mdin

This past March my wife and I booked a day pass for Ocean Osasis. Beautiful place with loungers, shade, and excellent service. However, the water entrance is very rocky. I skipped swimming that day, so not sure if there is a spot to comfortably walk in.

1 minute ago, mz-s said:

Whenever you know for sure the cruise you want to go on, go ahead and book. Why wait? If the price goes down, price match. If it goes up you're insulated.

 

Why exactly are you thinking it's advantageous to wait?

No reason to think it's better to wait. I've since explained the advantages of booking early and will book as soon as the family confirms they are in.

Yesterday it didn't occur to me to book asap and I didn't want to rush anyone into a decision. Ended up saying we have plenty of time to decide without thinking if a holiday trip books faster than usual.

So over the weekend, my family suggested we should go on a New Years cruise. If we're all in, we decided December 2024 would be ideal. Just need to figure out ship, itinerary, and duration that we want.

Now normally, my wife and I pick cruises sailing anytime from January through March, and then book it about 12 months in advance. It obviously gives us plenty of options to choose from. For this one however, we are limited to a specific week.

How far in advance should we book it? Originally I was thinking booking it by this time next year, but now wondering if these sailings sell out faster due to the week it's on.

TIA

I was hoping to get an excursion offer. Did those offers come via email, or is offered within the Carnival account?

TIA

2 hours ago, csm5986142 said:

 

The best way to know if this is good deal/offer based on your booking, is if you know how much you would have paid for a balcony cabin at the time you booked (versus the interior).  I just did a mock booking on Mardi Gras for March 4th.  I can book a balcony (double occupancy) for $350 per person more than an interior.  Granted this example doesn't take into consideration the deck and location of the rooms, etc, but you get the idea.  So assuming your upgraded rate is a total of $350 for 2 people, it sounds like it could possibly be about 50% less than you could have booked it for originally (depending on when you booked of course).

In general for me it would not be worth it, but much of it is personal preference.  We've been on Mardi Gras twice (balcony cabins both time) and there is so much to do on that ship, we spent very little time in the room.  

Also we recently sailed the Mexican Riviera during hurricane Kay and while many of the people with balcony cabins said the high winds caused their cabins to be noisy all night (for multiple nights), it was perfectly quiet in our interior cabin.  Of course that was a different ship/different time of year, but food for thought. 🙂

Good advice, thank you. Ironically it is for that same March 4th sailing (7 day W. Caribbean). Comparing today's balcony price to the price I paid in January for interior it's a savings of $259.

Being this is my wife's and mine first time on Mardi Gras, I think we'll be exploring the ship more than relaxing on the balcony. Will probably pass on it this time.

Going to jump on this thread instead of starting a new one.

I received my first ever upgrade offer. I'm currently in an interior room for a March 2023 sailing on Mardi Gras. The offer is to move to a deck 12 balcony towards the back for $350. Out of curiosity, is that a good deal as far as upgrades go?

3 hours ago, groundloop said:

Your best bet would be the Sports Bar, but it depends on who's televising the games.  It's been mentioned that Carnival has a contract with ESPN, so if it's one of the ESPN networks you might be in luck.

TBS and Fox Sports in this case, at least in the U.S.

Back in March the "Funship" was $1 off I believe. 

Great review. My wife and I did this same itinerary in March. On Vista Class, we are 100% in agreement about Havana. Loved that space. We ended up spending most of our days there.

Also agree that La Cucina was a disappointment. Everywhere else we ate was good to excellent however.

My wife and I did the A & B portion of this trip earlier this year (also went to La Romana and Amber Cove) on Horizon and had a great trip.

Just like you have planned, we did the Sunset Sail and it was one of the best excursions we've ever done! Excellent choice!

We also did the steakhouse on the first night. My only tip there is if you drink wine and don't mind paying, take the 50% off bottle deal. We basically gave into our waitress pushing the free bottle on us and the red wine was terrible. 

Getting breakfast in the MDR on port days was quick and easy, and the food was delicious. 

If you have time during your pre-cruise stay, I'd recommend checking out the cruise ships sailing away on the pier at the end of South Beach. It was a cool experience. 

I used this Master Lock travel safe. Worked well for me.

My wife and I sailed Horizon this past March to Aruba, Bonaire, La Romana, and Amber Cove.

We stayed in Havana and loved the ship.

As for what we did ashore:

Aruba - took a taxi to beautiful Eagle Beach, spent a good part of the day there. Then did the Sunset Sail through Carnival. Instantly became one of our favorite islands to visit. Perfect day.

Bonaire - took a taxi to Ocean Osasis resort and just had a nice, laid back day by the water. Beautiful area, but rocky. We really liked the resort. Food and drinks are available to purchase, and the service was great.

Here's a more detailed review of the trip 

Anyone have any luck of the offer appearing after adding other offers to the card?

FWIW, I noticed some additional offers pop up today on my card, including Celebrity Cruises. Still no Carnival, but maybe it will be offered in the coming days.

Unfortunately doesn't look like I got it this time. Only seeing an NCL offer ($250).

Great review, thanks for posting! I'll be sailing in the MG early March 2023 with the same itinerary. Looking forward to it. 

17 hours ago, coaster said:

Watching more Carnival YouTube videos from same couple as I speak. Miracle with purple or pink grapes in MDR is hard to digest. Trying to keep an open mind though...

I occasionally like to watch cruise videos and would like to check them out if you don't mind sharing the couple's YouTube name. Thanks.

I sailed on Horizon at the end of March and didn't notice it being extremely warm throughout the ship (was comfortable as far as I remember). Sounds like the issues started since then.

21 hours ago, indigo38x said:

@mdin  - Apologies, I was asking in reference to the Amber Beach Club.

No worries. The food had a local flavor. I don't remember everything, but some of the items were grilled chicken thighs and legs, yellow rice and beans, chicken lasagna, garden salad, pasta salad, mixed veggies, BBQ meatballs, fried plantains, and some kind of croquet. Hope that helps.

1 hour ago, indigo38x said:

@mdinDo you recall what the food options were? Do they have a regular menu too? Traveling with a picky preteen so I'm curious. Thanks!

Food options in the MDR or on board in general at different venues?

The MDR menu changed daily, however it always had some constant dishes that included grilled chicken breast, Indian vegetarian, and steakhouse selections. I never ordered something that wasn't featured on the menu, but I guess it's possible to order a simple dish that a picky eater will eat. Would probably have to check with the waitstaff or maitre'd to confirm though.

Another great review. Thanks for sharing.

53 minutes ago, notscb said:

Thanks for starting this thread! I checked my expired Chase offers (Freedom Card) and this offer was available to me in April and I missed it. Definitely want to keep this thread bumped up so others check!

 

I also checked my other card offers with Citi and BarclayCards- Citi had this as expired as well, so BOLO!

Try BoA card if you have one. I found the same offer there.

Havana area on Vista Class.

Just bumping this thread. Probably a good spot to continue to share credit card offers we come across for Carnival. 

I didn't have it on my Chase card, but found it on my BoA card.

I've had Carnival offers on Amex cards in the past, but nothing recently.