Fantastic - Paradise by
joy m from NJ
Sailing date: Aug 2008 Pros:
The ship was beautiful, the staff great, the two ports of call were the best. Cayman stingray adventure was amazing.
Cons:
We liked everything,
The ship was beautiful and the captain kept us out of any rainy areas. Smooth sailing and sun the whole trip even with Hurricane Fay around the corner. We had a great time. I've been on all cruise lines and this was the best.
Ship Quality
Dining/Food
Stateroom Quality
Ship Staff Quality
Entertainment & Activities
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very enjoyable by
Gavin L from trinidad
Sailing date: May 2008 Pros:
the menu and the night time entertainment
Cons:
too commercialised in terms of added costs to do stuff
the Inspiration was very efficiently laid out but it could do with a few more heated tubs and more signage within the ship as to wear places were located. Needs more variety in terms of activity options. The excusion to Tulom was not bad but it should include lunch and transport to the entrance of the ruins. The stop off at the flea market should be removed as the prices are in some cases are three times more than elsewhere which makes it a bit deceptive to tourists looking to pick up on souvenairs.
The food on board was very good.
Ship Quality
Dining/Food
Stateroom Quality add a little rack to put your toothbush and toothpaste in the rooms
Ship Staff Quality opportunity for improvements exists here as some staff were extremely polite whilsts others were not which made it inconsistent. Also apart from customer service there is the issue of customer care which could be improved a bit.
Entertainment & Activities main show was excellent. Other options could be such things as board games and darts
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Cozumel, Mexico shopping in cozumel is pretty good in terms of prices
Don't Miss: shopping
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Amazing Experience 4/23-4/28 by
Cara from New Hampshire
Sailing date: Apr 2007 Pros:
Food,and fun
Cons:
Not a lot of oppurtunities for 13-17 year olds
The Carnival Inspiration is a lot of fun! Anyone will love it. There is something to do for everyone. This was my first cruise experience and I would definately do it again with Carnival.
I went to the Cayman Islands and Cozumel. The excursions were over priced. In the Cayman Islands I went on a stingray and snorkeling thing. It cost like $62 and the snorkelling wasn't too good. In Cozumel I went shopping. It is very good there. I got my hair braided. You should see some of these creative people. I got a purse made out of candy wrappers. I also got a bracelet made out of string with my name in it and it took they man 5 minutes to make. There are very good deals. I got a skirt for $8, earrings for $2, and a candle for $3.
We got on the ship on our first day and we ate lunch in the Brasserie. Then we had a lifeboat drill. You don't get your luggage for a couple hours.
On the final day you can take of your luggage from 7:30-8:30 or wait for general disembarkation. It is easier to take it off yourself. It only took us 10 minutes to get through security and all that stuff. Take advantage before you get on the ship of the people who are asking if you need transportation to the airport the last day.
This is what the 5 day cruise looked like
Day 1-Welcome aboard
Day 2-Fun Day at Sea
Day 3-Arrive in the Cayman Isalnds
Day 4-Arrive in Cozumel Mexico
Day 5-Fun Day at Sea
Day 6-You Leave
Make sure you have clothes for the formal nights. There is one or two. People dress like its prom basically. In the dining room you cannot wear shorts or tanktops (or anything to that effect).
Ship Quality The ship was always clean! I never saw a dirty area. The decor was fabulous! I thought it was beautiful and very different(in a good way).There are many colors around so it makes you feel happy. I got lost the first couple days and the ship is not too big! After a while you will figure out where you are. You can get deck plans if you get lost a lot. The ship is very accesible. I am pretty sure there are 12 elevators in all. There are A LOT of stairs too ( i enjoyed them because you can get a good work out going up and down them). The only problem about the ship was that there are so many areas where they allow smokers. My parents didn't enjoy the casino because the smell was horrible. I wouldn't know because I am not old enough to go inside. There are a lot of tanning chairs by the pool but they fill up quick. The gym and spa are nice.
Dining/Food WOW! The food was way better then I expected it to be. There are two dining rooms, the Carnivale and Mardi Gras, the Brasserie grill, Sushi Bar, and unlimited pizza. I was in the Mardi Gras Dining room. Our waiter Joseph was so nice! The food was amazing especially the warm chocolate melting cake. Every night you can have a four or five course meal! The dining room is available for breakfast, lunch and dinner.
The Brasserie has food for everyone! It is also a buffet. There is a place for ice cream, dessert, sandwichs, pizza, pasta, and things like rice, fish and chicken. If you step outside on the Lido deck there is a place where you can get hot dogs and hamburgers. For breakfast they have fruit, bagels, eggs, hash browns, cereal, toast, and pancakes. My suggestion is that you eat in the dining room for breakfast because they have yummier food. Soda costs money as well as other speciality drinks. They have lemonade, iced tea, water, fruit punch, and different juices though for free.
Stateroom Quality I stayed in an ocean view room with my older sister. Our steward cleaned it twice a day. He straightened everything and cleaned. The room was only enough for two people. You would not feel too well if you had three or four. The bathroom was very large compared to other cruises my grandmother has been on. In your room you have a closet and drawers. I suggest you use them. At night when you come back in your room you have chocolate on your pillow, a towel animal, and a program of activities for the next day. In your room you have a phone and tv but if you make a call to the U.S it is $6.99 per minute. The beds are very comfy! The pillows are too. Your stateroom has 6 sodas and a humongous water bottle when you arrive. They cost money. I would buy the water for $3.50 if you get thirsty at night. It last me all 5 days. There is a safe in your room too.
Ship Staff Quality The ship staff was amazing. There are only like 20 americans and the rest are foreign. They can understand english perfectly. All the workers went out of their way to make my experience great. They are all very creative as well. Philipe, one of the fun people was very funny. I did not meet one mean worker.
Entertainment & Activities There was always something to do. There is a pool with a slide, ping pong, giant chess, bingo, trivia, contests, tanning, working out, listening to live music, and going to the casino. You name it, they have it. They also have like unlimited photography. You get so many pictures taken. The entertainment in the Paris lounge was fabulous. They had two comedians, a magician, talent show, and dancing/singing shows. The male singer was like Sanjaya Malakar...So if you hate Sanjaya you shouldn't see the show. The female was amazing.The dancers were okay...A little too smiley though.
Children's Programs The little kids seemed to have fun at their camp carnival thing but there was this lame thing called club 02 for 15-17 year olds which looked lame. There were too many groupieish kids.
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Our kids are HOOKED! by
A Traveler from Columbus, OH
Sailing date: Mar 2007 Pros:
The choices for activities while onboard and on shore.
Cons:
Unorganized debarkation at ports and at home
We absolutely LOVED everything about the ship!
Dining/Food Willfredo and Stephen (sp?) were the best wait team EVER in the Mardi Gras dining hall!! Thanks guys for making our family dinner enjoyable every night.
Stateroom Quality Thanks to our steward and staff for a flawless trip. Everything absolutely perfect every time we returned. We will be spoiled for all future cruises. I hope the others can meet our expectations.
Ship Staff Quality We only had one person out of 900 that we were not 100% satisfied with.
Entertainment & Activities
Children's Programs Our teens were so happy with the activities and other teens they met that we barely even saw them. They can't wait to take another cruise.
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Cozumel, Mexico We LOVED the Viva Mexico Snack Bar (upstairs). If you want a relaxed, quaint but not cramped, fun-loving, somewhat wild atmosphere, overlooking the beach, this is the place! The food was FANTASTIC! Our waiter was wonderful, and helpful with suggestions. Diamonds International takes care of you!
Don't Miss: Viva Mexico Snack Bar - tell them it is your birthday!
George Town, Grand Cayman It took so long to get off the ship that we only got to go to the beach for about an hour before going back to wait in line for about an hour to go back to the ship. What we saw of Georgetown was what we expected.
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Great Cruise for Young, Old & Families by
Erika Z from Cleveland, OH
Sailing date: Jan 2007 Pros:
Got used to be pampered for 5 days.
Cons:
The cost of the alcoholic drinks & they added 15% gratuity to drinks.
This was my 2nd cruise and my husband and babies 1st cruise. From the moment we got on the ship, everyone was so friendly and professional. We were well informed regarding the daily activities, of which there were many for young, old, singles, families, children, teens, etc. The food was excellent and there was always plenty of buffets and sit down meals, whichever you prefer. The only drawback was not having enough time at both ports. The ship had to anchor out and we had to take a tender boat to the dock. For us, getting on and off the ship (debarkation process) was seemingly painless. We were able to self assist, take our bags off ourselves and make an earlier flight to return home. Overrall, we would defintely recommend the Inspiration as a good time & a good value for your next vacation.
Ship Quality Very clean ship. Always saw cleaning crews working.
Dining/Food We ate in the Carnivale dining room. Baboo was the matreD who made it fun and an enjoyable experience. We had Lobster, Prime Rib, Steak, something for everyone.
Stateroom Quality We chose a Guaranteed Room and got an Oceanview Stateroom on the Upper deck which was roomy and had a nice view. It was fine for husband, wife and baby. They provided a baby crib. However they waste space with putting the life preservers in a box area on the floor.
Ship Staff Quality Every person on the staff was very friendly always said Hello to our 1 year old baby. Our head dinner waiter was excellent. He knew our names, knew our preferences and went above and beyond to make it an enjoyable experience. Cruise activities director Risa was professional, informative and fun.
Entertainment & Activities I went to 2 shows which were very good. We could of gone to more since they have babysitting for $6.00 however babysitting wasn't available until 10:00pm.
Children's Programs We were traveling with our 1 year old. Their Camp Carnival was for children over age of 2 so she did not participate in those activities. However they did have open family play time. We took our baby in there an played. The only part we didn't like is it was hard to find the Camp Carnival area and the only way to get there was to go down a flight of stairs & as such had to carry the stroller down the stairs which was tricky to maneuver.
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Cozumel, Mexico Poncho's Backyard downtown Cozumel was very good and had great ambience. When we walked in they were giving out complimentary tequila shots.
George Town, Grand Cayman We didn't book a tour however when we got to the port there were local tours available. We took a bus tour for $20/person and took us around to all the different sites, beach, Tortuga Rum Factory, Turtle Farm and Hell. Wish we would of had more time at the port.
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