If you have been on a Royal Caribbean cruise before, then this may not be the cruise for you. I found myself comparing everything, and the Carnival Sensation lost at everything. The ship was clean, but not modern. There is only one small pool and 4 hot tubs. Good luck if you intend to use these amenities on a day at sea.

The food was good, but the buffet for lunch is not big enough to handle the crowds. My group would have half scouting for a place to sit and the other half standing in lines to get a drink and lines to get the food. Breakfast was similar, unless you go to the dining room. The service is actually really good but you can't tell because they are understaffed. There were a lot of times I had to wait about 20 minutes to get a drink from the bar but only because there would be 25 people at the bar and only one bartender. Cocktails take quite a bit of time to make and each drink was made to perfection. I never had a bad drink, but the wait times were a little ridiculous.

My room was always kept clean and the dining room service was excellent. The activities were plentiful and very enjoyable. This was my 3rd cruise and I have to say that Mat, the cruise director of my trip on the Carnival Sensation was by far the best director. My family all agreed. I was amazed at his ability to dance, sing, joke, entertain, and smile all day long - every day. He goes from one event/show to the next and gets the crowds pumped up. Martin who does a lot of hosting as well (A lot of the trivia's) was also very entertaining. I sure hope the entire service staff gets paid well and Carnival treats them right because THEY create the enjoyment of this ship. The biggest downfall was the crowds.