4th Anniversary Trip -- Cruise to the Bahamas

Every year for our anniversary Brian and I like to go on an international trip to escape from the world for a bit and celebrate. Since we went to Europe in February we didn't want to go on another big trip, but still wanted to get away for a few days, so we ended up deciding on a short, 3 day cruise to the Bahamas. We were able to find a cruise that left on our actual anniversary, leaving from Port Canaveral (only about 2.5 hours from Jax), so we went with that one. It was on Carnival Cruise line, so it was a pretty reasonable price too. This was our first cruise, so we didn't really know what to expect, but we were up for the adventure and just looking forward to getting away together for a few days.

We started the day with a great breakfast at Metro Diner in downtown Jax and then hit the road, complete with a "4th Anniversary" playlist on our iPod.

While the first part of our cruise (before we even set sail) was a nightmare, and we didn't even know if we'd be able to go on the Cruise due to Carnival's mistake, we had a good time. You can read more about the fiasco here, but for this post, I'll focus on the actual cruise.

The ship we went on, Carnival Sensation, seemed a bit outdated. It looked like it was straight out of the 80's. Our room was pretty nice though; we opted for the ocean view room and were really glad we did. We think we would have felt too confined without the window. The bed was pretty comfortable too, so there really weren't any complaints about the room.

You're assigned a dinner time and table that you can choose to partake in, or you can go to one of the buffets. We were under the impression there were only large tables available and we'd have to sit with a bunch of strangers, but we got lucky and were able to get a table for two which was nice. The dining room is pretty bright and noisy so the ambiance isn't terrific.The food was pretty decent; not awesome, but decent. There was a pretty good selection at dinner. All of the food is included in the price of the cruise and alcohol is extra. You're allowed to each bring one bottle of wine or champagne per person on board, so the first night, on our anniversary, we payed the $10 corkage fee and had the wine we brought served at dinner. I also surprised Brian with a "Happy Anniversary" cake at dinner, and since the traditional gift for the fourth wedding anniversary is fruit and floral, I also surprised Brian with chocolate covered strawberries in the room, in addition to the floral board shorts I gave him earlier that day. I purchased the cake and fruit from the cruise's online store where you can purchase different items before you even set sail which is helpful for setting up surprises!  

We set sail around 4pm on Thursday evening and then arrived in Nassau, Bahamas at noon on Friday. We decided at the last minute to book the catamaran snorkeling cruise excursion and were really glad we did. As soon as we got off the ship in Nassau we were escorted to the catamaran and took off. We stopped near Rose Island and snorkeled for about an hour. The water was beautiful and the reef we snorkeled at was awesome as well. On the way back it turns into a bit of a "booze cruise" with music and all-you-can-drink rum punch. Overall we had a great time and are really glad we went.

It was about 4pm by the time we finished with the snorkeling trip, so after we walked around the Straw Market and downtown Nassau. It was a nice little stroll, but there really isn't a ton to see / do in downtown Nassau. We eventually made our way back to the ship in time for dinner. Since there wasn't much more for us in Nassau, we stayed on the ship for the rest of the evening. We went to one of the shows which was somewhat entertaining but a bit hokey, and also went to a comedy show which was actually pretty funny.

The next day was a day at sea so we had a lot of down time which was nice. There's an area on this particular ship called the Serenity Deck where only adults are allowed and they play relaxing music. The main part of the ship where the only pool is located was always crowded with a ton of people, usually had an announcer doing some sort of game with the audience, and had loud hip-hop music playing. Since we wanted to relax, we spent most of our time at the Serenity Deck. It was nice to have this lower-key option. (I realize that made me sound really old, but hey, we love our relaxation!) Both Brian and I felt like the days seemed so much longer during the cruise. It was extremely relaxing which is exactly what we wanted, so that was great.

Brian was concerned he'd get sea sick so he came prepared with Meclazine (comparable to Dramamine but it's not supposed to make you as drowsy) and Sea-Bands. Fortunately, he didn't need either and was just fine. The boat is so big you can't really tell you're on water. The only time that I felt the ship moving was when I was in the shower which was a bit odd.

We were scheduled to arrive back at Port Canaveral at 7am on Sunday. They offer different options for debarkment, one of which was a later departure time based on your cabin section (around 8:30am for us), so we were able to have breakfast on board and take our time leaving which worked out well.

We decided the best word to describe this particular cruise is "hokey". The decor was pretty bad, the shows weren't awesome, there were random pirates who came around at dinner trying to take a picture with you holding a sword to your neck, there were a ton of photo booths with terrible background options, and the "entertainment" was pretty silly. With all that said, we definitely made the most of it and really enjoyed getting away for a few days, disconnecting with the rest of the world, and just relaxing. We certainly won't be sailing with Carnival again, and I'm not sure we'd do a cruise this short where you spend most of the time on board and only go to one port. We're actually already talking about a cruise with our families over Thanksgiving on a different cruise line that will take us to four locations, so we'll see what we think about that experience...

Since we got off the ship so early we decided to take the scenic route home up the East Coast of Florida along U.S. 1 and A1A. Brian knew of several nice State Parks along the way so we pulled into a couple of those. We also stopped at a couple of local markets on the route and managed to find some boiled peanuts for the trip which makes any drive better! I think it took us a total of 6 hours to get home (including lunch in St. Augustine), but we really enjoyed taking our time exploring new areas since it's not something we get to do often.

And that's another anniversary trip in the books! I can't believe we'll be celebrating our 5th wedding anniversary on next year's trip...

Complaint letter to Carnival regarding recent cruise

Brian and I recently took a cruise with Carnival to celebrate our wedding anniversary. Unfortunately, Carnival came very close to ruining our anniversary trip. Following is the complaint letter I sent to Carnival, along with what appears to be a form letter response from them. After I received their response, I called and spoke to three different people. At the end of the day, I was told either someone messed up, or there was a computer glitch and we shouldn't have experienced what we did and they apologized. I wanted to post this information so you're all aware of what happened to us before considering booking a cruise with Carnival. We have no plans to travel with Carnival again.

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To Whom It May Concern:
Each year my husband and I plan a trip to celebrate our wedding anniversary. This year we chose to take a three-day cruise to Nassau, Bahamas on the Carnival Sensation departing from Port Canaveral on Thursday, April 14, 2011. Due to our experience with this cruise, we feel the need to share our frustrations in hopes of receiving an explanation.

The boarding time was listed as 12:00pm - 2:30pm so we arrived at the port at approximately 12:15pm after traveling nearly two-and-a-half hours from Jacksonville, Florida. When we dropped off our bags outside the terminal we were told we were in stateroom E217. We proceeded to go through security and check in. While we were checking in, we were told we did not yet have a room assignment. We told the employee we were told room E217 by the luggage attendant. She said that room was assigned to "John and Mary" and there currently wasn't a room assigned to us. She then spoke to her supervisor who gave us temporary passes so we could gain access to the ship. We were then escorted by another supervisor onboard who took us to the guest services desk. After waiting approximately 20 minutes while the supervisor spoke to the guest services desk staff she returned to tell us that we still did not have a room assignment. We were told to go have lunch and return in two hours at 3:00pm to check on our room assignment. We were given four drink tickets to use since we did not yet have our "Sail and Sign" card. We asked if we were going to eventually get a room assignment and were told it was about a "50-50" chance. We asked what would happen if we did not receive a room assignment and we were told "let's not go down that road yet".

We were disheartened and concerned, but tried to have a good time in the two hours we waited in limbo. We went to a bar on the main deck to get a drink and the bartender gave us a hard time about using the drink tickets. She was concerned we did not have a room for her to charge the drink tickets to, so we tried to explain we were given the tickets because we did not have a room. She eventually angrily obliged and gave us our drinks. She was extremely agitated and rude and it was a very unpleasant first experience aboard the ship.

After killing time for the next two hours we went back to the guest services desk to inquire about our room assignment. We were told to sit at the adjacent bar and wait for a supervisor to come speak to us. We waited another 20 minutes before someone approached us. She explained we still did not have a room assignment but they were working on it. We asked what would happen if they were unable to find a room for us and she said they would ask us to leave the ship and then try to rebook us for a later cruise. We explained that today was our anniversary, the sole reason for booking the cruise, and we work full-time so we were using vacation time to travel down to Port Canaveral to go on the cruise. We asked why this was happening and she told us we booked a "standby" ticket. In actuality, we paid to have an ocean view room and booked the "Fun Saver" option, not a "standby" cruise. According to the disclaimer on Carnival.com, the "Fun Saver rate guarantees you a stateroom within that stateroom class: Suite, Balcony, Ocean View, or Interior. You will receive your stateroom assignment when you check in for your cruise, and your stateroom may be located on any deck of the ship." So essentially, we were lied to. We are frequent travelers and fully vet our potential arrangements before booking. We did the same for this trip and knew we did not book a "standby" cruise as that is not something we would do.

Finally, after nearly three-and-a-half hours of the back and forth, we were eventually told we had a room assignment (E35). When we were told, it was said to us like the staff at Carnival did us a favor by providing us a room. In actuality, we had already paid for our trip in full, including the gratuities. A room assignment was not a favor bestowed upon us by Carnival and we didn't appreciate the portrayal of such.

Additionally, I called a Carnival representative before the cruise to arrange for (and paid for) chocolate covered strawberries to be waiting in the room once we arrived as a surprise for my husband, and a "Happy Anniversary" cake to be delivered at dinner, also a surprise for my husband. When we finally gained access to our room (approximately 3:50pm), the strawberries were not there. Our luggage also wasn't there and when we asked about it, the staff had no clue where it might be. After the security briefing, we took it upon ourselves to check room E217 (the room we were originally told we were assigned) and found our luggage waiting outside that room. I also had to consult with our stateroom attendant about the strawberries and the cake. After several minutes on the phone, he determined the strawberries were not delivered because they didn't know which room we were in. Thankfully, they were finally delivered, albeit, the surprise for my husband was pretty much ruined at this point. And, since our Sail and Sign card did not indicate a dinner assignment, the cake was still in limbo. We were told to check with the Maitre'D at 6:00pm for our dinner time and table assignment (although we had been confirmed for the 8:15pm dinner time before we departed for our cruise via an e-mail sent by Carnival on March 14, 2011 at 11:33pm ET). Luckily, after speaking with the Maitre'D, we were assigned a table at the 8:15pm dinner time and after I double checked on the cake, it was delivered following our meal.

While we enjoyed the rest of the trip, we are still confused why our trip began the way it did. I hope you can understand the frustration and uncertainty we dealt with on April 14 instead of enjoying our anniversary on the ship. We spent a good part of the day feeling uneasy, trying to figure out a "back up plan" in case we were asked to leave the ship. And then, once we were confirmed, we spent our time finding our luggage and making sure the other details were in place. This is unlike any other experience we've encountered during our extensive travels and we consider it unacceptable. We would like an explanation for why this happened, and make sure you are aware how disappointed we were with our experience traveling with Carnival, which happened to be our very first cruise experience. We are now on the fence as to whether we would consider another cruise in the future.

Please don't hesitate to contact me with any questions.

Best, Krisita (and Brian) Burket

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Carnival's Response:

Hello Mrs. Burket,

Thank you for contacting Carnival Cruise Lines.

Please know we were very disappointed to hear that your experiences on board fell short of expectations. I want you to know that we value your support and thank you for taking the time to share your comments with us. We want you to know that we will make every effort to ensure that these issues are resolved so that future guests do not experience the same issues. We extend our sincere apologies for the disappointment you experienced.

Your reservation was booked using a TBA (to be assigned) rate. This type of special promotional fare does not guarantee a specific cabin or location. It does guarantee you will receive the minimum cabin category purchased with the possibility of an upgrade. To guarantee a specific cabin, location or type of accommodation, you must book directly into the cabin type required.

We know that a friendly staff is key to a great cruise, which is why we are so sorry to hear about what happened. We strive to give all of our staff the best training possible. Your feedback is important to us; thank you for bringing this to our attention.

Thank you again for allowing us to be of assistance.

Cordially,

Jaclyn Worsdale
Guest Care Representative Carnival Cruise Lines l 3655 NW 87th Ave l Miami FL, 33178
p: 305.599.2600 Ext. 76440 l f: 305.406.6156 I guestcare@carnival.com