Thursday, October 22nd, 2009...7:12 pm
Sorry
I feel angry at myself today and I need to admit that to you. Do you remember a comment I posted about a man who had complained that he had found ants in his cabin? Well if you missed that let me quickly say that a guest had stated that there were ants in his bed which after investigation turned out to be bits of fluff.
Well, I posted that comment and shared a little chuckle with you about it. Well, this morning I met the gentlemen concerned.
He is 30 something …….well……..he has…..learning difficulties as his Mother explained to me this morning and now…….I feel like total crap for writing what I did. His Mother is a lovely lady and was actually quite apologetic about the fuss he had caused and about an incident in the dining room that I won’t be telling you about. I shook hands with Greg and he said “You make me laugh”…….and I just wanted someone to beat me around the head with a baseball bat………how can I have been so stupid…………..I should have figured it out before I posted the comment and before I laughed about what I had read.
Greg’s smile could have melted the coldest heart and as he walked away from the coffee bar, holding his Mother’s hand………..I felt sick.
And this has been on my mind all day. So much so that I needed to start this blog with an apology to you and somehow I will find away to apologize to Greg and his Mother……….I should have done it today………..but I didn’t.
I have tried to make myself feel better by sending Greg a trophy, medallion and the Captain signed a photo of the ship as well…….but I still feel I must apologize, even though they are not aware of it.
So, please forgive me everyone……..and I will ask Greg and his Mum to do the same. Oh……..and while I am saying sorry can I also apologize to the guests who joined me on deck 7 in the elevator after I had joined on deck 10 and thinking I would be alone released what can only be described as hazardous material from my bottom……….sorry.
Time for today’s questions………here we go.
Jan Paratore Asked:
JOHN PLEASE REPLY – NEED HELP FOR ROTTEN CABIN!!I was on the inaugural cruise for the Carnival Dream which was wonderful except…there seemed to be a cooking exhaust venting into cabin 7390 somehow – very unpleasant cooking odor starting around 10:30AM and going all night – not very nice with the balcony door shut at night and who knows what we were breathing in!!
When I left at the end of the cruise, they had the people from the ship builders on board, shutting down one ventilation shaft section at a time, trying to figure out what was wrong. If it was a hotel on land & they couldn’t move me, I would have checked out after (or probably during) the first night, but since it was a 12 night Med cruise, just tried to make the best of it. Guest Services just kept offering to send housekeeping to “refresh” the cabin…hey guys, it’s an engineering problem, not housekeeping. Carnival (after much complaining) gave us a 20% credit – I thought that was not terribly adequate but didn’t let it spoil our wonderful vacation. They also gave us a letter for 15% off a future cruise of 3-8 days, not a comparable 12 night cruise. I know you pay for the food & entertainment as part of your cruise fare, but the comp they gave us works out to $79 per night for a balcony cabin which was basically uninhabitable. Is there a higher authority I can bring this up to?
John Says:
Hello JanI am so glad to read that you had such a great time on your Carnival Dream cruise despite the obvious concerns you expressed above. I won’t comment further except to send you my sincere apologies and to tell you that I have sent this on to the vice president of our Care Team. Please let me know if there is anything else I can do for you.
Best wishes
JohnJUDY SHARUM Asked:
JOHN PLEASE REPLY!!!!I few of us “agents” were talking with customers and can’t figure out WHY the cruise ships can’t supply pop free???
If it’s served like the dining places-it’s just a cylinder of syrup mixed with carbonated water. Has to be cheaper than milk or the Hot Chocolate???? WHY can’t it be included as a free item?????
Myself-I always bring some back on with me after going ashore-I’m not about to pay 2.15 per can of coke! I know it’s a sore spot with people that like to cruise.
Please check on it and let us know why.
John Says:
Hello JudyIt’s a fair question Judy and let me see if I can give you an answer. First of all in days gone by we did indeed use the fountain soda guns but these days we pour straight from the cans. It should also be noted that having checked with the bar manager here on the Carnival Legend on our last seven-day cruise we served 2,680 cans of Coke and 3,384 of Diet Coke. So there’s a revenue issue involved. Remember we already serve tea, coffee, water, lemonade and ice tea complimentary which most hotels and resorts charge for. So, I guess the simple answer is that in order to allow Carnival to keep their prices the most affordable in the industry we must look at the bottom line when we can. Thank you for your continuing support and best to you and all the “agents” who read the blog thingy.
Best wishes
JohnDavid Vigue Asked:
Hi John, (Please Reply)You asked me to let you know how the cruise on Carnival Sensation went with my 2 grandsons. So here it goes. Wonderful!! Camp Carnival’s staff was outstanding; the new features on the ship were great. My wife and I took our chance with the water slide, and this is a big deal, as she is afraid of pools, and I, like you don’t do roller coasters. I did however leave my socks in the cabin. Now as for the shore excursion. We took the one to Atlantis with beach, lunch, water park, and aquarium. The boys had a blast. I however had the time of my life with the boys until the rapids tube ride (I thought might be a lazy river tube ride) flipped me over and the current dropped my trunks to my knees. The life guard kept yelling put the tube over your head, and all I could think about is getting my trunks up before I landed in the slammer, one hand on the tube the other pulling up the trunks. Good thing for me that I did before anyone could notice.
I have read that you are enjoying Carnival Legend, and having cruised on Carnival Pride this summer I know how you feel. But I want to take it a step further. We took our best cruises early, on Sensation, Imagination, Fascination & Carnivale. We fell in love with cruising. Now after sailing on the larger ships, and going back to the improved Carnival Sensation, I know why we fell in love. My 11 year old grandson and I ran into the Staff Captain on the Lido deck and after a short conversation about his job on board, he called the Captain of the ship over to meet us. Later, I got to meet our CD Paul on the same Lido deck, and he was just as friendly as you were on our 3 cruises with you. We got outstanding service from everyone, from the moment we got in to the line to check in, till the porter helped us take our bags to the car after the cruise. I have no complaints. The best endorsement is that our 7 year old when asked if he wanted to go to Disney World next year he said no, he wanted to come back on this ship. Both boys said they liked the Carnival Sensation better than Disney Wonder.
Now for the standouts. Hard to pick because the entire staff was great. Jorge from Peru, who works as a bar server in the Fantasy dining room, portrays such a love for his job. He smiles from ear to ear, and never let my soft drink glass get empty. It is the little things that mean so much. This guy acts like serving beverages to the guests is the most important job in the world. With people like Jorge from Peru on the ships, how can you not have a fun time? Could you get word to his supervisors how valuable he is to the company. (Sail Date Oct 4 Table #148)
The next person you need to be aware of is Shirley McCall, our PVP. I have now booked 3 cruises this year with her, and she has gone out of her way to resolve all my concerns. She even came in early one day to help us book our Carnival Sensation Cruise. I can only tell you that if all customer service sales people had her knowledge, and gave her service, there would never be a complaint. Please let her supervisors know how great she is.
Now, my question to you is this. The photo people on Carnival Sensation were also outstanding, they took more pictures of the boys that we didn’t know about, till we discovered them, or at least the boys did. Can the photo people put together a package of pictures that you can buy on line like they do at say, Disney World? After you get home, you may notice that you didn’t get enough copies, or wish you had taken some that you left in the refuse bin. Maybe they could get a scanner thingy that could route them by cabin#, Sail Date, and Ship, from the Sail and Sign card. I was lucky at the Atlantis Water Park that they gave one of the boys a number on his wrist band, we thought the ship took the picture, but on the way out, I saw the photo station, and she set it up for us to buy online. That led me to this question? Why can’t the Carnival Fun ships have a “Fun Ship Photo Club”?
Now that we have rediscovered the Carnival Sensation, I can’t wait to go on the Carnival Imagination this January.
Best wishes to you and your family, I love the “Blog Thingy”
Dave ViguePS: Thank you so much for standing up for our troops, you are right, we can’t thank them enough.
John Says:
Hello DavidAs you may have read at the start of today’s blog I am feeling quite upset at myself today but your brilliant review has put a smile back on my face. I am going to send this review to everyone onboard and the Senior VP of Hotel Operations all of whom will I know be just as thrilled as I was to read this. It is also great to read that our investment in the upgrades on our Fantasy class ships have paid such dividends. Just a quick note on the photos. We are very aware that our photo purchase system needs looking at and I can tell you that this is an ongoing project. So, thank you again and I hope one day to meet you and your family onboard one of our ships. I hope you continue to enjoy the blog thingy.
Best wishes to you all
JohnRoy & Terry Miyamoto Says:
Hello John,We sailed on the first Blogger’s Cruise and are now looking forward to sailing again with you on the Dec 3rd Blogger’s Cruise.
Big Ed emailed to tell me that you had previously mentioned special Blogger shore excursions at Tortola and Antigua. Neither of them are on the Carnival shore excursion list.
We are in the process of booking all of our shore excursions for each of the ports, how do we sign up for the Blogger shore excursions?
Please have one of the many Stephanies email us to assist us in our planning.
Many thanks and see you soon.
Cheers!John Says:
Hello Roy and TerryI too am looking forward to meeting you again on BC3. Thanks for the info on the tours and thanks also to Big Ed. I did not know they were not there anymore. While you can purchase them onboard it should be possible to purchase them online as well. I will get right on this and post information as soon as possible. Thanks again and see you both soon.
Best Wishes
JohnSheryl Asked:
Hi John, Great blog, as always!Will Carnival ever consider doing some repositioning cruises from Florida to New York and visa versa during the spring and fall? I think many people would be interested. I know I would! Can they at least give it a try and see if it’s worth their while?
John Says:
Hello SherylThe repositioning cruise of the Carnival Elation is the latest of these voyages and reports are that it is selling very quickly. Repositioning cruises are very popular indeed and while there are no current plans for one from New York to Florida, I am sure it is not out of the question. I will keep you informed of course here on the blog thingy.
Best wishes
JohnKelli Asked:
Please ReplyWe just finished a wonderful cruise on the Dream. It was awesome! The itinerary was unbelievable. We like others after us, were led to believe that cabin 8473 had a couch, wrap around balcony so we paid for the upgrade as we were to be in room 8470. Much to our dismay, we had a tiny room, no wrap around balcony and not even a chair in our room. Carnival Dream customer service took pictures and agreed that this definitely was not an upgrade. They took pictures and created a case. When we got home we called our vacation planner, Charles, who was aware of our problem. Carnival sent us a letter stating that although it was not the room described, too bad. We were not going to get a refund on the upgrade. We were so disappointed as we and many friends and family, have cruised on carnival quite a bit. Anyway, I heard on cruise critic that a meeting was held and they would compensate us for this. Can you help? We would love to plan another cruise with Carnival.
John Says:
Hello KelliI am glad to hear you enjoyed the cruise so much despite the concerns about your cabin. I appreciate you letting me know and I have sent your comments to our Care Team. Someone will be in touch very soon. Please let me know if I can help further. Most of all please accept my apologies for this and I will make sure this is followed up on.
Best Wishes
JohnKiciaski Asked:
Hello John, (please reply)I’m sure you’ll get many, many comments about the Carnival Dream deck 8 9A aft wraps. We have 7454, the aft wrap on deck 7. Is that a true wrap? We would all appreciate any info you can give us on those 6 cabins and even the two 8D on deck 9.
Thanks John and have a magical day!
John Says:
Hello George and LindaIt has been a long time since I have written to you and I hope you are both well. I am sure you have seen my blog of a few days ago where I apologized for this obvious mistake in our deck plans and the construction of these two cabins. The partitions are being removed as we speak and so by the start of the Trans Atlantic crossing the work will have been completed.
Best wishes to you both.
JohnSallyOwl Asked:
John, please reply … some time!Yesterday’s and today’s blogs took us back to our 49 days on the Carnival Splendor this year – and made us think of Przemak, the delightful Polish pianist who was everywhere around the ship, making our lives joyful. We know that he was continuing on the C-Splendor until September – will we be able to see him on other Carnival ships … maybe the Carnival Spirit, if we get to do the three b-2-b cruises we’re hoping to do next year? He was a definite bonus to Carnival!
John Says:
Hello Sally OwlI had the joy and honor of working with the so very talented Przemak on the Carnival Freedom and the Carnival Splendor. His skills as a pianist and his love of the Carnival guests make him a very special asset. He is currently on the Carnival Splendor and I will see where he is due to go next and let you know. Thanks for praising him and I will make sure he sees your comments.
Best Wishes
JohnBIG ED KONEFE Asked:
Please ReplyYou saying “I’m sure that Craig is a great chap but Stephanie Meads is much easier on the eyes…” won’t get you anywhere with Stephanie because remember she was on BC2 that night when your teddy didn’t cover all your ….uuummmm… parts. Next time you will use the robes from the cabin like I did. Even though I had to use 2 of them. One put on from the back and one from the front because John has still not got us BIG people the “THESE FIT THE REST” size robes.
Will there be the “THESE FIT THE REST” size robes in time for BC3 on the Carnival Dream??? Remember you said I would get one if I came on BC1, never happened 1. You told me in Philly that you and I would do a photo shoot for CURRENTS modeling the new robes, never happened 2. So what are you going to say about this for BC3???? So we can have a NH3
BIG ED
John Says:
Hello EdI have let you down so far and I have not given up. I want to get these robes made for two reasons. I owe you and…….Pat does not deserve to see Small Ed first thing in the morning.
See you soon mate
John
That’s all for today and I am about 8 days behind still………..bugger.
My apologies for the very late posting of yesterday’s blog. That was my fault as time ran away with me yesterday and I me and my underpants did not finish the blog until very late. I haven’t read the comments from yesterday yet but I am sure there are those who expressed their gratitude to Cunard’s eloquent President and Managing Director Mr. Peter Shanks for his superb telling of the story of the Queen Mary 2’s voyage around my home country.
Well today the story continues as the ship is welcomed in an extraordinary way by the people us Brits like to call “scousers”……..the people of Liverpool and judging by what Peter has written………you would think John, Paul, George and Ringo had returned home. There are some great photos to accompany Peter’s words and please go on over and have a read……….I will wait here for you. Here is the link thingy.
As I mentioned yesterday I have booked a cabin for the Queen Victoria’s UK voyage next year. It’s not a bloggers cruise but it would be wonderful to share the Cunard experience with you…….Heidi and Kye are coming……..it would be spiffing to see some of you there with me.
Now, I need to ask you a question because there is something I don’t understand. Let me preface this by saying that last night due to the late sending of the blog thingy I missed dinner. I have been trying to eat at 7 pm to help my mertabalserm ……. metabioliserm …… metabolisam………my beach ball of a stomach get smaller. Anyway, as it was quite late I decided to pop up to the Lido Deck to get a sandwich from the deli. I was surprised to find so many people eating at the alternative dining there……..approx 100 people were enjoying the carvery and evening specialties. Anyway, I gathered my turkey and cheese sandwich on wheat bread and sat at a table ………once again I was Billy No Mates.
But not for long because a family of four saw me and asked if they could sit with me. I told them to bugger off because I needed to be alone with my thoughts of Megan Fox’s bottom. No I didn’t.
Of course I invited them to join me and so it was I got to know the Colin and Margaret Wilkinson and their two kids. Colin, a landscape gardener and his third grade teacher wife are from Boyzy, Idaho ………..I am sure that’s not how you spell it but anyway …….. they were a lovely family and while we munched I asked them a question thinking I already knew the answer. The question was “I guess you had a long day in port so you are having a quick meal here on lido deck.”
The answer surprised me.
“No, we eat up here every night.”
‘You mean you never go to the dining room?”
“No”
“Oh, may I ask why?”
Well, we like it and with two kids to get ready we can’t make the dining room on time and 8:15pm is too late for them.”
I then mentioned Your Time dining and they were surprised and had not heard that this was an option.
It didn’t matter…….they love to eat on the Lido Deck……..the end.
And so here are my questions for you to answer for me because I am a bit flummoxed.
1. Does anyone else never eat in the dining room and if so, may I kindly ask why not?
2. If you don’t read the blog or the cruise boards do travel agents and Carnival reservations staff offer you the anytime option? I guess my point here is, are we doing enough to inform our guests of all their dining options?
There is admittedly a lot of choice these days at dinner time on Lido Deck. Here is the menu for tonight.
Salad Bar
Mixed Greens, Tomato Wedges, Cucumber Slices,
Bell Peppers Julienne, Broccoli and Cauliflower Roses,
Red Kidney Beans, Shredded Carrots, Onion Rings
Red Radishes, Garbanzo Beans
Boiled Egg, Black and Green Olives,
Freshly Tossed Caesar Salad Ranch, Thousand Island, French, Blue Cheese, Honey Dijon (Low Cal)
Italian Dressing (Low Cal), Balsamic Vinegar, Raspberry Vinaigrette
Sunflower Seeds, Bacon Bits, Croutons, Raisins, Olive Oil and Red Wine Vinegar
Sliced Salami, Mortadella
Smoked Salmon with Purple Onion Rings
Cheddar, Provolone, Swiss, Gouda Cheese
Salads:
Spinach & roasted Pineapple,Walnut in zesty vinaigrette
Sesame Snowpeas, Field greens , Bell peppers and Jicama in Tangy Sesame Sauce.
Sushi
Japanese Omelet Maki Roll
Mackerel and Portobello Roll
Hot
Corn Chowder Maryland
Charred Half Spring Chicken
Grilled Jumbo Tiger Shrimps with Beurre Blanc
Cinnamon Pumpkin, Squash, Yam and Cheddar Pot Pie
Lemon Confit Topped Grouper Fillet
Honey glazed Virginia Ham — Carving
Penne Siciliana
Roasted Cauliflower – Steak Fries – Baked Potato
Dessert
Amaretto Cake – Diet Cheesecake – Date and Walnut Cake
Raspberry Chocolate Gateau – Apricot Mascarpone Cream – Apple Gelee
Warm Chocolate Melting Cake
Sliced Watermelon – Sliced Cantaloupe – Sliced Honeydew
Sliced Pineapple – Orange Fillets – Whole Fruit
What a great choice and notice the addition now of the Chocolate Melting Cake.
I would be very interested to read your comments.
So it’s Belize today and finally………finally……….there is a golden ball in the sky shining down on guests who have had two days of rain and gloom. It is actually a picture perfect day and I am so very pleased for everyone.
Just to close the subject of Greg and his mother. I just called Mum in the cabin. We spoke for 30 minutes and I told her about my blog and what I had written. She was so gracious and told me not to worry about it and said that Greg likes to find excuses to use the phone because he loves to talk to people. Mum also told me how he loved the trophy and had not taken his medal off since he had received it.
She also said something that I don’t think I will ever forget. She told me that she has to deal with an anxious child, in a fully grown male body, and the emotional stability that goes with it. I asked her to repeat the quote I am going to tell you now and asked her permission to put it in the blog along with the rest of the story……..Mum agreed. And this is how she described living with Greg: “He can melt you with a smile, can touch your heart when he kisses your head, and can lift your spirits with his infectious giggle.”
I have invited Mum to join us on the blog, I hope she does.
It has been a strange day………have a read of this.
Guest: Mr. _______ Ref: 828011641A
Cabin: Booking#: ____ Added-Changed: 10/20/09 – 10/20/09
THREW LAPTOP OFF BALCONY
Guest called the desk asking to speak to the Cruise Director or Hotel Director. Guest stated that he needed another cabin as he and his girlfriend had been arguing since coming on the ship and tonight his girlfriend threw his laptop computer over the balcony and into the sea. Laptop was a Mac Book value $700.
Security and Environmental officer called.Guest informed that there are no other cabins as ship is sold out.
I am not sure where to start on this one. I think though I should mention how wonderful that the Guest Services Associate took the time to find out the make and value of the computer just in case a passing dolphin were to see and return it to its owner. Good old Flipper…………by the way………did you notice we had to inform the environmental officer who will file paperwork accordingly and report this incident to various organizations.
Well, the guest asked to speak to me even though this is not really my jurisdiction I agreed and so just after midnight last night I went to the cabin with the Chief Security Officer. I can’t go into too much detail as it is very personal. I can say that poor Mac met his watery grave because he said “nasty things” to her. However, after 30 minutes of the “life is too short” speech and the “you have spent all this money and you obviously love each other” advice from John the relationship director they both apologized and I left the cabin feeling a little better after my grave mistake with Greg earlier.
Anyway, they seem to friends and lovers once again and so far there have been no further incidents……..I did give the lady a little tip as I left the cabin……next time he says “nasty things”……..kick him in the bollocks………it’s cheaper ………and much more effective.
Goodnight
Your friend
John
68 Comments
October 22nd, 2009 at 7:55 pm
Hi John, We usually eat in the dinning room. I check out the menu on the television every day. At least once or twice on the cruise we just decide we don’t feel like getting dressed up and we go to the Lido in our jeans. We aren’t fancy eaters. Sometimes a couple of slices of pizza is just right.
YUM.
Jo
October 22nd, 2009 at 7:58 pm
Answer about dining…..
All we can do when we make an unfortunate mistake is admit it, apologize, and learn. I am pleased that Greg’s mom “let you off the hook”. How fortunate that you now have a different perspective from a very gracious mother.
As to dining, I would never choose to eat at the Lido deck buffet unless there were no other options…and the reason for that is having been in the hospitality business from age 16 to age 52, I do so enjoy being the one who is receiving service. I value the attention and having my needs anticipated; I took pride in giving good service and now is my turn to be the one sitting at the table. Ahhh…
As always, I enjoyed your blog today; thanks for reminding me to look beyond the surface.
Bonnie
October 22nd, 2009 at 8:01 pm
John:
As the Mom of a special needs adult (now that DJ is 18) …. I look at your recent incident as an innocent joke.
You did not “knowingly” make fun of that young man. We all know that you would never do that.
There are lots of times that people “say things” (either to or about DJ) that they do not mean to be offensive. I have learned to look at the “intent” of what is said…not the actual words.
For example, I know people who “speak” eloquent words that looks like honey flowing out of their mouths…but their “intent” is to be deceitful and malicious.
I will take an innocent mistake over the “honey” any day of the week.
This “ant” incident could just have easily been a mistake by a very gifted individual.
Some of our funniest “family jokes” have not come from DJ with his special needs… but from our oldest son Josh. You have not had the pleasure of meeting Josh. He has been at college when we have sailed with you. But he is in a word….. brilliant.
He is Chemical Engineer major. (full academic scholarship) He was recruited by Eastman Chemical (parent company of Eastman Kodak) after his freshman year. He spent last summer working with Dr. Visco on an Alzheimer’s cure. The University has already offered him a scholarship to cover his Master’s Degree.
And as brilliant as he is…he doesn’t have the common sense of a goose. I could see him mistaking “lint” for ants or bedbugs. He will walk out to his truck in a heartbeat in his sock feet to get something….in the POURING RAIN.
We have many “Joshisms” that we have added to our family history over the years.
So….rest your heart about that joke. No need for any additional apologies.
Greg’s Mom sounds like a delight. And I know exactly what she means. Things can be a struggle sometimes…. when an 18 year old young man is standing before you, but you know he has the insecurities and emotional development of a child in elementary school.
I can not imagine how empty my life would be, if I did not have DJ there to fill it full of joy every day.
On to Lido dining…..
I have to say that for the first 9 years of cruising…David, myself, Josh and DJ ate in the Main Dining Room every night. All three of my guys in suits on Formal Nights and in Polo and Khaiki’s all the other nights.
I have never been a “buffet” person. However, this past year or so….we have found ourselves skipping the Main Dining Room at least twice on a 7 day cruise. There have been a few times, when we got back from a port late and did not dress for dinner….so we headed up to the Lido.
It is certainly nice to have the option.
We do however run by the Maitre D’ and let them know we will not be there that night…since we have a table to ourselves. Just seems like common courtesy to let them know we are not coming that night.
Please pass onto Greg and his Mother a website called “Autism of the Seas”. It is a travel agency that specializes in assisting families with special needs children and adults. In fact, they do a group cruise once or twice a year for adults with special needs. Most of these individuals have Autism…but it is not restricted to that.
Linda (Mom of your friend ~ who actually said today “I need a cruise” ~ yes it has been a whole MONTH since he has been on a ship~ DJ)
October 22nd, 2009 at 8:04 pm
John, this is a very easy question. We always eat dinner in the dinning room because we like having the same waitstaff and guest every night. Plus we paid for this fine service and are going to enjoy it. We always eat breakfast and lunch on the lido because there we can grab a quick bite anytime and sit on the smoking side of the ship or even take it back to our cabin if we wish.
BIG ED
October 22nd, 2009 at 8:07 pm
Hehehehehee… Your last story reminded me of my sailing on the Carnival Inspiration last April. My boarding, along with the rest of the VIP crowd, was delayed for a wedding group. Lovely girl, good looking guy both dressed up wonderfully well and looking fine. They had the Cat 12 suite two doors down from mine and I said hello and congratulations to them when we met in the hall.
Long story made short, it seems that the new Mister had not much tolerance for alcohol as I found him staggering drunk, locked out of his honeymoon cabin and bellowing like a cow when I returned from the late show.
His wife had not much tolerance for drunks and refused to let him back in the cabin. Isn’t young love wonderful??
Don’t beat yourself up about Greg. You certainly could not have understood the circumstance and I think you handled it well. I believe that our mutual friend, Linda, would agree.
I’ve eaten dinner at the buffet any number of time but I prefer the main dining room. I’ve eaten at the buffet because it’s convenient and because I just didn’t feel up to getting ready for dinner. Count me as a lazy bugger, on occasions.
Please offer my best to your lovely ladies. I wish I could sail with y’all on the Queen Victoria but, alas, my dance card for next year is full. I’ve lusted after that vessel since you first started presenting pictures here oh so long ago.
Ciao!!!
Host Mach
October 22nd, 2009 at 8:23 pm
We always go to the dining room for dinner. My husband and I enjoy getting dressed and going to dinner. Its not something we get to enjoy frequently at home.
I must say, you are the utmost gentleman. You said something you regretted and owned up to it. Its very likely that lady would never have found your blog. There are a lot of people out there who would have not pointed out their mistake. Don’t be so hard on yourself – we all make mistakes!
October 22nd, 2009 at 8:25 pm
Hi John!
My PVP, Gina A. (I don’t know if I should mention her full name) is awesome. While booking my Carnival Legend cruise for next year she remembered (or maybe she has notes) that we like the late seating. But she did tell me about the anytime dining just to make sure! So she is doing her part and letting us know about that! She is also VERY quick at returning phone calls. I mean quick…. within 3 minutes usually!
Oh how I would love to sail with you and your girls. We just can’t afford it. I’m jealous of those who will join you guys!
Have a great weekend….. I hope the weather stays nice for everyone!
October 22nd, 2009 at 8:42 pm
Two years ago on the Carnival Liberty, we ate at the Lido buffet the whole week. We decided that we were on vacation and didnt want to put up with the formalities of the dining room each and every night. It had nothing to do with the rude waiter or his non-existent assistant. We have not had the opportunity to experience the anytime dining concept.
October 22nd, 2009 at 8:43 pm
John,
In response to offering anytime dinning, freestyle dinning or what ever each different cruise lines labels open dinning. As cruise travel agents that is one of the first questions we ask when gathering information on a client. We like the sit down service and same wait staff at every evening meal execept for the Steak house which we do at least one time per cruise.
I am glad that family joined you for dinner.
October 22nd, 2009 at 8:45 pm
John
Now you know why I choose to cruise solo–cabin mates and arguments…..I hope he had a backup of the hard drive……
Dining–I prefer to go to the dining room, even more so if a particular dining room crew member is there (I hope he is on that ship in January cuz I he is too damn hot to not want to see every night and to flirt with too!). I have eaten on Lido, but it is not the same. I miss the tablemates and company. I’m still in touch with two ladies from Sept 2008 and I am meeting up again with one on the Glory in January. Email is fine, but getting together in person to have a shopping mate is better!
We are all guilty of speaking before thinking, so don’t beat yourself up about it!
October 22nd, 2009 at 8:46 pm
$700 Macbook? … I wish.
October 22nd, 2009 at 9:31 pm
John, sounds like you are having a rough week. The weather will not cooperate. You are missing your Ladies and feeling some guilt over not being with them 100% of the time. You are a amazing guy with a huge heart. You touch lives every day with your compassion and ability to make people laugh even in the worst of times. You spend time with a young woman who might of been a jumper if not for an intervention. You then play marriage counceler a few days later. You put into world wide publication thoughts that many of us have when we encounter situations like Greg’s. The difference is we do not verbalize our thoughts nearly as much as you do.
You are too hard on yourself. Kye will grow up with a world full of friends and great memories of the places and people she will encounter in the coming years.
You noted several times that you have no friends on the ship. You have a ship full Cruise Critic members on a group cruise many of which are most likely blogger friends also. Many of us have been to these ports of call so many times and have no specific agenda planned. We would love to sit and visit with the most amazing cruise director over a diet beverage, if for no other reason than to just say Thank You John for all you do. The Wilkinson family was blessed to have you to themselves if only for 20 minutes.
I owe you a cruise review of our Holiday group cruise and it is coming soon but I just wanted to say this first.
You have a gift, a gift from God I would say.
Thank You John for all you do.
Uncle Doug
October 22nd, 2009 at 9:50 pm
John,
As to your question about not eating in the dinning rooms. I have cruised on a few different lines, most recently HAL for 7 nights to Alaska. Out of 4 of us, 2 of us ate in the dining room only one time during the cruise, and the other 2 never ate in the dining room.
As to why? There are several factors that help us to eat mostly in the Lido or room service or on deck stuff.
1. We can go as we please and have a wide option of foods
2. We can chose where we want to sit and whom we sit with or sit alone. Sorry I know this is a hard topic but some people just do not feel comfortable eating with others
3. We traveled with a 9 year old and she was so concerned about the club hal activities that sometimes a quick bite was what we needed for her so she could get to programs. While other cruises offer meal services for the clubs HAL does not.
4. My partner and I really dislike the time frame that it takes to eat in the dinning room.
5. We knew about the anytime or as you wish but just did not take advantage of that option but one time.
Anyway, thats how we feel about it and I hope you have a great cruise.
PS about the sorry, I work with children 0-3 years old, and I have children of all needs. Mom’s words that you posted are so incredibly true. There are hard hard moments in caring for them but then you get those smiles and laughs and it all goes away! Thank you for being brave enough to post the story!
Aimee
October 22nd, 2009 at 10:09 pm
As the mom of a special needs child, I fully accept your heartfelt apology to Greg … as I know his mom will too. Thank you for loving our ‘kids’ so much – we do appreciate it!!!
Miriam
PS. Thank you for answering my last question many moons ago about special needs kids and the offer to help them. I invited you to be our CD on the Destiny in January 2010 – have you decided to join us yet??? If not, a 2010 schedule will suffice … but I still want you aboard!!!
October 22nd, 2009 at 10:44 pm
Dear John,
I just wanted to post a quick response to your questions regarding dining solely on the Lido deck.
1. We have never had dinner on the Lido deck, even with our 3-year-old daughter on the cruise. We enjoy dining in the main dining room too much – there’s something to be said about being waited on by our friendly Carnival wait staff. And our 3-year-old can’t wait to wave her napkin around and dance with our waiter, the passenger at the table next to us, or our bar server…whomever is kind enough to indulge her.
2. I’ve NEVER had the option of Your Time dining offered to me by any of our travel agents or by our Carnival PVP. I booked our Carnival Dream cruise through an online travel agent, and was asked if I wanted early or late seating. I then booked my mom on the same cruise through a Carnival PVP, and was given the same 2 options. No mention of Your Time dining at all.
A month or two ago, I booked our April Carnival Inspiration cruise through a different travel agent. Again, the only options offered me were early or late seating.
Now, I knew very well that Your Time dining was available (at least on the Carnival Inspiration), but when traveling with a group of 5 on the Carnival Dream and a group of about a dozen on the Carnival Inspiration, I prefer the stability of traditional dining. If just my hubby, my daughter and I were taking the cruise, we MIGHT consider the Your Time option. However, I can only imagine how much of a wait we would have with a large group during the more popular times, and 3-year-olds aren’t that great at waiting for a table when there’s so many other fun and exciting things to see and do on a cruise ship.
Thanks again for the great blog!
Laura
October 22nd, 2009 at 11:00 pm
I wonder which of the Saints and Sinners it was that had the laptop thrown overboard?
October 22nd, 2009 at 11:01 pm
When we booked the Carnival Spirit for next fall the travel agent asked “early or late”. No mention of anytime dining. I think I prefer the “fixed” seating anyway!
October 22nd, 2009 at 11:17 pm
Hi John,
We have always gone to the dining room for dinner no matter the ship or the cruise line we have been on. The one exception was this past May on the Carnival Splendor, when due to winds/sea condition we were not able to dock at the scheduled time in Victoria. Hours later we did, went on our shore excursion, and arrived back well into our dining time, so we headed to the buffet. While we more than appreciated the option being there for us, it is not something we would purposely choose.
Clair
October 22nd, 2009 at 11:32 pm
We often opt for the Lido, especially after a long day in port or if we just don’t feel like dressing up enough. This year we skipped the dining room often as it seemed we never got our dinner much before it was “showtime”, which delayed the service even longer. Having inconsiderate people at the next table that never showed up until at least 30 minutes after dinner service started didn’t help either…but that’s another story!
Next year on the Legend, we have opted for Your Time dining, so we may head back to the dining room more often, but we truly do enjoy the informal atmosphere of the Lido as well.
October 22nd, 2009 at 11:42 pm
We have been on 7 Carnival cruises and have almost always ate dinner in the dining room. The exceptions have been when we returned from port too late and didnt have time to get ready for the dining room. We love getting to know our servers and thoroughly enjoy the great service we receive there. Not to mention the food is incredible!
We tend to eat on the Lido deck during breakfast and lunch, though. The food is always fantastic here too!
October 23rd, 2009 at 12:34 am
John
We used to enjoy every meal in the dining room and then we had kids. It started with one and now there are two. When we have cruised with other family members (our two year old has been on 5 cruises) we still eat half our meals in the dining room but on the cruises with out extra hands it so much easier to go the Lido where we can have space and not worry about bothering anyone. We have also found that Carnival’s staff are more then eager to help out with the little ones since many like yourself have a little one at home. The waiters would get our daughter fresh milk with a straw and constantly replace her spoons that kept finding the floor. Not to be outdone in infant services in the main dining room of our Alaska cruise on the Spirit since we were our waitstaff’s only table on that cruise/seating our head waiter would whisk our daughter away and dance with her for five minutes so that my wife and I could enjoy dinner. Just more reasons why we love Carnival
October 23rd, 2009 at 12:56 am
John,
We prefer eating in the dining room most nights as a large part of the cruise expereince is meeting new friends. On the other hand, there are nights when I just don’t want to spend the “hours” it seems to take eating in the dining room.
As to anytime dining – no my TA has yet to mention it to me – we are currently reserved for late dining. We will be switching to anytime dining.
On a side note, I know you’ve asked about the entertainment – we love the guest participation shows, hypnotists and comedians. We rarely go to the production shows. Those nights we hit the hot tubs, spa, casino etc in the evening – really wish saunas etc were open later in the evening – that’s something I’ve noticed is different on Carnival vs Princess – Carnival seems to tie up the outside deck areas at night while Princess leaves deck chairs out and access to the spa hot tubs, saunas is available later in the evening.
October 23rd, 2009 at 1:01 am
John,
We never eat dinner on Lido. Sometimes we eat lunch on lido, and sometimes breakfast. Just really enjoy MDR.
Trip on Cunard sounds wonderful, but will have to wait until we retire and have more time.
October 23rd, 2009 at 1:19 am
On the one cruise I have been on, I couldn’t imagine not going to the dining room. But, we had a table for two. Originally we had a table for four with two other people that made for very awkward conversation. If I had been faced with having to sit across from them every night… I might have skipped it a night or two. But, they changed dining times and left us with just the two of us and dinner time in the Dining room was something I looked forward to very much. However, I think I would enjoy a large table (for 10 or something) a lot, making lots of new friends and not having to rely on just two other people for conversation.
October 23rd, 2009 at 4:10 am
Dear John Heald,
(Please respond.)
I will be on the 02/14/10 sailing of the Carnival Glory in room #7440. I need a (cold) refrigerator in my room for some disability-required items. I know the room comes equipped with a mini-bar, but those are usually not cold enough (I need regular refrigerator temperature). My required liquid needs to be refrigerator-cold and my service dog’s canned foods (her breakfast) need to be kept from going bad for two to four days each, depending on how I mix them together. (Once opened, they need to be refrigerated because they are meat/fish along with vegetables, vitamins, and other healthy pieces.)
My travel agent has spoken with Carnival a couple times about this, but they have so far refused to put a refrigerator in my room, stating that I can either store items in the mini-bar (which the Carnival Web site even says is not very cold) or walk halfway across the ship (and back) first thing in the morning (twice) each day to store items in the purser’s refrigerator. They do not seem to understand that with my mobility and stamina disabilities, this is burdensome, if not sometimes near impossible, (and the pain issues I have don’t help, either). I have been on a cruise before on a different cruise line, so I know what it is like trying to get around a cruise ship, trying to wake up and get out of bed after a day or two onshore (remembering a particular day I could not get up until at least noontime or early afternoon), and the other challenges I face. On that cruise, the cruise line just had me fill out a form pre-cruise to get a mini-refrigerator put in my room (in addition to the built-in mini-bar that wasn’t cold enough). I have already filled out disability forms for Carnival and requested a refrigerator on the applicable one to no avail.
Could you be so kind as to see about this issue so that I will be able to go on this cruise? I know Carnival has mini-refrigerators for medical use because I have done some Internet searching and found people who have gotten them put in their cabins for their medical items. If you could please have Carnival add to my reservation that I need a mini-refrigerator for medical use in my cabin, that would be so helpful and I would be very grateful.
Please let me know if you need any more information (I don’t want to give too much out on a very public Web site) or if there is anything I can do for you in return. Thank you for your help!
Sincerely,
“JM”
October 23rd, 2009 at 5:47 am
Dear John, like I said before, what a lovely sensitive man you are. Please don’t be so hard on yourself, you didn’t know John, you didn’t know. Remember how much you help others, and how much pleasure you bring to many of us, don’t foxus too much on what was an innocent mistake that contained no intended malice whatsoever, you’re a thoroughly decent guy, and honest too, not many people have the integriy to hold their hands up and say “I got it wrong”. Top guy.
October 23rd, 2009 at 6:26 am
Hi John .. as a father of two little boys ( 7 and 1 year old ) i would like to respond to your Lido dining question .. We did take our older son on 3 cruises when he was 4 and 5 years old and even with flexible dining on the NCL cruises there are some evenings you cannot make the little ones sit for an hour and a half for dinner, because they are so worn out from the day and just plain tired even at 6 p.m. so the buffet is the ovious choice for a plate of pasta and a soup or salad ….
Our little boy loves restaurants and loved seated dining but i can see people only using the Lido buffet for this reason … Mabye expand the baby sitter program onboard and let mum and dad have dinner later with the confidence of a cared for child. You will soon experience this with Kye on her cruise …. there is a big gap in childcare for the very little ones … and for families flexible dining works best ..
By the way i think we did sail with you in 1999 on the triumph out of Miami and you were the reason we love going on cruises .. NCL with their flexible Dining was the only choice with a little boy and we are happy Carnival has this offer now as well .. greetings from a cigar smoking daddy about your size …from freezing cold germany …
Stephan
PS: Did they ever think about offering cabins for us larger folks ???? Talking about toilet seats .. shower cabins and larger beds .. and sometimes the chairs on the balcony are hard to squeeze in and out as well … hint hint ….
October 23rd, 2009 at 8:00 am
Good Morning John. I hope today is a beautiful day so your pax can enjoy laying by the pool and soak up some rays or go on an excursion if you are in port. It’s only 41 days until we join you on our Carnival Dream. I’m like DJ, I need a cruise.
Concerning the dining options. We much prefer sitting down in the dining room being waited on. We make friends with our waiter. Our waiters have always been so much help in making sure I don’t order something that has milk products in it.
We enjoy meeting new people. We dined with a very nice couple on the Freedom recently. They are from Puerto Rico. They plan on meeting us when we come into San Juan in Dec.
If I remember right, we have only had dinner on the Lido deck once. We got back from a tour so late that I didn’t have time to get ready to eat in the dining room.
We missed our update from Heidi this week. I hope when she feels better and will have time to give us a new update.
Hello to Mum, Dad, and Suzanne.
Countess Caroly
Hi to Stephanies………… all of them
October 23rd, 2009 at 8:31 am
About the dining…
We choose to eat on the Lido deck almost every night for dinner. We may go into the dining room one night on a 7 night voyage. Here are some of our reasons… 1. You have to get dressed up a bit. (We have to dress for work, our cruise vacation gets us away from that. We are shorts, t-shirts and flip-flops people. My feet don’t want to see the insides of shoes). 2. The dining times a flexible. 3. Dinner in the dining room takes too long. (We can grab what we want, eat and go do another fun activity on the ship).
We were not aware of the open dining.
Matt
Harrisburg, PA
October 23rd, 2009 at 8:36 am
I cruise with a friend and we generally eat every meal in the dining room. It’s fun to dress up and the service is fabulous. I think once, on the last cruise, we were tired after visiting a port and just went to Lido for a quick bite to eat.
She likes to eat lunch in the dining room, as well, and chat with the new people she meets. I will do that sometimes, but sometimes I just want a quiet meal and take a book to Lido with me and eat there.
Anyone who doesn’t try the dining room doesn’t know what they’re missing, by the way. Talk about pampered! You always walk out of there feeling very special – and full!
October 23rd, 2009 at 9:17 am
John,
We’ve all put our foot in our mouth & wished we could remove it. A sincere apology was given & accepted. Foot removed! What a lovely woman!
To answer your dining question, whenever possible I prefer eating in the dining room for dinner. Sometimes tours or port days make the Lido an alternative. I worked for many years where cafeteria food was my only dinner option. To sit down, be served, & not have to rush back to work, is a luxury I very much appreciate. And I prefer scheduled dining, as it gives me a structure to plan my evening around.
In four short days my sister & I will board our Carnival Dream! WooHoo!!
Joyce
October 23rd, 2009 at 9:19 am
John,
To answer your question regarding the dining room: On our 2 cruises, we have never eaten in the dining room. Why?
1. We like to choose what time we eat.
2. We like to sit with each other, not a group.
3. Some nights we want to eat and run, other nights, we want to take time and enjoy the food and variety.
4. We feel the dining room is for “dressing up” and we don’t like to dress up on our vacation. Khaki’s and a polo is as dressy as we get!
Now that there is Anytime Dining, we may try it, but if we have to dress up in more than our Khaki’s and polo shirts, then it is back to the Lido deck for us!
We book through our long-time travel agent and she did make us aware of the dining room, but since we haven’t booked a cruise recently, there was no “Anytime Dining” option.
Thanks!
Lisa in Rainy, Rainy, Rainy Missouri….
October 23rd, 2009 at 9:20 am
John, We also tried eating just on the lido and we’ll lets say to us the selection was extremely limitied. Now that Carnival offers steak every night in the dining room which I must add is GOOD! We will eat in the dining room. As for John the relationship director .. It has a catchy phrase and How about we take one from the flop of a movie and just call you the, “Love Guru”
Big Fans as allways,
Frank and Bridie
October 23rd, 2009 at 9:20 am
John:
We all make these kind of mistake, accept the fact that you are human. I love your sense of compassion and how terrible you feel shows what a caring human being you are but stop kicking yourself. We’re all human and we all make mistakes.
Love ya!
Maria (aka Elationismyship)
October 23rd, 2009 at 9:29 am
Dear sweet and ever so tender hearted John,
Please do not beat your self up about that dear sweet boy, you could not have known unless you were one of the people that went to his Stateroom. I hope his Mother becomes a regular on your blog thingy, she will love being here just a much as I do. You can put a smile on my face like nobody else can.
I would never go to the Lido deck for dinner, but we do go there for lunch. We always go to the Dining Room where we are waited on by wonderful staff, food presented to us in such a lovely way and said food that tastes as good as it look. We also have assigned dinning. We like going to the same table and having the same dining staff every evening.
The couple, what to say, well sounds like life is going to be interesting for them.
Keep smiling John, you truly are one of the good guys.
My best to Heidi and Kye
October 23rd, 2009 at 9:55 am
We’ve been cruising since my oldest children were 8 and 10. They are 21 and 23 now. My youngest child is now 10 and he has been on 5 cruises. All my kids have really enjoyed the formal dining. The food is always great and the waitstaff make everyone feel important (especially the little people). We eat at formal dining every night if at all possible. We have only eaten on the lido deck for our evening meal on 3 or 4 occasions in our 8 cruises that we have been on. Those instances were due to late shore excursions usually. In any case, whether we eat formal or casual, the thing I really love about Carnival is there are so many choices. My kids are not picky eaters, but they all have different tastes. Therefore, there is always something for everyone.
I do think Carnival should publicize the dining options more, especially on the Carnival website. Most people do not realize the time frames for early vs. late dining or the details of the anytime dining. Even after 8 cruises I could not tell you the details of “anytime dining” other than what I can derive from it’s name….
Keep the blog coming…………We love it!!!!!!!!!!
October 23rd, 2009 at 10:03 am
We INTEND to eat all of our dinners in the dining room…I enjoy taking the time to have conversations with my friends and loved ones regarding our days’ adventures. Although I must admit, there’s usually 1 night, about halfway through a 7 day sailing, where we are exhausted from the excursions of the day and just aren’t motivated to get dressed properly. We throw on our shorts and tshirts after hopping out of the shower and just grab some Lido dinner.
Oh the chili dogs….the Carnival chili dogs and fries from the grill….yummo. 35 days and counting…
Stacey
October 23rd, 2009 at 10:35 am
Hi John. We all know that you would never intentionally make fun of a special needs person. I’m glad his mother was so gracious in accepting your apology.
We booked our next cruise with our PVP (also Gina A.) and she knows after 4 cruises booked by us with her that we prefer early seating. Even though we booked the Freedom for January 2011 and Your Time Dining is not yet available on the Freedom, she did mention that next summer it would become available if we were to change our mind for dining time. We are rather partial to being spoiled in the dining room with scheduled seating though. As for eating on Lido for dinner, we do that sometimes just because we either had late time in port or if we are just too lazy to change into dressier clothes for dinner.
So, since we are on the Freedom in January 2011, we are hoping you will be too. We’ve always wanted to cruise with you.
October 23rd, 2009 at 10:53 am
Hi John!
What a shame that the laptop got thrown overboard. I can only imagine the papertrail nightmare that has to be dealt with now.
I would not think its necessary to make an apology since you are just dealing with the information presented at hand.
Glad the weather was more favorable for you today in Belize. I hope it stays nice for you.
I’m a big fan of Lido dining but always prefer the dining room during the evenings.
Take care and have a nice weekend!
David
October 23rd, 2009 at 11:12 am
John,
We LOVE eating in the dinning room. It’s such an important part of our cruise. In fact, in 6 cruises, I have missed dinner in the dinning room only 3 times. Once was due to a severe headache, the next time was due to the Biolumiscene Tour in San Juan, and the last was due to eating in the Supper Club.
The thought of missing dinner in the Dinning Room is a sad one to me! AnyTime dining makes it even better! I love that option and hope that Carnival continutes to keep it on all of their ships!
And John- we all know that you would never intentionallly hurt anybody with special needs. You are one of the really good guys out there and the way that you handled things after you found out just reinforces that! Keep up the great job you do everyday!
Sarah
October 23rd, 2009 at 11:13 am
If my husband would go for it, I would eat in the dining room for all three meals!
October 23rd, 2009 at 11:17 am
JOHN:about the dining. We go to the dining room most nites BUT the menu does get “stale” for me. I am a fussy eater and don’t do chinese/japenese-duck,seafood etc.If it doesn’t oink crow or moo, I don;t eat it!(pork,chicken,beef) You can eat only sooo many steaks and the chicken is so dried out! Nice to have spagetti-fried chicken, pasta and a salad-normal stuff we eat at home. Plus it doesn’t take 2 hrs to get it and eat! By self serve-the foods here now!
ALSO! I knew about the new Itin on mircle before you announced it friend my friend Jackie at Carnival! We have booked a cruise for Feb 7th 2011!! But this time just 2 of us not 17! THEY have any time eating I was informed, which is nice! If you come back from a shore excursion and its too late for Lido-too early for dining rm you have to scrounge around! This way we can eat when and where and with whom(or not) we want!Much nicer!! I have also had food COLD from dining room by the time it got to me. entertainment in dining room you mcan never see! Its always somewhere blocked by walls! Never know whats happening. I don’t drink Ice Tea-lemonade is nice-but usually bring MY OWN can of pop!! Hate dressing up every nite just to eat!! We go change THEN go to the show if its any good.
These are experiences from our 11 cruises! YOU asked!
October 23rd, 2009 at 11:37 am
John, I just wanted to drop you a note that I second what Uncle Doug said. His response to you brought me to tears. Many a day, I sit feeling a little down & I turn to your blog. It lifts my spirits & truly makes me laugh. You are a gift.
Only I wish you were sailing on our cruise. After reading your blog, I am seriously considering cruising one of your blogger cruises.
October 23rd, 2009 at 11:42 am
Hi John,
I prefer to eat in the dining room, but sometimes the people that you’re assigned to sit with are about as interesting as slug racing. I haven’t been on a cruise yet that offers Your Time dining, but I’m looking forward to it as I never cared for assigned dining times.
October 23rd, 2009 at 11:58 am
John- As you can see form the many posts, the Lido deck is a great fit for many. That’s the beauty of a cruise, there are venues and options that meet everyone’s style. Personally we have never eaten dinner on the Lido (the food is just too good in the dinning room), we even like to do lunch and breakfast in the dinning room which is something many people do not seem to know about. But getting lunch from the deli or the fish and chips service and the other venues is a must too.
Its not so much about any time dinning versus set dinning times, but personal preference. But, having said all of that, I would like the option to be able to do anytime dinning should we be able to get ready for dinner on time. That would be the ultimate flexibility. We always pick early dinning times and it seems that there are many times when we leave port late that we are either late getting the dinning room OR rushing back to the ship so we have time to get ready. Being able to do anytime dinning for that one night would be great.
October 23rd, 2009 at 12:56 pm
John,
Here’s what we do… I’m not a morning person, so room service for breakfast, (unless some little devil running loose in the hallways has taken our order form off the doorknob as has happened a couple of times). But it is just the most spectacular thing to sit on the balcony, drinking coffee and sailing past the Blue Mosque, Hagia Sophia, et al. That was a truly special cruise! Lido deck for lunch and the dining room for dinner. We also try to make it to the supper club, sorry, steak house, at least once per cruise. In fact, I’ve put in a request for the 11/13 Dream sailing. Would you like to join us so you don’t have to eat alone? We would love to treat you for all that you do for everyone. (notice, I’m not asking for you to make the reservation, LOL). Like you, I am trying to control my sugar and regular meal times is very important. Please send us a note if you can make it. We are in cabin #7230.
Carrie Sullivan
October 23rd, 2009 at 12:59 pm
John!
Hello! My name is Drew. I was a social Host with Wee Jimmy on the Triumph in 2006. I’m cruising on the Freedom next month, and wanted to let him know I’m coming. Could you maybe tell him? or Give me an e’mail address for him?
I’m currently a 4th grade teacher, but I have not yet found a lovely lady to settle down with, so I’m still considering going back to ships.
(mostly I worked with Paul Stantley, but did a month with Wee Jimmy and a month with Chris Jefferson.)
Maybe you and I will meet one day!
Drew
October 23rd, 2009 at 1:01 pm
Dear John,
As for our dining preferences:
BREAKFAST:
We always have room service for breakfast. We like to nibble while Nancy is getting ready (Which can takes up to two hours) She primps and I look over the Carnival Capers and we discuss what options we want to do that day. I love to plan (Its the Engineer in me, I can’t help it!) If we didn’t order enough food then its up to Lido for a few more pieces of bacon.
LUNCH:
On sea days we always do the Lido “Taste of the Nations” as it is always great. The Mongolian stir fry is my personal fav but I saw your pictures of the India’s Tandori Chicken so that may change. When we are in port we usually don’t eat much as there is to much to do and not enough time to do it all.
DINNER:
We have tried the early seating on our first cruise and the late seating on the second and neither was what Goldielocks would have called just right. When we had the early seating we felt like we had to get back to the ship and get ready for dinner and were rushed so we didn’t get to do much shopping done while ashore. (Good for me bad for Nancy.) When we had the late seating we got back from port one day and there was still two hours before dinner and since we had nothing for lunch while ashore we were both famished. Lido to the rescue!
Since Carnival has now started the anytime option we will probably use that from now on. We also make it a point to go to the Steakhouse (Supper Club is still a better name) and celebrate being on a cruise with the best food and service on the planet. If you haven’t tried it you really must! A friend of mine had gone on several Carnival Cruises and never taken advantage of it so when she went on the Superbowl Cruise on the Carnival Conquest her and her husband and another couple that they had met onboard went there and when she returned she thanked me for telling her about it because she said it was the best meal and service that she had ever had bar none.
Oh and one more thing! Every night before we go to bed we open a little silver package and snarf a delicious piece of chocolate. The perfect way to end a perfect day aboard any Carnival Ship.
DO NOT TAKE THE CHOCOLATE AWAY!
I will hunt you down Gerry Cahill.
All the best!
The Cruzin2some
James & Nancy Enslow
October 23rd, 2009 at 1:17 pm
Dear John,
I just need to say that if more people could be like Greg’s mother, I think this world would be a much better place. She didn’t take offense and forgave you (instead of DEMANDING that you compensate her with a free cruise!!). Don’t beat yourself over the head too much; you have apologized and I’m sure she has moved on.
October 23rd, 2009 at 1:22 pm
Dear John,
We just got back from our cruise on the Carnival Ecstasy (first cruise out of dry dock!). Everything was great and we loved the “new ship” smell in the areas that were redone. Love the water slide and new resort pool.
CD Steve was great. He is an amazing fiddle player and did a great job at the marriage show!
I just wanted to say a very large thank you for remembering us on our cruise and sending a very nice gift to the cabin. It really brightened our day and we enjoyed it greatly!
And thanks again for writing the blog and being so kind to so many people!
October 23rd, 2009 at 1:58 pm
John,
We usually eat in the dining room. That is the part I love about cruising, having a fantastic dinner served by gracious servers. When my children were young, it was a great learning eperience. They loved ordering things that were different. If they didn’t like it that was OK. they just ordered something else. They learned to eat things like escargot, chilled soups, oxtail soup and many other delicacy at a very early age and knew they could only get food like that on a cruise.
We will eat in the Lido for breakfast and lunch. We have had dinner a few times in the Lido when returning to the ship exhausted.
Can’t wait to try anytime dining!
October 23rd, 2009 at 2:05 pm
Hi John, I posted why liking to have dinner in the dining room. Like to meet the same waiters and fellow travellers (almost) every night. As I noticed sometimes you might get into trouble reaching early seating on port days, I switched to late seating. Do know about open seating reading your blog. Most of the time having breakfast inside dining room and checking out the menues for lunch deciding.
October 23rd, 2009 at 4:15 pm
John, We have been on 6 cruises with Carnival. Of the 6, 4 of them, we have never set foot in the Dining room. The reason is mainly that we do not want to dress up to go to the dining room. Now, we are not slobs. We look just fine to go out and eat in just about any restaurant. But, after reading all the complaints about people not dressing up to go to the dining room, we feel that maybe we just better stick to the lido deck and not upset anyone. It is our vacation, and we don’t want to bring dress clothes.
Also, we have always asked for early dining. We always seem to get late dining. It is too late for us. I have asked to get it change, but twice I was told it was not possible. We have not cruised since anytime dining was an option. We will be using anytime dining on our next cruise.
I really wish that Carnival would drop the dress code for the dining room. We would love to eat there more often. Just seems like too many people get too upset if everyone is not following all the “rules”.
October 23rd, 2009 at 4:41 pm
Wow, sit down dining is our favorite part of any cruise and we NEVER miss dinner in the dining room! The luxury of a delicious 4 course meal with impeccable service is one of our trip highlights. Lido is fine for lunch (can’t eat too much all the time!) but NOT for supper! Love the blog, Gloria
October 23rd, 2009 at 4:44 pm
Hi John,
I just want to thank you for my solid gold Ship on a Stick that I won on board. You took care of this matter of the missing prize and I thank you. Stephanie was fantastic as was all the staff aboard the C-Splendor for our 3rd trip. I can’t say enough for Carnival for making such happy memories for us.
See you on the C-Dream on the 13th (not the 7th). We have nearly 25 family members cruising on Carnival now.
We rec’d a nice note from Captain Carlo. He is such a fine gentleman. We will see him on the C-Dream also. Can’t wait……..B2B Nov,
Bye for now and have a great jovial day!
Best regards to your beautiful family.
Geri
October 23rd, 2009 at 4:57 pm
I have only been following your blog for about a month or so. Where had I been?? I can tell that you are a very caring person who wouldn’t intentionally write or do something to harm them. Lighten up on yourself!!!
Dining room question: We always have eaten in the MDR with a group as we enjoy talking to new people and interacting with our servers. We always have fun and like to be around fun people. We are retired and take most of our meals at home, just the two of us, and by eating in the MDR gives us a chance to “break away” from just ourselves. Most cruises we have been on, we normally go to the MDR for all meals, if served there, (some port days we have no choice). The Lido is good for a quickie snack ie: hamburg, hot dog and fries, and the Lido is a must after the early show to check out the pizza and soft ice cream to share.
Our Carnival Dream cruise is only a little over 40 days away.
October 23rd, 2009 at 7:22 pm
When MaryLou and I are on our cruise we always have our dinner in the dining room. It’s an opportunity to have someone else treat us at dinner. Also I love the fact of meeting and speaking with new people during the dinner and can’t wait to see them for dinner each night. We also have breakfast some of the time in the dining room, most of the time in the Lido and once in awhile we have coffee and toast on the balcony. A cruise allows us to be pampered as in the dining room where as in home I’d be cooking every night.
As far as Greg is concerned, you did nothing wrong. If you look at my 24 year old daughter you’d think she looks great and she is great but at times if something doesn’t fit according to how she feels, look out, yet this beautiful woman shows tremendous love and everyone loves her where she works, so John relax. By the way Greg’s mother looks like a gem. Unless you have lived with a child that has difficuties you wouldn’t be able to see the difference. Morever John, with all the good things that you sent to Greg, he will forever love you for thinking about him and that is what’s important for his real understanding, love.
Paul
October 23rd, 2009 at 7:39 pm
Hi John:
It is very rare that we do not eat in the dining room. I like to check the menu on the TV before we go and especially when I have the grandchildren as I can get their orders down before we get there. My grandchildren enjoy the dining room and all the attention they get from the wait staff–it makes them feel special. It is a rush sometimes to get us all showered and dressed but it is usually on port days.
October 23rd, 2009 at 8:40 pm
John, We are on Nov 1st Legend sailing. Am very excited to see on cruise schedule you will still be on board when we sail. Enjoy your blog. Will new port at Roatan be open for our sailing? Think I saw somewhere wasn’t opening until late Nov. but would be nice if it was opening sooner. Can’t wait for our cruise. Hopefully will have better weather than this week. Thanks.
Jane
October 23rd, 2009 at 10:12 pm
With 4 Carnival Cruises under our belts we have only eaten on the Lido deck for dinner once and I felt jilted. The food was good but I really enjoy the atmosphere of the dining room and knowing our wait staff.
Lon eats in the dining room for breakfast more that I do, especially on the day’s at sea. This is mainly because I am not a morning person and would rather sleep in if we are not going into port. I also love the omlet bar on the lido deck!
I don’t think we have ever eaten in the dining room for lunch, do they even serve lunch in the dining room?
Roxianne
October 24th, 2009 at 12:31 am
John,
You did a wonderful job apoligizing to Greg & his mom. Just goes to show what a wonderful CD you are! You had no idea that Greg was special needs. All you knew was what you had read. I wouldn’t worry any more about it. We all learn from our mistakes. As for the dining room vs lido deck, we always eat dinner and sometimes breakfast in the dining room. We enjoy being catered to while on vacation. We do however, eat lunch and sometimes breakfast on the lido deck as our days are busy and it’s much quicker. We also enjoy meeting new people at the dinner table so we don’t do anytime dining.
Mike & Lori
October 24th, 2009 at 11:27 pm
my only comment is about the lack of security. I’ve seen elderly parents beat up by their children, security refused to even take a report or report it to local LEOs.
Parents that leave teenage kids in interior cabins for an entire cruise without supervision. drugs, noise, ect…
I have had beer poured from the top of my cabin door to the floor and all security had to say is that we will keep an eye out.
even with all of the great things on the lines… security needs to be improved…….
October 25th, 2009 at 2:38 pm
From my last Carnival Splendor cruise I noticed that the buffet had the same food as the dining room. I like the service in the dining room but sometimes it just takes too long. That said, I still prefer the dining room over the Lido.
October 25th, 2009 at 6:27 pm
We always take advantage of the wonderful waiters and waitresses and the GREAT food in the dining room. Although, the food on the Lido Deck is just as great (we always eat breakfast or lunch on the Lido Deck), the chance to be a little “spoiled” by all the great service & food in the dining room is a MUST!!
October 26th, 2009 at 11:52 am
John
We were with you on this cruise of the Legend from Oct 18th to 25th 2009. It was our 1 year anniversary (2nd time on ship went for honeymoon 0ct 19 08) We had problems with our Carnival comfort beds. they were so bad my wife woke up with numb arm and I hardly slept. Our room stewart Juilo (cabin 5190) tried everything he could towels under the mattress, new bed frame, multiple comforters. The middle was completely worn down and the my bed was 2 inches higher than hers. Three nights I slept on the couch. Age old dilema sour wife or sour back. I choose the sour wife on account of the physical activties we had planned. Almost asked for the j bed once too. We live in tampa, and love this ship – the beds. I am having reservations about booking for next year. All this happening after we get a voicemail that our reservation for the Golden fleece was canceled on Oct 18-09 Our 1 year.
Let me get to the good! John as a cruise director you exceeded out expectaions. You gave the ship a vibe of home with a comical edge. Julio the Stewart for 5190 is excellent. He would make a great supervisor, great with people and genuine. Raymundo, Jaquim, Jasumin at truffles. We requested every night. Guided over by Meda the hostess from Romania whe remembered us from last year. I challenge every cruiser who has given carnival the bad dining room service review to sit with these guys. Perfect service called by name, never empty water, and just enough conversation. Great ship, food, Ports of call…. oh and cruise director. oh and couple named Mr dick and Anita Little. back to the bed issue We sailed the fascination in 07 and the beds were great. I love this cruise, but If the we did not have issues we would already be booked for next year.
Mike
October 27th, 2009 at 5:08 pm
PLEASE ANSWER!!
Hello John,
I work for a singles travel company based out of Los Gatos, CA. We have many cruises; past, present and future, that we choose to book with you for the obvious reasons: great ships, wonderful customer service and fabulous trips!
We have a question however: why is it that you have started charging $10 a head to reserve a group meeting room? We book many people through your company and we do not overcharge by much to keep the prices competetive with your ever-changing rates and if we spent 10$ per person we would not make any money at all! For large groups, such as our 200 person group going in December, could it be possible to waive the fee? We are stumped by this sudden change and would love an answer straight from the top as it were.
Thank you!
Glynnis Jones
October 29th, 2009 at 7:27 am
John,
I am on a cruise to get fat & happy. I eat in the dining room AND the Lido deck if I can fit it in.
November 21st, 2009 at 11:41 pm
Just returned from 8 day Carnival Spirit cruise to Mexican Rivera. Wonderful! Just wonderful time, outstanding entertainment, great food, menus were superb as many others have commented. Like others Its obvious that Carnival is out to be first in the cruise industry. Just one request for you John. Could you send me or post the recipe for Pumpkin, Squash, Yam and Cheddar pot pie for say 8-10 guests. I’ve found the recipe posted, but it serves 100, a few more than I serve! Keep up the good work. Glad I found your blog.
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