dive excursions cost a little more, but they guarantee that the dive operators will get you back in time before the ship leaves port. The stay in Grand Cayman is too short. Cruise ships in Grand Cayman cannot dock, so you are forced to use a tender to go back and forth. Needless to say, traveling with 2,500 anxious guests makes for some long wait times for the tenders. I waited for over 1 hour in Grand Cayman to board a tender back to the ship! The line is especially busy within about an hour of the ship's departure. So plan accordingly if you don't want to wait. The stay in Cozumel was much better. We had plenty of time for me to dive and still go out and see the area. If you are a diver, Cozumel is a must. The reefs are absolutely spectacular!

Time of Year: After reading some reviews, we knew that there would be a lot of kids. And the reviews were correct. If you travel during the holidays when schools are out, expect lots of kids. We would estimate that over 75% of the ship's passengers were families. Overall, the kids were not a problem. Carnival seemed to do a great job with the young ones. We never had a problem with older kids either. But, don't plan on partying at the Disco as the kids took it over from day one. Even though our cruise ship was packed solid, we never felt overly crowded. The top decks do get crowded for sunbathing. But, we never had to wait in long lines for the buffets. For the shows, Carnival runs all of the main entertainment twice for both early and late dining groups. Thus, the shows were never too crowded. As for the weather, the first and last day (sea days) were cool. It probably got into the mid 70's during the day with blustery winds and cooled off into the 60's at night. Bring some warm clothing for these days. The weather in Grand Cayman and Cozumel was gorgeous. We had low 80 to mid 80's both days.

Overall, we enjoyed our cruise and would recommend it to someone looking for a good value.