After my first cruise 14 years ago and my wife being knocked unconscious by one of the folding bunks because the kids next door were throwing each other against the wall I swore never ever again. And never with Carnival. I took a chance on this cruise and it was a night and day difference. It paid off, and I was pleased with everything in general. Could some things be improved, sure. But you can't please everyone 100% every time. What matters to me is I had a good time with my wife and we will probably do this again. I would really like to see the Veterans reduced cruising fees we were told about but cannot find referenced anywhere in any emails or ads. I would probably book again much sooner if the choices for cruises were not like a mine field. Send my a offer for Vets and without all the hidden charges.
Embarkation
1 out of 5
After reading and reading and then asking at every stop along the way if I could bring my wife's bottled drinks onboard I was told NO PROBLEM, THEY ARE SEALED! Only to arrive at Customs and have all of it confiscated. I was told we don't care how much Booze you bring onboard but you can't have Sweet Tea. I then asked for at least an explanation at Guest Services. I was turned away with a no plastic bottles are allowed period explanation. ALL THE WATER ON BOARD WAS IN PLASTIC BOTTLES!!!!
Ship experiences
Food and Dining
5 out of 5
Food was outstanding. Our Cabin was so much better than the first time we sailed. Everything about the ship this cruise was a huge improvement over my first Carnival Cruise.
Onboard Activities
5 out of 5
Our Servers from teh Head Waiter Edwin down through the ranks to Chungmila and Christian were above just great. They were outstanding. I have never had serve like this before. The food was awesome and only made better by the team at out tables. We were treated like royalty.
Entertainment
We wanted to just relax, and that we did. We never went into any of teh bars and we would never ever ever go into the casino. The stench of smoke was everywhere and it stuck to you and your clothes. We avoided that area of the ship like the plague.
Children's Programs
I'm 65 and my wife is 59......the kids are gone
Service and Staff
5 out of 5
Josie was our cabin Stewart. There was never a request that was out of her area of expertise. She responded to any question with outstanding knowledge and professionalism. Really made the cruise worth while and enjoyable.
Ship Quality
4 out of 5
I miss giving 5 stars for one reason only. We had a balcony, and as such we enjoyed every second of that experience. BUT!....The Cabin window looking out, had mold and other crude growing on it. You could barely see out of it. It was honestly disgusting.
Cabin / Stateroom
5 out of 5
Our first cruise was 14 years ago. We had a outside cabin but not a stateroom with balcony, This was a huge upgrade for us. The additional room to stretch out and to do what we wanted was great. I might suggest that you invest in better TV programming for the sea days. And PLEASE......PLEASE find something other than CNN....ANYTHING, news in Chinese would have been better.
Ship tip
To all my friend that are Vets like my wife and myself. Make sure you attend the Veterans gathering in the theatre. It is a moving tribute and you have the opportunity to meet and hang out with some of your fellow ship mates that have your same experiences. Outstanding program .....THANK YOU!
We didn't book any activities, we only went ashore to shop. The shore shopping experience was cancelled. Having some information available for how to get out of the touristy, every body in your face areas would have been great. As it was we walked around a little and got extremely tired of being pushed and pulled on to come into this store or that one. We ended up going back to the ship early because it was just too much for us to put up with.
Again this misses the 5th star because of the missing fine print. We took a tour to the Mayan Ruins. What you are not told and I couldn't find in the description was that you would spend 4 of the 6 hour tour in a boat or a bus. VERY little time to see the actual tour. But the tour operator was extremely knowledgeable and we have a pleasant tour. BUT 2/3 rds of out "tour" was riding somewhere. Not nearly enough time in this port to do and see things.
One.....One issue. Why do we meet 2 decks above and all the way aft in the ship to get priority disembarkation? And why at 0715, when your representative didn't even show up until 0800? After we sat and sat and sat we were finally herded like cattle through the ship to the line we could have just gotten into on deck 7 anyhow. Not the best way to do things.
I'm a Veteran and have used that fare on occasion...it's not always the best rate, so shop around. I like using USAA travel. But what hidden fees are you talking about? I've never experienced anything like that. If you talking about port fees, taxes, upgrades, and gratuities, every pays that.
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