Carnival Glory

This was my 103rd cruise and my third with Carnival. Former Carnival sailings were on two older ships: Fantasy in 1991 and Inspiration in 1997. I was a group leader on this sailing and responsible for 193 members of a professional organization for the week. We had meetings and social events scheduled daily and lots of preparation had gone into this cruise.

Let me start by saying that I was very pleasantly surprised overall by the Glory and the improvements Carnival has made over the past few years.

Embarkation: I arrived at the port at 11:15. When I finally boarded the ship it was 1:05 pm. We waited in line in the car to drop off luggage (20 minutes), security was not a long line but I did notice when I was getting on the ship that the line stretched out of the doors and down in front of the terminal. Unlike other lines I have sailed where there is a single check in process, we had to go through several lines with Carnival. We checked in on one line, then we had to go and get out SeaPass in another line (inefficient in my opinion). Then we waited in another line to have the photo taken for the SeaPass card. The final line was really annoying as it was the embarkation photo line. We were told it was “mandatory” to have an embarkation photo taken which I found ridiculous. The only way past the photographers was blocked with a large trash can. So we waited yet again in a line and, when it was my turn, I said “no, thanks” and continued on through, despite being told it was “required” yet again. I was done waiting in line by this time and had no interest in a photo. I think Carnival needs to lighten up and provide a way through this process that does not require people to wait to have a photo taken if they are not interested.

Ship: The ship is 110 GRT and she was sailing completely full. The large, bold lobby area was designed with dramatic use of color and little natural light. I find Carnival ships to be generally quite dark with extensive use of neon and this held true with the Glory. It was however, more restrained in décor than the other two Carnival ships I sailed. I knew that only two decks went all the way through and I found this to be a very inconvenient design, espeicially having to criss cross the ship with boxes and things all day long. The ship felt very cut up, adding to the feeling of overall congestion that I experienced all week.

The pools were VERY small for a ship this size and got crowded early. I did not care for the stadium seating at the main pool and, when I did use a pool, chose the Azur. There were seldom any chairs available at the pools so I found myself only using the pool on the days when we were in port and I chose to stay on the ship. Unfortunately, there were a ton of kids and teens aboard and swim diapers were in fashion. These really gross me out so I tended not to use the pool very often when there were kids around. Glory would benefit from an adult pool, IMHO, and this is something I missed all week long. There was really no place to get away from kids and noise. Funnel deck got full early and I never was able to find a free lounge chair there either.

My stateroom was cabin 8461 on Verandah Deck. It was an aft cabin smack in the middle. The cabin was spacious and well appointed, with plenty of storage and a good sized bathroom. My verandah was smaller than expected, but they did manage to fit two lounge chairs and two regular chairs out there. I liked the location except for two things: (1) there was a good bit of vibration while we were sailing and (2) three mornings around 3:00 they would start re-organizing the deck chairs at the Azur pool, directly above my stateroom. If you are a light sleeper as I am, it will be a problem.

Food: I am not going to be very helpful here to most readers, I imagine. I am a healthy eater and did not eat at the pizzeria, the deli, the ice cream stations or the fish and chips. I did not try any desserts during the week, nor did I go to the chocolate buffet. Also, I dislike buffets in general and prefer to be served. For breakfast when I cruise, I eat half a grapefruit and some smoked salmon. This was not available at Red Sail so I ordered thru room service a few days and on the others went to the dining room. I checked out the lido buffet for breakfast but found it heavy on sugary and fatty foods. I did go to the omelette station one day and ask for egg whites. They cooked some up for me but had a really heavy hand with the grease so I did not eat them and did not go back there again.

Lunch needed to be fast for me and I would make a salad from the buffet and enjoy it on my balcony. There were a good number of choices available and the fish offerings were good in general. However, the lines were very long on sea days and I would just give up and forget about lunch altogether. The waits were REALLY long on sea days and not too bad on others.

We had the entire Golden Dining Room, Deck 4, reserved for our exclusive use. Food at dinner was good to very good most nights, with two exceptions. I had fish every evening, minus the sauces, and they were well cooked and moist. There seemed to be a problem with having foods, especially soups, served hot. They were often lukewarm. Twice I sent back my entrée because it was cold. Otherwise, food was a pleasant surprise. The dining room staff was very friendly, however, service was not attentive. Water glasses were not kept full, refills on coffee were not offered and had to be requested. We had wine with dinner every evening and poured our own from the bottle. Second servings of bread had to be requested, sometimes more than once. Waitstaff were simply not very attentive. This was also the case in the dining room in the morning when I several times observed passengers getting up to pour their own coffee. I did not care for the booths in the dining room and felt that you were on top of other people. It felt like they were trying to jam as many people as possible into the space available. I thought this detracted from the experience.

Also, despite the fact that Caper stated that “shorts, baseball caps and tank tops are not permitted in the dining room”, it was a common mode of dress. Carnival should either forget the dress code or enforce it. Jeans were everywhere.

The Emerald Room was a different story. I dined there twice and it was simply wonderful! The service was attentive and professional, the food delicious and perfectly prepared. The sommelier was knowledgeable and well trained. The piano player was very talented. It was worth the supplement of $30 per person and was a highlight of the trip. There were only a few things that detracted from the elegance of the experience. One, the nearest ladies room was one deck down, outside by the pool. Not convenient and, by the nature of its location, not a great choice when one was dressed up. Two, it is a shame that advantage of the views available at sea was not utilized when deciding on where to place this restaurant. Three, tables were arranged so that, when dining at a four top near the window, I constantly had to move aside so the server could serve from my right, as is proper. The tables needed to be farther apart.

Staff: The staff on the Glory were friendly and cordial. I had excellent service for my group and the entire staff was personable and always had a smile. My room stewardess left a bit to be desired as on two occasions dirty towels were simply left on the bathroom floor and not replaced when the room was made up. My pool towels were not changed unless I asked. And once she actually took a towel off of the bathroom floor and rehung it for me to use; I know this because I had dropped the towel into the toilet and soaked one end in the morning when I was getting ready. I left it on the floor so it would be replaced. When I reached for a towel that afternoon after my shower, the one I grabbed off the rack was soaked on one end. It made me wonder how many times she had simply hung dirty towels back on the rack.

I had drinks one evening with the Captain and senior staff and totally enjoyed myself.

The bartenders were very nice but need better training with wines. On four different occasions I was served wine that had been opened a few days before and had turned. As I paid between 9 and 15 a glass for these wines, there was no excuse for this. They were always replaced with a glass from a fresh bottle but this should not have occured.

Nightlife: I did not attend any shows so cannot report on these. I also did not go out at night. I found the bars to be quite smoky overall and also was not impressed with the live entertainment offered. I had looked forward to the jazz club but it was acid jazz not smooth jazz and it was also the cigar bar so it was just too stinky. On the couple of nights I popped into the disco, it was filled with a younger crowd (20s). I do not gamble but the casino was hopping whenever I walked through. I missed going out at night as I am usually a nightowl but there were no spots on the ship that appealed to me. Instead, I relaxed on my balcony and read.

Passengers: The passenger mix was generally a casual group, certainly the most casually dressed I have ever experienced on a cruise. There were a lot of families and lots of kids and teens. Everyone seemed to be enjoying themselves.

Gym: The gym was well equipped and seldom crowded, at least at 6 in the morning when I was there. There were very few options for classes that were free. Three classes a day were ten dollars each and one was no charge. I am spoiled by RCI and their sports program and really missed the fun classes offered. The sauna and steam room were very nice and I used these most afternoons. There was never anyone else in either.

Ports: I did the western itinerary. I stayed on the ship in Key West (don't care for it) and Progresso (working), went to Paradise Beach in Cozumel, and went to the shops at Belize for about 15 minutes. The lines to get back on the ship in Cozumel were long and it was very hot. I have never been on a ship where I had to wait in line to get back on in port and I am not sure why it took so much time. Some of my clients told me it took them over an hour in line to embark the ship.

My overall experience with the Glory was generally positive. The big plus was the staff, which was really quite good. The ship was clean overall and well maintained. The minuses, for me, were that the ship constantly felt overcrowded and I felt like a sardine in a can. I stayed in my stateroom on this cruise more than on any other as I simply got tired of the crowds and the noise. It seemed like there was no escaping a crush of people! Lines were long, pools were packed, there were unsupervised kids running around eveywhere.

There were NO adults only areas and I missed that. The whole ship was full of noise and people. Also, I prefer cruising on a line that is more upscale and elegant overall and disliked the jeans and shorts environment I found on the Glory. It is just not my style.

I think the Glory offers good value, especially for new cruisers or those looking for a more casual, less service oriented experience. It is not, however, a ship for those used to high levels of personal service (i.e., Celebrity or Radiance class) and a more refined atmosphere.

Caviargal,

Thanks for the objective review ;)

I'm glad you had a pretty decent cruise :)

I do have a question for you, I will be trying Royal Caribbean in the near future, so in your opinion, are the things that were lacking on the Glory (i.e more service-oriented, upscale, less casual) available on RCI ships?

The reason I ask is that I too am not a huge buffet person at home, and I enjoy a nice upscale restaurant, but I also enjoy decent nightlife and some casual times during the day.

I would appreciate your opinion. Thanks.

Caviar, I will admit... I was anticipating a very degrading review from you... just based on your attitude going into this cruise. I was pleasantly surprised by your review. I think you were objective and focused on the positive and negative. I still think that Carnival is just not going to suit you, but even you have said that.... I hope your group had a very nice time. And thank you for an objective and honest review!!!

Hey, thanks for being honest with your detailed review. I appreciate that a lot. We are cruising on the Glory this July. We even have cabin #8461! I just knew one day while seaching this website I would read where someone had the same cabin. I was glad to read your comments on the cabin as this will be our first time with a balcony room....

Caviargal,

 

Thanks for the objective review ;)

 

I'm glad you had a pretty decent cruise :)

 

I do have a question for you, I will be trying Royal Caribbean in the near future, so in your opinion, are the things that were lacking on the Glory (i.e more service-oriented, upscale, less casual) available on RCI ships?

 

The reason I ask is that I too am not a huge buffet person at home, and I enjoy a nice upscale restaurant, but I also enjoy decent nightlife and some casual times during the day.

 

I would appreciate your opinion. Thanks.

Depends on the RCI ship as the older ones are missing a few things, like the specialty restaurants. I really love Portofino but Chops for me has been hit or miss.

You will find a great sports and fitness program, ShipShape, with lots of indoor and outdoor activities, live music before dinner which I really like and lots of options after dinner for entertainment. It is certainly casual during the day but at night you will not likely see folks in shorts and jeans, unless they are in the Windjammer or it is after dinner. I really like the nightlife on RCI and seldom get in before 1 or 2pm. Many of the ships have latin dance clubs, which I also enjoy. The service in the restaurants is better in general, as was pointed out to me several times this past week by my clients. And the ships are just pretty, IMO, with lots of glass and light wood and colors that blend with the sea.

The Champagne Bars on RCI have bartenders that really know their wine and this is a big difference for me. I had one of the bartenders at the Champagne Bar on the Glory ask me if Pinot Noir was white or red. They need to train these folks better if they are going to charge 9 bucks for a glass of wine that I buy for 12.99 a bottle at home. Also, hot and cold hor d'ouvres are served in the lounges aboard RCI before.

And, the poolside bar service is excellent on RCI and was virutally non-existent on Glory. Once only was I able to wave down a bar waiter to order a cocktail. People had to get up and get their own. Seems like the other way rings the register a lot more.

There are also more adults only areas, like the Solarium pool. And, there are more options to eat heathily at sea on RCI. Some of the ships are very service oriented, Radiance class in particular.

I am not a fan of Voyager class ships as they are too big and too many guests are aboard. I personally could care less about the ice rink and rock climbing and Johnny Rockets but it seems to appeal to many folks.

Hope you enjoy your cruise.

Hey, thanks for being honest with your detailed review. I appreciate that a lot. We are cruising on the Glory this July. We even have cabin #8461! I just knew one day while seaching this website I would read where someone had the same cabin. I was glad to read your comments on the cabin as this will be our first time with a balcony room....

The view was really awesome! It was my first aft cabin and will not be my last.

It gets hot out on the balcony because you get less of a breeze, but I think the view is worth it.

This was my 103rd cruise and my third with Carnival.

 

 

 

 

 

Oh my goodness, 103rd cruise ?

I can't even phathom that.......

 

Wow... I am jealous ;)

Congratulations on 103 cruises..

 

LOL :)

This was my 103rd cruise and my third with Carnival.

 

I've been a busy girl for the past 30 years!

 

 

 

Oh my goodness' date=' 103rd cruise ?

I can't even phathom that.......

 

Wow... I am jealous ;)

Congratulations on 103 cruises..

 

LOL :)[/quote']

Excellent review! Well rounded and to the point. There is nothing wrong in that Carnival is not for everyone, which is why we have so many cruise lines to choose from.

Just like Royal Caribbean, Carnival has a difference ambiance depending on what class of ship you sail and what time of year. You were on one of largest and newest ships, part of the Conquest Class. Personally I don't care for this class of ship for the very reasons you mentioned ... over crowded, lacking deck space, small pools, disjointed layout, too noisy. I found a completely different Carnival experience on the Spirit Class. These are comparable to the Radiance Class of Royal Caribbean if you wanted to make an analogy. Smaller but still packed with amenities. The Supper Club which you loved (and me too!) is so much nicer on the Spirit Class. It's located at the top of the atrium under a glass enclosure built into the funnel. I also find the pools larger and deck space better on the Spirit Class. Another plus, you can walk through on every deck. There are no galleys (the problem with the Destiny/Conquest Class) that require going up and over, or down and under to get where you are going. The other plus with the Spirit Class is a quiet, full wrap-around Promenade Deck. Very nice when you want to get away from the main pool area. I also believe the aft pool has been designated as "adults only" on the Spirit Class.

So if you decide to try Carnival again in the future, keep the Spirit Class in mind and travel during the Fall or Winter when school is in session. This is my philosophy when sailing Carnival and my experiences have been excellent (comparable or better than Princess and Royal Caribbean).

And WOW .... 103 cruises! Quite impressive. I am at 60 cruises so I have some catching up to do. ;)

Ernie

Ernie, thanks for the information. I just may do that one of these days! I was impressed enough by the changes Carnival has made to consider another cruise with them but it would definitely be on a different class of ship.

After a week on the Glory, I know what salmon feel like while swimming upstream!

caviargal ....Read every word of your review with great interest because we will be taking our first Carnival cruise ... and it will be on Glory.

While we haven't been on 103 cruises, we have been on 40+. Your review gives us a very good idea of what to expect. That "dirty towel" situation is the only thing that really grosses us out. :eek: What did you do? Did you have to keep calling housekeeping to get clean towels? :confused:

Thanks for taking to time to write this helpful review!

Happy Sailing! OCruisers :)

I'm nowhere near a party person for my age (21) and personally,but IMO, I think you were into the time when teens are graduating HS and college kids have finally finished finals. My cruise was May 7th on the Glory and there were not very many teens AT all. I finished my finals May 5th, but many college kids were still in college or graduation. There was a gang of maybe 15 that I saw on the ship at night. however, during the days, they were in Club H20 or whatever. There were little kids, but honestly the only time I saw them was at dinner or headed out @ ports. I personally think the average age of all passengers was between 40-50. Never had a problem finding a spot in either pool. Even on "sea days" the pools (when I was up) never had more than 8 people. It was really nice. So it seems all relevant to the time. So if you decide to ever go again on Carnival, I'd try the second week of May

:-)

Depends on the RCI ship as the older ones are missing a few things, like the specialty restaurants. I really love Portofino but Chops for me has been hit or miss.

 

You will find a great sports and fitness program, ShipShape, with lots of indoor and outdoor activities, live music before dinner which I really like and lots of options after dinner for entertainment. It is certainly casual during the day but at night you will not likely see folks in shorts and jeans, unless they are in the Windjammer or it is after dinner. I really like the nightlife on RCI and seldom get in before 1 or 2pm. Many of the ships have latin dance clubs, which I also enjoy. The service in the restaurants is better in general, as was pointed out to me several times this past week by my clients. And the ships are just pretty, IMO, with lots of glass and light wood and colors that blend with the sea.

 

The Champagne Bars on RCI have bartenders that really know their wine and this is a big difference for me. I had one of the bartenders at the Champagne Bar on the Glory ask me if Pinot Noir was white or red. They need to train these folks better if they are going to charge 9 bucks for a glass of wine that I buy for 12.99 a bottle at home. Also, hot and cold hor d'ouvres are served in the lounges aboard RCI before.

 

And, the poolside bar service is excellent on RCI and was virutally non-existent on Glory. Once only was I able to wave down a bar waiter to order a cocktail. People had to get up and get their own. Seems like the other way rings the register a lot more.

 

There are also more adults only areas, like the Solarium pool. And, there are more options to eat heathily at sea on RCI. Some of the ships are very service oriented, Radiance class in particular.

 

I am not a fan of Voyager class ships as they are too big and too many guests are aboard. I personally could care less about the ice rink and rock climbing and Johnny Rockets but it seems to appeal to many folks.

 

Hope you enjoy your cruise.

I appreciate the comparison. Thanks again.

I have a problem with the training of those who work at wineries on land as well. I guess it doesn't matter whether they are on land or on a ship, the training for these people needs to be stepped up quite a bit.

Ernie, thanks for the information. I just may do that one of these days! I was impressed enough by the changes Carnival has made to consider another cruise with them but it would definitely be on a different class of ship.

 

After a week on the Glory, I know what salmon feel like while swimming upstream!

caviargal,

There is one other important point I forgot to point out regarding the Conquest Class of ships ... and for me this is important because I don't have kids. On the Conquest Class, Carnival decided to put the teen/kids center smack in the middle of the adult indoor promenade. In fact it's right next to the adult disco. I thought this was a horrible mistake as teens/kids crowded the promenade (in front of their club, not in it!) every night causing traffic jams and bottle necks. There were literally gangs of them. Many tried to get in the adult disco and several did sneak in. Getting past them was a challenge. On the other Carnival ships the teen/kids/child centers are far removed from the adult action. You don't run into gangs of teenagers like I did on CARNIVAL CONQUEST (sister to GLORY). This is another reason I have no desire to sail on a Conquest Class ship again.

Ernie

ps - on my CONQUEST sailing, a teenage girl was allegedly raped by an adult male. Disembarkation was delayed in New Orleans while authorities sorted it out. Just another reason I felt the teen club should be further separated from the adult disco.

I have to say I'm stunned!!

Your review was excellent...totally fair all around, which surprised me because you went into this cruise worried that you'd be getting off the ship and fielding complaints from 193 people.

I agree with the folks who have responded and said that if you DO sail Carnival again, the Spirit class is the way to go.

Thanks for taking the time to post a great review, and surprising me all at once :) .

I'm nowhere near a party person for my age (21) and personally,but IMO, I think you were into the time when teens are graduating HS and college kids have finally finished finals. My cruise was May 7th on the Glory and there were not very many teens AT all. I finished my finals May 5th, but many college kids were still in college or graduation. There was a gang of maybe 15 that I saw on the ship at night. however, during the days, they were in Club H20 or whatever. There were little kids, but honestly the only time I saw them was at dinner or headed out @ ports. I personally think the average age of all passengers was between 40-50. Never had a problem finding a spot in either pool. Even on "sea days" the pools (when I was up) never had more than 8 people. It was really nice. So it seems all relevant to the time. So if you decide to ever go again on Carnival, I'd try the second week of May

:-)

Jenna, this was business, not pleasure so the ship and date were not my personal vacation selection. I prefer to sail in Jan/Feb/Oct and I prefer other lines.

It is hard to fathom that there were only 8 people by the pools on sea days! This ship holds 3600 people, after all. I have never been on a ship where there were that few people by the pools, ever.

The kids and teens aboard were apparently granted the freedoms to do as they please by their parents. This included running through hallways, laying on the floors in public areas, jumping in the pools. I do my very best, when travelling for personal pleasure, to stack the deck as much as possible to avoid kids and teens.

Ernie, I am sorry to hear about that episode. We unfortunately had a incident on board, apparently racially inspired, and one of my clients sons was injured. A pax came forward and told the story to the security folks. It was sad to say the least that some people feel it necessary to burden others with their personal prejudices.

caviargal ....Read every word of your review with great interest because we will be taking our first Carnival cruise ... and it will be on Glory.

 

While we haven't been on 103 cruises, we have been on 40+. Your review gives us a very good idea of what to expect. That "dirty towel" situation is the only thing that really grosses us out. :eek: What did you do? Did you have to keep calling housekeeping to get clean towels? :confused:

 

Thanks for taking to time to write this helpful review!

 

Happy Sailing! OCruisers :)

I did not call for clean towels as there were 4 in my bathroom when it was serviced and it was just me in the room. So I made due. But you can believe I sniffed and checked carefully when I determined I could not trust my cabin stewardess. There was also a lot of dust in my cabin and she walked in on me twice without knocking. I think I was just unlucky with this employee.

Thanks for a very balanced review. I too was one that doubted you would come back with any positive comments. I agree with everything that Ernie stated in his reviews. The Conquest class of ships is not for me. The passenger space ratio is bad and the ship always felt crowded. Also as I have stated over and over the layout of the ship leaves a lot to be desired. Give me the Spirit class anyday.

I think that the Conquest class is good for families or people that do not mind the crowds which is not me. I am one that likes the Voyager class and never felt crowded on them. I will be on the Enchantment next May and am looking at some of the Radiance class ships for late next year. If they are anything like the Spirit class then I know that I will like them.

This was my 103rd cruise...

You really are a cruiser!

Caviargal - thank you for review. I expected a scathing tirade against Carnival but, I have to say, I agree with a lot of your review and I feel that it was fair and balanced. I'm glad it wasn't the horror show you expected and it seemed that you really enjoyed some aspects of the Carnival experience

Hopefully, this cruise was good enough that you may be willing to try Carnival again. Next time try a Spirit class ship. It's a little smaller an may be better suited to your tastes.

Whatever anyone here does...if going on the glory steer clear of room 1393 as you will not get any sleep...among other noises theres a sewer pipe that runs under that cabin and it flushes off and on all night and rattles the bed! Sounds like a freakin subway under the floor!

 

The bartenders were very nice but need better training with wines. On four different occasions I was served wine that had been opened a few days before and had turned. As I paid between 9 and 15 a glass for these wines, there was no excuse for this. They were always replaced with a glass from a fresh bottle but this should not have occured.

 

Wine can turn even when the bottle has never been opened. It is called Corked. They probably got a bad case of wine.

This is a 6 year old thread started in 2005!!!!