Carnival Destiny to North America

When she made her debut in 1996, the Carnival Destiny was the largest cruise ship in the world, and the first ever to exceed 100,000 tons. So huge was she that her own crew referred to her as the 'Death Star' of the industry. She soon became a ship that was as successful as she was stupendous.

With thousands of spacious balcony cabins, some top drawer suites, and even a large number of good sized inside and sea view rooms, Carnival Destiny really turned up the heat. Her debut spawned the biggest shipbuilding race in maritime history.

With separate (in theory) pools for adults and children alike, Carnival Destiny offered more of everything. From the awe inspiring, ten storey Atrium Lobby, with its quartet of glass lifts to the long, glitzy interior boulevard lined with bars, shops and cafes, this swaggering ship seemed to offer something to everyone.

Food is served up in two large, double height dining rooms that are as much about showbiz as food. Waiters dance on podiums to 'Hot, Hot, Hot' on special theme nights, and drag passengers up to form impromptu congas. This combination for fine food (admittedly served very quickly) and floor filling fun was one that most passengers loved.

Carnival Destiny is essentially Carnival on steroids. Everything, from the vast casino to the huge, multi level show lounge, is bigger, shinier, and more stunning than her fleet mates. But the double height ceilings of both dining rooms actually impedes the flow of passengers through the ship. Passengers have to descend to both main dining rooms, and the layout is confusing for a lot of people.

And we're talking about a lot of people, too. Well in excess of 3,000. Expect lines for getting on, getting off, and queuing at the enormous, indoor/outdoor lido buffet every day.

But getting past even that, there's no denying that the Carnival Destiny has a certain, majestic swagger that is quite infectious all round. Fun in the sun is what she is all about, and there's no shortage of that on offer.