Cruising- Carnival Conquest 2023

September is always an interesting month to cruise, but we got married in October and started our cruise journey then, so we tend to always cruise in the fall months. The best part of cruising in the fall? The prices are usually cheaper!

This year, we visited the beautiful Carnival Conquest for a brief and short introduction trip. Our son, 15, go to experience his first taste of the cruise life, and let me tell you…. He is hooked! Carnival Conquest is currently running short itineraries out of Miami, FL and sailing to the Bahamas region. During this short 3-day cruise, we only had one port of call scheduled. In this case, the port of call was a water shuttle port at the beautiful Half Moon Caye. The ship sailed to the destination with an amazing sail away party that did not disappoint. However, the weather in Half Moon wasn’t friendly for our visit. Due to the rain and the winds, the port was closed.

Don’t think Carnival failed us here… because they DID NOT! Within minutes of the announcement that the port would not run due to weather, the captain had contacted the home office and secured a spot for us in Nassau, Bahamas for the next day. So, what did we do? We did what any cruise ship would do, we flipped the itinerary, and our first port day became sea day. Zach, the cruise director, and his fun squad team found 1,000 ways for us to have fun! From contests, to shows, to bingo, to give-a-ways and a whole lot more!

Now, the ship. She is an older ship in Carnival’s fleet, but she is still just as enjoyable as any other ship. I felt that the ship didn’t carry the same level of elegance that Carnival Imagination had, in their older class of ships, but the ship was still up to par. This ship has been remodeled with the newer ship designs. That includes having Guy’s Burgers on the pool deck. Now that didn’t mean that Pizza was gone, it was just harder to get too. The Pizza bar had moved to the aft of the ship and they struggled to have pizza available every time we visited the pizza bar. We typically waited in a long line to get pizza. We also noticed that the eateries around the pool deck closed frequently, including the bars, instead of being open 24/7 or close to it. For example, Guy’s Burgers was only open 12pm to 5pm both days. This made the buffet one of the few options, which also frequently closed or reduced for meal changes.

The main dining room was the highlight of the night! The staff was, as always, top notch and loved to provide excellent service. I felt that they were the most well-rounded team on the ship, outside of entertainment of course. The wait staff were always attentive to your needs and when we showed up for dinner, they quickly had our drinks ready before we even had to ask. They were quick with offering bread and even offered additional food as needed. They were there for the entire meal right when you needed them.

The shows! I have to say the opening night show was enjoyable. Although I remember the shows being a bit more formal in the past, I noticed that Carnival has changed their shows to be “one time per night” where most cruise lines still have an early show and a late show to coincide with dining times. Carnival does not do that anymore, at least not on this ship. The shows were “The Showdown” on opening night, “80’s Pop to the Max” on our Half Moon/Sea Day and “The World Works Here” on the last day. These shows were okay overall. 80’s Pop to the Max was the most well performed and entertaining show on the ship. We didn’t make it to the comedy club this time, so we can’t comment on anything there. The nightclub was always hopping with the DJ breaking out the tunes, but again, we didn’t visit.

The coffee bar on the ship was a blessing we didn’t know we needed. Having the drink package made stopping here well worth it! I would recommend stopping at the coffee bar at least once per day or more. The drink package paid off for us, even with not drinking regularly. Visits to the coffee bar only would have cost us a pretty penny.

Overall, I would recommend Carnival Conquest for any short cruise. They know how to have fun, I mean… they are the FUN SHIPS, and they aren’t afraid to have a lot of fun in a short time. We stayed in an Ocean View this trip but look forward to being back on the balcony or suites again in the future. I can’t recommend Zach as your cruise director enough! The man knows how to run a cruise ship activity team. He was always full of energy and entertainment He could also be found around the ship frequently! Not to mention, his wardrobe must have been massive because he had an outfit for everything!

If you would like to book your next cruise, consider contacting ITS Travel Services at 248-983-4559 or email travel@itstravelservices.com to schedule your next vacation planning session.

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