Since the beginning of the year, Carnival Cruise Line’s Brand Ambassador John Heald is addressing or clarifying something every other day via social media. Here is a round up of everything in the last 10 days that Carnival Cruise Line has “set straight.”
First, Heald addressed concerns regarding mobility scooters. Who gets the priority elevator board? Is aggressive driving a concern? Guests on both sides of this argument have been frustrated. Some guests even suggested there be a dedicated scooter elevator with a posted crew member to enforce the rules.
Heald said, “We do not have the manpower to have a crew member reserve an elevator all day at each elevator bank just for mobility scooters. I wish we did. But I do know that most (I know not all) guests will be respectful to those guests who do need [scooters] to get about the ship.”
Other guests are frustrated with the aggressive driving of the scooter operators. Heald implored scooter drivers to please drive carefully and be respectful of others. Carnival Cruise Line does have a guideline for guests with mobility limitations that states, “Guests must drive at a safe speed to ensure their own safety and the safety of others.”
Moving on…
Carnival Cruise Line clarified its policy on the use of drones. Ultimately, drones are listed under the “Items for Port Use Only” section of the cruise line’s prohibited items list. Heald’s statement reads, “I get asked so much these days about our rules on this that I thought I had better mention it. I am sorry but for safety reasons of the drone perhaps crashing into a guest or damaging the ship in some way we cannot allow people to be flying drones over the ship. Drone(s) are allowed, but must be held in the custody of the Chief Security Officer and must be checked out/in by the owner for PORT USE ONLY.”
Let’s clarify when the “Behind the Fun” ship tour takes place. When you make your reservation, the wrong day is displayed. The tour is booked as a shore excursion on embarkation day when it actually takes place on the last sea day of the cruise. Heald took to Facebook to say, “There is still a glitchy thing going on where the excursion says that it will be departing on embarkation day. This is not the case , obviously. I do apologize and wanted to let you know the Behind the Fun look behind the crew-only doors will leave on the last sea day and information will be sent to you on board.”
A few days later the question was about ducks and whether or not guests could hide them on a Carnival ship. Let’s clarify this one quickly. Heald made what may be the best statement ever when addressing this one. He said, “The answer is no, we are not going to ban the hiding of ducks. I know this is not for everyone. I also know it gives so many people joy so why would we stop the spreading of joy?” Exactly! Why stop the spreading of joy?
Then there was the one about the crew speaking in their native language in passenger areas. Someone that had been on Carnival Jubilee complained because they thought, “The crew can make fun of you right in front of your face and we would not know.” Heald addressed it, of course, and said, “This really should not, I hope, be a problem. The crew know they are expected to speak English in all guest areas but of course when busy or when asking help from another crew member it is sometimes automatic to ask in your own language. They are, I promise, not talking about you.” I promise they are not talking about you. They are likely just attempting to service you in the most efficient way possible and sometimes it is just more efficient to communicate in your first language.
Most recently, Carnival Cruise Line has addressed the use of plastic straws and suggests that water bottles may also go away. In an effort to remain environmentally conscious, Carnival Cruise LIne discontinued the use of plastic straws and moved to edible straws in 2019. When posed a question about plastic straws and a different, unnamed cruise line, Heald said, “So plastic straws. While I cannot answer for other cruise lines and what they may do, we have no problem in holding our heads high and saying we are working hard to protect the oceans we cruise on and the creatures who call those oceans home. I know the edible straws are not a favorite of everyone but you can bring your own straw, a stainless steel or reusable straw but please, not plastic. We do not have a rule on bringing plastic straws on board but please try not to if you can.” Heald also hinted that plastic water bottles may soon disappear and “the Beards are working hard to find a replacement for these in 2024.”
You never know what John Heald will be asked, but you can be sure he will let you know where Carnival Cruise Line stands on an issue.