This sailing on the Carnival Pride was a Journeys trip which means Carnival added several opportunities to meet with the entertainers, wait and cabin staff. They also had special events including the Captain’s Gala (which included free drinks, snacks and live musical entertainment and a Midnight buffet.
We visited Grand Turk, Aruba, Curacao, Martinique, St. Kitts and Tortola over a 14 day sailing out of Baltimore. The islands were beautiful and fun but I found St. Kitts and Tortola expensive and the street entertainers agressive.
In Aruba we spent the day at the Barcelo all-inclusive. The staff at the Barcelo was excellent but alas the guests at the hotel were rude and tied towels around chairs and recliners they NEVER USED! The only place to sit was the pool bar but the bartenders understood and I was able to sit and read a book at the bar. It was clear that the Barcelo overbooked by a very large number which made the resort less enjoyable than it could have been.
This cabin was very nice but it felt a lot smaller than the Junior Suites I had been in on the Pride in the past. I can’t comment on the cabin staff because all we asked for was ice and towels in the evening.
I will add that there was a lot of maintenance work on the balconies during the trip. Scraping, sanding, primers and painting that many complained about. My issue was that there was NO NOTIFICATION before hand and the work equaled 2+ days where we couldn’t use our balcony.