Top_of_the_Cube

Since no other posters experienced what you have, I would say that you were given incorrect information by the staff member. I would think many spa cabin members would be on this site complaining if it was fleet wide

I tend to agree with you, but I would also have anticipated those that cruised last week, or did a short cruise this week, to report in saying they had a fully-jetted Carnival ship.

And other than, apparently, John Heald, Carnival has not gotten back with me to confirm or deny.

I hope that no one takes my original post beyond what I intended. I have no reason to believe that Carnival is eliminating the hot tubs or the thalasso pool. My wife and I enjoyed the fully-functional thalasso pool (jets and all) the first few days of our cruise last week. Later, the thalasso pool was down for two or three days. It did reopen, but the jets were not operating. I asked when the jets would be fixed, and was told that Carnival will no longer be jetting its thalasso pools and hot tubs, and that this is effective across the whole fleet. I cannot verify that this statement is true, but it is a fact that the statement was made to me.

I did observe that for the remainder of the cruise, I saw no bubble in the hot tubs. Well, not jetted bubbles.

In Post #17, there is quoted an "official response" from John Heald. When John says that the hot tubs were fully operational, is he saying they were filled with water, or that the jets were turned on? I don't know what he is referencing as "false news."

So, what are cruisers experiencing this week and last week? Are the jets not functioning? If so, has anyone heard why?

I love Carnival, and have very few complaints. But this one thing: when they do not want to address a particular issue, there is deafening silence or a lot of conflicting information is disseminated.

On this matter, Carnival has not responded. One passenger on our cruise demanded a partial refund and received it (don't know the amount). As for me, I have not gotten any response other than what I mentioned in my beginning message for this thread.

To be clear, in regard to the Thalassotherapy pool, the two large faucets continued to pour out water, but there was no type of jets, bubbles, or agitation of the pool.

Any first-hand experience from cruisers?

Hoping someone has more information.

About midway through our cruise last week on the Breeze, the thalassotherapy pool was drained. It was opened a few days later, but the jets were not operational. I asked about this at the Spa desk, and was told that the jets have been turned off on all hot tubs and thalasso pools across the whole fleet. I tried to get more info out of them, but they would just shrug.

Anyone know anything about this? I had not heard of any issues, and was curious if this was a permanent situation.

HUB app is free. Download the app before you get on the ship, and you have a neat little count-down to your cruise. App doesn't do much of anything else until you get on the ship.

Once on the ship, let the app know you are onboard. Turn your mobile device to Airplane mode (important!) and connect to the ship's wifi. You will be able to monitor your ship account, sign up for ship excursions, access restaurant menus, make reservations for a specialty restaurant, schedule spa services, access the ship's daily schedule, view and order Pixel pictures, plus I am sure other stuff. There is no charge for this access (but of course your account will be charged for activities, services, and products you order over the app).

In addition, as previous poster said, you can sign up for the HUB chat feature for $5 per device, good for the length of your cruise. This allows you to contact (kind of like a walkie talke?) other folks in your party who activated their chat feature.

Separate from the HUB, you can purchase different wifi packages which allow access to connect to your e-mail, social media, and, in general, the internet.

Probably more than you needed or wanted, but I am writing this as if it will be read by me before my first cruise.

** Sorry, got ahead of myself. Ability to view specialty restaurant menus and make reservations is COMING SOON.

I am a HUGE advocate of doing whatever makes you most comfortable and makes the most sense to you, regardless of others "opinions" on what you SHOULD do. Don't you love all the quotation marks and capital letters?

So, this questions is just for my enlightenment: If you already have the Gift Card, why not put that on your account instead of purchasing Cruise Cash? You don't have to apply the full balance of the Gift Card if you don't want to, but even if you did, you would get back any unused money.

Enjoy the voyage. Cruising has proven to be a powerful addiction for my wife and me, but we bear that burden the best we can.

Was it possibly the captain?

I feel like I am on vacation when my wife and I are in the car heading to Galveston.

The beginning of my cruise is the point I clear the final hurdle in the terminal.

But, my tropical state of mind does not hit until my luggage is in my cabin.

Moving past straws and back to the topic of the OP -

In February and July of 2017, the Breeze received scores of 100 and 97. In December 2017, the score was 77 (anything below 86 is considered failing, or FAILING if you prefer). I did not delve deep into the reports, but seemed that many of the demerits on the July report (score of 97) were still not corrected by the December report (failing score of 77, also known as FAILING).

The offenses were things like trash was placed too close to foodstuff, out of commission equipment was being stored instead of offloaded (really, look it up), and some practices and conditions that could lead to contamination or an unhealthy environment if not addressed. There were no reports of actual danger to the passengers. I assume the December score is more a reflection on the inability of Carnival to remedy infractions between inspections.

This information is important so that no one panics just because a ship gets a failing CDC inspection score. Investigate the reason behind the score, and then you can panic.

This is also important to put cruisers on alert regarding Carnival. If someone gives you a list, or rather, a LIST of problems, and you can't get around to moving a simple trash bin within 5 months before the next inspection, there is something seriously lacking in your operations.

So, congratulations on the perfect score for the Breeze in April 2018!!

NOTE: Not a perfect inspection. You should see all the STUFF that was identified. But that is no different than any other ship across all the cruise lines.

PS - my next cruise is in June 2018, on the Breeze, with no worries about my health.

When I first started cruising, my S&S card was on a lanyard around my neck. Later, it was still on a lanyard, but the lanyard was attached to my shorts and the card was in my pocket. Last cruise, I ditched the lanyard and just carried the card in my pocket. So far, the cordless card in my pocket has worked best for me.

By the way, changing my carrying method had nothing to do with what people thought or said, but was just my personal journey of discovery. Folks that allow themselves to be offended by lanyard-wearing cruisers are in dire need of an emotional support yak.

What is required and what is actually checked are not necessarily the same thing. In Cozumel, last June, there was a sign as you entered the pier from land that said photo ID required. The armed official standing next to the sign just nodded at people as they walked by him. He didn't ask for ID, and no one had their ID out. A few folks paused as they saw the sign and saw the guard, but quickly noticed that no one was being stopped.

My advice, though, is have your photo ID with you whenever you leave the ship. Odds are, at most ports, you will never be asked for it. But odds aren't always in your favor.

DW is gluten intolerant, she is highly sensitive to gluten.

Sailed on Conquest and Breeze after her diagnosis. We, too, were directed to visit with the maitre de as soon as we got on ship. That never happened. Once, the MDR was closed, the big doors shut. I knocked, and even tried to find another way in. Second cruise, the MDR was open, but after asking around I was told the maitre de was busy elsewhere. Some worker took down my information, but I highly suspected they were doing it just to appease me. They had no more idea what to do than I did.

Here are our experiences -

Conquest 2013 - First night was rough in the MDR, but they were able to accommodate her with a wonderful dinner. MDR bread was absolutely delicious. She was so used to sawdust and sand textures. Even I could not tell they were gluten free. After that, each night, someone came by with the next night's menu, and DW selected her next night's meal. I can't recall if they ever told her they couldn't make a particular main dish gluten-free. There were many side dishes that surprisingly they were able to alter, and, of course, there were many items that didn't need to be altered to be gluten-free. Chocolate melting cake is a highlight.

We discovered that she could order breakfast in the MDR the night before. Now one of her big cruise must-haves is the gluten free French toast.

Don't remember much else from that cruise. She did try the buffet with advice from the floor manager,and did not get contamination.

Breeze 2017 - Dinner rolls were not nearly as good as they were a few years back on the Conquest. Still tasty, but definitely not the same. We didn't always get to pre-order the next night's dinner, but there were always lots of options. When not pre-ordering, we did notice that gravies and sauces might be absent. I guess maybe those were made ahead based on request.

Breakfast was still delicious. French toast as good as she remembered.

Other things she loved: At the for-fee sushi bar, the gluten-free sushi rolls were her daily snack. Don't remember what she was limited to, but they understood gluten-free and helped us order.

Guy's Burgers - another staple. She had them without buns, but they did have Udi's gluten-free buns.

BlueIguana - getting the corn tortillas and telling them you can't have gluten, they will set you up nice.

Lunch time in the Cucina Del Capitano - while this is a for-fee dinner option, there is no extra fee for lunch. She loved the gluten free pasta dishes.

Pizza Pirate - gluten free crust. She said she liked it, but apparently not enough to face the lines again.

Things we didn't try on the Breeze, but were told she could have -

Deli - they have gluten free bread. I watched them, and they seemed to do a good job of putting on new gloves, unwrapping meat and bread, and then putting everything back for those who ordered gluten-free.

Buffet - again, get some assistance from the floor manager. Some of the servers are not really "gluten-free savvy", even if they try to come across like they understand your situation.

Specialty for-fee restaurants - I have always heard they are excellent venues for gluten-free eating.

As is your life now, always observe and ask questions. Be polite but firm if you think there might have been contamination. If a server doesn't seem to understand you, find someone around who does. Most everyone was very helpful and friendly.

While we have never sailed the Pride, just looked it up. Did not see an Italian restaurant, but all other eating locations that I mentioned do seem to be on the Pride.

I hope you get a response from someone who has had experience with children and avoiding gluten.

Until that happens, let me give you an adult experience on the Breeze from last June.

Breakfast - eat in the MDR. They make amazing gluten-free French toast. We used to pick breakfast the night before, but this cruise we ordered when we arrived in the morning. To clarify, it is my DW that has gluten issues, and everything she wanted for breakfast, they had a gluten-free option. She felt in heaven. I tried some of her GF concoctions, and almost without exception they were as good as the "normal" version.

No experience at the buffet. DW didn't even want to chance it. Except for bacon. Lots of bacon.

Lunch - you can get a gluten free bun at Guys Burgers. My wife opted for just the patty, so I don't have feedback on how good the buns were. I believe, though, that the buns were Udi's. She watches the fixin's table carefully, but one of the Guy's Burgers servers provided her with toppings of her choice from unopened containers in the back.

The BlueIguana Cantina has corn soft and hard tortillas that were labelled as gluten free, and I believe the meat choices were all safe. She always asks a lot of questions, and keeps a keen eye on the prep process. She also looks for signs of possible cross-contamination. She gave a thumb's up to Guys Burgers and the BlueIquana.

I hear the deli keeps a supply of gluten free bread, and seems to understand avoidance of cross-contamination. We did not eat there, no other reason other than, well, we just didn't.

Any buffet questions, we were told to find the Floor Manager and he/she would help. They were very nice and accommodating, but again, we did not do the buffet.

We know nothing about the Guy's barbeque.

One little known venue for lunch, so don't tell anyone. The Cucina Del Capiano restaurant, which is a for-fee restaurant at dinner time, is open for lunch with no extra charge. They have gluten free pasta options which were, per my wife, just delicious. If your daughter likes spaghetti and meatballs, or any of that kind of thing, this is an excellent option.

One last mention. One of my boys, when he was in elementary school, liked sushi. The Breeze has a for-fee sushi bar. Ask for gluten free, and they can set you up. It has limited hours, so you would want to check on that.

Dinner - we only eat in the MDR. We always have, even before she was diagnosed. Choices are limited the first night, but then after dinner they come by our table and gave her the next night's menu from which she can pick, well, just about anything. So she preorders her dinner and they let her know if they can make it without gluten. They almost always can (even the chocolate melting cake).

Well, thinking back on our last cruise, they did not always just come by and get her pre-order. Sometimes we had to ask. Other times, we didn't pre-order. But, they always seemed to be able to give her what she wanted, with maybe just a few alterations.

Also, this last cruise, she did not think the gluten free bread basket was as good as previous cruises. I tried a couple of the rolls and thought they were good.

Other - the Pizza Pirate (is that its name now?) has a gluten free crust. She liked it, plus she gets the whole pizza for herself. There are usually long lines, though, and they have to make it to order. Honestly, I didn't think the wait was that long. But then, I am not a six year old. Pizza available twenty-four hours.

The ice cream concoction is gluten free, and available twenty-four hours.

I assume the food options and such will not be too different regardless of age. The kids menus will allow for plenty of gluten free choices. And, absolutely, do not underestimate the power of the food staff. Let them know what you want, regardless of any printed menus or preconceived ideas of "no way they can do this", and you will be surprised how often they can make magic happen!

I am sure I am missing something.

I always alerted Carnival, prior to sailing, that there is a "special need". They consistently advised for me to go to the dining room immediately upon boarding, and talk to the maître d'. To date, I have tried ever time to do that, but either the dining rooms are shut down (with those big honkin' doors), or the maître d' just wasn't available or to be found. Therefore, I have never talked with the big guy or gal, but yet everything seems to work out just fine.

Regardless of which ship you and your daughter take, it should be a great experience for you!

I know the OP was talking about the Carnival Liberty, but the only ship I spent much time investigating was the Breeze. Long string of high marks, and then this one current failing score.

I read through the infractions on the current report, and then reviewed the past few reports. I don't have much of a life. There were no issues with the actual food quality or incidences of contamination on the ship, but what I did notice were the number of complaints that kept showing up from one report to the next.

I have seen how well the crew constantly clean, both on the Breeze and other ships, the common areas and the food prep areas that are visible to the public. I do not have any concern about the safety of the food or the ship in general.

What does concern me is the management of the ship. The report basically gives you a check-list of problems, and you can't get those corrected before the next inspection? Some were as simple as properly storing unused equipment or moving a trash receptacle to another location.

I wonder if a contributing factor to this bad score had to do with unresolved infractions from one reporting period to the next.

Not saying that there weren't some issues that could directly adversely affect someone's health and well-being, but we are not talking about finding bugs in the food or Hep C crew members running around spitting on the hand railings. The Breeze was not declared to be a cesspool of disease and death, but Carnival must meticulously follow the proper policies and procedures so that its ships do not become a hazard to its passengers and crew.

'Nuff said.

The headboard was not against the hallway wall. We have stayed in all rooms from inside to suites. No question about what we prefer, but the last time I booked the Breeze it was for a piano bar cruise and I had to pick a cheaper room as it was off my regular cruise schedule.

Sailed on the Breeze, Room 12008, in June 2017. The headboard is against the hallway wall. All YouTube videos and photos that I came across in my research of these "special" interior spa cabins (12008, 12012, 12018, 12022; same as Carnival Magic) seem to show the same arrangement, headboard against hallway wall.

Wife and I loved this cabin. We turned around and booked the same room on the Breeze for June 2018, before the ship leaves Galveston as its home port.

We liked how the bathroom door opens into the open floor area. As mentioned in another post, the closet is lined up along a dead-end "hall". We LOVED the spa access. I used it multiple times every day.

NOTE: When researching, many sites show a "Stock" floorplan of the normal interior room. This is NOT representative of cabins 12008, 12012, 12018, 12022. Thought it odd that even Carnival's site does not show an accurate floorplan for these rooms.

As an option, this is something you can organize yourself. You can reach out on CC's Roll Call (and/or other similar boards) to see if there are other like-minded and like-faithed cruisers who are interested in a service. Several venues on the ship tend to be empty in the early mornings if you want to take advantage of an empty room, understanding that these areas are still public. Of course, you can meet in a cabin. I think it would be cool to worship on one of those foreward public observation balconies that seem to be unknown by many passengers.

If putting together a service is more than you want to do, you can still let it be known on Roll Call that you are interested in attending a service that someone else organized.

Ship - Breeze (same as Magic)

Deck - 12 (Sun and Spa deck)

Stateroom # - 12008

Stateroom Category – Interior (4S)

Starboard or Port Side - Port

Quiet Stateroom? –

Yes,mainly. It is the forward-most interior cabin of a dead end hallway, so very little traffic. It is next to the entrance door to the workout area, but I still did not notice much traffic. There may be some minor bumps heard through the wall caused by dropped weights, but hardly noticed by my wife and me. Reading comments from others who had this room, I did not find any who seemed bothered by the occasional noise. But, be aware of this in case it might be an issue for you.

Was stateroom a connecting stateroom? -

No

Any specific problems with this cabin? -

This is NOT a problem, but be aware that the layout of this cabin is NOT the same as a typical interior (or even Spa interior). If you are researching and see a stock photo or floor plan showing a room similar to every other interior room, this is NOT representative of the actual room. Cabins 12012, 12018, and 12022 have the same design as 12008.

Any other comments? -

This is a Cloud 9 Spa cabin. Check Carnival’s web site to see the perks that come with any Cloud 9 Spa cabin. Personally, DW and I loved the room and the Spa access,and have booked the same stateroom for next year, before the Breeze leaves Galveston as its home port for Cape Canaveral.

Thank you, c-leg5 and nascarcruiser. Information is much appreciated!

Cruising to Cozumel in June 2018. DW and I are contemplating several ideas on what to do. One option is to rent a vehicle and tour the "wild" side, the east coast of Cozumel. At some stops, we would like to walk down secluded beaches and just "be" for a little while. This post is not requesting a discussion of the pros and cons, but I would like knowledgeable advice on a few items:

1. Is there a place in Cozumel where a tourist can acquire a couple of beach chairs to throw in the car or jeep? Depending on the price, I would be willing to buy them and then just leave them in Cozumel on our way back to the ship. Again, just wondering if there is a place, not asking whether or not we should.

2. Has anyone PERSONALLY had a bad experience renting and driving a vehicle while in port? I read a lot of issues a friend or family member had, but I am wanting first person stories and how they were resolved.

3. Are all beaches along the eastern coastline available to the public? Do any of the businesses along the route control access to certain sections?

Thanks for sharing any knowledge and experience you have!