Today marks the second day of my Carnival Celebration cruise, and while the itinerary promises sunny skies and beautiful destinations, my initial experience has been defined by overwhelming crowds and long wait times. It’s important to acknowledge that this is a spring break cruise, which naturally brings a higher passenger volume. However, even after factoring that in, the sheer number of people onboard has made navigating the ship and enjoying its amenities a bit of a challenge.
Being a sea day, the crowds were particularly noticeable. The main dining rooms boast wait times of 70, 80, 90+ minutes during peak hours, making dinner a time commitment. The buffet, unfortunately, is a complete cluster. There really isn’t any type of gust flow to any part of the buffet stations and people just do their own thing, cut where they want to, make their own lines that sometimes go the opposite direction of lines already established… it’s a hot mess. Then there’s the seating. Finding a seat, let alone one that doesn’t involve sharing a table with strangers, is an exercise in patience.
Similar situations plague the quick service venues like Blue Iguana and Guy’s Burger Joint. Lines snake through the common areas, making the wait for a simple taco or burger feel like an eternity. Theme park-style wait time signs almost seem needed to give people somewhat of an estimate as to how long they’re committing to standing in line for! (That is satirical, in case you didn’t catch on.)
The situation isn’t much better at the bars. During peak hours, expect a wait of up to 15 minutes just to grab a drink. It appears staffing levels have been cut, with bars that previously had two or three bartenders are now struggling with just one or two. The crew does their best under these circumstances, but their fatigue and frustration is palpable. In some instances, it’s almost like they’re on “go slow” to make guests express their complaints in reviews in order to call attention to the fact that THEY NEED HELP!
During my quest for a nightcap, I was served a martini in a rocks glass at the Golden Jubilee Bar. The explanation: a lack of clean glasses due to understaffing. There simply wasn’t anyone available to wash glasses. My second martini was served in a white wine glass – again because they didn’t have enough help to get them clean glassware. The bartender apologized and tried to make light of the situation, but you can certainly tell she was embarrassed that it was happening. Meanwhile, her partner was making someone an espresso martini and lining the inside of a red wine glass with chocolate syrup due to the lack of martini glasses.
It was comical, yet sad at the same time.
The constant lines and extended wait times undeniably impacted my overall experience today. At one point, I found myself retreating to my cabin to escape the crowds and enjoy some classic movies on TCM.
Tonight brought the first elegant night of the cruise, and I opted for Fahrenheit 555, the ship’s specialty steakhouse. This restaurant, with its $49 per person price tag, offers a menu of steaks and other tempting options. Having enjoyed my previous dining experiences at Carnival’s steakhouses, I was confident in my choice.
A continual technical glitch which appears to be unique to me prevents me from making specialty dining reservations through the Carnival HUB app. However, I ventured to the steakhouse around 8 pm and inquired about a table for one. Despite the restaurant being busy and diners arriving for their 8 pm reservations, the gracious host was able to accommodate me after a short wait at the bar, not even long enough to finish my pre-dinner drink.
Seated comfortably, my server promptly introduced himself and presented both the dinner and dessert menus. This was a welcome change from the ubiquitous QR code menus that have become the norm in post-pandemic dining. They do nothing but save restaurant owners money on printing costs and force us to keep our phones out at dinnertime.
I hate them.
For starters, I opted for the tuna tartare and a shrimp cocktail. While the shrimp seemed slightly smaller than I recall from previous experiences, they were still a perfectly acceptable size for a steakhouse. The tuna was undeniably fresh and delicious.
My main course was a bone-in ribeye steak cooked to a perfect medium-rare. Seasoned to perfection, it arrived alongside a loaded baked potato and two small pieces of broccoli. The service, as always, was impeccable, and the food provided a much-needed respite from the crowds and chaos of what was just outside the restaurant doors.
It’s worth noting that elegant night offers a special menu in the main dining room, a highlight for many cruise passengers. However, due to the sheer volume of people, wait times there reached a staggering 90 to 120 minutes at around 7:30 pm.
Following dinner, I ventured to the casino, only to find it teeming with people and every slot machine occupied so I called it a night.
While today wasn’t without its challenges, Fahrenheit 555 undeniably saved the day.
Next stop, Amber Cove in the Dominican Republic. Thanks for following along.
FunTimes for February 26, 2024:
The FunTimes for February 26, 2024, is also available as a PDF.