Towel Critter

Who gets to decide what's "reasonable"?

I'll volunteer! ;-) Not that it matters. Carnival is NOT going to turn down revenue. I'd prefer that everyone monitor their own alcohol intake and know when to stop. That probably isn't going to happen either though.

Lots seem to be suspecting too much alcohol. I agree that is likely the culprit, but let's not forget that alcohol doesn't really morph someone into a completely different person - though it seems to with some - but only gives them courage to be the jerk they really are. I, for one, would be in favor of reasonable drink limits on cruise ships. I realize it isn't going to happen though. If only folks had a little more self discipline. Sad.

I don't recall any, either, but it's no big deal. There are mosquitoes everywhere.

Everywhere except HMC, apparently... at least the times I have been there. I've been there on a rainy day too, unfortunately. It may have a lot to do with the time of day. I don't think I've ever been there past 3:00 PM. I could see them getting bad in the evening.

Much prefer the buffet on Lido for breakfast. The last thing I want to do on vacation is sit and wait to be served, then watch my food get cold while my server is retrieving something from the galley that he/she forgot to bring. Besides, often on a cruise there isn't time for an hour to an hour and half breakfast. If I need a refill, I simply get up and get it, as opposed to waiting fifteen minutes for my server to do it for me. :-)

Well, if there are mosquitos there, I'm certain they are indeed out for blood. I've never seen one though. Not disputing that others have encountered them, just reporting my experiences.

Coolest ship for us so far was the Vista which got the temp down to 63.4

 

 

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LOL. Was this an accident or some sort of meteorological experiment?

I see complaints on here all the time about hot cabins, but I've yet to experience one. I think it mostly depends on what you are used to. For example, if you routinely keep your house thermostat on 65, you may find the cabins to be a bit warm. On the other hand, if you normally live in a 75ish degree environment, you'll likely be comfortable. We keep our house about 75 or 76 in warm months and I've never found the staterooms to be uncomfortably warm.

Over a dozen cruises and I'm still waiting to see my first super model on a cruise ship. :-)

 

I say that mostly in jest (though it's true), but you will fit in no matter your body type. In fact, if you are only 40 lbs overweight you may be among the more fit on a cruise ship. Go, enjoy, fret not. :-)

When the Italians adopted the Pizza from us Americans, they ruined it! :D

You're darn right they did! And don't even mention what the French have done to good ol' American snails! :cool:

 

edit: Seriously, the pizza on Carnival is closer to authentic Italian pizza than what was offered on the MSC Poesia. Maybe they were trying to appeal to American tastes??? Beats me.

I wasn't crazy about my one MSC cruise, but that was several years ago. Perhaps they have improved. I at least hope the moods and attitudes of the staff have gotten better. Much of the staff seemed overworked/exhausted and not friendly at all. Food was just okay. Believe it or not, even though MSC is an Italian cruise line, the pizza is much better on Carnival. Shows, however, were MUCH better and more varied than what is now offered on Carnival. Stateroom was noticeably smaller (balcony stateroom) and had less storage space. The entertainment staff were energetic, but less than friendly in person. Just a few stray thoughts...

We aren't gamblers. We stopped rolling the dice on tablemates years ago and started requesting a "table for two."

Lobster...had it a couple times on Elegant night and it wasn't really all that good.

I got a really bad one a couple of cruises ago. It smelled faintly of ammonia. I sent it back and the replacement was edible.

 

edit: not saying it had ammonia in it, just that the smell reminded me of ammonia.

Meats in general. They seem to have more off nights/days than on nights/days with meats. IMO.

Checked luggage for us, plus a carry on with a few essentials.

 

Towel Critter- We would be on the Empress or Verandah deck, are we able to see down to the water there?

 

 

You wouldn't be able to look straight down to the water on those decks. To do that you'd have to be in a cove balcony, which are below the extended deck. Of course, you can still see the water from any balcony by looking outward, but you can only see it directly below you from a cove balcony, deck 2, I believe. It isn't a big deal to most people, but I hated that cut-off from the water feeling.

 

 

This is on Dream class ships. It isn't a problem on Conquest class, Spirit class, or Fantasy class.

Towel Critter, hello, yes we are concerned about service overall....we don't want to wait forever for a drink or for a table in the buffet to be cleaned or wait 20 minutes for a slice of pizza...on another note, this isn't going to be our only cruise next year so another reason to try the Breeze.

 

I would love to hear why people that went on the Breeze loved her or didn't?

One more note regarding the Breeze. I don't know which deck you prefer to book, but on the upper decks, when you look down you see an extended promenade instead of water. For this reason, when booking a Dream class ship we prefer a cove balcony, which is just above the water level. We enjoy the ocean and don't like feeling cut off from it. This may or may not matter to you, but I thought I'd bring it to your attention. Happy cruising!

Towel Critter, hello, yes we are concerned about service overall....we don't want to wait forever for a drink or for a table in the buffet to be cleaned or wait 20 minutes for a slice of pizza...on another note, this isn't going to be our only cruise next year so another reason to try the Breeze.

 

I would love to hear why people that went on the Breeze loved her or didn't?

I had no complaints with the Breeze, other than the "Generic cruise ship" décor. I'm probably in the minority, but I prefer the over-the-top, as some refer to it, look of the older Farcus designed ships. I wouldn't want that look in my house, but for a week or so it is fun. As for service, you shouldn't notice any difference in waiting times than you encountered two years ago on your last Carnival Cruise. The biggest change is that you may be given a card by your room steward to fill out, specifying once or twice a day service.

 

Towel Critter- Funny, we were considering Italy on Oceania cruises and realized these ships as so are Silversea are way TOO SMALL for us. They don't offer all the nice bells and whistles that we are so used to plus you have to get dressed up for dinner which really isn't fun to us any longer. Surely they totally cater to your needs but at my age I am not ready yet to try them, perhaps in another 10 years when I am older and can't walk as much?

If you enjoyed Carnival in the past because of the relaxed atmosphere you should still enjoy it. That hasn't changed. In fact it is more "relaxed" than ever. If you aren't overly concerned with amenities, service, and such - which you are not, it seems - you'll hardly notice the cutbacks.

Since money is no issue, why not try Silversea? CCL and RCCL are both budget/family cruise lines. Not much of a difference between the two really. But Silversea would offer you a genuine upscale cruise.

I always enjoy my tablemate. If that were not the case I would not have married her. :-)

Yep, what he said.

I'm amused at the number of people who think that the OP is completely out of line in asking for more than 20% off. First, think about if this was you. Many of us (myself included) have been on cruises where either an airline lost bags or bags were dropped at the curb with porters but didn't show up that first night. We've seen and heard how gracious other lines have been (have seen this myself on Disney, RCCL, and X) when passengers end up in this situation. Others have even chimed in that Carnival without fight opened shops and provided t-shirts, shorts, toiletries etc.

 

Why then should the OP have to fight tooth and nail to get even that? If it were you, you'd have been madder than a hornet if by day two you're still having to beg for clothing out of the shop knowing that Carnival has in the past been more accommodating in this situation. And to the person who says that wearing the same bra for a week never killed any woman? That may be true, she didn't die, but I'm pretty sure she was VERY uncomfortable. Wearing the same underwear for 5-7 days is not pleasant, even if it was being hand washed. I'd like to think none of us would be comfortable wearing the same undergarments that long.

 

While cross packing and trip insurance may have helped, we still have the issue of the poor customer service the OP received. Sure if they'd cross packed the Mrs would have had half her wardrobe. If they had trip insurance, she could conceivably go into port and buy clothes. Conceivably. But I challenge many of you to find bras and panties at most ports. And heaven forbid the Mrs is very small in stature or very large in stature because she's going to be out of luck if she can find something. Not to mention, did anyone miss how Easter occurred during this cruise? Gonna guess that affected the ability of the OP and his/her wife to find clothing in port. No, the holiday is not Carnival's fault. But their overall lack of empathy and customer service very much so is there fault.

 

Yes, the bag eventually showed up. Considering all tags were still in place, it makes you wonder where the heck the bag was. Considering it showed up and was just left outside my money is that another guest found the bag and left it there. But none of us knows that to be true. It's just as conceivable that crew found it and didn't want to be on what they figured would be someone's wrath if they presented it and so they left it.

 

But all along, OP is having to go to bat and beg and plead for what he/she needs for the wife. And that, I think, is what the whole point is. Certainly none of us was there but it sure doesn't seem to read that Carnival was that concerned about the situation. I mean, to tell a guest essentially that luggage gets lost sometimes and tough luck is not acceptable. I don't see why there wasn't shirts, shorts, etc from the Fun Shops offered to the wife sooner and on a daily basis. And why make them wait until a certain time? Someone somewhere has the keys to the shop and the power to let guests in before then for something like this. After all, it's breaking no rules for having the shop open as it's not a sale.

 

Personally, I'd be pretty upset were I in the OP's shoes. And I would want some acknowledgement for the lack of service given.

I can't speak for other posters, but in my case I never stated that the OP shouldn't ask for compensation above and beyond what Carnival is obligated (by their policy) to do. I do, unfortunately, doubt they will get anything "extra" though, especially since the bag was eventually found and returned. I hope they do get further compensation. It was a bad situation for the OP's wife and I feel for her. It isn't likely though, especially since it is possible, even likely, that the fault was with an uncompassionate fellow passenger. Let this be a lesson for all of us to always cross pack and to purchase travel insurance.

Ok, not a loud beep. How about a recordable message like: "help, I am lost, please contact my owner in stateroom 7555"

Works for me. :)

But the word "misplaced" is not present....if a bag is "lost" then "found" how could there be a claim?

I don't suppose there could be a claim in that event...technically. The point is though that we all agree to a maximum of $50 per bag or $100 per stateroom compensation when we cruise, so asking for anything more likely won't get you anywhere. I'm not saying it is fair or not fair, just that we agree to it. Now on occasion Carnival does go beyond what they are legally bound to do to compensate passengers, but it is up to them whether or not they do it.

 

edit: I've rethought this. If something is lost for a period of time and then found, it was still lost for the period of time the owner didn't know where it was. And in this case neither did Carnival know where the bag was. Finding something doesn't negate that it was lost. I would think the OP would be able to file a lost luggage claim. That's just my best guess though. I'm not a lawyer (thankfully).

I have a solution to this lost bag problem. Someone needs to invent a device with a timer which you can set for, say 8 hours. After the timer elapses, there is a loud beep every 15 seconds or so. Like the smoke detector in the house.

 

There is no way that bag is going to stay "lost" very long with that annoying beep!

I think that might be a problem in 2018. The entire ship would probably be evacuated. :o Other than that one small issue it would probably work though.:)