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Our Glory Experience

mllewis48

By mllewis48,
in Carnival Cruise Lines

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mllewis48

mllewis48

Posted
Posted

My wife and I recently returned from a New England/Canada trip out of NYC on the Glory and needless to say we were not very satified with the trip. We have cruised 3 times with Carnival and over 20 times with another cruiseline. The last thing I wanted to do was compare the two from the start but as the week went on it was difficult to not do exactly that. The crew was wonderful, the CD was the best we've seen and the shows were very good but that's about where it stopped. The ship was very difficult to navigate, the organization was not good embarking and disembarking and the food was very poor both in variety and taste. We ate in the Emerald Steakhouse and our filet had zero flavor. Shore excursion organization was also lacking. With all that said we made the best of it and enjoyed the ports but we both agree that we will not return to Carnival but instead stick to our favorite cruiseline and possibly try a couple others. Since retirement in 2010 we have cruised at least 8 times as we both enjoy the ports and the seas. During this trip we heard many similar comments from others on the ship. Just my two cents!

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Unknotted

Unknotted

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Sorry you didn't enjoy your cruise. The Glory is my one of my favorites of the Carnival ships. I've found other cruise lines also have a few ships that are not too easy to navigate, but I enjoy wandering so it doesn't bother me much.

 

As far as the food...maybe the crew is different from it was the last time we cruised on the Glory, but we had no complaints at that time except for the crowded buffet area.

 

But you may be right, Carnival might not be the cruise line for you. That's one of the nice things about cruising...there is a cruise line for all tastes. You just need to find what suits you and apparently the Carnival Glory isn't it in your case.

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KirkNC

KirkNC

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Sorry it did not live up to expectations but at least you made the best of it and enjoyed some aspects. After you cruise several lines it is hard not to draw comparisions. I find that most frequent cruisers tend to settle on one or two lines that they tend to stick with and enjoy.

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Andoria

Andoria

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No snark intended here-Could you tell me what kind of food you wanted? Not a lot of variation surprised me because I couldn't imagine craving something that wasn't provided on a 5 day cruise.

 

I get lost in parking lots so I did find the Glory difficult to navigate. I was proud with myself when I finally knew my way around:)

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ron1946

ron1946

Posted
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My wife and I recently returned from a New England/Canada trip out of NYC on the Glory and needless to say we were not very satified with the trip. We have cruised 3 times with Carnival and over 20 times with another cruiseline. The last thing I wanted to do was compare the two from the start but as the week went on it was difficult to not do exactly that. The crew was wonderful, the CD was the best we've seen and the shows were very good but that's about where it stopped. The ship was very difficult to navigate, the organization was not good embarking and disembarking and the food was very poor both in variety and taste. We ate in the Emerald Steakhouse and our filet had zero flavor. Shore excursion organization was also lacking. With all that said we made the best of it and enjoyed the ports but we both agree that we will not return to Carnival but instead stick to our favorite cruiseline and possibly try a couple others. Since retirement in 2010 we have cruised at least 8 times as we both enjoy the ports and the seas. During this trip we heard many similar comments from others on the ship. Just my two cents!

 

My wife and I were probably on the same cruise, returning to NYC on 29 Sep. I agree with you that the crew was sensational, and Matt the CD was great. Glory is one of Carnival's larger ships, and yes, we did not like the "up and over" to get to the Platinium Dining Room, and yes, some areas were crowded and difficult to navigate, but we did not let this cause us difficulties. This was our seventh Carnival Cruise, and yes, we have experienced some of the cutbacks made in the food and other areas, but, I can't say I went away hungry any evening. To us their were sufficient choices and variety to find something each of us liked. It did "hurt", as in the past I always had a cappuccino after dinner, but now Carnival charges $2.95 for that. We did not eat in the Emerald Steakhouse though.

 

As far as shore excursions, I ALWAYS book my excursions independently PRIOR to the cruise. That way I can communicate with the principles and have a good idea of what the excurison is going to consist of. We had some fantastic tours, especially in Saint John's and thoroughly enjoyed visiting the other ports.

 

One of the highlights of this cruise for us, was the "Behind the Fun" tour conducted the last sea day. This is a tour of the ship, going places that "normal" passengers are not allowed to go. The bridge, engine control room, behind the stage, main galley, Emerald Room Galley, and various other places including some crew spaces. This was about a 3 hour tour that was greatly enjoyed. It certainly gave us a much better feel of the ship. Well worth the time and expense.

 

I do have to agree that disembarkation was a zoo. Seems that the terminal folks got a lot of the luggage mixed up, but I don't think that was Carnival's fault. We were in zone 7 and it took us a while to find our three pieces of luggage, located in three different locations. However, we found embarkation to be smooth and uneventful.

 

I am sorry you did not enjoy the cruise as much as my wife and I did. Perhaps different size ships, different staterooms, cruise line policies, etc. may have had a bearing on your experience. I do know that sometimes it is difficult to overcome "favorite" things and it is hard to compare them to others. Good luck and God bless on your future cruises!

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JohnSpo

JohnSpo

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I was on the same 7 day Glory cruise returning to NYC on 9/29. This was my fifth cruise with Carnival and I have only cruised with them. This was my favorite cruise of them all. I live on Long Island and I was looking forward to leaving out of the NYC port. I emarked at 2:30pm. It was about 40 minutes from street to my cabin and my bag was waiting for me when I got to my cabin at about 3:20pm. I thought that was fast. My cabin was spotless and the cabin stewards were great. It was a nice experience passing the Statue of Liberty and going under the Verazzano Bridge.

 

I thought the food was great. I ate the Lido buffet for lunch once and breakfast 5 of the mornings. I thought the buffet food was better than in the past. I ate all dinners in the MDR. I was a little concerned about what to expect due to recent reviews but I thought the overall quality of the food and service was better than when I sailed Liberty in January 2011. My favorites were the chateau briand and the roasted chicken dinner. I do like the Glory layout especially walking the promenade on the 5th floor to walk to the back of the ship.

 

I heard the shipped was fully booked and I was surprised the lines were minimal. I don't recall waiting for the Any Time Dining more than 5 or ten minutes and that was any time I went. The buffet lines were minimal also. Even the mongolian buffet lines were not bad. The only disappointment I had was one of the comedy shows was packed and I could not get in but I did go to the later show.

 

The stops in Boston, Portland, Saint John and Halifax were all great. I did not do excursions but I did use the maps provided at the ports to walk/tour the ports and cities. We had great weather in all of the ports except Saint John was overcast with light rain on and off. Portland was my favoritie. It was a nice little city. I ate at Dewey's and had the clam cake sandwich. It was good. I did enjoy the stage shows and the comedy shows. I even attended the art auctions and enjoyed learning about the artists even though I did not purchase anything.

 

I liked the VIFP party. They served good rum punch type drinks and a few good appetizers. I thought the free drink coupon for the VIFP's was a nice touch

 

I am sorry to hear the OP did not enjoy the cruise because I really did enjoy my recent experience on the Glory. I look forward to booking my 6th Carnival cruise.

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dct

dct

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We cruised the glory 5 night last month. It was what I expected and paid for. Some great mostly good some just okay. The steakhouse was great. What didn't you like about that. I have cruised many lines but you cant beat Carnival pricing. We are doing the Sunshine in jan 2014. The price is right and we will enjoy it I'm sure

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