If our taste buds could make memories, we will have to get some therapy because our one and only meal on board left a horrible taste in our mouth. Everywhere we looked for lunch was deep fried , frozen or just not great Chefs who specialise in food would not be involved in this display of un healthy food. Carnival you really have to change the photos of the food and the description you are not telling us the whole story. This would have to be the worst food we have ever been offered. After walking round all the food court food outlets we made the decision to leave the ship before it set sail to Sydney for our health If taste buds can make memories, yours will savour your Carnival cruise for years. Step aboard and enjoy everything from anytime casual dining to multi-course degustation meals. Anywhere you look you'll find a great variety of food, made from fresh ingredients by chefs who specialise in delighting your palate. Read Less

Never again.No customer service.Food poor so many people sick .Was advised 55 in one night.Food is laid out on trays hours before buffets open .They only thing they don't charge money for is your oxygen.Give them time.Horrible greedy sloppy ship.Witnessed 14 and 15 year olds gambling in casino.Kids playing in casino while parents play pokies. Carnival had no security in casino didn't care as it was money.Greedy greedy company.Most people sit smoking on the decks because there's nothing else to do .If they gave me a ticket on this horrible ship I could not give it away in all good conscience as I know what's it's like. I was told by one guest there granddaughter was sold a cocktail of kiss on the lips because kids are given there own charge cards.Poor everything.Never again.The delays were extensive getting on 3 hours to get on ship.poor entertainment nothing worth anyone's time Read Less

Have been on spirit before ..4 times encouraged a group of 9 to go on this cruise and asked to b seated in the middle area of dining .Bottom level so we could see everything that was going on..And was put in a corner behind a service area where we could see nothing..Asked again and was moved 3 tables away ..The food in the buffet at breakfast and lunch was nearly always burnt and hard..The laundry on our floor wasn’t working..Overall very dissatisfied and will prob won’t b bak on spirit again..We also booked a tour on the ship which I don’t normally do..What a rip off that was $240 for a train trip in Dunedin all you could drink didn’t stipulate it was only beer and wine 7 out of the group of 8 didn’t drink beer or wine..What a complete waste of money especially when you were not told ... Read Less

Close to home, part of a group we have travelled on many times (Princess, Cunard, P & O International & Holland America), but this was all so different. Before we left we received an email that stated there would be extra health checks, what a joke, we signed a piece of paper & we were on board. Our biggest shock was there was no hand sanitation enforcement, didn't happen until the last few days of the cruise, and that was hit & miss, outside the dining room no-one supervising & many people just walked past. Overcrowded, terrible dress code, even on Elegant night in the dining room had to suffer bogans dressed in muscle shirts, board shorts & rubber thongs. Sorry I don't want to share a meal with hairy armpits. Met some lovely families with young kids who wouldn't even let their kids in the pool LOL We were on a cruise to the tropics. PS: it was not school holidays! Children running unsupervised everywhere putting themselves & others at risk, children were served soft drinks at the Casino Bar sitting on stools in the evening. No lounge bar was opened for pre dinner drinks, never saw the bar operating once in 10 days in the Cool Lounge, Piano Bar only open for about an hour later (after dinner). Won't go on any more, guess you have the picture, so I'll add some good things. Our room stewards were great, only do the room once a day, but that was okay. Good waiters & the food was okay, just restricted. Loved the singing waiters, and we booked a Ocean Suite but was upgraded to a Grand suite. The suite was huge with lots of cupboard space, spotlessly clean, a bit dated but every thing worked. Read Less

Best to just do in point form. Most of other reviews I have read are all true. Bad points. Ship has strangest decor like the Spirit and Legend, different lets say. Entertainment started out good, but faded rapidly as cruise went on. Sanitation was non existent for 7 days, then suddenly it's a priority ( obviously lots of people became sick). Dinner at the bistro was sad, very little choice. No room to sit on deck 3 I think it was where reception is located and they do lots of trivia etc, all read by Spanish fellow that has the strangest sounds in English. KIDS wild everywhere especially worse each day, no control. Our room had no hot water for 4 nights then another room had nothing but problems and noises - all they offered was a few drink vouchers. Water from the ship for tea and coffee and cold water tasted terrible for days, complained to desk and they thought I made it up, but most guest were tipping tea out and pulling faces after tasting, came good just before end of cruise. Trivia - must be a shortage of questions as same trivia 3 out of 4 days! Good points. Dining room was excellent, best we have had in 47 cruises. Maybe just lucky.? Water slides were great. Because we went to Port Vila the on board duty free for alcohol were same price as in port give or take a dollar. Prices on board were in Australian dollars - drinks etc a bit more expensive then some other ships eg beers were $8 and wine about $15. Guy's hamburgers were great, also Indian and other outlet which did toaties etc but only open till 5pm. Staff all looked like they didn't want to be there. Laundries on board and no charge as some computer problem. Ice cream dispensers around ship. Pool attendant watching and controlling kids. Read Less

My wife booked the cruise this time and did very well as always. The Splendor is a very nice ship which we were pleased to be aboard. We sailed at a very turmultuous time with covid19 on the rise. I cannot praise the staff highly enough on this. Their diligance and professionalism was fantastic in every way. Yes we missed several ports that were planned But at no fault of Carnival, the captain, the crew or the ports. In whatever way possible they tried to give us the best possible experience. The portside entertainment whilst in Port Vila from the local musicians was great. Fahrenheit 555 was deliciously awesome you have to try it. Casino staff and management absolutely amazing. We had so many good conversations whenever we were there. Wait staff 1st class thankyou Daniel, Patrick, Sumali, Jose. HUGE Thankyou to Mateo, Ivan, Jodie, Gladys, Larry, Mihai and all casino crew Ryan, Roan, We had a blast. Black Pearl staff and Gold Pearl staff you all Amaze me. How you carry those trays, balance everything like watching juggling. Evening waiter entertainment was so fun. Thankyou Angela, Leilani, Putu and all we met during our dining experiences. "You Hoo, Yummy Yummy". Read Less

We Chose this ship as we were under the impression that after having a recent refit etc and having been on Carnival Legend we actually thought Splendor would be great, how mistaken were we. The embarkation and disembarkation processes were not too bad but they were the only good things. The whole boat was filthy when we first boarded and when we got to our cabin we had asked for two single beds and a double bed was made up, when the double was seperated and i went back into the cabin I stood on a rather large hair pin left by a previous passenger. I tried to find the stateroom steward to no avail and only saw him twice fleetingly on a seven day cruise.Four days before our cruise we were advised that Isle of Pines was closed,(the Australian Government had posted this information a week and a half to two weeks prior) so we would be going to Moreton Island, when we got there we were told we could not go ashore as the weather was too bad but they still launched at least five tenders which all passengers could see thus if the weather was too bad they were putting their own crews lives in danger. It was learned later that for at least four previous cruises nobody could get ashore at Moreton Island so why go there. The food in the Lido Bistro was lukewarm at best and the service was non existent, bar and waiter service was also nonexistent and there were children playing poker machines in the casino and staff had to be told but it still happened all day every day. The serenity lounge was overcrowded and there was also a group of girls flashing their breasts at everybody, these same girls were later seen on the smoking deck pole dancing and flashing in front of elderly passengers and children, it was also noticed that there may also been some nudity photos of these girls taken. There were fights onboard every night to which the security seemed indifferent and the same can be said about the underage drinking that went on and if Carnival have a responsible serving of alcohol policy then they don't on Splendor. There are many, many more things i could put up on here but they would take up too much room. And before anybody ask there were complaints made and ignored Read Less

Decided that as this was a fun ship we would take our youngest daughter and eldest grandson with us. We were so looking forward to the experience but unfortunately we were a little underwhelmed. The colour scheme of the ship reminded us of Willy Wonka - tacky. We were advised four days before the cruise that the Isle of Pines was not allowing cruise ships to dock. (Coronavirus). We were diverted to Moreton Island where were to drop anchor and spend a number of hours there. Well as much as they tried to get the boats to dock alongside the ship to pick up passengers to go to the island were in vain. This meant more time at sea. We did get a few more hours in Noumea and time to go snorkelling but the communication on the pier was terrible. We were told to meet our guide once we got off the ship but instead were ushered on to a bus even though we said what we were doing. We eventually met up with our group near the passenger terminal. Great shore excursion (snorkelling). Felt being on board for 6 of the 7 days was too much. Felt that the ship was not designed well as we needed to go up stairs or lift to move to the back of the ship and then down again to dine. The live shows at night were great - the best entertainment on the ship. Felt that a family friendly cruise did not need to have the Casino in full view of children - we had to walk past it every night to get to dinner. Would not be allowed on land. Pools were quite small when you have a full ship - no room to move. Food selection was reasonable. The shops were overpriced and some were in $US which makes no sense if you have left an Australian port. Over the top photography every night almost to the point it became annoying - and overpriced. It seems all the company wanted to do was get us much money out of you as possible. Cabin was basic but comfortable- we did have an ocean view. Not real big for 4 people though. Will need to try another company to see if my expectations are totally warranted but based on what we experienced not sure we will travel Carnival again. Read Less

Chose this cruise because it didn’t involve going to an airport. Easy embarkation for my 77 year old mum. Driven straight to the door of the ship. However on disembarkation private cars were not allowed on the pier. Wasn’t informed there was a shuttle bus until after my mum had walked 700 metres. Good to know for future cruises. Whatever you do, don’t miss the 88 keys show. The lead male singer is 11 out of 10. The food was very nice with many options. Noticed on second last day at the entrance to the smorgasbord the food in the blueiguana looked very nice. A corn chip basket and you can choose your filling, prawns, chicken, salad. Heard one gent asking for 2 more scoops of prawns. No problem. We ate many meals in dining room and the thumbs up options were delicious, especially the sugarless meringue cakes. Gazpacho (cold tomato soup) was delicious. Ordered lobster from the pay extra menu twice and 2 of the tails were very tough, perhaps over cooked or just naturally tough. Told waiter and they were replaced with good ones. Ordered 2 mains for myself one night, thinking I would get a bit of each but no I got two main meals. Very accommodating. Up in Lido I tended to order omelettes from the omelette station and pizza. Paid to have a good look around before choosing your food. I’m not a huge drinker but enjoy a glass of wine with dinner so I ordered a nice bottle of red, which the staff cheerfully tracked down each night until I finished it on the last night. Ship is well noted for its over the top Vegas style and showing a little wear but clean and comfy. Port Arthur is a big walk for a 77 year old but it had golf carts cruising around to take you where you want to go, and the drivers were friendly and accommodating. We took hop on hop off bus in Hobart when it was 27 degrees. Try and get on the newer ones as they have great commentary and air conditioning. I allowed for a fair bit of on-board spending as I have previously cruised with Carnival, and overall we really enjoyed this cruise. Read Less

Tacky decor, way too much pink. The ship was meant to have been recently refurbed but I don't know what they refurbed because things in the rooms were broken (lamps, bedside tables). The mirror in the bathroom had been moved however the old holes werent patched. The staff were not friendly, apart from the cabin staff and the 3 staff we had in the dining room. The food was absolutely awful. Only 4 options of salad and mains in the bistro and a lot of the food was tasteless and cold. The bistro had 4 sections but they all had the same food. However the chocolate soft serve was amazing and tasted just like a chocolate paddlepop. The dining room had almost the same menu as the bistro. The ship is not easy to navigate and we often got lost, especially trying to get to the dining room as you have to take multiple lifts and walk to the other end of the ship. We cruised to tasmania and it was incredibly rough on the way there, so bad so that they had to cancel our port in Port Arthur. Stayed docked overnight in Hobart. Tasmania was beautiful. We asked about getting off to fly home but were told we werent allowed to, even though we were still in Australia it was an international cruise line. Thankfully it was much smoother on the way back so we were able to enjoy it more. Would not recommend this cruiseline to anyone and will not be sailing with them again. Read Less

I did not enjoy this experience. Over crowded, badly organised from the beginning. Our first thing was the master. We had to stand around waiting for so long some of the elderly were starting to get ill. Then our first meal in the Gold Pearl, was a disaster, giving us food we didn’t order. A storm meant we missed out on Port Arthur so we were in Hobart for two days. I thought they could have given us a free trip, via bus to Port Arthur, but know it was very costly. They is so much waste, food is left everywhere, I saw pizza crusts in the lift a couple of days. So many bogans on board. They should refuse service. Too cold to swim, activities lame, bingo, trivia? Beds so uncomfortable, soft foam. Piano bar only good entertainment, but be early limited seats. Steward, Guntur was the only good thing Read Less

We took this cruise because it was departing from Melbourne...……..the ship itself is old and the décor is dark.... our stateroom was very comfortable and the housekeeping men were fabulous and friendly nothing was to much trouble for them'. The food in the buffet was poor meat was tough, chicken tough and fish over cooked. pizza was average, Mexican excellent, sandwich bar great, burgers average......dessert bar great... one incident in the eating area of the buffet, when a guy dropped 2 desserts and one spilled up a cupboard and all over the carpet, a crew member that was picking up plates etc saw it and ignored it, I reported it to the head guy of the waiters, he had a look and did nothing, so it was left and the food on the floor was trampled into the carpet. The food in the Empire dining room was excellent except that the Vegetables were always COLD, the service was excellent from all the waiters, again nothing was too much trouble, special diet needs were met. The team members in the Gym very rude would not acknowledge you, it was like you were invading there space so didn't go back Entertainment excellent...…...just great. Over all service good, drinks a bit expensive. Ports ok Noumea very expensive $40 for 2 cups of coffee and 2 cakes Excursions ok would book of shore as a lot cheaper than on ship. I would like to see a few bins inside some of the areas as there was no where to put rubbish so went back to cabin to get rid of tissues etc. Disembarkation was smooth. Would not do Carnival Spirit again though. Read Less

Any person or persons thinking of going on this ship Think again Company lied about the ports cancelled and the cyclone we went through Food like slop Cold tasteless 2 hours to clear plates from piggy Buffet Coffee machines didn’t work Toilets dirty Dinning room same food every nigh Cold staff rude and disgusting Entertainment what entertainment Guest services staff so rude Could not care less from any passengers Rails on swimming pools loose Had my phone stolen 38 families got off at port villa And said this ship should be destroyed The buffet was like a piggery staff slow at replenishing food The tables were so dirty with dirty plates cups and cutlery Carnival knew so much about cancelled islands 8 days before And offered us a lousy $50 back Stuck on a disgusting ship for 10 days with 2 days off never never again carnival destroy the ship Read Less

My 4 day cruise to Morton islands leaving sydney the 6th Feb.The service in the restaurants was great and the food but that's where it stops, too many bogans swearing and drunken people. The dress code was poor and not much entertaiment during the day and found the staff not happy compared to the P& O staff. There was no control over handwashing at the buffet and before you enter the boarding on ship, the toilets are filthy and no paper towels and some hand dryers not working. I've taken 45 cruises and it's hard not to compare but this particular ship is poor compare to the carnival spirit. The cleaning of the inside lifts can be upgrade too many drinks dropped on the floor and tables not cleaned. The spa not always open at the spa & beauty place on deck 11 due to water spilling over to the corridor, the steam room dirty and some of the heat beds not working but on a good side they did refund my money. Thumbs down on this particular ship and will stick to Royal Caribbean & P&O , Princess Read Less

I think this carnival cruise is pretentious type. I was not really impressed with their buffet menu, especially their breakfast. They have app to check the program, where to eat and chat with other passengers. Unfortunately, for chatting feature was not working most of the time for us so it was a waste of time. The breakfast are flat and boring. Sometimes in their app showing that their buffet is open but when you get there, there was signs that the buffet is closed. In the rainy/wet weather, even worse. There was not enough good entertainment / activities that is fun. The water will in the slides are not heated so at the top deck, it was windy & cold. I also lost one of my AirPod and report it almost every day but no update was given. When we were leaving, we supposed to receive letter / memo to advised our checkout zone but many of us never received any. In the fine dining area, only on the last day they show us the kids menu. I think they have to train their staff much better in the customer service. Before we sailed, I had some inquiries over the phone but again the customer service agent hang up on me before I finish my inquiries. Read Less

This was our 7th Cruise and we chose Splendor because it was supposedly refurbished and we enjoyed Spirit so much. I believe a cruise is what your make of it and we enjoyed ourselves, but somethings were disappointing. The ships decor I think is very ugly unfortunately, ceilings very low and areas very dark. The glass lifts are like walking into a hallway very narrow. Overall the ship is very hard to navigate because nothing flows, only deck 5 runs front to back, so you would have to go up a level walk across and then down a level to get to the pub and restaurants. Firstly we stayed in a suite which was very old dark and dated, maybe they put new carpet down. I know the showers on most cruises arent the best but these were the worst, no pressure and temperature fluctuations. We were in a party of 6 and you could pre-book your table 10 minutes prior to seating if all your guest had paid to go on the hub app. You cannot contact the dining room until it is open. Weird thing is not once did we get a table for 6, it would be seven chairs or ten chairs and eight. But when we did book for eight people we got a table of nine. this became a bit of a continuing joke. Food tried to be fancy had some nice and not so nice meals. We enjoyed the Red Frog Pub and the trivia was entertaining, the casino poker machines were very stingy. The Carnival shows in the theater were not so great. It would have been nice if they had a price list for their services at the Spa. When I asked them their excuse was they only print one brochure for all their ships world wide. But nothing is stopping them from printing their own price list. As for Ports we had 2 (Lifou and Isle of Pines) cancelled and Vila was a substitute unfortunately it was a Sunday the markets were open but only 2 shops in town. We were to leave port at 2.30, but when Isle of Pines cancelled they extended our stay till 8pm and everythings was closed off and on the ship it made no sense. Lastly the carnival hub app is soooo bad constantly having no connection. We enjoyed ourselves anyway and will be going on another cruise , just not on this ship. Read Less

My husband and I aged 54 and 52 had an interior room on deck 6 (6376) for a 9 day South Pacific cruise at a total cost of $83 per day each, now thats exceptional value. As the old saying goes "You get what you pay for". The ship overall look is older style with very gaudy decor, clashing colours and overall ugliness in some areas. "You get used to it". Stateroom was a good size clean and comfy. Food was a hit and miss. Some good choices in the Lido and some not so good. Sandwich bar is excellent, also liked most of the food in the Black Pearl dining room restaurant. Most staff where very good, a few seemed brash or uninterested. Unfortunately we missed 2 Island days, Lifou and Isle Of Pines, due to the Corona Virus scare. Island officials closing the Islands to ALL cruise ships until further notice. Ship gave all passengers a $25 credit to compensate for this. Instead of Lifou we went to Port Vila and a day at sea instead of Isle Of Pines. Ship holds a lot of passengers and finding seating especially near the 2 pools was usually impossible unless you staked your claim before dawn. Hygiene practices were nearly non existent. I hardly ever saw anyone use the hand sanitiser before entering eatery areas. Entertainment was very mediocre actually worst we've had on our 7 cruises. Please be aware if you have sailed on the Carnival Spirit and expect this ship to be on par, you will probably be disappointed. We will not be returning to Splendor even at the budget price. Read Less

This cruise was very average and nothing to recommend people on, most of the staff are fantastic (and completely over-worked). The ship was OK but looking poorly for a twelve year old ship, and the layout as good once you got accustomed. Hygiene is not Carnival strong point, so you have to be pro-active here as most of the passengers are not. The Good: -The kids facilities are good, the water parks and ocean camp are excellent, the Cat in the Hat activities are very good too. -The buffet was better than some other ships I've been on but the food don't change at all. -The Red Frog Pub had a good vibe. -The stateroom was cosy and clean. -Good movies on the pool deck at night. The Bad: -The dining room food and service was very average, less of 'The Show' and more of imaginative food please. -The theatre shows very average except for the Illusionist who was great. -The bar service was slow. -The cruise director was very average and basically called the passengers bogans! -The photos are too expensive and mostly poorly shot. This ship is positioned at the cheap and of the market, but I had the feeling that Carnival was cutting expenses everywhere to total maximise profit at the passengers enjoyment. Read Less

Bridge version. In my opinion the Ship need to be scrapped and Carnival need to invest into further training for staff, lack of maintenance has caused ship to be an eye sore. Rust, corrosion, wear and tear is certainly no priority on this ship. Cleaning is done at an absolute minimum standard. Process are not enforced or sustained. Dirty windows throughout. Furniture torn and damaged. Broken items are not discarded. Ceiling fixtures are falling away. List goes on!!! don’t just take my word for it read other reviews. If you’re looking for a wow experience through and through this is certainly not the ship. Staff are friendly and most happy to help. The problems is staff are limited to training and resources, offered this makes their jobs difficult. Don’t expect captain to greet you or have a photo taken unless you are willing to pay $25 for the photo. (disgrace). So many families were looking forward to a simple wave and smile. Grime is so visible throughout. Too top it off Carnival smoking area is in within the children’s pool area. The term you get what you pay for is a complete understatement. Witnessed Bar staff serving drunk guests alcohol to intoxicating levels. ( bar is so understaffed during busy periods they overlook what and who they a serving drinks too. To allow underage guests to be intoxicated on the ship is not right. Assaults on innocent elderly couple by young drunks. Security guards not present enough through the bars areas. All in all process need to be enforced for family’s to have a fun safe enjoyable time. Wake Up Carnival!!! Read Less

Having sailed with carnival before on the legend I was really looking forward to this new ship. The experience was mixed The good - variety of food - options to eat and drink - 24 hr food pizza but other open late like deli - amazing shows The bad - the dining room staff were ‘boring’ and never available - not once did we get asked if we wanted a second drink - on previous cruise they were smiling, happy and diligent - lack of pools - with just one main pool and 3500 guests in Australia warm weather this is a total oversight from carnival - need another pool - lack of shade - in outdoor areas were you could relax Eg sun lounges around pool and level 11 plus kids water parks there was absolutely NO shade. Carnival need to buy some umbrellas or install shade sails - daily activities - I actually felt bored on this cruise. Last time I was missing out on so many things because they were on at the same time. Give the huge capacity on this ship they need to double the activity program. 50% of activity listed on the day schedule was the shops or art gallery. There was also limited if any outdoor activities - lido deck was a total boring place to be apart from 1-2 hrs a day with the dj. - cleanliness - the ship was not cleaned enough, walking around common areas you would see food spilled on floors that stayed there for hours at a time. Under our 4 beds (2 separate rooms) we found an iPhone, foreign currency, hair bands and hairpins, credit card and lolly wrappers. Read Less

Cruise was below average. Not worth the money we paid for. We were around 10 families with 17 room and the experience was very bad 1- the room door was broken 2- the food quality was terrible and not much varieties 3- customer service in the Lido restaurant was very bad 4- very crowded, you have to line up for everything 5- 2 Small pools and 4 tiny spas for 3000 ppl are definitely not enough. 6- you have to pay for the spa, sauna and steam room. 7- only one good show for the entire trip 8- our date of birth were stored wrong and went to fix and still weren’t fixed for all of us so I had to go again. 9- carnival hub wasn’t working probably we had to do few trips to guest service to make it work. Photos are away too expensive. Unfortunately I don’t recommend it to anyone. Read Less

Friend selected cruise. She had been on carnival spirit. Horrible. Horrendous. Scrap assault. Food poisoning and food pressure. All of us. Drinks taking varnish off tables. Bad behaviour. Bad food and alcohol. Lack of security. Boss food. No information tool third day. Terrible planning of the ship. Nothing to do. But drink. Eat food that is killing you. Aggression on the boat. Thinking food drink and whatever they were using to clean the cups plates. No vegetarian gluten free options. Msg in the food. Best thing. Comfy beds getting off. Again I thank the universe I didn't take my son. Children young ones. Children touched everything. Do yourself a favour and never go on this ship. It was my first, scared me for any travel ever again on a cruise. My boyfriend's first and last. Nightmare. I feel terrible. My friend organised this cruise. One chess board. Slides kids didn't even ride. Boat rocked in call waters. Crew had no idea. People trying crew like garbage. I felt trapped as in jail with people that fight. Group of men hit on and beat up others. Man cut his girlfriend's face with glass. Kids in adult section with smoking. This is a nightmare of a cruise. Read Less

I chose Carnival cruise because it was a family fun holiday ship. Overall cruise was great. Ship was great. Staff were great. Entertainment was fantastic. Art auctions were great. Food was fine and at times great. Grumps and don't bother with: Don't pay for the priority boarding. You get on the ship fast enough when you first board and when you disembark. As for propriety boarding on day trips if you pay for tours it cancels out your priority boarding. It only applies on on the boat shuttles if you are not doing an organised ship tour and it will only apply for your trip out to shore. It won't cover you for getting back to the boat so this is when you will want it to really work and it won't. We had a 1 hour wait from Akora to get back to the ship. The last water shuttle deadline was at 5:15pm. We didn't clear the line to get on the shuttle boat until about 5:30pm and I reckon about 300 - 400 people queued up on the jetty panicking the ship was going to leave them behind. The ship waited for all passengers to get on board. SO NOT WORTH PAYING FOR priority boarding. The internet is a 50 - 50 thing to get. If you need to post, contact people via social media or keep updated on what's going on back home then you need to get it. Would suggest you get the value pack as the internet is slow and at times won't work at all. It is user number dependent meaning the more people online the slower the internet will work. Would suggest you get your children their own internet package for their device as it is a one device at a time package. This will cause fights in the cabin for sure. The main milk is soy and dairy in the buffet areas - so anything special is difficult to get on the ship apart from the dining room or cafe. There is only 1 Australian and USA powerpoint in the cabin which is so close to the bench top that you cant fit a power pack in. It is low voltage 220 Volts. There is a powerpoint in the bathroom for shavers but it is USA input only. Why?? Don't upgrade to the back of the boat or upper high decks unless you are a seasoned cruiser with a strong stomach for rough seas. Best to get a room higher than level 3 and lower than level 5 and always be mid ship not back or front of boat unless you want to be tossed around in your cabin or you are up for sling shot sleeping all night during open ocean days. NOT WORTH THE EXTRA MONEY TO BE GREEN FOR MOST OF THE TRIP. Make sure you get to all shows, trivia and other events at least 30 mins early. Lunches on shore excursions ARE a big issue. You can't take food off the boat. You can buy drinks of water before you leave the boat. GET THEM. As it may be hours before you can get food or drink on your tour. Be aware that meals or mealtime included in your tour. It was a big issue on 1 of our tours and we were very light headed and thirsty by the end of the tour - did not eat until 3pm and it was only a basic lunch. Self tours beware you will be up for heaps of walking so make sure you can walk well and you have the local taxi number on hand. Many taxi companies wont take your booking for short rides and some of these places only have a few taxis in the area and difficult to hail from the side of the road. If you are at the back of the boat watch out as towards the end of the cruise (about 2 days left of it) you will experience a bad sewerage smell, which makes it impossible for you to go out on you back deck. iF you open the balcony door the smell will get into your cabin and is difficult to get rid of quickly. It is putrid enough to make you want to vomit if you smell it. Housekeeping said the filters on the sewerage tanks get full towards the end of the trip and they don't change them until they finish the cruise. Grump of the day is the lack of passengers tipping the housekeeping and dining room staff. It really was shameful to see that so many passengers did not tip their staff for the amazing work they did for them on the cruise. Going minimum tipping rates are: Housekeeping - $50 AUD Waiting Staff dining room only - $20 AUD each (you will have up to 3 staff you will need to tip here) Drinks waiter dining room only - $10 AUD (you should only have 1 of these and this is for the alcohol dining waiter) that's about all we would suggest you tip. Beware if cruise photographers they will take great pics of you and your family throughout the cruise each day. When you go to pick them up they will charge you top dollar for these pics and the package deal is expensive. There were pics I wanted but we left them all behind on the ship as the cost of the photos was overpriced. You will need minimum $1000 AUD to do a small photobook. Just take your own pictures and get a book done through somewhere like Big W where it will cost you under $50 AUD Art auction - beware most of the paintings you are bidding on are limited edition prints done in various ways. The one off paintings are limited and makes sure you check before you bid or buy if it is a one off painting or a run in a series of prints. IF you are going Quality of products in the on ship shops. I think you have to be careful what you buy from shops on board. I purchased a beach back and the zip broke on it the next day. The souvenirs are for a country you are not travelling to which is pointless and annoying. Watch the prices. Especially the jewelry. Also check the quality. Be aware if you have the bubbles program you are only covered for over the bar, dining room and Showtime areas. Room service, drinks for onshore excursions and specialty bars you will not covered. you will have to pay. Cheers to Carnival cruise and make sure you do: Entertainment is fantastic don’t miss a show and try and get to comedy hour also. Trivia quizzes are fun so be sure to do some Staff are amazing across the entire ship. 10 out of 10 for service and efforts they all go to for you and for friendliness. Rooms are kept clean Keep an eye on your spending and have fun. Read Less

I chose this cruise as a single parent with a young child. The cruise staff were outstanding, especially the kids' club (3-5 yr olds). Honourable mentions go to Miss Candy (Mary Jean), Miss Pizza (Roisin) kid's club, Yaowaluck ("Lucky"- amazing cabin steward) and Head waiters, Joel, Roy and Welly. However, v disappointed with the layout of the ship, especially since the ship has recently undergone a retrofit. For more than 3500 passengers (and we travelled at the peak time during school summer holidays) there were only two small swimming pools which were consistently full, as were the deck chairs around them. So for the entireity of the cruise, I didn't get the chance to swim on the ship. Likewise, the two spas in the adults only area were constantly crowded, either with mixed groups or entirely men who staked out their territory for the day. As a single woman there was no way I was going to hop into a small jacuzzi with 15-20 semi-naked strange men. It would be helpful if one of the spas could be designated for women only. The layout of the ship was designed to narrow, not widen the flows of traffic. The only espresso café, candy shop and juice bar were all grouped at the back of the ship, with the only major access via walking your children through the casino (dark, endless slot machines). This was a major design fail. There was an average 45 min wait for tender boats on shore days which resulted in the ship offering optional full discounts for shore excursions. The programming and entertainment, especially the kids' entertainment (all the Dr Seuss related events) was excellent (don't miss the Towel animals Theatre). Dining options were fair, including good gluten- free options. Read Less

We had sailed on the Splendor back in 2011 & the Carnival Splendor once again gave us a great cruise! The ship is bright and colourful like a Las Vegas casino resort & I like how they modernised the main pool area. The ship has some really good public places. The main pool area has a huge flat deck area between the pool and huge movie screen. This area is great for outdoor dance deck parties at night or other activities by day. It’s way bigger an area than I have seen available on ships much bigger than splendor. The buffet area on Lido deck is huge with an extra section of seating and food available on deck 10 aft. We never had trouble finding a seat to eat. The serenity pool looked great, although it was always very busy & I think there was enough space to squeeze in at least another 10-20 sun lounges in that area. Food was good everywhere. You can’t beat carnivals 24hr pizza. We had late dining in the larger Gold pearl dining room. Service led by the fab Desi was great and food was tasty and plentiful. We did a one off Italian dining experience in the steakhouse for $40 each and it was amazingly good. The mad hatters tea pary was also a hit with our group. Buffet food was great & the omelette station served up large well cooked servings. Avoid peak times though and lines are short. The bbq station inside deck 10 aft was awesome at lunchtime. The indian food out back was popluar, as was the deli. Coffee from the main cafe bar on deck 5 was pretty good & we loved the fresh squeezed juices from the juice bar also on deck 5. Drinks from all bars were made quite strong and prices reasonable. Entertainment – this was really good. The Spectacular theatre is large and comfortable. I miss the days of when Carnival had a house band/orchestra play in the stage pit along side the singers and dancers, but this playlist cast on board were brilliant. They had a good chemistry and their energy really came through their performances getting lots of wows and applause from the crowd. The El Morocco lounge would be one of my fav cruise ship show lounges. It is huge right at the back of deck 5. It has a funky décor, comfy lounges and a great place to watch the late night adult comedy which was always packed or to watch/play in the adult quest, etc. The nearby piano bar was also always good fun. The redfrog pub down on deck 4 is bigger than redfrog pubs on spirit class. Music Manilla playing in there were as brilliant as usual. There were some other great live acts playing throughout the ship too. Our cabin was a Spa balcony room on deck 10. We loved it! Slightly nicer décor than a regular balcony room and it was in a nice quiet corridor forward, and good views being nice and high. It was also only a few steps away from one of the front 'secret' decks for good views over the bow.This room gave us access to use of the large mineral hot tub and other steam rooms, etc, in the spa area. We don’t tend to participate in many on board activities preferring to just chill by day, but the usual things like trivia, etc, seemed to be well populated. The new water slides seemed a big hit. My nephew loved the green one so much he went on it over a 100 times! Finally, the crew were mainly all very friendly and smiley and their service was fantastic. The entertainment team were great and tried their hardest to keep guests informed and making sure people had fun. I smiled and laughed a real lot on this cruise and good memories were created. I wouldn’t hesitate to book another cruise on this ship again. I think Australia is very lucky to have a ship like this year round. Read Less