I will never cruise with Carnival again, and here's why...

[frito58]

Had you taken the time to actually read what i'm saying, is that it goes well beyond my distaste for pace, it's downright lazy, especially when they serve up freshly made tortilla chips and pico de gallo daily.

 

sorry, no offense to tostitos, I like tostitos, it's just the laziness that i'm pissed off at. i still don't like pace, though.

 

I hope you know I just kidding , I guess thats hard to see on the internet , I joke about everything. I dont take life to serious , as a cancer survivor I just take life one day at a time. As to your plight , sometimes we just have to take the lemons and make lemonade and go on. If Carnival is not your cup of tea so be it. Don't think I would condemn a whole cruiseline on one ship . Our last cruise on the Victory wasn't all that great more or less because I didnt like the class of ship . But life goes on , sometimes cruising isnt for everyone as well . I keep thinking I want to try an AI resort than I think man stuck in one place for a week , not for me for more than a cruise would cost or just as much.

 

Good luck with future vaction choices I know it stinks when you spend your hard earned money and come home not happy.

[halos]

He is entitled to his opinion and, if we disagree, we should be civil.

agree.

This IS supposed to be a place to talk about ones experiences good and bad. Sometimes, for some reason, some people forget that. :rolleyes:

 

 

 

I am not "fooled" nor do I think most others are. Carnival is "for profit" corporation. Until people stop cruising with them because of the mac and cheese and meatloaf, they will continue to maximize profits by providing less quality. Those things don't bother me, so I will continue to cruise with them.

 

LOL...I agree with you again.

I do find it funny, that you can say the same thing about CCL that I would, but I get slammed because I choose (or, should I say am going to choose after April) not to cruise with them any longer (for now...anyway).

If you say they are offering less quality, nobody jumps on your case.

 

The irony is quite funny.

 

To be honest, food is food, and I have never gone hungry on any cruise (even RCI where the food on that particular cruise I took was NOT good) however, knowing that somebody might not be changing sheets in between passengers bothers me. I don't like that at all.

 

Since the OP is writing to corporate, one thing I am wanting to hear about is if he gets a decent response.

No cruise is perfect, but how customer relations deals with complaints means a LOT...and I am not talking compernsation here, just acknowledgment beyond the standard, scripted return letter.

[b_bay_girl]

I don't live in a black and white world soooo I'll skip your review because most of it seems minor and more irritating than anything. But I do hope you narrow your complaint because no one at a corporate office will make it through anything this long.

 

I couldn't agree more. I have been to all inclusives and had good and bad. There is nothing perfect out there that I know of. I am on vacation and just go with it!

 

My daughter did anytime dining last year and didn't recommend it - slower - especially if you are with a bigger group. I have done cruises with groups of five to eleven and we are among the last to leave the dining hall - it is our time to catch up on everyone's day.

[Sargent_Schultz]

The cruiselines sure have some people fooled. Carnival's annual net income was $1.912 billion last year. And we're supposed to feel that cut backs are a necessary thing? Maybe to keep their income at sky high levels but if they accepted a bit lower income AND delivered a good product WITHOUT the cutbacks maybe they'll be a stronger company 5, 6, 7 years down the road.

 

I gotta hand it to these companies especially Carnival. They've got people convinced that they're dirt poor and mac and cheese and meatloaf is all they can afford to feed us nowadays. Sheeesh.

 

I guess some people are fooled. Carnival Corporation owns a number of cruise lines and doesn't release numbers for individual lines. For all we know, Carnival cruise line may be keeping Cunard afloat. :cool:

[kingpinJK]

how about a positive note?

 

In freeport/port lucaya, I had the BEST Gyro i've ever eaten in my entire life at Zorba's.

 

[b_bay_girl]

I hope you know I just kidding , I guess thats hard to see on the internet , I joke about everything. I dont take life to serious , as a cancer survivor I just take life one day at a time. As to your plight , sometimes we just have to take the lemons and make lemonade and go on. If Carnival is not your cup of tea so be it. Don't think I would condemn a whole cruiseline on one ship . Our last cruise on the Victory wasn't all that great more or less because I didnt like the class of ship . But life goes on , sometimes cruising isnt for everyone as well . I keep thinking I want to try an AI resort than I think man stuck in one place for a week , not for me for more than a cruise would cost or just as much.

 

Good luck with future vaction choices I know it stinks when you spend your hard earned money and come home not happy.

 

Last cruise we were on, we said we were doing an all inclusive next time and when it came time to start looking, it was back to cruising. My husband wasn't interested in getting up in the morning and going to the same beach, same bar, etc. I could just lie in the sun and read so it didn't matter to me, but cruising it is - in 3 1/2 weeks!! I am sure at the end of the week, we'll say " next time all inclusive" LOL I have had good and bad experiences with cruises and with A.I. I just go with the flow as long as I come back with good memories, relaxed and safe I am happy.

[BeachChik]

Other than the bed seems so minor as to be silly complaints. How is it possible to get bored on a cruise ship? Never happened to me. Use some salt and pepper on your steak.

 

Why do people feel the need to dismiss others complaints. Just because they are things that don't matter to you doesn't mean they dont impact someones vacation. I bet there are things you feel are important that I would say are silly but that's doesn't make them less valid.

 

But again it goes along with the blind loyalty that people have to one cruise line.

[Nanaimobound]

Thanks for starting an un-biased review.

We sailed out of Galveston in 2010 on Conquest. It was our first Carnival cruise. I thought the food was fine, not the best ever, but I enjoyed the food.

For me the issue was service on Lido deck. After day 2, we noticed that more and more dirty tables just sat unattended. It started drawing flies at one point and that was just gross and no excuse for it.

We enjoyed our cruise, but could see Conquest was in need of some dry dock attention as well.

But all the controversy ended when we sailed on Splendor last May. We had a perfect cruise on a beautiful ship, with an outstanding crew.

It is not an excuse that Conquest and others in the fleet are older, but it seems to follow a sort of trend of older ships not always having a great staff (which for me is the heart of a ship).

Anyway sorry you didn't have a great time on your cruise, We are excited to sail on Splendor again in April. I guess what i am trying to convey is ships can vary greatly even within a line. Some are great, others not so much!:)

[dmet0225]

....and the channel that show’s the ship’s status was stuck on the same slide for the entire trip.

 

 

You mean I should have been able to turn on the TV in my stateroom and see the ship's status? (insert big question-mark-while-scratching-my-head smilie here) I must have missed that channel every time I scrolled through the channels on my TV during my cruise on the Conquest last July. I guess since it wasn' there, I didn't miss it or know that I should have been irritated that it wasn't there. (I actually was looking for it, because I remember having that type of channel when I cruised on an RCCL ship in 2004.)

[fitzy123]

Why do people feel the need to dismiss others complaints. Just because they are things that don't matter to you doesn't mean they dont impact someones vacation. I bet there are things you feel are important that I would say are silly but that's doesn't make them less valid.

 

But again it goes along with the blind loyalty that people have to one cruise line.

 

 

I totally agree...I like reading all of the reviews, the good, the bad, and the ugly. I can decide for myself what things would bother me and what things wouldn't. I don't understand why people get so defensive on here. If you don't want to read about other people's opinions, why go on Cruise Critic? Isnt that what its for?

[Cruzface]

agree.

This IS supposed to be a place to talk about ones experiences good and bad. Sometimes, for some reason, some people forget that. :rolleyes:

 

 

 

 

 

LOL...I agree with you again.

I do find it funny, that you can say the same thing about CCL that I would, but I get slammed because I choose (or, should I say am going to choose after April) not to cruise with them any longer (for now...anyway).

If you say they are offering less quality, nobody jumps on your case.

 

The irony is quite funny.

 

To be honest, food is food, and I have never gone hungry on any cruise (even RCI where the food on that particular cruise I took was NOT good) however, knowing that somebody might not be changing sheets in between passengers bothers me. I don't like that at all.

 

Since the OP is writing to corporate, one thing I am wanting to hear about is if he gets a decent response.

No cruise is perfect, but how customer relations deals with complaints means a LOT...and I am not talking compernsation here, just acknowledgment beyond the standard, scripted return letter.

 

Maybe it's just the way I say it...:confused:

[frito58]

Last cruise we were on, we said we were doing an all inclusive next time and when it came time to start looking, it was back to cruising. My husband wasn't interested in getting up in the morning and going to the same beach, same bar, etc. I could just lie in the sun and read so it didn't matter to me, but cruising it is - in 3 1/2 weeks!! I am sure at the end of the week, we'll say " next time all inclusive" LOL I have had good and bad experiences with cruises and with A.I. I just go with the flow as long as I come back with good memories, relaxed and safe I am happy.

 

LOL I think my wife could do the same thing , I think guys get bored to easy , we are children at heart :D Maybe someday. The best deal on AI is in Oct but then you have to book last minute because of the H things , I still may someday Cancun area looks so inviting never say never for we do 2 vacations a year in 2013 we a spring cruise booked sooooooo that fall we may take the plunge that or Disney World :eek:

[Tapi]

If someone is "bored" and thinks that there's nothing to do on a cruise' date=' then cruising (in my opinion) is obviously the wrong type of vacation for them.[/quote']

 

I see the OP's point when he says he was bored on this cruise, because like him, we've also had our share of boring moments on recent Carnival cruises. That doesn't mean that we shouldn't go cruising. We love it, and will continue doing so. We just don't care about Carnival's entertainment anymore because it has become repetitive, dumbed down, and IMHO, downright insulting to people's intelligence.

 

For those who consider hairy chest contests, bartending competitions, slot tournaments and free liquor tastings prime forms of entertainment, they are in luck! But for those with more discerning taste and looking for something that stimulates their brains just a bit more, they are out of luck on a Carnival ship.

 

We still love to cruise on Carnival because it allows us to enjoy the basic pleasures of crusing without spending too much, and that's entertainment enough for me...

[elcuchio24]

not angry, far from it really. I'm just making a point that if you want to flame me then do it in person and not from behind a keyboard.

 

You just seem super angry. I haven't seen anyone anyone attack you personally. I think alot of people have just had different experiences. And for the record: the salsa does suck.

[sparks1093]

So have we gotten to the main reason why the OP won't be sailing with CCL again? I can't keep up:o.

[Betsybill]

Sailed Conquest in December and agree embarkation was horrendous. Had received an email from Carnival the week prior stating if travel was flexible to arrive at port between 10:30 and 12:30. Left Hotel (Hilton) in a taxi (was beginning to rain) at 10:15 and sat in traffic for an hour (and the Saints were NOT playing in town). Once we arrived at the drop area, there were still a lot of passengers from the prior cruise waiting transportation away from the Port. I believe part of the grid lock was due to debarkation on the incoming cruise being delayed for whatever reason.

 

I had to hunt down a porter to take our checked bags. Once in the Terminal the lines moved quickly enough and the remaining boarding process went smoothly.

 

Our room was fine and steward (Bawa) took great care of us. Had early dining and all went well there also. Tried some things I didn't care for and had some things I really liked. Wait staff was appropriately attentive.

 

I was intent on relaxing on this trip and spent the 3 sea days up on deck reading. Nary a chair hog is site....in fact, there were plenty of chairs to be had even in prime areas around the pools. One thing I noticed (not sure if this is just on the Conquest or all ships) was Bingo.... Last March, on sea days there would be Bingo Sessions where you could play multiple games of bingo at the session for the same fee. Didn't see that on the Conquest. I sail the Freedom this March and hope they have the multiple games of bingo there. (they did in 2010 as I won!! woot, woot).

 

Debarkation was another painful process. Seems there were issues again and self debark was not called until close to 9:00.....Unfortunately, no preliminary announcements were made regarding the delay and as a result, there was a total gridlock outside the elevators on deck 3 with a mix of self and assigned folks all trying to figure out where and when to go.

 

All in all, my experience was good....Not my favorite cruise by any means and probably ranks at the bottom of the 4 I've been on. But was still enjoyable. I look forward to the rest of this review to see how your experience compared to mine.

 

We were with you on this cruise, what you're saying is right on. NOLA needs work for embarkation. A five minute shuttle ride in January turned into a 45 min. trip this time. Couldn't find a porter where the shuttle dropped us off, so carried all our bags on. Half of the sign and sail check in desks wern't manned, even the VIP line was backed up.Then the zone concept also needs work. Embarkation also was a chore, we have a only a two hour drive home, but we could hve been home at 1 pm instead of 3.

The cruise was fine, very relaxing. The food was good, cabin was clean,and all the crew were friendly. With what we paid for the cruise, I have no complaints other than embarkation and debarkation. We use CCL for trips that are just getaways. Sometimes we don't get off the ship at ports that we've been to before. We tend to use another cruise line when we go to a destination (Europe, Bermuda, Hawaii) and have had great cruises with them. I would sail on the Conquest again, but would like to change up the itenerary.

[Cruzface]

I totally agree...I like reading all of the reviews, the good, the bad, and the ugly. I can decide for myself what things would bother me and what things wouldn't. I don't understand why people get so defensive on here. If you don't want to read about other people's opinions, why go on Cruise Critic? Isnt that what its for?

 

Absolutely agree. I was reading a review last night of the Dream and the person complained that High Tea was served in the MDR when it should have been in one of the cozier lounges with linens and classical music on the piano! LOL!! That one cracked me up!

[kingpinJK]

So have we gotten to the main reason why the OP won't be sailing with CCL again? I can't keep up:o.

I'll answer it for you myself. I feel that over the last year the quality of product has degraded to a point of where i don't believe CCL is deserving of my hard earned money.

 

I spent $1700 for our stateroom(balcony, empress, starboard, aft) for both myself and my wife... with tip. Additionally we spent ~$700 on board on jewelry, 2 new watches, an excursion in nassau, and miscellaneous other items. we spent $100 in gas to drive from houston to new orleans and spent another $180(split between us and her mom who sailed in the cabin next to ours) for a hotel room/parking package.

 

it wasn't a "cheap" vacation, especially since i'm the only one between us who has a job at the moment, but it was something we both needed and we used it to celebrate her receiving her bachelors in december.

 

I think for the price we paid we would have been able to pull off a better vacation, but hindsight is 20/20.

[sparks1093]

I'll answer it for you myself. I feel that over the last year the quality of product has degraded to a point of where i don't believe CCL is deserving of my hard earned money.

 

I spent $1700 for our stateroom(balcony, empress, starboard, aft) for both myself and my wife... with tip. Additionally we spent ~$700 on board on jewelry, 2 new watches, an excursion in nassau, and miscellaneous other items. we spent $100 in gas to drive from houston to new orleans and spent another $180(split between us and her mom who sailed in the cabin next to ours) for a hotel room/parking package.

 

it wasn't a "cheap" vacation, especially since i'm the only one between us who has a job at the moment, but it was something we both needed and we used it to celebrate her receiving her bachelors in december.

 

I think for the price we paid we would have been able to pull off a better vacation, but hindsight is 20/20.

 

Thank you.

[debster11]

Why is the OP being slammed for having an opinion? Just because someone doesn't agree with his experiences doesn't mean he should be flamed for it. I may not agree with everything he said but that is how he saw it. He has the right to his opinion. Just sayin.

[WeBeCruisin']

Oh, well next time i'll consult you as to what i can do and not do on my next vacation, oh great king of the world.

 

Again, you're flinging insults without grasping the point.

 

The point is: If there are so very many aspects of cruising which either annoy you, disappoint you, or bore you (and you have promised to relate even more later in your "review"), then you would probably be happier with a different type of vacation.

 

That is my personal opinion. And my having that opinion does not make me an "idiot", "ignorant", or the "great king of the world" just because it's not an opinion you share.

[H82seaUgo]

Why is the OP being slammed for having an opinion? Just because someone doesn't agree with his experiences doesn't mean he should be flamed for it. I may not agree with everything he said but that is how he saw it. He has the right to his opinion. Just sayin.

 

how to start an argument online:

 

1. write an opinion

2. wait

[dliteu]

Well SAid

[Rowan555]

I spent $1700 for our stateroom(balcony, empress, starboard, aft) for both myself and my wife... with tip. Additionally we spent ~$700 on board on jewelry, 2 new watches, an excursion in nassau, and miscellaneous other items. we spent $100 in gas to drive from houston to new orleans and spent another $180(split between us and her mom who sailed in the cabin next to ours) for a hotel room/parking package.

 

 

 

We drove from New Orleans to Galveston for the 1/1/12 Magic sailing, and had the best cruise of our lives. We almost just did Conquest b/c it was so much closer (15 minute drive!), but we decided to splurge. You might want to give the Magic a go before you throw out the baby with the bathwater.

[DrLookGood]

I'll answer it for you myself. I feel that over the last year the quality of product has degraded to a point of where i don't believe CCL is deserving of my hard earned money.

 

I spent $1700 for our stateroom(balcony, empress, starboard, aft) for both myself and my wife... with tip. Additionally we spent ~$700 on board on jewelry, 2 new watches, an excursion in nassau, and miscellaneous other items. we spent $100 in gas to drive from houston to new orleans and spent another $180(split between us and her mom who sailed in the cabin next to ours) for a hotel room/parking package.

 

it wasn't a "cheap" vacation, especially since i'm the only one between us who has a job at the moment, but it was something we both needed and we used it to celebrate her receiving her bachelors in december.

 

I think for the price we paid we would have been able to pull off a better vacation, but hindsight is 20/20.

 

OP,

 

I agree with you regarding Carnival getting to the point when it does not deserve my hard earned money. Our family of 4 recently came back from New Year 6 day cruise. All in all (cruise fare, excursions, airfare, on board spending, tips, etc..) we spend around 7K for our family of 4 (6 days, not 7!). And we felt that the quality went down from our August cruise on the same ship (less than a year). Why should I be spending this kind of money on so so experience?

 

We are jumping ship for the next 2 cruises. They are going to be more expensive (but percentage-wise not that much). Then we will re-evaluate. And maybe if enough people complain Carnival will get a clue and get their act together to provide the value vacation they used to provide.