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dkmarionaz

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    Question about on board credit

    in Carnival Cruise Lines

    Posted

    A refundable onboard credit is one in which someone (you, travel agent, etc.) has actually paid funds for or could be an amount added to your account instead of a refund for a price drop. A non-refundable onboard credit is one that may be given to you by the cruiseline as part of a promotion when you booked.

     

    Perfect - thank you!

    Review - Carnival Miracle/Mexican Riviera 9/5-12

    in Carnival Cruise Lines

    Posted · Edited by dkmarionaz

    My husband and I sailed on the Miracle to the Mexican Riviera from Sept 5 - 12. I've always found reviews helpful so I thought I'd throw mine in the ring...

     

    We have each cruised once before -- once on Celebrity (10 years ago) and once on Royal Caribbean (20 years ago, on this same Mexican Riviera itinerary). This was our first Carnival cruise.

     

    We live in Phoenix and drove over on Friday, September 4. We stayed at the Best Western on Long Beach Blvd. It was an older hotel but for $175 or so it was worth it for the night to be able to be close to the port on Saturday morning and to be able to park our car for the week. It was an older hotel but clean. The shuttle driver from the hotel to the port on Saturday morning was very nice. Dropped us right near the entrance with our bags.

     

    We purchased Faster to the Fun (FTTF). Without a doubt -- worth every single penny. We arrived at the terminal about 11am and were on the ship about noon. The line to check in was LONG -- felt good to walk on by!

     

    We made our way to the Lido deck to grab some lunch first. We got to our room by 1:30p and our bags arrived about 2:30p.

     

    We had an issue with Guest Services properly applying some amounts to our Sail and Sign card -- long story but we should have had $1,000 -- they only showed $583 or something and it took two freakin' hours to get it straightened out. It was simple math, and a simple issue -- I had the backup, emails, etc for all of it -- but it took 2 hours to get someone to really help us, and it was only after I got forceful did I find someone that would actually listen to me. I was nice through it all, but sure was frustrated!!

     

    Our room was 8178 -- great location, mid-ship, near the elevators but not too close. Extended balcony was really nice to have. Room was spacious -- I'd read so many reviews about lack of space and bringing hanging organizers and such. That must be for the inside cabins because we had more than enough room. Hanging areas, shelves, six shelves in the bathroom -- all plenty for the two of us. Small fridge, safe, comfortable bed. Ernesto was our cabin steward -- very nice. We would come back in the afternoons and take a nap before heading to dinner -- when we got back, he'd already been in and out leaving our towel animal and Fun Times for the next day.

     

    I'd read about bringing a (new, wrapped) extension cord but he shared if he found it, he'd have to confiscate it. We used it each night (CPAP machines) but put it in the closet each day and it wasn't a problem.

     

    We made reservations at Nick & Nora's Steakhouse for the first night to get our free bottle of wine ;) I'd read nothing but GREAT reviews. We had an 8pm reservation. We arrived at 7:50pm and were promptly seated at the first table at the top of the stairs -- and then forgotten and ignored for 20 minutes. It was crazy -- people walked by us, we walked about our server, and either got grunts or shoulder shrugs... Finally, at 8:15p -- we walked out. Told by the manager why we were leaving, and she apologized and said she'd call us the next day to make it right. This was Saturday night and by Tuesday morning, I still hadn't heard anything. It was still bothering me -- it was our anniversary and that was supposed to have been a nice dinner on Saturday night... I called again and the head of the food & bev dept called me personally, apologized for the service and invited us back. We decided to give them another shot and went that night. It was amazing -- they apologized profusely (sounds like something was going on among the servers and we were caught in the middle of it). We had an amazing dinner, they honored the free bottle of wine from Saturday night, made us a special dessert for our anniversary and brought two glasses of champagne and when it was time to pay -- they'd comped the entire bill because of the issue we'd encountered. They even delivered chocolate covered strawberries to our room for our anniversary. What started out as a really bad first impression ended on a very positive note -- I'd definitely recommend the Steakhouse for at least one night. We ran into the food and beverage manager a few times over the cruise and he was always very kind, came and shook our hands, asked how we were enjoying the cruise, etc.

     

    The dining room food, for the most part, was also very good. Years ago on Royal Caribbean, I remember being in awe of Cherries Jubilee being set aflame tableside -- and while there was nothing like that, it was good food with good staff. If you can, request Carlos -- he was wonderful. He's been on ships for 26 years and will take good care of you. There was another really great guy -- I forgot his name, but it sounded like Sexy and that's what he went by ;)

     

    As for the Lido deck food -- it was all pretty good to decent. Nothing to write home about, but it didn't suck ;) Pizza was a bit greasy for my taste, but the salad bar was good, we liked the Deli and the breakfast options were good.

     

    Entertainment -- The Flying Scotsman (Chris Matthews) is NOT to be missed. He's just amazing. He's also the lead singer in a few other productions including 88 Keys and was just fanstastic. We liked all of the productions at night except the Beach themed one -- my husband fell asleep. Comedy Club was fun -- we made a few of the 18+ shows and laughed our asses off. GOOD stuff ;)

     

    The band in the Red Frog Pub -- Designated Divers -- was a ton of fun. Versatile, talented, great. We really loved the RFP too -- spent a lot of time there. Lancelot, one of the bartenders, was so kind -- talkative, told us about his family, his 21 years on ships, etc. And knew how to make a mean drink ;)

     

    There was a female "artist" named "Wonder" -- saw her a few times and honestly, she was horrible. We also sat next to her at dinner one night -- she was with a passenger -- but we could overhear part of their conversation and she was very critical of the experience of being a musician on board, critical of the passengers, etc. She was in the RFP one night -- Designated Divers was playing, they took a break and she stepped in -- and half of the place left. I mean -- it was really bad.

     

    Cory Rogers, the Cruise Director was on his way out -- I think we were his last cruise (?) -- and I believe Saffie is the new CD. She was fun, spunky, cheerful and lively -- I think she'll be great when she does take over.

     

    Debarkation was a breeze, again thanks to FTTF. Highly, highly recommend -- we were sold out at 2124 people and only about 30 FTTF were sold -- so easy. We ate breakfast in the dining room at 7:30am, were off the ship at 8:45am, through Customs and to the hotel (after a long wait for the shuttle driver) by 10am and on the road to Phoenix by 10:05am. If we hadn't had FTTF, we wouldn't have gotten off the ship until after 9:30am.

     

    All in all, a great cruise, great memories -- and we booked our next cruise this afternoon ;)

    Frustrated with Carnival.com

    in Carnival Cruise Lines

    Posted

    I'm trying to book shore excursions (we leave in a week) and their website won't allow me to book or filter/search. I've tried IE, Chrome and Firefox -- and I've rebooted. Is there a secret to getting their website to work properly? We booked a year ago, and I still have to put my booking number in each and every time (along with last name, DOB, ship, date of sailing - seems once I log in, that should all be automatic.

     

    Just frustrated; any advice will be appreciated ;)

    FTTF - embarkation time?

    in Carnival Cruise Lines

    Posted

    Hi all --

     

    We have purchased FTTF for an upcoming Mexican Riviera cruise out of Long Beach. I can't seem to find anywhere what time we can board the ship -- I've searched the forums but can't find it either (it must be here somewhere) -- does anyone know?

     

    Thanks much!

    :D

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