detroitreds

Hi everyone, It's my first time posting on a Carnival board. We've traditionally been Royal Caribbean cruisers, but looking at trying Carnival. My 10 year old son has been on the Royal Caribbean Oasis class ships 3 times, and loves it. I was wondering if someone here might have a son roughly the same age that did both kid's club on Oasis and Excel class ships? Would the Carnival kids club have many physical activities to do within their space (tag, dodge ball etc...). I see that they have plenty of video games and TVs on YouTube, but would an active 10 year get bored after an hour? The older age groups seem to have more to chose from. Do they do outings, or stay in their space? I don't know anyone that has been on the Excel class ships, so my perspective is only based on the short videos I was able to find. I understand that filming is likely prohibited when the kids club is opened. I would appreciate any feedback.

I tried searching this topic, but most of the results are on how to get cruise discounts, or excursion discounts. We had attended a shopping seminar on our last cruise. We were made to believe that it would give us access to "special" discounts. We were given a coupon booklet, but I'm not sure it was worth the 1 hour speech on how great Diamonds International is (and the rest of the partner companies like Effy). Apart from the raffles that they advertise in advance for port shops, can one get the same deals when it port? The seminar felt more or less like a sales pitch to make purchases, where they will suggest you give them the name of the presenter to unlock some "deals". With all the cruise lines and ships that dock in ports, I somehow doubt that an owner will only offer discounts to a select few if asked. I agree that someone should purchase items where the price feels comfortable, and I'm also aware that passengers are targets for some stores, especially in the designated port shopping areas. I know it's a vague question, but any advice on how we can gain an advantage? Off the top of my head, waiting until the last minute might be an example.

I recall hearing about a store in old San Juan that served multiple flavors of popcorn. I've been looking for some place to bring our 7 year old boy. I've seen where they may have closed down. Apart from the typical souvenir shops, is there a place that would wow a 7 year old boy not too too far away from the cruise port (nothing historic like the castles).