Diminishing Quality on Carnival?

[Doug & Cindy Scrap Hunter]

That would depend on who you are. Those commercials are aimed at two completely different groups.

 

Come try it one time, and you'll see. I did.

[StolidCruiser]

Come try it one time, and you'll see. I did.

 

I did. Never again.

 

If that’s yours, wonderful! It doesn’t invalidate mine.

[jimbo5544]

I did. Never again.

 

If that’s yours, wonderful! It doesn’t invalidate mine.

It just blows my mind that it is beyond comprehension that some posters can't believe that everyone thinks that the Oasis class ships are the be all end all. In many ways they are lacking from a "real" cruising experience.

[Tapi]

In many ways they are lacking from a "real" cruising experience.

 

 

As much as I loved sailing on the Allure, and as mesmerized as I was, and as much as I believe that there’s nothing remotely close to the Oasis class of ships, I also agree that it’s not like a “real” cruising experience which was a bit of a turnoff. Did it once, super glad I did it, got the T-shirt (literally [emoji23]), but I’m not rushing to book a cruise on another Oasis class ship.

 

 

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[jimbo5544]

As much as I loved sailing on the Allure, and as mesmerized as I was, and as much as I believe that there’s nothing remotely close to the Oasis class of ships, I also agree that it’s not like a “real” cruising experience which was a bit of a turnoff. Did it once, super glad I did it, got the T-shirt (literally [emoji23]), but I’m not rushing to book a cruise on another Oasis class ship.

 

 

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Ya know if we keep up on this agreeing stuff, I might become unstable.....

 

 

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[buddrs]

We were on the Ecstasy out of Charleston in December for a five day Bahamas cruise. We enjoyed it so much we came home and booked the same cruise for next year. We did not see any serious deficiencies or "cut backs". We fondly remember the extremely pleasant staff (and tasty cocktails) at the Alchemy bar.

[E@syPe@zy]

summersigh thanks for your input but again there is no bashing in my post. I was asking other cruisers if they had noticed the same decreased level of service and quality that we had, or our experience was limited to a single bad experience. If I wanted to bash I would just make blanket statements based about the entire Carnival fleet on NO experience, but that is NOT the case! OUR observations were based on numerous sailings on Carnival yearly over the past decade. If others have had positive experiences that is great and maybe our experiences were possibly a crew having an "off cruise". We have sailed on these other lines and have never had any of the problems on them that we had repeatedly experienced with Carnival. That is why I was asking for general feedback from other cruisers.

GM...I can appreciate the fact that you are trying to figure out if your last cruise on Carnival could have been a one off and would like to hear from other cruisers regarding their experience.

For me, I think if you could offer more information and particulars rather generalizations, then we might be able to pin point the issues that left you with a less than stellar experience. Then we could concur or offer up our experience if it was different.

I have found that the time of the year and the length of the cruise can have a huge bearing on the experience of a cruise. We now only cruise in Jan, Feb., and late Fall and the longer the cruise the better. I love the Caribbean, but find myself getting tired of the same ports, unless it is a Journey cruise. I have been to Alaska, Hawaii, and Panama Canal, so it may be time to switch cruise lines that offer more cruises to other parts of the world. We began cruising in 2005 with NCL and after 3 cruises decided to try Carnival. To be honest, I really didn't think we would be satisfied, but to my surprise we have been cruising with them for the past 11 years. During that time I've only experienced small cut backs that really don't devalue my cruising experience.

[Computer Nerd]

Come try it one time, and you'll see. I did.

 

I have tried it. Oasis last March and upcoming again this New Years. She has a lot of wow factors but most of them don't interest me. I still pick Carnival over RCCL.

[Tapi]

Ya know if we keep up on this agreeing stuff, I might become unstable.....

 

 

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I know! [emoji23] You may be surprised that I actually agree with a lot of things that you write.

 

 

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[jimbo5544]

I know! [emoji23] You may be surprised that I actually agree with a lot of things that you write.

 

 

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Good to know.....lol, careful, you might not want that info to get out....

 

 

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[sabanknight]

I have cruised Carnival twice, first had minor mechanical issues, but was otherwise a great cruise. Public areas were kept clean, staff friendly, decent entertainment, cruise director had just the right presence. Same with my second, however food took some solid dings. Breakfast eggs benadict had baked on hollandaiese Apps were under temperature regularly. One of us even got food poisoning, possibly from seafood entree. We didn't really complain, but on our next cruise I think I might have to, if we see warning signs of last cruise. Just to get the issue corrected, not to damage anyone's employment.

 

 

I see a lot of people responding with mild hostility, however with this, it sounds -I have done this myself- like venting frustration from a place of disappointment, not whineiness. I hope my negative dining experience was a fluke. While I am trying carnival again, I both won't be silent(but still polite) about issues on my expensive vacation, and won't consider them my primary cruise line if this turns out to be a trend.

 

 

My experience is calmly and politely speaking with staff to get issues corrected -even if they are repeat issues- tends to make things go smoothly. If the problems persist talk to someone higher up with the same somber method.

 

First let me say that my wife and I are experienced cruisers and have cruised on Carnival, Celebrity, Norwegian, and Royal thus far. This post is not meant to bash on Carnival in any way... just looking for opinions. Does anyone else notice that it seems like Carnival is really going down hill quality wise? Food problems (quantity, variety, and temperatures), customer service issues, common area ship and stateroom cleanliness complaints, poor entertainment, etc. Is it just me or does it seem like Carnival is having problems? Our last Carnival cruise was very disappointing and we both agreed that our Carnival days were over until changes were made. Many small things like return guest perks, mints on the pillows, and complimentary toiletries in the stateroom bathrooms, to much larger issues like food, cleanliness problems, and a general feeling of a lack of concern for customer satisfaction. It also seems to me like the fleet is showing signs of age and they do not seem to be keeping pace with other lines in regard to introducing newer ships with more current features. I do understand that they try to be the "value" line and must keep costs low, but it just seems like their has been a real effort to take away the few last remaining reasons that we would choose to sail with them in the future.

[Stateroom_Sailor]

That’s what I was trying to express on my last post. As people mature and become more traveled, chances are that their expectations will mature as well.

 

And this is not only with cruise lines, but with everything. For example, there was a time when my wife and I were perfectly happy staying at a Days Inn and similar chains. Today, there’s no way we would ever consider them.

 

Carnival may have changed, but so have we.

 

 

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I don't disagree with you. There are some on here however, that have implied that diminishing quality is a good thing, making way for those on limited budgets, the chances to cruise. I'm saying, they should keep Carnival at the "Holiday Inn level", and create/purchase a new line (such as Celebration Cruise Line), to reach a new demographic of entry cruising. They could even do Carnival and Carnival+, just like Best Western. Otherwise, for every new customer they attract, someone is going to split, and not necessarily to Princess and HAL.

[sparks1093]

We first cruised with CCL in 2012 and we thought that cruise was pretty good. We've sailed 3 more times, just finishing up on Pride a couple of weeks ago. We've seen steady improvement in that time. They aren't perfect by any means but they do deliver a good value for what we pay.

[declansdad]

Come try it one time, and you'll see. I did.

 

 

I may try RCCL some day but it won't be because I think the quality has diminished with Carnival. WE always look at both lines when selecting a cruise but so far the price for similar itineraries has always been better with Carnival.

 

And it would have nothing to do with the two videos you linked earlier.

[ScrappinCSI]

Interesting the things that make or break a cruise/cruise line for people. Mints and robes.... I found even my Alaska cruises too warm in my stateroom to ever ponder a robe let alone wearing one in the humid hot Carribean. Frankly I'd rather have the closet space it once took up. I'm always amazed by people's fascination over cruise directors. 10 cruises on various lines and I've never even paid attention to the C.D. or bothered to hear their name let alone remember it. Am I the only one who finds C.D.'s and their staff sophomorish no matter what line I'm sailing? Frankly is there a need for a cruise director when you bother to read the daily letter? Never seeing officers? I don't want to see officers. I want them behind the scenes working and leading and directing. I want them busy. I don't mind old ships, I actually prefer them if they are clean. The only things that make a ship of any age feel unclean is the ratio of unsupervised entitled juveniles who run amok sucking on ice cream machines and vandalizing at a pace faster than the poor overworked staff can keep up with. If anything is unpleasant on some Carnival ships it may be their rather tacky interior design but I think the company no longer has the Italian designer that invented the giant Mad Hatter and gilded gold grapes on the Miracle. I think as we age, we as a passenger, change our opinion of a line or ship. Its a natural thing, turning into our parents so to say. As I age I see all the lines getting lesser in "quality" but its really the quality of fellow passengers that I see degrading. And, they greatly affect my "cruise experience". I find it impossible to stand silently by when I see passengers rude to staff. I find it impossible to watch juveniles not know their place, but I've always been an @$$ looking for a fight. Maybe entertainment quality is governed more by where you come from. With the exception of the Blue Man Group and Cirque on the Epic years ago, I've never found Beatles imitators or dancing in general to be entertaining. Again an age thing. I find a quiet shaded deck devoid of noise and frequently patrolled by bar staff to be much more entertaining than anything ever presented in the theater. Food quality on all lines has degraded in some way or another in the name of profit. If it be the strange red yolked eggs I get on NCL or the less than warm dinner caused by a lines cut in staff. But at least on Carnival the staff has anticipated that and been watchful for my satisfaction. Very much unlike the staff on NCL which were once the best and now become totally disinterested thanks to anytime dining. Oh....there's my Dad popping up in me again! With every price increase Disney thrusts on to the public, cruise lines become a more common solution to many. Maybe instead of lines popping out more city like ships with pipeline hairdos of scaffolding for the young to hang on or slide around on, they might be better served adding a couple of ships devoid of slides and monkey bars for us complaining curmudgeons to quietly float on by in!

[SMSACE6]

Interesting the things that make or break a cruise/cruise line for people. Mints and robes.... I found even my Alaska cruises too warm in my stateroom to ever ponder a robe let alone wearing one in the humid hot Carribean. Frankly I'd rather have the closet space it once took up. I'm always amazed by people's fascination over cruise directors. 10 cruises on various lines and I've never even paid attention to the C.D. or bothered to hear their name let alone remember it. Am I the only one who finds C.D.'s and their staff sophomorish no matter what line I'm sailing? Frankly is there a need for a cruise director when you bother to read the daily letter? Never seeing officers? I don't want to see officers. I want them behind the scenes working and leading and directing. I want them busy. I don't mind old ships, I actually prefer them if they are clean. The only things that make a ship of any age feel unclean is the ratio of unsupervised entitled juveniles who run amok sucking on ice cream machines and vandalizing at a pace faster than the poor overworked staff can keep up with. If anything is unpleasant on some Carnival ships it may be their rather tacky interior design but I think the company no longer has the Italian designer that invented the giant Mad Hatter and gilded gold grapes on the Miracle. I think as we age, we as a passenger, change our opinion of a line or ship. Its a natural thing, turning into our parents so to say. As I age I see all the lines getting lesser in "quality" but its really the quality of fellow passengers that I see degrading. And, they greatly affect my "cruise experience". I find it impossible to stand silently by when I see passengers rude to staff. I find it impossible to watch juveniles not know their place, but I've always been an @$$ looking for a fight. Maybe entertainment quality is governed more by where you come from. With the exception of the Blue Man Group and Cirque on the Epic years ago, I've never found Beatles imitators or dancing in general to be entertaining. Again an age thing. I find a quiet shaded deck devoid of noise and frequently patrolled by bar staff to be much more entertaining than anything ever presented in the theater. Food quality on all lines has degraded in some way or another in the name of profit. If it be the strange red yolked eggs I get on NCL or the less than warm dinner caused by a lines cut in staff. But at least on Carnival the staff has anticipated that and been watchful for my satisfaction. Very much unlike the staff on NCL which were once the best and now become totally disinterested thanks to anytime dining. Oh....there's my Dad popping up in me again! With every price increase Disney thrusts on to the public, cruise lines become a more common solution to many. Maybe instead of lines popping out more city like ships with pipeline hairdos of scaffolding for the young to hang on or slide around on, they might be better served adding a couple of ships devoid of slides and monkey bars for us complaining curmudgeons to quietly float on by in!

 

Holland America might work!

[ScrappinCSI]

Holland America might work!

That's what I keep telling the wife and her girlfriends. But they are not as ready to acknowledge and accept it. They plead a woman's right to deny their age. Soon though it'll be my turn to decide the cruise. I'm next in line to pick and they are in for a surprise.

[skiingj]

ScrappinCSI - HAL or VV might be a great experience.

[sapphire_407]

I've been taking Carnival cruises for 15 years. Some things were better back in the day. Like the flaming desserts. I sure do miss those. On the other hand they now have amazing selections for lunch. And different restaurants. So I think that's better. Taking the chocolates off the pillows is just downright annoying. You shouldn't take those little things away from the passengers.

[E@syPe@zy]

Interesting the things that make or break a cruise/cruise line for people. Mints and robes.... I found even my Alaska cruises too warm in my stateroom to ever ponder a robe let alone wearing one in the humid hot Carribean. Frankly I'd rather have the closet space it once took up. I'm always amazed by people's fascination over cruise directors. 10 cruises on various lines and I've never even paid attention to the C.D. or bothered to hear their name let alone remember it. Am I the only one who finds C.D.'s and their staff sophomorish no matter what line I'm sailing? Frankly is there a need for a cruise director when you bother to read the daily letter? Never seeing officers? I don't want to see officers. I want them behind the scenes working and leading and directing. I want them busy. I don't mind old ships, I actually prefer them if they are clean. The only things that make a ship of any age feel unclean is the ratio of unsupervised entitled juveniles who run amok sucking on ice cream machines and vandalizing at a pace faster than the poor overworked staff can keep up with. If anything is unpleasant on some Carnival ships it may be their rather tacky interior design but I think the company no longer has the Italian designer that invented the giant Mad Hatter and gilded gold grapes on the Miracle. I think as we age, we as a passenger, change our opinion of a line or ship. Its a natural thing, turning into our parents so to say. As I age I see all the lines getting lesser in "quality" but its really the quality of fellow passengers that I see degrading. And, they greatly affect my "cruise experience". I find it impossible to stand silently by when I see passengers rude to staff. I find it impossible to watch juveniles not know their place, but I've always been an @$$ looking for a fight. Maybe entertainment quality is governed more by where you come from. With the exception of the Blue Man Group and Cirque on the Epic years ago, I've never found Beatles imitators or dancing in general to be entertaining. Again an age thing. I find a quiet shaded deck devoid of noise and frequently patrolled by bar staff to be much more entertaining than anything ever presented in the theater. Food quality on all lines has degraded in some way or another in the name of profit. If it be the strange red yolked eggs I get on NCL or the less than warm dinner caused by a lines cut in staff. But at least on Carnival the staff has anticipated that and been watchful for my satisfaction. Very much unlike the staff on NCL which were once the best and now become totally disinterested thanks to anytime dining. Oh....there's my Dad popping up in me again! With every price increase Disney thrusts on to the public, cruise lines become a more common solution to many. Maybe instead of lines popping out more city like ships with pipeline hairdos of scaffolding for the young to hang on or slide around on, they might be better served adding a couple of ships devoid of slides and monkey bars for us complaining curmudgeons to quietly float on by in!

Thank You! I too am amazed at the people that have to know who the CD will be on their next cruise. I'm like you....most times I never know or care who the CD is or will be. I think it's funny when the captain makes an announcement, the CD has to follow with the same information. What is it about the captain's message that we didn't understand?? The only CD that I recall is one that seemed to have the microphone surgically implanted into her face and on top of it was a "loud talker". I found this so annoying and by the end of the cruise, it was grating on my nerves. The funny thing is...others just loved her!

[angeleyes27]

We were on Carnival in 2011 and 2015. In 2011, lobster was free and in 2015, it was an upcharge but other than that, we didn’t notice any diminished services. Both were good experiences except for my daughter and son having sea sickness

 

 

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[pulledporky]

...... The point of my post was to ask other cruisers for their experiences based on their sailings on Carnival to see if our recent experiences were isolated or a general trend across the entire line. ......a legitimate question based on observations made over a decade of cruising on Carnival.....

 

To get back to this:

 

Same here, almost 20 years of cruising and several hundred days on Carnival, we have seen the “Change” continue.

 

Three weeks ago on the Splendor:

First of all CCL spent a ton of money on the new Long Beach terminal it’s beautiful! Although boarding is now so efficient we never stopped, just walked right thru, scanned boarding pass and passport and we were onboard, nice. Good job CCL!

 

They better address the parking soon.

 

Went directly to our cabin and had the first “hmmmm” moment. There was hair, lint, other stuff on the counter that wasn’t ours. TV remote had a big coffee stain or something on it. COuld’ve been worse I guess. I wiped the counter and the remote off, I guess the steward didn’t have time. There were no welcome back papers on the bed as usual, (they showed up a few days later) these are not major issues just changes (cleanliness is kind of important tho). The steward came by to meet and greet, fill out the form, etc, I asked for (and wrote down) two extra pillows, they never showed up, but I did find some under the couch.

 

Bedding has been a steady decline over the years but I have to say this was one of the most comfortable mattresses ever.

 

Came back from lunch the next day at about 2 and our room hadn’t been cleaned yet. I spoke to the steward and he said he (and team) had 40 rooms to take care of and ours was second to last, but we could call him any time (?). Our first 7 day cruise the steward had 8 cabins to watch, and he did; when you walked out of the cabin he Ninja’d out of the wall and took care of your room, amazing. Remember those days?

 

The food was certainly no better than normal (but I did find the key lime pie the first day, good stuff). We often eat dinner on the lido on our schedule. One evening I noticed there was not a beef selection. Apparently they ran out and no one was there to go get some more, the one person there was too busy ladling soup and slicing a pork roast, so they slid a second tray of chicken into its spot. Ok, whatever. But then I walk over to the salad topping bar and was floored! As I walk up there are two ladies there, could be sisters, 35-40 yrs old (old enough to know better). I see one getting Parmesan cheese and using the tongs, straight to her hand then to her mouth. I look over at the other gal and she’s piling croutons in her mouth (no tongs) and then sticks her hand in the bacon bits for a handful, they were grazing. I “yelled” at her and she walks off like “what, I do this at home”. I look around for a CCL employee to remove the bowls from the line, but nope, another unattended food venue, probably out looking for some ranch dressing which they were often out of on this cruise.

 

It’s difficult for CCL to control the passengers behaviors, I get that, but the other things I mentioned are to make it more, as someone else mentioned, efficient. Now I understand six sigma, muda, etc, but in the hospitality industry those efficiencies can directly impact customers in a negative way.

 

Now I still like cruising on CCL, it’s just not as special as it used to be. Just my requested observations and opinions.

 

As a side note, at the diamond/platinum party there were only about 30 people there (last day at 4:30). Drinks were more than plentiful. Talked to the entertainment director for a while, he said when the Splendor goes into dry dock they are eliminating the comedy club venue and adding cabins for 600 more guests. There’s too many people on that boat now!

[luv2kroooz]

I have several hundred days sailed on Carnival, but haven't sailed Carnival for three years now and have no future cruises booked on Carnival. I switched to NCL and Princess because the entertainment on Carnival shifted from something I enjoyed to something I didn't. I have been fortunate enough to find reasonably good values on both NCL and Princess and both provide a larger variety of vacation destinations than Carnival.

[BlerkOne]

To all of you who shared your experiences both good and bad I say thanks for the worthwhile feedback. The point of my post was to ask other cruisers for their experiences based on their sailings on Carnival to see if our recent experiences were isolated or a general trend across the entire line. Some of you guys brought up some great points and it was really helpful. Maybe we will give it another shot.

 

 

 

Anyone who thinks other cruise lines haven't cut back is in denial, not very observant, or something we aren't allowed to say. Likewise, anyone who fails to notice some enhancements is the same.

 

Someone mentioned lobster on a 7 night cruise. I have always seen lobster available on the first elegant night.

[tallnthensome]

I sailed the Vista and am booked on the Panorama. The food was just "meh" on the Vista in both the MDR and especially the buffet. To me the quality of the clientele is what is the worst .... not Carnival's fault though. I will only book Carnival when a great deal seems to be there.