CARNIVAL CRUISE REVIEW- MY TRIP ABOARD THE PARADISE

My trip was in conjunction with the Permission to Hustle Retreat. Carnival Cruise line sponsored this trip. My Carnival Cruise Review is an independent assessment of my time aboard. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

“Vacation, all I ever wanted; Vacation, had to get away.” Most likely if you are reading this, you are interested in taking a Carnival Cruise. You came here looking for a Carnival Cruise Review. A true assessment would take many, many pages, but below I will detail what I feel are the most important aspects of my Carnival Cruise and what I would be looking for in a review.

Since the time I got married, my husband and I have been travelers, but we have mainly traveled the United States, and vacations have been important to us, but we have not been cruisers. When I was invited to the Permission to Hustle Retreat, I wanted to attend the retreat so much that I decided to try out the Carnival Cruise line. So what did I find out about Carnival Cruises? 

THE BEST THINGS ABOUT A CARNIVAL CRUISE:

Carnival Cruise is just the place for a getaway retreat. It is a place to relax and soak up the sun surrounded by fun and activities. I sailed on the Carnival Paradise for 5 nights. This newly renovated ship is stunning. I have never been on a Carnival Cruise before, and I was told it was not a luxury cruise, so I was immediately surprised at how beautiful the ship was. We sailed for five nights and stopped in two ports, Grand Cayman and Cozumel.

“I gotta feeling that tonight’s gonna be a good night.” From the moment I walked on board, I was surrounded by the stunning common area and friendly staff. I knew that this was going to be a good cruise. The only concern I had was about the food. 

FOOD ALLERGIES ABOARD A CARNIVAL CRUISE

I worry about trying a new destination because I have to be gluten-free and new vacation venues make me worry. From the few things I read online before boarding, I knew that Carnival took food allergies seriously. The following is from the Carnival Website:

“Food Allergies: We ask that you please inform our dining team of any food allergies and special preparation you may require to accommodate your allergy. Please discuss this the first evening of your cruise. Although there are a number of options at our various restaurants, special dietary and food requests can be accommodated in our main dining rooms only.”

So was it possible to eat gluten-free aboard a Carnival Cruise? The short answer is yes. Here is what I found out. Mostly everyone was knowledgeable about what I needed. I did encounter a couple buffet workers who thought that they could tell me what foods had gluten, but when I heard, “you can’t eat that, it has cheese,” I knew to ask for a chef. But most of the time a chef was called, without me asking, to ask about the buffet line. The chefs I encountered always offered me a plate from the back with the plenty of gluten-free options. 

Guy’s Burgers did not disappoint. When I asked about their gluten-free options, I watched as the chef changed his gloves and put my burger in a clean area of the grill. I was offered a gluten-free bun but declined. I have found that I actually prefer a no-bun burger. In fact, I am convinced most people would prefer their burgers that way. 

We have all heard about people who go on cruises just to eat whenever and whatever they want. And there is food available all the time aboard a cruise ship, but what else is there to do? 

NIGHT AND DAY ENTERTAINMENT

There is a casino aboard the ship. But there is also plenty to do outside of the casino. There are live shows. My roommate, Tina from Footprints in Pixie Dust, and I went to see 80s Pop to the Max which was a song and dance show featuring top hits from the 80s. Wow, did we really dress and style our hair like that back then? There several nightclubs where you can sing karaoke, hear live entertainment, and dance the night away.  B-I-N-G-O – yes there is even Bingo.

Pool, awesome slide, Art auctions, art seminars, miniature golf, Martini tasting, Video game arcade. . .But what if all you want to do is stretch out in a deck chair with a good book? There are plenty of chairs to do that, and Carnival has planned for everything. If you forgot your book at home, there is a well-stocked library for you to peruse. 

The On-Shore Excursions were awesome: I had the opportunity to go to StingRay City and the Cayman Turtle Center which raises Green Sea Turtles and has helped save the species from extinction. THIS.WAS.AMAZING! 

Closing time? Plenty of nightlife will surround you. If you like Pina Coladas – there are plenty of places to find drinks. All drinks except lemonade, ice tea, coffee and hot tea are an additional charge. Soda is also additional. You can purchase an all-you-can-drink package. There are 2 packages available and must be purchased for the length of your cruise: CHEERS! (Alcohol, Mixers, and Soft Drinks), and Bottomless Bubbles (Soft Drinks). 

CARNIVAL HUB APP:

Make sure to download the Carnival Hub App. This app will keep you on ship time and island time. Enables you to see at a glance the restaurants that are readily available to serve you. Find out a moments notice what activities are going on on-board and more. 

ARE YOU LOOKING FOR FUN?

Carnival sells themselves as the FUN SHIP, but they never say luxury. This is an affordable vacation with more than plenty to eat, see, and do. AND You will have a great vacation without breaking the bank. 

NOT PERFECTION:

Here’s the deal. No vacation is without flaws. And my Carnival Cruise Review would not be complete without pointing out the couple of things I noticed. There are only two things I would wish for aboard the Carnival Paradise. 1) More Charging Stations:  There were not enough charging stations for cellular devices. There are charging areas and outlets in your cabin, but with 2 bloggers in our cabin, these were in high demand.

2) My number 2 is a sensory issue for me. Carnival Cruise lines do have smoking in select regions onboard. There is no smoking in cabins and most public areas, but there are designated smoking areas onboard. I am not a smoker, and my family has said I have a super sniffer. The ability to detect cigarette smoke before most people is not a super power that most people wish for. I could personally smell smoke throughout the ship, however, most people said they could not.

MORE CRUISE INFO:

Cruise Essential Packing List

Permission to Hustle Carnival Cruise