Magic 5/14 review

[csoud68]

We sailed on the first 23' norfolk sailing. This was my second Magic cruise. My first was in 2017.

 

Embarkation and debarkation are covered in another thread so I won't address that. We definitely enjoyed our cruise . I'll just do some fast positives vs negatives..

 

Positives

1.  We thought the dining room dinners were very good. Service was great.

 

2. The carnival hub app is much better than last time. We saved copies of "fun times" for nostalgia but you end up relying on the hub app. The chat feature for $5 is a steal.. It's a breeze to check in for dinner. They notify you within minutes what actual table you have.

 

3. Carnival does a great job entertaining everyone. Very fun.

 

4. Our suite was well appointed and comfy..we were in 7374. Ocean sounds and views were stunning. 

 

5. Elevators are in good spots..I encourage newbies to use them to your advantage.

6. Non smoking casino was very nice to lose 💰.

7. Guys burgers and fries were yumm.

 

Negatives

 

1. The lido is a disaster at peak times. 9 am-11 am is a cattle call. Sesrching for a table can be frustrating.

But...You can easily offset that by going in earlier. 

 

2. Magic balconies overlook deck 5. Just forget going onto the deck for peace.

We were down from a hot tub and heard loud drunk people all week without fail.

Early mornings and late evenings were the only times to be out there. Fortunately we had huge windows to see the ocean from inside..

 

3. Carnivals  politics seem to be forced on the cruiser more than ever. That can be irritating to a segment of cruisers. Some cruisers are more outspoken than others. 

 

That's all...much more positive than negatives... 

[pe4all]

Good points, both positive and negative.  We will be on Magic again in January, and can't wait.  We try to book cabins on her towards the aft, where deck 5 narrows out and there are no hot tubs.  Interested in the "carnival politics" comment.  Do you mean people complaining over things CCL is doing now?

Edited May 21, 2023 by pe4all

[geochick73]

Thanks for sharing!   We are sailing on the Magic in 3 weeks.   First time out of Norfolk and our first time on the Magic.  We've booked an aft wrap balcony on deck 7....also our first balcony!  Looking so forward to it!    

 

Happy to hear that the MDR experience was good.  Did you happen to catch the production numbers?  We enjoy going to those but on our last cruise out of Mobile, they were pretty bad. 😞

[csoud68]

4 hours ago, geochick73 said:

Thanks for sharing!   We are sailing on the Magic in 3 weeks.   First time out of Norfolk and our first time on the Magic.  We've booked an aft wrap balcony on deck 7....also our first balcony!  Looking so forward to it!    

 

Happy to hear that the MDR experience was good.  Did you happen to catch the production numbers?  We enjoy going to those but on our last cruise out of Mobile, they were pretty bad. 😞

Yes..we really enjoyed the rock show and flick..

 

We walked out of The 88 keys piano show before it started..we could see it was not good. The guy can't sing..lol

[djfrangella]

I have been out of Norfolk once before covid and as I didn't like dropping off luggage and parking elsewhere but it didn't stop me from booking again.  I was just u tubing and they were saying what a disaster it was.  I am not a newbie but we are cruising with friends on their first cruise. Any hints on a smooth embarcation? And debarkation was even worse.  We carry off but they said they were off before the ones carrying off their luggage. Does anyone know if our friends can get off with us. We are platinum. Thanks! 

[csoud68]

5 hours ago, geochick73 said:

Thanks for sharing!   We are sailing on the Magic in 3 weeks.   First time out of Norfolk and our first time on the Magic.  We've booked an aft wrap balcony on deck 7....also our first balcony!  Looking so forward to it!    

 

Happy to hear that the MDR experience was good.  Did you happen to catch the production numbers?  We enjoy going to those but on our last cruise out of Mobile, they were pretty bad. 😞

This will help immensely..you can walk through the middle of the ship on decks 3, 4, 5..but for quick access depending on where u are...

 

Forward elevators go to

1. Deck 12 spa...if you walk to the rear of the spa there is an elevator that goes to serenity deck 15

2. Showtime theater on decks 3,4,5

3. Guest services deck 3

4. Main atrium on deck 3

5. Deck 3, 4..Northern lights mdr

 

Mid ship elevators

1. Deck 5 casino 

2. Deck 5 ocean plaza..pig and anchor is outside off ocean plaza, alchemy . bar, coffee and cake station..down past that area is red frog pub

3. Deck 10 Front of lido/pool 

 

Rear elevators

1. Deck 5 Spotlight lounge..piano bar 

2. Deck 10 rear of lido/ aft pool/pizza/seafood shack 

3. Deck 3, 4 southern lights mdr..

 

Our room was 7343..we were close to mid elevators so I could get to the casino and ocean plaza and front of lido fast

 

I had a bit of a walk to get to the rear elevators and fronts...

 

I suggest using your stateroom hallways to walk to proper elevators..much faster than using the wrong elevator and then wading through crowds..

[StephPS79]

I was on this sailing as well.  Had a great time.  Spent way too much time in the casino, but I had goals!  lol.  We actually went out of Norfolk on the Magic last year, and I didn't really like the ship.  However, I decided this time, it is actually a good ship.  I hated Ocean Plaza the first time, really enjoyed it this time.  I liked the lania on deck 5, although I could see how having a balcony above it might be disappointing.  Really no problem with embarkation/disembarkation either time.  Some crabby people during disembarking, but honestly, it's 4000 people coming off a ship, everyone just calm down.

 

We live close enough to Uber to the port, the whole parking and shuttle thing though seems like an extra hassle, not sure it would prevent me from booking, but I probably wouldn't travel to Norfolk to cruise anyway.  

 

We had an interior in the front of the ship on deck 6, with the "hidden deck."  So no problems with noise, other than, man, you really felt the thrusters when on.  Room was otherwise very quiet and I don't think anyone ever passed by our door lol.  The door to the deck was 10 feet away, so easy to hop out whenever we wanted fresh air or to see views.

 

As I said, too much time spent in the casino, so not sure how everything else fared.  Hardly any time spent at the pool, much to my disappointment.  Never even made to Serenity!  Didn't even see any comedians or entertainment, although we were on the Glory in February, with most of the same shows. 

 

Didn't eat in the MDR at all, ate Steakhouse 3 nights - always fab!  Cucina one night - great!  Only got 1 Guy's burger, pizza once, deli once, and ordered a lobster roll once.  No complaints on any of it, other than I wish I would have visited more!  Oh, and completely missed a breakfast burrito at Blue Iguana, still mad at myself for that one!

 

I'm still curious what "politics" OP is referring to...

Edited May 23, 2023 by StephPS79