Pride, part of Carnival Cruise Lines Spirit-class, is miles ahead of the Fantasy class in the proliferation of balcony cabins and innovative features.
This ship's passenger capacity is 2,124, and her 1,029 crew includes Italian officers and international staff. The ship’s registry is out of Panama. She has a gross tonnage of 88,500 and is 963 in length with a beam of 106 feet. She sails at 22 knots.
She has been deployed to Long Beach, California to make 7- and 8-day Mexican Riviera cruises. The 7-day journey begins with two days at sea, followed by calls at Puerto Vallarta, Mazatlan and Cabo San Lucas and a final day at sea. Pride’s 8-day voyages include calls in Acapulco, Zihuatanejo/Ixtapa and Manzanillo, as well as four days at sea sandwiched around the ports.
These cruises offer white-sand beaches, watersports, off-road biking and trips to the interior.
The Carnival Pride's public rooms range fore and aft of a spectacular nine-deck atrium, the ship's main point of orientation. Music and entertainment venues include a piano bar, jazz night club with karaoke, two-deck-high disco with video wall, sports bar, three-deck-high show lounge, library and Internet center and a video arcade for kids. In the Camp Carnival program, children have fun in supervised activities. Teens have the run of the disco until 11:30 every night, when the adults take over. Deck space is generous, and a big draw on sea days. Passengers gravitate to the four pools, four hot tubs, the two-level gym and spa, jogging deck, basketball and volleyball court and the water slide.
Traditional dining is in the formal Normandie Restaurant, styled after the dining room of the famous ocean liner. Lots of good food is dished out at early and late seatings. For informal eating, the Mermaid Grill serves Caesar salads and New York-style deli sandwiches and pizza at numerous stations, 24 hours a day. But for a real treat, pay the $25 extra charge to have at least one dinner in David's Supper Club. Its location is away from the bustle at the top level of the atrium and beneath a glass skylight that dramatically reveals the ship's funnel above. Tables are mostly for two and four, and service is excellent. The specialty menu, carefully explained at your table, presents a choice of excellent porterhouse and New York strip steaks, prime rib, grilled lamb chops, stone crabs and Chilean sea bass. Reservations are required.
On this class, the cabins are less plain and have more attractive design features. They are roomy with good storage space, and 624 (65% of them) have tiny balconies sparsely furnished with two chairs and a small table. All staterooms supply TVs, minibars, robes, hair dryers, safes and toiletries.
The theme of this ship is "Icons of Beauty," and lovely objects of art embellish many of the public spaces.
