Cruising on the Carnival Fantasy

What else can cruise aficionados do aboard the Carnival Fantasy? Passengers will be able to enjoy a wide variety of entertainment options, such as a friendly Casino and a huge Spa Carnival and Health Club, where fitness fans can work out in three outdoor swimming pools and jog a well-maintained eighth-of-a-mile mile track, then relax in one of the ship’s six whirlpools.

A game room and onboard activities including pingpong, shuffleboard, dancing lessons and a well-stocked library offer a range of pleasant diversions. There’s duty-free shopping, and a barbershop and beauty salon, and all cabins offer closed-circuit television.

The Carnival Cruise Lines Total Choice Dining Program means that all passengers will be free to choose from a host of meal-time and snack-time options, among them formal dining rooms where the tables are always set for a first-class dining experience, including fresh lobster on every cruise, an extensive wine list and attentive service. For more intimate dining, there is a reservations-only steakhouse with a Manhattan-chic ambience and many hearty favorites. Casual dining includes a European-style café and plenty of kid-pleasing meal choices, from hamburgers, hot dogs and pizza to spaghetti and meatballs and more.

When the sun dips below the horizon, the Carnival Fantasy comes alive with night life to satisfy every taste, from the Universe Lounge, featuring Las Vegas-style shows, to a varied lineup of entertainment in the Crystal Lounge, disco in the Electricity Dance Club, sophisticated piano in Cleopatra’s Bar, plus a half-dozen other themed watering holes for cocktails and fun.

For veteran cruisers or first-timers, being able to enjoy the pleasures of the sea and visiting exotic ports without having to fly or drive to distant cities to embark is the best of all worlds. Carnival Cruise Lines’ year-round schedule of sailing from the port of Charleston makes it all possible.

Is that the sound of a steel drum band in the distance? It just might be the Carnival Fantasy gliding past Florida’s shores as it embarks on yet another fun-filled cruise.

By Bill Farley & Barbara Patrick