Should CCL Tell You a Group Will be on Your Cruise?

[Molly BPOE]

I was just reading another post where the OP was booked on a cruise that had a very large group on board. The thread contains differing opinions about whether or not Carnival should disclose the nature and size of the group to people booking.

I personally have only had one large group on board and they were Red Hatters...they were a hoot and we enjoyed them emensely!

 

What have your experiences been and do you think CCL has an obligation to forewarn you of large groups in the event that it may be a type of group you would prefer not to have your family exposed to? Or do you think that large groups are always a possiblity and it is a chance you take?

 

With the exception of an active group of nudists...I personally would not be bothered by a group.

 

Your thoughts?

[jessemon]

No.....

[firefly333]

You can want something ... but if its against the law and would invite lawsuits, it aint going to happen, no matter how much wishing and hoping you do.

 

Just for starters ... no one can say you are on the ship to another passenger either without your permission.

[afcj1]

Well, unless you have the $$ to charter the ship and invite who you want, then no, nobody has anything to say about what groups are on board.

[Chip1]

In early June of 1998 I sailed on the Ecstasy. On this sailing were 3 groups of high school seniors. These groups consisted of more than 600 passenger's. The student's would run and yell down the cabin corridors at all hours of the day and night. If I had known there would be these groups on board I would not have booked the cruise.

[Crusin Hogs]

Very large groups Yes we should be told, We were on the Freedom

with a large Bluegrass convention , EVERY night they put on

shows in the large lounge ,where normally the rock band played

but it was closed , Only one's allowed in were in the Bluegrass group

When it affects other passengers not in the group we SHOULD be told

[kris12]

We were on the Valor out of Miami several years ago and there was a group of swingers on board. They had a method of identifying one another and as far as I know weren't soliciting participataion outside of their group so, live and let live. None of my business what they do in their cabins.

[richstowe]

In early June of 1998 I sailed on the Ecstasy. On this sailing were 3 groups of high school seniors. These groups consisted of more than 600 passenger's. The student's would run and yell down the cabin corridors at all hours of the day and night. If I had known there would be these groups on board I would not have booked the cruise.

Just when I was going to state a firm NO I read this post and well... Makes you think it might be nice to know.

 

By the way the original thread is "Just off the Carnival Freedom - worst cruise I've ever been on "

As usual when there is an unfavorable review of a Carnival cruise, this thread is a ping pong match of OP haters and supporters. FUNNY!

[lillian marie]

I was on a Princess cruise when a large group was on board. They reserved large spaces for their group and it did close some of the bars, the piano bar, that we usually spend sometime in at night. But that really wasn't a big deal, we still had a great time. I don't care who else is on a cruise, I'm just there to enjoy myself with my husband and family.

[GottaLuvCruising]

I have sailed as part of a large group (great fun) and on a cruise where huge numbers of guests (not including me) were part of a group. I'd rather do the former than the latter.

 

Large groups must be booked far in advance because of the amount of space they have to block. So personally, I'd rather know about the group and have the option to book an alternate sailing (in most cases, that's what I would do). But I don't think the cruise line has any obligation to divulge than information and I sure don't expect them to start doing so.

[Jeff Y]

I was originally going to post an enthusiastic yes but now I am going to backtrack just a bit and make it a qualified yes. If it is a family gathering or a non controversial group then no disclosure would be necessary of course. Who would be offended by the Smith Family Wedding?

 

It is even possible that some could be offended by a Yankee Fan group if they were traveling with friends from Boston. The question is where do you draw the line? Nudity is OK among a group that is ALL nudists. Then you could be offended by groups of a particular political or religious affiliation. I'm sure that Carnival and other cruise lines are bound by privacy act regulations which I admittedly am not entirely versed on.

[5waldos]

Very large groups Yes we should be told, We were on the Freedom

with a large Bluegrass convention , EVERY night they put on

shows in the large lounge ,where normally the rock band played

but it was closed , Only one's allowed in were in the Bluegrass group

When it affects other passengers not in the group we SHOULD be told

 

I would have loved that- would seriously prefer bluegrass to rock!

[melodystrother]

well I guess I would want to know if the ship was full of gay groups and wished I had waited another week to book.

[Crusin Hogs]

I would have loved that- would seriously prefer bluegrass to rock!

 

But you would not have been allowed in , Their group only

[richstowe]

I would have loved that- would seriously prefer bluegrass to rock!

Love both but would have been pissed if not allowed to go to the large lounge or for that matter being blocked from any entertainment.

[vacruizer]

well I guess I would want to know if the ship was full of gay groups and wished I had waited another week to book.

 

This is exactly why Carnival doesn't disclose. People's prejudice might cause bookings to fall. Or even others to book specifically to cause trouble.

 

I don't like the idea of being with any excessively large group that causes venues to be closed for the group be it insurance salesman or teachers or nuns for all I care. But you can't always tell when a group will be a problem or not. We were on a sailing a few years ago with several hundred black gay & lesbian cruisers. Met some wonderful people and they were one of the nicest groups you could ever meet. But I'm sure lots of cruisers would decide not to sail with them simply out of ignorance or hatred when there was really no reason not to. On the other hand, a small club of about 30 or 40 doing their annual cruise with an open bar card were some of the most obnoxious and rude people I've ever met.

[Hunwolf]

On the other hand, a small club of about 30 or 40 doing their annual cruise with an open bar card were some of the most obnoxious and rude people I've ever met.

 

Why are you prejudice against cruisers with open bar cards? Expand your horizons a little.

[afcj1]

This is exactly why Carnival doesn't disclose. People's prejudice might cause bookings to fall. Or even others to book specifically to cause trouble.

 

I don't like the idea of being with any excessively large group that causes venues to be closed for the group be it insurance salesman or teachers or nuns for all I care. But you can't always tell when a group will be a problem or not. We were on a sailing a few years ago with several hundred black gay & lesbian cruisers. Met some wonderful people and they were one of the nicest groups you could ever meet. But I'm sure lots of cruisers would decide not to sail with them simply out of ignorance or hatred when there was really no reason not to. On the other hand, a small club of about 30 or 40 doing their annual cruise with an open bar card were some of the most obnoxious and rude people I've ever met.

 

I couldn't agree with you more.

 

IMO where the cruise line is to blame is when they shut off portions of the ship, to only cater to the particular group. Now that would make me mad.

[richstowe]

This is exactly why Carnival doesn't disclose. People's prejudice might cause bookings to fall. Or even others to book specifically to cause trouble.

 

.

Great points. Agree 100%. People can still try and google their cruise and see if anything pops up. Waste of time though.

[richstowe]

Why are you prejudice against cruisers with open bar cards? Expand your horizons a little.

Funny Funny Funny!

[noblepa]

I don't think that CCL or any other cruise line is going to change their policy and begin informing potential passengers of large groups on board.

 

Some of the more controversial groups, such as gay, swinger and nudist groups sometimes charter an entire ship. This avoids the possibility of other passengers taking offense or being inconvenienced. You must book such a cruise through the sponsoring travel agent or group, so there's no way you could unknowingly end up with a group you don't feel comfortable with.

 

The best you can do, is to google your cruise, including the ship and date, to see if any special-interest group is advertising a cruise on your sailing. I suppose that a large group of high school students might not show up this way, as they would probably not be doing a lot of web advertising. It would all be handled within the school.

[vacruizer]

Why are you prejudice against cruisers with open bar cards? Expand your horizons a little.

 

LOL!!!! :p No problem with bar cards, just trying to say that you never know even if you find a group on your sailing. One that seems controversial may be fine and another that seems fairly innocent could turn out to be a real problem.

[CorvetteLady]

I would have said no until I read about the high school seniors!! :eek:

 

Seriously, I would be upset if many of the public areas were closed for a private group. I wouldn't really care what group it was, I would just want to be told if certain areas of the ship would be closed off.

 

I was on the bloggers cruise and a lot of the events were held at midnight after the regular entertainment was over. I don't think other cruisers were inconvenienced at all. It was also no secret that there would be a group on that cruise, at least on these boards.

 

I don't think any cruiseline would be upfront about really large groups taking over public areas because it would make it very hard to fill the rest of the cabins.

[KFinTx]

I was on a Carnival cruise that happened over the Panamanian Independence Day holiday. Scores of Panamanians everywhere! Fun people btw. But there were some who were, shall we say politely, "put off" by (and this is a direct quote) "all the black people on the ship" & how rude they were, etc. Not sure which group of Panamanians those people were running into, but the ones I met were fun, friendly, & polite. I had a great time celebrating their national holiday with them.

[Jenbo57]

Given the choice, I'd cruise with a group of gays before a bunch of Tea Partiers, or Sarah Palin fanatics. Different strokes for different folks!

 

We were on the Valor in '08 with a HUGE convention of Spaniards; some sort of aftermarket auto parts thing. Rude, pushy, people everywhere! But that didn't bother me near as much as the sunbathing attire of the men from this group: Speedos, lots of bling, and at least 30 pounds too much flesh crammed into that tiny bit of fabric. My eyes are still burning...thank goodness we had a balcony to escape to! ;)