The Carnival Destiny

 

 

I had an opportunity to sail on the Carnival Destiny recently and wanted to share with you a report on the experience.

The Carnival Destiny was the first ship introduced after the very successful “Fantasy Class” of ships by Carnival in 1996. When it came out, it was the first Carnival ship to feature standard balcony cabins rather than just in suites. It was also Carnival’s largest ship to date at a double occupancy capacity of 2600 and was initially deployed into the 7 night Caribbean market and has most recently returned into shorter deployments of 4 and 5 night cruises from Miami year round. It joins the NCL Sky as the only year round short cruise option to feature balcony cabins.

The ship had a wow factor then and still does now. Upon boarding the vessel you are in the main atrium which expands from deck 3 to 10 up to a skylight. The lobby bar highlights the atrium as do the 4 glass elevators. In true Carnival fashion, the lobby is festive, decorated with many led lights which truly accent this area in the evenings. The ship is smartly laid out, with all of the public space basically on decks 3, 4 and 5 and staterooms on 1,2,6,7,8, and 9.

One of Carnival’s greatest assets fleet wide is that their boast of some of the largest staterooms at sea on big ships. The Destiny is no different. Standard balconies are just less than 200 square feet as are the interiors and ocean views. All staterooms are equipped standard with safes, ship to shore phones (at only $0.99 a minute – a first!), and hair dryers. The staterooms are very comfortable and have ample closet and drawer space. Regardless of the category you book, the staterooms are identical within type – for example all balcony staterooms are identical – the differences in categories are deck locations. This makes assigning staterooms very easy.

The forward of the ship is home to main show lounge which is accessible from 3 decks and can seat 1000 guests. This is a great room for a large theatre style show or private event. There is full state of the art A/V as well as a sunken orchestra pit for the elaborate Carnival shows. The balance of deck 3 is home to the front desk, shore excursion desk, lobby bar and atrium.

On deck 4 just outside the show lounge are the photo gallery and shop as well as the library and entrance to the Galaxy Dining room. On the aft side of the Galaxy dining room is the internet café and the Onyx Room Cigar Lounge.

Deck 5 (Promenade) is the ship’s main thoroughfare. Starting forward at the theatre and all the way aft the secondary showroom, The Criterion Lounge which accommodates approximately 500 guests theatre style. In between are the shops, sports bar, casino, sushi bar, disco, Apollo piano bar, the wine and champagne bar, and Down Beat jazz and blues club. The Onyx, Apollo, Down Beat, Disco and Criterion are all available for meetings or cocktail events ranging in size from 40 to 500 guests.

Dining on the Carnival Destiny features two main dining rooms. Both the Galaxy and Universe dining rooms are two levels. Guests are assigned a dining room based on their dining time choice (early, late, or as you choose) and their proximity to their cabin. In addition to the dining rooms, the lido dining on deck 9 is available for all meals. The outdoor lido buffet is open for breakfast and lunch and snacks. The indoor lido is open for all meals including dinner for those that don’t want the dining room dress code. There is also a deli station and Asian cuisine station on the inner lido dining area. On the very aft of deck 9 there is also a grill station and a 24 hour pizza oven and ice cream and let’s not forget 24 hour complimentary room service.

The dining experience on Carnival Destiny was good. Dinners in the Galaxy dining room were 4 to 5 course and each night there are vegetarian and seafood choices. The food quality was very good at dinner. Every Carnival cruise features a lobster night but for me the highlight meal in the dining room was an Indian vegetarian dish I had on the final evening that was absolutely fantastic. Considering that many of the top chefs onboard the ship are from India, it was very authentic, not lacking in any spice or presentation. The lido was where I had breakfast and lunch most days and the breakfast buffets were good and the omelet station was very popular. The one thing that I noticed is that the lido is very busy during breakfast and lunch hours. One day I went to the Universe dining room and found excellent food, service and far less people for breakfast and lunch. The newer ships on Carnival also feature alternative dining choices like steakhouses and Italian bistros for nominal charges.

The pool deck on the Carnival Destiny is a great place to enjoy an afternoon at sea. The deck is tiered from deck 9 up to 10 so there are many areas to grab a chair and relax. Carnival Destiny also has the huge screen TV on the pool deck which they use for movies under the stars. They also use this to enhance the pool activities during the day. There are three pools on the Destiny two of which are on the main pool area and one all the way aft. The aft pool area can be closed off with a retractable magradome in case of inclement weather. Bar service is readily available on the pool deck and we enjoyed great service and fun afternoons in the pools, on deck, and going down the waterslide! On the night leaving Cozumel, there was a great party on the pool deck with bands, laser lights and a great time.

Carnival’s marketing tag is “the Fun Ships” and that is exactly what they deliver. It seems there is always something to do and the staff is very friendly and set the mood. The entertainment on board is fun as well. The Piano Bar is a great spot to sing along the night away and was very popular. Carnival recently introduced a new comedy club concept “Punchliners” fleet wide and on the Destiny it was in the Criterion Lounge twice during this cruise. There were PG and R rated shows depending on whether it was the early or late one. The comedians were very good having come from national clubs. This isn’t your typical cruise director comedy – this is the real deal like you’d pay to do on land. The Disco was thumping like a South Beach nightclub and the Down Beat always had a great band playing. The Casino was busy and action packed and the deck parties as I mentioned were very good. Another “Fun” aspect is that each night in the dining room the staff had a song and dance for us. Most cruises do this on the final night only.

In closing, I personally enjoyed cruising on the Carnival Destiny for this short time. It was, without a doubt “Fun”! Carnival’s brand recognition and ability to deliver what they advertise is a winner.

The Carnival Destiny in particular is a great choice for small and large programs alike in the short cruise market. Value for the money, large balcony staterooms, a great spa, quality service and food, and plenty of entertainment are what you’ll get on this ship.