Great Itinerary, Below Average to Poor Experiences aboard ship

Only ate in one of the main dining rooms twice and had to send food back and the other time, the food was only average.  Dining rooms were not used very much for breakfast or lunch.  Buffet was rather redundant and the pizza was probably the worst I have ever had.  The waiter/servers in casino and on lido deck were friendly but it was obvious that they were instructed to push the drinks and I had to say no very frequently.  We considered getting their alcohol package at $50 per person per day but decided that we would probably not drink that much.  We saw a internal video on day two which advertised the price at $35 per person per day (it ran repeatedly that morning and was viewed by both parties in the room)  We decided that was a pretty good deal and attempted to purchase the package only to be told repeatedly that we were mistaken.  We went to the main customer service desk and after we insisted, because by then we felt as if they were telling us we were lying, the csr contacted the beverage operation manager, Sylvia Anderson, who promised to investigate and get back to us within 24 hours.  Never did we hear from Ms. Anderson or anyone else.  Debarkation was a nightmare that pretty much illustrated that Carnival has a great distance to go in the logistics department.  They were sending people down throughout a 45 minute period during which there was absolutely no movement as we stood like crowded animals with our luggage in elevator bays and stairwells.  The entertainment was mediocre at best and there was much more noise at night from above and from the hallway than on my previous 4 cruises on other lines so sleeping was not nearly as restful as we experienced elsewhere.  Still, we enjoyed the ports of call and excursions.  Overall, Carnival will not be a first or second choice for a future cruise, regardless of the itinerary and/or cost.