Carnival Mardi Gras
Boarding the Carnival Mardi Gras in Port Canaveral was a smooth process as they still had the spaced-out boarding times in June 2022. Although they had gotten past the lower occupancy rates of the COVID days by this cruise, with just over 6100 customers on board, we were officially sold out on this cruise. The Mardi Gras is the first ship in the America’s to be powered by eco-friendly Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) and is also the only ship in the world with a real roller coaster on board for guests to enjoy for $15 for 3 laps. This ship is without a doubt the biggest and most beautiful ship in the Carnival fleet. The Mardi Gras offers a lot of fun for the young and young at heart.
Carnival Horizon
I recently, after many invites, had the opportunity to cruise on a normal cruise on the Carnival Horizon, their latest great ship. I have to admit it’s been a long time since I have been on any Carnival ship. Years ago Carnival was the darling of the Incentive Cruise business. Times changed, people change and frankly Carnival had an identity crises and they lost their market share.
So many of us stuck our nose up to using Carnival and their “Fun Ships”. Well the time has come to rethink what you may think about Carnival. After spending 5 really fun days on the Horizon I can honestly tell you todays’ Carnival is great fun that your clients will love. It is FUN and without any pretenses.
Carnival Conquest
Alexia and I were invited to see the Carnival Conquest today in Port Everglades. While she is one of the older Carnival ships, she is truly in good condition. Décor throughout is the traditional dark colors and a lot of woodwork. The theme around the ship in the public areas is around the Impressionist era with a lot of paintings from that period. You will also find quite a bit of large décor accents in brightly colored glass to give it more of a modern feel. Cabins were fairly standard. My favorite were the ones at the bow of the ship. They have wonderful floor to ceiling slanted windows with roller shades that provide fantastic views.
Carnival Celebration
I boarded the Carnival Celebration on Sunday 07-23-2023 at Port Miami at about noon. While the port itself was very busy, as this was a sold out cruise, things moved very well. From check in, through security and onto the ship in about 30 minutes. The Carnival Celebration is the second ship in the Excel Class of ships, including its slightly older sister Mardi Gras. This is a Mega sized ship at 183,521 Gross Tons! At over 1100 feet long and 130 feet wide & 20 decks high, you cannot miss this mega ship from a distance! For our cruise, we stayed in a Lido Deck Balcony on deck 16 forward. We really liked the cabin and location as it was close to everything and very quiet.