paul,
Wanted to let you know I was on the Triumph last week and we had a fantastic time. There was a goup of 13 of us and it was great. I think you said you were on the ship. I didn't find the ship that hard to navigate but the atrium on these newer Destiny Class ships is much less impressive than on the Fantasy class ships, do you agree? the ship was very nice though the public rooms are so toned down for Carnival. We saw two shows on the ship which were absolutely fantastic. The camp carnival on the Destiny Class ships is 1/3 the size that it is on many of the Fantasy class ships, this was a little disappointing since we all had kids but they didn't seem to notice.

I could go on all day about how "WONDERFUL" the entire camp Carnival staff is. This is a wonderful program and really makes a vacation unique from others. The food was fine, though deserts in the buffet are a bit tasteless.

halifax was a wonderful port to visit, I had never been there.

I must say this vacation was fantastic and I'd like to try the Carnival Paradise. I'd really like to go on the non-smoking ship since this Triumph was lake a smokers haven. The casino was so smokey you could hardly walk in there.

Any thoughts on the paradise? Do you know if any other cruise lines plan on offering Non-smoking ships? i think this is a great idea. I wonder if they'd offer non-smoking sailings.

Betsy

I decided long ago that people either love Carnival or hate her!

For those of us who have "been there, done that" and choose not to go again, I hope we all find lines that meet our needs. (I know I did!)

For those who enjoy Carnival, ENJOY! Keep cruising with them and having a great time.

Hilary

Hi ya'all,

Just returned from cruising the Triumph.

What a ship! I thought I walked onto the Maasdam by mistake.

No more flashing neon, all wood, glass and brass. The staterooms are all very tastefully decorated, no more loud colors. Joe Farcus, the CCL architect must be getting
old. He has not lost his creativity in design. Nothing is square (walls, ceiling, floors). Absolutely beautiful!

One thing has not changed. It is still a fun ship. You can walk into every public room on any day or night and find cruisers having a laughing good time. And mostly seniors on this sailing out of NYC.

Only heard one complaint at my table about one entree. The pork was overdone, dry and tough. He promptly sent it back. I found the food very good as on other CCL ships.

Before I get bashed again. I will repeat there is much better gourmet food on other ships (the upscale cruise lines).

Paul

For our first ever cruise we boarded the Elation Mexican Riviera tour with our 3 boys (separate cabin) - October 11. We had a fabulours time, and got real value for our dollar. I have posted a more complete report as a separate item on this forum. The ship was beautiful, the staff attentive, and the food far better than I had anticipated. I have no negatives to report.

PLEASE NOTE: E-Mail address correction (webtv.net) Dear Paul, Thank you for your kind response - regarding my Carnival Cruise experience. I'm glad you had an enjoyable cruise vacation. With all the negitive responses on this forum it must have been quite challenging for you to feel postive while boarding the ship. Bravo to your response!!! Regarding the menu selection----You might consider contacting the main head quarters for Carnival Cruise Lines in Miami. When we returned home from our cruise we contacted them to express our joyful experience. While chatting with the cruise consultant we discussed the menu choices. She told us Carnival was negotiating with several different food consultants on upgrading their menu.

Dear Paul, Inaddition to my previous respose I would like to commend you for your time and effort to this forum. As a cruise vacation travel agent I'm sure all the negitivity on this forum can sometimes become quite annoying to you. I'd like to share my favorite quote with you, in this imperfect world we live in...."The past is history, the future is a mystery and the moment is a gift." There is nothing in life that comes with a 100% guarantee, including a vacation. The unexpected can happen on any cruise line regardless of the price.

I would be interested in hearing how anyone like the Paradise. Also has anyone sailed on the newest ship?

I can't believe the extent of the whining and complaining about Carnival! We are going on a back to back Carnival cruise in Januuary and are looking forward to it! We are experienced cruisers (Princess, Holland Americal and RCCL) and have experienced problems on all of these lines from mediocre food to pathetic entertainment (i.e a banjo player!!) to changes of ports to rude staff. There are however, lots of opportunities to surmount these problems - go to another part of the ship, take advantage of the other food service options, enjoy the new port (our best cruise experience resulted from a change in port); or just try to focus on the humour of the situation. One thing we have learned is that the WORST part of cruising is the complainers who will go on ad nauseum about everything that is not (to their minds) perfect. I often wonder how they manage in life. Stay home!, and save your fellow passengers the grief of listening to you.

Some perspective here:

Holland America is clean and service is excellent, however entertainment is definately geared to the geriatric set.

RCCL is beautiful but we found the food to be mediocre and the dining room staff to have a bit of an attitude - it became a bit of a joke at the table - so we turned it into a positive experience, and we ate in the Lido where the food was great.

The Princess ship we were on was old and pretty worn out (Fair Princess)but we had the best! time.

Have you checked out carnivalsucks.com? It's no joke; the site really exists. Having never sailed Carnival, my lips are sealed, but from all the horror stories I've heard & read, the temptation of cheap deals on Carnival's ships loses out for a little more money for a cruiseline that offers a consistantly great value for my cruise dollar: Celebrity.

I happen to LOVE Celebrity too, but she isn't for everyone either. The key to happy cruising is to find a line that meets your needs. Carnival meets some people's needs...just not mine! I will stick with Celebrity, Princess, or RCCL so I know I will have a relaxing, enjoyable vacation with excellent food and service.

I've been on 12 Carnival cruises and loved them all. My travel agent steered me away from the older ships so I can only respond to the newer class ships and they are all excellent. I found the staff to be very helpful and courtious. The entertainment is great and the food is good but not great. This guy had a bad experience which is too bad and worst of all they did nothing to correct it. But to bash the entire line is silly. I've had 12 wonderful experiences so I can only speak highly of them. We found the waiters and busboys to be outstanding on each and every trip. I would recommend Carnival to anyone. My question is why would any TA recommend those old run down ships? They do serve a purpose as far as price goes but just use common sense. If you had a choice to buy a 1981 LeSabre for $800 less than a 1997 LeSabre would you? Those years make a difference!

How about that Destiny floaten out there without any power! Sounds like a great time! Only on the Circus line.... I mean, Carnival line! oops

We, family of 4, were on the Triumph Christmas Cruise, Southern Caribbean. TA touted it for its value. Our 20 something adult children had teenies running wild down their hall, smoking pot which went through the vents (yup, they called security, to no avail). Food mediocre, half the time my children's room wasn't made up, shore excursions screwed up. Basically, the darn thing is too big for the crew they have. For the ten grand we paid, not enough value for us ever to go Carnival again. But the upside, the ship did not catch fire, lose power and they never cut off our phone lines so that passengers can't call out when there's a problem.

Just got back from 5 day cruise on the Imagination sailing to the W. Caribbean. Everything was almost perfect from the time we left home until we returned. A couple of delays on the flight home which Carnival had nothing to do with. The ship was beautiful, food great, rooms roomy, and the staff considerate. I only cruise Carnival and never had a bad experience. Lucky? Things are going to happen beyond Carnival's control - bad weather, rude people, things breaking down. If you let little things bother you, your trip will be ruined. Relax!!! It's a vacation.

Don't get me wrong-- I have
enjoyed Carnival in the past, and
have another one booked on the
Inspiration's 16 April 2000 sailing.
However, it makes sense to me
that if Carnival would spend their
money overhauling their maintenance
and engineering departments instead
of spending money taking over other
cruise lines--- they would be in far
better shape! It is obvious to me
that the quality of their maintenance
and engineering departments are
not as it should be--- heads should
roll!! Look what happened to NCL---
I'm sure that their run of bad luck in
the last few years have weakened
the line to the point that Star and
Carnival were successful in buying
out the line! Carnival better watch
out---- some company may be
watching, waiting to bite their hand!!
JanGail

Did I miss something? Has Carnival bought NCL?? When?? Is NCL in better shape yet?

Kathleen,
Carnival Cruiselines and Star Cruise
lines purchased shares of NCL,
with Star owning 90%. For more
infomation about this story, try
www.cruisemates.com and click
on their Cruise News and Bargains.
Also, Carnival's website, www.carnival.com, has information
about this development in their
Carnival News--
It's too early to tell if this will help
NCL--- hopefully infusion of new
cash will help. Star Cruise lines is
a company based in Singapore,
specializing in cruises for Asian
and European passengers. These
are ships named SuperStar Leo,
SuperStar Virgo, etc. They have
a pretty good reputation for service,
food, according to cruise guides by
Fodor's and Fielding's.
JanGail

Thanks to all of you that have come to my rescue. Carnival is really a fun cruise and a great value. I think their new menu is just great.

Thank goodness Star/Carnival took controlling interest in NCL, now I will sell the line again.

As far as the misfortune of the Destiny, it really was bad luck. The ship has two propulsion units. When one broke down and they were attempting to repair it, the other one broke down. You will note though how CCL takes care of their irate passengers. A real good deal. All their money back plus 50% off their next cruise. The passengers could also have stayed at a high priced resort for the rest of the week if they wanted. NO other cruise line would do this.

As far as the older CCL ships. I am wondering why CCL does not give them to a foreign line. It's time for Tropical and Celebration to go.

Someone asked about their new ships. I have sailed the Triumph and found it to be very classy. Gone is the Las Vegas touch. The fun does continue....I was very pleased. And wow, that NY Deli.....

Bring on the Victory....I am going this fall out of NYC.

Happy sailing you all.

Paul

The cruisers of today are a bunch of whiners. No class like the cruise of yesteryear.

Today's cruisers even whine at dinner with the effect of making other cruisers unhappy.

It is all a matter of attitude. Look at the bright side, instead of whining so you can get something for FREE.

Carnival is a great cruise line. This guy was a cheap penny pinching bum and went on the worst ship in the line. He gets what he deserves.