Within 24 hours of Panorama's 7 day cruise, already regret it.

[mbglib]

2 hours ago, Itried4498 said:

 

The Great Vacation Guarantee was short-lived and hasn't been around for many years.  IIRC, it began circa 2013 in response to poor bookings following the so-called Poop Cruise, and was extended until 2015 after NCL or Royal matched it.  IIRC, while it began as no questions asked, toward the end you had to have experienced a problem that Carnival was unable to reasonably address.  

 

Unfortunately, such program wouldn't work in today's world.  Millennials and Gen Z (and I'm an older Millennial) live in a "deals" world where this would be marketed as "get PAID to take a 3-day cruise from Long Beach to Puerto Vallarta."  

I requested it one time when our toilet would not work and no one seemed to care after I reported it a few times.  After asking for the Great Vacation Guarantee, someone quickly appeared to fix our toilet.  🙂

[mz-s]

7 minutes ago, mbglib said:

I requested it one time when our toilet would not work and no one seemed to care after I reported it a few times.  After asking for the Great Vacation Guarantee, someone quickly appeared to fix our toilet.  🙂

 

Yeah that was my experience one time. All I had to do was utter those three words and all of a sudden they realized I was serious. It was a powerful tool. I understand why it's gone, especially now, but at the same time I wish it wasn't.

[Boatdrill]

4 hours ago, CruisingFromLA said:

Does Carnival still have the Great Vacation Guarantee? Within 24 hours of embarking, if you are not happy with the way the cruise is going, go to Guest Services and let them know. They will give you a 100% refund and get you back to the original cruise port for free (which means they will fly you back from Puerto Vallarta back to LAX). 

Um, there's a catch. If they end up flying from PV to LAX, they'll need a pre-flight negative COVID test first, to re-enter the U.S.  

[Illbcruzn4life]

3 hours ago, Itried4498 said:

 

The Great Vacation Guarantee was short-lived and hasn't been around for many years.  IIRC, it began circa 2013 in response to poor bookings following the so-called Poop Cruise, and was extended until 2015 after NCL or Royal matched it.  IIRC, while it began as no questions asked, toward the end you had to have experienced a problem that Carnival was unable to reasonably address.  

 

Unfortunately, such program wouldn't work in today's world.  Millennials and Gen Z (and I'm an older Millennial) live in a "deals" world where this would be marketed as "get PAID to take a 3-day cruise from Long Beach to Puerto Vallarta."  

according to Carnivals website the great vacation guarantee was suspended in November 2020.

The Carnival Great Vacation Guarantee | Carnival Cruise Line

[Badfinger]

5 hours ago, tallnthensome said:

I was on the Panorama a few months ago. I don't remember any restaurant open until 3AM. I also had a couple`s thermal spa pass and was never ever offered complimentary scrubs. Either you heard wrong or a worker, maybe new, made an error. Why not just enjoy the the Thermal Spa for what is important and not try to show them that you're willing to throw away a week of relaxation in there over a scrub that others were never offered..... makes me wonder. You're being petty in my opinion. 

 

I have stayed in Cloud 9 Spa Cabins many times on the Magic and Breeze.  They will give you one free scrub when you first check in at the Spa Desk for the first time.  We have never taken one.

 

[Giskard]

5 hours ago, californiatripman said:

The Panorama disembarkation was delayed because a loud mouth women got physical with staff for not letting her off with first ones off instead of waiting her turn.  Police called, arrested her and took her off the ship but it delayed everything over an hour

 

OMG So that is why port security was going up the ramp as we were going off!!! So glad we were ahead of that mayhem!

 

We got off the boat this last Saturday and we had a great time. However, compared to others we've been on we "noticed/experienced" issues we haven't had in  the past. I even had my own complaint i had to take to guest services and ended up having to cancel an excursion in PV so I could use my own data to resolve a work issue. It was not the "best" cruise but we had fun and made the most of it.

 

We found out a lot of the crew were on their first cruises and some were still in their first month. They are understaffed and being trained. However, everyone is trying their best. They work really hard to make your floating hotel/restaurant/spa/pools a wonderful place. 

 

This is not the Pre Covid world, everyone is adapting and trying to catch up. I feel for the OP because she gave up other stuff to go on the cruise, I will reiterate previous advice, make the most of it and have a great time. It doesn't take long to learn to the ship and the routines. That's part of what i like about the non mega ships. 

[LuvCruiSun]

I’m on the Panorama now and everything has been great so far. Embarkation was very organized for the early groups, but noticed people were still boarding after 4pm. I’m sure that must have been frustrating for those people. We have a Cloud 9 cabin and the spa wasn’t too crowded at 8am. I didn’t bother getting my scrub because I never used it last time. I’m wondering if the OP thought they would be getting the actual body scrub treatment?

 

We were on this ship last October and December. Both times there were about 2500 passengers. It is much more crowed this time, but it’s simply back to where it was before.

[pc_load_letter]

2 hours ago, Giskard said:

 

They are understaffed and being trained.

 

I guess I don't understand Carnivals speed in getting all their ships back up in service?

 

If they can't staff them all 100%, why put them all in service?

[ashkir]

Great news! It got immensely better later. Much more staff now in dining areas, and other areas and now effectively managing crowds. A hotel manager came by our room and a few of our neighbors to check on the cabins, and apparently our neighbors had the same issue. They double cleaned everything today and fixed it up.

 

Dinner service was excellent. Filipino waiter was very happy to be at our very Filipino table! 

 

Much better experience than yesterday. Spa manager called as well, gave us a full 100% refund and they said they'll pull the incorrect ads immediately. We walked by recently and the incorrect ad was already gone. 

[sanmarcosman]

12 hours ago, icft said:

So, she got off first? 😁

Yes and the "room" they took her to has roaches! 

[sanmarcosman]

4 hours ago, ashkir said:

Great news! It got immensely better later. Much more staff now in dining areas, and other areas and now effectively managing crowds. A hotel manager came by our room and a few of our neighbors to check on the cabins, and apparently our neighbors had the same issue. They double cleaned everything today and fixed it up.

 

Dinner service was excellent. Filipino waiter was very happy to be at our very Filipino table! 

 

Much better experience than yesterday. Spa manager called as well, gave us a full 100% refund and they said they'll pull the incorrect ads immediately. We walked by recently and the incorrect ad was already gone. 

This is an excellent response you received from management which you richly deserved. I suspect Panorama's top notch Hotel Director Lars was instrumental in correcting what he could to make your cruise a better vacation.

[CruisingWalter]

15 hours ago, ashkir said:

I know that now. The app says different. Hopefully they fix it. Last week cruisers had deli at that time. Now that’s not an offer anymore. 

 

All I can add is that on Mardi Gras the only thing open past 11pm was the Pizza del Capitano which was the only 24 hour food location on the ship. The Panini shop closed at either 11 or 12. Other than a 24 hour eatery, I've honestly never seen a full restaurant on a ship stay open past 10:30pm for new seatings. 

 

Even with the late arrival back to port, there was no excuse for them clearing your room for arrival if it had not been cleaned yet. And as someone else noted, there are roaches onboard every ship and all those plates of food left out in the hallways don't help the situation. Usually we don't see them because the ships do a good job of extermination control, but on occassion you will see one.

 

Hopefully things start to turn around for you and you're able to enjoy the rest of your cruise. It does sound like some things are getting better. Try to relax the rest of the week. 

[Eli_6]

Ugh. Hate to hear this.  We are supposed to go on her in October. Sorry you are dealing with this.

[ontheweb]

6 hours ago, ashkir said:

Great news! It got immensely better later. Much more staff now in dining areas, and other areas and now effectively managing crowds. A hotel manager came by our room and a few of our neighbors to check on the cabins, and apparently our neighbors had the same issue. They double cleaned everything today and fixed it up.

 

Dinner service was excellent. Filipino waiter was very happy to be at our very Filipino table! 

 

Much better experience than yesterday. Spa manager called as well, gave us a full 100% refund and they said they'll pull the incorrect ads immediately. We walked by recently and the incorrect ad was already gone. 

At least they are trying to make things better. Hopefully all will go well after the horrendous start to the cruise.

[ontheweb]

1 hour ago, sanmarcosman said:

Yes and the "room" they took her to has roaches! 

And she still will be getting free meals.

[JMKreno]

15 hours ago, ashkir said:

Guest services fixed the incorrect bar charges. They filed a complaint with the spa manager and apparently I’m not the only one in that line about it. Luckily I had the ad that showed they didn’t give me what is included. 
 

they said they’re aware of the app to being incorrect information and are working on fixing it. 
 

I paid full price for my cruise some time ago. Now when walking around I am noticing almost everyone had a blue card. The staff must be overwhelmed. 
 

tbis is far from my first cruise. But it’s the ONLY time I’ve ever had an issue with them. 

You mentioned you had the ad, can you scan it/take a photo and show us what it says? This would be useful for others who might run into the same problem and would also help with those who "trust, but verify" on these forums (like me). 

[baelor]

15 hours ago, jetsfan58 said:

Why do we think that those soon to be Trillionaires didn't have issues with their Amazon, Tesla, etc. companies? It's called "re-growing pains" and trying to get back to "whatever normal is going to look like" moving forward! Same thing with the Medical and Dental Industries; they are desperately seeking assistants and technicians.

 

I still say let's be thankful for Cruising resuming as we could be waiting another two more years to get back on the waters?   

No.  This is a bad take.  People should not accept roaches, subpar service, and bogus charges simply because of "growing pains" on the part of the line.  Nor should they be "thankful" for a substandard experience that they paid for.  

 

If lines are not ready to return, they should not return.  Or return in a way that allows them to provide at least adequate service.  Medical services are necessary and don't really have an option; cruising is (perhaps sadly) not and does.

 

I am also concerned by people accusing OP of lying or omitting material facts without any evidence whatsoever.  

Edited May 9, 2022 by baelor

[ontheweb]

1 hour ago, baelor said:

No.  This is a bad take.  People should not accept roaches, subpar service, and bogus charges simply because of "growing pains" on the part of the line.  Nor should they be "thankful" for a substandard experience that they paid for.  

 

If lines are not ready to return, they should not return.  Or return in a way that allows them to provide at least adequate service.  Medical services are necessary and don't really have an option; cruising is (perhaps sadly) not and does.

 

I am also concerned by people accusing OP of lying or omitting material facts without any evidence whatsoever.  

Yes, they rushed to get all their ships sailing before they had enough crew to pull that off in any acceptable manner.

[Moviela]

54 minutes ago, ontheweb said:

Yes, they rushed to get all their ships sailing before they had enough crew to pull that off in any acceptable manner.

 

I don't agree with that at all. There was no "rush" to return to sailing. It was well planned and executed. Proper staffing was in place for the reduced passenger capacity. People were hired to add to staff as capacity was allowed to increase.

 

Several adverse conditions have affected the industry that are totally out of control of Carnival. Among them machinations of government making rules about protocols for covid prevention impacting the ability to bring workers aboard. Compound this with air travel restrictions and habitual flight cancellations. A recent problem is workers are hired and fail to show up or give notice they will not be joining the crew.

 

There is also serious disruptions to getting provisions aboard the ship. Shortages of certain commodities like meat, eggs, dairy, breads, spices, liquor, paper products are common. Some items like meat even when available is not the same level of quality as before. 

 

Life as we know it is limited and difficult to know when the "fog will lift."

[pinto18]

We have sailed on the Panorama 3 times, once jan 2020 right before covid, one time in October "post" covid with half capacity and the third time last week. Honestly we did not notice much difference ..enjoyed all three . Did not notice any shortages in staff or service..maybe we are just oblivious 

[ScottsSweetie]

12 minutes ago, Moviela said:

 

I don't agree with that at all. There was no "rush" to return to sailing. It was well planned and executed. Proper staffing was in place for the reduced passenger capacity. People were hired to add to staff as capacity was allowed to increase.

 

But now that the ships are not sailing (seemingly) at that reduced capacity, the amount of staffing does not appear to be adequate. Carnival themselves have admitted staffing issues as the reason for closing the pizza place for several hours a day and ending afternoon tea on cruises less than 7 days. If they can't hire the staff then they absolutely should not increase capacity.

[UpstateCruizer]

21 hours ago, icft said:

What people remember is useless information. One of the problems apparently is that the app that they have forced everyone to use is giving bad information to the OP. The OP did not expect anything but what the app said. Are you guys now saying people should ignore the app? Apparently the app is also screwing up reservations and with people down the staircases it obviously isn't a case of the OP not knowing how to use the app.

 

I guess roaches and broken furniture in your room is the norm for some of you, but I find that unacceptable and would not consider myself "petty" for complaining. Nor would I consider it inappropriate to complain about being charged $50 in error and having to stand for two hours to get it fixed.

 

Given the litany of problems I think the OP has been very gracious. One or two things are "stuff happens" but this list is just beyond the pale.

 

In these times one expects some problems, but there is a limit beyond which complaining is totally appropriate for anyone with a spine.

 

 

We experienced issues with the hub ap not being accurate on the Magic recently. The bar  times hadn’t been updated to reflect the changes in hours open and close. Several bars closed earlier than noted on the schedule. 
 

This was also the first cruise we’ve been on where guest services closed until 9am. We found the same in the casino with their service desk. By 9am both locations had long lines. 

Edited May 9, 2022 by UpstateCruizer

[ontheweb]

4 hours ago, Moviela said:

 

I don't agree with that at all. There was no "rush" to return to sailing. It was well planned and executed. Proper staffing was in place for the reduced passenger capacity. People were hired to add to staff as capacity was allowed to increase.

 

Several adverse conditions have affected the industry that are totally out of control of Carnival. Among them machinations of government making rules about protocols for covid prevention impacting the ability to bring workers aboard. Compound this with air travel restrictions and habitual flight cancellations. A recent problem is workers are hired and fail to show up or give notice they will not be joining the crew.

 

There is also serious disruptions to getting provisions aboard the ship. Shortages of certain commodities like meat, eggs, dairy, breads, spices, liquor, paper products are common. Some items like meat even when available is not the same level of quality as before. 

 

Life as we know it is limited and difficult to know when the "fog will lift."

They are sailing all the ships now, and we were told so IN CAPITAL LETTERS. And they are having staffing problems which lead to other problems. That cannot be denied. 

 

There was a rush to sailing all the ships and at full or near full capacity when they were not ready to do that adequately.

[icft]

33 minutes ago, ontheweb said:

 

             *                    *                    *

There was a rush to sailing all the ships and at full or near full capacity when they were not ready to do that adequately.

This was well planned, so I guess that was their plan 😇

[Ilovesailaway]

30 minutes ago, ontheweb said:

They are sailing all the ships now, and we were told so IN CAPITAL LETTERS. And they are having staffing problems which lead to other problems. That cannot be denied. 

 

There was a rush to sailing all the ships and at full or near full capacity when they were not ready to do that adequately.

Staffing problems and supply problems.

Carnival is selling some pretty cheap cruises right now. A lot of people here on CC are saying they are seeing a lot of blue cards. I wonder if these first impressions are gonna harm the company more than  help? Hope the issues get sorted out and we start to see less complaints.