This was my 21st cruise, my third with Carnival. The other two Carnival cruises were out of New Orleans, on the Carnival Conquest and the Carnival Dream. Those were both good experiences, but I have to wonder if there is a "typical" Carnival cruise. I don't think I will try again, though. Back to Celebrity, Norwegian, or Royal.
Embarkation
5 out of 5
Embarkation was so great it gave us hopes for a terrific cruise. Fast. We arrived before out assigned time, as we usually do. We got in a line with early/late arrivers. This was a nice plan so that we did not get ahead of those arriving on time. We got in early without inconveniencing others.
Ship experiences
Food and Dining
1 out of 5
The food at the main dining room (Black Pearl) was--for the most part--sub-par. A few dishes were excellent, but most were not as good as you get at Appleby's. Tough, dry chicken, undercooked steak. I did like the shrimp creole, though.
The dinner was very good at Pinnacle, the specialty restaurant. It should be, for a $35.00 charge over what we had "paid" for a meal in the main dining room.
The Lido buffet was perhaps acceptable, but certainly nothing special.
Definitely the worst food I have experienced on my 21 cruises.
Onboard Activities
2 out of 5
We spent most of the day at the adult area at the back of the ship. I appreciate having this area, because the "music" at the main pool was terribly loud. The Serenity section up on deck 12 is nice, too.
The piano bar was fun, although overrun with 20-somethings.
We did enjoy most of the comedians in the Punchliner club.
Maybe the most entertaining activity we observed was when a 20-something girl got out of one hot tub without her bikini bottoms, walked about the pool, and got in the other hot tub. By the time security got to her, someone had delivered her bottoms to her and she was led away fully bikinied.
Entertainment
2 out of 5
Some of out group went to a couple shows in the main theater and said nothing good about them. Most ships have a magician and/or juggler. Not the Splendor.
The piano bar was fun, although overrun with 20-somethings.
We did enjoy most of the comedians.
Children's Programs
Our group of 10 had no children.
Service and Staff
4 out of 5
Our room steward, Henry, was excellent. He learned our names and preferences the first day and was very attentive. When I told him that my bedside light did not work, it was immediately fixed.
The waiters in the main dining room (Black Pearl) tried hard, but had been assigned too many tables. One evening we got tired of waiting and left before the desert menu was distributed. Again, John worked hard and tried to treat us well, but he had too many tables and not enough help.
Ship Quality
2 out of 5
I like the layout, with most of the public areas on deck 5 and the Lido deck (9).
The ship must have been decorated for South American venues. The color palette emphasized pink. That didn't bother me much, but I heard complaints from others. Another reason for thinking that the ship was not built with North American clientele in mind is that the main plug in the cabin was 220 volts. The ONLY 110-volt outlet in the room was back in the corner of the dressing table.
I saw more rust on the Splendor than I have ever seen on another cruise ship. This leads me to think that is is scheduled for a refurbishing in the near future--maybe to include getting rid of the pink.
Cabin / Stateroom
4 out of 5
The cabin was larger than I have experienced on most other ships. (It was a foot wider than that of a fellow traveller who had an aft balcony on the 6th deck.) It was clean.
I rate it as less-than-excellent because the ONLY 110-volt outlet in the room was back in the corner of the dressing table.
Ship tip
Get assigned to the Golden Pearl restaurant. The food will be the same, but maybe the staff will not be overworked.
If you are over 50, got to the adult pool at the back and try the Serenity section on deck 12.
I only got off for a little while. Others in our party went on a whale-watching excursion and were very impressed.
There is much less poverty at Cabo than at the other ports.
Those in our party who went to the beach reported that they were overwhelmed by people trying to sell them something. There is a lot of poverty that is not visible from the ship--as in Caribbean countries.
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