Carnival Miracle

From the maiden voyage of Carnival’s first ship, the TSS Mardi Gras, which ran aground on a sandbar outside the Port of Miami, Carnival Corporation’s Carnival Cruise Lines brand has grown to be the world’s largest, most popular cruise line, carrying more than 2.5 million passengers annually. It was a vision of the late founder Ted Arison to make leisure experiences at sea once reserved exclusively for the well-heeled accessible to average vacationers. Carnival, founded in 1972, continues to offer affordable cruise vacations steeped in Fun Ship appeal with a finance plan for having fun now, while paying later. Carnival’s parent company renamed Carnival Corporation to distinguish between it and its flagship CCL brand in 1994 was renamed Carnival Corp. & plc following the combination with P&O Princess Cruises, creating the world’s largest cruise operator by far. As the flagship line, today’s Carnival defines contemporary cruising with expanded options in dining, kids’ programming, spa pampering and shipboard weddings. Carnival’s fleet, composed of six vessel classes, has grown to 20 vessels including the Carnival Miracle – fourth of the popular Spirit-class ships – with more Fun Ships on order.

Quick View

Debuting in Jacksonville, Florida in early 2005 and serving as a hotel along the St. Johns River during Super Bowl in 2005, Carnival Miracle is the newest, largest ship based year-round in Tampa, sailing seven-day, four-port “Exotic” Caribbean cruises calling on Grand Cayman, Costa Maya, Cozumel, and Belize. Carnival’s new 2,124-passenger Spirit class of ships (Carnival Spirit, Carnival Pride, Carnival Legend, Carnival Miracle) introduce added features including a wedding chapel and supper club located high in the funnel. Balcony cabins are in abundance, covering 80 percent of all outside cabins. Ideal for budget-mid-priced cruisers, Carnival Miracle offers the typical Carnival high energy, Las Vegas-style atmosphere with lots of glitz, many choices of excellent nightlife and daytime activities, alternative evening dining, balcony cabins, large fitness / spa facilities, a big casino, extensive facilities and programs for kids; large cabins, many holding three and four passengers, and above average food and friendly, although unpolished, service.

About Gratuities
Gratuities are automatically added to Sail & Sign accounts. The total is $10 per guest, per day ($5.50 for the dining team, $1 for bistro service, and $3.50 for cabin services.) Guests can adjust upward / downward at the information desk. Tipping the Maitre d' is at guest discretion, based upon services rendered. For guests preferring to extend this gratuity in cash, envelopes are available on the last evening of the cruise. Tipping still applies regardless of the dining options selected, such as eating at the casual dining restaurant or utilizing room service.

Disabled Access
Carnival Miracle has more than a dozen staterooms in various categories that are wheelchair-accessible.

Ship Features

Carnival Miracle -- with former soldier Jessica Lynch, captured and recovered in Iraq, as Godmother -- has an 11-story Metropolis atrium with a ruby-red glass ceiling, an indoor / outdoor promenade, four swimming pools, and a water slide. A dining venue on the top level of the ship’s atrium -- one of three restaurants on board -- is the only reservations-style supper club at sea offering prime beef. Sixteen lounges and bars with dramatic interiors celebrate famous fictional icons of film, music and literature, and a comprehensive golf program offers tips from pros aboard ship and during golf excursions. Some 80 percent of staterooms have ocean views and 80 percent of those have balconies. Carnival Miracle’s lobby and atrium are named after the Metropolis of Superman fame, while the lower promenade is the Fountainhead, from the Ayn Rand novel, whose main character is an idealistic architect. The upper promenade is called Kane’s Way from Orson Wells’ film Citizen Kane. Gatsby’s garden has long arches that look like cast iron trelliswork.

Staterooms
Six penthouse suites, 52 suites, 624 ocean-view staterooms with balcony, 68 ocean view staterooms with French doors, 99 ocean view staterooms without balcony, and 213 inside cabins.

Stateroom amenities
In-cabin amenities baskets are filled with brand-name products for men and women. Terrycloth robes are on hand for guest use in all ocean-view accommodations.

Kid & Teen Stuff
More than 450,000 kids children are sailing aboard Carnival Fun Ships in 2005, an increase of 350 percent from nine years ago. Similarly, Camp Carnival children’s program continues growing with high-tech play areas including computer labs and indoor climbing mazes. At bedtime, kids get fresh-baked cookies on first and last cruise nights. Fun Ship Freddy, Carnival’s mascot, appears on embarkation day and hangs out with Camp Carnival youth program participants. There’s a teen-only coffee bar and dance club, and teens-only shore excursions are also available on some cruises. A children’s dining program provides kids with supervised meals at the casual poolside restaurant. Dinners including a salad bar and desserts are followed by “Camp Carnival” evening activities.

Cruises Specials

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Life Aboard

Dining
The main dining room has a grapevine and silver goblet motif hailing Bacchus, Greek god of wine, with an annex named after his wife Ariadne. Lido Deck has casual dining. Nick and Nora’s, the reservations-only supper club, is named after the detective pair. Total Choice Dining on Carnival Miracle includes flexible seating times in main dining rooms, a poolside restaurant, a patisserie, and a pizzeria, and 24-hour room service.

Sports / Health / Fitness
Four swimming pools, five whirlpools and a spiral water slide are onboard, along with Spa Carnival, offering a full line-up of scrubs, facials, massage and more for men and women. A golf program provides professional instruction both aboard ship and during excursions to courses at ports of call.

Entertainment
Mad Hatter’s Ball, the main showroom, features production extravaganzas within three-dimensional Alice in Wonderland character decor. Dr. Frankenstein’s Lab, a dance club, is like a gothic castle. Phantom Lounge hails Phantom of the Opera and the Gaston Leroux novel set in the Paris Opera House. Frankie & Johnnie’s Jazz Club has a speakeasy atmosphere. The Raven Library, hailing Edgar Allen Poe, has Victorian decor. The Joker hosts card play.

Casino
Mr. Lucky’s (named after a Cary Grant movie and TV show where Joe (“Mr. Lucky”) Adams runs an illegal gambling yacht out of New York) has an Irish sports bar motif and myriad bar-top gaming machines.

Bars
Carnival Miracle’s piano bar, Sam’s, recalls the movie Casablanca. Jeeves Lounge hails the butler of P.G. Wodehouse’s novels, the atrium’s Gotham Lounge is inspired by Batman.