Is Carnival Paradise That bad!

My wife and I are thinking of booking a five-day cruise out of Tampa on the Carnival Paradise in February, but we are shocked at the number of awful reviews. We realize it is an older ship, it only has one pool, has no 2.0 upgrades,; but the reviews say it is filthy, has poor service, lousy entertainment, and awful food.

Our expectations are reasonable; we are have sailed on Fantasy ships before, but we are, indeed, concerned. Can anyone tell me whether I should ignore the reviews, or avoid this cruise at all costs.

I hope that's not the case. We sailed on her awhile back and she was one of our favorite Fantasy ships, even without the upgrades other ships in the class have received.

We did that sailing on the Paradise this past January. We had a great time. Dinner service in the dining room was very slow on formal night. But I wouldn't say that makes service and the whole trip awful. The shows we saw were decent. I remember there was one really great comedian, the other not so great. My son loved the kids club. We all had a great time, but we aren't too picky. Sounds like you'll have a great time too. You've been on other similar ships so you know what to expect. If you enjoyed your vacation on those, I'm sure you'll enjoy this one just as much!

We sailed the Paradise in 2012. It was our son's first cruise. He had a great time, and so did we. We spent most of our time at the pool so he could go on the slide over, and over, and over again :). No, it didn't have all the bells and whistles, but it was an easy getaway for us. We found the ship to be very clean, and we found the staff to be very friendly. It was a great 5 day cruise.

It was our first cruise. We may do a bday cruise in Dec '17 and may redo on the Paradise. The only difference is we will do a balcony next time. The trip is what you make of it. There isnt excuse for poor service but relax and have fun!

There are so many nicer ships.

It's a super clean ship. It's also a super old ship. If you're a ship snob it's not for you. It was our first cruise on 2014 and did the trick and got us addicted to cruising.

My wife and I are thinking of booking a five-day cruise out of Tampa on the Carnival Paradise in February, but we are shocked at the number of awful reviews. We realize it is an older ship, it only has one pool, has no 2.0 upgrades,; but the reviews say it is filthy, has poor service, lousy entertainment, and awful food.

 

Our expectations are reasonable; we are have sailed on Fantasy ships before, but we are, indeed, concerned. Can anyone tell me whether I should ignore the reviews, or avoid this cruise at all costs.

Avoid at all costs.

There are so many nicer ships.

You are being kind.

I've enjoyed every cruise taken, but Paradise the least. Highly doubtful that I would ever book that ship again. There are nicer ships even within the fantasy class. JMO.

There are so many nicer ships.

Absolutely agree with this but if I was looking for a shorter cruise out of Tampa I wouldn't hesitate to go on the Paradise. Also although I love reading reviews I've never booked a cruise based on what I read, good or bad.

Avoid at all costs.

We are considering this particular cruise because our daughter lives in Tampa, and we could spend the weekends with her and our grandchildren. We are usually loyal to Carnival, but reviews talking about two-hour dinners, bedbugs, rude or apathetic staff, and long buffet lines (while other food stations are closed) have us very concerned.

Maybe we should consider another line.

Since "Paradise" is my Local Ship as well, I've sailed her many, many times, and always had great cruises aboard. I haven't sailed her since the change in Cruise Directors, and that might, or might not make a difference, as Steve Cassel was always a bright spot while aboard. The new C.D., Calvyn is not one of my favorites, but I'm booked again in September to give him a chance. We'll see how it goes.

"SKY"

We have been on the Paradise twice and it's probably our least favorite ship. We still had a good time but we were disappointed in a lot of areas. Admittedly, we aren't fans of the small size. However, both times we had a very unfriendly cabin steward, we thought it was odd how the piano bar closed so early, and we weren't impressed with most of the food(and we are far from being foodies!). It was all little details, but the little things add up.

After the last Paradise cruise, my husband said, "We are never going on that ship again". Now, having said that, we are going on her again in October. Lol. Why? Well, we live super close to the port and it's cheaper than driving over to the beach for four nights. Plus, we both absolutely love Cozumel. Maybe third time will be a charm and change our thoughts on the ship.

If you found a great rate and since your daughter lives in Tampa...I would say to give it a try!

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Since "Paradise" is my Local Ship as well, I've sailed her many, many times, and always had great cruises aboard. I haven't sailed her since the change in Cruise Directors, and that might, or might not make a difference, as Steve Cassel was always a bright spot while aboard. The new C.D., Calvyn is not one of my favorites, but I'm booked again in September to give him a chance. We'll see how it goes.

 

"SKY"

Where did Steve go?

My wife and I are thinking of booking a five-day cruise out of Tampa on the Carnival Paradise in February, but we are shocked at the number of awful reviews. We realize it is an older ship, it only has one pool, has no 2.0 upgrades,; but the reviews say it is filthy, has poor service, lousy entertainment, and awful food.

 

Our expectations are reasonable; we are have sailed on Fantasy ships before, but we are, indeed, concerned. Can anyone tell me whether I should ignore the reviews, or avoid this cruise at all costs.

Sailed the Paradise in May. Had a great cruise. Yes, the ship is older, but it was well maintained and the crew was great.

We are considering this particular cruise because our daughter lives in Tampa, and we could spend the weekends with her and our grandchildren. We are usually loyal to Carnival, but reviews talking about two-hour dinners, bedbugs, rude or apathetic staff, and long buffet lines (while other food stations are closed) have us very concerned.

 

Maybe we should consider another line.

I have read reviews with the exact same complaints on just about every ship of every mass market cruise line.

A grain of salt goes a long way.

Several here have indicated they enjoyed their experience on the Paradise and explained why. Other have succinctly advised "Don't do it" with little or no reason.

You now have to choose to focus on the negative or the positive feedback. No matter your choice, I hope you have a fantastic time!

Here are my thoughts:

• We experienced both the best and the worst staff members of our three previous cruises on this ship.
  
• The food was pretty much on par with our other cruises on Fantasy Class ships.
  
• The smoke issue was much less prevalent on this ship vs. the other two Fantasy Class we have been on.
  
• The ship was just as clean as the other ships.
  

Since "Paradise" is my Local Ship as well, I've sailed her many, many times, and always had great cruises aboard. I haven't sailed her since the change in Cruise Directors, and that might, or might not make a difference, as Steve Cassel was always a bright spot while aboard. The new C.D., Calvyn is not one of my favorites, but I'm booked again in September to give him a chance. We'll see how it goes.

 

"SKY"

We were just on Paradise a few weeks ago. It was our 2nd cruise ever, 1st being on the Fantasy back in 2006ish. Maybe our expectations haven't been tainted yet with the bells and whistles of the larger ships but we were more than happy and had a great time. We found Calvyn very entertaining on stage but when we met him in passing up close and personal he didn't seem as friendly and inviting as he seemed like on stage. Our experience with the crew from the bar tenders, MDR servers to our room steward was absolutely top notch. The comedy shows kept us laughing, Scotty K was awesome ("Dammit Bobby...). The only thing I could really complain about was the pool, yea its small and crowded but we live in FL and swimming isn't a big deal to us to be honest lol. There were plenty of places to lay out if you wanted to soak up the sun. Being our 1st time on Paradise, I was also a bit jaded reading the reviews but we honestly had a blast.

We have cruised on multiple Fantasy class ships including the Paradise. They are great for a shorter cruise and we will be on her again later this year. We live in Tampa but will drive to other ports during the winter as fog closes the skyway bridge way to often.

Where did Steve go?

Good question Ruthless! I was told that he retired, but I've not been able to find anything about where he might have gone. I know he is from California, so that's probably where he went. I'll sure miss him when aboard "Paradise" as he was one of my favorites. (Bet Calvyn can't even play the fiddle!) ;)

"SKY"

We have sailed her 3 times, she remains my favorite ship to date. I've been on some bigger ships such as the Liberty and the Glory...I find that for me I know I can find food somewhere on the ship that I'll like..I know where my cabin is and that it's comfy, I know how to get to the casino and how to order a drink, I know how to find a lounge chair in the sun near the pool or on the serenity deck. Those are my basic requirements for myself..for the ship as long as it sails, I don't have to clean anything or cook anything, the lifeboats work and I can find my way around then I'm all good. So basically I guess my advice is you'll never really know unless you try, someone else's experience may not be YOUR experience. You may have the time of your life but you'll never know for sure if you listen to anyone other than YOURSELF. ;) I hope you give it a try!

Good question Ruthless! I was told that he retired, but I've not been able to find anything about where he might have gone. I know he is from California, so that's probably where he went. I'll sure miss him when aboard "Paradise" as he was one of my favorites. (Bet Calvyn can't even play the fiddle!) ;)

 

"SKY"

Kinda " as per John H " he has retired in Calif. When Larry was sick & after he passed I sent messages to Steve through John. Must say Steve didn't respond even though I know John gave him the messages. :(

Char

Paradise is not one of our favorite ships. We do love Tampa port, so convenient with Valet Parking. We are heading on to see some old officer friends, only reason. Don't care for Calvyn; past experiences. Unfortunately, it's a package deal.:) Believe Steve is on Inspiration.

The Paradise is a great ship! It is smaller, but honestly, my husband and I have never noticed "age" on any of the Carnival ships we've sailed.

They are all clean, shiny, well appointed and comfortable. Lots of glitz and glam. Great service, good food, lots to do.

Enjoy every minute of your cruise!!