Just got on the Pride and not impressed so far

[Eli_6]

Day 1 of our UK cruise on the Pride.  We have been having an amazing trip in Europe leading up to this.  We have been here for a week and just boarded.  So far, the cruise part of our trip has been a pretty big let down.  I know Carnival isn't responsible for the problems in Dover, but there us plenty of other things they are responsible for. As we were walking the mile to the port, we were passing departing passengers.  Almost without exception, they were talking about how awful their experience was.  Some of them saying it took 5 hours to get off the boat at one port. One lady said she sat on a bus on a CCL excursion for 6 hours. 

 

When we finally got there, we were directed to some sort of barn/garage like building that was not a terminal.   They kept us in that hot holding tank (seemed a bit like a garage)  with no chairs for about two hours at the port past when boarding was supposed to have boarded. 

 

Once boarding started, hours late, it was a mad house. There was basically no priority and just a free for all.  They never even looked at or asked for our negative tests, etc.  One platinum guy almost got in a fight with a suite guest trying to board before him. 

 

Once on board, things weren't much better. The doors between our connecting rooms were locked and they could not find the key.  So, spending $$$ for a vista suite adjoining to an aft balcony to get the adjoining rooms was pointless.  Can't get sangria because they have no fruit.  Can't get fruit because they have no fruit.  Several other things we always look forward to on Carnival they don't have (like red frog happy hour) because "this is Europe not America."  For the first time EVER I have encountered not only one but several rude staff.  I was screamed at by one of the spa personnel.  The lines at guest services are soooo long so if you have anything to take care if, plan on half your day.  The suites/plat/dia line was longer than the regular one. My kids can't swim because the swimming pools are freezing and the one and only spa open to kids had about 40 adults in it...meanwhile the one at the gym was empty but it is 18 and up.  My Guy's Burger was cold.  My dinner thus far has been cold. And the previous posters discussing the ships condition were not wrong.  

 

Our cruise in May on the Splendor was fantastic.   So far, this has not been. And it stinks even more when you have flown halfway around the world for this and looked forward to it for 3 years. 

 

 

Edited July 22, 2022 by Eli_6

[tallnthensome]

Yikes! That's awful! Sorry to hear that and it makes me nervous as I'm booked for Europe on her for next August . Keep us updated if conditions improve. How long is your cruise ? 

[mz-s]

I hate to hear this - especially the rude crew. I know you were looking forward to this trip as I recall seeing your username in other posts here. I hope it turns around quickly for you.

[pe4all]

Hope things will settle down and smooth out for the rest of your cruise.  Can't get much worse than the poor start you have had.

[csm5986142]

Very interesting - thank you for posting.

Not to make excuses, because I would be frustrated too, but unfortunately I think CCL is having a hard time getting back up to speed (much like many of my local venues).  It's hard to hire enough staff and the ones they do have, they are holding over/extending contracts, so I imagine they are exhausted (from being short-staffed) and ready to just go home.

We had a terrible embarkation in San Francisco recently and we heard the terminal staff saying they were sent up from southern California (staff shortage over a holiday weekend) and none of them were familiar with the port or procedures (I felt bad for them because it was just chaos at one point).

I'm afraid things are going to be like this for a bit longer.  More and more people are traveling again, but they still need to get the staffing and supply chain issues get worked out.

[ninjacat123]

30 minutes ago, ThaNectar said:

Moral of the story... Stay in the USA

The OP did say:

Day 1 of our UK cruise on the Pride.  We have been having an amazing trip in Europe leading up to this.  We have been here for a week and just boarded.

 

So it seems it's not about staying away from places outside of the US, just Carnival issues.  I hope it gets worked out.

[cyntil8ing]

Sorry to hear this. I hope things improve for you.

 

We will be boarding next cruise. 

[lazydayz]

Op, hang in there and I truly hope things turn around soon.  

 

Like you, we have had some great cruises since the restart.   

 

While there are staff shortages and supply chain issues, that should not be an excuse.  You paid dearly for this cruise, and travelled a long distance for it.  They need to figure out how to get you connecting rooms and how to serve you warm food.  Crazy.  

 

We are booked on this ship for NYE, and I am having my doubts about it.  

[jimbo5544]

13 minutes ago, lazydayz said:

Op, hang in there and I truly hope things turn around soon.  

 

Like you, we have had some great cruises since the restart.   

 

While there are staff shortages and supply chain issues, that should not be an excuse.  You paid dearly for this cruise, and travelled a long distance for it.  They need to figure out how to get you connecting rooms and how to serve you warm food.  Crazy.  

 

We are booked on this ship for NYE, and I am having my doubts about it.  

Staff shortages and supply constraints seem like pretty good reasons to me, regardless of how dearly anybody’s money is (not wven sure what the heck that means.  
 

how long have you had your doubts?

[chengkp75]

1 hour ago, Eli_6 said:

The doors between our connecting rooms were locked and they could not find the key.

This is BS.  The Staff Captain will have a full set of every hard key on the ship, and the Carpenters have a key making machine to duplicate the one he has.  Get on the Hotel Director, or Staff Captain directly.

[lazydayz]

4 minutes ago, jimbo5544 said:

Staff shortages and supply constraints seem like pretty good reasons to me, regardless of how dearly anybody’s money is (not wven sure what the heck that means.  
 

how long have you had your doubts?

 

There is a long thread on the Pride in Europe, which raised doubts about the ship and the crew.  I have had my doubts for a while.  

 

We have done two Mardi Gras cruises this year and they have been fantastic.  Could be the newness of the ship and that Carnival picks its best crew members for its new ships.  So that has made us leery of the older ships. However, we went on the Liberty recently and liked the vibe.  I am trying to hang in there with the Pride as the Port of Tampa is 15 minutes away from my house and I love being at sea on NYE.  Decisions, decisions. 

[Drazil65]

Sorry to hear this as I know you were very excited about this cruise.  We will be in UK next May for 8 day vacation and have tossed around adding a cruise on to that.  DH on the fence cuz we have another cruise booked for this year and then one later next year. He said he is open to talking about it but your review is the 3rd one (in last month) that has not had a great experience with cruising CCL in UK. 

 

We are also looking at cruising from elsewhere in Europe in 2024 so maybe we will stick with that plan for now.  Hopefully things will get better on this cruise for you, soon!

[Velvetwater]

Just wanted to weigh in on this as a Brit who knows that port well and has sailed out of it on the pride's sister a few years back. That cruise was truly stunning. Baltic cruise.

 

Most of your points would completely annoy me too but I'm just going to pick up a few points.

 

1) Dover is rarely used as an actual cruise port and is mainly used as a channel crossing port. It doesn't really have a proper terminal due to this and in U.K.terms isn't really close to London. Disney and cruise lines that were too late/too cheap to book Southampton use it. It's an awful dump of a town only known for its continental links and white cliffs.

 

2) Of course the drinking offers are different. It's Europe. I don't see why this is a thing. However, if your cruise is anything like my ones in Europe then you can bring as much booze back into the ship as you want.

 

3) I have found a large amount of diamond and platinum cruisers on both my long Europe Carnival cruises and my unusual long Panama one. All 3 of these had over half of the cruisers as this. This will equal longer priority lines.

 

4) Today has been milder than UK summer weather after our heatwave. However, many many Europeans would have no worries swimming in none heated pools this time of year. I can remember our Baltic cruise on the Legend and floating about in the pool along with the Italians and Russians and my fellow countrymen while US folk looked on. This was our sea day on the way to Copenhagen. If you want to swim in northern Europe you gotta brace for colder water.

 

 

 

 

Edited July 22, 2022 by Velvetwater

[bgrmini]

2 hours ago, Eli_6 said:

Day 1 of our UK cruise on the Pride.  We have been having an amazing trip in Europe leading up to this.  We have been here for a week and just boarded.  So far, the cruise part of our trip has been a pretty big let down.  I know Carnival isn't responsible for the problems in Dover, but there us plenty of other things they are responsible for. As we were walking the mile to the port, we were passing departing passengers.  Almost without exception, they were talking about how awful their experience was.  Some of them saying it took 5 hours to get off the boat at one port. One lady said she sat on a bus on a CCL excursion for 6 hours. 

 

When we finally got there, we were directed to some sort of barn/garage like building that was not a terminal.   They kept us in that hot holding tank (seemed a bit like a garage)  with no chairs for about two hours at the port past when boarding was supposed to have boarded. 

 

Once boarding started, hours late, it was a mad house. There was basically no priority and just a free for all.  They never even looked at or asked for our negative tests, etc.  One platinum guy almost got in a fight with a suite guest trying to board before him. 

 

Once on board, things weren't much better. The doors between our connecting rooms were locked and they could not find the key.  So, spending $$$ for a vista suite adjoining to an aft balcony to get the adjoining rooms was pointless.  Can't get sangria because they have no fruit.  Can't get fruit because they have no fruit.  Several other things we always look forward to on Carnival they don't have (like red frog happy hour) because "this is Europe not America."  For the first time EVER I have encountered not only one but several rude staff.  I was screamed at by one of the spa personnel.  The lines at guest services are soooo long so if you have anything to take care if, plan on half your day.  The suites/plat/dia line was longer than the regular one. My kids can't swim because the swimming pools are freezing and the one and only spa open to kids had about 40 adults in it...meanwhile the one at the gym was empty but it is 18 and up.  My Guy's Burger was cold.  My dinner thus far has been cold. And the previous posters discussing the ships condition were not wrong.  

 

Our cruise in May on the Splendor was fantastic.   So far, this has not been. And it stinks even more when you have flown halfway around the world for this and looked forward to it for 3 years. 

 

 

 

Sorry to hear its a rough start for your cruise. I was on the ship in February, and the only issue I had was being told I had 2 drinks already and had to go to muster less than 2 minutes after boarding. Food was great, staff was attentive, and the pools were usable. Granted, the ship was in a warmer climate then, so if the pools aren't heated it's not an issue. Hopefully things improve for you.

[Cruisesfun65]

Yes, I have a friend who got off the Pride today. She had a less than pleasant cruise and claims for instance, the food was awful. Guest Services loooooong line, ship in a deteriorated state.

Being a Diamond guest and having sailed most of the fleet she was surprised by the negative experience. 

[sunonfire]

We were on the Pride at the end of January and at the end of April both cruises were great . We did not have any issues. The crew were great. Everyone was super friendly. We felt welcomed and appreciated. We have a cruise in January. I’m hoping that things will be like our last 2 cruises on the Pride. The issues seemed to have started in Europe.

[TrqoisWtrs]

1 hour ago, Velvetwater said:

However, if your cruise is anything like my ones in Europe then you can bring as much booze back into the ship as you want.

Yes, this is key lol.  That's why I never get Cheers for Europe.

 

And sorry, this doesn't help the OP, but Pride is going into drydock 4/26/2023 - 5/17/2023.  Don't know yet what will be done, but hopefully that will fix all that rust and other problems.  I'm excited since I'm cruising her in June 2023.  

[jimbo5544]

1 hour ago, Velvetwater said:

Just wanted to weigh in on this as a Brit who knows that port well and has sailed out of it on the pride's sister a few years back. That cruise was truly stunning. Baltic cruise.

 

Most of your points would completely annoy me too but I'm just going to pick up a few points.

 

1) Dover is rarely used as an actual cruise port and is mainly used as a channel crossing port. It doesn't really have a proper terminal due to this and in U.K.terms isn't really close to London. Disney and cruise lines that were too late/too cheap to book Southampton use it. It's an awful dump of a town only known for its continental links and white cliffs.

 

2) Of course the drinking offers are different. It's Europe. I don't see why this is a thing. However, if your cruise is anything like my ones in Europe then you can bring as much booze back into the ship as you want.

 

3) I have found a large amount of diamond and platinum cruisers on both my long Europe Carnival cruises and my unusual long Panama one. All 3 of these had over half of the cruisers as this. This will equal longer priority lines.

 

4) Today has been milder than UK summer weather after our heatwave. However, many many Europeans would have no worries swimming in none heated pools this time of year. I can remember our Baltic cruise on the Legend and floating about in the pool along with the Italians and Russians and my fellow countrymen while US folk looked on. This was our sea day on the way to Copenhagen. If you want to swim in northern Europe you gotta brace for colder water.

 

 

 

 

Great oost

[jimbo5544]

20 minutes ago, cruisin*tigger said:

Yes, this is key lol.  That's why I never get Cheers for Europe.

 

And sorry, this doesn't help the OP, but Pride is going into drydock 4/26/2023 - 5/17/2023.  Don't know yet what will be done, but hopefully that will fix all that rust and other problems.  I'm excited since I'm cruising her in June 2023.  

The Pride was supposed to go into dry dock that was postponed when cruisng resumed.  Not sure of the dates.  

[jimbo5544]

51 minutes ago, Cruisesfun65 said:

Yes, I have a friend who got off the Pride today. She had a less than pleasant cruise and claims for instance, the food was awful. Guest Services loooooong line, ship in a deteriorated state.

Being a Diamond guest and having sailed most of the fleet she was surprised by the negative experience. 

Done 46+ CCL cruises and with slight variations food quality, prep and taste have never varied.  I understand the op’s disappointment, that said when every single thing is terrible, it relates to the value  of my take on the cruise.  

[rjrpar]

Sorry to hear this.  We were on the Legend pre-Covid out of Dover and it was a great cruise. Carnival has not had a stellar startup and I won’t sail with them until they get their act together. 

[sanmarcosman]

3 hours ago, jimbo5544 said:

Done 46+ CCL cruises and with slight variations food quality, prep and taste have never varied.  I understand the op’s disappointment, that said when every single thing is terrible, it relates to the value  of my take on the cruise.  

Europe and the U.K. are experiencing food supply issues much as parts of the USA are seeing. Hence no fruit and the like per current news reports.

[bunnyette]

Hmm, the food for us ranged from inedible to delicious.  I always greeted all staff with a cheery hello, how are you doing?   It went a long way to turning those grumpy frowns upside down.  Before you think I’m sparkle farkle I have complaints.  The debarkation in 6/7 ports was horrible!  2 hours to get off in Reykjavik and if you needed an early tender ticket for a non carnival excursion you had to be up and in line before 6 am!  Holyhead was awful.   It took 2 hours to get to shore.  The excuse was rough seas.  Yet they weren’t!   Carnival seemed to go out of its way to punish those who wanted to see the ports independently.  People were exhausted, on one sea day there were a lot of “snoozin” signs up all day.

 

every port is worth getting off for but try to book a tour for Stornoway.   The island is lovely.

[stephen@stoneyard.co.uk]

That does not sound very good. It is very different from my experience of a well maintained ship, friendly service, good food and definitely no queues.  
Dover is a quite typical of European cruise ports. They are often converted or shared use with other types of ship. More ferry or cargo than  cruise passenger. Some are even just big tents. 
 

I wonder if the fruit delivery was stuck in the Dover traffic. We can, on the whole, get the food we want in the UK at the moment. Soft fruits particularly, and also cheap, at this time of year. We have no bacon shortage here too. 

Facilities were open and properly crewed I thought. Some events did not happen but I believe this is accords the fleet.

The weather in northern Europe even in the summer can be cold. For my cruise wet and windy also featured. Food served and eaten by the pool will go cold quickly. I wonder if they have closed the pool roof.  Ships designed for the Caribbean may not ideal here. Having a closable roof and outside decks protected by glass does make Carnival pride better than many. 

 

I have read about tendering delays. That does need resolving.  My cruise to Norway did not have any tender ports so I do not know how it would have gone. 
 

Pride was my first Carnival cruise and I was impressed by the ship, service and food. As good as many more expensive ships I have cruised on. For me it was just not formal enough.

Edited July 23, 2022 by stephen@stoneyard.co.uk

[Riles34]

Well the pools are filled from the ocean, so the temp isn't CCLs fault. As we are all aware, there is shortages everywhere in the world from product to food. As for the staff, it would take me back as I have never had a rude employee but maybe they are being over worked with the short staff? 

 

If it was me, I would make the best of it and maybe not book another cruise from that port. Try to enjoy!