cruisingfanatics

from one who has been on 76 cruises---all lines. when they started extorting money from us to pay their employees--i cannot tell you how badly that irked me off--i tried every thing in the world to get around it. finally, i can tell you what works best. let me preface this by saying i am a good tipper for anyone who goes above and beyond. i go to the desk and lower our--mine and my husbands--tips to a 100 dollar total. the line can think i am a cheap *****--i do not care. that way they do not go to our waiter and steward to make them give them anything we give them. they just think we are cheap. then we go around and give the people who have been good to us exactly what we want them to have.

the lines guarantee those people a certain amt. per week--say 400 dollars. if passengers tips meet that--they love it and keep the rest--if passengers tips do not meet that, then they have to make it up. believe me, years ago those people made a lot more money when we did our own tipping--and they worked for it. today, they do not work for it-because they know they are going to get x amt. without working for it. we are very, extremely discreet when we give them "their tips". and, they gladly put it in their pocket with no fear because they know we did not mark all off what the line charges.

yes-yes-yes---ships are way too big. i ditto all the above replies---74 cruises under my belt---and i dislike it more every time--just finished 10 cruises in the last 13 months. it is hard for me to say dislike---cause i am addicted to cruising. but, i am giving myself a break here. still cruise the 2 to 3000 passenger ships---had to get on ccl dream a couple of years ago because of an emergency "buy" situation in st. martin and it was an absolute nightmare. problem was the public spaces was the exact same as smaller ship --they just added a zillion more cabins---it was horrible.---really miss the old days of cruising---just total relaxing and thoroughly enjoyable without all the hustle bustle and cruise directors NOT harassing the heck out of you on the system. sure miss the NORWAY--the truly last REAL ship---not neon, plastic and glass like these things today. but, glitz and glamour can be done with style and sophistication without all the hullabaloo---the msc DIVINA is a perfect example of it. been on that one 3 times in the last 13 months. love it. just wish the ccl's and ncl's would go aboard and take notes.

what in the name of hades happened to all the hype for this ad? example:vote for the one you like--win a cruise per year for life. all of those ads were really good. i bet you "the virgins" won hands down for THE ONE. the really stupid ad they ran was not even in the running on the VOTE scene. i know they made six and i wondered why 2 were not up for the vote. what a come on and what a rip off and what a god awful decision!!! who decided to run that thing. what a waste of money---and after 26 carnival cruises i feel like a portion of that money was definitely mine whoever made that decision should be shot--at the very least should be FIRED!!! as one someone posted, "if they had run the virgins, everyone all over god's creation would be talking about that ad today.

an absolute goof up if one every happened. arnold donald should think twice before RAISING CCL PRICES after that big debackle.