Carnival Pride Review
Rating by category
Additional details
My wife and I took our 2 daughters (ages 10 and 6) on our first family cruise. Wife and I have cruised before on Royal Caribbean, Norwegian and Celebrity. We all had a great time on Carnival Pride!
We chose this cruise to try something different and our girls are now old enough to comfortably and independently handle a cruise, including the activities offered at Camp Carnival. We also took advantage of Carnival's "Kids Sail Free" promotion. Being from Baltimore, the fact that it left from Baltimore made it so convenient -- no need to fly anywhere -- just a 25 minute ride from home and we were at the ship! Parking is $105 for the week if you park at the port; however, I dropped off the family and the luggage at the port and then parked in a garage downtown (as I have monthly parking because I work downtown) and took a taxi back to the port ($20 flat fare - it probably could have been negotiated lower, but it's still a good deal as the parking was "free").
Embarkation was great and smooth and hassle free. As we had an Ocean Suite (category OS), we had Priority Boarding. We just went through the metal detectors (like at the airport), went to the VIP Lounge where they took our photos and gave us our Sign and Sail cards and then we sat in a reserved section for Priority Boarding. We got to the terminal early (before noon) and sat in the terminal for about 30 minutes or so (they do not allow you to take photos or talk on your phone while you are waiting to board the ship). They then called the Priority Boarders and we got our Welcome Aboard picture taken and then went through a short line where they scanned your Sign and Sail card and took a short walk to the ramp to the gangway and we were on the ship!
Cabin Review
Our cabin was on deck 6, starboard side, mid-ship. It was ready when we got there. The Ocean Suite was great as we all shared the same cabin. It had a small entrance way with a hardwood floor; a small make-up area with granite top and mirror and stool; a large bathroom (for a ship) with double sinks and a Jacuzzi tub/shower with sliding doors. There was tons of storage and lighting options. The balcony was large (we had 2 tables, 4 chairs and 1 lounger and still had plenty of room to move around. The sofa was converted into a single bed and another bed came down from the ceiling to make bunk beds. Our steward (Gede) was great and he always smiled and greeted us by name and was sure to leave 2 towel animals every night for our girls. The room showed a little age, but it was clean and comfortable.