justacruzr

We cruised on the Carnivale & Mardi Gras back in the early 80's and IMO it was a very different experience vs. today.

 

Dinning - One waiter/bus boy pair per two 6 person tables, Waiter & bus boy became your best friends by the end of the cruise, Waiters would tell adult jokes & do table tricks while waiting for food to be ready. Even today I still miss some of the waiters from my cruises in the 80’s and wonder what they are doing now.

 

Staff - All of the staff went out of they way to make your cruise special. it was like they were out to prove the Carnival was the best and most fun cruise line. One example I remember was when we were in Nassau docked next to a competitors ship Carnival had a loud deck party going on when the Cruise director had all the passengers taunt the other ship to show how much more fun we were having.

 

Environment - Much more of a party atmosphere - not falling down drunks - just every lounge & bar packed with people having a good time. The bars wouldn't shut down until 3:00 or 4:00 in the morning. We would get up at noon to start the next day.

 

Room steward - Lots of interaction would get anything you wanted - tried to be your best friend.

 

Ship layout - If you look at a layout of the older ships they look like a maze in many ways. Sometimes you had to make several turns down a dead end hallway to get to your room. Much smaller (~20,000 tons) but the ships seemed big at the time. The ships were converted ocean liners so many of the amenities we expect today were nonexistent. The rooms were tiny, no TV, had a central movie theater, small cramped theater with columns that blocked your view.

 

Enjoyment - I have been on 19 cruises (14 on Carnival ships) and remember the cruises I took in the 80's better than the ones I took last year. I would give anything to be able to take a cruise on the Carnivale or Mardi Gras if the staff and attitudes were the way it was back then.

 

In the early 90’s the whole atmosphere started changing to be more mainstream and more like it is today. I asked a waiter in 91 what had caused the change and was told Carnival was getting too many complaints about the waiters being too personal and the adult jokes/tricks offended too many people.

 

I cruise today because I feel it’s a great value. I pay significantly less today for a cruise than I did back in the 80’s & 90’s. I guess that’s why the service is the way it is and why they try to hawk everything they can to get the revenue they need to make a profit. Every time I take a cruise I think back to the 80’s and wish this cruise could be like one of them but of course that’s not possible. I would gladly give up the big ship experience to get the service and staff interaction like it was back then.

Here I am, adding to this thread almost 2 years later but I couldn't resist. A friend and I took our 1st and 2nd cruises on the Festivale in 1986. The 2/23/86 cruise and the 4/27/86 cruise. The 1st one was about 2 weeks after the Challenger disaster and I remember thinking, as we sailed out of Miami, that we were in the area of the sea where it went down. Kind of an eerie feeling. I've been reminiscing lately about those first 2 cruises and have been reconnecting with some absolutely awesome friends we made on those cruises with surprisingly good luck. Absolutely correct description and totally agree. I had never had such treatment in my life. They made you feel like Kings and Queens. Far beyond what I had imagined or expected beforehand. Although there were some older people on the cruise, the Festivale had the reputation of being THE ship for young people who were partyers. We were in our late 20's at the time and that's why we booked her. Except for a few hours in the morning (4 AM to 7 AM) that ship never shut down. Nothing has ever compared to those 2 cruises including our 2/21/87 cruise aboard the MS Holiday, although it did come close. I'd say that the 80's were the classic era of cruising. It was sad to see that her life after Carnival owned her went downhill and that she is no more. But she will always live on in our memories. :cool:

First cruises were on the Festivale on 2/23/86 and 4/27/86 and there were no TVs. I was just turning 30. Following cruise was on Holiday on 2/21/87 and she did have TV although we did not use it. We were there for the fun of a cruise...not to do what we could do anytime at home. Still don't think I would care whether or not a ship had TV.:)