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First time cruising for myself and my husband however travelled with my sister and brother in law who have both cruised before. We travelled Sydney to Queensland 10 day cruise in May. None of us would ever cruise with carnival again, booked and paid for via phone customer service rep for carnival not on line, with an assurance we were located in a… Read more
very convenient spot to access amenities, not the case . We ate in the Dining Room most morning and most nights. Food was poor, every meal started to taste like the meal you had the evening before and I am sure it was, just with something added or removed. There were times we did not attend the dining room as we were sick of the food being served, a couple of times we tried the eatery/ buffet however it was the same , same food nightly. There are a number of free food shops but they are very slap together food, not very appetizing. Information provided by carnival prior to the cruise regarding dress codes in particular to the dining room indicated smart casual , no singlets, thongs etc. however this is not the case so if you are cruising with Carnival dont bother packing nice clothes , you can wear whatever you want wherever you choose to eat. There are minimal laundry facilities so if you need to wash , you need to find a laundry they are not on every level. There is usually a wait line and a dispenser for your detergent , use your carnival credit card to access the machine , it may or may not work but it will definitely take your money. Purchased beverages /alcohol also did not taste the same Most days we all felt sick and I did put this down to the food and beverages, Booked a state room which was fine , nothing flash but comfortable. I also found the layout of the Splendor very confusing and speaking to other guests they felt the same. Not a lot of information provided or displayed around the ship to assist in navigating.
Over $12,600 in medical bills on an Australian cruise! I'm writing this review on behalf of a 90 year old Australian pensioner who recently travelled on an Australian based cruise with Carnival. The cruise was entirely within Australia. The… Read more
passenger is too old to be able to obtain health insurance (like many cruise passengers).
This elderly woman presented to the onboard doctor with acute stomach pain. She spent two days in sick bay and had some medical tests done. The cost, just for being in sick bay for 44 hours was $4620. With medical testing, medication and medical evacuation (within Australia by Australian services) the total bill was over $12,600. They even charged her for sandwiches she didn't eat! Before being allowed to leave the ship to escort his wife, her husband, also 90, was pressured to sign a "promissory note" for the cost of treatment and has since been told that if he does not pay on time there will be a $140 PER DAY fee applied.
They were not offered any partial refund on the part of the cruise they were unable to complete, nor any reduction in fees that took this into account.
No opportunity to make payment over time and this couple are pensioners. Had they waited overnight and gone ashore they could have accessed free medical care within Australia.
The couple don't want to speak to the media because they are elderly, and she remains seriously unwell. They DO want other elderly people warned about the potential cost of needing medical treatment on a Carnival cruise, even if they are within Australia. They are now facing significant financial hardship in order to pay the bill. Ironically, this couple are regular cruisers who would have spent more than the amount of this bill over the next few years on cruising, but who will now never cruise again.
Carnival's site warns travellers that medical treatment may be "expensive" and recommends travel insurance, but for those unable to obtain travel insurance the best advice it to avoid cruising and stick with domestic travel within Australia, where you will be able to access our wonderful medical system wherever you go for little or no cost.
Follow-up · They have reiterated that the bill must be paid in full. The review also resulted in two people contacting me and claiming to be Carnival representatives and something at your end warned me they were likely fraudulent so thanks for that.
Reviews with attachments
Thank you Min Aung, stateroom attendant. The BEST The Cruise was as planned, a relaxed time away from my busy business Hunter Valley Tours www.hvtours.com.au ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Show details
- +7
Went on the 0ctober NZ 2025 from Sydney cruise for 10 days was wonderful especially due to great weather.Although boat was full it didn’t seem that busy everywhere.Would thoroughly recommend seeing New Zealand ports and the magical Fiordland park.Looking forward to next cruise on the adventure.Ocean view cabin was spacious and service as always excellent. Show details
Not a cruise person, but my observations, The Splendor decor is at first hilariously tacky, but after a few days it feels like you’re inside an overcrowded 90s RSL club. The outside is better at least. Staff are all good, but it’s clear they aren’t paid well. I actually had one of them ask me for a tip because he said they get so little, and… Read more
others complained about their conditions…… So we pay Australian prices, but Carnival pays them a much lower wage…. It seems unfair.
Despite Carnival paying no tax on alcohol, the bar prices are high and actually the same as the inflight menu in Virgin.
So a beer or wine is $11-$12, spirit with mixer is $14. Bottle of wine is about $42. The type of wine they have is cheaper, “Willowglen” and “De Bortoli” which cost under $9 in a bottle shop.
Wifi is $30 a day, but at least works well and I needed it to get some stuff done and to fill in the time whilst stuck onboard during 3 boring sea days on the way back from Vanuatu.
Food was OK, it reminded me of when I was in a hospital for a few months. It was a very decent private hospital, but it struck me the menu was precisely the same. Boring, safe food.
The staff is amazing, they are friendly happy even though they work bloody hard with the demand. Food was great only had one not so great meal, the decor was interesting, but it was great experience and again with great hard working staff. Show details
Another great cruise especially as weather was perfect and the seas.Not too busy for Easter holidays and as usual great service and food.Easy early boarding and saw Hobart and Port Arthur which we enjoyed.Everything went smoothly and looking forward to NZ cruise in October.Simon the cruise director is always fabulous. Show details
Latest follow-ups
Carnval Splendor not worth risking your health – We would not recommend carnival splendor to anyone, The inside and outside is rusting and the interior looks old and outdated. The water to shower and sink was boiling hot water took more then 3 attempts by maintenance to fix. The food is bland in… Read more
buffet. We were sick for most of the cruise with fever, coughing, dirrea we did not want to eat the food at all. Because we would have dirrea after eating. We do not believe that the food is fresh . Also we could not locate sanitation stations , we seem two sanitation station on the ship and did not see them being used. We asked for medical assistance and nurse gave us a call and told us we have a choice if we want to see the doctor we will be isolated for rest of the cruise and they will email nsw health department. We have 3 young children including 3 year old . Our 3 year old wet the bed including the Doona and they refused to replace it and told my wife they dont have enough for other guest. We could not wait to leave the cruise.
Follow-up · We were informed that if we consulted the ship's doctor while onboard the Carnival cruise, NSW Health would be notified and we would be required to remain confined to our cabin, regardless of the outcome of the medical assessment. This information made us feel discouraged from seeking medical attention, as we were concerned that any visit to the… Read more
Currently on an eight night cruise. Where do I start? Staff are very helpful and friendly. Food in anytime dining is awful. Food Luke warm. Poor quality too - steaks full of fat. Limited choices for B L & D. Most didn’t dress smart casual eg thongs,… Read more
short, singlet tops. Kids all ages roudy and loud. Dinner in Buffet limited to basically roast meat (again fatty) and vegetables that could bounce off the floor. Other limited options with long queues for dinner. Free pizzas and burgers - very very ordinary. Kids of anll ages running about and yelling with no parent control - fining areas and around the ship. I’m a first time Carnival cruiser (previous five cruises with P&O, Princess and Royal Carribean) and have never experienced such unruly behaviour. No area was quiet - even the small Library with groups of adults or kids loudly played games with teenagers generally acting stupidly.. Entertainment in different areas were good but no quality shows. First and last Carnival cruise. $1500 wasted.
Follow-up · Short excursions were great. Poor area was awful – kids in the adult pool kids running around. Drunk and behaviour. Had a balcony cabin was lovely.
We took our two grandchildren on a 4 day cruise out of Sydney. It is fair to say that a cruise spent mostly at sea with another 3800 passengers is not one we would normally select, but our grandchildren wanted teen clubs and waterslides so we headed… Read more
from Sydney to Moreton Island and back. We had balcony suites on deck 10 which were relatively spacious although the decor was tired and worn and there was considerable noise from our neighbours and from the corridors. Priority boarding and disembarkation was a real godsend and the meals in the dining room were good but not great. The staff were efficient and very accommodating. The focus for many in board was drinking and gambling but that had little impact on us. One incident however really spoiled the cruise for us. Whilst my wife was in the Spa she handed in her cabin folio card at Reception was is required and it was then used by someone to purchase a $535 Seiko watch. It took nearly an hour to settle the dispute ant disembarkation even though the ships cameras could have proven it was not my wife who made the purchase. No apology was received and it took four days for the charge to be reversed.
Follow-up · The weather during the cruise was not very hot, so our grandchildren used the water slides sparingly and the lines to use them were quite long. The teen clubs for our 13 and 15 year old grandchildren were really good, after they overcame their initial shyness. They made lots of new friends and their activities during the day and night centred… Read more
Positive reviews
Impressed with how the employees stood out to be of service with their guests. Room service were all excellent, good job to James and all who service our family rooms ( 23/04 - 2430, 2038, 2392). Restaurant was at its finest bec of Alit, Wayan and Gelyn! Kudos everyone! Show details
I enjoyed the professionalism of the staff and my children liked the children's programs. We had a great time wondering around the ship, including the shows and spas. It was a great family holiday and I would do it again. Life is cruising. Leave the negative attitudes behind on the dock. You will love life. Show details
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Room 8549 Great stateroom large verandah. Nyoman stateroom attendant was wonderful. Show details
Negative reviews
Be warned - if you need to visit the medical centre on a Carnival Cruise you will pay more than you ever could have imagined! My husband and I both had to see the doctor on the last day of our cruise. On presenting to the medical centre we were each told that the consultation alone could cost $290. Being desperate for help, we agreed to that cost.… Read more
At no other time we were advised the cost of tests or medication (and when you're feeling ill, you don't think to ask, you're just desperate for relief). Believe it or not, for a SINGLE nasal swab which tested both Covid and Influenza, we paid a total of $295! A course of 10 Tamiflu tablets - $231.80. Bottle of cough syrup - $44.94. All up, when we received the bill the morning we disembarked, we were staggered to see a total of $1,555! To add insult to injury, my husband was taunted by the staff for not having had a flu vaccination! Another warning - be sure that your travel insurance covers medical costs. Don't be like me and trust when your insurance company tells you that because the cruise is a domestic one, your medical will be covered by Medicare. What a joke! And then when you try to make a complaint you go to Carnival's "Guest Care" page, type out your complaint, click Submit, and .......... nothing happens. It doesn't go anywhere. Never Again!!!
This company should be avoided at all costs. We just went on 8 nights carnival splendor cruise from Sydney and they put every effort to ensure we do not book them again in the future. Staff at Casino are rude and are racist especially [Name Removed] and [Name Removed]. I went second day at the poker table and the female dealer couldn’t be bothered… Read more
and actually said she is over it .Bar staff make their own rules person to person. I had full alcohol package and to get bottle of water after a drink you have to wait ten minutes. Doesn’t make sense. Bar usually runs out of salt or other ingredients to make cocktails and mocktails . The whole trip was under staffed , people on duty were grumpy and just couldn’t be bothered to provide any sort of customer service. Even the guy with mop at the pools yell at you if you walk to get your towels . Two days at the end weather was bad so they had to close pools and other outdoor activities for safety reasons but no alternative entertainment was provided so people were just stuck in cabins . In the buffet area there is may be 2 staff looking after more than 500 people. The only one good thing we found on this cruise was staff at the gold pearl Restaurant table 533. team leaders name was [Name Removed] I think . The food and service at this one restaurant was exceptional and the house keeping guys are awesome. Our kids loved the towels animal made everyday by house keeping dude . We went on Royal Caribbean cruise two years ago and carnival is at 25% of that at every aspect whether it’s staff, service or entertainment. Royal Caribbeans motto is PLEASE BOOK US AGAIN and Carnival motto is DO NOT BOOK US AGAIN so we are a group of 35 friends and will be booking Royal Caribbean next year. There is nothing to do for kids apart from a small water park. I mean nothing unless you want to drop them at onboard child care system even there if kids age gap is more than 3 years they can’t be in one area. Staff and food at Masala Tiger is also awesome. The after dinner parties at the pool area are fantastic. DJ guys are awesome. What frustrates me that the cruise itself has all the infrastructure available just the behaviour of staff / couldn’t be bothered attitude kills the vibe . It is just not planned properly.
We were due to sail to New Caledonia on 16/1/26. On the evening of 15/1/26, after travelling to Sydney for our cruise, we were informed that due to weather, the cruise to New Caledonia was cancelled - this weather system had been predicted for weeks. We were offered cruise credit, or a cruise to Queensland. We rejected both the cruise credit and… Read more
QLD cruise, and requested an immediate refund. Carnival said that under their terms and conditions, they were not required to refund our cruise. Carnival is still holding on to thousands of dollars of ours, and will now not respond to emails regarding the matter. I requested that Carnival confirm that they received our legal documents and they still have not responded. They have not issued a refund or cruise credit, stating that we rejected the credit. Carnival's conduct constituted a major failure in the supply of services under Australian Consumer Law.
Recent reviews
Great food staff was excellent could not fault the ship the only thing I would recommend not to stay above the casino on level 6 but it wasn't terrible i had a great time would not hesitate to go on carnival spendlor again Show details
Please don’t waste your money on a holiday that is terrible and disappointing. The food was terrible unless you paid a lot extra. Everything needs a booking with long queues and wait times despite paying for the cruise with the assumption you would not need a physical credit card or you would be cut off. I’ve been on holidays all over Australia and the works this is the worst and has put me off cruises forever . Show details
Our cruise was paid for by my daughter as a gift. A few days before we were due to sail I had a fall and fractured the neck of my femur. I called Carnival to postpone our cruise and was told that I could not and in fact I would have to pay a hefty penalty to cancel.
ZERO STARS HONESTLY My daughter just got back from NZ 10day tour-FIRSTLY-hardly ANY VEGAN FOOD-even though the cruiseline was informed SEVERAL TIMES leading up to her holiday-THEN her wildlife tour was cancelled and they werent told-until the day -and THIS was her main reason for going- they ALSO arrived at most cítíes at 6am- THEN they made them… Read more
pay for a shuttle -to the CBD- where ABSOLUTELY NOTHING is open for 3-4hours! ALSO be warned you may NOT even get to SEE the fjordlands at all-OR even be informed by the cruiseline if they have decided NOT to go there -AS this happened to my kid too-which sadly was her other reason for going -NATURE AND WILDLIFE-she got neither
Very disappointing. The food was appalling and the ship is so over populated you can’t get a seat anywhere and feel like you’re in stampede whenever you go anywhere.
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HORRIBLE. We will never take another carnival cruise! Negatives: Our cruise had to be rerouted due to "adverse weather", yet they sent us the wrong itinerary leaving us in Brisbane instead of bringing us back to Sydney. We never got a corrected itinerary. The interior decor is desperately outdated and not very well-kept, although the ship did… Read more
seem clean, just raggedy. The spa staff used pressure tactics to try to get us buy their crappy spa products when we had spa services. We had Elemis products in our spa suite, and the shampoo was disgusting- dried my hair out and felt very cheap, so no way did we want to purchase more of their products. The thermal pool was luke-warm at best and closed a lot of the time. The deck pools are tiny- maybe 20 people can fit standing up, but forget swimming ever. There were only a few hot tubs, and kids were in two of them all the time, and the other two were in the adult only section. There was only ONE variety show the entire cruise because they got a new cast. Guest services said the cast had to practice for the next cruise- so the rest of the so-called nightly entertainment was really minimal and pretty bad at that, but the next cruise will get what they paid for in terms of nightly entertainment. The comedians were vulgar, crude and not at all funny. The food was horribly cheap and tasteless except for a few meals. Don't be fooled that you will get freshly prepared Wok dishes because you can watch them prepare the food, but you are served from a tub of noodles/rice that was already prepared well before you walked up to the buffet. Most every thing costs extra money, and we felt Carnival is all about upcharging at every turn. Positives: The food and service in the specialty restaurant was excellent. The people who work on the cruise ship were mostly very kind and nice. Our massages were really great. But the negatives outweigh the positives, so 1 star is all this cruise ship deserves.
If I could give a 0 star I would. I booked my cruise, left a $400 deposit and due to medical reasons my doctor advised I couldn’t go. I contacted the Cruise Line 2 days after leaving my deposit, as well as my medical report. They said because I was outside of their 24 hour cooling off period, they wouldn’t be refunding me. My friend was going on… Read more
the same cruise, same dates, different booking. I asked if my deposit could be transferred onto their booking since they hadn’t yet payed the balance. The answer was no. No leeway. All this cruise line are, are money hoarders. I do not recommend.
Our last cruise with Carnival was awful and unfortunately the cruise we embarked on 4/12/25 was no better. I am relieved we have no more pre-booked cruises with this company. I could address all the usuals - cold food of poor quality, ship cleanliness or lack of, extremely intoxicated patrons etc. These complaints have been expressed by others. My… Read more
complaints are about add ons that are so not worth the money. 1. High Tea. For 3 people, $117. What you receive is: A dried out scone and a dry pastries. A teapot with one, yes one, teabag. During breakfast, two bags are supplied. Explain that one. Also, the advertised glass of bubbles was non existing. Do not purchase this promotion. 2. Premium cruise the vineyard 5 bottle package. $260 Oh my, this one is to be avoided. Premium wine? Not even close. Two wines were ghastly, one passable, one undrinkable and we gave up on the last one. And waiters don't appear to enjoy receiving the coupon to redeem the wine. Rico in the BLACK Pearl especially. Show time is tired, really tired. Either reinvent or lose it. Carnival has gone from affordable cruising to dog turd presentation. Oh well, so it goes.
I traveled from Sydney to New Zealand. The cabin was good in size and clean but we were very disappointed in the food. We didn’t have a hot meal in the buffet over the whole ten days. The food was put out 30 minutes before the buffet was open and just placed on top of the buffet. Just before opening time they placed the food in the Bain Marie but… Read more
by this time it was stone cold. Coffee machine often didn’t work and when it did the cappuccino was cold. I am planing another cruise to the Queensland coast but will be looking for another cruise liner. This was my 5th cruise but definitely the worst
I wrote a review 18months ago saying how wonderful carnival cruises were.well they still are . especially the crew.however we have done a further 3 cruises and had booked 4more .we came off 3 cruises with rhino virus spent 6 nights in hospital seriously ill and an account from the ship's medical centre for almost $3000 for less than 5hours in the… Read more
medical centre.we strongly recommend that when traveling with this company that you take Glen 20 and spray your cabin often as the virus could be on that ship.we have now cancelled all cruises with carnival our health is paramount.
Avoid like the plague! This was to be our 6th cruise with Carnival, but no loyalty or trust given to us. We paid a deposit, have a receipt. We paid the balance, have a receipt and email stating paid in full. We then get an email saying we owed $1000, but if you've paid this disregard the email. We disregarded the email as we had all confirmed… Read more
emails and receipts stating, paid in full. We then find out cruise was cancelled as we didn't contact them in time to fix the problem. Remember we had paid in full. We called carnival customer service who treated us like we were st>pid, it was all our fault and we needed to sort it out with the bank. We then find out the link from the website was a scam and we paid a dodgy on seller who no one knows about. Carnival still treating us like id*ots. Absolute joke.
Tired old ship with tired old amenities. No wonder Carnival flogged it off to the less than discerning Australian cruise public. If you like stodgy, tasteless and unappetising food, shore excursions to boring nondescript islands that even olden day pirates wouldn't leave their prisoners on, then cruise with Carnival Splendor. A cruise line… Read more
designed to separate money from their Guests. The only upside is that the long suffering staff are wonderful but have to endure serving on this crappy old tub.
The Guest Services team, especially Subhankar Bera, was very kind and helpful. I really appreciate their support and the gesture they made. Thank you for making my cruise enjoyable
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