top optional deck

[7777777]

Expansive children's water parks, a new design style and features for the pool areas, and the creation of the Serenity adults only deck area will be part of a dramatic transformation of the open decks of Carnival Cruise Lines' eight Fantasy-class ships.

The new features are just part of Carnival's $250 million "Evolutions of Fun" program, the cruise industry's most ambitious ship refurbishment and product enhancement initiative, which focuses on the line's eight Fantasy- class vessels. These "extreme makeovers" are part of an overall initiative to upgrade all of the unique guest-pleasing features and design style of the Fantasy-class vessels in addition to providing guests with new and exciting shipboard amenities.

 

Is Carnival only doing this to the 8 Fantasy Class Ships? I would personally like to leave the top optional deck the way it's presently is and not give it to the kids for a water park.

[DqALEX]

If it keeps kids away from people who don't want to be around kids its a great idea. I have never been on a cruise where I have had a problem with kids. But some people dont want them around the pools or the hot tubs.

[Cuizer2]

If it keeps kids away from people who don't want to be around kids its a great idea. I have never been on a cruise where I have had a problem with kids. But some people dont want them around the pools or the hot tubs.

 

So naturally they book Carnival, which carries more children than another cruise line.

[pholter]

So naturally they book Carnival, which carries more children than another cruise line.

 

Carnival markets to the masses, not just the kid population. It's the Fun Ship :) In comparison, I would guess that Disney and RCCL carry their fair share of children. Not everyone in the world wants kids around them- even the parents need a place to get away....

[Cuizer2]

Carnival markets to the masses, not just the kid population. It's the Fun Ship :) In comparison, I would guess that Disney and RCCL carry their fair share of children. Not everyone in the world wants kids around them- even the parents need a place to get away....

 

Yes, RCI, Disney and NCL all are family friendly. If someone what to get away from the kids, then Princess, Celebrity, HAL, Seabourn, Silversea, Crystal ... would be less likely to have kids.

 

You don't go to Chucky Cheese expecting a nice quite dinner. You should not book Carnival and expect to escape the kids.

[pholter]

Yes, RCI, Disney and NCL all are family friendly. If someone what to get away from the kids, then Princess, Celebrity, HAL, Seabourn, Silversea, Crystal ... would be less likely to have kids.

 

You don't go to Chucky Cheese expecting a nice quite dinner. You should not book Carnival and expect to escape the kids.

 

Why shouldn't I expect that?? Carnival commercials show Adults having Adult time- gourmet dining, discos, casinos, etc. Camp Carnival keeps the little angels under lock and key. BTW, there are ALOT of kids (rich kids) on the other lines you mentioned as they all have kids club's too. Are you saying that only families should be allowed to cruise on Carnival and those without kids should have to pay a premium to vacation?? The kids already get to cruise for a fraction of my costs, so having a small undesirable deck that has always been there for the adults is not unreasonable.

 

Chucky Cheese doesn't market to adults, btw and they don't have Casino's, Premium Liquor, Gourmet Dining, or Discos that I'm aware of. If I want a really bad piece of pizza, that would be my first choice of classless restaurants though! :)

[kujobie]

Why shouldn't I expect that?? Carnival commercials show Adults having Adult time- gourmet dining, discos, casinos, etc. Camp Carnival keeps the little angels under lock and key. BTW, there are ALOT of kids (rich kids) on the other lines you mentioned as they all have kids club's too. Are you saying that only families should be allowed to cruise on Carnival and those without kids should have to pay a premium to vacation?? The kids already get to cruise for a fraction of my costs, so having a small undesirable deck that has always been there for the adults is not unreasonable.

 

Chucky Cheese doesn't market to adults, btw and they don't have Casino's, Premium Liquor, Gourmet Dining, or Discos that I'm aware of. If I want a really bad piece of pizza, that would be my first choice of classless restaurants though! :)

 

The price for kids is the same as adults. And Camp Carnival Is not solitary confinement.

[pholter]

The price for kids is the same as adults. And Camp Carnival Is not solitary confinement.

 

I should have been more clear- my apologies :) I'm referring to the cost of 3rd, 4th, 5th persons in the same cabin being much less than just 2. Although I have heard of adults taking advantage of the fantastic rate, my observations have been mostly families with kids. Do the adults have to check the kids out of Camp Carnival or can they roam around the ship without being checked out?? That was my reference to "lock and key."

 

Regardless, none of STILL makes any sense at all to closing the most undesirable deck on the ship to the Adults that enjoyed Topless sunbathing or just getting away from their own or other's children.

[deborahjo]

Well it will be interesting to see if these decks stay adults only. Carnival has a trouble enforcing their rules when it come to children being where they are not suppose to be.....ie hot tubs.

[ShedQueen77]

But does "adult only" automatically equal "tops optional"? Somehow I'm thinking this is going to be just an adult area, not a topless sunbathing area. If Carnival wants to keep with the "family orientated" image, they probably aren't going to be encouraging any sort of nudity. However, to keep the adults happy, they'll have the adult area. JMHO.

[Cuizer2]

Why shouldn't I expect that?? Carnival commercials show Adults having Adult time- gourmet dining, discos, casinos, etc. Camp Carnival keeps the little angels under lock and key. BTW, there are ALOT of kids (rich kids) on the other lines you mentioned as they all have kids club's too. Are you saying that only families should be allowed to cruise on Carnival and those without kids should have to pay a premium to vacation?? The kids already get to cruise for a fraction of my costs, so having a small undesirable deck that has always been there for the adults is not unreasonable.

 

Chucky Cheese doesn't market to adults, btw and they don't have Casino's, Premium Liquor, Gourmet Dining, or Discos that I'm aware of. If I want a really bad piece of pizza, that would be my first choice of classless restaurants though! :)

 

Read what I said again. I said LESS LIKELY. I did not say there would be no kids. Not all the kids go to Camp Carnival. Princess, HAL and Celebrity are all competitive with RCI and Disney. Disney does not have a casino either. I did not say only families should book on Carnival, nor did I say that those without kids should pay more. What I do suggest however is that you read before replying. Your comments about Chucky Cheese only support what I am saying.

 

By the way, you are wrong about the cost of children cruising. Kids pay the same price as adults. If a child is the third or forth person in the cabin, they are charged a reduced rate. However, the same is true if an adult is the third or forth person in the cabin. If a child is the second person in a cabin, the child is charged the full rate.

[Cuizer2]

I should have been more clear- my apologies :) I'm referring to the cost of 3rd, 4th, 5th persons in the same cabin being much less than just 2. Although I have heard of adults taking advantage of the fantastic rate, my observations have been mostly families with kids. Do the adults have to check the kids out of Camp Carnival or can they roam around the ship without being checked out?? That was my reference to "lock and key."

 

Regardless, none of STILL makes any sense at all to closing the most undesirable deck on the ship to the Adults that enjoyed Topless sunbathing or just getting away from their own or other's children.

 

At Camp Carnival any child that is nine or older can sign his or herself out.

[kelz66]

But does "adult only" automatically equal "tops optional"? Somehow I'm thinking this is going to be just an adult area, not a topless sunbathing area. If Carnival wants to keep with the "family orientated" image, they probably aren't going to be encouraging any sort of nudity. However, to keep the adults happy, they'll have the adult area. JMHO.

 

Well they need to keep adults happy because they are the ones who book cruises and pay for everything.

:p LOL

 

And do you mean "Child oriented"? Because MY family consists of only adults and appreciate areas where we can relax in peace. :D

[rgreenpc]

I think a refurbishmaent of the "older" ships is a great idea...

 

As far as kids, and cruise lines... I have seen kids on my Alaskan cruise on PCL (even if there wern't many (we went when most schools were in session))

 

When my wife and I went on our last cruise I maybe saw 20 kids the entire time, and I think their parents were CC members since they all seemed to keep them under a tight leash.

 

Not once did I hear a kid running down the hall or.... come to think of it... I hardley EVER saw them.

 

I think any cruise line is kid friendly as long as the kids are well behaved.

 

I am a military brat (all grown up) and I know that I never dreamed about getting into trouble else I would regret it.

[m steve]

could be the next ship and and the area around one of the pools could be clothing optional and all passengers would have to be 18 or older. Now that would really be a FUN SHIP!

[kabuka]

Yes, RCI, Disney and NCL all are family friendly. If someone what to get away from the kids, then Princess, Celebrity, HAL, Seabourn, Silversea, Crystal ... would be less likely to have kids.

 

You don't go to Chucky Cheese expecting a nice quite dinner. You should not book Carnival and expect to escape the kids.

 

First, Cuizer2: Why should I have to pay twice as much for a cruise on say Crystal or Seabourn (and cruise with a population 20 years my senior) simply because I don't have children and would like my vacation to be quiet at times???

 

Maybe parents need to teach their children some manners and none of this would be relevant.

 

Second, how about we all get along on these boards. The orginal post for this thread was about Carnival changing things. Not a discussion of children and those who like or dislike them!

 

It has been quite a few years since I have been on a Carnival cruise and there was no adult "topless" deck then. I actually would be very uncomfortable with that because I don't want to see a bunch of "ta-ta's" and I am surely not sharing mine. An adult only area for relaxing with no nudity works for me!

[pholter]

Read what I said again. I said LESS LIKELY. I did not say there would be no kids. Not all the kids go to Camp Carnival. Princess, HAL and Celebrity are all competitive with RCI and Disney. Disney does not have a casino either. I did not say only families should book on Carnival, nor did I say that those without kids should pay more. What I do suggest however is that you read before replying. Your comments about Chucky Cheese only support what I am saying.

 

By the way, you are wrong about the cost of children cruising. Kids pay the same price as adults. If a child is the third or forth person in the cabin, they are charged a reduced rate. However, the same is true if an adult is the third or forth person in the cabin. If a child is the second person in a cabin, the child is charged the full rate.

 

I would also suggest that you read before replying as you so eloquently asked me to do.... Others took your posting the exact same way that I have as I have finished reading the updates to this thread before replying this morning (as I normally do) . Now, maybe we should return to the actual topic asked about?? ;)

[Falcon164016]

I don't really agree with the association between a deck being topless and it being not family friendly. I just got back from a week on Orient Beach in St. Maarten, and it didn't bother me one bit. Most European countries have it figured out, but the prudish U.S. is still lagging behind...they are just breasts, pure and simple; men have them too, they are just (usually :eek:) smaller...get over it.

[DqALEX]

So naturally they book Carnival, which carries more children than another cruise line.

I bring my 3 kids 99% of the time. Like I say I have never had a problem with any kid on a cruise. They are there to have a good time like I am.

[Cuizer2]

I would also suggest that you read before replying as you so eloquently asked me to do.... Others took your posting the exact same way that I have as I have finished reading the updates to this thread before replying this morning (as I normally do) . Now, maybe we should return to the actual topic asked about?? ;)

 

I responded to what you wrote. You responded to what you think I wrote. There is a difference. Just because someone else gets it wrong does not mean you should too. I have read some posts three times to make sure I understand what is being said.

[CORONAONTHEBEACH]

I don't really agree with the association between a deck being topless and it being not family friendly. I just got back from a week on Orient Beach in St. Maarten, and it didn't bother me one bit. Most European countries have it figured out, but the prudish U.S. is still lagging behind...they are just breasts, pure and simple; men have them too, they are just (usually :eek:) smaller...get over it.

 

Falcon, you hit the nail on the head. European cultures do not make a big deal over it but to us American's, public nudity is the end of the world. I also was at Orient Beach and saw plenty of nudity, did not bother me in the least bit (male or female). But a family from our cruise sat down near us and their younger boy was playing in the sand. A nude man walked by and they did everything in their power to cover his eyes and frankly made more of a scene. I bet if they did not do anything, the boy would not have even noticed but since the parents made a scene, the nudity was brought to the boy's attention. Needless to say, they left right after that. I really enjoyed going to the "adults only" deck because it was nice and quieter up there without much disturbences. And if there is nudity, so what...after a couple of minutes you don't even realize that there is any and get used to it. Us Americans need to learn to relax and not be so uptight!!

[JanesCruisingBuddy]

So naturally they book Carnival, which carries more children than another cruise line.

We book Carnival basically on economical reasons. Yes it carries children. I have absolutely no problem with children being on board, and with them being free to roam virtually all of the ship. But we have done the kid thing, loved vacationing with them, but now we do not miss them either. There are times on the ship when we enjoyed watching them have fun - in their appropriate spaces. But now that we do not travel with children, we also appreciate some places where we can get totally clear of all of them and still be out doors under the Caribbean sky.

If past experience counts, we found Carnival did not enforce the adult only areas well enough, and yes, I know it is going to be difficult for them to do so if the parents are not doing it.

If adult only can be enforced, then fine.

But in practice, it seems the only way to get it enforced is to get the parents to enforce it, and the only time some parents will enforce it is if they fear their children will be endangered (see what they do not want them to see - toplessness).

The topless deck did not force toplessness, only permitted it... thus parents kept their children away just to be "safe." Thus we got to enjoy a quiet child-free space when we wanted such. If "toplessness - permitted" is the only way to get enforced adult only space, then so be it.

Will my wife ever go topless, that will be up to her. Does she sometimes enjoy being with me in a quiet child-free space - you bet. Just give us a true adult only place where we can go when we want such.

Thanks.

[Cherlach]

We book Carnival basically on economical reasons. Yes it carries children. I have absolutely no problem with children being on board, and with them being free to roam virtually all of the ship. But we have done the kid thing, loved vacationing with them, but now we do not miss them either. There are times on the ship when we enjoyed watching them have fun - in their appropriate spaces. But now that we do not travel with children, we also appreciate some places where we can get totally clear of all of them and still be out doors under the Caribbean sky.

If past experience counts, we found Carnival did not enforce the adult only areas well enough, and yes, I know it is going to be difficult for them to do so if the parents are not doing it.

If adult only can be enforced, then fine.

But in practice, it seems the only way to get it enforced is to get the parents to enforce it, and the only time some parents will enforce it is if they fear their children will be endangered (see what they do not want them to see - toplessness).

The topless deck did not force toplessness, only permitted it... thus parents kept their children away just to be "safe." Thus we got to enjoy a quiet child-free space when we wanted such. If "toplessness - permitted" is the only way to get enforced adult only space, then so be it.

Will my wife ever go topless, that will be up to her. Does she sometimes enjoy being with me in a quiet child-free space - you bet. Just give us a true adult only place where we can go when we want such.

Thanks.

I have read post after post on this subject without comment, but I must say you just put my thoughts on the matter into words, I could not agree with you more.

[kelz66]

We book Carnival basically on economical reasons. Yes it carries children. I have absolutely no problem with children being on board, and with them being free to roam virtually all of the ship. But we have done the kid thing, loved vacationing with them, but now we do not miss them either. There are times on the ship when we enjoyed watching them have fun - in their appropriate spaces. But now that we do not travel with children, we also appreciate some places where we can get totally clear of all of them and still be out doors under the Caribbean sky.

If past experience counts, we found Carnival did not enforce the adult only areas well enough, and yes, I know it is going to be difficult for them to do so if the parents are not doing it.

If adult only can be enforced, then fine.

But in practice, it seems the only way to get it enforced is to get the parents to enforce it, and the only time some parents will enforce it is if they fear their children will be endangered (see what they do not want them to see - toplessness).

The topless deck did not force toplessness, only permitted it... thus parents kept their children away just to be "safe." Thus we got to enjoy a quiet child-free space when we wanted such. If "toplessness - permitted" is the only way to get enforced adult only space, then so be it.

Will my wife ever go topless, that will be up to her. Does she sometimes enjoy being with me in a quiet child-free space - you bet. Just give us a true adult only place where we can go when we want such.

Thanks.

 

*standing ovation*

 

Very well stated!! :cool:

[Caliber1]

We book Carnival basically on economical reasons. Yes it carries children. I have absolutely no problem with children being on board, and with them being free to roam virtually all of the ship. But we have done the kid thing, loved vacationing with them, but now we do not miss them either. There are times on the ship when we enjoyed watching them have fun - in their appropriate spaces. But now that we do not travel with children, we also appreciate some places where we can get totally clear of all of them and still be out doors under the Caribbean sky.

If past experience counts, we found Carnival did not enforce the adult only areas well enough, and yes, I know it is going to be difficult for them to do so if the parents are not doing it.

If adult only can be enforced, then fine.

But in practice, it seems the only way to get it enforced is to get the parents to enforce it, and the only time some parents will enforce it is if they fear their children will be endangered (see what they do not want them to see - toplessness).

The topless deck did not force toplessness, only permitted it... thus parents kept their children away just to be "safe." Thus we got to enjoy a quiet child-free space when we wanted such. If "toplessness - permitted" is the only way to get enforced adult only space, then so be it.

Will my wife ever go topless, that will be up to her. Does she sometimes enjoy being with me in a quiet child-free space - you bet. Just give us a true adult only place where we can go when we want such.

Thanks.

 

Without a doubt the best written post I have read on this subject!! Cheers.