moongal

My first cruise we wrapped duct tape all around over and over our suitcases we left out in the hall. I did that to make our luggage stand out so we could locate it quickly. I bought some duct tape that was printed with gummy bears. I think it would also deter thieves because unless they had an exacto knife to cut through all the tape it would take them forever to undo all the tape. It sure took me a long time once I got home! Even with all the duct tape tho I did not put anything of any value in the suitcases except a bunch of dirty laundry.

We did self debark/disembark (which is the correct term???) on our last cruise and will always self debark/disembark from now on.

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We found a Game Boy and a little Velcro bag with all of the little games that go with it under the bed. I felt so bad for the kid who lost it. We turned it in to Guest Services. Hope the kid got it back!

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I have only one wish that would make balcony rooms perfect. And that would be an automatic timer that turns out the balcony lights every night at 9 pm and has it so that the lights cannot be turned on. In fact do away with the light on the balcony all together.

On my last cruise my neighbors had theirs on for most of the night. It kinda ruined sitting and watching the stars. Also the light shown in through the cracks in the curtain. I like the darkness at night to see the stars etc. I don't mind someone having it on if they want to read or something but keeping it on all nite is rude Imo.

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$20 bucks does wonders.

Not always!!

On my first sailing on the Magic we had an awesome steward. He came twice a day, kept room spotless, brought ice made us all feel special. I had tipped him $20 in the beginning and gave even more at the end. (And of course paid the auto gratuities)

On my next cruise on the Liberty I had the same expectations and gave the steward $20 the first day, asked for ice and that was the last I ever saw of him. Only got ice sporadically but mostly it was just melted water in my little cooler. Room was barely serviced. Like bare minimum.

I really don't like having to ask for ice. I wish it was like a hotel and I could just get my own. Anyway in this case my extra $ did absolutely nothing to improve service.

Perhaps on my next cruise coming up I will withhold extra tipping till the end.

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Just finished cruise from San Juan May 5-14. Ship is old and as a result the AC was ineffective in our Junior suite. The Guest Service desk made us feel like we were over critical of a room that would not cool down until 3 am in the morning. We could not take advantage of great views from our deck because doing so meant the room would heat up even more. Room measured 75F at 8:00pm. They measured temp right below the AC vent. Room was V11. This was my 5th cruise and never had trouble till now. Do not book this cruise!

 

 

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We live in Houston and keep our thermostat on 80 during the summer. We would freeze at 75.

My daughter though, keeps her house at 72 at night and it is like sleeping in a refrigerator to me. She complains about our house being too hot though. I guess everyone has their own comfort zones. I do think though that the AC system on each ship should be in such a condition so that each guest could have their cabin set to their own comfort temp.

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I have used these capsules. Just be aware to drink lots of water with the capsule, plus your mmm.. urine will turn red like blood (almost.) But they do the trick.

What brand of capsules were you using?? I have never had urine turn red from using cranberry capsules!! That doesn't sound healthy! Maybe they used dye in the capsules?

The best cranberry capsules are Ellura. They are quite expensive (you can order them on Amazon if you can't find) but they definitely do not turn your urine red! If the problem is a UTI these capsules work very well to prevent. This is the only brand my doctor recommended to use. (That's not to say there are others) but these are very good.

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It is also available in the Fun shops that you can pre order and have sent to your cabin. My son is crazy about orange juice, drinks it all day so I was looking and saw they sell cans of orange juice and cranberry juice that can be delivered to your cabin. When we went I ordered an entire weeks worth of the orange juice and it was in our cabin when we got there. No lugging stuff through terminal etc and we put them in the little fridge and he had easy access to his OJ. You could do the same with the cranberry juice.

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In 20 or so cruises we have never had an issue with cleanliness. But then neither of us is a germaphobe. We do not go looking for problems and have yet to encounter a visibly dirty stateroom. Clorox, Lysol and such is vile. The smell is nauseating. I have a healthy immune system and let it do its job.

 

For those that do feel compelled to clean their stateroom, how do you deal with the rest of the ship when not in your room?

I try not to touch stair railings and I am definitely one of the ones who uses the hand sanitizer dispensers that are placed in Lido. I never saw anyone else using it though I am sure there must be others. I also wash my hands frequently and carry around a mini bottle of hand sanitizer.

I also haven't been sick in years. I can't even remember the last time I had a cold which I attribute to frequent hand washing. I have terrible asthma and every time I even catch the tiniest of colds I pretty much wind up in the hospital because my asthma gets so bad which is why I go to extreme lengths to avoid germs.

Hopefully in my next life I can be one of those carefree types who never wash hands or even think about germs. [emoji4]

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I bought a special waterproof passport holder on Amazon. You can wear it around your neck. I put mine and kids passports inside a ziplock bag and then yet another ziplock bag and then into the special passport holder. I got one that I can also fit my drivers license some cash and a credit card. I wore it around my neck tucked into my bathing suit top. I swam and snorkeled with it on and had no problems.

I did buy a couple of different ones and I thoroughly tested before hand by putting a paper towel inside and then going into the bathtub or swimming pool. If paper towel was wet then I knew it was no good. The holders are not expensive. The one I found I've had for 3 years now and still works.

Sorry I can't send a link because I don't remember exactly what it was called but you can find them on Amazon easy enough.

We never go into port wo our passports, travel insurance info, drivers license and cash and credit cards.

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I have brought Clorox wipes and cleaner and it's the first thing I do when I get into cabin. Completely clean every surface. I am completely grossed out by the fact that someone else was inhabiting the cabin just a few short hours ago. I know hotels are probably not any different but to be honest I don't think hotels have quite the turnover that the cruise ships do. I have had faster to the fun for both my cruises and knowing someone vacated 830 and here it is 1130 and the room is ready? Just don't know how good they can get it clean in such a short time with so many to clean.

I also bring my own pillows and blankets.

After seeing some of the people onboard I just think, "eww what if one of the grungy looking groups were in here last cruise", Not everyone is as fastidious as I am. So I don't leave it to chance and always do a thorough clean as soon as I board.

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Went to Alchemy last cruise on Liberty. Would not make anything off the menu and drink maker was so rude I felt I had been slapped in the face.

She yelled at me for holding the menu wrong and grabbed it out of my hands.

Apparently I was holding it so that instead of it being like an open book, I was letting it open a little too far so that it was like a flat surface in my hands and she said I was ruining the spine????? I can see if I had been holding it so that it was bent backwards but it was flat. I tried to give the benefit of the doubt to her and thought maybe from her angle it looked like I was bending the menu back but STILL it was very rude!!! Needless to say I didn't ever go back.

I don't think this particular drink artist must have been too popular, there was only 1 other person at the bar and it was only about 830 or 9 in the evening. I'm not a drinker at home so I don't know when the best drinking time is but it seemed to me a dead place which I thought was odd based on all the great things I had read about it. I had been looking forward to having something special made like everyone was raving about but it was strictly what was on the menu according this drink lady. Perhaps I didn't really know what to ask for but still the whole menu grabbing and chewing out left me with a bad feeling.

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Do only the dream class ships have this thassowhatever pool? I think I heard the newer ships like Vista did not have them. I wonder why they discontinued this type of spa thing? (Sorry for the life of me I can't remember what exactly it is called)

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Or they could easily set a required attendance time. Like you have 20 minutes (or whatever reasonable time they come up with) to check in at your muster drill station. Anyone not checked in by this time will be removed from ship. Or some other stiff penalty such as a fine or something that would serve as a catalyst to get people there in a timely manner.

I truly don't want others to suffer because I am tardy but I also don't want to rush there and be on the very back row because I know myself, I would probably completely lose it since I would just be trapped in there with no set ending.

Even if I get approval to attend a "handicapped" muster, it sounds from everyone else's stories that it would still be disorganized and they would likely be calling my name to be at my station, whilst all the other poor sardines were standing there baking and fainting.

You would think that after the first or even couple of times that customers fainted during drill they would be able to come up with a better plan.

Also according to Cheng's post above the ships who have room by the lifeboats to safely conduct the drill there must do so, well there was no walk space in the front of the rows when I had muster drill on the liberty. The front rows were smashed into the railing. The employees were actually perched up on top of the railing. Sitting and chatting with each other as we baked and suffered.

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The thing is, if the other cruise lines or even some of the Carnival ships such as the Magic are able to conduct their muster drills in relative comfort in seated climate controlled rooms then why not on all ships? It makes no sense why some are subjected to standing in airless summer heat packed like sardines and others are able to conduct the same drill in seated air conditioned comfort. I don't think the law says it has to be held in front of the life boats or else all ships would conduct the drills in the exact same manner.

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This is completely unacceptable. As I stated in the thread I started on this very matter, it gives me a panic attack being smushed in so close in the unbearable heat (summer in Texas in my case)

Some of the advice I was given was to just show up as late as possible and that was going to be my plan, but I think that is why these things are lasting an eternity. Everyone now is thinking the same thing. Why rush to muster drill only to be smushed in the very back with even less air and more heat and bodies in front and around. So more and more people are meandering there as late as possible which is making it last longer and longer as they try to round up the late comers. I have been wrestling with this as I don't think it is fair to anyone. Not the people who report immediately as requested, they wind up standing there the longest and not fair to people like me who have panic disorders or health problems that preclude them standing a long time in the heat so they are forced to make choice between self preservation or doing the right thing and going right away.

Something needs to be done about this. I truly see no point in the drill as it is executed at this time. Even the employees running the drill seem like they don't know what to do.

I don't have any expectations that if a true disaster were to take place that anything but pure chaos would be the scenario that would play out no matter how long or efficient any "drill" might be. We have become too uncivilized in general as a society to hope that any abandon ship event would be done in a calm organized manner.

Just do away with the drill ( lol I know that would involve changing laws etc so probably won't happen in my lifetime) but at least make it easier. I feel like I would learn a lot more if I watched a "drill" on my cabin tv.

Perhaps if we all revolt and say "no more" we can make changes.

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If you've spent any time at all reading the myriad of posts on here regarding smoking on the ship, you'd know that non-smokers are very vocal about the subject. I haven't cruised on every ship in the fleet, but I've been on enough of them to know that there isn't any one particular ship that has what you might call a "best smoking area". The areas where you can and cannot smoke are pretty much the same on every ship. If you're looking for an area where you're least likely to be glared at by non-smokers, try the Starboard side of Deck 3 (Lobby Deck). It's one of the few areas where smoking is allowed, and it's pretty quiet there. Very few people go out there during the day compared to other areas of the ship. Stop by the Atrium bar, get a cocktail, and go get a seat out on the deck.

Sorry to hijack this thread but is there a port side on deck 3 off of the lobby for non smokers on every ship? On my last cruise I really loved going out on deck 3 because it was closer to the water than my balcony but it seemed someone was always smoking out there so I always left. Did I just happen to always go out the wrong side or is there not an open port side? (I can't remember)

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Thank you so much for all the kind replies! I was afraid most people would poke fun or make snide remarks. I will try all of your suggestions, and somehow just knowing that others out there (for different reasons ) find muster drill difficult makes me feel better and that I can handle it since I am not alone.

So I will try to find the handicapped station and if that fails I will try Mary Ellen1's suggestion to close my eyes and zone out in my head to get through it. [emoji4]

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Thank you for the info. Cruising is actually a great choice for me. I cannot fly because of my extreme claustrophobia, not afraid at all of actual flying but being closed up in the airplane is too much for me.

Cruising is the most fun I have had in years ever since I discovered it and can go out of my home port , no flying required.

My very first cruise was on the Magic and the muster drill was no problem at all. It was held in some interior conference room of some sort (where my station was) and we were not crammed in so tightly and it was fairly quick. So on my next cruise I was not prepared for the scenario that played out and to be honest I don't think it is right that they should treat paying customers in such a way.

I understand the need for the drill but to have people herded in so close and made to stand so long in the heat was untenable and not right. There was a woman whose child was overheated I'm assuming because he started to pass out, we all crowded ourselves together even more to give the poor person a little breathing space and some air and the mother was pleading and begging to be released or a glass of water but it fell on deaf ears of the drill employees. It went on so long before they even started the drill that people started getting unruly and shouting for them to get it underway. All in all a terrible experience and I don't think I should have to give up a fun vacation because it is so poorly executed. Also I am not going to give up on cruising just because I have to endure an hour of torture at the outset , this is a trade off I am willing to make but since it was mentioned that there might be an alternative I figured it couldn't hurt to ask.

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How does one go about getting a special dispensation to attend a "handicapped" or indoor seated muster drill?

The closer it gets to our sail away date the more I am stressing about the muster drill. On my last cruise on the Liberty last July out of Galveston it was a nightmarish torture. For one thing I am massively claustrophobic. I can't go in elevators, if I absolutely have to I feel like I am going to die and completely panic.

When I attended my last muster drill they crammed us all like sardines into an outside deck somewhere but there was something blocking the view to the outside, I'm not sure if it was a lifeboat or what, I was getting in such a panic at being stuffed in rows and more and more people in and around me so that we were all smushed in and touching (nasty sweaty lot of us because the heat was unbearable as there wasn't a bit of air moving....as it was July in Texas)

I can't help but start to feel panicky about being all crammed in there again. (I know....irrational fear....but it is what it is)

Can I request the indoor seated muster drill? Is panic attack a good enough reason? I don't even get anything out of the drill because I am too panicky feeling to be paying any attention. Also if we ever did have to abandon ship there is no way in heck I'd ever get in one of those closed in life boats. Id rather take my chances with swimming. (I'm a strong swimmer and can easily float along in my life jacket)

How does one request this? Any suggestions? I had been planning to hide out in my room and skip it but then I have been reading about they are scanning people in now and I don't want to get kicked off the ship for skipping. (And not fair to the poor people waiting for the darn thing to start)

Btw we will be on the Valor (June sailing) which if I had to guess the muster drill will be similar to Liberty.

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We were a party of 7 last year and we did the anytime dining. Never had to wait once. Of course that might be because we went early every night. We were always in line before the MDR even opened. So that probably was the reason no wait time. We liked getting in early and then having the entire evening free. Only problem was with eating so early we all seemed to get hungry late at night when the only choice for eating was pizza and swirls.

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More late night food options

Larger pools

No smoking for entire ship

Definitely better seating for comedy

No more ships with the deck (deck 5?) that you look down on from your balcony like on the Magic and I assume it's the same on the Breeze and Dream and maybe the Vista? I hated looking straight down onto that deck. It was so much nicer on the Liberty when I looked straight down from my balcony it was straight down to the ocean.

More efficient Muster Drill on some ships. Being packed in like sardines in the middle of summer heat in Galveston Texas with little to no air moving was pure torture. (Liberty).

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I would like an ice cream place like Ben & Jerrys or Baskin Robbins, or Marble Slab type place. I know there is the free swirls ice cream but would also enjoy the ice cream upgrade option. If not that, then maybe a magazine/bookstore? I don't really get the whole jewelry shopping thing on a cruise. But to each his own. [emoji4]

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Keep in mind ... cruising is not just about eating. ;p

What???? That's not what was on the memo I got!

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I just bought the week spa pass for myself, but I am not sure yet who will be sailing with me so can I purchase another spa pass for "guest"? I don't want them to be sold out. Also is it refundable if we decide not to go on our cruise? I booked for 2018 so I'm a little unsure of the timing so far out. I did make sure to book under past guest so I can get my money back if we cancel. I just can't figure out if a spa pass is cancellable and refundable.

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Here is what will probably be a stupid question, but if you pay off your balance every month, doesn't the credit card company not make any money off of you? Hence they would not want to keep you as a customer? Or do they make money other ways from your use of the card?

I was planning to pay off the balance every month but if it will hurt my standing not to keep some revolving credit I won't.

I normally use an AmEx card for every single daily purchase I make and pay it all at the end of the month (it makes it easy for me to keep track of where I'm spending) but it was just a regular green Amex with no rewards so I was excited to get this Carnival card so I can earn points for cruising.

So is it ok to pay off the balance every month or will they cancel me after a while if I am not profitable enough to them?

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