On board Carnival Cruise Lines Carnival Liberty, the new Funship 2.0 incentive features that have been added to the ship are stunning. Not stunning like a great big honking diamond, or a Victoria’s Secret super model, but stunning like “Wow, this is an entirely different ship.”
Just one day into a 7-night sailing that will take us from Miami through the Caribbean, long-time Carnival guests on board are chiming in with praises for new features.
“This is the best cheeseburger I have ever had in my entire life” said 12-time cruiser Pam from Canada sitting at the ships new Red Frog Rum Bar.
We agree and had made Food Network star Guy Fieri’s new shipboard dining venue, Guy’s Burger Joint, our first stop. Featuring some pretty amazing handcrafted burgers, fresh-cut fries and special recipes created exclusively for Carnival I expected a line. There was none. While finding a place to sit was a challenge, the system Carnival has worked out for serving is flawless.
The burgers themselves, fully dressed, are served from dual stations manned by plenty of crewmembers to move things along. The old cafeteria manger in me knows that 10 to 12 people a minute coming off the end of a buffet line is a good number. Take that times two and 20 to 24 people walking away from this place with a burger in hand would be a win. The well-trained crew at Guy’s Burger Joint was feeding ravenous guests at nearly double that rate. There is virtually no waiting for this.
Contrast that to the Boardwalk Dog House, custom hot dog stand on Royal Caribbean’s Allure of the Seas. Guests line up for that also-free venue but are moved along at the pace of about 6 to 8 a minute at best.
The difference between the two is the stuff that makes people say “Oh no, that line is way too long” (at the Dog House on Allure) or “Wow, this is cool” (at Guy’s Burger Joint here on Liberty).
Guy’s Burger Joint is a great choice for anyone hanging out anywhere on deck to stop by, grab a burger, and get back to what they were doing. The central Lido-deck location, right by Carnival’s Seaside Theater, makes for easy access.
This area will be the hot place to be and no-doubt a favorite of chair hogs. They probably start adorning lounge chairs with old paperback books and flip-flops at midnight like they were camping out for a Black Friday sale. We’ll check that out and let you know.
Right next to Guy’s Burger Joint is the Red Frog Rum Bar.
Memorize the last sentence.
Right next to Guy’s Burger Joint is the Red Frog Rum Bar.
This is critical information we do not want to lose.
The Red Frog Rum Bar is where we find Thirsty Frog Red, the custom-brewed you-can-only-get-it-at-sea ale that is a must-do upon boarding. Forget the umbrella drinks (although they do have some pretty unique ones), Thirsty Frog Red is the ticket to getting a Carnival Liberty cruise off to a good start.
Here again we see another venue loaded with crewmembers working hard to take care of the demand. There’s no hanging around waiting for the one lone bartender to finally get to you like we see so frequently on so many other ships and cruise lines. These people are loaded for bear, take aim and fire a salvo of service beyond comparison in recent years at sea.
Targeting guests who linger in the area, individual crewmembers make them their guests and the same crewmember (“Winston” was our guy) that took care of them once, comes back again in a timely manner to take care of them throughout their stay.
As I write this I’m thinking “Oh, like service used to be?”
Indeed, this refreshing service style goes back to basics and is totally right in line with Carnival’s simple mantra of being “the fun ships” offering guests great value.
I had pretty much resigned myself to the common slow service at pool bars on a variety of cruise lines. How refreshing to be slapped in the face with this fully staffed venue, cranking out the gourmet burgers and drinks.
On the first day, just an hour into the sailing, our first impression of the effect of Carnival’s Funship 2.0 initiative is really good. Make that stunningly good or as Pam from Toronto put it “I may never want to sail another ship ever again.”
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