GOOD things about Victory?

[Bothell]

Hello

4 weeks from today we go on our very first cruise and it is on the Victory, Western itinerary. I really am wondering if we have chose the wrong boat? The reviews are getting pretty bad recently.

 

There are 6 traveling (3 oceanview rooms) and I am paying for everyone and really dont want to come away regretting spending this much money if the ship and service stinks..........and from reading here it sounds like I have a good chance that might be the case.

I do have one thing going for me, I have nothing to compare it to! (Although we always stay in nice resorts on our tropical vacations and so I am very accustomed to great service, clean and nice surroundings, and pampering)

 

I never even investigated the boat, just looked at the ports and picked this cruise due to the ports (mainly due to Cozumel and how long we were there, then after booking Cozumel was changed to Costa Maya) now I wish I would have investigated the boat better. I booked this in December kinda on a whim...DH finally agreed to a cruise, I looked and booked within the hour just so he could not change his mind! :)

 

So are there any GOOD things about the Victory that I can start reading up about to ease my worries that I may have chose the wrong boat?

 

Thanks!

Lisa

[caprcorn28]

We are going in 8 weeks - and I am not worried at ALL!!! (I have cruised many times before, just not on the Victory.)

 

First thing is, there has been an exhorbantant amount of people lately, it seems, coming on just to start trouble. Full moons and New moons and Friday the 13th's seem to have brought them out in droves.

 

Secondly, what people post is their opinion (as this is mine) and take it with a grain of salt. Everyone sees everything differently. Some of the people that have recently come to back to talk about the Victory weren't "excited" about it to begin with (from things that they worried about before the cruise in various posts)...so they may have gone looking for bad things. NO cruise/vacation will be perfect. Not yours in four weeks, not mine in eight. But roll with the punches, don't let the little things bug you...and you will have fun if you want to have fun!!

 

Thirdly, realize that there is a certain amount of things that WILL happen that Carnival or the Victory ship itself cannot control. For instance, weather. A lot of people will come back and complain that it rained for five of the seven days and they "...will never sail with Carnival again..." Whatever. Weather will control if you will stop at some ports sometimes due to safety reasons of not being able to dock or tender you in. Not Carnivals fault. It's just the way that it is.

 

Some of the BEST advice that I read on here recently from a member (I am sorry that I can't credit them appropriately - but it was GREAT advice): Think of the ship as the destination, and the ports are just bonuses. Sure, it is disappointing if you miss a port, but the ships just can't pull in to another port like if it was a parking lot. They will accomodate you the very best that they can!

 

As for Cozumel. I know, I was initially disappointed too when it got changed to Costa Maya. I was looking forward to a LONG day in Coz...but Hurricane Wilma had other plans for us!! Costa Maya, from what I have been reading on the Ports of Call boards, sounds like a really fun place!!! I can't wait to go!! We have known about it getting changed to Costa Maya for months now, you would have had time to cancel if it was before the final payment date...but I am sure that it will be great and you'll probably have a lot of fun there!!

 

Fourth, go with the intention of having a good time!! Don't look for the negatives. You are on vacation, not at home cooking, cleaning, battling traffic on the way to work...etc! If you see that there is worn out carpeting in the hall, who cares. Doesn't ruin your vacation. It's worn carpeting (one of my favorite complaints of people that complain about their cruises...SO?? Worn carpeting...don't come to my house then!! LOL!). If your room steward stinks - report that to the pursurs desk and adjust your tip appropriately. One of the biggest complaints about the ship that I have seen....long buffet lines. Hmmm...there is only 3000 people to feed, I would expect there to be something of a line. Those are probably the same people complaining about lines at the mall and post office at Christmas time. Pretty logical to me....Just go and have a great time!!!

 

Last few things....there are a TON of good things on here about the Victory. Just go to the top of the main Carnival board and click on the Search button and do a search for it. Friends of ours have been on the Victory and had a fabulous time. There were a few glitches on their cruise, but overall it was great and had nothing to do with the ship/cruiseline...there's just stuff that happens. And reviews are only really reviews IF they are balanced with the GOOD and the BAD...It's ok to report bad as long as it is a thing that can be controlled, fixed, something to know ahead of time to be avoided, etc!! Balance is the key to something really being a review.

 

Unfortunately, last year while on a land based vacation...I had a horrible time!!! I won't go in to the whole thing...but my attitude definitely did NOT help matters with the fun to be had or not!! (I am having this vacation as a "make up" vacation!! LOL)

 

Sorry so long....I hope that you have a FABULOUS cruise!! :D

[jordanaire]

We sailed aboard the Victory last April and had a wonderful time! We had absolutely no complaints whatsoever about the ship, crew or activities! The ship is in great condition, the crew is outstanding, especially Asst CD Matt and "Mr. Verbalicious".

 

It seems like we hardly ever read great things about the Victory before we sailed on her, but the cruise couldn't have been any better. So don't worry.. you will have a blast!

 

:cool: Bill

[Donna573]

We sailed the Victory in December 2005 and had a great time. The ship is absolutely gorgeous and I really cannot recall us having any problems or complaints. The food, staff and service always met our expectations. The Victory is a huge ship (3,000+) passengers, so be prepared for the crowds (and lines) during peak hours. Other than that, we had a wonderful vacation. We look forward to cruising on the Victory in the near future.

 

Hope this helps to ease your fears. When reading these reviews, I find it helpful to always keep an open mind. Out of the thousands of cruise ship passengers that sail every year, there are always going to be those "few" people that had a miserable time.

 

Have a great time!!

 

Donna :D

[TinaJ04463]

We sailed on the Victory in April 2004, and had a grand time. First day out, the wind was horrible, and the ship rocked terribly. Did it bother us? No, we just had another drink to counteract the staggering we were already doing! The ship is huge, we had a hard time finding the dining room almost every nite. A pain you say? Well everyone at our table was part of our group and we all knew the situation, so no big deal. My hubby lost his book down beside the bed, so he pulled it out and found someone's thong, tossed it in the trash and washed his hands, we laughed our butts off! So, something got missed, not a big deal. Every look under your bed at home???

The ship was clean, the crew friendly, the food was as good as any I've ever had, and different from the norm for us. We ignored the chair hogs, did our own thing, and we had a great time.

One of the highlights for us was sitting on the Lido deck second formal nite, someone had a boom box playing salsa really loud, we sat at the bar and watched a couple dancing, it was just very cool. The bar man showed us magic tricks and convinced us to try a new drink-bushwackers, mmmm boy!

I can hardly wait for our Conquest adventure next year!

Tina

[maurick]

Been on this ship at least 5 times. Latest was cruise to nowhere last June. Had a great time and food was wonderful. Love the 24hour pizza. Like others said its what you make of it Enjoy yoursefl!

[Bothell]

OK, thank you all for the grand reviews....makes me a tad more at ease. I am so looking forward to this! 28 days and counting!

[CrazieNCruisingGypsy2]

I'll be on the Victory a week from today! I'll try to remember to pick up my 'thong'! ;)

[caprcorn28]

My hubby lost his book down beside the bed, so he pulled it out and found someone's thong, tossed it in the trash and washed his hands, we laughed our butts off! So, something got missed, not a big deal. Every look under your bed at home???

 

:D ROTFLMAO!!!!!!!:D and then a bit of a {sHuDdEr!!} Toooo funny!!!

 

~yeah, and unfortunately I have recently had to look under/move the bed at home...I painted in my bedroom...the dust bunny population under there was frightening! ~

[caprcorn28]

I'll be on the Victory a week from today! I'll try to remember to pick up my 'thong'! ;)

 

Are you all packed and ready to go?!?!? :D I'll be waving to you next week!! (Two weeks in a row now I have watched the Victory leave the pier!!!)

 

Have a FABULOUS vacation!!!

[VentureMan_2000]

I wouldn't put any credence in the nagative reviews. Let's put it in perspective:

About 150,000 people cruise the Victory a year... and only 30 or 40 people post their reviews. I would trust the views of the 150,000 people that put their money where their mouth is... and keep coming back.

 

The folks who post negative reviews are a bit off the edge, in my opinion. They are not easily pleased it appears, and generally look at life through a half empty glass... never full.

 

It appears that anything that goes wrong on their cruise is someone elses fault, never their own.

 

I'm on the Victory in 3 1/2 months and can't wait. Party time...:D

[Marco56]

I have taken my family on vacation cruises the last three years. All during the month of May and all on the Victory. My family and friends refuse to cruise another ship. They really believe the Victory is their ship. We love everything about it especially the crew and service. I explained to them that last year the Valor was a brand new ship and had only been in service a month. They wanted no part of it. Victory is what we know and love!!!

[CrazieNCruisingGypsy2]

Are you all packed and ready to go?!?!? :D I'll be waving to you next week!! (Two weeks in a row now I have watched the Victory leave the pier!!!)

 

Have a FABULOUS vacation!!!

 

Let's try this one more time! I might be double posting at this point though!

 

I almost done packing! I have to pick things up from the cleaners Tuesday. I almost forgot to pack a bathing suit! :eek:

 

And I'll be waving back at you! I've given my whole family the link and I'm gonna be calling them when we leave!

[laura1960]

Don't worry, the Victory is a beautiful ship - there's not a thing wrong with her! We sailed on the Victory Jan 1-8 and really and truly had a blast. I wrote a review here:

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=278749

 

I did mention a few negatives - i.e., the hypnotist, and the overhead sounds of the chairs, but really, they weren't a problem at all. I'm not going to pout about a "ruined" vacation just because I didn't like one entertainer, or heard noise from other passengers, or found that we weren't the only passengers on the ship in the buffet lines.

Every Carnival ship I've been on...the Ecstasy, the Elation, and the Victory - has had negative reviews. After sailing each of these fine ships, I was pleasantly surprised!

You and your sailing party will be fine! Happy cruising!

 

Laura

[PaulMedik]

Bothell:

 

We sailed the Victory this past June. (Myself, Dw, DS10, DS7, DS4) We had a balcony room on the Panaroma deck that we all five found to be spacious enough.

 

The only negative thing I can say about our experience was our room steward wasn't satisfactory. I won't bore you with details but the main thing is that I'd sail Victory again in a heartbeat even if I knew I'd have the same room steward.:) I wouldn't tip him up front and I wouldn't tip him additionally during the week because it proved futile in his case. Other people who cruised when we did had excellent service from their stewards and I'm sure ours was an isolated case.

 

I did not see areas of worn carpet or chairs in need of reupholstering. I did pay attention to the structural areas of the ship and saw evidence of care and attention and no evidence of neglect. I also observed the crew and maintenance staff meticulously inspecting the ship all over the place.

 

Relax and have a good time on your cruise. The Victory is in fine shape regardless of her age.

[*CruiseFan*]

The LINES SUCK. That was my main complaint. We didn't like our waiter at dinner and the Matre'd (sp?) was obnoxious but other than that we had a FABULOUS time.

 

The shows are great, the piano bar is SO much fun, and the service everywhere else was fab. Our room steward we didn't see much but our room was always made up. He didn't do many towel animals, haha - funny how that sticks out!

 

It was great though - we were actually on the same cruise as PaulMedik (didn't get to meet though!) and his review versus mine just goes to show it's all about who you're getting the service from!

[ship99]

Thanks so much for all the positive comments about the Victory. We are traveling aboard April 2-9, Eastern Caribbean and very much looking forward to it. I've read some of the negative reviews and was nervous until now. I'm looking forward to some more reviews from the soon to be cruisers. :D

[ship99]

Thanks for the positive comments about the Victory, we will be aboard April 2-9, Eastern Caribbean and looking forward to it. The Negative reviews have caused me to be a little nervous. I'm looking forward to the reviews from the soon to be cruisers. :D

[deadbug]

The first cruise is always a magical experience that it hard to duplicate! Relax! Sun, fun, food, friends! Ex[plore the entire ship your first day out. Get a chair by the main pool early in the AM. Be one of the first on the ship and go right to the Lido deck, have some food and relax while everyone else is in line for a long time..... We are leaving on the Victory on 2/12 and can not wait!

[kelz66]

The Victory is a fantastic ship!

 

The wife and I had a blast last June!

 

I would not hesitate to book on her again!

:D

[olen70]

Leaving 2-12 also, Absolutely can't wait. This will be my third cruise with carnival and have had 2 positive experiences so far.

[pstow]

The folks who post negative reviews are a bit off the edge, in my opinion. They are not easily pleased it appears, and generally look at life through a half empty glass... never full.

 

It appears that anything that goes wrong on their cruise is someone elses fault, never their own.

 

I'm on the Victory in 3 1/2 months and can't wait. Party time...:D

 

yes i did post a negative review in another topic about Victory, and this is what I said::

My experience on the Victory was bad.. sorry to say.. we sailed back in Dec. 2005 and was bad from day one.. my handle was broken off my luggage , so therefore it sat down at the info desk with no ID on it so they did not know where to take it., then my cabin was so hot, we couldnt hardly sleep, and they had no fans to give us. we had an inside cabin and my son had a balcony,, and they actually had the nerve to tell us to change rooms with my son.. (NOT). that was really uncalled for.they kept telling us that 74 degrees in that room was ok..(they didnt have to sleep in it) ALso the room was right over the lounge where that had shows at night.. I think you could hear it better in our room than actually being in the lounge, then we called for room service one night, and 2 hours later , no room service, so at 1 in the morning we called and told them to cancel room service, well after 5 mins. there they were knocking at the door with our food,. service in the dinning room for breakfast was terrible,,had to flag someone down to get refills on coffee and juice. There were so many people on board complaing about things on the ship,, One lady said when she came back from dinner , her balcony door was open and she called secruity to check it out, it took 45 mins for them to get there..(now it's not like they had to drive from somewhere to get there) we also had problems with our toilet and so did my son in his room..guess it was just a bad week for them.. Hope yours is better:

 

 

no i am not off the edge and none of these things were my fault,i didnt ask to be put in a room where the air didnt work, nor did i ask my luggage to be destoryed or for room service to be 2 hours late.. i was only telling my experience on the victory,, i am not a hard person to please and i dont normally compain about things. i ususally just let things go. but some things cant be ignored..I thought this board was for everyone's opinions not just the good reviews

[Caribbean Dad1]

ship99

 

Victory is a beautiful ship. When we sailed, the crew was fantastic. Keep in mind, just as with anything else in life, a cruise is what you make of it. If you go in with a negative or cautious attitude, it is more likely that you will make yourself have a bad time. If you go in with a positive attitude prepared to roll with the punches, in all likelihood, you’ll have a blast.

 

Things to keep in mind:

 

Victory is a BIG ship. Go to Carnival.com, click “Fun Ships”, click “Carnival Victory”, then click “Deck Plans”, and get to know her before you go. The one mistake we made was not doing this before our trip, and it took 2 or 3 days to get used to her layout.

 

You will be going during Spring Break, so be prepared for lines at the buffet, especially at noon. To avoid this, all you have to do is choose to either eat a little early, or wait until after the lines die down. The food will still be fresh and hot.

 

Relax and have fun. Remember, you’re on vacation.

 

It’s too bad that pstow had such a bad time, but take it with a grain of salt. Even though his/her(?) complaints are legitimate, it seems like Christmas cruises have a greater chance of turning into a train wreck, which is ironic because they are also usually the most expensive. :eek:

 

So go into it with an open mind. You’ll likely have the time of your life.

[Caribbean Dad1]

I thought this board was for everyone's opinions not just the good reviews

 

Of course your opinion is welcome and I’m sorry you had such a rough time. Unfortunately when sailing on a ship that houses enough people to constitute a small city, things can and do go wrong. What’s worse is the fact that problem seem to become amplified on cruises around Christmas. If you where to give it another shot at a different time of year, I’d be willing to bet that you would have a completely different and most likely wonderful experience.

 

I'll be on the Victory a week from today! I'll try to remember to pick up my 'thong'!

 

Don't forget the Crisco and Twister either. ;) :p :D

[CrazieNCruisingGypsy2]

Don't forget the Crisco and Twister either. ;) :p :D

 

Already packed! ;) How did I know this comment would bring you out again?!