Uh Oh!

[kissesofnovember]

I've stumbled across a few troublesome posts about carnival on here and a few other sites...I'm just wondering if anyone has experienced anything similar to the following or if it occurs a lot--i'm just curious to see if these are regular occurences or i just happened to find all of the minority group:

-poor customer service/
-being charged for something you didn't do
-not addressing issues with the rooms?


also---

does anyone know if the seas are rough in the bahamas during march? i'm nervous about rough waters/bad storms--and what happens if your ship gets caught in a storm while you are out at sea?! what is the procedure/safety stuff?!

[Lilmatcat]

Originally Posted by kissesofnovember

I've stumbled across a few troublesome posts about carnival on here and a few other sites...I'm just wondering if anyone has experienced anything similar to the following or if it occurs a lot--i'm just curious to see if these are regular occurences or i just happened to find all of the minority group:

-poor customer service/
-being charged for something you didn't do
-not addressing issues with the rooms?


also---

does anyone know if the seas are rough in the bahamas during march? i'm nervous about rough waters/bad storms--and what happens if your ship gets caught in a storm while you are out at sea?! what is the procedure/safety stuff?!

I have never been charged for something other than purchases I made on board. Rarely have I had an issue with anything in my room, but they have always tended to it promptly. I do know someone who had an A/C problem in their room and although it was a day later, they did get them moved to another cabin.

Customer service is in the eye of the beholder. Someone that doesn't get their way or get a free cruise when something goes wrong will complain incessantly. That said, to me customer service has run the gamut, from being mediocre to above and beyond the call of duty, so to speak.

As far as March seas, I have sailed that month and not had a problem. Even when I've sailed in hurricane season it hasn't been bad. The ships have avoided the storms.

[kissesofnovember]

Thanks!! I get worried about everything so thanks for helping to put my mind at rest!

[WinnieinWA]

Originally Posted by kissesofnovember

I've stumbled across a few troublesome posts about carnival on here and a few other sites...I'm just wondering if anyone has experienced anything similar to the following or if it occurs a lot--i'm just curious to see if these are regular occurences or i just happened to find all of the minority group:

-poor customer service
-being charged for something you didn't do
-not addressing issues with the rooms?

You will read/hear the same thing about each mass cruise line. I've experienced each of these on other lines.
Go with a good attitude and you'll have fun.




also---

does anyone know if the seas are rough in the bahamas during march? i'm nervous about rough waters/bad storms--and what happens if your ship gets caught in a storm while you are out at sea?! what is the procedure/safety stuff?!

Never been there so can't answer.

[skylock]

Originally Posted by kissesofnovember

I've stumbled across a few troublesome posts about carnival on here and a few other sites...I'm just wondering if anyone has experienced anything similar to the following or if it occurs a lot--i'm just curious to see if these are regular occurences or i just happened to find all of the minority group:

-poor customer service/
-being charged for something you didn't do
-not addressing issues with the rooms?

Anything serious should be taken care of. The ones with the complaints for the most part are unhappy because they had a minor issue that was not solved with a free cruise.

also---

does anyone know if the seas are rough in the bahamas during march? i'm nervous about rough waters/bad storms--and what happens if your ship gets caught in a storm while you are out at sea?! what is the procedure/safety stuff?!

Could be calm so go with that thought. If the seas are acting up, find somewhere to sit down and ride it out.

Thousands and thousands of people cruise every week. Think about it.

[Host Mach]

Originally Posted by kissesofnovember

I've stumbled across a few troublesome posts about carnival on here and a few other sites...I'm just wondering if anyone has experienced anything similar to the following or if it occurs a lot--i'm just curious to see if these are regular occurences or i just happened to find all of the minority group:

-poor customer service/
-being charged for something you didn't do
-not addressing issues with the rooms?


also---

does anyone know if the seas are rough in the bahamas during march? i'm nervous about rough waters/bad storms--and what happens if your ship gets caught in a storm while you are out at sea?! what is the procedure/safety stuff?!

In all of my dealings with Carnival I've not experienced bad customer service once.

Now, when you consider that MILLIONS of people sail with Carnival on an annual basis the report of a few instances of poor customer service aren't surprising. Everyone has a bad day and may inadvertently be rude to a customer; in some instances the customer's demands are simply outlandish and some people go on a cruise with ridiculous expectations that no one could live up to.

I'm sure that, occasionally, folks get charged for something they haven't purchased. When you by a drink from a bar waiter they copy down your folio number and I'm sure that once in a while they get a number wrong. You're provided a receipt for every one of your purchases that you can compare the list of purchases that provided on the last night of the cruise. On many ships you can check your purchases on the TV, as well.

Regarding the cabins... I'm sure that some issues can not be addressed while at sea and perhaps not until the vessel is in dry dock. Some cabins are noisy due to location... not much that can be done about that. There have been some issues with the toilets but that is almost always an issue caused by passengers flushing things that do not belong in a toilet.

Now, having said all that, the number of problems reported are exceptionally low so don't go expecting that such things will happen to you... they probably won't.

In March the seas are normally pretty benign. The only time the seas in the Bahamas would get interesting would be after a cold front passage and, of course, cold fronts become increasingly rare during that time of year...

Don't worry... these are big ships and they take unruly seas in stride...

[MrPete]

In ALL my CCL cruises, I can only think of ONE individual with poor customer service. I think that's a pretty good record. Only tip I didn't tip to full potential.

Been to the Bahamas once in March. Seas were calm, but it always depends on what's coming through.

[firefly333]

All of the above has happened, and always will if you cruise a lot (Iv got 7 cruises this year). I had terrible customer service on my Ike cruise, purser's desk hanging up if you called them and completely overwhelmed staff, substitute CD who was acted clueless instead of being a leader and taking charge.

I once was charged for a big bottle of water I didnt drink, but they took it off. It was on Princess, not on Carnival ... never had it happen on Carnival.

I had a lousy cabin steward last May on Carnival, hopefully he is gone.

Things happen on all cruiselines, you cant let a few things stop you from cruising, no cruise is going to be 100% perfect.

btw on RCL I also had a bad cabin steward and once on Princess. RCL it was her 2nd week and turned out she was terribly seasick all week, to the point she could hardly function. She said RCL put her all the way in the front cabin to sleep and she woke up sick to her stomach every morning until noon. Some of the pax were seasick on the same voyager, strange side to side movement that was odd. People who never got seasick got hit.

Things arent going to be perfect, even though some say their cruises have been. I guess its possible but to me odds are you might have to deal with a tiny problem or two. Its life. Hey at home I get no service.

[balcony bound]

Originally Posted by kissesofnovember

...I'm just wondering if anyone has experienced anything similar to the following or if it occurs a lot--i'm just curious to see if these are regular occurences or i just happened to find all of the minority group:

-poor customer service/
-being charged for something you didn't do
-not addressing issues with the rooms?

I've never had poor customer service. I've recently had cause to talk with guest services about an issue, it took a while but got resolved to my satisfaction. We've had outstanding customer service on every one of our Carnival sailings.

We've never been charged for something that was not ours.

We've never had on onboard issue with our cabin, so I can't comment there.

I am sure you will have a wonderful cruise!

[Traveler353]

Originally Posted by kissesofnovember

I've stumbled across a few troublesome posts about carnival on here and a few other sites...I'm just wondering if anyone has experienced anything similar to the following or if it occurs a lot--i'm just curious to see if these are regular occurences or i just happened to find all of the minority group:

-poor customer service/ Not yet
-being charged for something you didn't do For one drink, 2 minutes with the Purser fixed it.
-not addressing issues with the rooms? Not yet


also---

does anyone know if the seas are rough in the bahamas during march? i'm nervous about rough waters/bad storms--and what happens if your ship gets caught in a storm while you are out at sea?! what is the procedure/safety stuff?!

No one can really know what the seas will be the days that you will be there. If there is any storm action out in the Altantic you may have high seas in the Bahamas. Don't sweat the small stuff. Have a great cruise.

[ShannLC16]

The only problem we had on Carnival was being over-charged at the dance club one night for our drinks. We were charged for some premium alcohol and two drinks totalled $25...we brought the issue to the Purser's Desk and explained that the total should have been about $12.50 or so. Not only did correct their mistake, but they took the two drinks off the bill entirely as an apology (even though we had no problem paying for what we drank!). I would call that excellent customer service. I expect mistakes will happen - I make them myself at my job all the time (ok, not ALL the time, but you know what I mean!). As I expect mistakes will happen, I also expect that I will be treated fairly and politely by the people I ask to fix any problems or situations I have - and so far Carnival hasn't let me down!

[G'ma]

Originally Posted by kissesofnovember

I've stumbled across a few troublesome posts about carnival on here and a few other sites...I'm just wondering if anyone has experienced anything similar to the following or if it occurs a lot--i'm just curious to see if these are regular occurences or i just happened to find all of the minority group:

-poor customer service/
-being charged for something you didn't do
-not addressing issues with the rooms?


also---

does anyone know if the seas are rough in the bahamas during march? i'm nervous about rough waters/bad storms--and what happens if your ship gets caught in a storm while you are out at sea?! what is the procedure/safety stuff?!

I recently completed my 67th Carnival cruise and have never had a problem. Best thing is to ignore petty complaints and judge for yourself.

There has ocassionally been a billing error but has been quickly fixed when brought to the attention of guest services. I check my billing every day and if an error is found, they've been happy to fix it. If you wait until the last day to check your bill, you will find yourself short of time to have it fixed onboard and it's really tough after you've left the ship. I don't consider this a major problem. Everything you buy onboard comes with a receipt you have signed. With errors, there is no signed receipt available so it's an easy fix. Sometimes, it's just a key stroke problem....

I've never had an "issue" with a cabin.

Take reviews with a grain of salt.... CC represents a tiny percentage of the millions of cruisers a year. Carnival wouldn't be the largest and most successful cruise company in the world if they didn't come through with a great cruise experience.

As for weather, there is always the possibility of rough seas - especially during the winter/early spring months. Ships will not purposely sail into a raging storm.

[JRock59]

We've never been charged for something we didn't buy. Have had Cabin problems but they were always quickly taken care of. As for Customer Service have had 99% wonderful service there's always someone who may be having a bad day or decided to take out their frustrations on you. I have seen passangers treat Cranival crew like dirt under their feet and call them just awful things. Esp the folks at the Pursers/Customer Service Desk. (for some reason people think the folks at this desk control everything including the weather!) I've always treat crew they way I would like to be treated. A calm voice and a smile will always get you better service no matter where you are.

[notme1955]

Only one problem with poor customer service from our former PVP. He never did call back with an answer to a pretty simple question. No matter, I found the answer on my own.

We've never been charged for anything we didn't purchase and we've never had less than a great cabin.

Maybe we're just lucky?

[GinDon]

On our cruise last week, we were charged for an "in cabin beverage" that we didn't use. The mini bar was locked, we couldn't even get into it, let alone drink a beverage. We had checked our bill in the afternoon on the last day, and all was fine. The next morning's final bill had this charge on it, but we didn't have time to attend to it, as we had an early disembarkation. We were going to just write it off, however, the day after we returned home, my husband had to call Carnival about another issue. After straightening that out, the representative asked if there were any other discrepancies, and he mentioned the drink charge. No problem! Our credit card was immediatley adjusted to delete the amount. So, maybe sometimes there are mistakes made, but, it happens. Carnival will "make it right" for you, even if you call after you have returned home.

[upnrth9]

On a recent cruise on the Spirit, my husband was charged 3225.00 for a beer, actually it was about 970 beers . He forgot to tell me so when I looked at our account on tv, I just about fell over. I thought maybe he was being a nice guy and bought the entire Lido deck a drink! Just a typo though by the bartender and it hadn't been taken off the account yet. Went down to the purser's desk and had it all straightened out. Not a big deal.

[flutepilot]

Originally Posted by Host Mach

There have been some issues with the toilets but that is almost always an issue caused by passengers flushing things that do not belong in a toilet.

We had this happen on Millennium, and I still gave her five stars. This is something, as stated above, which is caused by the passengers, and they probably do the same thing on dry land. The problem on a ship is that this then causes a clog for 30 or more cabins upstream.

The best two things to pack are a good attitude and a big smile. I intend to pack both for our first Carnival cruise in 10 days. Pack those two items and you will have a great vacation doing whatever you want, or nothing at all - your choice.

Dan

[LoveToCruise78]

No problems here. I love Carnival..and as you can see..I've been loyal to them so far. They can't make everyone happy. There are people out there that will bitch about the smallest things. That's not me. As long as I'm on a ship..I'm happy!!!!!!!!

[Magic City Cruiser]

Just off Fantasy with my group of 11. This was our 4th annual cruise. This time a couple of girls were charged for spa services they didn't have...no problem having them removed.
Last year, one of the girls bought a bottle of Patron and when she got home, it was another, less expensive brand.
We have had cabin issues but all were resolved within a reasonable amount of time.
One of my girls dropped her IPOD into her drink. She ran back to the cabin and saw our steward in the hall. He immediately helped her try to fix it and when she said "Richard, I need some rice!" he ran off in a sprint and returned with a whole bag! After a day in the rice, it worked just like it was sposed to!
So, things happen. And, even with the Patron issue, we knew it was just an accident and didn't lose sleep over it. However, we do all check our bottles when delivered now

[mouche]

Originally Posted by kissesofnovember

I've stumbled across a few troublesome posts about carnival on here and a few other sites...I'm just wondering if anyone has experienced anything similar to the following or if it occurs a lot--i'm just curious to see if these are regular occurences or i just happened to find all of the minority group:

-poor customer service/
-being charged for something you didn't do
-not addressing issues with the rooms?


also---

does anyone know if the seas are rough in the bahamas during march? i'm nervous about rough waters/bad storms--and what happens if your ship gets caught in a storm while you are out at sea?! what is the procedure/safety stuff?!

All of the above could happen, I have been blessed that it hasn't happen to me on a cruise, but if it did I would try my best not to let it take away from my good time.