Jeff Dissell

Age: 48
Occupation: Systems Analyst
Number of Cruises: 2
Cruise Line: Carnival
Name of Ship: Fantasy
Sailing Date: March 2nd, 2003
Itinerary: Bahamas

Carnival Cruise Lines Fantasy to Freeport and Nassau 3/2/03

Sunday March 2

The trip from Gainesville to Port Canaveral was a breeze and embarkation was made very easy even though we arrived without tickets (travel agency error). We were on the ships manifest and as such were guided through the boarding process with patience. Arrival on board was exciting and lasted 30 minutes at worst from leaving our car in the well secured parking lot to stepping onto the Empress Deck. The rest of the day and night was spent eating dinner, exploring the Fantasy and finding a margarita. Music was everywhere and so were crew members trying to get guests to buy everything from jewelry to cosmetics.

I found the attitude of the crew to be very odd. With the exception of our wait staff in the dining room and our steward (who were wonderful), everyone else seemed irritated by any request. This would prove to be the case the entire cruise.

The cabins were fine, being the cabins on the oldest of the Carnival fleet of superliners. The beds could have been fitted with nicer bedspreads and while the carpet was clean, it was stained pretty badly. The bathroom was very clean, so we were pretty happy. Our luggage was delivered very quickly and everything got there fine.

The food the first night was not what I expected from Carnival, having been on the Imagination last year. I had the lamb and my wife had fish. It was good, but not great. My scores, one (low) to ten high);

Food..................5
Service..............7
Cleanliness.......7
Crew attitude....4

Monday March 3

Arriving in Freeport, we decided to wander through the Straw Market on the pier, which took about 5 minutes. We then decided to go to the Lucaya Market. So, after paying 5 dollars each for a taxi (one way), we headed out in a stretch Lincoln limo that was falling apart. We actually had to stop one time to push down the hood that had decided to pop up while we were in full afterburner. Lucaya was pretty cool, but the constant hawking of hair braiding and buying other stupid trinkets got to be annoying. We understand that this is the way a lot of those folks make a living, so we sucked it up and moved on. We then jumped into another taxi (another 10 dollars) and went to the International Marketplace. We walked from the market to a restaurant called Geneva’s Place (10 minutes) and had a great lunch. I had cracked conch and my wife had baked chicken, both with “peas and rice” and plantains. It was wonderful local food. Back to the International Market to catch another taxi (another 10 dollars) back to the Fantasy.

We spent a total of 30 dollars on taxis which was not bad, given the ground we covered. Next time I would skip the Straw Market on the pier and go straight into Lucaya. Of course, drinks were high at 6 dollars or so a pop, but if you look around the marina, you’ll find drinks for 5 dollars and beer for $2.50. Not bad. Back on board, we went to the Lido deck to rest up for a couple of hours, and I was rudely awakened by a crew member informing us that we had to get up so they could clear the deck for a dance floor that would be used in 1 and a half hours! I was angry to say the least, but got up and instead of relocating, we left. I walked that area several times during the evening and there was never so much as a single person using that area to dance.
To disturb multiple paying guests in that manner was inexcusable and my scores reflect the actions of that one crewman. More hawking of Carnival merchandise and spa stuff by the crew wherever you went on the Fantasy.

When we got back on board the Fantasy, our cabin was nicely cleaned and our steward had made an animal out of towels, which is kind of fun. They do this on the carnival Imagination as well. Dinner Monday night was mediocre at best, with the prime rib being flavorless. We spent that evening at the Majestic Lounge which is all the way in the back of the boat on the Promenade Deck. There were only 6 or so of us back there, but it was quiet and fun. The Majestic is also the cigar bar for those who enjoy a good stick.

At 8:45 PM , my wife and I watched the variety show in the Universe Lounge and I have to admit, it was fun. The singing and dancing were not Las Vegas quality as advertised, but still were fairly well done and certainly entertaining.

At somewhere around 1:30 Tuesday morning, we said goodnight and went to sleep. My scores;

Entertainment...6
Freeport.............5
Food..................4
Crew attitude ....2

Tuesday March 4

I got up early and watched as the fantasy docked in Nassau. Good coffee, a beautiful sunrise, warm and sunny weather, what else could I ask for? We had booked the Blue Lagoon excursion the night before at $27 per person, so at 9 AM we were off with around 200 other folks. The 45 minute boat ride to Blue Lagoon is really nice and relaxing. Every guest gets a ticket for 1 drink while making the trip, but of course you can purchase more. Upon arriving at Blue Lagoon, you follow a cement walkway to various areas on the island, find one of the over 200 hammocks hanging up on the palm trees and settle in. While some of the folks chose to snorkel or just swim, I just wanted to swing in those tropical breezes. My wife swam some and got to know some other folks. I have to be honest.....this was a great excursion and worth every penny.

Another nice 45 minutes boat ride back to the dock in Nassau and you are ever so gently deposited in front of the Straw Market. Before I go on, let me warn you of a couple of things. First, the some of the cops here carry Uzi submachine guns, so they are serious about their job. Next, you will be approached by several guys who introduce themselves as “Doobie” and want to show you “what they have”. I actually laughed at the first guy when he said he was “Doobie”. These guys are drug dealers plain and simple, so stay well clear of them. The next bunch of con artists are the guys who sell the “Cuban” cigars. I’m a cigar smoker of no few years and can tell you that if you deal with these guys, you are going to be swindled. If you want a real Cuban cigar, go to a reputable shop and buy one in a metal or glass tube. That way, you know what you are getting. The first guy who asked, “Hey mon, you want a Cuban cigar?”, got my usual, “Um, where do they come from?” response. He was plainly not amused. Look, I know they need to make money, but not by selling me a fifty cent Swisher Sweet for 7 dollars. We actually spent over $100 for $25 worth of stuff, but the lady was fun and friendly to talk to, so she got our money.

It was around 5:30 PM when we got back to the Fantasy, so we rested for a little while and decided to eat dinner at Windows on the Sea, which is the cafeteria-style restaurant in the aft part of the boat. Now, here the food was actually flavorful and easy to get. We had a really good dinner and set off for our room to watch a little TV before the nightlife began.

My wife actually fell asleep, so I went up on deck to smoke the REAL H. Upmann Cuban I had bought, drink a cold Corona and do some ham radio work, since I am W4JHD. After about an hour, I was ready for bed as well, so I called it an early day. My scores for Nassau;

Nassau.......7
Blue Lagoon......8
Cabin Steward....8
Crew Attitude....4

Wednesday March 5

Our “Fun Day At Sea”. It was really nice to wander the ship, do some shopping and just relax. I bought some gifts for my wife and we went back to the dining room for dinner, which was quite nice this time. The grilled steak was tender and very tasty, while the turkey my wife had was every bit as good. After dinner, we knocked back a couple of Coronas and went to the casino. It is always fun to watch folks get serious about gambling and the blackjack tables had some very serious players. We watched for about a half hour, got ourselves $20 worth of quarters and promptly lost them on the slot machines. One more Corona to drown our gambling sorrows and off to pack, put our luggage outside the door and go to bed.

Thursday March 6

Back to Port Canaveral to debark. The general attitude of the crew this day is, “we got all of the money from you we’re going to get, so get lost”. The announcement comes over the loudspeaker to go to one of the designated areas to await instructions on debarkation, such as calling luggage tag colors, etc. We’re on the rear Lido deck when two separate work crews begin to clean paint with an air chisel and remove some rust with a wheel sander. There is so much noise that the announcements cannot be heard and when asked to simply postpone the work for an hour so that PAYING guests can hear the “important” announcements, we’ll know what to do, the crew says no and continues to work. I go down to the pursers desk to complain and when I explain to the lady what has happened, she tells me to “move to where you can hear”. WHAT?! Good money was paid to Carnival for this cruise and they can’t wait 1 hour for the guests to clear before beginning MUCH NEEDED work? This is inexcusable as far as I am concerned. MY scores?

Crew Attitude......-10
Ease of Debarkation......8

Summary

A mediocre cruise. It was fun just to be away and going to Nassau, but the crew needs a little lesson in courtesy. Not that any of them were overtly nasty, but there was definitely an attitude of irritation and lack of desire to do anything more than what was absolutely necessary. The folks on the Imagination bent over backwards to make guests feel special and well taken care of, while the crew of the Fantasy just made me feel like I was taken.With the exception of the Widows on the Sea, the food was below par as well.

On the upside, the dining room staff was exceptional in every way and the cabins, while obviously old, were very well kept which is a testament to the hard working housekeeping staff.

As far as this particular cruise, I would not take this cruise again, nor can I recommend it to anyone else. It seems that Carnival Fantasy has forgotten who supplies the money to pay the bills or has gotten so full of itself that it no longer cares about customer satisfaction.

As far as Carnival the company is concerned, I am unhappy with them as well. I turned over a pocketknife to them last year that was disallowed on the Imagination. Carnival would not honor the receipt I got for the knife from their own security people and when I asked to get the knife back, I was told it could not be found. I lost a $125 knife to somebody at Carnival who decided to “appropriate” it and Carnival could not care less. If they had simply confiscated the knife, I would accept the blame for being stupid. But they gave me a receipt along with assurances that I would get the knife back.

I will not travel Carnival again.

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