Conquest Review May 5-12 2013

[klfrodo]

Most of the OP post is fair.

I'm not sure I understand the FTTP purchase plus being in a suite:confused:

If in a suite, you get priority embarkation and VIP treatment. Why purchase FTTP? Or am I misunderstanding something?

[railroader]

I would be po'd too if I didn't have acces to my room. They shouldn't have sold the cabin if they couldn't allow you to have full use or at least comp you somehow. Otherwise you are a little picky, try to let stuff go sometimes, makes life better.

[Cruise To Relax]

In fairness your review was a balanced review. You gave the good bad and the ugly which is all one can hope for from a review. Please don't let the forth coming comments put you off writing another review and thank you for taking the time. Without all reviews these sites wouldn't be worth a grain of salt.

 

Yes certain aspects of your review had me thinking .... well that wouldn't bother me, oh yes that would bother me or if I was in that situation I would do that differently. This is the idea of reviews.

 

Again thankyou for taking the time to tell us your experience.

 

I for one appreciated it.

 

 

Thanks for your comments. The other comments were to be expected and it does not bother me. As for life jackets, two folks said they had seen them under the bed. I have not in over 10 cruises on 4 major lines and 1 foreign line. And if they had been marked as being under the bed, would have been fine. However, when you go to look at the marked place and they are not there, you start wondering about them

 

FTTF worked great for us. Early on, quick luggage, scheduled for early disembarkation, and priority at Guest Services (big one because the line can get really long). I was pleasantly surprised by the Punchliner Brunch because I had read negative reviews. For us, it was absolutely wonderful and very good and relaxing. And breakfast in the main dining room and dinner in the main dining room were both great experiences. And the Chefs Table was out of this world - wonderful chef who really interacted with the guests during and after the event. I also very much liked Café Fans. Good coffee but we also like the coffee in the dining room.

[Cruise To Relax]

In that respect where would you see someone staying in the captain suite on the hierarchy? Don't know the cost of these for a 7 day trip and just speculating here but if one did several 3 day cruises on a carnival sale price on an interior could they not make platinum for the same price that one would pay for one 7 day cruise in a captains suite? As I said Im just speculating here!

 

Please understand I knew Carnival does not give suite guests many extras - in fact priority boarding is about the only thing. So I knew that and I knew the P/D members are their loyal customers. I guess I just expected some fair level of treatment - yes below the P/D but yet still fair and good.

[Cruise To Relax]

I had a Ford product. My friend had same vehicle, year and model.

 

Never once did I need anything other then routine service.

 

Friends Ford was in the shop what seemed to be monthly for various issues.

 

Chalk it up as luck of the draw. I could go to every cruise line forum on CC and find the exact same type of a review with the "Never again."

 

Sorry it didn't work out, and I hope you will have a great cruise in the future.

 

You are so right. I understand that completely. I was really hoping Carnival was going to be a good fit but it just did not happen. Yes we will cruise but will go with a different line.

[Cruise To Relax]

Sorry the cruise didn't live up to your expectations. You may get flamed, but when you come in and say things like

 

 

 

and

 

 

 

It sounds like you are looking for a fight and trying to bait people into arguing with you.

 

Sorry you felt that way but I have been reading reviews posted on this site for several years. Every time someone puts up an honest review showing good and bad, there are always folks who just want to say how bad their review was. No matter what you say honestly (good and bad), someone will blast you unless you write a flowering review. Just my observations so I wanted to make sure they knew I expected their comments.

[Cruise To Relax]

Or the OP knows that no one here can sympathize or tolerate a person who wasnt happy with their cruise.. for whatever reason.

 

I dont think anyone bothers to post their experiences and how they felt about their cruise wanting rudeness like some of these posts.

 

Some times you "had to be there". The one rude steward, I couldnt get a 2nd pillow for my sister, and he told me to go look for it.. I looked, still couldnt find one in the cabin. I think its not asking for so much to ask a cabin steward to find something you need or want that is standard without a bunch of lip. He finally got one, and acted imposed upon to provide 2 pillows on the bed. .. one day later.

 

Well said and glad you understand. Thanks.

[Cruise To Relax]

Sorry you did not have a good cruise. I was on the cruise right before you on Conquest and had a good cruise and good experience. But it can bit hit or miss. The cruise before last was on Conquest and it was my least favorite cruise. That cruise we had issues with embark and debark and dining room staff (main issue). The cruises were like night and day.

 

This cruise had Faster to the Fun and had very good experiences with it. Sorry that you do not. We had no issues with Muster, but we were in the second row. It did seem to take a while to get everyone lined up.

 

We also dined in the steak house and thought it was great. I had lobster and while I was not as crazy about the preparation (tasted grilled/broiled and I prefer boiled), it was still good. Everything else was amazing for us.

 

We also did not have issues with room service coming- maybe it was the time.

 

This is not to say that you did not have issues, as I believe you did have them. Just that it may have been a couple of bad apples that you were unfortunate enough to get.

 

Absolutely agree - hit or miss. We got the wrong cruise I guess. My wife had lobster and filet in the steakhouse and she did not like it either.

[Cruise To Relax]

I'm not sure that I understand your logic, but I feel that someone staying in the Captain's Suite should be given equivalent treatment to Platinum and Diamond level guests. It coats a lot of money to book that type of cabin.

 

However, other than that, this review was ridiculous and a waste of time to read.

 

Carnival does not care what suite you are in - you get their standard service. As for the review being ridiculous and a waste of time, well guess you could have stopped and not even replied.

[bobsfamily]

 

You are right. I will be much better off and Carnival can continue to be the low budget party cruise line. Enjoy

You just could not let it go could you? It's your opinion, fine move on now. Have tried other cruiselines, may try them again in the near future but Carnival offers a vacation that ALL can enjoy.

[KatPem]

Sorry you felt that way but I have been reading reviews posted on this site for several years. Every time someone puts up an honest review showing good and bad, there are always folks who just want to say how bad their review was. No matter what you say honestly (good and bad), someone will blast you unless you write a flowering review. Just my observations so I wanted to make sure they knew I expected their comments.

 

 

Not all, but many times it is in the delivery and tone. It is one thing to say you didn't enjoy your cruise and why, it is totally another to say that they can continue to be the "low budget party cruiseline" and "I am glad you consider those items minor. If that is the case, then Carnival is a great fit for you. Enjoy your time with them."

 

There really isn't a need to be rude.

 

You didn't enjoy your cruise and for that I am sorry. Just like in life, some are just glad to be on a cruise and willing to overlook things and others expect for everything to be perfect, most fall in between.

[Cruise To Relax]

I would be po'd too if I didn't have acces to my room. They shouldn't have sold the cabin if they couldn't allow you to have full use or at least comp you somehow. Otherwise you are a little picky, try to let stuff go sometimes, makes life better.

 

I agree completely and I usually don't let things bother me. But it just seemed, at the time, that Carnival had so many rules and procedures that were not explained that I just could not get into a nice vacation. When we decided to get the Captains Suite, we wanted to spend time in that room. We are not big partiers and enjoy quiet and time for reading and just being together. This was a cruise to celebrate \45 years of marriage. Being denied our room for an entire day did not seem right. In fact, I teased them and said that I was going to bill Carnival for all the hours I was denied access to the room. That was the last thing that sort of set the fuze. I will say again the Guest Relations Manager agreed with my comments, was very good about correcting things, and did confirm they do have a priority status for some folks. She also explained about the maintenance and warranty work that had to be done on the room. This was never explained to us until that time. I did not expect that nor want any priority - just wanted standard service. I did not order any more breakfasts from room service so never took advantage of the situation. Yes, we did leave the full tip on our bill and even gave both room attendants extra money at the end of the cruise because they really did do a great job when they serviced the room. I do not think I should blame the attendants for something that is a Carnival procedure.

[gregg204]

Not all, but many times it is in the delivery and tone. It is one thing to say you didn't enjoy your cruise and why, it is totally another to say that they can continue to be the "low budget party cruiseline" and "I am glad you consider those items minor. If that is the case, then Carnival is a great fit for you. Enjoy your time with them."

There really isn't a need to be rude.

You didn't enjoy your cruise and for that I am sorry. Just like in life, some are just glad to be on a cruise and willing to overlook things and others expect for everything to be perfect, most fall in between.

 

Very well said!

[Cruise To Relax]

Not all, but many times it is in the delivery and tone. It is one thing to say you didn't enjoy your cruise and why, it is totally another to say that they can continue to be the "low budget party cruiseline" and "I am glad you consider those items minor. If that is the case, then Carnival is a great fit for you. Enjoy your time with them."

 

There really isn't a need to be rude.

 

You didn't enjoy your cruise and for that I am sorry. Just like in life, some are just glad to be on a cruise and willing to overlook things and others expect for everything to be perfect, most fall in between.

 

Agree. Not intended to be rude. But then again, something minor for someone does not mean it is minor for everyone. As for your comment, statement of the obvious. Yes, nothing is perfect. But some things should meet a standard. And if Carnival is not a low budget party cruiseline, then I guess I did not understand all the parties, drinking, loud music, etc. at all times. I am glad you are willing to overlook things but I feel certain one day you will have something happen that you cannot overlook. At that time, please remember this review and then go see the Guest Relations Manager. They are there to help and the one on Conquest did.

[Cruise To Relax]

You just could not let it go could you? It's your opinion, fine move on now. Have tried other cruiselines, may try them again in the near future but Carnival offers a vacation that ALL can enjoy.

 

Great. If Carnival fits for you, so be it. But respect the fact that I can state my opinion too - even if it does not agree with your opinion. Carnival is a great cruiseline fit for many and I applaud that. But as I said, it is not for everyone.

[bobsfamily]

Great. If Carnival fits for you, so be it. But respect the fact that I can state my opinion too - even if it does not agree with your opinion. Carnival is a great cruiseline fit for many and I applaud that. But as I said, it is not for everyone.

Hmmm, NOW I understand... BYE bye, on to the ignore list ya go! You made it! Congrats!

[laurenfl15]

Great. If Carnival fits for you, so be it. But respect the fact that I can state my opinion too - even if it does not agree with your opinion. Carnival is a great cruiseline fit for many and I applaud that. But as I said, it is not for everyone.

 

But you don't respect it. I told you earlier it works for me bc I'm a new mom on a budget who is pretty laidback. In turn you told me to enjoy my low budget party cruise.

 

You are flamed for coming off as thinking your superior, not for disliking your cruise.

[cccer]

The only thing I see as a real problem was expecting you to stay out of your cabin for that long. To me the rest was minor.

 

That's exactly what I was thinking. Seems like a lot of really minor issues that would ruin a vacation if you let things like that get to you.

 

Funny though, usually diamond/platinum are the ones complaining about the downgrading of the program. I think this was the first time someone was complaining that diamond/platinum were getting preference over others. Oh well, I hope OP enjoys other cruise lines.

[KatPem]

Agree. Not intended to be rude. But then again, something minor for someone does not mean it is minor for everyone. As for your comment, statement of the obvious. Yes, nothing is perfect. But some things should meet a standard. And if Carnival is not a low budget party cruiseline, then I guess I did not understand all the parties, drinking, loud music, etc. at all times. I am glad you are willing to overlook things but I feel certain one day you will have something happen that you cannot overlook. At that time, please remember this review and then go see the Guest Relations Manager. They are there to help and the one on Conquest did.

 

yes, but the point of my comments was that everyone has different standards. I didn't have to overlook things on my cruise, I was speaking in generalities. our last cruise was on the Carnival Liberty with our four children. We didn't notice any excessive 'partying'. People were having fun on the lido and in the clubs but it wasn't excessive nor drunks everywhere. And, no, I am not a huge drinker nor is my husband so we don't have a high threshold. I think I had 2 drinks with alcohol our whole cruise with my husband having a few more. I saw one lady drunk the entire week, I wasn't looking for drunks either so there may have been more.

[repo-cruiser]

Great. If Carnival fits for you, so be it. But respect the fact that I can state my opinion too - even if it does not agree with your opinion. Carnival is a great cruiseline fit for many and I applaud that. But as I said, it is not for everyone.

It is a fact that Carnival is a low budget cruiseline and a party ship. The problem you get on here is from people not accepting that fact and get mad at the truth. They want to believe there on a great above average cruiseline, so the truth hurts their feelings and they lash out at you the Op. Personally thanks for the review as it was dead on.

[irishnyc]

As for FTTF, I got everything I expected. I never said it was bad - in fact I said it was good.

 

Gee, I guess I was mistaken when you called it "Faster to the Farce."

[TPLGT]

 

You are right. I will be much better off and Carnival can continue to be the low budget party cruise line. Enjoy

 

Oh...we're sorry you're so "high end"...way to start this thread to just pick a fight. Don't try to tell us it was anything but. There are lots of people wo enjoy themselves on Carnival. I suspect you couldn't enjoy yourself on much of anything.

[AtSeaWithChris]

I would like to say this was a great cruise and everything was wonderful. But alas, it was not. I expect I will get “flamed” by the Carnival Cheerleaders but I really do not care. What I have written below is factual – all this happened to us. We have been on 10+ cruises, and if you add up all the problems on those cruises, the total would not even come close to the problems we had on this cruise. I am not sure where to start so will start at the beginning (obvious huh?).

 

Embarkation: No major problems. We were in one of the Captains Suites on deck 9 and also purchased Faster to the Fun (FTTF). I renamed that later but will wait to tell it. Of course, we did have a minor problem during embarkation – could not find our room keys. If you have FTTF and are in a suite, they don’t always pick that up so your sign and sail cards are someplace else. After a short wait, we were “allowed” to move on and sit down (if we could find a chair). Now I am disabled but I am fortunate in that I can walk without a cane now even thought I have an AFO (ankle foot orthotic). Most of the chairs in the priority waiting area were full or had folks personal items on them (of course, they will not move them for you to sit down). Then I saw the handicapped chairs and nobody was sitting there. But the catch – you have to also look disabled to sit there. Even though I told the lady I was disabled, she sent me down to the end of the waiting area where we were able to find 2 chairs – but not together. So not a real good start but nothing major. We got on, got to our room, room was ready, and luggage came really quickly. We had our obligatory Guy’s burgers and they were awesome.

 

First Night: Room attendants met us and seemed very nice. We were not very hungry that first night so we ate something quickly on the buffet and then went back to the room. The attendants came by but would not come in since we were in the room. We asked them to come in (as we have done on every other cruise) but they said no, gave us 2 pieces of chocolate, and left without servicing the room. We thought that unusual but did not think any more about it. Then we had the muster. Well, I felt even less safe after that mess. We were assigned to B muster station and were all the way forward on the Port Side. It took forever before they did the briefing and then I could not understand one word. I understand they also took the opportunity to try and convince everyone to buy something but again I could not understand anything. Too loud and too garbled.

 

Second Morning: Enjoying our nice big room. By the way, the Captains Suites were added with 2.0 and are wonderful. Nice balcony, nice view forward, and 2 bathrooms. We put our order for a continental breakfast on the door the evening of the first night and asked for delivery between 8:30 and 9:00 AM. We waited and waited but no delivery. Finally at 9:00 AM I called to cancel the order and they said it was on the way but was late. I agreed and told them to cancel it. Imagine it was still sitting in the kitchen waiting for delivery. So my first Rule (Rule 1), on the first day if you really want something on time and you are not Diamond or Platinum, order it 30 minutes before you really want it. I think if you are Diamond or Platinum, you are priority for room service. So we went to Punchliner Brunch and enjoyed it very much. Then back to the room to sit on the balcony, read, and just enjoy the cruise. Room attendants came by and said to call them when we left so they could clean the room. We told them to come in but they say they could not come in while we were there (Call this Rule 2). We were asked to call them when we left. At about 2:00 PM we left to get a quick snack before our evening meal at the Pointe Steakhouse and called the attendants. It rang and rang and then went to a busy signal. I tried the other phone and got the same thing. We ate something light and came back and I realized I had not seen the life jackets where they belonged. So I started checking every nook and cranny and could not find them. So I called about 3 items – no life jackets, no service, and a mirror problem (will cover that later). The person on the phone thought I was crazy and was not nice about the life jackets. I told him to send someone up and have then show me the life jackets. They also said they would try to send someone to service the room. And there was nothing they could do about the mirror problem.

 

Ok, the mirror problem. In the Captains Suite, they have a nice makeup table area in the bedroom with a nice window above it. There is a mirror but it is one of those lighted magnifying mirrors that is great for up close but well not good for drying your hair. So of course, where was the hair dryer? It was permanently mounted in the drawer at the makeup table. So according to my wife, you need a regular mirror to use your hair dryer to dry and style your hair. I guess this is a problem just in those 2 rooms but Carnival should correct that problem.

 

Back to the life jackets. Someone did show up and guess what – he could not find them either. He looked everywhere and then decided maybe under the bed. If course, just where I would look for them if we had an emergency (tongue in cheek). Well guess what – 4 life jackets. He folded them properly and put them where they belonged and left. Did get someone to service room because our attendant was on rest during the afternoon. But surely things will get better – right? WRONG! We went to the Pointe Steakhouse and it was a bitter disappointment. The steaks were not as good as you can get at most mid-level restaurants like Outback, etc. I got the recommended spiced steak and it was good but very tough even though it was supposed to be done medium rare. So ended the first day and thought the next day had to be better.

 

Third Day: This was Key West day and only one minor problem. We went to Renoir for breakfast and my wife asked for some strawberries as a fruit. She was informed that you had to request fresh strawberries 24 hours in advance but they were able to find some. So Rule 3 – order fresh strawberries 24 hours in advance. Later on this day, we got a call that they had to do maintenance on our room and we had to be gone between 9:00 AM and 1:00 PM. They told us we could not be in the room during that time. We did not understand but figured we had to do it.

 

Fourth Day: Arrive at Freeport. Left room before 9:00 and reported that fact to Guest Relations. They again confirmed it would be done by 1:00 PM. Went ashore, walked around, and the back to the ship for lunch and reading. A few minutes before 1:00 PM, we were back at Guest Relations to verify we could go back to our room. After a few moments and a couple of calls, we were told that we had to stay out until 5:00 PM. Ok, now I have had it. I am working my vacation around what Carnival wants to do and there are only so many places you can go. Plus we had Chefs Table that night at 6:15 PM and really wanted to clean up before we went. After some discussion the Guest Relations Manager came down and we went to her office. She is a very nice person and a true professional and she listened to our list of problems and was somewhat concerned. She did check and she was able to take us back to our room even while they were working on the front door. Seems these rooms that were added in 2.0 have problems and they have to work the schedule to get warranty work done. So back to our room and glad to be there.

 

Went to Chefs Table and it was magnificent. Our cruise sort of started turning around (for the good) at this moment. A great event, great dinner, and a super Chef de Cuisine. Very personable, very open, and really talented.

 

Fifth Day: Nassau. Stayed on the ship, relaxed, room attendants serviced the room while we sat on the deck. Evidently, they got the word. It seems they put us on some priority list with dining and room service so things were done well with no delay. I guess that is normally reserved for Diamond and Platinum member. However, some of these services should be done for everyone – like room service on time. But it was clear to me that Carnival caters to the Diamond and Platinum members. And based on this cruise, you really have to be dedicated and a “hardy” person so survive that many days traveling on Carnival.

 

Sixth Day: At sea and no problems. Again room attendants serviced room while we were there on the balcony.

 

Seventh Day: Same as the sixth day.

 

Debarkation Day: Well no debarkation is fun but Carnival really exceeds in working to make it really bad. Suffice to say, what a mess with no “adult leadership” around to tell folks not to block elevator exits, halls, pathways, etc. It seems like everyone wants to do self assist and those folks block every pathway, elevator exit, stairway, etc. If we had an emergency during debarkation, I really believe a lot of folks would have been hurt.

 

So to sum it up:

Good (my opinion): Punchliner Brunch, Guys Burgers, Renoir Dining Room (breakfast and Dinner), and Fans (nice coffee).

 

Not so good (my opinion): Pointe Steakhouse, breakfast buffet, lack of quiet spots (we had trouble finding any that did not smell of smoke), preference provided to Diamond and Platinum members and everyone else is second or third class (sort of like the old class system on ships).

 

Oh and FTTF is really, in my opinion, Faster to the Farce. But then only my opinion.

 

In conclusion, yes, this was our first and last Carnival Cruise. There were many other things that were minor nits as well as some other positive items so those sort of cancelled out in my mind. You can call me a hater (which I am not), you can call me an elitist (sorry you are wrong there too), or you can say I am totally unfair in reviewing Carnival because after all it is a low budget cruise line (yep you are right – it is low budget, very low budget). So, yes, I will go back to Celebrity, Holland America, Princess (maybe), and perhaps Royal Caribbean or Norwegian. So far none of these have treated us as badly as Carnival.

 

Blast away!!!

 

Wow, I hope those are the only problems we have in Sept. I wouldn't wait to go to my room. I'd just go. As far as servicing the room, complain to GS. Nothing else seemed to me but a princess complaining about a pea.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[Sargent_Schultz]

 

You are right. I will be much better off and Carnival can continue to be the low budget party cruise line. Enjoy

 

nothing like a parting cheap shot. :rolleyes:

[sugaree78]

I stopped reading when I got to the part about the hairdryer and the mirror. Seriously, some people just look for things to complain about.