Some of the features that were added were:

Serenity (Adults Only): You guessed it, no kids allowed! This is in the aft part of the ship and is a paradise just to escape. There are a couple of hot tubs, a sea of comfortable deck chairs, a drink service station, shade and servers waiting on you hand and foot.

Dining: A couple new features were added to the poolside cafe called the Coconut Grove Bar and Grill. Talking to a staff member we were told that the dining area was fitted with new tables, buffet area’s, floors, fixtures and a Mongolian WOK grill station was added.

In March, the ‘Your Time’ dining program will be added to the formal dining rooms where you can eat when you want. Currently the formal dining rooms have regimented dining where you eat at 6 or 8 pm.

Aqua Park: On the back of the ship a water park area was added that now has a 300′ yellow Twister slide, two 82′ racing slides and a splash zone for the kids.

Balcony Rooms: 98 rooms were fitted with balconies during the renovation stint. I found it amazing that they could retrofit a ship to add so many balconies, most rooms being aft of the ship. A lot of the ship’s room amenities were replaced too. One replacement I noticed in the room was the TVs went from your standard television to flat screens.

Overall the ship is in good condition but my personal feeling is that it will be one of the next to go. The ship is almost 20 years old and with so many ships being released with state of the art features, these older boats may not be the next best thing to some cruisers.

The port of Jacksonville is a great port, easy to find, and your no longer than 15 min from the airport. The port is five minutes off a major beltway (SR-9A) and the average cab fare from the airport to the cruise terminal is approx 20-25 dollars.  If you do drive your car, pier parking runs ten dollars per day. Carnival Cruise Lines also offers a shuttle for a nominal fee.

 Right now we have a carnival cruise line ship the fascination in port and we may have it for a while. Carnival cruise lines just extended the port lease til May 2011.

The Holiday Inn is a brand new hotel that is a stones throw away from the port. Being so close allows you to take advantage of that 11 am check-out time My suggestion if you plan on staying there book as soon as you confirm your itinerary. It fills fast. The rates are affordable too at about 79.00 per night. There is a Wendy’s fast food joint in the parking lot and you are about 10 minutes from the mall and major chain stores and restaurants. You are just minutes away from the Jacksonville Zoo, the beaches, and the Jacksonville Landing ( a river front mall with food court).

Once aboard the ship enjoy the cruise to the ocean. Our port is 12 miles from the cruise terminal to the mouth of the St. Johns River. It will take about an hour to reach the ocean passing a shrimping village and cargo ship ports.  Take pictures of the ship ride out and enjoy your cruise.

When you return, taxi’s will be lined up against the pier.

I hope this gave you a little insight.