To sail Carnival again or not?

[Ocean68]

I was on the Miracle last september (not the freedom but this was my experance)to answer the two questions that you asked...

 

We stayed in the Theater for two shows one night... My husband and i went to the first show and then our friends decided they wanted to come down and see it so they met us there and we just stayed. No one said anything. They brought us more drinks tooo :D

 

The only time i smelt the smoke was in the casino... I never really smelt it on our balcony or on any of the outside decks.

 

It can't hurt to give Carnival one more try. its not like you had the worst cruise of your life last time...you will be on a different ship and maybe this one will be the best cruise you've ever been on! you never know.

 

Hope you decied to go and have a great time with your friends!!!!

 

Thanks for writing. That sure makes more sense to me about the shows. And the shows we were watching were two different comedians, one before the other. We still had a great cruise, just like we always do. :)

[Ocean68]

To the OP:

I think you owe it to yourself to try another ship, but on the same cruise line.

 

We sailed on The Conquest in 2005 and I said I would never sail on Carnival again. Then this past January we had a chance to sail with a group (of 800) on The Conquest again. It was a local band that we love and didn't want to give up the chance not to sail with them. So all in all we booked another cruise on The Conquest and came to the conclusion that we really don't like the Conquest. Nothing personal, its just us.

 

So just to make sure that it is the ship and not the cruise line that we don't care for, we are booked on The Magic for its first cruise out of Galveston, next November :p. This way we can honestly say we compared different ships on the same cruiseline before we make a definite decision.

 

I think you deserve it to yourself to cruise with your friends and give Carnival another try. Then come back and let us know if you plan on "jumping ship" (pun intended).

 

Thanks for writing. There are ships in the other line's fleets that we like more than others, so I see what you're saying. I know it would be a lot different with another ship and another crew. Just hopefully not as much smoke. Love your pun!

[Snookie415]

I'd definitely go with my friends and give Carnival another try. We didn't have smoke problems on our first Carnival cruise this summer and I have a daughter who is extremely sensitive to any smoke (will trigger asthma attack very quickly!!) I don't even recall seeing many smokers in public areas!

 

We didn't have to give up our seats when we played bingo and waited for the next show either.

 

We just booked our 2nd Cruise for next summer and my husband said to definitely go with Carnival even though I was tempted to try another line. He loved the food and is looking forward to going again just for that reason! LOL He didn't care for the buffets at all but he doesn't like buffets at home either.

[MistyRo76]

I guess I'm still not asking the right questions in my posts. We did still have a great cruise, and there were lots of positives that I made comments about.

There are two main reasons that after our Fantasy cruise we felt as if

we wouldn't want to sail Carnival again...the smoke(mainly), and the getting booted out of the lounges for the next show.

I want to know if these issues were isolated to this ship or if it's all of Carnival.

 

*Does the Freedom allow smoking in every bar? Where all do they allow smoking?

 

*Are they going to make us leave a lounge for the next show when we already had seats like they did on the Fantasy? (ridiculous)

 

Thank you again.

 

To answer your questions:

I believe that on the Freedom, the smoking areas are about the same as they were when you were on the Fantasy. I was on the Freedom in Feburary, 2009and I did not notice any areas where the smoke was overwhelmingly bad. The Freedom is a newer ship, so perhaps the ventilation is better than it is on the Fantasy.

 

For your information though, Carnival is testing a stricter smoking policy on several of its ships currently. I was just on the Splendor on 10/10/10 and there were only a few places on the ship where smoking was allowed. In the casino, there were far more non-smoking tables than any other ship that I have ever been on. Smoking was not allowed at the casino bar, piano bar, disco, or any of the show lounges. The only public rooms that I could really tell where smoking was allowed was the cigar bar and sports bar. Also, smoking was only allowed in very small, specific areas of the Lido deck. I never saw anyone smoking in the main areas of the pool decks. Based on the results of this testing, this stricter policy could roll out to more ships in the future.

 

As far as being asked to leave the lounges after the shows...this is the first time I have ever heard of this practice. I have been on 12 cruises in the past 12 years. However, I don't necessarily disagree with the policy. When we were on the Splendor, we had the late dinner seating so the only shows that were options for us were the late comedy shows. We would arrive 20-30 minutes early and wait for the previous show to get out and nearly 1/2 of the people at the previous show stayed for the next show. And many of those stayed for the show after. One of the comics even asked how many people were at his early show, and I'd say about 25% of the people clapped. Some people will sit through all 4 of those comedy shows even if they are the same performers and material. We had a large group and had a difficult time getting seats together because so many people stayed. And forget getting good seats!

 

I'm not saying that the right answer is making people leave, but either way it isn't necessarily fair to everyone. Maybe move the location of the late shows, so those who want to see it a 2nd time have to move to the new location. I don't know. But it is an issue.

 

I hope these two issues, don't sway you from giving Carnival another chance. Sounds like everything else was to your liking.

[Ocean68]

I'd definitely go with my friends and give Carnival another try. We didn't have smoke problems on our first Carnival cruise this summer and I have a daughter who is extremely sensitive to any smoke (will trigger asthma attack very quickly!!) I don't even recall seeing many smokers in public areas!

 

We didn't have to give up our seats when we played bingo and waited for the next show either.

 

We just booked our 2nd Cruise for next summer and my husband said to definitely go with Carnival even though I was tempted to try another line. He loved the food and is looking forward to going again just for that reason! LOL He didn't care for the buffets at all but he doesn't like buffets at home either.

 

Hi, what ship were you on this summer? It's great that maybe just this ship has the smoke issue, and maybe not all the rest. That's my point... this was the same thing as if you're playing bingo and waiting for the next show to start. Why would you need to leave and come back in again when you already had a seat. Makes no sense. We loved the food too, even the lunch buffets! Have a great next cruise!

[hankandteri]

Smoke doesn't bother me that much so I don't really notice it. I'm no help to you there.

 

But I really notice it when someone gives me less than enthusiastic service, or, worse, lousy unfriendly service. There's no excuse for that and it sounds like you encountered that more than once on your cruise.

 

On my last Carnival cruise, I encountered the exact opposite on Legend. Everyone from the entertainment staff to wait staff to cabin steward went out of their way to make sure I was having a good time. The entire week, I can think of only one instance when a staff member was cold (a bartender in the lobby bar). She wasn't rude, she just looked like she was having a bad day and didn't want to be bothered by customers.

[Ocean68]

To answer your questions:

I believe that on the Freedom, the smoking areas are about the same as they were when you were on the Fantasy. I was on the Freedom in Feburary, 2009and I did not notice any areas where the smoke was overwhelmingly bad. The Freedom is a newer ship, so perhaps the ventilation is better than it is on the Fantasy.

 

For your information though, Carnival is testing a stricter smoking policy on several of its ships currently. I was just on the Splendor on 10/10/10 and there were only a few places on the ship where smoking was allowed. In the casino, there were far more non-smoking tables than any other ship that I have ever been on. Smoking was not allowed at the casino bar, piano bar, disco, or any of the show lounges. The only public rooms that I could really tell where smoking was allowed was the cigar bar and sports bar. Also, smoking was only allowed in very small, specific areas of the Lido deck. I never saw anyone smoking in the main areas of the pool decks. Based on the results of this testing, this stricter policy could roll out to more ships in the future.

 

As far as being asked to leave the lounges after the shows...this is the first time I have ever heard of this practice. I have been on 12 cruises in the past 12 years. However, I don't necessarily disagree with the policy. When we were on the Splendor, we had the late dinner seating so the only shows that were options for us were the late comedy shows. We would arrive 20-30 minutes early and wait for the previous show to get out and nearly 1/2 of the people at the previous show stayed for the next show. And many of those stayed for the show after. One of the comics even asked how many people were at his early show, and I'd say about 25% of the people clapped. Some people will sit through all 4 of those comedy shows even if they are the same performers and material. We had a large group and had a difficult time getting seats together because so many people stayed. And forget getting good seats!

 

I'm not saying that the right answer is making people leave, but either way it isn't necessarily fair to everyone. Maybe move the location of the late shows, so those who want to see it a 2nd time have to move to the new location. I don't know. But it is an issue.

 

I hope these two issues, don't sway you from giving Carnival another chance. Sounds like everything else was to your liking.

 

Thanks so much for your great response, I really appreciate it. That's the thing, on the other ships smoking is usually only allowed in the casino and maybe one other bar, if that. Plus, no smoking in the rooms, only on balconies. It's great that Carnival is trying that out...maybe they'll go that way for all of their ships eventually.

 

That's bizzare to me that people would sit there to watch the same comedian again. If that is the case, then I understand why they'd want to do that... but still, in many more cases people are just there to get to see both comedians. They would solve this problem and just go back to having the comedians in the show theater. It would give the comedians a break too. This is what the other lines do. We just love stand up comedy, and had a seat, and wanted to see the next guy. Not have to get up and walk all the way out to the end of a line with our drinks. Thanks for seeing my point.

 

Your'e right... most of the things about the cruise were really good. :)

[Ocean68]

Smoke doesn't bother me that much so I don't really notice it. I'm no help to you there.

 

But I really notice it when someone gives me less than enthusiastic service, or, worse, lousy unfriendly service. There's no excuse for that and it sounds like you encountered that more than once on your cruise.

 

On my last Carnival cruise, I encountered the exact opposite on Legend. Everyone from the entertainment staff to wait staff to cabin steward went out of their way to make sure I was having a good time. The entire week, I can think of only one instance when a staff member was cold (a bartender in the lobby bar). She wasn't rude, she just looked like she was having a bad day and didn't want to be bothered by customers.

 

So it sounds like our experience on the Fantasy isn't typical of Carnival overall as far as some of the things. Every ship in every line is different, as are the crews. I always notice the bad service of course, but also notice the people that go above and beyond and are really nice. I'll let them know that they're appreciated, and will give them a commendation at the end of the cruise too on the survey. Although in this case we didn't have a survey.

[marryclear12]

We sailed on the Fantasy last month, and because of a few issues, we would most likely not sail Carnival again. We've been on 15 cruises, and this was

our first with Carnival. However, we have friends who are booked on the Freedom this winter, and we'd like to go with them, but have serious doubts based on our Fantasy experience. I wrote a post earlier, but I don't think I

was specific enough when I labeled my title. If any seasoned Carnival cruisers

would have a minute to scan through my original post and answer my questions, I'd appreciate it. Thank you very much.

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1304089 <--- Click the link here.

 

Well everybody gets a little bad experience once in a while but that shouldn't break you down as to not to cruise again

[nothomeonacruise]

Freedom is newer and it's a great ship!! It's so big you won't notice the smoke. I say go along and have a ball. I was on her for an 8 day Panama trip. :)

[Ocean68]

Well everybody gets a little bad experience once in a while but that shouldn't break you down as to not to cruise again

 

Yep, true. Every cruise has it's positives and it's negatives.

Every cruise is always great though! Including this one-

had a great time.

Nothing's gonna keep us from cruising again. We love it! :)

[marryclear12]

Yep, true. Every cruise has it's positives and it's negatives.

Every cruise is always great though! Including this one-

had a great time.

Nothing's gonna keep us from cruising again. We love it! :)

 

Same here, we enjoyed all our past cruises especially our last on the Victory.

[flalady29]

I guess I'm still not asking the right questions in my posts. We did still have a great cruise, and there were lots of positives that I made comments about.

There are two main reasons that after our Fantasy cruise we felt as if

we wouldn't want to sail Carnival again...the smoke(mainly), and the getting booted out of the lounges for the next show.

I want to know if these issues were isolated to this ship or if it's all of Carnival.

 

*Does the Freedom allow smoking in every bar? Where all do they allow smoking?

 

*Are they going to make us leave a lounge for the next show when we already had seats like they did on the Fantasy? (ridiculous)

 

Thank you again.

 

I didn't read all the posts on this thread so not sure if this has been stated yet if it was i'm sorry..... if you read through the posts on your other thread I believe your questions have been answered and I believe if you look at Carnivals smoking policy it will state which areas are smoking if i'm wrong a Carnival PVP should be able to tell you for the Freedom. I wouldn't let 1 cruise with Carnival sway you go on the Freedom with your friends if you still don't like it that's fine go back with RCCL. I personally like both lines. Happy cruising :-)

[katiel53]

I guess I'm still not asking the right questions in my posts. We did still have a great cruise, and there were lots of positives that I made comments about.

There are two main reasons that after our Fantasy cruise we felt as if

we wouldn't want to sail Carnival again...the smoke(mainly), and the getting booted out of the lounges for the next show.

I want to know if these issues were isolated to this ship or if it's all of Carnival.

 

*Does the Freedom allow smoking in every bar? Where all do they allow smoking?

 

*Are they going to make us leave a lounge for the next show when we already had seats like they did on the Fantasy? (ridiculous)

 

Thank you again.

 

I can only say that sometimes there is more smoke than others. I don't personally know about Freedom, but other ships I have been on have smoking in many bars, but not all. On almost all Carnival ships the piano bar has a lot of smoking.

 

I am sorry, but I think you're expecting to stay for another show in the Comedy club is quite selfish. There are many people lined up to get into the club and for you to feel that because you staked out a seat by being there for an earlier show is unfair to others who haven't had a chance to be there.

 

I think you will run into the same thing on Freedom, as it is Carnival's policy to empty the theater after a show. If these two things are really bothering you, and I can agree about the smoking, then I think you will be unhappy cruising Carnival and perhaps should sail another line that is more to your liking.

 

 

To me, I would probably go with my friends and have a good time. I don't like smoking, but it wouldn't ruin my cruise. I just don't go to areas that are smoking, but that's my choice.

[captaincrash]

I have not read ALL prior postings - however - my opinion is this Splendor fire is no different then an accidental fire in a Major hotel or shopping center - or any other large public facility. This should not really reflect upon Carnival at this stage since we don't knkow if Carnival is in fact responsible and negligent. I saw one posting contributor remark that the Coast Guard conducted an inspection of the Spendor just one day before the Splendor sailed!

 

So, we have a cruise scheduled with Disney in January - and that will mark our 37th cruise. We have no reluctance for cruising with this unfortunate fire on the Splendor. Nor do we have any diminished regard for Carnival - as it sounds like they're doing a good job handling the crisis - including offerring refunds, travel compensation and a free future cruise of comparable value.

 

I might add we sailed on the Splendor last year and we'd sail the Splendor again as I expect they will CAREFULLY inspect the ship after repairs are completed. In fact - I predict bargain prices for those initial sailings... so I will keep my eyes open for a deal!