Just got off the boat today. This is my 20th cruise (RC, HA, Carnival and Princess Past Cruiser) -Hot Food! Learn it, Everything was COLD This is my 11th Mexican 4 Day. Ive never seen such cold food. Quality's gone down a lot but... the price is cheap... -Music in ALL areas to damn loud In between a comedy show I don't like screaming at the people besides me and my waiter needs a written paper to understand what I am saying its SO LOUD. Took my kid to the Holiday "carol" in the atrium and it was so loud she wanted to leave. There was a show on Tuesday that woke me up in the atrium FROM MY ROOM. (E55) Yikes! Get your sound checked. LOUDER IS NOT BETTER. With that said our room guy was awesome. I couldnt belive they stopped cleaning rooms twice a day I cant belive that Lobster on Fancy Night is gone Trashy people on board: I can NOT Blame Carnival for this. The price is amazing. I literally witnessed a woman try and get money out of the ATM machine....trasshhhyyyy *checked it though she didnt use it*. I loved everything else. MY kids wouldn't shut up, all they wanted was to go to the kids club. The towel animals on deck were awesome. The Dr, Seuss breakfast was amazing. Read Less

Convenient cruise- easy getting form the Long Beach airport to the cruise ship- & used the shuttle as only myself traveling, but if I was with a group would have used UBER to get to & from the ship . I wanted a short itinerary, to determine if I would enjoy solo cruising. Was great being able to have cabin to self, able to do what I wanted when I wanted & how I wanted. Totally enjoyed the sauna, steam room & gym. was well taken care of by my room steward, Supron - always had a full ice container, room cleaned as necessary Did the Chef's table & was impressed by all the food that was fixed & served, Learned many interesting facts about the food, preparation & many ingredients for the many foods that was served to us. Even learned some new things about different herbs & spices to combine with different foods. In Ensenada discovered a great place to go for a massage- Massage & Facial Wellness - within walking distance of the ship- and very reasonable priced, then did a chocolate class at the Maya Cacao- learning how chocolate is made form cacao beans- Did I mention that is all organic & they use the profits to support orphanages in the area Read Less

I have sailed on Holland America, Norwegian and now Carnival. This was my 50th birthday cruise to Ensenada Mexico. It left from Long Beach, CA so was easy to get to from Oregon and it was a short cruise which was ideal since I had several friends and family coming along. The ship was older and smaller than previous cruises I have been on. There were things to do on board during our "at sea" day (the first full day even though Ensenada was close by). However, none of us could participate in anything because for the first 24 hours of the cruise the ship was pitching and rolling so much we could barely stand upright. I had my parents with me and some of them are beginning to have mobility issues... I know the ship can't control the ocean and I'm not sure what I would have expected Carnival to do, it was just a difficulty we weren't expecting and that I had not experienced before. Aside from the curve ball mother nature threw us, the cruise was "ok". The room was fine but it would have been nice to have something other than the bed to sit on, and a coffee maker would have been appreciated. The food was marginal - the buffet was not large, there were only two other main dining restaurants and we were assigned to one of them. The manu was limited and the portions were small. There was a sandwich bar, a pizza bar - the quality of thes was so-so. There was also a burger place near the pool - that was a GOOD burger! I think my biggest frustration was the service. On previous cruises, the staff treated us like we were the first and only passengers on the ship giving us attention like they wanted us to have a good time. On this Carnival cruise, the staff were just going through the motions and actually avoided eye contact to get out of serving us on a few occasions! Except for the people that wanted us to buy overpriced stuff on board... For the shore excursion we were going to just go into town, but on the bus on the way, they talked us into going to Bufadora and the Flea Market. I'm really glad we did. It was a lot of fun even though in the market there's a lot of pressure from the vendors to buy their wares. All in all this cruise was pretty much what I intended it to be - a quick getaway with a group to celebrate my birthday, but Carnival cruise line in general left me a little disappointed when compared to other cruise lines I have experienced. I can't say I will jump at the chance to book another carnival cruise. Read Less

I have been on cruises before with Carnival. So, I like Carnival but sometimes its a hit or miss on some cruises if you dont have good staff, So let me kind of tell you the bad news first, 1. When we arrived at the port we were ready to hand over our luggage to the folks to take it to the ship. However the porters said we dont work for the cruise line but if we take your luggage for you if you give us a tip. We talked to the Carnival representative and they said that our cruise price included luggage transfer to the boat. Apparently the porters were trying to shake down customers for more money. We noticed this problem only at the Long Beach port but not at other ports where the service was excellent. We had to bring our own luggage on board since it appeared if we did not pay...we may not get our luggage if the porter wanted to be mean. He appeared to look like he could screw us since there is no logging of our luggage or proof we gave it to the porter, That was a real drag. 2. My daughter won a prize at giveway for guest in the main lounge. The Cruise Director said it was 200 dollar value. But the stuff in the package was crap necklace that you get for free at the shops. Plus there was a 25 off 175 dollar coupon. The other gifts were free excursions and other valuable gifts. The Cruise director took the cabin number down to investigate but never followed up. The prize was more of an insult to us and the director did not seem to care. This is unlike other cruise directors on other boats. Her assistant also did not care and told her to trade the gift to another person. The gift was worthless so there was nothing to trade. Note this behavior never occurred with other cruise directors who seem more attentive to customers. 3. Cabin service on main deck portholes was horrible. Beds were suppose to be separate and we had to push the steward to make the change even though we booked the rooms that way. We found globs of air on the new towels. When we were moved to a new cabin due to noise issues (see below), the stewards were excellent. This was on the Rivera floor 4. 4. Food was ok. 5. Service at the dinning was excellent from the entire staff. 6. Comedy club and night entertainment was very good, Like I said, most Carnival cruises are very good, Sometimes you don't get a good cruise director or cabin steward and that kind of blows most of your cruise, The real problem is the luggage situation where the porters are trying to intimidate/extort money from passengers when that service should be part of the cruise package, Read Less

Never going back--even if free So there are good things about this cruise. 1. SOME of the staff were very nice.The guy who cleaned our room was amazing-super friendly and always greeted us with a smile. The girls working the excursions. . BUT we had a few VERY BAD THINGS. 1. The FOOD WAS HORRIBLE across the board. It was like bad, cheap mall food and there was hardly any available. The food at dinner was a little better, but two nights, I didn't even eat because it was so yucky. Cold, soggy, smelled "off", and it was obvious that it was premade. In the Mardi Gras room, I tried to eat there twice with no luck. Bad service--one guy got really mad that I didn't want coffee and the next day the guy kept bringing me the wrong food. They tried hard, but it was bad. Room service was lackluster and they charged for everything. 2. There wasn't much to do on the ship except drink and since so much of the ship was filled with smokers, it was bad. 3. They didn't explain anything to us and when we asked we got yelled at. We were very confused much of the time (it was our first cruise)*** come back to this. 4. Excursions were very expensive and they were super unorganized--getting off the ship etc. It was chaotic. 5. The "safety" thing was just the cruise director taking roll and telling us what shows were coming up. And he mentioned that kids had armbands. We would have been screwed had anything happened. 6. Our stateroom was FREEZING. I had on three shirts, a sweatshirt, two pairs of thick socks, a hat, gloves and a scarf and got under the covers. There was no way to warm up. The shower was lukewarm. So we FROZE. It was warmer on the deck in the rain and 50 degrees. I caught a really bad cold and was coughing. It was so uncomfortable. When I asked the man who cleaned our room he said that was how it was. It was like camping, outside, in the winter. This was probably the thing that was the hardest to deal with. 7. The internet for $59 was super slow and you couldn't even access the app without it. Only one person can be on it. 8. The hallway and room smelled like rotting feces at all times. (E78) 9. We were by the atrium where they had parties and loud music and games from early morning til midnight or later. THE WORST WAS this one lady at the guest services. We asked her how to disembark on day three--we thought we should know. She started immediately yelling at us to "turn on the tv!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!" when I explained that on the Carnival TV channel there was only ads and a cartoon explaining how to put on a life jacket she got more angry. She told us to TURN ON THE TV!!!! IT WAS ON THERE. Then I suggested that the rooms should have a book or something with information like hotels do---she got upset again. She demanded to know why we were confused. I said that for example we had no idea where to eat or anything and that's when she lost her mind. She literally said, "JESUS CHRIST!!!" and then called me a B**ch Then put her hand up and refused to answer any questions. We were then AFRAID to ask anyone anything. I was in tears at that point because I hadn't eaten all day (due to the lack of food choices) and just wanted an explanation of what time we could leave on Friday morning. There was no need to be nasty. I even explained that it was our first cruise. I left in tears. I asked a man in the hallway to see a manager and he told me that there was no such thing on Carnival cruises and that guest services were the boss. I explained what happened and he said that was up to them how to treat people. Then I said, "so you could verbally abuse me and no one would do anything, not even the captain?" He confirmed. I was crying. I went outside to sit on deck nine to calm down, because there was nothing we could do to get help. I got locked outside for 45 minutes. :( I don't know if I will get a lawyer because of he behavior, but honestly verbally abusing guests is UNCALLED FOR. Also she NEVER told us how to do anything. I went down there at 3 am and asked someone else. To end on a good note, the guys in the dining hall were amazing. Once we figured out where to go and went there every night at 8:15, they went above and beyond to make us feel welcomed. Sadly this was our honeymoon and because the stateroom smelling like poop, being about 50 degrees, and being called names and cursed out. It ruined it for us. I am drafting a letter---the old fashioned way and mailing it to them. I hope they refund at least half or it, but even if they do, we aren't going back. It was really, really, really bad. PROS: some of the staff, and the people we met, the comedy shows were good, the entertainment shows were good. CONS: Food, some of the staff, freezing & stinky rooms, no hot water in shower, general confusiong, loud parties outside our room. Read Less

We took this cruise because it was convenient to where we live and we wanted to experience the Mexican Pacific coast. The cruise started off well but the food was of poor quality. The instant mashed potatoes had the consistency of applesauce. Meats were either well over-cooked or undercooked. The fried chicken was so overcooked it was almost black and hard and stringy. They ran out of sprouts for salads by the third day. The fruit was often mushy and overripe. Where they served burgers we found them and the fries were served close to room temperature as was the mayonnaise which was discolored on top and may have been the cause of my wife's diarrhea, vomiting, and upset stomach that ruined the last two days of the trip for us. The evening shows were well below the standard we came to expect on our previous cruise. However, the comedy shows were good except we missed the last two days since my wife was not feeling well. Our shore excursions at the first two ports were well worth the cost. Due to heavy rain, we were allowed to cancel the excursion at the last port of call. Read Less

Left out of Long Beach. Splendor could use a few aesthetic repairs but overall the ship seems to be in good shape. I love the pink decor! Comedy shows were super fun, best Piano Bar performer I've seen on CCL, Dara Jazzlin! Go see her. Bartenders were great. Best Chocotinis at sea. 4 stars instead of 5 because my brother didn't get a towel animal in his room for the first 2 days! Also the Serenity deck does not have a hot tub which was kind of a bummer. However there is an adults only pool and hot tubs at the back of the ship. Food was excellent in my opinion although there is no Guy's or Blue Iguana on this ship. I recommend getting the the mac and cheese in the dining room....always available even tho it's not on always on the menu. The gym was clean and not overly crowded. Wonderful vacation overall! Read Less

The staff was courteous, fun, friendly,helpful, accommodating and kind. My room always sparkled. Room service was in the time frame stated. And the entertainment was top notch.They were great talents. The comedians brought down the house. The lounge singers were hypnotic! I had an incredible memorable time!!!!!!!!!!! And as a solo single gal traveller I felt completely safe as well. The excursions were informative, educational and inspiring ( I selected excursions that were geared toward the arts and culture and they definitely delivered) I was overjoyed with every aspect of my excursion experience. The memories are so rich and enriching that I'm still elated thinking of it. If I absolutely had to think of any criticism is that I do wish more ships has solo cruiser rates ( but I understand that that's not the norm for the cruise industry... while I would love it! I just planned accordingly ). And in regards to the menu as a vegan and gluten free traveller I appreciated their efforts so much and hope that they will continue to grow in that area so that there is even greater variety of entrees that incorporate both. Overall great job!!! Read Less

Last year I took a 3 day cruise with Carnival Victory. I’d have to say I was disappointed this year with Carnival Inspiration as I compare it to last year’s cruise because: The ship needs updating badly, there were not enough adult activities during the day, in the adult only deck section (which is extremely hard to find)- there was no bar, guest services was unfriendly along with several bartenders, the food was subpar in the buffet area, there were no areas where food was offered during non-meal times (which Carnival Victory had and I hear a lot of other ships do too), the safety check in Muster C was a waste of time because you couldn’t see the person on stage demonstrating or hear the overhead announcement for safety instructions, you also couldn’t hear the overhead announcements while in the cabins so if you’re not in the hallway or a common area- you don’t know what they’re trying to tell you. I would say Orlando (cruise director) and Alvin (Orlando’s assistant) did a PHENOMINAL job with entertainment. I wish they hosted more activities during the day for adults though, because there were hour stents when there was nothing to do but sit at a bar or on a deck (it was a bit cool, so we barely used the deck). Jodi (stand up comedian) was GREAT and had me laughing so hard that I cried. Mon (our housekeeper) was OUTSTANDING. Mon had great customer service and attended to our request quickly. I was also disappointed there was not a deal on he pictures. Not even the day we left the ship. There were just so many times that I didn’t feel there was adequate customer service. Next year, I’m not sure I would give Carnival another try because I hear so many great reviews about Royal Caribbean. I would like to express how great of a time I had during the horseback riding excursion in Ensanada. Jose was our guide and he did an AWESOME job. All the men at the horseback riding place were personable, made sure we were safe during the ride through the mountains and provided us an overall meaningful experience. Read Less

7 day Mexican Cruise. Longbeach arrival was easy via an Uber from my hotel. If you are early you can stand in line and go through before your set embarkation time, which got us on board 30 mins earlier. Highlights - mostly friendly staff, few grumpy exceptions, but particularly the stewards, look out for Bjorn he was lovely. Room was always clean and tidy. Food - pizza was great, sit down breakfast was also good. Room service - the free version average at best, the cost version slightly better. Lido buffet was very average, no flavour, some of the cakes were lovely that are served over lunch. Mazatlan was a wonderful port. We were on deck 2 forward, which wasn’t the best spot, but we were on a budget. The last 24 hours there was a lot of waves and it was a bit unpleasant, that’s not the ships fault. The two things that bugged me, firstly the cloud spa was terrible, I paid for a 7 day pass and used it twice. The service was snooty and rude and there were people everywhere, it was not relaxing at all. The spa services as your would expect on a cruise are not cheap and not worth the cost, several passengers felt the same way! Secondly, and this could be me being nieve, there is still a lot of things you pay for, drinks (sure but including soft drink, really?). The duty free is terrible, I bought a well known face cream before I left the cruise, it was almost double the price on board. Finally, the shopping information session on the first day at sea was terrible! It was just a huge upsell of diamond and watch companies disguised as a port information session, I did not learn one thing that was useful regarding the three ports we were visiting and many of us walked out after half an hour. Also, selling coupon books at $25 a pop that keep you locked in to visiting certain shops whilst in port is a con. Felt for the people that bought them. Lee, the cruise director was upbeat all the way through and I witnessed him genuinely chatting to passengers, he’s a natural. Overall. Ports were good, food average, up selling annoying and spa service dreadful. Would we go again, probably not. Read Less