What is the worst Cruise line that you have sailed on

[moniquet]

Our worst cruise was one on the Nile as we and many others were sick. Only cruised Carnival once (Valor) and we were pleasantly suprised. My least favourite was Princess...too large and overcrowded and food not great.

 

Not really had a disaster cruise though, enjoyed them all. Our favourite is HAL followed by Cunard.

[Taxguy77]

Re: NCL

One of our nicest most memorable cruises was on the NCL Crown from Miami to Valparaiso. Besides being a spectacular cruise and the great tablemates we had, some personal stops added to the enjoyment.

About the worst we had was on NCL several cruises later. We had noticed the line was cutting corners, but when we cruise the second ship to be designed for "freestyle" and the dining room was horribly managed we quit the line.

Note that every time NCL was sold, or had massive cash investments into it, the whole cruise experience deteriorated.

[Ashland]

The old Azure of the Seas...Our cabin was under the water level and you had to walk past it to get to the disco :eek::eek:

[mr green]

Re: NCL

One of our nicest most memorable cruises was on the NCL Crown from Miami to Valparaiso. Besides being a spectacular cruise and the great tablemates we had, some personal stops added to the enjoyment.

About the worst we had was on NCL several cruises later. We had noticed the line was cutting corners, but when we cruise the second ship to be designed for "freestyle" and the dining room was horribly managed we quit the line.

Note that every time NCL was sold, or had massive cash investments into it, the whole cruise experience deteriorated.

 

I think that that says it all for and against NCL.

 

john

[Love.II.Cruise]

Worst cruise was on Carnival Holiday back in 1996. I'd already sailed other lines beforehand and this was just the pits in comparison.

 

However, for first time young cruisers that want to party, I do recommend Carnival, because it is cheap and think it is a party boat. I think Carnival is a good starter cruise line and people can work their way up from there.

 

Now since I haven't cruised on Carnival in so long, I may be completely off base for my judgement. Perhaps I should try it again, but I'm afraid I will be disappointed.

 

Carnival has several ships and a lot of passengers, so they must be doing something right for certain passengers.

[moniquet]

Our cruise on the Valor was not a party cruise. I think it may depend on the time of the year. We went in January and it was the same range of people as any other line. Although it is a few years ago I wouldn't hesitate to cruise with them again if the dates, ports and prices fit.

[momofmeg]

Our cruise on the Valor was not a party cruise. I think it may depend on the time of the year. We went in January and it was the same range of people as any other line. Although it is a few years ago I wouldn't hesitate to cruise with them again if the dates, ports and prices fit.

 

Moniquet-on Carnival, especially the shorter cruses on the old cheaper ships. Those cruises go for about $200 a person for an inside and a bit more for an oceanview.

 

Shorter cruises in the summer are not much better-too many UNSUPERVISED kids. I have also heard people complain that even the 7 day in summer have this problem. Our little 4 day on NCL had teens throwing food on the stairs and running down halls and hitting stateroom doors LATE at night. I do think that problem would be ANY cruiseline that especially does short cruises in summer.

 

Three day weekend party cruises can be any line too. We experienced this on Sovereign of the Seas in late 2001. We had previously cruised her in 99 on a 4 day-Mon. through Fri. The atmosphere was completely different.

[moniquet]

Yes true about the shorter cruises. QM2 had some very bad reviews recently after a short cruise. Many described it as a booze cruise.

[commodoredave]

Re: NCL

One of our nicest most memorable cruises was on the NCL Crown from Miami to Valparaiso. Besides being a spectacular cruise and the great tablemates we had, some personal stops added to the enjoyment.

About the worst we had was on NCL several cruises later. We had noticed the line was cutting corners, but when we cruise the second ship to be designed for "freestyle" and the dining room was horribly managed we quit the line.

Note that every time NCL was sold, or had massive cash investments into it, the whole cruise experience deteriorated.

I could not agree more. I've tried to diplomatically suggest this on a few thread abouts NCL, but their cheerleaders rudely refused to acknowlege this decline. I used to enjoy the old NCL, and hope they can one day improve their product to the point that I would want to return. But it seems to have a long way to go.

[Smokeyham]

One cruise I went on which has to rate badly for service was a river boat cruise from Moscow to St. Petersburg.

 

The first night the air conditioning failed, and Moscow is hot and humid in the summer time!

 

One memorable dinner had a main course of rice, with what looked like chicken knuckles, with some shreds of meat left on. Dessert was some sort of donut.

 

We were told we could not charge drinks to our cabin, since "the ship is full." As you can imagine, their drink sales plummeted.

 

Finally, one day I entered my cabin to find the steward with a small carboard box open in her hands. The box contained a souvenir which I had bought, and there was no need for her to move it from the shelf where I had left it, let alone open it.

 

A complaint to a ship's officer brought a shrug, and a response that she must have been "curious." I was furious!

 

The cultural sites were interesting, but I am in no rush to go back

[goldne]

Staten Island ferry....they won't let you sleep and I couldn't find my cabin. The food cost extra and is mostly hot dogs. The captain fell asleep at the wheel...but the positives is its free and has a great view...

 

 

Omg.....LOL!!

[boogs]

However, for first time young cruisers that want to party, I do recommend Carnival, because it is cheap and think it is a party boat. I think Carnival is a good starter cruise line and people can work their way up from there.

 

Depends on the passenger. I know one couple who's first cruise was on Carnival to the Mexican Riviera. They say they will never again consider a cruise, even on another cruise line, because of the unsatisfying experience they had on that one and only cruise. Is Carnival cheaper? Yes. But apparently that old saying "You get what you pay for" certainly applies for some people.

[Davechipp74]

Staten Island ferry....they won't let you sleep and I couldn't find my cabin. The food cost extra and is mostly hot dogs. The captain fell asleep at the wheel...but the positives is its free and has a great view...

this is by far the funniest post iv'e seen all week

:D:D

[lovevacadays]

Carnival, Carnival, Carnival

[momofmeg]

Depends on the passenger. I know one couple who's first cruise was on Carnival to the Mexican Riviera. They say they will never again consider a cruise, even on another cruise line, because of the unsatisfying experience they had on that one and only cruise. Is Carnival cheaper? Yes. But apparently that old saying "You get what you pay for" certainly applies for some people.

 

You know Carnival Tropicale was our first real cruise- a real dump-but we had nothing to compare and we loved it. We were hooked! Over the years we have progressed to other lines and we now know Carnival will never be our first choice. However, they do give you good value for your money. "You get what you pay for"-works both ways.

 

I will be honest. We were not so sure we would like cruising, which is why we picked a cheapo cruise for our first cruise. We found we loved it. However, I have friends who picked a top of the line ship on RCI. Other friends picked a fairly new HAL ship. These people hated their cruises and say they will never cruise again. I don't think it was a reflection on the lines they picked, it is simply cruising is not for everyone. Just like going to all in one resorts, is not for everyone. I hated that.

 

My most favorite vacation of all time was a land tour to Bordeaux and Paris. I would love to do that again, however that was super expensive and not something we can afford very often. We are planning next year a med cruise right now. Thank goodness we like cruising, as the cruise and airfare is half the price of the land tour in France.

[Happy ks]

Depends on the passenger. I know one couple who's first cruise was on Carnival to the Mexican Riviera. They say they will never again consider a cruise, even on another cruise line, because of the unsatisfying experience they had on that one and only cruise. Is Carnival cheaper? Yes. But apparently that old saying "You get what you pay for" certainly applies for some people.

 

 

This just happened to a client of my husband. It wasn't the Mexican Riviera, but just Baja on a short weekend cruise. The guy had been listening to my husband speak of all our cruises over the years and was anticipating a great cruise. When he returned He said he will never consider a cruise again.

 

I read all the time here about people advising others to take a short cruise to determine if they will like cruising. Since the short cruises are typically the oldest ships going on the least desireable itineraries, I just don't think it's representative of cruising all that much.

 

Our one and only Carnival cruise was horrid...the only time I ever wanted to get off a ship ASAP. It was a 4 nighter to, yes, Ensenada. I don't blame the guy, if it would have been our first cruise, it would have been our last. We were on a different ship than he cruised on.

 

When RCI brought Monarch to this same market, we cruised on that ship numerous times. We miss our short cruises, but will not cruise on Carnival...too expensive for what you get.

[momofmeg]

This just happened to a client of my husband. It wasn't the Mexican Riviera, but just Baja on a short weekend cruise. The guy had been listening to my husband speak of all our cruises over the years and was anticipating a great cruise. When he returned He said he will never consider a cruise again.

 

I read all the time here about people advising others to take a short cruise to determine if they will like cruising. Since the short cruises are typically the oldest ships going on the least desireable itineraries, I just don't think it's representative of cruising all that much.

 

Our one and only Carnival cruise was horrid...the only time I ever wanted to get off a ship ASAP. It was a 4 nighter to, yes, Ensenada. I don't blame the guy, if it would have been our first cruise, it would have been our last. We were on a different ship than he cruised on.

 

When RCI brought Monarch to this same market, we cruised on that ship numerous times. We miss our short cruises, but will not cruise on Carnival...too expensive for what you get.

 

The only Carnival cruise I would consider is the 8 day southern caribbean (the ports) or if they did a Bermuda form Charleston, SC again. (Driving is 5 hours -flying to NY is 2 hours for us-then the time spent waiting and etc.-just as much time) although Carnival has more affordable med cruises, they are not that much more affordable-for $200, nope not worth it.

[mr green]

Your first cruise may be your best.

We went on a six day 'sampler', on our first, with NCL:eek:, and really enjoyed it, however we met up with many 'Old Salts' who, all said that it was the worst cruise that they had ever been on.

We carried on cruising for a time, with NCL at times, until we learned better, and NCL went 'Free Style'.

 

john

[kennicott]

Depends on the passenger. I know one couple who's first cruise was on Carnival to the Mexican Riviera. They say they will never again consider a cruise, even on another cruise line, because of the unsatisfying experience they had on that one and only cruise. Is Carnival cheaper? Yes. But apparently that old saying "You get what you pay for" certainly applies for some people.

 

Well, true, caveat emptor is worthy of consideration, for certain. We have cruised for 2.5 decades, almost twice around the world. Never had a bad one or even an uncomfortable one. But, never did Carnival Cruise Line, NCL, or RCI---however have cruised with quite a few who did and all those seemed to have enjoyed their voyages.

 

Our daughter, husband and our two granddaughters did their first cruise last year on Carnival. Now, her and hubby have been in the air/land visitor business for many years and know the positives as well as the down sides of the industry, perhaps much more than most of us do. They all loved the cruise. Who are we to argue? To each his own. Don't like these low end outfits, then don't whine, instead, try Crystal Cruises or upper decks on Cunard Cruises, you will love it.

[Aquahound]

Well, true, caveat emptor is worthy of consideration, for certain. We have cruised for 2.5 decades, almost twice around the world. Never had a bad one or even an uncomfortable one. But, never did Carnival Cruise Line, NCL, or RCI---however have cruised with quite a few who did and all those seemed to have enjoyed their voyages.

 

Our daughter, husband and our two granddaughters did their first cruise last year on Carnival. Now, her and hubby have been in the air/land visitor business for many years and know the positives as well as the down sides of the industry, perhaps much more than most of us do. They all loved the cruise. Who are we to argue? To each his own. Don't like these low end outfits, then don't whine, instead, try Crystal Cruises or upper decks on Cunard Cruises, you will love it.

 

I have some good friends who, despite making decent incomes, always pinch pennies and go the cheap route. They are on their first cruise right now, which stopped in Key West yesterday, so I had a chance to meet them at the dock. They chose the Carnival Imagination as their first cruise. Despite my recommendations to book a different cruise, they still went with the cheapest cruise they could find. Sure enough, they did nothing but complain to me yesterday...about the ship, their stateroom, the fellow passenegers, etc.

 

I told them the same thing you just said. Don't whine. They chose to go this route against the word of others.

[boogs]

Sure enough, they did nothing but complain to me yesterday...about the ship, their stateroom, the fellow passenegers, etc.

 

I told them the same thing you just said. Don't whine. They chose to go this route against the word of others.

 

Don't like these low end outfits, then don't whine, instead, try Crystal Cruises or upper decks on Cunard Cruises, you will love it.

 

To be fair, most new cruisers aren't that experienced or knowledgeable about the various cruise lines to make a best judgment as to which line is best for them, especially if their first cruise was before the days of Cruise Critic and the wealth of information now available on the internet.

[sail7seas]

Out of all our cruises (about 90), the cruise we enjoyed the least was RCI.

[muti]

Hands down -- Carnival.

[commodoredave]

Out of all our cruises (about 90), the cruise we enjoyed the least was RCI.

 

Wow, 90 cruises!! What are you - a pair of barnacles?

[mazdaleak]

I been on 10 or so cruies and i have never had a bad time the staff ware all very good frendly the food the best bot if you look hard you well always have something to say..so if your going on a cruies have a open mind//.//