Don't pick on Carnival Cruise Line!

Carnival seems to have become a easy target in recent months.  There is no doubt that they have had a couple of issues with some of their ships, but the other 88% of the fleet have been running very well.  Another way of putting this is that Carnival has about 1300 sailings every year.  If 4 out of the 1300 have issues, that is less than 1% of sailings. 
 
Every cruise line has experienced mechanical issue at one time or another.   Did Carnival handle the Triumph issue well?  Some will say yes, others will say no.  Regardless, Carnival AND all the other cruise lines are hopefully using what happened to the Triumph to prevent similar tragedies from occurring in the future.
 
It is sometimes easy for us to just focus on the negatives.  But Carnival Cruise line has so many positive aspects to it.   They have done wonderful things with some of the older ships in the fleet.  Spending millions to add balcony cabins and water parks, new dining establishments, cabin upgrades, remodeled interiors, cove balconies.  The new ships are on the cutting edge with resort style features.  They continue to work on new entertainment ideas.   They added in the adult Serenity on all the ships and with its hammocks and private huts it is one of the best ideas that any cruise line has come out with. 
 
Are they perfect?  Are any of us perfect?  Of course not.  While I support many of the things they do, there are things that I am not happy with.  But I have a list for all the cruise lines out there.
 
For Carnival I would like to see them develop ships with fewer passengers.  They are doing a wonderful job converting the Destiny into the Sunshine.  But I think the number of passengers on the ship will make the experience less than what it could be.  And if anything unexpected happens then it could be another disaster.
 
The bottom line is that Carnival does provide one of the best cruising experiences out there.  Carnival employs some of the best entertainers and crew members at sea.  Many people choose Carnival as their favorite line and the cruise boards are filled with Carnival fans.   In fact you will probably find more fans of Carnival on the cruise boards then you will find for any of the other lines. 

Steve Millay, ACC