The Ecstasy or The Agony?

[kicker]

Perusing the Carnival Roll Calls for Ecstasy - basically no one ever posts after their cruise (one exception, in recent cruises, and his reply was one word: "Sucked"). So what's up with people not responding? Is Ecstasy that bad? Do people take Ecstasy cruises and never return?:eek:

 

We're usually Royal Caribbean cruisers, but an August Ecstasy cruise fits our summer schedule best. Our most recent cruise was a Royal with horrible reviews, yet we had a great time (and for that matter, out of 15 or so cruises, never been on one I didn't enjoy).

 

So, anyone have any thoughts? My personal opinion on reviews: it's never as bad as some make it out to be.

[Savlamara]

We did a 4 day cruise on Ecstasy a few months ago and found the roll call dead then as well. It just seems that the shorter cruises have little to no action in roll calls. All of the roll calls for the 7+ day cruises were always active for me.

 

I loved my cruise on Ecstasy, I would do it again in a heartbeat.

[JohnSpo]

I enjoyed my 5 day Bahamas cruise on Ecstasy. It certainly was not agony.:)

 

It is a fine ship that was clean with a great crew. The entertainment was fun and the food was very good. I enjoyed the itinerary especially our stop at HMC. Ecstasy is one of Carnival's smaller ships but it had most of the amenities that I like that are found on Carnival's larger ships.

 

If you want the mega ship amenities such as rock climbing walls, ice skating, wave pools, etc. then you may not like Ecstasy. If you want a fun cruise experience without the mega ship crowds and price tag then you will like Ecstasy.

 

Check out Ecstasy on Carnival.com. Click on Explore then Our Ships and click on Ecstasy to view what Ecstasy has to offer before you book.

 

Give it a try and have fun.:cool:

[Razor_Poke]

It's been since 2009 when she was in Galveston, but I have nothing but great memories of that trip.

 

But I have trouble rating cruises - the only scale is Good to Great. Unless there is a Triumph like disaster, there really isn't a lot to complain about. :)

[RuthlessBoss]

I enjoyed my 5 day Bahamas cruise on Ecstasy. It certainly was not agony.:)

 

It is a fine ship that was clean with a great crew. The entertainment was fun and the food was very good. I enjoyed the itinerary especially our stop at HMC. Ecstasy is one of Carnival's smaller ships but it had most of the amenities that I like that are found on Carnival's larger ships.

 

If you want the mega ship amenities such as rock climbing walls, ice skating, wave pools, etc. then you may not like Ecstasy. If you want a fun cruise experience without the mega ship crowds and price tag then you will like Ecstasy.

 

Check out Ecstasy on Carnival.com. Click on Explore then Our Ships and click on Ecstasy to view what Ecstasy has to offer before you book.

 

Give it a try and have fun.:cool:

I've been on her 3 times. You actually see some people over and over!!

[SadieN]

I've been on her 3 times. You actually see some people over and over!!

 

 

That's the reason why the roll calls aren't that busy, repeat cruisers. We have the same 'issue' on the West Coast. See the same pax (and crew!) cruise after cruise.

 

 

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[jefffrompawpaw]

I enjoyed my 5 day Bahamas cruise on Ecstasy. It certainly was not agony.:)

 

It is a fine ship that was clean with a great crew. The entertainment was fun and the food was very good. I enjoyed the itinerary especially our stop at HMC. Ecstasy is one of Carnival's smaller ships but it had most of the amenities that I like that are found on Carnival's larger ships.

 

If you want the mega ship amenities such as rock climbing walls, ice skating, wave pools, etc. then you may not like Ecstasy. If you want a fun cruise experience without the mega ship crowds and price tag then you will like Ecstasy.

 

Check out Ecstasy on Carnival.com. Click on Explore then Our Ships and click on Ecstasy to view what Ecstasy has to offer before you book.

 

Give it a try and have fun.:cool:

 

 

Couldn't have said it better. I find this ship to be a gem. We took the family of 4 and loved it. I'm looking forward to going on it again. The only issue is it's usually a 3-5 day cruise ship and I think I'd prefer a longer cruise.

[bobsfamily]

We had a great roll call for our Feb 6th cruise out of Charleston, it was the first cruise out of Charleston. We even shared a "viila" on HMC between 4 couples. I posted after we came back as to how great the whole cruise was. Did we have some problems? Well if you can count 30+ foot waves the first night/day then yes we had some BUT not as bad as the RCCL ship behind us! At least we did not limp into port and go home... we hit all three ports and had a wonderful time at each. It was cold and nasty at home (we live in Charleston) but warm and toasty in the islands!

 

Ecstasy has a wonderful crew, they are jazzed to be in Charleston and to be doing mostly 4-5 day cruises with some 6-7 day cruises. Before they were doing 3/4 day cruises and really had little time to get to know people, now they have time, especially on the 7 night cruises, to interact with the cruisers. Had a wonderful time and would be on the Ecstasy in May but could not pass up the chance to sail on the Sunshine out of Charleston!

 

Here is the thread if you are interested:

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2202641&page=20

Edited March 22, 2016 by bobsfamily

[OCruisers]

Since Ecstasy is new to Charleston, very interested in the thoughts of others.

[erinmarie424]

I rarely go back to the roll call to comment on my cruise when it's over, and as stated earlier, don't see a lot of action on roll calls for the shorter cruises I've been on even before the cruise. So maybe the lack of posts isn't necessarily a reflection of the ship.

 

FWIW I was on the Ecstasy in 1993 and it was great. [emoji4]

[BenjiRodney]

Perusing the Carnival Roll Calls for Ecstasy - basically no one ever posts after their cruise (one exception, in recent cruises, and his reply was one word: "Sucked"). So what's up with people not responding? Is Ecstasy that bad? Do people take Ecstasy cruises and never return?:eek:

 

We're usually Royal Caribbean cruisers, but an August Ecstasy cruise fits our summer schedule best. Our most recent cruise was a Royal with horrible reviews, yet we had a great time (and for that matter, out of 15 or so cruises, never been on one I didn't enjoy).

 

So, anyone have any thoughts? My personal opinion on reviews: it's never as bad as some make it out to be.

 

I have 2 cruises booked on her. August this year and a June group cruise next year.

[cruizinisthebest]

You're better off clicking on the ship name at the top of the page or searching for reviews, then going back to roll calls. People usually don't go back to them after the cruise is over. Especially to post a review with the same people they just sailed with. I use that ship button at the top of the page often. It will bring up any thread related to the ship you click on.

[kicker]

You're better off clicking on the ship name at the top of the page or searching for reviews, then going back to roll calls. People usually don't go back to them after the cruise is over. Especially to post a review with the same people they just sailed with. I use that ship button at the top of the page often. It will bring up any thread related to the ship you click on.

 

Done all that. Personally, I usually post something after returning (besides posting a review), as many times cruisers on the ship after me will post on my Roll Call, asking for comments. And, I've done the same, checking other threads to see what excursions people are doing, specialty restaurant experiences. CC is a great, helpful tool, so I've learned a lot over the years - just seems people are posting less and less (all cruise lines, not just Carny) than before. Could be because I'm not a fan of a particular well known site that starts with F.:rolleyes:

[kicker]

I should mention my thread title was simply a play on words, not all that serious, but I figured it might get people's attention. I'm looking forward to the cruise and to the Carnival experience. We actually booked a Carnival cruise out of NYC a few years back. Hurricane Sandy was scheduled to hit New York (as it certainly did!:mad:), so they moved our cruise UP one day (how often do you hear of that?); we couldn't arrange our schedule to get there a day earlier, so they ended up refunding our money.

[cruizinisthebest]

Done all that. Personally, I usually post something after returning (besides posting a review), as many times cruisers on the ship after me will post on my Roll Call, asking for comments. And, I've done the same, checking other threads to see what excursions people are doing, specialty restaurant experiences. CC is a great, helpful tool, so I've learned a lot over the years - just seems people are posting less and less (all cruise lines, not just Carny) than before. Could be because I'm not a fan of a particular well known site that starts with F.:rolleyes:

Oh. Well sorry. Didn't realize you tried those other options.

 

As for the site you and I won't mention, yup I would guess that's the primary reason. Most of the talking goes on over there. I know, because I participate in several cruise pages - including a big one for our upcoming cruise which is a carry over from last year's cruise with many of the same people. I don't think any of them are on this site.

 

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[CatlinSTJ]

It's not the fanciest, but our crew on the Ecstasy was awesome and we had a great cruise. My kids actually preferred the youth programs on the Ecstasy to those on the Breeze.

 

 

Next cruise: Carnival Vista - July 2016

[lilchief27]

We had a great roll call for our Feb 6th cruise out of Charleston, it was the first cruise out of Charleston. We even shared a "viila" on HMC between 4 couples. I posted after we came back as to how great the whole cruise was. Did we have some problems? Well if you can count 30+ foot waves the first night/day then yes we had some BUT not as bad as the RCCL ship behind us! At least we did not limp into port and go home... we hit all three ports and had a wonderful time at each. It was cold and nasty at home (we live in Charleston) but warm and toasty in the islands!

 

Ecstasy has a wonderful crew, they are jazzed to be in Charleston and to be doing mostly 4-5 day cruises with some 6-7 day cruises. Before they were doing 3/4 day cruises and really had little time to get to know people, now they have time, especially on the 7 night cruises, to interact with the cruisers. Had a wonderful time and would be on the Ecstasy in May but could not pass up the chance to sail on the Sunshine out of Charleston!

 

Here is the thread if you are interested:

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2202641&page=20

 

Thanks for your information! We're on Ecstasy this October. I started a roll call & it is currently quite small.

 

 

It's not the fanciest, but our crew on the Ecstasy was awesome and we had a great cruise. My kids actually preferred the youth programs on the Ecstasy to those on the Breeze.

 

Next cruise: Carnival Vista - July 2016

 

By any chance, do you have teens? My teens love the kids clubs & we do too :D Hope there's a bunch of teens are our fall break cruise!

Edited March 24, 2016 by lilchief27
clarity

[lilchief27]

It's not the fanciest, but our crew on the Ecstasy was awesome and we had a great cruise. My kids actually preferred the youth programs on the Ecstasy to those on the Breeze.

 

 

Next cruise: Carnival Vista - July 2016

 

By any chance, do you have teens? My teens love the kids clubs & we do too :D Hope there's a bunch of teens are our fall break cruise!

Edited March 24, 2016 by lilchief27
double post

[bobsfamily]

Thanks for your information! We're on Ecstasy this October. I started a roll call & it is currently quite small.!

About 60 days it got a lot busier.. I'm on one now that we are under 60 and it's starting to pick up, even with the "other place"

[bosoxfan5]

Perusing the Carnival Roll Calls for Ecstasy - basically no one ever posts after their cruise (one exception, in recent cruises, and his reply was one word: "Sucked"). So what's up with people not responding? Is Ecstasy that bad? Do people take Ecstasy cruises and never return?:eek:

 

We're usually Royal Caribbean cruisers, but an August Ecstasy cruise fits our summer schedule best. Our most recent cruise was a Royal with horrible reviews, yet we had a great time (and for that matter, out of 15 or so cruises, never been on one I didn't enjoy).

 

So, anyone have any thoughts? My personal opinion on reviews: it's never as bad as some make it out to be.

We're sailing the Ecstasy in August this year as well. I have sailed her before and enjoyed it. I especially like Half Moon Cay. That is my favorite part. You will enjoy her!!

[bosoxfan5]

I have 2 cruises booked on her. August this year and a June group cruise next year.

We'll be on the August 6 sailing!

[The4Cruisers]

If anyone booked Ecstasy and is having severe second thoughts, go ahead and sign it over to me and I'll gladly take your place. :D :p

[BenjiRodney]

We'll be on the August 6 sailing!

 

 

 

August 20th 2016 and June 10 2017

[Tracey/Thom]

Ecstasy was our first very cruise 2 years ago and we enjoyed it! It was a small ship (all of our other cruiseships got bigger and bigger), but it had everything we needed at the time. For a short cruise (ours was a 4 day), it was perfect!

[JimAOk1945]

It's been a few years since we cruised on the Ecstasy when she sailed out of Galveston, but we enjoyed ourselves both times.. The ship is small enough to get around quickly. The food was great. We enjoyed the ports of call which was the main reason we booked her.

 

My wife has a few pictures she took on our cruises on her website. If you're interested, you might like to take a look at the links below.

 

Have a great cruise!