berrieh

Look, it's irrelevant. We are talking about an expensive cruise vs a plate of chicken. I get it. But just pointing out that I don't think it's necessarily bad business for Carnival to do SOMETHING, anything, when their guest makes a mistake that costs them a vacation. We aren't talking about if they are required to, but I just don't quite like it.

 

Many are saying it's not even Carnivals fault, it's the officers. That's correct. In my business, we rely on USPS, UPS, and FedEx - when they screw up, it's not my fault, by my customers sure as heck expect me to remake their order, send it out, and pay for expedited service. And we do exactly that. We take the hit, no problem.

 

This topic is going on and on, it's just a matter of opinion as I pointed out in another post. Some prefer the militant "too bad, so sad" approach, some don't. Nobody is really right or wrong.

 

Too bad for the OP, and I hope they can salvage something.

It's not the officer's "fault" either frankly but the young man in OP's party (and the adults who didn't double check IDs at each stop...my family always does, and we all show each other to be responsible). The officers did their job. They did nothing blameworthy or malicious, just upheld an important law for passenger safety.

It's unfortunate this happened, and I feel sorry for OP, but if I lose my purse somewhere, the store/restaurant/hotel isn't going to pay me back for the cash in it or my phone, if they go missing. Holding Carnival to a standard that they should refund guests or give them credit for their own totally preventable mistakes or even tragedies is a bit odd to me. No business does that.

Thank you for educating me. Obviously I am not as studied as you on Carnivals latest marketing gimmicks. Now I get it. With a catchy name like American table, they can water down the cruise experience, cut laundry costs and add no value, but we loyal customers are obviously not smart enough to catch on, after all, we all know that fine American restaurants where we dress in suites and ties to enjoy an elegant dining experience never use tablecloths.

It's actually a new menu too (I prefer it because it has more seafood and contemporary dishes, like flatbreads, more interesting desserts, etc. though some people are disappointed in certain favorites being gone), not just them taking the table cloths off. I'm actually one who thinks a nice looking wooden table without a table cloth looks more contemporary (and the ecological ramifications of less laundry is good too... I wish I didn't have to use so many towels on a cruise, but they never dry well in the room; I always re-use in land hotels). Almost none of the expensive places we eat out around town have table cloths (a few of the older places do) these days.

Then again, we prefer a place with a high quality food, sort of foodie style, and no requirements on formal dress....dinner is less fun for my husband if he has to wear a tie! So I suspect our dining tastes are very different. But if it has a special butcher's cut, high food quality, good wine, and corresponding price points, I'd still consider a place fancy. These days, there are a lot of dining experiences in the world and I'd never associate a table cloth with quality.

I always do a small carry on and a big suitcase (edit - I don't really need the small carry on but it's mainly for my chi hair tools and iPad and extra outfits to change before luggage arrives or if delayed, as we do steakhouse day 1 and I prefer dressing up). I've never felt "overpacked" because usually wear or use 90% of what I bring, sometimes more. We aren't really pool people though and stay busy in other ways throughout the day, except a few aquatic excursions (usually just 1 per cruise). I change like 6 times a day! Part of the fun of vacation on a cruise, where your room is so convenient. I do re wear things, too, but I still wear a lot of variety. I guess if we were just pool hangers it might be different (though then I'd want more than 1-2 bathing suits, which is all I bring in that department).

I agree with everything you said except this. It is cases like tragedy that we pay insurance for. The cruise line is not your personal insurance company. You don't pay them to be. My DGM passed away the day before our CCL Glory cruise. We drove 14 hours to NY to find out she passed away while we were driving out there. We cancelled our cruise and turned around to go home to mourn with our family. I never expected Carnival to reimburse us for our cancelled cruise due to our tragedy. That is what we purchased travel insurance for. We expected our travel insurance to reimburse us for our tragedy...and they did. Personal responsibility dictates insuring yourself against tragedy....not doing so does not make it Carnival's responsibility. Just like with OP's case, if the cruise line covered every one with a tragedy there would be no need for travel insurance and all of our cruise rates would go up as they self-insured for all of the passengers tragedies. While I have empathy for those who go through situations like the OP's or tragedy like ours, this does not mean I feel Carnival should be responsible for recouping their losses. Personal responsibility is something many in our country no longer seem to understand and I find that sad:(.

I agree with you and wouldn't expect it then either! I was just pointing out that there may be a situation (like if a member of your party was killed in a hotel fire or plane crash the night before your cruise) where they might make an exception and be OK/fair still because it was just so horrific. I still think it should never be expected and, yes, that's what insurance is for, but depending what type of insurance, it's sometimes hard to get the travel insurance payout even when deserved (in a timely manner).

There will be decorations, music, the Grinch, a Christmas show, probably "snow" in the atrium, Christmas menu at dinner, etc. Carnival does the holiday stuff well. They usually have holiday movies 1-2 nights at the seaside theatre too. We have gone on Christmas cruises and it's the only way I can even get my husband into Christmas stuff (he's gotten more into Christmas since we've gone on a few cruises)! It's probably escapable if you're a Scrooge too, but there's usually plenty of holiday themed fun.

The lack of empathy radiating from many of these posters is kind of sad. I understand all views - but the tone is kind of disheartening. Such little care for our fellow souls.

 

Those who demand Carnival treat everyone identical, no discretion, just remember that position if you are ever pulled over by a police officer and they let you go with only a warning.... Maybe you should demand a ticket, so that you are treated like others. Anytime you get a little something extra from a company, special treatment, etc. Decline it.

 

Discretion is a constant in customer service. It's generally bad customer service to hide behind paperwork and terms. Every industry is different, and travel just seems to work this way. You rarely get much sympathy or care from airlines, either. Though, I certainly have been treated by airlines after unfortunate circumstances better than this person was treated by Carnival.

 

Ultimately, this just comes down to what different people expect from customer service. Some prefer a very militant approach, rules, follow them, too bad if you don't - everyone treated identical. Some prefer a little more of a human approach - with discretion and understanding.

 

Both are legitimate. Truth is, I think all of us prefer a little bit of both depending on the circumstances and our personal experiences. :D

I have empathy for OP but I think expecting companies (especially those offering a pretty inexpensive product in their category) to give money back based on empathy alone, just whenever, though it was 100 percent no fault of theirs, is a bit much. I could see it if there had been a tragedy, like a death in the family or natural disaster that kept them from it, but every time someone messes up, if you make it not a big deal, how do you keep prices down for everyone else? Is that fair to others? You have to consider what's best for the greater good too. No, this one credit wouldn't kill the bottom line, but then is it fair to everyone else who forgets ID or misses the ship?

I think it's human to be kind but firm and not just give in to every demand, and I wouldn't confuse a lack of monetary credit with a lack of empathy. Sounds like Carnival tried to work with Customs/Homeland Sec. to get him on with the copy. I'm sure they wanted to help.

His main gripe was asking about some help on a future cruise, not a refund. Comparing a single unit to a cruise ship is apples and oranges as well. Nobody is saying Carnival is technically at fault. But the "too bad, so sad" response to a guest is a bit off putting. To me at least.

 

How about another analogy. You are at a restaurant, order a dish, it's made perfectly, but you just don't like it at all. Whether you ask for it or not, the waiter notices you didn't eat it, you clearly didn't like it, and offers you a new dish to enjoy - complimentary. It was your fault for ordering the wrong item, the restaurant did nothing wrong, but to keep a good reputation and make sure their guests are as happy as possible, they do whatever they can to make it right, even at a cost.

 

That's good business, and I think a little more accurately reflects the tone of this thread.

As others have said, your example is more like the Guarantee (which is not insurance and everyone has). In my experience, if you are unhappy with anything and tell them, I have always gotten way more than expected (then again, I never try to finagle money out of anyone, and honestly would be so mortified if I had any culpability, like the ID, I'd never report it). I think there's a difference between good customer service and catering to one guests every whim. If they cannot do X for EVERYONE in the same situation, they should think twice before offering it to anyone.

If this is the only problem, just mail a package to yourself at your night-before hotel. Include ALL your liquids -- shampoo, sunscreen, etc. -- and it'll be waiting for you upon check-in.

At some hotels, they charge a lot to accept it (plus the parcel rate), so check with your hotel first. My mom likes to do this on trips with stuff (she still checks bags) and it often runs her $75-100 all considered. She'll only do it with things that cannot be bought locally.

In my experience (granted, peak times always due to my profession), YTD (anytime dining) fills up, so if you want it, you should select it while you can. I hate the set dining personally. Always do anytime. Sometimes a wait at peak times (7-7:30), especially on formal nights, especially the first (lobster and usually sea day). But usually near the atrium bar, so we just grab drinks or do photos while we wait. Most nights, little to no wait (0-10 minutes) for 2 or 4, even at peak times in peak season.

I think it taking 3 hours probably shows Carnival pled your case and tried to help. Why not make the calls you mentioned to his nearby family as a just in case in all that wait time if you say that would've potentially allowed the rest of you to go (if it had been resolved sooner). I'd be making back up after back up in 3 hours!

The decision to bring along one of kids friends on a cruise means, they would be treated as part of the family and I would be just as responsible for them as I was for my own kids.. I could never leave them behind - I wouldn't appreciate anyone doing that to my son either..

 

Sorry, I agree with OP - if we were all travelling together in one vehicle, everyone would stay together - even if it meant not going.. :(

My mom would totally leave me! (As an adult now, I mean, or at 18, but as a kid, she would've organized my documents herself.) She always warns me if I'm late or without my docs, she's leaving me!

I do agree that it wouldn't be good business practice to reimburse everyone and I will start keeping all important documents together myself in the future. But what would it have hurt to let him on in the first place? Would anyone's security have been at risk because he was on the ship without a ID with him? We were also told on the phone by Carnival and employees at the port that each port is different and they may have let him on at other ports. If it's a policy then stick to it, no exceptions. It's more frustrating knowing that a different customs employee that day or sailing from a different port may have changed the outcome.

In this case, no one might be at risk but needing a photo ID for international travel seems like a very useful law to me! I would reconsider cruising if people didn't need ID to get on. Flying too!

They do indeed change times occasionally. Depends on the time of year. But you will have ample notice of the change. Fun Times, ship announcements, and the very large easily seen boards like this:

 

Interesting. We've gone to Belize and didn't change times (on Carnival but not Miracle) any of the times we traveled Western Caribbean from FL. I'm sure it happens sometimes though, and I know long cruises across multiple TZs often change, like the CA to HI. But the poster I was responding to seemed to assume the ship would always be on local time. My main point was that was a dangerous assumption because it doesn't always! I think the ship is less likely to change TZs on a closed circuit than an open one.

Due respect, Mrs Bob, but your very first sentence was a generalisation - and the OP hadn't even mentioned where or which cruise line they're sailing.

There's no mention of the Caribbean in the question - or in your first post, which makes it difficult for you to "say it one more time" :confused:

Carnival sail the world, so there will be places where even Carnival's ship time will change.

Hence my comment that your post was a dangerous generalisation.

 

But thanks for now being more specific ;)

 

JB :)

To be fair to that poster, I believe this thread was moved from the Carnival board! That's where I saw it first. But since it's not a Carnival specific topic, it was moved here. That poster might have already been in-thread.

I take Bonine just in case consistently on the cruise. It works great. No drowsiness or side effects at all. Not sure if you're technically supposed to but we get the Cheers and I drink plenty with it too... I think it actually helps avoid feeling alcohol sick too, lol, and never had any issue with taking it while sunning, adventuring, drinking, etc. Bonine is magic.

It's not misleading. The rules of Cheers are clearly stated on their website and have been discussed in many threads here. Their website with Cheers rules specifically states no floaters. If you were unaware, it was because you did not inform yourself before you purchased. It's not like it's bait and switch marketing.

 

You're free to just not purchase Cheers, or to sail NCL and Royal if you don't like Carnival's policies.

 

 

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With the enhanced Cheers, it now says doubles count as 2 drinks, but my husband was still hoping that meant he could get doubles (he just prefers the ratio sometimes, he understands it'd be 2 drinks). Is that not a change? I thought that changed with the new version of Cheers.

All the cruises I've been on - the ship changes time with the time zones! There's a notification the evening the time is changing to move your clock forward or back - this happened on our round trip cruise to Hawaii, Western Caribbean, Transatlantic cruises - various European ports - I have no idea what you guys are talking about saying the ships time never changes??? This would only happen if you don't change time zones. We've cruised Carnival and Princess.

In the Caribbean on closed circuit Carnival cruises, I have never seen ship time change with the time zones. I know they do something with TZ changes to Hawaii (I still think they "control" the time change and don't change it immediately as they pass through zones but do get on HI time, yes). No idea what they do on Euro or TA cruises (I'm sure they have to change it for convenience at some points). To be fair, most Europe cruises are not closed circuit, nor are Carnival HI cruises generally or a lot of other lines, and obviously, a TA implies open! Open cruises almost always have TZ changes, controlled or not. Closed often do not (varies by locale, circumstances, and probably line but "ship time" is a thing).

This may vary by line. I don't recall what other lines do in the Caribbean anymore (and it may have changed!) since Carnival is my brand of choice for those kinds of cruises. But we have almost never changed TZs on a Carnival Caribbean cruise. Stays in home port time (usually EST for us).

Edit - it seems common for cruises, CCL and Princess included, to change TZs in Alaska. I'm still not sure they stick 100 percent to what your phone would be in each port, but think it's a controlled TZ change.

We don't want to make a bunch of reservations, don't care about Broadway style shows, like a casual, fun atmosphere with good drinks, good food (we love Carnival steakhouses, like the MDR, like the "satellite" lunch choices (Guys, Iguana, Indian, deli, etc). One weird thing we find a little important is free room service. We don't like to dress up too much, find Carnival nickel and dimes less, and find a younger (our age, 30s) crowd. There are still too many kids for my tastes when we travel (I teach so.... when school is out) but nothing's perfect and I love Serenity. Honestly, it's the best line for the relaxing vacation we want. We also love the Seaside movies, Comedy, and would miss those on other lines (I know some have comedy but Carnival does that best IMO).

Silverware goes on plates typically anyway, but honestly, the majority of nice restaurants we go to (granted, we favor gastropub style places but any nice contemporary steak or fish place too) don't have tablecloths. So weird to me that anyone fixates on them. We really only go out for really nice food (no offense to chains but if I want chain food, I do to-go because it's not worth going out and we like takeout). I'd never factor in the linens. If I did, I guess I technically think tablecloths are old fashioned and not desired.

Has anyone who has done Chef's Table had the Cheers package? If so, two questions for you:

 

Do the glasses of wine count toward your 15 drink limit?

 

Will they bring you cocktails other than wine to be charged to your S&S card (which of course would go toward your daily limit)?

 

Just curious about the first question mostly and I ask the 2nd question because I don't typically like to drink more than a glass or two of wine in a sitting - it tends to give me a headache, which other beverages do not have the same effect.

 

Doing Chef's Table for the first time on our Nov. 2017 Vista cruise! Can't wait!

 

Thanks,

Misty

Did CT with Cheers. Glasses of wine don't count towards the limit. As I recall, the wine paired very nicely, but a gentleman at our table did ask for a beer (not cheers) and was given one, not sure if they charged him or did it gratis. It was a Coors or something, guy didn't care for wine. His wife fussed at him for mentioning it but the CT servers were very anxious to please! We did CT on a day we'd been at Grand Turk and not done much (not beach people) off ship so we still got our money's worth with Cheers.

[deleted]

Okay thank you.

Let's go back to the beer thing. I thought I had to only get one drink at a time every five minutes regardless of the type of drink. Does that go back to the kind word and good tip? I was just wondering because what if I go to the bar to get us both another round or vice versa? Or if he goes in the morning to get us both RockStars... I was afraid we would always have to both be there. I wonder if he could take both our cards to the bar? Hmm

 

 

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I've never tried to get 2 drinks at once with 1 Cheers! card. I have gotten 2 drinks with my card and my husband's when he was saving a spot (or vice versa, him for me). To me, I'd think getting 2 at once couldn't be done because they have to ring it up with the card (and because it kinda smacks of sharing). Not opening the top of a can as a courtesy is not really the same thing.

Edit: Agh, I misread. I see you meant with both cards. That works sometimes. It's a crap shoot to take both cards and get 2 drinks. Well, maybe not a crap shoot -- I'd say it works 75-80% of the time. If the bartender knew us, they'd usually let us and ring both cards without us both being present. But some wouldn't and it seemed to depend on time of day. We got our unopened beers at night, not long before the Lido bar was gonna close. Probably depends when managers are nearby too!

Will they give you cans at the bar unopened? I was wondering about getting a RockStar the night before, putting it in my fridge, and drinking it in the morning.

Same with bottles of water and juices.

I haven't sailed since they added the RockStars and have no idea the policy on opening those. However, every time we've gotten Cheers!, when we had a few "regular" bartenders we would go to and throw a decent tip to, they would not open the extra beer I'd grab for my husband and we could keep some in the room (there were lots of times he'd be closer to 15 than me, so it made sense for me to grab the extra beer). Some people will say this is an abuse of Cheers! but we spend well, tip well, don't get ****-faced drunk (my husband might have 17 on a sea day, with a couple of mine, if we start drinking at 10am, because he's 6'5'' and metabolises alcohol like a dude his size), and never go over 30 total.

Based on my experiences, policy or not, I have no doubt that if thrown a decent tip and a kind word, a Carnival employee would give me an unopened Rockstar.

I am counting down for my cruise leaving Jan 2rd on the breeze!

My family would like to self assist ourselves off the boat to make sure we catch our flight on time but we just have a few questions considering we have never done it before.

 

How do you inform carnival you would like to self assist off the boat?

What time does self assisters normally get off the boat?

Do you have to get off as soon as they call you or can you hang around for a bit?

 

Our flight is at 1oclock in Fort Lauderdale were just trying to figure out the best time to schedule a car to pick us up!

 

Thank you

You don't have to get off ASAP but you have to vacate the stateroom pretty early and you'll have all your luggage. I've never really heard of a bunch of self-assist folks hanging around for that reason.

We always do self-assist - sometimes they call by deck/zone, sometimes it's all at once, and either way, it's all in a very short window of time, before the others get off. I can't imagine waiting around for my luggage at the port that early, with the post-cruise "meh" feeling lingering over you. Even with FTTF, we do self-assist. We usually have a car at the port, though. Technically, once in port, you could get an uber or car if somewhere that the wait is not huge, since you'll be able to get cell service when they dock (likely -- I don't guarantee no charges, but I've always used the phone on ship at my home port). But there's no way of knowing the precise time they will let self-assist leave, I find, ahead of the cruise, since sometimes ships dock early or late.

We have always been off and driving by 8, I want to say, but it does vary. Usually around 6:45-7am we can start leaving the ship, sometimes it's not till closer to 8. I have seen/heard of ships come in late, though! It happens.

No, not really because those with priority almost always have a separate waiting area dedicated to their status that would not impact the capacity of the general boarding passengers.

I have found there is usually a separate Plat/Diamond lounge, but not always/usually a separate area for FTTF. FTTF often waits with general boarding.

You paid to sail a cruise that leaves at, usually 4 pm. They open boarding when they do - sometimes 11:30 but if a ship has been delayed, it could be 1 or more under current rules.

Right, I never get why anyone fusses about the "I paid for that day" part (I do get why this change might be a bit inconvenient or anxiety-inducing, especially while you're not sure when you need to select a window, because it's coming to your port but not available to select yet or because you're not sure if it's coming before your pre-booked cruise). Do people do this with hotels? The first day I check into a hotel for a vacation, they never let me check in particularly early. I've stayed at some that you could check in at early, but usually it's not before 2pm or so. The cruise ship is a floating hotel. They have to push people off as well as get people on in one day.

Edit: I do think it's important they let people select times in a fair way and that's hard for cruises when implementing it near to the cruise (like saying it will roll out in January for the NO port now -- it should be true first-come, first-serve with these things, and it's a little slapdash with cruises so close-up).

I have and will be traveling with my former step daughter and I had to provide Carnival with a notarized letter from her father (my ex) allowing her out of the country with me. I have had friends that took some of their kids friends with them and they were held at the port until they received a letter from the parents. I say get it. Not worth the risk.

But wouldn't step-daughters, kids' friends, etc, all be different than biological kids? Did your notarized letter have BOTH parents signatures? Because OP is a biological parent of this child and that is a big difference, no?

I was on the Victory the first week of this month. I kept, and retyped on another post, verbatim what the Funtime had in it on Elegant night and it simply said no shorts or cut off jeans. it did *not* say no jeans and did *not* match the website.

 

I saw plenty of jeans in the MDR on elegant night, as well as shorts. In fact, except for a few more suits around the ship it really didn't look different from other nights.

Was it a 7 night or longer? I am wondering if their "Elegant" standards are more relaxed on smaller ships or shorter cruises compared to others. But I really hope we get the same signs/standards as you saw! (I just don't want to count on it and tell DH not to pack anything. So we will be cautiously optimistic.)

Actually, I am not convinced that the number of FTTF is as low as many claim it to be. In a cruise out of Baltimore last May, they had a section for FTTF & Plat/Diamonds across the aisle from each other. There were approximately 300 in the FTTF section and a lot in the Plat area - and that was at 11:00 before boarding. Who knows how many FTTF etc. came after that time. I know that that is only one cruise, but look how many on these boards and reviews manage to get FTTF. Of course, this is just my opinion, but I do think FTTF contributes greatly to the early boarding crowds.

Well, 300 on one of the larger vessels is still a very small amount. Like 10%.

But I would suspect the number is generally much smaller, unless they are mixing all priority together (Plats, wedding parties, FTTF mixed together...300 sounds about right for what I've seen on the larger ships. Edit: Maybe quite a bit less, but it is hard to tell and wedding parties can be very large sometimes.)

The people of CC represent a very small % of cruise passengers who are informed and often book early; I don't think their getting FTTF really indicates anything other than that. We booked a cruise 6 months out this year and FTTF was already gone. We did get it, but only with much checking.

I would agree that FTTF people come early, but I think the ones that do are mainly people who would come early anyway, like me. I'm anxious until I'm at the terminal checked in, so I would hate a late boarding time, as it'd be a morning of massive anxiety! BUT I would just pick an early check in time and/or get FTTF. I would plan ahead. It doesn't seem that much to ask.