Worst Carnival Ship We've Been On

Carnival Conquest Cruise Review to Caribbean - Eastern

LancedeBoyle

Contributor Level: Third Mate

Cruises: 7+ cruises

Reviews: 2

Helpful Votes: 60

Overall rating:

3 out of 5

8 Night Eastern Caribbean (Ft. Lauderdale Roundtrip)

Sail date: January 09, 2016

Ship: Carnival Conquest

Cabin type: Inside

Traveled as: Couple

Reviewed: 8 years ago

Review summary

The Carnival Conquest is a ship that I will avoid at all cost in the future. If it is a choice between Conquest and no cruise, I would save my money. Why? Let me count the reasons.

1. There is NO Serenity area. Where serenity normally would be are two levels of empty deck with a FEW chairs. This also means that this ship HAS 2 LESS HOT-TUBS!! (For the same number of people)

2. I heard from various people a rumour that Carnival was cutting back on the number of staff. Whether or not this is true, it did seem like there was fewer wait staff in the Monet Dinning Room. We were on the Glory in December and were always done dinner by 700pm but on Conquest we were never out before 730 and a couple of times not till 7:45. This meant we missed some of the shows. Our food was sometimes luke-warm. Nothing against the wait-staff, the three of them were very nice and pleasant.

3. While at sea, there was a constant gentle rolling from side to side. Just noticeable to cause some to be sick. This was for the entire week while not docked. THE SEAS WERE NOT ROUGH! I do NOT believe the stabilizers were ever deployed. If they were, then they didn't accomplish their purpose. This just added a constant touch of annoyance.

4. The ventilation system did not seem to work. We constantly smelt the cigarette smoke from the casino on various decks both fore and aft. Sanitation odours were also a problem on the lido deck around the main swimming pool.

5 The Adults Only hot-tubs were closed at 10 pm!! Just when some shows were finishing! On the Glory we used those hot-tubs until Midnight!

6 For a ship that was last refurbished just over 3 years ago, there were an UNBELIEVABLE number of cracked and broken floor tiles in the buffet dining room. Some desperately needed replacing before they became tripping hazards.

NOT SPECIFIC TO THIS SHIP: Had I known that the evening dinning room menus were identical from ship to ship, I would have chosen a different cruise line. The menu we had on the Glory in December was repeated exactly on the Conquest in January. I am not saying the food was bad but by Wednesday I was bored with the menu and dinner became less enjoyable and more drudgery. It doesn't seem like Carnival Cruise Line gives the chefs any autonomy. One size fits all for all the ships.

i really enjoyed the food the first time around on the Glory. But the second time around on the Conquest was boring, in my opinion.

WHAT I DID ENJOY: There were two trios that Carnival was trying sort of on an experimental basis. One was a stringed trio of young ladies from Bulgaria who were EXCELLENT. 2 violinists and a cello player. We tried not to miss them when they played. The other trio was a Brass/reed trio who often played at the entrance to the dinning room. We enjoyed them very much as well. Finally a touch of class on a ship were most music is top 40 pop music mush. Don't get me wrong, I love my 60's, 70's, and 80's rock.

We had a couple of comedians who were also very good... Tony Esposito and John Dicrosta (sp?) as well as an Excellent juggler/ entertainer. First rate in my opinion. The piano man was also better than the one on Glory. The piano bar performer at least could sing well, not shout-sing like the one on Glory.

Ship experiences

Food and Dining

3 out of 5

Onboard Activities

3 out of 5

Entertainment

5 out of 5

Service and Staff

3 out of 5

Ship Quality

3 out of 5

Ports of call

Ft. Lauderdale (Port Everglades), Florida

3 out of 5

Philipsburg, St. Maarten

5 out of 5

Basseterre, St. Kitts

5 out of 5

San Juan, Puerto Rico

3 out of 5

Grand Turk Island

5 out of 5

37 Comments

sbeach3 8 years ago

I don't mind that kind of negative feedback. The paint is peeling, food is sometimes cold and casino smoke filled on the best of ships. I expect that. It is good to know about staffing cutbacks, schedule changes and even how shows are affected so I can anticipate (and even plan for) the changes and not have it impact the fun vacation that I (and we all) need. Thank you for sharing, and if you know how to become one of those 2 lucky folks at the casino, inbox me.

Thumbs Up 1

Flag

sbrid3911 8 years ago

people had commented on the sewage smell before we went. they were telling the truth. luckily the side of the ship we were on didn't have that smell but we had to walk thru it a couple of times a day. We still had a great time but it was the worst of the three cruises we took last year

Thumbs Up 0

Flag

sbrid3911 8 years ago

it was around the 3rd deck and smelled like shit. If it was from the smoke stack half the ship would have died from carbon monoxide poisoning.

Thumbs Up 0

Flag

Forevercruiser 8 years ago

wow, an expert on what a smell is...congrats. the cruise ship needs help. been on a lot of them.

Thumbs Up 0

Flag

rogerellenborland 8 years ago

we are not carnival employees. we were on the conquist last October. agree on the CIG smoke. what you smelled was not sewage, it's back draft from the smoke stack. you only smell it when the wind is blowing in a certain direction. we did not experience any of the other complaints.

Thumbs Up 0

Flag

sbrid3911 8 years ago

My wife and I had a great time but the conquest was the worst ship I have been on. There are a lot of Carnival employees that comment on this site and they pretend to be cruisers. They attack anything critical of Carnival.

Thumbs Up 0

Flag

Forevercruiser 8 years ago

dream not dean!

Thumbs Up 0

Flag

Forevercruiser 8 years ago

just got of the conquest last Saturday...agree 100%. this ship sucked. been on the victory, valor, dean and breeze...the conquest by far the worst

Thumbs Up 0

Flag

tawnyacourson 8 years ago

No serenity deck but there is an adults only pool and 2 hot tubs at the back of the ship and I saw crew members make kids leave if they were back there.

Thumbs Up 0

Flag

CruisinCraze 8 years ago

You're complaining about rolling seas and gentle rocking? You're on a ship! That's the most ridiculous complaint I've ever had the displeasure of reading. Here's a tip. Don't look down and you won't see cracks. How does this affect your vacation? Had u done your proper research you would have easily known there is no serenity deck. If that was so important you should have selected a diff ship

Thumbs Up 0

Flag

BZxqN5mSyEfklLEhxH4YrFukG 8 years ago

Finishing previous comments. Other than what I mentioned, I was impressed with the food and staff. Lots to do onboard and would definitely book conquest again. For her age she has held up well! Don't be discouraged by negative comments. The good far outweighs the bad. It's what you make it and we made it fun!!!

Thumbs Up 2

Flag

BZxqN5mSyEfklLEhxH4YrFukG 8 years ago

Just got off of Conquest this last Saturday. Had a great time even with the not so great weather. The few things I agree with you on was the sewage smell on several decks some of the time. Also, I could not go into the gambling area unless I wanted to smell like smoke. That was a big disappointment and I am a previous smoker! Yes the boat rolled a little but it was so windy the entire trip.

Thumbs Up 0

Flag

floydwonder6 8 years ago

people need to respect other people comments its nothing wrong with a pro and con review, its not that deep to be disrespectful to other people post, it information I want to hear, I don't live in fantasy land where everything is all peaches n creme! its our hard earn money we work for and if we want to give a pro and con on our experience than we have the right to do so. If not then don't comment or get mad cause you like cheap/poor stuff and we like quality.

Thumbs Up 0

Flag

Micheleb67 8 years ago

wow so many miserable people. nothing is wrong with ft. Lauderdale port. people should do research and maybe they will learn about the ship. I always do it and make my reservations myself with the cruise line and I ask a bunch of questions. who cares how long dinner took, your there to relax and enjoy, if your in a rush then go to the buffet.

Thumbs Up 4

Flag

l0BGxqWCWCUbq8msVPmC62oci 8 years ago

If you'd spend less time complaining about everything you just might have a great vacation. Or maybe cruising just isn't your thing.

Thumbs Up 4

Flag

sbrid3911 8 years ago

The Fort Lauderdale port is the worst one I've ever been to. I will never go out of that port again. My wife and I were on the conquest in November, it was our 3rd cruise in just over a year with carnival. We had a great time but it was by far the worst of the 3. The food wasn't as good, it took way to long for dinner, almost 2 hours most nights, they were under staffed, and there was a strong sewage smell on part of the ship. Guys burger joint was really good. Also when scheduling this cruise the carnival representative I was talking to said we would get on board ship credits and other guarantees about trip insurance ect that we bought and all of it was untrue. the insurance is worthless only believe what carnival puts in writing. they will promise anything to get you booked with them but once they have your money you are at their mercy. The agent I was speaking to in the beginning supposedly got promoted right before I booked and could not be reached under any circumstances even tho she left me a message the day before reminding me to call her the next day to finalize my reservations. The agent that finished the booking would only say she didn't say or promise that when asked about the incentives we didn't get.

Thumbs Up 1

Flag

rogerellenborland 8 years ago

hey, pinkie60. you hit the nail on the head about the wind. thanks for the back up.

Thumbs Up 0

Flag

batch123 8 years ago

Conquest and it's class is one of my favorite ships. Will be on it again in April. Then Vista in December.

Thumbs Up 3

Flag

Pinkie60 8 years ago

This is all a part of cruising in the Winter. No matter what people tell you about the sub-tropics, we do experience high winds and cool to cold weather. You can't blame a ship for that.

Thumbs Up 4

Flag

Pinkie60 8 years ago

If you just got off the Conquest and you say the seas were not rough I am taking exception to your statement. I live in South Florida and although the sun maybe shining we have been experiencing gale force winds for the past 2 weeks off and on. I watch PTZtv all the time and let me tell you I've seen ships the size of the Allure bobbing up and down traveling to and from Port of Nassau, etc.

Thumbs Up 1

Flag

livewire03 8 years ago

I'm ready for March 19th to get here so I can make the best of my cruise and not nit pick on every corner I make on the ship. it's vacation people enjoy!enjoy!!enjoy!!!

Thumbs Up 5

Flag

sloopjohnb53 8 years ago

Don't worry folks, I volunteer to make up for all the fun that Lance missed when October gets here.

Thumbs Up 3

Flag

mrwhite21 8 years ago

I didn't like the conquest either my wife and I went on it for our honeymoon and it was not a great experience, luckily we met some amazing people which made it better.

Thumbs Up 1

Flag

aarmstrong 8 years ago

If you would have done your research, you would know that there is no serenity area so that's on you!

Thumbs Up 2

Flag

cruzn4life 8 years ago

We took our 11th Carnival cruise on the Conquest this past October and it was great. There was very little movement on it. The cruise director, Wee Jimmy was the absolute best we have ever had. I will definately take the Conquest again!

Thumbs Up 2

Flag

sbeach3 8 years ago

One more cruiser who thinks Carnival = Cunard. Be happy you're able to go on a cruise. There is plenty of folks who would gladly have traded places with you, lukewarm food, broken tiles, dormant stabilizers and all...

Thumbs Up 6

Flag

firehawk512 8 years ago

Cruised on the Conquest last June Had a great time ship was good Crew was excellent. We did the Chef's Table and behind the Fun Reccomend both

Thumbs Up 1

Flag

megbro 8 years ago

First off, there is an adult only area on all boats, some may not be labled. Also, there is always rocking! Some are more sensitive but you all have to deal with what you're dealt. The no variation is how they support the speciality diners. If they had different things, they wouldnt need speciality restaurants and the ships will always have cracks and stuff if its three years old! Carnival is a good cruise line but none is perfect! Dont expect the impossible.

Thumbs Up 1

Flag

rogerellenborland 8 years ago

we were on the conquist last October. the first 5 days you could not tell the ship was moving. day 6 the wind got strong and you could feel the ship roll some. all ships will rock when the weather gets bad. don't blame the ship its mother nature. don't let that article discourage you.

Thumbs Up 3

Flag

floydwonder6 8 years ago

@rogerellenborland OK Wow

Thumbs Up 1

Flag

rogerellenborland 8 years ago

evidently he did not go to the adults only pool area behind the buffet. it does not specifically say serenity area, but its adults only. there are hot tubs, a bar,pizza and ice cream cream machine. what more could you ask for. yes,the dinner menu is the same for the whole fleet. can you imagine trying to do a different menu and keep up with ordering different foods for 20 something ships. if you think you can you need to apply for a job with them.

Thumbs Up 4

Flag

floydwonder6 8 years ago

I totally understand your pain I never sale carnival again, I tried them once 10 years ago and it was first and last time. I love royal Caribbean! I'm doing Norweign soon in May. My mother and grandmother travel all the time on different lines and didn't like celebrity cruise line. I'm pick on accommodations and dining I can't relax around something that is not right. I stayed at a motel 6 by default about 10 years ago and was scarred ever since, so now I'm very picky about where I stay. I will pay money for the best accommodation and dining. I did Disney world last year and stayed at Baylake towers with my children very expensive hotel but awesome rooms and dining. Looking forward to taking my kids on there first cruise on the NCL Escape ☺im sure I won't be disappointed. Change cruise lines and try others until you are happier ☺ Happy Sailing!

Thumbs Up 0

Flag

brennerbrat817 8 years ago

I enjoyed the Conquest. your trip is what you make it...be positive and have fun. if you come across a bump in the road do something else

Thumbs Up 6

Flag

psb14zipsuakronedu 8 years ago

And it didn't help that the weather was crappy 5 out of the 6 days..obviously the weather is in no ones control but good old Mother Nature and is unpredictable; just very disappointing.

Thumbs Up 4

Flag

livewire03 8 years ago

We're do all these people find the time to complain I'm getting ready for my 8th carnival cruise and number 2 on conquest and I always enjoy my time maybe cause I don't expect everything to be perfect if you think that way you are going to be disappointed, so chill out and enjoy your vacation and stop complaining about everything.

Thumbs Up 26

Flag

firefighter4u 8 years ago

Hmmmm a choice between staying home with a foot of snow or going to the Caribbean on a ship that has two less hot-tubs..... Decisions, decisions....

Thumbs Up 28

Flag

cfakescomcast 8 years ago

Yikes we are going on this cruise in 12 days! I've never heard of NO Serenity area 😟

Thumbs Up 2

Flag

Other reviews of this sailing

We remembered it being better...

Upgrade

Had a great time on this cruise