Recently, I had the opportunity to stay in a Grand Terrance Suite on Margaritaville’s newest cruise ship on a 4-night voyage from Florida to Mexico and was more impressed than I thought I would be.
Margaritaville at Sea’s Islander started as Costa Atlantica, offering cruises for Costa from 2000 until 2019. However, Margaritaville didn't purchase the ship until 2023.
Before re-entering service in June 2024, all 1,105 cabins received a major refurbishment, as well as the public areas like the atrium, pool deck, and restaurants. The Margaritaville theming brought a vibrant, relaxed, and tropical atmosphere to the entire ship and combined classic cruising with the laid-back vibe of the Margaritaville brand.
Islander embarked on her first cruise on June 14, 2024, from Tampa, Florida, which is where she is currently homeported. Savannah Buffet, the daughter of the infamous Jimmy Buffet, is the ship's godmother.
Initially, we had reserved a standard interior stateroom for $863.58. However, a few days before sailing, Margaritaville graciously upgraded us to one of the ship's Grand Terrace Suites. It was a nice gesture and set the tone for a great voyage. According to Margaritaville's website, these suites start at over $1,000 per person for a 4-night cruise in 2025.
Our Grand Terrace Suite on Deck 6 measured over 270 square feet, including the balcony, making it more spacious than standard cabins. For example, a traditional interior stateroom on Margaritaville at Sea’s Islander is less than 160 square feet.
We greatly appreciated the extra space, from the comfortable sitting area to the additional dressing area. It was the perfect amount of room for two people to spread out and relax. Still, I don't think we would have been tripping over each other if we were cruising with a third guest.
My first impression of the cabin was that it didn't feel like it was on a 20+-year-old ship. Last year, I cruised on Vision of the Seas and Carnival Elation, two older ships operating for Royal Caribbean and Carnival, respectively.
While they're a little older than Islander launching in 1998 versus 2000, the cabins were far more outdated. For example, my stateroom on Vision of the Seas had just two standard American outlets!
Compartively, the Grand Terrace Suite on Islander felt more modern and well-maintained. It was evident a lot of thought went into the stateroom's refurbishment.
I loved the décor, too. I didn't expect the stateroom to feel dark or dingy, but I didn't think it would feel like a hotel room on Key West, where the original Margaritaville restaurant is located. Everything was bright and tropical!
Instead of a standard vanity area, there was a bar-like surface with two stools that housed the ice bucket and mini-fridge. The vanity area was separate from the cabin, which helped divide the bathroom from the living and sleeping areas.
It was far more spacious than traditional vanities. Because it didn't house the stateroom's only outlets, it was easy to keep free of clutter. While I kept my makeup bag on the vanity, there weren't cables everywhere or miscellaneous bottles of sunscreen.
The lightning here wasn't always the best, though. Sometimes I'd begin my makeup at the vanity and finish it in the living area with more natural light.
The storage was plentiful, too. The vanity area had four drawers and a closet. There was also an extra closet adjacent to the bed. Next to that closet was a built-in dresser with two large cabinets and even more drawers!
However, because we were only onboard for four nights, we opted to live out of our suitcases. There was a lot of floor space, so we weren't worried about tripping over our suitcases.
Instead, we had plenty of room to navigate the cabin! Had we stayed in a standard cabin, we would have likely immediately unpacked to take advantage of the limited space.
Speaking of space, the bathroom was more akin to a traditional hotel. In other words, my knees didn't hit the sink when using the restroom!
There were six shelves for our toiletries and other products, and the dual sinks made getting ready more efficient. I also appreciated the liquid hand soap and lotion since standard cruise ship bar soap quickly dries my hands out.
Though Islander never operated for Carnival Cruise Line, the bathroom reminded me of pictures I've seen of suites on Spirit Class ships, such as Carnival Pride; the backsplash was identical! This is because Costa is owned by Carnival Corporation & plc.
The layout was also similar to the bathroom in my Junior Suite on Carnival Vista, which had the same dual sinks and shower-tub combination.
While I loved how spacious the bathroom was, I was relieved to find a clean shower. After my experience aboard Carnival Elation last year, I've become hesitant about cruise ship bathrooms.
The shower head was gross and showed obvious limescale build-up. The same couldn't be said about the shower on Islander. It was clean and had great shower pressure. Even better? There wasn't a clingy shower curtain!
The Grand Terrace Suite also came equipped with separate shampoo, body wash, and conditioner. It smelled just as tropical and coconutty as you'd expect!
I always bring my own products because I color my hair; however, my friend forgot travel-sized toiletries and used the provided shampoo and conditioner. She said it made her hair feel nice!
Another pleasant surprise was the number of outlets. There were four standard American plugs, two of which were beside the bed.
If that wasn't enough, there were also four built-in USB ports. Since two were near the bed, there were four charging bedside options. This means you can charge multiple devices without getting up and plugging in your phone or headphones at the vanity or bar top when you're half asleep.
The highlight, however, was the large balcony. I joked that there was room for yoga, but it was true! You could easily do morning stretches on the balcony each morning watching your ship pull into port.
Because I cruise so frequently, I don't sail in balconies often, so it's a treat when I do! If I splurged on every cruise, my habit would be far more expensive!
Overall, the suite had comparable benefits to my cabin aboard Carnival Vista. Priority embarkation was nice, but the Port of Tampa was so small that we breezed onboard. We also received priority disembarkation in Progreso. However, we did not utilize this perk.
Perhaps my favorite benefit was the complimentary Nespresso coffee in the Concierge Lounge. The most disappointing aspect of Margaritaville's drink package was that it did not include specialty coffees. The Nespresso machine made up for it, though!
The lounge also had complimentary water bottles and soda like Coke, Sprite, and Fanta. So, if you don't have a drink package, you don't have to go the entire week without a crisp soda.
Our Concierge, Diana, also arranged for a Bridge tour with other suite guests on the first full day onboard. Though I had seen a Bridge before, this was my friend's first cruise since 2004. She was impressed by how well the Staff Captain explained the complex navigational systems and enjoyed learning about Azipods.
Speaking of Diana, she was incredibly helpful throughout the cruise and always went above and beyond to ensure we had everything we needed.
For example, since Margaritaville doesn't have a mobile app, we stood in the Guest Services line on the final evening to get a copy of our onboard spending statement. However, Diana spotted us and guided us to the Concierge Lounge, where she immediately printed our statements out for us.
I'd definitely consider booking the Grand Terrace Suite on future cruises, especially if the itinerary was longer and we had more days at sea.
Four nights felt so short, and by the time we started preparing for disembarkation, we wished we had one more day to lounge on the balcony and sip on Nespresso coffee from the Concierge Lounge!
Elizabeth Wright
Elizabeth graduated from New York University's Arthur L. Carter Journalism Institute with her M.A. in Journalism in May 2023. Growing up, she had the privilege of traveling frequently with her family and fell in love with cruising after sailing on the Oasis of the Seas her freshman year of high school. She wanted to pursue a career that highlighted her passion for travel and strengths as a writer.
