Crew Members ….

[Markmom18]

Hi,

  Our son who was working on the Panorama for the last few months (his first Contract after the Covid Pause) has come home.  Thankfully, he didn’t get sick with any virus. He’s been with Carnival as a Fun Squad Member for a number of years.  Loved the job!  
  After the initial happiness by both himself and most cruisers … both groups being able to be on ships again … shifted.  
 

The comments here on CC about wearing masks , not wearing masks, saying “I’ll always have a drink in my hand”  (to avoid the mask rules), is absolutely ‘noticed’ by the Crew.

 

How about the Crew doing their job and reminding guests everyday (hour) to pull the mask up over their nose or just please wear one in this room?   Responses our son heard from guests are unprintable here!  He’s on the FUN Squad, doing the tasks that his employment required. 

 

What has happened to us? Rudeness,entitlement,  the … I don’t have to follow the rules attitude — backed up by personal political opinions! I have to say I’m not shocked.  
 

Our son had a great adventure while it lasted, pre-Covid. One he can tell about to a future family of his own one year.  

 

I hope WE (including me aka a “cruiser” too) will remember to treat any person with respect & KINDness. 

 

Our words spoken to that Crew Member  - X thousands of people -  are heard.  It makes a difference, so be nice, ok? 
 

To the great people our son HAS met, he tells us about you too!  There are regular cruisers and the Crew remember & love ya!!  Truly.

 

🛳🛳

Bobbi 

 

 

 

 

 

  
  

[ohioNCLcruiser]

I worked onboard NCL ships for five years at the Guest Services/Front Desk. First of all thank you to your son for helping get the industry back up and running. Sadly, after going on five cruises this year (3 on Carnival, 1 on HAL and 1 on MSC) I would have a very hard time working on the ships in these conditions.

 

I'm going to get really hated on for this comment but I noticed the problem is far worse on Carnival these days than the other lines. I think it's due to Carnival almost giving away cabins and having a different crowd with much fuller ships.

 

Sadly I don't think things will get better for him this year. After I finish my booked cruises on Carnival I'm sticking with the other lines for the time being. I wish your son all the success in whatever he ends up doing! 

 

(P.S. I'll be on the Panorama in Jan and Feb. If he was still onboard I would make sure I would thank him in person!)

Edited December 26, 2021 by ohioNCLcruiser

[Guest BasicSailor]

25 minutes ago, ohioNCLcruiser said:

I worked onboard NCL ships for five years at the Guest Services/Front Desk. First of all thank you to your son for helping get the industry back up and running. Sadly, after going on five cruises this year (3 on Carnival, 1 on HAL and 1 on MSC) I would have a very hard time working on the ships in these conditions.

 

I'm going to get really hated on for this comment but I noticed the problem is far worse on Carnival these days than the other lines. I think it's due to Carnival almost giving away cabins and having a different crowd with much fuller ships.

 

Sadly I don't think things will get better for him this year. After I finish my booked cruises on Carnival I'm sticking with the other lines for the time being. I wish your son all the success in whatever he ends up doing! 

 

(P.S. I'll be on the Panorama in Jan and Feb. If he was still onboard I would make sure I would thank him in person!)

The son is home 🙂 and quote,

  Our son who was working on the Panorama for the last few months (his first Contract after the Covid Pause) has come home.  Thankfully, he didn’t get sick with any virus. He’s been with Carnival as a Fun Squad Member for a number of years.  Loved the job!  

[ohioNCLcruiser]

2 minutes ago, BasicSailor said:

The son is home 🙂 and quote,

  Our son who was working on the Panorama for the last few months (his first Contract after the Covid Pause) has come home.  Thankfully, he didn’t get sick with any virus. He’s been with Carnival as a Fun Squad Member for a number of years.  Loved the job!  

 

I know, that's why I said "If he was still onboard I would...." 🙂 

Edited December 26, 2021 by ohioNCLcruiser

[Markmom18]

1 hour ago, ohioNCLcruiser said:

 

I know, that's why I said "If he was still onboard I would...." 🙂 

  Thank you for the thought OhioNCL. 🙂 I know he has many, many memories of the GREAT times working on Carnival ships.  We’ve enjoyed the stories and both his Dad & I really are so proud of him. 

 Sailor, I was hoping  my post here wasn’t going to be dissected (just seemed really unnecessary). I read Ohio’s replies, I understood that he got it, Mark was off the ship. 
 

I had been sharing our son’s journey back to working on Carnival’s cruises. Like 99% of onboard crew he was out of a job , and was waiting for the reopening!!
 

I just wanted to write to say the cruise journey was over for him. Next cruise …. He’ll be a guest ! 😁

 

🛳🛳

Bobbi 

Edited December 26, 2021 by Markmom18

[icft]

2 hours ago, Markmom18 said:

...What has happened to us? Rudeness,entitlement,  the … I don’t have to follow the rules attitude — backed up by personal political opinions! I have to say I’m not shocked...

  

Some few of us old farts know what has happened; the death of honor has happened. You won't hear that word used much these days. Being a man of your word is out of favor. If you can lie, cheat and steal and get away with it and make money from it then you are a hero. So people agreeing to follow the cruise line rules and not doing so should be no surprise. I personally believe masks do very little, though they do have some minor positive impact, but I have agreed to follow Carnival's rules so I wear a mask where they ask me to wear a mask. But expecting honorable behaviour from Americans is unrealistic. They have a "right" to do whatever they want even if they said they wouldn't.

[Jamman54]

It was a pleasure to have met Mark on the Panorama. Patti and I wish him well and know that he will be successful in whatever he chooses to do in the future. 😎

[crazyank]

2 hours ago, icft said:

But expecting honorable behaviour from Americans is unrealistic. They have a "right" to do whatever they want even if they said they wouldn't.

Please don't lump all Americans into this.  Some of us still believe in doing the right thing.

[havanadaydreaming]

Just learned yesterday a friend of a friend, non vaxxer, got fake vaccine cards so she and her daughter could see a touring broadway musical.  

 

Playing by the rules isnt acceptable to a decent percentage of our population. Shameful.  Ill probably pause booking cruises for half a year and see if things settle down. 

 

That said, of course the majority of folks abide.  But...only takes one apple to ruin youknowwhat. 

[ontheweb]

12 hours ago, Markmom18 said:

Hi,

  Our son who was working on the Panorama for the last few months (his first Contract after the Covid Pause) has come home.  Thankfully, he didn’t get sick with any virus. He’s been with Carnival as a Fun Squad Member for a number of years.  Loved the job!  
  After the initial happiness by both himself and most cruisers … both groups being able to be on ships again … shifted.  
 

The comments here on CC about wearing masks , not wearing masks, saying “I’ll always have a drink in my hand”  (to avoid the mask rules), is absolutely ‘noticed’ by the Crew.

 

How about the Crew doing their job and reminding guests everyday (hour) to pull the mask up over their nose or just please wear one in this room?   Responses our son heard from guests are unprintable here!  He’s on the FUN Squad, doing the tasks that his employment required. 

 

What has happened to us? Rudeness,entitlement,  the … I don’t have to follow the rules attitude — backed up by personal political opinions! I have to say I’m not shocked.  
 

Our son had a great adventure while it lasted, pre-Covid. One he can tell about to a future family of his own one year.  

 

I hope WE (including me aka a “cruiser” too) will remember to treat any person with respect & KINDness. 

 

Our words spoken to that Crew Member  - X thousands of people -  are heard.  It makes a difference, so be nice, ok? 
 

To the great people our son HAS met, he tells us about you too!  There are regular cruisers and the Crew remember & love ya!!  Truly.

 

🛳🛳

Bobbi 

 

 

 

 

 

  
  

I now have one more cruise regret, never having met your son.

 

The members of the fun squad are definitely one of the best things about cruises on Carnival. Other lines may do some things better, but none I have been on have anything comparable to the Fun Squad. Wishing Mark all the best in whatever his future holds.

[LHARTWICK]

Just off the Glory this morning.  Quite honestly, I was surprised to see how well people were adhering to the masking protocols. Yes - there are always a few “bad apples” in any setting, not just cruising, but most people were compliant.  And those that weren’t were reminded by crew members to mask up. 

[ohioNCLcruiser]

2 hours ago, fyree39 said:

I sailed in August on the Panorama. During a lull, I tipped the Guest Services staff, asking if I could buy them a coffee. They about fell over.

 

That was a really nice gesture of you. At Guest Services a big part of our job was to reduce the amount of passengers that wanted to remove their service charge. We would get in trouble if a certain % adjusted it even though they were technically optional. The staff worked so hard to keep the adjustments down even though we were not part of that tip pool. There were days the lines would be so long that someone offering to bring me over a coffee would have made my voyage! Thanks for doing that for them!

[AQW]

14 hours ago, Markmom18 said:

Our son who was working on the Panorama for the last few months (his first Contract after the Covid Pause) has come home.  Thankfully, he didn’t get sick with any virus. He’s been with Carnival as a Fun Squad Member for a number of years.  Loved the job!  
 

 

My son Dexter decided at the age of 12 that he wanted to be a FUN Squad Member... he'll be 20 soon and he's still 100% committed to working for Carnival! He's pursuing a degree in Communications with a concentration in Entertainment and Tourism and always looking to build skills that will make him a more attractive candidate -- hosting/emcee/mic skills, working with diverse groups of people, etc. Please message me if your son might be willing to share some info about his experience... I'd love to connect them via email or something. 

 

Enjoy your son being home!

[icft]

2 hours ago, LHARTWICK said:

Just off the Glory this morning.  Quite honestly, I was surprised to see how well people were adhering to the masking protocols. Yes - there are always a few “bad apples” in any setting, not just cruising, but most people were compliant.  And those that weren’t were reminded by crew members to mask up. 

That was our experience on our two Glory cruises (September and week before last).

[ray98]

These doom and gloom posts always strike me as odd.  

[Cherrys]

I feel so bad for the staff! While most people on my cruise last week were well behaved, a few of those defiantly not wearing masks inside looked like they just wanted someone to correct them for a challenge! I didn’t pull my mask up between sips in the casino one night and had to be told and I was embarrassed and of course complied. These people are just prolonging the pandemic and making another future shutdown more likely 

[1025cruise]

Anyone that ignores a crew member or acts defiantly should be put off at the next port.

[groundloop]

7 hours ago, LHARTWICK said:

....... And those that weren’t were reminded by crew members to mask up. 

 

That's different than what I witnessed (we sailed on Magic in September, Pride for Thanksgiving, and Pride again a week ago to the Panama Canal).  The only place crew members were reminding guests to mask up was entering the buffet.  At the shows and comedy club announcements were made that masks were required but quite a number of people simply ignored the request and nothing was ever said to them.  Hopefully Carnival is taking this more seriously now.

[LHARTWICK]

38 minutes ago, rs45thompson said:

t is about following the rules. You agreed to follow protocols to cruise and they should be followed.  The crew should not be put in a situation to be yelled at or demeaned because they are doing their job.  They work hard enough without having to put up with people and their attitudes.   People should just comply.  

Exactly!  Believe me - DH and I absolutely HATE MASKS, but we decided when we booked this cruise if that's what it takes to cruise, then so be it.  We signed up knowing full well all of the protocols and were happy to follow them.  I'll be completely honest - I was one of the posters on these boards who initially said I'd never sail in a mask. Well here we are, just finishing our first cruise since the restart - in masks.  LOL!!!  It wasn't nearly as bad as we thought it would be.  We spent a lot of time out on the decks, so no mask there.  The remainder of the time I guess we were just having too much fun to think about it!!!  (The worst part for me was waiting on our test results to come back so I could pack - felt like I was waiting on a birth - LOL!) I had tears in my eyes when we took that first step (literally) onto the ship last Sunday.  We'll never take any of our cruises for granted again!  As I type this, I still have my sea legs - I think the house is swaying!!!  Love it!  We also made it a point to talk to the crew members and tell them how thankful we were to be back and how thankful we were that THEY came back - just good, hard working people who appreciate everything we can do to say THANK YOU!  Remember - a smile and a kind word goes a long way. 🥰

[sanmarcosman]

1 hour ago, groundloop said:

 

That's different than what I witnessed (we sailed on Magic in September, Pride for Thanksgiving, and Pride again a week ago to the Panama Canal).  The only place crew members were reminding guests to mask up was entering the buffet.  At the shows and comedy club announcements were made that masks were required but quite a number of people simply ignored the request and nothing was ever said to them.  Hopefully Carnival is taking this more seriously now.

It has been the same exact scenario and venues for us on 4 cruises on the Panorama since the restart. No one in the comedy club monitoring the room. 

[Bgcruising]

People are asses everywhere. Not a good time to be dealing with customers of any sort. 

 

[satxdiver]

Sadly this is how we have become as a nation.  It is all about me and my wishes and not about my fellow citizen.  While it may be more evident on a cruise ship it is everywhere these days.  We have been on three cruises so far this last 3 months and have thanked the crew we have encountered for their service to us.  We have been more mindful of this than perhaps in the past but always made sure to thank those that helped us.  It is sad to read about the abuse some of our fellow cruisers lay on the staff.  Hopefully with this new administration in DC things will change and people will become more attuned to others around them.  We were vaxed as soon as possible and have since received the third jab.  We wear our mask to protect ourselves and the people around us and try to follow the ship rules to limit the spread of COVID.  We are in this together fellow cruisers so let us help each other. 

[Wennfred]

Great post Markmom18, I just got off the Panorama this Friday 24 Dec and have sailed on Panorama on 18 Sept & 13 Nov, my roll calls all reflect those trips with daily posts and pictures. 
 

The passenger numbers on my 3 Panorama cruises were

 

18 Sept 2300 pax

13 Nov 2954 pax

18 Dec 4000 pax

 

Carnival Panorama maintained outstanding Covid procedure’s at all times, Everyone seemed to comply with the mask rules and I didn’t see anyone sick nor did I get sick on any of those 3 cruises.

 

i commend the Panorama staff for always reminding everyone whether at shows or indoors to always keep your mask on. They explained this all the times in their shows as to why it was needed to continue to cruise and have fun.

 

I always felt safe while onboard Panorama and this time around due to this new Omiron I wore a N95 mask and my black cloth mask over it. I don’t have any issues with masks, I’m so used to it already. Carnival don’t mess around, they keep this Covid issue a serious matter.

 

Fred

[Guest BasicSailor]

23 hours ago, Markmom18 said:

  Thank you for the thought OhioNCL. 🙂 I know he has many, many memories of the GREAT times working on Carnival ships.  We’ve enjoyed the stories and both his Dad & I really are so proud of him. 

 Sailor, I was hoping  my post here wasn’t going to be dissected (just seemed really unnecessary). I read Ohio’s replies, I understood that he got it, Mark was off the ship. 
 

I had been sharing our son’s journey back to working on Carnival’s cruises. Like 99% of onboard crew he was out of a job , and was waiting for the reopening!!
 

I just wanted to write to say the cruise journey was over for him. Next cruise …. He’ll be a guest ! 😁

 

🛳🛳

Bobbi 

Yep, thank goodness for editing . Dissecting has become a hobby of mine.

 I have gotten really good at it 🤣

[icft]

24 minutes ago, BasicSailor said:

...

 

 

It would be interesting to know how much Carnival spends each year on those little round circles they use for eyes on these things... What do they call those things anyhow? iPads?