BTromboneFrack

I love to go to the lowest open deck on nights when the waves are really rough.   It thunders like Niagara Falls and is VERY dramatic.  

We signed up for 6 "free" cruises.  Port fees, taxes, gratuities not included, but it's a great deal.   We leave on our first one this Saturday.  After the benefits they are giving us (casino play  and return of deposit), our 10 day Alaska cruise this summer will cost my wife and I a total of $75.00.  HOWEVER, be careful.  Make SURE it is really from Carnival because there are some unscrupulous "travel agencies" that are saying they are offering free cruises from Carnival and they really are not.    I checked their phone number online and the most common thing to pop up with it was the Better Business Bureau. 

We are in our early 60's and my wife uses a walker.   We've sailed Carnival and Disney most of the time.   Since our kids have now moved out, (and Disney got to be REALLY expensive), we now are with  Carnival and have always enjoyed the relaxed atmosphere and the wide variety of people you see on Carnival  While we don't party hard, we enjoy watching the kids and adults enjoying themselves.   I once was speaking to a guy on the balcony of his Holland American ship and he asked us what we was going to happen on our Carnival ship that night.   I told him that since it was New Years Eve, we'd probably have parties going until 2 or 3.   He told us that he wished he was on our ship, because it gets real quiet on his after 10 PM.

6 minutes ago, med2cruise said:

We are going on Carnival Pride in November and were going to try the Steakhouse for the first time.  Are we better off waiting to make the reservations when we get on the ship or prior to boarding?  Is he free or 1/2 price wine only for reservations made on the ship?

 

Thanks for your help!

Make the reservations now if you can.   You can always cancel later if you can't make it.

We've done the steakhouse on the first night for the last 6 cruises we've been on.   You get half price bottle or a free wine at the table.   They used to do both.   Not sure if they do now.    Did the Dom Perignon once (bucket list).    The Steaks are GREAT.   The service has been wonderful.   The lobster bisque was great.   I've also done the oysters and that was fun.   The Art at the Table dessert is an adventure and surprisingly filling.   Never seen anything like it and the tastes were really interesting.   We met another couple who have been on dozens of cruises on different lines and they told us the service and the food in the Carnival steakhouses are as good as ANY they ever experienced - even the "luxury" cruise lines.   Enjoy.

OK, we will be driving to the cruise across parts of the country we are unfamiliar with.   How does one get a COVID test when they won't be staying in any one place for more than one night?   

Don't gamble HUGE amounts but just before the COVID I won some money at the beginning of the cruise and then spent it throughout the week.   Carnival thinks I'm a big gambler now, and coming out of COVID, I had three offers with 4 redemption on each offer.   It means we had 12 "free" cruises  (aside from taxes, port fees, insurance and gratuities).  These Premium Offers were too good to turn down, so we now have six cruises coming up.   I was shocked however, about how much people spend.   On that same cruise a year and a half ago, some lady told me she was down $3000, - and we'd only been cruising for two hours.  I'll never be in that league.

I just retired after 39 nine years of teaching.   Went crazy last weekend and book SIX

 cruises in the next year and a half.   Maybe its my push back from the COVID.   Maybe it's the offers from Carnival.    Maybe its just the time to bucket list everything possible.   Whatever, the ocean will be blue and the palm trees will be green.   

You know, there was a time when nobody thought Cancun, Roatan, or Costa Maya would ever be a place that had the infrastructure to accommodate cruisers.   While it might take awhile, the money generated by cruise lines in the Great Lakes would open the politicians and business entrepreneur's eyes.   There certainly is some hurdles, but if the cruise companies and cities follow the money trail, there is a pot of gold waiting for everyone.

My wife and I are both vaccinated.   If everyone is vaccinated, Carnival may be the safest place on Earth to be.   Can you imagine the protocols for the cleaning crew nowadays?   It is in the cruise line's BEST interest to be ULTRA safe.    Before the pandemic, studies proved that cruise ships were actually SAFER than hotels in respect to spending disease.   No worries on any of these cruises.

We've gone to the steakhouse on the first night on every cruise in the last 5 years.   It's never crowded and it is nice having a good long time to get ready before dinner.   

I had open heart surgery in October of 2015  and I was on a ship that December.   If your doctor says its OK, go!!!  I looked at it as getting back on the horse, and even if I did check out, a ship was a pretty good place to do so.

Our first cruise was on the Festivale, out of San Juan in 1987.   I almost didn't want to do a cruise, because I felt we were paying for a lot of things and probably wouldn't be able to do them all.    We were used to just going to a nice resort and hitting the beach.   After getting on the ship though, and watching the ocean for 7 days, I found it to be, by far, the most relaxing vacation I could have.   The service was great.   The food was amazing!!!  The ship was HUGE - (HA).   I remember a Greek ship docked next to us t one port and snapped their bow lines.   All the Italian officers were laughing at the Greek ship at the time and I found out there was a quite a rivalry between the Greeks and Italians on the cruise ships.   Now we cruise every chance we get, and when this COVID goes away and I retire someday, we'll be on several cruises a year.   Festivale - Thank you -- and RIP.

I went on the Marine Traffic Live website to see where all the Carnival ships were and there are a bunch that are just wandering out at sea at a very slow pace.   I thought most of them would have docked to save fuel.   I also thought maybe it was a glitch, but the ships are showing up in significantly different places from day to day.   Any idea what is going on?

Belize 2018 on the Magic, looking out on the Legend as we leave at sunset.....

The Festivale, New Years 1988 - Puerto Rico, St. Thomas, St.Maartin, Barbados, Martinique.  I remember being amazed at how relaxing it was to watch the ocean.   Never had been pampered like that on a vacation before.   

I find the Carnival experience to be very similar on all of the ships we've been on, which have been the Fantasy class, Conquest class, and the Magic.  There are differences, but the service and food have been more alike than different on the ships we've been on.   I would imagine if we had kids, the experiences would be different because of the new stuff on the new ships the kids would enjoy.   

We've done a number of aft wraps.   We're not picky on our itinerary or where we leave from, but we love the view and the privacy of the aft wrap, so we pretty much take the best itinerary that still has one open.    It's closest we can be to being outside while cruising.  We never have to fight for a deck chair and we can have dinner with a view any time we want.

Son't know about the size of the balcony you are talking about.   Every type is a little different.   However, be prepared.... Our experience is once you go to a balcony, you can never go back.   There is nothing like hearing the ocean whenever you want.

I would feel comfortable putting the scooter in a a corner somewhere on the deck you wish to leave it on and take the key.   My DW did that in a number of places around the ship and then she came back for the scooter when she needed it.

We've done a bunch of Carnival cruises, 3, 5, 7, 8 day cruises.   We've found Carnival to be very similar across the fleet.    The food and service are very consistent in our experience.   The entertainment has been up and down.   Nothing really bad, but some outstanding.   The best show we ever saw was the Cuban show on the Paradise.    I've heard the comedy is always good.   

Waking up in the middle of the night and listening to the ocean as we sail to our new destination - then going out on the balcony for awhile and seeing other ships on the horizon, the stars at night and the clouds as they try to obscure the moon.   The warm breeze and the hiss of the ocean below us is sometimes better than sleep itself.

On 10/15/2019 at 5:37 PM, jbwilson1988 said:

I am going to try to resurrect this again. I am in Room 7453 on Carnival Freedom in April. We upgraded from a regular balcony for only $50 more. My only concern is engine noise. Has it been bothersome for anyone else? Also, as far as looking at Stars, is there more light at the back of the ship near these type balconies?

Good to get this thread going again.  We have had aft wraps on the Conquest (3rd time this Christmas), Liberty, Valor, and Glory.  We've been on all three decks (6,7,8).  We've never had engine noise.   When in higher waves, there was a slight vibration, but it was nice to go to sleep to.  All the wraps are essentially the same, but the 8th deck wrap is a bit longer.   There is a nice covered area on the side of the wrap where you can look down to the front of the ship.   Nice place to go if it's raining.  As for the stars, you can see them, but there is enough ambient light from other places on the ship to wash out some of the stars.   I think the best place to see stars might be near the bridge, on one of the observation decks.  

Cruised on the Glory out of NOLA this summer and loved it.   Maybe I just don't notice if the chairs are worn, but I didn't see any of that stuff.   Just like on every one of the Carnival Cruises we've been on, the crew were all very friendly.   EVERYONE said hi with a smile as we passed them in the hallways.   Back on the Conquest at Christmas.   We've been on a number of the Conquest ships and they are all pretty much the same, just different themes for their decorating.  

On 10/5/2019 at 2:27 AM, themnms said:

I am sailing with my Grandmother so will park at the port as I have to get her mobility scooter out. Does anyone know if they have handicapped parking. Will it be easy for me to get to the terminal with her. Last time we sailed from Nola she did not have mobility issues.

 

thanks in advance

My wife has mobility issues too.   They do have handicapped parking right next to the elevators, however, they were already filled up when we got there.   It was easy to get to another parking spot and do a short walk.  Carnival is great at getting handicapped people into the right lines and through the system.