Just got on the Pride and not impressed so far

[Trueblueky]

We were on Pride's last cruise before the transatlantic one. The crew was excited about going to Europe. Many new crew members joined in Tampa with our cruise. Didn't seem to be a problem.

 

I probably could have guessed Brexit would create new "opportunities for improvement".

 

Note to self: avoid Dover.

Edited July 24, 2022 by Trueblueky
added

[freeholdfriends]

16 hours ago, mz-s said:

 

Yesterday you said boarding was quick and organized. Today you admit the port was a mess and it took 3.5 hours. Why should we listen to anything else you say about this cruise I guess is my question now.

Our trip from London took 31/2 hours but once at the terminal about 15 minutes to register and board. I really don’t care if you read about our experience. The port issues caused delays for some people and resupplying the ship but it did not affect our experience 

[cyntil8ing]

We are on next week's sailing. We will be transferring from London on Sunday, the day of departure.

 

We currently have tickets both for the train (1 hour) and the Carnival transfer (3 hours). There is a train strike planned for Saturday, so Sunday's trains may be delayed. I guess that's also important information for anyone debarking on Sunday hoping to get to London.

 

Anyway, I'm not sure yet which way we'll travel. I know the Carnival transfer is the safer bet, but I was really looking forward to the high speed train.

[fuddrules]

14 hours ago, Eli_6 said:

 

I will say this: Anyone who claims getting to the port and the initial boarding process was easy peasy is either lying about being on the cruise or did BTB or boarded MUCH later in the day than we did. 

 

Just to specify for others - this was for this specific cruise only.

 

I  boarded the June 19th cruise - we left London via train at 9:40 am (Charing Cross Station).  Arrived at Dover Priory at approximately 11:30 am. 

 

Found a cab just outside for the fixed 8 euro price to the port.   Dropped off at the port at approximately 11:45 am.   

 

Walked in the terminal and saw many CSR's waiving their paddles at us to get us checked in.   

 

Had a snafu with Verifly but the check-in was still roughly 10 minutes.  Walked as fast as we could to the ship check-in "ding" handheld. 

 

Piece of cake experience for us.

[fuddrules]

3 hours ago, cyntil8ing said:

We currently have tickets both for the train (1 hour) and the Carnival transfer (3 hours). There is a train strike planned for Saturday, so Sunday's trains may be delayed. I guess that's also important information for anyone debarking on Sunday hoping to get to London.

 

 

As a backup to your backup - try Uber as a last resort.   Just out of curiosity I priced the Uber cost before we boarded our train and it was about $155 euros.   Even less than the Carnival transfer.   

 

I'm not sure it would have actually filled the request (although Uber has never failed me) as I didn't go through with the booking but something to consider in a worst case scenario.

[cyntil8ing]

2 hours ago, fuddrules said:

 

As a backup to your backup - try Uber as a last resort.   Just out of curiosity I priced the Uber cost before we boarded our train and it was about $155 euros.   Even less than the Carnival transfer.

There are four of us, with luggage, so we would need an XL. Price-wise, that would be about the same as the Carnival transfer, so guaranteed arrival would be our choice.

 

Or maybe I could find a helicopter! That would be fun. Nope, the luggage kills that idea.

[freeholdfriends]

18 hours ago, fuddrules said:

 

Just to specify for others - this was for this specific cruise only.

 

I  boarded the June 19th cruise - we left London via train at 9:40 am (Charing Cross Station).  Arrived at Dover Priory at approximately 11:30 am. 

 

Found a cab just outside for the fixed 8 euro price to the port.   Dropped off at the port at approximately 11:45 am.   

 

Walked in the terminal and saw many CSR's waiving their paddles at us to get us checked in.   

 

Had a snafu with Verifly but the check-in was still roughly 10 minutes.  Walked as fast as we could to the ship check-in "ding" handheld. 

 

Piece of cake experience for us.

I am the one who said boarding was easy. It did take a long ride from London but the boarding was the fastest I’ve ever had and we didn’t have vetifly. The traffic congestion was not Carnival’s fault.

[BBQluver]

On 7/24/2022 at 2:50 AM, Eli_6 said:

Another suggestion for future cruisers in tender ports: If you do not have priority debark, you need to take a carnival excursion or schedule any excursions late in the day at tender ports.  They have very limited tenders and a lot of platinum and diamonds.  This is the priority lounge 20 minutes before debark starts and there are people lined up in the hallway still.  They are even doing zones for priority. I have seen people with zone numbers as high as 30 for priority guests.  My guess is not priority and non ccl excursions will be hours getting off the boat. 

Was this at Holyhead?  When I first booked our Busybus excursion from Holyhead, I didn't realize that tendering would take as long as 2-3 hours. Our August 12-21 cruise had Isle of Skye as the first port of call. It was changed to Holyhead. The reason given by John Heard was that there was not enough tender boats to support passengers tendering at Isle of Skye and rough waters there. I don't see Holyhead being an improvement in the situation. Two hours to tender and then the time to tender back make for a short day in port. I am hoping the process is improved within the next couple of weeks.

[Velvetwater]

Glad to hear its getting better.

 

Back in 2013 we boarded really easily at 11.00 but things have changed I guess.

 

Transport to Dover is now better but there will always be some delays due to the summer season. Schools broke up last week and will go back first week in September. Dover in June is very different to Dover in late July and August.

Edited July 25, 2022 by Velvetwater

[Mimigm]

On 7/24/2022 at 11:18 AM, cyntil8ing said:

We are on next week's sailing. We will be transferring from London on Sunday, the day of departure.

 

We currently have tickets both for the train (1 hour) and the Carnival transfer (3 hours). There is a train strike planned for Saturday, so Sunday's trains may be delayed. I guess that's also important information for anyone debarking on Sunday hoping to get to London.

 

Anyway, I'm not sure yet which way we'll travel. I know the Carnival transfer is the safer bet, but I was really looking forward to the high speed train.

FYI - At the Dover train station there is a shuttle that goes back and forth to the cruise terminal. Cost is 5 dollars or 5 euros or 5 lbs whichever one you have. 
 

we boarded the  Pride  on 6/19 and took a Uber from heathrow  to a Dover Premier Inn hotel for 140 lbs 

 

It was difficult getting a  taxi the next morning for the short ride to the port - but we finally were able to get one.   Some people walked with their luggage to the port 

[Eli_6]

On 7/24/2022 at 11:05 PM, fuddrules said:

 

As a backup to your backup - try Uber as a last resort.   Just out of curiosity I priced the Uber cost before we boarded our train and it was about $155 euros.   Even less than the Carnival transfer.   

 

I'm not sure it would have actually filled the request (although Uber has never failed me) as I didn't go through with the booking but something to consider in a worst case scenario.

They don't have uber in Dover.  We booked a taxi months ago but it could not get to us.

[Eli_6]

18 hours ago, Velvetwater said:

Glad to hear its getting better.

 

Back in 2013 we boarded really easily at 11.00 but things have changed I guess.

 

Transport to Dover is now better but there will always be some delays due to the summer season. Schools broke up last week and will go back first week in September. Dover in June is very different to Dover in late July and August.

Absolutely.  Despite what others said, I was not exaggerating the problems in Dover on our embarkation day.  Carnival would not have delayed the ship leaving from 4 pm to 10 pm had there not been a legitimate problem.  I don't know if it will get better next cruise or not, but I would recommend anyone boarding in the next couple of weeks get to Dover the night before and build in plenty of extra time.  

[Eli_6]

16 hours ago, Mimigm said:

FYI - At the Dover train station there is a shuttle that goes back and forth to the cruise terminal. Cost is 5 dollars or 5 euros or 5 lbs whichever one you have. 
 

we boarded the  Pride  on 6/19 and took a Uber from heathrow  to a Dover Premier Inn hotel for 140 lbs 

 

It was difficult getting a  taxi the next morning for the short ride to the port - but we finally were able to get one.   Some people walked with their luggage to the port 

The shuttles and buses could not get to the port because of the traffic that morning.  That's why embarkation was delayed because they could not debark anyone at the normal 6ish am time because they had no where to put them because the buses and shuttles and taxis could not get to the port.   The people who debarked and who got to the train station did so by walking.  We talked to some who had carnival transportation booked and ended up just deciding to walk to the rrain station and take the train so as to not miss their flight. 

 

There were still some departing passengers outside the terminal when we walked up waiting on their ccl bus to wherever they were going that were supposed to depart at 6:30 am at about noon.  They were not happy.  

 

I believe it got a little better later on in the day (which is I suspect what happened woth the lady above who said it took "just" 3.5 hours to get from the airport to Dover...normally a 90 minute jouney) but that morning was REALLY bad. 

[Eli_6]

To update:  Tenders are slow to board.  Hasn't been an issue as much for us because we have a suite, but others have said it took several hours to get off the boat.  Getting back on, this was the line.  

 

[Eli_6]

Scotland is amazing!!!!  Still having fun.   

 

They fixed our hot water but now the shower doesn't work at all.  I am just showering in my kids' room.  

 

The sites are amazing and have made the trip!  Food is good.  Wait staff excellent!   Our room steward is somewhat lacking. I dont thInk our sheets were chsnged from the last guest in our suite because the sheets had stains and smelled like smoke.  I don't smoke...I asked steward 3 times to change them and he did not so finally talked to GS and then they sent someone else to change them.  I think the issue is he is waaayyyy overworked.  Per another guest, ship is at 85 percent capacity and they only have half the staff.  I think some of the staff are stressed out and overworked.  I think that is probably why that one guy yelled at me.  But overall most of them are still doing a great job.  

[ninjacat123]

6 minutes ago, Eli_6 said:

Scotland is amazing!!!!  Still having fun.   

 

They fixed our hot water but now the shower doesn't work at all.  I am just showering in my kids' room.  

 

The sites are amazing and have made the trip!  Food is good.  Wait staff excellent!   Our room steward is somewhat lacking. I dont thInk our sheets were chsnged from the last guest in our suite because the sheets had stains and smelled like smoke.  I don't smoke...I asked steward 3 times to change them and he did not so finally talked to GS and then they sent someone else to change them.  I think the issue is he is waaayyyy overworked.  Per another guest, ship is at 85 percent capacity and they only have half the staff.  I think some of the staff are stressed out and overworked.  I think that is probably why that one guy yelled at me.  But overall most of them are still doing a great job.  

Great Pic!!

[BlerkOne]

On 7/22/2022 at 3:05 PM, Velvetwater said:

Just wanted to weigh in on this as a Brit who knows that port well and has sailed out of it on the pride's sister a few years back. That cruise was truly stunning. Baltic cruise.

 

Most of your points would completely annoy me too but I'm just going to pick up a few points.

 

1) Dover is rarely used as an actual cruise port and is mainly used as a channel crossing port. It doesn't really have a proper terminal due to this and in U.K.terms isn't really close to London. Disney and cruise lines that were too late/too cheap to book Southampton use it. It's an awful dump of a town only known for its continental links and white cliffs.

 

 

and Dover Castle! In years gone by, we've cruised from Dover on both Carnival Splendor and Carnival Legend.

 

On 7/22/2022 at 3:05 PM, Velvetwater said:

 

 

4) Today has been milder than UK summer weather after our heatwave. However, many many Europeans would have no worries swimming in none heated pools this time of year. I can remember our Baltic cruise on the Legend and floating about in the pool along with the Italians and Russians and my fellow countrymen while US folk looked on. This was our sea day on the way to Copenhagen. If you want to swim in northern Europe you gotta brace for colder water.

 

AFAIK, the pools on Pride aren't heated so the temperature will be whatever it is.

 

Not a lot of A/C in England, so the terminal temperature when it is hot outside will be...

[BlerkOne]

7 hours ago, Eli_6 said:

To update:  Tenders are slow to board.  Hasn't been an issue as much for us because we have a suite, but others have said it took several hours to get off the boat.  Getting back on, this was the line.  

 

 

Some of the tender ports in the UK and Ireland don't have tenders and ships have to use their own. This can result in long wait times. The cruise line doesn't matter. If you tender into Dublin or Edinburgh, surprise!

[CruizinSusan70]

On 7/23/2022 at 6:53 AM, Riles34 said:

 

If it was me, I would make the best of it and maybe not book another cruise from that port. Try to enjoy!

The best thing would be to avoid Carnival in Europe.  Next year there are 15 sailings of the Pride after she gets out of dry dock.  This, combined with hopefully better supply issues next year could probably make for a much better experience, but why put yourself through it?  There are many other choices to cruise Europe, including sister ships to the Excel Class on P&O the Iona and Arvia, or MSC, who specializes in European sailings. 

[BlerkOne]

3 hours ago, CruizinSusan70 said:

The best thing would be to avoid Carnival in Europe.  Next year there are 15 sailings of the Pride after she gets out of dry dock.  This, combined with hopefully better supply issues next year could probably make for a much better experience, but why put yourself through it?  There are many other choices to cruise Europe, including sister ships to the Excel Class on P&O the Iona and Arvia, or MSC, who specializes in European sailings. 

How many days does it take an Excel ship to tender using just ship tenders?

 

I might avoid MSC altogether

https://www.cruisecritic.com/msc-british-isles-cruises_cl80-de111/mra/

[CruizinSusan70]

6 hours ago, BlerkOne said:

How many days does it take an Excel ship to tender using just ship tenders?

 

I might avoid MSC altogether

https://www.cruisecritic.com/msc-british-isles-cruises_cl80-de111/mra/

You stick to the rust buckets and we'll stick to the newer builds, even across the pond.

And MSC does cruise in areas besides the British isles.  They infact have 15 ships sailing in Europe next summer, versus the one lone ship that Carnival has, the Pride.

Carnival Corp may be number one, but they are far down the list when it comes to cruising in Europe.  Leave cruising in Europe for those lines that specialize in it.  European lines don't dare cruise out of the secondary ports in the US that Carnival dominates, then why should Carnival send a lone ship across the pond each year?  They should stay where their bread is buttered and leave Europe to those lines that do it right.

[BlerkOne]

3 minutes ago, CruizinSusan70 said:

You stick to the rust buckets and we'll stick to the newer builds, even across the pond.

And MSC does cruise in areas besides the British isles.  They infact have 15 ships sailing in Europe next summer, versus the one lone ship that Carnival has, the Pride.

Carnival Corp may be number one, but they are far down the list when it comes to cruising in Europe.  Leave cruising in Europe for those lines that specialize in it.  European lines don't dare cruise out of the secondary ports in the US that Carnival dominates, then why should Carnival send a lone ship across the pond each year?  They should stay where their bread is buttered and leave Europe to those lines that do it right.

In your opinion....

 

For British Isles, I would choose Princess before P&O and a rowboat before MSC.

[Old Fart Cruisers]

17 minutes ago, CruizinSusan70 said:

You stick to the rust buckets and we'll stick to the newer builds, even across the pond.

And MSC does cruise in areas besides the British isles.  They infact have 15 ships sailing in Europe next summer, versus the one lone ship that Carnival has, the Pride.

Carnival Corp may be number one, but they are far down the list when it comes to cruising in Europe.  Leave cruising in Europe for those lines that specialize in it.  European lines don't dare cruise out of the secondary ports in the US that Carnival dominates, then why should Carnival send a lone ship across the pond each year?  They should stay where their bread is buttered and leave Europe to those lines that do it right.

 

I think you are confusing Carnival Corp with Carnival Cruise line.  Carnival Corporation & plc  or Carnival Corp as you called it actually owns some of large brands in Europe, including:

	AIDA Cruises Carnival Cruise Line Costa Cruises P&O Cruises P&O Cruises Australia Cunard Line Princess Cruises Holland America Line Seabourn[4

[CruizinSusan70]

26 minutes ago, BlerkOne said:

In your opinion....

 

For British Isles, I would choose Princess before P&O and a rowboat before MSC.

You'll have to choose that rowboat since MSC is not doing the British Isles next summer.  Princess would be a good choice, but the Celebrity Apex would be an upgrade.

  No matter which one you choose across the pond, it would be an upgrade over the Pride.

[CruizinSusan70]

10 minutes ago, Old Fart Cruisers said:

 

I think you are confusing Carnival Corp with Carnival Cruise line.  Carnival Corporation & plc  or Carnival Corp as you called it actually owns some of large brands in Europe, including:

	AIDA Cruises Carnival Cruise Line Costa Cruises P&O Cruises P&O Cruises Australia Cunard Line Princess Cruises Holland America Line Seabourn[4

Fully aware of the varied lines that are part of the Carnival Corporation and the three lines that are based in Europe.  This thread is about the problems on the Carnival Pride and I was saying that since that is the only ship that CCL has in Europe, it would be better to choose an European based line or at least one from this side of the pond that sends multiple ships over there such as Princess or Celebrity.