Carnival itineraries getting a little tired

[Warm Breezes]

The Carnival Corporation needs to snap to attention re. this!

-while Royal Caribbean surges ahead

on several small matters that make a difference to the cruiser! :cool:

 

All eleven cruises I've done have been on Carnival Corporation ships (8 of them Carnival Cruises)

-yet I get no credit for sticking with one cruise corporation!

 

Not good enough.

Soon time to switch to another cruise corporation where they appreciate your overall loyalty!

 

.

 

Not really. The repeat cruiser isn't their target market. They have other cruise lines for them mature to. Carnivals focus is on the newer cruiser who has no need or expectation of loyalty perks:rolleyes:.

[Warm Breezes]

We are changing it up next year. Last year we chose Carnival, this year we cruised with NCL.

 

Next year we were looking for Islands we have not visited before (why spend money on the same old itinerary??)

 

We had a specific week and found a wonderful itinerary that stops in Grenada, St. Croix, and Domenica!

 

After 11 cruises on 3 different cruise lines we have only had 1 cruise that did not have at least one new port for us...and that was because we chose that cruise for the ship (Epic) and did not care about the itinerary. We still have a lot of ports we haven't been to yet that are on our bucket list. Unless we are sailing for the ship again, I have a feeling it will be along time before I have to settle for an itinerary without at least one new port for us. It is amazing how your options open up if you don't limit yourself to a certain embarkation port or cruise line. It is bad enough being limited by when and how long you can go...I can't wait until retirement :D....15 years to go :(.

[kcwingwalker]

Would love to see some changes! We've seen Cozumel too many times.

[Warm Breezes]

Would love to see some changes! We've seen Cozumel too many times.

 

Then why don't you pick a ship that does not stop there? I personally love Cozumel. We've been there 4 times on (2x with NCL and 2x with CCL) and did something different each time. There are still a few more excursions I would love to do there. Every time I run out of vanilla, I tell DH we need to book a cruise Cozumel :p. I personally wouldn't care if we went back to Nassau or Key West again. But I have no problem staying on the ship and enjoying an empty ship while everyone else is on the island if it happens to be on an itinerary we have chosen.

[Aplmac]

Not really. The repeat cruiser isn't their target market.

People keep saying that.....that Carnival is aiming at newbies all the time

not at 'repeats'.

 

So what's with their multi-layer loyalty programs then?

Just fer fun?

 

I reckon those loyalty programs/head-games work very well

and 'repeats' probably amount to a healthy percentage on any one cruise.

.

[CanWeGoYet?]

I had been hoping to do a baltic, transatlantic or British Isles cruise in 2015. Thought it would likely be on Carnival, disappointed that Europe is off the table again.

 

I like Carnival. And yes, of course I know I can go to a different cruise line. Since carnival did cruise those routes last year it was just in my plan to consider them for the future.

[Warm Breezes]

People keep saying that.....that Carnival is aiming at newbies all the time

not at 'repeats'.

 

So what's with their multi-layer loyalty programs then?

Just fer fun?

 

I reckon those loyalty programs/head-games work very well

and 'repeats' probably amount to a healthy percentage on any one cruise.

 

.

 

I am Gold on CCL now. I would sail on CCL just because it meets our wants for a certain vacation, I am by no means sailing on them for the purpose of reaching Platinum or Milestone or the benefits associated with them. While it is nice to get perks with a loyalty program...it is not why I choose to sail a particular ship. Yes there are repeats on CCL. I doubt that the loyalty program is what makes most of them repeats....it's just a nice bonus. CCL doesn't have the best loyalty program because those repeats are not their focus. But even a little is a nice touch.

[MrBanana1240]

I don't understand why the Sunshine, glory and Conquest run the same routes on different weeks. Why don't they do routes like these and run them on certain ships:

 

7 night to Half Moon Cay, Tortola, Phillipsburg and Grand Turk

 

7 night to San Juan, Phillipsburg, st. Thomas and Grand Turk

 

7 night to Grand Turk, Ocho Rios, Grand Cayman and Cozumel

 

 

I could list them all day, but I don't get why they are wasting away one the same ships to the same islands for so many years.

 

Also, the Tampa 7 night itinerary bugs me. Why cant the Pride (when it gets there) alternate on a 8/6 night schedule with the 8 night visiting Roatan, Limon Costa Rica and Colon Panama like they used to do. The 6 night could go to Cozumel, Belize and Costa Maya.

 

I really hate the same ships doing the same things from different cities.

[MrBanana1240]

.

Carnival docking at Barbados...

 

If Carnival would home-port a ship out of Barbados

where services and availability are quite reasonable

they could do a truly-Southern route

including Tobago, Grenada, Isla Margarita and maybe the Dutch ABC Islands as well.

 

.

 

Carnival aims more toward the USA market. The Legend was the first time they went to Europe for a season just because. The new ships only go because they are there. Why not stay there? Carnival sent the Spirit down, and its in a whole different cruise line. When you cruise on Valor, you can board in Barbados

 

I totally agree with you though. I want to see Curacuo!

[Cruizinman]

Carnival aims more toward the USA market. The Legend was the first time they went to Europe for a season just because. The new ships only go because they are there. Why not stay there? Carnival sent the Spirit down, and its in a whole different cruise line. When you cruise on Valor, you can board in BarbadosI totally agree with you though. I want to see Curacuo!

 

 

I thought that was San Juan :confused: You will love curacao!

Edited December 10, 2013 by Cruizinman

[Georgiagolfer]

As a fellow Platinum cruiser, don't let some bags of laundry worth $50 and priority embarkation stop you from experiencing other cruise lines and itineraries. Even if you sailed on the same exact itinerary but on a different cruise line, the experience will feel new, refreshing, and just different.

 

And yes, other cruise lines' loyalty programs offer more tiers and perks than Carnival, and they are truly worth your loyalty and with less effort. For example, I also became Platinum on Royal Caribbean after only 30 credits. Not only that, but that automatically gave me Select status on Celebrity, and Explorer status on Azamara Club.

 

There's really no reason to keep taking the same exact cruises over and over because of some limited perks.

 

Agree

 

Try another cruiseline

RCCL has the best perks for loyalty

If you arnt cruising a certain week their prices are a lot of the time close to or cheaper

 

Agree again

[jcool]

I agree the ports are the same. I would like to take other carnival cruise but to go to the same place over again I rather take other cruise line. Or the port hours are to short like Puerto Rico you leave like 3P.M. that is not enough time for me.

[Sh1035]

I find it interesting that someone can spend 8 hours on an island and been there done that. Hey I've been to Cozumel 10 times but never seen the east side, took a cooking class, etc. somehow a chair on a gorgeous beach works for me and I live on the beach.

 

Now been to Nassau 4x this year and stayed at Atlantis. But I too. Can enjoy a day on the ship as well.

 

Open your eyes and explore the islands new or old. Snorkeling there does not count as seeing the island.....but it's a great start!

[sharecruises]

Change can be good IMHO

 

IMHO Carnival's routes are better than Royal which has that boring Falmouth and mostly the same old routes

Royal does have some good routes out of San Juan

 

I like MSC - they have some nice change ups - next fall they have one to Columbia, Costa Rica, Panama that I am looking at (they have one ship in Miami now Divina)

 

Holland America does some nice routes but I still don't know if I would really enjoy that line?

[golfadj]

Wish they would do a two week Caribbean run to go into S America but of course not their style.

[Aplmac]

Wish they would do a two week Caribbean run to go into S America but of course not their style.

Homeporting out of Barbados would serve this end.

 

Refuelling inexpensively at Tobago (if available) -or at Trinidad if necessary?

 

 

Barbados gets lots of UK and other Euro-visitors per winter: they come to stay for 2-3 weeks

- a Southern cruise could fit in there somewhere if marketed.

These visitors are already committed to spending the $$ on air fare from UK to Caribbean

so 'the hi cost of Air' is not much of a factor

especially if if a week's cruise out of Barbados

costs the same as a week's Island Hotel bill.

Which would you rather do?

.

.

[Aplmac]

I thought that was San Juan :confused:

You will love curacao!

You can board VALOR at San Juan on Sundays

and at Barbados on Wednesdays.

 

 

The ship operates a split-schedule thing with around forty cabins boarded at Barbados, weekly.

Specific cabins are allocated to this, as are specific 'Barbados-boarded' tables in the MDR.

 

___________________________

 

This may be the only such situation in the whole Carnival fleet?

Anyone know of another Carnival ship/route where passengers can board at two(or more?) ports?

.

Edited December 11, 2013 by Aplmac

[Cruising Rules]

Not really. The repeat cruiser isn't their target market. They have other cruise lines for them mature to. Carnivals focus is on the newer cruiser who has no need or expectation of loyalty perks:rolleyes:.

 

I respect your opinion. Problem is that no company survives on new business only. That is a recipie for disaster. Any successful service company does everything they can to get their customers to repeat their support and new business is what they depend on for growth. This is a marketing 101 concept and is one that even Carnival would aspire to achieve. Problem is they do not do it very well. For several years Carnival did a good job at this. Then they decided it cost too much money and began over time to devalue their overall product through cost reductions in key areas. They cut back the loyalty program, entertainment and now it seems in the MDR. While many on CC will argue that I don't know what I am talking about, I assure you I am pretty much on target. They do want loyalty but they are getting to a tipping point where loyalty does not mean anything. So today to fill their ships they are at price points that will attract the masses. Problem is to make money at those price levels they most likely will continue to have to reduce their overhead.

[golfadj]

I respect your opinion. Problem is that no company survives on new business only. That is a recipie for disaster. Any successful service company does everything they can to get their customers to repeat their support and new business is what they depend on for growth. This is a marketing 101 concept and is one that even Carnival would aspire to achieve. Problem is they do not do it very well. For several years Carnival did a good job at this. Then they decided it cost too much money and began over time to devalue their overall product through cost reductions in key areas. They cut back the loyalty program, entertainment and now it seems in the MDR. While many on CC will argue that I don't know what I am talking about, I assure you I am pretty much on target. They do want loyalty but they are getting to a tipping point where loyalty does not mean anything. So today to fill their ships they are at price points that will attract the masses. Problem is to make money at those price levels they most likely will continue to have to reduce their overhead.

 

I agree with you. New cruisers spend more than experienced ones on the ship so they are more valuable to the cruise lines.

[gracie65]

I have been thinking the same thing about itineraries. My last cruise I booked specifically for the ship. The next one I wanted it to be more about the itinerary. I searched not only Carnival but Princess, RCCL, NCL and HAL. I was looking Oct 2014-Feb 2015 and unless I went to a 10 night it was the same places. St. Thomas, St. Marteen, Nassau, Cozumel etc. Used to you could atleast book Carnival from San Juan and get some neat stops for 7 night. The Valor does have some good stops but it still goes to St. Thomas and St. Marteen. What a missed opportunity to add a couple more islands that are outside the norm. I did end up booking The Valor. St. Thomas, St. Lucia, Barbados, St. Kitts and St. Marteen. Have never been to St. Kitts, Barbados only twice and St. Lucia just once. I love St. Thomas and St. Marteen but some different islands would be nice!!

[NCTribeFan]

new but been lurking for years. finally had to post while looking at planning for 2015. Sorry I missed the similar post, i tried some searching but that just brings up 4 million unrelated topics.

 

I should mention that I'm thinking more about the itineraries Carnival used to offer that no longer exist. I understand some issues, like not going to ST Kitts for a little while because too many people get held up by masked gunman, I'm not looking for that type of action on a vacation. But in general, you cannot go on a Carnival ship without going to St Thomas, Cozumel and Grand Turk.

 

Which is exactly why I just did the 2nd leg of the Conquest repositioning from San Juan to Miami - 8 nights, called at St Kitts, Dominica, St Martin, Antigua, and Grand Turk with 2 sea days. It was fantastic.

 

I was ready to come home and book one of the Pride repos for next year only to find that they had cancelled them. I've already ranted about that in a few places. I just don't get it! It's the perfect opportunity for Carnival to offer something "different" just for a change. And since I love Old San Juan, any opportunity to start or end a cruise there and add a couple of extra nights to make it a nice, long vacation, is one in which I'm interested.

 

But Carnival doesn't appear to care for repositioning cruises. I love them and am now hunting for something else next fall. And it will probably be on a different cruiseline. Sorry, Carnival.

 

I especially love Dominica and the only way I'll be able to return on a cruise ship is on a different line. So be it!

[golfadj]

Which is exactly why I just did the 2nd leg of the Conquest repositioning from San Juan to Miami - 8 nights, called at St Kitts, Dominica, St Martin, Antigua, and Grand Turk with 2 sea days. It was fantastic.

 

I was ready to come home and book one of the Pride repos for next year only to find that they had cancelled them. I've already ranted about that in a few places. I just don't get it! It's the perfect opportunity for Carnival to offer something "different" just for a change. And since I love Old San Juan, any opportunity to start or end a cruise there and add a couple of extra nights to make it a nice, long vacation, is one in which I'm interested.

 

But Carnival doesn't appear to care for repositioning cruises. I love them and am now hunting for something else next fall. And it will probably be on a different cruiseline. Sorry, Carnival.

 

I especially love Dominica and the only way I'll be able to return on a cruise ship is on a different line. So be it!

 

One reeason we are doing a Princess TA to Europe next year.

[MrBanana1240]

I thought that was San Juan :confused: You will love curacao!

 

You can board in both. The majority goes kn on San Juan however.

[Relayer]

Homeporting out of Barbados would serve this end.

 

Refuelling inexpensively at Tobago (if available) -or at Trinidad if necessary?

 

 

Barbados gets lots of UK and other Euro-visitors per winter: they come to stay for 2-3 weeks

- a Southern cruise could fit in there somewhere if marketed.

These visitors are already committed to spending the $$ on air fare from UK to Caribbean

so 'the hi cost of Air' is not much of a factor

especially if if a week's cruise out of Barbados

costs the same as a week's Island Hotel bill.

Which would you rather do?

 

 

.

.

 

Wanted to thank you again for your photos. I have been enjoying them for several years now!

 

CCL certainly is boring. Our stops are just always repeats:

Belize, Roatan, Cozumel, Costa Maya, Caymans, Bahamas, St Lucia, Barbados, St Thomas, St Maarten, Puerto Rico, Dominica, Antigua, St Kitts, Tortolla and in 23 days add Curacao, Grand Turk, Aruba and Santo Domingo. Same old same old...

 

I could spend countless days at Nachi Cocum and never tire of it.

 

We can only hope that we are blessed enough to do it all over and over again!

[NCTribeFan]

On my first dozen or so cruises, I always tried to get at least one new port. After all, I was sailing to get to these places, not for the ship, or to stuff my face 24/7, or to drink 15 drinks a day and stay blitzed the entire time. ;)

 

Once I was "cured" of seasickness and decided that sea days weren't to be avoided, I found that I enjoyed cruising just to relax, so I didn't feel so compelled to find somewhere new to explore/investigate.

 

I'm perfectly happy going to Nassau and Freeport again and again! Yes, I get off the ship and go wander around or look for a new excursion to take. I figure that I can always find something to do, even if it's just wandering the port area, finding a local restaurant, or having a beach day.

 

There are still about a dozen Ports-of-Call listed under the Caribbean section of these boards to which I have not been, and I'd like to see them all. Price is an issue for me, since I mostly sail solo these days and I cannot wait for last-minute deals offered to solo cruisers. I can only sail at certain times of the year and must give plenty of notice.

 

So, for now, I will continue to take a short post-tax-season cruise that will not be a budget-breaker, and keep looking for something longer and more exotic for the fall.