Vista Review... Not Impressed...

[jimbo5544]

And on Allure, you can just reserve the comedy show (among other shows) - no dealing with lines and that nonsense.

 

From what I'm reading, it seems just like you said - Royal has the big ship stuff down FAR better than Carnival. We have been strongly considering Vista, but may just skip it and continue with Oasis class... maybe Harmony.

 

 

Where else can you pay 7 bucks for a greasy burger 3.50 for a small bad of popcorn and 14 bucks for a pina colada sounds like heaven to me.....

 

 

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[First and Ten]

In the opinion of many that B rate comedy show is better than the other 999 things going on that night.

 

 

 

Bill

 

 

That would make you stand online for hours and miss an entire night???? Seriously????

 

 

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Edited December 18, 2016 by First and Ten

[First and Ten]

I would have been annoyed that they treat TA better than us and took away things that we have paid for.

 

 

The OP as a Diamond/Platinum, did get onboard faster than the regular cruiser....what did they "take away"?

 

 

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Edited December 18, 2016 by First and Ten

[LMaxwell]

The OP as a Diamond/Platinum, did get onboard faster than the regular cruiser....what did they "take away"?

 

 

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They said parts of buffet closed; certain venues and lounges were closed. When there are private functions those things are usually limited to day time and not to abbreviate regularly scheduled entertainment, and have never seen part of buffet closed for a private function on any ship, any cruise line.

[First and Ten]

They said parts of buffet closed; certain venues and lounges were closed. When there are private functions those things are usually limited to day time and not to abbreviate regularly scheduled entertainment, and have never seen part of buffet closed for a private function on any ship, any cruise line.

 

 

So they took it away from everyone, not just D&Ps

 

 

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Edited December 18, 2016 by First and Ten

[Ready 2 Go]

Well I'm planning to keep an open mind and see how my Vista cruise goes in July 2017. Hopefully, any "kinks" will be worked through by then.

 

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[LMaxwell]

So they took it away from everyone, not just D&Ps

 

 

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Yes, you are correct.

 

Additionally, I think many here know a huge crowd of TA's running ships like that is not regular and common occurrence, but that's what happened to the poster on their vacation time and their dime. That's their experience and their review; so be it.

[beerman2]

Yes, you are correct.

 

Additionally, I think many here know a huge crowd of TA's running ships like that is not regular and common occurrence, but that's what happened to the poster on their vacation time and their dime. That's their experience and their review; so be it.

 

I was on a Carnival cruise that had a group(BBW's) sailing once. It was interesting to say the least

[chong67]

Sailing on the Vista next week. My first time on Carnival. I'll see how it goes.

[Micahs Grandad]

So they took it away from everyone, not just D&Ps

 

 

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They took things away from everyone and as a paying guest would have been upset.

[v3cruiser]

Not surprised. We're trying to stick with cruising carnival on a spirit or conquest class ship. Even on the conquest class ships many rooms are empty most of time so i guess carnival was trying to cut back in later designs but making the comedy club smaller looks like a huge design flaw. From people i know, not many impressed with dream class or newer. Unfortunately these bigger ships are the future as the smaller ships don't do long cruises or they are moved to Australia or China.

[funat55]

Thank you for your review. I'm glad I read it.

 

I feel better now about my upcoming cruise on the Dream. I really wanted to try out the Vista, but my other traveling companions wanted to sail out of New Orleans so the Dream was booked.

[First and Ten]

They took things away from everyone and as a paying guest would have been upset.

 

 

So you had to stand online for an hour, is that such a big deal. Maybe one of the lounges were reserved for a private event. There are 20 other lounges and bars you can go to for a drink and to hang out. Some people would never go into the lounge the TA's were using, but as soon as you tell someone it's off limits, then it's a big deal....Be like Elsa and "Let It Go" :D

 

 

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Edited December 18, 2016 by First and Ten

[crochuma]

I am back from the cruise on 12/11 to 12/16. This was my 13th carnival cruise and first on VISTA. The VISTA is beautiful but understaffed and crammed with too much. No one should have to wait 2 hours for room service at midnight. No one should wait 1 hour for pizza on LIDO at 12 midnight. The walking/running track is located next to shuffleboard and mini golf. The result is an inability to actually walk/run on the track.

 

Additionally, the floor in the Marketplace on LIDO is slippery as all get out. They need to fix this before someone gets hurt (if they didn't already).

 

Who decided the Serenity area should be right next to the Waterpark/splash zone with tons of kids. I didn't use Serenity. I had my 5 year old with me. However, I felt bad for those above the area in Serenity that probably heard all the screaming kids having fun in the splash zone.

 

I liked the mezzanine to the main pool area. The dive in theatre accommodated more people and there was plenty of lounge space up on deck. This was the only improvement I saw from the other classes of ships.

[Mooguy]

I am back from the cruise on 12/11 to 12/16. This was my 13th carnival cruise and first on VISTA. The VISTA is beautiful but understaffed and crammed with too much. No one should have to wait 2 hours for room service at midnight. No one should wait 1 hour for pizza on LIDO at 12 midnight. The walking/running track is located next to shuffleboard and mini golf. The result is an inability to actually walk/run on the track.

 

Additionally, the floor in the Marketplace on LIDO is slippery as all get out. They need to fix this before someone gets hurt (if they didn't already).

 

Who decided the Serenity area should be right next to the Waterpark/splash zone with tons of kids. I didn't use Serenity. I had my 5 year old with me. However, I felt bad for those above the area in Serenity that probably heard all the screaming kids having fun in the splash zone.

 

I liked the mezzanine to the main pool area. The dive in theatre accommodated more people and there was plenty of lounge space up on deck. This was the only improvement I saw from the other classes of ships.

 

 

I second the slippery floor in Lido market, thought it was the shoes I had on but walked in there with other shoes and just as bad.

[Cruzaholic41]

And on Allure, you can just reserve the comedy show (among other shows) - no dealing with lines and that nonsense.

 

From what I'm reading, it seems just like you said - Royal has the big ship stuff down FAR better than Carnival. We have been strongly considering Vista, but may just skip it and continue with Oasis class... maybe Harmony.

 

You are exactly right and there's no denying it. While Carnival has their strengths, mega ship logistics is not one of them. CCL still has a lot to learn from RCI on ship design and crowd management.

[clarkg]

Thanks for the honest review.

[trogmd]

While I don`t think that the Vista is perfect I did still enjoy my time on her.

I think that the bigger the ship and the more passengers, there are bound to be problems with queues and sometimes poor service. For those of you traveling on her or thinking of traveling on her you can make up your own opinions I am sure, I have a full review of my cruise you can read, the link is in my signature. :)

[Max Circus]

I am not surprised at what the OP and other seasoned Carnival cruisers have said about the Vista. In reality the Vista is only 2.7% larger than the Dream Class tonnage wise (133,500 vs 130,000). However the Vista carries 6.1% more passengers than the Dream Class. This has resulted in the Passenger Space Ratio being a 28 as opposed to the Dream Classes 29. For Comparison the Conquest Class is a 31, Fantasy Class is a 29, and the Spirit Class is a 34. The Carnival Sunshine is the worst in the fleet at a 27. She was a 31 as the Destiny.

 

The other interesting thing is that the number of crew on the Vista only increased by 4.3% over the Dream Class which does not match the increase in passengers, so I can understand why some service issues have popped up.

 

All things being said, If I had listened to all the negative reviews on the Sunshine, I would not have sailed her. It turns out that we liked the Sunshine, and would sail her again.

 

And so it will be for the Vista. Somewhere down the line we will try her and form our own opinions.

 

Happy cruising everyone!! :D

Very interesting stats!! Thanks for sharing. The maximum number of crew will always be an issue since you can only have as many crew as you have crew cabins. We heard about this directly from the Guest Services manager when we had a Behind the Scenes tour of the HAL Koningsdam which also has service issues - especially in the MDR. If they want to add more crew to the MDR, another department (such as Housekeeping) has to give up people and no one wants to do this.

 

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[Mooguy]

Very interesting stats!! Thanks for sharing. The maximum number of crew will always be an issue since you can only have as many crew as you have crew cabins. We heard about this directly from the Guest Services manager when we had a Behind the Scenes tour of the HAL Koningsdam which also has service issues - especially in the MDR. If they want to add more crew to the MDR, another department (such as Housekeeping) has to give up people and no one wants to do this.

 

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We were on KDam last month but never ate in the MDR but noticed it seemed a lot more people ate dinner at the buffet on KDam then we saw on Vista. For the most part it seemed bar service and food lines were reasonable on K-dam, Vista was not the end of the world but was pushing it for us in many areas. I think it's stuff they can work out though.

 

 

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[serene56]

can you tell me if Vista has the American Table menu? or the "other" menu for dinners

[firemanbobswife]

can you tell me if Vista has the American Table menu? or the "other" menu for dinners

 

 

I have seen pictures and JH has also posted that it's American Table.

[NCTribeFan]

I believe you summed up my view on the Vista quite nicely. It is understandable that some of the most diehard Carnival Cruisers may not like this ship as it is quite a change from the style of all of the other ships. I myself absolutely loved this ship with the exception of the two main show venues (Liquid Lounge and Limelight). I did feel there were a few spaces that could be revamped a bit as they did seem to be underutilized (the Library was never full). The taste bar just seemed odd and out of place but I did enjoy that it was never busy there and I never had to wait for either a quick bite at breakfast or the taste bar in the evening. I really liked all of the outdoor spaces and agree with the flow of traffic to get around the ship. I also liked that there were many places just to get away from the crowds - we had two sea days of rain and it never seemed crowded any where that I went. I would most definitely travel again on the Vista - I loved it and I know what to expect as for the lounges.

 

I think it is a great that people have a choice on the style of ship they want to take considering some of the itineraries are the same. If you are the type that really truly enjoys the comedy shows and evening productions then understand this may not be the ship for you. I on the other hand enjoy the other amenities more so I am not that disappointed in the little bit that doesn't work.

 

I've been wondering what you thought of the ship. I was hoping you'd write a review. ;)

 

I also liked the more, varied, smaller spaces. Much more intimate feel than I expected for a ship that size. I was surprised at how not-crowded the ship seemed. I only went to one main show, and no comedy shows. Those things aren't important to me, so no negative feelings about the venues.

 

I wouldn't be happy if I arrived at the port and discovered a large group was boarding and getting priority the entire sailing, but it does happen. Not the fault of the ship or crew/staff and it shouldn't have any impact on evaluating the ship, just the overall experience.

[Micahs Grandad]

 

I wouldn't be happy if I arrived at the port and discovered a large group was boarding and getting priority the entire sailing, but it does happen. Not the fault of the ship or crew/staff and it shouldn't have any impact on evaluating the ship, just the overall experience.

 

I would prefer that if a group takes over a substantial part of the would make them charter the entire ship.

 

Been on ships that had large venues reserved for 0thers and do not think that is fair.

[evandbob]

I sailed the Vista repo cruise from NY to MIA. Our balcony cabin seemed a little smaller, like 1 closet less, but that was due to having individual climate control units in each cabin. The thermostat adjustment actually worked to warm or cool the cabin. We didn't notice having less closet space since we each sailed with just a carry on for the 11 day cruise. Diamond unlimited laundry is great, even if we only used it twice.

 

The sports bar, comedy club and main theater are all smaller venues than the spaces on older ships. There is a 3D as well as a "thrill" film theater and a large sports area on an upper deck. The spa and gym are seperated on different decks, rather than occupying the same area. The running/walking track is much larger, and has various outside workout areas as well along its way.

 

The only MDR negative we experienced was being seated at the only 20 top circular table in the fleet. I could barely see the diners on the other side, and couldn't hear them at all. The Matre'D immediately complied with my request for a smaller table.

 

It's a new ship, things are different, and it takes some getting used to the changes. I enjoyed the neutral hallway tones, others thought it horrid. I liked the changing atria vortexes, others wanted the high open space and glass elevators brought back.

 

I would sail the Vista again for the right itinerary and fare.

 

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