Are Carnival Standards Slipping?

[DarthGrady]

The old Lambchop Show theme comes to mind:

 

(singing)

 

"This is the thread that doesn't end, yes it goes on and on my friend!

Somebody started typing it, about how bad that their cruise was , but Terys still prolonging it forever just because........

This is the thread that doesnt end, yes it goes on and on my friend...................."

[tripdaddy0801]

It has been 3 years since my family has sailed on a Carnival Cruise. I have a cruise set up for this March(23-29). I have been on this site for quite some time just browsing and reading other peoples thoughts on cruising. It seems to me a lot of people post some very good information and some people just come here complain. Personally, I know things can happen on a cruise. If they would ever happen to me, I would make the best of it and try to enjoy my vacation. If something happened that was that bad, I probably wouldn't cruise with that cruiseline for awhile. We have tried a couple of other cruiselines and are still happy to come back and cruise with Carnival. I will see if anything has changed after a 3 year hiatus with Carnival. I hope not.

[marty30907]

What ashame on c.c. to have such poor workers like you. what a miserable job you have.C.C.treated us bad Igave enough information.YOU ARE a very rude person who work for a rude company.I do not have any e mail accounts.Tery.

 

Well, you just want this to continue, you are not giving requested information. So, I will quit this as you seem to be a person that will not consider what others ask.

 

Have a great New Years and I hope that you find the perfect cruise line for you demanding personality.

[kcslim]

While I am not as seasoned as many of you, I certainly have cruised a little since my 50th birthday. My first cruise was for my birthday, and I went solo. I certainly was nervous about it. That was the Carnival Triumph. I had such an amazing time, I booked another 6 months later out of a local port, Baltimore. That was a Celebrity cruise. The food, service and crew were outstanding on Celebrity, and I had a wonderful time because I love cruising. But I went back to Carnival for three more years, because I liked it better in terms of people, activities and median age of passengers. This past September I went on Princess. Again, their were many excellent things about Princess. But guess what? At the end of January I'm going back to Carnival.

 

My cruising habits definitely center a bit on price, a lot on who I am traveling with, and itinerary. I keep finding that Carnival is my preferred line. Believe it or not, I keep hearing the food is bad on Carnival and it's a "party ship". Well, the food was bad on Princess IMHO, and I found it to be the "party ship", at least for that particular cruise.

 

No matter where you go, with whatever cruise line, you are going to have good and not so good experiences. Overall, I believe that you have to weigh what works for you. Everyone gets good/bad service at the same place depending on conditions. It's going to happen on cruise ships too. I also strongly believe while it's true some people are just plain rude, you can turn that around often times with how you react to their behavior.

 

I'm going on the newly refurbished Imagination 1/28 and I just can't wait. My only disappointment so far is that it is only 5 days! lol

 

While I've had complaints with Carnival, I have always been treated decently when reporting them. The results may not necessarily have been what I would prefer, but I was given courteous responses.

 

I'll let you know if I think Carnival is declining in its overall experience, but somehow I don't think I'll get that impression. Mainly, because it is my own attitude which will make it a positive experience.

 

Karen

[Tery]

 

Well, you just want this to continue, you are not giving requested information. So, I will quit this as you seem to be a person that will not consider what others ask.

 

Have a great New Years and I hope that you find the perfect cruise line for you demanding personality.

Finally .Bravo. TERY.

[VIPBY40]

Ya...the disco (dance club) really sucks, in comparison to Princess and Norwegian.....I CAN say that....it truly sux....I am not a fan of dancing to AC/DC or the money dance previously performed on Lido! or the silly kid dance on Nikelodean (sp)....this is a bar right? No kids involved....give me some disco in the dance club! The results of hearing disco in any disco is well duh dancing!......This is bottom barrel for Carnival! Renew the disco for requests! and not "set" music for the evening!

[cruisecruisecruise1234567]

Ya...the disco (dance club) really sucks, in comparison to Princess and Norwegian.....I CAN say that....it truly sux....I am not a fan of dancing to AC/DC or the money dance previously performed on Lido! or the silly kid dance on Nikelodean (sp)....this is a bar right? No kids involved....give me some disco in the dance club! The results of hearing disco in any disco is well duh dancing!......This is bottom barrel for Carnival! Renew the disco for requests! and not "set" music for the evening!

 

You are so right, and even when it is requests and there is a popular dance song (or type of music) as soon as it is over they play something that no one dances too.Wake up stupid! If people are dancing to a certian type, keep playing it.

[KSN]

I must say there are some passionate posters here, on both sides of the issues. It is very surprising that a single bad experience on one cruise can cause a person to pass judgment on an entire cruise-line and all of it's employees both past, present, and future. In an earlier post in this thread I mentioned that I had on a few occasions had less than stellar service at a restaurant that is one of mine and my wife's favorites. I am sure glad I didn't make a hasty and absolute judgment like "This place SUCKS! I will NEVER eat here again!", mostly because we have had dozens and dozens of great dining experiences there, both before and after those handful of not-so-great experiences. All four of my Carnival Cruises have been great, but I have noticed people on the same cruise I'm on having a very different experience. There are always some that are upset about everything, making demands and yelling at staff as if they were the King and Queen of Sheba. On one cruise we were in line at the pursers desk while a guest let loose on the crew-member behind the desk because they had discovered upon returning to their cabin from Breakfast that the steward had made the horrific and stupid mistake of only leaving one fresh bath towel when there were obviously two people staying in the cabin! Really, that required berating and browbeating a crew-member? What people like you don't understand is the rest of us in line end up apologizing to the crew-member for having to deal with people like you. Seriously, a polite reminder to your cabin steward that he overlooked a towel would have been out of the question? I'm sure the rest of their cruise was nothing but down hill after the "towel incident" (which it most likely became known as when they retold it to all of their "high-fa-looting" friends).

 

On a side note my Mother-in-law returned from a Royal Caribbean cruise the end of last week, it was a 5 day cruise (not a 3 or 4 day), and she told us she was disappointed because they didn't get Lobster. So contrary to what some posters have said it isn't served on all 5-day cruises.

 

KSN

[cruisecruisecruise1234567]

Seriously, a polite reminder to your cabin steward that he overlooked a towel would have been out of the question?

 

A simple anything might not have worked. Just like I complain about a dining experience after,since I don't want additives in my food:eek: .

 

I had a towel experience,No pool towels when we boarded in our room so I mentioned that to him,steward claims they were there,I ended up speaking to a higher up after no satisfaction and the steward got caught later going thru my closed luggage under the bed later.Got a new steward.

[KSN]

A simple anything might not have worked...

 

 

The key word in that statement is might. I try to avoid escalating a problem until I know It can't be fixed politely. Don't get me wrong, I've gotten upset when it was necessary, but I think now days the first impulse of most people is to snap and go off on someone without ever trying to work out the problem civilly. Yes, if you complain loudly enough and get angry you may get what you want, but then people are less likely to go out of their way to go above and beyond for you as well. Each time I have had a bad experience at my favorite restaurant I do make sure I let them know what I was disappointed with, but I try to do it in a rational way and only escalate my complaining if they do the same to me first. The point I was really after is that one bad experience doesn't need to be the end of the line for one particular cruise-line, but if a large percentage of your experiences are bad then you may want to run the other way, otherwise let them know why you were disappointed and then give it another shot, it may have just been a one-time experience.

 

I look at it like this, when some yells at you and gets angry at you for a mistake you've made, you become defensive and even if your job requires you make them happy, you end up doing it begrudgingly because they upset you, you really don't go out of your way to make them more than happy, you just do the minimum you need to to fix the problem. However, if some one comes up to you and politely lets you know that you were disappointed with something and politely asks if you could rectify it for them, you end up feeling bad that you disappointed them, and usually go out of your way to fix the problem as well as putting in a little extra effort or compensation to make it up to them. (Trust me, this approach pays off in spades!).

 

KSN

[DJ Eddy]

Ya...the disco (dance club) really sucks, in comparison to Princess and Norwegian.....I CAN say that....it truly sux....I am not a fan of dancing to AC/DC or the money dance previously performed on Lido! or the silly kid dance on Nikelodean (sp)....this is a bar right? No kids involved....give me some disco in the dance club! The results of hearing disco in any disco is well duh dancing!......This is bottom barrel for Carnival! Renew the disco for requests! and not "set" music for the evening!

 

You are so right, and even when it is requests and there is a popular dance song (or type of music) as soon as it is over they play something that no one dances too.Wake up stupid! If people are dancing to a certian type, keep playing it.

 

Yes I agree but you get different types of people asking for different types of music... anything from hip hop to country, disco to rock, techno to motown & latin so our job as a DJ (if he/she is a good DJ, I can't comment on the DJ's on the ship syou have been on) is to play requests, a human jukebox if you like and if no-one is requesting music and the disco is busy & the dancefloor is packed then as far as i'm concerned i'm doing a good job. The majority of music that is asked for on ships is hip hop or line dances (the electric/cha cha/cupid slide) and this gets more people on the dancefloor than disco does unfortunately, it always depends on the crowd from cruise to cruise but the majoirty of times in the discos hip hop is the number 1 choice (not my #1 choice), it is the majoirty of music that is played on commercial radio stations today and that is what people want to hear.

[VIPBY40]

DJ.....a good dancer should always be accomodated....and well.....I like to dance!

[cathyoo]

DJ.....a good dancer should always be accomodated....and well.....I like to dance!

 

Well, I beg to differ... poor dancers are entitled to their fun also. ;-)

[cruisecruisecruise1234567]

Yes I agree but you get different types of people asking for different types of music... anything from hip hop to country, disco to rock, techno to motown & latin so our job as a DJ (if he/she is a good DJ, I can't comment on the DJ's on the ship syou have been on) is to play requests, a human jukebox if you like and if no-one is requesting music and the disco is busy & the dancefloor is packed then as far as i'm concerned i'm doing a good job. The majority of music that is asked for on ships is hip hop or line dances (the electric/cha cha/cupid slide) and this gets more people on the dancefloor than disco does unfortunately, it always depends on the crowd from cruise to cruise but the majoirty of times in the discos hip hop is the number 1 choice (not my #1 choice), it is the majoirty of music that is played on commercial radio stations today and that is what people want to hear.

 

When these hip hop requests are made and the dance floor is hoping I don't have a problem with that.Its when it goes from full to empty because some fool requests a rap song and just sits there.Last time I checked, a dance club/disco was for dancing.

You are right when you stated if the dance floor is packed you are doing your job.

[VIPBY40]

Well, I beg to differ... poor dancers are entitled to their fun also. ;-)

 

Of course! But its all about the music that is played! Its all about give and take....."Club Hollywood" on Triumph for instance....ok well give me dance music Hollywood style.....poor dancers good dancers who cares give us some dance music so we can dance good or bad but be on fire and have some fun! Not all the silly riff raff or "this is what you have to play DJ itinerary from headquarters. Play what the people in the house want to play and get rid of the "pre-fabbed" script for the night! Mr DJ how many people ACTUALLY REQUEST AC/DC "shook me all night long? Its so in your pre-requisite on things to play...that along with all the "HEE HAW" crap and all the silly line dances. You are instructed to play what HAS to be played and YOU cant alter it! It is truly rediculous! If you played what the people wanted to hear we could eliminate all the HEE HAW and stupid try to dance to rock (although Im sure 2 couples will dance in the spotlight to the TT and think they are "really cool" cuz no one else is dancing) but come on......its supposed to be a disco! That is how Carni advertises it! Disco=Dance. Hollywood clubs do not play AC/DC or country or line dancing...its hard core dance/retro/hip hop/disco/alternative.....maybe we should rename the club....to the Carnival Tug and Chug? Stay here long enough and youll hear at least ONE song that you wanna get up and dance to?

[Aplmac]

It's all about monetary greed and corporate profit.

Pack them in. 90% of them won't complain meaningfully.

 

Same thing at Ocean Village (another CCL offshoot, in the UK)

where the cabins regularly STINK of cigarette smoke

and the Brits just too damned cheap to buy and use

that magical chemical spray to freshen things up.

 

And why should they bother?

Most Brits are still of the post WW2 belief

that complaining isn't polite, and one should maintain 'a stiff upper lip'

through thick and thin.

They get what they deserve, don't they?!:)

[NCTribeFan]

Just off Miracle, and DD (21) stated that the one night they went to the disco, the music was great, the place was pack with 20-somethings, and NO ONE was dancing. She goes clubbing quite often and was very disappointed. So maybe it isn't always the DJ. Maybe it's sometimes the crowd.

 

Anyway, everything about the Miracle was excellent EXCEPT some of the entrees at dinner.

 

The ship was very clean, the service excellent without being obtrusive, the staff was friendly without giving the impression of just trying to suck up for extra tips.

 

I've seen absolutely no evidence of "declining service" from Carnival.

 

Experiences vary from ship to ship, week to week, cabin to cabin, table to table.

[DJ Eddy]

Of course! But its all about the music that is played! Its all about give and take....."Club Hollywood" on Triumph for instance....ok well give me dance music Hollywood style.....poor dancers good dancers who cares give us some dance music so we can dance good or bad but be on fire and have some fun! Not all the silly riff raff or "this is what you have to play DJ itinerary from headquarters. Play what the people in the house want to play and get rid of the "pre-fabbed" script for the night! Mr DJ how many people ACTUALLY REQUEST AC/DC "shook me all night long? Its so in your pre-requisite on things to play...that along with all the "HEE HAW" crap and all the silly line dances. You are instructed to play what HAS to be played and YOU cant alter it! It is truly rediculous! If you played what the people wanted to hear we could eliminate all the HEE HAW and stupid try to dance to rock (although Im sure 2 couples will dance in the spotlight to the TT and think they are "really cool" cuz no one else is dancing) but come on......its supposed to be a disco! That is how Carni advertises it! Disco=Dance. Hollywood clubs do not play AC/DC or country or line dancing...its hard core dance/retro/hip hop/disco/alternative.....maybe we should rename the club....to the Carnival Tug and Chug? Stay here long enough and youll hear at least ONE song that you wanna get up and dance to?

 

The name of the club does not mean that is what music will get played. The disco on the Freedom is called "Seventies" but if all that was played in there was 70's music you would have an empty disco. People only want to dance to what they want to dance to. Therefore the majority of people expect to hear what they heard played on the radio that week... if you don't have it all you get is grief. On a ship the DJ is accessible... on land in a lot of clubs you cannot get close to the DJ, either you dance to the music or you don't.

I do not get told what to play, I am not instructed by "management" or "Carnival Corporation" to play anything... my "instructions" come directly from the people in the disco. A club on a ship is not a club in Hollywood... the way a disco works on the ship is similar to DJing at a wedding, you have to appeal to ALL ages, you can't really stick to 1 genre of music all night. There are themed happy hour and nights for Motown music, latin, 70's & 80's to try & cover different genres of music, that way people who like Motown can go to the Motown hour. This is as well as normal evenings which primarily is hip hop... why... because that is the majority of what is asked for. Believe it or not but I get AC/DC Shook Me requested more or less every night more than once... The Electric Slide, Cha Cha Slide & Cupid Shuffle requested 10 times every night. I only try and play songs once in a night as I don't like to repeat the same songs every night (it's bad enough repeating it every night throughout the week) and the line dances fill the floor more than any other type of music, EVERY TIME!

 

It's one of those things, you're not gonna please everybody all of the time, if someone requests AC/DC and there are 40 people in their party want to hear that song but they don't want to dance what am I supposed to say "sorry but people don't dance to that, you will clear my dancefloor"... erm no. They will then go straight to the purser's desk and complain that the DJ was rude. I try to play as many requests as I can, WHEN I CAN FIT IT IN. If i'm in the middle of playing latin music with a pacekd dancefloor, I won't stop it and go striahgt into the Bee Gees... if you are patient then I will work the crowd round and alternate the music. If you come up & say "play that next" then sorry but you're not gonna hear it next. You can always leave, again this is not like Hollywood... there is no entrance fee to get in so you can go to other bars and lounges on the ship, there's plenty of entertainment for eveyone afterall.

[DJ Eddy]

It's all about monetary greed and corporate profit.

Pack them in. 90% of them won't complain meaningfully.

 

Same thing at Ocean Village (another CCL offshoot, in the UK)

where the cabins regularly STINK of cigarette smoke

and the Brits just too damned cheap to buy and use

that magical chemical spray to freshen things up.

 

And why should they bother?

Most Brits are still of the post WW2 belief

that complaining isn't polite, and one should maintain 'a stiff upper lip'

through thick and thin.

They get what they deserve, don't they?!:)

 

Wow... that's an interesting opinion.

I don't generally like to complain, if you are rude & arsey with someone they are less likely to help you. From working in this industry I always am polite to people, especially when on holiday. Does this mean I have a tight upper lip... no, just means I show RESPECT to people who work very hard for their salary which is probably a lot less than they deserve. If i need to complain I will do, but not for the sake of it, seeing what I can get for free. I just try to laugh it off, after all if i'm on holiday I will ensure I have a good time. Trust me i've had some holidays that have been in some dives... if I book a cheap or budget holiday then I get what I pay for. I don't complain about it becuase hey it was a cheap holiday and instead laugh about it later "remember the time we were in that dive of a hotel in Spain".

And before you go off on one I am not saying that you aplmac are a chronic complainer I am just giving my opinion as a british citizen... we only won WW2 and invented the language after all ;)

[Tery]

[i:mad:I saw a C.C. post about their guarantee which says that if one is not completely satisfied with the cruise it is possible to debark at the first non u.s/ port of call.I saw a post in which the poster says he wanted to get off the ship at the first port of call according to their guarantee but c.c. said NO.So this guarantee seems to be unreal and unreliable.I think the poster felt cheated. Tery/

[cruisecruisecruise1234567]

[i:mad:I saw a C.C. post about their guarantee which says that if one is not completely satisfied with the cruise it is possible to debark at the first non u.s/ port of call.I saw a post in which the poster says he wanted to get off the ship at the first port of call according to their guarantee but c.c. said NO.So this guarantee seems to be unreal and unreliable.I think the poster felt cheated. Tery/

 

Guarantee is for US residents and by booking thru a US TA they probably added to their problem.

[Tery]

Guarantee is for US residents and by booking thru a US TA they probably added to their problem.

THAT IS NOT WHAT C.C. HAVE TOLD ME.THEY HAVE POSTED A REPLY TO MY POST TELLING ME ABOUT THAT SO CALLED GUARANTEE WHICH LOOKS TO ME LIKE A HOAX. TERY.

[Tery]

THAT IS NOT WHAT C.C. HAVE TOLD ME.THEY HAVE POSTED A REPLY TO MY POST TELLING ME ABOUT THAT SO CALLED GUARANTEE WHICH LOOKS TO ME LIKE A HOAX. TERY.

C.C. KNOWS THAT WE ARE NOT U.S. RESIDENTS.TERY.:mad:

[Cruiseaholichal]

I think I read RCCL was discontinuing Lobster after the first of the year...but I am running on an old memory here that sometimes fails me....;)

 

Carnival does not serve real Lobster . Where are the claws?