An Easter
FANTASY
Cruise Diary
On Board Fantasy
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Fantasy
Promenade |
The Ship
At 70,367 tons, Fantasy was a big step up in ship size for
Carnival in 1990. She also introduced a lot of the glitter and neon
glitz which became synonymous with a Carnival ship. Compared to
today's mega-ships, she is small. However, that smaller size is
ideal for her present 4- and 5-night itineraries. There's still
plenty of room to roam, while an advantage is that she's easier to
get to know.
Up the gangway at Port Canaveral,
we found ourselves in the Fantasy's six deck atrium, flooded with
sunlight streaming in through an overhead skylight. Not original to
the ship, the lobby bar on the lowest level was our first hint that
Carnival hasn't neglected this vessel. Popularized on newer
fleetmates, the lobby bar was added to the Fantasy.
It's not clear to us when each
upgrade was accomplished, but we found similar modernizations
throughout the ship. The secondary show lounge was reduced in size
in order to expand Camp Carnival facilities, which were once
woefully small. The more compact lounge is primarily used for art
auctions and evening karaoke and Camp Carnival is now bright and
cheerful. For teens 15 to 17, there is Club O2@Spirals, their own
no-adults-allowed party space. Spa Carnival has been expanded and
the indoor whirlpools removed to make way for an aerobics room
beneath the skylight. A miniature golf course is located in the
center of the oval jogging track on Sun Deck.
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Fantasy
Miniature Golf |
In terms of decor, much of the
original "fantasy" theme remains. Past passengers will
feel right at home in Cats Lounge and Cleopatra's piano bar, as well
as in the two dining rooms with their awkward rows of booths running
along the center of each side. Tiled atrium wall murals depicting
whimsical "fantasy" scenes are particularly attractive, as
is the Roman-inspired Via Marina promenade where a sushi bar
(complimentary) and Bistro coffee and pastries shop (extra charge)
are found. What was to become our favorite, the Majestic Bar, an
elegant, quiet, and extremely comfortable lounge now contains two
oddly-placed tables for serious poker players (at least they weren't
rowdy!).
The look and feel of Fantasy is
up-to-date and modern. Maybe not the latest thing... there are still
some funky colored wall tiles in the Windows on the Sea buffet
restaurant that clash with the hip copper ceiling and parasol-style
overhead ornamentation. Gone are the garish neon lights that
encircled the atrium landings. In their place are bands of fiber
optic lights (although neon still outlines the glass elevators).
Overall, the multi-million dollar makeover that Fantasy underwent in
the fall of 2005 is apparent. She sparkles and is squeaky clean.
Entertainment
As on all Carnival ships, Fantasy's production shows were
high-caliber and high-energy. Our single complaint would be the
volume of the lounge music. The pianist in Cleopatra's was
exceptionally talented and drew us in... then we fled the room after only
one song because it was too loud to stay any longer. Same thing with
the musician performing on the promenade near the casino bar. Seated
off in the distance, his sets were enjoyable. Maybe it was just
us--other passengers didn't seem to mind.
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Windows
on the Sea Dinner Buffet |
Dining
This is an area where "today's" Carnival shines,
particularly in the formal dining rooms. Each evening's menu seemed
to top the one the night before and it was challenging to choose
from so many appealing options. Our meals were all well prepared to
our liking, even my very rare steak and prime rib. While we intended
to skip dinner in the dining room one night in favor of the casual
buffet, the menus were just too good to pass up. We did look over
the buffets, though, and we would have been very satisfied with the selections.
For breakfast and lunch we tried nearly everything in the buffet and
grill--omelets, pizza, salads, deli sandwiches, burgers, carved
meats, and Taste of Nations selections. As a matter of personal
taste, we didn't try the sushi--it must have been good because it
was crowded every night. Admitted coffee snobs, we found specialty coffees from the Bistro
to be hearty brews and well worth the extra charge; however, the room service and restaurant java also measured up
pretty well.
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| Cabin
E60, standard outside on Empress Deck |
Cabins
Ours was a standard outside, E60 on Empress Deck. Spruced up and
outfitted with Carnival Comfort Beds and new linens, it was a
spacious and restful spot to get away from it all. As a bonus, we
were delighted that our proximity to the lobby's WiFi "hot
spot" meant we could get a wireless signal to
access the Internet with our laptop.
Fantasy class
ships lack the one amenity we find most appealing in a standard
cabin--a private balcony. You have to book a suite in order to have
one. We didn't really miss having a refrigerator in our cabin, but I
did bemoan the lack of a hairdryer. Okay, flog away--I goofed and
didn't pack one. I knew there weren't any in Fantasy's
pre-makeover days and simply assumed they were added at some point. I was wrong.
However, I discovered that the nozzle on a hand-dryer in the spa's
locker room could be adjusted to point upwards and I could dry my
hair there.
Back to the cabin... the only wear-and-tear evident was
on the door frame where nicks from luggage were apparent. An
oddity we noted was the absence of a folder containing miscellaneous
information, such as how to use the phone and room service menus. We
received an info sheet during embarkation, but it didn't adequately
take the place of the usual folder. On the plus side, a special
laundry promotion was offered--for $15 you could have as many
undergarments, shorts, tee-shirts, and swimwear laundered as you
could fit into the bag provided.
Passengers
Did you notice this was an Easter week cruise? There were a
total of 2,620 passengers on board, with 979 of them under age 21
(955 under age 18 and 718 under age 15). Despite the fact we were
sailing at absolute maximum capacity, Fantasy never felt overly
crowded. Camp Carnival was a busy place and we seldom saw the
youngest children out and about except when in the company of their
counselors. If we had to mention unruly children, it would be those
kids in the age group from about 12 to 14, whose actions were noisy
and silly.
Older teens pretty much stuck
together and acted cool, which to adults means mildly annoying. What about the underage drinking which has
been so widely discussed in the media? We saw a bit of it and
learned that teens mostly drank ashore where age wasn't an issue
when purchasing alcohol. One evening we were joined by a 16-year old
who
related an afternoon of drinking and drug use at the beach. She
eventually requested that we buy drinks for her and her
17-year old boyfriend. We declined, suggesting that she find her
parents and ask them. Another teen told us his
friend's older brother had purchased beers for them. Unlike the
young girl, the boys weren't the slightest bit tipsy. We didn't
witness any drunken debauchery by passengers of any age during the
cruise; however, we
weren't out and about any later than midnight.
One unusual trend we noticed was the wearing
of bathing suits all over the ship. In particular, female passengers
strolled through the promenade throughout the day without cover-ups.
For the most part, passengers followed the evenings' suggested dress
codes for dinner and formal night was quite dressy, although there
wasn't a tuxedo in sight.
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| Atrium
whimsy -- a "fantasy" tiled mural |
The Fantasy Experience
A short cruise, particularly one during a holiday period, is
decidedly different than a one week or longer sailing. Our shipmates
seemed anxious to get as much as possible out of their short vacation
get-aways and the
atmosphere was laid back and casual. Overall, it was a cheerful
cruise on a ship that's just the right size for family fun.
To those cruise critics who feel otherwise, we say
take another look... Fantasy appears set to
sail many more
fun-filled years in today's Carnival fleet.
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