Carnival Paradise--Did I make a mistake?

Taking mom on her first cruise. Carnival Paradise out of Tampa. After booking, I am finding all the negative reviews on this older ship. ugh! We are not stuffy people and can make a party out of any situation, but I so want this to be a memorable (in a good way) for mom. Please share with me the good things about the Paradise so I will feel better. Thanks!!

Sorry but it's an old clunker.

Love the Paradise! Don't second guess your decision.

This site is full of negative reviews for every single ship. Take them with a grain of salt...

You have made a very nice choice - take your mom and enjoy every moment!!

We absolutely love the Paradise! We have been on her 7 times and have booked another again for next year. The staff has always been exceptional. While the ship is older, we believe that it is maintained well. Your vacation is what you make of it. Go relax, have fun and ignore the grumps.

I love the Fantasy class ships! If you go into the cruise with a negative attitude, you probably won't have a good time.

She will have a great time and you will as well. We sailed on the Paradise in May 2017. I had the same concerns after reading many peoples negative posts. Yes the ship is older but it was clean, food was good, staff was great and the entertainment was wonderful. I had no horror stories of any kind to report. Some people just look for things to complain about so of course you can pick things apart. If you are going with the expectation of just enjoying yourself and all the Ship has to offer then you will have a great time.

My first cruise was on Holiday. Even smaller and older than Paradise and no longer even in the fleet. Reviews were terrible and I had paid attention to those, I probably never would have cruised in the first place.. Most everyone here hated that ship. I was totally blown away by everything and that was what hooked me on cruising. Your mom has nothing to compare to. Pay no attention to the reviews and go make the best of your time together :)

We leave November 2

November 2nd? No no no, you shouldn't be worried at all, you just won the piano bar lottery! You'll be sailing with my second-favorite piano bar performer Gustavo! If I were you I wouldn't be concerned, I'd be celebrating!

Here he is performing on the Paradise...you'll have a grand time, he's not to be missed

[YOUTUBE]U29J2-NM5N8[/YOUTUBE]

I've also been on the ship before, she's fine. :)

Oh! Thank you for the video, CoW mAn! And everyone's replies! I feel that this trip will be the best yet! My mother (her first cruise) is 82 years young, and I want it to be awesome for her! I know it will because of everyone's help.

Oh! Thank you for the video, CoW mAn! And everyone's replies! I feel that this trip will be the best yet! My mother (her first cruise) is 82 years young, and I want it to be awesome for her! I know it will because of everyone's help.

Glad to hear you're now excited about this trip. As others mentioned, your mother has never been on a cruise and has nothing to compare it to so I think she will be extremely impressed. The naysayers have lots of experience cruising, often on only newer ships in recent years, so take their comments for what they are worth. Enjoy! :)

Been on the big ones the small ones and the medium ones. Been on the Vista and don not care to return, like a floating motel.

Older does not mean less it means character with fewer passengers and a higher crew to passenger ratio. You will enjoy it as you really cannot equate someone with different likes and dislikes with your own. Throw out the high and the low and look at the 3 and 4 star ratings then go and have some fun.

Lets hope you go after dry dock. I went on it recently because of the Cuba itinerary. What a run down ship. Worst ship in 20+ cruises but would do it again to go to Cuba.

We're all entitled to our own opinion but when we were on her in October of this year, she didn't seem run down at all. No worn out carpets, no lights burned out, no rust showing, etc. She's older but still in great shape for her age.

She doesn't have all of the bells and whistles of the newer ships but a lot of people don't sail for those things anyway.

I think the Fantasy class ships are a much better experience. After sailing the Dream this past March, I have told many that I do not think I would have fallen in love with cruising if that had been my first experience. It was a week of waiting in line for everything, even the elevator, and the design was horrendous.

it means character with fewer passengers and a higher crew to passenger ratio. You will enjoy it

This!

I am sailing this Thursday ! I will let you know my thoughts !!!

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I sailed on her this past September to Cuba. The ship.is an older ship but me and my wife had no complaints. We have been on bigger ships also and we sail based off of itinerary and not solely off of what the ship offers. When we sail with our kids we pay more attention to what the ship.has on it for them but it's never a deal breaker as long as it is the itinerary we are looking for at that time. Enjoy your cruise.

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Just came back - we had a great time !! The crew was great and I have no complaints . Guest services did a super job with one issue I had . Food was excellent and service on all fronts was top notch . Ship was decorated beautifully for Christmas . Cruise director Jamie Deal had some awesome holiday event . Any specific questions let me know

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Taking mom on her first cruise. Carnival Paradise out of Tampa. After booking, I am finding all the negative reviews on this older ship. ugh! We are not stuffy people and can make a party out of any situation, but I so want this to be a memorable (in a good way) for mom. Please share with me the good things about the Paradise so I will feel better. Thanks!!

Went on her about 3 years ago. Had a wonderful time. Is a great little ship. And probably a better choice for an older 1st time cruiser then a Mega Ship. Dont be afraid of her.

Just realized, I never posted how things went. We had a great time! Everything went perfectly. Only exception was mom ate a very rich dinner one night, and with the ship rocking quite a bit that evening, made for a very long night for her.:( But we were all so happy we went on this trip, and I would love to take her again. Thank you to everyone who took the time to post on my thread! :D