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I booked two 185 square foot rooms at the Carnival Legend for my family of five.
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My husband and I shared a windowless unit and my three children stayed in a sea view room.
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Staying in separate cabins gave our family more space and privacy during our seven day trip.
I was looking for a getaway in November, so I booked a seven-day cruise on Carnival Legend for my family of five.
In past holidays we have all stayed in the same hotel room. At one point we all crowded into the same tiny cruise cabin.
This time I have reserved two separate 185 square meter staterooms on Carnival Legend’s Riviera deck for more space and privacy.
My husband and I stayed in a windowless inside cabin with a king bed.
The king was actually just two single beds pushed together.
We each had a bedside table with a reading lamp.
If either of us wanted to stay up a little late, we would turn off the main light and turn on the lamp.
My three children – 14, 11 and 8 years old – shared an ocean view cabin across the hall.
Connecting rooms were not available so my kids stayed in their own separate room.
The children’s room had two single beds and a sofa that could be converted into a third bed.
There was more than enough room for the three of them.
The children’s picture window offered beautiful natural light.
Our room had no windows and was sunless. In the future I would also reserve a room with a sea view for the adults.
The bathrooms in both cabins were identical.
The bathroom had plenty of storage compartments for our toiletries.
Cruise staff cleaned the bathrooms and replenished our towel supplies each day.
Many hotels we checked into have not offered daily housekeeping since the start of the coronavirus pandemic, but we enjoyed a clean bathroom and fresh towels every day on the Carnival Legend.
The showers had shampoo and gel dispensers.
There was also a retractable clothesline in our bathroom for drying wet swimsuits.
Even with three kids sharing a small bathroom, the floor stayed dry thanks to the shower’s well-designed drainage system.
I was happy to see that water didn’t cover the entire bathroom floor.
The floor plans of both rooms make excellent use of the 185 square meter area.
Thanks to all the drawers, shelves and hangers, we could easily store a week’s worth of items.
Two of the closets had hanging rods for clothes and coats, with enough space to store our suitcases in the floor.
My husband and I had no trouble storing our suitcases and clothes in an orderly manner.
Like many cruise cabins, our room had an electrical outlet next to the desk.
This was a bit annoying as my husband and I had to take turns charging our devices.
The crew confiscated one of our power strips.
I packed two power strips to avoid having to take turns using the outlet, but only one made it on board. Unfortunately, the crew confiscated the other.
Carnival’s website states that power strips without surge protectors are allowed, but those the crew deems dangerous will be removed and returned to the owner on the last day of the cruise prior to disembarkation.
However, the kids had no trouble getting their power strip into their cabin.
The TV screen was so small that by the end of the trip my eyes were straining.
The too small TV screen isn’t a big deal unless you’re a movie watcher.
However, our family likes to relax by watching shows and by the end of the week the tiny screen was straining my eyes.
There was a mini fridge in a table big enough to hold two bottles of wine and some snacks.
Only downside was it didn’t get cold enough to chill drinks.
Our rooms had thermostats, but I don’t think they worked well.
The rooms had thermostats with moving dials, but turning them didn’t seem to affect the temperature.
Our cabin seemed too cold and the children’s room seemed too warm.
Even though we were on a Thanksgiving cruise, we decorated our cabin doors for Christmas.
The small copper box was a mailbox where crew members could drop off our excursion tickets and other information flyers.
For future family trips I will stick with booking two separate rooms.
Our cabins were small but offered plenty of storage options, making them feel more spacious.
Next time we go on a cruise or vacation I am considering booking separate rooms for adults and children so everyone has their own retreat.
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