Your cruise ship stateroom will be where you can keep your belongings, sleep, and clean yourself up. For some cruisers, the type of room does not matter, but for others deciding which type of cruise stateroom to select is a big deal. This blog post will give some tips and suggestions to keep in mind as cruisers try to determine the best type of stateroom for a cruise. 

1. How Much Time Do You Plan On Being In Your Stateroom? 
              There are many things to do on a cruise and some cruisers spend more time in their stateroom than others. If you plan on not spending much time in your stateroom, you may not want to spend much money on your stateroom. An interior or room with a window might be a good choice for you because typically these staterooms are cheaper. If you plan on spending time in your stateroom or looking at the view from your stateroom often throughout your cruise, spending money on a balcony or suite would probably be worth it for you. 

2.  Does Light Bother You At Night? 
             While most cruise ship staterooms that have a window or balcony have curtains, some light might still be able to get through the cracks and into your stateroom. If light bothers you at night and disrupts your sleeping, you might want to look into getting a room that is an interior. This is the only way to guarantee your room will have no outside light coming in. If you book an interior and realize it is too dark, you could always turn on your stateroom's bathroom light and crack the door to allow a little bit of light into your room. This often works, except if the ship's motion closes the bathroom door. 

3.  Price:  Choosing Your Stateroom Can Have An Impact On How Much You Pay For Your Cruise
                 Typically, interior staterooms are the cheapest option for cruises. For most cruise lines and ships, the lesser the view a room has the cheaper the price will be. If you are trying to cruise as a cheap as possible, I recommend pricing the different categories of rooms and comparing the prices of each. There are a few rare cases, where interior rooms are not the cheapest, but I have found this to be an exception. 

4.  Do Suites Have Extra Perks? 
                    This will vary by cruise line because each cruise line does suites differently.  If you are considering a suite, I recommend finding out perks are available to suite guests on your cruise ship and deciding if those perks are worth the extra cost. 

         In the fall of 2018, the Carnival Vista will reposition to do 7 night cruises out of Galveston, Texas. The Carnival Vista was launched into service in 2016 and is currently Carnival's largest ship. Since the Carnival Vista is the leader of the Vista Class and still a new ship, many cruisers may not know about all the features the Carnival Vista has to offer. This blog post will give some information about the Carnival Vista's features, their locations, and other general information about the ship. 

​1.  Skyride 
Location:  Deck 12 
          The Carnival Vista is the first Carnival ship to receive a feature called the Skyride. Essentially, the Sky Ride contains two tracks that are suspended above the ship's Sports Square. The Sky Ride riders will get to petal themselves, similar to riding a bike. However, as you petal yourself around the Sky Ride you will get to enjoy a view of the scenery around your cruise ship. If your ship is docked in a port of call you can enjoy the sights of the port and if your ship is sailing at sea you can enjoy the open waters of the ocean your ship is sailing through. To me, this feature sounds like a fun way to excersize and enjoy the sights from the ship! 

2.   WaterWorks
Location:  Deck 12 
              There are plenty of things to do on the Carnival Vista, and the WaterWorks is another thing. The Carnival Vista's WaterWorks has several waterslides including Carnival's Twister Waterslide and a slide called the "Kaleid-O-Slide". The WaterWorks also has a splashpad called "Splashzone" for kids and 300 gallon bucket that dumps water. The splashpad and waterslide landings are on the Carnival Vista's Deck 12, but the entrance to some of the slides is on Deck 15. 

​3.   Skycourse 
Location:   Deck 12
                 The Carnival Vista's Skycourse is a ropes course for guests to enjoy outside. The Skycourse consists of two paths, which are of different difficulty. For safety reasons, cruisers have a harness. This is also a great way to see the views from the ship as you have fun on the ship.

4.   Carnival Multiplex
(Consists Of The Thrill Theater and Imax)  
Thrill Theater Location:  Deck 6         Imax Location:  Decks 7, 8, and 9  
                The Carnival Multiplex on the Carnival Vista consists of the Thrill Theater and an Imax Theater. These features both cost a little extra. The Thrill Theater shows films that have special effects and motion. The Imax Theater is essentially the same as an Imax on land, but the Carnival Vista's shows a variety of different movies and films. The daily onboard newsletter, the Fun-Times, should have information about show-times. 

5.  Guy's Burger Joint
Location:  Deck 10 - Lido Deck 
             Guy's Burger Joint serves free hamburgers and french fries at lunchtime. During open hours, cruisers can step up to the counter and order. Once a cruiser receives his or her burger, there is a toppings bar that offers tomato, lettuce, onion, cheese, ketchup, chopped bacon, and other toppings that go great on hamburgers. The Carnival Vista's Guy's Burger Joint is located on the Lido Deck, which is Deck 10. 

6.  Blue Iguana Cantina
Location:  Deck 10 - Lido Deck 
                The Blue Iguana Cantina serves burritos and tacos at lunch. Usually, the Blue Iguana Cantina also has some breakfast options too. To compliment tacos and burritos, Carnival's Blue Iguana Cantina also has a salsa bar. The salsa bar has a multitude of options available for cruisers. The Blue Iguana Cantina is complimentary! The Carnival Vista's Blue Iguana Cantina is located on the Lido Deck, which is Deck 10. 

7.  Family Harbor Staterooms and Lounge
Location:  Deck 2 
                  The Carnival Vista has special staterooms located on Deck 2 that are considered a part of the ship's Family Harbor staterooms. Staterooms that are considered a "Family Harbor Stateroom" receive access to a lounge located on Deck 2 that is considered exclusive to the guests staying in these rooms. The Family Harbor Lounge has a few video games and board games for families, family movies, and other things meant for families to enjoy. Also, a continental breakfast buffet and afternoon snacks are a part of the Family Harbor Lounge experience. For cruisers staying in these staterooms wishing to utilize the lounge, keep in mind the lounge may only be open certain hours of the day. 

8.  Red Frog Pub & Brewery 
Location:   Deck 5 -  Promenade Deck
                     The Carnival Vista's Red Frog Pub has an onboard brewery that makes beers for Carnival Vista cruisers to drink. The Red Frog Pub primarily serves craft beers and snacks to cruisers for a fee. 

9.  Havana Pool Area 
Location:   Deck 5 -  Promenade Deck
                     The Carnival Vista's back of Deck 5 has an area called the Havana Pool Area. This area is reserved for guests staying in Havana staterooms from the morning until 7pm. The Havana Pool Area consists of a pool and two hot-tubs. Beverage service (for a fee) is available. This area has a tropical look and feel. 

10.  Serenity Adults Only Retreat
Location:  Deck 15 
                       The Serenity Adults Only Retreat on the Carnival Vista is an area for adults 21 and older. On the Carnival Vista, the Serenity Adults Only Retreat has a variety of areas for relaxation and getting some sun. Carnival's website says the Vista's Serenity has areas for getting sun, but also areas for cruisers wishing to stay in the shade. Also, the Carnival Vista's Serenity Adults Only Retreat has a complimentary salad station, massage huts available for a charge, and hot-tubs. 

11.  Cucina Del Capitano / Pasta Bar
Location:  Deck 11
                        Cucina Del Capitano on the Carnival Vista is a dinnertime eating venue that serves Italian food to cruisers for an extra charge. Cucina del Capitano is only open during the dinner hours. 
​                    However, at lunch the Cucina Del Capitano area is used as a Pasta Bar and this area serves complimentary customized pasta dishes. The Pasta Bar is only open at lunch. 

12.  Red Frog Rum Bar
Location:  Deck 10 - Lido Deck
The Red Frog Rum Bar serves frozen drinks and beer for cruisers to purchase. This  Caribbean themed bar is located on the Lido Deck near the pool. 

13.  Blue Iguana Tequila Bar
Location:  Deck 10 - Lido Deck
       The Blue Iguana Cantina Bar serves frozen drinks and beer for cruisers to purchase. This themed bar is located on the Lido Deck near the pool. ​

14.   Cherry On Top 
Location:   Deck 5 -  Promenade
The Carnival Vista has one of Carnival's Fun Ship 2.0 features, Cherry On Top, which is essentially a candy shop. This shop sells candy, gifts, and a few other things. 

15.  Sports Square
Locations:  Deck 12 and Deck 14 (Selected Areas Of Each Of The 2 Decks) 
The Carnival Vista's Sports Square consists of numerous outdoor attractions for cruisers to enjoy. In the Sports Square Clubhouse there is two lane bowling (costs extra), billiards, ping-pong, shuffleboard, and foosball. In addition, Sports Square on the Carnival Vista has a two level 9 hole mini golf course, a jogging track, basketball court, volleyball court, and some exercise equipment. This information does include all of Sports Square's features. 

​Please note, the features are subject to change. While some things are complimentary, others are not. Please check prior to your cruise to find out what is included and what is extra. This list does not represent all of the Carnival Vista's features.

UPDATE August 2019: This post is now considered outdated. The Carnival Breeze has been replaced by the Carnival Vista. Also, the Carnival Valor has been replaced by the Carnival Dream. 

Currently, the Carnival Breeze, Carnival Freedom, and Carnival Valor sail from Galveston. This combination of cruise ships gives Galveston cruisers many itinerary choices and options for cruising. The Carnival Breeze has been sailing from Galveston since April 2016. The Carnival Freedom has been sailing from Galveston since February 2015. The Carnival Valor became the most recent Carnival ship to reposition to Galveston in December 2016. 
      While all three of these ships are Carnival Cruise Line's ships, there are a few differences between the three. The Carnival Valor and Carnival Freedom have many similarities because they are both a part of the Conquest class of vessels, but when these two are compared to the Breeze there are some differences. 
         I decided to put together a chart that will compare some basic information, amenities, and features of all three of these ships. 

       Carnival Cruise Line made changes to its gratuity system that took effect in September 2016 that some cruisers may not be fully aware of still. The goal of this blog post is to explain how gratuities work on Carnival Cruise Line ships. 
         The standard automatic gratuity for staterooms that are non-suites is $12.95 per person per day. This amount is broken down into $4.05 for housekeeping staff, $6.40 for dining room service team crew members, and $2.50 for alternative services crew members.
            The standard automatic gratuity for staterooms that are suites is $13.95 per person per day.  This amount is broken down into $5.05 for housekeeping staff, $6.40 for dining room service team crew members, and $2.50 for alternative services crew members. Essentially, the only difference is $1.00 extra per person per day goes to the housekeeping staff that service the suites. When Carnival first announced the increased rate for suite guests, Mr. John Heald (Carnival's brand ambassador) mentioned on Facebook the suites will receive priority embarkation, priority disembarkation, confirmed main dining room selection, complimentary bottled water in suite, enhanced turndown service, priority tender service, and one complimentary bag of laundry.  
                   Cruisers that are cruising Carnival have two options to pay for gratuities. Gratuities can be prepaid before the start of the cruise. However, if a cruiser wishes, pre-paid gratuities can be adjusted at the Guest Services desk during the cruise. The other option to pay for gratuities is Carnival will add gratuities to each cruiser's Sail & Sign Card account at the end of the cruise. This method is typically referred to as an "automatic gratuity". Just like guests who prepaid gratuities, cruisers who use this method can also visit Guest Services to adjust the amount of gratuity. 
                      Carnival will automatically apply a 15% gratuity for bar service and the Chef's Table. These charges will be on a guest's Sail & Sign Card's onboard account. 

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Please keep in mind this information is subject to change as Carnival changes its recommendations and gratuity procedures.