lazydayz

I would go with two cabins, then rent a cabana at Loft 19 where all five of you can hang out.

Yes, and the hours are limited. Look for it in the Fun Times or the App. Once we checked it out, we headed back to the cabin. Very unappealing on the Mardi Gras in August.

I would go with the Bermuda cruise since it is drivable. Cabo is great, but two days in Bermuda sounds better. As to it being hurricane season, that would eliminate any cruise from June to November. We have cruised with hurricanes brewing and they simply reroute the cruise. But you can always get Cancel for Any Reason coverage, and that would make it a risk worth taking for me.

Glad Carnival handled the first day issues well. Hope you get good weather and have a great cruise.

Well, I tried it on the Mardi Gras two weeks ago and it looked and smelled disgusting. Honestly, why bother if you going to put out slop?

I feel your pain. My sister was dog sitting for us two weeks ago and our AC went out. Painful.

And what OP enjoyed at the steakhouse.

I didn't find Rudi's small, but rather oddly laid out. I don't like that wrap-around bench and all of those two tops right next to each other. We refuse those tables and get a corner one on the much smaller bench at the back of Rudi's. This gives us an opportunity to actually talk to each other without interrupting other conversations going on around us. I absolutely loved the Chilean Sea Bass at Rudi's. Hope you give it a chance. After all, it's free, you didn't have to check in on the app, and you aren't dining in room with a thousand other people.

Glad you made it on the ship, luggage and all. Enjoy!

You got this!

Safe travels.

Hoping the casino hosts and machines are good to you, and that you have a fantastic cruise. Spend some of those gift cards at Emeril’s. For value, I think it is the best food on the ship.

Smart! I am hoping you have a wonderful cruise! Our recent Mardi Gras cruise was an Elite cruise, and for the first time ever, I hit four jackpots. The casino was hopping and the regular casino hosts were on the ball. They were the ones who approached me for most of my comps (not the Elite hosts). I spend under $2,000 and got two free massages (Elite offering), dinner for two at the steakhouse, dinner for two at Rudi's with a bottle of wine, $50 for Emeril's, and $40 for the gift shop. So that was a pretty good return for the money.

No, way too ugly for pictures. Mardi Gras is interesting. The food with an extra charge was always delicious - whether from room service, Emeril's, steak house or Rudi's. The included stuff was mostly blah, but the free room service breakfast and Late Night Eats just were not worth the calories. My only exceptions to free wasn't good was ChiBang for lunch and pizza for late night.

We just got off the Mardi Gras on Sunday. Great ship. But avoid the Late Night Eats. It was so disgusting I went to the cabin, got my husband and said you have to see this. He agreed. Disgusting.

So glad to hear it. Are you ready to go back to Princess for your next cruise?

Thanks for doing this trip report. I really enjoyed your reports from the Princess cruises, and am glad to see you decided to cover this one. So happy that you and your dad are enjoying your Alaskan adventure. Your dad is a gem, as are you.

Others have reported being able to use their offer onboard when the cabin is booked using a spouse’s offer. My guess it depends on the casino host. And I have had many servers just bring my husband a free drink when we are in the casino, even when he didn’t have any type of drink package. Let us know how it turns out.

My last e-mail from Carnival said that Platinum and Diamonds can show up at their appointment window or later. In these two instances, you would be directed to the Priority Line. This is a change, but I don't know if Carnival will start enforcing the rule for the Platinum and Diamonds that show up early. Honestly, I don't think they will.

Online check will become available once you are two weeks out. It is pretty straightforward. How are arriving at the port? Emergency contact information. Passport or birth certificate? If passport, you enter the number, issuance and expiration dates. Set up an onboard account. If you want to enter your credit card info, you can or elect to deposit cash onboard. Accept the cruise contract. Accept or reject Facial recognition. Select an arrival time of the ones still available. It takes about 10 minutes if you have all of your information handy. Some people go straight to the arrival times. You can save your progress along the way and come back later to complete.

Love having this option for breakfast. And I am excited to have one of their Bloody Mary’s next Sunday on the MG.

Thank you! We are excited.

So we are eight days out and got the call from Carnival's Upgrade Department (I know, some say it's an upsell, but it's an upgrade to me). We were booked in an Ocean Suite. Offered an Excel Corner Suite. Took it immediately then called PVP to have our Milestone benefit applied to this cruise. Access to Loft 19 made the extra cost worth it to me (and a lot cheaper than booking a cabana). We already have the Deluxe Beverage Package and free room service due to being part of the Elite group. Anyone know if there are any other Excel Suite benefits? Thanks!

We will be following along. Hope everyone makes the ship. We love the ABC cruise route.

We had one from balcony to suite, but it was due to a last minute cancellation, with the call from Carnival coming just two or three days before the departure date. The purchase confirmations for the cancelled guests were delivered to our suite.