kwokpot

I'd be interested to know if you've met anyone that went to Cork on their own and if it was worth the trek. I know the train station is right by the ship pier and it takes about 20 minutes to get there. In any event our Cobh stop in July is rather short at 11-5 so I don't think that's enough time to get to Cork and have enough time to see anything, but still I'm still curious if anyone on your TA did this.

A TA from Europe to NY in November is going to have cold and rough seas and you'll be indoors the whole time during the crossing. Any ship with an indoor pool will still be chilly in it. You'll be wearing sweaters/hoodies/fleece indoors. It will be a HUGE difference go to NY vs Florida, HUGE.

That's our breakfast too! Oatmeal made with Almond milk,with some sliced almonds, dried cranberries, honey. And of course coffee! Awhile ago we did a land trip in Ireland and stayed at a castle which also had modern apartments for vacation rentals. I wanted to enjoy the famous Irish oatmeal and at breakfast asked for it. The server had a puzzled look on her face and said we don't have OATMEAL. Another server overheard the conversation and said, oh you mean PORRIDGE. I thought it odd that a server in a hotel wouldn't know the other terms for porridge. Last year after a long cruise on Carnival we stayed in London post-cruise at a IHG Staybridge hotel in Central London. It had a great breakfast spread. Although they didn't have fresh made porridge they did have those Quaker Oats Instant Porridge cups. What was unique about it is unlike the American version the British version had powdered MILK in it with the oats. When you added the hot water you needed to stir very vigorously and then you had this really creamy porridge that you can't get just using plain water.

Yes

The issue is going to be a Carnival cruise vs a Celebrity cruise. They are not REMOTELY the same. Celebrity is an relaxed, cruiseline with premium food and an upscale vibe. Even the oldest Celebrity ships are more sophisticated than the older Carnival ships. The cabins on Carnival are basic and the bathrooms are all plastic. The food is going to be a big difference. While Carnival beats Celebrity in the complementary food venues the overall quality is less than Celebrity. Carnival definitely has better burgers and the pizza is very good. If you decide to go realize it's going to be a more frantic experience and not the 'make your own kind of fun' relaxed cruise experience. BTW, I'm Diamond on Carnival with 26 cruises and Elite+ on Celebrity with 24, so I love both cruiselines, but for totally different reasons.

For everyone here's a great video about Cobh.

Which is why for us, the two times we've traveled in Retreat Class, we never went to Luminae for Lunch. For us the lunch menus at Luminae are too similar to the dinner menus in that it's a more elaborate meal than we want for lunch. That's why we enjoy the buffet for lunch which allows us to customize what we want for lunch to a degree that's not possible even at Luminae.

Interesting to know that Carnival is allowing downlining.

Yes, it includes Java Blue coffee bar drinks.

The parking lot is adjacent to the Pier terminal, so no shuttle is needed nor is there one

Well it looks like there's a small candy by the pound section which is the 1st time I've seen that photo, so at least there's that.

There no separate Cherry on Top on the Luminosa. Instead it's relegated to a few prepackaged items for sale at Javablue.

Agree 100%.That can be easily remedied with either a small section of the buffet being open for beverages, cookies, pastries and/or a showcase at Javablue similar to what Celebrity does at Caf al bacio or Royal does at its promenade cafe. Obviously Carnival has no intentions of doing it and it's ashame.

American with Disabilities Act. IOW an accessable cabin.

Marugame Udon on Kuhio Ave. It's a world famous Udon noodles restaurant in Waikiki. It's open until 10pm every night. There's lines out the door to eat there. https://g.co/kgs/4uGBMh

This is an interesting statement. Unless things have drastically changed post COVID Honolulu USED to be a place where everything stayed open late. In fact you used to be able to shop until midnight on a Sunday. There were always constant mobs of tourists in the shops and restaurants. I'm very surprised to hear that everything closed up at 8pm?That's never how it used to be.

I'm glad you enjoy what I post. I know I can at times come off as too direct and in your face (a combination of being a native NY'er and Chinese-American ((reference Everything Everywhere All at Once)) 😜) but I try to be helpful in my posts and call out what is incorrect or misleading.

Thank you for a great review, concise yet lots of information. I'll agree with your overall assessment and although my husband and I can't say Virgin is our most favorite cruiseline, that would go to Celebrity, it is among the top two. I'm glad the simple but effective flag solution for the Galley service works as intended.

Just because you didn't have a problem doesn't mean that it's allowed, WHICH IT ISN'T. Have you asked the Spa desk attendants on all the Oasis Class ships and Quantum Class ships whether ANYONE can you the spa locker rooms? I have, and confirmed that they're not available to all passengers.

This is a bit alarming. Has the water quality been like this the whole cruise so far?

On the Oasis Class and Quantum Class the spa locker rooms are only for passengers with a spa treatment or a Thermal suite pass.

No, that's not true. You may be using them but on the Oasis Class and Quantum class the spa locker rooms AREN'T AVAILABLE to all passengers, only those that are having a spa treatment or have a thermal suite pass.

I forgot about that. I was thinking more along the lines of Royal and their Diamond Lounges which would translate to an Elite and higher lounge on Celebrity.

Yes, make pre-cruise reservations through the cruiseplanner.

That's for Specialty restaurants. NEVER MDRs.