Did a 3 night cruise and loved it. Great ship, great entertainment, alcohol at pub prices, comedy club fantastic, cabin we booked an interior but got a free upgrade to balcony which was good. I don’t get sea sick but did need to take sea sickness tablets as our first night was rough. Thoroughly recommend. Ship didn’t feel crowded lots of spaces including serenity deck for peace and quiet. If you want a daybed get up there early. Weather not too warm so didn’t swim but pools are good. We did cash just deposit when you get on and keep topping up card. Casino area huge, red frog bar great music and vibe. Food was plentiful and pizza to the early hours of the morning. Ship decor was different but for the value we thought it was great. Lots of lifts for easy access. You can get Carlton draught just ask at different bars. Cocktails so many on offer. Read Less

This was our first cruise with Carnival and I have to say that I think it was our least favorite. That's not to say that it was bad, it just did not come up to the standard, overall of other cruises we have been on, this being our seventh cruise. Embarkation was smooth, but very little information was displayed and the staff did not tell you much at check-in. Other cruise lines issue the room key at check-in, but Carnival have it an envelope at your door which was not told to us until we asked and two different people told me different things???, The decor of the ship is......... how do you say.................unusual. Very dark and very unusual to the point of being gourde. Not to everyone's taste I am sure. Dark wall panels, lots of ancient style paintings and most of the coulombs were made to look like an urn. Our room was spacious and well appointed and the hotel staff, as always were excellent. The room was well laid out and even if it is the same size a other cabins we have been in it appeared larger and more spacious. We chose an inside cabin and ended up with a window with an obstructed view which was excellent. No you did not have a view of the ocean, but a large window with a view where you could see the sea whooshing by. Much better than just an inside cabin. The food, while of good quality, was not as good a variety as we expected. The Lido deck was very popular and busy and the amount of food outlets was too small to cater for the numbers. The free Pizzas and Hamburgers were good, but the wait could be considerable. The Truffles restaurant menu was not very appealing so I think most people chose to eat in the Lido deck buffet. As to the bar service, Carnival have chosen to have seats all around the bar leaving no room for service. Lots of people buy drink packages now and particularly on the first night you could not get near the bar. They need to take out three or four seats and have a sign "Service Only" so others can get to the bar and the bar tenders know who is next in line. Bar staff were very busy all the time because lots of people order cocktails, which take time to make. I just wanted a beer and my wife a wine, so we are always waiting for ages to get served, and only take a few minutes to serve and be on our way. The price for the three day cruise we did out of Melbourne was quite expensive for the three days. We have been on two day cruises that were a quarter the price. Overall, we enjoyed the cruise and the break, but of the seven cruises we have done this would be our least favorite. It would be appealing to people with children as they cater well for the younger set ad they boast that their cruise line carries the most families and children. Although very busy, all the staff were very helpful, happy and extremely hard working and we have no complaints about any of the staff. Read Less

I hadn't visited New Zealand and didn't know where to start so we decided to have a glimpse of some of the noted scenic places. We had a bit of rough weather but handled it well and certainly our choice of a vista suite made the scenic cruising fantastic with views from our wrap-a-round balcony. We dined in the main restaurant almost all the time and found the staff very attentive. They tried hard to make the meals pleasant without being overbearing and the quality of the food was always good although we did find that occasionally the meals could have been warmer. The entertainment was good, although one night it had to be revamped because the seas were too rough for the scheduled performance to include the dancing but it was still very good. The priority embarking and disembarking was great, as was the any time dining. Some of the people that we spoke to weren't fans of the scheduled dining with the same people each night. We didn't take advantage of the pools because the weather wasn't great but I wonder how busy they would be when in a warm climate. We also didn't take advantage of the buffet type restaurants because it also seemed very busy at peak times but we never went hungry and occasionally just grabbed a biscuit or piece of cake to take with a cup of tea that we took back to our room to relax on the balcony. We specifically avoided internet because of our busy lives back home so the trip was particularly relaxing with our "Digital detox". This was our main reason for taking the cruise and we will try and do that once a year as enforced relaxation. I could think of worse things to do! Read Less

I have never been to New Zealand before. We have travelled with P&O several times and loved it. Carnival legend was disappointing with Luke warm food every meal, even Truffles restaurant the meals had to be sent back to heat them up. Food terribly disappointing. Our cabin was spacious and we had a balcony which I think is pretty necessary. We were constantly running to open the cabin door as the speakers are not in our room and so we missed a lot of general goings on within the ship. Jen, the entertainment director was very good, so was Tiny Tim with the bingo. The food let the cruise down otherwise it was enjoyable. Bass Strait tested a lot of stomachs as it was pretty rough and the ship did a lot of rolling. If you do tours book through the information centres on shore when you dock, ship prices are exorbitantly expensive. You can buy the same shore excursions for half the price as we both did and it was wonderful. Read Less

Have never sailed with Carnival before so decided to take a break. The ship had been refitted this year. The decor of a Greek theme was very dark and oppressive. The ships layout was easy to navigate. It was surprising to see sanitization ok n stations in obscure locations . They were not manned. The wash stations were not manned and looked like a drink dispenser. What was a surprise was there was no attempt to educate passengers on hygiene. Now on a double dose of antibiotics from throat infection . Thanks Carnival. The ship has a constant vibration that keeps you awake. Fatigue will set on and something will fail. Maintenance of small items took forever Fridge was defective for 3 days and took 3 calls to get attention. Cruise Director was good. Buffett was ghastly. Food was stewed and sat there. Burgers and tacos were good. Pizzas passable. The buffet menu suited the overweight and obese. Full of sugar and carbs. Dinner in the dining room was superb . Service was very good. Read Less

First time on Carnival line and chose this Cruise as we had a last minute discounted cabin. Have cruised over a dozen times with Princess, Celebrity Solstice Solstice and P&O. We were worried that our indoor cabin under the Red Frog Bar would be noisy, it was extremely quiet except for the occasional scraping of chairs. The cabin was spacious with heaps of hanging space and a good sized shower. Overall cleanliness was very good. The entertainment was probably the best we had experienced and the Cruise Director Jen was energetic and the love of people and her job was obvious. We ate just about everywhere. Found the Truffles Restaurant fabulous for breakfast and lunch. Could be hit and miss at dinner. The free pizza was great, as was the hamburger station and Mexican. Buffet was just a pass. Salad bar was great, and desserts very good, however except for the vegetables the rest of the buffet was pretty ordinary. Meats seemed dry and over cooked. This was a small negative, as considering the market Carnival gears itself to (families) we expected this. Carnival Legend has plenty of sitting areas inside, and we never found it a problem to find a sun lounge at the adults only Serenity area. Some people will grizzle just about everything given the chance, we found many many positives. No need to rush dining and head to showroom early to bag a seat, as there were always plenty in the two tiered showroom. Lifts were quick and no breakdowns. Waiters bursting into song some evenings in Truffles bought a smile to many a face. Carnival Legend is a fun ship...go with the flow, we certainly would travel with Carnival again if you want a relaxed holiday. We didn’t find the children on board a problem...some adults could learn from them. And...there was always the free Adults Serenity area to escape if need be with it’s own bar. Yes, you can wear shorts into the evening dining room (except for formal nights) and we found this wonderful. Not so many clothes to pack. Most people were always smart casual. All in all, thanks Carnival....we will come back. Read Less

Embarkation and Disembarkarion went smoothly. Everything was organised and we didnt have to wait for long periods of time. Food at buffet was pretty average but enjoyed food at Main Dining Room. Great service from staff. Room was a bit small for 4 people. Not enough storage in the room to store clothing etc. Unfortunately we didnt get an invite for the meet and mingle which we were looking forward to it. Ship Decor was a bit dark. When visiting Port Denarau in Fiji it took a while to get off the ship because we had to use tenders, but Mystery Island and Isle of Pines didnt take so long to get off the ship even though we used tenders as well. The only port that we got off the ship to land was Port Vila. We traveled with a 2 yr old, he like being on the ship and really liked the purple slide. Above all we got what we paid for and i would do it again. Read Less

This was my first (& last) cruise with Carnival. We have cruised many times with Royal Caribbean & Holland America. We chose this cruise as we were travelling with our family which included 4 grandchildren and we thought Carnival would have more activities for the kids, but they have no more activities than RCL. Embarkation was efficient and we were on board quite quickly (although we had an issue with Carnival not having our credit card details despite having provided the details previously). Food was very disappointing. I found the buffet set up on the Lido deck very confusing, as the serving stations don’t seem to be in any formation. I also found it very strange that the Lido buffet had very limited serving stations for dinner, with only 2 or 3 options available. I assume this is so that everyone eats in the truffles dining room to save costs to Carnival on staff and food. Carnival ran out of several food and drink options on the last 2 days of the cruise. Items that were not available included Coke, Sprite (sugar fee was available but not the normal coke), pineapple, muesli, rockmelon ect. Cleanliness left a lot to be desired. There were hygiene lotion dispensers placed outside each serving station on the Lido buffet, outside the entry to the dining room, & at entry & exit points on port days and that was it. Unlike RCL & HAL who both have copious dispensers placed through their ships. RCL also have staff dispensing hygiene lotion to passengers prior to entry to the buffet on the Lido deck. By the end of the cruise it seemed like half the passengers were coughing from having caught something on the ship, no doubt caused by the lack of hygiene on the ship. Having said that, our cabin was always cleaned well. Staff at the Guest Service desk need training as they didn’t seem to understand the simplest query. If you only want a print out of your statement they are fine. One of my grandsons was injured on the ship (through no fault of Carnival), and required medical treatment. The farce that followed between the medical centre & guest services is too complicated and detailed to go into, suffice to say, legal advice will be sought. While the majority of children on the ship were well behaved and supervised, there was one feral lot of children who ran amok on the Lido deck. The feral kids would throw ice cream cones on the deck, throw bean bags around, almost hitting one passenger, and generally bullying their way on the deck, and no one on the Carnival staff intervened unless fellow passengers complained that someone was going to get hurt. I don’t know where the parents of the feral kids were, but if they were close by, they certainly never stopped the bad behaviour of their children. It seems Carnival Legend has learned nothing from the fiasco that occurred earlier in the year when passengers had to be off loaded for their bad behaviour. The general service staff in the dining rooms, bars and cabins are fantastic and nothing was too much trouble for them. They were the best part of the cruise. I would not recommend this cruise line. Read Less

We need a break from work and everyday life. It's a nice ship staff very polite room service was great we had haur as are room attendance left beautiful towel animals on our bed everyday.Was very disgusted that there was no tea or coffee in room. When asked just got told we don't do that. Well as l said to the lady at the service desk ever other cruise ship we have been on has tea and coffee in and all l got well we don't. So many rude people on the ship couldn't wait in line at the buffet had to push in its not as if there wasn't plenty of food to go round. Shows was fantastic, comedy club great . I do think this ship is just for family's and children. Over all went on this cruise to relax but never again .O and the seriedty for audlts only when you couldn't get a chair as people would come up early put there towels on them and be there all day Read Less

The cruise we took with Carnival was aboard the Legend, to Fiji and New Caledonia, over 11 nights. The condition of the ship is atrocious, and we never felt completely safe. There were many times we seriously considered disembarking early and simply flying home. There are major safety issues with this ship, if you decide to travel on the Carnival Legend, please be careful. There are smashed windows, rust inside, and an overall grubby feeling to everything, but the biggest safety issue however is the outside railings. They have, at certain intervals, gates in the railings, and these are secured, not with huge safety locks as one might think, not even with a padlock, but with a barrel bolt. Yep, the very thing keeping you from opening the gate and jumping or toppling overboard is a very unsafe barrel bolt. That anyone can open. I passed by some kids playing with it! Luckily their mum was watching and was able to avert a disaster, but seriously!? Carnival Cruises can you say lawsuit waiting to happen?! The stateroom we had was very dated, with numerous issues. The wardrobe doors didn't shut properly, which isn't a problem on land, but at sea all you hear all night long is the thud, thud, thud of the door as the boat rocks! The beds were very old, and one of them was on a permanent slope towards the floor. The pillows were incredibly uncomfortable, and no variations of soft or hard, they were all the same. We also had paint peeling, drawers slightly warped, and other cosmetic issues. The big issue I had with this room however, was the layout. The room is essentially a rectangle, the bathroom is tucked into one corner, and the door opens straight into the bedroom, shining the light onto the bed. Big design flaw. The best thing about cruising, so I have been told, is the food. Sadly, this is not the case on the Carnival Legend, where the food is bland, tasteless, monotonous, and, if you can find something to eat you are lucky! The food has a very heavy Asian influence, and everything is very heavily spiced. There is one restaurant onboard, Truffles, which is not open every day. There are essentially three options for mains, a chicken schnitzel with chips or mashed potato; grilled steak with chips or mashed potato; or a beef and mushroom pie with chips or mashed potato. Riveting stuff. Sides consist of glazed carrot chunks, chips, baked potato, mashed potato, or green beans in a vinaigrette. The dessert we tried was horrible, consisting of flavours that should never be mixed together. If you don't want to eat in the restaurant, there are other options. There is a Guy's Burger Joint aboard, we ate there once, and it was so bad we left our plate untouched save for a bite or two. There is a taco bar, although the only serve soft tacos, not the hard shell ones. My son ate there once and said it was ok. There is a 24 hour pizza bar, and although it is very hit or miss as to how burnt or raw yours will be, the pizza is mostly edible. And then you come to the most confusing buffet I have ever seen. First off, it does not flow in any logical manner, everything is sectioned off, so you constantly need to line up and quite often miss parts altogether. My son loves a good buffet, unfortunately for him, this was not a good buffet. What was meant to be hot wasn't, and what was meant to be cold wasn't. Again the food was boring, and all the same. There was no usual buffet suspects, and the lines were insane! There was one roast meat on offer at any time, unlike most buffets giving a variety, and the dessert here was just tragic, and always on the burnt side. Weird. The Swirls ice cream bar was just a help yourself soft serve, and every time we went past it was filthy. What really struck me though was the obvious lack of any fruit and vegetables onboard. In Australia, we have vegetables or a salad with every dinner, and most cooked lunches. And fruit or fruit salad several times a day. So to be without any fruit or vegetables for so long was really quite hard. The staff on the Carnival Legend were, with the exception of a few, quite rude and disinterested. They are obviously not bight on customer service training. We had Monis and Ernest as room stewards, which was fine. I think they did the best they could have, obviously it is not their fault the room is in need of repairs. Our waiter was Ari and he was quite lovely, always on top of his section and what the tables needed. The people at Guest Services were completely useless, no matter what the question was, they had no answer. Very frustrating! This was literally the most boring two weeks of our life, there is nothing to do on this cruise ship. I found it quite baffling that as a cruise line that claims to be family fun, most of the activities are for the over 18 group. What are you supposed to do on a family holiday? Dump your kids in a kids club and then have fun by yourself? Weird, and not what I would consider a family holiday. There are numerous bars and a casino, and they offer two stage shows each night. There are endless games of trivia, and a very small library. There is a tiny games arcade (costs between AUD$1.25 and AUD$3.50 per game), a couple of ping pong tables, a basketball court and a mini golf course. Carnival Legend claims to have a Build A Bear Workshop aboard, what they really have is twice a cruise they set up a stand for Build a Bear. The price is exactly the same as it is shoreside, the only exclusive item is a Carnival t-shirt for your bear. Seriously, skip the queue and do it in Brisbane, Sydney, Adelaide or any of the other locations we have in Australia. The cost of the Carnival Legend was really expensive, when you consider it is a no frills bottom of the heap budget cruise. These prices are the total amount I paid, for two adults, as my son is no longer considered a child, despite only just having turned 13. The cruise itself was AUD$2000. Knowing what I know now, I would never consider even paying half of that amount. Nothing is included in that amount, not even the movies on your TV are included, those need to be purchased at $5 each. Rip off! Four shore excursions was AUD$459.92. I purchased the Bottomless Bubbles drink package for AUD$140.25. and an internet package for AUD$229, which I think was money well spent as at least then we had something to do in the form of YouTube and Facebook. I had ordered Faster To The Fun, for an extra AUD$175, and what a rip off! The room wasn't ready until nearly 8pm, as well as the luggage, and every time we went to our dedicated queue at guest services, the teller wasn't there, so we had to queue and wait for a regular teller to become free. I went there to book my shore excursions, which apparently you can do, only to be told by Catalina, who said she was the manager of guest services, that I was unable to do that here, and would need to queue up in the shore excursions queue to be served! As it was 11:30am and the queue was insane, we didn't bother. Numerous issues with this optional package, if you are thinking of getting it, don't bother! On top of that, I was overcharged AUD$534.50. When I approached the Guest Services desk, I was told that there was no one onboard who can handle a complaint, but that after the cruise finished I would be sent a post cruise survey, and could put all the details in there and ask for an adjustment. Surprise surprise, when I did that I was told that there is nothing they can do, as I should have raised the issue while I was onboard! So in other words, I won't see that money again. There were so many things about the Carnival Legend that simply horrified me, and made me feel quite unsafe while aboard, and it is this reason alone that I would never consider travelling with Carnival Legend again. The fact that there is no customer service, and getting a refund on money that they overcharged me is apparently impossible, is the reason I would never consider Carnival Cruises again. I'm afraid I am old fashioned like that, I like my customer service customer focused. Read Less