Tiger0613

On the Valor in December and the Freedom in January, it was pizza, most of the Seafood Shack menu(no crab cake sliders), and only some of the paid room service items.  The normally "free" items weren't options.  No desserts or drinks were available either.

It is also not just anywhere on the ship.  It won't deliver to the comedy club, but it will deliver to the stairs near the comedy club.

2 hours ago, ProgRockCruiser said:

As for Alaska, it looks like it doesn't have a State Sales Tax.  

Local taxes apply.

Ketchikan - 2.5%

Juneau - currently 5%, will be 2% 7/1/22 or 7/2/22, will be 1% 9/30/23 or 10/1/23

Tracy Arm Fjord - I'm guessing that it might use Juneau's rate.  Don't quote me on that.

Skagway - 0%

Hoonah(Icy Strait Point) - 6.5%

Sitka - fluctuates - 6% 4/1 - 9/30, 5% 10/1 - 3/30, I have no idea about 3/31.  The city website stops at 3/30.

Freedom

1/15/22 - 1/23/22

8 day Southern itinerary

low 1500s - If I am remembering correctly, I think it was somewhere between 42% and 43%.

16 hours ago, groundloop said:

 

Just curious, was the departure time 3:30 CST for both of these cruises?

On paper, yes.  They both actually left at least an hour later.

Monday 11/29/21

5 days

10:00am - 10:30am arrival time

The line moved quickly, and boarding started at about 11:15am.

Thursday 12/23/21

4 days

1:00pm - 1:30pm arrival time

The line was horrendous.  It was crawling at best.

5 hours ago, SNJCruisers said:

And don't say that there are no entrees that you like since you can get a grilled chicken breast or a flat iron steak any night.

You have to actually like those things.  In my case, I don't like any steak.  I'm also not a fan of most non-breaded/battered chicken after having a dry baked chicken breast at a restaurant I used to go to.

I often have to get multiple appetizers because I don't like any of the entrees or they have onions and peppers that are already mixed in.  I can't tolerate the texture of onions.  They frequently don't have any desserts that I like, so I end up ordering a banana split off the kids menu.

1/15 - Miami

1/16 - Sea Day - It was supposed to be Half Moon Cay, but there was a crew medical emergency(not Covid) last night, so the ship diverted to Freeport to offload the crew member.  They are refunding the taxes, fees, and port expenses for Half Moon Cay as well as giving us $50 OBC per person.

1/17 - Grand Turk - We will be getting there earlier due to Half Moon Cay getting canceled.

1/18 - Sea Day

1/19 - Aruba

1/20 - Bonaire

1/21 - Sea Day

1/22 - Sea Day

1/23 - Miami

I drank a peach smoothie on 11/29/21 without a straw because I didn't want any other flavor in the drink.  I couldn't taste any difference using the chocolate straw in my chocolate shake on 12/3/21.  The straw also didn't go limp or slimy.  I only used the sugar straw because I forgot to bring my plastic straws on that cruise.

22 hours ago, Virga said:

but to my knowledge, Carnival hasn't discounted solo fares in quite awhile.

Carnival didn't charge me the solo supplement on the 12/23/21 sailing on the Valor for a 1A upper/lower porthole cabin(1212).  I also was only charged one already reduced deposit($50).  The total for just me was $340.86 for a 4 day Christmas cruise with $25 OBC.  I booked the cruise on 9/13/21.  I got two Early Saver price drops, and the OBC came with the second drop.  On 11/16/21, they moved me to a 6B oceanview(2481) because they took 1212 out of service.

I added my mom to the cruise on 12/6/21.  Adding my mom bumped the OBC up to $50 and doubled the fare and taxes to $681.72.  That negated the savings, but I still got an oceanview for the price of a 1A.

Carnival also wasn't charging the solo supplement for a 1A upper/lower porthole on the 9/12/21 sailing on the Glory.  I put a hold on it, but I let the hold expire.

For chain burgers I prefer McDonald's, Steak 'n Shake, Freddy's, Johnny Rockets, and Fuddruckers over Guy's.  The only compliment I can give Guy's is that it is better than Burger King, but that doesn't take much.

When I took a test on 11/27/21, the first test had an empty reagent bottle.  I had five more tests.  Since that bottle was empty, they said they would send me a replacement test for free.  The order confirmation email showed one test.  They sent me six more tests that will expire 2/13/22 instead of 1/5/22.  Now I have tests that will be good for my January cruise.

The biggest problem for my test and my mother's test today was getting disconnected multiple times.  It only happened once to me, but it happened at least three times to my mother.  Neither of us had to start over because we got reconnected soon enough each time.  In my case I had only opened the box, not the three components in the box.  I can't remember where my mom was in the process the first time.  The second time my mother was disconnected was immediately after sealing the test card and right as the proctor was starting the timer.  The third time was shortly after the timer was up.

I was off the Valor on 12/4 before 8:00am.  I did self assist and was in muster station D.

6 hours ago, wgeddings said:

When you get onboard, you can sign in and  you will to put your folio number in the app but you will not know your folio number until you get your key (it is on your sign and sail card).  

 

I went to Guest Services, and they told me my folio number before I got my card.  I wanted those 2 hrs and 15 min of internet I had already paid for.

16 hours ago, kitten816 said:

You would log into your account, scroll down to chase Offers, for new accounts, it may take 30 days for you to start seeing them, it's based off your spending. 

I've spent $3,941.19 at Carnival(fares, internet, and excursions) with my Marriott Bonvoy Bold card since I was approved 5/31/21.  I have never received any Carnival offers.

Most of the offers I do get are junk.  The only half decent ones I have right now are for ShopDisney and Love's Travel Stop.  I have no need for Disney merchandise at the moment.  Also, there are no Love's locations that I will be near anytime soon.  I got offers for McDonald's and Starbucks no more than a month after being approved.  I had never spent any money with this card at those merchants.

I had to get new cards on the Valor on the 11/29/21 sailing.  The peeling was isolated to the hole punch area.  I got a total of 4 cards on that cruise.

1) The original card had a different dining time than what had been confirmed.  I printed my boarding pass the same day I checked in.  It still said late dining.  Sometime in the next 14 days they switched me to early dining without my consent.  I only found out when I couldn't see late dining as an option on the food and drink tab in the app when I got onboard.  I got my first new card after they switched me back to late dining.

2)My card didn't work when I was scanned off and on the ship in Cozumel.  It said the card was disabled, yet I was still able to get into my cabin multiple times, use a slot machine, buy a drink, buy candy, and play in the arcade.  I thought it was the scanner, but no one else around me had any problems.  I was stubborn, but I eventually relented and went to Guest Services and got a new card.  My card was also peeling.

3)The card was peeling again.

All four cards had printing errors.  Some of the letters and numbers weren't completely printed.  The second card(the one that gave me trouble in Cozumel) had incomplete lines in the barcode.

I had the fries on the Valor 11/29.  They looked the same, but they had less seasoning than before.

Just now, Aplmac said:

Which terminal? Where? This is Manhattan...

 

The Glory is homeported in New Orleans.

I have been sitting at my hotel room window watching river traffic since 3:45pm, and I still haven't seen the Glory leave.  The Norwegian Breakaway left between 4:00pm and 4:30pm.  Every ship tracker I can find that doesn't require a login or subscription still has the Glory at the terminal.

21 hours ago, txgal08 said:

Any side effects?  I am waiting until after my Thanksgiving cruise to get it just in case.  I was sidelined an entire day after the 2nd Moderna shot

32 year old female with obesity but no other applicable pre-existing conditions

3/18/21 1st Moderna - mild swelling and discomfort at injection site

4/19/21 2nd Moderna - mild swelling and discomfort at injection site

Early July 2021 - I possibly got covid from my mother(70, diabetic, obese).  She likely got it from sitting at a table with one of her church friends that likely wasn't vaccinated.  She tested negative but still lost smell, taste, and hearing in one ear.  She also had a nasty cough and runny nose.  She got the 1st Moderna shot 2/25/21 and the 2nd Moderna shot 3/25/21.  She had a mild cough(appeared to be just a cold) on about 7/2/21.  The symptoms slowly ramped up until 7/8 when she had the nasty cough that would cut off breathing and cause her nose to run.  She didn't lose smell/taste/hearing until 7/9 or 7/10.  I never got tested, but I only had the nasty cough and runny nose.  I was over it before she was.

10/29/21 Moderna booster - mild swelling and discomfort at the injection site, mild nuisance chest pain 9 hours later.  I took two Aleve about an hour after it started, and the chest pain went away about 45 minutes after that.  I have had no problems since.

https://www.carnival.com/Legal/covid-19-legal-notices/return-to-service-faqs

Do I have any other testing requirements in case I travelled internationally (excluding Canada) within 14 days of the cruise?

Other than the pre-cruise COVID-19 test, no other test will be administered in the cruise terminal unless required as a result of your health screening.

I am booked on back-to-back cruises. Will I be tested in between voyages?

When traveling on back-to-back cruises on the same ship, guests will receive an antigen test in between voyages.

Back-to-back guests traveling on another Carnival Cruise Line ship within one day of disembarking their first voyage should inform onboard Guest Services in advance so they can receive the required pre-travel COVID-19 test before they disembark. Guests must present their negative test results upon arrival at the cruise terminal for their next voyage.

Back-to-back guests traveling on another Carnival Cruise Line ship within 2-7 days of when they disembark their first voyage should present proof of their previous cruise to the health screening staff at check-in so they can receive the required pre-travel COVID-19 test at the cruise terminal.

The test will be offered on a complimentary basis to vaccinated guests, and included in the $150 testing and reporting fee assessed to unvaccinated guests.

15 minutes ago, icft said:

We actually did feel crowded. They attempted to make intimate areas and succeeded. In addition the casino is very small for the number of passengers. And speaking of the casino, you have to take a long hike to go to the bathroom. They got fancy with the elevators and pushing one button does not signal all the elevators so everyone goes around pushing all the buttons and the elevators in one bank don't know an elevator from another bank has come - hopefully they have changed that; just a matter of programming I hope.

I forgot about the elevator nonsense.

3 hours ago, txgal08 said:

Why - I was on the Vista in Dec 2019 and loved it!  Never felt crowded.

It has nothing to do with crowding.  It is very poorly designed.  I have been on the Sunshine.  I hated the Sunshine.  The Vista class and later copied the worst aspects of the Sunshine and Dream classes. 

The main lounge looks and feels like a high school auditorium.

Aft cabins and balcony cabins on each side overlook either a pool or open deck instead of water.  I want to see water when looking straight down.

The cabana cabin patios aren't secure.  I would have to be concerned with two ways into my cabin instead of just one.  The patios aren't private.  Only a few people passing is still not private.

The clear barrier on deck five gets dirty which obscures the view.  I want to lean on a railing, not press my nose up against a barrier.

Assigned dining is in the midship dining room.  I want to see water when looking out the window, not a lifeboat.

I hate the stunted atriums.  I want an atrium that is much more open.  The funnels in the atriums block the view across the already tiny atriums.

12 minutes ago, keels81 said:

 

If only Port of NOLA could handle the Vista. We'd definitely welcome her with open arms in New Orleans! 

I wouldn't.  I refuse to ever sail on the Vista class or later.

55 minutes ago, BlerkOne said:

Your mustard station map is on the back of your cabin door. In a real emergency, it is the fastest and easiest reference pont. If you aren't near your cabin when an emergency is declared, you could be directed to a different mustard location, anyway.

What about the ketchup stations?

7 hours ago, davy jones said:

I am a curious gold.

 

How much is the laundry bag?

 

How much are the onboard washers and dryers?

https://help.carnival.com/app/answers/detail/a_id/1134/~/laundry-service