jcearth

I am having a difficult time reconciling how a company can maximize their revenue (when they are already losing money at the rate they charge me to get on the ship) by making onboard optional purchases so expensive that I won't buy them. 

I have gotten villas 4 or 5 times in the past.  They were a great investment at $499 split a few ways, and still pretty good at $599. I balked at $649 but still went ahead and rented (had others pitch in, so still thought value was ok). $999 would be a deal breaker for me, however.  

Here is my question - how do you define maximizing revenue?  Even if the company still sold all of the Villas and Cabanas and the new rate, how many customers are alienated by the inflated pricing?  What value does Carnival place on repeat business? What value do they place on the customer experience?  

I would argue that raising prices on optional items could do way more harm than good, by leading to a reduction in repeat business.  I, for one, would take my vacation dollars elsewhere if I didn't feel that I was getting enough value for my money. Just my opinion.

Was on Mardi Gras last month.  You get 15 seconds from the time your card is accepted to complete your soda pour.  The maximum dispensed each time is 16oz. They had Pepsi, Diet Pepsi, Starry (Sierra Mist), Mountain Dew, Diet Mountain Dew, Orange Crush, and Mug Root Beer (although Root Beer was not available at the Guy's Pig and Anchor location).  There are 3 stations in the buffet and one in Guy's Pig and Anchor.  It is a far, far better system than having to wait at a bar for soda (except for the places where you get get an entire cold can - like the Pizza Place).  It took me about a day to get really good at the timing, and by the end of the week I was a pro (knowing exactly how much ice to have in my cup, etc.).

Was on last month and Trivias were held in Limelight Lounge 7 Mid, Summer Landing 8 Aft, and a few were held one night in Punchliner 6 Fwd (these were the big specialty trivias: Friends, Harry Potter, and The Office).  There may have possibly been a few at Center Stage 6 Mid but I didn't attend those and my memory is foggy.

Note about the sensory bag:  We got one for our 16 year old last month on the Mardi Gras.  Guest Services directed us down to Camp Ocean on Deck 4 to check the bag out.  The headphones in the bag had amazing noise cancellation properties, but were a very loud color (Bright Orange maybe?), so my son wouldn't wear them.  It also contained some fidget items and a lanyard that identified him as having sensory needs.

Had them last month on the Mardi Gras -- they were also available in Sea Day Brunch (for a fee)

It closes at 10pm each day and and typically opens at either 11am or noon.

Just off the Mardi Gras - the Pig and Anchor was the biggest disappointment on the entire ship.  Service was subpar and slow, the food was a bit of a disappointment (although mac and cheese was good), but the biggest disappointment was the bar.  It was by far the worst place to get a drink on the ship.  Service was at a monolithic pace, and oftentimes, it took over 30 minutes to get a drink.  I opted to go outside to the Watering Hole and got my drinks much faster.  It was strange to see such slow service, when other venues on the ship were busy yet still very efficient (coffee shop, pizzeria, Shaq's, Guy's Burgers to name a few).

The fries at Guy's Burgers were not as good as in the past, but there are also 2 other venues to get your fry fix (Shaq's and Time Fries)

Just off the Mardi Gras this past weekend.  I was able to use Cheers on debarkation morning at JavaBlue.  However - note 2 things.  1) They did not permit any alcohol drinks on debarkation morning, only non-alcoholic ones (specialty coffees, Powerade, soda, etc.), and 2) Since we were in a US port, tax was charged on the transaction.  Hope this helps!

Your other options for Embarkation Lunch would be:

1) Guy's Burgers

2) Blue Iguana Cantina

3) Deli

4) Pizza

5) Chopsticks

and if you want to pay extra:

6) Bonsai Sushi Express

Thanks for the review!  We were on the sailing after yours, and it was much less crowded. I heard we were at 75% capacity.  I am not sure if that was correct, but we did not encounter many lines the entire time.  I had the Value plan for internet, as I needed to do a little but of work while onboard, and I will agree that it is probably the slowest of any ships that I have been on.  

I know that food is always subjective, but our experience was that the food on the Sunrise was very good overall.  Highlights for us were Guy's Burgers, Cucina (both lunch and dinner), and the Deli (my wife loved the meatball sub).  MDR food exceeded our expectations also,

I guess I feel a little lucky, because we made Half Moon Cay, making me 6 for 6 lifetime at this amazing port.  This was our 3rd time in a Villa, and I can't imagine not having one now.  Quite honestly, I believe it is the most beautiful beach in the entire Caribbean.

For those into Cruise Directors, Adam has left the Sunrise to join the Spirit, and has been replaced by Mel.

I can't remember exactly how much they want for extra guests, but I think it is somewhere in the $70 to $80 range.  Unless you want extra snorkel gear and extra beach mats (or extra tickets to get on the earliest water shuttle), it isn't really necessary to purchase.

First choice - Riviera Deck 1 Oceanview (6A) or Porthole (PT) - - most cabin space of any standard stateroom and usually a bargain. Keep in mind, these are not the Deluxe Oceanview (6L, 6M, or 6N) - which have 2 bathrooms that take up way too much space.

My second choice would be Lido deck midship balcony (8F) - these rooms are quiet for their location and extremely convenient to everything on the top decks.

We just got off the Magic a few weeks ago - I had two noticeable issues while on board. 1) We had connecting cabins.  The temperature in our kids cabin was much lower than ours, which never seemed to be able to cool off.  We like it cool when we sleep (around 68-70) but our room seemed to be more around 74-76.  Our room steward was able to get us a fan, which helped considerably.  2) I noticed the "smell" a little more than usual on this cruise.  I have been on around 15 cruises, and most of them have had some sewage type smells on them at various places and times, but this was probably the most that I noticed it out of all of my cruises.

Outside of that, I thought that the ship was fine, and we had a great time.  Again, one of our cabins had a nice, cool temp, and I am sure that many people did not have a "smelly" experience, so your mileage may vary on board.

We were the first people on the first tender a few weeks ago on the Magic, but we had a Villa booked. If you want to get off of the ship early (and don't have a Villa or Cabana booked), here is what you do:  around 3 pm the day before, they will put out the tender tickets in Ocean Plaza.  You just need to get in line and snag the time that you would like.  I was there playing trivia and the #1 and #2 tickets were there for awhile, as not a lot of people were lined up initially.

We used it on the Magic last week.  It worked pretty well - the capabilities and reliability of the HUB app have increased exponentially over the last year.  We had a large group see it was much easier to connect and set up meeting times for dinner, shows, and keeping track of kids, etc.  The biggest issue that we had is that we had to remember to keep the app open all of the time -- once you close it, you no longer get notifications.  However, this was the first cruise that I no longer relied on the paper Funtimes, as the App had all of that information, plus the menus for each day at dinner, and the ability to request a table for anytime dining (but only for up to 8 people). You also have the ability to favorite certain activities, and the app will remind you when those activities are about to start.    

I asked about it when I went to the Steakhouse on my last cruise.  Essentially, the waitress told me to not order it, that the chef really didn't think it was a good cut of meat and didn't like to make it.  I went with the filet instead.

1 minute ago, bury me at sea said:

 

Either of these options would be a deal breaker.

 

 

For some, but not for others.  I was just thinking of the most labor intensive things on the ships that could easily be eliminated.

You will probably feel a difference.  You may like it, and you may not.  The lack of bells and whistles is noticeable, but the Fantasy class ships have a certain charm to them. You tend to see the same people more often than on the mega-ships.  In the end, it comes down to personal preference.  Is the lack of the big screen on Lido, Red Frog Pub, basketball court, etc. going to make a difference in the enjoyment of your cruise?

In order to stretch labor, you need to make it more efficient.  For bartenders, I would eliminate the cans of soda and go to a fountain system. Also, a self service station for sodas for those with a prepaid package. The cans are a huge waste of time and take up way too much space.  I would have the stewards clean the rooms once a day, and make it a premium (suite guest or add-on) for an additional room cleaning per day or butler services, etc.  I would look to update the antiquated ordering system in the main dining room, possibly with an electronic system. Eliminate the assistant waiter position and use food runners to hustle the food out of the kitchen. Turn the MDR into more of a family style restaurant atmosphere with less "service".  Add an additional restaurant where folks can pay a premium to experience a "full-service" restaurant.  Increase the English-fluency of the staff at Guest Services, or just hire native speakers.  Empower staff to be able to fix problems, or if not be straightforward with the guests.

And a whole bunch of other stuff that may or may not work.

I have sailed on: Breeze, Magic (in 2 weeks), Dream, Conquest, Sunshine, Legend, Triumph (now Sunrise), Fascination, Sensation, and Holiday.  The only one that I would never do again was the Holiday - that ship was a dump.  Now, we did sail it 2 months before it was being removed from service, so that may have had something to do with the quality aboard the ship.  

Great topic!! And definitely some good information for new cruisers to be wary of.  I would have to agree with the previous posters on Bingo and Art Auctions.  Your monetary rate of return on either is very low.  There would be some entertainment value in each, for sure, but not enough to make up for the utter lack of value in either product.  Perhaps the one item that most have missed though, is alcohol. As cruise prices have come down over the years (when factoring in inflation), alcohol prices onboard have skyrocketed. I just purchased the Cheers package for my wife and I for our upcoming cruise, and while it provides the best overall value if you plan on drinking, the cost is still enormous, almost equaling our base fare (porthole). So for my money (of which I am paying a lot 🙂), alcohol is one of the worst deals on the ship.

This reminds me of a hilarious scenario that happened on another cruise line (that rhymes with Norwegian).  At the time, the perks I had coming in were unlimited free drinks for my wife and I and free soda packages for my kids.  Also, since my kids, we 6, 7, and 10 at the time, I did not let them have charging privileges on their card.  So, my 7 year old wanted to get a "smoothie" (virgin mudslide, to be exact), and went up to the bar with his card and ordered one.  He came back to where we were sitting and said that the bartender needed to talk to me. So I went to the bar with him and the following exchange occurred:

Me: What's going on?

Bartender:  I need your card to charge for the drink.

Me: Here you go

Bartender: (Runs card) Sorry - I can't charge you for the drink. You have the unlimited drink package. Your son needs to pay for it.

Me: Ok - son, give him your card.

Bartender: (Runs card) He can't pay for it it. He doesn't have charging privileges. Let me see yours again.

Me: Ok - here you go.

Bartender: (Runs card) I can't charge you for the drink - you have the unlimited drink package. Your son would have to pay for it.

Me: Surely there is a solution here.

Bartender: Sir, can you order the drink?

Me: One Virgin Mudslide, please! Oh, and a Grey Goose screwdriver.......

I understand using the PSR number as a tool, but more space doesn't matter if the cruise line isn't able to effectively disperse the people within the ship.  My anecdotal evidence:  I was on the Disney Dream back in 2013 - it has a listed PSR of 37 (should be tons of open space!!) In fact there was lots of space (parts of the ship resembled a ghost town), except if you had young children and wanted to take them to the pool. In all of my years of cruising, it was probably the most crowded I have ever felt on a ship.  Conversely, I was on the Sunshine last year (PSR of 27), and I never had trouble finding a seat at the pool, eating (while on deck for breakfast or lunch - sit near the Havana Bar) , comedy club, or shows, and I never felt crowded. Another example: Norwegian Escape - cruised on it in 2016 - PSR of 32.  Sounds like a great rating, until you realize just how much space is dedicated to for pay food venues, private areas for suite guests, and adults only areas of the ship. Families were relegated to a small sliver of space on deck, and complete areas of the ship inside were off limits.  Counterpoint again, Carnival Dream 2013, Carnival Breeze 2015 (and Carnival Magic coming in a few months), PSR of 29, but probably the best layouts of a ship I have ever been on. The only negative is probably the buffet (which can get a bit crowded). I think the Dream class is far superior in layout than the Conquest Class (Conquest 2014 - PSR of 31).

In addition to the buffet for first day lunch, the following places are open:

1) Mongolian Wok - stir-fry

2) Guy's Burgers

3) Blue Iguana Cantina - tacos, burritos

4) Deli

5) Captain's Pasta - located in the Italian restaurant

6) Seafood Shack - (extra cost)

7) Pizzeria

All are located on the Lido deck, with the exception of the Captain's Pasta which is one deck above.  My recommendation on the first day would be the Pasta Bar (you fill out a form with your choices of noddles, sauce, and add-ins in addition to Caesar Salad and bread and then they will either deliver your food to you or give you a pager to pick up). This location is typically not crowded on Day 1 but will get more and more so as people discover it throughout the week.

Note that on Embarkation Day and other port days, the MDR will not be open for lunch.  On Sea Days, the MDR will be open for Seaday Brunch.  Also, Guy's Pig and Anchor BBQ outside on Deck 5 will be open on Sea Days.