We have always sailed on RC or Celebrity and decided that we would try Carnival. We love Hawaii and wanted to be there in January for whale watching, and the Spirit seemed to fit. We arrived on the pier early and it was madness. The chaos and misinformation/communication provided by Carnival staff, left us to wonder if it was the first day on the job for many

We sat or stood around for hours with no updates about the delay no kind of refreshments (water, etc...)were ever offered. Upon finally entering the ship we went to our room. We had upgraded from an interior to an "obstructed balcony view." The room was spacious with lots of storage & shelves. This one thing was the only saving grace we found.

We made our way to the Lido deck for the buffet lunch. The layout of the food lines causes much congestion and waiting lines. Royal Caribbean's Jewell really has this problem mastered. Read more