Overall Score

BERLITZ'S RATING
	Possible	Achieved
Ship	500	427
Accommodation	200	165
Food	400	219
Service	400	269
Entertainment	100	85
Cruise	400	287

How this score is created

. Carnival Victory is the 15th new ship for this very successful cruise line. It shares the same generally well-balanced profile as sisters Carnival Conquest, Carnival Destiny, Carnival Freedom, Carnival Glory, Carnival Liberty, Carnival Triumph and Carnival Valor. It is unable to transit the Panama Canal due to its size. The ship, whose bows are extremely short, has the distinctive, large, swept-back wing-tipped funnel that is the trademark of Carnival Cruise Lines, in the company colors of red, white and blue.

This is quite a stunning ship, built to impress at every turn, has the most balanced profile of all the ships in the Carnival Cruise Lines fleet. Amidships on the open deck is the longest water slide at sea (200 ft /60 meters in length, it travels from just aft of the ship’s mast), as well as tiered sunbathing decks positioned between two small swimming pools and several hot tubs. The Lido Deck space is more expansive than aboard the earlier sister ship Carnival Destiny (the swim-up bar has been eliminated), and the pool is larger, as aboard sister ship Carnival Triumph.

The ship’s decor is actually quite tasteful – the theme being a tribute to the oceans of the world (although nowhere near as glitzy as the “Fantasy”-class ships). Seahorses (no, you can’t race them), corals and shells are prominent throughout the design. The layout is logical, so finding your way around is a fairly simple matter.

There are three decks full of lounges, 10 bars and lots of rooms to play in (their names all relating to oceans or seas). Like its smaller (though still large) predecessors, this ship has a doublewide indoor promenade, nine-deck-high, with statues of Neptune at both ends, and a glass-domed rotunda atrium lobby. For those who like to gamble, the South China Sea Club is certainly a large (and noisy) casino, with more than 320 slot machines.

An additional feature that the Fantasy-class ships do not have is the square-shaped Capitol bar, located in the Rotunda (atrium), which faces forward to the glass-walled lifts and sits under the 10-deck-high atrium dome. A sports bar (Aegean Bar) has tables that feature sports memorabilia.

Children are provided with good facilities, including their own two-level Children’s Club (including an outdoor pool), and are well cared for with “Camp Carnival,” the line’s extensive children’s program.

From the viewpoint of safety, passengers can embark directly into the lifeboats from their secured position without having to wait for them to be lowered, thus saving time in the event of a real emergency. Well done.

Note that the terraced pool deck is really cluttered, and there are no cushioned pads for the deck chairs. Although the outdoor deck space has been improved, there is still much crowding when the ship is full and at sea. Getting away from people and noise is extremely difficult. The Photo Gallery becomes extremely congested when photos are on display.

Berlitz Guide © Apa Publishing 2008