It’s back to Port Canaveral we go! Days 7 and 8 of this Eastern Caribbean cruise on Carnival’s Mardi Gras are going to be spent at sea as we savor the few remaining hours we have onboard. Thankfully the weather cooperated for 99% of the trip, with just a few passing showers that didn’t cause any disruption. The ocean has also cooperated and it’s been pretty hard even to tell you’re on a moving ship.
Since I don’t have a port call to talk about, I’m going to touch on a few aspects of the ship in today’s report. First the pool and public decks. While the ship holds +5,500 passengers, you may think, “We’ll never get a lounge chair by the pool!” Well, if you get to the prime pool spots early, you shouldn’t have a hard time scoring one. Mardi Gras, and sister ship Carnival Celebration, have multiple pools, but the most popular one is always the Lido pool and those spots go quickly.
There is no shortage of space to lay out in the sun whether on the ship’s top deck above the Lido, at the aft pool, or in the adults-only Serenity area, I never encountered an area that did not have an abundance of empty lounge chairs, Lido pool excluded. In addition to loungers, many areas have day beds, clam shells, and conversational seating out in the sun and shade for you to enjoy.
If you’re so inclined to enter a hot tub, a few are available, including ones reserved for 21+ in the Serenity area. I’ll never understand the popularity of these things, but hey… you do you!
I mentioned at the beginning of this cruise, that I got a free room as part of a casino offer, so in order to keep those offers coming, I did make a donation several times. Did I end up ahead? Absolutely not, but spending money in any ship’s casino will get you perks such as free rooms, free drink packages, etc that are worth it, especially if you like to gamble.
The casino on Mardi Gras is broken out into smoking and non-smoking area, but let’s be honest, you’re going to smell smoke even in the non-smoking area because there is no physical barrier to keep the smoke on one side of the casino. But the difference in air quality in the non-smoking area is noticeable, but it’s not 100% smoke-free.
Casino policy says that smoking is allowed only while actively playing and that’s to avoid the casino from becoming a smoking lounge. There are other areas to smoke which are all outdoors.
The Mardi Gras Casino has table games, slots, and a full bar with bar seating and cocktail tables. Roaming bar servers are constantly around so you don’t have to leave your favorite machine to go to the bar and get a drink.
Machines and table games allow you to use your sign and sail card to transfer cash from your onboard account to gameplay and points are tracked. Free play is awarded based on point levels and when you hit 1,500 points you also get free drinks while you’re playing.
In my final report, I’ll let you know whether or not the house won!
When it comes to bars and lounges on Mardi Gras, there are plenty. Some like the two-story RedFrog Rum Bar on the Lido deck and the Alchemy Bar are more popular than others, but there is no shortage of places to grab a refresher. Bars are located both indoors and out speciality drink menus are available at most indoor locations, while the outdoor ones have the standard “quick service” drink menu.
Like most cruise lines Carnival offers beverage packages that you can purchase to cover all your alcoholic and non-alcoholic drinks for the duration of your cruise. In the case of Carnival, you can buy the CHEERS! Beverage Package that includes both, or Bottomless Bubbles which includes juices and soda.
I always recommend you get at least some type of beverage package so you don’t get hit with a huge, unexpected bar bill at the end of your cruise. If you don’t drink alcohol, even those $3.50 sodas add up quickly. To determine whether or not to buy the CHEERS! package, I put together a CHEERS! Beverage Package calculator you can use to see if it would be worth purchasing based on your anticipated consumption. Also, it’s important to note that purchasing the package before your cruise will cost less than buying it onboard.
In the Day 8 report, I’ll have the final thoughts on all aspects of the cruise, but so far I have very little to complain about… but there’s still one day left!
For the evening, I was able to grab a last-minute reservation at Bonsai Teppanyaki, which I feel is one of the best values among all the specialty restaurants on board. While the steakhouse and Rudi’s Seagrill both charge $48 per person, the teppanyaki restaurant is only $38 per person and you get so much food it’s hard to even think about the six individual desserts that come your way at the end of the meal. Plus, the atmosphere is fun, and interactive, and makes for a great experience all around.
Dinner was once again fantastic and you can read about my first visit to Bonsai Teppanyaki in the day 2 report, here.
Before heading off to bed, I stopped at the previously mentioned casino. I didn’t have too much luck other than the first night, but I did manage to win around $300 at one point. Rather than take it and go to bed, it went back into the machine and I walked away with $0.
Fun Times for Day 7:
The Fun Times for May 19, 2023, can also be downloaded as a PDF by clicking here.