Cut backs i noticed on breeze.

[seaman11]

Im on her right now, i did notice long lines at buffet and drink stations, and not just on the first day. Fewer stations open.  No free room service even breakfast( but i dont use )   purel stations are fewer and some do not work. (Bring your own in case)  they are letting ppl fill up big travel mugs at stations directly so this adds to wait time and minus for sanitary.  Quality of food at breakfast and lunch seems down. No icecream and fewer sections of varity. 

 

Other than that not much I noticed.  My time dinning has been great both food and service. 

[seaman11]

I forgot to mention 2 free movie channels still there ,someone i remember was asking.  

[Schoifmom]

In your room you will find (usually on the wall near the phone) a QR code.  This is for the room service menu where you will see that there are still no charge items (at least until the beginning of October).  The "free" items do not appear in the HUB app.

 

Are they out of ice cream?  They have not discontinued it.

[sparks1093]

I think the filling travel bottles directly is a matter of enforcement versus something that is allowed. I've seen people doing that on every cruise and every line we've cruised so far.

[cruisingguy007]

1 hour ago, sparks1093 said:

I think the filling travel bottles directly is a matter of enforcement versus something that is allowed. I've seen people doing that on every cruise and every line we've cruised so far.

 

Indeed, I saw a guy rise out and refill his travel bottle at the water station, then rinsed his hands off and then used the water to pat some on his neck to cool off, all at the community water station 🤢. Some people, I tell ya 😡. This is why we can't have nice things.

[mz-s]

Frankly I don't understand how it's seen as unsanitary to fill your own cup at the water station. Do people think possible germs migrate upstream and infect the dispenser?

[cruisinqt]

It’s been really frustrating for me too but I’ve been trying to be understanding about the cutbacks. The cruise industry was completely shutdown for at least a couple of years. How many businesses can go with zero profit for years and still make it? Very few. It’s going to take a long time for them to recover. And many cruise lines will probably go under. Some already have. If I have to deal with longer lines, fewer food options, no free room service after breakfast hours, etc. I’ll accept that for awhile. I know they’re trying to recover and this is the most practical way to do it. I’m hoping that it’s just a temporary situation until they get back on their feet so to speak financially. I’m sailing a few other lines and seeing the same cutbacks and complaints. It seems like it’s a problem right now in the entire cruise industry. 

[psikic]

Its the lever on the back of the dispenser, touching the lip of the cup they drink out of that then touches the lip of the cup you drink out of.   Also, when liquid comes out of the dispenser into a dirty cup it splashes droplets out of their cup onto the dispenser which then mixes with what comes out of the dispenser next time and goes into your cup.  Its the same reason why you have to get a new plate at the buffet each time.

[mz-s]

5 minutes ago, cruisinqt said:

It’s been really frustrating for me too but I’ve been trying to be understanding about the cutbacks. The cruise industry was completely shutdown for at least a couple of years. How many businesses can go with zero profit for years and still make it? Very few. It’s going to take a long time for them to recover. And many cruise lines will probably go under. Some already have. If I have to deal with longer lines, fewer food options, no free room service after breakfast hours, etc. I’ll accept that for awhile. I know they’re trying to recover and this is the most practical way to do it. I’m hoping that it’s just a temporary situation until they get back on their feet so to speak financially. I’m sailing a few other lines and seeing the same cutbacks and complaints. It seems like it’s a problem right now in the entire cruise industry. 

 

The frustrating thing to me is it's a surprise when you board what will be the latest cutback. The only way people find out a lot of these is they're reported here.

[cruisinqt]

9 minutes ago, mz-s said:

 

The frustrating thing to me is it's a surprise when you board what will be the latest cutback. The only way people find out a lot of these is they're reported here.

A lot of the stuff people are complaining about are not because of permanent cutbacks. Most of them are due to certain ships being short staffed. The covid situation made it really hard to live or work in another country. Visas weren’t being approved hardly at all. On our cruise back in February our cabin steward said most of his friends were struggling to get work visas and the ship was very understaffed because of it. So the food quality, service, etc suffered. The restaurants hours were cutback and even the kids center wasn’t running.

 But now we are seeing some stuff get back to normal on certain ships while other ships stuff is still being cutback. That’s why it’s a hit or miss as to what to expect on your ship. It’s not because of permanent cutbacks but because they are short staffed. On our Horizon cruise there were lots of cutbacks (because of staffing) but on our Mardi Gras cruise there were almost no cutbacks except a few permanent ones like the pizza places hours changing or the free room service being only till 10 am. It’s because it’s a new ship with all new people that were hired months in advance whereas the older ships were scrambling to try to bring back the previous staff. 
 
Most of the permanent cutbacks are minor annoyances in my opinion and carnival has been up front about them. What’s driving everybody crazy are the cutbacks and changes due to lack of staff. That’s something carnival can’t do much about and can’t predict because it changes from ship to ship. We really should be complaining to the immigration and visa people about the super slow turn around on issuing visas. They need to get on the ball. Hopefully most of these issues will clear up in the next few months and the permanent changes will be minor. 

[Itried4498]

3 minutes ago, cruisinqt said:

A lot of the stuff people are complaining about are not because of permanent cutbacks. Most of them are due to certain ships being short staffed. The covid situation made it really hard to live or work in another country. Visas weren’t being approved hardly at all. On our cruise back in February our cabin steward said most of his friends were struggling to get work visas and the ship was very understaffed because of it. So the food quality, service, etc suffered. The restaurants hours were cutback and even the kids center wasn’t running.

 But now we are seeing some stuff get back to normal on certain ships while other ships stuff is still being cutback. That’s why it’s a hit or miss as to what to expect on your ship. It’s not because of permanent cutbacks but because they are short staffed. On our Horizon cruise there were lots of cutbacks (because of staffing) but on our Mardi Gras cruise there were almost no cutbacks except a few permanent ones like the pizza places hours changing or the free room service being only till 10 am. It’s because it’s a new ship with all new people that were hired months in advance whereas the older ships were scrambling to try to bring back the previous staff. 
 
Most of the permanent cutbacks are minor annoyances in my opinion and carnival has been up front about them. What’s driving everybody crazy are the cutbacks and changes due to lack of staff. That’s something carnival can’t do much about and can’t predict because it changes from ship to ship. We really should be complaining to the immigration and visa people about the super slow turn around on issuing visas. They need to get on the ball. Hopefully most of these issues will clear up in the next few months and the permanent changes will be minor. 

 

Many, if not most, of the cutbacks are due to cost, not staffing.  You won't convince me that Carnival can't find adequate staffing for late night dining options.  Trimming deli and pizzeria hours and eliminating the buffet option ultimately save millions of dollars - and generate some income from room service orders.  Most people have already had multiple meals and snacks, and are eating out of compulsion, so it's an easy cutback with little backlash.

[mz-s]

52 minutes ago, cruisinqt said:

A lot of the stuff people are complaining about are not because of permanent cutbacks. Most of them are due to certain ships being short staffed. The covid situation made it really hard to live or work in another country. Visas weren’t being approved hardly at all. On our cruise back in February our cabin steward said most of his friends were struggling to get work visas and the ship was very understaffed because of it. So the food quality, service, etc suffered. The restaurants hours were cutback and even the kids center wasn’t running.

 But now we are seeing some stuff get back to normal on certain ships while other ships stuff is still being cutback. That’s why it’s a hit or miss as to what to expect on your ship. It’s not because of permanent cutbacks but because they are short staffed. On our Horizon cruise there were lots of cutbacks (because of staffing) but on our Mardi Gras cruise there were almost no cutbacks except a few permanent ones like the pizza places hours changing or the free room service being only till 10 am. It’s because it’s a new ship with all new people that were hired months in advance whereas the older ships were scrambling to try to bring back the previous staff. 
 
Most of the permanent cutbacks are minor annoyances in my opinion and carnival has been up front about them. What’s driving everybody crazy are the cutbacks and changes due to lack of staff. That’s something carnival can’t do much about and can’t predict because it changes from ship to ship. We really should be complaining to the immigration and visa people about the super slow turn around on issuing visas. They need to get on the ball. Hopefully most of these issues will clear up in the next few months and the permanent changes will be minor. 

 

Carnival's website is still advertising 24-hour included pizza. It hasn't been 24 hours in months and probably never will again so there is no excuse in Carnival bait and switching like that.

[cruisinqt]

14 minutes ago, Itried4498 said:

 

Many, if not most, of the cutbacks are due to cost, not staffing.  You won't convince me that Carnival can't find adequate staffing for late night dining options.  Trimming deli and pizzeria hours and eliminating the buffet option ultimately save millions of dollars - and generate some income from room service orders.  Most people have already had multiple meals and snacks, and are eating out of compulsion, so it's an easy cutback with little backlash.

My cabin steward on the Horizon (in February) said he got his visa after a few months but his wife was still back home waiting for hers to be approved. He mentioned several friends that had worked on the ship with him in the past that were also waiting on visa approval. He also stated that many former workers found jobs back home and didn’t want to return to cruising. So not only are they short staffed but many of the workers are new to the industry and need extensive training. So they are training people while still having to do their jobs.
I asked my waiter about the issue in July on our Mardi Gras cruise and he confirmed that most ships were still struggling with staffing issues. He said the Mardi Gras was lucky because they were one of the few ships almost fully staffed. (That’s probably why all of their specialty restaurants were open when the other ships were closed for a short time.) He also said covid was a big factor in the staffing issues because every sailing there are lots of staff hit with covid and can’t do their job. So everyone ends up working extra and picking up the slack. Cutting back restaurant hours and buffet hours is inevitable considering the situation. 
 

That being said, I agree that saving money is probably also a deciding factor in some of their decisions. The cruise industry was given a severe blow during the pandemic when they had to shutdown for years and now they’re struggling to stay afloat. But the worker shortage is a fact. They must sign a contract to work on a ship for a minimum of 6 months. That means not seeing their loved ones for quite a while. Most Americans won’t even work a normal job on land so why would they opt to go overseas for 6 months or longer with lousy pay? That’s why you’ll almost always see foreigners working the cruise industry.  And those foreigners need visas to work. And the countries are panicked over covid and making people jump through hoops to get a visa. Therefore, there’s most definitely a worker shortage and staffing problem on all of the ships. And it absolutely will cause cutbacks. But are the cutbacks solely because of being short staffed? No. Is it strictly because of money? No. It’s a combination of both. I’m hoping that once the staffing issues are resolved that some of these cutbacks will disappear. The workers I talked to seemed to think so. I guess we shall see. 

[sanmarcosman]

3 hours ago, mz-s said:

Frankly I don't understand how it's seen as unsanitary to fill your own cup at the water station. Do people think possible germs migrate upstream and infect the dispenser?

Spittle from our used cups remains on the rim and when we place the used cup against the plate that releases ice the spittle can transfer to the machine and then to the cup of the next person to use the machine. Swab tests taken by USPHS inspectors during their ship inspections of norovirus outbreaks demonstrated this to be so.

[csm5986142]

5 hours ago, sparks1093 said:

I think the filling travel bottles directly is a matter of enforcement versus something that is allowed. I've seen people doing that on every cruise and every line we've cruised so far.

 

in our experience it varies by ship.  I've never seen it enforced on a Carnival ship until this past week on Panorama.  They had someone standing at the coffee machines every morning (you could not get your own coffee - even using their mugs).  The crew member would ask if we wanted regulars or decaf, and then dispense it and hand it to us.

[Guest BasicSailor]

Too many ships at sea and not enough staff to run them adequately. Float your boats.

[Itried4498]

6 hours ago, cruisinqt said:

My cabin steward on the Horizon (in February) said he got his visa after a few months but his wife was still back home waiting for hers to be approved. He mentioned several friends that had worked on the ship with him in the past that were also waiting on visa approval. He also stated that many former workers found jobs back home and didn’t want to return to cruising. So not only are they short staffed but many of the workers are new to the industry and need extensive training. So they are training people while still having to do their jobs.
I asked my waiter about the issue in July on our Mardi Gras cruise and he confirmed that most ships were still struggling with staffing issues. He said the Mardi Gras was lucky because they were one of the few ships almost fully staffed. (That’s probably why all of their specialty restaurants were open when the other ships were closed for a short time.) He also said covid was a big factor in the staffing issues because every sailing there are lots of staff hit with covid and can’t do their job. So everyone ends up working extra and picking up the slack. Cutting back restaurant hours and buffet hours is inevitable considering the situation. 
 

That being said, I agree that saving money is probably also a deciding factor in some of their decisions. The cruise industry was given a severe blow during the pandemic when they had to shutdown for years and now they’re struggling to stay afloat. But the worker shortage is a fact. They must sign a contract to work on a ship for a minimum of 6 months. That means not seeing their loved ones for quite a while. Most Americans won’t even work a normal job on land so why would they opt to go overseas for 6 months or longer with lousy pay? That’s why you’ll almost always see foreigners working the cruise industry.  And those foreigners need visas to work. And the countries are panicked over covid and making people jump through hoops to get a visa. Therefore, there’s most definitely a worker shortage and staffing problem on all of the ships. And it absolutely will cause cutbacks. But are the cutbacks solely because of being short staffed? No. Is it strictly because of money? No. It’s a combination of both. I’m hoping that once the staffing issues are resolved that some of these cutbacks will disappear. The workers I talked to seemed to think so. I guess we shall see. 

 

I don't disagree that there have been staffing issues - and it was largely self induced; Carnival (Corporation, not just its namesake) literally gave away staterooms at the same time it was re-activating its fleet.  This caused occupancy to swell, which caused a larger need for help at the same time the industry was trying to staff ships it was activating.  This caused an overburden system (government) to become even more overburden.  Etc.

 

But it's mid-September, and much of the situation has resolved itself, and yet most of the cutbacks have not returned.  And the reality is they won't -- I'll reiterate my example of late night dining.  The food at the buffet was not prepared fresh, it was cooked earlier in the day and placed in warming trays.  And Carnival's so short staffed it can't find one person each night to resume service?  It's a clearly a cost cutting move...

[Socalf1fan]

11 hours ago, seaman11 said:

 No icecream

WOOOOOAHHHH.

STOP THE SHIP!

Seriously no more self serve ice cream? I am actually kinda disappointed in this. It was nice being able to get some at odd times or whenever you wanted.

[icft]

Everything below is just my OPINION.

 

In my opinion the short staffing on ships is completely on Carnival.

 

While it is totally appropriate to be understanding and appreciative to the crew that is on a ship, since the situation is no fault of theirs and they are being taken advantage of by Carnival, there should be no understanding for Carnival management.

 

Carnival rushed to get its entire fleet sailing knowing they did not have sufficient crew, knowing it would put immense pressure on the crew they did have, knowing it would degrade the cruising experience for customers and they they did it anyway.

 

The visa thing is bogus as a reason the ships are short staffed. You don't put a ship into operation until you know you have crew. Here we are a year after reopening and still short crew? Being a little optimistic and being short crew for two or three months is one thing, but for over a year? And the problems only became apparent six months after reopening when they put the last of their fleet in service rather than fully crewing the other ships? By that time they had to know the problem with getting crew but they decided to take advantage of the crew and the customers rather than delay putting the last of their fleet in operation.

 

So let's stop with the visa stuff. Carnival is short crew and providing a degraded cruise experience solely to increase profit. The only question, and it is a valid question, is if that was the best decision. Some will say it is that or bankruptcy. Others will say that the low fares made it fair to the customers and that the reduction in services took the pressure off the crew and made it fair to them.

 

I don't know the answer, but in my opinion the visa thing has no merit.

[sparks1093]

I know many businesses ashore that even now are short staffed. This isn't something that just affects the cruise lines. The cruise lines can't just go get anyone off the street to fill positions, either. There are visas and background checks that need to be passed and that is in addition to finding someone that wants to earn their living by going to sea in the first place. And if some of the so called cut backs are designed to save money then I see that as sound business practice. Carnival has all of the data that none of us have and they know more precisely how many people are affected by a certain change versus how much they can potentially save by said change. I don't make my decision to cruise with a certain line by what amenities they have, or what late night eating options are available. My decision is made by what it costs to get onboard and anything that can be done to keep that figure low is a good thing. 

[sparks1093]

11 hours ago, sanmarcosman said:

Spittle from our used cups remains on the rim and when we place the used cup against the plate that releases ice the spittle can transfer to the machine and then to the cup of the next person to use the machine. Swab tests taken by USPHS inspectors during their ship inspections of norovirus outbreaks demonstrated this to be so.

I can understand that with a cup that someone is drinking out of, but what of the containers that use a removable top and the rim of the container never touches one's lips? Most water bottles use some sort of straw for example and one's lips never come in contact with the part of the bottle that touches the dispensing plate.

[jimbo5544]

14 hours ago, cruisinqt said:

It’s been really frustrating for me too but I’ve been trying to be understanding about the cutbacks. The cruise industry was completely shutdown for at least a couple of years. How many businesses can go with zero profit for years and still make it? Very few. It’s going to take a long time for them to recover. And many cruise lines will probably go under. Some already have. If I have to deal with longer lines, fewer food options, no free room service after breakfast hours, etc. I’ll accept that for awhile. I know they’re trying to recover and this is the most practical way to do it. I’m hoping that it’s just a temporary situation until they get back on their feet so to speak financially. I’m sailing a few other lines and seeing the same cutbacks and complaints. It seems like it’s a problem right now in the entire cruise industry. 

They lost tens of billions of burn money while forced to shut down by the CDC. Started at 1.3 billion a month in the beginning down to 585 million the last month.  This is not lost revenue, but the cost to keep ships idling.  Actual money out the door, you could add lost revenue on top of that.   During their startup, they are still loosing money (the slow resume to the sea).  It is going to-be a while before the Carnival we all knew is back, until then, my view is I am perfectly fine with being able to cruise.

[jimbo5544]

4 hours ago, icft said:

Everything below is just my OPINION.

 

In my opinion the short staffing on ships is completely on Carnival.

 

While it is totally appropriate to be understanding and appreciative to the crew that is on a ship, since the situation is no fault of theirs and they are being taken advantage of by Carnival, there should be no understanding for Carnival management.

 

Carnival rushed to get its entire fleet sailing knowing they did not have sufficient crew, knowing it would put immense pressure on the crew they did have, knowing it would degrade the cruising experience for customers and they they did it anyway.

 

The visa thing is bogus as a reason the ships are short staffed. You don't put a ship into operation until you know you have crew. Here we are a year after reopening and still short crew? Being a little optimistic and being short crew for two or three months is one thing, but for over a year? And the problems only became apparent six months after reopening when they put the last of their fleet in service rather than fully crewing the other ships? By that time they had to know the problem with getting crew but they decided to take advantage of the crew and the customers rather than delay putting the last of their fleet in operation.

 

So let's stop with the visa stuff. Carnival is short crew and providing a degraded cruise experience solely to increase profit. The only question, and it is a valid question, is if that was the best decision. Some will say it is that or bankruptcy. Others will say that the low fares made it fair to the customers and that the reduction in services took the pressure off the crew and made it fair to them.

 

I don't know the answer, but in my opinion the visa thing has no merit.

Well that is a view, might want to view the monetary side also, but staying in business (rushing to get ships sailing).  It is your vacation after all.😎

[mz-s]

Me personally, the "I'm just happy to be able to cruise again" isn't good enough anymore. Things are as close to back to normal on land as they will ever be. Prices are up but I can buy all the bacon I want. Flight prices are high but I can fly wherever I want. Etc. So I want a normal experience from my cruise. Charge us more if you must. But telling me "well we can't get enough visas" or "well there is a bacon shortage" or whatever just don't cut it after a year of the excuses to me.

[ShakyBeef]

59 minutes ago, sparks1093 said:

I can understand that with a cup that someone is drinking out of, but what of the containers that use a removable top and the rim of the container never touches one's lips? Most water bottles use some sort of straw for example and one's lips never come in contact with the part of the bottle that touches the dispensing plate.

 

One word: backwash.🤮

 

This article is not specifically about refilling your drink container from public sources, but the information contained therein is relevant to your question:

 

https://www.unmc.edu/newsroom/2006/03/28/microbiologist-weighs-in-on-reusing-water-bottles/