Carnival Miracle Cabins

Carnival Miracle staterooms offer good value for money. While short on frills and bereft of a fresh color scheme, they aren't tight quarters, and unless you plan to spend most of your cruise in bed, they're perfectly comfortable -- especially at Carnival's usual price point. One complaint we had: The lighting options in the living area of the cabin didn't range much beyond all-or-none. There was an odd wall sconce on the mirror that was glaring, and better reading lights would have been welcome.

The ship is blessed with lots of balconies. In fact, 64 percent of the cabins on Carnival Miracle have a balcony, whereas balcony options throughout the rest of the line’s fleet represent less than 50 percent of the cabins. However, it is worth noting that Carnival Miracle balcony rooms on deck 5 (a.k.a. Upper Deck) have views obstructed by either lifeboats or tender boats. (These cabins are labelled Balcony Obstructed View on the ship’s stateroom charts.) The same is true of the inside Carnival Miracle units known as Interior with Obstructed View (also known as interior room with French doors). Despite their name, these staterooms on deck 4 of Carnival Miracle have windows facing the outdoors, but the views are blocked.

The Carnival Miracle layout means only cabins on decks 1 (Riviera Deck) and 4 (Main Deck) share space with loud public spaces. Those, to us, would be the top Carnival Miracle rooms to avoid. However, light sleepers will also want to stay away from Deck 8 (Panorama) cabins, as they are directly below the pools and buffet restaurant. The Carnival Miracle’s best deck for a good night’s sleep would be either deck 5 (Upper), deck 6 (Empress) or deck 7 (Verandah).

Carnival Miracle has four basic cabin types -- Interior, Ocean View, Balcony and Suites -- and there are various bedding configurations, allowing for up to four people to share a single cabin. Standard cabin sizes are 185 square feet, while suites are larger. There are 28 with connecting doors to combine two cabins, all of them either balcony units or suites. (Tip: Light sleepers might want to avoid connecting cabins, since we've experienced sound leak on other Spirit-class ships.)

All cabins come with two twins that can be pushed together on request for a king-sized bed. Some cabins come with one or even two pulldown beds, or with a single or double pullout sofa bed. Other standard Carnival Miracle cabin amenities included a pair of beach towels that were waiting for us when we arrived, couch, empty mini-fridge, in-room safe, hair dryer in the vanity drawer and a small, height-adjustable table that could be used for dining (as long as we didn't order more than a course apiece). There were two 110V outlets at the desk, and another by the bed, and a flat-screen TV mounted inside a cabinet that offered a few public channels, plus several ship channels used for Carnival communications and movie channels.

We found ample storage for two, especially when using the drawers and open areas under the beds. The three side-by-side closets were floor-to-ceiling height, and each 20 to 22 inches wide. There were a dozen hangers in total, but we asked our cabin attendant for a couple extra, which were brought shortly after sail-away.

The bathroom was brightly lit, with a single large mirror spanning the wall above the sink, flanked by three shelves on each side and a makeup mirror. The lowest ones on each side were sufficient for a standard travel kit. The bathroom had a shower (no tub) and a fabric curtain. A retractable line gave us a place to hang wet laundry inside the shower. Shampoo and shower gel were available in fixed dispensers inside the shower. There was bar soap, but no conditioner or body lotion were provided. Bath products were not what we'd call glamour-puss quality.

Seventeen accessible cabins are available on decks 4 through 8, and are generally clustered near the aft elevator banks. Most of them are interior units, although there is an accessible ocean suite at midship on Deck 6.

Carnival Miracle Rooms Are Spacious and Comfortable

Interior: Carnival Miracle inside cabins are found throughout the ship and are a comfortable 185 square feet in size -- definitely larger than many "entry level" cabins on some cruise lines.

Typically, interior rooms do not have any window, however, on Carnival Miracle there are 68 cabins on Deck 4 classified as "interior obstructed view." These cabins have a French door that opens onto a railing (but without a balcony to walk out onto). The horizon view from these units is blocked by lifeboats, but you can gaze down onto the Deck 3 promenade just below. These rooms cost a few extra dollars over a typical interior unit, but might be worth it for the dose of natural light and fresh air.

Ocean View: There are only 99 Carnival Miracle Ocean View cabins, and all of them are located on Deck 1. They are each 185 square feet and have no balcony.

Balcony: By far the largest category on Carnival Miracle, balcony rooms are found on Decks 4 through 8. Cabins measure 185 square feet and feature all the amenities mentioned above, but open onto a 40-square-foot balcony. The standard balcony has two deck chairs and a small coffee table -- it's not much to move around on, but it's fresh air and sunlight and a view to the port to see who's running late for re-boarding.

Carnival Miracle Extended Balcony cabins on all of these decks, measuring 60 square feet. Some of these are aft-view units overlooking the ship's wake. Carnival Miracle features six "premium balcony" cabins, all clustered around the aft elevators and offering starboard views from slightly larger balconies.

Carnival Miracle has 66 obstructed-view balcony units, all of them located on Deck 5. This is the type of cabin we had for our cruise, and although we expected to have limited views over the lifeboat, what we didn't expect was a wall that jutted out about 10 feet on one side, completely obscuring our forward view. It pays to examine deck plans carefully when choosing a cabin, to avoid selecting a cabin that is less than ideally situated.

Carnival Miracle Suites Offer Additional Perks and More Space

There are four categories of suites on Carnival Miracle, starting with Junior Suites. Suite perks include priority check-in, express boarding and debarkation, priority main dining room time assignment, pillow-top mattresses, and bathrobes.

Carnival Miracle Junior Suites are all located on deck 4 (Main) and feature balconies, shower/tub combos, and sitting areas with a sofa and a small table with three chairs.

Ocean Suites are found either next to the aft corners of Decks 5 through 8 or at midship on Deck 6. These cabins measure 275 square feet inside and have an 85-square-foot balcony. The Carnival Miracle Ocean Suite category also features a walk-in closet and a whirlpool tub in the bathroom.

Vista Suites on Carnival Miracle are all found at the rear of the ship, on Decks 4 through 8. They measure 240 square feet inside and have an extended, 220-square-foot wraparound balcony with two deck chairs and two lounge chairs. There are hardwood floors at the entrance, a walk-in dressing area with vanity, double sinks, a bathtub with shower and sliding doors. In addition to the doorway leading to the balcony, the living room area has a pair of floor-to-ceiling windows facing aft.

Grand Suites, Carnival Miracle's largest accommodations, are also available. These are all located on Deck 6 at midship, and measure 300 square feet inside, with a 115-square-foot balcony offering two sitting chairs and two reclining lounge chairs. Inside, two floor-to-ceiling windows open up the space, and in addition to ample storage space, the bathroom comes with a whirlpool tub and shower, a bidet, double sinks and a separate, spacious vanity area with its own sink as well. There are hardwood floors at the entry, a slightly larger desk, an L-shaped couch and USB charging ports near the bed.