Carnival Victory not for tweenagers

My son (a 13 year old ["tweenage" in marketing terms]) contacted
Carnival for teen related activities. Carnival faxed from another ship
a recent teen schedule and roster of activities that included
"Playstation 2" game play. When our tweenage boy got on board and found
that only $0.25/per play old style (and I do mean "old") arcade games
were available (as opposed to "current" generation multi-player
"Playstation 2" games he really felt betrayed and "trapped". (Note PS2
was released in March '2000, about the time the ship first launched;
the PS1 had been out for several years before then. Who designs these
ships?) Though he enjoyed some of the other activities (water slide and
on shore excursions, for example) he still spent more than half of the
trip holed up in our inside cabin watching the "movie of the day" ...
which he could have done at home for a lot less $$$. His take on
another "fun" ship cruise .... "you've got to be kidding .... not
interested". [BTW, trivia and bingo are NOT tweenage activities ...]

Carnival Victory should cut in half their arcade space and replace it
with sets of multiplayer networked video games (maybe a couple of sets
of Sony Playstations, and two sets of Microsoft xBoxes) They could sell
a "fun video game" card for access to that section of the ship to
"monetize" the investment and offer prizes for winners (one networked
set of players trouncing another network set of players). If Carnnival
really wanted to get "in play" they could offer a specialized satellite
access to some of the world largest massively multiplayer role play
(MMRP) games. For example "World of Warcraft" has 12 million players on
line at any time. (Again, is anyone under the age of 30 at Carnival
paying attention to tweenager amusement?!!)

Shifting gears, my wife and daughter (21) enjoyed the trip considerably
though our expectations were quit different. We just want time away
from appointments and classes to eat well, relax and read (or in my
case to "study" programming as a hobbyist using my laptop).

My main frustration. After searching extensively I found only two
places on the entire ship with access to 110v electrical receptacles
(ship was made in Italy) and with a chair, table and view of the deck
(from which to watch the parade of people, ports and ocean views) ....
AND NEITHER of them were close enough to the internet cafe to obtain
the ship's Wi-Fi network signal. As I progressed though the software
tutorial every couple of hours I had to walk back to the internet cafe
area before I could go on line to post questions, lookup answers,
download sample code, find knowledgebase articles, etc. What a pain.
Carnival really needs to place a couple of Wi-Fi repeaters (they're
cheap; less than $100 each) near the front and back ends of the
Lido/Promenade decks in order to "extend" the reach of the internet
cafe.

On the plus side the food and related service was fantastic, the cabin
was quite serviceable, the steward and the cleaning folks did a
sterling job. I as really impressed with their cheery greetings
whenever we passed them in the halls. The extras (towel "animals",
cookies, etc.) were nice. The selection of on shore excursions was
extensive!

The Jamaica excursion to the Gardens would have been three times better
if the guide was more knowledgeable and brought a BULL HORN. What
little he did say we seldom heard. (Thankfully the Reeves Video lady
that accompanied us prompted the "guide" to mention numerous very
interesting items.) Even so the experience was delightful, especially
the bird area. (I snapped a picture of my wife with several parrots
perched on her head and arms that is truly memorable). What a beautiful
place.

Three out of four of us would sail again on the Victory so that's not
too bad a batting average.

"LeeNY" wrote in message
ups.com...
wrote:
When our tweenage boy got on board and found
that only $0.25/per play old style (and I do mean "old") arcade games
were available (as opposed to "current" generation multi-player
"Playstation 2" games he really felt betrayed and "trapped".

I just don't know what to say to this. Is this serious? Your son felt
trapped because he couldn't play some specific video games for a week?
Is that really what being a tween is all about? That's just really,
really sad. The week could have been a great opportunity for him to
learn about life, literally, "outside the box". Instead, he chose to
stare at a different box, to watch movies. Why didn't he explore the
ship, meet the other tweens on board, perhaps even make some friends?
I'm not a parent, so maybe I'm just so far removed from the loop as to
not even be able to comprehend this whole scenario. All I know is that,
if I did have a 13 year old boy, and I did bring him on a cruise, I can
guarantee you, his time would not have been spent sitting in an arcade
playing games or sitting in the cabin watching movies. You're
right...you did waste a lot of money paying for a cruise for hi. Sorry
about that.

Lee


Agreed, Lee. I have an 18 y/o son. I always limited his video game time to
30 minutes a day AT HOME!! There's way too many kids that veg out in front
of a video screen. On cruise???My kid would've never considered playing
endless video or watching movies on a cruise!!!!!!!!

On 21 Mar 2006 10:05:53 -0800, wrote:

he still spent more than half of the
trip holed up in our inside cabin watching the "movie of the day" ...

Hi Mark,

Don't take this as a criticism but where was the rest of the family? I
am curious, why did he not take part in family activities? Was this
not a family vacation? I think it is a disservice to not involve the
family in activities the entire family can enjoy.

Best regards,
Ray
LIGHTHOUSE TRAVEL
800-719-9917 or 805-566-3905
http://www.lighthousetravel.com
--
NewsGuy.Com 30Gb $9.95 Carry Forward and On Demand Bandwidth

"LeeNY" wrote:

wrote:
When our tweenage boy got on board and found
that only $0.25/per play old style (and I do mean "old") arcade games
were available (as opposed to "current" generation multi-player
"Playstation 2" games he really felt betrayed and "trapped".

I just don't know what to say to this. Is this serious? Your son felt
trapped because he couldn't play some specific video games for a week?

Not to answer for the OP, but I think this is more about the lies by
omission - the tween called to ask, and was told that they did have
video games and then found that they didn't really.

If he had been told more specifically, then he could have been better
prepared. I have a kid like that (although no longer a tween) and
she's still like that. She doesn't like being lied to.

I think it would be like being told that you would have cell phone
coverage and then finding out that you could only connect if you hung
out of the window of the back bedroom. Happens all the time in real
life, but a tween isn't as used to it.

Is that really what being a tween is all about? That's just really,
really sad. The week could have been a great opportunity for him to
learn about life, literally, "outside the box". Instead, he chose to
stare at a different box, to watch movies. Why didn't he explore the
ship, meet the other tweens on board, perhaps even make some friends?
I'm not a parent, so maybe I'm just so far removed from the loop as to
not even be able to comprehend this whole scenario. All I know is that,
if I did have a 13 year old boy, and I did bring him on a cruise, I can
guarantee you, his time would not have been spent sitting in an arcade
playing games or sitting in the cabin watching movies. You're
right...you did waste a lot of money paying for a cruise for him. Sorry
about that.

I'm sure he did explore the ship, and the OP said he did enjoy some of
the activities. But having been on a cruise when I was 12, the making
friends thing isn't as easy as all that. Depends quite a bit on
whether there are appropriate people on board to make friends with.


grandma Rosalie

I've been on the Victory and have seen many a tween having fun in that
dark/dank/cave with all of the videogames. Yours must be just too cool
to partake.

Next time leave the 13-year old at home to fend for himself and save
yourself some money.

I don't even think he would miss anyone based on what I read.

Rosalie B. wrote:

I'm sure he did explore the ship, and the OP said he did enjoy some of
the activities. But having been on a cruise when I was 12, the making
friends thing isn't as easy as all that. Depends quite a bit on
whether there are appropriate people on board to make friends with.

That's true. The only experience I have, cruising with a tween, is with
my niece. We've cruised together 4 times, starting back in 1997, which
would have made her 10 years old on that first cruise. On all four
cruises, she's never had a problem meeting kids her age and
establishing a circle of "best friends" before cruise's end. No doubt,
she's a very outgoing and sociable kid, so making new friends comes
easily to her, once the ice is broken (at that first kids meet & greet
party that the ship organizes). My niece is the one I think of, when I
read about 13 year olds so involved in video games at the exclusion of
socializing with people. She's never had a gaming system, has never had
any interest in owning or playing with a gaming system, and doesn't
understand the appeal of them. She's a freshman in college now (wow,
how time flies) and just recently joined her generation and bought an
iPod. Go figure. So, admittedly, my experience with this age group is
limited. I know making friends is really tough. But, I also know that
sitting in a cabin watching movies or sitting in an arcade mesmerized
by what's happening on a screen, doesn't make the process any easier.

Lee


grandma Rosalie

wrote:
My son (a 13 year old ["tweenage" in marketing terms]) contacted
Carnival for teen related activities. Carnival faxed from another ship
a recent teen schedule and roster of activities that included
"Playstation 2" game play. When our tweenage boy got on board and found
that only $0.25/per play old style (and I do mean "old") arcade games
were available (as opposed to "current" generation multi-player
"Playstation 2" games he really felt betrayed and "trapped". (Note PS2
was released in March '2000, about the time the ship first launched;
the PS1 had been out for several years before then. Who designs these
ships?) Though he enjoyed some of the other activities (water slide and
on shore excursions, for example) he still spent more than half of the
trip holed up in our inside cabin watching the "movie of the day" ...
which he could have done at home for a lot less $$$. His take on
another "fun" ship cruise .... "you've got to be kidding .... not
interested". [BTW, trivia and bingo are NOT tweenage activities ...]

Carnival Victory should cut in half their arcade space and replace it
with sets of multiplayer networked video games (maybe a couple of sets
of Sony Playstations, and two sets of Microsoft xBoxes) They could sell
a "fun video game" card for access to that section of the ship to
"monetize" the investment and offer prizes for winners (one networked
set of players trouncing another network set of players). If Carnnival
really wanted to get "in play" they could offer a specialized satellite
access to some of the world largest massively multiplayer role play
(MMRP) games. For example "World of Warcraft" has 12 million players on
line at any time. (Again, is anyone under the age of 30 at Carnival
paying attention to tweenager amusement?!!)

Shifting gears, my wife and daughter (21) enjoyed the trip considerably
though our expectations were quit different. We just want time away
from appointments and classes to eat well, relax and read (or in my
case to "study" programming as a hobbyist using my laptop).

My main frustration. After searching extensively I found only two
places on the entire ship with access to 110v electrical receptacles
(ship was made in Italy) and with a chair, table and view of the deck
(from which to watch the parade of people, ports and ocean views) ....
AND NEITHER of them were close enough to the internet cafe to obtain
the ship's Wi-Fi network signal. As I progressed though the software
tutorial every couple of hours I had to walk back to the internet cafe
area before I could go on line to post questions, lookup answers,
download sample code, find knowledgebase articles, etc. What a pain.
Carnival really needs to place a couple of Wi-Fi repeaters (they're
cheap; less than $100 each) near the front and back ends of the
Lido/Promenade decks in order to "extend" the reach of the internet
cafe.

On the plus side the food and related service was fantastic, the cabin
was quite serviceable, the steward and the cleaning folks did a
sterling job. I as really impressed with their cheery greetings
whenever we passed them in the halls. The extras (towel "animals",
cookies, etc.) were nice. The selection of on shore excursions was
extensive!

The Jamaica excursion to the Gardens would have been three times better
if the guide was more knowledgeable and brought a BULL HORN. What
little he did say we seldom heard. (Thankfully the Reeves Video lady
that accompanied us prompted the "guide" to mention numerous very
interesting items.) Even so the experience was delightful, especially
the bird area. (I snapped a picture of my wife with several parrots
perched on her head and arms that is truly memorable). What a beautiful
place.

Three out of four of us would sail again on the Victory so that's not
too bad a batting average.

Jesus - go on a cruise and the major bitch is video games? I have kids
that age and if that was a complaint, next time I'd buy them a psp and
leave them the hell home.

I don't think this guy posted so his parenting skills could be critiqued.
Just because his son didn't enjoy the video arcade doesnt mean you should
critque his social skills either especially since he cant defend himself..
He was disappointed in it but he did enjoy some of the other stuff, Just not
enough to do this ship again. I think thats fair.

I thought the original post pointed out some problems with the cruise and
also some ways to perhaps improve it. Certainly a much more informative post
the replies to it.


"AWB" wrote in message
oups.com...
I've been on the Victory and have seen many a tween having fun in that
dark/dank/cave with all of the videogames. Yours must be just too cool
to partake.

Next time leave the 13-year old at home to fend for himself and save
yourself some money.

I don't even think he would miss anyone based on what I read.

We have two teenage daughters who have a little more social skills than to
have their face stuck to 'puter games. If our children were so ungrateful
to complain about video games on a cruise, we would not take them on a
cruise again. Not to mention they would be removed from all other
privileges that would earn them videogame privileges at home. A cruise is a
great opportunity to un-plug kids from a tv or a computer and to see the
world as it is.

Frank


wrote in message
ups.com...
My son (a 13 year old ["tweenage" in marketing terms]) contacted
Carnival for teen related activities. Carnival faxed from another ship
a recent teen schedule and roster of activities that included
"Playstation 2" game play. When our tweenage boy got on board and found
that only $0.25/per play old style (and I do mean "old") arcade games
were available (as opposed to "current" generation multi-player
"Playstation 2" games he really felt betrayed and "trapped". (Note PS2
was released in March '2000, about the time the ship first launched;
the PS1 had been out for several years before then. Who designs these
ships?) Though he enjoyed some of the other activities (water slide and
on shore excursions, for example) he still spent more than half of the
trip holed up in our inside cabin watching the "movie of the day" ...
which he could have done at home for a lot less $$$. His take on
another "fun" ship cruise .... "you've got to be kidding .... not
interested". [BTW, trivia and bingo are NOT tweenage activities ...]

Carnival Victory should cut in half their arcade space and replace it
with sets of multiplayer networked video games (maybe a couple of sets
of Sony Playstations, and two sets of Microsoft xBoxes) They could sell
a "fun video game" card for access to that section of the ship to
"monetize" the investment and offer prizes for winners (one networked
set of players trouncing another network set of players). If Carnnival
really wanted to get "in play" they could offer a specialized satellite
access to some of the world largest massively multiplayer role play
(MMRP) games. For example "World of Warcraft" has 12 million players on
line at any time. (Again, is anyone under the age of 30 at Carnival
paying attention to tweenager amusement?!!)

Shifting gears, my wife and daughter (21) enjoyed the trip considerably
though our expectations were quit different. We just want time away
from appointments and classes to eat well, relax and read (or in my
case to "study" programming as a hobbyist using my laptop).

My main frustration. After searching extensively I found only two
places on the entire ship with access to 110v electrical receptacles
(ship was made in Italy) and with a chair, table and view of the deck
(from which to watch the parade of people, ports and ocean views) ....
AND NEITHER of them were close enough to the internet cafe to obtain
the ship's Wi-Fi network signal. As I progressed though the software
tutorial every couple of hours I had to walk back to the internet cafe
area before I could go on line to post questions, lookup answers,
download sample code, find knowledgebase articles, etc. What a pain.
Carnival really needs to place a couple of Wi-Fi repeaters (they're
cheap; less than $100 each) near the front and back ends of the
Lido/Promenade decks in order to "extend" the reach of the internet
cafe.

On the plus side the food and related service was fantastic, the cabin
was quite serviceable, the steward and the cleaning folks did a
sterling job. I as really impressed with their cheery greetings
whenever we passed them in the halls. The extras (towel "animals",
cookies, etc.) were nice. The selection of on shore excursions was
extensive!

The Jamaica excursion to the Gardens would have been three times better
if the guide was more knowledgeable and brought a BULL HORN. What
little he did say we seldom heard. (Thankfully the Reeves Video lady
that accompanied us prompted the "guide" to mention numerous very
interesting items.) Even so the experience was delightful, especially
the bird area. (I snapped a picture of my wife with several parrots
perched on her head and arms that is truly memorable). What a beautiful
place.

Three out of four of us would sail again on the Victory so that's not
too bad a batting average.

"sheree" wrote in message
...
our son is also only allowed in a cruise arcade for a bit after dinner,
that
is it!! there is too much else to do.


I'm not sure I agree with that. What's there for a kid to do at night if he
doesn't like the shows like his parents do? In fact... what's there for a
grown up to do if he doesn't like the shows, bars or casinos?

Ships don't really have that much to do at night if you don't go with their
"canned entertainment"... which are basically shows, bars, bingo and
casinos. I don't gamble very much (I lose $5 and I'm outa there for the
week). I don't like shows. I don't drink very much. And I don't do bingo.
I tend to be bored at night... so I can see how a kid would be bored as
well.

At least a ship like Constellation had a computer center... even though they
charged exorbitant rates. Plus, being with a group we did things like Texas
Holdem in the card room.

I don't think there are very many things for kids to do on ships. Some
ships have teen discos. But many kids just run around in groups. Unless
you find a group to fit in with... there may not be much to do after dinner.

--Tom