UGH!!! DO NOT GO HERE! Worst Cruise Excursion EVER!! (Carnival Mardi Gras)

[@tonia.5861]

WOW….you know it’s bad when you guys don’t like it because you generally find and focus on the “good” in everything😬😬

[@EECCTravels]

Yeah, there was just no good here.

[@claudiamercado9977]

I apologize from the bottom of my heart that you had this experience in my country!!! Just know that not all places are like that and that is a disgrace for us Dominicans that any resort is in this conditions. Please give it another shot and go back and enjoy my beautiful Dominican Republic.

[@EECCTravels]

Oh this is absolutely nothing against DR!! My daughter-in-law is from DR and we are planning a big trip there, hopefully next year. This was just a terrible resort!

[@andreagriffiths3512]

Awwww Sweetie! I’m sure no one holds this against your people or country! You’re so sweet to apologise! If I had the cash I’d visit in a heartbeat…just not to that particular locale.

[@davidfence6939]

Claudia, you have no reason to apologize. The business does and that's fine. They can improve and I hope they have done so.

[@heavyhinges478]

I don’t think you should have to apologize for not have enough beach chairs. The beach looked fine.

[@beachedntexas9281]

Unbelievable carnival is not inspecting these excursions any better than this. I mean that didn’t just happen over nite. Thanks for the vlog I’ll be extra precautions going forward. Love how you guys always keep it real no matter what. 🙌🏼

[@EECCTravels]

Yeah no kidding! They said they would go inspect it now.

[@davidyoung3237]

@@EECCTravels did you and your family get a full refund? The quality of that ship excursion was abysmal such a shame you wasted your day there - and that you couldn't return to the ship sooner huh?? 😉 at the end of the day carnavil need to know about it and what poor quality it is as they need to put a stop sell on it and refund anyone pre booked for future cruises as if they don't it's their reputation at stake. - does your travel insurence allow you to claim for a days lost enjoyment?- Seriously; you should look into it your video is all the evidence you should need- put in the claim and see how you go? David Young 37 Brisbane Australia

[@sheenajackson2596]

Based on your video review I will not be going there and I have a trip coming up next year

[@tracygriffiths6292]

Carnival doesn’t just owe you a refund, they also owe you obc for the time you lost. The cruise lines are expected to make sure their excursions are top notch. I’ve been on several excursions on other lines that included a cruise staff member to make sure the experience was great. Not good Carnival. Thanks for the great content Jason and Alisa! Sorry you had a yucky day.

[@cruzinandcashin]

It might have been hard for them to check out new excursions because of covid.

[@EECCTravels]

Yeah I agree! We only got a 50% refund… I think it should have been fully refunded.

[@kellykane7950]

@@EECCTravels i would have showed them the video..

[@smileycindymarie]

@@EECCTravels really? only half a refund?? That is terrible!! Where is the customer service?!!!

[@leehamilton8344]

@EECC Travels it makes me wonder if they still have it listed as an excursions? I'm sure you weren't the only ones to complain.

[@dipatrivedi9009]

Thank you for your honest review and keeping it 100% real. I sure hope you all not only got your full refunds back on the excursions, but something extra for the trouble.

[@kellykane7950]

Alisa and Jason i posted this in the 2 fb groups im in as we are going to Amber Cove the last week of October on our cruise on the Freedom. One lady said she was actually thinking of booking this and is glad she saw this..

[@planner722]

When we went to Dominican we hired a private driver (not thru carnival). He drove us all over the island, do anything we wanted. Went to see sloths / monkeys, did an all inclusive beach for 3 hrs (could have stayed longer or shorter- our choice) eat at a small restaurant the locals eat at. We did a lot of other stuff. Best part it was cheap compared to all the other thru carnival and we essentially combined two and half of the excursions they offered. There were several places we would say… pull over here and just take a couple pictures (our driver would take pictures of our family for us also). Correction: I was thinking of Roatan Honduras.

[@Wire-Free]

Name of driver or outfitter please?

[@planner722]

@@Wire-Free sorry… I got my ports mixed up, in Dominican I think we just stayed near the port. It was in Roatan Honduras (I corrected my post). At Roatan is was Victor Bodden Tours that we enjoyed so much.

[@MrsQakakrissie]

DR is one of the most safest ports we have been to , we rented a local cab for the day and he brought us all over to see the culture. And we had our kids . Love love DR . We even flew there to an all inclusive resort for a week in 2019 . Can’t wait to go back.

[@Wpilot673]

We just cruised on Mardi Gras to Amber Cove and went to Casa En Playa and it was really good. It's small but cozy and the service is top-notch. They really make you feel welcome. This was our second time there. I hate that you all had a bad time at Playa Bachata

[@aliciajackson6492]

I'm so glad I watched this video because I was going to book this excursion when I cruise on the Mardi Gras next month. Now I know not to waste my money, Thanks!

[@staceywasham200]

Same here. I’ll be there in feb

[@emilysisco2392]

I’ll be there in March

[@michelealkins616]

Hope it was still quality family time - some of my family’s funniest shared experiences were terrible - yet they crack us up for years to come! My son and I went to a Starbucks in Niagara Falls that had bugs - lots and lots of them - crawling all over the food in the display case! We took video and laugh hysterically every time it comes up in memories!! That’s one part of the trip none of us will ever forget!

[@colleenmeyerkorth679]

I'm just so impressed with your boys' ingenuity in fixing the chairs!

[@paulvandyke7037]

we just were in amber cove on 10/15/21. I was given a deep sea fishing trip excursion by my wife as it has been a bucket list item for a long time. we had a great time , everyone caught something, with a total of 6 mahi mahi, 2 wahoo and one bonito tuna for the 4 hour trip. my beautiful wife just hung out at the amazing free pool area in port and relaxed. I'm sorry you had a bad time, we have enjoyed watching y'alls adventures, hope y'all have many more happy travels.

[@EECCTravels]

That sounds amazing!

[@easypeasy1216]

The good, the bad, and the ugly. We know you truly have good hearts, but these types of reviews are very helpful. Thanks for your honesty, along with a video to back it up.

[@cruiselifeeric]

This video showcases one of my favorite things about cruising. That it is really really hard to have a bad day. Even when things go negative, you're on vacation and there is an awful lot of positives. and sometimes you just have to make your best day with a plan B, like you guys did in summer landing after getting back on the ship.

[@ivansbaby69]

I just want to say the time I spent in the DR its the great people there I asked alot of question about there country when I was there and all answered with truthfulness and great pride genuine people im for 1 going back

[@5781nashmiller]

I appreciate the review; one thing, though--you commented that ". . . it was like a hurricane came thru here and they threw the chairs back on the beach." Isn't that EXACTLY what happened?

[@erikfox3238]

If that's the case this resort should close for repairs, instead of offering a sub par excursion at full price. Would you purchase a car with 50,000 mile on it and be expected to pay the new car price?

[@jeanettelorenzo4112]

Love to watch you spend time with your boys. Good kids giving their perspective is so valuable. Thank you!

[@lamisk5479]

You book a cheap azz cruise to a poverty stricken island not sure what you were expecting.

[@quz908]

I blame Carnival for this. After all, they're partnering with the resort. It's their responsibility to make sure the resort is as top notch as their ship, or there's a problem. And I felt bad for your friends. So now we know.

[@wernstberger]

Thank you so much for warning all of us. So glad you didn't eat any of the food. It's not worth getting sick on your vacation.

[@kennywalker4091]

Let's not forget that 1) they've been closed for 18 months and have no money to make repairs or basic upkeep. 2) they were hit with Tropical Storm Fred just two months ago and were without electricity or water for the longest time. 3) The reviews on Carnival's site were mostly 2 years old. The recent reviews are bad. 29 one star reviews, 11 two star reviews, all complaining about food, chairs and lack of service per skeleton crew. 4) I disregard comments about rocky beaches or water conditions or weather as that cannot be helped. 5) it's a poverty stricken country 6) let's hope Playa makes a lot of positive updates and repairs. I'm glad you did this review as it will help keep others from making the same mistake. I'll share this with my cruise group on Elation that will be there in two weeks. I think I'm going to use the pool and zip line stuff right there at the port. 😉

[@EECCTravels]

All of those bad reviews were since our cruise which was @3 weeks ago. I left one myself. I understand the problems here but Playa Hotels should keep their properties up better. They are a chain, not locally owned.

[@kennywalker4091]

@@EECCTravels I figured that one was yours. 😉 Some of the other comments people made though were a bit over the top. But yeah you're right, as a chain they should pull from other sources to repair and upkeep what they have.

[@certifiablyyours]

Oh no! Sorry for the bad experience. My Husbae, and I will be hitting this port later this year. Thanks for the heads up.

[@williambrittian3726]

As a disabled right leg amputee I would've been extremely upset. Not being able to use the pool. It doesn't any better for the beach. I don't ever use my disability as a excuse for anything.

[@dwightfretwell3998]

We are leaving for a cruise this week. We have watched several of your videos this morning. Subscribed! Thanks for the honest reviews

[@jkconner9636]

The “port” at Amber Cove is very nice. Has a nice pool area & water sports (for rent) plus some shopping. Spend a few hours there & jump back on the ship for a great day. 😀 We didn’t gamble on the excursions based on feed back…

[@nhernandez7028]

It makes me so sad to hear you had such bad experience in my country. I hope you don't stop going because of this. We Dominicans are very hospitable and happy people. So sorry to hear that

[@EECCTravels]

We will be back! We know this was not typical.

[@chuckoneill2023]

Had to click on this immediately. A terrible review is always more interesting than a good one. We didn't do any excursions on our one Amber Cove visit. Kinda glad now.

[@simplyatsea6779]

Doesnt mean all of the excursions are bad. The waterfall and atv one is awesome. ❤️

[@lindaobrien3397]

Did the cruise line give you a refund for that excursion

[@EECCTravels]

Only 50%

[@hairdresser1300]

@@EECCTravels whoa...

[@TheTechDuke]

This video is PURE GOLD.

[@GlobetrotterGranny]

thanks so much for the honest review! I do a lot of research before booking any excursions. So far I’ve been very lucky and have had only good experiences, and I would have been livid if I’d experienced what you did. So glad you had friends to make the best of it with though.

[@julieparker5029]

Excellent video guys. I greatly appreciated your honesty and did not think you were being crybabies for complainers. I'm glad you got 50% refund but it should have been 100%.

[@maryg4551]

We went to a "Lifestyles resort all inclusive beach" excursion and it was fine. Food was good, loungers were good, but the beach wasn't really accessible because of the strong current/waves. So, we went back to the port and really enjoyed our time at the Amber cove port pool.

[@dianehall6686]

Thank you so much for the public service announcement. We’re booked on the Mardi Gras and will be going to the DR, and we appreciate the info. Forewarned is forearmed. Excellent video.

[@Texasgirl10]

Thank you so much for letting us know! 🥰

[@jomamma51]

We did La Casa en La Playa with Carnival in Amber Cove. It was absolutely amazing. No pool but the drinks flowed and the food was just delish!

[@turdferguson7277]

I did this one. Mama was fantastic and the food and drinks were too.

[@CruisingtheworldwithJackie]

I talked to you about this resort while we were sailing away. Nice to see you on board. And glad you did this video. The resort looked so good from the ship

[@reginaobrien8983]

Wow. Thanks for the heads up. Im glad you still enjoyed time with your family. I’m wondering, did they give you the refund?

[@EECCTravels]

We got a 50% refund.

[@twixieshores]

I'm headed to Puerto Plata in January on the Escape. I had to immediately check to see which of the resorts I was booked at. Thanks for being honest you all

[@wendyhorvath415]

I’m not making excuses for the resort and please no hate but didn’t the island just go through a couple hurricanes and also the pandemic I’m sure has affected their ability to do upgrades .

[@monykalynf3604]

Holy crap that food wasn't even pretending to be on safe food handling practices. WOW

[@sherrywagner8449]

Thank u for an honest review. Many vloggers only give positive reviews.

[@EECCTravels]

We try to find the positives but just couldn’t here!!

[@Rnaway123]

We leave this weekend and we will be in Amber Cove. Thanks so much for your honest review! Were you able to get a refund? I also saw another vlog that had a horrible experience there. Thanks for your vlogs. !

[@EECCTravels]

We got a 50% refund

[@davva360]

@@EECCTravels I am surprised they did not refund the whole thing. I would send the link to this video to the CEO.

[@tinaseaboch1364]

@@EECCTravels I bet Royal Caribbean would of refunded 100%.. Thank You Guys for honest reviews

[@dogcrazy25]

@@EECCTravels 50% that's outrageous. Imagine how many people see this. Terrible advertising. You should get 150% refund.

[@karendschaak7658]

Thank you for your honesty I often wonder about the cruise ship Reviews I am now going to check the reviews online for theses resorts !!!!

[@Lealelan]

Thx for the review.. I'm sorry you had that experience and lost your excursion day. Curious, did they refund your money? Hope so!

[@EECCTravels]

They did not but also we could have fought it and probably won but we decided to just cut losses and get on down the road if you know what I mean!

[@travelinhawk4584]

Thanks for the honest review. And now I’ll remember to check both the reviews from Carnival and directly from the resort.

[@ShootinTheBriez]

Best thing to do in Amber Cove is rent one of those Cabanas you can see from pier. My family had the Grand Cabana and it was nice. It comes with unlimited zip line and 2 hours of water activities at no additional cost.

[@BthoWms]

Thanks for the warning; you did right by letting others know.

[@TheRochester]

Thank you so much for sharing this I was going my research on this place…thank god you have saved me the headache..also sorry you had a bad experience

[@EECCTravels]

Glad I could help!

[@johndwhite1972]

I’m here for the first time. I love your family vibe!

[@fernandopineda7036]

Out of the excursion options, you chose the cheap ones. What do you expect?? Lol. The price was just up your alley.

[@michelealkins616]

Thanks for sharing your experience- sorry to see the “resort” sucked. I was there in Aug on Mardi Gras and we did the waterfalls & monkeyland excursion thru Carnival and it was absolutely fantastic.

[@ladylovebx]

Yes monkey land is awesome

[@molara7607]

Wow I would’ve been pissed too. Thank you for honest review

[@pamelafisher7154]

I love watching you guys you guys sure know how to have a great time and I appreciate the videos that you put out for us

[@nancyt8006]

Our friends did a chocolate factory excursion here. Worst ever! They were expecting to see the process of course and maybe get to make some chocolate. Instead, they were planting trees, harvesting the beans and getting dirty. Too much physical work for a tour. They complained to carnival and got refunded. Never fully believe reviews on a cruise line website. If you post something negative, they won't post it.

[@jellokids]

I appreciate your honesty!

[@nicholedorsay1253]

TY TY TY! I've been looking for video reviews on this so I can figure out if we want to do this excursion...I think I've made up my mind lol

[@EECCTravels]

Glad I could help!

[@ellenkester6703]

Where was the excursion in Belise you did. You said how bad it was but not which excursion and where it went.

[@robertfoerster566]

Love the ominous music for the food part. LOL. 🤣 The pool situation is horrible, which means the water isn't going through the filter!

[@staceywasham200]

Thanks for the advice. Wife and I will be there in feb.

[@penelopepitstop762]

We are cruising on the Mardi Gras in 9 days!! I’m so nervous about something going wrong I can not sleep lol. Anyway, we are going to Amber Cove, but truthfully, none of the excursions appealed to me. For the first time ever, we didn’t book any! We may check out the ports because they look nice, but we are mostly excited to see the new ship. My son booked the horseback/zip line excursion with some OBC he has. (We all have a bit of OBC from our cancelled cruise before the pandemic.) That’s a shame your excursion stunk. I hope you also leave a review on Carnival’s website. Sorry such a long post!!

[@stormreform8113]

Omg I love ur videos Love from 🇬🇧🇬🇧

[@EECCTravels]

Thank you 😊

[@travelingaquanauts3137]

So sorry for the bad experience. We go to a AI resort in Freeport Bahamas that gets alot of cruisers on day passes and it is much better than this. It still is not like a Cancun-type mega resort, but it does have a beautiful beach (with serviceable chairs!) and a great snorkeling reef. They do also have a rocky ocean which I think you actually need if you want good snorkeling and sometimes the food (veggies) leave alot to be desired. Hopefully this one has just been bought and they are in the process of updating. Definately Carnival needs to re-evaluate it as an excursion. We had a bad experience in Antigua on a cruise and we did just as you did, took the first shuttle back to the ship! Hope the rest of the cruise was great! Enjoy your vlogs!

[@CreationsByChrisFashionDesign]

Watching this video reminded me of a bad movie, where you would continue to watch to see if there was a good ending. I even felt better to see you enjoy yourself once you were back on the Ship. Thanks for the heads up. I hope the rest of your cruise was enjoyable.

[@adjustableWench]

good to see ur still cruising with the boys!

[@neryrodriguez2158]

THANK YOU! Had the same bad experience at a different resort. Beautiful country, not well prepared for tourism.

[@Giuchini26]

Did you guys get that refund from carnival?? Hope you did!

[@EECCTravels]

Only 50%

[@jennib11]

Good to know. Thank you for the great info. Happy bday boys!!! 🎈🎈🎈

[@fionacharrington7709]

Food poisoning no one wants when on holiday for sure! So glad you managed to get back onboard & enjoy the fresh food there. Side note: your boys are lovely. Polite well rounded young men - well done to you all ✌️👍🙏💕😎👏

[@deborahworpell9516]

why didnt you go to the beach club that on the right once you go through the duty free shop? It is out of pocket but they have a lazy river, zip line, bar with a DJ and restaurant. You can rent umbrellas too. We go every time.

[@fr06hgv]

You can just walk round the headland to get to the cruise beach, then up the road to amber cove......the next door hotel the Merenge is actually worse!!

[@timeisnowbooth5627]

We went to Amber Cove and had a wonderful experience at Ocean World. Different excursions different experiences.

[@teresalewelling7318]

Thank you for letting us know.

[@CptBlysWife93]

We went to Amber Cove in 3/2019 and did a snorkel excursion and had a blast! It was called Freestyle Catamaran.

[@lauriekamp2988]

Thanks for the heads-up about that resort at Amber Cove. I will be there next year in September and have yet to decide where to go for excursions!

[@sunaugvttony7746]

When we went to amber cove in the Dominican we did the outback mega truck excursion and enjoyed it. Itcwas nice to see the countryside away from the tourist area.

[@mellymel3245]

The waterfalls is one of the best excursions i've ever done, second to the bioluminescent bay in Puerto Rico. I'd do it again in a heartbeat. Sorry you picked the short straw :(

[@Kimberlymogan]

We stayed a week in PR and went to bioluminescent bay. Must have been an off time, we seen nothing, can you suggest a good time to go

[@donnawhiting8194]

I love deck 8 as well, it is the best! Sorry your excursion was so a bad. I am going back on the Mardi Gras in Dec and I can't wait to get to deck 8 😀

[@kevingunning675]

My experience with Amber Cove was starting out getting on the open bus and driving by the burning open dump. We did the excursion to the schools and it was very nice kids & teachers were nice and let us see a close up view of daily life. Local lunch at a family house for buried pot chicken. Which was educational but the poverty was so invasive. I got to see and tastes a fresh cocoa Nib from a pod. Then to a beach to learn about boogie boards. The sweat shop factories lined the highways. The Tour guides were paramilitary and groups of "people" were along the trail to the beach. The tour guides herded our groups together and the "groups" melted into the palm trees and under brush. The beach had plastic and metal trash embedded in the sand. The tour guides were really trying to make it work. Did not realize who they were till I saw them walk in lock step. Not going back. I really wish Carnival and the rest of the cruise lines would spruced up the tours and get some money into the economy. Get some of the economy rolling and away from the sweat shops and away from the crooked politicians. The burning dump was a cost overrun gift from the politicians. Everyone we were allowed to meet were nice and personable. I am grateful to Carnival for the experience. I take cruises for the experience of seeing how life is elsewhere. Good bad ugly, it was still better then work. Thank you Carnival for the safe look see behind the real Dominican Republic at Amber Cove..

[@tr852]

The bees on the food!! I'm sorry that made me laugh! I wouldn't have eaten anything, not wanting to get sick!!

[@EECCTravels]

I guess bees are better than flies… but yeah, I wouldn’t eat!

[@Cinder896]

Are you saying the ship is bad or amber cove is bad

[@mrbit10]

wait!? @18:56 Jason has cheers, so do you book two cabins and 1 adult in each and that way only one cheers package?

[@EECCTravels]

Yep, that is what we do 👍

[@nancyrichardson9927]

Glad to see this because we stop there in November. I think we're just planning on the Carnival pool area right at the port.

[@rochelle1117]

That's what my kids and I did when we went there and it was great, plus we didn't waste any time traveling back and forth.

[@QueenSuperJ]

I’m on Carnival in November also, I am so glad I saw this, I might just enjoy Amber Cove from our balcony.

[@markledesma2396]

We did go to an all inclusive in Punta Cana Occidental something back in 2010 and the beach had brown water not blue as in the brochure.

[@vdarienzo]

i know i’m a little late, but super curious after watching if they ended up giving you guys a refund! thank you 😊

[@EECCTravels]

We got a 50% refund, better than nothing.

[@randyo6019]

Wow thanks for warning us! I believe in second chances on most things so hopefully they’ll fix all issues soon. I’m glad y’all didn’t get food poisoning or cripple from beach chairs but dang I’m sorry y’all had such a bad experience!!

[@lucycolon5697]

Thanks so much for this real time review. For the money they ask I would think that carnival would better inspect the places they recommend . I can’t tell you how much I appreciate this as this was a maybe on our upcoming trip. So thanks for not letting us waste our time ! You guys rock!

[@yousetfernandez4796]

Specifically were in Dominican Republic was this excursion? Puerto plata?

[@cherrielipz510]

I was on the mardi gras in sept and amber cove was one of the ports. I did the puerta plata beach excursion with lunch and it was horrible! Most of the beach chairs were broken, there were bees everywhere so you couldn’t put down your drinks, the pool and beach showers were all broken the food at the buffet was so terrible, the beach was very rocky so be careful i stub my feet in the water, took the first shuttle back.

[@melonthemove9376]

Hey really enjoy yall cruise vlogs thanks for sharing your experience with that excursion so no one else will have that experience

[@margaretkersh4027]

I love y'all's videos! Can you tell me where you bought your swim suit? The one you wore to Roatan. I love it!

[@EECCTravels]

It came from Walmart 😃

[@rosey312]

I didn't eat off of buffets before covid but my first concern would have been the self service food during covid. Nothing would have mattered after that.

[@travelingon7458]

I would be afraid of food temperature and getting food poisoning.

[@greentree211]

thank you for being guinea pigs for us so we dont have to go through this!

[@kennywalker4091]

Ditto! 😉

[@TheArtKemist]

Me and my wife have been watching you guys for years and you are all always Positive people . and this location from what i see is terrible the food is not even up to code . from looks alone looks terrible i would never visit this excursion. hope you all got a refund

[@samdjr1ify]

I laughed my a$$ off when he said IKEA

[@lornagoodspeed3331]

Whats the name of this excursion? If said I'm sorry I missed it.going in a couple of weeks and I don't want to do this......

[@jamiemckenna3668]

Oh man what a disappointment. Thank you for your candor -that really sucks!

[@NancySettles]

Sorry you had to go through that horrible experience! Hope you got a refund, but thank you for being honest and posting the review!

[@trishkeller8228]

Omg that food was disgusting- you picked the perfect music. The IKEA comment was brilliant

[@Kimberlymogan]

Ok, I need to cruise with you all!