Carnival Glory - January 3-10 - Ever Wondered About Carnival?

We have cruised 10+ times and have always wondered about Carnival. The price can't be beat. So, we went on the Glory in early January. We knew about the potential "kid" issue on Carnival, but thought they would all be back in school. WRONG! There were over 500 children on board. The worst part wasn't really the kids, it was that parents did not supervise them and that Carnival didn't appear to mind that posted rules and regulations were not heeded. There were kids in adult pools, kids (in diapers) in spa adult-only whirlpools, kids in the casino running around, but the worst was screaming and running in the corridors outside staterooms until usually 1 AM. Did we report it? Certainly. Nothing happened. Many were Spanish speaking. Is it me, or are they just plain louder? Our second major complaint was the smoking. There were several bars, nightclubs we couldn't go in because the smoke was too heavy. On sea days, we could never figure out which side of the ship was supposed to be the non-smoking side. It really is a shame because Carnival has a lot going on for it. FOOD: The food is really quite good. We were originally scheduled to eat in the Golden Dining Room. But when we went there the first night we were right beside a serving area and after several loud bangs of trays right behind my head, we asked to be moved. The maitre d' was gracious and we were moved the next day to a table overlooking the rear windows in the Platinum Dining Room - very pleasant indeed. Thanks Paul! Every meal choice was excellent. The food surpassed our expectations. The cold soups are delicious. Other than being addressed as: What would yous guys like tonight? - which may have been a language issue, service was good - not excellent -but nothing to complain about at all. SERVICE: Again, we were pleasantly surprised. Most crew smiled and said hello. Our bar waiter was Lucia (Burgundy Bar) and she made excellent martinis - excellent choices - all very professionally handled. Room stewards, waiters, virtually everyone was friendly and service was excellent. SHIP: The Glory is beautiful. We did miss the outdoor movie theater but hear she is being refurbished to receive one. The spa is quite small but the use of the very large sauna and steam rooms is free - unlike some other cruise lines. We used the gym daily. The design of the gym is poor in that the windows only come part way up from the floor so your view of the ocean is blocked by mirror. There are no individual monitors on equipment so the workout is tedious and boring. Either being able to see the ocean, or watching some TV helps, since we are not gym nuts who go just because we like it. Again too bad - it is a "miss" that could have been avoided. Yes, the ship dEcor is gaudy but the ship is kept very clean. It does take some skill to find your way because there are 2 main dining rooms. The one in the middle of the ship blocks the flow of the ship along with the kitchen. Sounds like small issue, but for us it was a pain. EMBARKATION/DISEMBARKATION: Both were handled with ease - absolutely no complaints at all. We reached the pier at 11:00AM and were on board with no hassle by 11:30. Greeters were all friendly and everything was very well organized. Leaving was a breeze. SMOKING: This is one reason we will likely not consider Carnival again. It is allowed in many public rooms, which we cannot tolerate. It would be so easy to allow it outside, on one side of the ship only. But even outside on open decks it was everywhere and no one did anything to stop it. The issue of unsupervised children is so easy to fix. It requires 1 officer in uniform who roams the ship and addresses these issues constantly - much like a VP in a school. It continues because it is not dealt with. Expecting parents to deal with their children is not going to happen, but when both the children and the parents see it is going to be dealt with consistently, it will stop. As well, when other passengers see that it is dealt with they too may begin to say something when an officer is not present. No one says anything now because it appears it is OK to have fun at everyone else's expense. The FUN FOR ALL, ALL FOR FUN only works if everyone's idea of what fun is, is the same. The look on the faces of those over 50 watching these children was horror. The look on the faces of those singles under 30 was terror. (BTW, we did not find the 18-30 age group a problem at all) The look on the faces of those between 30 and 50 was oblivion (they were the parents and the crew) and the look on the faces of the children was frenzy! We cruise about 3 times a year and were ready and willing to include Carnival as one of our choices. But we now realize, that although it really did come close, the children issue has closed this door for us. Too bad, we're teachers and we love children!