This was not my 1st cruise, but highly different than others. Carnival employs 0 Americans, yet makes it too obvious that their sole purpose is to take as much of our money as possible. Jewelry, art auctions, bedding, bingo, etc. are all areas for Carnival to solicit you! The gift shop was convenient, but naturally expensive [$7. for $1.50 deodorant.]
The employees are all very nice and attentive. They should be, because they're working solely on your tips, which Carnival kindly charges to your 'Sail and Sign' card the 1st day. They push tipping very hard because they don't pay these hardworking folks anything. So they're not only seeking all of your money, but don't pay the people that actually make the positive aspect of your cruise. Unbelievable.
Outside of upper management, Carnival goes to 3rd world countries and hires out all help now... You won't be able to spell the names of your housekeeping or waitstaff because they retain their native names, which are of course, foreign to most 99% customers.
Horrible location of my room; the main walkway of the self-serve restaurant above is over my bedroom! Very poor insulation resulted in me hearing every footstep of the many walking people, and the really noisy sounds of the carts coming in/out of the restaurant and being wheeled around. This was horrible. You could hear people down my hallway talking, their conversations, the Kids Camp Director running kids thru the halls while the kids screamed at 1am the last night! Come on. The kids were only doing what they were told they could. The Camp Director thought it was a fun thing to do and didn't appreciate me stepping outside my room to explain to her that this is not appropriate guidance.