Cruising is not for us

[noah53]

This was our first cruise, 5 days on Ecstacy and we now know cruising is not for us. There were some good points, Half Moon Cay was fabulous, enjoyable local van tour in Nassau, food on elegant night was good, we had some very good beef on the Lido deck and enjoyed our balcony suite, good lemonade, Steve was a great juggler and violin player. However there were too many negatives - too many lineups and crowds, too much cold food in main dining room, cold toast everywhere, too much smoke drifting over into non-smoking areas. Last morning we were in Sapphire lounge for foreign immigration stamp at 6am, fifteen minutes later were told that US agents would not be there til 7am, either sit and wait or go get breakfast and come back. Very disappointed to end cruise getting up at 5:30am. All in all too many lineups and waiting to suit us. Glad to be back on land. We live in the country and perhaps this is another reason that we found that cruising is not for us.

[firefly333]

Maybe the 2nd oldest cruise ship in on a budget line is the problem.

 

Celebrity and Princess do not even allow smoking on your balcony. It seems to me, many of your complaints could be cured by trying a more upscale line.

 

Carnival is not for everyone. A smaller ship would have fewer crowds as well.

[Kamloops50]

Never being on Carnival I can't answer you. I would try another cruise line more upscale with a newer ship . You don't mention your age group .

 

If you are between 20 and 40 my recommendation would be Royal Caribbean

40 to 60 - Princess or Celebrity

60 + - Princess or Holland America.

 

You should try 7 day instead of a 5 day.

 

True cruising isn't for everyone.

[caribsun]

At least you gave it a try, we all have our likes and dislikes.

[spleenstomper]

Cruising is not for everyone. It sounds like you enjoyed your ports of call, so that is good.

 

I also agree about trying a more upscale cruise line before you decide... I have neighbors who refuse to do any cruise line other than crystal.

 

My mother refuses to set foot on a ship.. Says she needs land!

 

I'm glad you tried it and had a nice time on your vacation. Maybe next time a land vacation to a destination-- maybe an all inclusive resort-- would be more to your liking.

[firefly333]

I was thinking one of the smaller Celebrity ships might fit better too.

[ItsAllAboutTheSass]

At least you tried it. Not sure I would try another if I was you as you will already be predetermined not to like it. Find the vacations that you enjoy and enjoy yourself.

[nonna5]

At least you tried it. Cruising is not for everyone. Just as other types of vacations are not for everyone. Have a great time on the types of vacations that make you happy. :)

[FightOnRon]

It really isn't for everyone. My first cruise was an Alaska cruisetour and we formed a group of 8 that bonded and we are still in touch today. But it drove one man int he group nuts. Coudln't stand be confined,,even though it was on a giant ship. Just the thought that he was not in control of his day (especially sea day) and where he went made him nuts.

[happy cruzer]

In my opinion almost all travel has lots of line ups. Airports are the worst in my opinion. When doing land travel, you can run into lines at ticket counters, museums, restaurants, buses, taxi stands, etc. so I'm not sure there is ever a guarantee to avoid crowds and lines if you want to see something that is popular.

 

But now you know about cruising. Although many experienced cruisers just never get in a long line, they tend to do something else and wait until the line dies down. Regardless there is stuff out of your control when you are on a ship with alot of others so you have to be flexible.

[Knights on the Beach]

At least you tried it. Not sure I would try another if I was you as you will already be predetermined not to like it. Find the vacations that you enjoy and enjoy yourself.

I agree, cruising is not for everyone. I wouldn't try to convince someone to try it again unless they came here asking how to find a ship/cruise line that was better suited to them.

[Redsfan]

do agree with you on immigration...was a pain in the you know what to have to line up at 6:45am on debark day. A bit of a sleep in would be nice, and to not have to be rushed down there would have been ideal. To be forced to get up so early on our last morning was crap if you ask me again.

 

6am does sound early though...

 

If we are able to Vacation now cruising is great for our kids. They get to visit many different countries/islands and cultures, and the Camp allows us time alone and them to have a great time meeting new people.

 

Just me an my wife I may prefer an AI...

[mjl1960]

Anytime you travel it seems like there are lines...thus I am not crazy about travelling. However, what does appeal to me about cruising is being able to wake up somewhere different, and the service we get. Never really had much problem with cold food in the MDR, or it would have gone back for sure. I have never really been a fan of the buffet, seems like they get a weird slants on different foods that are supposed to be American sometimes...in other words, it ain't like mamma used to fix it.

[firefly333]

I know its not for everyone .. like my new BIL who hates the idea. I booked them a cruise, I paid for .. got a real deal on Celebrity. They said they dont want to fly, book something closer, booked Conquest, nice OV cabin .. changed their minds again.

 

I lost money on the deal cancelling it, not to mention all the work booking and cancelling twice. They feel its not even worth apologizing to me because I asked them if they wanted the cruise .. so its my fault for offering it. They did this with less than 48 hours as I was leaving for my cruise last week.

[airlink diva]

Nothing wrong in knowing that cruising is not your vacation thing!

I have a friend that loves to travel, but don't like cruises. Her main reason is the timeframe allowed in port. She don't like the fact you don't spend a whole day in port.

She tried two cruises on two different cruiseline and still didn't like them.

Enjoy your vacations the way you want to!!!

[jonbgd]

Its Ok If cruising isnt for you I know alot of people that done like it. Thats thier choice.

Someone on the Royal boards just said the same thing today after the Allure.

[sailaway4]

Understand completely. Just like some people love to live in the country and hate the city. I'm from the country,live in the suburbs and hate it.

 

There are some vacations that are not for me,put me in a place like Vegas and I would complain the whole time. Most of my families' vacations,sea and land,my siblings and parents would hate. My husband and I drag our kids a lot of places but,I think we may be weird that way.

 

At least you tried and have the experience. Enjoy your country life because,I have almost 3 years before I can move back.

[golfadj]

Worth trying and if you dont like try something else.

[Tapi]

I agree about the smoking. Ventilation on the Fantasy class ships is horrendous. There's always a lingering stale cigarette smell. The smoking was soooo bad on our last Fascination cruise, that we almost chose not to cruise Carnival again (but we later did aboard the Dream and everything was OK).

 

As others have said, cruising is not for everyone, but keep in mind that not all cruise lines are created equal. Now that you know what you liked and disliked, maybe you can narrow it down to a ship/cruise line more to your liking if you do decide to try it again some day...

[sail2sea]

Sorry you didn't enjoy it. Cruising really isn't for everyone.

 

If you choose to give cruising another chance, I second that an upscale line would be less crowded and may be your thing. I have a friend who hates land based all-inclusive's. She prefers luxury lines such as Crystal but think Carnival is fun in a different way. Not all ports require immigration on the last day though. Miami does not.

 

Whatever you choose, I hope your next vacation is better.

[molole]

Op, not saying you are obligated to give it another try or anything but if you do want to try it again I suggest try a longer cruise. The feel is likely very different. :)

[noah53]

Yes we (close to 60 yrs old) gave it a try, and now will return to our usual means of travelling, sometimes camping in rv and other times in motels and hotels. Haha we shall see how the lineups are at Universal in a few days. On board the ship we did search out quiet areas and they did exist but there was always a lineup for the next activity or meal. We enjoyed our balcony alot but there was a smoker 2 balconies away and whenever he hung over the railing smoking we retreated inside. With 2,000 people onboard, there will always be lineups and the herding will continue, can't imagine the Oasis with 6,000 passengers (heard it will come to Port Canavaral in future) not having lineups like Ecstasy does. The pool was bit chilly and it was almost empty all cruise, enjoyed the swims. Five days was plenty of time to judge. For everyone who enjoys cruising - happy cruises for all.

[Roscoe13]

Yes we (close to 60 yrs old) gave it a try, and now will return to our usual means of travelling, sometimes camping in rv and other times in motels and hotels. Haha we shall see how the lineups are at Universal in a few days. On board the ship we did search out quiet areas and they did exist but there was always a lineup for the next activity or meal. We enjoyed our balcony alot but there was a smoker 2 balconies away and whenever he hung over the railing smoking we retreated inside. With 2,000 people onboard, there will always be lineups and the herding will continue, can't imagine the Oasis with 6,000 passengers (heard it will come to Port Canavaral in future) not having lineups like Ecstasy does. The pool was bit chilly and it was almost empty all cruise, enjoyed the swims. Five days was plenty of time to judge. For everyone who enjoys cruising - happy cruises for all.

 

While you are correct that cruising just isn't for you, understand too that the more you cruise the more you learn.

 

After my first cruise I figured out right away that if I could get to the buffet line early or late I would bypass much of the herd. Same with the shows, try to be early and take a drink with you and play the bingo and you'll be much more relaxed than showing up five minutes before show time.

 

Same with the MDR, if you have a 8:15 seating for dinner you can wait in the que at 8:00 to 8:15 or go at 8:20 and walk right to your table.

 

Little things like that might have helped you at least have a better time while you figured out that it's not your cup o'tea.

[Tapi]

With 2,000 people onboard, there will always be lineups and the herding will continue, can't imagine the Oasis with 6,000 passengers (heard it will come to Port Canavaral in future) not having lineups like Ecstasy does.

 

You would be surprised! We did the Allure last May and there were ZERO lines. We didn't stand in line one time. Embarkation, debarkation, buffet, shows...ZERO. The ship is divided into so many sections, that people are spread out all over. Ironically, the ship almost feels intimate at times!

 

Even though the Oasis twins are considerably larger, they are a much modern design, and were engineered to handle crowds with minimal lines. On the contrary, The Ecstasy was built in the early 90's and it was one of the first "mega-ship" experiments, so even though it's a third the size of the Allure/Oasis, its passenger flow is much worse.

 

Cruise lines have learned a lot since the Ecstasy was conceived. But still, Carnival is not known for "generous" space to passenger ratios...

[deborahjo]

Cruising is not for everyone. It is what you make of it in my view. We love it.