Towel Critter

The stewards do not clean the room during turndown service (evening), unless perhaps the room is a total mess. They straighten the bedding and make it look nice, put out new towels, leave towel animals, and close the drapes (if they are open). That's about it as far as I can tell. The cleaning takes place during the morning service. Still, I want the evening service for the new, dry towels and towel animals. I could live without the other things, but it is nice to return to a room that is tidy. We keep our room tidy anyway, so it isn't like they have a lot to do, at least in our room. They are probably in and out in five minutes or less. Some rooms take longer I'm sure. I'm thinking of the ones I've seen while walking down the corridor that look like a drunken rock band is staying in them. The total slobs among us are a key reason the stewards are over worked. Come on, folks. You are adults. At the very least put your clothes away instead of throwing them on the floor. You don't have to actually clean your room, but just putting things away (like a real grown-up) makes the steward's job SO much easier. I guarantee you, given the choice, they would prefer to do morning and evening service for neat and clean passengers to just morning service for slobs.

69 and counting

John Heald said months ago that the fare viewer is not coming back. Let's move on.

And John has never been wrong about anything.:D

The only "Quest" type activity I remember on Carnival was called the "adult scavenger hunt." It might have garnered an R rating, had the ratings folks been present. They turned the lights down and asked the couples to exchange underwear. Of course, they turned the lights back on before all had time to complete the exchange. The one NCL does is called "The Quest." Other cruise lines may use that name too, but I don't think Carnival ever uses it.

You can use Platinum line at Guest Services without being Platinum? Says who? I don't think so!

 

Sent from my LG-LS993 using Forums mobile app

It was humor.

I stopped browsing cruises on the Carnival site two or three years ago. I go to my favorite cruise search engine, which I can't mention here, enter my criteria and boom! Every cruise that meets my criteria is listed. I pick two or three that I'm interested in, then go to Carnival to see if they're offering any OBC or upgrades. I pick one and call my PVP. He finds me the best location for my price point. Done.

If you like Guy's, go over to Blue Iguana to get guacamole on your burger. Guac, Pico, Bacon, Chipotle Mayo is my favorite combo

That's a great tip. Love guac on a burger... and jalapenos. I wish the jalapenos were available for late night pizza.:( I suppose I could put some in a cup and keep them in the cabin fridge.

I see that we only allowed one checked and one carry-on, each of which can be no larger than 16x24. That seems small for a 5-day cruise, especially if you bring any formal wear (we won't, but if we did our shoes would take up a whole bag).

 

Am I understanding the luggage rules correctly? Just one small suitcase per person? (plus carry-on which will have sodas, etc)

From Carnival FAQs: "Each checked suit case and carry-on suit case should not weigh more than 50 pounds, and when lying flat, bags must not exceed 16 inches high by 24 inches wide (the length of the bag is not a factor)."

Thank you! I will say one thing... I think we're both showing our age talking about Eeyores and Pollyanna's LOL! The younger ones might not get the reference. ;p No apology necessary. Happy cruising to you as well!

LOL indeed. As I was typing "Pollyanna," I was wondering if anyone would know who that was. I tried to think of a modern equivalent, but couldn't. I'm glad you got it at least, that's the important thing.

 

Now, in keeping with the spirit of your thread, some positive notes. I LOVE what others call the "new" Carnival pizza. I have defended it multiple time here on CCL. I also enjoy Guys and "Blue Iguana." I'm also pleased the cabin fridge is empty now when you move in. Embarkation is MUCH improved.:)

My apologies if I offended anyone. Yes, I am a "cheerleader" type of personality. In fact, in our house it's called the "Tigger or Eeyore Personality". I always try to find the best in any situation. For me, it makes life a little easier;). It definitely wasn't my intention to group anyone. I just see so many complaints on this site and I just don't get it. I feel so fortunate to be able to go somewhere and have a group of wonderful people take care of me while I lounge around and do nothing. I appreciate it even more when I go to countries where the people are much less fortunate and I see how good I have it.

 

So, with that said... I do apologize if I offended any one. I really wanted to try to make this a positive post. That's the bad thing about posts - sometimes the intent can be misinterpreted.

No problem at all. And I appreciate your graciousness. I owe you an apology as well... a direct one. I already apologized to you while responding to another poster. Now I am doing so directly.

 

Here's the thing. I've seen lots of threads started here similar to yours. I know the intention is good in most cases and was obviously meant that way by you. Not all are though. And since I occasionally have griped a bit about some changes CCL has made I might be interpreted as a "complainer" by some. I don't see it that way though. I really do love most things about Carnival. If I didn't I wouldn't have continued cruising with them for the past fourteen years. I don't love every single thing they do though and I sometimes speak up about it. I also speak up about the good things they do.

 

I'm neither an Eeyore, nor a Pollyanna, imho. I try to be objective.

 

I do appreciate your apology, though I'm not sure it is warranted. I just wanted to make a point and wasn't really personally offended all that much. So carry on. I should have kept my opinion to myself in the case of this thread.:) Happy cruising!

Nice recovery I am a go with the flow person but there are certain things I really like that are no longer part of the cruise experience So while I am not swearing off Carnival it is a little less fun. I never eat dinner on the lido deck but understand that some folks hate the dining room. I love trivia games and dislike sitting in the sun. I really, really miss the horse races but understand some folks thought them childish Don't understand why I can't say what I like or dislike without being labeled either a cheerleader or a complainer.

Thanks. Yes, most of us who have been with Carnival for a while have seen things we enjoyed and looked forward to take the big dirt nap. Thing is, I still love Carnival. I just don't love every single thing they do, nor will I ignore those things for the sake of appearing positive. The silver lining is, yes, they HAVE added some nice things. I recognize that and applaud it. They have also added some things that in no universe is an upgrade, though some see it that way. And that's fine too, I guess. Happy cruising! :)

Are you accusing the OP of bashing people with different opinions, because they did no such thing. They said they can live without the trophies, chocolates, and tablecloths. And wanted to talk about the positive things that have been added to the ships. How is that bashing someone? You unjustly attack them with your very first comment, accusing them of saying something they didn't, then want to talk about being positive? The OP has every right to say they don't care about those things. They weren't bashing anyone.

You're right. Perhaps "bashing" was too strong a term and I could have said it better. My apologies to the OP. The fact remains though the OP spoke of "complainers." That is a generalization and a negative one at that. The things that the OP doesn't consider cutbacks are all things they care nothing about. In my mind, the biggest difference between a "complainer" and a "cheerleader" , for lack of a better term (not crazy about the word cheerleader either, it just works well here for sake of comparison), is that the complainer has had something go bye bye that was meaningful to them, while the cheerleader hasn't... yet. I didn't state it well, but my whole point was that it is unfair to lump everyone who has ever lamented a CCL cutback into a group called "complainers." Yes, there are those here that have never spoken a positive word about Carnival. I get that. But every person that has ever complained about something Carnival has changed or taken away is not necessarily a habitual complainer or hater. I found it ironic that the OP was asking for positves after having negatively labled a group "complainers." I don't like the whole concept of putting people into "groups" without their consent. Yes there are legitimate "groups" of people with a label. These are generally positive and the people in them gladly accept the label. I don't see calling folks complainers as a positive, for reasons I've already explained.

What the heck is a ship on a stick?

The infamous "solid gold plastic ship on a stick is a trophy/trinket Carnival gives to winners of activities like "80's trivia," etc...

Upgrades that I love are Guys Burgers, thin crust pizza, steakhouse options in the MDR, Bonsai Sushi, Red Frog and Blue Iguana Pubs and let me not forget Alchemy Bar.

I'm right there with you on the Italian style thin crust pizza. Love it! In fact, I like and enjoy CCL, in general, very much. That said, there are areas that have declined in quality though. I'm all about "fair and balanced." :D

Food is rather subjective and generalizing by saying it was better back when really does not mean much to anyone but yourself since there is no specific reasons offered. Just my personal opinion I find food options better now than 10 years ago but again that is subjective and everyone will have their own opinion. I don't cruise because the food is the best there is, really most things offered on a cruise is not the best quality if looked at by itself, but the sum total of things offered in the setting it is offered in makes cruising a good value to most people regardless of cruise line.

I agree that food is subjective in most cases. However, in some cases, quality, or lack of, is not quite as subjective. You mentioned I gave no examples. That is because I was speaking of quality overall. But as an example, I'll offer this. Meats, both in the MDR and on the buffet, have suffered over the years, often being dry and tough lately. One might conclude in the case of the buffet it is because it sits under a heat lamp (or whatever) for too long. With pre-cut meats I could see this being the case, but with meats that are carved this should be much less of an issue. Anyway, I'm glad you enjoy the current offerings. I do as well, just not as much as I did say, ten years ago. Thanks for responding. happy cruising!

Since this was supposed to be a "positive thread," supposedly (I have a hard time thinking of a thread that bashes folks with a different opinion as positive), and for the record, I do like Guy's burgers. I also like the "new" pizza. Honestly though, I'm a little unsure that a trend toward fast food and away from quality "real" food is an upgrade. Overall, the food was better ten, maybe even five, years ago. If someone wants to call it an upgrade though, then who am I to disagree. Right?

Reporting a supposed cutback and then asking for positive comments is contradictory at best. The OP may not care about ships on a stick, and nor do I, but I'm sure there are many who feel differently. Saying something is unimportant because it doesn't affect you doesn't necessarily make it not a cutback. For example, I couldn't care less about the Deli, but many do. If Carnival did away with it I'm sure there would be a huge uproar, even though I might not even notice it. Same thing in regard to chocolates on the pillow, table clothes, whatever.

I've seen this being done and it is not appealing to me in any form or fashion. I prefer leeches. ;-)

From all these threads I've read it seems like if Carnival changed the rule, then everyone would be fine with it. It seems that the issue people have is that the folks who wear jorts on cruise elegant night are rule breakers.

 

So if Carnival just made the dress code officially optional, it would all be okay right?

Everyone would have no choice but accept it. Many wouldn't be happy about it, but it is Carnival's "home" and Carnival's rules, so to speak, one of the reasons many dislike seeing people disrespect the current "rules." I doubt they ever do away with the dress code though, even though they are often lax in enforcing it. Having zero rules would open a can of worms they probably would prefer to not see opened. At least with the way it is currently, many, if not most, dress somewhere in the neighborhood of decent. I shudder to think what the MDR would look like with no rules... bathrobes, lounging pants, PJs, no shirts or shoes, etc...

If one can afford it, then absolutely a balcony is worth it. If one can't afford it, then it is not. Personally, I couldn't enjoy a cruise as much without a balcony. I need it to get away from the crowd and recharge my batteries. Watching the water go by and the flying fish soaring from the crest of one wave to another does that for me. Other personality types don't require that and like the Energizer bunny, can just keep going, and going, and going. It is a personal choice and everyone has to decide, based on expendable income and temperament what is best for them.

From my understanding, yes, St Thomas is the first stop from San Juan.

I see. Thanks for replying.

St Thomas being a short distance from San Juan.

Ah! Makes sense. Is St Thomas always the first stop?

Took this excursion through carnival and made for a long day. Tulum was great to see, very busy with people and huge bus parking lot. Luckily we were one of the first to arrive. The beach and water and ruins are just stunning. Food was limited on tour, getting something to eat before heading back is highly recommended! I think there was a stop at a souvenir place as well. Drink lots of water too!

I'm curious, since I'm basing my responses to the OP on a land based excursion, if you would do it again. That would be more helpful to the OP than my comments, I believe.

Drink lots of water too!

Definitely. I remember it being one of the most sweltering places I've ever been.

This is just a guess on my part, but I assume it is because of the longer flights required. Someone will correct me if I'm wrong. :-)