Back from Carnival Magic July 9th, Never Again!

[BigDozer66]

Agree!! And it's funny how those reviews always exist somewhere in the middle of everyone else raving about the opposite (i.e. "Cleanest hotel I ever stayed in!")

 

It's like people look for things just to be spiteful. (Or possibly work for the competition :eek:)

 

When I look at reviews (Trip Advisor, Yelp, Amazon, Cabela's, REI, etc.) I normally throw out the "Rave" reviews and the "Worst I have ever..." reviews and go from there. ;)

 

There are times when places really are 5-Star places and there are times when they are 1-2 Stars.

 

I am glad to see so many on this thread give their good (or better) reviews of CCL as we have one booked in January. :)

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[Justwant2cruise]

I guess it's all about prospective , the two things which where the worst had nothing to do with carnival .

 

maybe try Princess next time

[hulksmash]

My worst cruise was on the Dream a few years back. Mold, bad service, bad food, guests fornicating in public areas, we went to exercise the guarantee, but decided against it as the kids asked us not to.

 

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[KCpumkin]

In the normal world nothing is ever perfect! The world does not resolve around me and I am one to find solutions to any problems that occur on any trip I encounter.

 

Bed Bugs Solution = Call Steward IMMEDIATELY just in case!

 

Food Poisoning = Avoid cold foods ANYWHERE you go (BACTERIA!) Why should you have to avoid it when you paid for it? RISK vs. REWARD = That's LIFE!

 

Walking Distance = Pick a smaller ship or just enjoy the EXERCISE!

 

1200+ Rude Crew Members = The problem usually within the black cloud that follows that certain individual in life!

 

Terrible Buffet = I am not a buffet person because of the usual QUALITY but all the options on board I NEVER "NOT FIND" something to enjoy!

 

2 pools = usually enough as I never have seen pools not MANAGEABLE! Add another pool and you "LOSE" another feature many do enjoy besides swimming!

 

So on and so on!

Edited September 20, 2016 by KCpumkin

[honestguy]

While I respect with a lot of your opinions with respect to cruising, I take issue with your opening sentence.

 

I don't think the notion that something cost more is a strictly an American trait. And as an American, I feel comfortable saying that when anything is able to command a price premium over time, it indicates that is in fact "worth more" to a majority of consumers. Worth more may not equal better in all cases, but that is the conclusion of the market.

 

 

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I can post numerous examples where this is true. I sold blue jeans, and one of the most popular pairs in america, sells for around 120 dollars a pair, and are cheap chinese garbage that will fall apart, but because of marketing all the girls want them. Nevermind if you shop sales you could have a pair of great american made jeans for almost the same price.

 

I sell a lot of expensive wine at my restaurant. Several bottles we sell is utter garbage, but because it has a certain name on the label it commands a certain price.

 

We easily fall prey to marketing wizards, and if it costs more, well it has to be better is the mindset. The OP feels this way about RCCL. Do they do some things better than carnival? Sure, but some stuff carnival does better. There's no reason that a rccl cruise should cost double what a carnival cruise does, but a lot of the times they do, and this is do to marketing success RCCL has had, and also the fact, because of their balance sheet, they have to get more for their cruises.

[LibratPDX]

I get everything is subjective but I'm shocked at the unfriendly staff comment. Not saying it isn't true but it is shocking. We got married on a carnival cruise last year and family stayed for the wedding but didn't sail. Now a year later my parents and grandparents are cruising with us and I've heard my grandmother say "ooo I hope (insert various staff members that worked at our wedding) is there". They made that much of an impression on her in like 2 hours.

 

 

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I have N E V E R encountered unfriendly staff on any cruise ship; if anything they are usually so sweet I feel my inner grouch grumble! But then I don't expect bowing and scraping.....some people want to be "served" and feel above those in the service industry.........

 

I agree that humans in general seem to add a cache to items and services that cost more whether or not the items or services have earned it and are worth it......not just Americans!

[Glock19]

Thanks for your review. I've been on 29 Carnival cruises since 1992, some ships multiple times. I find each cruise is different. Some things I like more some I like less. I also cruise Royal. For me I like Carnival's price and its a good bang for the buck when I bring the kids. We have the Pride booked again for New Years. I find as years go by the gap between Royal and Carnival as far as food, service and ships has widen in Royal's favor. I'll continue to cruise both. what a wonderful time we live in to have such great choices.

[pearose]

I take the entire review with a grain of salt myself. You're going to find good and bad things on any cruise line if you look hard enough.

 

First off, the bomb scare was not, in any way, Carnival's fault and I applaud them for wanting to be sure the passengers were safe before allowing them to board.

 

Staff, I have encountered a few staff that were not particularly friendly, but that's always been the exception. That's going to happen anywhere you go.

 

Food...for all the griping they did about the buffet, they sure mentioned almost ALL the other places to eat that were great, so it's not rocket science, avoid the buffet. I agree with this one. When I was on the Magic, the buffet was my least favorite place for food. But I definitely did NOT go hungry. Too many other options as OP pointed out themselves.

 

Pools.....maybe RC has numerous pools, but I also happen to think most of their ships are just too big. And a ship of that size, any pool is going to be crowded.

 

Adult area....not sure what else you want at the adult area. A place to relax, have a drink, listen to music without kids running around? Works for me.

 

A cruise, as with life, it is what you make of it. Some people just look for bad stuff vs. looking for the good. I just get the feeling that their mind was made up before ever stepping on board that RC was better, and that's what they took away from the cruise. It's a shame they wasted their vacation seeking the bad, vs. enjoying the good.

 

But to each their own! Enjoy RC! I'll be sticking with Carnival, my "Walmart of the Seas". Best value for the money, IMO. Bon Voyage!

[WiCruiseDreamer]

My worst cruise was on the Dream a few years back. Mold, bad service, bad food, guests fornicating in public areas, we went to exercise the guarantee, but decided against it as the kids asked us not to.

 

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Wow

 

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[NYGirl1002]

Every cruise line is different just like every single cruise is different. It's nice to have some variety. I don't have a favorite cruise line as you can see by my signature. The only problem is I'll probably never be platinum or diamond on any cruise line.. doesn't matter.

[john91498]

I envy you, OP. I wish RCCL would send some ships to California. Alas, RCCL left California years ago.

[Mycruises62]

We normally cruise on Royal but decided to try Carnival, needless to say we will NEVER go on Carnival again!

 

To start the cruise off our shuttle couldn't enter the port other then driving around in circles because there was a security beach which was said to be a Bomb threat at first and even the bomb squad came out. After we could finally get into the terminal everyone was told to wait outside then we were guided up to another area were we had to wait for a couple hours until they secured the area, after this ordeal we were then told it wasn't r

a bomb but a can of something that was spraying in a suit case. Better safe then sorry. Once this was over then we could go inside and get ready to board the ship. In my opinion Port Canaveral is the best port there is.

So once on board we went to our cabin and put our other bag in and headed to eat at the buffet as we waited to leave the port.

 

1st issue Staff and lack of knowing anything when asked and lack of friendliness. This ship had the worst staff I have ever encountered on a cruise. They never smiled,spoke or new anything if you asked them a question. Some were even rude. The only staff member we encountered that was very friendly was our room guy, he was awesome all the time. Spoke to us by name and had a friendly attitude.

 

2nd issue Pools, For a ship that hold 4,500 people and only have 2 swimming pools is ridiculous and what makes it worse is that only 1 pool was ever open at a time. I was only able to enjoy the pool 1 day when in a port because it was not crowded.

 

3rd Issue FOOD, the food at breakfast was the best and made to order omelettes were awesome, best meal of the day everyday. Guy's Burger Joint,Blue Iguana & BBQ place also had great food as well as the 24 hr pizza. We ate all these places several times and they were really good.We also ate at the steak house on wed night for our 20th anniv and it was very good. Now for the buffet, the food was lousy in my opinion with the exception of the desserts and the sandwich bar that had pastrami and corned beef, in fact that is what I hate most the time after trying the other food 1st. I also enjoyed the ice cream machine daily. The buffet was not opened long enough if you wanted it and then only one side would be open at times and you would have to walk a long distance just to get food if you wanted it. Terrible buffet all around except breakfast.

 

4th issue, I believe Carnival Magic has bed bugs because every night when we went to bed and got under the sheets I was always really itchy like something was crawling on me but I couldn't see anything when we looked. On the last night I actually got bit by something and ended up sleeping on top of the covers so the ship is not very clean.

We stayed on the 11th deck in a spa room and had access to the spa which was great, very relaxing and enjoyable. We stayed in 11242 and it was quite noisy at times, kids running up and down the hallway,noise from deck above etc. We were still able to sleep, just a lot of noise.Room was nothing fancy, pretty plain and basic.

 

Entertainment was just ok, nothing special. We did enjoy a few dive in movies and Dr. E was great. The comedy shows were also very funny and we enjoyed them as well. Party's on deck were also ok, I overheard several elderly folks complaining about the type and sound of the music and about it being way to loud. The entertainment staff were friendly.

 

Sadly there was a medical emergency with a passenger suffering a heart attack and dying(At least thats what we were told by several crew members) which caused the itenerary to be changed and the Honduras port being skipped and went to key west fl instead. The ship was diverted near miami to get the ill patient medical care. My prayers are with the family.

 

So we went to Key West Fl, Belize, Cozumel & Costa Maya, We had already been to Cozumel but still enjoyed it as well as the other ports. Really liked Key West and would like to go back there. The ports were the best part of the cruise, other then that the cruise was pretty boring. No adult area other then if you want to nap in a hammock or chair and use a jacuzzi, that is Magic's "adult" area.

 

And to top it all off, my hubby got sick on thursday afternoon and was up all night puking his gut out, not sure if it was from the food or what caused this. I know he wasn't sea sick so the food may of been the issue. Not sure because i was fine the entire time.

 

After being on 3 Royal ships, there is NO comparison with Carnival. I would never go on another carnival ship nor would I ever recommend one to anyone I know. You really do get what you pay for and Royal is in a class all its own. My brother is a Carnival cruiser and he bragged to me about how good they are but now I know for myself, not worth bragging about.Anyway, this is my small review, Happy cruising!

 

 

The crew on carnival ships do suck!!! Carnival sucks!!! She has her right to post what she observed.loved your review and I will never cruise Carinval again !!

[debster11]

this ^

 

i stopped reading when you slammed the crew. Not my experience at all.

 

lol!

Edited September 22, 2016 by debster11

[h_blond2]

Well good for you! Why do you feel the need to announce this? Just cruise with RC and go on with your life.

[cdnmr]

We normally cruise on Royal but decided to try Carnival, needless to say we will NEVER go on Carnival again!

 

To start the cruise off our shuttle couldn't enter the port other then driving around in circles because there was a security beach which was said to be a Bomb threat at first and even the bomb squad came out. After we could finally get into the terminal everyone was told to wait outside then we were guided up to another area were we had to wait for a couple hours until they secured the area, after this ordeal we were then told it wasn't a bomb but a can of something that was spraying in a suit case. Better safe then sorry. Once this was over then we could go inside and get ready to board the ship. In my opinion Port Canaveral is the best port there is.

So once on board we went to our cabin and put our other bag in and headed to eat at the buffet as we waited to leave the port.

 

1st issue Staff and lack of knowing anything when asked and lack of friendliness. This ship had the worst staff I have ever encountered on a cruise. They never smiled,spoke or new anything if you asked them a question. Some were even rude. The only staff member we encountered that was very friendly was our room guy, he was awesome all the time. Spoke to us by name and had a friendly attitude.

 

2nd issue Pools, For a ship that hold 4,500 people and only have 2 swimming pools is ridiculous and what makes it worse is that only 1 pool was ever open at a time. I was only able to enjoy the pool 1 day when in a port because it was not crowded.

 

3rd Issue FOOD, the food at breakfast was the best and made to order omelettes were awesome, best meal of the day everyday. Guy's Burger Joint,Blue Iguana & BBQ place also had great food as well as the 24 hr pizza. We ate all these places several times and they were really good.We also ate at the steak house on wed night for our 20th anniv and it was very good. Now for the buffet, the food was lousy in my opinion with the exception of the desserts and the sandwich bar that had pastrami and corned beef, in fact that is what I hate most the time after trying the other food 1st. I also enjoyed the ice cream machine daily. The buffet was not opened long enough if you wanted it and then only one side would be open at times and you would have to walk a long distance just to get food if you wanted it. Terrible buffet all around except breakfast.

 

4th issue, I believe Carnival Magic has bed bugs because every night when we went to bed and got under the sheets I was always really itchy like something was crawling on me but I couldn't see anything when we looked. On the last night I actually got bit by something and ended up sleeping on top of the covers so the ship is not very clean.

We stayed on the 11th deck in a spa room and had access to the spa which was great, very relaxing and enjoyable. We stayed in 11242 and it was quite noisy at times, kids running up and down the hallway,noise from deck above etc. We were still able to sleep, just a lot of noise.Room was nothing fancy, pretty plain and basic.

 

Entertainment was just ok, nothing special. We did enjoy a few dive in movies and Dr. E was great. The comedy shows were also very funny and we enjoyed them as well. Party's on deck were also ok, I overheard several elderly folks complaining about the type and sound of the music and about it being way to loud. The entertainment staff were friendly.

 

Sadly there was a medical emergency with a passenger suffering a heart attack and dying(At least thats what we were told by several crew members) which caused the itenerary to be changed and the Honduras port being skipped and went to key west fl instead. The ship was diverted near miami to get the ill patient medical care. My prayers are with the family.

 

So we went to Key West Fl, Belize, Cozumel & Costa Maya, We had already been to Cozumel but still enjoyed it as well as the other ports. Really liked Key West and would like to go back there. The ports were the best part of the cruise, other then that the cruise was pretty boring. No adult area other then if you want to nap in a hammock or chair and use a jacuzzi, that is Magic's "adult" area.

 

And to top it all off, my hubby got sick on thursday afternoon and was up all night puking his gut out, not sure if it was from the food or what caused this. I know he wasn't sea sick so the food may of been the issue. Not sure because i was fine the entire time.

 

After being on 3 Royal ships, there is NO comparison with Carnival. I would never go on another carnival ship nor would I ever recommend one to anyone I know. You really do get what you pay for and Royal is in a class all its own. My brother is a Carnival cruiser and he bragged to me about how good they are but now I know for myself, not worth bragging about.Anyway, this is my small review, Happy cruising!

 

 

Switch your font from 'casual crayon' to something legible and I'll read your list of complaints. :D

[MACUQUI58]

The crew on carnival ships do suck!!! Carnival sucks!!! She has her right to post what she observed.loved your review and I will never cruise Carinval again !!

I used to cruise RCL paid a lot more money and they suck!!!!

[Mike0223]

if your had a bad experience I'm sorry but I feel it still doesn't justify bashing the crew when a ship must change its plans things don't always go smoothly and for the record I was on the same cruise and our family had NO issues with the crew or any part of trip. again sorry your trip didn't meet your standards. But if you've always sailed RC maybe it's not carnival it's just because it's different, from your norm just saying

 

 

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[SMSACE6]

wow, cant believe that this post is still going strong.

 

I have responded to this post before, but I just need to add; with regard to accusations against Carnival crew and they being rude; I was on a Carnival cruise two weeks ago, and witnessed a passenger being unnecessarily mean to a crew member. That crew member smiled at her, and said I am sorry that you are unhappy. Wish I could help.". I'm not sure what the issue was, but the woman stalked off, and the crew member/bar server served me next and did not seem affected. I have been in situations before when something was not quite right, and if you approach staff with respect, and in a non confrontational way, they will make sure that you are happy. I have never ever had to stalk away with my nose/head up in the air like that woman did.

 

I have utmost respect for Carnival on board staff, and cannot imagine that anyone could experience rude treatment, especially from staff on a carnival cruise. I just have never seen or experienced a rude employee ever on a Carnival ship.

[Mike0223]

Well put

 

 

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[divemom3]

[deleted]

Edited October 9, 2016 by divemom3

[Austinettecruiser]

I must say I am very surprised that you feel so strongly about your dislike of the Magic. We were on the inaugural cruise out of Galveston on that very ship. After that very impressive cruise, we cruised four or five more times on her. The staff was always exceptional. We especially liked that they still had the Show Band. We never had a problem with the food or any of the staff. I am sorry that you feel like you feel that Royal Caribbean is so much better. We have sailed on them also but we continue to feel,that Carnival does such a great job,that we are staying loyal to them. They are the Fun Ships after all. We like the relaxed atmosphere. Royal Caribbean is nice but most of the passengers are stuffy and uptight. The staff was great and so was the food, however, Carnival keeps calling us back. You might want to give them another chance. I don't think you will regret it.

 

 

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[CJHAN]

We have had many cruises on carnival including the Magic and have never had a bad time. The magic was the 2nd best only in that the breeze had more stuff to do. I hope you have a good time one the other lines but im guessing you are hard to please, a cruis is what you mke it. Have fun elsewhere but interesting post.

 

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[MelissaMcC]

We normally cruise on Royal but decided to try Carnival, needless to say we will NEVER go on Carnival again!

 

To start the cruise off our shuttle couldn't enter the port other then driving around in circles because there was a security beach which was said to be a Bomb threat at first and even the bomb squad came out. After we could finally get into the terminal everyone was told to wait outside then we were guided up to another area were we had to wait for a couple hours until they secured the area, after this ordeal we were then told it wasn't a bomb but a can of something that was spraying in a suit case. Better safe then sorry. Once this was over then we could go inside and get ready to board the ship. In my opinion Port Canaveral is the best port there is.

So once on board we went to our cabin and put our other bag in and headed to eat at the buffet as we waited to leave the port.

 

1st issue Staff and lack of knowing anything when asked and lack of friendliness. This ship had the worst staff I have ever encountered on a cruise. They never smiled,spoke or new anything if you asked them a question. Some were even rude. The only staff member we encountered that was very friendly was our room guy, he was awesome all the time. Spoke to us by name and had a friendly attitude.

 

2nd issue Pools, For a ship that hold 4,500 people and only have 2 swimming pools is ridiculous and what makes it worse is that only 1 pool was ever open at a time. I was only able to enjoy the pool 1 day when in a port because it was not crowded.

 

3rd Issue FOOD, the food at breakfast was the best and made to order omelettes were awesome, best meal of the day everyday. Guy's Burger Joint,Blue Iguana & BBQ place also had great food as well as the 24 hr pizza. We ate all these places several times and they were really good.We also ate at the steak house on wed night for our 20th anniv and it was very good. Now for the buffet, the food was lousy in my opinion with the exception of the desserts and the sandwich bar that had pastrami and corned beef, in fact that is what I hate most the time after trying the other food 1st. I also enjoyed the ice cream machine daily. The buffet was not opened long enough if you wanted it and then only one side would be open at times and you would have to walk a long distance just to get food if you wanted it. Terrible buffet all around except breakfast.

 

4th issue, I believe Carnival Magic has bed bugs because every night when we went to bed and got under the sheets I was always really itchy like something was crawling on me but I couldn't see anything when we looked. On the last night I actually got bit by something and ended up sleeping on top of the covers so the ship is not very clean.

We stayed on the 11th deck in a spa room and had access to the spa which was great, very relaxing and enjoyable. We stayed in 11242 and it was quite noisy at times, kids running up and down the hallway,noise from deck above etc. We were still able to sleep, just a lot of noise.Room was nothing fancy, pretty plain and basic.

 

Entertainment was just ok, nothing special. We did enjoy a few dive in movies and Dr. E was great. The comedy shows were also very funny and we enjoyed them as well. Party's on deck were also ok, I overheard several elderly folks complaining about the type and sound of the music and about it being way to loud. The entertainment staff were friendly.

 

Sadly there was a medical emergency with a passenger suffering a heart attack and dying(At least thats what we were told by several crew members) which caused the itenerary to be changed and the Honduras port being skipped and went to key west fl instead. The ship was diverted near miami to get the ill patient medical care. My prayers are with the family.

 

So we went to Key West Fl, Belize, Cozumel & Costa Maya, We had already been to Cozumel but still enjoyed it as well as the other ports. Really liked Key West and would like to go back there. The ports were the best part of the cruise, other then that the cruise was pretty boring. No adult area other then if you want to nap in a hammock or chair and use a jacuzzi, that is Magic's "adult" area.

 

And to top it all off, my hubby got sick on thursday afternoon and was up all night puking his gut out, not sure if it was from the food or what caused this. I know he wasn't sea sick so the food may of been the issue. Not sure because i was fine the entire time.

 

After being on 3 Royal ships, there is NO comparison with Carnival. I would never go on another carnival ship nor would I ever recommend one to anyone I know. You really do get what you pay for and Royal is in a class all its own. My brother is a Carnival cruiser and he bragged to me about how good they are but now I know for myself, not worth bragging about.Anyway, this is my small review, Happy cruising!

 

 

I had basically the same experience as you on my first and only carnival cruise. Although no bed bug worries.

 

I was really surprised at how dirty bathrooms were and how little sanitizing was going on. In fact when I could find a sanitizer machine it was usually empty.

 

The staff was not friendly and often rude. I spent a good 2 hours searching for toilet paper one day and getting attitude about it.

Service was slooooooowww and without a smile 90% of the time.

The service was not what I'd come to expect of cruise service and the food well, I actually lost weight on that cruise. Haha

 

I was excited for the "funship" experience but was disappointed. Only the ports were worth the expense of the trip and I found myself just ready for it to be over instead of dreading the end of the cruise.

 

Edited to add

 

Those who swear by Carnival seem to think bad experiences are made up by bad customers. That's sad because I'm a cool chick who is pretty easy to please. I laughed my carnival cruise experience off and had fun anyway because I can make the best of a situation.

I guess my standards and expectations are higher than some others but that doesn't make me wrong or difficult to please. Just means I have received better elsewhere.

 

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Edited October 9, 2016 by MelissaMcC

[StolidCruiser]

...

The staff was not friendly and often rude. I spent a good 2 hours searching for toilet paper one day and getting attitude about it.

...

 

Those who swear by Carnival seem to think bad experiences are made up by bad customers. That's sad because I'm a cool chick who is pretty easy to please.

...

 

Wow. So many thoughts, so little time.

[MelissaMcC]

Wow. So many thoughts, so little time.

 

 

Not sure where you are going with this but thanks for stopping by for no reason.

 

 

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