crusing on fantasy may 4 with low expectations

[All4fun&fun4all]

We really enjoyed Fantasy. We enjoyed her so much that we were going to take the exact same itinerary in February of this year. A house fire made that trip impossible though. What I wouldnt do to be on a cruise ship this year. :(

 

If you are interested in reading our picture review, there is a link in my signature below for our June 2010 sailing.

[KentuckyKat]

We love Fantasy. In July we will be on her for the 4th time in 18 months. While she is not the fanciest ship we have been on, she is our favorite. I can't imagine not having a wonderful time on a vacation with family away from everything and completely in the moment. Happiness and satisfaction are choices.

 

SoccerATAmom - We're in Kentucky too and and we will also be on the Fantasy 7/23 for a b-day/anniversary cruise. Our first time on this ship. From everything we've read, the reports of heavy smoking in the lounges on the Fantasy is the only thing that worries us. We have cruised twice from Miami, but being from Central Kentucky and are excited about the prospect of a drivable port! We are sailing with our children on the Fascination from Jax in Oct., so we will have a chance to compare these two Fantasy Class ships.

[soccerATAmom]

KentuckyKat, join our roll call. We are in central KY too...just north of Lex. Smoke not bad in lounges as most are smoke free, except one and it is a divided lounge and not one of the more popular spots anyway.

[dustyroad]

Based on member reviews and some recent board comments, I have lowered my expectations for our upcoming fantasy cruise. I expect to find an older, small ship that smells like stale cigarette smoke, mediocre food and entertainment, lots of children around, no lounge chairs available 9-5, a gas mask needed in the casino, and many passengers who refuse to adhere to the ship's dress code for the MDR. I hope I'm wrong. I'll let you know.

 

why are you still booked then. you have already made up your mind what kind of time you are going too have so why ask us.

[Nyc2tropics]

Fantasy class is my favorite. I like the layout the best and it never feels as crowded as the bigger ships.

[cruisin1982]

I do not mean to appear negative. I figure if I lower my expectations our actual experience might be better. We usually cruise just once a year and most recently on Celebrity and Holland America. Those ships were in excellent condition and we generally rated the cruises as very good to excellent. Very few children on board, well-mannered passengers, and very few smoking areas. Our most recent cruise was on the Celebrity Solstice in February so booking the Fantasy so soon afterwards was unusual for us. I had so much fun playing blackjack on the Solstice I didn't want to wait a year to do some more. It's just a 4 hour drive to Charleston for us and the Fantasy's 5 night itinerary offers a relatively cheap cruise getaway so I booked it. Subsequently, I read several reviews and started reading the Carnival boards and saw that some posters had quite a lot of negative comments. The smoking will be the hardest for me to tolerate. I can live with everything else.

 

But you sound like a snob:mad:. You don't like children come on I love seeing children having fun while on vacation and no our children have never been on a cruise before. You won't have fun if you are thinking the way you are. Try to have fun but if I was a betting man I'm sure you will find every little thing wrong I will love to read your reveiw when you get back.

 

Mike

[maxxdout]

Great outlook. Do everyone a favor and dont show up, save the staff from having to deal with your piss poor attitude.

 

The fantasy is great, sailed her twice. Yes its an older ship, thats about the only thing accurate in your ranting. Clean, organized, and up to date is what we have all come to expect from her.

[missdebi]

I can't promise you will LOVE it but we did~~~ Fantasy has one of the best crews without question and I love the food-four pounds too much to be exact!!! As far as the smoke it is only bad in the casino but I have found that on all the cruises I have been on, and it is worse later in the night during peak times. I would go during less busy times because I get a severe headache from the smoke and I was still able to get my gambling time in! I really think you will have a great time.

[EastCarolina]

I just got off the fantasy Friday April 29th and had a great time on the ship.

 

There is a funky smell on the Empress deck forward. Kinda like sewage. Its not strong, but its there. You can only smell it in the hallways and around the forward elevetators. Once you get in your room I couldn't smell it at all.

 

There is almost zero ciggarete smoke on the ship, with the exception of the casino and comedy zone area. It was never overpowering and we hardly noticed it.

 

The food is excellent and service was great (with the exception of our room steward, but that I believe is more an isolated incident). Our shower had lots of nasty hair on the wall and curtain and also on the bathroom floor when we first got on the ship. He also wasn't the friendliest and seemed to do the bare minimum when cleaning the room. We never complained and still did tip him the regular amount since we just figured he was having a rough week.

 

Chefs table is worth every penny and Chef Russel is awesome. Food is great in both the Lido deck and in the main dinning. If you get something you don't like ask for something else! One night I got the Mahi and it was horribly dry, however the lamb was outstanding! Wait staff were great as always!

 

For the price the Fantasy is probably a better value then any other cruise or vacation out there. Its not the nicest or fanciest ship, but a great vacation is almost assured if you want one and have a positive attitude.

[mcfam5]

We sailed on the Fantasy this past Thanksgiving and had a wonderful time.....so much so, we will be returning to her in October for a Bermuda cruise.

 

We didn't notice the smell, excessive smoke or excessive children. It was very much in line with all of our other sailings. It is smaller than some other ships, but still has the grand atrium and is very worth sailing in my opinion. And since this is your first cruise, it will definitely seem big to you. We aren't talking about a fishing boat here! LOL

 

Enjoy your trip ~ a vacation is what you make of it!

[bradm77]

You should be EXCITED - you are about to set sail with Risa Barnes, THE VERY BEST Cruise Director in the entire fleet!

[twentyknots]

why are you still booked then. you have already made up your mind what kind of time you are going too have so why ask us.

 

I booked inside the cancellation period.

 

I didn't ask anything, I merely summarized the impression I have gotten from reading posts and reviews. Usually I have very high expectations of an upcoming cruise but this time I've tried to lower them and be more realistic about what to expect. I talked to several former passengers who booked with my TA and they refer to it as the Walmart of cruises.

[lowbass]

Actually a lot of people refer to "Carnival", as the "Walmart of the cruise lines". I've sailed Carnival twice and I've loved it both times. I didn't go into my cruises with a negative attitude or low expectations, but then I've never let "other peoples kids", or "other peoples smoking", or "how others dress", ruin my vacation either. With the amount of time and money my wife and I spend on our family vacations we can't afford to worry about other little petty things that we can't control.

 

All I can say is that you should have checked the forum before you decided to cruise with Carnival. You would have found out that Carnival is more of a "low cost" cruise line that caters to families. The dress code and other policies are not as strict as other more expensive cruise lines. And that's fine with me and my family.

[All4fun&fun4all]

I talked to several former passengers who booked with my TA and they refer to it as the Walmart of cruises.

 

*slaps head* I would give my right elbow to be on Carnival Fantasy tomorrow with the year we have had.

 

OP, go into this with an open mind listening only to yourself. If you go into this with impressions from others your opinion will already be biased. Have your kind of fun and enjoy the sun, sand and beautiful blue waters.

 

Come back with a review and pictures that all of us can appreciate. Join the conga line and smile a bunch. The fun is in your hands.

[BURNS1]

Your attitude during a vacation can make or break it. If you go camping in a rain storm you can still have fun, if you want to, or you can let the rain ruin your experience. It is the same with a cruise. If you look for all of the negative you won't have a good time. Just decide before you leave that you WILL have a good time!:D

[hoop4321]

"if you look for the bad in mankind expecting to find it, you surely will". - Abraham Lincoln.

 

i think this could also be for cruise ships;)

[Chief Cruiser]

Based on member reviews and some recent board comments, I have lowered my expectations for our upcoming fantasy cruise. I expect to find an older, small ship that smells like stale cigarette smoke, mediocre food and entertainment, lots of children around, no lounge chairs available 9-5, a gas mask needed in the casino, and many passengers who refuse to adhere to the ship's dress code for the MDR. I hope I'm wrong. I'll let you know.

 

I've cruised the Fantasy 5 times. What does that tell you? Reviews and opinions are subjective and the only opinion that counts is yours. However, going into anything with a negative attitude will only produce something negative. Your cruise will be what you make it, not what I or anyone else says it might or will be.

 

It's vacation for goodness sakes!!!!! Getting away from the hustle and bustle of work and the stress of everyday life should make you glad to be anywhere, uh? :cool: So, come on.......have a great time and enjoy yourself. :)

[halos]

...although I totally agree with the basic psychology behind everyone's opinion, I find it funny to think of all the times someone comes back disappointed and posters will say something like, "You had your expectations too high...this is an old ship after all."

;)

Having said that....OP, I have to be honest and say that The Fantasy was absolutely my least favorite ship/cruise followed closely by Triumph. However, even after being disappointed on those ships, I would hope that if I were to wind up booking one of them again, that I would go into it with a fresh, clear head and a good attitude.

The bottom line is each week every sailing is different and I would get on the ship expecting to have a great cruise. It serves no purpose to get on thinking you aren't going to like it.

 

I hope you have a fabulous time :)

[LUVMYGSDOG]

I am so looking forward to our Fantasy cruise in October. But then again, I don't mind shopping at Walmart either. :D

 

Relax and enjoy your cruise. Don't worry about the things you have no control over. Go into it with an open mind, not "lowering your expectations" based on what others have said. No vacation is ever totally perfect, stuff happens - just like in everyday life. But it will be what you make it to be! And my Fantasy cruise is gonna be an ass kicker!

[LindaJean]

I booked inside the cancellation period.

 

I didn't ask anything, I merely summarized the impression I have gotten from reading posts and reviews. Usually I have very high expectations of an upcoming cruise but this time I've tried to lower them and be more realistic about what to expect. I talked to several former passengers who booked with my TA and they refer to it as the Walmart of cruises.

 

Don't think you have to lower your expectations because of what some people have said. All cruise lines and cruises have positives and negatives. I choose to concentrate on the positives and have a great vacation. Hope you do too. (P.S. I find some great bargains for my money at Walmart.)

[mariemorgan]

I loved the Fantasy when I went on it twice in 2008 and 2009.. I was very sad to see it leave New Orleans.

[mouche]

I will be on the Fantasy in 6 days!!! I am going to have a ball no matter what:D

[raylene5]

I booked inside the cancellation period.

 

I didn't ask anything, I merely summarized the impression I have gotten from reading posts and reviews. Usually I have very high expectations of an upcoming cruise but this time I've tried to lower them and be more realistic about what to expect. I talked to several former passengers who booked with my TA and they refer to it as the Walmart of cruises.

 

Honestly, you kinda have a very bad attitude about the whole thing. Cancel the cruise and go with something else...sourpuss.

[jordanaire]

KentuckyKat, join our roll call. We are in central KY too...just north of Lex. Smoke not bad in lounges as most are smoke free, except one and it is a divided lounge and not one of the more popular spots anyway.

 

How far north of Lexington? We live in Georgetown!

 

:cool:Bill

[Bo Didly]

Based on member reviews and some recent board comments, I have lowered my expectations for our upcoming fantasy cruise. I expect to find an older, small ship that smells like stale cigarette smoke, mediocre food and entertainment, lots of children around, no lounge chairs available 9-5, a gas mask needed in the casino, and many passengers who refuse to adhere to the ship's dress code for the MDR. I hope I'm wrong. I'll let you know.

 

If you read CC on a daily basis thats how your going to feel.

It's actually because there is more negative in peoples views than positive .

 

Break away open the door and smell the fresh air ;).

Happy Cruising .