I too have read so many bad reviews regarding the Destiny. We found nothing could be further from the truth on our cruise.
San Juan Airport; Smooth, smooth, smooth...
San Juan Terminal: We bought two bottles of Rum outside the terminal, with a six pack of coke, brought it in on our carry on bags.... Nothing was said.
Embarking: the easiest ever of my six cruises with Carnival.
Cleanliness: Ship was very clean, someone was always cleaning.
Decor: I thought the decor was wonderful...... deep rich rust color with blue..... throughout.
Food: Was excellent. Wait Staff: Our head waiter, Sebastian was fantastic!!
MaitreD: was awesome. He had just come in the week before and was so entertaining. He went out of his way when we mentioned that our favorite meal, Chateau Briand, was begin served on Good Friday. He had a special dinner waiting for us the nexy day. Very unexpected and we were quite pleased.
Steward: Knew our names, room was clean, every request was met.
Airconditioning: Cold, Cold, Cold...... despite the 90 degree weather. Room: Clean and bed comfortable as always.
Weather: was beautiful every day.... sunny, warm, but not too hot. Sun was very strong as I got a good sunburn despite sun tan oil.
Ocean: Smooth as glass.....only one day of slight waves.
Debarking: Went well except one of our suitcases lost its tag and we spent quite a while hunting for it.
San juan Airport: Was awful......... US Air never fails to deliver bad service. We were in line for over two hours waiting to check in. People were being pulled from the lines to make their flights which was good but caused some hard feelings for people who had been standing in line for a long long time..only to have passengers arrive a half hour before their flight took off, they were taken straight to the window. Which I fully understand.........but there wasn't just one or two their were at least fifty or more..... We finally got through...... security was a breeze. Our plane took off..... about a half hour late......I slept most of the trip so the ride was quick.
PORTS OF CALL: This was a very port intensive cruise. We were hesitant as we were concerned we would be exhausted by the end of the week. We made sure we booked the every excursion in the morning...it was cooler...but also we then had lunch, then laid out each day in the afternoon, before getting ready for dinner. It was very very relaxing.
San Juan: We have been to San Juan before..... We decided to see the Barcardy Rum Factory: Be aware on Sundays........ the factory shuts down at 4:00 p.m. We were taken in a taxi with about 8 other people. When we arrived the guard at the gate did not want to let us in. A big bouncer type guard came in over and said something in Spanish to the driver.... in a not so nice tone. To us he said we were welcome to come in and sample the rum, but not the factory as they were closed. He invited us to come back the next day. It was clear by the shady behavior of the taxi driver he had known all along that the factory would be closed. When we got out he kept pushing for his 3.00 fee per person. I voiced my concern that if went in would he wait? He said he wouldn't wait but pointed to two taxis and said they will be here. I didn't trust this joker one bit. I told him if a taxi wasn't available I would be coming after his butt. He looked a little startled and said something smart which I didn't quite catch. But I got the drift.
St Thomas: was beautiful as always, especially from Paradise Point. We stopped at a mountain top for a wonderview of Magen's Bay. If we are fortunate to go again that will be one of our stops for sure. It was a beautiful beach! We stopped at St. Peter’s Great House which was quite beautiful.
Dominica: Pronouned as Dom-in--eeka..... All these years I have been pronouncing it incorrectly! This was one of the most lush islands of them all. It was absolutely wonderful. We took the Rainforest Arial Tram which was quite breathtaking. Immense trees, and mammoth leaves....... I kept looking for King Kong to appear at any moment. It ws not what I had expected.. It was peaceful and soothing..... when we arrived at the top we got off to go on a short hike.... which our guide was most informative. Then we got back on for the ride back. It was pretty hot and sunny that day.....but in the rainforest, with a constant shower of rain, it was shady and a good twenty degrees cooler. I enjoyed this excursion the best.
Barbados: I was disappointed in this island. I expected more.... The only highlight for me was Bathsheba which had a spectacular beach with huge rocks and crashing waves. It was very beautiful.
St. Lucia: Was very quaint and very pretty. They have alot of schools for children in St. Lucia and it is clear they hold education dear as alot of their resources are dedicated to providing quality schools. This island was so very beautiful.... The only disappointment I had was not seeing the Pitons up close...next time.... I hope to. St. Lucia looks to be more like a pacific island..... Different then the rest. We stopped at a private home called Stony hill..... with a magnificient view. Here we sampled Banana Ketchup and Banana hot sauce...which I thought I would hate but.... was so tasty we bought a couple bottles.
Antigua: We took the 4x4 tour. We saw alot of the island and some of the most beautiful beaches. I took a nice swim in the ocean and loved every minute of it!
One day at sea: Very very relaxing..... after a port intensive cruise. This was the best cruise I have ever taken.... and I would go back on Destiny in a heartbeat.
Cruise director: Was okay.. a little irritating. There was not much for him to do as pretty much all the activities took place at night as everyone was in the ports most of the day.
Note for those interested: Cruise Director said they have found that most of their passengers like the port intensive cruises and they will be changing Destiny every year to include different islands. He said next year the Destiny will include St. Kitts, St. Martin..and an overnight stay on a island.... santa domingo??? We didn't catch the name......but the overnight stay will be at a private resort. He said they would be adding Aruba on in the future......my guess if the cost of fuel drops.
I hope this helps because I was worried as well regarding the bad reviews. I can not stress enough how wonderful this cruise was, the staff, the ship, the MatreD, and the itinerary.
The only thing I didn't care for was the Cruise Director, not that he was bad but that we have had two really good directors before him and he paled in comparisons.
