jsglow

Yep. And gamblers are notorious liars. Those people actually pay premiums, even if some convince themselves they don't. Carnival doesn't do that to lose money. Promise.

Remember @wardwhitty, that's per person. So if both you and your traveling companion are Plat you can both take advantage so it really amounts to 10 bags in that case. Plenty. We find that we do laundry every 3rd day or so and are never stuffing the bag to make it happen. Usually back the next morning but be forewarned that it might certainly be 2 days on a Journeys cruise as so many will qualify.

Fantastic choice. She's one of my very favorite ships. Most of the 'bells and whistles' of the big boats following her conversion a few years ago without the gargantuan size. We're excited to be sailing her twin sister Radiance to Hawaii next winter.

For a 5 nighter, I'm a big Sunrise fan out of Miami. Better get to it pronto. Few cabins remain.

I think what actually happened @kwokpotis that the gamblers ran out of $$! 🫣

No doubt they are already successfully marketing 'ultra long' cruises, typically associated with dry docks or repos. I'm thinking of the trans Pacs to shuttle Luminosa between Alaska and Australia, the Panorama Singapore dry dock, and several Cadiz trans Atl drydocks. Personally what I'd really like to see is a South American circumnavigation but Carnival never goes that way for a 'work related' reason. I do think ongoing Middle East conflict may weigh heavily in any decisions. Those rerouting logistics had to be a nightmare this winter for the '24 world cruises.

Look, on a going forward basis, 7 day Carnival cruises are likely not getting any farther than Grand Turk or Amber Cove. Throw in a Celebration Key stop and HMC after the pier gets built and they control 100% of your spend. Plus they save gas. There's huge demand for that kind of product, especially on these extra fancy new builds. Doesn't interest me in the slightest but that's where the mass markets are going.

Well it's certainly a different type of cruising @bg2310 and not for everyone but we have found our multi-week European experiences to be fantastic. Personally, our cruise preference is to see new and different places. Judging from the success Carnival has had over there these past 3 seasons I'm guessing they think there is a market for this. Certainly RCCL does.

Here's a linked article. We likely wouldn't consider the whole thing but I bet we'd consider a particularly interesting segment or two. I suspect this wouldn't be before '25 or '26 as folks can't do that on a whim. But at least they're seemingly floating a test balloon. https://www.cruisehive.com/carnival-cruise-line-hints-at-possible-world-cruise/129053 What say you?

Back in the day, I believe all their San Juan departures were 10p. As you said, they could practically drift over to St. Thomas by morning. Plus it afforded folks to fly in that day quite reasonably if they chose. AND it meant passing by the fort when it was all light up at night. Man I miss sailing from San Juan.

Yeah, while I'd personally be a fan, I don't think a Spirit sized ship is ever going to be in the works for Carnival. HAL? Different story.

Yep. In fact my PVP once 'yelled' at me (we're actual friends) saying 'that's what I'm here for'.

Whatever. I have more important issues in my life. Have a nice day.

No, it was an inartfully chosen phrase; not a 'lie'. 🙄

So here's what I'm remembering. Boarding began as normal about 11a if memory serves. But unlike in Miami (or any other American port for that matter), there isn't a crush of people at the outset. Rather, they trickle in throughout the day. We took the train down in the morning, had coffee and pastries at the local shop in town, then walked to the port bus loading area and went to the ship. We were surprised NOT to find a big crowd as one normally would here in the US. There were people, sure, but not the masses early in the boarding process. I'm thinking that our train might have left Rome at 8:30a and arrived in Civitavecchia around 9:30a. Further details are sketchy for me as this was in '22. Also understand that because most folks board mid afternoon or later, Carnival MAY have simply pushed the start into the afternoon so I can't comment on the most recent procedure from the '23 season.