I have sailed on Carnival before and this was the worst cruise by far. The best was the Spirit when we cruised Alaska. The staff was great and the ship was beautiful. This cruise in no way compares to any that I have had.
We sailed from Miami after a very very long wait to board. Once on ship the rooms were nice even though the crew seemed a bit rushed and abrupt. I attributed this to the stress of boarding so many passengers. However I cruised Alaska on the Spirit and never saw any evidence of stress or abrupt behavior from any of the crew.
The fun actually started the next day. It was Spring Break in the Northeast and we boarded with what seemed to be every child from New England to the Carolinas on board. Carnival has Camp Carnival but the parents did not take advantage of the activities it offered and the other passengers were subjected to many children in a confined space. Not only did the parents not enroll their off spring in Camp Carnival they let them roam the ship at will. Running down the halls at all hours of the day and night slamming doors, and yelling. Trying to get an elevator was practically impossible, it was usually full of kids, and a mess. When we finally went to the purser's desk to complain, we were told that you can't lock them in their rooms... No you can't but as a paying guest I think we deserve some peace and quiet and not have to be subjected to unruly children at all hours.