Carnival Pride Review

4.0 / 5.0
1,595 reviews

Fun But Very Average

Review for the Mexican Riviera Cruise on Carnival Pride

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Additional details

Sail Date: May 2008
Cabin: Balcony

This was my 7th cruise (the 4th on Carnival) and I was greatly looking forward to going somewhere other than the Caribbean or the Bahamas. I have read every review of the Pride on the Cruise Critic and decided that we would give it a shot even though I knew this ship would be very different than other Carnival Cruises that we have experienced. We set sail on May 25th and arrived in Long Beach on the 24th via a flight through LAX.

The Day Before - We spent the evening before in Long Beach at the Coast Long Beach Hotel. We absolutely LOVED it! Perfect location (right on the marina) with wonderful views and lots of palm trees. It has a wonderful restaurant (dining outside highly recommended), very friendly staff, a heated pool, and a free shuttle service that runs to the downtown area of Long Beach. We took advantage of the Park and Sail Package which includes a one night stay (in a bay view room - well worth the extra charge), free parking for the length of the cruise (if you drive), two breakfast buffets, and free transportation to and from the pier. Total cost including tax was $209. Our flight after our cruise didn't leave LAX until 5 p.m. so they even stored our luggage for the day while we used the transportation system to catch a movie and lunch in Long Beach before our flight! The hotel stay was one of the high points of our trip! Downtown Long Beach has a lot to do for couples and families alike. There is a Boardwalk area with many restaurants, arcades, street vendors, dinner cruises, bars, etc... Ferris wheel and carousel rides, a movie theater, and more restaurants and bars are in the Pike District. We went to Sergeant Peppers Dueling Piano Cafe which was lots of fun for adult entertainment. They are also opening a Laugh Factory in this area as well! You can access all of these areas using the free local transportation system. It is very easy to get around town.

Embarkation - After reading the nightmare reviews about this process, we decided to wait until 2 p.m. to check in as I am not a big fan of standing in long lines. No luck, still lots of lines. It was an organized, but still very long process. Wait in one line to even be able to stand in another, not fun. I was prepared though so it wasn't that bad. Got on board at about 3:30. Went up to the Lido deck to have lunch. It was kind of a confusing process at first, but we were able to find food and a table without a problem. Lots of choices...and the food was pretty good. Cabin and Steward - We got a category 8B cabin and it was a decent size. The thing about this cruise that did not impress me was the lack of attentiveness in service from just about ANYONE. It was adequate but nothing special. When we first entered our cabin, I found two hairs (not mine or my husbands) on the vanity and another in the bathroom. Yuck! That has never happened before on a cruise so I was a little disappointed. There was also some wear and tear visible in the cabin from a cigarette stain on a lampshade (not sure how this happens when people are not supposed to be smoking in the staterooms hmmm....), paint chipping off the balcony, and a cracked light on the vanity panel. One light bulb was also out for the ENTIRE week. These are the little things that really aren't a HUGE problem, but just stuff I noticed that never seemed to happen on other cruises I have been on. Our cabin steward never came to introduce himself by name but was friendly when we did happen to see him.

Cabin Review

Balcony

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