Rethinking Carnival Conquest??

[CCLCruiser4321]

Oh maybe it's changed its been a couple years or I just don't remember which is very possible

Edited September 1, 2015 by CCLCruiser4321

[TerReuv]

We were onthe Conquest in 2013 and we are sailing on her again in October. We loved the Conquest. Everything was nice and while there is no Serenity deck, there is an adults only pool. Most of the time it was quiet out there.

 

We had no issue with the temperature and the staff was fantastic when we were on her.

 

I say go and make the decision yourself. You will always find people who did not like a particular ship and those who love it. As others have said, it all depends on you. First is your attitude. Go with a great attitude that you will have a good time and enjoy and most likely you will. Don't nitpick the little things. Remember that crew changes every so often so someone last year who said the service was poor probably had a different staff than the one you will have.

 

No matter what you decide, have a great time!

[tlw440]

We have sailed on the Conquest twice, Nov. 2013 and May 2015, great ship and great crew both times. No problems with air.

[NCTribeFan]

Yes, about those reviews.

 

People do realize that we don't even get a single review for every sailing. And even if we do, that's ONE person's experience out of the couple thousand who were on the ship for that one week.

 

And that because of what people expect, what they choose to do while on board, when they eat, where they eat, who they have for the waitstaff and whether that wait staff has full tables or not and whether those people place multiple "special orders" that affect the service, where they spend their sea days, who they have for a cabin steward, their cabin location, and everything else, the experience of the person next door to you can be vastly different from the your own.

 

Honestly, the sample size of reviews is way too small to be a true reflection of the "good" or "not-so-good" qualities of any one ship are are really pretty meaningless!

 

Example - the things BBT pointed out are things I'd never see because I don't spend time in the gym or the arcade, and I have late dinner and wouldn't be looking at the windows of the dining room at night! But even if I did, these things would have absolutely no negative impact on my impression of my cruise and I'd probably not even mention them in a review.

 

And I hope that people realize that ALL ships require constant maintenance. There are always going to be some things that needs repair. Given that the ships are in service for years at a time between dry docks, and that there are thousands of people putting great wear-and-tear on them week after week, I think it's amazing that they look as good as they do.

 

Did I notice a tear in the upholstery on the arm of a chair along the Promenade! Oh no! The ship is falling apart! It's a dump! What a waste of money! :eek: That's not how I see things but I know there are people who do.

 

I write reviews partly because I want to memorialize my vacation experience - for me! But I also want to share my experience and impressions with others and provide any first-hand information I can if people have questions. I certainly hope people don't take my experience and project that to include all sailings of a particular ship.

 

OK - off my review soapbox. Point of all this? Don't read too much into the reviews.

 

ps - happytraveler - the doors have a deadbolt on them you know. The steward cannot enter when that is locked.

Edited September 1, 2015 by NCTribeFan

[Elaine515]

My parents celebrated their 60th Wedding Anniversary on board the Conquest this past February and liked it so much that not only are they going back on her in January, but we're going with them!!

 

And trust me, besides the fact that Mom & Dad are Diamond passengers, and have been on all but 3 of the Carnival ships, if Dad didn't like the Conquest, we'd all know about it and there's no way he would go back on her :)

 

And there's a gym on the ship???? not for me there isn't :) lol

[carolinaviking71208]

I was on the Conquest December 2013. Liked her enough to book her for a B2B coming up at the end of November.

[karen&roy]

BIG thanks to everyone that replied. I have decided to take this cruise with all these recommendations. Maybe people who write reviews in the review section tend to have something to complain about. I went and read the great reviews here and they are completely different. Cannot wait to experience amber cove, Grand Turk and Half Moon Cay. Have not been to any of them and LOVE new ports ! :D

[stargate fan]

I recently booked the Conquest for next year because of the different ports that Royal Caribbean does not go to. Now after reading the reviews, which are mostly bad, I am thinking of maybe jumping to another Carnival ship that has different ports like Grand Turk. Anybody have any recommendations? Not really familiar with Carnival. Thanks in advance!

Karen

 

We sailed Conquest in February. The ship showed its age. I tripped on a cracked tile on Lido, I saw broken window glass in places, we had rust on our balcony, we had no Serenity.

 

But we had an amazing cruise! The crew was amazing - amongst the friendliness we've encountered. Food was tasty and dining room service was top notch. Entertainment was fabulous.

 

A cruise is what YOU make of it. Go with a positive attitude and you'll have a great time. Think negatively and you've got a self-fulfilling prophesy.

[wegiekat]

I recently booked the Conquest for next year because of the different ports that Royal Caribbean does not go to. Now after reading the reviews, which are mostly bad, I am thinking of maybe jumping to another Carnival ship that has different ports like Grand Turk. Anybody have any recommendations? Not really familiar with Carnival. Thanks in advance!

Karen

 

Just sailed the Conquest in May - Great ship and great crew:D

[Emptynesternow]

We are going on the Conquest this Saturday, 9/5.....I don't pay attention to the nay sayers.... the cruise you take is what YOU make of it. Go, enjoy, and make your own conclusions. If you aren't happy, book another cruise!!!

[rooster1961]

Wow, I had a wonderful rime on Conquest in May,I wish it had Serenity but it was not a deal breaker. Someone said their A/C was awful,what deck was it,i was on 7 and it was the coldest air of any of the Carnival ships we have been on,actually had to turn it off cuz i felt scratchy throat,i would say just try it for yourself because its just like the movies,some people hated it,some loved it.

[rooster1961]

Oh,if you want some great food in Grand Turk,try Jack's Shack. Better than Margaritavile and about 1/2 the price.

[Sparky2]

I recently booked the Conquest for next year because of the different ports that Royal Caribbean does not go to. Now after reading the reviews, which are mostly bad, I am thinking of maybe jumping to another Carnival ship that has different ports like Grand Turk. Anybody have any recommendations? Not really familiar with Carnival. Thanks in advance!

Karen

 

We did a B2B on Conquest this past January, and it was a great cruise. We did Western and Exotic Southern itineraries.

[John Reid]

A question for recent Conquest-idors. Did they switch to Playlist productions when they did the partial 2.0 refurbishment?

 

Thanks.

[stargate fan]

A question for recent Conquest-idors. Did they switch to Playlist productions when they did the partial 2.0 refurbishment?

 

Thanks.

 

Yes. The live band was gone. :( We went one night just because we were traveling with friends who wanted to see the show. The singers, and I use the term loosely, moved around in front of a giant screen that ran abstract pictures and shapes. I lasted 10 minutes and we left.

[WLHyatt]

I've been on the Conquest twice and would absolutely book it again. It's my second favorite ship out of the 4 I've been on.

[Domino D]

BIG thanks to everyone that replied. I have decided to take this cruise with all these recommendations. Maybe people who write reviews in the review section tend to have something to complain about. I went and read the great reviews here and they are completely different. Cannot wait to experience amber cove, Grand Turk and Half Moon Cay. Have not been to any of them and LOVE new ports ! :D

 

Have a great time.

[John Reid]

Yes. The live band was gone. :( We went one night just because we were traveling with friends who wanted to see the show. The singers, and I use the term loosely, moved around in front of a giant screen that ran abstract pictures and shapes. I lasted 10 minutes and we left.

 

Thanks. I was hoping otherwise!

[rtap23]

Sailed on the Conquest this July and it was one of our favorite cruises so far.

[kicia]

Just got off of the Conquest yesterday and had a great cruise. True, there is no Serenity but the aft pool is adults only so it was quiet. There is a Guys Burgers, Blue Iguana Cantina, Red Frog Rum bar and Blue Iguana Tequila Bar. Jase, the CD, and all of the crew, were terrific.

 

Go and have a great time.

[CruisingFamilia]

As much as we try to be objective no review it truly objective. People base their reviews on past and present experiences whether good or bad. Reviews can be used as a starting point or general guide taken with a grain of salt.

 

We sailed on the Conquest on August 15th, and as far as the itinerary, service and entertainment goes the cruise was great. The cruise director was good as well. He earned his money. As for the ship itself, our opinion is that it is in need of a major overhaul. Nothing ruins our family vacation, and anytime spent with family is fun quality time. Sometimes we pick a cruise for the ship, sometimes for the itinerary, and sometimes for both. This time we chose our cruise for the itinerary. I cannot recommend the ship itself, but if the ship is not on the top of your list , and itinerary, service and entertainment is then go for it. I am a fan of cruising no matter which line, and we have tried the main three. I had to mention the condition of this ship because I feel it is only fair to fellow cruisers. We are easy to please, and do not nick pick. Our experience is that the issues encountered were right in our faces. To Carnival's credit some of the issues were address and resolved for the most part. Hopefully, the Conquest will be added to the dry dock list soon.

 

Ship's condition aside, Have lots fun and enjoy your family time.

[NCTribeFan]

OK, I thought I'd said everything already, but I need to chime in again.

 

Before I sailed her the first week of June, I'd read all these comments about how she was "showing her age" and really needed a makeover. I went ahead and booked because the exact same sailing on Breeze was going to be >$300 more (and airfare was more).

 

I was wondering if she really was in that much worse shape than when I'd sailed in November 2013.

 

Honestly, I didn't notice anything. OK, there was the one chair on the Promenade deck there there was a 2" tear in the upholstery on the arm. :eek:

 

I saw no broken tiles or windows. And rust? Seriously, people, you're on a ship at sea. Things rust and windows get salt spray on them.

 

Every cruise I've been on (#25 & 26 coming up), I've seen crew constantly working at scraping, painting, re-sealing, carpet cleaning, and more. Like I said, given the number of feet and rumps that are on the ships every single day, it has to be a major undertaking to keep them looking as good as they do. They can't take the ships out of service once a month to make cosmetic repairs.

 

Yet I read people complaining about a pool or hot tub being out of use while they worked on it. Well, when do you think these things are going to be done? They HAVE to work on them while passengers are on the ships because passengers are ALWAYS on the ship!

 

As for the Playlist shows, I honestly have no problems with them. I think the talent level is much better than it was 10 years ago (when I stopped going to shows because I refuse to listen to people sing off-key).

 

I read someone complaining about the video background of the Epic Rock show. I think they totally missed that the whole point was a sort of recreation of the MTV experience!

 

As for temps, there were hot spots and cold spots throughout the ship. My cabin was fine.

 

Anyway, OP, have a good time and try not to walk around the ship looking for things that aren't perfect. Nothing's perfect.

[CruisingFamilia]

Thank for sharing your experience of the Conquest, but as I wrote people experience things different. We did not look for things, they were right in our faces. I was on vacation and not inspecting so my focus is on enjoying myself. Unfortunately, the condition issues were too obvious. I had a great time because I had an idea of he ship's condition going in. My review mentions the good as well. Good luck.

 

Once again ship condition aside anyone sailing on the Conquest should enjoy their vacation and focus on family, ports and entertainment.

[rtap23]

I guess I might be blind since I did not notice anything in that poor of condition

[CruisingFamilia]

Im sure you are not, and I am usually skeptical of post or reviews that report the negative or nick picking. I refrained from posting pics of issues because Our feedback should reflect on the line's brass and not the hard working crew. As one example, The pic is of the balcony's door latch. Friend's of our also cruisng on this ship reported the same.