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What time did you go to dinner? Guy's closes at 6pm doesn't it?

Being on 2 ships in 6 weeks, the Guy's had different hours. On the Pride in March, the hours were 12 (11?) - 6. Just off the Conquest, the hours were 12-2ish, and 6-9:30.

This is printed on the price protection form--By selecting yes, if a guaranteed rate is found you will lose your assigned stateroom number.

 

Doesn't that sound like you could upgrade from an assigned interior to an unassigned OV cabin?

dapaddo, thanks... checked... NOTHING :(

Yes, you can upgrade from an assigned interior to a GTY OV. However, you give up the ES status at that point and are waiting to get a cabin when Carnival starts setting them for GTY.

I have been watching the Glory for September 5 (7 nights). It is still showing ES Last Call. I would like to book it while I am on the Victory on May 16 (16 days from now) to get the $100 OBC, and am afraid ES will be gone and the price will rise before then. Anybody have any theories?

Have you contacted Carnival and asked them this question? They would probably be the best place to start. If you have a PVP, ask that person.

I just went to the Carnival website and also do not see anything regarding a 12 hour sale.

But to answer the ES question, you can price match to any offer as long as you can select the cabin. Matching to a Guarantee offer is not valid.

For the first time, I booked Splendor while ON Splendor for next Feb. It was an ES price, with $100 obc for booking onboard. I specifically asked if I would lose this obc if the price dropped, and was told no. So far, no price drop (I check every day) but it will be interesting to see what happens when/if there is one!!

I've done this a few times and have worked through the price drops. Just double check the change after the price drop to make sure the 100 OBC stays with your booking. They have to do an extra step to keep it on the booking; but they will put it back on if it gets dropped off. You just need to be vigilant.

I thought the exchange rate was set by the banks......:confused:

 

I know my credit card charges me a higher fee for transactions outside the US. But I would have assumed that whether you book through NCL or CCL your Canadian vs. USD exchange rate would be the same.

when you book with the Carnival website, I am sure it represents US dollars. If you pay with a credit card, the credit company (e.g. Chase) will perform the exchange rate between the US and Canadian currencies.

There are some credit cards that do not charge exchange rate fees. You may want to look into those when traveling internationally.

we were on the pride for 14 days with late seating and a table of 6. After a couple of days, we (ok, I instigated :) ) started moving into different seats around the table. Gave each of us different views of the dining room and it was not a problem with the wait staff. They actually started joking with us around day 9 about the nightly shift.

Go ahead and move, there are no assigned seats at the table :)

My family and I are cruising in July on the Breeze. I brought a FTTF because I have two smaller kids, and I don't want to be waiting in lines with a 2yr old and 5yr old. This is our first time tendering so I'm trying to understand it. I know we will get priority tendering with FTTF in Grand Cayman, but we have a Carnival sponsor excursion scheduled in the Cayman also. Will we need to use the FTTF to get off the ship for the excursion or do Carnival have an area on the boat where we meet to get to our excursion & fttf will not be needed? How do we get back on the boat when the excursion is over? TIA for any information.

You will get a notice the NLT evening before your excursion telling you where to meet. You will not need the FTTF for this. Getting back to the ship you just go back to where you got off and wait for the next tender. No priority on return to the ship.

We were just in Grand Cayman and it was very easy both ways.

It was actually warmer in September in our three cruises then, than out cruise in July. Also, the water/air differential is much less in September, so the chancing of fog diminish drastically.

We had fog/mist/light rain all day in Halifax and into the next morning; which was unfortunate. There were multiple pods of porpoises and some whales the morning after leaving Halifax. The porpoises came right up to the ship, the whales much harder to see in the fog.

probably, the same as you the 13th.

great. There is a roll call page setup for the cruise. Join us when you want.

Yes, the Splendor is enjoyable did a Caribbean cruise on it last June. I think I will book an inside, I really enjoyed being on it was previously on the Glory. On the Caribbean cruise I enjoyed having the balcony, when on the Glory for a four day to St. John did not use the Balcony much so when it comes down to choosing probably an inside for this particular cruise would be best for me. I enjoyed the Market in St. Johns looking forward to going there again. So that's it a done deal Canada here I come in September...whoops, almost forgot have to ask my boss for the time off. You know what I will be doing first thing Monday morning.

If you don't mind me asking, which Sunday are you looking at for September? We are on the 13th.

I was intending to do the 4 day from New York to Canada in June but now have been looking at the 7 day from New York to Canada in September. Why is it so hard to choose sometimes? Has anyone done this trip and can give some insight for me. I know it will probably be cooler but I tell myself regardless just getting away is a bonus. Tell me your feelings please !!

Also, although my last two cruises I had a balcony I am thinking of going with a porthole this time, can anyone tell me what those cabins are like?

 

Thanks !!

Jeffrey, we did this cruise last September and loved it so much, we are going back and doing it this September too. The weather is cooler (but not sure how it compares in June) than the Carib cruises, but that was expected. We had fleeces and jeans with us for the days, which were ok. I will have gloves and a hat next time. The days were warm in the 60s/70s but the late afternoons, early mornings, and evenings on the ship were much cooler. Did go on the slide most of the days but it was definitely a cold one.

The ports are beautiful. Wish there was more time in St John since I would love to hike in Fundy. But there was a provincial park nearby which we rented a car and drove there. Was beautiful hiking along the coast, watching the tides change.

Not sure about the balcony or OV since we book interiors and only in the cabin to sleep, shower, change clothes. We love to people watch and are on deck a lot. The Splendor is a beautiful ship, IMO. Some people don't like the decor but if you look past that, it is a great ship to travel on.

Steve

Try this: guestadmin@carnival.com

You can send me a private email at cnoel1224@yahoo.com thanks!

sent you one yesterday, did you receive it?

No special lunches on the Pride - in fact, I was very surprised to discover that when I went to dinner in the dining room one night, several of the dishes were repeated from the lunch I had in the dining room earlier that day!

 

Also disappointed in only two Seaday Brunches out of our eight sea days - and one of those was on a Friday, so I couldn't enjoy my yummy Huevos Rancheros. ;)

 

As for formal nights, never more than two on the long sailings I've done previously; the third one on the Pride was a big surprise especially after John and Jase both confirmed ahead of time that there would only be two. Weird!

According to my wife and some friends we met onboard, the Huevos Rancheros were very tasty at the Burrito bar.

We were on the 14-day repo from Tampa to Baltimore, our first experience on the Pride but not on Carnival. A splendid cruise. Hovering in the background, probably working on future projects, was John Heald, the brand's chief cruise director. He held an incredibly informative 90-minute Q & A.

 

The biggest news was that when the Pride gets its wi-fi upgraded next month -- as one of the last ships in the fleet -- passengers will be offered unlimited wi-fi for $25 a day. On our sailing, I ponied up $169 for a wi-fi that barely worked.

 

This is Carnival's realization that all the fruits of digitalization -- from selfies to tweets -- are now so much part of our lives that the availability has to be offered on cruises too. Carnival is trying to cope with lots of similar lifestyle issues. Heald said certain hot items -- he mentioned chicken wings -- will soon be available from room service.

 

As to entertainment, hit and miss, but it was free. Carnival has increasingly abandoned bands in favored to canned background orchestra. The maitre 'd turned out to be a pretty good Frank Sinatra type crooner. He did a song a night in the MDR and then one long show in the atrium.

 

Carnival has released many longer itineraries in recent weeks and more is to follow later this month. Think Greenland.

Hey I remember that cruise too...

LIKE!!!! :)

My signature says it all. 14 days on the pride

Enjoy it... just make sure you have some warm clothes for the beginning and the end of the cruise :)

Yes I can imagine how much "stuff" people would be bringing for a 14 day trip. Also most people with the ability to do a 14 day would be platinum or diamond I would think. Also I think most people being seniors on that cruise there wouldn't be too many passengers using self assist.

We had two big suitcases and a small carryon type. Did laundry once for me. About 1/3 the ship was diamond/platinum. Yes LOTS of seniors. We heard two average ages, 68 and 75. A grand total of 45 kids (under 18) on board.

How did you book them privately? And do you recommend any excursions in Nassau?

 

Thanks!

Go to the Nassau page here in Cruise Critic. There will be recommendations for excursions and vendors. You can also look at Trip Advisor or just search the internet for excursions at Nassau

Just got off the Pride, no chocolates. I always brought them home and froze them. Much better that way!!!

Howdy!

I have cruised numerous times in the past but I was never the one actually booking them and I had a few questions.

 

Are passports required?

 

What are the best shore excursions in Nassau?

 

If we don't book an excursion, are we allowed to just explore the island on our own?

 

I know these might be silly questions but its been a while since I've gone on a cruise. Any advice would be great! Thanks so much!

Passports are NOT required but preferred. You can use a birth certificate and photo id instead.

Yes, you can explore anything on your own either with Carnival, a private tour operator, or just yourself wandering around.

Not sure about Nassau since it depends on your preference of shore excursions.

When is family and friends going on?

F&F is a certificate that is good for up to 60 days after a booking onboard. You need to know someone to get this certificate and to get the extra OBC for this, you need to book the same ship and date.

We just got back from the 14 night Pride repositioning cruise where we experienced the 3 person team for the first time. Maybe because late dining wasn't at capacity but we found the service to be some of the best. One of the servers was always around and checking on us - even when the other two were at different tables or getting the food, it seemed like there was always someone available.

 

I think service depends much more on the people than on anything else. At breakfast and lunch in the dining room, we experienced a variety of serving teams, some were super efficient and some were just plain terrible.

Trisha, I have to agree with you about the Pride. We had a VERY competent 3-person team for late dinner. Plus, when they were doing their day jobs, they always had time to chat with us as we saw them; which I thought was very special and mentioned it to the Maitre'D.

Breakfast and Brunch service was awful. Took 90 minutes each of the two times. And I heard that was pretty standard.

Steve

We have always done the "self assist" and I don't think we would ever do it any other way. We're 33 and as long as we can roll our luggage, I see no reason to have to go through the hassle of baggage claim any more than we have to. We just rolled it right on out ourselves and if we want to leave the ship early, we have always been able to leave VERY early. I think a lot of people who do it either have a lot of bags, (We always each have one large rolling suitcase + 1 carryon that can sit on top of the large bag), people with children who cannot carry their bags, or people who struggle carrying their bags in general. Or people who just want to stay on the ship longer!

 

Both times we have done it, we have literally arrived at the airport before 9am. This was in Ft. Lauderdale though.

Just did self-assist on the Pride in Baltimore from a 14-day repo. They do call Diamond/Platinum first. Then people needing extra assistance; then FTTF. On the Pride, there were almost 700 Diamond/Platinum and 60 FTTF. But most of the Diamond/Platinum chose the Zone 1 disembark. Took us 15 minutes from docking to getting off the ship. Some people were lugging WAY too much, and even the security near customs made that comment.