12/6/10 Fascination Review, Pictures, and memoirs of a 1 yr old's first cruise...

[Tapi]

On December 6th, 2010, we sailed on our 24th cruise (12th on Carnival) aboard the Carnival Fascination. This cruise was different for us because, for the first time, we sailed with our one year old infant son. We selected this ship and itinerary specifically for that reason. We wanted to make things as easy as possible, so we chose a ship that sailed from an embarkation port within driving distance (in order to avoid the hassle of flying with baby gear in tow). We also wanted ports of call that would be "stroller" friendly. Both stops in this itinerary didn't require tenders and had tourist areas within walking distance. Finally, this being somewhat of an "experiment", we wanted an inexpensive cruise (just in case the experiment was a failure!). At $239 per person for an oceanview stateroom on the Empress deck, not only was it an inexpensive option, it was dirt cheap! So, off we went on the Carnival Fascination for five nights to Key West and Nassau!

 

Pre-cruise:

 

We left our house the day before the cruise. 5 hours later, we arrived in Jacksonville and checked in at the Marriott Spring Hill Suites (located by the JAX Airport, and 10-15 minutes away from the port). We used Reward Points to book our stay, but the regular rates were very affordable ($89/night). The hotel is fairly new (built 2 years ago), it's tastefully decorated, and has large, comfortable rooms with a separate sitting area. It is within walking distance of some chain restaurants (Ruby Tuesday, Longhorn Steakhouse). In fact we had dinner at Longhorn. The next morning, we woke up refreshed from our drive, enjoyed a complimentary hot breakfast, and relaxed for a few hours before heading to the port around 12:30pm. We could've left our car parked at the hotel, as they would make arrangements for 3rd party transportation to/from the ship, After some consideration, we chose to park the car at the port and consider the extra $25 we paid by taking this option money well spent for the convenience of having our car waiting when we got off the ship. We highly recommend this hotel for a pre-cruise stay.

 

Cruise Terminal and Check-In:

As previously mentioned, the terminal is 10-15 minutes from the hotels near the airport. It's not the most attractive facility, so don't expect to be wowed by state of the art facilities with high ceilings and glass windows overlooking your ship. It's a single story temporary facility. The city of Jacksonville is currently trying to figure out where (and if) they build a permanent cruise terminal once the permit on that piece of land expires. Parking is at an adjacent, ground level, fenced parking lot. Golf carts are continuously patrolling the parking lot, giving passengers a ride to the terminal. We were inside the terminal around 1:00pm, and proceeded to a separate room for VIP/Platinum cruisers. Check-in was VERY fast and efficient. From what we could tell, the lines for regular embarkation were very short at this time of day, so we recommend arriving later rather than earlier. This cruise terminal was built when the Celebration was the resident ship, so the bridge is too low to embark on the more traditional Empress deck (at the atrium). Instead, boarding takes place from deck 3 and into a small unattractive area. Not the most efficient, but it would have to do. Within a few minutes, we were dropping our belongings in our cabin (another reason to arrive later, instead of waiting around for cabins to be ready), and we proceeded to the Coconut Grove Grill for lunch.

 

The Ship:

 

This was our 4th time on the Fascination, but it was our first time sailing on her from Jacksonville, and first time after the full Evolutions of Fun upgrades were performed. I must say that the ship looks in great shape! The Serenity Area, Carnival Waterworks, Resort-style pool deck, and upgraded cabins are very welcome additions. In addition, the ship was decorated for Christmas (same decorations we've seen on past December sailings, but they still look nice!) There are some signs of wear and tear (which reminded us that the ship is after all, 16 years old), but in our opinion, they were minor things. (Shame on "Amanda" who decided to carve her name on the metal wall near the glass elevators! Who does that??).

 

Cabin:

As previously mentioned, we booked an oceanview cabin on the Empress deck. We were a bit concerned about space since we would have a crib in our cabin. However, it wasn't much of an issue. We moved the chair to the corner underneath the TV, and placed the crib where the chair used to be, pretty much out of the way. Flat screen TV's, new furniture, new carpeting, and Comfort Bed Systems are standard on all cabins on the Fascination. At 185 sq ft, these are some of the smallest oceanview cabins on the Carnival fleet, but still comfortable and functional.I take full responsibility for not thinking about the impact of our cabin location in advance. Having a cabin on the Empress deck meant being close to the Atrium, Guest Services and elevators. Great location, UNLESS you're going to bed early (and since we were traveling with a 1 year old, we were back in the cabin by 9pm). We were bothered by noise. There was a lot of traffic outside our door, and we could hear quite a bit of noise coming from the Atrium bar area. Loud music, conversations, and laughter was common until around 11pm. Lesson learned!

 

Departure from Jacksonville and first day at sea:

Even though the cruise terminal is located in a fairly unattractive area, we did get to sail underneath the Dames Point Bridge within a few minutes after sailing away. Pretty neat! Temperature on the day of departure hovered around 40-50 degrees F, so for the first 2 days, outdoor decks looked pretty empty as most people (understandably) chose to stay indoors. For this reason, it felt a bit more crowded inside the ship, specially along the Promenade deck! "Elegant Night" was held on the second night of the cruise. Although we did see quite a few passengers who took the word "Elegant" to heart, many others seemed to have a veeery relaxed idea of what "Elegant" means. I'm a firm believer that everybody should wear whatever they feel comfortable in, but it's hard to get in "elegant" mood if those around you are not. After several cruises where Elegant Night has become more and more casual, I might just join the other passengers in casual wear instead of hauling a jacket and tie. It's becoming less and less appealing to dress up on Carnival.

 

Key West, FL:

We arrived early in the morning. Beautiful and sunny (although a bit chilly, but warmer than it had been the days before). but it was great walking weather. Since we were traveling with our infant son, our first stop was Walgreen's on Duval Street to purchase some "baby supplies" (ha!ha!). I looked at other fellow cruisers with envy as they made their way to Sloppy Joe's (and other bars) as we made our way to the Key West Toy Factory! Still, we had a very enjoyable morning in Key West. It seems though that souvenir shops selling $5 T-shirts have multiplied in Key West since our last visit. They seemed to be everywhere! And our fellow cruisers DEFINITELY took advantage! It seemed that, for the rest of the cruise, half the people onboard were wearing a Key West T-shirt, sweatshirt, hat, or a combination of the above! Good move in the part of the owners of the $5 T-shirt stores!

 

More coming up...

[Tapi]

Nassau, Bahamas:

We spent the morning at sea and arrived in Nassau around noon. Temperature was now in the upper 60'S! Time to wear my shorts! We booked the Seaworld Explorer excursion through Carnival. The tour description was a bit misleading, as it described us taking a deluxe catamaran for a harbour tour. Instead, we were packed in an old boat that looked like it had been previously used to smuggle drugs. The ride to the semi-submarine was nice though. The luxury homes along the eastern portion of Paradise Island don't have anything to envy to luxury homes found in other countries.

 

The semi-submarine portion of our tour was Ok. We did see plenty of fish and corals, but it wasn't nearly as impressive as they made it sound in the tour description. The tour guide was informative and funny though! For the return ride to the ship, we boarded a larger boat (maybe this was the catamaran we had been promised??!!) We had a second tour guide for this portion of the tour which proved to be even funnier than the first guide. We tipped both guides generously as they went out of their way to help us with our son and his stroller always keeping a smile. The Junior Junkanoo Festival was taking place in downtown Nassau, so streets had been closed and stores were closing early in preparation for the evening festival. We were able to squeeze in about 30 minutes of shopping time before the stores closed.

 

I've never been a big believer in "Duty Free Shopping", which I've always considered to be a gimmick...until this time. I had been researching a wrist watch at stores back home and through the internet, and the price that I found at a store on Bay Street in Nassau was at least 15% lower than the best price I'd found back home. So, needless to say, I left Nassau with a brand new watch! We walked back to the ship and were onboard as the sun started setting.

Last Day at Sea:

 

We enjoyed a leisurely day at sea. My wife enjoyed two (very well deserved) treatments at the Spa. They were offering great specials! For example, 1 hour massages were $79 (with free 20 minute add-ons of your choosing), and Top-to-Toe packages for $119 which included a massage, collagen treatment, facial, and pedicure. Being Christmas, there was a Christmas Show at the Palace Theatre at 4:00pm, which according to other fellow cruisers it was either great OR terrible. Can't please everybody!

Debarkation:

 

We normally take advantage of Self-Assist debarkation (where you get off the ship first with all of your luggage in hand). Since we were traveling with two large suitcases and a stroller, we opted for Relaxed Debarkation. VIP/Platinum cruisers were asked to meet at the Puttin' on the Ritz Lounge by 8:45am to be escorted to the gangway for priority debarkation. Still, we didn't get off the ship until almost 10:00am. It wasn't terrible, but it wasn't as expeditious as we had experienced before. Getting a porter to assist us was a plus, as she quickly grabbed all of our belongings and loaded our bags in our car within minutes! Before we knew it, we were back on the highway, headed home...!

 

Overall, the cruise was OK, but not great. Traveling with a baby and having to do things a bit differently did contribute to a new cruising experience, but we wouldn't say that traveling with a baby made for a WORSE experience. It just made for a DIFFERENT experience! We loved having our little guy with us, and overall, we would say that our "experiment" was sucessful! He had a great time and we enjoyed immensely watching him as he discovered new things!

 

Here's a summary of some of the HIGHLIGHTS and LOW POINTS of our cruise:

 

HIGHLIGHTS:

 

• VIP/Platinum EMBARKATION: Very organized and efficient! It took us less than 15 minutes to go from check-in to cabin
  
• Fantasy class ship layout: Moving around with a stroller around this ship is EASY! There were very few areas that weren't accessible to passengers on wheels.
  
• Our cabin steward as well as many crew members: Our cabin steward was phenomenal! He was easily one of the friendliest, most courteous, and hardest working cabin stewards that we have ever come across. He definitely deserved the extra tip we left him on the last day! :) Many crew members around the ship approached us to greet our baby. Upon engaging in conversation with these workers, we learned that many were fathers with babies of their own back home in places like India, Phillipines, and Indonesia. Needless to say, they missed being so far away from their little ones for months at a time... :(
  
• New menu entree's: There was a time when Carnival's food was mediocre, but then it started improving. Although we feel that selections and quality are once again on the decline there were some welcome surprises. Among my favorite, the ricotta and spinach ravioli, as well as the chilled curried apple soup (who would've thought?).
  

 

LOW POINTS:

 

• Guest Services/VIP treatment onboard: We've noticed a gradual decline on the way that Platinum cruisers are treated. This was confirmed to an extent by the Platinum "gift" that was given on this sailing: a cheap, plastic Funship Freddy Photo frame. When we became Platinum cruisers in 2008, we felt like the staff was genuinely happy to assist us and was going out of their way to make us feel special and welcome again. Now, we felt as if we were a hassle to them. Going to the Platinum desk meant being ignored, and given dirty looks when I asked if there was anybody assisting Platinum guests. I actually started going to the regular line instead of going to the Platinum line. In my opinion, if they're going to have a dedicated Platinum line at Guest Relations, either have it staffed properly with people who actually care, or just get rid of it altogether. All it does is aggravate people.
  
• Room Service: We ordered room service twice during the cruise. Both times, it was very late. On the last morning of the cruise, we requested that our breakfast be delivered between 7:00am and 7:15am. After several calls, it arrived at 8:45am (and with the wrong items) as we were leaving the cabin for debarkation. Not happy about leaving the ship on that sour note, but we got over it quickly by making a fast food stop on the way home. I would've been much more thankful and understanding if I had been informed earlier that they were overwhelmed with orders so that I could go grab some breakfast from the lido, instead of being promised every 20 minutes that our order was on its way...
  

For the next two low points, I really wanted to make sure that my opinion wasn't biased because we were traveling with a baby. I asked myself if these things would've bothered me had I been traveling without our son. The answer was yes...

• SMOKE! SMOKE! SMOKE! and more SMOKE!: First of all, let me say that I'm in favor of having areas where people can enjoy their cigarrettes, and I don't mind going to a smoky bar or dance club. In fact, if you look at some of my previous posts on Cruise Critic concerning this matter, I've defended smoker's "rights". As I mentioned before, we've been on many Carnival cruises, and while there are always smokers onboard, the cigarrette smell hasn't really bothered us before. On this particular sailing though, it felt like there was a MUCH larger percentage of smokers and they had taken over the entire ship! We couldn't escape cigarrette smoke! We blame part of this on Carnival for poorly designating smoking areas, and part of it on the lack of courtesy and social awareness of some of these smoking fellow cruisers. We could smell cigarrette smoke even in our cabin. Every time we walked along Hollywood Boulevard, we had to rush past the casino and other designated smoking venues. The smoke just permeated along the Promenade deck. There seemed to be a permanent cloud of smoke lingering right outside the casino and into non-smoking areas at all times. This is Carnival's fault for designating an area as smoking, and then an area literally two feet away as non-smoking. If they are going to designate the casino as smoking, how about closing off the area with glass doors so that people can actually enjoy sitting along Hollywood Boulevard? Non-smoking areas on the lido deck were constantly violated and many treated the whole deck as one large smoking area. It felt like I was constantly dodging smokers all over the lido deck as they casually strolled to the non smoking side while still holding a lit cigarrette.
  
• Some fellow cruisers: Let me start by saying that I applaud Carnival for deploying their fleet of Fun Ships along so many ports along the US coastline, making cruising accessible and affordable to many! It is for these reasons why we chose this particular cruise! Unfortunately, these same reasons also attract some passengers who under different circumstances, probably would've never cruised in their lives, and who have no sense of social awareness, consideration for others, proper manners, or courtesy. This sailing seemed to have a larger percentage of these ill-acting fellow passengers. While traveling with a baby brought out the best in many of our fellow passengers (thanks for all your help, kind words, and assistance!), apparently it also brought out the worst in others. On the first day, a woman basically pushed my slow moving wife (carrying our son) down the stairs during the muster drill as she tried to get around my wife. When she realized what she'd done, instead of apologizing, she gave us a shrug and kept walking. More than once, people would literally rush to get in front of us at elevators or buffet lines and almost push us out of the way. One man tripped on our stroller and almost fell on our baby as he rushed to get in front of us as we were walking into the elevator. In Nassau, we had to stand tightly packed in a line of people as we waited for our shore excursion to depart. The man in front of us lit up a cigarrette, which queued the couple behind us to light up as well. All of a sudden, we had cigarrette smoke coming from less than a foot away in both directions. I know that we were off the ship and outdoors, and it was their "right" to smoke there, but come on people! Have some courtesy and social awareness of who's standing next to you! To make things worse, the moment that my wife started fanning the cigarrette smoke away from our baby, the woman behind us made a point of blowing her smoke directly at us, as if it was amusing to aggravate us further. My wife grabbed the baby, moved away and sat on the curve while the smokers finished their much needed cigarrettes. I want to emphasize that we met MANY courteous and friendly fellow passengers, but it seemed that there were just as many who were just the opposite.
  

Once again, the cruise was OK, but not great. I think that the main two reasons which hindered our full enjoyment of our cruise were these rude passengers and the inability to escape from cigarrette smoke. As we drove home, I kept reminding myself to put everything into perspective. This was a cheap cruise. At $239pp for a 5 night vacation which allowed us to unwind and enjoy the sea, we DEFINITELY got our money's worth! Will I sail on Carnival again? Probably. At some point in time, I'm sure that we will come across an offer "too good to pass up". In fact, I would love to sail on one of the special 7 night sailings aboard the Carnival Elation going to Belize. Roatan and Cozumel out of Mobile (another easy drive for us), but the thought of having to possibly deal with the same type of fellow passengers again has me reconsidering it. In fact, at the time I'm writing this, I can't even mention another Carnival cruise to my wife.

 

I think that for now, we'll take a break from Carnival. I know that my wife will eventually come around. For now, we will check out other cruise lines, ships, destinations, and fellow cruisers, even if we have to dig deeper into our wallets to once again feel the joy that cruising should bring...

[rdalmeida]

I'm a non smoker but I'm sure if I had my 1 yr on this cruise I'd feel the same way. All in all it was a lot of fun. I haven't been but I hear the Disney cruises are great for families.

[navybaby1113]

Thanks for the review!

[cruiseman111111]

Very nice pix...

[vacruizer]

Thanks for the review! I was on the Fascination about a month ago and it's funny how the crowd changes from cruise to cruise! Our issue wasn't so much with rudeness, but we had many, many busloads on a senior citizen tour onboard. The Promenade was deserted after 9pm. :eek: Some of them were lovely, but most just wanted to complain about everything! Not much smoking on our sailing at all - my mother who is really allergic only had problems the one day she walked through the casino.

 

I also have to say that as a smoker, I'm disgusted that anyone would light up next to your baby. Or even in a crowd or line like that. It's just common sense to me that if I want to smoke I either find a designated area, or if outdoors move away from any type of crowd. Makes me mad - it's these idiots that give smokers a bad name!

 

I'm curious what you thought of the entertainment onboard. Don't know if you got to experience much of it with the baby along. We had fantastic service and food on our sailing but the entertainment was pretty sad.

[Captain Carnival]

Excellent review indeed and it makes the next 104 days until I sail on the FASCINATION seem just a wee bit longer now!

[Tapi]

I'm curious what you thought of the entertainment onboard. Don't know if you got to experience much of it with the baby along. We had fantastic service and food on our sailing but the entertainment was pretty sad.

 

Thanks vacruizer!

 

Service from both the cabin staff and dining staff was great! They truly did a phenomenal job!

 

About the entertainment, we normally shy away from most organized activities as we prefer to do our own thing, whether we're with the baby or not. Relaxation is the name of our game! We did go to the Christmas show on the last day which we thought was OK. Some fellow cruisers thought it was phenomenal, others thought it sucked. Go figure! Reading the Fun Times, there wasn't much that we considered a new or a "must do" activity. After all of these cruises, the novelty of the Hairy Chest Contest, Newlywed Game, etc has lost its luster so we don't bother with them anymore.

 

Speaking of, they kept playing the Hairy Chest Contest and Master Mixologist Contest over and over and over and over on the cabin TV. There really must be something else that could be shown...

 

Thanks for your comments about the smoking! Like you said, it's a select few who give even the considerate and courteous smoking passengers a bad name...

[roobear512]

Thanks for your review. Your pictures were beautiful. I'm so sorry that your cruise was marred by some who have a lack of class and manners. It sounds as though you made the most of it, however, and I am glad that you managed to have a good time in spite of it. :) Happy Holidays!

[czechgal]

Thanks Tapi!

As you said:

"Some fellow cruisers: Let me start by saying that I applaud Carnival for deploying their fleet of Fun Ships along so many ports along the US coastline, making cruising accessible and affordable to many! It is for these reasons why we chose this particular cruise! Unfortunately, these same reasons also attract some passengers who under different circumstances, probably would've never cruised in their lives, and who have no sense of social awareness, consideration for others, proper manners, or courtesy. This sailing seemed to have a larger percentage of these ill-acting fellow passengers. While traveling with a baby brought out the best in many of our fellow passengers (thanks for all your help, kind words, and assistance!), apparently it also brought out the worst in others. On the first day, a woman basically pushed my slow moving wife (carrying our son) down the stairs during the muster drill as she tried to get around my wife. When she realized what she'd done, instead of apologizing, she gave us a shrug and kept walking. More than once, people would literally rush to get in front of us at elevators or buffet lines and almost push us out of the way. One man tripped on our stroller and almost fell on our baby as he rushed to get in front of us as we were walking into the elevator. In Nassau, we had to stand tightly packed in a line of people as we waited for our shore excursion to depart. The man in front of us lit up a cigarrette, which queued the couple behind us to light up as well. All of a sudden, we had cigarrette smoke coming from less than a foot away in both directions. I know that we were off the ship and outdoors, and it was their "right" to smoke there, but come on people! Have some courtesy and social awareness of who's standing next to you! To make things worse, the moment that my wife started fanning the cigarrette smoke away from our baby, the woman behind us made a point of blowing her smoke directly at us, as if it was amusing to aggravate us further. My wife grabbed the baby, moved away and sat on the curve while the smokers finished their much needed cigarrettes. I want to emphasize that we met MANY courteous and friendly fellow passengers, but it seemed that there were just as many who were just the opposite."

 

I despise smoke, but not the smoker, unless they are being rude and making an effort to cause misery. Apparently there were many rude smokers on your trip. (And according to some other reviews about other ships, they are everywhere.)

 

You are correct, lower prices can attract ill-mannered louts with poor social skills. I think the fact that it is a short cruise also attracts more of the "party hearty, who cares" type. We didn't see many on our first 2 cruises (both 7 day trips), and are hoping with the higher prices at Christmas time, we won't encounter many on this trip either.

 

I'm sure I will offend someone with my opinion, I'm sorry, but it's my opinion.

 

We are considering HAL or Celebrity for our next cruise, and if the smoke and trash are rampant on this trip, we will be "jumping ship" for certain.

 

Lisa

[Tapi]

I think the fact that it is a short cruise also attracts more of the "party hearty, who cares" type. We didn't see many on our first 2 cruises (both 7 day trips), and are hoping with the higher prices at Christmas time, we won't encounter many on this trip either.

 

I kept trying to rationalize what was it about this cruise that made it feel like the rude passengers were in full force, and a couple of things came to mind:

 

• It was COLD during a big part of the cruise, which meant that most passengers stayed indoors. It felt unusally crowded at times in areas like Hollywood Boulevard and the Coconut Grove Grill. I'm sure that the cold weather, and being packed indoors while dealing with the crowds, made some people not be in their best behavior. On further review, It does seem like most of the rude people encounters we experienced, were during these moments when it was unusually crowded.
   
  
• I talked to my sister yesterday. We're always comparing notes about our parenting. I told her about our experience on the cruise, and she told me that for her, it's normal to be much more aware of what's going on around her when traveling with kids. Maybe under different circumstances, we would've totally ignored the rude people, but because we had our son with us, we noticed more!
  

 

I'm not trying to justify bad behavior, but I want to be fair and objective.

 

Although this shorter cruise wasn't so great, we've had an absolutely wonderful time on shorter cruises before. Some of our best cruises were on a 4 night cruise out of Mobile and a 4 night cruise out of Miami, both during low season! Our BEST Carnival cruise ever was a 7 nighter aboard the Liberty, so I do think that the longer cruises are more my cup of tea...!

[Meyer2]

Thanks for sharing your review! I enjoyed it completly! Great pictures too! :)

[4myboyz]

Tapi, Thanks for your review, nice pictures. We are traveling with our 3 boys in Feb. On our first Carnival cruise. I hope we don't have too many rude people onboard. I am going to try to have your relaxed attitude and not let them bring me down.

By the way is your avatar picture a Dobe? We have a Red Dobe he just turned 10 months such a sweet heart!

[gapearl]

Thanks for sharing your review Tapi! I'm like you about the cigarette smoke. I can't stand it! That was VERY rude of those folks to light up around a baby. My big mouth would have called them out on it. I'm glad you and your family had a relaxing trip, despite the rude people and smoke.

[czechgal]

I understand where you are coming from Tapi, and you say it so well.

 

I am not a snob, but I can't stand what our society had come to. Rudeness and inappropriate social behavior, really irritates me. And I'm afraid I sound rude by complaining about the smoke and the behavior of some people, but I'm really not!:p

 

ANyway, I too notice more bad behavior when our son is around, and am sad he has to witness it. Maybe that is a good rationalization as to why you noticed it more too.

 

I am a 7 day cruiser and, as a matter of fact, all vacations should be 7 + days! :D

 

Have to try the 4 day cruise once, as it is our family's Christmas gift to each other instead of presents. My sister's first cruise, so I am very excited to see the expression on her face when she sees how beautiful the water is, and the world in general.

 

So I will make the best of it and wish for the Smoke Free Paradise to return someday.

[Tapi]

By the way is your avatar picture a Dobe? We have a Red Dobe he just turned 10 months such a sweet heart!

 

The black and white picture on my signature is our real dog (Tapi), who is a chocolate labrador. The avatar is a chocolate labrador puppy which I found online! :)

[Tapi]

Have to try the 4 day cruise once, as it is our family's Christmas gift to each other instead of presents. My sister's first cruise, so I am very excited to see the expression on her face when she sees how beautiful the water is, and the world in general.

 

I hope you enjoy it! I do have to say that I enjoyed some of the most beautiful sunrises and sunsets on this sailing. And even though it was a bit chilly at times, it was sunny, the skies and ocean were blue, and the temperature was perfect for walking around and exploring!

 

I'm like you about the cigarette smoke. I can't stand it! That was VERY rude of those folks to light up around a baby. My big mouth would have called them out on it. I'm glad you and your family had a relaxing trip, despite the rude people and smoke.

 

Once we got our bearings and figured out what parts of the ship to avoid, dealing with the smoke got much better. For example, if we were walking from the atrium area to the Coconut Grove Grill in the back of the ship, instead of walking along the Promenade deck 9 (where a lot of the smoking was taking place), we would cut through the Art Gallery on the Empress deck 7 and then take the elevators up, or we would take the elevators from the atrium up to the Lido deck 10 and cut through the pool deck on the port side (starboard side was the smoking side).

[marshhawk]

Tapi-finally got to finish reading your review. And you are right, how can two people see a cruise so differently? Now I understand. My first question-which dining room did you dine in, and did you have early or late dining. As I said in my review, potentional diners were escorted out when they showed up in blue jeans baseball hats, and ratty capris. Every one else I saw may not have been dressed to the nines but they were spiffed up.

As to the smokers. well I am one, but I would never light up next to a baby, or in an area that I knew was designated non smoking. I appreciate the fact that the cruise line still offers smoking areas, The back side of Coconut Grove outside, the port side of the lido, two bars and the casino. And not all of the casino is smoking. So in reality more of the ship is non smoking than smoking, so we smokers are concentrated in smaller areas making it much more obvious that there is smoke.

As far as rude, well I work for a non profit, all sorts of people come in everyday, and I see rude on new levels that you wouldn't believe, (last year a man who wanted to make a pass at a woman at the other window called me an old skank B***) I'm on the other side of glass, I can hear you. I think rudeness will end up ruling in this world until we can put down all the electronic gismos and learn to speak to each other face to face. I didn't grow up learning rudeness, bad manners, insensativity, and neither did you, But I also was raised at a time when, when I wanted to talk to someone I actually had to talk face to face to them. The reactions of their face let me know how I was doing, now it's text, write, blog, email, and there is very little one on one communication which makes it almost impossible to get a feel for how another is doing, feeling, reacting. Because we do this in life, it is hard to "play well with others". So I think I will suggest to everyone next year, unplug and live.(maybe a new mantra).

Take care. Don't right off Carnival yet.:)

[Tapi]

Tapi-finally got to finish reading your review. And you are right, how can two people see a cruise so differently? Now I understand.

 

Hey Marshhawk!

 

Thanks for taking the time to read my review! I know, how can two people have two different opinions of the same cruise? :) Well, let me reply to your questions/comments:

 

My first question-which dining room did you dine in, and did you have early or late dining.

 

We had Anytime Dining at the Sensation Dining Room (we chose this option so that we would have the flexibility to go to dinner when our "little guy" was ready to go, instead of trying to force him at a specific time. Worked like a charm!). We'd request Daniel as our waiter every time. He was phenomenal, and very accomodating!

 

As I said in my review, potentional diners were escorted out when they showed up in blue jeans baseball hats, and ratty capris. Every one else I saw may not have been dressed to the nines but they were spiffed up.

 

Although we did see a few people at the main dining room on Elegan night wearing t-shirts and jeans (one with baseball cap and construction boots) that somehow got by the maitre'd, they were a very small minority. We did see plenty of men in suits and women in evening dresses, but my comment about it being hard to get into elegant mood when fellow cruisers do not, meant that I'm seeing more and more "Resort Casual" wear instead of "Elegant" wear on these nights. In the section where I sat, there were many men smartly and nicely dressed in khakis & polo shirts, or long sleeved shirts. Many woman wore pants with nice sweaters. Yes, it was very appropriate, but not what I would define as "Elegant". That's why I believe that I might as well leave the jacket and tie back home next time. The atmosphere is definitely more relaxed and casual, (which I think is very appropriate for Carnival!) :)

 

As to the smokers. well I am one, but I would never light up next to a baby, or in an area that I knew was designated non smoking.

 

Many of the people who smoke that we came across onboard were like you, respectful and aware of their fellow non-smoking passengers! :) Unfortunately, there were many as well who were not, and that's who my dissapointment was geared to.

 

I appreciate the fact that the cruise line still offers smoking areas, The back side of Coconut Grove outside, the port side of the lido, two bars and the casino. And not all of the casino is smoking. So in reality more of the ship is non smoking than smoking, so we smokers are concentrated in smaller areas making it much more obvious that there is smoke.

 

I'm a HUGE supporter of giving smokers decent and multiple places where they can smoke. I've defended that point on Cruise Critic before. The biggest problem I see is exactly what you mentioned: Smokers are confined to areas that, in my opinion, are improperly designated. Carnival SHOULD recognize that they do cater to many smokers, and instead of trying to confine them to small areas and pretend that there's an "invisible wall" that will confine the smoke as well, they should give them better options. The aft deck behind the Coconut Grill is an EXCELLENT example of a wonderful place where smokers can enjoy a cigarrette without bothering those who don't. Glass partitions in areas that are shared by smokers and non-smokers (like the Casino and along Hollywood Blvd) would help alleviate some of this problem. Carnival spent A LOT of money to add balconies, redesign the pool deck and the serenity area. They should've spent some of that money to think of ways to improve this issue, instead of maintaining the status quo. From what I read on Cruise Critic, the present way of doing things makes smokers mad, and it makes non-smokers even madder.

 

As far as rude, well I work for a non profit, all sorts of people come in everyday, and I see rude on new levels that you wouldn't believe...it is hard to "play well with others". So I think I will suggest to everyone next year, unplug and live.(maybe a new mantra)

 

I hear you! And this is exactly what I was trying to say...These days, many don't know how to interact with others in a nice way. That doesn't mean that I want to deal with that type of behavior when I'm on vacation.

 

Take care. Don't right off Carnival yet.

Don't worry. I'm not! :). We recognize the great product that they deliver at a very affordable price, and we've had many,many, MANY more good times onboard Carnival ships than bad times.

 

Even if everything had been absolutely perfect on this cruise, we want to try out a few other cruise lines. As mentioned before, I know that at some point in time, we will return...:)

[Kimmie36]

I'm a non smoker but I'm sure if I had my 1 yr on this cruise I'd feel the same way. All in all it was a lot of fun. I haven't been but I hear the Disney cruises are great for families.

 

 

The Disney Cruise line Is GREAT!!!!!

[Tapi]

The Disney Cruise line Is GREAT!!!!!

 

Thanks! We might definitely give it a shot at one point in time. We'd like to wait until our son is a bit older and can actually enjoy it though. We didn't think twice about booking this Carnival cruise because it was so inexpensive, but with Disney prices, he better know what's going on! :D

[pattimelt]

The black and white picture on my signature is our real dog (Tapi), who is a chocolate labrador. The avatar is a chocolate labrador puppy which I found online! :)

 

I've wanted to say something, but always chickened out, but I have to say it now--pictures of upside down dogs are ADORABLE!!! Well, imo, ALL dogs are adorable, but I LOVE upside down pics!!

 

Secondly-- I would have asked the smokers in the line to please step out of line if they are going to smoke. As a smoker myself, I won't smoke in line, and if I am going to be in the line for a while and want to smoke, I ask the people in front and behind if they would mind if I stepped out of line to smoke. I would rather walk out of line than make people that don't smoke put up with my habit. It's not just manners, it's common sense--let alone, you had a BABY with you!!!

[rdalmeida]

Hey Tapi did you use any of the baby sitting facilities or even checked them out? I'll be back on the Fascination in April but this time with the 1 yr old and wife. Time to put the Orbit to good use.

[czechgal]

Tapi,

 

Just wanted to give you a quick report of our 12/16 cruise:

 

I think I smelled smoke a total of 2 times during the whole cruise. I was pleasantly suprised, as our last 2 cruises we had a large group of smokers, I just didn't see them this time.

 

The only day that was nice, was the day we were in Freeport. The other days were rainy and cold, and I was VERY sea-sick on our sea day. Never have had that happen before, needless to say, I didn't get any shopping in or do any of the things I had been saving until the last day...DANG! Plus, for 3-4 days after the cruise I was dizzy and walking like I had been drinking all day. Crazy!

 

Meal-times: Great group of passengers, all well dressed, much better than us for the most part! (We just did carry-ons since we had connecting flights/large group, so we didn't pack "formal" dinner clothes). I saw many formal gowns, and very high-end looking resort wear for all evenings of dining, not just the formal night. Everyone just looked so glamorous!

 

And we met some really nice people on this cruise, I think because it is a smaller ship and you see the same people more often. Probalby the best time we've ever had on a cruise vacation in this regard.

 

 

Anyway, we had a great time, just wish the weather would have cooperated. Stinks to come home from the Bahamas with NO TAN! :mad:

 

:D

[McDebbie]

Tapi, thanks for the review. We are taking grandboy on his first ever cruise 2/28 and I am hoping he will enjoy it. Since it is a Monday-Saturday cruise I must admit I am more worried about the elderly pushing people than I am of the smokers. :rolleyes:

 

Thanks again for your review.