LB_NJ

You could make a phone call to the railroad and ask. Every time I have called, they seemed to have friendly knowledgeable people answer the phone.

We'll be there in January and probably just do the ferry.

The port itself is one of those standard cruise ports with the standard port restaurants and bars, duty free shops, etc. A couple of local vendors with T-shirts, etc. We were there once and took the ferry into town.

Try to get off the ship ASAP.

Our cruise does not arrive until 3PM. We have the same problem. We have been to Puerto Rico before and will mostly treat this as a sea day. There is a restaurant/bar close to the port that makes a great Pina Colada. May just get off the ship for that.

What type of booking do you have? Guarantee room?

If I logged in and booked the shore excursions it shows me and my wife on the excursion in the calendar. If my wife booked the excursion from her login it only shows me when I look at the calendar. When she logs in it shows both of us in her calendar for the excursions she booked and only her with the excursions I booked. The credit card was charged the correct amounts for two people on each excursion. I hope this is just a stupid glitch with the website and I don't have to call.

Sounds like a group rate. Just ask the TA. They should tell you if it is.

I could be wrong; however, I believe she is the ONLY ocean liner afloat.

It is not just Carnival lines. I used to be happy with RCL pre-COVID however, post COVID the food quality dropped significantly.

There are multiple discussions in multiple forums on this subject. As all the others have said there is absolutely no need to tip the steward. And if the service were truly subpar, I would ask for some of the automatic gratuities to come back. All that said, if you were provided outstanding service you could tip the steward a few extra dollars at the end. Additionally, if you expect to be making many requests you might give the person a few dollars up front. Even though you didn't ask here are the people we usually tip extra: the porter at the dock when we check our luggage; the waiter and the assistant at dinner (assuming that we have the same person the majority of the trip and the service was excellent). The porter I give $5. The waiter usually gets around $2 per night and the assistant $1, all in envelopes at the end of the cruise. Some people don't tip at all, some more. On occasion I have tipped a barrister and a bartender. Absolutely none of this tipping is necessary and you should NOT feel compelled to tip anybody. After the cruise you will get an email asking for your reviews of the cruise. I think a good rating in response to the email is more important to the crew members.

You can usually upgrade through cruise planner. You should do the math to see if it makes sense. If you don't upgrade you can still order the drinks, just pay the difference plus gratuity.

I lucked into this once, happened to call and they had a group rate on the cruise I was calling about. How do you find a TA that has a group rate on the specific cruise you are interested in?

Not sure I want to pack all the cloths I'll need for a cruise. How much is laundry service?

It is just as easy to wait until you are onboard.

I am sure this must have been asked before however if you don't mind either directing me to the previous discussions or answering it here. We are booked on an Alaska trip in Britannia class. We did a QM2 trip a few years ago and were OK with the food in the MDR (so hopefully that has not gone downhill post COVID), however I don't remember if the coffee was that great. If the coffee these days is not that good, I will probably be getting a couple of cappuccinos or lattes each day. I do not drink much soda, but my wife does. We both like an occasional juice (eg, orange juice), but usually only at breakfast. I am looking at the three options: Specialty Hot Drink, Soft Drinks Option, non-alcoholic premium. If it makes sense, I will just pay as you go and not buy anything. Any thoughts would be appreciated.

Thanks for the input. I think we will just keep the one cruise we have booked. Maybee spend 2 nights in Savanah on the way back.

I can't seem to find a cruise that leaves the day after we get back. It sounds like south Florida is a bit iffy. Would Port Canaveral be realistic or still iffy?

We have a cruise out of Tampa in January and we are thinking of going on another cruise the day we get back. However, the cruises we are thinking of doing are out of either Miami or Ft. Lauderdale. We will have our own car parked at the Tampa cruise port so we would just get off the boat and drive. Is this crazy?

I called Cunard directly even though I booked through an agent. They care of it without any question. Not sure however I think Carnival puts some of their better agents on the Cunard phone line.

Constellation. I couldn't switch the order. I have sailed on smaller Royal C. ships. Is the Carnival ship not as good as Royal?

Never been on a Carnival cruise. Will be getting off of a Celebrity cruise the same day a 5-day Paradise cruise sails out of Tampa in January. Thinking of trying an Ocean View cabin on Paradise, looking to extend my stay in warmer climates for a few extra days. Any thoughts?

FYI, the Water St. location is almost twice the price of the airport location. Anyone have experience with the AC Hotel by Marriott Tampa Airport?

Unfortunately, I believe many things have gone downhill post COVID.

How do you plan to get from Anchorage (I assume you are flying into Anchorage) to the hotel/lodge and then to Seward? Last time I looked one way car rentals were very pricey. Most people take a train or bus from Anchorage to Seward.