CorbinCatFan

We did a couple of days pre-cruise in Galveston so we booked a private shuttle with Island Breeze.  The price was $105 for two people.  The shuttle was waiting for us as we left baggage claim in Houston.

The return we booked with Galveston Shuttle for 9:00 AM.  We got off the ship early and was lucky that the 8:00 AM shuttle had room for us. 

Overall, both were excellent choices. 

19 hours ago, nanatutu said:

If you have already reserved a drink package how do you find out if the price has gone down. When I do to Royal’s website it doesn’t show the price unless I sign in. When I sign in it only shows the price I paid. So how do I find out???

TIA,

Pam

It takes a little effort but you will have to sign in and go to your planner.  Sometimes if you follow a roll call, they may tip you in on when a drink package drops.

58 minutes ago, odis said:

So what happens if you purchase it now, and the price goes down later?  Too bad?

If you purchase now and later the price drops, you can cancel the original purchase and purchase at the new price.  The original purchase will be refunded to the original purchase method and usually is refunded within a week.

2 hours ago, Biker19 said:

Use that instead of the ship's phone. Set up wifi calling or some app to make calls.

I've used WhatsApp from the ship's WiFi with good success before.

I usually buy the two device package for myself and my wife's phones.  I create the account and log on both phones.

Also, passengers are to be out of the staterooms before 8:00 AM in most cases.  So the stewards have about 5 1/2 hours to change the linens, vacuum, clean the bathrooms, and setup for the new passengers.

Last month we walked off the ship and were waiting for the shuttle before 8:00 AM.  The shuttle stopped a Hobby first and it was around 9:00 AM.  I don't think you'll be able to make a 9:30 flight.

Also, you never know about the fog in Galveston. It was foggy the weekend before we left on the cruise and that caused some arrival delays.  Good luck and happy cruising.

We were just off the Radiance of the Seas a little over a week ago and they are still doing two services a day.  In fact the when we mentioned we wanted only evening service, she was confused.  I don't think the reduction in service has made it's way across the entire fleet yet.

We're doing our first back to back cruise out of Charleston in a couple of weeks. 

Does anyone know if you pay parking for both cruises when you arrive or is there something else to do?

1 hour ago, ninjacat123 said:

We walk down the Graycliff Hotel street on our way to John Watling's.  It's very charming! Is Fish Fry on Arawak Cay?

It's either Fish Fry or Arawak Cay.  I believe the the area is Arawak Cay and the street is Fish Fry Street.  We were there last spring and went to Curly's and Goldie's Conch House.  

2 hours ago, Saint Greg said:

Did you notice if the Signature Tower was missing from the Sea Day Brunch menu?

3 hours ago, Saint Greg said:

The one I don’t like is brunch closing at noon. They had it that way on Splendor. Not a fan. I like to go for lunch in the 12pm hour.

Before the Sea Day Brunch, we would take advantage of eating lunch in the MDR.  We always enjoyed that service.  We really didn't get into the Sea Day Bruch around lunch time, which in hindsight was on us.   

I was able to download a copy of the Funtimes each day on ship (my last three) by using this link:

http://fhma.cclfunhub.com/~/media/files/documents/funtimes.pdf

I usually same each day and email to myself to save as souvenirs.

From the Hub, I'll also use the QR to open the menus then save to a PDF and email as well.

Happy cruising. 

My first cruise was in a port hole cabin on the Fantasy.  The complaint that I had on this cabin was it was above the bow thrusters and the anchor.  I wasn't able to sleep in due to the noise when arriving in port.  I'm not a fan and avoid those at all cost.

Returned to Carnival in April on the Magic and the times I had Guys, it was the fresh cut fries and normal buns.  I was so pleased after two RCCL cruises where their hamburgers were really disappointing.

I hope this change in Carnival is only temporary.  I'm looking forward to the next few Carnival cruises.

I've found that I can roll my close tightly and fit more into the bags without tearing.  

17 hours ago, jedi bobs said:

I live in London, Ky I'm on this cruise too, are you driving down?

 

Yes, we are going to drive down.

John Heald was the cruise director on our first cruise in 1991 and it's been 24 years since we sailed on the Ecstasy.  What the heck, I just booked this cruise.

The only other time I booked a cruise from Mobile was on the Fantasy for it's last season but it was cancelled due to Covid.  The next thing that I knew, the Fantasy was sent to the scrap yard. 

I'm sure this will be the last Fantasy class ship that I will cruise on.  Good memories but time moves on.

I've only booked a balcony guarantee once.  It was on the Splendor and any balcony would have been fine.  It wasn't until 6 days before sailing that we were assigned an aft extended balcony one deck below the lido deck.  I was quite happy about my luck.  I don't know why I haven't tried this again.

We just got back from a Royal Caribbean cruise and are set to go on a Carnival cruise this month.  From my point of view, each has it's on unique offerings.  I do like somethings that Royal does and somethings that Carnival does.

On Royal, I do like their MyTime dining where you can reserve your dining in advance.  We were served by the same waitstaff during the cruise.  By mid cruise, the staff knew what wines we normally would order.  A difference between the lines, there were white table clothes on the tables and these were scrapped before the desert course.

On Carnival, I like the Anytime dining app so that whenever we are ready for dinner, we just request a table and the app let's us know when the table is ready.  We never had the same waitstaff.

At breakfast on Royal, you could order your omelet and they would give you a number to take to your table.  When it was done, they would deliver it to you.  On Carnival, you would have to stand in line, order you omelet and wait until it was cooked.  I prefer the Royal method but always found that Carnival made better omlets.

The drink packages, Carnival has a high dollar value limit ($20) but limits the number of drinks.  Royal has a lower dollar value ($13) but no limit on the number of drinks.  I know that if you order a drink over the dollar value on Royal, you will be charged the difference.  I don't know if Carnival has the same policy.  A plus for Carnival is the Alchemy Bar for crafted cocktails.  I didn't find the same on Royal.

A strong point for Carnival is the availability of include and upcharge food venues.  There are dead times I found on Royal that food was limited, typically between 4:00 and 6:00 PM. 

I do like both cruise lines and will cruise on them in the future.  

3 minutes ago, Saint Greg said:

whoa you haven’t been getting them in the room? I have since I turned platinum 

It was my first time that they didn't deliver them.  It was on the 14 day Panama Canal cruise on the Glory.  But I'm glad they are not doing that anymore.

17 hours ago, Saint Greg said:

I’ve been downgraded to 4. I was a 2 in Galveston. I do still have some 2’s in my back pocket if I ever need them. Or if anyone wishes to purchase them.
 

In November, we had to go and pickup the tags.  It was a cluster as so many people were just grabbing the tags by the handful.  We're platinum and ended up with 16.  

Bring a foldable duffle bag to pack in your luggage.  Use it to take to a beach shore excursion for towels, water, sunscreen and such.  Plus, it can be used to take home souvenirs.  Attach a cheap $10 watch to the bag to keep time on shore.

Bring some bathroom spray.  Trust me, the cabins ventilation isn't the best and you'll thank me later.

Bring a insulated sports bottle for shore excursions or smuggled spirits on deck.

Bring some zip lock bags to protect your electronics while on shore from sand and water.

Great review.  It was good to hear that the Windjammer is open now for dinner (although I don't think we'll be going there for dinner).

On embarkation prior to getting your Sea Pass, could you get an adult beverage?  Thanks in advance.