Cruised the Magic June 16th--happy to answer any questions

Not sure I'll do a trip report as I don't have the writing ability as many on here do, but I'm happy to answer any questions. We had a Deck 8 Balcony stateroom. Didn't notice any air issues in the cabin. The lido deck seemed stuffy in the hallways and the elevators were stuffy on the last day. Didn't get the drink packages and didn't go to the casino so can't answer questions about those.

Your thoughts on the MDR?

We liked it overall. We had anytime dining (just two of us). Two nights I think we waited about 15 minutes or so with a pager. We just took pictures and watched whatever was going on in the atrium. We were pleased with all the food with the exception of maybe a dish or two. We enjoyed our serving team the first night so requested to be in their section again the subsequent nights. One night we were tired and didn't feel like dressing up and waiting to be served so we just went to the lido.

We liked it overall. We had anytime dining (just two of us). Two nights I think we waited about 15 minutes or so with a pager. We just took pictures and watched whatever was going on in the atrium. We were pleased with all the food with the exception of maybe a dish or two. We enjoyed our serving team the first night so requested to be in their section again the subsequent nights. One night we were tired and didn't feel like dressing up and waiting to be served so we just went to the lido.

was the ship noticeably slow on sea days?

was the ship noticeably slow on sea days?

We never seemed to be going very fast but I don't have a good standard of comparison for that. I do know that we talked to a crew member whose boyfriend was an engineer on the ship and she mentioned that they had been working on the engines all week. This was toward the end of the cruise.

was the ship noticeably slow on sea days?

Simple answer from those that have cruises a lot is to me, we were going considerably slower than normal on sea days. If I equated this to car speed , it seemed like we were moving at about 10 miles per hour. No real waves coming off the side of the ship

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and still no email from Carnival re 6/30 sailing.

like everything is normal.

not happy with the company policy whatsoever.

This will be our last Carnival Cruise.

We liked it overall. We had anytime dining (just two of us). Two nights I think we waited about 15 minutes or so with a pager. We just took pictures and watched whatever was going on in the atrium. We were pleased with all the food with the exception of maybe a dish or two. We enjoyed our serving team the first night so requested to be in their section again the subsequent nights. One night we were tired and didn't feel like dressing up and waiting to be served so we just went to the lido.

Thanks!

Conflicting reviews

Aft pool.

Adults only

Or family pool? Thanks

:cool:

Aft pool allows kids as long as accompanied by an adult

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Ok we are planning to go on July 22 and have seen some negative reviews and was going to switch to Norwegian but it seems they charge for everything

I have 18 14 and 10 year old donyou think they will like the magic?

Was it super crowded will they be able to get in pool? We are used to all in clusives and have never cruised

Any thoughts lol I’m getting nervous I made wrong choice

Ok we are planning to go on July 22 and have seen some negative reviews and was going to switch to Norwegian but it seems they charge for everything

I have 18 14 and 10 year old donyou think they will like the magic?

Was it super crowded will they be able to get in pool? We are used to all in clusives and have never cruised

Any thoughts lol I’m getting nervous I made wrong choice

I hope you meant July 21st, since Magic doesn't depart on the 22nd. We'll be on the ship with you! And don't worry - Carnival is a great choice for kids. Lot's of fun stuff to do!

A few questions. We were on the Vista last November and loved Guys Pig and Anchor BBQ. Is there a Guys BBQ on Magic. Did you go to the evening shows? If so, any that stand out? We are looking at an 8 day cruise on the Magic Nov 2019 and trying to decide between the Magic and the Horizon. The cost difference would pay for the drink package.

A few questions. We were on the Vista last November and loved Guys Pig and Anchor BBQ. Is there a Guys BBQ on Magic. Did you go to the evening shows? If so, any that stand out? We are looking at an 8 day cruise on the Magic Nov 2019 and trying to decide between the Magic and the Horizon. The cost difference would pay for the drink package.

Magic does indeed have a Pig & Anchor BBQ. Deck 5 mid ship starboard side and you can eat lunch there when you first get on the ship with little to no line while everyone else is dodging carryon luggage in the Lido buffet. Can’t comment on shows, and it will likely be a completely different group of performers by the time you sail. Magic is a nice ship, only slightly smaller than Vista or Horizon, and obviously a bit older. Guess it really depends on how much you value things being brand new as to wether it would be a better choice for you over Horizon and it’s higher price tag.

Magic does indeed have a Pig & Anchor BBQ. Deck 5 mid ship starboard side and you can eat lunch there when you first get on the ship with little to no line while everyone else is dodging carryon luggage in the Lido buffet. Can’t comment on shows, and it will likely be a completely different group of performers by the time you sail. Magic is a nice ship, only slightly smaller than Vista or Horizon, and obviously a bit older. Guess it really depends on how much you value things being brand new as to wether it would be a better choice for you over Horizon and it’s higher price tag.

thank you for the quick reply. One more question. Does the Magic have movies at the pool in the evenings?

thank you for the quick reply. One more question. Does the Magic have movies at the pool in the evenings?

They do indeed. Usually 2 a night based on some sort of general theme (date night, action, family night, etc.). Recent releases but not new. Usually 6-12 months old. Some nights may have only one if there is some sort of planned deck party at the lido pool.

They do indeed. Usually 2 a night based on some sort of general theme (date night, action, family night, etc.). Recent releases but not new. Usually 6-12 months old. Some nights may have only one if there is some sort of planned deck party at the lido pool.

WONDERFUL! Did you try the sea day brunch? Wow, BBQ available the day we board and movies at the pool we may have to book a cruise sooner... I always enjoy Carnival's food and I'm looking forward to trying something new at the steak house this trip. From your experience anything we shouldn't miss?

WONDERFUL! Did you try the sea day brunch? Wow, BBQ available the day we board and movies at the pool we may have to book a cruise sooner... I always enjoy Carnival's food and I'm looking forward to trying something new at the steak house this trip. From your experience anything we shouldn't miss?

Steakhouse on the first night gets you a free bottle of wine. Italian place is open daily for lunch with no crowd and no fee. We did the brunch one morning and it was good as usual and not overly crowded. The only time we had issues with long lines was buffet breakfast. To avoid that mess you can go outside to Blue Iguana and get breakfast burritos or tacos and tasty arepas, and the taco line (burrito line right by the lido buffet door, taco line around the corner and usually shorter because people don’t realize it’s two different serving lines) will cook fresh eggs to order. I’m not one for the shows so can’t speak there, I love cruises just for being on a ship in the middle of the ocean. Have sailed Magic twice and hadn’t a fantastic trip both times.

Will say that there is a music act called Music and Magic (will be long gone before you sail I’m sure) that were quite entertaining. Decent singers but Filipino and never got the words right. It was a fun game for our group to try and predict what lyrics they would come up with.

Hopefully OP doesn’t get upset I’mateal their thunder and answering questions on their thread.

Hopefully OP doesn’t get upset I’mateal their thunder and answering questions on their thread.

Not at all! Thanks for answering! I agree with everything you said! Your blue iguana suggestions were spot on for breakfast. The line builds for Guys Pig even before it opens. We hit it one day right before closing time--we don't adhere to a normal eating time on the cruise so 2:00 was a perfect time for lunch--(or maybe that was lunch number two) ha. There was no wait at that time. We only watched one of the shows (America Rocks) as we had seen the others before on the Breeze. We went and caught the early (PG) comedy show instead.

is there an adults only pool? does Serenity area have hammocks? do you need to get tickets for comedy shows?

Marsha

Cruisinmsk and Dmgabe, you've provided such positive feedback we are now considering B2B (6 day and then 8 day) on Magic. We were considering cruising twice next year and sailing Magic B2B will save on airfare. Now it's time to research Curacao and Aruba. Any knowledge you have of these ports would be greatly appreciated.

is there an adults only pool? does Serenity area have hammocks? do you need to get tickets for comedy shows?

Unfortunately no adults only pool, however there is a hot tub in the serenity area and the aft pool is usually less chaotic than the main lido pool. Serenity also has hammocks as well as many other large comfy options for lounging in and out of the sun. I can’t speak for the comedy show though since I’ve haven’t been, I’m not much of a night owl and would rather spend my evenings just sitting on deck staring out at the water or watching a dive in movie.

Cruisinmsk and Dmgabe, you've provided such positive feedback we are now considering B2B (6 day and then 8 day) on Magic. We were considering cruising twice next year and sailing Magic B2B will save on airfare. Now it's time to research Curacao and Aruba. Any knowledge you have of these ports would be greatly appreciated.

Like any ship new or old, it is all about what you want out of a cruise. Some people need constant distraction and entertainment while I need very little other than a good view of the open water. I would sail Magic B2B in a heartbeat if I could ever get that much time off work at once. Plenty of things to do for those that are on the ADD side while tons of open deck space and quiet spots for those that prefer to relax a little. Even on a sold out trip like the one I was on earlier this month the boat never seemed overly crowded other than the breakfast lines I mentioned and debarcation if you rush to be first off at every port. If you are looking for a great spot to watch sail away then deck 9 full forward puts you on top of the bridge and you can walk out on the wings and usually not many people out there

Unfortunately I can’t help you out with the port info.

Cruisinmsk and Dmgabe, you've provided such positive feedback we are now considering B2B (6 day and then 8 day) on Magic. We were considering cruising twice next year and sailing Magic B2B will save on airfare. Now it's time to research Curacao and Aruba. Any knowledge you have of these ports would be greatly appreciated.

Sorry I don't know anything about either of the ports. The Ports of Call section on these boards really helped me in researching info on the ports were were going to visit.

Unfortunately no adults only pool, however there is a hot tub in the serenity area and the aft pool is usually less chaotic than the main lido pool. Serenity also has hammocks as well as many other large comfy options for lounging in and out of the sun. I can’t speak for the comedy show though since I’ve haven’t been, I’m not much of a night owl and would rather spend my evenings just sitting on deck staring out at the water or watching a dive in movie.

As of last week, there were no tickets needed for the comedy shows. We went and saw the PG comedians and as long as you were there maybe 15 minutes before show time, you should be able to find a seat. The 7:30 comedy show wasn't as crowded as the 8:30 one. As we were leaving the PG 8:30 show the last night at 9:05, there were already a TON of people lined up to get in for the adult show that didn't start until 9:45.