cruisewiththekids

I have a $500 Carnival gift card. My cruise is already paid for. I wanted to pre-book an excursion, but the cost will be less than $500. If I use the gift card, what happens to the remaining balance? Does it show up as a credit on my onboard account? Does it still remain on the gift card and then I apply it to my onboard account once on board?

I'm disappointed that the Conquest sailing doesn't actually transit the locks. If you call a sailing "Panama Canal," I think most people would assume you will enter the locks. I wouldn't have even thought about it had hey-buc not mentioned it in a previous post, which prompted me to research a bit.

As I'm doing some more research, it appears the 9nt does not do the partial transit of the canal as the 8 nt does. Can anyone give insight into the difference?

I am looking at two different sailings for Panama Canal. I don't have the time for the full transit cruise, so I'm looking at the 8 nt or 9 nt. I'm comparing the ships, itinerary, weather in January vs. November, embarkation port. 9 nt appears to be the better itinerary, but I'm not sure about early November for weather. How do the ships compare? Thoughts from those who have done Panama Canal?? Pride from Tampa Jan 21 2023 8nt. Sea Sea Limon 11 - 7 Panama Canal Partial Transit Sea Grand Cayman 8 - 5 Sea Conquest from Miami Nov 10 2023 9nt Sea Grand Cayman 8 -5 Sea Limon 8 -5 Colon 7 - 4 Cartagena 9 - 5 Sea Sea Thanks.

I tend to believe your PVP. My old PVP always set it up that way. Like I said, I didn't think too much of this new PVP. She was a sub for my old PVP who was off on a medical leave. Thankfully, she will be back to work soon.

I questioned her about that, but she claimed they don't count the TBD as a person for lifeboat capacity until the name is entered. I did decide I wasn't going to use this lady again for other reasons, so I take her recommendations with a grain of salt. Just wondered if anyone else had been told something similar.

I always keep the second person TBD, as that is what happens by default when you book. I had a new PVP tell me if I wasn't sure who the TBD was going to be, I should definitely book as a single and add the second person later. She said lots of problems can happen if you keep the second person TBD, but I'm not sure what she meant. I don't know how much weight to give to her recommendation. My old PVP never told me anything like that.

What are the waterpark tickets costing lately? We sail on a 3nt at the end of August, and the price has been $97.99 since I booked a couple months ago.

Seems to be an odd policy. You would think Carnival would be happy to take our money to upgrade but instead are turning people away who don't want to lose their promotions

I may ask for a new PVP since my original one won't be back for a while. I know there are good ones out there.

The replacement PVP didn't work out too well. I emailed her the cruise I wanted to book with the cabin number and promo I wanted to book with a refundable deposit. She emailed me back with a different promo code that was not refundable and actually cost $1,000 more than what the other promo cost. I asked her to change it back to what I requested, but she kept deflecting and emailing me terms and saying this was the promo she was familiar with. She said I could change to a different promo later. I gave up and booked what I wanted myself. I actually couldn't believe it.

So upgrading your cabin is considered rebooking?

My PVP is currently on medical leave, and I have been dealing with the call center reps, who seem less than competent, at least the ones I've dealt with. The most recent one didn't seem to know how to upgrade my cabin but did state I would lose my original promotion if I upgraded from an interior to a balcony. Is that correct?

Currently $109 for Independence of Seas late August. Hoping for a sale over July 4.

There is no option to choose a specific cabin?

If you don't mind my asking, what did the waterpark cost last minute?

I have a cruise booked at the end of August. School is back in session in my area by then. Should I expect the number of kids onboard will be fairly low, or are there still a fair number of schools in parts of the country that start after Labor Day?

If you don't park your car at the port, will Uber/Lyft/taxi drop you right at the ship, or is there still a shuttle involved somewhere?

We've only had a cabana once, and we enjoyed it, but has anyone else felt rushed out by the staff? It was probably 2:00 or so, and they kept coming around wanting to know if they could take the food, if they could come in and start cleaning up, and we felt like we should have not been rushed out.

We enjoyed the cabana, but I can't justify $449.

Was it 449 for your upcoming April cruise? Or 349?

Anyone else see cabana pricing at $449.99? I've never seen it that high. I think I paid $349 a few months ago. This is for a 4nt cruise in October.

How crowded did you find the ship?

It mentions dinner in the letter. Will it be open for the free lunch?