Why is the Vista not a favorite?

[MauiWowie57]

Everything else on the ship seemed to have shrunk too. They basically made a bigger ship with smaller venues, without an atrium, and added a movie theatre. What did they do with the extra space? They added more rooms to make more money.

I agree with every post here. I've done 20 Carnival cruises now, last one was on the Vista maiden voyage transatlantic.

 

- The MDR looks like "high school cafeteria," - but there wasn't even any artwork.

 

- Too many food venues, most out on the promenade which makes taking a stroll about deck impossible.

- The spa is ridiculously undersized. The angriest people on the ship were the Cloud 9 cabins that couldn't ever get in the bathtub sized hot tub.

- The "liquid lounge" has been mentioned as well. Again, high school auditorium, not stadium style seating like other ships.

Without belaboring the point....my personal favorites are:

- The Pride, Legend or Miracle. Mid sized design, appropriated sized venues (MDR, Comedy Clubs, bars, etc.)

- The good old Fantasy class. I love that design, despite the lack of balconies. Easy to get around. In my (many) conversations with crew members, they generally prefer the Fantasy class as well.

 

I'll stick with mid sized (2,200) on Carnival or HAL until they've all been cut up into razor blades or sunk as artificial reefs.

[LetsSail]

Had great service, very clean. They need a reservation system for shows. I only saw one comedy show because the aft room they use is too small, so you have to wait in line. Same for main theater.

Great food options. If it wasn’t for waiting in line for shows, we would sail on vista again.

 

 

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[carrieluvsgreg]

We have not yet sailed on the Vista, but have booked the Horizon out of Barcelona in April.

Honestly, it seems to me that with the introduction of a new class always yields seasoned cruisers who just don’t like the changes. I remember when the Dream made her debut. She was dubbed the “stink pot” of the seas as there was an apparent sewage smell that just overwhelmed passengers... we sailed on her the first season after the TA because the prices had dropped pretty significantly (possibly due to the bad press)- we never noticed the smell that others claimed “ruined their cruise”.

It seemed most of the Dream fans were new cruisers who had little or no experience with other Carnival ships. With each subsequent release the class seemed to have gained ground making the Breeze the favorite ship of many.

We have 14 under our belt and have sailed on fantasy, Conquest and dream classes only thus far. To date the Dream is my favorite (even above the Breeze) with the Liberty coming in a close second.

So with my upcoming trip being on a sister ship of what seems to be Carnival’s “red headed step-child” I’m cautiously optimistic. This is a huge trip for us- we’ve never traveled to Europe before- so that should outshine the ship experience for sure but I hope the completion is at least close.

 

 

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[asalligo]

- The MDR looks like "high school cafeteria," - but there wasn't even any artwork.

 

LOL, so true! I told my wife it reminded me of a Panera Bread. My first thought, was fire whoever designed this place.

 

Carnival ship design should either go Farcas with gaudy opulence or Key West type design. I think Carnival design peaked with the Pride. Maybe they will figure it out one day though.

[Alaskan Joe]

I could give 5,000 reasons, too many people

 

This is the reason I dislike the Vista and any ship this big. I also would not go to a resort where I had to wait in line for everything. To exacerbate this issue, Vista has new sections of the ship in which you are only allowed if you have purchased a certain room like the Havana area, thus even further lessening the room for the 5000 passengers to be. Dream ships were too large for me already, I am afraid I am relegated to the older of this fleets ships. I really dislike the short Atrium, but I am afraid it is the wave of the future for Carnival as they can both add cabins and a safety measure to the atrium.

 

The only thing I liked about the Vista and the larger ships is the 3 deck Lido area, but even that is negated by so many people.

 

I know this is the Carnival boards, but I was on the Oasis of the Seas RCCL. Now this ship was maxed out on our cruise 5,400. Although you had that many PAX you did not notice it. In fact for all the shows you had to sign up for a day/time, which made for smaller lines. I think RCCL did a great job at not making you feel crowed.

[Computer Nerd]

You sound like a real happy cruiser who does not exaggerate.... which room did you stay in, must have been big.

 

 

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Probably the engine room. ;p

[nybumpkin]

We have not yet sailed on the Vista, but have booked the Horizon out of Barcelona in April.

Honestly, it seems to me that with the introduction of a new class always yields seasoned cruisers who just don’t like the changes. I remember when the Dream made her debut. She was dubbed the “stink pot” of the seas as there was an apparent sewage smell that just overwhelmed passengers... we sailed on her the first season after the TA because the prices had dropped pretty significantly (possibly due to the bad press)- we never noticed the smell that others claimed “ruined their cruise”.

It seemed most of the Dream fans were new cruisers who had little or no experience with other Carnival ships. With each subsequent release the class seemed to have gained ground making the Breeze the favorite ship of many.

We have 14 under our belt and have sailed on fantasy, Conquest and dream classes only thus far. To date the Dream is my favorite (even above the Breeze) with the Liberty coming in a close second.

So with my upcoming trip being on a sister ship of what seems to be Carnival’s “red headed step-child” I’m cautiously optimistic. This is a huge trip for us- we’ve never traveled to Europe before- so that should outshine the ship experience for sure but I hope the completion is at least close.

We sailed Vista in Europe two years ago. Since the cruise was so port-intensive we never had an opportunity to experience everything the ship had to offer. However, one of my "take-aways" from Vista was that Carnival tried to cram too many bells and whistles on the ship, with the result being that some spaces are way too small for the demand, like Liquid Lounge and Punchliner. But there are really nice features as well - we loved the outside Promenade deck. It was our "go to" place for morning coffee and afternoon drinks. My favorite ship? No - that's Breeze. However, I'd happily sail on Vista again and we have Horizon booked for July.

[jimbo5544]

Cruisers don't like reduction in product quality.

 

 

 

Interesting, have you sailed on the Vista?

 

 

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[cdnmr]

Loved Havana area, disliked comedy club layout/lineup. If you dont have assigned/priority dining you had to line up to get a ticket then line up again to get into dining room.

 

Havana area made it one of my favourites. That said, if I couldnt book Havana access for a reasonable $$$ I wouldnt sail Vista again.

 

Some do hate it, a guy got on the elevator on the last sea day loudly proclaiming "thank God this cruise is almost over!"

I asked him what he meant....he then rattled off a dozen things he hated in 15 seconds, then got off on the wrong floor, stopped and got back on.....they adds 1 more complaint by saying "damn elevators!" lol

[carrieluvsgreg]

We sailed Vista in Europe two years ago. Since the cruise was so port-intensive we never had an opportunity to experience everything the ship had to offer. However, one of my "take-aways" from Vista was that Carnival tried to cram too many bells and whistles on the ship, with the result being that some spaces are way too small for the demand, like Liquid Lounge and Punchliner. But there are really nice features as well - we loved the outside Promenade deck. It was our "go to" place for morning coffee and afternoon drinks. My favorite ship? No - that's Breeze. However, I'd happily sail on Vista again and we have Horizon booked for July.

 

 

 

Knowing what we like about the Dream, I think we will be plenty satisfied with the Horizon. We don’t really go to the shows, and the comedy shows only sporadically. We aren’t sun worshippers so we are rarely on Lido for more than food- except occasionally for dive-in movies.

Since the trip is “port intensive” we’ll probably have the same issues you did with feeling like we didn’t even get a good feel for it. [emoji5]

 

 

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[jimbo5544]

No, and have no plans.

I wanted originally before details were revealed (I do reviews and it's exciting).

But later..... Thorough disappointmet. Too unpleasant feel.

I studied Dream class from bow to stern.

This is the same thing (plus gimmicks) but made worse.

I study ships. There is no need to be on every ship to know what is going on. Same related to the Dream class clones.

Per Helvetius, the knowledge of certain principles easily supplies for knowledge of certain details.

Enjoy your cruise!

 

 

 

Interesting, so you sailed the Dream? Helveticus did not sail them either....go figure.

 

 

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Edited February 8, 2018 by jimbo5544

[jimbo5544]

I have been on 32 cruises on all different lines. I am not new to cruising and I know good from bad. Vista is not even in same class as other larger ships. Carnival ship wise, I actually like the Pride better. They should stick with smaller ships.

 

 

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Huh, what is the break even for "knowing good from bad" ? Here all this time I thought it was at least 35....go figure. So your suite must have been really big to be bigger than the Comedy club. Wow....

 

What class for bigger ships makes the grade from your perspective? We all have our own views on what works and what does not, yours counts just as mine (been on 39....but it does not make my views better or worse than yours). We can agree on one thing, we have sailed the Pride 5 times and like her as well.

 

 

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[nealstuber]

..one of my "take-aways" from Vista was that Carnival tried to cram too many bells and whistles on the ship..July.

 

 

Royal is doing the same with its new builds and refurbs.

 

The problem is a lot of the things that take up the reduced public space are once a cruise- or once in a cruising history experience.

 

Once you’ve rung the bell (on the rock wall) or hear the lifeguard blow the whistle (when it’s your turn on the water slide) once or twice - it’s a “been there done that” thing for us. Then we spend the rest of the cruise wishing the pools weren’t so overcrowded.

 

 

 

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[kona_wahine]

Seems like either people like the huge ship or the smaller ships. I like the huge ones so that's why we booked our next cruise for the Vista, Havana cabana. I'm looking forward to the private daytime area. I like the extra room in the big ships. We've cruise the Glory and Liberty and they just felt too cramped.

[jimbo5544]

Royal is doing the same with its new builds and refurbs.

 

The problem is a lot of the things that take up the reduced public space are once a cruise- or once in a cruising history experience.

 

Once you’ve rung the bell (on the rock wall) or hear the lifeguard blow the whistle (when it’s your turn on the water slide) once or twice - it’s a “been there done that” thing for us. Then we spend the rest of the cruise wishing the pools weren’t so overcrowded.

 

 

 

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Correct, that is one of the reasons that the free space ration has little value.

 

 

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[nealstuber]

Correct, that is one of the reasons that the free space ration has little value.

 

 

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I agree that the tons of water a ship displaced dived by the number of passengers on a ship can be deceiving. But it is a useful frame of reference. If and RCCL ship comes out of drydock with a 10% reduction in her Ton/Pax ratio it’s a pretty good indication that THAT ship will feel more crowded. Similarly, if a new class of ship (say the Vista Class) comes out with basically the same features as the class before it (Dream Class) and the ratio is lower, the new class will likely feel more crowded- and that’s before accounting for huge areas being carved out for folks willing to pay a premium.

 

 

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[mumofsons]

Got off the Vista Sunday Feb 5th. We enjoyed our cruise but it probably wasn't our favorite. There were some things that we loved - the Havana area - we paid for an inside what we could have had a balcony for but in my mind it was well worth it. The Havana area is beautiful plus it was very close to Ocean's plaza that we spent most evenings and to the Aft dining room that we ate breakfast in each morning.

We loved the outside areas around Red Frog, Cherry on top and although we did not eat at Fareinheit 555 - the outside area looked lovely also the revolving doors going outside at Ocean's Plaza were fun.

We rarely leave the ship anymore while in port and we got a chance to go on the skyride without a lineup. It was so much fun!

The Imax was great - we saw Jimanji which was very good. DH also went to a dive in movie one night and watched Dunkirk.

The staff are great - our servers fantastic as well as Lawrence our room stewart. Cheeky Charlie and Richy Rich were funny and we enjoyed their antics.

We enjoyed the entertainment - the main lounge is hard to find a good seat and during the Diamond/Platinum party I heard a lot of complaints about no tables to put drinks on.

I think Matt is great - and it seems like he had a good relationship with his staff.

I think there is a lot to do - if our DS (22) who cruises with us occasionally - he would have loved it and all the things offered. For DH and I - we are very low key and it was just too much - but I suffered from a horrible cold that the lady on the plane in front of me was so kind to share - I felt pretty crappy the whole 8 days, so that may have affected my opinion in a way.

There was an issue with the gangway they only had one working - so getting on was a cluster - even for Diamond and Platinum - disembark - they seemed to do a better job about being organized and although it was slow - it moved smoothly.

I am not much of a gambler - like a little roulette - I found it weird that the tables seemed to be pushed to the outside casino - I felt like I was in a corner. Of course very smoky but as one of our table-mates said one night - it's the price she pays for liking to gamble - I tend to agree with her - I don't have to go in there :)

Not saying I would never sail her again - since she is leaving our least favorite port (sorry we just not a fan) For now we will stick to ships that are a bit smaller - and leave the Vista for other people.

Next up on Carnival - Journey's - 9 day Panama Canal on Valor next Feb.

[lcpagejr]

Seems like either people like the huge ship or the smaller ships. I like the huge ones so that's why we booked our next cruise for the Vista, Havana cabana. I'm looking forward to the private daytime area. I like the extra room in the big ships. We've cruise the Glory and Liberty and they just felt too cramped.

 

You will love Havana area....

[jimbo5544]

I agree that the tons of water a ship displaced dived by the number of passengers on a ship can be deceiving. But it is a useful frame of reference. If and RCCL ship comes out of drydock with a 10% reduction in her Ton/Pax ratio it’s a pretty good indication that THAT ship will feel more crowded. Similarly, if a new class of ship (say the Vista Class) comes out with basically the same features as the class before it (Dream Class) and the ratio is lower, the new class will likely feel more crowded- and that’s before accounting for huge areas being carved out for folks willing to pay a premium.

 

 

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don't want to turn it into a space discussion, but I would not call the balcony area for 40 rooms and the aft on one floor huge. Is this space not available most of the times to the whole ship, sure. Think of what the Dram class has in that space...

 

 

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[TomCruise48]

- The "liquid lounge" has been mentioned as well. Again, high school auditorium, not stadium style seating like other ships.

 

High school auditorium is much too kind to describe the Liquid Lounge. I previously stated on another thread that it had all of the ambiance of a high school gymnasium, but even that was too generous, as the sight lines in a high school gymnasium are much better, and the seats are more comfortable.

[nealstuber]

don't want to turn it into a space discussion, but I would not call the balcony area for 40 rooms and the aft on one floor huge. Is this space not available most of the times to the whole ship, sure. Think of what the Dram class has in that space...

 

 

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Loosing the aft (supposedly kid free) pool, hot-tubs and wake view lounging is a pretty big deal for DW and I. Since the introduction of Jumbo Trons to the main pool area, DW and I have pretty much avoided it and they were overcrowded before folks who were using the aft pool were forced in to the main pool. The pizza place moved too someplace with more traffic and Tandor gone. Always got better service at the aft bar Vs other bars on the pool deck as well.

 

So.. when Vista comes to Galveston; if we can get a Havana cabin with a balcony that over looks the ocean, (not a walkway or Lani) for a price we like, we’ll book her. It’s more likely, for the prices we’re seeing, we’d go after an aft wrap on Freedom, revisit RCCLs Liberty in a JS or do 9 or 10 days on her older 5 day ship (currently the Vision). We were thinking we even drive an extra 4 hours to NOLA for the Dream class - but that option is going away for Sunshine- and that ship strikes us as the Destiny trying to be the Vista, but we might drive to NOLA to give NCL another shot after 10 years.

 

Anyway, my point is Carnival was able to keep about half of our business because the Cove Balcony/ Aft pool combo works for us on Sea days. We can still get a Cove on Vista, but not if we want the Havana and the Aft pool. So all of the afore mentioned options come in to play now, when they could have had us locked for a number of years if they had kept either the Breeze in Galveston or Dream in NOLA.

 

 

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[tap_out]

Royal is doing the same with its new builds and refurbs.

 

The problem is a lot of the things that take up the reduced public space are once a cruise- or once in a cruising history experience.

 

Once you’ve rung the bell (on the rock wall) or hear the lifeguard blow the whistle (when it’s your turn on the water slide) once or twice - it’s a “been there done that” thing for us. Then we spend the rest of the cruise wishing the pools weren’t so overcrowded.

 

 

 

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Man you really hit the nail on the head with this. This seems to be the case on just about every cruise line now. To add a few more examples. NCL getaway's huge rope course. Yes we did it once and it was cool but that is it. That is a ton of space that could have been added to there crammed pool deck.

 

As much as I love going to the movies, especially the IMAX I dont want to do it on a cruise if its at the sacrifice of the main theater where we will see a show every night.

 

With that being said I am getting ready to pull the trigger on the Horizon. I will go with no reservations and have a great cruise no matter what.

[jimbo5544]

Loosing the aft (supposedly kid free) pool, hot-tubs and wake view lounging is a pretty big deal for DW and I. Since the introduction of Jumbo Trons to the main pool area, DW and I have pretty much avoided it and they were overcrowded before folks who were using the aft pool were forced in to the main pool. The pizza place moved too someplace with more traffic and Tandor gone. Always got better service at the aft bar Vs other bars on the pool deck as well.

 

So.. when Vista comes to Galveston; if we can get a Havana cabin with a balcony that over looks the ocean, (not a walkway or Lani) for a price we like, we’ll book her. It’s more likely, for the prices we’re seeing, we’d go after an aft wrap on Freedom, revisit RCCLs Liberty in a JS or do 9 or 10 days on her older 5 day ship (currently the Vision). We were thinking we even drive an extra 4 hours to NOLA for the Dream class - but that option is going away for Sunshine- and that ship strikes us as the Destiny trying to be the Vista, but we might drive to NOLA to give NCL another shot after 10 years.

 

Anyway, my point is Carnival was able to keep about half of our business because the Cove Balcony/ Aft pool combo works for us on Sea days. We can still get a Cove on Vista, but not if we want the Havana and the Aft pool. So all of the afore mentioned options come in to play now, when they could have had us locked for a number of years if they had kept either the Breeze in Galveston or Dream in NOLA.

 

 

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Understand your view

 

 

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[tap_out]

Loosing the aft (supposedly kid free) pool, hot-tubs and wake view lounging is a pretty big deal for DW and I. Since the introduction of Jumbo Trons to the main pool area, DW and I have pretty much avoided it and they were overcrowded before folks who were using the aft pool were forced in to the main pool. The pizza place moved too someplace with more traffic and Tandor gone. Always got better service at the aft bar Vs other bars on the pool deck as well.

 

So.. when Vista comes to Galveston; if we can get a Havana cabin with a balcony that over looks the ocean, (not a walkway or Lani) for a price we like, we’ll book her. It’s more likely, for the prices we’re seeing, we’d go after an aft wrap on Freedom, revisit RCCLs Liberty in a JS or do 9 or 10 days on her older 5 day ship (currently the Vision). We were thinking we even drive an extra 4 hours to NOLA for the Dream class - but that option is going away for Sunshine- and that ship strikes us as the Destiny trying to be the Vista, but we might drive to NOLA to give NCL another shot after 10 years.

 

Anyway, my point is Carnival was able to keep about half of our business because the Cove Balcony/ Aft pool combo works for us on Sea days. We can still get a Cove on Vista, but not if we want the Havana and the Aft pool. So all of the afore mentioned options come in to play now, when they could have had us locked for a number of years if they had kept either the Breeze in Galveston or Dream in NOLA.

 

 

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You know the vista still has an aft pool in addition to the pool in the Havana area. Not sure its adult only if thats what your getting at.

[Micahs Grandad]

There are some things I really liked about it and some things I didn't.

I liked the number of eating places available, the hand sanitizing machines in the buffet, the cruise director (the absolute best ever), and the shows. I also liked that they seemed to enforce rules a bit more and were very orderly. They even had a late night small buffet.

 

What I didn't like is that I had to show up very early for shows in order to get a decent seat. Forty minutes for an adult comedy show and for a theater show. There were so many people that the good seats filled up very quickly. I also hated the theater. It is the worst I have ever seen. It's like they built the ship, made it bigger than the rest, but went back in time when they built the theater and decorated the interior of the ship.

 

The theater has a main floor and a balcony. Many of the seats on the main floor are just regular chairs on a flat floor. The second floor isn't much better, but at least the seats are at an angel. Some of the other theaters on other ships have little tables every so often so you can put your drink down or use it to play bingo. This theater is a dud.

 

I really enjoyed my cruise on the Vista and the cruise director couldn't have been more entertaining. However, the crowds for the shows were too much. I don't mind getting to a show early, but this was ridiculous and the theater bothered me every time I saw a show in it. Also, it has absolutely no wow factor. It's very blah looking. If the appearance was the only negative thing, I could get over it. I prefer Carnival's other ships.

 

Carnival did a great job in building the Dream class and decided to shrink the comedy club and theater for vista making it ship that we have no interest in cruising on.