Carnival Pride Cruise Reviews - Reviews

There were parts of this cruise that we loved, and unfortunately, parts we didn't love so much!

The Good...

1. David's Steakhouse .. Excellent!

2, The Tours.. Kennedy Space Center and the Dolphin Experience .. Excellent

3. Stateroom ... Very Nice and staff cleaned it 2 or 3 times a day!

The Disappoinments ...

1. The food was average at best, and the staff was very nice, but seemed so rushed, the never had time to do anything, but get your food and plop it in front of you.

2. The entertainment/shows ... below average ... we actually walked out of 2 shows.

Not enough to do if you don't gamble, drink ,play bingo  or want to listen to sell pitches. Need to add movie theaters maybe even bowling alleys . More time in ports . The ship it self is beautiful  the staff goes above to make your trip pleasant . There is plenty to eat . We did not go to eat . This was my first cruise and sad to say for the money I would never go again . The weather was awful the whole trip . Which isn't the cruise fault . But on land we could have found lots to do .  

As a first time cruiser I had no idea what to expect on this vacation.  From the moment I booked the cruise, up until I returned hom from my vacation, I was pleased.  I was kept up to date with emails before the vacation began. If I had questions or concerns I was encouraged to make them known. The embarkation process was easy, the directions to the port were understandable, and all of the Carnival employees were helpful.  Our balcony room was small, but that it always expected on a cruise, so I have learned. The balcony was a great asset and I'm glad I chose the balcony suite because the view was spectacular.  It was also very helpful to have natural light in the room when the power went out on the ship for about an hour on Monday morning. Hearing from others aboard the ship, the interior suites were dark and they couldn't see anything!  There was always something to do aboard the ship, and there was always food available to eat no matter the time of day. Our shore excursion in Nassau was cancelled at the last minute due to high winds (we were supposed to go parasailing) and we were afraid we wouldn't be able to find anything to do. We were able to take a carriage ride thru the city and just wander around shopping on our own.  There were plenty of other excursions we could have picked from, even at the last minute.  In Freeport we chose the culinary experience which I would highly recommend.  The food aboard the ship was amazing, the staff was friendly, and the whole vacation was fabulous. I'm so glad I booked this trip!

Cruise was as expected. Food and service were good. Quality of the ship was above average. The special dinner we had in the steak house was fantastic - but was enough of an extra charge, we could only do it once. Would probably not choose another cruise with so much time at sea. The entertainment shows weren't quite what we have seen on other cruises.

There were highs and lows to this ship experience. First, the highs. Price for a balcony cabin was very reasonable. THe cabin was large and bright.The weather was warm enough on five of the seven days to sit out on the balcony. Embarking and disembarking was handled very efficiently.There is a Serenity area for folks over 21 years old with lots of seating under cover and out in the open plus a pool and hot tub. Service everywhere was excellent. Staff is very helpful and efficient. They work hard to call you by name. We had four days of sunny weather which made you forget the snow ice and cold at home. Really enjoyed the wine and food pairing event even at a cost of $15 per person. The ship was very clean. The ok elements. Food was plentiful, on the whole good but not very creative or interesting. Fat people, of which there were many on this cruise, were in hog heaven with the wide variety of foods at the buffet. All cruise ships offer this buffet. Announcements couldn't always be understood because of music in the background or just the high volume. Shore excursions were fairly priced. The entertainment was ok but the volume everywhere was so high that it made it impossible to enjoy the shows with lots of singing. The library was a joke. Just three cabinets of books and the library was only open two hours a day. The computers were in the same room so the library wasn't a quiet area for reading. 

Our most negative comment is the decor of the ship. The ship had low ceilings, was dark and often felt like you were in a cave ( except for the cabins). The ornate carvings everywhere-including on the ceiling- were over the top. The large Italian fake art on the walls everywhere wase very distracting. The public spaces were very noisy at all times. It was like everyone was on a speaker phone . We have been on seven other cruises and they were all much better experiences than this one was. I think this ship is geared to younger adults who like to drink and party a lot.

Surprisingly, there were lots of young families with smal lchildren on this cruise. It would be interesting to hear their reviews. For us, this ship and we were mismatched.

The service was stellar, the staff was very attentive and we wanted for nothing. Everyone made a point of smiling and knowing our names which was very nice. There were lots of things to do on board and a nice gym to use. The food was a solid B in the dining room except for the desserts which I'd give a C as some of them just weren't very good.  But there was a lot of food and they were generous about bringing you more than one course of anything. The lido deck was better I thought for dessert although there was some overlap. Their asian bar was great, I enjoyed their italian one also. Breakfast was pretty standard but they had great chocolate cupcakes, I'm glad I didn't discover them till the last day. We did 2 excursions, the snorkling was great but too short, of course, and we saw Coco Beach, it rained so unless the weather is awesome, don't bother. We didn't do any of the drinks packages but bought from the bar instead and that worked well for us.  It was a very relaxing trip overall.

This was our fifth sailing with Carnival Cruise Line's Pride. Once again, a relaxing cruise experience.  Every ship member we encountered was courteous, friendly, and very professional, many quickly learning our names and addressing as such ... a nice personal touch.  Sailing out of Baltimore is a snap IF you have the proper documentation and identification.  Food service, in both the grill and dining room, was wonderful with plenty of meal variety.  Reading other negative reviews, I can't understand what some people are expecting ???  For the price of this cruise, it more then met our expectations.  Anyone who went hungry .. shame on them for it was their own fault.  Great cruise for relaxing but if you wanted to go ashore you have to do your homework and search out activities in port.  Excursions were still a bit over priced.  Carnival needs to sharpen its pencil and find more short, cost effective beach excursions for those passengers who cruise south in search of a warm, sunny beach to relax on.  Balmoral Island needs more shade! Nassau has a public beach which has been cleaned up since we last visited.  Freeport has a nice little dock side area which appears to be undergoing improvements and upgrades for those who elect to stay close by but still leave the ship.  Room service onboard was exceptional ... stewards worked very hard to meet our every need.  Evening entertainment was very good, featuring so many young talents who sing and dance their hearts out to please the audience.  Casino was a bit smoky for those who elect to play.  And do people really win .... you bet. One customer won a new BMW on a slot machine but elected to take the cash equivalent.  ONLY complaint from me is that the Sushi Bar was discontinued in lieu of some little snack food Taste Bar .... no comparison.  We need the Sushi Bar reinstated !  All in all it was a very cost effective and relaxing vacation away from the snow and ice of home.

I have cruised with you for over 15 years. Point  although every one very pleasant many amenities were ob viously changed or missing.You have no specialty restaurants. The only games were the same bean bag every day. Captain did not seem to be available. The shows were terrific .The cast really worked hard and a great performance Food was just soso. Our waiter was a bit sarcastic although he might have thought he was funny.He wasnt.Other ships seem to be doing the  same thing.Obviosly I!m not happy. Maybe I should con sider find ing another vacation like all inclusives .Neither are cheap

I HAVE BEEN ON 10 CARNIVAL CRUISES,  THE CARNIVAL PRIDE HAD THE WORSE FOOD BY FAR.  THERE IS NOTHING GOOD ABOUT THE FOOD EXCEPT THE PIZZA.  

TO STOP IN FREEPORT FROM 7:00 A.M. TO 1:00 P.M. IS A WASTE OF TIME, AND NOT WORTH GETTING OFF THE SHIP.

The cruise was very cheap. We got 2 cabins (4 people) for about $2500. The sit down dining was great food, but service a little rushed. The buffet was very limited food choices and hard to get to for lunch. The sit down brunches were the best meals of the cruise.

We took 2 days to get to Florida. i don't know why we didn't get there in 1 day and we could have had more time in other ports.

The entertainment was typical of a cruise. Reviews of Broadway and pop hits with a dance troupe and lots of costumes. Not very family friendly in terms of the dance numbers and revealing costumes. The comedy shows had both family and adult shows which I enjoyed.

The game shows were poorly run and could have had more production value with minimal effort. We took a carnival Cruise last summer on the Glory and the shows were all much better.

The stops. Port canaveral was a good day to see one of the Universal Parks and the excurtion included a shuttle to and from the parks.

Nassau was a short day at a private beach with boat rides to and from the beach.

Freeport was a short stop where we just went shopping at the little shopping area right off of the boat.

I felt both Bahamas stops were too short and would have liked more time to do more things.

Then we raced home in a day and a half to get back to Baltimore. I wish the trip back was slower to get an extra day of warm weather.

Too many unattended kids running around all of the time. Nothing is monitored in or around the pool/ hot tubs and some people are just rude.

I guess you get what you pay for.

This was our first cruise with Carnival and I know I won't go on one of their Pride-sized ships again.  Embarking went well, but we had priority boarding due to having a mini-suite.  I did pick the wrong week to cruise from Baltimore (or NY) due to it being winter break for the school kids.  Heard there were aprox 600 kids on-board meaning the pools and hottubs were full at all times.  The adults-only area (Serenity) is a joke.  It was packed except when it was cold (days coming in/out of Baltimore).  I also had some spa activities.  Massage was great!  Nails and hair, not so much.  With 2 days at sea on each end, there just isn't enough to do onboard unless one is drunk or gambles.  I got the bubbles soda package and was very disappointed with it.  With my other cruises (not Carnival), purchasing a reusable cup comes with the package (it is extra and not needed for this program) and can be refilled ANYWHERE by any wait staff.  Carnival only gives drinks from the bar meaning when at dinner, we had to flag down a bar-staff person and it would be 10 minutes before they came back with the drink, forget getting a refill.  There was no incentive for them to help someone with a soda card as there was no automatic tip.  To top it off, even at the bar, the sodas were poured from a can not a fountain system.  This particular cruise has 2 seadays on either end (as mentioned before).  In following the cruise map, we hugged the coast.  I'm not a mariner, but wouldn't it be quicker just making a straight line down?  The port stops were short except for Port Canaveral.  When I cruise, I'm not planning on my longest port stop being in the states.  Freeport was extremely short, we made it back from our short excursion with 20 minutes to spare.  I also would like more dining options.  24-hr pizza was great, but the staff was inconsistent in the types as well as any organization in taking orders.  The caeser salad offered with pizza was in premade bowls sitting under the top counter. There was a grill that was open longer hours, but I only noticed it open a couple of times.  David's was very good and the service exceptional!  As for our room steward, ours was also exceptional. We also had a virus going around.  We weren't notified by staff, but the buffet staff started serving everyone, but not stopping those that grabbed the utensils anyway.  Plus staff was walking around with gloves and buckets with sponges and disinfectant.

Maybe we are used to larger ships (between this and a Breakaway size) that have more to offer during the sailing.  

My main complaint is that the ship spends way too much time out at sea.   A seven night cruise should spend more time at the warm ports like Florida but especially The Bahamas.  A full day 9-5 in Florida was nice, but 10:30-5 in Nassau (we didn't get to our excursion, Atlantis until noon) and 7-1 in (yes that's 7am) Freeport, really???? I thought going on a mid winter cruise to get away from cold snowy weather would be a nice reprieve.  The ship purposefully slows down so you spend more time onboard spending your money there.  The food was pretty good.  Drinks were weak but I knew that beforehand, and not worth the wait to get.    Take advantage of being able to bring a bottle of wine onboaed.  (1 per person 21 and over per carry on).  The room and ship were very clean and our room purser was extremely nice and took care of everything we needed with our room accommodations.    Oh and PARENTS WITH KIDS, set a limit on the arcade!!!  All games are $1 each!!! $55 dollars goes pretty fast in an hour or so in one day!!  

All in all not too bad if you like to just relax onboard and love to eat but if looking for more fun and adventure I would fly somewhere direct or really do more research on actual island and excursion times aboard another ship or cruise line.  

Oh,  and for the woman presumed overboard or lost at sea.... I wouldn't have had the stamina!!

A good experience  the buffet is very good  our room was beautiful   !!! The steak house is really very good  even though  it's an extra  cost !! The formal dining stinks  poor quality !!!   The staff works  hard to keep  you pleased   Port canaveral  in Florida is terrible useless port  not alot to do or see unless you really wanna rent a car 

This was our 7th cruise, 2nd on Carnival and it was a disappointment.  Our cabin had air conditioning that would not shut off and we were freezing most of the time.  Throughout the ship there was loud music blaring, impossible to find a quiet place to sit and read.  The buffet was often closed and when open, hot food was cold.  We so looked forward to relaxing in the hot tub, however it was never hot.  The ice cream machine seldom worked.  The tours offered were outrageously priced.  The stop in Nassau was so bad, we feared for our lives.  Our own state department had issued a warning about travel to Nassau.  When we arrived there were 5 other cruise ships docked.  Can you imagine the crowds?  The natives followed us around trying to sell their "junk". I do have some positives to mention.  The dining room was superb, both the food and the service was excellent.  Also Freeport was lovely, our stop there was most pleasant and the best part of the cruise.

Over all great cruise for the cost.

Food choices was nice.  Taste was bland on some dishes (main dining room)

Buffet was great.  Chopsticks seem to carry the same dishes every day.........boring

Breakfast was wonderful.

Shows were okay to good.

Comedy shows were very nice.

Staff was very good. 

Ship was dark and glad to hear it is getting an over haul. 

After waiting almost two hours in line my back couldn't take it anymore. I went through security afterwhich I advised an older woman with a British accent that I would need help boarding because of my back. Her immediate response was a curt "you should have said something before. Come over here and wait up there" pointing towards the counter where another older female was sitting. My wife and I moved to an area where I thought she meant when the counter employee yelled at me to get back. I asked to register a complaint and in a couple of minutes the assistant supervisor asked if she could help me. The supervisor's demeanor was polite, respectful and professional. I gave her the details of my complaint and she assured me that she would address them with her supervisor. All toll my wife and I have been on about 15 cruises both in this country and abroad and are gold card members of Carnival Cruise. I retired as a senior executive in PA. I don't think that that should warrant any special treatment but I do understand what respect is and I, like all of your customers, deserve it.

This was my first cruise. I was impressed on some aspects but totally dissapointed on alot of others.  Customer service desk people were not customer friendly. I lost 3.00 in a dryer on the 6th deck went down to get it refunded . instead of having them send someone up to check on the dryers, like asked, i ended up throwing away another 12.00 for dryers that did not work.  The ststeroom was wonderful!! Putu was a wonderful ? cabin boy?? ( I hope that is what they call the,) room services with coffee in the am was great!!  most of the people who work on the cruise ware friendly. The Captin was not.  in fact I though he was quite rude and snobbish.  Juan in the dinning room Normande was just wonderful and friendy and receptive to my food allergies. made me feel like a queen.  You need to hold onto him!!  Dane from the Casino was Wonderful!!!  I was surprised that there was no buffet but a cafateria on the Ledo deck.  What Gives???  food was not good , service not friendly.  I would have like to have had more time in the Bahama's.  Since I will never get there again.  This cruise came a wonderful time since when we got back My husband got notice that his company is closing the doors.  Now we will never get to take another cruise.

We

this was our first cruise so we didn't  know what to expect . Friends  encouraged us and we are happy they did. 

The ship (Pride) was beautiful ...crew pleasant and helpful...activities  plentiful...

we especially enjoyed the serenity deck..and of course the meals were delicious .

what's not to like?  We would recommend this cruise to anyone. It was a very relaxing and wonderful experience.

...

We had a great time but not because of Carnival but because we had great excursions and met great people.  Was frustrated witht the smoking in the casino and nightclub. Did not spend more time there because of the smoking.  Disappointed in the food lines.  The setups were inefficient. For example at the salad bar, no food trays to carry anything.  Carnival did not provide anything memorable to make this a great cruise.

Rooms were freezing! Barely warm in Bahamas. We had anytime dining and it was the first time we were given a pager.

Twice! The shows were very good. We really liked them. Food service was verry good, as usual.