Carnival Triumph: Nice Ship or Dumpy-Long Buffet Lines??

[livetocruisenow]

I see several bad reviews for this ship :( Is the ship that bad? Are the waits real long in buffet lines? Scary

[neverpar]

I don't pay much attention to the reviews, a lot of different people with different tastes....

There are bound to be lines, with that many people..

[neverpar]

Oh one other thing........the Triumph is going into DryDock at the end of the month!!

[livetocruisenow]

Oh one other thing........the Triumph is going into DryDock at the end of the month!!

 

Is that good or bad that it's going drydock?

[Mulligan from Nova Scotia]

We were on the Triumph in March and it was a great ship.

 

As is the case with any of the ships, if you want to eat right at 12 noon, you will wait in lines. We choose to eat later...like around 1:30...and we never have a problem. The same is true in the ports. If you want to get off the ship first...like 2000 others...you will wait in lines. Sit back and enjoy yourself and get off the ship a bit later and you will walk right off.

 

My best advice is to try and think like the herd...and then do the opposite.

 

Mike from Nova Scotia, Canada Eh!

[neverpar]

Is that good or bad that it's going drydock?

 

Good thing. I understand they are going to put the seaside theater on deck. Don't know what else they will do, maybe new carpet...we will just have to wait and see! ;)

[G'ma]

I see several bad reviews for this ship :( Is the ship that bad? Are the waits real long in buffet lines? Scary

 

I've been on Triumph 3 times and about to do it again in December......she is one of my very faves.

 

The ship is terrific.

 

If you want to avoid lines at the buffet, don't go at noon. Go early (11-ish) or wait until 1-1:30. Everyone seems to show up at "lunchtime" and, therefore, the lines. They are no better or worse than any other buffet line where many, many people try to each at the same time.

 

You can also have lunch in the dining room......a more pleasant experience where you can actually sit down.

[rgplanner]

Hi neverpar,

 

I see that we are on the same cruise. I can't wait. I have started laying out my clothes in the spare bedroom. It has been 3 years since my last cruise. I should not have waited so long. The waiting is driving me crazy.

[UKCruiser_2008]

The waiting is killing me too! But it is all part of the fun - imagine if you book a week before the cruise ... it would all be over before you knew it.

 

I have been looking at some pictures of Triumph online ... she looks like a beautiful ship with those Tudor-style rooms etc. I can't wait to explore the ship!

 

Great tip about avoiding the hoardes!

[CruisingCarolina]

I dont do beffets...so I wouldnt know about any lines...LOL

I love the dining service

always excellent service, always excellent food:)

[neverpar]

Hi neverpar,

 

I see that we are on the same cruise. I can't wait. I have started laying out my clothes in the spare bedroom. It has been 3 years since my last cruise. I should not have waited so long. The waiting is driving me crazy.

 

 

It's getting closer and closer!! Join our Roll Call...Welcome aboard!

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=735942

[UpstateCruizer]

I see several bad reviews for this ship :( Is the ship that bad? Are the waits real long in buffet lines? Scary

 

Keep in mind although there are lines they do move along rather quickly. You may be in that line for 5-10 minutes depending on when you get there. There were times there was no line at all. If you show up before the buffet opens there will be a line forming. If you show up just after it opens you will be in line. If however you wait a little bit and adjust your timing there can be very little wait if any. The longest and most time consuming line we ever encountered on the Triumph was at the deli. People knew how good the sandwhiches were and they were willing to wait for them. I was one of those who waited :)

[Millygirl]

We were on the Triumph last year and had a great time! It is starting to show it's age I will admit in some areas. But, not anything that would ruin your cruise. A hint about the buffet lines. On the side of the ship where the deli is, the deli line always backs up. But, it seems to run into the regular buffet line. If you want to eat from the regular buffet, make sure that you pass the deli window because that is where the end of the line for the buffet will be. I LOVE the deli sandwiches and there is usually always a line there. A lot of the time people in line behind me would be mistakenly waiting there for the buffet since that's the first line you see when you walk in. Hope this helps and have a great cruise!

[kelz66]

Keep in mind although there are lines they do move along rather quickly. You may be in that line for 5-10 minutes depending on when you get there. There were times there was no line at all. If you show up before the buffet opens there will be a line forming. If you show up just after it opens you will be in line. If however you wait a little bit and adjust your timing there can be very little wait if any. The longest and most time consuming line we ever encountered on the Triumph was at the deli. People knew how good the sandwhiches were and they were willing to wait for them. I was one of those who waited :)

 

Good point....there are lines at every buffet on every ship.

 

Timing is everything....I do not run to the buffet at noon like the bulk of people seem to do..I'll wait till 12:45 or so and walk up to no line and get my pick of the freshly replenished food. :D

 

Just pick and choose times to avoid the rush and you will not be annoyed. ;)

[NaturalLove]

It is starting to show it's age I will admit in some areas.

 

That comment always makes me nervous.

[ms.sunburn]

I've been on 3 Carnival cruises, including last March on the Triumph and can't say that I noticed a huge difference from one ship to the next. I had fun on them all. My least favorite was my Princess cruise and that was the nicest ship.

[nothomeonacruise]

I've seen a lot of positive reviews, too. No one ever pays attention to the good, but only remember the bad.

 

We had a great time on the Triumph. She's not as flashy, but I like that quiet elegance. The Triumph is a great ship. I didn't go onboard both times looking for problems..but went with the attitude of fun. The ship did not disappoint us.

 

I once read something negative about the Freedom. I'm not letting it stop me, though! I'm excited about my upcoming cruise!

[NaturalLove]

I hear you about not letting the bad reviews affect you. Heck if I did that, I would've stuck with Royal Caribbean and never would've considered Carnival.

[runner15km]

Here's my take on the Tri, sailed her in April 2008 back on November 2008.:)

[Embre]

Here is a link to my review of my cruise on the Triumph last December, if you are interested...

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=684581

 

I tried to be objective, and give both the good points and not so good ones. The bottom line for me was the Triumph was a great ship, we enjoyed cruising on her. As noted earlier she isn't a new ship and shows some wear, but that is to be expected, wasn't excessive, and I am sure will be remidied in dry dock, along with some new features being added.

 

I hate to see her run down and maligned (sorry for the poor spelling, not in the mood to deal with spell check this evening). I don't know why so many people take such a disliking to this ship....I have to say I had some of the same concerns, and asked the same question before my cruise.

 

As for lines....3000 people, plus or minus......no such thing as no lines! The buffett was always busy, and I suspect is on all ships.

 

She is a beautiful ship...sail off into the sun and enoy her.

[dclark]

The buffet lines can be long and the food can be pretty poor too, so, why do it?

Go to the dining room! You get waited on, the food is better, more relaxing.

You are on vacation, you should not have to wait in line, go get waited on!

[Megnolia]

The Triumph was just beautiful. I liked the colour scheme, and the tiles on the floor and in the elevators were stunning - deep blue with gold flecks. Every time I walked through those halls it brought a smile to my face. I was worried after reading the reviews that it would be dingy.. it was opulent and gleaming.

[Minn.cruisers]

We sailed on the Triumph last December and had a great time. The ship was beautiul, had no complaints about anything. Our cabin was nice, service was prompt, diningroom was elegant and meals were good. We had a cruise critic group thread and once on board arranged to be seated at one large table.

People are always talking about 'wear' on the ships. With 3000 people on almost every cruise what carpet could withstand that kind of traffic over an extended time without showing that someone had actually tread on it? The staff is cleaning and tidying up continuously around you, but most of the time we hardly noticed what they were doing. We didn't have to wait in long lines at any time, there are lines...we weren't the only ones on the ship. All in all, we had a really great time on the Triumph, there wasn't anything we didn't like. We have been on 3 ships, all different in some ways, and we loved them all. Can't wait to go on another cruise.

[mainer208]

Would agree with previous posters about long lines...any ship will have long lines at the buffet at peak times - noon, 8:00 a.m. on sea days, etc.

 

We sailed the Triumph in 2003 and thought it was a very nice ship. Enjoy!