Carnival Sunshine 10/26-10/30 - AKA Neighbors Behaving Badly

[Keys2Heaven]

Interesting. Never understood doubling the cost of the cruise by adding cheers.

 

It's a little-known contest amongst cruisers to see who can damage their kidney's and liver the quickest.

[Micahs Grandad]

It's a little-known contest amongst cruisers to see who can damage their kidney's and liver the quickest.

 

I could see doing it for a day or two on a 7 day or longer cruise but every day is a bit much. I would be horizontal for much of the day.

 

However that is my opinion only and others should do as they wish.

[Keys2Heaven]

I could see doing it for a day or two on a 7 day or longer cruise but every day is a bit much. I would be horizontal for much of the day.

 

However that is my opinion only and others should do as they wish.

 

That would be an expensive cruise! I can see where this might have more appeal to the 2 - 5 day cruises, but not sure after that. I, like you, wouldn't remember my cruise if I drank like that....even to the break-even point. Mainly because my wife wouldn't use it as much and would be ordering a drink to give to me anyway.

[MrsPhoenix91]

After they were confronted the first time, they covered themselves with a towel and smoked under it (talk about a fire hazard!!). I wanted to tell GS just to come sit on our balcony for an hour and they would have proof.

Is there a cure for stupidity :(?

[horsegal]

We've had balconies on all our cruises on different lines and never had any problems. Our neighbors have always been friendly and polite. Maybe it's an issue with the clientele Carnival attracts.

I have had maybe 6/7 balcony cabins on carnival and never had a problem. I don't think it's the "clientele" on carnival. They got stick next to an inconsiderate idiot. It can happen on any cruise or vacation.

 

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[cltnccruisers]

Is there a cure for stupidity :(?

 

Yes, but it's fatal

[Ziggy7]

We have had many balcony cabins on Carnival, Princess, HAL, and RCI (20 cruises). Only once on RCI did we have rowdy neighbors and GS would go and tell them to quiet down each night (after complaints by us and others) and they did but it had to be done every night! RCI acted as if we were the problem when we complained and asked for something to be done about it! And no we never asked for compensation and did not receive any either!

[Micahs Grandad]

Is there a cure for stupidity :(?

 

First time towel catches on fire they might learn a lesson but than again probably not

[Keys2Heaven]

First time towel catches on fire they might learn a lesson but than again probably not

 

I wonder what GS would do then. Blame the people next door for not telling them sooner that these folks were smoking on their balcony? :evilsmile:

[13cheermom]

Most of our cruises have been on balconies, only 1 where smoke seemed to be a problem. Actually it was a European cruise and our neighbors were actually foreign and never spoke a word of english so felt like it was a mute point to complain. It was actually cigar smoke which isn't quite as bad, but it seemed like everytime we would go out there, the older man would go out also, like he had radar or something. Did effect some of our balcony usage especially when cruising into Venice and back but made the most of it. It is disturbing that some will go to such lengths as well as risk the safety of everyone else on the ship to satisfy a habit. :(

[Keys2Heaven]

Most of our cruises have been on balconies, only 1 where smoke seemed to be a problem. Actually it was a European cruise and our neighbors were actually foreign and never spoke a word of english so felt like it was a mute point to complain. It was actually cigar smoke which isn't quite as bad, but it seemed like everytime we would go out there, the older man would go out also, like he had radar or something. Did effect some of our balcony usage especially when cruising into Venice and back but made the most of it. It is disturbing that some will go to such lengths as well as risk the safety of everyone else on the ship to satisfy a habit. :(

 

It's the all-too-familiar "Me first" mentality that is commonplace everywhere it seems, from driving to traveling.

[cltnccruisers]

I have had maybe 6/7 balcony cabins on carnival and never had a problem. I don't think it's the "clientele" on carnival. They got stick next to an inconsiderate idiot. It can happen on any cruise or vacation.

 

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If this had been a rare comment I would agree that perhaps I'd overstated things. But it's not. I've "cruised" these boards for years on many lines and Carnival has the most complaints of this type by far. I wish I was wrong since we live in Charlotte, NC so we're only 3 hours from Charleston. But what I read makes me still drive to Fla to embark on better lines.

[horsegal]

If this had been a rare comment I would agree that perhaps I'd overstated things. But it's not. I've "cruised" these boards for years on many lines and Carnival has the most complaints of this type by far. I wish I was wrong since we live in Charlotte, NC so we're only 3 hours from Charleston. But what I read makes me still drive to Fla to embark on better lines.

Carnival was also among the last cruise lines (maybe the last?) to ban smoking from balconies. I know there was a lot of complaining about smoking before they changed the policy and it took awhile but it has gotten better. Of course when they changed the policy many smokers were upset and saying they would never sail with carnival again because of it.

 

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[cltnccruisers]

Carnival was also among the last cruise lines (maybe the last?) to ban smoking from balconies. I know there was a lot of complaining about smoking before they changed the policy and it took awhile but it has gotten better. Of course when they changed the policy many smokers were upset and saying they would never sail with carnival again because of it.

 

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We'll keep watching these boards and should it seem things have improved we'll give them a shot. Perhaps there just hasn't been enough time for the smoking ban to reach here yet. We'll both be retired in a couple of years and hope to do some quickie cruises from Charleston so Carnival might be a good fit. A 3 or 5 day to Bermuda, where we honeymooned in 1976, does have some sentimental appeal.

 

 

BTW, thank you for a polite exchange. I'm sure you understand that doesn't always happen. :)

[horsegal]

We'll keep watching these boards and should it seem things have improved we'll give them a shot. Perhaps there just hasn't been enough time for the smoking ban to reach here yet. We'll both be retired in a couple of years and hope to do some quickie cruises from Charleston so Carnival might be a good fit. A 3 or 5 day to Bermuda, where we honeymooned in 1976, does have some sentimental appeal.

 

 

BTW, thank you for a polite exchange. I'm sure you understand that doesn't always happen. :)

Haha, yeah it's so sad how nasty people can get in Internet boards like this... If you've never cruised out of Charleston just be patient for the boarding process, and driving through the parking lot just to park or drop off someone... It is a really messed up port. However we did a Bermuda cruise on royal a few years ago, wasn't crazy about royal (need to give them another shot that has been our only one with them) and we had some pretty bad weather but loved Bermuda and want to go back some day!

 

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[cltnccruisers]

Haha, yeah it's so sad how nasty people can get in Internet boards like this... If you've never cruised out of Charleston just be patient for the boarding process, and driving through the parking lot just to park or drop off someone... It is a really messed up port. However we did a Bermuda cruise on royal a few years ago, wasn't crazy about royal (need to give them another shot that has been our only one with them) and we had some pretty bad weather but loved Bermuda and want to go back some day!

 

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Charleston is one of our favorite towns (Savannah not so much) so should we embark there we'll probably do a couple of days pre and post and see if we can find a hotel with a shuttle - maybe around Calhoun or somewhere near the aquarium.

 

 

Our next cruise is our first on X out of Miami and we're stopping at St Augustine for a few days on the way home. That's one of the things we love about living in the South now - so many nice places to visit without it being a huge production.

 

Have a nice Holiday Season. :)

[Computer Nerd]

Carnival was also among the last cruise lines (maybe the last?) to ban smoking from balconies. I know there was a lot of complaining about smoking before they changed the policy and it took awhile but it has gotten better. Of course when they changed the policy many smokers were upset and saying they would never sail with carnival again because of it.

 

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HAL still allows smoking on the balconies as far as I know.

 

And many smokers had no intentions of giving up on Carnival. We just don't waste money on balconies anymore.

[puppycanducruise]

HAL still allows smoking on the balconies as far as I know.

 

And many smokers had no intentions of giving up on Carnival. We just don't waste money on balconies anymore.

 

FYI, HAL does not allow balcony smoking.

[quickrate]

Haha, yeah it's so sad how nasty people can get in Internet boards like this... If you've never cruised out of Charleston just be patient for the boarding process, and driving through the parking lot just to park or drop off someone... It is a really messed up port. However we did a Bermuda cruise on royal a few years ago, wasn't crazy about royal (need to give them another shot that has been our only one with them) and we had some pretty bad weather but loved Bermuda and want to go back some day!

 

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I cruised out of charleston once with my daughter and I'm not sure I would ever do it again! The worse embarkation in 27 cruises, made the first day very stressful, 2 hours from parking to get thru the front door and we are priority! Standing in the hot June sun, and no cover to stand under. I loved the cruise with my daughter once we got on the ship, but we will choose another port next time!

Pat

[horsegal]

I cruised out of charleston once with my daughter and I'm not sure I would ever do it again! The worse embarkation in 27 cruises, made the first day very stressful, 2 hours from parking to get thru the front door and we are priority! Standing in the hot June sun, and no cover to stand under. I loved the cruise with my daughter once we got on the ship, but we will choose another port next time!

Pat

We thankfully did not have to stand outside to wait, bit my husband dropped me and the luggage off then went to return the rental car and walked back... It was like a 2 hour process!!! By the time they let us in to drop me off was at least a half hour, they wouldn't let us through until they started letting the cars park. Then they wouldn't let him walk into the parking area, had to wait for a golf cart which took 45 mins. Then we had to wait for a shuttle to take us to the port building. Trying to get a taxi after the cruise was just as bad!

I knew about it being confusing and messed up before we went but I didn't think it would be that bad... We only cruised from there because we were visiting family in NC and decided to take a short cruise as well.

 

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[StolidCruiser]

HAL still allows smoking on the balconies as far as I know.

 

And many smokers had no intentions of giving up on Carnival. We just don't waste money on balconies anymore.

 

You might want to try sailing a HAL ship and smoking on a balcony. You'll find out quickly the same no-smoking rules now apply on that line as almost every other.

 

While you find balconies a waste (since, by inference, you can't smoke on them), other smokers still enjoy the pleasures of a balcony for the plethora of experiences beyond just being a convenient outdoor ashtray.

[Computer Nerd]

FYI, HAL does not allow balcony smoking.

 

When did they stop? They were the last to allow it.

 

Still, saves me a lot of money not booking balconies anymore so I get to do more cruising now. :)

[Ronanc]

This was our first Carnival cruise, but our 5th overall - one on Princess and three on NCL. I chose this cruise because I was looking for a quick getaway for DH and I without the kids and we could drive to the port. This cruise happened to fall on a long weekend where the kids were out of school one day, so their grandma only had to get them to school one day.

 

Let's just start out by saying that the cruise did not get off on the right foot. First, we supposed to depart Charleston at 10:00 pm and I had a check in time of 3:30. There were questions of when the port authority was going to open and allow parking at the cruise terminal. Then, about two weeks before the cruise, we received notification that the ship would be leaving at 8:00 pm and to arrive two hours to our scheduled time. Fine with me, as we were driving to port. Then, the day before, we were notified there was a medical emergency on the prior cruise, and not to arrive to the port before 5:00. They were still planning on leaving at 8:00. We got differing information about when parking would open, etc. It was very confusing!!! We arrived at about 3:30 and wound around the parking lot, paid for our parking and had our documents checked. People who had arrived earlier had been told to come back to park at 5:00. We waited and waited but they let us in to park about 4:00. YAY!

 

Check-in was OK. We had two carryons so we just walked to the terminal (others had to check their bags in the parking lot and they could choose to ride the shuttle to the terminal). No issues, it took us about an hour to get from our vehicle to our cabin.

 

We had an aft balcony - 5347, which we loved, with the exception of our neighbors. After unpacking we went out to enjoy our view and were greeted with cigarette smoke. The lady in the cabin next door casually said, "I smoke" when she saw us. I immediately called guest services and they sent someone up to our cabin. The floor director arrived about 30 minutes later and explained the process - first they would give the cabin verbal warning and then they would begin fining them if it continued. After that, guest services followed up daily with me, but the smoking did not stop. Guest services said they could not find any evidence they were smoking. I'm not sure if they were fined or anything, but it really gripes me that almost every time I went to sit on my balcony, they started smoking. We could not leave the door open because the smoke would come in our cabin. Sometimes it would even come in our cabin with the door closed. It was very annoying!!! In addition, in the afternoon of the first sea day, the male in the cabin started yelling obscenities to people in other aft cabins. And then about 2:00 am he started yelling again on the balcony. I did not report that to guest services but evidently someone else did because they asked about it when they followed up everyday. I'm all for someone having a good time, but not when it infringes on me. There is a special smoking section and I am sure you could all the yelling you want on the Lido deck.

 

We did not go to any shows or participate in any activities, although I did have a seaweed wrap massage and it was awesome! We sat on our balcony and read when we could and slept a lot. We just enjoyed our time together.

 

This ship seems to have an issue with cigarette smoke because I smelled it everywhere it seemed! We avoided walking thru the casino area because of the smoke. One night we walked thru the sixth floor (above the casino) and the cigarette smell was terrible. There did not seem to be a deck where you could easily walk around outside and see the ocean. I really missed the open outside dining areas that we had on NCL.

 

With the exception of having breakfast at the Taste Bar the day we were in Nassau, we ate in the dining room. The food was OK, nothing special. It would have been much better if the food was served hot or even warm. I know it's hard to serve 3000 guests, but other than the soups, everything was cold.

 

We went to Atlantis on our day in Nassau and enjoyed ourselves despite the rain. I had booked a room using Marriott points and since our room was ready, we dropped our stuff off there. After walking around the entire resort and riding a few water rides, we went back to the room for a shower in a large bath and DH was able to catch up on the college football games.

 

Our last sea day we ran into TS Phillipe with winds of 55 mph and 8-12 foot seas. DH is prone to sea sickness, and despite wearing the patch, he was out of commission most of the day. We originally had reservations for the Italian restaurant, but I cancelled them. I went to the buffet and had a HOT pizza.

 

Debarkation was a disaster. Evidently there were issues with customs and we did not get off the ship until about 10:00.

 

I was also on the cruise and honestly wish we had just skipped this one. First let me say the crew was great and Darwin, our room steward, was friendly and remembered our names every time we saw him. The bar staff was smiling and generous and the dining room (your time dining) was fast and efficient. The Steakhouse crew fell over themselves to help and it was a fantastic (though expensive) experience. Like our previous time on the Sunshine we had zero complaints about any of the crew or the ship in general.

 

Security: Not sure if this was a pro or con but there were a LOT of security on the ship. Maybe they are always on there but they were very visible this cruise. Every outside area and the bar area on deck 3 had one or more security personnel watching or patrolling. Sometimes 2-3 together scanning crowds.

 

Cons: The port at Charleston continues to be one of the worst parts of the cruise. We also received the conflicting messages about arrival times and we arrived "early" at 4:30pm. We knew we were in trouble when we saw people already walking around on the ship on the top levels because we knew the terminal would be full. We didn't get on the ship until after 7. Many of the (non Carnival) staff working the lots were just standing around, others said it was their first day and almost everyone besides the baggage loaders were just plain bored or inefficient. One waving 10 cars in one lane through at a time while the other lane had one checking every line on every passport. People who arrived 30 minutes after us were parked before we made it to baggage drop-off. FYI - stick to the right of the double lanes leading to paperwork and baggage checks. It splits to 2 lanes about half way in and goes much, much faster.

 

We didn't have a balcony but I have to say that outside the casino area I didn't notice any cig smoke smell. It sucks that guest services couldn't help you with your unruly guest. We also had some wonderful next door neighbors with their hyper active 4 year old running the room and jumping on and off the bed for around an hour each morning starting around 7. Enough to not only wake us but actually shake the bed.

 

I overheard multiple complaints about the length of time dinner took for scheduled times. The most common complaint was around 2 hours just to get to the desert menu. As I mentioned above our "your time" dining was much faster and took around an hour and a half start to finish.

 

Room service I continue to believe is manned by one person to answer the phone, one to make it and one to deliver it. We gave up on it Sun night after being on hold for 30 minutes.

 

The storm is where it killed it though. Being in the front and towards the bottom we felt every wave. The water hitting the front basically sounded like a hammer hitting a drum and the constant up/down and left/right movement was taking out everyone. We barely left the room the entire day and saw lots of trash cans outside of doors and crew carrying steam cleaners. Wind was also bad enough they closed some of the sides and the sporting/waterworks decks.

 

We had the opposite experience leaving. We woke up at 7, out the door at 7:15 and we were in the car leaving Charleston at 8. Even customs was fast this time around (for us). We did not buy any alcohol though.

 

On the bright side the cruise that left yesterday is expected to have smooth sailing, no rain and be mostly sunny the whole time :)

 

 

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[Ronanc]

On our first cruise on the Liberty, we had a balcony with no issues except for a rambunctious child next door. At times we could smell smoke but that was an infrequent occurrence. We had such a great time that we booked another cruise. Our next cruise was on The Dream out of New Orleans, and we had the worst neighbours you can imagine. They were smoking on their balcony, swearing, screaming, and spitting on the deck below. We phoned GS (as others did) many, many times but they never seemed to get a handle on the situation. After the cruise I wrote a scathing letter to carnival but I did not receive a reply. We loved the ship, the ports but many of the fellow passengers seemed to be drunk and obnoxious. I vowed to never sail on Carnival but 3 years later I'm booked on a Mexican Riviera cruise on The Splendor. I hope I did not make a mistake!

 

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[E@syPe@zy]

It's always interesting to hear of other's experiences.

We just cruised out of Charleston on Carnival Ecstasy the first week of October. We had a wonderful experience with embarkation. It couldn't have gone smoother. We arrived between 10:30 to 11:00 am and we dropped of our bags, parked, shuttled to the terminal and on the ship by Noon. Debarkation was equally as efficient. We had absolutely no complaints with the terminal. Everyone we spoke with was delightful and helpful.

It really was one of our smoothest embarkations of about 12 cruises. I guess we all have different experiences. I wouldn't hesitate to cruise out of Charleston again.