Joebucks

On 8/12/2024 at 11:47 AM, ldubs said:

 

Yes, we all need to do our part where we can.  I just recognize the irony of people sitting on a cruise ship being concerned about golf balls.  We should recognize the reality, "getting more environmentally friendly" is a good thing but is still far away from being environmentally friendly.  

I find a lot of "environmental issues" to be a bit over-the-top. With that said, I completely understand why we shouldn't be putting things in the ocean that don't belong. I absolutely hate that.

On 8/15/2024 at 3:08 PM, mrgabriel said:

 

Sounds like you need to try a different line! Celebrity still has most of those. 

This brings up the age-old topic of what I miss most. When people would book the line with the experience they wanted instead of complaining the cheaper one doesn't have all of the "small touch" bells and whistles.

I have never heard of a hotel that allows you to store your car there for a week, for free. Most hotels in Fort Lauderdale don't even give free parking when you're staying there.

1 hour ago, UPNYGuy said:

Sounds like some of you should try virgin cruises (or as I call them, the promiscuous cruises), where blow up dolls adorn the pool deck, and the entertainers toss condoms out. I’m glad Carnival is trying to move upmarket. I only hope they continue to do so. Not a prude, but a girl whose age was called into question openly stimulating herself (as implied by a statement in here) is HIGHLY inappropriate. I don’t need to state the legal reasons why. 

Quest is actually fun. Virgin's attempt to be over-the-top sexually promiscuous is not fun.

One of the least effective tactics is to find a date and think you know secrets about when the price will drop. You could be right, you could be wrong.

The best way to save money, is to just book the cruise with the cheapest price.

1 hour ago, Fairsky84 said:

My guess is that Carnival is not building this new class of 230,000 ton ships to answer the threat from Royal Caribbean's Icon and Oasis-class ships, but to answer the low-cost threat from MSC and their new World-class fleet of ships coming to Miami. I don't know how many people are leaving Carnival to pay 2x, 3x, or 4x as much for a cruise on Icon, but a bunch may abandon Carnival to pay the same or less to sail on MSC World America. 

As we saw with COVID, a lot can change, quickly. What we thought we knew, changed overnight. There's a lot of economic indicators out there that suggest the money gravy train is tightening up. It will be real interesting to see what happens.

What in the world makes people think Carnival would build "smaller" ships anytime soon? Is it your personal preference that trumps all, or is it some reverse-engineered scenario to weep for smaller ports? The Spirit class isn't going way. However, you can enjoy its layout all you want, it makes no sense to build another. The Conquest class can do almost anything the Spirit can, in most places. They will reposition those as newer ships take their place today.

On 7/27/2024 at 2:16 PM, BlerkOne said:

I don't see this ever. I can see perhaps a new Carnival benefit of a one time trial of other CCL cruise lines loyalty programs.

 

The sheer number of Carnival cruisers dwarfs the number of cruisers of the other lines and would result in their most loyal customers likely looking outside of the Carnival family. The other lines would quickly run out of resources and budget.

I'm certain you're overconfident that this will overrun their other lines. Even if it becomes a problem, it's an excellent one to have. Too many customers are looking to purchase more expensive products. Who is having this problem and trying to get rid of it? Might there be growing pains? Sure. However, any loyalty program that gets people to spend more, has reached the intent of a loyalty program.

On 7/28/2024 at 11:06 AM, Theosprey247 said:

Can you imagine 8,000 people on HMC? Or 16,000 if two ships are docked? No thanks!

If I was a betting man, I'd throw big money down on this being the future. It just makes sense with the growth of cruising and implementation of a dock. It wont be 8000 people laying on the beach in the experience you know today. It will probably get some Celebration Key/Coco Cay treatment where the island is developed more, and inland, you have amusement parks, shopping, bungalows, restaurants, etc. Of course, this will cause people to become fuming mad, because those trees and everything no one is using inland, will ruin the experience once gone. Because I remember "the way it used to be."

20 hours ago, Salem615 said:

Do you a PVP? I emailed ours and he said he could see what he could do for us and the next morning I had an email that we were switched to the 6pm dining slot. 

This is interesting. Personally, I've never had an issue getting any dining option I wanted. They may say full, but something usually opens up or whatnot. If this can save me a trip from going to the Maitre D, I may give it a try. 

I've tried them all and nothing is better (for me) than 6 pm. 

Who in the world cares who is first to do something? I swear, people are obsessed with everything that doesn't matter. All I care is the experience and the value I'm getting. I could care less if you are 1st or 20th to do it.

On 7/29/2024 at 2:12 PM, mfs2k said:

Is a cabin steward or room service server available by phone if we want ice in the afternoon? 

Yes, but also, I've never had to do this if I asked on the first day. People lose their minds because they need to have workers in their room more often because that's the way it has always been. I've never had an issue getting anything I need. If anything is important to you, ask for it on the first day. 

Much ado about nothing. Supply chains constantly "quietly" change. I do prefer the fresh-cut. However, it is seriously not the end of the world if they aren't. 

Bonus answer: I'm better off if fries are less delicious, so I eat less of them. They are one of the unhealthiest things you can eat. 

Going anti-internet is such an area of pride for many people. It used to be about $6 a day so I could read articles while in the sun or have someone contact me, seemed worth it. Not the end of the world. Now at almost $20 a day, I reconsider. 

I mean, I doubt many people were really that fooled in the first place. The price you pay hasn't changed You just feel like fees are gone, but they aren't. So that really soothes people. 

But hey, if this puts every cruise line on a level-playing field, I'll take it. 

I'm generally not one to complain about the cruise food. However, ham and cheese as your only meat option, is very tacky. It's fine to not have the unlimited topping customization. Just give a few better choices. 

Do yourself a favor and don't visit this thread again. Otherwise, you will "notice" things you might not have noticed on your own. 

On 7/25/2024 at 1:31 PM, mikayla73 said:

For short 3 or 4 day cruises, I'm not necessarily cruising to see new things. For me, I'm going to relax and spend time at the beach. Two port stops at CocoCay or HMC or eventually Celebration Key for a 3 or 4 day cruise would be great for me! Makes things easier, and likely cheaper, to go to their private island twice. Going to say Nassau or San Juan, I'd be forking out $ or an excursion, cab rides, etc. Do I want to do those things too, of course, but I don't need to for a short cruise.

 

For the short cruise like that you're really only giving up a sea day to be at the beach. So for me it's 6 of one 1/2 doz of the other.

I'm generally not one to poo poo on ports. I have a great time at every port. Even Nassau where some people just find so much misery. However, going to the same ports that also require a ton of extra money, planning, and time, isn't always the most attractive option. Even less so with Freeport where you get dumped off where there's nothing to do. It's a nice option to venture off from the "cookie cutter area," but not always to be forced. However, I don't see myself getting sick of places HMC anytime soon. I've been to far less impressive beaches, many more times in my life, and I still enjoy them. 

I agree that a relaxing day at the beach is hugely underrated. Replacing Freeport/Nassau with Celebration Key is a huge value proposition to get me taking more 4 day/total cruises. Even more so if it's on an Excel class at a reasonable price. 

On 7/18/2024 at 12:42 PM, CruiserBruce said:

Just relax...don't sweat the small stuff.

End of thread. I can't begin to comprehend negative people that always find a problem. There can be diarrhea in my room when I board. Let's go ahead and find a solution so I don't have to deal with diarrhea. I'm still going to have a great vacation.

I don't know that I quite agree with the "top" advice of bringing more money. Maybe it's because I don't gamble. Traveling on a plane, staying in a hotel, staying in your cabin, going to a port. Lots of avenues to lose money or have it stolen, and it happens. I'm really only spending cash at taxis and very rarely, a vendor or whatnot. Credit card acceptance isn't that rare by cruise ports and nothing else on the cruise requires cash. 

15 hours ago, jimbo5544 said:

smaller than????

All I know is my brother's, roommate's, cousin went on a cruise a few months ago, and the cabin was huge. I expect to get the square footage I PAID for.

2 hours ago, jeblack1 said:

that is correct....I think Carnival used to have an itinerary that left from San Juan, and spent a day in each island and if my memory serves correctly, you would then start another cruise in reverse.

I went on such a cruise around 2018. It was my favorite itinerary ever. However, this one would not start a cruise in reverse after. It did pick up and drop off people in Barbados mid-cruise. I found that to be interesting. 

I truly wonder how many cruisers keep an excel spreadsheet of "horror room numbers" to avoid. 

Another successful loyalty thread. Spending $2500-$5000 on a vacation and get the most fired up about a $10 benefit, and a gambling civil war.

On 7/13/2024 at 10:11 PM, notscb said:

Seems like there's definitely a market for it but Carnival is trying to figure out how to price it.

Many cruise lines (Celebrity and MSC to name two) are starting to try this "ship within a ship" idea and have found great success. I'm glad Carnival is trying to offer something more upscale to those who want it beyond the Havana area which doesn't seem that "upscale," or maybe it's just an old idea that needs refreshed too.

You're on to something here. People like the idea of cabanas, but they don't want to pay $2,000 extra. Instead, cruisers are absolutely obsessed over getting free stuff. Have a few rooms or whatnot, mark them up $2,500, and include "free cabana access." They will be sold out for a year.

Personally, I don't care if a ship has 1,000, 8,000, or 50,000 people. As long as it's designed to reasonably handle them. My last Carnival cruise was on the Celebration, and that was my favorite Carnival ship so far. There were so many more amenities, the Serenity was beautiful, the food and drink choices were vast. It was a great time. We never felt bored or that it was too crowded. I feared the lines because that is what the internet taught me. There were a few tweaks that could be made to areas like comedy clubs and the new atrium. Overall, it was no worse.

I'm not here to worry about problems that may or may not be overblown. As the world's population grows, unfortunately there are more people everywhere. People have no qualms about going to Vegas, Europe, Florida, or wherever else, where there might be tens of thousands of people in your vicinity, causing crowds and whatnot. We continue to live in the past about nostalgia and a bar that was set then. If you prefer that, fine. However, it's really not the end of the world the way people make it sound.

Carnival doesn't need to design smaller ships. They have plenty of brands that cater to all of the needs everyone asks for. We all know that the new, large, ships will practically sell out every time. There is demand. Opinions don't change that. 

With that said, there are concerns as everything continues to grow in size:

- Ports of Call: Unfortunately, as I said, space is limited, but crowds don't care. If you're going to expect exploration in the wilderness, with a machete, you might be disappointed. Some ports are only going to continue to get more crowded. I've said it before, I welcome things like Celebration Key with open arms. Sometimes, it's just nice to have a beautiful beach day that doesn't require you to buy expensive taxis and food. Plus, more options for those who so choose. However, looking to 2033 (which is a ways off) the current port situation will not work with all of the destinations we have today. There are going to need to be more options.

- Embarkation/Debarkation Ports: The boarding process on ships is great. Significantly better than even 5 years ago. I laugh at needing to buy a priority package for this. With that said, getting to and from some of the ports is getting to be too much. The Port of Miami is already a traffic disaster. It will only get worse. They need to figure out some sort of train or other system to transport people. 

- Venues: Please please please heavily consider the flow of popular areas. If you want me to jump on the anti-crowd bandwagon, this is it. I can't stand when it becomes impossible to get into things. Like having to be at a comedy club a half hour in advance to get a seat. I don't know if they need to put multiple theaters in, but this is the kind of stuff that truly matters to most people. Not ratios. Not how many people are here compared to how many people were in 1990. Flow.

You can really do whatever you want, as long as you're carrying them. They might get inspected, but it's no big deal. 

I used to think I wanted to find ways to carry on as many as possible. In reality, I've found we're generally good with a 6 pack or so. 

I just don't understand cruising in the summer. (Dodges flaming brick of "THAT'S THE ONLY TIME WE CAN GO!") It's too hot, too crowded, and too expensive. I'd much rather stay up north in the summer. I prefer cruising in the Spring and Fall, but winter is acceptable too. 

Haven't been to Progreso, but was recently at Costa Maya. I really enjoyed it. The port is your standard cruise port. Shopping, bars, and even a pool, etc. We went over to Mahahual Beach. I want to say it was a $4 taxi each way. It was a small beach town. Beautiful beach, taco cart vendors, a lot more small business overall. I look forward to going back. 

2 hours ago, jimbo5544 said:

I am sure it is on a list, and a fairly short one.  That said, their focus is reducing debt and refinancing the debt they were taken to the cleaners on.  3 years sounds reasonable, but I know that offering even a small one would go a long way.  Their performance since getting back full steam in simply amazing, despite some comments to the contrary.  

There are also uncertainties in the economy as a whole. For them to even reference, could instill fear in their model. Plus, reintroducing a dividend, and potentially having to pull it back again, would likely cause way more damage to the stock vs their current "position of improved strength."