My first cruise on Carnival (and my last!)

I cruised on the Imagination a few weekends ago. Due to a heavy work schedule, my fiance was unable to join me, and I really needed a vacation. I went on a 3 day cruise to Ensenada and was looking forward to a relaxing trip by myself. I have cruised before on NCL with my grandma and had a wonderful time, so when I saw Carnival offered a 3 day cruise out of Long Beach near me, I was excited I could have a short getaway.

Unfortunately I was also on crutches for the trip. I had hurt my foot and had been on them for about 2 weeks before the cruise. I had gotten off them the Monday before the trip, but I hadn't done much walking on it at all (I sit at a desk at work) so once I was on the ship walking around, I decided I needed to go back to using them because my foot couldn't handle so much walking. So I was alone and disabled for the trip. I was determined to have a good time regardless.

I had booked one of the suites. It was disappointing when I found out that the balconies are above the deck where people walk, so there is no privacy. I had a balcony suite when I cruised NCL and loved sitting outside in complete privacy and looking at the water. Also the room was pretty outdated and a little worn. I was further disappointed to find when I pulled the curtains back that there was a lot of corrosion around the edge of the window. I would think for the money I was paying for a suite it would have at least been updated and look like the rooms look on the website. Still, the bed was comfortable and the room was clean at least. I guess I should be grateful for that. I decided I'd overlook the outdatedness of the room and go book some spa treatments.

More than anything I just wanted a relaxing massage on my cruise. I explained to the massage therapist DONT TOUCH THE FEET AT ALL, I have a nerve issue, I'm on crutches, I recently had injections there, etc. She agrees she will stay away from the feet. 5 minutes in she is grabbing my foot to do some kind of pressure point thing and digs her thumb in HARD on the exact spot on the bottom of my foot where I have the problem and the pain. There was no warning, she was just standing near my feet and went right for that spot. I jerked my foot away and said to her *** don't touch the foot, and she said "it's just a pressure point." I said that's the exact spot where I got the injection and I am having pain. It didn't hurt much immediately afterward but about 2 hours later it got painful and swollen and I was in my room crying. A bruise formed there which I noticed later on in the cruise. This hurt me for the entire time I was on the ship. The massage therapist also talked the entire time, soothing and relaxing was the opposite of this massage.

After that, I decided to take my mind off things and try to go to dinner. Since I was crying in my room I had missed my assigned dinner time. I am used to NCL's freestyle dining so I didn't fully comprehend the dinner schedule and seatings, but I had been looking forward to trying Carnival and seeing how it works.

On a side note, I am allergic to cigarette smoke. In order to get to the dining room I had to go past the casino which is mid ship. I had known about designated smoking areas on the ship beforehand, but the casino where smoking is allowed is right near everything else. It's near some of the activity rooms and the route past the casino is the most direct way to get to the dining room. I figured out other routes via other decks and elevators later, but for someone on crutches, having to avoid a middle section of a deck was a major inconvenience.

On to the dining room. I asked if they could accommodate me since I missed my dining time and they said they would. I said I would like to sit with others. They said this one table set for two was the closest one and since I’m on crutches I need to take this table and they would not be seating me with others. I said I am capable of moving and I can sit at another table, I didn’t want to sit by myself. They said “ma’am, that’s all we have available for you.” So I sat there by myself. At first I wasn't sure if this was because I missed my dining time, but there were 2 tables on either side of my table and once dinner started there were at least 4 empty seats on one and 5 empty seats at the other, and several people were sitting at both those tables. They could have sat me at either one. I asked the waiter about it and they said I had to sit where I was because I was on crutches. I left after the first course, I felt discriminated against and I couldn't stand it.

The second night after coming back from Mexico, I had more problems with the crew. There was one incident where I was trying to get into the bathroom and there was a staff member a few feet away. I kept hitting the handicap button to get the door to open which was broken and finally had to go and push the door open which was difficult for me. The staff member glanced over but never moved to help me. They could have helped me with the door but didn’t.

Little things like this happened throughout the trip - not holding open a door for me, not helping me pick something up when I dropped it, etc. It was like the staff didn't care. Some passengers helped me, but not the crew. This is the hospitality business and they should be dedicated to making sure I have an awesome time. Instead they couldn't be bothered with helping me at all.

The attempts to segregate me at the dining room happened again on the brunch sea day in a different dining room with different crew!

This time it was brunch and people just came in as they pleased. I was there when they opened the dining room. I asked to be seated with others and I had to argue with them about it. They said I am on crutches and the closest seat for me is there. And I said I can go further if there is a table where I dont have to be alone and I can sit with others, and they said I have to sit there at the small table by myself because I’m on crutches and that was the seat. And I said again to please seat me with others, I really don’t want to dine alone, and the hostess turned to the waitress and asked her to please seat me in that seat at the table for one. When I sat down I almost started crying, I felt so isolated and mistreated. Khrystina the waitress – I think her name was – she was awesome. I explained to her how unhappy I was and how this happened to me the other night. She moved me to a seat by the window and brought over 2 people for me to have brunch with. I had a great time meeting them.

Why was that so difficult? I should not have to fight to be treated like a normal person. I should have been given the window seat at the larger table to begin with and not been dictated to that I am on crutches and have to sit by myself.

I didnt have it in me to fight with the dining room staff again so I decided I'd eat at the buffet, which I did twice. When I was Cruising NCL with my grandma (who is disabled) a few years ago, if she wanted food, a staff member doing something less important would drop everything and go help her.

At the buffet I was going around everywhere on crutches looking for a spoon. I asked the staff member standing next to the desserts with the tongs where the spoons were. They just gestured to the other side of the room and said they were over in that direction. I waited for a second to see if they might offer to go get me a spoon and instead they went back to staring at the desserts. I was fed up and I crutched over to the other side of the room to get myself a spoon.

They should have put the tongs down and gotten the spoon for me or at least offered to, and I really shouldn’t have to ask them to do it. They didn’t seem like they wanted to be there, and I shouldn’t feel like asking for help would be such an imposition on them.

Because I was struggling with crutches and a plate I also ended up dropping things (no one helped me pick them up) and I burned my hand because I was trying to get soup (the soup is too hot, by the way).

I was also surprised to see staff riding in the elevators which I know is not allowed on NCL. When I was getting in, never did any of them ask me what floor I was going to or help push a button for me or hold the elevator door for me.

I was also surprised at how many people were trying to sneak a smoke on the ship. People were sucking on the e-cigs in the elevators and on the pool deck and none of the staff were saying anything to them. One person was standing in line at guest services vaping his e-cig and the front desk did nothing. I asked him to please stop and he said the ship allowed this because they sell e-cigs and cigarettes in the store on the ship. Some guy was puffing a cigar on the deck above the pool. You could smell it at the bar. None of the staff did a thing to stop him. I called to report the smoking at the front desk and they told me "all staff are trained to ask people to stop smoking except in the designated areas." Not an apology, just a flat canned answer.

On the last day I got my hair done on the ship. The girl who did my hair was nice and I liked her, but I had planned a specific color with her, picked it out in the book, she confirmed my hair would be that color, and then after it was done, it was not that color. I wanted dark red and I got bright orange. She explained to me afterwards on how it was not possible to get my hair the color I wanted in just one sitting, and in 4 weeks I needed to follow up with my regular hair dresser who could make it the color I wanted. After the ship, I went straight to my hairdresser about this who thought that was ridiculous and said it sounded like the person doing my hair just didn't know how to mix the color or messed up and tried to cover for herself, and the shade I wanted was certainly doable in one sitting.

I don't hate my hair, the way she did it on the ship was nice and it doesnt look awful (thank goodness!), it just was not what I wanted and what I paid for. I feel like a moron for believing her story. I have never gotten professional color in my hair before so I didn't know. I was confused as to why I can get it exactly the way I want with a box from the store, but the "professional" color was different? nonetheless I bought her story. Maybe it's because I just wanted to be optimistic and not have anything else go wrong.

I talked to the spa manager about the massage in which my foot was hurt. I had spent a good deal of time in my cabin icing my foot, and I even showed the bruise to another massage therapist on the ship who thought it looked pretty bad. The spa manager gave me 30% off that massage.

Overall it wasn't one incident or one thing that made this cruise awful for me, but the staff really ruined it. The one waitress Khrystina was the only one who actually cared and went above and beyond to take care of me and try and make my experience enjoyable. I would further not recommend anyone who is disabled to go on the Imagination.

If I was not handicapped or not by myself, I may have had more fun and I may not have noticed the staff didnt care because I'd have someone helping me, but my solo experience I think really highlighted the shortcomings of the crew on that ship and it's not a cruise line I will be coming back to because of it.

Sounds like you had more problems on one 3 day cruise than we have had on 30+ cruises. Hmmmmm.

Sorry your cruise wasn't what you expected or hoped for and that by posting you got some of your frustration out of your system. Sometimes we all just need to do a little ranting.

Sorry your cruise wasn't what you expected or hoped for and that by posting you got some of your frustration out of your system. Sometimes we all just need to do a little ranting.

I think so. I did enjoy Mexico though. I went on the cheese tasting tour and had a great time, so it wasn't all bad. Pedro, our tour guide was great and I enjoyed the wine and cheese. I managed to find some cool stores in Ensenada that weren't full of touristy stuff and I had fun poking around and exploring in town despite being on crutches.

I think Carnival maybe isn't for you. On another note.... the crew aren't mind readers. If you need something (a door opened) ask. I agree if they see someone struggling to do something they should offer to help though.

Spoons are (logically) by the soup and ice cream.

I, too, am sorry you had a bad experience but usually Carnival crew members go above and beyond. That is a lot to happen in 3 short days. Perhaps another cruise line is better for your needs. Good luck.

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Did you ever actually ask anyone for help? Because it sounds like you just assumed that they would know you wanted help. Unfortunately they are not mind readers. I'll bet if you asked for help (nicely) the situation would have been different.

Did you ever actually ask anyone for help? Because it sounds like you just assumed that they would know you wanted help. Unfortunately they are not mind readers. I'll bet if you asked for help (nicely) the situation would have been different.

Exactly.

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OP what's wrong with the staff riding with you on the elevator? Btw that told me all I needed to know. I definitely think you should go back to NCL.

Sorry you had a bad cruise. Although I believe that you have a few valid points, like the improper massage, I also believe that a big part of your disappointment was due to unrealistic expectations and lack of research.

You were on an older ship on a budget cruise line. You booked a "suite" which isn't really a suite. A bit of research would've revealed the lack of privacy and small balcony. You didn't understand the dining procedures on Carnival (a bit of research would've revealed that you could've done Anytime Dining, which is similar to what you experienced before on NCL). Finally, while Carnival crews are in the most part very friendly and do a great job, the service is typical of a mass market cruise line. You were in a tough spot because you were in crutches, traveling alone, but you need to understand that these workers are also attending 2,000 other passengers. There's no personal attention to detail as on more upscale cruise lines. They can only take so much time out of their busy schedules for your special needs.

I firmly believe that the bad things that happened were magnified and perceived worse than they truly were because you were already having a bad time before you even boarded (having to leave the boyfriend behind, traveling in crutches). And while I wont make excuses for Carnival for the areas where they can improve, once again you need to understand that Carnival is a budget cruise line and you need to adjust your expectations accordingly when you sail on them.

One final thing: Next time that you're looking for a quick west coast getaway, keep in mind that Carnival is not your only game in town. Princess offers short cruises seasonally and they may provide that attention to detail and more upscale feel that you erroneously expected on the Imagination.

Sorry OP your not getting any sympathy here. Some of what you say I have seen happen but think the crew could have been more hepful.

Do agree you should have been asking for help during the cruise.

I cruised on the Imagination a few weekends ago. Due to a heavy work schedule, my fiance was unable to join me, and I really needed a vacation. I went on a 3 day cruise to Ensenada and was looking forward to a relaxing trip by myself. I have cruised before on NCL with my grandma and had a wonderful time, so when I saw Carnival offered a 3 day cruise out of Long Beach near me, I was excited I could have a short getaway.

 

Unfortunately I was also on crutches for the trip. I had hurt my foot and had been on them for about 2 weeks before the cruise. I had gotten off them the Monday before the trip, but I hadn't done much walking on it at all (I sit at a desk at work) so once I was on the ship walking around, I decided I needed to go back to using them because my foot couldn't handle so much walking. So I was alone and disabled for the trip. I was determined to have a good time regardless.

 

I had booked one of the suites. It was disappointing when I found out that the balconies are above the deck where people walk, so there is no privacy. I had a balcony suite when I cruised NCL and loved sitting outside in complete privacy and looking at the water. Also the room was pretty outdated and a little worn. I was further disappointed to find when I pulled the curtains back that there was a lot of corrosion around the edge of the window. I would think for the money I was paying for a suite it would have at least been updated and look like the rooms look on the website. Still, the bed was comfortable and the room was clean at least. I guess I should be grateful for that. I decided I'd overlook the outdatedness of the room and go book some spa treatments.

 

More than anything I just wanted a relaxing massage on my cruise. I explained to the massage therapist DONT TOUCH THE FEET AT ALL, I have a nerve issue, I'm on crutches, I recently had injections there, etc. She agrees she will stay away from the feet. 5 minutes in she is grabbing my foot to do some kind of pressure point thing and digs her thumb in HARD on the exact spot on the bottom of my foot where I have the problem and the pain. There was no warning, she was just standing near my feet and went right for that spot. I jerked my foot away and said to her *** don't touch the foot, and she said "it's just a pressure point." I said that's the exact spot where I got the injection and I am having pain. It didn't hurt much immediately afterward but about 2 hours later it got painful and swollen and I was in my room crying. A bruise formed there which I noticed later on in the cruise. This hurt me for the entire time I was on the ship. The massage therapist also talked the entire time, soothing and relaxing was the opposite of this massage.

 

After that, I decided to take my mind off things and try to go to dinner. Since I was crying in my room I had missed my assigned dinner time. I am used to NCL's freestyle dining so I didn't fully comprehend the dinner schedule and seatings, but I had been looking forward to trying Carnival and seeing how it works.

On a side note, I am allergic to cigarette smoke. In order to get to the dining room I had to go past the casino which is mid ship. I had known about designated smoking areas on the ship beforehand, but the casino where smoking is allowed is right near everything else. It's near some of the activity rooms and the route past the casino is the most direct way to get to the dining room. I figured out other routes via other decks and elevators later, but for someone on crutches, having to avoid a middle section of a deck was a major inconvenience.

 

On to the dining room. I asked if they could accommodate me since I missed my dining time and they said they would. I said I would like to sit with others. They said this one table set for two was the closest one and since I’m on crutches I need to take this table and they would not be seating me with others. I said I am capable of moving and I can sit at another table, I didn’t want to sit by myself. They said “ma’am, that’s all we have available for you.” So I sat there by myself. At first I wasn't sure if this was because I missed my dining time, but there were 2 tables on either side of my table and once dinner started there were at least 4 empty seats on one and 5 empty seats at the other, and several people were sitting at both those tables. They could have sat me at either one. I asked the waiter about it and they said I had to sit where I was because I was on crutches. I left after the first course, I felt discriminated against and I couldn't stand it.

 

The second night after coming back from Mexico, I had more problems with the crew. There was one incident where I was trying to get into the bathroom and there was a staff member a few feet away. I kept hitting the handicap button to get the door to open which was broken and finally had to go and push the door open which was difficult for me. The staff member glanced over but never moved to help me. They could have helped me with the door but didn’t.

 

Little things like this happened throughout the trip - not holding open a door for me, not helping me pick something up when I dropped it, etc. It was like the staff didn't care. Some passengers helped me, but not the crew. This is the hospitality business and they should be dedicated to making sure I have an awesome time. Instead they couldn't be bothered with helping me at all.

 

The attempts to segregate me at the dining room happened again on the brunch sea day in a different dining room with different crew!

This time it was brunch and people just came in as they pleased. I was there when they opened the dining room. I asked to be seated with others and I had to argue with them about it. They said I am on crutches and the closest seat for me is there. And I said I can go further if there is a table where I dont have to be alone and I can sit with others, and they said I have to sit there at the small table by myself because I’m on crutches and that was the seat. And I said again to please seat me with others, I really don’t want to dine alone, and the hostess turned to the waitress and asked her to please seat me in that seat at the table for one. When I sat down I almost started crying, I felt so isolated and mistreated. Khrystina the waitress – I think her name was – she was awesome. I explained to her how unhappy I was and how this happened to me the other night. She moved me to a seat by the window and brought over 2 people for me to have brunch with. I had a great time meeting them.

Why was that so difficult? I should not have to fight to be treated like a normal person. I should have been given the window seat at the larger table to begin with and not been dictated to that I am on crutches and have to sit by myself.

 

I didnt have it in me to fight with the dining room staff again so I decided I'd eat at the buffet, which I did twice. When I was Cruising NCL with my grandma (who is disabled) a few years ago, if she wanted food, a staff member doing something less important would drop everything and go help her.

 

At the buffet I was going around everywhere on crutches looking for a spoon. I asked the staff member standing next to the desserts with the tongs where the spoons were. They just gestured to the other side of the room and said they were over in that direction. I waited for a second to see if they might offer to go get me a spoon and instead they went back to staring at the desserts. I was fed up and I crutched over to the other side of the room to get myself a spoon.

 

They should have put the tongs down and gotten the spoon for me or at least offered to, and I really shouldn’t have to ask them to do it. They didn’t seem like they wanted to be there, and I shouldn’t feel like asking for help would be such an imposition on them.

 

Because I was struggling with crutches and a plate I also ended up dropping things (no one helped me pick them up) and I burned my hand because I was trying to get soup (the soup is too hot, by the way).

 

I was also surprised to see staff riding in the elevators which I know is not allowed on NCL. When I was getting in, never did any of them ask me what floor I was going to or help push a button for me or hold the elevator door for me.

 

I was also surprised at how many people were trying to sneak a smoke on the ship. People were sucking on the e-cigs in the elevators and on the pool deck and none of the staff were saying anything to them. One person was standing in line at guest services vaping his e-cig and the front desk did nothing. I asked him to please stop and he said the ship allowed this because they sell e-cigs and cigarettes in the store on the ship. Some guy was puffing a cigar on the deck above the pool. You could smell it at the bar. None of the staff did a thing to stop him. I called to report the smoking at the front desk and they told me "all staff are trained to ask people to stop smoking except in the designated areas." Not an apology, just a flat canned answer.

 

On the last day I got my hair done on the ship. The girl who did my hair was nice and I liked her, but I had planned a specific color with her, picked it out in the book, she confirmed my hair would be that color, and then after it was done, it was not that color. I wanted dark red and I got bright orange. She explained to me afterwards on how it was not possible to get my hair the color I wanted in just one sitting, and in 4 weeks I needed to follow up with my regular hair dresser who could make it the color I wanted. After the ship, I went straight to my hairdresser about this who thought that was ridiculous and said it sounded like the person doing my hair just didn't know how to mix the color or messed up and tried to cover for herself, and the shade I wanted was certainly doable in one sitting.

 

I don't hate my hair, the way she did it on the ship was nice and it doesnt look awful (thank goodness!), it just was not what I wanted and what I paid for. I feel like a moron for believing her story. I have never gotten professional color in my hair before so I didn't know. I was confused as to why I can get it exactly the way I want with a box from the store, but the "professional" color was different? nonetheless I bought her story. Maybe it's because I just wanted to be optimistic and not have anything else go wrong.

 

I talked to the spa manager about the massage in which my foot was hurt. I had spent a good deal of time in my cabin icing my foot, and I even showed the bruise to another massage therapist on the ship who thought it looked pretty bad. The spa manager gave me 30% off that massage.

 

Overall it wasn't one incident or one thing that made this cruise awful for me, but the staff really ruined it. The one waitress Khrystina was the only one who actually cared and went above and beyond to take care of me and try and make my experience enjoyable. I would further not recommend anyone who is disabled to go on the Imagination.

If I was not handicapped or not by myself, I may have had more fun and I may not have noticed the staff didnt care because I'd have someone helping me, but my solo experience I think really highlighted the shortcomings of the crew on that ship and it's not a cruise line I will be coming back to because of it.

I am sorry that you are having difficulties with your feet. I hope you feel better soon.

The thing that strikes me about your stated experiences on the ship is your lack of fulfilling your responsibilities of the cruise contract that you agreed to when you booked the cruise. Carnival does provide special assistance to passengers who need it, within reason, but the passenger needing the assistance is supposed to notify the Carnival Special Needs Desk in advance to discuss the details of their special needs. I did not read anything in your post that you did that. The cruise contract also recommends that anyone who is not self-sufficient travel with a companion who can provide that assistance during the voyage and in case of emergency. You stated you didn't do that either.

IMO you exercised poor judgment to begin with in deciding to take the cruise solo with your stated disability. And then you want to blame Carnival for your poor judgment.

It does sound like there were opportunities where Carnival could have done better. But you should understand that staff would have concerns with you trying to navigate through a very crowded dining room on crutches where one movement of the ship or misplaced crutch could place you in someone's lap, possibly injuring another person. I think the absolute responsible thing for you to do would have been to graciously accept their offer to seat you at an unassigned time in the safest place for your circumstances. Carnival does not give someone's assigned seat away because they have no way of knowing whether the missing diner might show up to eat at their assigned table.

I just think you missed the boat on this one by exercising poor judgment and blaming others for your situation. I'm not surprised either that no one seems to have sympathy for your situation where you complain about everything and everybody you encounter. I give you the benefit of the doubt though understanding that one's judgment and attitude can be clouded when one is in pain. I really hope your health improves soon. IMO your entire post wreaks of immaturity. Your entire post is all about me, me, me where you describe in detail how others are supposed to bend over backwards to please you, and when they don't you complain about their shortcomings. Your post made me feel sorry for you, but not because of your feet.

Sorry you had a bad cruise. Although I believe that you have a few valid points, like the improper massage, I also believe that a big part of your disappointment was due to unrealistic expectations and lack of research.

 

You were on an older ship on a budget cruise line. You booked a "suite" which isn't really a suite. A bit of research would've revealed the lack of privacy and small balcony. You didn't understand the dining procedures on Carnival (a bit of research would've revealed that you could've done Anytime Dining, which is similar to what you experienced before on NCL). Finally, while Carnival crews are in the most part very friendly and do a great job, the service is typical of a mass market cruise line. You were in a tough spot because you were in crutches, traveling alone, but you need to understand that these workers are also attending 2,000 other passengers. There's no personal attention to detail as on more upscale cruise lines. They can only take so much time out of their busy schedules for your special needs.

 

I firmly believe that the bad things that happened were magnified and perceived worse than they truly were because you were already having a bad time before you even boarded (having to leave the boyfriend behind, traveling in crutches). And while I wont make excuses for Carnival for the areas where they can improve, once again you need to understand that Carnival is a budget cruise line and you need to adjust your expectations accordingly when you sail on them.

 

One final thing: Next time that you're looking for a quick west coast getaway, keep in mind that Carnival is not your only game in town. Princess offers short cruises seasonally and they may provide that attention to detail and more upscale feel that you erroneously expected on the Imagination.

Very well stated. I like reading your responses to posts on CC. They are always reasonable, detailed and fair towards both parties involved in situations like the OP's.

I agree that there was a lack of research since the trip was done at the last minute. This particular ship is older and the expectations of cruising in a luxury suite should have been down graded. In this case, you get what you pay for.

I am sorry that you are having difficulties with your feet. I hope you feel better soon.

 

The thing that strikes me about your stated experiences on the ship is your lack of fulfilling your responsibilities of the cruise contract that you agreed to when you booked the cruise. Carnival does provide special assistance to passengers who need it, within reason, but the passenger needing the assistance is supposed to notify the Carnival Special Needs Desk in advance to discuss the details of their special needs. I did not read anything in your post that you did that. The cruise contract also recommends that anyone who is not self-sufficient travel with a companion who can provide that assistance during the voyage and in case of emergency. You stated you didn't do that either.

 

IMO you exercised poor judgment to begin with in deciding to take the cruise solo with your stated disability. And then you want to blame Carnival for your poor judgment.

 

It does sound like there were opportunities where Carnival could have done better. But you should understand that staff would have concerns with you trying to navigate through a very crowded dining room on crutches where one movement of the ship or misplaced crutch could place you in someone's lap, possibly injuring another person. I think the absolute responsible thing for you to do would have been to graciously accept their offer to seat you at an unassigned time in the safest place for your circumstances. Carnival does not give someone's assigned seat away because they have no way of knowing whether the missing diner might show up to eat at their assigned table.

 

I just think you missed the boat on this one by exercising poor judgment and blaming others for your situation. I'm not surprised either that no one seems to have sympathy for your situation where you complain about everything and everybody you encounter. I give you the benefit of the doubt though understanding that one's judgment and attitude can be clouded when one is in pain. I really hope your health improves soon. IMO your entire post wreaks of immaturity. Your entire post is all about me, me, me where you describe in detail how others are supposed to bend over backwards to please you, and when they don't you complain about their shortcomings. Your post made me feel sorry for you, but not because of your feet.[/quote

 

 

Touch Down!

Wow, not much sympathy on these boards, but there usually isn't.

Sorry you had such a bad experience. I agree the massages on the ship aren't great. They are expensive, and a bit of an excuse to sell their products.

I agree if you are struggling to get through a door and a staff person is there, there is no reason to not open the door for you. And refusing to seat you with others is ridiculous.

Sorry you had a bad experience, but I've sailed 8 times with Carnival and although I have come across a few staff with bad attitudes of the years, generally they are very pleasant and helpful. I think you just ran into a series of unfortunate events.:(

My only input to this would be to keep your shoes on for your next massage. That way they won't be able to hit the bad spot on your foot. Would prevent any problems.

Sorry OP your not getting any sympathy here. Some of what you say I have seen happen but think the crew could have been more hepful.

 

Do agree you should have been asking for help during the cruise.

AMEN, seems common sense might have solved some of the problems. I am 74 yo and do everything I can to work around our problems and I remember the loudest dog gets the bone.

Did you ever actually ask anyone for help? Because it sounds like you just assumed that they would know you wanted help. Unfortunately they are not mind readers. I'll bet if you asked for help (nicely) the situation would have been different.

I am really surprised by this lack of help issue. My sisters and I were on the Imagination back in Jan and one of them was in a wheelchair. Staff constantly offerred to help her even with us right there with her. When we would enter the buffet, often someone would greet us and help us find a table and move a chair, they offerred to get her food and a drink....again, two of us were right there with her. We requested a different table at dinner because our first one was up a couple of stairs and the next night, we had a different table assignment.

I just find it odd that the OP had such an opposite experience on the same ship just a few months later.

Sorry you had a bad trip. Physically it sounds like you were not ready to travel. A 3 day cruise is so short the staff doesn't even get a chance to know you and your needs. Did you give special needs request on your sailing info before cruise so Carnival would be aware of your needs?? If not that would have helped them meet your needs

Even though it does sound like very high expectations, lack of research and an injury were the major factors of this bad cruise I would have complained about the massage therapist....really bad practice to not listen to a customers aliments.

I don't think a 3 day voyage on a smaller older ship when you are handicapped is a fair way to judge a cruise line and maybe try Carnival again when you are feeling better and with company as you could at least talk about things with a sailing partner instead of stewing about things by yourself.

I have always found Carnival staff helpful. On my first cruise I fell over walking to my stateroom and dropped my plate, drink and cake on the floor and as I looked up a room steward came to help me up and offered to take the items away for me as Ihad spilled everything...he even said hello and asked how I was if he saw me afterwards as a bit of a joke.

Carnival does provide special assistance to passengers who need it, within reason, but the passenger needing the assistance is supposed to notify the Carnival Special Needs Desk in advance to discuss the details of their special needs

And from what we've experienced, the Special Needs dept will bend over backwards to make things work for the guest.

OP, I'm sorry u had a disappointing cruise. For other readers....we cruised Carnival Conquest a couple of years ago with my husbands disabled parents. Carnival staff did an excellent job. I specifically remember crew members pushing both wheelchairs onto the ship and all the way to Lido. Buffet crew always offered to carry drinks and plates and fetch things. My in laws were treated like royalty!

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I cruised on the Imagination a few weekends ago. Due to a heavy work schedule, my fiance was unable to join me, and I really needed a vacation. I went on a 3 day cruise to Ensenada and was looking forward to a relaxing trip by myself. I have cruised before on NCL with my grandma and had a wonderful time, so when I saw Carnival offered a 3 day cruise out of Long Beach near me, I was excited I could have a short getaway.

 

Unfortunately I was also on crutches for the trip. I had hurt my foot and had been on them for about 2 weeks before the cruise. I had gotten off them the Monday before the trip, but I hadn't done much walking on it at all (I sit at a desk at work) so once I was on the ship walking around, I decided I needed to go back to using them because my foot couldn't handle so much walking. So I was alone and disabled for the trip. I was determined to have a good time regardless.

 

I had booked one of the suites. It was disappointing when I found out that the balconies are above the deck where people walk, so there is no privacy. I had a balcony suite when I cruised NCL and loved sitting outside in complete privacy and looking at the water. Also the room was pretty outdated and a little worn. I was further disappointed to find when I pulled the curtains back that there was a lot of corrosion around the edge of the window. I would think for the money I was paying for a suite it would have at least been updated and look like the rooms look on the website. Still, the bed was comfortable and the room was clean at least. I guess I should be grateful for that. I decided I'd overlook the outdatedness of the room and go book some spa treatments.

 

More than anything I just wanted a relaxing massage on my cruise. I explained to the massage therapist DONT TOUCH THE FEET AT ALL, I have a nerve issue, I'm on crutches, I recently had injections there, etc. She agrees she will stay away from the feet. 5 minutes in she is grabbing my foot to do some kind of pressure point thing and digs her thumb in HARD on the exact spot on the bottom of my foot where I have the problem and the pain. There was no warning, she was just standing near my feet and went right for that spot. I jerked my foot away and said to her *** don't touch the foot, and she said "it's just a pressure point." I said that's the exact spot where I got the injection and I am having pain. It didn't hurt much immediately afterward but about 2 hours later it got painful and swollen and I was in my room crying. A bruise formed there which I noticed later on in the cruise. This hurt me for the entire time I was on the ship. The massage therapist also talked the entire time, soothing and relaxing was the opposite of this massage.

 

After that, I decided to take my mind off things and try to go to dinner. Since I was crying in my room I had missed my assigned dinner time. I am used to NCL's freestyle dining so I didn't fully comprehend the dinner schedule and seatings, but I had been looking forward to trying Carnival and seeing how it works.

On a side note, I am allergic to cigarette smoke. In order to get to the dining room I had to go past the casino which is mid ship. I had known about designated smoking areas on the ship beforehand, but the casino where smoking is allowed is right near everything else. It's near some of the activity rooms and the route past the casino is the most direct way to get to the dining room. I figured out other routes via other decks and elevators later, but for someone on crutches, having to avoid a middle section of a deck was a major inconvenience.

 

On to the dining room. I asked if they could accommodate me since I missed my dining time and they said they would. I said I would like to sit with others. They said this one table set for two was the closest one and since I’m on crutches I need to take this table and they would not be seating me with others. I said I am capable of moving and I can sit at another table, I didn’t want to sit by myself. They said “ma’am, that’s all we have available for you.” So I sat there by myself. At first I wasn't sure if this was because I missed my dining time, but there were 2 tables on either side of my table and once dinner started there were at least 4 empty seats on one and 5 empty seats at the other, and several people were sitting at both those tables. They could have sat me at either one. I asked the waiter about it and they said I had to sit where I was because I was on crutches. I left after the first course, I felt discriminated against and I couldn't stand it.

 

The second night after coming back from Mexico, I had more problems with the crew. There was one incident where I was trying to get into the bathroom and there was a staff member a few feet away. I kept hitting the handicap button to get the door to open which was broken and finally had to go and push the door open which was difficult for me. The staff member glanced over but never moved to help me. They could have helped me with the door but didn’t.

 

Little things like this happened throughout the trip - not holding open a door for me, not helping me pick something up when I dropped it, etc. It was like the staff didn't care. Some passengers helped me, but not the crew. This is the hospitality business and they should be dedicated to making sure I have an awesome time. Instead they couldn't be bothered with helping me at all.

 

The attempts to segregate me at the dining room happened again on the brunch sea day in a different dining room with different crew!

This time it was brunch and people just came in as they pleased. I was there when they opened the dining room. I asked to be seated with others and I had to argue with them about it. They said I am on crutches and the closest seat for me is there. And I said I can go further if there is a table where I dont have to be alone and I can sit with others, and they said I have to sit there at the small table by myself because I’m on crutches and that was the seat. And I said again to please seat me with others, I really don’t want to dine alone, and the hostess turned to the waitress and asked her to please seat me in that seat at the table for one. When I sat down I almost started crying, I felt so isolated and mistreated. Khrystina the waitress – I think her name was – she was awesome. I explained to her how unhappy I was and how this happened to me the other night. She moved me to a seat by the window and brought over 2 people for me to have brunch with. I had a great time meeting them.

Why was that so difficult? I should not have to fight to be treated like a normal person. I should have been given the window seat at the larger table to begin with and not been dictated to that I am on crutches and have to sit by myself.

 

I didnt have it in me to fight with the dining room staff again so I decided I'd eat at the buffet, which I did twice. When I was Cruising NCL with my grandma (who is disabled) a few years ago, if she wanted food, a staff member doing something less important would drop everything and go help her.

 

At the buffet I was going around everywhere on crutches looking for a spoon. I asked the staff member standing next to the desserts with the tongs where the spoons were. They just gestured to the other side of the room and said they were over in that direction. I waited for a second to see if they might offer to go get me a spoon and instead they went back to staring at the desserts. I was fed up and I crutched over to the other side of the room to get myself a spoon.

 

They should have put the tongs down and gotten the spoon for me or at least offered to, and I really shouldn’t have to ask them to do it. They didn’t seem like they wanted to be there, and I shouldn’t feel like asking for help would be such an imposition on them.

 

Because I was struggling with crutches and a plate I also ended up dropping things (no one helped me pick them up) and I burned my hand because I was trying to get soup (the soup is too hot, by the way).

 

I was also surprised to see staff riding in the elevators which I know is not allowed on NCL. When I was getting in, never did any of them ask me what floor I was going to or help push a button for me or hold the elevator door for me.

 

I was also surprised at how many people were trying to sneak a smoke on the ship. People were sucking on the e-cigs in the elevators and on the pool deck and none of the staff were saying anything to them. One person was standing in line at guest services vaping his e-cig and the front desk did nothing. I asked him to please stop and he said the ship allowed this because they sell e-cigs and cigarettes in the store on the ship. Some guy was puffing a cigar on the deck above the pool. You could smell it at the bar. None of the staff did a thing to stop him. I called to report the smoking at the front desk and they told me "all staff are trained to ask people to stop smoking except in the designated areas." Not an apology, just a flat canned answer.

 

On the last day I got my hair done on the ship. The girl who did my hair was nice and I liked her, but I had planned a specific color with her, picked it out in the book, she confirmed my hair would be that color, and then after it was done, it was not that color. I wanted dark red and I got bright orange. She explained to me afterwards on how it was not possible to get my hair the color I wanted in just one sitting, and in 4 weeks I needed to follow up with my regular hair dresser who could make it the color I wanted. After the ship, I went straight to my hairdresser about this who thought that was ridiculous and said it sounded like the person doing my hair just didn't know how to mix the color or messed up and tried to cover for herself, and the shade I wanted was certainly doable in one sitting.

 

I don't hate my hair, the way she did it on the ship was nice and it doesnt look awful (thank goodness!), it just was not what I wanted and what I paid for. I feel like a moron for believing her story. I have never gotten professional color in my hair before so I didn't know. I was confused as to why I can get it exactly the way I want with a box from the store, but the "professional" color was different? nonetheless I bought her story. Maybe it's because I just wanted to be optimistic and not have anything else go wrong.

 

I talked to the spa manager about the massage in which my foot was hurt. I had spent a good deal of time in my cabin icing my foot, and I even showed the bruise to another massage therapist on the ship who thought it looked pretty bad. The spa manager gave me 30% off that massage.

 

Overall it wasn't one incident or one thing that made this cruise awful for me, but the staff really ruined it. The one waitress Khrystina was the only one who actually cared and went above and beyond to take care of me and try and make my experience enjoyable. I would further not recommend anyone who is disabled to go on the Imagination.

If I was not handicapped or not by myself, I may have had more fun and I may not have noticed the staff didnt care because I'd have someone helping me, but my solo experience I think really highlighted the shortcomings of the crew on that ship and it's not a cruise line I will be coming back to because of it.

Oh my!! Along for the ride, I think that some of your issues were valid (maybe), but most were not. Surely you must know that you would not get much sympathy here, so I will try to be as fair as possible. For the room; a little pre cruise internet research would have made you much better informed and prepared for what you got.

As for needing a holiday and the foot injury/crutches, you knew you were not up to scratch going into this cruise, yet went ahead anyway, and travelled solo. Travelling solo, whether on crutches or not, means you will depend on yourself and yourself alone to get food/get to the food/get on and off the ship/on and off elevators etc. Yes, perhaps some crew should have offered more help, dont know, we were not there.

In all my Carnival cruises, crew have been over the top friendly and helpful, especially when I cruise solo. The fellow with the tongs at the dessert station, is probably not supposed to leave his station, but I believe they do have spoons right there at that station also. The fact that the staff allowed you to come to the dining room after you missed your assigned time is to me very generous. I would have taken whatever table they gave me, and not made any extra demands.

I think that given your first disappointment (your room), you just let every other little thing get you down. Perhaps solo cruising is also not right for you. I cruise solo, and do have some mobility issues, but I know going in that I rely on myself for the duration of the cruise for the things I need.

Sorry you had a bad time, good thing it was only a short cruise. If and when you cruise again, hope you have a much better one.

Cruising solo is not for the timid or for those needing an extra pair of hands (though I have a friend who uses a cane and does remarkably well). I think that poor planning started this whole boondoggle and that the OP didn't think this trip through.

Anyone with a physical issue needs to take some personal responsibility and know exactly what they are capable of. I also don't understand how anyone with two crutches managed the buffet without assistance. It's hard enough for me to carry food and walk through the crowded area the buffet is.

And, as an aside, the spa and the hair salon are independent contractors on a Carnival ship and those are just two areas I would never trust a strange technician. Even on dry land I need a gazillion references to book a masseuse or a hair dresser.