Disappointed in Carnival Cruise 7/11/04

[familycruise]

We just returned from the Paradise Ship, a great nonsmoking ship. We weere cruising with our 4 kids, ages 23,22,19,and 18. The best part of the cruise was eating dinner. We had a great waiter, Luna, who catered to us. As the mother, I loved being with these young adults talking and interacting with each other. The excursions were great also. The kids were disappointed that there was no easy way to meet others of ther age. There was no happy hour or any attention paid to that age group. There were many activities but none specific to this age group. I spoke to the cruise director, jeff bronson, and he said that it would be unfair to the others if there were specific activites planned for this age group. They had a lounge for 18 and over and the kids went in the first night and they would not want to dance there because of the little, ie younger, kids and their parents that were sitting there. So there were times that they did not know what to do. They had each other so I consider this lack, partly a bonus for our family. They shows, other than the 2 comedians were mediocre and bad. I would not cruise on Carnival again. They seemed to cater to young families.

[shungirl]

No offense, but since your kids are adults, they didnt need a group. I am near that age, and would feel like we would have been treated like babies if we had to have meetings arranged for us. I am real shy, and dont just go up to people to meet them, but was approached by a lot of people my age in the discos, or in line to eat etc. I cruise 3- 4 times a year, and Carnival has always had a meet and mingle the first night out. However, I have never been on the Paradise. I have heard it is not as fun as the rest of the ships...

[Beerman]

Have to agree with previous poster. Why do young adults at that age have to have things planned for them? 30 years ago I would have just been happy that my parents took me anywhere on vacation. Wasn't that fortunate. We( wife and I) can't wait to sail on Carnival. Don't people go on vacation to REEEELAAAAAAAXXXXXXXXX any more. Stress happens in everyday life, I know. Vacations IMHO is to have fun and go with the flow of things. Don't plad things!

[Beerman]

Have to agree with previous poster. Why do young adults at that age have to have things planned for them? 30 years ago I would have just been happy that my parents took me anywhere on vacation. Wasn't that fortunate. We( wife and I) can't wait to sail on Carnival. Don't people go on vacation to REEEELAAAAAAAXXXXXXXXX any more. Stress happens in everyday life, I know. Vacations IMHO is to have fun and go with the flow of things. Don't plan things ENJOOOOOOOOOOOY!

[GoinCruisin]

I'm sorry to hear you were disappointed in your cruise:( Don't take this the wrong way, but I will say that most consider people 18 and up adults so I don't think they would have anything really targeted to that group? As you said, they have a nightclub that is 18 and up... They don't have anything specific targeted to a certain age group for any of the adults, but they throw ALOT of options out there, just pick and choose what you would like to do :) As far as being able to meet people, this is our responsibility, not Carnivals... We were able to meet alot of great people but many times, we had to go up to others and just start up a conversation, or get involved in the many activities. If your children were very young, I could understand your disappointment... but they are adults and it is just my opinion, but should be out there meeting people and finding things to do on their own. Again, I am sorry you did not enjoy your cruise... :(

[hstrybuf]

I'm sorry to hear about your disappointment. It does sound as though almost everything else went well. Didn't they schedule a singles meeting? I thought most ships did that for single adults.

[Cotton]

I'm sorry to hear that you won't be trying another ship in Carnival's fleet.

 

I thought all Carnival ships had a "Singles Meet & Greet" on the first evening at sea. I've noticed this listed in the 'Capers'. Did they not take advantage of that? I've never attended one (altho I'm a solo cruiser), but I understand a lot of folks enjoy this as a way to meet others.

 

I'm surprised about the small children in the 18-and-older lounge. I've never noticed parents bringing kiddies to the lounges. I feel pretty sure I wouldn't have let them stop me from dancing....? Young folks, your children's ages, shouldn't have to have organized activities to have an enjoyable cruise.

 

Hey, maybe they actually enjoyed their sibling bonding time more than you know. Hope you all have a better cruise next time. All ships are not alike, and the Paradise at the present time seems, from most accounts, to be more staid than most. You need to give Carnival another chance.

.......A little analogy for you: I bought two fresh peaches yesterday. One was delicious, and the other was awful and had to be thrown away. Total waste of money. Point is - It won't stop me from buying peaches in the future.;)

[Cruising89143]

If this is your reason for not cruising Carnival again then you more than likely will not be on another cruise. Mass market cruise lines(Carnival, RCI, Princess and NCL) cater to families with kids now more than ever because that is where the money is but there is always plenty for one to do if they just put forth the effort. The premium lines(Celebrity and HAL) cater more to adults and are not aimed at the younger adults. Your kids are old enough that they should have been able to find something to do without the cruise line stepping in to make it happen.

[MrPete]

I have never heard of such nonsence. As a child, who didn't cruise, I had no problem meeting kids my age. At any age. I didn't need group activities to meet and greet other kids. I can only imagine what I would have experienced had I had the opprtunity to cruise with my parents.

 

As an adult, I don't have that problem either. And I watch my daughter interact with other children just the same as I did. She makes many friends.

 

The only kids she does not meet are those that are in Camp Carnival from morning to night. I have yet to send her there. I've never had the need.

[babs275]

We were on the Paradise in June with our 19 & 23 year olds. If I remember correctly the dance club allowed younger people up to 10 pm then they had to leave and the older kids could dance. Mine seemed to have a good time - more limited than land based clubs but after a day of excursions it was fine for them. I actually thought it was nice to NOT have as much - because as you said it allowed them to step out of "real life" and reconnect with each other - which is the real reason for vacationing together anyway, right? :D

 

On another note - we also had Luna and Bonni !!!! The BEST wait staff we have ever had! I loved how Luna takes the time to learn your name on the first night and no matter where you see him on the ship he addresses you by name. His dry sense of humor really made our evening meals somthing to look forward to!

[jaguar9748]

It sounds to me as though there was no Singles meet on the Paradise. If not, that is a real shame. There have been Singles meets on every ship I've been on. There's usually one the first or second night and other scheduled meets later in the week.

 

However, there are always plenty of activities for singles to meet - disco, shows, casino, etc. Sometimes it just requires overcoming that infernal shyness.

 

Don't get turned off Carnival just because of this. Folks in this age group on most ships have to expend a little effort to get to know each other. There are some singles cruises that they might want to try in the future.

 

Glad to hear that you had a nice cruise in all other aspects.

[Knights on the Beach]

I would not cruise on Carnival again. They seemed to cater to young families.

Don't tell my 65 y/o MIL; she thinks Carnival caters to HER. And my 85 y/o parents thought Carnival was catering to THEM. Come to think of it, I've always thought Carnival was catering to US (I'm 42, my DH is 44, ours sons are 20 and 12). I think you will have a very hard time finding any cruiseline that has specific activities geared only to the 18 - 23 age group. I consider my older son an adult, and he has been cruising with us since he was 12. He always has a great time on cruises (both with his family and with others his own age); it's just never been an issue for him.

[DASA]

I WENT BACK AND CHECKED YOUR OTHER POST THAT YOU MADE AND IT SAMES AS THOUGH YOUR CRUISE WAS GREAT.

IF THE ONLY PROBLEM YOU HAD WAS THAT YOUR ADULT KIDS COULDN'T FIND A PLACE TO PARTY ON THE SHIP BECAUSE THE PARADISE IS A LITTLE LESS LIVELY THAN THE OTHER CCL SHIPS, THAN THATS A POOR EXCUSE NOT TO DO CCL AGAIN.

WE HAVE BEEN A SEVERAL OF CCL SHIPS AND FIND THAT THERES A FLAW WE EACH ONE,BUT WE CONTINUE TO BE LOYAL TO CCL BECAUSE OF THE PRICE, SERVICE, FOOD AND ENTERTAINMENT THEY OFFER,

 

OUR LAST CRUISE ON THE DESTINY WAS LACKING ENTERTAINMENT TO SATISFY OUR GROUP (ages 35 to 65 ) OF 20 , BUT THAT DIDN'T STOP US FROM PARTYING ON AND MEETING OTHERS.

 

LIFE IS SHORT/TAKE A LONG CRUISE

[Jett456]

My son who is 18 is too old now for the group activities. I think it is important to have a singles night, meet and greet, etc. It doesn't have to be age restricted but it should be held so that singles of all ages can at least meet each other and if they happen to run into them again they will already be acquainted. It is much easier for some than others to socialize.

[DreadPirateRobert]

I'll ditto the others. Sorry you did not enjoy your trip. Your comments were interesting because one of the complaints I often hear about CCL is that too much is geared to younger adults.

I suppose different people focus on different things. For us and our kids (18, 19) nightlife is just a small part of the adventure. I have one son who's very social and one who is a bit of a loner. We've never sailed Paradise but on Destiny and Jubilee both found plenty to do.

I wouldn't write off CCL . If you do, at least there are plenty other choices in cruise lines. I hope you find one that meets your needs.

[finoky]

Maybe they would like the Caribbean Princess better. Reading KuSydney's review it sure does look enticing.

[voyagerfl]

They had a lounge for 18 and over and the kids went in the first night and they would not want to dance there because of the little, ie younger, kids and their parents that were sitting there.

Okay....I'm confused........if the lounge was for 18 and older........why were there younger kids sitting there ????

 

It is hard to believe that young adults 18 - 23 can't find ways to have a good time on a Carnival Ship.

Could be that traveling with over-zealous parents, but a little crimp in that

[OhioJeff]

Sounds like your kids left the disco too early the first night. As was mentioned, there is usually a few hours set aside for the younger kids to use the disco. Later on that night there was probably a singles meet n greet that your kids missed. I would think a ship in July would be fully of college age kids

[lieutenant al]

The person who initiaited this thread makes references to her children. The last time I checked, people 19 thru 23 are not children. I cruised on the Pride in August, 2003 and did not see my children (13 and 14) until past bedtime! My nephews who are YOUNG ADULTS (18 and 20) had so much fun they cannot wait until we leave on the Legend 8/3/04! They continue to exchange email from the friends that they made on the Pride.

 

Maybe if you stopped seeing your ADULT offspring as children, they would find the ability to meet and mingle on their own.

[Cotton]

The person who initiaited this thread makes references to her children. The last time I checked, people 19 thru 23 are not children. I cruised on the Pride in August, 2003 and did not see my children (13 and 14) until past bedtime! My nephews who are YOUNG ADULTS (18 and 20) had so much fun they cannot wait until we leave on the Legend 8/3/04! They continue to exchange email from the friends that they made on the Pride.

 

Maybe if you stopped seeing your ADULT offspring as children, they would find the ability to meet and mingle on their own.

Al...You are being unfair to the original poster. If you re-read her post, you will see that she did not use the term "my children" - (and even if she had, they ARE her children, and will continue to be until they cease to exist).

I believe YOU also said "my children". Doesn't matter what age - you're just nit picking, which is not necessary.

She said "our 4 kids".

She also said "As the mother, I enjoyed being with these young adults..."

 

(Mine are over 30, and I often refer to them as 'my kids' or 'the kids'...just as millions of folks do.)

[INCHARGE]

The person who initiaited this thread makes references to her children. The last time I checked, people 19 thru 23 are not children. I cruised on the Pride in August, 2003 and did not see my children (13 and 14) until past bedtime! My nephews who are YOUNG ADULTS (18 and 20) had so much fun they cannot wait until we leave on the Legend 8/3/04! They continue to exchange email from the friends that they made on the Pride.

 

Maybe if you stopped seeing your ADULT offspring as children, they would find the ability to meet and mingle on their own.

 

I have always referred to my children as "children." When someone ask me about them, they say "How old are your children?" Not "how old are your young adult offspring?" I promply reply that they are 31 & 34 years old. They all(twins 34) are married with their own families, but they will always be my children when I am referring to them, regardless of their age. My thoughts about the OP situation is that her children went too early. I have been on the Paradise twice, and they do have meet and mingle parties for the adults. I brought the video from the Paradise showing these young adults having a ball. They were playing fun dance games that required mingling. It was cute. But then again, some young people do not like discos. I am sorry they did not enjoy themselves. What does some of the other ships offer for young adults that is different from Carnival?

[serene56]

My oldest is soon to be 24 =my youngest is soon to be 20. I still call them my kids.. They can be 40 and they still willbe my kids. lol. cant imagine telling people about my young adults...lol

 

 

To the original poster-- did your kids go to the shows each night?

Midnight buffets?

[BottledRed]

My oldest is soon to be 24 =my youngest is soon to be 20. I still call them my kids.. They can be 40 and they still willbe my kids. lol. cant imagine telling people about my young adults...lol

 

 

To the original poster-- did your kids go to the shows each night?

Midnight buffets?

Yeah, I'm 28, go out to bars with my mom and I'm still her kid in conversation! :o

[basketsiam]

They had a lounge for 18 and over and the kids went in the first night and they would not want to dance there because of the little, ie younger, kids and their parents that were sitting there.

 

Being the parent of a 7 year-old that simply loves Camp Carnival, I'm going to take a guess at what your kids saw. On the first night there is a Bon Voyage party for Camp Carnival in the disco, usually about 7:30 or 8:00 (if I remember correctly). Parents bring their kids to sign them up for Camp Carnival, and then they have a dance party with Funship Freddie to get the kids used to the camp counselors. Parents and kids usually get to the disco and sit around until it actually starts. I'm curious.....Did the capers state what was supposed to be going on in the disco at the time your kids were there???????? I think the party for the young kids is over about 9 or 9:30.

[cmitch9999]

We have cruised about 10 times with our kids , oldest is now 22, also have her cousins 23 and 25. No way would these adults want to join in any special organized activities. They do go to the disco in the evenings and have been known to close it down when the disco is finally closed for the evening... or early morning!!! they usually do meet other young adults to hang out with.

 

Chris Mitchell