This was my third cruise, second on Carnival, The first was on the "Glory" last August. We traveled with three other couples, no children this time. We arrived at the Port of Miami around noon time and were on the ship in less than 20 minutes. No lines, no waiting. We easily found our room as the Triumph has the same general layout as the Glory. The room was clean but clearly older and not as nice as the Glory's cabin. We never met the room steward until we called later the first night to have the balcony doors opened so that we could share a large balcony with our friends in the next room. I also requested beach towels and continental breakfast hanging cards and received neither. This set the tone for the week.

In the dining room our server provided prompt service but lacked a personality. Her assistant was never introduced to us and he rarely offered ice tea that I had to request every single night and usually didn't get it until the meal was nearly over. It became easier to simply order a soda and pay for it. The wine stewart was fantastic and was rewarded for her service at the end of the week. We found ourselves constantly comparing this cruise to last year's. We realized right away how the Glory was a far better cruise experience. Maybe we were lucky last year and it's clear that the level of service will vary ship to ship and even room to room. One of the couples with us had a different room attendant than the others. Their room was tended to constantly, with fresh towels, bed made and towel animals every night. Our attendant arrived after 10pm on two occasions for turn down service. We only got three towel animals the entire week. We would see her in the hallway socializing and she even asked us to bring her a "drink" from the bar! One night she confided that people make her "nervous" when they ask for things from her that she can't provide.

Our server in the dining room was difficult to understand and we had to ask her to slow down when speaking so that we could understand her. On one occasion she didn't like the way I was ordering my food. She reprimanded me saying " you don't have to say the whole thing, just tell me what dressing you want on the salad" There were always two salad choices so apparently she could read my mind! Very disturbing. Toward the end of the week she finally became more friendly (as tip-time was getting close). We only went to one show and it wasn't that great. Lines were always long on the Lido deck for the buffet. The elevator area on one deck always smelled of garbage. Read more