Mini review Magic June 25-July2 Eastern Caribbean

[vacationcruiser05]

This was our fourth Carnival cruise. We have previously sailed on the Miracle (2005), the Glory (2007), the Breeze(2015), and now the Magic. We are also booked on the Magic next year. On this cruise, my husband and I travelled with another couple. We went to Amber Cove, St. Thomas, San Juan, and Grand Turk.

 

Ship/cabin: The condition of the ship was great! Really no complaints about condition of the ship. We had a 4J cabin on deck 7. We have previously had balconies. We really liked our cabin. Our only complaint was a loud banging noise at the front of the ship. I don't know what it was was but it was all day and all night on some days.

 

Food/Dining: We had late dining. The food was good in the dining room and service was good. We did sea day brunch twice and we liked that. We are big fans of Guy's Burgers and Blue Iguana. I really wish Blue Iguana would stay open later. I also wish lunch started before 12:00. We arrived at a couple of ports at 11:00 and 12:00. I would have liked to eat at Guy's or Blue Iguana before getting off the ship.

 

Ports: We stayed at the pool area at Amber Cove. We were impressed with the pool area. My husband and I did the zip lining at the port for $15 each. If you're going to do the water slides, I would suggest water shoes. The pavement is very hot during the walk up. We went to Magen's Bay at St. Thomas. The beach was crowded but very beautiful. There were three ships in port that day. We shopped at San Juan and went to one of the forts. The water at Grand Turk was beautiful as usual. We just stayed at the beach near Jack's Shack.

 

Entertainment: This is the category where I have the most complaints. My husband and I like going to the comedy shows. The comedians were TERRIBLE on this cruise. We were so disappointed. There was one comedian named Thea. During her PG show, she hardly told any jokes. She just preached to the kids about being spoiled. People were walking out. We went to the Illusionist show. It was just ok. The Legends show was pretty good.

 

We arrived at Port Canaveral around 11:00. We were able to walk right on the ship. When we got back to Port Canaveral at the end of the cruise, debarkation was easy as well. This is a short review, but I hope it's helpful. I did not save my fun times from this cruise.

[Clarea]

Appreciate the feedback.

[tayzia00]

Thank you for the review. We will be on the Magic July 23rd doing the same itinerary. This will be my fourth, DH 3rd, and our kids 2nd cruise. We have never been on the Magic and have only been to Grand Turk. We have been wondering what to do on these islands. Thanks for the heads up about the water shoes on Amber Cove!! Did you try any of the restaurants onboard? My last 3 cruises we never really strayed far from lido buffet or the MDR.

[mamamaga]

Thanks for the review. We will be in a 4J on magic in September. I always book them if I can.

[vacationcruiser05]

We did not try any of the restaurants.

 

We will be taking our kids with us next year on a Southern Caribbean on the Magic. It will be their first cruise. They will be 8 and 4.

[Cruiser_89]

Thanks for sharing your experience on the Magic. Question for you- the zip lining in Amber Cove, was that within Carnival's new Port area or did you venture out to a private vendor? If it was carnival's zip line would you recommend it to others? $15 sounds like a great price however I'd like to be fairly certain it would beat Tree Limin' in St. Thomas.

[vacationcruiser05]

There is a zip line at the port area. It's a fairly small zip line. It's just goes over the pool area. It's $15 per person for unlimited all day.

[bigeagle12]

Appreciate the feedback.

 

 

Bob .. you and I are stalking the Magic reviews .. are you planning a cruise on Magic? We are going on Sept. 10th.

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Forums

[vacationcruiser05]

There is a zip line at the port area. It just goes over the pool area. It's $15 per person for unlimited all day. We enjoyed it but it definitely wouldn't compare to the zip lining excursions.

[cruizinisthebest]

Thanks for the review!!

 

We'll be doing this same itinerary on the Magic next month. Great to get your concise feedback.

 

Can you tell me a bit more about the 4J? We have two booked on deck 6. First time staying in these. What was up with the banging? lol. So excited to try these cabins. And Amber Cove as well. That's the only port of the 4 we haven't been to. Thanks for the tip about the water shoes. I will get some for my kids.

 

How were the lines for getting off at the ports?

Edited July 6, 2016 by cruizinisthebest

[Cruiser_89]

There is a zip line at the port area. It just goes over the pool area. It's $15 per person for unlimited all day. We enjoyed it but it definitely wouldn't compare to the zip lining excursions.

 

Ah ok.. thanks. Sounds like the zip line on the Oasis class ships...nothing with nothing.

[monkeyluis]

I was on the same sailing date. I agree about the comedians. They were Meh.

 

I also agree that they should open up the Cantina and Guys a little earlier if the ship doesn't arrive till late. But they were still very good.

 

And don't forget about the Pig & Anchor. Wow was that delicious. Again I wish they were open more, but that was more like a treat to have than everyday. Same though, they could have been open a little longer. Our balcony was right above it and it smelled sooooo good.

 

I like the illusionist show that was part musical & part magic it was pretty freaking awesome. The Win! musical was also pretty fun and very well done. It was nice to see something different than the usual playlist shows on the other carnival ships. Also I the burlesque show that the illusionist hosted was pretty good, but it was burlesque light. Not like an on land show that my wife and I have been too. But for the high seas it was entertaining, the magic at that show was Meh.

 

I have the fun times and will post them soon.

[Florings]

Thanks for your review and comments. Not sailing on her till next year, but nice to read positive feedback.

[vacationcruiser05]

We thought the banging noise could have something to do with the stabilizers but we could be wrong. It seemed to happen when the water was more rough. We really liked the 4J though. Sometimes it's really windy on the balcony at the front of the ship but it wasn't a big deal. I would definitely book one again to save money.

 

The lines to get off the ship weren't bad but we didn't rush down to get off as soon as we docked either.

[vacationcruiser05]

I forgot to mention that we loved the water slides on the ship!!!

[Port of Tampa]

Thanks for the review. We cruise on her 3 Sep 16 and are really looking forward to it.

 

Cheers and happy cruising!

[JaniceB]

Thank you for the mini review.

[Rizzorp]

This will be our first time in San Juan during the day... all our other visits were at night (4pm-12am) so we never got to see the forts..... I am curious about the fort you went too. Was it the one we pass on the way into port? Also do you mind sharing the cost to get in and if you booked it through the ship or just went there and paid to enter? Trying to get things set for December!

[vacationcruiser05]

We went to the one that you pass on the way in. It's smaller than the other one. We went to the bigger one last year. We just paid to get in. It's only $5 per person and that includes admission to both forts. I think there is a trolley you can take to the forts but we just walked.

[Rizzorp]

We went to the one that you pass on the way in. It's smaller than the other one. We went to the bigger one last year. We just paid to get in. It's only $5 per person and that includes admission to both forts. I think there is a trolley you can take to the forts but we just walked.

 

Awesome! Thank you!

[Hillman23]

I was on this cruise as well. What really made it great for me was my lady friend that went with me ;)