This cruise week came nowhere near expectations, which considering that this was Carnival, were not very high to begin with. The cruise was chosen as an economical family reunion venue. As it turned out, not too many came fortunately. I would not like to have answered to them. As succinctly as I can put it, if this had been my first cruise, there would never have been a second. Since we are mature grandparents with fifteen cruises behind us, I feel we are capable of making reasonable judgements.
There are some good things to say that I should relate. Embarkation and debarking were efficient and easy. Once on board, after running the gauntlet of photographers, however, one was left to his own devices to find his cabin. The staff was friendly, courteous, (with one glaring exception) and tried hard to make this a memorable week. Unfortunately, our steward and table servers left something to be desired. Service was slow, but accurate. Requests to the steward had to be repeated a couple of times to get a response. (I suspect he was pretty much overworked). The children's program was excellent. The ship, considering its age, was in good condition. All ports were made on time. The ship rode well and was very quiet.
So much for the good stuff: Now for the negatives. It might be best if I relate them in bullet form.