Firenze Experience Inaugural 4/25 Cruise

[ScottsSweetie]

I'll leave the detailed cruise reviews to others, but wanted to give a few thoughts and impressions on our cruise. These are my experiences, yours may vary.

 

BAR SERVICE - non-existent. If you want a drink, you are going to stand in line at the bar. The bartenders are hustling, but every venue is severely understaffed (or not large enough to hold adequate staff). I don't know if staffing for the Firenze is not complete, or staffing shortages are an issue corporate wide, or if this staffing is purposeful - but it is definitely not adequate. And speaking of bar service -

 

SUN DECK - The Firenze has a unique layout in regards to the sun deck. Deck 10 is Lido with the pool and tv screen. They have one bar here (where typically you would have Red Frog & Blue Iguana). Deck 11, which can be reached by stairs is an enclosed deck (all comfy chairs, the library, the deli and a bar). There is no access to Deck 12, where the loungers line the sides of the deck. You must go inside the auto doors and up the interior stairs to reach this area. I'm guessing this is the reason why there is no bar service on this sun deck. Really disappointing. Takes the vacation out of the vacation when I can't get served a drink from my lounger. Again, is this a cutback thing, understaffing thing, or just awkward design where it gives them an easy out?

 

INAUGURAL - I was surprised to find that there were really no special activities. We received in our room a pair of sunglasses (turquoise colored with Carnival Firenze stamped on the arm) and a waterproof phone case as a gift. Nothing else marked this cruise as different from any other.

 

DINING - We did no specialty dining on the ship. We expected issues with it being an inaugural cruise, but were pleasantly surprised with great service with the exception of the last night, where it was excruciatingly slow. The food was typical Carnival food - some great, some good, some meh. The Guy's Burger place has an italian version of a burger (but they have no pig patty). One evening in the dining room DH witnessed (behind me) an officer berating a server during the dinner service. This type of thing should never happen in the middle of the room - take it private. The breakfast buffet never seemed crowded to us, even on port days. Pro tips - go to the buffet line farthest aft - most people seem to just come in through the pool deck and get in the first line they see. Also, though the omelet lines inside were never long, there is an omelet station at the Chicken Shack on the aft pool deck that seemed to be unknown to most!

 

ROOM - Our steward introduced himself on the first day. Instead of am hours + pm hours, we were told he works 8am - 8pm with a lunch break. We were not given a choice of cleaning times per my usual experience. We just made sure to put our snoozin' sign out when in the room and had no issues at all with our cleaning.

 

ACTIVITIES - We attended the Captain's Toast - I recommend that you go - there is a short performance by the Playlist Cast that is great! The rock band on Firenze is great - we attended some of their sets most nights. There is just no point in playing trivia as a casual cruiser, as many other people playing are proud to announce that they have just cruised in the last weeks / months - and they are the ones who end up winning. How is it fun attending a trivia game that you just attended and you know all the answers? I don't get it.

 

Embark was awesome - walked right in the door and right up to a table for passport check then right onto the ship. Disembark was a nightmare. Our ship apparently had to slow our last evening (overnight)  for a pod of whales to move out of the way, and then I heard we had two ambulance pick-ups early on disembark morning. These are unforeseen and can be forgiven. However, I cannot understand how priority disembark does not mean that. We met in the theater at 8am and it was close to 10:30 by the time we got off. There was a couple behind me in the theater line with a BLUE card - how did they even get in there? When we got off and picked up our luggage (zone 2), we noticed people getting luggage in zones 11, zone 17, etc. The ship was calling additional people to get off before priority disembark. I read on the inaugural facebook page that people were getting off as late as 12:30.

 

I was surprised, and it was a nice touch, to be recognized at the past guest party as a milestone cruiser (my 25th). They recognized all levels of milestone and we had one milestone of 100 cruises!

 

My HUB app somehow moved a day ahead during the cruise. It was cumbersome, but I could use it as long as I remembered to move it to the day prior. 

 

We had no plans in Puerto Vallarta except to take a taxi to the Malecon. Upon disembark, we went to the authorized taxi stand and were told it would be $25.00 for the 4 mile trip. I told her that was too much and she would instead get nothing. We walked the small beach right next to the port and had a nice ship day instead. Would love to hear if this was your experience - $50.00 round trip (not including tip) to the Malecon??

 

That's all, folks! 

 

 

 

 

[tonit964]

@ScottsSweetie Thank you for your thoughts on your trip. I'll be on the Firenze at the end of August and I'm super excited for this different style of Carnival ship.

 

For the taxi situation in PV, if you walk down to the corner of the main street, by the gas station, there are taxi's there that will take you to the Malecon for about $6 for 2 people. I've done it many times. The taxis just in the port area are very expensive. Glad you made the most of your day there.

[westerdam]

You could just catch the bus in both directions for about a dollar each way.  There is a stop just outside the Chedraui grocer from what I recall.  It will take you directly there.  

[Butterbean1000]

Maybe the blue card had FTTF.

[CruiseAdict218]

1 hour ago, Butterbean1000 said:

Maybe the blue card had FTTF.

I believe FTTF isn’t offered right away on new ships for X amount of time but I could be wrong 
 

But to the OP: The quirky Sun deck design wasn’t by choice for Carnival, think that’s just how it was designed with the sliding dome roof for its previous life. 
 

Don’t think Venezia had any special activities to mark it as an inaugural either. All in all, would you sail on the ship again down the road? 

[tree.critter]

2 hours ago, Butterbean1000 said:

Maybe the blue card had FTTF.

 

Or booked a suite, the suites are getting priority status no matter how many cruise days.

 

[pinto18]

10 hours ago, westerdam said:

You could just catch the bus in both directions for about a dollar each way.  There is a stop just outside the Chedraui grocer from what I recall.  It will take you directly there.  

Yup, thats what we do

[ScottsSweetie]

2 hours ago, CruiseAdict218 said:

I believe FTTF isn’t offered right away on new ships for X amount of time but I could be wrong 
 

But to the OP: The quirky Sun deck design wasn’t by choice for Carnival, think that’s just how it was designed with the sliding dome roof for its previous life. 
 

Don’t think Venezia had any special activities to mark it as an inaugural either. All in all, would you sail on the ship again down the road? 

 

Hmm - good question. If it's in the heat of the summer (with the much smaller window on this coast) and I want to spend time in the sun with bar service, I'd say no. In cooler weather, since I understand the Firenze will be doing the 4/5 day routes, I might choose this one because it is newer (but only if it is not more pricey). 

[ScottsSweetie]

3 hours ago, Butterbean1000 said:

Maybe the blue card had FTTF.

 

1 hour ago, tree.critter said:

 

Or booked a suite, the suites are getting priority status no matter how many cruise days.

 

Perhaps either of these is true - I forgot about that. When the people in the theater were reminding us to have our S&S cards out for scanning, she asked me if she had to turn in the card as she left the ship. 

[ScottsSweetie]

12 hours ago, westerdam said:

You could just catch the bus in both directions for about a dollar each way.  There is a stop just outside the Chedraui grocer from what I recall.  It will take you directly there.  

 

1 hour ago, pinto18 said:

Yup, thats what we do

Will DEFINITELY figure this out for the next time. Do they take US$ or do we need pesos?

 

[Hyuaul]

Glad to hear you loved the ship! Sorry to hear about children being bullied and the staff's staffs inability to  go  above and beyond to model some kind of resolution- although temporary. From your multiple cruises, I  applaud you  for observing that the service staff probably was being trained. Remember trained staff was a problem waaaay before the mega ships and the  'P'. Unfortunately from your recent experience, low staffing has continued to be a problem- Very sorry to  hear this. We experienced this through-out , when we cruised on a new to  US cruise line. Makes the  cruising experience  a LOT of  work. Happy to hear that  cruising is in your blood and you are addicted to being on the ocean. Thank you! Hope to  see you by the pool some day😁

[pinto18]

5 hours ago, ScottsSweetie said:

 

Will DEFINITELY figure this out for the next time. Do they take US$ or do we need pesos?

 

We usually bring some pesos just to make it easier, but if you pay them a dollar each person that would probably work, you just won’t get change back if it’s less than a dollar. 

[Mike45LC]

If you want to use the bus, bring pesos.  It makes it much easier for everyone.  [Also, it might help to have 10 peso coins just in case -- public bathrooms require 10 pesos for their coin-operated turnstile.  Also carry a roll of TP.  For years, I have carried those pocket sized packets of Kleenex.]

 

I won't use the public bus.  Standing around to catch one, crowded, maybe non-airconditioned, to save about $13 US?  No, thanks.  

 

PV, from the Puerto Magico (or whatever it is called), using a federal taxi, I was quoted $20 to Playa Los Muertos.  I instead walked to the OXXO at the corner and paid $15.  

 

[westerdam]

9 hours ago, ScottsSweetie said:

 

Will DEFINITELY figure this out for the next time. Do they take US$ or do we need pesos?

 

I always have some pesos with me.  I go to Mexico several times a year or more on cruises or land based holidays. So it is just easier. I know in Cancun they take dollars on the bus so maybe Puerto Vallarta would too?  Just check the route on the cardboard sign in the front and they will get you there quickly. Beats wasting all that money on a taxi!

[TiredTrucker]

On 5/8/2024 at 11:58 AM, ScottsSweetie said:

I'll leave the detailed cruise reviews to others, but wanted to give a few thoughts and impressions on our cruise. These are my experiences, yours may vary.

 

BAR SERVICE - non-existent. If you want a drink, you are going to stand in line at the bar. The bartenders are hustling, but every venue is severely understaffed (or not large enough to hold adequate staff). I don't know if staffing for the Firenze is not complete, or staffing shortages are an issue corporate wide, or if this staffing is purposeful - but it is definitely not adequate. And speaking of bar service -

 

SUN DECK - The Firenze has a unique layout in regards to the sun deck. Deck 10 is Lido with the pool and tv screen. They have one bar here (where typically you would have Red Frog & Blue Iguana). Deck 11, which can be reached by stairs is an enclosed deck (all comfy chairs, the library, the deli and a bar). There is no access to Deck 12, where the loungers line the sides of the deck. You must go inside the auto doors and up the interior stairs to reach this area. I'm guessing this is the reason why there is no bar service on this sun deck. Really disappointing. Takes the vacation out of the vacation when I can't get served a drink from my lounger. Again, is this a cutback thing, understaffing thing, or just awkward design where it gives them an easy out?

 

INAUGURAL - I was surprised to find that there were really no special activities. We received in our room a pair of sunglasses (turquoise colored with Carnival Firenze stamped on the arm) and a waterproof phone case as a gift. Nothing else marked this cruise as different from any other.

 

DINING - We did no specialty dining on the ship. We expected issues with it being an inaugural cruise, but were pleasantly surprised with great service with the exception of the last night, where it was excruciatingly slow. The food was typical Carnival food - some great, some good, some meh. The Guy's Burger place has an italian version of a burger (but they have no pig patty). One evening in the dining room DH witnessed (behind me) an officer berating a server during the dinner service. This type of thing should never happen in the middle of the room - take it private. The breakfast buffet never seemed crowded to us, even on port days. Pro tips - go to the buffet line farthest aft - most people seem to just come in through the pool deck and get in the first line they see. Also, though the omelet lines inside were never long, there is an omelet station at the Chicken Shack on the aft pool deck that seemed to be unknown to most!

 

ROOM - Our steward introduced himself on the first day. Instead of am hours + pm hours, we were told he works 8am - 8pm with a lunch break. We were not given a choice of cleaning times per my usual experience. We just made sure to put our snoozin' sign out when in the room and had no issues at all with our cleaning.

 

ACTIVITIES - We attended the Captain's Toast - I recommend that you go - there is a short performance by the Playlist Cast that is great! The rock band on Firenze is great - we attended some of their sets most nights. There is just no point in playing trivia as a casual cruiser, as many other people playing are proud to announce that they have just cruised in the last weeks / months - and they are the ones who end up winning. How is it fun attending a trivia game that you just attended and you know all the answers? I don't get it.

 

Embark was awesome - walked right in the door and right up to a table for passport check then right onto the ship. Disembark was a nightmare. Our ship apparently had to slow our last evening (overnight)  for a pod of whales to move out of the way, and then I heard we had two ambulance pick-ups early on disembark morning. These are unforeseen and can be forgiven. However, I cannot understand how priority disembark does not mean that. We met in the theater at 8am and it was close to 10:30 by the time we got off. There was a couple behind me in the theater line with a BLUE card - how did they even get in there? When we got off and picked up our luggage (zone 2), we noticed people getting luggage in zones 11, zone 17, etc. The ship was calling additional people to get off before priority disembark. I read on the inaugural facebook page that people were getting off as late as 12:30.

 

I was surprised, and it was a nice touch, to be recognized at the past guest party as a milestone cruiser (my 25th). They recognized all levels of milestone and we had one milestone of 100 cruises!

 

My HUB app somehow moved a day ahead during the cruise. It was cumbersome, but I could use it as long as I remembered to move it to the day prior. 

 

We had no plans in Puerto Vallarta except to take a taxi to the Malecon. Upon disembark, we went to the authorized taxi stand and were told it would be $25.00 for the 4 mile trip. I told her that was too much and she would instead get nothing. We walked the small beach right next to the port and had a nice ship day instead. Would love to hear if this was your experience - $50.00 round trip (not including tip) to the Malecon??

 

That's all, folks! 

 

 

 

 

 

We had the same issue with the app moving forward a day on Panorama. 

 

The taxis are pricing themselves out of business.   We used Uber, works great in MX and is cheap.