Sensation 4/1/06 Review

[dsh0512]

I don't know how needed this review is now that they are switching the Fantasy and Sensation. However since so many people have been worried I wanted to share my experience.

 

Overall it was a great cruise. This was my 9th cruise and 5th with Carnival. The embarkation went smoothly and quickly no problems. I had an inside cabin on Empress Deck. The room was clean and I experienced no problems with smells or the water. Our room steward was lightening fast. My family of 4 ( dh, myself and ds6 and dd 2) can make quite the mess of a stateroom but everytime we left we came back to a sparkling clean room.

 

We found the food to be good. It was on par with every other Carnival cruise I have taken. The waitstaff did a great job but by comparision they seemed very understaffed and seemed to be working very hard to keep everyone serviced.

 

The shows ...well I have mixed reviews. Without a doubt the entertainers were talented and their show was polished. The first show Curves was very risque in nature. It was the most sexual I have ever seen Carnival do. When they say Las Vegas style this time they really mean it. I had to leave with the kids. The second show was a tribute to the 80's and it was very entertaining and much more in line with a standard broadway style cruise show.

 

Camp Carnival's new location is up and running on the veranda deck forward. The new area is much larger. The staff was great. My kids enjoyed the little time they got to spend there.

 

The putt putt course was open and in use it is on the sports deck forward. It makes a great place for the under 2 crowd to run or crawl a bit on the astro turf.

 

The slide to the pool was finally open on the final day(our sea day) note kids must be 48 inches to use the slide.

 

I took a small blow up pool for my 2 year old on sea day. We used it on the aft kiddie pool deck. There is plenty of room and we were not in anyone's way.

 

Ports of call:

we went to Freeport, Nassau and Half moon cay

 

Freeport: We chose to take a 20 min taxi ride to Lucaya. We went out to the beach and had fun for a few hours, then wandered through the shopping that is across the street. It was a great day for $20 for a family of 4

 

Nassua: We went to the Pirate Museum. It is $12 per adult... kids under 12 are free. The pirate out front is a blast and the kids loved him. The tour is really neat and it was worth the money spent. We shopped and then took a water taxi to Atlantis. Be advised that you can no longer walk the grounds if you are not a resort guest.

 

Half Moon Cay: All I can say is Awesome!! This Island is wonderful. It is a great addition to the Carnival itinerary. The sand is sugar fine and white. The water is waist deep all the way to the bouys so it is great for kids. They have 2 water slides, a giant spraying fountain, large floatable creatures in the water to play on sea snake, crab, shark, and turtle. The clam shells to cover the chairs a nice. The island has tons of activities horseback riding, fishing, stingray encounter etc.. The snorkeling from the shore is very lacking. There isn't anything to see. I wouldn't waist the money on a rental. I would guess the snorkeling boat tour would be a better idea. It was our favorite day.

 

The only complaint I have of the cruise is the carnival capers were consistently wrong. I don't know if this was a result of the itinerary change or just poor editing.

 

It seems they have worked out most of the kinks. It was a great cruise. If you are scheduled you can look forward to having fun.

 

I hope this is helpful..feel free to ask any specfic questions..

 

DH

[myfirstcruiseapril]

Thanks for the review. I will be going on the Sensation 4-30-06. Since I am traveling with two children, I found your information to be so helpful. Did your children eat in the dining room with you? Did being understaffed seem to affect how long it took to receive your food? I was thrilled to hear your children enjoyed the Pirate Museum. We plan to go there too.

[dsh0512]

Yes the kids ate in the dining room every night. They did great. The staff was very accomodating to the kids. After realizing the kids loved fruit they brought a plate of cut of fruit to them at the start of every meal. The staff did a great job of servicing us. From my past experience they seemed to be covering way more tables. They were working very hard to keep everyone serviced. I did not notice a significant delay in getting our food it seemed to be more affected by when we arrived in the Dining room.

[phlebo53]

I'm confused. did you go the Sensation or Fantasy? I am also on the Sensation 4/30 and I thought we had a day at sea not Half Moon Cay. I was booked on the Fantasy and then changed to Sensation. Did they change the Itinerary too. I hope not I was looking forward to day at sea.

[thequotegal]

Hi...great review!! I also am bringing a tiny blow-up pool and am hoping for the best (they'll let me use it by the kiddie pool if it isn't in anyone's way) However, how do you fill and empty it??

[myfirstcruiseapril]

Thanks again for the info about your children and the dining room staff. We are so excited to go on our first cruise. How did you get to the Pirate Musuem? We are thinking of walking.

[divadiverfl]

Going now on the "Sensation." instead of Fantasy. I really don't care as long as I have fun. Been in small shiops before and they are fine.:)

[jaxstatealum]

Well not that you need my review (the first one was great and acurate), but here is my two cents worth. The Sensation was great. Ship was beautiful and all the concerns of those who posted weeks ago after the apparant fiasco were all a moot point.

 

We had a fabulous cruise and only wish we were still there.

 

If any of you EVER get a chance to go to Half Moon Cay - GO!!!! I think it may just be a slice of Heaven.

 

Freeport - unless you ride out to the beach or take an excursion that you know you will enjoy stay on the boat. The island is nasty and the people were rude.

 

Hope these further help those that care.

[dznymom]

I am so pleased to hear that the Sensation is back to being the fine ship I remember :) Thanks for taking the time to post. Great idea about the kiddie pool - wish I had though of it when mine were small!

 

plebo53, the switch between Sensation & Fantasy took place on April 6. The next reviews to come in should reflect the changes.

 

Half Moon Cay sounds better and better. Can't wait to get there on the 26th :D

[michigan tim]

I posted much of this review on a couple of other threads related to Sensation and Fantasy, but this is probably the best location for it: :) :D

 

DW and I had a great vacation... both because of and in spite of the ship.

 

The upside:

Food service was all excellent (however, they could use another body at the pizza counter as there was often a line and he just couldn't keep up with demand), the room was fine, the bed and bedding was amazing (we will be ordering pillows), the shows were very good as were the daily activities. In spite of the ship being sold out, there was plenty of space to find quiet spots away from the crowds. The staff was attentive and friendly. The last day was the day at sea, and this was the first time they operated the water slide. The embarkation process was amazing... we were on the ship in less than 10 minutes.

 

The downside:

The public areas (aside from the spa) were a bit worn and dated looking the decks look in need of a refinish (the wood is very greyed). My guess is that while the ship was serving FEMA, it did not receive the daily maintenance (paint touch-up, metal polising, etc..) it would while sailing. There were 2 aft pools (on different decks) that I never did see operational.

 

The biggest downside was the communication. You could ask 3 different staffers the same schedule question and get 3 different answers. While on Half Moon Cay we asked what time the last tender departed... we were told 5:00, 5:30 and 6:00 by 3 different employees. You may suggest checking the Caper, well, it made 2 references to 6:00 and one to 5:00. This sort of thing was typical. The last day of the cruise the Caper reported the Ecsatsy Dining Room to open at 11:30 to serve lunch... which came as a bit of a shock to the surprised Maitre' de after a line had formed outside the entrance. Here is a good one; on the first night of the tour we received our snorkeling excursion coupons for Grand Turk! Apparently someone did not know that the itinerary was changed? We had already received our refund for the excursion ??? I guess I'll attribute this stuff to a staff that has only been together a few weeks and still have some kinks to work out... This stuff, while worth mentioning, is too trivial to spoil my vacation!

 

Excursions:

We went bottom fishing in Freeport, most seemed to catch a fish or 2. DW caught a beautiful squirrel fish and I caught a grunt, most everyone was able to catch a fish or 2 including some real exotic creatures, however the rods and reels were a very bad repair. We did the Catamaran Snorkel in Nassau and was a bit disappointed after doing Grand Caymans last year... not nearly as scenic... plus the water was a bit chilly. I heard that the Pearl Island snorkeling was very nice. We did the flats (bone) fishing at HMC... we casted to lots of fish, but they were quite skittish and would scatter as soon as the bait hit the water...still a very enjoyable experience as they only take 4 people at a time and you have to stalk these fish in very shallow water (wading).

[Caitlyn]

Can you let your child ride down the slide with you. My dd is only 6 but would love the slide. I was told by Carnival that she could ride down on my lap... Did you see any other children doing this?

 

Glad to hear you had a nice vacation. I am looking so forward to our cruise!!

[Padron4000]

Has anyone had any problem receiving Sirius signal in the Carribean? XM fans keep your opinions to yourself. You have Oprah, we have Howard.

[Undrhil]

Well, if anyone at Carnival noticed all that stuff missing, I'm sure someone will realize now who it was. Hope those aren't your real initials. :)

 

The Sensation sounds as good as I remember it and I am still sad that I will not be on her during my cruise in May, but I have heard good things about the Fantasy, so I'm not sweating it. I do look forward to trying the lobster tail this time around. I'm not much of a sea food person but my sister loves it so I might have to try it just to shut her up. :)

 

Thanks for the reviews! Keep them coming if there are more. Maybe those nay-sayers from earlier in the week will read these and decide to have a good time on the Sensation after-all. :)

 

Undrhil

[zqvol]

I'm confused. did you go the Sensation or Fantasy? I am also on the Sensation 4/30 and I thought we had a day at sea not Half Moon Cay. I was booked on the Fantasy and then changed to Sensation. Did they change the Itinerary too. I hope not I was looking forward to day at sea.

The OP was on Sensation which last week sailed a modified schedule. This week it switched to the Fantasy schedule and Fantasy took its schedule. Read this review for the part that pertains to the ship itself not the ports.

 

As I recall the big concern was the on board problems. This seems to address those concerns.