amy2313

Thanks everyone for the info - this was incredibly helpful!

On 3/28/2024 at 5:30 PM, Saint Greg said:

 

You can check here. The most recent one I have right now is from a month ago. 

 

https://www.saintgregtravel.com/fun-times/

 

 

Thank you!!!

32 minutes ago, cacruisin said:

I'd search out a seasoned cruiser active on cruise critics who sails the same itinerary as close to your cruise as possible (prior) and ask them to forward.  It would be no guarantee of the exact same but as close and "best guess" as you'll get.  Maybe see who's active on the roll calls of prior sailings.

Great idea - thanks for the suggestion.

Does anyone know if it is possible to see the FunTimes in advance of the cruise sailing??  We are trying to plan activities and dining both on and off the ship with late port days and knowing the show schedule at night would be super helpful.

Thanks.

Stayed at the Courtyard on Iberville for a Conference in October and it was fantastic.  Not too far of a walk to the Port area but definitely an easy taxi/uber ride.  Rooms were recently redone and the staff were all beyond super friendly and helpful.  Highlight recommend.

Does anyone know where i can find the latest dining menus per day on an 8-day cruise on the Celebration??  I found some online but they seemed to be out of date.  We are hoping to see the menu per day so we can plan when to go to one of the specialty dining locations -- basically on our least favorite menu night in the main dining room.  Thanks for the help!

I feel like I should know the answer to this by now but can you use the FREE ship WiFi that you use for the Carnival Hub to use your iPhone’s texting (iMessage) while at sea?? Can you also use it to FaceTime while at see for FREE?? 
 

Im very cautious with my cell at sea so not to get any unexpected charges, but would love to know what is possible for free. 
 

thanks 

On 3/8/2022 at 8:58 AM, Ine said:

I forgot about Canopy River in Vallarta. Lots of activities. https://canopyriver.com/en/

1 hour ago, Ine said:

Canopy river is a very reliable company. Also known for their support to local communities. Yes you will be safe. Of course check with them about the pickup time and place, the same for the return. They have an office near the hotelzone at Villas Vallarta by Canto Del Sol Hotel which is a short cab ride from the cruise terminal. That Jorullo brdige is amazing! 

First THANK YOU so much for everyone's ideas and the recommendation for Canopy River.  This is exactly the type of tours we were hoping to do.

what i am concerned about is that we dock in PV at 9am ship time and the morning tours leave at 9a,m, 10am , and 11am local time with pick ups all 90 minutes before the start of the tour.  From what I have learned, ship time is 1 hour behind PV time which means that even if we did the 11am tour the pick up is 9:30 (local time) which is 8:30 ship time and we would not have arrived yet.  I have left Canopy River an email in the hopes of talking with them tomorrow to figure out possible alternate transportation options. 

Any chance you remember if the tour starting location is really 90 minutes away??

On 3/8/2022 at 8:58 AM, Ine said:

I forgot about Canopy River in Vallarta. Lots of activities. https://canopyriver.com/en/

Have you used Canopy River?  are they reputable?  The cruise line's excursions seem very limited right now and i don't mind booking privately but I want to be sure they are safe and will have us back on time.

What are your recommendations for an excursion in Puerto Vallarta for a couple adrenaline and beach junkies in Puerto Vallarta?  We are there in March from 9am - 9pm.

We are also looking for the same suggestions for Mazatlan.

Thanks for your suggestions.

On 2/25/2022 at 1:29 AM, Itried4498 said:

Yes, it’s customary for this cruise to move clocks forward one hour on Sunday night, then reverse Thursday night.  So, when it’s 12pm in Long Beach, it’s 1PM on the ship (and Cabo and Mazalan) and 2PM in Puerto Valletta.

 

I do not know whether the ship time will stay on Long Beach time during the weeks Mexico does not participate in DST.  That would make the ship time equal to Puerta Valletta. 
 

My question is- given the above, does it matter?  FYI- The ship historically arrives into Puerta Valletta super early and lets people off early.

It matters and is incredibly important when you are trying to book an excursion not through carnival; one that runs on local time. 
 

we were originally scheduled to sail on the Panorama in 2020 when the world shut down originally due to Covid and the excursion that we had booked back then through carnival is no longer offered and we were able to find it privately. 
 

we arrive in PV on 3/22 which is after the US switches clocks but before Mexico changes them. We are also scheduled to arrive in port at 9am and if I do not know what time 9am ship time is to PV time on 3/22, I run the risk of missed our excursion. 
 

all of which means it is incredibly important for me to know if carnival adjusts the time which onboard even after DST takes effect and it is crazy that no one at carnival can answer that ahead of time for me. 

Thank you to everyone for the help on this BUT i might be more confused now!! 🙂

And I have spoken to the tour company that was as confused as me and could not provide a clear answer.  I then tried our Carnival PVP and he was not able to provide a clear answer.  And finally, he put me in touch with the Shore Excursion folks who were no help at all (my guess is because they want you booking directly through them as well).

A number of you mentioned that PV is earlier/behind ship time (or California time).  But when I look they are actually ahead.

For example, right now...

PV it is currently 8:41pm

California/SHIP TIME is currently 6:41pm

If Carnival tells guests to move the clocks forward one hour on night 2 then...

PV is 8:41pm

California/SHIP TIME will be 7:41pm

And then to complicate matters even more, one of you were kind to mention that Daylight savings goes into effect in the US on 3/13 and Mexico 4/3.  Our cruise leaves on 3/19 so for the US that would factor in.

AND would Carnival even change the clocks while onboard if we are in DST at that point??

Any help you can provide is GREATLY appreciated!!!

In just a few weeks we will be on the Carnival Panorama - a cruise 2 years in the making due to Covid. 

We are trying to book a tour in Puerto Vallarta (private tour company that we have used in the past) and we are having a little trouble determining ship time vs. local time and if the Panorama changes their clocks. 

I know it is not normal for the ship to change the time to match a port time but we actually had this happen years ago when we sailed out of California. 

Basically, the questions are:

Puerto Vallarta is 2 hours ahead of California time so...

1) does Carnival adjust ship time at all due to such a big time difference?

2) if we dock in Puerto Vallarta at 9am, what is ship time and what is local time?

Thanks for any clarification that can be provided.

We are thinking about doing the RCL Hawaii Cruise from Hawaii to Vancouver.  However, what if we did not want to sail to Vancouver but wanted to stay in HAwaii and fly back.  Are you allowed to do that?

Has anyone ever done a UTV tour in Puerto Vallarta?

If so, what did you think?  What company did you use?

We did one years ago called Green Zebra and had a blast but they are no longer in business.

We are leaning toward The Atv/Suspension bridge in Cabo with maybe a inexpensive boat ride to the Arch, Stone Island in Maz, and some sort of UTV tour in PV.

Has anyone done a UTV tour in PV??  And if so which one?  What company did you use?

3 hours ago, klfhngr said:

We like to have fun, lol. So these are our suggestions:

 

Cabo: This is where I would jet ski (besides MZ). Also shopping, tacos Gordo Lele. Bar/Brewery hopping. We did a party snorkel boat once to the arches, we had a blast on the way back! My kids like hanging out at the pier area during the last hour or so before it's time to head back to the ship. Usually Cabo is a short stay, hence the less options.

 

Mazatlan: I highly suggest Stone Island, we all loved it. We've been there on 4 or so cruises and have taken others there. They have all loved it. Hang out at Lety's (Victor's used to be the spot, but word is that he's no longer open, he comes and goes). At Stone, you can do a lot of water sports and ATV. ATV's here are cheap, and you can ride all over the beach! Waiters at Lety's can hook you up. You can also do a banana boat here, jet ski, parasail, etc.! Very active place and also a great place to chill. Food is the BOMB and cheap!!! Head back to the ship an hour or so early and hang out at the bars by the ship or shop!

 

PV: Our favorite place in the MDR. So much to choose from. We've done this cruise about 10 times, so we've done many things. The ship is in port for a long time. I usually rent a van/driver. We do some shopping. We head up to El Eden (tourist trap, so don't eat here, just enjoy the sites and water) or somewhere up in the jungle. There's a tequila outdoor shops up there, have some samples. If you really want to ATV, I'd do it here in PV. Lot's of mud and water and jungle! Do not book on ship, bargain once you get off the ship. You can also zip line, drivers usually get you a good deal! BEWARE: They might get you a better deal, but it might not include ALL of the zip lines (some places might have 15, but you'll get to only do 10 or so). So ask before you pay. Los Muertos Brewery is a cool hangout, good beers and GREAT pizza! In my opinion, going with an affordable driver (NEGOTIATE!) is the way to go, cuz they can take you all over PV and get you on a schedule. But you tell him where YOU want to go! Sometimes they'll want to take over, don't let them do that. They'll take you to their buddies restaurant, stores, etc. They get a kickback. So figure out what you want to do and tell him! Trust me on this. 9/10, they'll do as you asked.

 

Anyhow, hope this helps! 

Thank you so much!!! This is all so incredibly helpful!!  We think Stone Island might be a great option/choice for us.

In less than 2 months we will be cruising to Cabo, Puerto Vallarta and Mazatlan.  

We are still deciding are our excursion and would love to hear if people's thoughts if they have done any of these...

Cabo:  we narrowed it down to doing the UTV & Suspension Bridge tour or Snorkeling & the Arch

Mazatlan:  UTV or beach day

Puerto Vallarta:  UTV through Sierra Madre or UTV through rain forrest or ATV & Surfing

Has anyone done these?  Recommendations, reviews and suggestions would be much appreciated.

On 2/3/2020 at 2:40 PM, SDPadreFan said:

At best it will be iffy. We did an Ocean Rider whale watching tour on a zodiac boat in middle/late April and saw zero whales. When the whales depart each year changes so April is always somewhat risky. But there's a decent chance you will just spend 2-3 hours looking with no results. My personal opinion is the best time to see the whales is Feb-early March. We've had great success in Feb. I even got a great photo on a Feb 09, 2008 trip on the Pez Gato Catamaran in Cabo. It was taken with a Canon Powershot S3 (so-so camera back then and I was real lucky with the shot). We even converted the picture to canvas and it hangs in our home. Our March trip was just ok with a few whales seen, but nothing like the February trip.

Thanks so much for the info, it has definitely helped us decide what to do during our day in port.

And that is a great photo!!

On 11/16/2019 at 7:37 PM, houseflipper48 said:

Would like that info as well.

We ended up booking with Marysol tours and we were extremely impressed.  They took excellent care of us, watched us while at the beach like hawks to make sure we were safe and taken care of and they kept everything on schedule.

Great option and would highly recommend.

We sail on April 4 and arrive in Cabo a few days later and were planning on the whale watching tour.  Is it a mistake booking/paying for a whale watching tour that late into the whale season??

We will be in the DR/Amber Cove in December and are interested in doing a day at Sousa Beach. What would be the best way (safest and not too expensive) of doing a few hours at this location?

Thanks!

3 hours ago, Jules Vacations said:

Someone else posted about a $2 taxi down to a beach where you can get massage.  Can you please tell me where to tell the driver to go?  Thanks so much!

Interested in learning the answer to this as well.

We are planning a back-2-back cruise on the Carnival Magic and have the option of a deluxe ocean view midship OR a cove balcony aft.  We've cruised on the Magic a couple times already but had a traditional balcony.  I've never booked a cove balcony before and need the pros and cons.

The deluxe ocean view is enticing with the extra shower/bathroom space, but i do love having the balcony option and being able to step right outside to see the ocean or sit and read a book from the comfort of your own cabin.

However, I am concerned about the location of the cove balconies that are left and available for both cruises without switching rooms.  The only ones left are not only aft ship, but also directly beneath the galley.  I am concerned about noise from both the ship's engines and from the galley with food preparation and movement in the early morning.  We are night owls and while we do not sleep in super late, we normally wake around 9:30am.

One of the specific cabins on the Magic we are looking at is the cove #2405 and deluxe #2240.  Any recommendations you could give and pros and cons of the cove (with the location in mind) and deluxe OV would be greatly appreciated.

Thank you!!

We will be in Costa Maya next month and decided we would rent a golf cart and do a little sight seeing on our own and then park somewhere in Mahahual to enjoy the beach, lunch and possibly snorkel.

Does anyone know if we need to reserve the gold cart in advance or is this something we can do once we arrive in port? 

Is it cheaper if we book the golf cart in advance?

Where in Mahahual would you suggest to park/which beach "club" would be best?? we are more interested in a great beach spot and mexican lunch (not drinkers) and then possibly a snorkel boat to the reef if it is worth it.

Thanks!!