HTownMC

We’ve been on several (10+) cruises – Carnival, RC and Disney. This is our first on the smaller Carnival Class ships. We chose it because of location (wanted to combine with Father’s Day weekend with in-laws), 5-days and recent new suites (Grand deck). My family of 5 and mom/dad-in-law took the cruise.

Random notes mostly Good:

• · Overall, we had a great time.
  

• · The boys (18 & 20) were in G2 in front of the ship. Awesome rooms (space, view, etc.).
  

• · Wife, daughter and I were in G7. Great new rooms. We’ve always done the grand or ocean view suite so we had to get use to the very small shower/no tub/with curtains. My wife chose to take most of her showers in the gym following her workout.
  

• · In-laws had a suite on deck 11. They enjoyed it.
  

• · As always, suite advantages were great. We drove to Tampa from Naples and got on the ship around 12:15 with no wait in the priority lines and went straight to checkout our rooms.
  

• · As before, we rented the private Cabana Honduras and once again we really enjoyed it. We had a great, relaxing time without the big crowds.
  

• · We have been to Cozumel several times so did not get off the ship this time. We were very glad we did. We got a chance to enjoy the slide area/ride the slides over and repeatedly with about 4 other people since most of the others had left the ship.
  

• · Our rooms were well taken care of each day.
  

• · 6-year-old daughter enjoyed 2 days of the kid’s club. She did 2 evening while we were at dinner and 1 late night. We have family dinner in the main diner together 3 nights.
  

• · Ship did not seem crowded. We mostly ate late breakfast/brunch in the dining room. Burgers around midafternoon and 8:15 dinner in the dining room. For the most part, no real complaints about the food. If we got a meal we didn’t like they accommodated us with something else that we did like.
  

• · Gym was good. My wife used it more than I did. I went 2 days and chose to do a lot of fast walking/stairs the other days.
  

• · Shows were OK, but nothing to really brag about. I didn’t care for the singers.
  

• · I joined the boys for 1 late night comedy show. Guy from Austin was decent.
  

• · We love table tennis. We played every day.
  

• Pool was mostly crowded, but we never really do much swimming
  

Minor negatives/thinks we would change in the future

• · We had 8:30 dining. Waiter the 1st night was terrible so we were moved to a new table the next night. At this table the servers were a lot friendlier and a lot of fun. 2nd night it took quite a while to get our food. Unfortunately, they had a big family with 4 other tables (about 40 people). We made a friendly complaint to the servers that night and the rest of the nights were great. They had baskets of bread and water already on our table to cutdown on the wait time. We also made a small adjustment by getting to the dining room at 8:10 before the big crowd got them so they took our order before the crowd arrived.
  

• · Ship was rocky the last 2 nights of sailing, but didn’t bother me too much.
  

Are you returning the car to TPA? :confused: If so I would drop the family and bags off, then return the car, and only one needs to Uber back to the port (should be just under $20)

 

There's an Avis and a Hertz office within a couple of blocks of the port - you can walk or they will shuttle. Enterprise is also within a couple of miles of the port and will shuttle you. I'd still drop off everyone and bags first.

Yes, I'm returning the car to TPA - Hertz. Awesome! I wasn't aware if the shuttle would take you to the port or just ot the airport. Thanks for the suggestion. I will plan on dropping the family off at the port, return the rental car and then catching the shuttle from Hertz back to the port.

Thanks,

I search the board, but couldn't fine the answer. My family of 5 are flying to Tampa Fri, renting a car and driving to to Naples to visit family for the weekend. we are driving back Mon morning to turn in the rental car and then catch a 5 day Carnival cruise. Are there any transfers/shuttles from the rental car location to port? I'm assuming we need to catch shuttle to airport and then some other transfers from airport to the port. Since there are 5 of us and we will have extra luggage (9 days of travel) we were considering private transfers for $150 until I read about taxi cost. If we decide to take at taxi, do I need to try to call them earlier or do they typical have minivan taxi's available regularly?

thanks,

The removed the basketball court from both ships with their respective dry docks.

Good you are doing your homework. We are in the same situation. We have 2 boys 21 & 18. both are 6-2+. We have been on many cruises and they always looked forward to playing basketball and volleyball each day (at least 3 to 4 hours). We've never been on this class of ships, but assumed (didn't think to check) that the Paradise had them also. We did not find out until we had booked. We will be on the Paradise next Friday. We are still looking forward to the trip.

My family and I have been on at least 15 cruises (RC, Carnival and Disney - mostly RC) and we've never seen/heard anything like this. I'm not saying alcohol caused this, but I have seen people under the influence go a little overboard. I know we are small in number, but I'm glad my wife and I decided to stop drinking 15 years ago (not a drop since). We've saved lots of money, calories, etc. In addition, I have more confidence in my own mind in making decisions that I prefer not being under the influence at no time. I can also have lots of fun without being up the influence and the next day I still remember the fun I had the day/night before.

In general, I think adults should be more responsible when they are drinking to not push the limit. I thought that was one of the reason why they are called adults.

Last time we cruised my oldest kids were teens and they really enjoyed all the activities in the teen club. Now they are in college and too old for this. Is there something on Carnival where college kids or that age group meet up to get to know each other and get together to do stuff on sea days?

Great question. I have the same question. We will be on the Paradise in June. At cruise time my boys will be 18 and 21. Our last cruise were 2 years ago. We have been on many and they have enjoyed the clubs. Both are athletic so they spent a lot of time playing basket and volley ball. We have not been on the smaller class ships before. We chose it this time because we were combining it with another trip to Florida so we had limitations on the location and date (had to do Tampa or Miami). We are very disappointed that this ship does not have basketball or volley ball. We didn't now find out until after we had made the payment. If we had known before we would have taken the 1 other option we had out of Miami. Since we have been on many cruises Carnival, Royal and Disney and they all had it we just assumed/didn't think to ask. Like others my boy are not old enough to drink and don't really have the desire too. My wife and I stopped drinking in 2003 - have not had a drop of alcohol, beer, wine, etc. since and really don't miss it. We are still able to relax and enjoy the cruises. On the last ship my boys did meet friends and hung out for a little bit (mostly at the basketball court and other meeting spots) and did some day games. They also enjoyed the shows and karaoke at nights. They did the pool some, but it was often overcrowded. We've always done 7 day cruises, but had to do 5 this time so it might be better. But, we are on a cruise so we will have fun enjoying the sun. We did rent a private cabana at one of our stops so that should be fun. We will enjoy some great family time and meals together - something we don't get to do often at home since we all have different schedules. Don't worry too much though. They will find friends and have some fun. They also like the game room, but that's more money. We usually give them a certain amount for the cruise and let them budget accordingly. The both will have short summer jobs so they can use a little of their own money this time :-), but still don't want them to waste it all in the game room

Thanks for taking the time to post. We will be on the Paradise in June to Cozumel and Mahogany B.. We will have 2 sons - 18 & 21 and 7 yr old daughter. We are on the grand deck - JR suite for us and scenic ocean for the boys. This is our 1st time on this smaller class. This will be our fist time in a JR suite (we've cursed a lot and always been in a larger ocean or grand suite). Even though we are in a smaller suite/not what we are use to, I think I've seen enough reviews to think that we will be OK. I think my daughter will be OK with kids club. I'm a little concern with the boys. They are 6-2 and 6-4. They always play a lot of basketball and volley ball when we are on cruises. I didn't found out until after we booked that we found out that this class of ships does not have basketball or volleyball. If I had know we would have gone with the Victory (the only other options we had with our dates/needs/requirements/etc.) Did you see many teens on the ship? What other types of activities do they have for teens (besides the slides). How is the game room? Do they have a good variety of games?

Thanks!

In June family and I will be on the Paradise out of Tampa to Cozumel & Mahogany Bay. We have been on many cruises (Carnival, Royal and Disney). We considered the Victory out of Miami, but chose this for the 5 day and a couple other reasons. We have never been on this class of ship. We've never been in a Junior suite. We've always done the Ocean or Grand suites. We decided to do the Junior this time mainly because we wanted experience the new suite and the grand deck. They still have grand suite available on deck 6, but we don't want to be quite that low. Right now I will be in JS (like G17) with wife and daughter. Our 2 teenage sons will be in scenic ocean view (G2) on the Grand level. We are concern that the JS will be too small since we are use to bigger and are considering switching to the grand suite on deck 6.

I have seen a couple photos on the other ships. Has anyone experience the Junior suites on the updated Paradise recently? Should we switch or stay? I heard the boys scenic ocean view will be nice.

We were on the Freedom Jun 20-27.

Party of 5.

We always went between 7 & 7:30 and had to wait 30 minutes. I think the 6:00 crowd was still eating. The one time we went around 8:00 we only had to wait about 10 minutes.

The pager worked throughout the ship so we just put our name in and walked. One time I went down about 15 minutes early and got the page while wife and daughter finished getting dressed.

It has been a few years since we have cruised. The last one was about 4yrs ago on the Elation. That has been the biggest ship we've been on!

 

Thinking about going on the September 19-26th cruise. I have a few questions.

 

1) are the menu's all different now?

2) no bottles of soda now, just cans Correct?

3) how do you eat in the Steakhouse, who do you make reservations thru?

4) besides the steakhouse, are there any other food places that you have to pay for??

 

Are the balcony's really worth the extra money, I would be letting Carnival pick it for me to save a little money. I know that this is a personal question, but has anyone ever got one and then wished they had a inside?? We have always stayed in the bottom of the ship and my husband is adamant about having a balcony or he wont go.

 

Any other tips or thoughts about this ship would be greatly appreciated!!

I can't answer all of your questions. I was on the June 20 Freedom. I posted a review a couple of days ago so you can see it for my general thoughts about the ship.. We've been on 9 cruises. Only 1 without a balcony. As long as I can afford it I can't see myself going without a balcony. I guess it also depends on how much time you plan to spend in the room. We love to relax and enjoy the breeze on the balcony, especially on sea days. this time we had 2 cabins - 1 suite with balcony and 1 inside (across the hall) for the boys. It's a big difference. My boys often came over to enjoy the balcony.

I called Carnival before I left and they told me that the no bottles change starts on July 9. We don't really drink much soda so we just needed bottle water. They had a special on water for 2.99 for a 12 pack of water. I ordered 48 before I left and they delivered to the room the evening of our arrival.

I don’t have much time, but wanted to offer a brief high-level summary since some of the reviews were helpful to me. I will hang around for a day or 2 in case there are questions and then back to work and planning for our next cruise :-).

Our 9th cruise (5 RCCL, 3 Carnival and 1 Disney)

Wife, 3yr old daughter and I had balcony suite on 7th floor.

2 sons (15 & 18) had their own inside cabin directly across the hall.

Lighthouse Parking Garage in Galveston was perfect. Booked online $65/wk for covered parking. Shuttle was fast. Car was nice and cool when we returned. 2 blocks over and on higher ground in case of a rare flood.

We had priority with suite and FTTF. FTTF was worth every penny. We arrived at port in Galveston around 12:30. Line was VERY long (extended outside the door). So long that you couldn’t see priority line. Don’t stand in line. Politely walked down the right side and you will see priority line. We were through the line and in our room in 20 minutes. FTTF did not help with luggage. We didn’t received luggage until 3:00 (last piece around 4). We complained. They said they got a late start. FTTF helped with guest services (we had had to go about 8 times – never more than 2 people in front).

We had my time dining. We like getting dressed up sometimes so we ate in dining room every night. Food was great most nights. If we didn’t like it, they brought something else. Most people dressed decent for elegant nights, but some still squeezed in with shorts and T-shirt. I think that there is a place for everyone so on those nights if you want to wear shorts and T-shirts I think they should go to the buffet (just my opinion).

I’m not a big buffet person, but everything was nice, clean and fresh when we ate there for breakfast most morning (did the brunch 2 mornings). Slow, but good. I hit the omelet line most mornings.

I had Guy burgers 4 times (very good). Pizza was thin, but very good (I had it twice, boys had it often).

Ship was very clean. Service was great throughout the ship. Evangeline keep suite in excellent condition every day and night.

We purchased the Cabana in Mahogany Bay Roatan. It was well worth the money. Very relaxing. Not crowded.

As soon as we docked in Belize heavy rain/storm came and was expected all day. After about 45 minutes we were leaving for an extra ‘at sea’ day. They credited us port taxes. Didn’t bother me too much. We didn’t have anything planned. Just wanted to see it.

Weather was great in Cozumel. We just got off the ship and did a little local shopping and got back on.

We did a couple of shows. I agree that the playlist productions aren’t as good as the use to be.

Overall the ship was nice, clean with great activities (depending on what you like). We never were board. The boys has lots of fun – basketball, volleyball, karaoke, trivia, ping pong, golf/putt, met lots of new friends, etc. We were never board.

Cruise Director was great.

Carnival Ocean club was very nice and clean, but our daughter preferred to stay with us. We forced her to go a couple of times (2 days for about 2 hours). We watched her on the monitors to make sure she was OK before we left. We had camp phone just in case, but didn’t have to use it.

Line to get off the ship was very long (even with zone 2). We jumped into the separate porter line and moved a little faster.

Thanks for the review. As soon as Bill moves out of the way we plan to be on the Freedom this Sat, June 20.

Family of 5 (wife, DS-18, DS-15 & DD-3) celebrating oldest son's HS graduation on the Freedom on June 20. We are starting to get excited. It's our daughter's 1's cruise, but our 8th, 6th for the boys. Our first on the Freedom. Which nights are formal nights? How were they? How did people dress? We've seen a variety on the cruises we've been on so I'm just curious about your experience on the Freedom.

Is it at least a fun 20-30 minutes ride or are people packed in like sardines. I'll be on the Freedom in June with family of 5 (including a 3 yr old).

Thanks all for the good feedback. We believe the Magic would have been better for the extra activities for the boys, but after giving it a lot of thought we weren't comfortable with Sun-Sun so decided on the June 20 Freedom. We made the deposit today so no turning back. We've been on several cruises (RC, Carnival and Disney) and have always made the best and enjoyed the all so we know we will enjoy this one. We've never done Belize or Roatan so we can check them off our list. It's also been a while since we've been to Cozumel.

Now on with other research/planning - This is Amaya's (3 year old daughter) 1st cruse. It's been a while since we've done the kids' clubs (boys are 15 and 18) so have a little research to do there. We have one Ocean suite, but will look into the FTTF that I read about on these board for tender priority.

Starting to get excited.

Those cabins are PERFECT! Make sure you book up the early saver if possible because if the rate goes down even two days before your cruise they honor it. You made a wonderful choice. ;)

Thanks! Right now it's Freedom with those 2 rooms. We still have 2 days in maybe talking ourselves into the Sun-Sun Magic :-). We'll see.

This is our 8th cruise - my daughter's first. We've done Carnival, several RC and Disney. It's always decisions, decisions, decisions :-), but once we are on we have a great time.

I would reconsider because I have to be honest here....life is too short one never knows what tomorrow brings, you have the opportunity of being together, the kids are still at home and you can go all together, the kids one day be on their own, in college perhaps somewhere else, they will have different schedules regarding school and work....take the plunge and go on the Magic (I feel this is a happy medium) but if The Freedom is your cruise, you will love her and you all will have a wonderful time and you will save that money for something else for another time. ;)

Thanks. That's the path we are on right now. Have to make deposit by Fri. Just checked. We have OS 7333 and inside cabin 7335 on hold. The boys will have their own room. Hesitated at first, but was OK with it once we were able to get them across from each other.

Thanks again for all the f/b!

Yes the Allure/Oasis is amazing but the OP is asking if its worth the extra 5k to go on the Oasis just so the kids have more activities...I have to say its not worth the 5k extra, the Freedom is a beautiful ship, it was also in dry dock just last year. They have given her the 2.0 upgrades.

 

The Magic goes to Galveston this year she has a cruise on June 7 and June 28 going to cozumel, belize, mahogany bay...then there is the Magic on June 14 or June 21 going to Cozumel, Grand Cayman, Montego Bay.

 

The Magic is the sister ship to the Dream and the Dream is my favorite Carnival ship. She has more water slides, a mini golf course, a ropes course, basketball court, Cucina del Capitano complimentary italian pasta dishes for lunch and it turns into a specialty restaurant at night for a $15 p/p fee, its excellent! She also has the mongolian wok so much more than the Freedom offers, i believe you should look into the Magic, it gives you more than the Freedom and offers more and you still save the 5k!

Thanks. Very good info. We actually considered the Magic briefly earlier, but was disappointed when I saw that it was Sun-Sun. My family is very active in our church so it's very tough when we miss back to back Sundays from church. We might need to reconsider.

Lyn,

The Freedom would save us close to 5K (2K + 3K in air). We have a choice of going 6/13 to Key West and Bahamas or 6/20 to Belize, Honduras and Cozumel. We have done Belize, Hond, Coz or Key yet, but have done Bahamas many times. This round activities for the kids are higher priorities then port visited.

OK, thanks all for the feedback. We did the Allure about 3 years ago and loved it. You all pretty much support what I was thinking. But since I hadn't been on the Freedom thought I'll see if there was enough activities to support me choosing it over the Oasis. It's about a 40 minute drive to Galveston to catch the Freedom over the cost and hassle of flying to FL, but I do agree that the week on Oasis would probably be much better. I guess I have a big decision to make. Thanks.

I'm in the Houston area. Traveling with family of 5: 2 sons (18 and 15) and 3 year old daughter. Freedom our of Galveston is 2K cheaper for 2 rooms (suite won't hold 5). Since this is oldest son's graduation present (along with family summer vacation), I was willing to pay the difference, until I noticed it will be an extra 3K for 5 airline tickets. Have to make a decision soon. Is it worth the extra money for the extra activities on the Oasis or will there be enough activities for the 3 children (different ages) on the Freedom.

I know I'm asking about 2 different cruise lines, but thought I'll give it a shot.

Need to make a decision soon.

Thanks for the info.

We will look into possibly doing something in FLL.

Awesome!!! Thanks for the info! It's very helpful. I have downloaded them all.

We will be on the ship in late May. It will be wife and I along with 2 sons (14 & 11) - and a little one to come :-). We have been on about 9 cruises (about 5 for the boys), but this is our 2nd on RCCL and first with an expecting wife (she'll be about 20 weeks), so we don't know exactly what to expect, how she will be feeling, etc. , but we are very much looking forward to the allure. From what I have read, there is lots to do for everyone so the boys can have fun and wife can relax if she like. We wanted a grand suite, but they didn't have any available when we booked so we went with the crown loft. We are very excited about this one - it may be our last one for a while :-).

Thanks again! This info is very helpful!

Thanks again for all of the great feedback. We may try looking into doing something while in Fort Lauderdale, but was wondering about what we would do with luggage and not having enough time to try to squeeze in an excursion.

Thanks again all for the feedback. I have a general idea now what to expect. We'll pace ourselves and fall in line as appropriate, but definitely plan on being off the ship by 10:00. We'll probably end of being at the airport about 4 hours, but we'll survive.

Thanks again!

We are getting excited!