Carnival Destiny - How is it?

[boozecruise78]

Sailing out of Miami on Nov. 21 for 5 nights to Grand Cayman and Ocho Rios...Taking my parents on their first cruise...we just sailed RCL - Radiance in Alaska and loved it, however other experienced cruisers have told me I won't like the Carnival cruises as much. We've booked a Balcony room on the upper deck (6 or 7 I believe).

 

How's the food, public spaces and statrooms?

 

Also any reviews of these ports would be great...never been to either...looking at a stingray city trip in Grand Cayman...I want to book a smaller outfit on a sail boat...to get away from the cruise crowds if I can...Also looking at something similar in Jamacia with a trip to Dunns River of course...

 

Any thoughts would be appreciated!

 

Happy Cruisin:)

[floatingaway2525]

Sailing out of Miami on Nov. 21 for 5 nights to Grand Cayman and Ocho Rios...Taking my parents on their first cruise...we just sailed RCL - Radiance in Alaska and loved it, however other experienced cruisers have told me I won't like the Carnival cruises as much. We've booked a Balcony room on the upper deck (6 or 7 I believe).

 

How's the food, public spaces and statrooms?

 

Also any reviews of these ports would be great...never been to either...looking at a stingray city trip in Grand Cayman...I want to book a smaller outfit on a sail boat...to get away from the cruise crowds if I can...Also looking at something similar in Jamacia with a trip to Dunns River of course...

 

Any thoughts would be appreciated!

 

Happy Cruisin:)

 

Well..I sail her on Oct 30 for the first time, so I just have a couple general comments for ya...:)

The ship is going in for an extensive update in September...so we will have the benefit of this newly fresh ship!:D

 

A sail to the islands will not compare to Alaska at all, so totally different experiences...forget about Alaska.

 

There is no reason at all for you to go expecting to like it less because "experienced cruisers" told you. Carnival offers an amazing experience for the money so go with an expectation for the most fun you've ever had!

 

Go to the member review section and read about Destiny, remember the drydock is scheduled before we sail her.

 

Go to the Ports of Call area to read about the ports. In GC you will tender. Dunn's River is amazing and a do not miss IMO if it is your first time there. Climbing them is considered fairly strenuous (slippery) by most people. It is one my favorite memories of Jamaica.

 

You will have a great time!!! :D

[boozecruise78]

Thanks for the note...any idea what the drydock will entail?

[Irishlinny]

From what I hear, they're putting in the Big screen on the Lido, replacing worn carpeting and general painting and freshening up.

We love the Carnival Experience....try not to listen to what others say...just form your own opinions. There will be stuff that's better and stuff that's not, I'm sure....just go and have fun!

We booked the stinray city and snorkeling with Captain Marvin's, but the cancelled going out because the water was too rough. We ended up waiting a couple of hours and then Nativeway went out (but only for the stingrays...too rough to snorkel). It was awesome, but I definitely would have preferred it in calmer waters so I wasn't worried about stepping on one while I got knocked around! LOL! It was fun.

Can't help ya with Ocho Rios, though....

[boozecruise78]

Thanks for your note and insight...Stingray City sounds like a great experience and must do while there...as for the ship sounds like it will get a nice facelift before we sail in Nov. so that should be nice...looking forward to it!

 

Z

[Lola1210]

My husband and I went on the Destiny out of San Juan. It was our worst cruise. Some of the guests were very rude. The food was okay nothing like the food on the other ships. The waiter at our table was not that pleasant. There was a mix up with our table seatings and they said that there was nothing that they could do to help us. On other ships, they have changed the seating if there was a mistake. The air conditioner was not operating in one of the balcony rooms. As to the ports, we were kept busy and happy every day. The best ship that we went on was the Liberty. It was like comparing night and day. A bad cruise experience changed into a fantastic cruise on the next ship. Good luck!

[*Luv2Cruz*]

We loved our cruise in May.:D See my review below in the Previous Cruises section. Enjoy!

[brnsnbrws]

My sister and I cruised Destiny out of San Juan and had no problems with rude passengers, our service was great everywhere on the ship. We wanted our seating changed and there was no problem. We had an air condition problem with the cabin not cold enough for me, I like cold! Maintenance came in and opened the ceiling vent and at times I actually had to go out onto the balcony to get warm.LOL The food was average, I surely didn't go hungry on the ship. We enjoyed the Destiny so much we have booked her again when she sails out of Miami.

[dutchiegirl6]

We were on the Destiny last December and loved it! The ship is older so there are a few minor details that were a little worn. For example, there was a small piece of edging on the corner of the vanity coming loose, but it really wasn't anything major. Other than that, everything was good. Our wait staff and room steward were very good as was the food while we were on the ship. Overall, the cruise was great and none of the little things bothered us at all. I hear it's going to get an outdoor movie screen during drydock. That will be nice I'm sure!

 

I agree with other posters who say Stingray City is a MUST! It was one of the coolest things I've ever done. :)

[boozecruise78]

My husband and I went on the Destiny out of San Juan. It was our worst cruise. Some of the guests were very rude. The food was okay nothing like the food on the other ships. The waiter at our table was not that pleasant. There was a mix up with our table seatings and they said that there was nothing that they could do to help us. On other ships, they have changed the seating if there was a mistake. The air conditioner was not operating in one of the balcony rooms. As to the ports, we were kept busy and happy every day. The best ship that we went on was the Liberty. It was like comparing night and day. A bad cruise experience changed into a fantastic cruise on the next ship. Good luck!

 

I've heard a lot people not like this ship out of San Juan...However we'll be leaving out of Miami...hope that helps...

[old sole]

It's worrisome I know when you read experiences like Lola1210's, but don't let those put you off. You will read many more comments from people who had terrific cruises on the Destiny. I rank ours (Feb 2008) in our top two.

 

The Destiny did show some minor wear & tear in the carpeting, and we did have a medicine cabinet mirror that wouldn't stay closed (fixed by maintenance when we pointed it out). But overall we thought the ship looked good, and she will be getting some freshening up before you board. Our cabin on deck 8 was spotless and comfortable, and the crew was terrific. Very efficient room steward, very friendly and attentive servers and bar server in the restaurant.This was the first cruise where I've tipped the Maitre 'd - he was around every night checking on how we were doing and just chatting for a few minutes. On our other cruises, the only time I saw the Maitre 'd was at the podium on the last night.

 

Food in the main restaurant is good to excellent. You will find some interesting selections if you are a little adventurous in menu choices, and tried & true favorites like steak or chicken if you're not. I especially like their cold soups. Don't miss the warm chocolate melting cake for desert, it's listed every night. I didn't like the buffet hot line as much on any of my Carnival cruises as I did on either NCL or Disney (possible exception of Carnival Spirit in Alaska), and Destiny continued that trend. On the plus side, the deli, pizza, salad bar and poolside grill are all very good.

 

I haven't been on RCL, but I continue to read that cabin size and entertainment is a plus for Carnival.

 

I haven't been to Ocho Rios. You will tender into Grand Caymen. Most people say the stingrays are the signature attraction there. We just did a highlights tour (rum cake factory, Hell, 7 mile Beach) and hung out downtown.

 

Don't worry about you & your parents not having a good time. I am convinced you will. If this is their first cruise they will be blown away - and will be convinced that no other line could possibly be better.

[MBL206]

We sailed from San Juan on the Destiny last September. Before the cruise, I read a host of negative reviews/comments about the ship; about the departure port; and about the itinerary (Southern Caribbean).

 

Happily, we were upgraded to a Penthouse Suite from a Suite about ten days before the cruise. The stateroom and balcony were beautifully kept throughout the cruise. We did not experience any "mechanical" malfunctions with air conditioning, etc. I did see some wear and tear, but all cruise ships have this to one degree or another.

 

My husband and I really enjoyed the food in the dining room. We ate at the buffet a couple of times and found the food to be consistent with the other Carnival ship on which we sailed. My husband loves pizza and he spent many happy moments at the pizza counter!

 

In short, we had a wonderful cruise! I would not hesitate to book another cruise on this ship.

 

After my most recent cruise, I have decided to accept all the information about particular cruise lines or ships in these postings with a "grain of salt." Just like this posting, they are an expression of someone's experiences.

 

I hope you have a great vacation on the Destiny.

[kiraryker]

We sailed in January and didn't experience any rude passengers and the food - well let me say I'm still trying to lose the weight I gained on the cruise - wouldn't think with a port everyday it would be possible but we loved all the food! We even preferred the buffet over the dining room most days. And even did the room service in the late evening. The service was amazing and our cabin was always attended to. This was our first cruise and we are sold so now we are taking the whole family in March on the Triumph.

[boozecruise78]

Thanks old sole for your candid review...I think we'll enjoy it. We wanted to re-book royal which is of course much more expensive for the same itinerary, but we really wanted to see what another line would be like...before sticking to just one or two...

[natduv]

Sailed out of San Juan on the Destiny. First ship I cruised on that had a self service laundry-loved that. Also, the deli sandwiches were very good. Had a wonderful trip.