MT_Sea_Cruisers

We did a B2B in cabin 5230, which is about as close to the Havana bar as you can get.  It was one of our favorite cabins of all time!  There's an entrance near the bar into the hallway (really close to where the cabin is located), which made it very convenient to get to and from the Havana pool area (and bar).  I was hesitant at first to book it due to the many comments I had seen regarding evening noise from the band in the Havana bar, but since it was a casino "free" offer, I decided to try it and was so glad I did.  We enjoy many late-night activities, so didn't get to our cabin most evenings until late, so never noticed a noise issue.  

On 3/20/2023 at 7:40 AM, PH2 said:

If Carnival employed fashion police on the Caribbean cruise we did last month, they would have had to double their staff to keep up. At the buffet, which is just off the main pool area, I saw more cheeks, side boob and hairy backs (sometimes all on the same person!) than I would typically see on a day at the beach. The neat trick of "covering up" with a spider web cover with holes that the Hulk could fit his fist through apparently kept the "fashion police" at bay on a technicality, I guess. It was disgusting. The MDR was better, but definitely saw tank tops, flip flops, etc., and don't recall anyone being asked to change.

 

I'm expecting Celebrity to be a lot better (although it's a September Alaska cruise, so I doubt there will be that much skin showing anyway).

Yes!  Our experience on our last Carnival Cruise as well.  Looking forward to a nice change on Celebrity 🙂

First-time Celebrity cruiser here.   We are booked in Aqua class and I see one of the perks is a welcome bottle of sparkling wine (upon request).  Who/where do you request this form?  Do you request pre-boarding or once on board and with who, do you place the request?

I wonder if it is a max of $250 per purchase.  I have 7 transactions ranging in increments of $25 to $150 each, all totaling $450.  

51 minutes ago, LaCal said:

Off topic question 

 

How much OBC can you Pre-purchase for a cruise 

 

On the website it limits it to $200 

 

Can you get up to $500 if you call in? 

I am on an upcoming cruise (April 15th) and have pre-purchased $450 for which Celebrity has sent a conformation for,

We did self assist and carried our luggage off the ship.  We were at Long Beach Airport and waiting at the gate by 10:45 AM

Agree that is differs from ship-to-ship.  Panorama (in January), we got a bottle of Champagne and fruit bowl but no picture or mimosa's on re-embarkation.  Spirit (two weeks ago) we got Champagne and fruit bowl and picture (taken in waiting area while waiting to re-board) and no mimosa on re-embarkation.

We were on the Carnival Pride a few weeks ago and from our balcony we could look down into the extended balcony below us and noticed they had a hammock  hanging.

Hello fellow Carnival Cruisers!  Any recommendations for hotels to stay in in Tampa?  Either near Airport with free airport shuttle (to hotel from Airport) or near the port with free shuttle to port on day of embarkation?  Many thanks!

We shared a balcony room (3 adults) on Legend configured as 2 twins and the couch made into a bed.  Cabin service was once per day and bed was made as a bed, however, we found that when all three of us were in the room we tended to just want to sit on our own bed.  However, with that said, if you wanted to sit on the couch made as a bed during the day, it could have easily been done since they do put a duvet type cover/bedspread on top and they do leave the back rest near by.

Has anyone utilized the COVID testing facility located at Long Beach Airport?  If so, I would love to hear yours thougts.

Has  anyone (cruising on Carnival), utilized the COVID Test site available at the Long Beach Airport?

I see they have rapid testing available for $20, with results available within 2 hours, however, it appears to be geared for travelers going to Hawaii and I am wondering if the same test is acceptable for cruising passengers.

https://www.longbeach.gov/globalassets/lgb/news/2021/faqs-for-covid-19-testing-at-lgb

Read the fine print carefully.  I've used two land based casino offers on Carnival.  One included everything and I paid zero out of pocket.  Meaning the casino covered even the port fees, taxes and prepaid gratuity.  However on another offer, I had to pay taxes, port fees, prepaid gratuity and a $100 "administrative fee", but I got $100 On Board credit so it was a wash.

Just returned from from a B2B on Panorama.  We had contemplated purchasing CHEERS once we got on board and changed our mind at the last minute.  We had over $800 in OBC ($200 Promotional Booking and $600 Rebooking Incentive).  All charges went to $200 Promotional First, then the rebooking.  As an aside note, I was glad we did not purchase the CHEERS package as we ended up not spending  what the package would have cost in drinks.  We found that on port days we bought only a few drink onboard, lowering the average amount spent per day.

For the second segment, We did purchase $300 Car Cash ahead of time and also had $200 OBC.  All bar purchases, went directly to the bar cash (including any extra tip we added).

Public Service Announcement - I live in a very small town.  The closest facility like a CVS or Walgreens that can provide rapid testing prior to cruise is about 4 hours away.  I arranged with my local medical clinic to have a rapid test done two days prior to boarding (October 29th).  Today I called to confirm my appointment for next Thursday and was informed that they will not be able to accommodate me due to a shortage in supply of tests.  As such, they are not testing for "Travel" to insure they have enough supply on hand for those requiring it for medical procedures.

Fortunately, I can order a telemedicine test to arrive in time to take it on Thursday, but had I not called to confirm, I would have really been in a bind. 

I share this so that those who may be in a similar situation can plan accordingly to just proceed with pre-ordering a telemedicine Covid test in advance. 

On 10/2/2021 at 5:28 PM, 80sGal said:

I see that often too but once I go through the mock booking and hit the "more" options for the VIFP offers, then the lower advertised rate will show up somewhere on the list.   But almost always, it starts at a higher price until I pick a different code.  

Same experience here!  It appeared to be a higher rate, however, when I worked my way through the booking, I got to a certain point where I had to select which offer I was booking under.  There were four of them and one was the lower rate.

19 hours ago, bafinegan said:

I also have a booked cruise where I am offered drinks everywhere and my cruising partner is not.

Ditto for us as well.  Have one booked in a Havana Cabin for Jan 2023, Cheers is only for myself, not my spouse.  Following this post as I am curious as well.  I too have seen many conflicting answers to this question, however,  none answered from someone who has actually experienced this.

We've been on Carnival cruises where discounts were offered on port days.  We received a separate flyer in our cabin for them (pre COVID);  I would imagine you'll need to keep an eye our on the HUB app now for any specials.  The one we took advantage of was a couples hot stone massage for 50% off on a port day.  We had planned to stay on board that day anyway so it was a fantastic deal.

Hello - Are there an Carnival Panorama cruises out there who have stayed in an interior, interior cabin.  These cabins are located in an interior hallway and appear to be square and and little bit larger in size.  I was just wondering what they look like inside.  I can't seem to locate and photos of these on the Panorama.

8 hours ago, SNJCruisers said:

Here is a link to the CVS Minute Clinic Website.  Type in your zip code and a list of nearby places will show up.  You can make a reservation 2 weeks in advance, you pick a place, pick a day and then pick a time.  easy peasey.

https://www.cvs.com/minuteclinic/covid-19-testing

easy peasy for those that don't live in a remote area of the US 😞

CARNIVAL CRUISE LINE REFUND* AND CANCELLATION POLICY FOR COVID-19 (from https://www.carnival.com/Legal/covid-19-legal-notices/covid-19-guest-protocols?icid=advisory_cruisehealth_072821)

The following information applies to all sailings scheduled during the declared Public Health Emergency involving COVID-19. Except as specifically stated below, or as otherwise provided in the Ticket Contract for your cruise, the standard cancellation policies and penalties described in the Ticket Contract apply.

CRUISE CANCELLED BY CARNIVAL

• If your cruise is cancelled by Carnival or boarding is delayed by twenty-four (24) hours or more due to government order or declaration of Public Health Emergency, you are entitled to a refund of the amount paid to Carnival within 180 days, or an optional Future Cruise Credit (“FCC”).

CRUISE CANCELLED BY GUEST

• If, following a declaration of a Public Health Emergency, you cancel a booking for a cruise scheduled during the declared emergency, or must cancel your booking because you are prohibited from traveling to the vessel due to a governmental travel restriction, but the cruise is not cancelled, you are entitled to a FCC for the amount paid to Carnival. In all other cases our standard cancellation policy will apply, as set forth in the Ticket Contract for your cruise.
  
• If you, your family members living with you in the same household or travelling companions assigned to the same stateroom cancel a cruise booking due to testing positive for COVID-19 within 14 days of embarkation, you and they are entitled to a FCC for the amount paid to Carnival. If guest has close contact with a positive or suspected COVID-19 case within 14 days of embarkation, and Carnival deems you are unfit to travel, you are eligible for a FCC.
  
• To qualify for the FCC, if your COVID-19 test was administered by a provider other than one retained by Carnival, you must present your verified positive test result in a form acceptable to Carnival.

DENIAL OF EMBARKATION OR REBOARDING; QUARANTINE AND/OR DISEMBARKATION

• If you, your family members, travelling companions or other close contacts are denied embarkation or reboarding, or quarantined or disembarked during the voyage, due to a positive COVID-19 test or being suspected of having COVID-19, you and they are entitled to a FCC for the amount paid to Carnival in the event of denial at embarkation, or a pro-rated refund of the unused portion of your Cruise Fare in all other cases.
  
• Guests denied embarkation or reboarding, or who are disembarked or quarantined during the voyage, for failure to comply with the Carnival COVID-19 Guest Protocols in effect at the time of the cruise, shall not be entitled to a refund or compensation of any kind. Please refer to the Ticket Contract issued for your cruise for complete details.

*All refund requests must be made within six months of the scheduled embarkation date or you will only be entitled to a Future Cruise Credit for the amount specified.

2 hours ago, abby1257 said:

Why is it, when you go into order details, it shows any promotional on board credit (which of course is divided between the 2 people in the room)...but it NEVER shows the obc owed to the person for left over $ from  previous cancelled cruise by carnival.....After they cancelled my cruise, I choose to rebook, but the new cruise is a lot cheaper.....They still owe me $500 of my $ from when they cancelled my last cruise,,,,,

I had additional OBC from a cancelled/rebooked cruise. It does not show on the "balance details" page on the carnival website, but if I go to print my documents (under cruise manager -> list of things to do) and print documents (and check print additional documents) it shows added to my booking incentive OBC amount

31 minutes ago, Dmg00 said:

I totally agree with you, it is stressful. I also live in a small town, would have to drive 3 hours to take a test. I do have to fly, I really don’t want to cancel but will have to see if everything can fall into place! 

Same here!  Unfortunately, I think people who live in metropolitan areas do not understand the complexity of everyday things that those of us face who live in remote areas of the US . . . .

19 hours ago, SNJCruisers said:

No, you will not have to cancel your B2B.  If currently on a B2B, Carnival tests everyone on debarkation day around 830-900 am.

The Antigen tests take awhile for results.  PCR tests take 20 minutes at a local facility near me.

Whew on not having to cancel B2B!  Unfortunately, closest Rapid result test facility is a 4 hour drive each way for me.  Looks like a long day of travel (before flight travel day) to get a rapid test 🙂

4 hours ago, cyclist_guy1 said:

i think youre confusing the pcr test which takes 1-3 days for results with the rapid antigen test which takes as little as one hour to get the results. vax folks can take the rapid antigen, accepted by carnival.

 

i have a funny feeling your "took 3 days to get the results" was a pcr test.

No - I live in a remote area of the US.  Local testing facility states current time expectation for test results.   However, you are correct regarding rapid test results - YES, I can travel by car approximately 4 hours (each way) to get one of those on the day before we depart for our flight.