Lee Cruiser

Non-refundable doesn't necessarily mean you lose it all, you just can't get a cash refund. For early saver fares you can transfer them to another cruise less a $50 per person penalty. We did this last year when we received one of the 50% off anniversary deals. We decided to cancel the cruise we had booked for April 2023 under a more normal rate and re-book it under the 50th anniversary deal. Even if we would have lost all of our deposit we would have come out several hundred dollars ahead. After cancelling I called and had the remainder of the deposit after the $100 penalty to a cruise later that year (2022). Never tried to get the full deposit transferred, so not sure how much luck you will have at that.

The article compares the cost of a cruise with the cost of a Disney vacation. I certainly don't think you can compare a Carnival cruise to going to Disney. It's a much different type of experience. The article also talks about closing the gap between a land vacation and a cruise. For us, that gap has already been closed considerably. We can do a land vacation for less now. We have a cruise booked for November on Valor that we are probably going to end up cancelling. We can do a trip to the Smokies Christmas and Dollywood Christmas for about $400 less after considering all costs. That is also allowing a generous amount for meals. We typically would have at least one cruise booked for the year after next by now, usually two which would be Jan and April 2025. We don't have any booked right now and probably won't book more than one for that year.

When a cabin on a certain deck has been sold out, I have been able to find another cabin on another deck that is still in the same category. For instance, if I have a mid-ship balcony cabin booked on deck 7 making it 8C, I was able to find a balcony cabin on deck 8 forward that was the same category. Not sure if that will work for your case or not.

It's doubtful that we will see any price decrease. Everything on cruises seems to be going up steadily of late. Even if it is less expensive, Carnival isn't likely to pass that along with all the debt they are trying to pay off.

Though we would prefer HMC over Nassau, if the price difference is only $300, we would choose the Mardi Gras. It's an extra day of cruising, the food options are much better and it has better entertainment, especially much more comedy. As far at the balcony in December. We cruise just about every January and still love our balcony. The main time it is very cool is later at night. During the day it is usually good.

If you want it as OBC, then you do that onboard. If we know that we will spend a certain amount, we go ahead and purchase cruise cash ahead of time to avoid having to do it onboard. But, you only want to purchase what you will use, because it is not refundable. We also use them to pay for the cruise, internet and excursions that we book beforehand.

We always choose YTD, but I believe I've read that you actually have to wait until 7:45 to request a table because it's based on when tables become available and not actually a set reservation time. It works the same way with YTD, except YTD can request a table as soon as the window opens. With YTD, you request a table and you are notified when your table is available.

We've used it several times and love it! It certainly speeds up the debarkation process in comparison to previously having to speak to an agent every time. We've been glad that we have a passport, because the line for those who do not was extremely backed up.

I have never gotten it, so I really don't know. I thought it may say up to 10% or something like that, but I just looked at our September cruise and it says save 10%, so definitely misleading. This is the quote for the purchase page: Enjoy the ease of paying one flat price for your spirited beverages over the entire length of your cruise. Now, that’s something to cheer about! Save 10% by purchasing before you sail.

If the description says 10%, then it needs to be changed, because $59.95 is not a 10% savings on $64.95.

Our cruise in September is sold out. Also, our cruise in November is already sold out. These aren't even holiday weeks when kids are out of school. Cruises are selling out a lot now. If you are wanting to go in 2024, you probably want to book soon. John Heald had a post about how 2024 is filling up fast. It looks like prices are going to be higher for the foreseeable future.

Carnival appears to currently have 11 ships with the upgraded internet. Seeing that Valor has it is great, since we have two cruises coming up on it in the next six months and the previous internet was not good. Here is the list according to the article: Carnival Celebration Carnival Elation Carnival Magic Carnival Panorama Carnival Pride Carnival Sunrise Carnival Sunshine Carnival Valor Carnival Venezia Carnival Vista Mardi Gras https://cruiseradio.net/starlink-maritime-carnival-cruise-line/

I just looked and our September cruise (Celebration) and November cruise (Valor) are no longer showing up. The November cruise previously had very little availability and this is not during the holiday, so it is pretty surprising. Cruises are apparently selling out a lot now.

I'm not sure that Carnival would ever charter a ship as large as Mardi Gras, especially this close to the sailing date. Specialty charter cruises are usually done a year or more in advance.

Not any longer. You can drop off your bags, but you cannot get stay until 1:30 (or whenever they announce rooms are ready.) That's one of the big negative changes for us. Early boarding is okay, but we always went back to our rooms as soon as we finished eating to relax and unpack while the chaos was taking place in the public areas. That's one of the perks that we had most looked forward to. Most of the others really aren't that big of a deal to us.

Numerous school districts in Mississippi and Tennessee have fall break in October with many surrounding Columbus Day. Some have it a full week and others just partial week. A few districts have adopted the longer school year schedule with more breaks during the year and some of those get two weeks in October right after completing the first nine weeks.

We have played trivia numerous times. It is always just for the fun of it for us. I came close to winning one time. I missed it by one question. As far as cheating, it probably happens every time. I always thought that trivia was an individual effort, so if you are playing as a group, would that not be technically cheating as well?

May just be a glitch in the system. However, that is fall break week for many school systems, so it could be that it is getting near capacity and they are limiting booking. The week prior and the week after are still showing up, so it's not really likely that it is cancelled.

You might do a search on here. I remember someone saying earlier that they did have success in getting the B2B cruises approved for extra onboard credit. They put a not on the request asking about it.

We had four approved for September through next April a couple of months ago. Two of these were the 50% off anniversary rates and these were approved. We don't do the casino, so never get any of those rates. Those usually seem to be the ones getting denied.

We send the title page and the page that Carnival is listed on. You can probably use your purchase confirmation the first time, but they usually want something closer to the date you are making the request. We made our last request back in May for all four of our cruises between now and next May. All were approved in a couple of days.

We just email it in to shareholders@carnival.com using the information on this form and a copy of our monthly brokerage statement. ShareholderBenefit2023-2024.pdf

Yes, it has to be on separate airlines.

Obviously the ones selected to play on stage are the ones that could win the most, but that is one or two out of hundreds of cards sold. As far as everyone else, chances are slim at winning much, if anything. Carnival is the one making big money out of this.

Yes, that’s right. I have seen some coming itineraries for Vista there. I guess it’s because Vista was in Galveston and not the size.