ButterflyGirly

We were supposed to stop in Catania, Sicily this morning. The captain announced at 7am that we would instead have a day at sea.  Last night around midnight the Italian coast guard received an SOS from the migrant boat that they were drifting at sea.  We were the closest passenger ship so the captain responded to the call. Along with a cargo vessel, the Breakaway provided support to the 2 Italian coast guards boats to get the 200 migrants safely onboard with the coast guard. We to the 4 hour delay we were not able to call on Catania. 
 

Although I am disappointed to miss Catalina, I am grateful that 200 souls were saved. For me it is just a stop along they way…for them it was their lives. 

Thank you for the recommendation.  I checked out their website and they also offer shore excursions from La Spezia, Livorno, Carrara and Portofino & Santa Marghertia.

LGinPA and KeithJenner thank  you for your responses, very helpful!

I am trying to coordinate our transfer from Civitavecchia (Rome) port aboard the Breakaway in October 2023.  Our flight leaves FCO at 12:50pm so we want to self-disembark.  The ship arrives at 6am that morning in port.  I know the ship needs to clear customs first.

What time should I have our transfer pick us up?  We would want to leave as early as possible for our international flight and the airport is 42 miles from the port.

For my Jan 2023 Odyssey cruise I was able to book "The Book". This was the only show available to pre-book.

I have sailed on Carnival many times and have experienced "no belligerent drunks, no fights, no crass/obnoxious behavior".  Just go and enjoy yourself, it what you make it.

On 1/2/2023 at 10:08 AM, firefly333 said:

Perks matter less on carnival. Laundry is a big perk for carnival or priority boarding, so others will board and debark before you. Other than that no biggie.

 

Less is included but the pay restaurants are less expensive. Drinks you either need to buy the pkg or pay for each drink. No option for them to be included unlike celebrity. 

 

More fast food during lunch and it's good and free. I eat guys burgers but not the ones on rcl. Stir fry is free for lunch on carnival though the line is slow as each one is cooked by itself. 

I loved the stir fry on Magic this past November, I got it for lunch twice!

I was on the Magic and stopped in Grand Turk in November.  There were 2 twenty-something girls in front of me trying to get off the ship.  One of them was told she could not get off of the ship and she was arguing with them saying she "wished I would have know this before I came on this cruise".  I assume it is because she was not vaccinated.  When we boarded the ship the port staff reviewed our vaccination card so I again, assume, it is recorded in our onboard account.  They scan your S & S card when you try to leave the ship so they can easily see if you are vaccinated.  

I we were notified that Grand Turk still had the vaccination requirement before we set sail.

Thank you for taking the time to share your story. Peace to you and your family.

I really hope you get your Royal Up!

Worked great for me in October when we almost missed our flight from Philly to Miami after our flight from Lisbon arrived late in Philly.  They held the plane for us and we got on the plane but our suitcase did not.  When we went to pick up the suitcase the next morning at the airport staff told us it wasn't there.  We could see on our phone that the airtag was nearby and showed it to them.  They were able to then find it and we went our merry way!

17 hours ago, DaKahuna said:

 

 Love you signature. I think I should change mine to "I waited until I retired and now I wish I had more money for cruising" 

 

So true, I am getting closer to retirement (my DH retired at 53) but am enjoying what my salary allows us to enjoy now.  So have the money but not enough vacation time from work.  When I retire I will have the time but not the $$!

On 12/24/2022 at 12:40 AM, ctlyf said:

Where do you find the email address for the specialty restaurant for each ship? We're traveling with another couple on Mardi Gras in a month and have each booked in the steakhouse and Rudi's. Our plan was to go to the maitre d' once we board but if we can make arrangements before hand, that would be even better. 

This is from a CC post that I copied and pasted as I couldn't figure out how to use the quote feature from a different thread...

Email either the Maitre’d or Steakhouse manager directly. The email address for either is listed below:

Maitre d' - xxmaitred@carnival.com

Steakhouse - xxsteakhouse@carnival.com (for ships with a steakhouse)

BR Breeze

CQ Conquest

DE Destiny

DR Dream

EC Ecstacy

EL Elation

FA Fantasy

FD Freedom

FS Fascination

GL Glory

IM Imagination

IS Inspiration

LE Legend

LI Liberty

MC Magic

MI Miracle

PA Paradise

SE Sensation

SL Splendor

SP Spirit

TI Triumph

VA Valor

VI Victory

I had cabana #10 in Dec 2021 and agree with LMKakaThing2...the snorkeling in the cove and along the rocks to both the left and right sides was amazing!

I can unfortunately not answer any of your questions since I have never stayed in a suite but want to wish you a Happy 30th Anniversary!  DH and I had our 30th this past summer.

Enjoy the suite life!

1 hour ago, ninjacat123 said:

Correct!  I paid off my January cruise with a couple Carnival gift cards on my Cruise Manager.

Me too...I buy Carnival gift cards from AARP for 10% and use them to pay the deposit, to pay my balance, pre-cruise purchased items like bubbles and water and then towards my folio balance once on the ship (at the kiosk).  

I  use my Southwest CC to buy the Carnival gift cards from AARP so also get airline points.

I guess time will tell if changes occur.

I just sailed in November on the Magic and had the bubble package.  I did not get a souvenir cup (although to be honest I had never had one previously so I didn't even ask if there was one).

On 12/22/2022 at 2:54 PM, superduper123 said:

So glad it worked out for you! I can't imagine going throught that. My stress and anxiety would have been off the charts!  😬

I had stress and anxiety reading the post!  So glad all worked out for the OP and mom deserves a bouquet of flowers!

I gave mine to my travel agent and he is taking care of it.

I purchased with the Black Friday pricing...$18.99/day, hoping that promotion will occur again before your sailing.

Congratulations Ryan! Enjoy!

Thank you everyone for your responses, they are very helpful!

New to Princess and also a lightweight drinker.  I usually only end up drinking a beer or a fruity frozen drink in the evening.  Will I be able to get either with my Plus package?  I don't have any special type of rum I would like in my frozen drink so hoping it would qualify as a drink up to $15.

Last month I had the same situation with 3 couples all traveling together.  Each couple made (and paid) for their own reservation, and we had 2 different times for the same evening.  I emailed the steakhouse for my ship and asked to be put at a table for 6 that evening.  I heard back from them and they were able to accommodate us.  I was on the Magic so the email was MCSUPPER@carnival.com.