tyfullbright

I've looked at some photos of the Horizon here on CruiseCritic and from what I can see/gather is seems as if the stationary bikes (photo here) that I am used to using at home and during regular workouts look as if they are only meant to be used for paid spin classes while on the ship.

Does anyone has any experience of being able to use these when not signing up for the fitness classes? I don't need any type of instruction for my exercises, as I'm used to just motivating myself (and I don't get a lot of joy of working out in a group either). The reason I ask is that from looking at all the photos that Cruise Critic took on the Horizon, the only type of stationary bike available in the main fitness center looks like this, and that definitely won't do for the cycling I'm trying to do while on board.

Any insight would be great, although I don't think I'll like the answer. I'm going on the Miracle next year for 10 days and from the photo here it looks as if it they "lock" these bikes up when not in use for a fitness class.

Thanks in advance everyone.

We have a flight coming into LAX the morning of our cruise and have about a 4 hour time slot of things to do before we can go to the terminal for our arrival appointment (reserved for 12:30-1:00 PM).
 

This will be our first time sailing out of Long Beach and I was wondering if anyone has hung out at places (with luggage) around/close to the terminal. Given that the arrival appointments seem pretty strict due to new Carnival COVID protocols, we have no idea what to do during the interim from arriving in LA and boarding the ship.

Thanks for the insight folks. Glad to know we can still tip as we used to before the pandemic.

😄

Hi all-

Wanted to get some insight from folks who have recently sailed to let me know if the crew is still accepting cash tips. My husband and I usually bring some cash along to tip the crew members that we connect with during the sailing.

We don't plan on getting off the ship when we sail on the Panorama in two weeks so we will likely connect with the crew more than we typically have before and we wanted to ensure that if we brought cash that the crew could/would still accept it - all in all, didn't know if COVID has played a role in cash transfers (moving potential germs).

Thanks!

21 minutes ago, Colorado Beach Bum said:

If you do YTD when you make a reservation for MDR each night through the app it allows you to request a table by yourself.  But as mentioned before, many of the two-top tables are very close to each and you could still end up very close to other guests. 

 Thanks so much for the responses everyone.  Normally we do early dining, but given that we booked this cruise later than we normally do we actually got assigned YTD.  We may stick with this as I was unaware of the fact you could request a table for yourself in app.  Thank you!

Has anyone been on a ship recently that could highlight if any changes have been made in the MDR?

My husband and I purchased an impromptu cruise leaving in a few weeks because it requires vaccination/testing, which made us feel safe and at ease.  However, it wasn't until after I booked that I considered what the MDR seating might be like.

Has Carnival changed their seating arrangements so that you only sit privately with folks from your own party? Or can you still be sat with other folks aboard the cruise?

Likely trying to gain insight from folks' experiences while eating at MDR dinner, breakfast, and Seaday Brunch.  Thanks in advance!

On 1/8/2021 at 7:09 AM, Hunter69 said:

Hi Ty 

Have done over 20 cruises on Carnival ships in Australia. Plus we drink, but wouldn't get the Cheers package. Rip-Off.

We mainly drink beer, which goes for $7 -$10 a bottle or glass. Or buy 4 & get $2 off.

I usually get 2 buckets of Heineken 500mls. Each can is around 2 drinks  so a bucket for $32, 2 a day. $64 Australia dollars & cheers is $119. WAY in front.

Cocktails are around $12.95 on average, so you would have to at least buy 10 to get value.. with 10 you would be real happy for hours..

Most spirit & cokes are $8 -$10 Also.

Alchemy Bar cocktails are around $16.95. If you love Alchemy bar  then the cheers package break even is 8th cocktail.

 

This is awesome information – thanks to everyone else for your info as well

This kind of solidifies that we will get the Cheers onboard.  We love the Alchemy Bar drinks and prefer to drink mojitos throughout the day, so Cheers seems like a no brainer now.

Reposting from the Carnival forum per a user suggestion:

Apologies if this has been asked, my search didn't turn up many reliable results.

I just booked a cruise on the Spirit for October 2022 - my husband and I are going by faith that the world will be [somewhat] back to normal by that time.  We also couldn't pass up the $750AUD onboard credit offer as well.

We usually purchase Cheers! in advance for our US based cruises and we always get our money's worth - with the amount of bottled water, speciality coffee, and drinks we get during our cruises.  However, I noticed that for Australian cruises, the package can only be bought once onboard at a price of $119AUD/person/day.  This doesn't bother us so much as we will use the onboard credit to offset about half of the cost of the package.  With that said, we are still on the fence about paying per drink though.

I was wondering if anyone knew the approximate prices of drinks (liquor drinks is typically what we get) onboard either of the Australian based ships.  This would help us to determine which route is better.  Another factor that we are taking into consideration is the the Australian Cheers! package doesn't include specialty coffee (sad face), so this also plays a factor in our decision.

Thanks for your help!  Thankful for any and all responses.

Thank you for the suggestion 😄

Apologies if this has been asked, my search didn't turn up many reliable results.

I just booked a cruise on the Spirit for October 2022 - my husband and I are going by faith that the world will be [somewhat] back to normal by that time.  We also couldn't pass up the $750AUD onboard credit offer as well.

We usually purchase Cheers! in advance for our US based cruises and we always get our money's worth - with the amount of bottled water, speciality coffee, and drinks we get during our cruises.  However, I noticed that for Australian cruises, the package can only be bought once onboard at a price of $119AUD/person/day.  This doesn't bother us so much as we will use the onboard credit to offset about half of the cost of the package.  With that said, we are still on the fence about paying per drink though.

I was wondering if anyone knew the approximate prices of drinks (liquor drinks is typically what we get) onboard either of the Australian based ships.  This would help us to determine which route is better.  Another factor that we are taking into consideration is the the Australian Cheers! package doesn't include specialty coffee (sad face), so this also plays a factor in our decision.

Thanks for your help!  Thankful for any and all responses.

How early did you guys arrive to the port in order to board by 10:30?  I know having the platinum members helped with boarding first, but just curious on what time you arrived.

Thanks so much everyone!

Hello all!

Have a cruise coming up on the Magic in 41 days and I am just trying to plan some stuff out.  I have completed the check in process and my "scheduled" check in time is 12-12:30; however I know that I can check in early since I purchased FTTF.

My inquiry is if anyone knows how early they will allow folks into the port.  I have a fairly early flight that lands at 8:30 AM the day of the cruise and instead of having to Uber somewhere to just sit for an hour, I would like to head to the port as soon as I get my bags picked up at the airport.

Any information would be great!  Thanks!

I called paypal and they won't allow the purchase through them as being tagged as suspicious. Guess I am out of luck!

I called and I'm out of luck too. Rep said that it was "out of my purchasing spectrum" and that I don't normally buy things like that. Told her it was disappointing because the seller is "PayPal Digital Gifts". It's unfortunate, but I'll guess I'll get over it.

So frustrated. I have been trying for 30 minutes and it won't accept my Paypal account for some reason.

You're not the only one. It keeps telling me to contact PayPal customer service. I can log in, but it will process me logging in and say it isn't accepted.

Hey all! I’m super excited and wanted to share about my upgrade offer.

This will only be my second time traveling with carnival and my boyfriend and I book an ocean view room on the Elation sailing on August 27. This will be our last vacation for a while since we are moving soon and buying a house.

After we booked I started to get more excited and really wanted to try and do a balcony but didn’t want to get in the headache of rebooking, etc.

However, today comes and carnival sends me an upgrade email. The offer was to skip the balcony and go straight to a junior suite for $600 more. After talking about it an weighing the options we decided we would splurge since it will be our last vacation for a little while. We also decided to do it because we already paid for Faster to the Fun, but we now can get that perk as a junior suite

I write all that to ask

1). Should I just call Carnival and ask for my Faster to the Fun be applied to my remaining balance of the cruise or just cancel it and wait for the refund myself.

2) After upgrading I found that it had canceled our cheer and social WiFi purchase. Is carnival going to go ahead a process that refund and I just need to purchase it again?

3) Are there any features for the junior suite that we may not know and need to take advantage of?

We have already upgraded, but I wanted to ask for advice regarding what I have above before reaching out to carnival

Thanks so much!

Is this pretty new? We cruise a lot and up until December (our last cruise) they still had the red and blue long narrow menu that offered 24 hours service (no charge), and had a section with free stuff and then stuff to buy (with prices listed).

 

Like a Ceasar salad and several sandwiches were free, but things like wings or french fries were a nominal cost.

 

Or maybe it is ship specific?

 

Also for the "fee" stuff on your link, I don't see a price (on the other menu the price was listed), how do you know what items cost?

Not sure how new it is, but Carnival has had that posted on their dining site for a few months now. I cannot say as to what ships it is currently implemented on as I do not cruise on my next ship until August.

For your last bit about the "fee" stuff, Carnival never posts the price of fee related food/beverages on their public menu (it is on the menu that you see on the ship). Perhaps you can search for a photo that a past cruiser has posted of the menu with prices.

I guess I'll close this thread.

Someone booked the room I wanted before I had a chance to inquire about it.

You snooze, you lose. Thanks for the comments.

$400 total for both of you to book the balcony, or $400 each?

 

If $400 total, that is $40 per day, per person for your 5-day cruise (assuming two people booked in the cabin). I might be tempted to make that move.

It's about a $400 total difference (for both of us) in the mock booking. I just didn't know if I called if they would give me a better deal or not.

Hey guys, just wanted some input/opinion and any comments if you have ever been successful in getting a good deal.

I am currently booked on the Elation for a 5 day sailing in August 2018. We have an ocean view currently on the Empress deck (that's where I prefer to stay).

I've read a lot about the balconies here and I have been doing a mock booking through Carnival every day and there is one balcony left on the Empress deck and it just seems to sit there.

Everyone posts their experiences about getting an up-sell offer (and I know these are random). Has anyone ever called Carnival and asked to upgrade their room and received a deal or do you just pay the difference? It's a $400 difference right now from what we booked our OV room at, but we would be willing to upgrade if we could get a deal, but I don't expect an up-sell offer.

Any opinions or experiences that you have had would be great. Thanks!

On my last cruise I signed up for several price alert websites. I ended up with an extra $460 OBC because I was calling in constantly - basically everytime I got an alert about a price drop.

 

I don't recall any of the websites because I didn't save them. Could you awesome people help me out with providing a list of websites that text/email you when there is a price drop on a Carnival cruise?

 

Thanks!

I am fairly new here on the boards, but I believe that we are not allowed to state specific websites/places here.

I personally use an app on my iPhone. You can plug in your cruise, join the roll call, read tips and reviews of the ship, and there is a price alert section.

Instead of tipping per drink in the MDR' date=' I would just give the MDR servers one tip at the end of the cruise, in cash. Easier for them, and easier for you. With early dining, you'll have the same servers every night.[/quote']

 

Great idea! Thanks!

Just a question, do you always tip 30% - 45% on a drink? Isn't 18% enough? When I go to a bar, I usually tip $1.00 a drink. The other question is this. Is the work really hard, taking you drink order, walking to the other side, getting it, and walking back?

Just a question, does it really matter what I do? If I want to throw in something extra for someone I can, that's my choice.

What you do is your business and what I do is mine. I understand that they take the order and bring it back, but they are doing this constantly and for people other than myself.

If I'm enjoying my vacation and someone makes it more enjoyable for me by presenting me with great service, then I will reward them accordingly. I don't have to explain myself to you for that.

I posted this question to get my question answered, which I did. I did not post it to be questioned about my own personal spendings.

And just so you know, Cheers! includes an automatic 15%, not 18%.

They usually write the folio number down and give the card back.

Thank you