Aug. 22nd 2005, 5 day cruise Cozumel, Calica. Where to begin? The bottom line for me is the entire ,"were done with you, we have your money, go to bed now" attitude has got to go! You need to understand that on SO MANY Different levels Carnival does NOT have your best interests at heart, no matter what they say or do! The saddest part is when they quite literally "roll up the sidewalks" at night, leaving you with no options but to go to bed. Forget visiting with friends or meeting new people, especially if you want a drink or two to enhance the experience, the bars are closed, the pool is closed, the deck chairs have been stacked and pushed to the corner, the music has been turned off. Now Please understand that I'm NOT talking about midnight, 2am, (I could understand that!), I'm talking about 10-10:30 PM!
Everything you buy has an 18% gratuity on it, including drinks you walk half way around the ship to get yourself! (which you have to do when the wait staff quits at 10pm!) And can you believe this, the ONLY bar left open on Thursday night ran out of beer!
The excursions: TOTAL JOKE! I was with a large group of 10 people. We wanted to do a jeep excursion. The Carnival web site said you could get a jeep that would seat 4 for $150, (give or take). Yet on the ship, it went up to $80 per adult, and $70 per kid. So a jeep with 4 people would cost $320?? And that Rebecca chick claimed that had sold out. So we get to Cozumel: First off, its FAKE! You are entering a totally fake area created for Americans. Bypass all of that crap, and keep walking down to the rental car place. Guess what? They have SCORES of Jeeps available for rental, (pick your color!) $50! We rented a Ford Econoline Van that held all 10 of us for $80 plus the $25 Mexican insurance. Went to a Grocery store in downtown Cozumel. Got a styrofoam cooler, 2 cases of Mexican beer, (cold out of a cooler!), 2 bags of ice, bottled water, $30 bucks! We all cruised downtown Cozumel, (the REAL Cozumel!), bought 6 Cubans, food, and some T-shirts, loaded in the van, and STILL joined in the jeep excursion! Went to the sample places and everything, but we had beer and food! Went to 4 different beaches, partied all day! Oh, and I recommend you visit the "Gentleman's Club" just outside the "FAKE" area, and spend your money there!