Am I the only on who has NEVER had a complaint about a Carnival cruise???

[adriennerm]

The only time I had a complaint was in the MDR. We had early seating and 3 of our tablemates ordered multiple apps and entrees. The first two nights we had to wait for them to finish their 3 apps just to be served our entree. Then we waited for them to finish their 2 entrees just to get dessert. After the second night I was not happy. We were the last table in the MDR both times. This also caused some other people at our table to leave early b/c of show times.

 

I understand Carnival allows you to eat as much as your like, but other tablemates shouldn't have to wait. Yes, I complained and I was told this is the policy. All tables are served apps together, entrees together and desserts together. The next two nights we were served our next meals even if the other tablemates were not finished....so I guess my complaint worked:rolleyes:

 

In no way did that ruin my cruise...I just didn't understand why Carnival would serve tables in this way.

[live2cruise2011]

I go on vacation to have a great time so what if not everything goes my way... I will have a great time anyway... I leave for a b2b Saturday and it will be awesome!!!!

[robwhite61]

I don't even do things in my own home where everything goes right.

 

I just don't know where to post it! :D

 

On the fridge?

[ib4cruzn]

I suppose it boils down to what one perceives as adequate. Most who complain are not upset about the incident but how the incident was handled.

 

Carnival customer support, or lack thereof, is a major stumbling block.

 

YMMV

[dulcimergirl]

First, I had a wonderful cruise on the Fantasy! Excellent food, no matter where I ate. Entertainment was good, music was a bit loud a time or two, but I just walked away from the noisy venues. My complaint? :DIts far to easy to put funds from your shipboard acct into that one-armed-bandit. LOL I did get a 1,000 dollar bottle of screwtopped wine for free.:rolleyes: Next time I will use a bit of restraint, I truly was worried about not being able to pay that room bill.. No worries, it came out ok.:cool: Just be careful... it all adds up. l did get my drinks in the casino free also. all 3 of them.:)

[Firkin]

This happens every single time I want them to change but they wont. AT the end of every cruise they make me leave. Very unreasonable of them. Every night when I went to bed I slept like a rock. And during the cruise my husband was so relaxed he forgot to complain about anything. Oddly enough in the middle of the ocean is when I got the best cell phone service.:D

[firefly333]

I suppose it boils down to what one perceives as adequate. Most who complain are not upset about the incident but how the incident was handled.

 

Carnival customer support, or lack thereof, is a major stumbling block.

 

YMMV

 

Exactly .. and nothing worse than someone getting on their pedestal and proclaiming .. a day on a cruise is better than being home. Really pissed off a lot of people who feel like no one is LISTENING to them and unable to have any compassion.

 

I hate when someone has that comeback if someone says they are not happy .. with whatever. Its someone patting themselves on the back who isnt hearing the complaint and has no feelings for others.

[Relayer]

DW and I are soon to embark on our eleventh Carnival cruise. 23 horribly long days to go!

 

I do not consider myself a cheerleader but I can, and do, call it like I see it. Each and every cruise with CCL has strictly exceeded our expectations. In several years we have only had 1/2 of a rainy day. That was spent at Starbuck's in Nassau until the sun decided to shine again. Lucky I guess. We are generally easy to please and are both really good at being happily content no matter the circumstances. I always read other reviews based on my own past experience. Anyone ripping CCL, or any cruise line, with post #1 just has to be taken accordingly.

 

So....the long wait continues as we anticipate another wonderful vacation at sea.

[Havingfun2010]

Bottom line is, things go down hill so far, that a new cruiser will not know what good service is about, so what the get, they believe is good. Carnival has gone downhill, like other cruise lines as well. Food is not as good. They don't even serve a real steak in the MDR. Service is slow. Waiters were the worst ever. Room Steward was OK, but still lacked detail. Bottom line is, service is down, and we for some reason think as a majority that it is good???

 

But the reality is, I expected it on my last cruise, so I was not dissappointed. IF I came onboard, expecting "above and beyond" service, than I would have been dissappointed.

[Gail & Marty sailing away]

Us as well,, they are not bad ....

[skiorcruise]

Like everyone else here, I have had some cruises that were better than others. I could have said some that were worse than others, but I didn't. That's just my outlook on life. I prefer to look on the bright side. I stay happy that way, and my family is much better off when I am happy than when I am grumpy - which does happen.

 

I have had things that concern me, and situations that needed correcting. When I approach someone who can correct a situation, I try to remember how I would feel in that person's shoes. I know that in my job as a retail manager, I am much more responsive to the complainer who is polite and respectful than I am to the angry person who demands that I fix something before they get me fired. When I get a concern corrected, I try to find that person again and thank them.

 

Am I too easy to please? I prefer to think of myself as living by the old rule "Do unto others as you would have done unto you".

 

I cruise for fun and enjoyment. I expect reasonable service, but don't complain if it isn't "over the top". I choose Carnival for the value and know that things have been going downhill since I started cruising. But what service related area hasn't? Don't get me started on the airlines.

 

On these boards, I try to ignore those who can't seem to be satisfied. I also ignore the obvious cheerleaders. The true story always seems to be somewhere in the middle.

[Amy Giard]

Never had an issue that I would raise to the level of complaint. I have had some AWESOME waiters and some that were.. well.. not really bad but just not as good as their best. Same with every other ship position.

 

After reading so many reviews and "horror" stories, I am pretty good at weeding out the chronic complainers from the legitimate complaints.

 

So I guess after 8 crusies (6 Carnival, 2 Disney) with 0 real complaints, I guess I am lucky.. but luck does favor the flexible!

[glrounds]

Okay, I have several questions for you guys... I keep reading comments on here about problems they've had on ships. Am I perhaps easy to please? I've always found that all staff on the ships, no matter where they were working, were above and beyond what I expected. Does anyone else feel that way? Also, people will say that they had good service on a specific ship. Well, that doesn't really mean much, because there are staff members that change each time the ship pulls into port. So the staff/entertainment/cruise director, etc could change from one week to the next. So to say "The service on the Dream was great, I highly recommend booking that ship in six months!" doesn't really make sense. Right? It's one thing to say that you like Carnival over RCL. I mean, they're different companies with different policies. So that could mean actual differences in service. And same thing about the food. We've sailed on three different Carnival ships, and the menu was the same each time, and the meals were the same from ship to ship -- and very delicious! How can you make the blanket statement that one ship's food was better than another? That's like saying Red Lobster in my town is better than in another town. I mean, they follow the same protocol from ship to ship! I think some people are picky or like to complain. Am I making any sense?

 

You make a lot of sense. :)

 

I have a lot of complaints about Carnival, but none of them worth getting upset about, GAWD forbid writing a review about it . :eek:

 

However, (here comes the kick in the ass after the pat on the head) Carnival's food and dining room service has gone down decidedly from when I first cruised her some 25 years ago, IMHO.

 

But, since I'm not a "foodie", I'll take the great cabin rates (almost identical to 25 years ago on the TROPICALE) any day and be tolerant of other NECESSARY cuts to fight the slumping economy and out-of-control oil prices.

 

[LHP]

I am coming up on 50 Carnival cruises (on every ship starting with the Tropicale) and I am assure you there have been a few issues over the

years....

 

 

all issues were minor, some issues were handled properly, some were not...

 

but basically the same "percentage" of issues and how they were handled would probably be the same on any mass market cruise line.

 

 

I can say that 99% of the crew members that I come in contact with have always been friendly and smiled....BUT that is probably because they are greeted by me with a smile.

 

 

I have found that someone that says "everyone" or "all" are individuals that can not be pleased and need to stay home.

 

The problem usually isn't the cruise line, but an unreasonable expectation on the part of the cruiser when the words "everyone" or "all" is used.

[mschancey]

Only complaint...........The cruise was toooooooo short!

[firefly333]

I have found that someone that says "everyone" or "all" are individuals that can not be pleased and need to stay home. .

 

I think EVERYONE is on the Carnival forum here because we all think Carnival is a good value for the money and most of us just enjoy cruising. The rocking lulls me to sleep as no bed on dry land can.

 

... sorry could not resist. :D

[nonna5]

Bottom line is, things go down hill so far, that a new cruiser will not know what good service is about, so what the get, they believe is good. Carnival has gone downhill, like other cruise lines as well. Food is not as good. They don't even serve a real steak in the MDR. Service is slow. Waiters were the worst ever. Room Steward was OK, but still lacked detail. Bottom line is, service is down, and we for some reason think as a majority that it is good???

 

But the reality is, I expected it on my last cruise, so I was not dissappointed. IF I came onboard, expecting "above and beyond" service, than I would have been dissappointed.

 

 

True service is not what it was in 1985. But service is not what it was in 1985 anywhere. Unfortunate yes. But I think as bad as it is it is what it is. I don't think worst than ever but surely not what it was back in the day as they say. Also I am paying for a cruise today what I paid back in 1985. So unfortuantely something as to give. I can assure you if a cruise today cost with inflation what it cost in 1985 there would not be as many cruise ships as there are today.

 

I am not disappointed in cruising today. I just know it is not the same. Many many things have changed over the years for all of us in every aspect of our lives. I still enjoy cruising more than any other vacation I have taken and and will continue to go and have a great time. I am convinced if you go with a smile on your face and are kind to others they will go over and beyond for you.

[N.FL Cruisers]

I am coming up on 50 Carnival cruises (on every ship starting with the Tropicale) and I am assure you there have been a few issues over the

years....

 

 

all issues were minor, some issues were handled properly, some were not...

 

but basically the same "percentage" of issues and how they were handled would probably be the same on any mass market cruise line.

 

 

I can say that 99% of the crew members that I come in contact with have always been friendly and smiled....BUT that is probably because they are greeted by me with a smile.

 

 

I have found that someone that says "everyone" or "all" are individuals that can not be pleased and need to stay home.

 

The problem usually isn't the cruise line, but an unreasonable expectation on the part of the cruiser when the words "everyone" or "all" is used.

 

You always had a smile when I saw/met you. You may not remember us on the roll call but it was a pleasure.

 

Back to the OP's question, yes there are people who love to complain. Both sides of my family cannot wait to come back and tell me every issue they have had. They start with "had a great cruise but..." It is in their behavior to make tallys along the way. Makes me nuts. I think they take cruises to make a story to tell.

[Wanna_Cruise]

I have tried, since my very first cruise, to be honest about our cruises. Nothing in life is "absolutely perfect" unless we can be honest about the ups and downs and decide that the ups outweigh the downs to make it "seem perfect". That's the way our cruises have been, seemingly perfect in the final analysis. When things go wrong, we learn from our experiences and try to make corrections on the next one. For instance, driving to the port on cruise day is far too hectic for us worrying if we are going to make it. We were stuck in traffic after a wreck once. Our time was cut too short. We made it in time but the stress was too much so from then on, we drive down the day before cruise day and spend the night. In other words, we make corrections when we can. So, the following is not so much a complaint but a reason for a correction to avoid having a repeat of the same situation again. We have different situations that come up and try to make corrections. Last year we were on the Ecstacy when the port of Galveston was closed and we could not get into port. We spent 2 extra days at sea. Wonderful to get extra days, bad for those people who had their vacation cut short. The problem was, the Conquest was also at sea and trying to get into port by the time the port opened up. So, Carnival made the decision to port the Ecstacy at the heavy equipment dock. Basically just a parking lot with no inside building, no restrooms, no water, etc. We all understood WHY they did that. And to be honest, Carnival did the best they could to get us back to the port. It was a nightmare. We had to take off our own luggage and everyone was fighting to get on one of the buses that took us back to the port and unloaded us out in the parking area. Again we had to try to manage all our luggage. With three ships in port all trying to debark passengers and that many people coming to the port to board, I have never seen such a mess of people and luggage. Our specific problem was that we had taken two garment bags with no wheels full of "dress up, formal" clothes, 4 large, heavy suitcases, with wheels and 3 carry ons for 4 people. One of our group was semi handicapped and could not handle his own luggage and because he was unstable on his feet with no where to sit down or any one to help us, his wife had to assist him. Which only left my husband and myself to manage ALL that luggage that we had brought. It was our own fault. We should have thought ahead to the "what ifs", but we didn't. We packed all that junk and brought it with us so we could take LOTS of pictures. Which we did. We had enough pictures to give all our kids and grandkids. Perfect! But less than perfect if you have to manage the luggage. So, this year we made an adjustment. We traveled light. We only carried a few nicer tops to wear to dinner. We got a walker with a seat for brother in law. We had one bag each and two carry ons. AND instead of leaving the car at the hotel across town thinking we can get a taxi from the port to the hotel, we parked the car within walking distance of the port. With each cruise we learn something about being self sufficient and taking care of ourselves. We cannot cover all the "what ifs" but we can make adjustments and not expect Carnival to cover all our what ifs for us. I hope this makes sense and is not viewed as a complaint but as it was intended, a learning experience.

[mondello66]

I have been on 3 Carnival Cruises with #4 coming up in May and they have all been good. I am looking forward to the day that I have as much cruise experience as firefly and some of the others, it sure does seem slow in coming. I do enjoy reading all the reviews both good and bad as it gives me some idea of what to expect.

[itravelalot]

I went on my first Carnival Cruise September 2011 really expecting not to like it compared to the other lines... We loved it.. I had no complaints. We were on the Legend and would have no problem booking another Carnival Cruise...:)

[askimdog]

Some people will complain about everything. I have never had a perfect cruise or any vacation, but then again, I don't regret any cruise and hope to do another one next year. I had more complaints about my cruise last month than on other cruises, but sometimes life deals you those things, and maybe, just maybe some of my complaints were petty.

 

It was a hot topic at one meal, among two tables, that less crew seemed happy and smiles were a rarity on board, but then again, does this ruin a vacation or cause complaint?

 

Most have had cabin stewards who leave a towel or vaccuum poorly, but day in day out, no ones perfect.

 

I guess complaints will happen everywhere. I did complain, or maybe commented is a better way to explain, at the main desk last month over one situation, but even that never ruined my trip. This was the situation..

 

Some unknown person spilled something resembling potato salad on the floor of the buffet. My wife and I noticed it as an elderly man slipped upon it, though catching himself and his tray. It was a good size "plop". A worker noticed it and mentioned it to another worker, they pointed at the mess yards away and at each other, voices escalated slightly. One then called upon another person as one of them placed a chair over the mess, the three looking angered pointed fingers at each other again and chatter continued, not loud but agravation was in the air. A cruiser finding the chair in a bad position, not knowing it was blocking the food, moved the chair. A fourth person arrived at the workers group and seemed unhappy as he was pointed to the mess. The 4 stood around and some diners were looking at this group wondering what was going on? At this time my wife, who had enough of the show got up with her napkin and scooped up the mess, wiping the floor to a slight round of applause from a neighboring, giggling table.

 

Now, as mentioned this does not cause complaint perhaps, but it is bad manners to have your customers witness this.

 

I think in general, the cruise lines recieve more praise from great workers than complaints most of the time. The workers I think who do great always out-number those who have slight failures.

[stephaniemason0316]

Okay, I have several questions for you guys... I keep reading comments on here about problems they've had on ships. Am I perhaps easy to please? I've always found that all staff on the ships, no matter where they were working, were above and beyond what I expected. Does anyone else feel that way? Also, people will say that they had good service on a specific ship. Well, that doesn't really mean much, because there are staff members that change each time the ship pulls into port. So the staff/entertainment/cruise director, etc could change from one week to the next. So to say "The service on the Dream was great, I highly recommend booking that ship in six months!" doesn't really make sense. Right? It's one thing to say that you like Carnival over RCL. I mean, they're different companies with different policies. So that could mean actual differences in service. And same thing about the food. We've sailed on three different Carnival ships, and the menu was the same each time, and the meals were the same from ship to ship -- and very delicious! How can you make the blanket statement that one ship's food was better than another? That's like saying Red Lobster in my town is better than in another town. I mean, they follow the same protocol from ship to ship! I think some people are picky or like to complain. Am I making any sense?

 

 

I have been on 2 cruises. Yes I know... not as many as the other poster but our first cruise was on RCL MAriner of the Seas and we were impressed with them. We switched to Carnival just last year and had the opportunity to go on the Splendor. We enjoyed ourselves emmensly but only had 2 "complaints". The first was the food (then again hubby is a chef so it takes a lot to impress him) and the second was our table in the dining room (which is fixble). Nothng that really will deter us from cruising on Carnival, in fact I am in the process of planning our next one. :D:rolleyes:

 

As for others that complain... it's unfortunate. Some are valid... others may not be... but none the less... I would love tobe on the cruise... away from the world. LOL

[pjhootch]

Nope, I have no complaints. Sure there are things I like better than others, or some things I could do without. But nothing to complain about. The things I've encountered that didn't please me, were mostly "live and learn" kinds of things. Such as... when we put three people in a cabin, we have to make sure we're getting a cabin with fixed bedding for three and not a cabin for two that the steward will add a rollaway bed to. Guess it could have turned into a complain, but that just isn't how I see things.

 

Now that doesn't mean I haven't read some valid complaints on these boards.

[Warm Breezes]

Too many subjective variables could make each persons experience and perspective of their experience different from everyone else. This is why I do not rely on anyone else's opinion when it comes to service, food, and entertainment (including my best friend's). If it is something that looks interesting to me, then I would rather try it myself and form my own opinion. Even then, I would not expect it to be the same experience if I were to try it again.

 

Personally, I have not had a bad cruise. But I am the type of person who has patience and I don't let the little things bother me. I plan ahead to make things go smoother, but I don't get all frustrated when things don't go exactly as I planned. IMHO that makes life much more enjoyable with a lot less stress. My DH and kids are the same. We are flexible and tend to go with the flow when things change unexpectedly.

 

We went on excursion on our last cruise that we thought was great and well worth the money we spent. I later read a review from someone who was on the exact same excursion with us who did not enjoy it and would not recommend it to anyone. Her experience started with a miscommunication on the time she was supposed to meet the tour and I think that set the whole tone for her day. We didn't have any miscommunications. It just goes to show how subjective our likes/dislikes are and how they enfluence our perceptions of our experiences.