What a disappointment

Item: Carnival Elation
Rating: 1
Author: Sandi2009

Carnival Elation Cruise Review to Caribbean - Western

Sandi2009

Contributor Level: Purser

Cruises: 2-3 cruises

Review: 1

Helpful Votes: 44

Overall rating:

1 out of 5

Verified Review

5 Night Western Caribbean (New Orleans Roundtrip)

Sail date: April 06, 2013

Ship: Carnival Elation

Cabin type: Inside

Traveled as: Family (older children)

Reviewed: 11 years ago

Review summary

This was only our second cruise ever. We loved our 3 day Royal Caribbean cruise last year so much that our children clamored for another one even before we got our bags unpacked and so we booked this one within two days of our return. Unfortunately, I decided to try Carnival thinking: heck if we loved RC that much how much more will we love cruising on Carnival, which supposedly caters to families with kids? WRONG!! The kid's club staff were some of the meanest, rudest people I've ever met (the Circle C lady actually made me cry when she screamed at me!), and my kids avoided those clubs for the entire 5 day cruise. To top it off, the food was awful and the entertainment (what little there was) was terrible. I will NEVER do that to my family again.

Ship experiences

Food and Dining

Tiffany's was down more than it was up. The food was mediocre at best. Desserts were horrible. Most people just got frozen yogurt and left the bland desserts on the stand. Yuck.

Onboard Activities

3 out of 5

Very limited. Music was on auto pilot most of the time (when they decided to turn it on)

Entertainment

3 out of 5

Children's Programs

1 out of 5

Bad, bad, bad!!! Shame on you, Carnival!

Service and Staff

1 out of 5

Our Maitre d' and cabin steward were the exception. The other staff members were so obvious in their distaste for Americans that, after my first few encounters, I just avoided them.

Ship Quality

3 out of 5

There was a bad odor in the right side hallway of the Lido Deck that stayed for the entire cruise. Every time I want past, I thought "what is that stink?!" Finally, I just veered left every time I was going up there, and I noticed that most people avoided that side too.

Cabin / Stateroom

3 out of 5

Bathroom could use some help, but our steward always made sure it was clean.

Ship tip

Long lines at Tiffany's, and you'd better time your visits because they shut down A LOT. Avoid the staff, you'll thank me later.

Thumbs up

Ports of call

New Orleans, Louisiana

5 out of 5

They took our bags early so that we could be free to wander the city unencumbered.

Thumbs Up 0

Progreso (Merida), Mexico

5 out of 5

Lots to see and plenty of haggling in the shops. Thanks, Maitre d' Jorge for that little tip

Thumbs Up 0

Cozumel, Mexico

1 out of 5

Overpriced and not much to see unless you're taking an excursion. Buy your trinkets in Progreso.

Thumbs Up 0

3 Comments

Sandi2009 11 years ago

Texassea: Our maitre d' clued us in on that and we did enjoy haggling for trinkets with the folks on Progreso. Our maitre d' and cabin steward were awesome. Joevietsjr: Those were my exact words! You could not GIVE me another Carnival cruise. And although my daughter would never say it for fear of hurting my feelings, she'd pass on another one too. CommunityMangr: The screaming came when I made the mistake of walking my daughter into Circle C. She's almost 15, but I still like to know where she is and who she's with, and the clubs were locked up tight until 8:30 so I hadn't had an opportunity to meet the director. Apparently (per the shrieking director) no parents are allowed in Circle C. Her exact words to me were "GET OUT!! No parents allowed! You all have your serenity deck, and this is OUR serenity room. Get out!!" I was so shocked that I didn't even respond, I just turned and walked out. According to my daughter, the director screamed at all of the parents that night. (Maybe she thinks doing that makes her look cool to the kids?) I might have handled that situation better if it hadn't come on the heels of an ugly encounter the O2 director. Right before this, I had found my daughter close to tears and she explained that she had been kicked out of O2 by the club director because she's not 15 yet. (My daughter is 4 months away from her 15th birthday and so, at her request, we registered her for O2.) Per my daughter, when she went to the club, the director confronted her at the door in front of all of the teens and demanded to see her birth certificate. (I wasn't privy to the confrontation, but I know it must have been pretty ugly for my daughter to react so strongly. She is nobody's shrinking violet.) When she told me what happened, I thought perhaps there had been some confusion with the registration and so I escorted her back to O2. The director (again in front of all of the teens) launched into a diatribe about how other parents "try this" too. When I explained that my husband and I agreed to O2 because of our daughter's age and level of maturity, she told me in no uncertain terms that, regardless of our decision, my daughter wasn't not old enough to be in there. Eventually (when she ran out of steam) she said that she would consider allowing my daughter into O2, but only if she tried Circle C first. In the spirit of compromise, I pressed my daughter to try Circle C. When I left, my daughter checked herself out headed straight back to our stateroom and told me that she wasn't going to either of the clubs. Eventually, she linked up with the other kids (who were also avoiding the clubs) and she made the most of the trip.

Thumbs Up 0

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Joevietsjr 11 years ago

We had the same experience last June on Carnival, after three RCCL cruises. I would not take a Carnival Cruise again, even if it was free!

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Sonya27 11 years ago

So sorry to hear you guys did not have a good time. Progreso is the best place to barter.

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