"carnival the food was awful" cruise review for everyone lol.

[missmad]

well i see that my original thread exploded, and everyone has been asking for my promised review so here it is...

Firstly i have cruised on pearl, sun and solstice so this carnival spirit cruise was my 4th.

the ship itself i thought was really nice but the decor just totally weird and of such poor quality for such a smart ship, the murals on the walls and paintings etc just plain tacky i thought, and all the painted plastic etc, but overall it was a lovely clean well maintained ship

 

staff were all nice enough, room steward putu fantastic, just not as fun and friendly as the p and o cruises we had been on, but cant really complain, for the job they do and money they get i certainly couldnt work on a cruise ship

 

room was nice, good space etc, but normal cruise room, no complaints there either but nothing totally stood out as being better than any other cruise

 

now entertainment i thought was quite poor, dj i felt played at some odd times and when a lot of people were up on deck by the pool a lot of the time there was nothing at all, yet other times noone was around and the dj was playing. i felt the singers all sung very similar music and all of the same era, whenever i went to karaoke no one was really singing same with the family sing alongs, the guy that sang on deck 2 was awful, it was like there was no real variety between them all, the Filipino band i think it was were ok but again very mediocre really, same stuff night after night.

shows i watched several, lady beside me had done over 20 cruises and walked out on one of the shows i watched, she said 1 before had been top notch but the rest boring as. when the hit song is hip to be square even im not going to sit and watch lol (and that was from the guy i thought had he had been given some decent songs to sing would have been fantastic), def felt very let down by entertainment.

now food, when i go on a cruise my expectations are never real high, just happy to be fed, but very let down with the foods being served well below hot. buffet was really bad for it, and unless you were right by the bain marie when they were changing then it was never too good, a lot of the stuff they had preprepared under the bain marie and they would replace with the tray that had obviously been already sitting in the warming area under so was served warm anyway, other stuff they fried/cooked at the buffet so was nice and hot and fresh.

other thing was all the fruit etc was fresh, cereal all preboxed etc, so if you wanted cereal and fruit for breakfast it would have been brilliant but i have that every day of my normal life and wanted stuff i normally wouldnt have like pancakes, waffles bacon and eggs, all generally served luke warm each morning without fail, i did however find the omelete bar and lived off omelets for the remainder of the cruise as they were awesome (but a lot of the time the line was not!)

lunch was not available in the dining room the few times i tried, but i know there were open im sure, fat jimmys was ok, was very windy so cooling factor of food wasnt great the day i ate there, but baked potato i got i think was one from the week before it was cold dried out and just plain bad, other stuff ok though.

main dining room, now you know the only thing i got hot from there? the warm choc melting cake, i mean really? the one thing supposed to be served warm was served almost to hot to eat everytime ( i did enjoy that cake though!), i thought the menu in there a bit disappointing too, lamb rack was the best meal by far, menu and food just didnt do it for me at all.

also they asked how you wanted your steak done, i got it done med twice and both times came out very well cooked. i didnt send anything back, i am generally not fussy and just ate what got put in front of me but seriously, i think they need a little more variety on the menu and to serve the food hot.

im wondering if people who got hot food all the time were served at specific times or something? seems weird some of us that cruise carnival say food is cold and others swear it is served hot and im wondering if at peak times food may be served hotter and fresher than when it is slow and food has been sitting prepared and waiting for first/last orders.

oh and the water slides, brilliant as was the water park, they would be the only reason i would possibly go with carnival again (and the great price i paid for my cruise of course) kids loved them, they were open almost the whole cruise and we got our fair share of rides out of them.

kids clubs, what do i say, while my daughter enjoyed it, for me as a parent worst kids club ever, they were always somewhere different and unless you carried the guide you could never find them to get your kid in, ques for sign in were way to long and drawn out, and get this i wasnt allowed into the kids club at any time to see what my child was doing, who was looking after her or who she was with, apparently i can go to any school, kindy, childcare centre in the state (with a staff member of course) but on carnival i was banned and not even allowed past the front door as i may have posed a danger to the other kids, seriously that made me quite mad, but anyhow....

thats about it, would i cruise carnival again, if the price was super super awesome, i guess so, but i will be looking toward p and o for my next cruise unless something else smacks me in the face pricewise....

p.s the internet was awesome!

[KiwiFunCruiser]

Good to see you have come back with a full review. Good to see also that most of your cruise was normal and also great to hear that all the food was not all "awfull". Good that you moved on and enjoyed the rest of your cruise. Great review.

[fishtaco]

Dinning room food on P&O I have found to be much better than Both Carnival and RCI,taste quality and presentation but fell far far behind on included alternative choices and hours food is available.

 

Carnival USA doesnt open the dinning room for lunch on shore days, did you go on shore days? Might be the same with Carnival Australia and the reason it was closed?

 

P&O cruises seem to have a bit more of daytime family and late Adult entertainment but i found the American brands to focus more on show lounge type shows with little to no daytime entertainment unless of course you love trivia and crossword competitions:(

[Wyuna1]

Missmad,

Thank you for the review of your Carnival Spirit cruise and yes the original post certainly opened some interesting debate. I am cruising on Carnival Spirit in July so I read with interest your comments and will post a review when I return.

Like yourself I also have cruised on P&O and found on occasions that the food was not as hot or cooked to my liking I simply asked for it to be replaced which was done without any problems.

Regarding the ships decor I have looked at all the available advertising material and read many reviews, which I assume that you did also, so am aware that the decor is a little over the top but I am looking forward to seeing some American Glitz. Once again thanks for your review.:)

[Australian family]

kids clubs, what do i say, while my daughter enjoyed it, for me as a parent worst kids club ever, they were always somewhere different and unless you carried the guide you could never find them to get your kid in, ques for sign in were way to long and drawn out, and get this i wasnt allowed into the kids club at any time to see what my child was doing, who was looking after her or who she was with, apparently i can go to any school, kindy, childcare centre in the state (with a staff member of course) but on carnival i was banned and not even allowed past the front door as i may have posed a danger to the other kids, seriously that made me quite mad, but anyhow....

thats about it, would i cruise carnival again, if the price was super super awesome, i guess so, but i will be looking toward p and o for my next cruise unless something else smacks me in the face pricewise....

p.s the internet was awesome!

 

 

What right do they have for denying you entry into the kids club to see what your child is doing??

 

They seem to be a law into themselves. The question needs to be asked what are they hiding? As a parent you need to feel happy with the care that your kid is in.

[The Fox]

Hi ,

 

Good honest review...I agree P&O put on great cruisres for entertainment etc but as for food and the standard of their ships I cannot agree with you .When i sailed on P&O in the earlier years when they were P&O orient they were excellent.When they became P&O australia thats when they dropped the ball.....they killed the poor old fairstar.

 

From your review it all seems to revolve around food....standard of the food is my least concern when I cruise.

 

Just my view

 

Col:)

[bazzaw]

What right do they have for denying you entry into the kids club to see what your child is doing??

 

They seem to be a law into themselves. The question needs to be asked what are they hiding? As a parent you need to feel happy with the care that your kid is in.

 

Right??? I would think that the only "right" they have is what people agree to when they sign the children into the care of the kids centre. As I don't have children, can others please describe their experience on different cruiselines.

 

I can imagine at least a couple of reasons why the cruiselines would not want parents coming into the childrens centre.

 

I like the P&O AUS sign that says at the gangway something like :" It is only compulsory for people who wish to board this vessel to be subject to search procedures". In other words, it's not compulsory to board -- but IF you want to, there are search procedures to go through :)

 

Barry

[didiaust]

Thanks for your review - We are sailing Carnival in 11days and I too will post a review and I will post on FB also which I suggest you also do as someone from Carnival usually responds.

 

I agree with you Fox- we thought the food on P&O just slipped into tastelessness as each cruise went by . We switched to Royal Caribbean and enjoyed a more tasty selection only to give P&O(Dawn) another try last January 2012. Back to cardboard food - soft , crisp and in between. Must say it was hot but not a lover of hot cardboard and that's what most of the offerings tasted like. Fairstar is just a memory but I will not forget many of the tasty dishes on offer.

 

I am a believer in giving good feedback and I often do to many companies but I also believe you should feel comfortable voicing disapproval about service and products.

 

Just off topic - we sent feedback about a wonderful sales person who sold us a stove ... well once it was delivered and I started using it was the worst stove I have ever cooked on and her ears must be burning as she did a right royal sales pitch on us and flogged us a lemon.

 

Di

[JimAOk1945]

Thanks for your review. You've mentioned the food, entertainment, staff, kids club, etc. but nothing about the ports of call.

Did you go ashore? Did you go on any shore excursions? You haven't mentioned them yet. I'm eagerly awaiting to hear about them. :D

[Sutho]

So it sounds to me that the food was not all that bad after all. Considering its a buffet you cant expect it to be steaming hot. I have done land tours like Contiki as well as hotel stays before and after cruise and even land tours to Ayers Rock. The hotel food is generally much the same as cruise ship food. I have never had a problem with temperature of food anywhere I have eaten.

 

So after reading this it looks as if the cruise was good enough for them.

 

Regarding kids club. Entry for adults could be restricted to prevent hoards of parents congesting the room on a ship where there could be up to 1000 parents. Not a good idea having them allowed all in the one small room. The other alternative explanation is that the US seem to be over-protective of children and perceive others as a "threat". Recently when I cruised on Celebrity Solstice their kids club was in an area forward on the ship and a main staircase leading to the upper decks actually passed it. There was a sign on the wall in that passageway that was quite noticable and read something along the lines of "there is to be no filming, video taping or photography of other peoples children in the kids club" Given that Carnival is a US brand and leart their trade in the US you could expect them to have US type rules and regulations, some of which us Australians may see as quite bizzare and strange.

[Aussieflyer]

IMO you still miss the point Sutho. The OP was not happy with the food overall and has every right to make that comment. Just because you do not agree does not mean you can try to negate their view or say that they admit that the food was not that bad (thus validating all your posts in the original thread).

The OP said that really only the items cooked to order in the buffet were consistently hot and fresh and said overall that the menu and food did not "do it for" her/him. Yes, they ate the food and did not send it back but that does not mean they found it fine, as they commented.

That you have never had a problem with the temperature of your food does not mean that others see it in the same way.

[Sutho]

The OP said that really only the items cooked to order in the buffet were consistently hot and fresh and .

 

Anyone who has picked up food straight from the hot plate/oven/grill or however it is cooked knows it is going to be hot.

 

The buffet is meant to keep it warm not boiling hot. If the buffet food had heating trying to keep the food at cooking temperature then it would quickly burn. You cant expect food in the buffet to be boiling hot in the serving line.

[Aus Traveller]

Anyone who has picked up food straight from the hot plate/oven/grill or however it is cooked knows it is going to be hot.

 

The buffet is meant to keep it warm not boiling hot. If the buffet food had heating trying to keep the food at cooking temperature then it would quickly burn. You cant expect food in the buffet to be boiling hot in the serving line.

 

No necessarily. Buffet food and pizza on the Century Celebrity was nearly cold. On a couple of occasions we were waiting for the buffet to open so the food hadn't sat there for a long time getting cold. It wasn't hot when the buffet opened. Just ask Les (NWSP) for his opinion on this on the Celebrity ship he went on.:D

 

By the way, we have been on a lot of cruises (around 50) on several different cruiselines. The sweeping statement in the first line of your post is breath-taking in its arrogance. All due respect to you, but I think you should consider that other people can have a different experience to yourself.

[Sutho]

No necessarily. Buffet food and pizza on the Century Celebrity was nearly cold. On a couple of occasions we were waiting for the buffet to open so the food hadn't sat there for a long time getting cold. It wasn't hot when the buffet opened. Just ask Les (NWSP) for his opinion on this on the Celebrity ship he went on.:D

 

I was on the same cruise as him and never encountered a problem with the food on it. The main dining room was always hot and I had any time dining. I ate in the alternative restuarants and buffet. I never got cold food from the buffet once.

 

That being said when I use the buffet I never line up. I never join a queue and keep my eyes open for serving lines that have little to no passengers at them, I walk around the buffet first to see what I would like and always grab the food from the back just in case some other passenger has had their dirty fingers on the food at the front.

[6andy6]

Just ask Les (NWSP) for his opinion on this on the Celebrity ship he went on.:D

Never ever a good look to quote someone else...usually makes yourself look an idiot. I was also on the same cruise as Sutho and NSW...and I can assure you one of them is wrong..and it wasn't Sutho. The food in the buffet was more than warm...it was the correct temperature for a buffet. And as any fool should now...the idea of buffet food is that it sits there for time and you never ever keep food that sits there for any period of time hot - otherwise it continues to cook and dry out.

By the way, we have been on a lot of cruises (around 50) on several different cruiselines. All due respect to you, but I think you should consider that other people can have a different experience to yourself. Indeed they do......but here are two people that had the same experience vs one. So what odds would you be backing? And I have never met Sutho apart from in here so I have no cause to support his comments - in fact we have crossed swords on occasion..but I do find his comments while direct and sometimes lacking diplomacy often have a far more ring of truth than many in here.

 

One thing I have noticed is that Australians have become incredibly whingers and whiners....and they have the gall to make comments about the English. The simple fact of the matter is few mass market cruise lines are gourmet experiences - they are caterers. Some are better than others at one thing or another...but few are actually bad given the numbers they have to feed and the food that goes to waste and Celebrity was far from bad. But from reading some reviews you would think we were on a totally different ship but that just happened to have the same names. So you have to ask yourself...is it that we have been brought up on incredibly bad food in all our travels or is it some are just incredibly picky and fussy...? :rolleyes:

 

I have seen it said steaks were tough....I or my partner never had a tough steak on that ship so was someone being singled out to be given all the tough steaks out of the meat freezer or.... Small servings of vegetables?? Well maybe true.....however I didn't see any one dying of starvation, you could order multiple things and somehow, I think small portions is actually healthy (unless your a glutton) & leads to less waste. Easier to place extra on a plate when requested than over serve everyone and throw half of it away don't you think? However, I do know they pile it on at RSL clubs so I suppose that could be the comparison.....

[Australian family]

Right??? I would think that the only "right" they have is what people agree to when they sign the children into the care of the kids centre. As I don't have children, can others please describe their experience on different cruiselines.

 

I can imagine at least a couple of reasons why the cruiselines would not want parents coming into the childrens centre.

 

I like the P&O AUS sign that says at the gangway something like :" It is only compulsory for people who wish to board this vessel to be subject to search procedures". In other words, it's not compulsory to board -- but IF you want to, there are search procedures to go through :)

 

Barry

 

As a parent you have a right to know that your children are happy. With care of children there needs to be transparency. The children are in a totally different environment, and sometimes this can be very upsetting for some children. What does the cruiseline have to hide if they don't want you to check on your children??

[bazzaw]

As a parent you have a right to know that your children are happy. With care of children there needs to be transparency. The children are in a totally different environment, and sometimes this can be very upsetting for some children. What does the cruiseline have to hide if they don't want you to check on your children??

 

Certainly, I cannot disagree with the concept of having regard for the happiness of our children .

 

However -- as I implied, it is not compulsory to leave your children with the cruiseline, and if you are unhappy about any of the arrangements, then simply don't. Organisations (like cruiselines) develop different organisational arrangements for their own reasons - these arrangements and the reasons for them are not sacrosanct, however the bottom line is that you either go along with them -- or not. It is not a matter of "rights".

 

Barry

[Wyuna1]

I agree that parents have a right to be sure that their children are safe and happy, but doesn't that duty of care extend to knowing where there children are when not in the kids club.

I see children running around the ship unsupervised, riding the lifts pushing every button, knocking on cabin doors at night where are the parents then.

On our last two P&O cruises this was evident but was quickly stopped by security, I then overheard a group adults in Connexions complaining that security on board was ruining their and their children's holiday but being to strict on them.

Can't have it both ways.

[fishtaco]

I tend to agree with Bazzaw, perhaps because I also have no kids?

 

When you cruise as a childless couple or even single you become very aware that kids areas are a no go!

 

You can feel the stares burning into you from both carers and parents when you accidentally happen upon a kids club area by mistake whilst exploring the ship without a female partner, a male father on his own visiting his child in or around the club could cause just as much concern to parents who do not know he is a father of a kids club attendee!

 

My first ever cruise on P&O I walked into the buffet thinking it was open and was very quickly and sternly told to leave by kids club staff as it was young children's "Early Meal time only" How was I to know? I dont read the child entertainment section of the daily rag.

 

I am not sure any cruise line would allow children to wander the ship if they were signed into the kids club unless the parents signed a waiver to allow the child to come and go as they please?

 

Unruly children are the parents responsibility but this job on P&O seems to have been pushed solely onto security?

 

On both RCI and Carnival I didnt see one "Youth Security" just "security" so the US ships obviously work under different rules and dont need youth only security?

 

I read a gripe story once about a family who were removed from a cruise because the father of a young girl attacked another male cruiser in the cabins corridor for looking at his daughter while they were all in the lift together!

 

Was this the young girl pushing all the lift buttons and running up and down the corridor or a Perv that was unjustly allowed to stay while an innocent family was removed for protecting their rights?

[bazzaw]

I tend to agree with Bazzaw, perhaps because I also have no kids?

 

 

Perhaps I should have said -- I have no kids (now) :)

 

I've certainly got nothing against kids on cruiseships -- they always seem to be out and about enjoying themselves - have never seen any behaviours that I didn't approve of (perhaps I've been lucky) :)

 

I do however have an issue with people talking about their "rights"!! My personal philosophy is that I have no "rights" at all -- not even the right to breathe air. What I do have however is privilege -- I have the privilege to breathe the air -- and other things. :D That philosophy feels good to me.

 

Barry

[fishtaco]

Perhaps I should have said -- I have no kids (now) :)

 

I've certainly got nothing against kids on cruiseships -- they always seem to be out and about enjoying themselves - have never seen any behaviours that I didn't approve of (perhaps I've been lucky) :)

 

I do however have an issue with people talking about their "rights"!! My personal philosophy is that I have no "rights" at all -- not even the right to breathe air. What I do have however is privilege -- I have the privilege to breathe the air -- and other things. :D That philosophy feels good to me.

 

Barry

 

I have never had kids and have never experienced unruly kids on a cruise! Perhaps this is because we naturally stick to Adult areas?

 

Perhaps its a case of some parents dont like the parenting skills of others so call their kids unruly.

 

Some cruisers dont think the ships cooks are up to much so call the food cold and bland:D:D:D

[The_Big_M]

As a parent you have a right to know that your children are happy. With care of children there needs to be transparency. The children are in a totally different environment, and sometimes this can be very upsetting for some children. What does the cruiseline have to hide if they don't want you to check on your children??

 

It appears to be a liability thing for the US lines. They strictly control entry of parents/adults to the club area, and will deliver your child to you when you come to collect.

 

In most cases, your child should be able to tell you how they were treated and if they were enjoying it. Also, they all have multiple co-ordinators operating, so unless it's a kids club co-ordinator conspiracy! there's not going to be any funny business going on to need checking...

[NSWP]

No necessarily. Buffet food and pizza on the Century Celebrity was nearly cold. On a couple of occasions we were waiting for the buffet to open so the food hadn't sat there for a long time getting cold. It wasn't hot when the buffet opened. Just ask Les (NWSP) for his opinion on this on the Celebrity ship he went on.:D

 

By the way, we have been on a lot of cruises (around 50) on several different cruiselines. The sweeping statement in the first line of your post is breath-taking in its arrogance. All due respect to you, but I think you should consider that other people can have a different experience to yourself.

Aus traveller, thanks for your support, I feel my integrity has been questioned by 6andy6 and Sutho and I don't like that. But I am a big lad with thick skin. But I won't be cruising Celebrity again, I think they are vastly overrated, their cuisine in particular.

[Sutho]

Aus traveller, thanks for your support, I feel my integrity has been questioned by 6andy6 and Sutho and I don't like that. But I am a big lad with thick skin. But I won't be cruising Celebrity again, I think they are vastly overrated, their cuisine in particular.

 

You will get lots of people coming up with different opinions about food. Its no big deal. I personally found it outstanding and have never been disappointed with any meal served to me on a cruise ship. Its certainly better than pub and club meals and all the fast food restaurants ashore. I honestly could not fault the food that I ate on that ship and from all the cruises I have been on not one meal has ever been sent back and I have never had reason to complain about any food.

 

I think it probably comes down to diet and menu choices why some of the reviews are different. I am beginning to suspect that what you would eat is entirely different to any choice of foods I would select.

[Wyuna1]

Sutho,

When I first joined these boards I did it to learn from previous cruisers and I greatly appreciated your comment , review and opinion on matters related to "Cruising".

Lately you have exhibited the attitude that the only person on these boards whose opinion is worthy of consideration as correct is you.

If by chance they their opinion differed than yours they were wrong.

Not everyone has the same expectations as each other.

I suspect that not every restaurant and take away in Newcastle agreed that you delivered the "Best" chips in the Hunter.

Mellow my man and revert to positive not malicious comments.