Hubby and I sailed 16/11/2012 on Carnival Spirit from Sydney for 11 nights.

Had done 6 other cruises. This one was very disappointing. I am writing to advise others of more senior years, (over 55 years) do NOT consider this cruise line. The allocation for children you find on other lines does not apply to Carnival. We sailed with (official figures) 2460 passengers of that 900 were children. This is a family ship I was told. However I would never have sailed had I known. The entertainment during the day was family and children based. The shows were very average and had to search for seats where children were not yapping and running amok. Security was scarce, children running along hallways, through the dining room, down the stairs, in the lifts, in gangs, was common. Children in the pool in nappies never drew attention from staff, running on the decks didn't either.

The food in the dining room (very relaxed attire) was excellent as were the staff. The buffet was very ordinary, having to queue at 3-4 different counters to get a variety, then eat cold food. The staff load up the trays with food, then put more on top, thus cold meals and very little variety. The sweets were average and the same all the time. In comparison The Rhapsody of the seas was 10 star. Read more