One of the reasons we were excited to sail on Carnival Liberty recently was to see just exactly how the whole Funship 2.0 thing played out in real life. We’ve covered much of what we experienced here, answered the questions we had before boarding and thought of a few more. Other questions, asked by readers, deserve a more direct reply so let’s get that done right now.
The Casino
Adele from Lincoln, Nebraska asks, simply: “How were the slots?” and I know exactly what she wants to know.
Adele, as usual, the first night was the best. I don’t care what anyone else might say; the people that run the casinos let us win on the first night to get us hooked. That’s just all there is to it. After that it’s downhill and, depending on the cruise line, it can go downhill pretty fast. On another line, a few weeks ago, the machines were so royally tight that I felt like I would have been better off just walking to the casino cashier upon boarding to deliver my donation. It was not fun losing so very quickly and that was the consensus of opinion among other players on that alluring ship.
What I like about Carnival casinos is that they let us win some. Personally, I am not looking to win a lot or pay for my cruise, (although that has happened to me before and it was on Carnival); I just like to play. Playing costs money. I only have so much. As much as I would love to believe that slots are a game of skill I know that delusion only goes just so far and that the odds are against me. Still, I like watching those wheels spinning around and I get to see that happen more on Carnival.
On this sailing it’s a story with a happy ending. Late on the last full day of the cruise I hit the jackpot on a machine (Triple Diamond Haywire) that I had been playing all week. Add it all up and it cost me most of what I won to win it but still, lots of fun.
Booze Smuggling
Rusty from Chicago asks “What’s the deal on Carnival’s alcohol policy? Can we bring wine on board? What about soda and bottles of water? “
Good question Rusty. We walked right on the ship with a case of bottled water (24 bottles) and 3 eight-packs of Diet Coke with no problem. Well a little bit of a problem. Just to make getting it on the ship easier we took all the bottles and cans out of their packaging and mixed it in with our rolling luggage that we take on the ship ourselves. That prompted the security screeners to look inside and look inside they did. Thoroughly. They were looking carefully at the seals on bottles to be sure we had not replaced the water content with something else. While they did that I asked the screener about wine or champagne. I knew from checking the Carnival website that we could have brought on board wine or champagne at embarkation and the security screener verified that.
Speaking of alcohol Rusty, I have to say: something is quite different here on Carnival Liberty in the way they serve it. There are crewmembers all over the place serving drinks, taking drink orders and coming back with them promptly. I don’t know that it has anything at all to do with Funship 2.0 per se but there is an overflow of spirit, especially in the pool areas where the Red Frog Rum Bar and Blue Iguana Cantina and their associated eateries are located. There’s an ongoing competition between the two venues that I thought was pretty much a bunch of hype before experiencing it, like a story that goes along with each one of the places but that’s as far as it goes. In practice, it’s playing out to be much more than that, a very surprising and pleasant side benefit.
That brings us to Sally’s question
Bar Service
Sally R from Salt Lake City asks “…what about bar service in the casino? The last time I was on a cruise there was one girl working the whole place and it was impossible to get a drink”
Sally, I have been in the casino every day on this sailing and noticed there are cocktail service people all over the casino, all the time. Better yet, when someone hits a jackpot or needs help with a machine, there is a casino manager right there pretty quickly. I can’t count the number of times I’ve needed someone for something and sat there forever wondering when they were coming. This is different. There is a whole different feel to how they do things. Servers remember your name, what you drink and are friendly. They are taking care of business here and doing a good job of it.
On a similar topic I think you might be interested in Sally, I should give kudos to Carnival for enabling slot machines to charge a players onboard charge account if they need to add money and save a trip to the cashier or ATM or wherever they hide their loot. Sailing a different line recently I missed that. Better yet, when I hit that jackpot I simply transferred the credit to my players account then stopped by the cashier to collect. Easy.
The Dining Room
Clarice from Nashville, Tennessee writes in a really long email about her dining room experience on a different Carnival ship, asking if the same situation existed on Carnival Liberty
The menu had a section of ‘Comfort Food- every night which was things like fried chicken, okra and meatloaf. On the other side of the menu was a section labeled ‘Didja’ and says- ‘As in ‘Didja ever wonder what this food would taste like but you didn’t dare try?’ The food was sushi or fried alligator tail. We have never read a menu anywhere, least of all in a finer dining room, where the menu was ‘dumbed’ down.’ This was very insulting. Is that on the menu on Carnival Liberty?
Yes, Clarice, it is and I think you’re missing the point. The “Comfort Food” section is actually one item every day that rotates and is more of a traditional variety. Meatloaf, Fried Chicken and similar items are offered as an alternative to what might be called the “fancy” food on the regular rotating menu.
One of the more traditional highlights (for many people) of a cruise line experience is the ability to try different things…and why not? If we don’t like it the dining room staff will gladly take it away and bring us something else. No problem. From what I can tell the “Didja Ever?” section is right in line with Carnival’s deep-seeded desire for us to step outside of our comfort zone and try something different. That might be taking a line-dancing class, going on a spin down the ships water slide or any number of things we don’t get a chance to experience in “real life”.
Back to that “fancy food” regular menu for a minute, that also features a great Shirmp Cocktail, Prime Rib, Lobster, Steaks, a variety of Pasta and vegetarian items; what looks to me to be a nice well-rounded menu that should please just about anybody. Oddly, one of the best menu items I have had in a long time, at sea or on land, was a Macaroni and Cheese entrée on the last night of our sailing. It was fabulous.
Clarice, I understand what you’re talking/upset about, appreciate you writing about it and hope my take on the menu might help it make a bit more sense.
Related articles
- Carnival Funship 2.0 transforms old to new on Carnival Liberty (chriscruises.net)
- Funship 2.0 steps up when Mother Nature throws paradise a curve ball (chriscruises.net)
- Harry’s Steakhouse a nice alternative on Carnival Liberty (chriscruises.net)
- Carnival Funship 2.0 preview (chriscruises.net)
