Carnival Cruise Lines
reviews and complaints

My husband and I were very excited to cruise with Carnival on our Sept. 7th anniversary. We have cruised twice before, both times with Carnival, and both times it had been in the winter month, so we were looking forward to traveling during the summer months with Carnival as well. We were booked to travel from Sept 4th through Sept 8th on the Carnival Victory, and we had a lovely balcony room booked for this trip.
My husband and I flew into Miami early to make sure we didn't have an issue with boarding the ship on time. We enjoyed our short time in Miami, and were very excited to get on board the ship on Monday, the 4th of September. We had seen some reports that there was a hurricane acting up in the Atlantic, but at the time we felt reassured that since our cruise was going into the Gulf of Mexico, to Key West, and then to Cozumel, we would be fine. We also called Carnival to ascertain if we had any reason for concern, and we were told that Carnival places its guests safety as their number one priority, and that had no cause for concern at this point, but that they would be monitoring the situation closely and would always keep their guests informed of any weather related or other risks while at sea.
We boarded the ship Monday morning, we had a Faster to the Fun pass and we were glad to get on board and to our cabin early. We had a lovely day Monday, enjoying a great dinner in the dining room. On Tuesday, the 5th, we spent the morning in Key West, and watched residents there putting up hurricane shutters and preparing for the storm that now seemed to be heading in a definite path towards Florida. We saw one person exiting the cruise ship from Key West. Once on board again, there were some tense undertones. People seemed to be watching the news and weather reports more closely, and as we pulled away fro Key West, tensions seemed to be mounting.
We talked to staff, who seemed to feel that our worries were unnecessary and we were told to "enjoy our vacation and let Carnival take care of us". We tried to focus on activities on the ship, but many of the other guests seemed to share our concerns, and stress levels were rising. My husband went to the guest services, where there was a long line to wait even in the "no waiting" Faster to the Fun lines. People were upset, scared, and there were no answers being given other then our itinerary was going on as scheduled.
Hurricane Irma was approaching the Caribbean Islands at that point. We waited for some kind of announcement. Some note under the door to address the fact that our ship would be going back to Miami, where many people had flights out late Friday and on Saturday as well. We would be going back to an evacuation zone, and to a city that was in imminent risk of utter destruction.
Our next stop was Cozemel and we were due to arrive the afternoon of the 6th, Wednesday, and it was announced by the captain on Tuesday that our stop there was going to be shortened and that instead of the ship leaving port at 10pm, it was now leaving at 6pm. What did that mean though? Did it mean we would get back to Miami 4 hours earlier then planned as well, so we would arrive at 4 am? We didn't know. First thing the next morning after a sleepless night, we went back to the long guest services line to find out. After a long wait, we were told that we would likely get back to Miami at 10 pm on Thursday night. "and then what are we supposed to do?" we asked the guest services representative. She shrugged her shoulders and said "that is up to you to figure out". Really?! We were told that the ship was getting back early so it had time to drop off guests and go back out to sea before the port closed. After discussing this, my husband and I tried calling guest services repeatedly with no answer. (we had tried calling them many times prior as well with no response). We went and waited in line again. We wanted to know if we could stay about the ship. Even just until Friday morning so we weren't dropped into an evacuation zone with no rental cars, no hotels, and no ground transportation available. We were told that staying aboard the ship was not possible. So we asked what other options we had, and we were told we could disembark in Cozemel and make our own arrangements to get home.
I felt so defeated in that moment. Our anniversary was the next day. We had been looking so very forward to this relaxing time alone, to being able to unwind a bit from the last 9 months which had been filled with serious medical issues, the death of both my mother and my grandfather, and multiple other difficulties that life had thrown our way. We didn't plan to add a hurricane to the list, as I'm sure that Carnival didn't plan on it either, but we did count on being able to trust Carnival to take care of us. It was very disheartening to realize that Carnival was only worried about getting its ship out of harms way, and that they would be a safe distance from the Hurricane only after dropping off their passengers in an evacuation zone.
We decided the only choice we had in that moment was to get off the ship with our luggage in Cozemel, and try and figure out what to do from there. We called guest services (again) with no response, then called our Steward to let him know that we were going to leave the ship and find a way home that didn't go through Miami. We called our airline, Delta, and asked for help and they immediately found us a flight from Cancun to Minneapolis for the next day, when we asked how much the tickets would be Delta said they would not charge us anything as their priority is their customers safety. We packed out bags and went down to the exit planks, where we were told that we could not leave the ship without papers, and that we had to go into the main dining room and fill out customs and immigration paperwork and pay a fee.
We went to the dining room, which was in a state of utter chaos. People were yelling, no one seemed to know who was in charge or what to do. We were handing a stack of papers in spanish to fill out, and told we would have to wait. We waited a long time, with no drinks, not even water offered. Everyone seemed to be on edge, there were crying children, confused elderly guests, and generally not a good answer to any question. Finally, someone came and took our papers, and said to wait until we were called, Eventually we went to a table with a few Mexican officials who took $64 dollars and gave us some papers back and said we could leave. Apparently many people missed flights while sitting there waiting. We left the ship, and found a taxi to take us to the ferry stand, then took a ferry to the mainland, then took another taxi the hour and a half to a hotel we had found a room at for the night. That was a $250 expense we had not planned on at all, in addition to food, cab fares, etc. we ended up spending over $350 to just get home from our "relaxing anniversary vacation". The next morning we took a cab to the airport and spent our anniversary waiting from one airport to the next, finally getting home at 11 pm on September 7th.
This was our ordeal. We are lucky that we made it home, safe and sound. I feel like I was incredibly let down by Carnival's promise that their guests safety comes first. I heard after the fact that Carnival changed their minds and decided to let guests stay on board the Victory during the hurricane. They may even still be out there somewhere waiting for a safe port as of today, Sept 11th. But that option was not given to my husband and I, even when we requested it (or even just somewhere safe to stay on Thursday night prior to our hopeful flight time). We were told that we would be dropped off at the port of Miami in the middle of the night, during a mandatory evacuation in which the news was reporting no rental cars or hotel rooms were available. No ground transport was staffed, and the likelihood of our flight home being cancelled was very high and we would be trapped at the airport in a hurricane. I am so disappointed with the way that this was handled, and I want to know how you will remedy this, not only for what we went through, but how you will change things in the future so other guests will never have to feel like Carnival puts the value of their fleet before the value of their guests lives.
I have spoken with Carnival on the phone regarding this matter, and honestly a partial refund for the days we missed out on our cruise would be an easy way to solve this. Even in carnival "cash". Guest safety should always be their number 1 priority and what about my "fun guarantee"?

Erica Morton

Booking # 7VK5W5

Booking #7zd3l2
i booked a trip for me and my step daughter and i have concerns, i tried to cancel but i've been told that i would only be receiving $200 of my money than i called back to see if i could take the money and put it on another trip and then they tell me that i will be penalized $400. I really don't think its fair to treat people this way if its a natural disasters going on even if the ship is still sailing i do not feel comfortable and people are in fear for their lives. I have been a member for a while now and i really have enjoyed my self on previous trips but if this is how you treat your members that's concerned for their own safety all to save a buck it shows me that you really do not care for your customers at all. I don't want a refund i just would like to change to date.

My husband and I went on a carnival cruise for our honeymoon.When we boarded the ship we went to see our room and were told by an employee that our room wasn't ready so we had to leave for another hour but we could leave our bag.

We had our birth certificates in the back hidden pocket of this backpack and this was the only time it was out of our sight. When we came back I went to put our birth certificates in the safe and they were gone along with my 2 iPhone chargers.

We told 3 security guards what happened and they all pretty much shrugged their shoulders and said we must have lost them and there's no cameras on our floor anyway. I had to call the local police department before they would do anything. Then all they did was search our room and tell us it's not there. We already knew that. One guard even said, "Well you could have dropped it anywhere." We did not lose them. They were stolen. It feels like they know their employees steal and they turn a blind eye to it.

I filled out a form during their search and had asked for a copy 4 times before I actually got one. We had to ask around and find the security office, knock on the door (where one woman almost shut the door in our faces until the head of security saw us and stopped her) to ask for a copy again, but this time in person. The head of security did deliver a copy to our room finally.

We couldn't relax and leave anything of value in our room the entire trip. We did not feel comfortable having our rooms cleaned while we were gone. It definitely kept us on edge the entire trip.

There was no resolution to this theft and we were treated as a problem ourselves. Then when we were getting off the ship we were flagged and had to sit on the side by the doors for about 15 minutes before we were released to get off the ship. The flag was so they can tell us that if we want me make a formal complaint we are free to do so after we get off the ship.

We now have to file a report with the credit bureau, get new copies of our birth certificates, and watch our credit for fraudulent activity. The worst part is Carnival has done nothing about this.

I live in North Carolina, my fiance and I were booked for the sensation September 7 -11th. We were going to be driving down to Miami, fl. On September 6th with friends on the same cruise. This was going to be a 12 plus hour drive each way. We were not going to risk losing our vehicle due to hurricane Irma. Miami was being evacuated and there was no gas in Miami. So we canceled, turns out the cruise we would've been on was kept out to sea longer than scheduled, and there was no trip to key west, fl. We have children being watched and could not be gone longer than scheduled. I also really wanted to go to key west and it's pay off what I paid for. I briefs she to all of these reasons I should be refunded the cancelation fees of $100. Booking# 6mj2m6.

Please Help! I booked a cruise for my second wedding anniversary but due to hurricane Irma we had to cancel. We have not had any electricity for days and my husband has been out of work for a week due to the storm. We also suffered damage to our home. I am a loyal Carnival cruise member (red VIFP) and also have the carnival cruise credit card that I used to pay for this cruise. I’m hoping that Carnival can help refund the money so I can reschedule my anniversary trip or by allowing me to cruise on a future date.

We booked for Sept.9th. This was changed and prorated to Sept. 13 with a shorter cruise or a future credit. The problem is every ship and cruise, including magic, cost $500 more for the credit. So we decided to sail and risk travel to a damaged port in a state with heavy damage. It took 17 hours to get there with little gas available and no hotels. When I asked Customer service what would happen if they canceled between 6 p.m. Tuesday and the time I arrived, she informed that evidently I would be very upset, but have a long drive back to get over it. So we arrived in order to receive any credit and not pay more to be treated very rudely by the staff, who evidently had all gratuities waved by the chip for passengers who chose to stay on for free for 7 extra days. I wouldn't be happy either if I wasn't getting paid. So after 12 hours we went to Customer service on the ship and asked to exercise or Guarrantee'd Satisfaction promise. We were told that it did not apply to three day cruises and that we could only deal with Guest relations for this - they only gave us the option to call from our room at .31 cents per minute. After convincing them to call on their cell, their own company. Customer service told me nothing could be done until after the cruise was over. Called today and they have no record even though I have all their names and none have extensions except if your booking right! Isn't this kidnapping under the Jones Act? So now I wait for the return phone call that will probably not come. So sad to lose trust and faith after having one of my best vacations aboard anther Carnival cruise. The only highlights were Candy in the dinning room, deck 5 bar (when open) and the very nice people who seem to live on Carnival. Ship was mostly empty, but also mostly closed.

I scheduled a cruise for September 11, 2017 out of Miami Florida The cruise was changed from a 5 day cruise to a 3 day cruise. I am not getting a penelty charge for over half of what I paid for "not cancelling" my trip. I tried calling and could never get a hold of a representative. I'd like my money back or it all toward a future cruise. I don't think that it was right that we had a penelty for something that wasn't our fault. I would like an answer back. Thanks in advance

We traveled from Spain to catch the cruise on September 2nd. As soon as they left the port, they changed their itinerary without giving them the option to get off. They knew that we were not going to be able to return to Miami on the 9th either, as all the forecasts indicated. I have lost a lot of money by having to return to Spain from Cancun. The usury of the Company is tremendous in hiding behind security. As they knew that the boats had to be taken out because of the hurricane, they took advantage of the opportunity to avoid losing the money of all the travelers, regardless of the consequences (flight perfidy, problems at work, expenses in Mexico, etc.). I hope and wish that Carnival Cruise line will be punished by all travellers of the world and never travel with them. booking number 7TL5B8
By the way, they tried to collect tips from me for the days when I wasn't going to be there, but I realized and complained. an absolute shame and usury.

Please Help! I booked a cruise for my daughter and I to celebrate her recent High School Graduation and 18th birthday. We were to sail to the Bahamas on the Carnival Liberty September 14. Due to Hurricane Irma I had to cancel our cruise which I am hoping to reschedule. Because of Irma we have had to relocate, there is damage to our home and car, we are flooded, we have no water and have been without electricity for almost 6 days now. I'm hoping that Carnival can help refund the money I paid for Booking #7RD0H5 so that we can reschedule this much needed vacation for the entire family once this is over.

Thank you so much,
S.Loftis 7RD0H5

September 15, 2017

Attn: Carnival Cruise Lines Customer Relations Dept. 3655

Fm: Michael and Sadie Baskett
813 Ives Way N.W.
Lilburn, GA 30047
[protected]@yahoo.com
[protected]

To whom it may concern:

Ref: Booking Number 6FD9S6 / Carnival Legend / Sep. 12, 2017 / VIFP # [protected] / Stateroom 1190

My wife Sadie Baskett attempted to book our cruise online which left from Vancouver to the Hawaiian Islands.
When keying in all of the pertinent information she had issues when prompting our Passport ID"s. It wouldn't
accept the ID numbers after several attempts. She therefore contacted a Carnival Associate to assist with
the online booking after explaining to her the situation. The Carnival representative somehow posted the
passport ID's and was able to complete the booking and told us we were good to go. When reaching the Atlanta
Airport 9/11/17 prior to the sailing date after showing our Passport ID Cards at check-in we were told that
we couldn't use them to fly into Vancouver. They stated that we needed the Passport ID Books. We contacted
Carnival at the check-in desk to explain and was told it was our fault after requesting a refund. We were to
make this cruise in celebration of our 18th Wedding Anniversary. All attempts to clarify the situation with
Carnival was futile.

Please review and consider us for the full refund of the vacation we were unable to take.

Thanking you in advance for your prompt attention to this letter.

Sincerely,

Michael and Sadie Baskett

My husband and I Booked a 7 day cruise from Miami to the Caribbean, and unfortunately hurricane Irma destroyed all the destinations that the cruise was going to. The hurricane hit the region we were traveling to a couple weeks before our trip and Carnival will not refund us our money or give us credit. I am deathly afraid of hurricanes and being on a boat in general. My husband surprised me with this vacation, but I already have a fear of being on the water and since the hurricane hit (and there is another one on the way) I do not feel comfortable or safe going on this cruise. We are not asking for a refund just cruise credit, which I think is more than fair, since all the destinations are destroyed and it is probably not even safe to travel to these places that just got devastated. We also have plane tickets that we will not get a refund for, other cruise lines seem to be giving their customers refunds for their plane fair as well.
Our cruise is for September 30th 2017
we are requesting cruise credit for the amount we paid.
My phone number is [protected]

Hi my family and I cruised5 days from 9/9/17-9-14/17. The reason I am contacting your cruise line is because we had our hearts set on staying busy there was nothing for our 19 year old to do he was told he could not enter club 02 . We were told that the soda was unlimited with his bubble card but he could not order soda from the bar because he was not 21 . The next morning our service was absolutely horrible the wait staff took forever to get to our table .I was so disappointed that I would not invite friends we met to breakfast the next brunch. Our morning servers where Wayan and David for brunch and breakfast in the Washington dinning room on the Valor . The servers never came back after serving our food all we had was water they did not ask if we needed any drinks or even if our order was correct . I ask why it was taking so long and I was told the waiter had other tables.This was our first cruise we will not be back on the Valor . We ordered room service and they forgot milk to go with the cereal and gave us bread untoasted. We where very dissatisfied with this cruise.
Thank you

Booking Number: 6FD9S6

COMPLAINT FOR REVIEW AND REFUND

My wife Sadie Baskett attempted to book our cruise out of Vancouver to the Hawaiin Islands sail date 9/12/17 on the Carnival Legend. She had issues when trying to key our Passport ID's. The system bumped her out twice.
She then contacted a Carnival agent and explained to them the problem.
After giving the agent the ID numbers, the agent keyed; cleared; or buy passed the passport option someway allowing them to complete the booking. They supplied us with the completed boarding pass and said we were good to go. Upon reaching the Atlanta airport for our adjoining flights to Vancouver, we were advised we had the wrong passport types and needed the books instead of the cards. We were turned back therefore missing our connection for the cruise in celebration of our 18th Wedding Anniversary. We're submitting this complaint in expectance of a refund for the cruise we were unable to board. We would of at least had a heads-up if we knew that we had the wrong Passport ID's. Thw Carnival agent put it through allowing the booking completion.

Michael and Sadie Baskett

My name is Janice Ellis.booking info. 1CB0P0
Very disappointed in carnival refund and vacation package.

I booked for 3 people 1 was unable to attend due to medical reasons I cancelled 3 months prior.

Paid $500 + was only offered $79 back unacceptable
I will never cruise with carnival again. Customer service was no help.
I paid for upgrade I'm am hurt, That carnival will allow such sales tactics.

I wish someone can look into this and help me to understand why they, are keeping so much of the money.
I just wanted to book on a future cruise with my credit. After calling customer service. No Thank you.

We went on the cruise that left Sept 4th. We had questions because of the hurricane and called to see if it was going to be cancelled because of Irma. They said it would not be cancelled and if we cancelled we would lose our money. This cruise should have never been left the port. Well Irma was a problem, we had to stay out at sea three extra days, we could have left the ship on Cozumel at fly back, if you had about $1, 400 for airfare. I guess most people would be happy for more days, but some of us work and lost a lot of money because of this. I have a handicapped son and this was very hard on him. We lost money on airfair, extra hotel room etc. They say buy their insurance, what a waste. It covers nothing. Because of them not being reasonable and canceling the cruise we have to bear the brunt of the loss. We should have been gotten some compensation for our loss but they are just out for themselves. I don't expect them to have a heart and help their passengers, but hope that they will think of their passengers and not just money. To make things worse they gave 200 select passengers free 4 days cruises on the ship next cruise. NOT FAIR

I purchased a cruise through Expedia for a Carnival cruise to depart 9/16/2017 from Miami for my elderly parents. My parents home was in the direct path of Hurricane Irma, and although they did not loose there house there only car was flooded and not starting up. They still due not have electricity and my father has become extremely ill. I requested a change of dates or a change pf passengers and the cruise line refused either. They said I needed proof of reason to cancel such as an insurance claim on the car. The car did not have insurance that would cover the damage and my father is unable to get to a doctor to provide him with a note saying he is not capable of travel. He can not get to a doctor because his car won't run and all the doctors he sees are not open due to the hurricane. He does not want to go to an emergency room due to the fact there is people with greater needs that need the access to the very limited medical personal available. They live in Fort Myers where there is no power and limited resources available. I was also told by the cruise line that there is no way to change the name on the reservation because I booked an early passenger ticket, which I don't even know what that means since it was my first time booking a cruise. This cruise was to celebrate my parents 50th wedding anniversary. They certainly are not happy about not being able to go and being stuck in a home with no power and no vehicle to transport them. It would be nice if the cruise line would at least reschedule them, especially since they were to visit ports that were completely destroyed. And as I am writing this I was called to be told my father was just admitted to the hospital. Please let me know if there is anything that can be done. I can provide paperwork that proves he is in fact in the hospital as we speak.

My friends and I planned our FIRST cruise to the Bahamas from Miami as a late birthday gift Sept 15-18. The Miami aftermath from the hurricane is a mess! I don't understand why we can not reschedule the cruise or at LEAST receive a credit! So we lost all of our money! Royal cruise lines not only cancelled the cruise for the same date & location but gave a refund & 25% future travel credit! Never will I ever book carnival, they are money hungry! I have never been so disappointed!

My family had a cruise scheduled to leave September 18, 2017 leaving out of Miami. We have traveled on Carnival for many years and have never had an issue. My mother is 80 years old and lives in Davie Fl. Her home was totally destroyed in the hurricane. The rest of our family has been thru a lot as well, lost business due to no power, loss of work therefore loss of income. There is no gas for us to travel to Miami and the area is not safe. With all of this, Carnival STILL expects us to get on the ship. We have cancelled by our own decision and the "BEST" that they can do is offer us a credit. NOT GOOD ENOUGH. IT IS NOT SAFE FOR US to travel to Miami, Carnival does not think that we have suffered enough they want us to put OUR LIVES in MORE DANGER and drive to MIAMI. NOT HAPPENING. My mother also happens to be a travel agent and books a lot of cruises for this cruise line. I seriously hope she rethinks her loyalty to them as they do not care about her.

Was scheduled cruise on Sept 4th thru 9th to Ocho Rio, with 6 other family members, because of unusual heavy traffic from home to airport, we missed our 725am flight, were put on standbys for 1030 flights, only 2 seats were avail, the others were again put on standby for the 1130 flight, again only 2 seats avail, once again the remaining 3 were on standby for the 1230 flight, unfortunately no seats were avail, was then offered to be put on 130 standby, was still none avail at that time we knew it would have been too late to catch cruise. My husband Reginald SWIFT, booking number 2WB3G4, and my 2 nieces carlisha lewis and Denise Bell booking number SMB3G4 missed the cruise, I was cruising for a second honeymoon and ended up spending 8 days away from my husband, we also considered flying them into Ocho Rio to meet us. But no one had a passport. I'm asking for refund or for them to be allowed to make up for missed cruise. Because they seriously tried to make the cruise. Thanks for your help.

We are a party of 4 traveling from outside of Maimi on the Sensation September 11, 2017. It is "impossible" to be in Miami to sail on the rescheduled date you proposes within 48 hours of the storm. Travel is not restored into South Florida. Your proposed rescheduling with 48 hours of the hurricane is both reckless and callous, as it renders it impossible for passengers traveling from outside Florida to be present for the cruise.
Please advise which regulatory agencies you report to, as your company practices place passengers at risk in attempting to force them to travel into an evacuated area prematurely, solely to avoid issuing refunds. Your Board of Directors need to reflect closely on your operations and implement immediate changes that take passenger interests and safety into account when dealing with major weather events.

Wendy St Charles, Esq.
[protected]@icloud.com
[protected]