11 Cruises with Carnival & NEVER AGAIN

I also would be pi***d if my shower didn't work and wasn't fixed promptly the first time. I also would be somewhat annoyed if I hurt myself due to apparantly poorly designed facilities. I would have followed the doctor's suggestion for stitches instead of going to the casino. However, I do not see these as a reason for me to exclude Carnival when searching for my next cruise. I do respect your decision though. :)

Just because it was not designed for a woman her size does not mean it was a poorly designed facility. She stated it was designed for a 110 lb woman, which would be a 5th percentile woman. I highly doubt it was designed for a woman so small.

It would seem to me that if the toilet paper holder was in a position that was hard to maneuver and was sharp enough to cut deep enough to need stitches, that would have been a safety hazard and a fault of the ship. I would have pursued this with guest services and insisted they cover the medical expense.

Even then, how expensive was it really that made it unaffordable? When I broke my foot in St Martin, my visit to the infirmary, including x-rays and casting the foot was less than $200. This was my fault and not the fault of the cruise line so I was happy to pay. I was amazed at the level of care and the low cost.

It does disturb me a bit to hear the second visit to the infirmary was met with a rude response, but maybe it was because you went against their recommendation and they didn't want to be further liable because you did. Stitches would have enabled the wound to heal faster and leave less chance of infection.

As others have mentioned, you really should get it checked if you are still having issues. MRSA can be very dangerous.

I too would have been irritated if my shower wasn't working properly. To say that a ship is notorious for this sort of thing doesn't make it acceptable. And even if the Spa shower might be more comfortable, it is not as convenient. If it is known that the showers are a ongoing issue, I would want to know up front before booking. If I found out after the fact that this problem was known but not disclosed, I would be fit to be tied. One shouldn't have to do their own research to determine the glitches on each ship before booking. Not to disclose a issue such as this if it is an ongoing problem, (and I am not saying it is, someone just mentioned it in their response) to me would be dishonest on the part of the cruise line. It wouldn't be the product you thought you bought so I would consider it a partial breach of contract.

I will say that if I was that dissatisfied, I would do all in my power to resolve any complaints while on the ship. To wait until you have left the ship and then complain makes it appear that it wasn't such an issue that it interrupted your fun, but when the fun was over you have sour grapes for what happened that wasn't as pleasant. You have more leverage when you are letting it be known at the time of the issue.

Just because it was not designed for a woman her size does not mean it was a poorly designed facility. She stated it was designed for a 110 lb woman, which would be a 5th percentile woman. I highly doubt it was designed for a woman so small.

In my opinion, a faulty design is something that has and will continue to injure your customer and/or damage their property ( ie clothes ). This is probably not the first reported occurance so Carnival should be doing a gradual fix. Carnival obviously thinks this is not an issue and are willing to accept injury and complaints vs spending the relatively small dollars to fix it. At the company I work for an employee suffered an injury due to an occurance that had never happened before. We asked - could this happen again and, since the answer was "yes", we spent considerable dollars to correct the situation that caused this accident. It all depends on one's safety culture. Again just my opinion. :)

You had the option of going to the spa and using the showers in the Ladies locker room. Many people do that even when their cabin shower is working properly. Not so convenient but better than no shower or a scalding/freezing one!

And no, you shouldn't have left the maintenance issues until you found your steward. You do know you can also call your steward if (s)he isn't around in the hallway, right? Or the service desk? If you're Platinum, you certainly should be aware of all these options. You even have your own service desk phone line!

Your own health insurance would probably have reimbursed you for the stitiches, too. So, yeah, taking care of a medical issue might've been more important than making donations to the casino.

The stalls are just fine. Granted, not designed for SuperSized, but not designed for only the most petite women, either. That's simply an exaggeration. Yes, they are rather narrow, but I'm having difficulty envisioning how one could maneuver in such a way as to put such a large gash in a leg that it would need stitches!

Sorry you had these problems, but agree that you probably could've done more to resolve them while on board.

I have to say, I would have gotten the stitches. Surely it would have put a damper on the cruise, but it would have been better than worrying about possible infections, etc.

As for the shower, we cruised the Destiny twice, and the second time we had the same shower issue...hot, cold, hot, cold. While it's inconvenient, it didn't ruin our cruise, and as you can see, we have cruised Carnival since then.

I'm sorry you didn't have a great vacation, but I have to agree...Nothing you mentioned is worth writing an entire cruise line off over (Carnival or any other line for that matter).

Can't imagine this is a design issue. How many ships has Carnival designed (or been involved in the design of across all their various brands) and this is the first time I think we have seen this become an issue.

And I'll ask the question some of you are probably thinking but afraid to ask....were there any adult beverages consumed before using the restroom? And could that have been a factor in the accident.

"The problem with mounting the tp holder higher is that for shorter people, i'm 5'2", if you mount them higher they become face height and you can bang your head on it. There is one stall like this at my job. I avoid this stall if I can. What works for one might not work for another."

Clearly we are not talking the same height if by raising it slightly it would hit a person of 5"2" stature in the head.

The troublesome height I am discussing and perhaps original poster is something more like below the knee. I is just slightly above the bottom of the divider panel between stalls.

If this height was raised it would not be anywhere near a 5'2" persons head by any means.

I returned Sunday from a bad week on the Sunshine. The ship itself is beautiful, I really like what they did with the upgrades and I had the most wonderful room steward.

 

It all started on Tuesday, 2nd full day at sea. Got up in the morning to take a shower and the temperature control was stuck on scolding hot. Located my room steward and he gave it his best shot. The valve had seized, had to call maintenance. OK, no shower for me, attempted to cleanup in the sink. Later that day the mixing valve was replaced in time for me to get cleaned up for dinner.

 

Yaaaay! I can take a shower. Oh no, I think I got a bad mixing valve or maintenance did not install it properly. Shower ran hot made a funny noise then ran cold. This happened through out the shower. Oh well, at least I'm clean and don't smell like a ........

 

Now we move on to Wednesday, when I see my room steward I will let him know about the shower. I don't see him in the morning, that's OK I'm off the ship to spend the day in Jamaica. Get back on ship, there he is. Let him know about the shower and he said he will contact maintenance. I get cleaned up, hot cold hot cold hot cold. Pain in the butt, I'm clean again.

 

Off to the Casino. I'm casual tonight wearing shorts. No, I did not go into the Dining Room. After about an hour and half after giving my usual donation, time to use the restroom. I'm a big girl, 5'9" and about 30 lbs over weight. The bathroom stalls are made for a 5'4" 110 lb girl, no room in these stalls. Get up off the toilet and ouch!!! Look down and there is blood everywhere. I had slashed my upper outer thigh. Oh terrific and in the bathroom (germs). I had cut my leg on the square metal guard hanging over the toilet paper. Cleaned it the best I could in the restroom, grabbed some toilet paper to compress the wound to stop the bleeding. Really needed a paper towel or napkin, but only dryers in the restroom.

 

Walked out the to Casino Bar to get some napkins, freaked out the bar tender and she took me straight to the Infirmary. Got there the Dr said I needed stitches, but it will cost quite abit and I need to keep pressure on the wound to stop the bleeding. Forget it, give me some band-aids and anti-bacterial ointment. Best deal on the whole ship, only $3. Now the adrenaline has stopped, this thing really hurts and very bruised and deep, but only 4" long.

 

I do have a comment for the Architect and the Owner: The Architect responsible for the mounting heights for the toilet paper dispensers needs to be slapped upside the head. This goes for the Owner (Carnival) for accepting these heights.

 

Back to the shower, it's now Thursday, my room steward informed me that it was not only my shower that is having problems with the hot and cold it is a whole block of cabins and maintenance is working on it. Thursday's shower hot cold hot cold again. Get use to it this is how it's going to be.

 

Thursday morning go back to the Infirmary to get more anti-bacterial ointment. Head nurse looks at me from 16 feet away and tells me I get nothing. I think she is the true Soup ****. Do not use band-aids, ointment and do not cover it up at all. Told me to take Tylenol for pain, wait I didn't say I was in pain, even though I was.

 

Walking around the ship, people would stop and ask me "WHAT HAPPENED?" Looks bad, tell them what happened, every women agreed that something needs to be done about the public restrooms. I did get an interesting idea, someone told me to get a tat to try and cover up what is sure to be a nasty scar.

 

On to Friday, not feeling well. By the evening I'm running a low grade fever. This better be the flu and not an infection from the injury. Saturday, self quarantine in cabin all day. Sunday disembark, still running a fever, I want to go home.

 

Get home, received Carnival's survey. Explain what happened, I get an email stating they are sorry, will let the proper department know so this will not happen to anyone else. Well, at least I got a less than heart felt apology.

 

So in all, next time I fell the urge to cruise with Carnival all I have to do is look at my leg to remind me that I will NEVER cruise with Carnival again!!!!! By the way it's over a week and the skin around the wound is still red and uncomfortable.

Carnival shouldn't have charged you, since it was their defective piece of equipment that cut you. I'd have insisted at Guest Services and then kept escalating if necessary.

Please go to the doctor and make sure you don't have a serious infection and feel better soon!

I too am sorry for your experiences, but I would have gotten the stitches, and if I was sober when this happened, I would expect Carnival to pay for them.

On our last cruise, me the clautrophobic person was in the ladies room on the Lido and the door handle fell off on the outside of the rest room and I was locked in the stall on a cold and empty decked Lido. Panic attack! Panic attack! but I got out and will cruise Carnival again, just being more careful of my surroundings.

Best of luck on your next cruise line. And remember it wasn't your shower it was that decks showers

charliedog, first the plumbing issue. If you were staying at a hotel and had a similar problem with the shower, would you tell a member of housekeeping about it, or would you go to the front desk and ask to speak to the manager? Think of the staff at the Guest Services desk as members of the management. Any issues you have with your cabin (plumbing or whatever) will be handled much more efficiently by the management than they will be by a room steward (a member of the housekeeping staff). On our very first cruise (many years ago), there was a problem with the door on our cabin's bathroom. We stopped by the Guest Services Desk on our way to dinner and told someone about it. By the time we got back from dinner, the problem was fixed. Second, as to the injury you incurred from the toilet paper dispenser. Obviously bad luck for you, but you really should have taken the doctor's advice and got the stitches. Then, you should have gone to Guest Services and explained what happened, and possibly suggested that some type of guard (rubber, plastic, whatever) be put on the dispenser to prevent anyone else from sustaining a similar injury. I'm sorry you had a bad experience on your cruise, but I don't think it warrants crossing off the entire cruise line. Bad luck can happen anytime, anywhere. If you haven't already done so, call Carnival's customer service number at 1-888-227-6482 and explain what happened. At the very least, you'll hopefully get a heart-felt apology. And if you're lucky, maybe you'll be offered some type of compensation for your troubles.

I'm so sorry that you had such a miserable experience. I understand your frustration and anger.

We also had shower problems on the Glory and it took maintenance more than two days to fix them. It doesn't help you now, but the staff should have suggested that you use the spa showers rather than going without.

I also would encourage you to see a doctor if the cut isn't healing properly. Travel insurance really is a necessity as sometimes stuff happens. With it (again you can't go back) you would have had the peace of mind to use the doctor on board and get proper care for the wound without a huge tab.

About the cost in the infirmary.. I have been lucky enough to use it twice, well not me but my DS.:rolleyes: Once when he was 8 and once when he was 17. Both times requiring stitches.

Once he was hurt during an activity thru CC. Not their fault. The second it was his fault he was running down some stairs and slipped cutting his leg open on a pole.

Neither time were we charged a penny. And we had follow up visits while on the cruise. Both times security took a report and we had to show them exactly where it happened. One so they could document it and two so they could fix the problem. Also had to cancel an excursion which they reimbursed.

The second incident was within the last 1.5 years I cant believe they have gotten more lax on injuries.

They have a protocol to follow with accidents , mainly to cover their butt. But I have been told if it happens on the ship they cover it. And that has been my experience..Hopefully not again LOL!

I hate to hear all this, better luck on your next cruise line.

So this could be never happen on another cruise line?

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OP: With all due respect, had you grown dissatisfied with Carnival over the years and these two incidents were merely the straw that broke the camel's back? While I'm not trying to minimize the impact of what you experienced, it seems like a drastic decision to quit sailing on Carnival altogether, specially when you were at least partially responsible for the poor handling of your leg cut and subsequent infection.

Hope you feel better soon.

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About the cost in the infirmary.. I have been lucky enough to use it twice, well not me but my DS.:rolleyes: Once when he was 8 and once when he was 17. Both times requiring stitches.

Once he was hurt during an activity thru CC. Not their fault. The second it was his fault he was running down some stairs and slipped cutting his leg open on a pole.

Neither time were we charged a penny. And we had follow up visits while on the cruise. Both times security took a report and we had to show them exactly where it happened. One so they could document it and two so they could fix the problem. Also had to cancel an excursion which they reimbursed.

The second incident was within the last 1.5 years I cant believe they have gotten more lax on injuries.

They have a protocol to follow with accidents , mainly to cover their butt. But I have been told if it happens on the ship they cover it. And that has been my experience..Hopefully not again LOL!

I had a client who opened the door to his stateroom onto his foot and tore his toenail off. Infirmary charged $300 to patch him up. Perhaps not viewed as a shipboard accident the same as your son's but it was a sizeable bill for the service. Fortunately, he had travel insurance.

I'm a bit worried you haven't gotten stitches, hope you will have a doctor look at your leg.

I get that a bad experience (regardless of whose fault it is or isn't) can absolutely dampen your cruise experience, and even your opinion of the cruiseline. I also think the doctor's office should have been more empathetic (if even just because everyone sues for everything these days).

Maybe I'm weird, but I would have never thought to ask my room steward about the plumbing issue. Seems like he helped you out but I think if you go through Guest Services they maintain a log and you can ensure, at minimum there is a proper record of your concerns.

At any rate, best of luck on your next cruise.

... Walked out the to Casino Bar to get some napkins, freaked out the bar tender and she took me straight to the Infirmary. Got there the Dr said I needed stitches, but it will cost quite abit and I need to keep pressure on the wound to stop the bleeding. Forget it, give me some band-aids and anti-bacterial ointment. Best deal on the whole ship, only $3. Now the adrenaline has stopped, this thing really hurts and very bruised and deep, but only 4" long....

 

Thursday morning go back to the Infirmary to get more anti-bacterial ointment. Head nurse looks at me from 16 feet away and tells me I get nothing. I think she is the true Soup ****. Do not use band-aids, ointment and do not cover it up at all. Told me to take Tylenol for pain, wait I didn't say I was in pain, even though I was....

First off, if a cut is 4" in length and is deep enough to warrant stitches, then YES, you should have gotten the stitches regardless of the cost. (I would have pushed for Carnival to cover the cost, as it occurred on the ship.) A wound cannot be stitched up after 7 hours from the occurrence due to the possibility of infection being enclosed within.

Secondly, I can't imagine that any amount of bandaids would close up the wound and stop the bleeding. The wound should have been irrigated and if not stitched, had 'steristrip' applied (they use these on wounds to pull it together and lessen the scar) to assist with healing.

You state "Best deal on the whole ship, only $3"...is your health and the possibility of a large scar only worth $3 ? I doubt it.

"The problem with mounting the tp holder higher is that for shorter people, i'm 5'2", if you mount them higher they become face height and you can bang your head on it. There is one stall like this at my job. I avoid this stall if I can. What works for one might not work for another."

 

Clearly we are not talking the same height if by raising it slightly it would hit a person of 5"2" stature in the head.

 

The troublesome height I am discussing and perhaps original poster is something more like below the knee. I is just slightly above the bottom of the divider panel between stalls.

 

If this height was raised it would not be anywhere near a 5'2" persons head by any means.

The cut was on her upper outer thigh. So it was higher then you are talking about. She got it while going from a sitting position to a standing position. Basically her thigh was under it when she went to stand up. She also had to have hit it hard since she had deep bruising. I am having a hard picturing this happening without some other factors coming into play.

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To address most people's assumptions:

1. I did go to the Dr.s when I returned home. Tested positive for the flu and I received oral antibiotics for the injury. My Doc stated I did a good job caring for the wound. Will have a scar and the stitches would not have prevented any scarring.

2. No, I was not drinking before and after the injury. After I left the Infirmary I went to the Casino Bar to thank the Bar Tender, I did not gamble or drink as another OP suggested. The nurse told me after the Dr stepped out that it would be very expensive and I would have to pay for it. The nurse the following morning was a different nurse, never looked at the wound and was rude and condescending. The sign in sheet showed I was never looked at the previous night, which I thought was odd.

3. Even though I am Platinum, any previous issue I have ever had was resolved by my cabin steward. I know he is not a mechanic, but he got on his phone immediately to contact maintenance. I never had any issues that required me to go to Guest Services. I was also under the impression that Guest Services was to pay on your S&S, make change, S&S issues. So, I guess I am at fault for not complaining to Guest Services.

4. Yes, money was an issue. After I booked and paid in full for the cruise, airfare and hotel I was laid off from my good paying job due to budget cuts. No, I did not purchase travelers insurance, my fault.

Discussing this with my husband he told me to go on the cruise after the horrible year that I was having. 5 deaths in my family, ages 25 to my grandmother, my best friends death and my sister in liver failure and requiring a liver transplant that has been denied due to funds. Then my job. Yes, my husband told me to go, yes I did gamble with a limit of $25 a night and for obvious reasons I did not gamble every night. I know that 50% of you out there have a bar tab of more than $25 a night.

The plumbing problems and my injury are Carnival issues which I did not have control over. I am not asking for a discount cruise or any type of reimbursement. I am just disappointed how this all unfolded.

On a previous Carnival cruise a fellow passenger broke my sternum. I did not say anything due to this was not a Carnival issue.

And the comment lose weight is mean and uncalled for.

charliedog, sorry about all of your problems on the cruise. Seems to me you probably were looking for a reason to not cruise on CCL or possibly even not cruise any more period. As you are Platinum, I also don't understand you not contacting Guest Services about either problem, the injury or the shower problems. Good luck if you do decide to cruise again, on any cruise line.

You have been a member of cruise critic for almost 5 years, so also find it hard you didn't know to contact Guest Services about maintenance issues, or any issue for that matter. Sure are a lot of threads about complaints, issues encountered, and working with Guest Services. Just saying.

Wow that su*k big time. I hate that, when it happens on vacation. I don't blame you

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I'll try not to pile on too much. The poster posted the experience, so has to be willing to absorb some amount of questioning/criticism.

The injury seems to be more a result of a sharp edge where a sharp edge doesn't belong. I'm less preoccupied with the height or location of the dispenser. It is where it is and is there to be seen. But if there is a hidden sharp edge at the bottom, then surely that is nothing but the fault of Carnival.

Easy for anyone to say the OP should have got stitches, but I think that is right. If recommended by the doctor, I would have to be sceptical about the advice not to take it. I didn't see any reason to doubt the advice. I would have fully expected to have this charge reversed once the circumstances were properly explained to guest services. Another poster suggested withholding tips. While on the one hand, the crew shouldn't have to pay, I would agree that as a last resort, the crew should have to pay before the passenger.

As for the shower issue, the spa shower was my first thought. I'm a little confused by the criticism about who was informed about the malfunction. Other than the slight delay on the day of the excursion, the problem ultimately got the necessary attention as a result of the OP informing the cabin steward. I take it that the underlying problem was a plumbing issue that affected a number of cabins, so the OP wouldn't have had a different result had she informed guest services.

The other thing I'm unclear about is why the OP is now boycotting Carnival. The issue with the hidden sharp edge on the dispenser was a problem that should have been fixed. But we have no information about whether it was subsequently remedied. The OP did not truly test the issue about whether or not she would have been required to pay for the stitches (i.e., so presumably it is not, "I'm boycotting because your doctor initially told me I would have to pay for the stitches").

So presumably the reason for the boycot is the bad attitude of the head nurse on the second visit. And that's fine. I don't have a whole lot to say about that other than that to boycot a cruise line because of rude behaviour by one employee out of 1,200 on one cruise ship out of 11 cruises seems a bit extreme, but not too far outside what I'd consider reasonable in the circumstances.

T. Advisor King,

Thank you.

Sorry, stuff happens. Was going up the ladder for the bunk bed, ship lurched got a nice shiner, stuff happens. Taking cruise 15 in April.:D