Carnival sprit 1-28-05 Did any one else experience this cruise?

[THE WINTER CRUISER]

There was eight of us. I have nothing good to say about it. We could not wait to get off the ship. It was are eighth cruise, third on Carnival. I half to blame most of it on the cruise director and his wife. It must have been their first cruise at our expense. The other portion on maintaining the ship of the wear and tear on every day use. I did not see any pride on this ship just people putting in there time and trying to acted as nice as they could.:(

[Another Cruise]

You have several comments under your identical post for Carnival Cruises. Please check them. Everyone wants to know what you are so upset about. What happened? You have logged a complaint, but you haven't followed up to expalin it. Many of us are waiting because we have had the opposite experience. Can you tell us exactly what hapened and what the CD did that upset you so much?

[mared1]

We were on the Spirit on 1/28 also, but had an opposite experience. It was great! This was our 4th Carnival cruise. The ship was continually being cleaned in the public areas and our cabin was always clean. We had a very large balcony and even that was cleaned daily! The entertainment was good overall with the comedians being so funny I laughed so hard I cryed.

 

The food was good, too - especially in the dining room and our wait staff were nice. One thing to remember is this is not a restaurant - food is prepared ahead of time since they are feeding over 2,000 people. For this type of preparation, it was good. Also the food on the Lido deck was good.

My only complaint was the some of the passengers - they would cut in front of you in line and just be pushy - that is not Carnival's fault.

 

I think you get what you expect - if you expect a good time, you will have one. If you are looking for ways to find fault, you will. Also if you are pleasant to staff and respectful, they will be in turn.

[THE WINTER CRUISER]

Sorry, But I Have Cruised On Some Pretty Nice Ships. The Spirit Does Not Hold A Candle To Any Of Them. Starting With Entertainment To The Wear And Tear On The Ship To Port Experiences. You Can't Tell Me You Did Not See All The Damaged And Frayed Chairs In The Dining Room (aft).

None Of The Hand Dryers Worked In The Rest Rooms & Their Wasn't Any Thing To Wipe Your Hands On Or That The Wood Rails On The Balcony Had Raw Spots All Over On The Out Side. The Graffiti Scratched On The Inside Of The Elevator Doors Or All The Stains In The Carpets In The Hall Ways Were Unsightly. The Abandon Snack Bars And Bars On The Lido Deck And A Second Class Comic Right In The Middle Of The Only Las Vegas Type Show On Formal Night Was Bad Taste. The Day Entertainment At Sea Was Bingo Or A Line Dance Class Or Some Harry Man Competition. The People We Took With Our Group Had Been On A Carnival Ship (same Setup) In The Caribbean In November And Couldn't Believe The Difference In The Two Ships. The Carnival Spirit Was A Disappointment To Them Also. And One More Thing? The Art Auctions Were Way Over The Line In Trying To Get People To Spend Money. That Was In Very Poor Taste To Take Up So Much Time On Trying To Sell Someone Something When They Are Trying To Relax. If You Have Ever Went On A Good Cruise You Would Know What I'm Getting At. Sorry But I Thought This Was Worth Letting People Know And If You Were Blind To This Then Your Expectations Are Very Low.

[Another Cruise]

No one has ever thought I had low expectations -- usually just the opposite!! Most people think I am a snob! But I never saw a worn, frayed chair, ugly stains on the carpet etc., etc. But then I didn't go around inspecting the ship looking for faults. I have been on nicer ships, but I still thought this was a good one, and by far better than other Carnival ships I have been on. However, I think a lot of us would still like to know why you blame the CD and his wife for the bad cruise,especially if you thought this was their first cruise.

[THE WINTER CRUISER]

Carnival Cruise Lines

Carnival Spirit

Member Name: Lisa McEmail:markmccluskey@earthlink.netCruise Date:01/04 Embarkation: San DiegoDestination:Mexican RivieraCabin Category:11Cabin Number:4237Booking Method:Internet Agency Overall:

 

First let me say that I have been on many cruises with my family; and sailed on almost every line. I chose Carnival because it fit our needs. We were booking 9 cabins, with 17 family members. We needed to cruise off the west coast, and wanted warm weather...so Spirit was our choice.

 

Embarkation was fine, a little slow as is Carnivals way. I don't care to be put into groups and sit around to wait for your group to be called.But it was fine, about an hour wait. Our room was cat 11, cabin 4237, at the rear of the ship. The balcony was incredible and wrapped around the whole cabin. We had 2 lounge chairs,3 deck chairs, 3 tables , and still could have fit 4 more.This was the highlight of our trip. The cabin is very different from the other cat 11 suites, as it is divided into 3 separate rooms....very nice.the bedroom and living room were separate, each with their own TV and VCR. These rooms are are best on the ship, much better even than the Penthouse suites.

 

Our cabin steward was the worst, and we even had to lodge complains because he was not making up the room. The food overall on this cruise was terrible! Just all around terrible. We ate at the supper club twice just to have a good meal.The coffee was undrinkable, again if you wanted a decent cup of coffee, you had to go to the cafe and buy it.

 

The entertainment on the Spirit is non existent...there was only one show worth watching, the hypnotist. Several nights there was nothing but a movie. T

 

he ports are all right,Acapulco is awful, with the people being so pushy. Ixtapa is great if you just get off the tender and go right over to the ticket counter, buy a ticket for a water taxi for 3.00 roundtrip. They will take you to the most perfect beach on the coast of Mexico. It is unspoiled and filled with locals. The food at CoCo Nut is great!!!! The shrimp tacos are to die for! Snorkeling is almost as good as Caribbean, snorkel rentals are 2 for 5.00. Manzanilo is a lovely port if you chose to see it for what it is. Yes it is in the industrial part of the pier when you pull in, but a 5 minute bus ride will take you in to the heart of a TRUE mexican town, resembling the back streets of Florence or Rome.The restaurant " Monkeys" is truly amazing!

 

Overall, the Carnival Spirit is a truly lacking cruise ship! The food is bad, the entertainment is bad, the service is terrible,there are almost no scheduled events on sea days, the one thing you can do is relax! And we did. 4 sea days make for great relaxation! And the weather was really warm and beautiful. We have given Carnival many chances, and have decided that we will not sail on them ever again. There are too many wonderful lines out there. We spent so much money on this cruise, and I would say we were very disappointed. i would whole heartily NOT recommend this trip! If you have already booked it, remember Mexico is always warm, there are 4 sea days, and there is always next time.

[jeremyh]

Reviews seem to vary wildly on the Spirit.

 

I can call up several "6 ribbon" reviews for the Spirit.

 

But for example, on a 12/04 cruise one person gave it a 1, another gave it a 4. For an 11/04 cruise one person gave it a 3, another a 6.

 

I have suspicion it has as much to do with demographics as anything. It would be cool if there was a way to get age range and ages of children as part of each review to help match people up.

 

I suspect my family with our 3 and 6 years olds and Carnival's "silly" contests and family targeted approach would rate any cruise much higher than a childless (on the cruise) couple in their 60s.

 

I also suspect that the rating overall is somewhat linked to what you pay. Someone traveling in the offseason for $700 per person for an oceanview on the Spirit is unlikely to be as critical as someone paying $1200+ per person during the high season or in a suite.

 

I had two of my personal friends travel on the Spirit in december. One travelled with his wife, 1 year old baby daughter, mom, sister, and brother in law. The other with just his girlfriend.

 

They were on the same cruise and are actually neighbors of each other. I don't know if their cabins were close to each other or not. They did get together a fair amount during the cruise.

 

The first did very little most of the time. Never "got into" the cruise, didn't participate in many of the activities, went to bed early because of the baby, and at the end said he thought "it was ok, but I don't think I'll ever do it again."

 

The other decided to go "all the way". Got new clothes, new formal attire, brought the highlighter for the Capers, and packed every day with activities. He said he and his girlfriend were worn out every night and they had the time of their lives. They booked their next cruise as soon as they got home.

 

As some have said, it is what you make of it, where you set your expectations, etc. Personally, I'm going on the spirit in 2 weeks, so I'll find out for myself. We had a great time on the Pride last year. The one thing I expect to be different is the food. The food on the Pride was great, IMO, and the reviews of the food on the Spirit seem to be mixed if you aren't in the supper club.

[rtrtx2]

we were on the Spirit a year ago at this time, exotic caribbean, actually one of our best cruises. We had the absolute best wait team ever in 11 plus cruises( RCI, Disney, Carnival, Premier). At that time the ship was well maintained. Food was fine, plenty of choices, husband truly enjoyed the deli in between our meals in dining room. Cruise director/wife team were fine, not my most favorite but not nearly my least either.

 

I have never been on a cruise( or anywhere infact) that in all honesty I could say every aspect was bad. Our last cruise was just a short 3 nighter on SOS, initially I started to feel disappointment as it was not measuring up to the Spirit BUT then I put it in perspective, shorter cruise, less $$$, different destination, older ship-- amazing how fast everything was much better after I quit making unfair comparisons!!!

[Iggipolka]

The Winter Cruiser - could you please not captalize every word that you write? It makes it very difficult to read your posts. Thank you.

[SheilaS]

We were on the 1/28/05 Spirit cruise and thought it was great. Of course, I don't need someone to entertain me constantly. I hardly ever watch TV and love to people watch. The food was consistantly very good and we never ate in the supper club. The wait staff and service all over this cruise ship was the best we have had in a long while. They all went out of their way to make sure we were happy. I will admit that the singing "Good Morn-ning!" got on my nerves just a little bit. But other than that, I can't think of a single thing worth repeating that wasn't up to par.

 

Sheila<--------------- would go on the Spirit again :)

[karfest]

The Winter Cruiser - could you please not captalize every word that you write? It makes it very difficult to read your posts. Thank you.

 

The board is converting a post that was done in all capitals to protect us from being shouted at by the original poster. :D

[CACREW]

:confused: We are traveling on the Spirit in March and I sure hope it's not as bad as WinterCruiser implies. Too much money spent to change plans now. We have cruised once before on the Elation and had the best times of our lives. Which is why we are heading back to Carnival again. I think any trip is what you make of it. If your looking for flaws your bound to find them.:cool:

[mared1]

Don't worry about canceling your cruise on the Spirit. I have cruised on Carnival before as well as other "upscale" lines. We went on the 1/28 sailing and it was fun!

[lstrong]

I agree, don't worry - we sailed Spirit in May and she is a great ship! Food and service exceeded our expectations and definitely in line with our experiences on X and RCCL.

[debby4000]

Just got off the spirit on 2/13. Yes their were stained carpets in the stateroom hallways, yes graffitti scratched on the inside of the elevator doors and some of the upholstery on the chairs were worn on the corners and needed to be replaced. I did see this to. But in spite of these items it was still a wonderful cruise and the spirt is a lovely ship if you look past these minor items. The Atrium, promenade deck and many of the lounges are very nice. We had a great time on this cruise. I never had a problem finding food that I enjoyed on this ship, (although I have to agree the coffee on the lido deck was awful and the deserts on the lido deck looked better then they tasted). But there is so much food and a good variety that its hard to complain about those items and the dining room food was always very good. If you are booked on this ship, don't worry you'll have a great time and try not to focus on these little things because you will never find a ship that is perfect.