Meet the biggest Carnival ship of them all

Carnival cuisine
Carnival offers by far the best dining value at sea with a vast array of perfectly prepared dishes. The dinner menus are full of fine dining staples Carnival is known for from large lobster tails and filet mignon to Chilean sea bass and rack of lamb — all are accompanied by an excellent selection of wines. The majority of meals are served in the ship’s two main dining rooms, Golden Pearl Restaurant and Black Pearl Restaurant, that offer dinners in the traditional manner, with assigned times and assigned tables (breakfasts and lunches are open seating). However, the line is toying with the idea of offering some open seat dining.

Carnival’s president and CEO Gerry Cahill says the company is currently testing open seat dining options onboard the Carnival Legend and on Carnival Liberty starting November 1. Cahill says sections in the upper level of the main restaurant are open for guests to dine between 5:45 and 9:30 p.m. Reservations can be made a day ahead of time and if there is a wait passengers are given beepers when seating is not available — Carnival says the wait times have been under 10 minutes. So far, feedback has been very positive. If the program proves to be successful it will be implemented fleet- wide sometime next year.

Still, Cahill expressed concern about the program since the company wants to maintain the close connection passengers have with their dining room waiters — a staple of the Carnival Cruise Lines experience.

Main restaurants aside, Splendor offers abundant round-the-clock dining options. Lido restaurant, the ship’s casual buffet restaurant, is arranged into several serving stations. One area in particular is proving wildly popular — Indian tandoori and the Mongolian barbecue. There are also a pizzeria, deli, hamburger and hot dog grill, pasta station and ice-cream machines. The Pinnacle is Splendor’s supper club restaurant, where for $30 per person you’ll get a six course gourmet meal.

Another dining option is the sushi bar on Promenade Deck and the Rotisserie on Panorama Deck serving chicken with the line’s signature spice rub and of course there is 24-hour room service.

If you go
Splendor is on an interesting schedule for the next year. It will continue to sail in Europe and then will offer a partial winter schedule in the Caribbean out of Fort Lauderdale. There are two repositioning cruises for its South America voyages. One leaves Fort Lauderdale for Buenos Aires in January; the second will be from Santiago to San Francisco on March 3.

Long Beach, Calif., will be the permanent year-round home for Splendor, with seven day cruises to the Mexican Riviera starting March 29. Prices start from $499 per person based on double occupancy.

Sound off! Do you have a comment, an idea, a complaint or a problem for Anita to solve? Send her an e-mail and you might find yourself in her next column. And check out her blog, ExpertCruiser.com.

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