Carnival Cruise Line
Sam Smith
Itinerary: Bahamas
Sailing Date: December 6th, 2008
Age: 41
Occupation: musician
Number of Cruises: 1st Cruise
I left on Sat 6th Dec for my first cruise. Generally
speaking, i enjoyed myself and had a good time. Yes i would
recommend it to my friends and i'm really glad i went, so
now i know what to expect. I did have a great time.
However, I do have some points that i would like to make.
we had to wait for hours in such a long line whilst we
waited to board. It was a horrible experience and we stood
for absolute ages. Not sure how true this is, but whilst we
were waiting in line we heard that, there was a delay in
getting everybody off the ship that morning, and so that is
why it was taking us so long to board. It took so long to
board, register (unfortunately, the lady who registered me,
made so many mistakes and messed up the credit card details
to other people who it shouldn't have gone to). By the time
i arrived on board i was so tired and frustrated from the
long lines. Absolutely no explanations or apologies were
given and we arrived on the ship with two girls from the
spa, taking our sail and sign in cards, with hardly a great
welcome. in fact, there was no welcome and this well cheesed
me off. After waiting in line for hours, the queue for the
lido restaurant was very long also. Just as i sat down, we
had to leave our food and go and have the safety talks. We
were unable to get any refreshments and relax for a short
while before being told we had to leave the restaurant. I
understand we had to have this talk, so i'm not too upset
about that. just upset that our entry/arrival/introduction
onto the ship was such poor quality and service.
On our way downstairs to the deck where the safety talk was
being held, we saw 3 members of crew just standing near the
staircase. they said nothing to us, even though they could
see we were lost and not totally clear where to go.
apart from the staff in the stateroom and the staff in the
restaurant, the rest of the staff around the ship, were
unfriendly, not welcoming and they looked so lost sometimes,
didn't always see enough of them, willing or offering to
help on days when they were really needed, like on the days
when we arrived at the port(s) to come off. Poor service
there, definitely.
The cuban band playing live at
the lido, great for about 30 mins, but they only played
cuban music and this was just too much after a while. would
have been nice to have a variety of songs and styles.
With regards to the show, thank God for Lawrence the singer
and the woman. They saved the show and i liked their
voices. The quality of the show in terms of having really
good dancers, was so poor. I cringed at the quality of
dancers, apart from maybe two that was good. However, the
costumes, the colours, the actual choreography, the staging
was brilliant. The musicians was poor quality and it seemed
like they just played for the sake of it, not for feeling or
soul, or rhythm. The theatre, was fantastic and a great
venue, great decor, and stunning lighting.
The air conditioning on the ship was ridiculous. it was way
too cold and most people had to constantly be wearing shawls
and cardigans. The captain didn't turn up on his cocktail
captain night, it was all a ploy for everyone to take photos
and spend money buying them. the treatments in the spa were
far too expensive but i did have a massage and the young
lady was lovely and friendly.
A lot more could be said, but i won't put it down
completely, i did overall still enjoy the experience and yes
i would do it again despite many things that i felt could
have been improved upon for definite. The ports are
expensive and after seeing 1 t-shirt, you have seen them
all, but still good to be able to say you have been to these
countries. sort out the lines, when entering and exiting
the ship that what i would say is the worst thing, i hated
so much on this trip. i understand its a security issue, but
for goodness sake, some of it is common-sense. (either more
staff, or open more doors!
all the best to you if you are going onto the splendor.
enjoy, but bring a woolly jumper to shield yourself from the
ferocious air conditioning.
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