Former Carnival Cruise hater converted!

[IDKaren]

Back story...our second and last cruise on carnival was 1995...it was such a bad experience I swore I would NEVER cruise them again. Service was slow...hot food was cold.cold food was hot..we had asked for early dining..given late and the Maitre d was a real jerk and would not change. The final straw...there was heavy fog..we could not get into harbor for almost two hours...they would serve NO water..no snacks..nothing...we just sat there..two other ships in the harbor had drinks, food etc served... They can't control the weather but they could have done something! OK.. Fast forward twenty years....... Needed dates that only fit into spring break week.ugh..that's another story! Good price..good dates..we decided to do it! Hubby and I..daughter and SIL and 6 year old granddaughter.. Ok...this may be long!!

 

Flew in day before...got a private transport from Prime time shuttle..well worth it! Arrived at port about 11:30.....had FTTF..walked right up to desk..no wait..there was already quite a line in regular check in...20 minutes and we were on the ship. Rooms not ready so we went to Buffett. Never seen a buffet with individual little food stations quite like that...works out great..unless you want something from each specialty place and standing in line could add up! Rooms were ready about 1 for FTTF but still no luggage as there was supposed to be...luggage did not get there till quite a bit later. That's fine..got to explore a bit!

 

Dining...had early seating at 6.. Waiter and his assistants were amazing! Food was mostly pretty good...not real Impressed with dessert menus..but always something could be found on menu. One night I just had three things off the appetizer menu. Something I have not seen in MANY years on others lines we had traveled..the wait staff actually came out dressed up and danced! Kind of fun to see! We ate most meals in dining room..breakfast was never crowded..that's nice early in the morning! Coffee was not so great but hey..it was caffeine! We could always find something to eat at lunch in the buffet...I have read a lot of complaints but we found the food to be varied, tasteful and just fine..of course we are not foodies...if we were I guess we would sale Costa or one of those. Always dessert to be found,..yummy.

 

Cabin...had cabin 4171.... Average sized room compared to,other lines..balcony was nice sized . Bathroom was small. But hey..I don't live there! Granddaughter was to sleep with us now and then so Steward made up the couch into bed with sheets and blankets and we just left it made..still plenty of room. The one thing I did not like... I have never in my journeys had a balcony door that could not be slid open or locked open to enjoy the sea breeze and noise..with a sign that said..air conditioning please close balcony door... And man oh man was that door heavy! Our room steward was IDA and he was amazing..very nice and very on the ball..I swear they must have a secret alarm that goes off because every time we left the cabin.within minutes he was there! I DID have to ask for a cushion as the bed was SO hard! i left for about an hour..got back and it was already on!

 

SHIP....found it well laid out..INTERESTING decor!! The theater was SO huge..never did see it full to capacity! Lots of lounges to sit in and read or chat. Casino as usual in ships was just too darn smoky to sit and enjoy. Pools were so small and with it being spring break week always crowed. HOT TUBS..BLECCHH! Always full of children with or without parents..mostly without 😒 At one time I counted TWENTYONE children in and around the edge of a tub. You would need a hazmat suit to go in there after that! Ugh. Lots of chairs and did not see too much hogging. Of course the last two days sailing back was cold and windy so no one wanted to be out there!

 

Entertainment....not too impressed. There were three different singing and dancing stage shows by the ship entertainment group. They were just OK..nothing special. The different comediennes were funny but almost Impossible to get into early PG shows unless you left dinner early and raced down.....the place was packed with a lot of kids...and to be truthful..it wasn't usually a show that would even be pertinent to their interest..but they packed in.

 

Ports.... Cabo...took a water taxi with 6 year old grandchild..had food and drinks at the SANDBAR..a smaller quieter place at end of Medano Beach..the Office and Manfo Deck were jammed with people..in various degrees of drunkenness..crazy times!

Mazatlan...took a private tour..harbor cruise..then to stone Island to a restaurant/bar for all u can drink and a meal plus three activities...horseback riding, boogie boards, banana boat etc. Granddaughter used a boogie board first time...so much fun and ocean was actually swimmable. Fun day

 

Puerto Vallarta...been here a lot but kids haven't..took a private tour..city tour..out to Mismaloya and then out to the jungle near Chicos for lunch and playing on rocks and river.

 

Disembark...with FTTF we met at dining room at 7:45 and we were first off ship by 8:30..no long luggage or customs lines..caught our shuttle and we were gone

By about 9. LOVE that FTTF..well worth every penny!

 

THE GOOD😎😎😎😎 ThE BAD😒😒😒 and. THE UGLY👿👿

GOOD..FTTF...the food..the dining and room staff... Magician was adorable and quite good and funny!

 

BAD..there really should be MORE rest rooms..you really had to search! Seems most ships I have been on usually have one on every floor near the elevators! Small pools.

 

UGLY... be prepared for a rant! Why and when were children allowed to run like a bunch of little pack animals thru the ship all hours of the day and night? Ok..this is NOT the ships fault..I am sure parents would get upset if security confronted their little monsters! Ugh will never do spring break again! RUNNING up and down corridors..knocking on all the doors. Pushing four different elevators buttons from top to bottom...caught one kid..maybe 11 or 12 in the buffet..no Tongs.just rummaging thru bread baskets..I confronted him to use tongs that nobody wanted his dirty hands in the food...he puffed up and sneered and got closer to confront me..all the while his little posse was cat calling and sayong ewwwwww she is in trouble. REALLY? I am 66 years old and have NEVER let my kids or grandkids be that disrespectful.. Then ten minutes later the little lovelies were sitting spread out in a row of tables..I looked and two were very carefully setting the salt shake lid on top of the shaker. I told them to beat it and find their parents..and talked to a crew member that he might want to check the lids on the whole row of tables. Kids taking over the hot tubs..taking huge amounts of food and walking away..crowding their ways in and out of elevators and doors....WHERE are the PARENTS?? And don't even get me started on the foul mouths of kids 8..9..10 years old! NoT Carnivals fault but it was UGLY!! Step up parents!

 

Soooo my long story is done....I was mostly very Impressed with Carnival...I actually found their food better than NCL that has been our last three cruises...I like bed the crew and YES I would sail on her again.....Do they MAKE childless cruises?😎😎😎😎😎 I would INVEST for sure!

[Keith1010]

Very nice report/review and so nice to get your perspectives.

 

Keith

[pusywillow]

What ship were you on?

[vwrestler171]

What ship were you on?

 

The only Carnival ship that goes to Cabo and Puerto Vallarta is the Miracle.

[amsred2]

Love the Miracle and her crew. In my experience they are the best in the fleet.

 

I am TOTALLY with you. My kids are grown but I am not yet a grandparent so my tolerance for unruly (or even just noisy) children is ZERO! I would pay double to go on kid-free cruises!

[jimbo5544]

Nice review....and welcome back!

[cruzncouple]

I am a parent, and I have always taught my kids respect. Under NO circumstances would I let my children run around like that. Our youngest is now 14 and we cruise regularly with him, and we have a ZERO tolerance for ridiculous behavior. People pay a lot of money for their vacations and I believe parents should be accountable for their kids.

 

That being said, we have cruised RCCL and carnival and we will always chose a carnival cruise before any other. Entertainment and service is far better on CCL.

Edited April 3, 2016 by cruzncouple

[mississauga]

Welcome back to Carnival!

 

Here's a tip if you have FTTF. You do not need yo wait until 1pm. Your cabin is ready for when you board. The closed doors are for those not FTTF, Platinum or Diamond or those in suites.

 

We avoid cruising during the holidays and spring break and summer. There are usually not many children cruising then. Those who do, are usually quite well behaved. Most times, we go not even see them around.

Edited April 3, 2016 by mississauga

[Clarea]

Thank-you for the feedback, appreciate the different perspective.

[IDKaren]

I am a parent, and I have always taught my kids respect. Under NO circumstances would I let my children run around like that. Our youngest is now 14 and we cruise regularly with him, and we have a ZERO tolerance for ridiculous behavior. People pay a lot of money for their vacations and I believe parents should be accountable for their kids.

 

That being said, we have cruised RCCL and carnival and we will always chose a carnival cruise before any other. Entertainment and service is far better on CCL.

 

THANK YOU!!! I wish many more parents were like you!!🙂🙂🙂

[IDKaren]

Welcome back to Carnival!

 

Here's a tip if you have FTTF. You do not need yo wait until 1pm. Your cabin is ready for when you board. The closed doors are for those not FTTF, Platinum or Diamond or those in suites.

 

We avoid cruising during the holidays and spring break and summer. There are usually not many children cruising then. Those who do, are usually quite well behaved. Most times, we go not even see them around.

 

Thanks!! I thought I had read that but the closed off hallway doors threw me off!

I normally do not travel during holidays or spring break...but traveling with granddaughter we had to this time....never again!

[Taters]

Thanks for your review of the Miracle. I wouldn't sail when school is out... We did once during a Christmas/New Year's cruise and there were 600 kids on board, most of them running amok. Never again!

 

But we love Miracle and this class of ship. More pools, less crowds, and an amazing crew.

 

Cheers!

[kona_wahine]

Thanks!! I thought I had read that but the closed off hallway doors threw me off!

I normally do not travel during holidays or spring break...but traveling with granddaughter we had to this time....never again!

 

There should have been a sign on the door that said if you had FTTF to go on in. That's too bad you missed it, one of the best FTTF perks. Glad you enjoyed your trip. I do find it interesting how parents seem to allow their kids to roam a ship, like its a big babysitter. But I try to remember how I was at that age. One thing, I would never be disrespectful to an adult.

[Fern Crest]

Welcome back! Glad you enjoyed most of your cruise!

 

Our first cruise was during the last week in August, and we had the same issues with unruly kids, even back then. It seems like some families get onboard and promptly relinquish any oversight of their kids to the staff. I'm sure that some kids wouldn't stay in line even if their parents DID step in.

 

Oh well, makes us appreciate the good kids! :)

 

Thanks for your review!

[OCruisers]

Great well balanced report!

Just goes to show it's a good thing to give a cruise line another try! :)

[jdemps]

less kids on cruises while they are in school. We always try to avoid the summer, spring or fall breaks.

[tallnthensome]

I have an 8 and 6 year old daughter. We always cruise a couple weeks after all spring breaks for college and school aged kids is over. So many parents are negligent and drop their parent duties. They probably know their kids are bad and that's why they get hammered and tell them to get lost and out of their hair and to become other people's problems on board. They probably get their poor behavior from their low-life parents. I'm all for giving kids old some space and to move about and the chance to do so to prove their level of responsibility and maturity ...... or the latter. If it's the latter then they need to stay in sight of their parents.

[joeyancho]

If you want nicer decor, better food, superior entertainment, less screaming children, try Princess. After about 20 Carnival cruises we tried Princess, not going back to Carnival ever.

Edited April 3, 2016 by joeyancho

[elainmir]

On our spring break cruise there were literally 25 kids jammed in one hot tub. I was ever so thankful they were NOT allowed in the Serenity area. I just laughed as I breezed past the Lido to get to the hot tub with NO kids in it. ;) I wouldn't swim in that cesspool on Lido for anything. I saw drinks, food...eww.

 

We've been on TWO spring break cruises and they weren't really that bad. The first one we talked with some college frat guys who were well spoken and very nice! The second one we played blackjack with some young men from Virginia ..they were very well spoken and nice kids..the young kids 10-12 were the ones that their parents obviously forgot they brought them onboard.:rolleyes: Not all of them were unruly but there were many. Running everywhere, slamming doors, pushing elevator buttons...I don't let it get me down if I need to I call security and let them deal..

 

I would continue to cruise during spring break though..I see more often than not folks just doing their own thing..having fun..

[elliair]

 

Soooo my long story is done....I was mostly very Impressed with Carnival...I actually found their food better than NCL that has been our last three cruises...I like bed the crew and YES I would sail on her again.....Do they MAKE childless cruises? I would INVEST for sure!

 

I think Carnival has far superior food than Princess. Carnival does not have childless cruises. Pick months that the little snowflakes are in school, that's when DH and I do the most traveling. We also travel on cruise ships that don't cater to "families." The children we've seen on Princess for the most part have been well behaved. Only encountered one brat but I think he had some mental issues going on or he was just spoiled. I'm thinking the later as the mother and grandmother catered to the kid. He laid down on the aisle in front of our cabin kicking and screaming. I opened the door and stood there staring at him. He stopped his act and told me to go "F" off.:eek:

 

P.S. That happened on a Princess cruise!

Edited April 3, 2016 by elliair

[JaniceB]

Thanks for the report.

[NCbmwmom]

Thanks for your report.

[golfb4cruzing]

What ship were you on?

 

LOL I reread 3 times thinking I missed the ship. Kind of important, maybe.

[IDKaren]

LOL I reread 3 times thinking I missed the ship. Kind of important, maybe.

 

Ooops sorry....it was the Miracle:)

[PAPERBKWRITER]

Done several spring cruises and agree with your assessment. The only positive is you never have to look for a seat at the shows....We avoid spring break.