Carnival Inspiration Review

Inspiring, fun cruise!

Review for the Western Caribbean Cruise on Carnival Inspiration

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Sail Date: Sep 2008

My husband and I sailed on the Carnival Inspiration departing Sept. 22nd. We thoroughly enjoyed this cruise and ship! Our experience was pleasant, fun and relaxing. The food was fabulous and couldn't have been better! The buffet selections in the Brasserie Grille each day were abundant and varied. And the chocolate chip cookies they make are really good! I only wish they were available 24/7 like the ice cream and pizza! Formal dinner dining was truly a gourmet experience and the menu items were consistently full flavored and beautifully presented. The lobster, prime rib, braised short ribs, "Tom Turkey" dinner was all exceptional. I would have liked to have complimented the food and beverage director and chefs if given the chance.

The crew was extremely hard working, professional and courteous. A 15% gratuity is automatically added to the bill which passengers may adjust up or down as they may see fit. (We're surprised that 20% is not automatically added to the bill - as our concern is that more people would not add to the already 15% billed when crew members like the cabin stewards and waiters definitely are deserving of 20% at least - as in our opinion; one would be hard pressed to find better service anywhere!) It was our impression that certain types of passengers do not adjust "up" as they really should; given the exemplary service. (These are probably the same people that smuggle in the alcohol and liquor because they're too cheap to pay! If they can't afford to buy a few drinks; they shouldn't be taking a cruise then! To their credit; the crew seemed to ignore this although I'm not sure I could have; as it was very obvious when witnessing women walking around with plastic pitchers of Margaritas made themselves or men with beer selections/bottles not available for purchase on the ship. Beer should be served when chilled at a certain temperature; so of course; these people would have to go to great lengths to find ice; chill their own beer, mix their own drinks, etc. Certainly not worth the effort! I'd rather be served a properly chilled or properly mixed drink! Just as I wouldn't want to have to cook my own meals and make my own bed; I sure wouldn't want to have to make my own drinks while on a cruise!

We witnessed no issues with "unruly" or disruptive people. We saw no one in the dining rooms for dinner wearing ripped t-shirts or inappropriate clothing. The only thing we did find "inappropriate" as mentioned earlier were certain types of passengers "smuggling" on large quantities of beer and liquor because they're too cheap to buy alcohol on the ship. Carnival does allow each passenger to bring a bottle of wine with them if they'd like it with dinner but otherwise bringing alcohol is prohibited. One passenger said that they took a 2nd large suitcase loaded with nothing but beer and liquor! If Carnival were to limit suitcases to up to 1 large suitcase per person (instead of 2); it might help curtail this issue; as it is rude and in poor taste. (In our opinion; there's no reason why a passenger would need more than 1 large suitcase anyway for a 5 day cruise.)

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