Regular cruisers of a certain age often have a nostalgic attachment to the way things used to be.
Some miss people dressing up for dinner, which used to be a staple of cruising. Some ships even had tuxedo rental shops for formal evenings.
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On family-friendly cruise lines like Carnival and Royal Caribbean, formal attire gradually fell out of favor. Neither cruise line eliminated it, but instead relaxed dress standards as passengers demanded it.
In other cases, both cruise lines have had to make changes that passengers hadn't asked for. The classic midnight buffet has disappeared, for example, because while it was a cruise staple, it was also a huge waste.
Passengers enjoyed visiting the buffet, taking photos of the ice sculptures, and maybe grabbing a bite to eat, but they didn't eat much at that time, which created a huge amount of waste, making offering the buffet a poor economic proposition for the cruise lines.
Concerns about the environment and waste have also led to other changes to the main dining rooms, including menu changes, a charge for anyone ordering a third course (and for all subsequent courses), and a controversial change that Carnival brand ambassador John Heald addressed on his facebook page.
Image source: Carnival
Carnival does not apologize for changes in main dining room
Technically, Carnival no longer uses the term “main dining room.” Management, which Heald calls “the Beards,” wants it to be referred to as a “restaurant.”
Heald was responding to posts on several cruise ship message boards about a change Carnival made years ago to what most people still consider the main dining room.
“There are many people posting on cruise forums that they will stop sailing with Carnival unless the tablecloths are returned to MDR. 'We're all moving to other cruise lines, John,' read the headline of one post sent to me this week. It was presented to me as very bad news, something I should worry about while eating my bowl of grits,” she wrote.
Heald made it clear, however, that he finds it difficult to take the threat seriously.
“I wanted to reply to her: 'We didn't mean to bother you. We didn't realize how important a piece of fabric was to you and how you felt about all this. We are so sorry,'” she posted.
“Except I couldn't lie because I had no regrets. I'm afraid my first reaction was 'ummm, okay, bye'. Do what's best for you and I'm sure we'll manage without you.”
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The brand ambassador doesn't feel bad because Carnival had a very good reason for stopping using tablecloths.
“Okay, I didn't actually write that and I responded with the explanation of the huge environmental impact of washing thousands of tablecloths on each ship every day and I was hoping you would reconsider and base your statement on affordability, fun and the brilliant crew,” he added.
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Some Carnival passengers are not happy
Some of the more than 400 responses to Heald's post questioned her dismissive attitude toward the passenger's plight.
“I always wake up surprised that you still have a job. I don't mind the tablecloths, but you seem exhausted and it shows. Your humor used to be funny, but now it's always directed at someone. I miss the old you,” Kimberly Brooks shared.
Tracey Beck Chandler wants Heald to see the larger point at hand.
“I feel the same way. The passive-aggressive way he presents the opinion of anyone who disagrees with him or Carnival is annoying at best. I don't mind the tablecloths either, but to some people they represent the many cuts that have been made over the past few years,” she wrote.
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However, many people came to Heald's defense.
“Wow, she's just saying what most of us (obviously not you) are thinking. Makes me smile every morning,” Peggy T. Ricouard posted.
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Katherine Anne offered a similar defense.
“I think he's brilliant and says what needs to be said instead of sugarcoating everything for sensitive people. He doesn't mention any particular person by name. Put yourself in his shoes and he gets so much hate on a daily basis that if you don't add humor to your life you'll be miserable. Also, there's an unfollow button. Use it if you don't like the way he talks,” she wrote.
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