Carnival Victory

[carabou1]

I know this is not going to sit well with many of you but we experienced our fourth cruise with Carnival on the July 5th sailing and it will be our last.

 

We really gave it a shot, but have decided it's just not worth it.

 

 

The food was only average with many nights the meat being really tough. Our waiter was wonderful, our room steward was awful. Our cat. 11 stateroom was dirty and never improved the whole cruise, even after complaining.

 

It was not an inexpensive cruise and I believe we would have dome better on any other cruise line and will do so in the future.

[Travel Angel]

I know this is not going to sit well with many of you but we experienced our fourth cruise with Carnival on the July 5th sailing and it will be our last.

 

We really gave it a shot, but have decided it's just not worth it.

 

 

The food was only average with many nights the meat being really tough. Our waiter was wonderful, our room steward was awful. Our cat. 11 stateroom was dirty and never improved the whole cruise, even after complaining.

 

It was not an inexpensive cruise and I believe we would have dome better on any other cruise line and will do so in the future.

 

You are correct in that I am sure it will not sit well with some on this board.... but as for me I APPRECIATE the comments and opinion.... Could you go in further detail about your less than desirable experience aboard the Triumph ? I sailed on her last year and thought the ship was far below the standards thast I have experienced on other ships in the fleet.... but that being said, I will not just totally give up on them as every ship has a bad sailing now and then.

 

I think if you would try one of the newer more elegant ships i.e. Glory, Conquest, Pride or Liberty, you would find a better experience.

 

And also, it may be time to try another cruiseline i.e. Royal Caribbean or Princess.....just for a fair comparison.

 

Just my 2 cents worth and w/out flaming !!!

 

Feel free to email me at fun2cruiz@aol.com if you would rather vent privately than on the boards.

[iteach]

I appreciate your post. I am interested in hearing more about your experience. I think this is one of the ships I was looking at for next summer.

[iteach]

Oops...I was looking at the Liberty for next summer, not the Victory. I'm still interested in hearing more about your cruise though.

[Travel Angel]

Oops...I was looking at the Liberty for next summer, not the Victory. I'm still interested in hearing more about your cruise though.

 

You will LOVE the Liberty... I was on her in March and the ship is BEAUTIFUL... and to see movies at sea just kinda makes you feel like you have found a slice of heaven ! So much to do on the ship... elegant decor, great dining and a wonderful staff... makes for a great cruise and one you should consider in my eyes !

 

The only other slice of heaven I fouind was in Belize on an island called Ambergris Cay.... so beautiful that I have just purchased a 2 bedroom 2 bath oceanview condo in the pre construction phase.... retirement or investment I have found my home away from home !

[zebra36]

I think the OP has stated their case and has decided to move on. There is a lot to choose from out there and I see no reson to return to Carnival if they were unhappy with their last experience. I wish them well and hope their next cruise is a more enjoyable one.

[LHP]

4 cruises with Carnival I believe is a fair evaluation. If they do not offer the product you want, then that is why there are so many other cruise lines. I hope you find one that does!

 

Happy Cruising!

[Crusin Karen]

Appreciate you sharing this and I respect your opinion. There seems to be a lot of people that haven't been happy with Victory in the past few weeks. We were on the 7/9 sailing and I have to say, except for the terrible weather, it was just about perfect! The ship was immaculate, our cabin was super clean, our waiter was fantastic, room steward great...we thought the food in the dining room was EXCELLENT. And we have been on a lot of cruises, so have a lot to compare it with. I had the prime rib the last night. I rarely order it because I don't like fat or grizzle. So I ordered a side of grilled salmon. The prime rib the waiter put in front of me was the biggest piece of fat free, pink, tender meat I have ever seen on a plate or tasted. The salmon was very very good also.

I am not in any way dissing you or your opinion, and I am very sorry this cruise wasn't up to your expectations. Maybe we were just one of the lucky ones! I just want to put forth that there ARE some people who had an enjoyable cruise on the Victory. I am sorry you weren't one of them and hope your next cruise is better.

[crusinpsychRN]

From Travel Angel: The only other slice of heaven I fouind was in Belize on an island called Ambergris Cay.... so beautiful that I have just purchased a 2 bedroom 2 bath oceanview condo in the pre construction phase.... retirement or investment I have found my home away from home !

 

There was a show on the Travel Channel yesterday about Belize. It had a lot more to be seen than what I knew was there. Congrats!

[dlbutler5]

Bye!

[mrdood]

I know this is not going to sit well with many of you but we experienced our fourth cruise with Carnival on the July 5th sailing and it will be our last.

 

...sits fine with me, Carnival needs to be more consistent, they need a wake up call, I am not sailing with them next. I like the product and we will come back, but we are going to sail some other lines in the mean time. I am planning my next Carnival cruise, just not this year...

[JulieMcCoy]

I read a lot of reviews of the Victory before we sailed on her in March. It seems that the ship gets a lot of negative reviews on the Canadian sailings, and more positive reviews on the Caribbean sailings. Don't know why - different crews?:confused:

[LHP]

I read a lot of reviews of the Victory before we sailed on her in March. It seems that the ship gets a lot of negative reviews on the Canadian sailings, and more positive reviews on the Caribbean sailings. Don't know why - different crews?:confused:

 

That has been a question that has been asked for years. A Social Host told me that the New York run on the Victory is not a popular one among the staff and crew. Several other staff and crew have confirmed that statement.

 

Having done an Alaskan cruise, I expect our 7 day on the Victory in September to be similiar....chilly weather, older crowd, more subdued.

 

Perhaps it is a chain reaction from the weather to the passengers to the crew that continues in a vicious circle. ( I mean, the ship would have to sink for us not to have fun in the Caribbean. )

 

But fun I will have, where ever I sail!!!

[CruiseQueen13]

Sorry to hear it. Hope I am not sharing your sentiments after my 4/08 Valor sailing. I sailed Carnival once in 1990 and it was so-so at best. I find myself to be a Celebrity/Princess girl. Hope we enjoy it.

[cruisecruisecruise1234567]

I know this is not going to sit well with many of you but we experienced our fourth cruise with Carnival on the July 5th sailing and it will be our last.

 

We really gave it a shot, but have decided it's just not worth it.

 

 

The food was only average with many nights the meat being really tough. Our waiter was wonderful, our room steward was awful. Our cat. 11 stateroom was dirty and never improved the whole cruise, even after complaining.

 

It was not an inexpensive cruise and I believe we would have dome better on any other cruise line and will do so in the future.

 

I agree with you, I too have an upcoming NCL booked instead of a CCL. I found my last cruise 3 months ago was really lacking in many area's with food being one of them.I sent my meat back several times (actually 3 times in one seating) How do you confuse Medium rare with Well done?:rolleyes: 3 times? As everyone states, if you went out to a nice place to eat you would tip the same,so if I went out to a nice palce to eat and the food was not to my liking, I would send it back as I have before.

The room being dirty...one call to the floor supervisor gets something done.

I do have a CCL cruise for next April still booked.

[RatherBFishin]

Having done an Alaskan cruise, I expect our 7 day on the Victory in September to be similiar....chilly weather, older crowd, more subdued.

 

Perhaps it is a chain reaction from the weather to the passengers to the crew that continues in a vicious circle. ( I mean, the ship would have to sink for us not to have fun in the Caribbean. )

 

I don't think the crowd on the NYC to Canada itinerary in the summer is that old actually. Lots of the recent reviews that weren't positive mentioned lots of kids too. The common thread seems (to me) to be: longs lines, stressed out/depressed staff, and less than polite fellow passengers.

 

I honestly believe its more likely to be a combination of the weather, and the way the itinerary attracts people who can save a ton of money by not having to fly to get to the embarkation port. Honestly, living in Boston, it's 100% the reason why I chose it...

 

- Cheapest family vacation on a ship I could muster during school vacation.

- A venue that would specifically allow me to let my tweens to safely push their boundaries a little.

- The prospect of being very well fed (quantity wise) without having to pay attention to the bottom line of the check 3 times a day.

 

In other words, don't rule passenger demographics out of the equation. I'll even admit that I'm more likely to be part of the problem, not the solution.

[LHP]

I don't think the crowd on the NYC to Canada itinerary in the summer is that old actually. Lots of the recent reviews that weren't positive mentioned lots of kids too. The common thread seems (to me) to be: longs lines, stressed out/depressed staff, and less than polite fellow passengers.

 

I honestly believe its more likely to be a combination of the weather, and the way the itinerary attracts people who can save a ton of money by not having to fly to get to the embarkation port. Honestly, living in Boston, it's 100% the reason why I chose it...

 

- Cheapest family vacation on a ship I could muster during school vacation.

- A venue that would specifically allow me to let my tweens to safely push their boundaries a little.

- The prospect of being very well fed (quantity wise) without having to pay attention to the bottom line of the check 3 times a day.

 

In other words, don't rule passenger demographics out of the equation. I'll even admit that I'm more likely to be part of the problem, not the solution.

 

I can't speak about a summer sailing. I was referring to what I expect our September 29th cruise to be like. With school in session and it being a 7 day cruise, I don't expect a lot of kids and therefore I do expect an older crowd.

 

And I was trying to be nice and NOT mention the passenger demographics. I did not want to lump all "Northern ports" as being harder to deal with.

 

Now you be extra nice on your cruise and put a big ole smile on the staff and crew!!! :D I promise it will make a much better cruise for you as well!!

 

As a Southern gal, I like to say I am 51% Sunshine and 49% Witch....don't push it!

[lovinlife12345]

We were on the Victory for the June 21st sailing, now I am sure I just appreciated the fact we were on the ship with a group of great friends, our teenagers were home (yippee) so that added to the great itime we had. Sure there were issues but I haven't vacationed any where when there isn't a few hurdles. Room location in hotels, bad meals, delayed flights I think are all part of a typical vacation; I just figure I am fortunate enough to have a few vacations every couple years so I just brush it off. Our rooms were 3 beautiful balcony rooms on the panorama deck (upgraded) all were very clean the cabin steward was a great girl, the divider between two of the cabins was opened for some great before dinner cocktails with our friends some dinners were great a few were just okay the service in the dining room was fine we had a very young waiter who was a bit overwhelmed at times but patience is a virtue everyone has to learn. All in all we had a great time alot of laughs and a bartender in a nice quiet bar who made the best martinis ever all for 429.00 dollars a person heck I live in Jersey where 429.00 is what you spend in the city for dinner and a show for 2, all in all problems and praises it is a great value for your money!

[MarylandLady]

I'm doing the 7-day Victory to Canada for the second time in September. I did it once on the Triumph, so this will be my third trip on the 7-day out of NY. I have enjoyed both trips -- yes, we have had fog with the fog horn out in the North Atlantic, but not every minute we were at sea! The fog comes with the territory! We never worried about it -- after all we were on a cruise!

 

We do cruises to the Caribbean, too (just got off the Miracle last Saturday) and we enjoy going both places. You just have to realize that heading north means you are going to a different climate!!! We have NEVER noticed any difference in service levels or food on the northern trip.

 

On our previous trips, there were few very few kids because they were in school. We did have some older folks but they were having a good time, too! On our first trip there was a little old man travelling by himself (he must have been 90) and he was having a good time on the excursions -- he needed a little help getting on and off the bus -- but hey, I hope I'm still doing that at that age, too!

 

I'm really looking forward to this cruise -- I've loved visiting all the ports. This one goes to Saint John instead of Sydney and I haven't been there so a new port for ME!!!!

[NoPiratesPlease]

The OP's opinion of the Victory was pretty much the same as ours. Our room steward was very pleasant, as was all the staff, but the room was not very clean--Cat 12 suite, too.

 

Big pluses for us were the staff, the smoothness of the ship's ride, the ports, the tours, the coffee, and the fact that I came out ahead in the casino...

 

Minuses were the food, the entertainment, lack of ballroom dancing, poor cleanliness, the claustraphobic quality of the ship, lines, and the fact that my better half came out losing in the casino....

[trock]

I know this is not going to sit well with many of you but we experienced our fourth cruise with Carnival on the July 5th sailing and it will be our last.

 

We really gave it a shot, but have decided it's just not worth it.

 

 

The food was only average with many nights the meat being really tough. Our waiter was wonderful, our room steward was awful. Our cat. 11 stateroom was dirty and never improved the whole cruise, even after complaining.

 

It was not an inexpensive cruise and I believe we would have dome better on any other cruise line and will do so in the future.

 

 

 

All i can say is thank you

I was on this cruise 7-5

 

And i was crucified for my review

[makeda]

have sailed this ship several times (latest was CTN last month)...never experienced what you did..guess it is what you seek and find...will probably cruise this ship again depending on itinerary

[S.S.Oceanlover]

I know this is not going to sit well with many of you but we experienced our fourth cruise with Carnival on the July 5th sailing and it will be our last.

 

We really gave it a shot, but have decided it's just not worth it.

 

 

The food was only average with many nights the meat being really tough. Our waiter was wonderful, our room steward was awful. Our cat. 11 stateroom was dirty and never improved the whole cruise, even after complaining.

 

It was not an inexpensive cruise and I believe we would have dome better on any other cruise line and will do so in the future.

 

something is definitely wrong on this ship. Mostly all the bad reviews about Carnival are about the Victory.:confused:

 

Bill

[RatherBFishin]

Now you be extra nice on your cruise and put a big ole smile on the staff and crew!!! :D I promise it will make a much better cruise for you as well!!

 

As a Southern gal, I like to say I am 51% Sunshine and 49% Witch....don't push it!

 

lol. I'll try!

 

Seriously though, I'm actually pretty quiet and normally reserved. I'm also not pushy or impatient. The problem, as it pertains to being on a ship, is that I really don't care what others think of me. I don't go out of my way to piss people off, but I don't really go out of my way to impress strangers either.

 

Examples (based on recent posts):

 

I'll be the one ordering a 2nd entree even though I know there's probably someone at the same table who thinks "That's not a guy who needs seconds!!" (see the current buffet rant thread).

 

If the Kids Capers says on the back page that kids over 12 can go in the hot tub if accompanied by an adult ( http://travel.webshots.com/photo/2509231200070058185PpQYgJ ), mine might be in there even if there's an Adults Only plaque glued to the wall. The Capers take precedence IMO.

 

If my kids are doing the teen's stuff in the early evening, I will probably go to late show in the lounge even though we're (hopefully) early seating for dinner. That'll give me alot of time to get there and grab great seats for the 3 of us. (see the thread on being a Theater Hog)

 

Anyway, I just think a boat filled with 3000 other "me's" probably would be a pretty crappy cruise for alot of people. That's not bragging or trying to stir the pot. I'm just being honest. People from the Northeast are not always the most easy going gentle souls on the planet.

[Clutterlady]

something is definitely wrong on this ship. Mostly all the bad reviews about Carnival are about the Victory.:confused:

 

Bill

 

Just got back today from a 5 day Victory cruise to Saint John and Halifax. After speaking to some of the crew, they really hate this itinerary. Lots of fog, cool, rainy weather. We had fog while at sea every day, even this morning coming into New York. We were lucky enough to have only light fog and cool weather in Saint John and beautiful 80 degree and sunny weather in Halifax.

 

To get back to the crew, they all were as pleasant as they could be. They all looked tired and I guess cruising in this type of gloomy weather for most of the time can get depressing.