Wow - the new year is upon us, and I still haven't gotten around to reviewing our New Year's Cruise on Carnival Mardi Gras! Rather than skip the review entirely, I figured I'd challenge myself to review our experience on the Carnival Mardi Gras before we embark on our Christmas Cruise this year (spoiler: I didn't meet my goal)! And in a heartfelt attempt to actually meet that goal, I'm going to change up my style of review a little from a day-by-day trip report to more of an overall summary with anecdotes. Also, if you'd like to hear about this cruise, I sat down with Doug Parker to talk about our time on the Carnival Mardi Gras on the Cruise Radio Podcast.
To decide which cruise and itinerary to sail to ring in 2025, we created a spreadsheet comparing ships, itineraries, and prices. When comparing price/value, Carnival was the clear winner - either the Celebration out of Miami or Mardi Gras out of Port Canaveral. Ultimately, we went with the Mardi Gras out of Port Canaveral because the dates/itineraries worked slightly better.
The last time I sailed Carnival was in 2014 on the Carnival Breeze. It was a promotional free cruise offer that I had received, and I remembered having a really great time. Landon had also recently sailed on Carnival out of Galveston for a Bachelor Party Cruise and raved about how great it was (of course, I'm sure the company and celebratory occasion probably had a lot to do with that). My parents and Rachel had last sailed Carnival in 2010 on the Dream, and this was Aaron's first time cruising with Carnival.
Embarkation - Port Canaveral
We spent the night pre-cruise at the Hilton Orlando Disney Springs. Since Stove and Judy drove to Orlando, they were able to transport all of us and our luggage from Orlando to Port Canaveral in their Suburban.
Stove dropped us at the curb with our luggage, then circled the garage to find parking. Unfortunately, he left his passport with Judy, so we were unable to go through security because we didn't want him to be stuck outside without his passport. It took him a very long time to find parking, as the garage was already mostly full.
Carnival has different size luggage tags that Royal Caribbean, so I used the 6.5x3.5-inch clear luggage tags that I had used previously for Norwegian Cruises. It's not as perfect as a fit, but it gets the job done.
We arrived later than our window, due to Stove circling the garage in search of a parking spot.
Landon was scolded for attempting to use the stairs and was told that he had to use the ramp.
Stateroom
We had a Cloud 9 Spa Stateroom on Deck 17. The Cloud 9 Spa is located on Deck 5, but there's an express elevator that takes guests from Deck 17 directly to the spa on Deck 5. This elevator also proved to be very convenient on port days to disembark the ship.
I will be providing a separate post with my review of our stateroom, but overall, I found it to have sufficient storage, and it was fairly comfortable.
I will be providing a separate post with my review of our stateroom, but overall, I found it to have sufficient storage, and it was fairly comfortable.
Ship Layout and Design
The Mardi Gras was the first of Carnival's Excel Class which launched in 2021. In lieu of the multi-story atrium on Carnival's smaller cruise ships, the Excel Class features Grand Central which is a hybrid atrium-theater space. While the Grand Central concept sounds nice in theory, its execution is a different story. When the space turns into a theater, the center of the ship is very loud. It functions poorly as a theater, having insufficient seating and poor sightlines. And then when it's not in use as a theater, the theater-style seating makes for an awkward one-sided atrium space.
It definitely took a few days to get used to the layout of the ship - I didn't find it intuitive, especially on the upper decks. Not all decks have forward to aft circulation. For example, on Deck 17, we couldn't walk from 17 Aft to our rooms on 17 Forward, but had to go down to Deck 16 to cross. I would say that Deck 16 and Deck 8 are the best decks for crossing forward-to-aft.
It definitely took a few days to get used to the layout of the ship - I didn't find it intuitive, especially on the upper decks. Not all decks have forward to aft circulation. For example, on Deck 17, we couldn't walk from 17 Aft to our rooms on 17 Forward, but had to go down to Deck 16 to cross. I would say that Deck 16 and Deck 8 are the best decks for crossing forward-to-aft.
What I did appreciate about the layout was the 8th deck exterior. Similar to Norwegian's Waterfront, the 8th deck has exterior bars and dining areas so that you can be outside and a little closer to the water than the top deck (which is quite removed from the sound of the ocean on a mega ship like Mardi Gras).
The downside about Deck 8 exterior is that the smoking decks were located forward, so the smoke would waft back toward "Summer Landing" - one of the "neighborhoods" on Mardi Gras consisting of an aft pool, Guys Pig & Anchor Smokehouse, and Heroes Tribute Lounge.
Pig & Anchor/Heroes was an... interesting space. In the Heroes lounge, they played football games here while simultaneously hosting non-football trivia. Activity overlap and sound bleed were a consistent theme on Mardi Gras which was surprising. With the size of the ship, I would think that they could manage to spread out the activities a little better.
Pools, Hot Tubs, and Waterslides
Carnival Mardi Gras has three pools for all ages - the main pool at Lido Deck 16 Midship, Tides Pool at Lido Deck 16 Aft, and Patio Pool at Deck 8 Aft. There's also the adults-only Serenity Pool at Deck 18 Forward.
The Lido Pool is in the center of the ship. It's small, as is typical on cruise ships, but is where all of the action takes place - belly flop competition, sexy man, etc.
There are two aft infinity pools, the Tides pool is on Deck 16 and is a great spot to watch the sunset while leaving port.
Waterworks consists of a splash area and waterslides, located Deck 18 Aft. Carnival has some version of Waterworks on most of their cruise ships. Unfortunately, the drop slide was closed due to maintenance issues for the length of the cruise.
Serenity, located Deck 18 Forward, also has a full-size pool which is nice to have in a complimentary adults-only area. The pool is positioned in a way that it is often shaded, but I'm sure that would be less of a problem in the summer months when the sun is higher in the sky.
Carnival has no shortage of hot tubs, but they were always packed full of children - I assume because the pool water was so cold. There are also two hot tubs in Serenity, but those were always packed with adults.
Dining
One area Carnival really excels in is quick/casual. Blue Iguana, Big Chicken Shaq, and Guy's Burgers provide great casual poolside eats. Piazza Panini has paninis and pizza on Deck 8. I appreciated the variety of casual food options, as well as the operating hours.
Main Dining Room
While Carnival provided many dining venues with lots of variety, I found they really struggled in the Main Dining Room. For one, attendance was low - perhaps because there are so many other dining venues on the ships, not as many passengers opt to visit the main dining room nightly (ourselves included). Our serving team seemed to have tables all over the dining room, which was not the most efficient. On top of that, every night they had to break for a 3 minute dance number which was fun and all, but I did wonder if it slowed service. One night, we sat down in the dining room and were at our table for 20 minutes before anyone spoke to us - and that person only to tell us that they'd get to us when they could. We decided to follow a tip from another cruise passenger we met in the hot tub and arrived 15 minutes early to dinner in the main dining room. Surprisingly, it worked! The dining room was already open 15 minutes before our scheduled seating time, and they were ready to serve us.
Fairenheit 555
We dined at Carnival's specialty steakhouse Fairenheit 555 the first night of the cruise, and I think it was the best dinner we had all week. Rachel and Landon purchased this dinner for everyone as a Christmas present because if you dine at Fairenheit 555 on the first night, you get a complimentary bottle of wine per stateroom. The free bottle of wine comes from a select list, but you can choose to upgrade your bottle for 50% off. We decided to upgrade our first bottle, then got another bottle from the free list. They then gave us two bottles of wine to go - meaning that we got one extra free bottle of wine.
Bonsai Sushi
Bonsai Sushi is an a la carte specialty sushi restaurant. Their pricing is a little better than if you were to go to a land-based sushi restaurant. We were so frustratied with the pacing of the main dining room that we opted to eat at Bonsai on New Year's Eve to hopefully help with the pacing of dinner.
Dinner at Bonsai was still a little slow, and I think my parents actually aren't big sushi fans, but Aaron and I enjoyed it. We got a sushi boat for the table which was fun.
Seagrill
Seagrill is the specialty seafood restaurant on the Mardi Gras which my dad booked because he was annoyed with the main dining room. At first they sat us at a weird table where we couldn't all talk to eachother (three 2-person tables shoved together), but then we asked to be moved to the big round table in the corner and it was much better.
Chi-Bang!
Carnival Mardi Gras has two specialty restaurants that are at no surcharge the first night you dine there (then you pay additional if you choose to return another night during your sailing)..... I appreciate anything included, but I do wonder if this has perhaps contributed to the fewer people and servers in the main dining room.
Chi-Bang! is a Chinese/Mexican restaurant. When I first heard of the concept, I assumed it was Chinese-Mexican fusion. It is not. There is a Chinese menu and a Mexican menu..... to my disappointment there were no wonton burritos or carne asada fried rice. The food from both menus is good, though. Chi-Bang! is also open for lunch during the day (included, no limit).
Cucina del Capitano
Cucina del Capitano is the other incuded-first-night specialty restaurant on Carnival Mardi Gras. It is an Italian restaurant located on Deck 8, near the panini stand.
The night we dined here, we had awfully slow service. It was so slow that they sent over a head waiter/magician to distract us by discretely writing an "X" on my hand, then disappearing right as the food arrived. If this restaurant had a surcharge, I'd be very annoyed, but since it was included, I was only slightly annoyed.
The food heere is casual Italian, nothing particularly fancy. I chose to order the fish entree which was a mistake, so instead I am showing a photo of Aaron's spaghetti.
Nightlife
Carnival Mardi Gras had one of the better nightlife scenes of the past ships we sailed. The few times we went into the nightclub, it was bumping (except not when I took this photo.... I only took the photo because it was the end of the night and mostly empty).
Carnival also offered late night movies on deck, and a late night bites in the Lido buffet..... not to be confused with "midnight buffet" of cruises of bygone eras, the Lido had chili dogs and pizza available starting at 12AM which was something I appreciated on nights that I didn't eat much in the main dining room.
Entertainment
Unlike Royal Caribbean and Norwegian, Carnival has not contracted Broadway plays on their ships. Carnival's musical theater group is called Playlist Productions. Aaron and I went to the theater to watch Rock Revolution, a show inspired by Woodstock. There was no plot or narrative, just one 70s song after another. The stage was minimal, and the choreography was interesting.
The aerialist shows took place in Grand Central. I found the seating there to be very limited, so I was unable to watch an actual performance.
However, the aerialists practice in Grand Central during the day before their performance, so if you'd like to get a glimpse of the show without fighting for seats during showtime, you could watch one of their practices. This photo was taken during a daytime practice -
What I really appreciated about Carnival Mardi Gras entertainment were all of the various musical groups they had playing at live venues throughout the evening. Every night, there was no shortage of live music, and all of the ensembles were very talented.
Bars and Lounges
Where I thought Carnival Mardi Gras really shined was in the theming of its many bars and lounges. The theming of the bars existed not only in very detailed decor, but in the carefully curated drink menus. Seriously - I was impressed.
Fortune Teller's, located in the French Quarter, had an extensive list of magical, interactive cocktails.
My favorite bar was Brass Magnolia, also located in French Quarter. They really nailed the theming of opulant French architecture meets Caribbean-Spanish influence.
Also the menu is very New Orleans, offering a Sazerac, French 75, and beers from Abita Brewing Co.
Of course, Mardi Gras has Carnival's staple Red Frog Pub, located poolside on the Lido deck. I found it to be smaller/less popular than Red Frog Pub on other Carnival ships I've sailed, perhaps because of the many other bars onboard.
Havana Bar is.... you guessed it... a Cuban-inspired venue. Havana Bar is adjacent to the Havana Staterooms which have exclusive access to the Havana pool on deck 8.
They closed this bar a few times during our sailing because it also serves as a wedding venue.
And then Alchemy Bar is a fun vintage cocktail "pharmacy" which will concoct the perfect remedy to soothe your ailment.
The menu features Cuban Coffee, and fun cocktails - daiquiris, mojitos, and cuba libres.
Novelties
If you've read any of my cruise reviews before, you know I include a "Do you have a....?" category. Cruise lines have been one-upping one another with "firsts" at sea for decades, and Carnival Mardi Gras had the first rollercoaster on a cruise ship, BOLT: Ultimate Sea Coaster.
I did not ride BOLT on this cruise. Being a bit of a coaster enthusiast, I had intended to, but in addition to the $15 per person charge, BOLT was often closed due to weather/maintenance. It didn't look particularly thrilling from below, but I'm sure it feels a lot crazier when you're flying over the side of the cruise ship.
Mardi Gras also had a ropes course, which I also didn't do - mainly because whenever I was near the ropes course, I was in a bathing suit, and non-bathing attire and sneakers are required. I enjoyed watching people "walk the plank" from below, though.
Overall Thoughts/Impression
This was a fun cruise, and I'm glad that we gave Carnival another try. Overall, I think that Mardi Gras does not handle crowds as well as Royal Caribbean's Oasis-Class ships, but I really enjoyed the themed bars and casual eats on Mardi Gras, and it was fun to be on a ship with actual nightlife.
After our cruise, Carnival announced some significant changes to their loyalty program which don't have me jumping up and down to become a loyal VIFP. The VIFP Program is becoming Carnival Rewards, to be based on bi-annual spend, rather than number of cruise nights (so even more now, you are buying your status). I think I would be more disappointed if I were a higher tier in the Carnival VIFP program, but I'm a Gold member, and the rest of the family are Blue members, so we won't be losing decades of Carnival loyalty points. Still, I don't like the direction that Carnival is going with their loyalty program, and I hope that other cruise lines do not follow suit, therefore out of principle I will not be sailing Carnival again in the near future.
It was a fun time, Mardi Gras!
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