Carnival Valor Review

4.0 / 5.0
1,524 reviews

Dark, Dirty and in Desperate Need of Dry Dock

Review for the Western Caribbean Cruise on Carnival Valor
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uoftxchik
6-10 Cruises • Age 40s

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Sail Date: Mar 2017
Cabin: Interior with Picture Window (obstructed views)

We really liked our stateroom (a very dated but not worn, roomy 4J with window and large bathroom and easy access to the "secret deck"--we booked an inside GTY so this was a bonus), our stateroom attendant, Guy’s Burgers, the photo backgrounds and the Serenity Deck. The adults only pool was also good and not over run with children on the day the big pool was closed. We enjoyed the two family-friendly comedy shows and the finale production show. We also thought the towel animal theater was cute. Oh, and the towel animals around the pool deck was a fun touch. We also liked that the dining room staff would remember your name. My mom ordered a soda at a breakfast and the lady remembered her name two days later, that is impressive.

Overall, we thought the ship was dark, dirty and in desperate need of dry dock but we’re spoiled to the two recently refurbed ships we sailed prior to Valor. We did like the art, big murals in the atrium, etc. It felt like the ship may have been understaffed. There were very few attendants in the buffet and very little visible cleaning crew. Several beverage stations were either closed or not fully working so lines for buffet drinks were long and the cart-served beverages were hard to come by. Cups and plates were left on tables and in random spots for long lengths of time before being cleared. Ice cream was spilled on stairs. Some public bathrooms were gross, out of soap and toilets didn’t flush well. The main dining room staff was slow and inattentive. We had one good night where things flowed smoothly and we didn’t have to wait 30 minutes between dinner and dessert…the rest of the nights were very, very slow. Thankfully, we had six amazing tablemates. It bothered me that there were no tablecloths on the tables except on cruise elegant night. The nightly show in the dining room was too much. It was monotonous and just made dinner last longer than needed. And the bartenders shouting/whooping it up/singing loudly to sell shots at dinner were just tacky! We thought the food quality overall was very poor. We grabbed breakfast at the buffet one morning and everything was cold (bacon, eggs, gravy, etc). Steak and eggs at Sea Day brunch arrived without steak, omelet was served with incorrect ingredients, huevos rancheros were ice cold. I have concerns about the temperatures at which they keep food. I opened the cabinet under the toppings bar at Guy’s and it was not cooled or heated and there was food stored in the cabinet to refill the bar.

We had two great excursions: Salsa, Salsa and Margaritas in Cozumel and the Scenic Photography and Foodie Tour in Progreso, which took us to Merida. Overall, very high quality excursions. Would recommend both.

Cabin Review

Interior with Picture Window (obstructed views)

Cabin 4J

We booked an inside guarantee and were pleasantly surprised with the bump to a 4J. Large and comfy.

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