Carnival Magic Review
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Yearly family vacation, and this year we chose a cruise. Everything from the entertainment staff all the way down to our state room was great! We took an Exotic Eastern Caribbean Cruise, and all ports of call were incredible. We visited Amber Cove, St. Thomas, San Juan, and Grand Turk. In Amber Cove, we spent our time at a few shops and at the pool that is right off the ship once you walk down the pier. In St. Thomas we took an awesome snorkeling excursion to Christmas Cove. Our snorkel guide Jodi was so knowledgeable about the particular reef and sea life we encountered. Captain Jay and Cory were very friendly and knowledgeable as well. In San Juan, we toured the city a little by foot. This port of call was a little more difficult to navigate if you didn’t understand the port map you were given, because you had to walk or taxi away from the port to really find shopping. We will definitely add an excursion for this port of call next time. Lastly, we went to Jack’s Shack in Hrand Turk. About a 15 min walk down the beach from the ship, or a $4 per person taxi ride. Water was beautiful, and playing with all the island dogs made it that much better. Beach chairs are free here, and umbrellas were $10 for the duration of your stay (worth if in our opinion, because the sun was out in full force the day we were there). On our way back to the ship, we stopped at the pool at Margaritaville and also did a little shopping! Would love to cruise this same itinerary again someday!!
Cabin Review
Cove Balcony
Loved our cabin. Most Cove balconies have a life boat above you, so your overhead view is obstructed. This particular cabin did not, so we really enjoyed not having that. We would sit in our balcony most nights, listening to the ocean, and star gazing. In my opinion our bed was a little on the firm side, but my husband didn’t mind it. It was a little warmer than usual in our room, but we were able to get a fan from our room steward so that helped a lot. Didn’t really bother us to much, because were not in our rooms that much anyways.
Port Reviews
Port Canaveral (Orlando)
Stayed at Country Inn and Suites the night before our cruise. Utilized their stay, Cruise, and park deal. Hotel was very nice and clean. Best part about our room, is you could see the cruise port from our window. Had a good variety on their free breakfast.
San Juan
Toured by foot. A little hard to navigate by foot if you have a hard time understanding the port maps they hand out, because most shopping is a few blocks away from the ship. We are at a local restaurant called Vaca Brave and tried some local food, which was incredible.
Amber Cove (Puerto Plata)
Very easy port to navigate. Many shopping opportunities right off the ship in port. We spent most of our time at the free pool right in port. Even though there were a lot of people there, it didn’t feel extremely packed. They also had free water slides there, a zip line for a small fee, cabanas your could rent, and a swim up bar and restaurant.
Grand Turk
Went to Jack’s Shack and the pool at Margaritaville. Jack’s Shack is about a 15 min walk down the beach from the ship, or you can take a taxi for $4 a person. Beach chairs were free, and umbrellas were $10 for the duration of our stay. The water was beautiful and I enjoyed playing with the island dogs. The pool at Margaritaville was nice, just a lot of people there.