03/11/2026
I just got back home from my first cruise with Margaritaville at Sea.
Overall if you are looking for a laid back, low-key, affordable cruise MAS (Margaritaville at Sea) is a great choice.
If you have never been on a cruise before you honestly wouldn’t notice half of the things that stood out to me. But being that I cruise often and have cruised with 3 other cruise lines it’s hard not to notice the differences. But differences aren’t always bad. There truly is a cruise for everyone. And I am here to help narrow down those options for you.
Here is my review of MAS Islander:
Ship: The Islander was built in 2000 by Costa Cruises but was bought and refurbished by MAS and set sail with them in 2024. Exploring the ship it was obvious what had been refurbished and what hadn’t. The updates were beautiful and had a fun theme to them. But this did make the original parts of the ship fall flat in terms of aesthetic. The ship was easy to learn and navigate. There are a few things in regard to the layout that just didn’t make sense. Guest services was located right next to a bar where there was almost always live music so it made it difficult to speak with guest services. The public restrooms were small, hard to navigate and the sinks were very low. Certain parts of the ship were noisy, specifically the middle of the ship near what I assume was the engine. The noise was avoidable on the upper decks but I would avoid specific staterooms because of this.
Food: I felt as though the food quality was very comparable to other cruise lines and ships I have sailed with, however there was not nearly as many options. This may make it harder to accommodate those who have food allergies, diet restrictions or who, like me are just picky. Complimentary Food options included The Port of Indecision (buffet for breakfast, lunch and dinner), Mexican Cutie Cantina (street style tacos, breakfast burritos, chips and guacamole), Cheeseburger in Paradise (burgers and fries), Fins Dining (main dining room) and Frank & Lola’s Pizzeria.
Entertainment: MAS nighttime entertainment was very comparable to other ships I have been on. Their shows included singing, dancing and acrobatics. They also had a comedian and magician. Being that I had been to similar shows and entertainment before, nothing wowed me. However we still enjoyed them.
Drinks: You MUST order a Pina Colada. They were so good! The Margaritas also did not disappoint. I am not a huge drinker so I can’t speak a whole lot to this, but the drinks I did have, I enjoyed.
Stateroom: We were in a Breezy Balcony Stateroom. It can accommodate up to 4 people. It had a king bed (2 twins put together that can be separated), a sofa pull out and a Pullman bed (bunk). The stateroom was very comparable to other interior staterooms size wise but just with a balcony. The balcony had enough space for 2 chairs. One thing to note is that once the Pullman sofa was pulled out there was almost nowhere to put the ladder for the bunk bed. We ended up just putting the ladder in the closet and I basically jumped onto the bunk every night. Kinda impressed myself TBH.
Our cruise was 5 nights and visited Mexico, we paid around $350 per person. Prices change daily but Cruise Lines also feature different offers all the time.
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