RaiderDuck

This happened to us about eight years ago on the Splendor. We got it switched. Assuming nothing's changed, either dining room can switch you. I'd suggest going to the Assigned Seating dining room and asking them to switch you. That way, you're asking the Assigned Seating maître'd to lessen his workload, instead of asking the Your Time maître'd to increase his workload. The first time we went to the Your Time dining room and asked for a table, we were told "You need to go the other dining room." We told them the other dining room had switched us. She took a second look at her screen, typed a few keys, and said "Oh, OK." Nobody after that gave us any trouble.

1. FTTF lets you board earlier. This is especially nice if for whatever reason, you can't check in online early on the day when online check-ins open. With FTTF, you can pick whatever time is available, but board whenever you want. If 3-3:30 PM is all that's available, you can pick that and still show up at 10AM because you paid for FTTF. 2. FTTF lets you put your bags in your room right away so you're not lugging them around the ship for hours, waiting for your room to open up. 3. FTTF gives you priority water taxi access (meaningless on docked ports or if you're taking a Carnival shore excursion, but some people may wish to take advantage of it). 4. If you need to call or visit Guest Services, FTTF allows you to get in the Diamond/Platinum line, which is nice when there are a lot of people waiting in the regular line. 5. If you'd like to get going early on Debarkation Day (when there's really not much to do except sit around and wait for your number to be called), FTTF gives you Priority Debarkation so you can either get home earlier or start the land-based portion of your vacation several hours earlier. For some people, this is worth the $160. For others, it's not. YMMV.

New York Steak for me, Surf & Turf for her.

IIRC, the price was based on the length of the cruise. $50 would be for a four-night Catalina/Ensenada run, where $90 would be for a seven or eight-night cruise.

My wife and I will be sailing on the Carnival Splendor out of Sydney on November 10, boarding at noon. Current Carnival Australia policies require a rapid test within 24 hours or a PCR test within 48 hours of boarding, which will be impossible for us to get in the United States due to travel times, etc. The night before the cruise, we'll be staying at a Marriott near the harbor. Is there a good place nearby to get tested, or should we just buy two tests at a store back home in the US, pack them in our luggage, and take them the morning we board?