Past Passenger Party

[jimbo5544]

1 hour ago, crzndeb said:

Since I tend to go on longer, unique cruises, there are always a lot of Platinum and Diamonds. It has always been in the main theater, and sometimes held twice.

 

I think they need to add a level between Plat and Diamond, because there is such a big day gap between those 2. Also, maybe a level above Diamond (300-350 days).

 

 

I think you could be right on

 

[Djptcp]

We have been Platinums for a long time and have two Carnival cruises booked for this month and December, our 36th and 37th on Carnival and 50th and 51st cruises overall. At the end of the Dec. cruise we will be 25 days from Diamond status. I would hope with this many days we would not lose our Platinum status, but would be seriously ticked off to have Diamond status that much further out if the program changes. I could see changing Platinum to 100 or 125 days, but keeping Diamond at 200 days. We also have a good number of loyalty days with Holland America and are 3 Star Mariners, but still a ways off to reach 4 Stars. What's great about Holland America is you receive double the number of days when you book a suite (which we always do) and you receive extra days for on board spending. Our typical Holland cruise gives us from 18-23 days for a 7-day cruise. Let's face it, Carnival does nothing like this and the perks with the various Mariner stars are so much more meaningful and better than anything Carnival offers. We have only sailed on Holland 8 times, but have received much more in loyalty perks than 35 cruises on Carnival. We continue to cruise the most on Carnival because we live 45 minutes from the Port of Tampa and it's so convenient to cruise on the two ships in Tampa rather than have to drive to another FL port even though it's only a few hours drive.

 

We attended the Platinum and Diamond party on the Miracle in April and it was less than thrilling. The food was marginal and I say that because we had attended the welcome aboard party for Premier Casino cruisers the same week and the food was great. Frankly, the party was boring and we didn't stay long.

Edited August 11, 2019 by Djptcp
Corrected misspelling.

[Sparky2]

On 8/9/2019 at 11:33 AM, GradUT said:

The way they can have a past passenger party is by how they did it in the past—make it for the last day of the cruise and barely advertise it (one small line in the Fun Times).  Thus, fewer than 100 people show up. I went twice in the past (as a Gold cruiser—nowhere near Platinum!) and they were both great parties with probably 75 participants.  The drinks were good and plentiful and the music was live and excellent.  

 

They stopped doing these saying that there was too little participation, but that’s what made them good. 

 

I don't think that was the Past Guest Party.  I think it was called the Farewell Party.  Yes, it was not advertised except for a little blurb in the first Fun Times - Welcome Aboard - with things to look forward to in the coming week.  By the time it came around people had forgotten about it and were probably packing.

[jimbo5544]

3 hours ago, Stick93 said:

I think they are going to have too many hard decisions to make on this issue. They have the potential to get may loyal people upset with whatever they do...I am going to wait for the book to come out before I take anything said her to heart. Everyone has an idea and friend in management - We will have to wait to see which one is the most important big wig and makes the final decision.

 

 

Well that is a thought.  I guess no info is better.....  that is why they call this cruise CRITIC tho.  

[rainbowflag]

1 hour ago, Sparky2 said:

 

I don't think that was the Past Guest Party.  I think it was called the Farewell Party.  Yes, it was not advertised except for a little blurb in the first Fun Times - Welcome Aboard - with things to look forward to in the coming week.  By the time it came around people had forgotten about it and were probably packing.

You're correct. Our group always timed our final LGBTQ mixer to coincide with the Farewell Party. Drinks on the house was a big draw for some and turned an otherwise blase event into a dance party. 

 

The past guest party is hit or miss. The Horizon had good hors d'oeuvre that were similar to those served at the casino event that we were also invited to attend.

Edited August 11, 2019 by rainbowflag

[Stick93]

43 minutes ago, jimbo5544 said:

Well that is a thought.  I guess no info is better.....  that is why they call this cruise CRITIC tho.  

 

I've tried that logic when I have been CRITICAL and some people don't want to hear it - I agree that the name is cruise CRITIC and we can be critical and speculate. I just feel this topic is emotionally charged personally to people as people do care about their status and perks. So speculating is just getting people upset about what hasn't happened yet and what may not happen. Feel free to discuss more though as that is one persons opinion.

[lottiegreen56]

I’m about to be over 200 cruise days on Carnival at the end of the month and I don’t remember anything about a farewell party or lgbtq mixers with open bars.

[jimbo5544]

1 hour ago, Stick93 said:

 

I've tried that logic when I have been CRITICAL and some people don't want to hear it - I agree that the name is cruise CRITIC and we can be critical and speculate. I just feel this topic is emotionally charged personally to people as people do care about their status and perks. So speculating is just getting people upset about what hasn't happened yet and what may not happen. Feel free to discuss more though as that is one persons opinion.

As far as I know, everybody’s count the same.  

[jimbo5544]

56 minutes ago, lottiegreen56 said:

I’m about to be over 200 cruise days on Carnival at the end of the month and I don’t remember anything about a farewell party or lgbtq mixers with open bars.

Can only speak for the party in the last day (every cruise) you can call it farewell or return guest.  Open bar, has been that way since they changed the format.  

[Nic6318]

58 minutes ago, lottiegreen56 said:

I’m about to be over 200 cruise days on Carnival at the end of the month and I don’t remember anything about a farewell party or lgbtq mixers with open bars.

 

Hi

 

Most people missed them because they weren't very well advertised. Also, most were too busy with things like packing.

[Maraprince]

6 minutes ago, Nic6318 said:

 

Hi

 

Most people missed them because they weren't very well advertised. Also, most were too busy with things like packing.

Amen to that!  Last day/night is usually a very busy time trying to get everything done prior to dinner so you can have some free time to get that last slice of pizza and see the farewell show or a movie on deck before turning in.

 

MARAPRINCE

[sanmarcosman]

14 minutes ago, Nic6318 said:

Most people missed them because they weren't very well advertised. Also, most were too busy with things like packing.

For the same reason why Carnival gold drink coupons we received had to be used only on the last night after 5pm. I don't know if it's still this way but at the time there was much Cruise Critic discussion on the matter.

 

Platinum past guest party has been fine, certainly less crowded. 

[sanmarcosman]

1 hour ago, lottiegreen56 said:

I’m about to be over 200 cruise days on Carnival at the end of the month and I don’t remember anything about a farewell party or lgbtq mixers with open bars.

Take a look at the 5pm slot here and see Fun Farewell in the Versailles Lounge. This party was not the past guest party which took place earlier in the week. This was the last night and was open to all guests who knew what it was and attended. No invitation was needed and it had nothing to do with past guests. There were servers serving house/well brands from the bar, no food was passed and there was a live trio of musicians playing dance music. 

 

Edited August 11, 2019 by sanmarcosman

[DallasGuy75219]

1 hour ago, lottiegreen56 said:

I’m about to be over 200 cruise days on Carnival at the end of the month and I don’t remember anything about a farewell party or lgbtq mixers with open bars.

People are mixing up two different things...

 

1. On the first formal night (before it was "elegant" night) there was a Captain's Party or Captain's Celebration in the main lounge for the entire ship, including free drinks (beer, wine and watered down cocktails from tray service) and hors d'oeuvres. There were actually two separate parties (one for early MDR seating and one for late MDR seating--this was before YTD).  To cut costs, Carnival changed this to (a) a Captain''s Toast on the Promenade(?) deck with $1 off drinks and (b) the Fun Farewell party (free drinks and hors d'oeuvres) on the last full day of the cruise. 

 

The Fun Farewell party was planned to be a failure so they could eventually cut it.  It was advertised in the Fun Times (actually Capers at the time, I believe) at the beginning of the cruise and the only other mention of it was a single line in the Fun Times activity schedule on the day of.  I had a close friend on the Cruise Director's staff at the time, and he confirmed they were not allowed to advertise the party beyond that.  The party wasn't heavily attended because it wasn't well publicized or people were busy packing on the last day, so Carnival cut it with the excuse it wasn't popular or well attended.

 

The Captain''s Toast originally had $1 off drinks at Promenade deck bars for a specific time before and after the toast.  I believe that's now been cut to $1 off a specific drink (maybe champagne or bellinis).

 

2. There used to be a past guest party with free drinks and hors d'oeuvres for everyone who had cruised Carnival before.  When this got too big (or likely more expensive than Carnival wanted to spend), Red cards got cut and it became the Gold/Plat/Diamond Party.  All past guests got a free bottle of water in their cabin as a consolation to Red cards.

 

Carnival then cut it down to the Plat/Diamond party, with Golds getting a coupon for a free "appreciation" drink after 5 pm on the last full day of the cruise.

 

 

And that's the story of how two free parties with free drinks and hors d'oeuvres got cut down to what you see today.

[DallasGuy75219]

 

1 hour ago, lottiegreen56 said:

I’m about to be over 200 cruise days on Carnival at the end of the month and I don’t remember anything about a farewell party or lgbtq mixers with open bars.

 

There was no scheduled LGBT mixer (actually it would probably have been called Friends of Dorothy at the time) with open bar.  Poster was saying he/she organized his/her own LGBT mixer to coincide with the free drinks at the Fun Farewell party.

[sanmarcosman]

DW just found this from our cruise the year before in 2011 of the first night of the cruise. It happens to be on the same ship, the Spirit from San Diego. As others have recalled the Fun Times ( it does not say Carnival Capers but Fun Times ) had a small note in the " Looking Ahead " section announcing the Fun Farewell. There were no PA announcements or further written reminders that we can find in the Fun Times for that week. It was a stealthy event for sure. You'll see they didn't even list the time and location! Some looking ahead, huh? 😉

 

The note reads: Join your fellow shipmates for a fun farewell get together on the last day. Complimentary cocktails will be served to show our gratitude and appreciation to you, our guests. 

 

 

Edited August 11, 2019 by sanmarcosman

[cruisequeen4ever]

We will be going on our second Carnival Cruise next summer; we are Elite on Princess. Our first Carnival Cruise was a 4 day in college, and my husband still associates Carnival with a fun party with lots of free drinks. Our group had a blast at it, and yes, the rest of the night was full of cheer. Our group photo reflects this. 🤦‍♀️ Anyway, I’ve now learned that was the Captain’s Party, since we weren’t past pax at the time. Either way, I know my husband and I would be happy to attend a past passenger party next summer if Carnival brings it back. I do understand the high numbers of people issue; that’s why Princess has limited its parties to Platinum and Elites only. They do still give a free drink voucher to ALL lower level past pax, though, which I think is very nice. 

[DallasGuy75219]

18 minutes ago, cruisequeen4ever said:

Either way, I know my husband and I would be happy to attend a past passenger party next summer if Carnival brings it back.

That ship has sailed, a long time ago.  Carnival has consistently been cutting costs (including staffing to bare bones) and perks and repackaging things that used to be free as "new" pay-for options. At best, most of their changes are cost-neutral.

 

Free drinks for the whole ship or all past guests won't be coming back.

Edited August 11, 2019 by DallasGuy75219

[jimbo5544]

5 hours ago, DallasGuy75219 said:

People are mixing up two different things...

 

1. On the first formal night (before it was "elegant" night) there was a Captain's Party or Captain's Celebration in the main lounge for the entire ship, including free drinks (beer, wine and watered down cocktails from tray service) and hors d'oeuvres. There were actually two separate parties (one for early MDR seating and one for late MDR seating--this was before YTD).  To cut costs, Carnival changed this to (a) a Captain''s Toast on the Promenade(?) deck with $1 off drinks and (b) the Fun Farewell party (free drinks and hors d'oeuvres) on the last full day of the cruise. 

 

The Fun Farewell party was planned to be a failure so they could eventually cut it.  It was advertised in the Fun Times (actually Capers at the time, I believe) at the beginning of the cruise and the only other mention of it was a single line in the Fun Times activity schedule on the day of.  I had a close friend on the Cruise Director's staff at the time, and he confirmed they were not allowed to advertise the party beyond that.  The party wasn't heavily attended because it wasn't well publicized or people were busy packing on the last day, so Carnival cut it with the excuse it wasn't popular or well attended.

 

The Captain''s Toast originally had $1 off drinks at Promenade deck bars for a specific time before and after the toast.  I believe that's now been cut to $1 off a specific drink (maybe champagne or bellinis).

 

2. There used to be a past guest party with free drinks and hors d'oeuvres for everyone who had cruised Carnival before.  When this got too big (or likely more expensive than Carnival wanted to spend), Red cards got cut and it became the Gold/Plat/Diamond Party.  All past guests got a free bottle of water in their cabin as a consolation to Red cards.

 

Carnival then cut it down to the Plat/Diamond party, with Golds getting a coupon for a free "appreciation" drink after 5 pm on the last full day of the cruise.

 

 

And that's the story of how two free parties with free drinks and hors d'oeuvres got cut down to what you see today.

Lol, you are funny..you are kidding right?  They made a change to a program so that they could eventually cut it?  Why in heavens name why would they do that?  I just love these conspiracy stories.....Area 51 is coming up next...wait they will cut it when the ships go thru the Bermuda triangle....  If they wanted to cut the program, they would cut the program.  They made the change because the vast majority of the ship was going to a party and it was untenable, pure and simple, not as sexy as the word cutback tho......

[jimbo5544]

4 hours ago, DallasGuy75219 said:

That ship has sailed, a long time ago.  Carnival has consistently been cutting costs (including staffing to bare bones) and perks and repackaging things that used to be free as "new" pay-for options. At best, most of their changes are cost-neutral.

 

Free drinks for the whole ship or all past guests won't be coming back.

All cruise ships are cutting costs...the operative word is all, we can like it or not or blame Carnival or not.  We can agree that free drinks for the whole ship is not moving back.  As a stock holder, I agree with that, as someone who has sailed almost 40 cruises on Carnival, it feels right as well.  You may disagree, but we can agree it will not happen again.  The recognition should be for their most loyal clients, not anyone who has sailed with them before......

Edited August 12, 2019 by jimbo5544

[DallasGuy75219]

46 minutes ago, jimbo5544 said:

Lol, you are funny..you are kidding right?  They made a change to a program so that they could eventually cut it?  Why in heavens name why would they do that?  I just love these conspiracy stories.....Area 51 is coming up next...wait they will cut it when the ships go thru the Bermuda triangle....  If they wanted to cut the program, they would cut the program.  They made the change because the vast majority of the ship was going to a party and it was untenable, pure and simple, not as sexy as the word cutback tho......

The Fun Farewell party was an interim step to appease complaints about the Captain's Party going away.  It was designed to fail, so that low attendance could be cited as the reason for getting rid of it.

 

The ones I attended had fewer than 100 people.  If they had advertised it like Gold by the Inch, BINGO, or the Spa, do you seriously think 95% of the ship would skip a party with free drinks?

[sanmarcosman]

Jim - Read what I posted and the printed announcements. Dallas is right, it was not promoted well at all. The first night " looking ahead " doesn't even say what DAY of the cruise it will occur! The day of the event there's a small listing that doesn't repeat any of the verbiage from the " looking ahead " notice of the first night of the cruise. Ask yourself why didn't Carnival insist the Cruise Directors make PA announcements to drum up interest and promote the event.

Does that look and sound like full transparency to you? For years here people have agreed almost as one to say it was planned to die all along so Carnival could say " See? We did something nice for you and nobody came. " It does sound odd but I sincerely believe based on my personal experience this was the case....................................................

Edited August 12, 2019 by sanmarcosman

[jimbo5544]

6 minutes ago, DallasGuy75219 said:

The Fun Farewell party was an interim step to appease complaints about the Captain's Party going away.  It was designed to fail, so that low attendance could be cited as the reason for getting rid of it.

 

The ones I attended had fewer than 100 people.  If they had advertised it like Gold by the Inch, BINGO, or the Spa, do you seriously think 95% of the ship would skip a party with free drinks?

The design to fail is your view, mine is they made a untenable program real.  Of course they would go, that does not make it the right thing to do.  

[jimbo5544]

3 minutes ago, sanmarcosman said:

Jim - Read what I posted and the printed announcements. Dallas is right, it was not promoted well at all. The first night " looking ahead " doesn't even say what DAY of the cruise it will occur! The day of the event there's a small listing that doesn't repeat any of the verbiage from the " looking ahead " notice of the first night of the cruise. Ask yourself why didn't Carnival insist the Cruise Directors make PA announcements to drum up interest and promote the event.

Does that look like and sound like full transparency to you? For years here people have agreed almost as one to say it was planned to die all along so Carnival could say " See? We did something nice for you and nobody came. " It does sound odd but I sincerely believe based on my personal experience this was the case....................................................

You get a printed invasion to the event the day before.  Sounds good enough to me.

[sanmarcosman]

3 minutes ago, jimbo5544 said:

You get a printed invasion to the event the day before.  Sounds good enough to me.

Invasion ? There wasn't even an invitation saying what day, time and location the party would take place! Stop chewing this bone. Carnival dropped it just as they knew they would. It's no disgrace, but let's not pretend it didn't happen the way it did. ( no ellipse ) 😉

Edited August 12, 2019 by sanmarcosman