Carnival Splendor Cruise Reviews - Reviews

I had the best time, this was my 2nd cruise and my 1st on Carnival......Loved the water slide, the hot tubs in the back of the boat. Our room was clean and beds comfy.  

 great cruise nice working staff good food beautiful shows nice pictures nice cities to visit they all have there beauty met friends from trinidad nice family

On arrival day, after lunch we decided to check out the casino. Every toilet in the ladies room had not been flushed and the floor was flooded. On day 2 the shower in our stateroom overflowed. Also on day 2 the stopper in our sink broke and we had trouble reaching the Cabin steward and guest services. On day three our tv remote stopped working. All of these things were fixed but they were still annoying and took time from our vacation. We were given exactly 2 bars of soap for the two of us to use all week.

We travelled with good friends of ours and it was my best friend's 60th birthday on November 7th. Before I left I ordered and paid for the birthday decorations with cookies package and also chocolate covered strawberries. I waited all day. Nothing. Finally at 8 pm our cabin steward phoned someone for me and after getting the information she told me that it had been done. I said I am standing in her room with the cabin steward and no, nothing has been done at which time she changed her story stating that my credit card had cancelled the order. I knew this was impossible. I had printed out my receipt and had it with me. I was told to speak to the lady in the candy store. I went there with my receipt in hand and that lady called the same lady that I had already spoken to and  repeated her second story, that my credit card had cancelled my order. No one wanted to help. My best friend's milestone 60th birthday surprise was a bust. It was the only gift I had for her but no one on Carnival cared. What would it have hurt them to take the chance that I was telling the truth and went ahead and decorated the room and delivered the cookies and strawberries? I checked my credit card as soon as I got home and I was in fact charged for everything I ordered. I tend to believe that the first story I was told was true. It was done but not in the correct room. So now I have lost over $50.00 to Carnival. 

In in the dining room I was given a drinking glass with something green stuck to the  side of it and I was given a cereal spoon that had food stuck to the bottom in the Lido Room. 

To to top it off, my good friends ordered room service several evenings. The last time they ordered they received a call from room service asking if they wanted to increase the tip they originally gave. Really?  All gratuities were included but we all were nice enough to give extra and then they are going to call and ask for more?  It was very rude. No more Carnival for us. This was our first and last experience. Let us not forget that word of mouth can be your best or worst advertisement. 

This was my first cruise and I loved it. My only gripe is the way you are treated by Carnival if you do not book your excursions through them. We needed to be one of the first tenders off the boat for an excursion and the ship gave first seats to people who booked through them even though we sat in line for an hour an half. SO next time when they ask if i booked through them i will lie and say yes to get on the tender boat because I paid HALF of what they charge for excursions through their third party partner BJ's. Other than that it was great !

Island visits were great!  Lots of shopping, swimming, etc.  I kissed a stingray in Grand Caymens (and I liked it...lol)

Now, on to the Carnival Splendor,  Hmmm, where do I begin?  I'll just hit the two biggies...We ordered room service and left our usual $5.00 tip.  Should be plenty considering all tips are already included.  A few minutes after the steward left, the phone rang.  Calling party was asking us to increase the amount of our tip!  SERIOUSLY!!  How rude!  Honestly, I believe Carnival wouldn't be to pleased to hear this happen.  My friend that cruised with us had ordered a birthday gift for me.  My room was to be decorated, chocolate covered strawberries and cookies were to be included.  I was wondering why she was following me around all day.  To make a long story longer, the order was never filled.  She was told by Carnival that the room had been taken care of.  She argued and then they changed the story and said the order was cancelled.  Guest services was NO help (after standing in line for over an hour).  After returning home she discovers her credit card had been billed for this.  Don't think I'll be cruising with Carnival in the future.

Overall a pleasant cruise. The staff for the most part was courteous and attentive with the few exceptions listed below. We brought our own wine aboard but please get rid of the corkage fee. Seems ridiculous. Please please please keep sailing from beautiful Norfolk,VA. Thank you!

Staff was not looking happy. Service in dining areas poor.  Seemed staff was not well trained and short staffed.  Signage inadequate, bathrooms not well marked. No information in rooms about destnation.  Compared to other cruises,  this was not an experience I would like again.  

One of the great things about Carnival cruises is that the sea days and the experiences on-board are a BIG part of the fun, so missing a port just allows more time to take advantage of what this ship had to offer. This was a 6 day cruise to the Bahamas, which included stops at Nassau, Freeport, and, our favorite port, Half Moon Cay. Unfortunately, mother nature intervened and 40 knot winds and 6 foot seas prevented us from tendering to the private island. The captain steered us away from the harsh weather and, by noon, we had sunshine and smooth(er) sailing headed to the next port. The Cruise Director, Kevin, and his great staff re-tooled the on-board activities for the day and lots of fun was there to be had. The Splendor is a great ship and we will sail on her again.

I've never been on a cruise before. It was great for my first time. I really enjoyed the food and the house keeping staff was amazing. Every one in service knew us by first name.

You were supposed to give me and my 2 girls a $50.00 onboard credit and you did not.  We called you before we got underway about the credit and you said that you would apply a credit for $50.00 back on my charge card so please make sure you do this.  Also, we were supposed to have a sofa in the cabin but we had a pull down bed which was very disaapointing and uncomfortable.  I don't

 think I will ever book through you again.

The cruise it self was good because of the company, I was with.  But the buffet food was lukewarm not even warm or hot.  The set up for the buffet line is too close to one another, and always long lines.  The food is the dining room was good on some nights and other nights it had no taste.   They told us on the second night in the dining room/restaurant area that we would have lobster but then we were told that's only when you do more than 5 nights.  This was the first time hearing this because I have did a 5 night cruise and we had lobster but on the menu there is a charge if you order lobster now. So that was disappointing.  For VIP passengers we received a bottle of water.  I think Carnival could have did better than that.  The last time, we cruised VIP receive happy hour for 1 hour.  Carnival is cutting back too much and they really need to improve on the food. 

For my first time on a cruise ship I had an amazing time. The trip was not to long and the events/ activities on the boat where fun. I would definitely cruise with Carnival Splendor again. 

A disaster at  Boston, all shore excursions cancelled by Carnival.  Luggage handling at embarkation, the first day,  was very, very, very, very, slow, keeping many passenger elevators tied up for hours, hours and more hours with luggage. The same situation, to a lesser degree, was also encountered at dis-embarkation on the last day, keeping passengers waiting, waiting, and waiting, for dis-embarkation.  Embarkation lines, after shore excursions in Portland, were very, very, very, long, and white uniformed officers were asked to correct the lousy situation, and they did nothing.

The piano bar singer was terrible and we told customer service. The comedians were great and the stage shows were boring. Not enough to do on ship on the days at sea days. Shopping was a disappointment all the clothes and gifts were for the islands nothing for Canada.

This cruise was a marvelous way for us to celebrate our 40th wedding anniversary! We thoroughly enjoyed ourselves, even without the 3 days in New York City post-cruise. That was just the frosting on the cake.

Carnival took very good care of us from the time we entered the terminal until we returned. The crew was attentive to our needs and provided a wonderful experience. The ports of call provided a good variety of American and Canadian cities both large and small. The indulgences aboard ship were most enjoyable - and of course, decent weather contributed to the pleasure.

Our stateroom on deck 2, mid-ship-aft, had an unobstructed view and more room than our Manhattan hotel room. The bed was very comfortable and our only complaint here is that scraping and banging noises from below ran up the hull more frequently than we would have liked. There was also some squeaking in the cabin door as the ship rocked with the heavier seas on a couple of the nights.

Food was generally good, especially in the buffets on Lido deck. Our favorite was the Tandoor Grill, but we happen to really enjoy Indian cuisine. We had to try the ever-popular pizza but were not particularly impressed, and the server seemed uncomfortable with his assignment that day. Our first two nights of "your time" dining were also less than stellar as the steaks were lacking in flavor. That set us to skipping dinner one night and eat at the buffet, but we returned to The Black Pearl night 4 and found much more enjoyable entrees for the rest of the cruise. Service in the dining room was passable but not as classy as we were expecting. We're simple folk, however, and don't need excessive pampering.

While our room steward kept the room clean and well made up, we noticed other lapses in service in the buffet dining rooms. Sometimes the tables were bussed as we finished a plate, and other times we would find multiple tables needing to be cleaned. We had to keep an eye out for tables needing to be wiped down as we looked for a seat.

We did enjoy the diversity of nationalities among both crew and guests, and there was also a wide range of socio-economic status among those aboard. As to ports of call, our only disappointment was the Boston schedule of 4pm to 11pm, delayed by heavy seas from 2pm to 10pm. Neither schedule allowed much time for visiting the city, but we did find our way through the bus/subway to the North End for dinner at the Union Oyster House and "snacks" from Mike's Pastry and from Modern Pastry. It was a fun time ashore. Portland, Halifax, and Saint John were also pleasant little port cities with interesting historical sites and good local seafood lunches.

Shipboard entertainment did not impress, but we are not very interested in usual nightlife activities even including television. The stage show had good music with constant scene changes - the number of costume changes the cast went through was amazing! And, they were excellent singers and dancers. We sat through two "PG" comedy routines; one was reasonably funny, the second a complete dud. When the comic realized his routine was falling flat, he tried resorting to more off-color humor and commenting on the age and presumed Bible-reading state of his audience - the pathetic refuge of an unfunny comedian.

Not to end on a negative, we enjoyed the various "towel animals" that the steward left in the room each evening. They were folded and rolled to look like dogs, bears, dinosaurs, crabs, and elephants. It was fun to anticipate what each night's "critter" was going to be sitting on the bed.

We're ready to do this again! :)

There were only 4 ports for this cruise, so when we didn't make it into Halifax it was very disappointing, especially since 4 other ships made it into that port ahead of us. We immediately set sail for our next port and spent the entire day at sea, yet we only arrived 2 hours early at the last port? The weather there was far worse, but we made it in without any problems. We were also 2 hours late for our first port in Boston. That meant we were in rush hour traffic, which meant the drive was twice as long. The only reason we got to see the museum was due to the museum remaining open late to accommodate our 2 buses. We then got to see the historic district in the dark.

too bad the weather kept us from novia scoitia which was the main reason for the cruise. i also was our 40 th wedding anniverseryy and we appreciated al the attention given and free wine. some problem with the hostess in the black pearl didnt get her name maybe luna, she was very tall and thin. being a senior citizen she should have been more helpfull and pleasent which she wasent. she was confused on our dinner time and said i cant help you here. we tryed to explain we had open dinner we finnally went to another hostess and she helped us.

The Staff is the best part of this cruise. The cruise director Kevin was funny. His staff made the games fun We enjoyed the comedy club. The wait staff was great.I have food allergies and they went out of their way to make sure my dinning experience was as good as everyone else. Our cabin was kept clean by the nicest crew you could meet. They were always asking if we needed anything.  No matter where you went on the ship if you asked a team member a question they helped you out. and always with a smile.

So a beautiful  Fall cruise......well sort of! Being chased by a hurricane wasn't expected but what can you do?? Mother Nature will do what she wants. What we didn't expect or appreciate was the lack of communication and effort to solve a significant problem that we encountered on the very day of boarding. Boarding in New York at one o'clock, we headed to our room. Now, granted, we weren't expecting the Presidential suite but we did expect to have a room that would accommodate the 3 senior citizens that paid to be in that room. What we were told we would have was a room with a queen size bed and a sleeper sofa. What we go were two twin beds and two bunk beds in the ceiling. Now I don't know about you, but at our ages, none of us were capable of making that climb up those stairs, even once, not alone a few potty calls all night long. Not to mention one hip replacement and one plate in the foot of each of two of the passengers. So.....the phone calls began to rectify the situation and continued until 11:30 that night. We were told there were no other rooms available, a roll away bed would be brought, then no, there are no roll away beds on the ship. No one seemed to know what was or wasn't available and nothing was being do by any one. My husband moved the two twins together up against the wall to make room for US to throw the bunk bed mattresses on the floor for one of us to sleep on. Why any of us at our age and having paid for proper accommodation should have to sleep on the floor, but that looked like what was going to happen. One more trip by me down to the desk, at 11:30 pm. and guess what....a room was suddenly available. So, my 70 year old husband had to move his sister, by himself, at that hour , up 5 floors to the available room. not a good way to start a cruise and not a good impression left for his sisters first time cruise experience. A nice girl named Georgia was the only one that seemed to care and eventually tried to help so kodoos to her. I also felt that there were a lot of attitude problems with some of the staff we were dealing with. Other than that, a typical cruise. I must say, the entertainment on this ship, the Splendor, was Excellent! We've been on many cruises and this was far the best we've seen on a consistent, nightly basis. Huge productions with singing, dancing, fabulous costumes and props. Food was good and plentiful, as usual. Ports of calls were good, even if we didn't get into Halifax due to the rough seas. All in all, it is what it is, and you make the best out of things that you can. So, keep on traveling, enjoying , and experiencing life!

Not a good ship for individuals in wheel chairs or other mobility problems. Rooms very tiny.Gettign around the halls was hard since the wheel chair we rented was the width of the halls. Prices for unboad items were way to high. I got hurt and had to leave the 2nd day the way our luggage was packed was not bad but they had no idea where the put which we needed for the 5 hour trip home. Please always get trip insurance. WE never got a refund for the party goods,cake, soda, and other items to be delivered during the week, etc that we payed for in advance before saling. Nor did Carnival offer us any thing for  future travel or an I'm sorry for my accident which for me to go home from Boston.