Quick Pride 2.0 Review

[Walt70]

sorry you took it that way. i wish everyone a great cruise.sorry for the people that were on the 1st cruise after dry dock . i am sure carnival has worked out some of the bugs by now however that does not make it right.take the time and read the reviews that the guest from the 1st cruise have put on for everyone to read. that is what cruise critic is all about. to help each other not to try and make fun and show how smart you are. have a good cruise on the pride i know i will.

[Walt70]

1st let me thank all the people that took the time to post reviews about the cruise on the pride. i hope carnival reads them. now let me say please do not feel sorry for me or the people in my life we are doing fine take a long look at yourself. how you can think carnival did the right thing on nov,9th cruise is beyond me but to each his or her own. well i have nothing more to say. thank you cruise critic for your web site so we all know what is going on with the cruise lines and the reviews.

[Ti2m]

Walt I don't think you have anything to worry about November 30th. When we sailed the Pride in August the staff said it would be a whole new crew after dry dock. This, along with the fact the renovations were not 100% complete, is most likely the reason for the glitches.

 

Personally I would never take a cruise right after dry dock or even a maiden voyage unless I got such a great price that I would be willing to be a "guinea pig".

 

I'm sure the balconies have been cleaned and the crew is working together smoothly by now. Enjoy your cruise and be sure to leave a review.

Edited November 23, 2014 by Ti2m

[margek]

Any new slot machines in the casino?

[crusinpsychRN]

Relax everyone...There were some debark issues in the morning that created a log jam with luggage that pushed embark back resulting in Pride missing its scheduled 4PM sailing window with the next channel opening that started at 9PM. All should be well this Sunday; I'll let you know.

 

Same debark issues this morning. On their radios staff were heard saying the garbage was in front of the luggage and screwed up getting luggage off. Platinum not self debark got off at 11am.

 

So many rumors were flying last Sunday about why the late debark from the fire alarms not functioning properly--they tested them over 8 times with ear piercing blasts. Containers were still being loaded after 7pm, even some luggage didn't go on until after that.

 

Crew all have new uniforms, some really nice, others rather blah. The steward said he paid $158 for 3 new uniforms of various colors for morning and evening.

 

Many cabins have flat screens, many don't.

 

The Lido pool area is very different. Guy's, which was seldom crowded, has a condiment station and extra 'fixins' in the walkway area. Fixed benches and fixed bench seats are to the side--very few places to sit. Blue Iguana has the same arrangement on the side and that seating is also fixed and sort of walled off from the pool lounge chairs which were almost always turned to face the new screen which was really nice. 5 rows of deck lounges in front of the pool, one row to the side facing the pool.

 

The forward pool, Avalon, is smoking on starboard side. Both port and starboard have the same seating arrangement...5 rows of fixed tables with chairs you could move then the "lounge" area with really pretty wicker like loveseats or single chairs with blue cushions--that mash to nothing when sat on. The matching wicker tables go to the floor and have a glass top. Looked very nice but was really, really uncomfortable.

[crusinpsychRN]

Much of forward Lido deck by the Avalon pool wasn't cleaned up after guests would leave coffee cups or plates of food and forget getting the ash trays cleaned. People repeatedly asked for things to be removed and then they would be. A drink server would pass by, pick up a drink cup and leave 3 coffee cups sitting there. A guy was using a broom and dustpan although there didn't seem to be anything to dust up. One guy joked he should set the ash tray down on the floor, maybe it'd get picked up. That is not a new issue and not specific to Pride either.

 

One night the menu had oysters as the didya ever item. I asked for that and the waiter literally snatched the menu from me and said, "Oh wrong menu. We have ox tongue tonight." I thought he was kidding! He wasn't.

 

On the first night the crème brulee got to our table cold but they went out of their way and we were served perfect brulee the next night. Only once was the buffet food not hot, I count that as an improvement.

 

The pizza guy late at night needs a 2.0 attitude adjustment. Just a flat affect and never answered anybody's questions or respond in any way.

 

Entertainment was really hit or miss. The 88 show was just fair. The Getaway Island was full multi media with 3D glasses used twice for a minute. and beach balls bounced around the audience. They put in a lot of effort, but really blew the songs--how do you mess up Jimmy Buffett? and they tried to get people to continue the party at the Red Frog but that didn't work--few followed there.

[Walt70]

hi thank you for the info. i guess i would never book a cruise after dry dock after hearing what i have heard on the reviews. i am sure we will be o.k. on the nov.30th cruise. we will make the best of it no matter what. i will be sure and post a honest review of the cruise on the 30th of nov. on the pride. i still think carnival should do something for the guests on the 1st cruise (nov. 9 )what i do not know but something. i was not on that cruise however i did read the reviews and i hope carnival did too.

[albether7]

hi thank you for the info. i guess i would never book a cruise after dry dock after hearing what i have heard on the reviews. i am sure we will be o.k. on the nov.30th cruise. we will make the best of it no matter what. i will be sure and post a honest review of the cruise on the 30th of nov. on the pride. i still think carnival should do something for the guests on the 1st cruise (nov. 9 )what i do not know but something. i was not on that cruise however i did read the reviews and i hope carnival did too.

Wow....Walt, Have you read your previous posts?:confused:

 

I'm not even sure how to respond, but to guess you have to be messn' with us...Right?!

I'll give you the benefit of the doubt, believe the best, and so on...

 

AND, blame it either on your PC having that evil "brain-phart" virus that affects the ability to put rational thoughts into words, as well as scrambling your grammer "syntax".

BTW: I heard from others that, "I'ts goin' a round>:)

 

See link...http://examples.yourdictionary.com/syntax-in-writing-examples.html

 

Al out,

 

pss...I wish you well and could you provide a list of your up coming cruises so we maybe could hang out:D

[laurieannme]

DW and I sailed on the Legend the first sailing after drydock. Some of the areas still needed work but by no means did it ruin our trip. Carnival should have all the bugs worked out within the next couple of sailings.

 

We're sailing on the pride out of Tampa 2/15 and I cant wait.

hi luke, ill be on her on the 15th of feb, Will u be wearing that Auburn outfits? Ill be wearing that ga hat,looking forward to meeting up.

 

ga fan

[whyjst4]

Sitting on my balcony now ... We missed our window to leave, but am happy I am here. Burgers were great and our cabin was ready when we boarded. We have a flat screen in 6245. To me the ship looks great. Staff has been very attentive and nice. We have not seen the cabin steward yet, which is odd. I usually see him a few times the first day. Looking forward to a great week!!!!

 

 

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[whyjst4]

Ok ... First issue that I have had is that they do not do refills of the drink of the day at the casino bar. Other than that, all good on the Pride!

 

 

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[Captain Carnival]

Sitting on my balcony now ... We missed our window to leave, but am happy I am here. Burgers were great and our cabin was ready when we boarded. We have a flat screen in 6245. To me the ship looks great. Staff has been very attentive and nice. We have not seen the cabin steward yet, which is odd. I usually see him a few times the first day. Looking forward to a great week!!!!

 

 

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In Port Tampa Bay it's all about the timing and the window period for getting 3 cruise ships out on Sunday's is really small. Unfortunately all 3 were tardy getting in yesterday and there is a particular arrival order in which the ships must due to the limitations of the channel and small port/pier area. The HAL Ryndam must arrive first followed by the NCL Sun and lastly the Pride. Then later on that day there was a crew related medical issue that delayed departure and both Pride and the Ryndam missed there departure window. In the end, both Pride and Ryndam sailed a few hours later.

[fridaythe13th]

In Port Tampa Bay it's all about the timing and the window period for getting 3 cruise ships out on Sunday's is really small. Unfortunately all 3 were tardy getting in yesterday and there is a particular arrival order in which the ships must due to the limitations of the channel and small port/pier area. The HAL Ryndam must arrive first followed by the NCL Sun and lastly the Pride. Then later on that day there was a crew related medical issue that delayed departure and both Pride and the Ryndam missed there departure window. In the end, both Pride and Ryndam sailed a few hours later.

 

Very interesting! Thanks for the info.... Any idea what would be a good time to arrive on Sunday for boarding?

[Captain Carnival]

Very interesting! Thanks for the info.... Any idea what would be a good time to arrive on Sunday for boarding?

A "good" time would be around 10:30...HOWEVER...keep an eye on the weather and any possible fog delays; Paradise is currently being held in the gulf and will not be making it to port anytime soon. :eek:

Edited November 24, 2014 by Captain Carnival

[crusinpsychRN]

They have trays and regular plates on Lido buffet.

 

The drink cart was not set up outside MDR on sea days for Bloody Mary's and Mimosa's.

 

First one to Red Frog bar on deck 2, gets a free beer and their picture on the wall and on John's blog.

[CruisersNC]

Very interesting! Thanks for the info.... Any idea what would be a good time to arrive on Sunday for boarding?

 

We just got off the Pride yesterday. When we got on the ship on the 16th we arrived at the parking lot we used (Parktologists) at noon.....and were told that everything was backed up because some people were still getting OFF the ship! So we had to wait in the parking lot till about 12:30 or so before they loaded us up on the bus and took us over to the terminal. When we arrived there we found the line to get into the terminal wrapped down the street and around the block. By the time we actually stepped on the ship it was around 1:45 I believe. So we were able to go straight to our cabin. That was the longest line we've ever seen getting on a cruise. But it was a fun cruise so the long line wasn't a big deal. The constant "testing" of the alarm system (wish I had some earplugs!) and the delay in leaving port were also a pain but didn't effect our enjoyment of the cruise. ;)

[Travelinman_Chicago]

After reading all the reviews, I have to admit I am bit concerned about the poor quality of food, entertainment, and late departures/ arrivals. Headed out on Dec 28th, so obviously paid a hefty premium. I hope all the reviews were exaggerated to the down side and looking forward to a good cruise! Even if it's as bad as people have said, it will be warmer than Chicago, and it's a heck of lot cheaper than RCCL. :eek:

 

Thanks for the reviews!

 

p.s. - Why are you guys ripping on Walt? He has valid concerns. It's not cheap to take a cruise and Carnival needs to recognize...

Edited November 26, 2014 by Travelinman_Chicago

[Walt70]

hi thank you and welcome to tampa hope you have a good flight. i still feel carnival should have put on extar help to get the ship in order and help the new crew get ready to sail

[CruisersNC]

After reading all the reviews, I have to admit I am bit concerned about the poor quality of food, entertainment, and late departures/ arrivals. Headed out on Dec 28th, so obviously paid a hefty premium. I hope all the reviews were exaggerated to the down side and looking forward to a good cruise! Even if it's as bad as people have said, it will be warmer than Chicago, and it's a heck of lot cheaper than RCCL. :eek:

 

Thanks for the reviews!

 

Actually we thought the food was quite good....both in the dining room and on the Lido deck. In our opinion it was better than the food we had on the Dream and Ecstasy in '12, and better than the food in the dining room on the Freedom of the Seas last year. (Though we did like the buffet food on the FOS). Don't worry about the food.

[crusinpsychRN]

After reading all the reviews, I have to admit I am bit concerned about the poor quality of food, entertainment, and late departures/ arrivals. Headed out on Dec 28th, so obviously paid a hefty premium. I hope all the reviews were exaggerated to the down side and looking forward to a good cruise! Even if it's as bad as people have said, it will be warmer than Chicago, and it's a heck of lot cheaper than RCCL. :eek:

 

Thanks for the reviews!

 

p.s. - Why are you guys ripping on Walt? He has valid concerns. It's not cheap to take a cruise and Carnival needs to recognize...

 

The food, for the most part was good. Chopsticks on Lido was good and on other ships I haven't liked it. Guy's was great. Only once did I get tepid grits on Lido--other station they were hot. Changed oysters Rockefeller in MDR to ox tongue--not so good...Flat iron steak was tough, so was the filet with the short ribs but the short ribs were good. One lady got the lobster from the Steakhouse and the giant plate of lobster she was served was amazing!

 

Not sure what's going on with late departures--we saw luggage still being loaded at 8pm, container trucks delivering goods at 7:30pm. But once they miss one tide they have to wait for the late one so...Coming back the fog is the problem, nothing Carnival can do about that.

[thecruiserofships]

Thank you for sharing your review!

[sra12574]

After reading all the reviews, I have to admit I am bit concerned about the poor quality of food, entertainment, and late departures/ arrivals. Headed out on Dec 28th, so obviously paid a hefty premium. I hope all the reviews were exaggerated to the down side and looking forward to a good cruise! Even if it's as bad as people have said, it will be warmer than Chicago, and it's a heck of lot cheaper than RCCL. :eek:

 

Thanks for the reviews!

 

p.s. - Why are you guys ripping on Walt? He has valid concerns. It's not cheap to take a cruise and Carnival needs to recognize...

 

I was on the Pride on the 9th . I assure you the peoples complaints are not exaggerated but hopefully Carnival does something to address the issues . Some were minor and should have been addressed before the first cruise . Hopefully the crew gets a little better after a few sailings and like you said its a lot warmer then Chicago . There a some nice ports on your cruise so hopefully you have a great time . I had a decent time on my cruise despite the issues the ship was having but it left me a little dissapointed in Carnival . I had great trips in the past and kinda chalked it up to your bound to have some dissapointment somewhere down the line . I got a great deal for the Splendor out of Miami going to the same ports and figured why not . The Pride would have been easier because its less then an hour from my house and I like the Port of Tampa but I dont mind the drive and its a chance to go on a 7 day on a non 2.0 ship . Don't get me wrong I liked the Blue Iguana Cantina , but I think the new format cut back a lot on entertainment . I wasnt so impressed with Guys burgers and I'm a big Diners Drive in and Dives fan . For those travelling in before the cruise you might want to check out Tampa Bay Brewing Company that place was pretty good and was featured a while back .

[NoDayButToday]

For those travelling in before the cruise you might want to check out Tampa Bay Brewing Company that place was pretty good and was featured a while back .

 

TBBC is incredible, we've driven the hour to Tampa just to eat there more than once. The Bomb is a great burger (although it's definitely greasy, but totally worth it-burger patty with bacon, onion straws, and cheese, wrapped in pizza dough, and then deep fried...so good) and the beer is good. Plus it's in Ybor, which is the nightlife area in Tampa so you can easily find something to do around the restaurant before or afterwards.

[cruisecrazytoo]

Sounds like normal just out of dry dock stuff. I'm sure the kinks of a new crew, new bands, etc will be worked out before we get her back in Baltimore!

 

I don't believe that all the staff are new to the generic operations of a cruise ship. They come from other cruise experiences. I have read of similar issues with the Pride BEFORE drydock. Basic cleanliness in a cabin, tables in an eating area, cleaning dirty cushions do not require an associate's degree. Oversight is not functioning and employees are unmotivated.

 

I don't ask for much and have always enjoyed my many cruises BUT there are some minimum expectations.

 

I cruised Legend last January and for the first time walked into a cabin that made me stop dead in my tracks. There was so many smears and dirt that my view out the balcony door was distorted. The reflection off the glass over the art prints and cabin mirror was downright slimy. The balcony was filthy. I left a note for steward that I needed a clean mirror and window out to the balcony and a clean balcony floor that did not leave particles on my bare feet.

I was told someone else does the balcony window ??!! but it and the mirror was cleaned. Balcony and prints remained dirty.

 

I observed my steward generally shooting the breeze way too much with the guests and on his cell phone. He was actually looking at his cell phone (text) while I was talking to him about cleaning my cabin. I still had a great time cuz I am not that way BUT I am now sailing on the Pride in January.

 

I am concerned about the reports pre and post dry dock.

If I walk into the same situation, trust me, I will first call for the presence of the head steward (missing at the last cruise) then I will clean it myself (former motel housekeeper in college) with the staff cleaning equipment and take their tips back. Same thing in the lido dining room and advertise my actions. I will probably take a movie of my hard work and post it here LOL.

 

These are not frivolous issues but I don't let it ruin my vacation but plan to address it much more differently, take care of it, them move onto my great time! Do not minimize it and make the guest a bad guy. We are creating a group of marginal cruise staff who will come back to bite us the next cruise!

[fridaythe13th]

I returned on 12/7 and was actually quite disappointed in the condition of our stateroom regarding stained carpet, still rather dated looking, dirty balcony, pocket door to changing/makeup area broken. I've been on older ships and that "old" feeling was not there like it was on the Pride. Someone had mentioned the destruction of the wall art, especially in the elevators, not hard to miss but could be an easy temporary fix. The entertainment (music) on the Lido and in the Atrium was much to be desired. They were young and sounded like beginners and the acoustics didn't help. The food was subjective as always. We did go to David's and the Filet mignon was way over-cooked. If you order medium rare it will be medium. If you order medium it will be very well done, not edible. There are always going to be chair hogs around the pool(s) but there were always chairs to be found. Love the choices in the Mermaid Grill. MDR service was just okay, slow and they seemed out of sync.

 

The worst part was the Port of Tampa!! We boarded on-time, departed on-time but arrived a little late due to the fog. Carnival has a very poor debarkation process and I wonder if the other cruise lines have the same issues in Tampa or if it's just Carnival.

 

I loved my last Carnival cruise and was fairly disappointed (but not completely) in this one. I definitely won't ever go out of Tampa again and not sure I will return to Carnival. I do jump around so never say never.... :D