Socref124

Based on what you said, I would look into the Breeze. The Glory, Freedom, Victory, Liberty and Conquest are also in the large category. Haven't been on the Sunshine yet, but was on the Destiny three times, but she is another large ship. If you want something smaller, the Legend out of Tampa is a nice ship.I hope this helps a little.

Hiya doin Captain? It was a great cruise wasn't it? If you see Zydeco cruisers pics he has some nice pics of whales. If I can ever figure out how to post her, I have some pretty good whale and eagle pics to share with everyone. Hope you have smooth sailing and calm seas in your future. :)

You are either Platinum/diamond, paid for faster to the fun or are in a suite. It gives you priority embarkation. Whoopie, one of the first on the ship.

Here is the newest member of my family, Lolita. I wish she could come on the cruise with us.

We were on 1 cruise (spring break) where 1 group of college students were so drunk they were falling down at the muster station (Comedy lounge) and when we went up to the boats, 1 girl decided this would be a good time for a bathroom break, so she just dropped shorts right there on the deck.:eek: We all scooted away from her and had to inform one of our muster attendants. BTW- Other college student would say, "We're not with that group". I don't know whether or not the 2 were either cutoff from drinking for the rest of the cruise or removed from the ship as we were still in port.

That is disgusting.

On all of our recent cruises (post Concordia) someone has been checking our names off against a list, so they would know if we weren't at the correct muster station. And we've been on Royal Caribbean, Seabourn and Costa since then, so it's not just one cruise line checking names. Doesn't Carnival do this now too? I got the feeling it was most, if not all of them these days.

Princess and Royal check you off a list. I can't remember how NCL did it because it was so long ago. Carnival hasn't checked cabin #'s off a list yet, at least they hadn't when we took our last cruise with them. Your muster station will be in bold letters and numbers on the bottom left of your sail and sign card. If they check your card and you are at the wrong station they will direct you to your muster station.The best station we ever had was on the Carnival Imagination. We sat on the Lido Deck by one of the pools.:D

I agree with the posters above. It is very important that you have the wine in your carry on. If it is in your checked luggage it will be confiscated if found. This happened to us once and they didn't care that we misunderstood the policy. The wine was returned to us on the day we disembarked.

We've had three friends use a cove on the Dream. Two of them had no problems at all:) and one of our friends had the doors locked shut because the seas were so rough.:o

The first two sailed out of Florida and the third sailed out of New York when the Dream first arrived in the States.

You are incorrect. If you look at your cruise, you will see that the cheapest inside cabin and the grand suite have the same taxes and fees. And they most certainly aren't the same price. So as you can see it per person not a % of the fare.

 

Sharon

WOW, I stand corrected. That makes no sense at all.:confused::confused:

I guess all those business classes I took at school led me down the wrong path.

You are totally wrong. First off, it is taxes AND port fees. It is not a percentage tax like a sales tax. Just because the cruise fare decreases does not mean port fees decrease. There are port fees for every port you travel to, and they can also change from time to time. Post 5 in this thread explains it perfectly.

The CSR didn't say port fees, she said taxes. The supervisor didn't say port fees, she said taxes.If they had said port fees I would have questioned this as well.

As for post #5, that assumption is close but not accurate, in my opinion. Most ships sail full these days, therefore, port fees should remain the same for everyone.

On the Triumph we did not port in Grand Cayman. The cruise director announced on the public address system that each guest would receive a $20 obc for port fees since we did not port. If the scenario in post #5 was accurate, every guest would receive a different amount of obc depending on when they purchased their ticket.

The cruise lines reduce their profit margin to lower prices when the ship is not at it's expected capacity at a certain point in time before sailing. Once the capacity gets back to what was projected they will raise the rate. If they are always meeting their projections the rate will not be reduced.

The "beards" know they make more money with a full ship rather than a half empty ship, therefore, they will reduce the fare to entice people. Port fees are not influenced in this decision.

Port fees and taxes are constantly changing. Sometimes they go up. Sometimes they go down. I always have received $10-$20 per person OBC at embarkation due to decreases to those fees/taxes.

I don't buy that either. It doesn't make sense for the port fees to constantly fluctuate. The port fees are set and the cruise line divides that number by the number of passengers it expects to be sailing. How could a cruise line set prices if their costs didn't remain constant? For example fuel. They understand that fuel costs are unstable, therefore, the cruise lines have a clause in their contract for a fuel surcharge should the cost of fuel exceed $75 a barrel. Food costs fluctuate slightly, but are within the lines margin.

We have been on over 20 cruises and have only received an OBC when we missed a port.

I finally received a price drop for our sunshine cruise (balcony.) However, my taxes/port fees went up ( from approx $398 up to $437 ish.) Ummmm, ok?!?

 

 

 

When I called to question it the rep couldn't figure it out not could her supervisor so I was transferred. They eventually gave me the reason that the new price/promo had a different tax/fee rate and that they are subject to change.

 

In the grand scheme it's only a little $$ but I feel like, "really guys you can change my tax rate?" It's just a bit wacky to me.

 

Has this ever happened to you? (Maybe I just didn't notice it last cruise?)

 

Thanks and happy sailing to you all. ;)

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

This just happened to us. We saw a $50 pp drop in price so I called Carnival for the rate reduction. The CSR gets done and says the $80 will be issued as an OBC. I told her the drop was $100 and she told me the price went down but the taxes went up. I told her bulls*%t, taxes are a percentage of the fare and if the fare goes down the taxes go down. She told me that's not the way it works so I asked for a supervisor. She got a supervisor that told me the same thing. I'm not buying it but hey, an $80 drop is better than nothing.

The rule is one 750 ml bottle of wine per adult over 21. Port or dessert wine would be okay.:D

Just took my second trip to Alaska on NCL (13 years apart) and I will not go on another NCL ship until I can be assured of better food and general feel around the ship. I thought the food ranged from mediocre to poor, the ship had only about 2 areas to congregate that were not used as restaurants throughout the day. Two "for pay restaurants" were walkways to other parts of the ship. I am Carnival spoiled - my food on carnival has always been great with some dishes very memorable. And the ships seem to be much more leisure area friendly as well as having a general feeling of friendliness. Not so on the NCL Pearl.

When we were on NCL the food was fabulous. The best part of the ship. :D

I want to book an Alaskan cruise for June 2015 to celebrate my twins high school graduation and our 25th anniversary, but the choices are terrible. Only one ship is cruising and only one itinerary, which is not the Glacier Bay route. I heard that is better. Any chance Carnival will add more in the next few months? I'd like to book soon before prices go up. I checked other cruise lines and although they have more choices, they are way more expensive! Feeling frustrated...:(

Carnival only sends one ship per year to Alaska. We are going this Sept and chose the last cruise of the season since it goes to Sitka, however, we lose Victoria, B. C. I looked at next years last cruise and it doesn't stop in Sitka.

You have plenty of time to shop around if price is a concern.We just had a price drop to $899 pp for a balcony. This is $300 lower than when we booked back in March.

I agree with others when they say check other lines to do what is best for you. We stayed with Carnival because we are platinum and we like the perks and the price is much lower that the other lines.

I thought about NCL but decided not to go with them because of the poor service we received on the NCL Star. I know that was a long time ago, but I was afraid to take the chance.

I hope this helps a little. Go with your gut. If it says Carnival is not the right fit then go with whoever you are comfortable with.

Oh, one last thing. We were on the Legend for my wife's 50yh birthday and had a great time. The ship is fantastic and very easy to maneuver around.:D

What do the bartenders look at on the S & S card that tells them they are of legal drinking age?

 

 

My card has the Folio, VIP#, and numbers the right top corner but not sure what they mean.

 

 

thanks

I would be careful if I were you. We were on the Paradise last year with a son and his wife and three kids. Our grand daughter, age 18, ordered a mixed drink at the comedy club right in front of us and her parents and was served:(. No questions were asked. I was shocked and surprised that her father didn't say anything. I wanted to say something at the time but I do not believe in telling a 39 year old how to raise his family.

I am very worried about this:

. Have a cruise in Port Canaveral and flying from Indianapolis to Melborn, Fl. on Sunday Nov. 29 and have Delta flights booked for the day before. Delta has changed the schedule so our layover time in ATLANTA is only 35 min. My DH and I are in our 70's with bad knees. How in the world do they expect us to get to our connection (even if they are on time) in that huge airport? We were in that airport last fall and felt completley lost. ESverything I have read recommends at least 45 min. Map of airport is so confusing. Any suggestions? Thanks so much!.

Why Melbourne and not Orlando? I believe all the Delta flights are in the same concourse in Atlanta so you getting to the connection shouldn't be a problem. Your luggage, on the other hand, is the problem. I would notify Delta in advance of your physical situation so they are aware and can have assistance for you in Atlanta. Good luck and have a great cruise.

Thank you! Here's a link to my review - I have tons of pictures (starting on page 3 of the review. I posted all pictures at the end). This includes 3 days pre-cruise stay in Seattle. If I recall the total time of the helicopter tour (from the time they transport you to helicopter pad & suit you up, including flight time and one hour glacier walk) only lasted about 2 hours or so. It was relatively short for how much we paid ($399 per person I think). We still had plenty of time afterwards to walk around Juneau and grab a bite to eat at Tracy's Crab Shack. I was also worried about the weather, because you hear so much about the helicopter tours being grounded due to weather conditions. I planned the heli tour for our first stop figuring that if plans fell through for that port, perhaps we could add flightseeing at one of the later ports. Luckily, we had good weather the entire trip.

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1929967

Heather, thank you so much for your information and pictures. We are going on the last Carnival cruise this season and can't wait. What was the name of the helicopter company you flew with? Also, what part of Pittsburgh are you from? I am originally from the McKeesport area about 10 minutes south of da Burgh.

You should send a message to John Heald and tell him how great you thought Emerson was.

 

I hate to say it but I agree with Pine Bluff:eek: So far the only cruise director that stood out enough for me to remember their name was Big Tex and that is because I thought he was really annoying. I didn't like him at all. The rest of them I guess were just average. Maybe one day we will have one that I will remember because they were outstanding.

John sent out a fb post today mentioning Emerson.

Well, perhaps I should give him another chance? When I sailed with him, he was busy chasing the women aboard, and didn't do much else. There was no "Showcase of Stars" show, and when I ask him about it, he told me that he was just too busy to arrange that, and I'd just have to do without it? His whole staff on that cruise was exactly like him, and interested in doing NOTHING that they didn't absolutely have to do. It was maddening! There was no "Silent Film Skit", or any other extra entertainment. It's been a number of years since that cruise, so maybe he's straightened out. Just made me want to ask him "What's Your Major Malfunction, Sh** Bird?" :D

 

Semper Fi Brother

 

"SKY"

Wow, only sailed with him once but we had the opposite opinion. Didn't really see him chasing women, but I wasn't watching either. If you ever do sail with him again and he has the Silent Film Skit, it is a must see.Like the Keystone Cops, LOL.

Hope all is well brother, Semper Fi.

HA! Nope. MALCOLM BURN!

WOW, I am shocked Sky. We think Malcolm is one of the best CD's. We saw him on deck almost every day talking to guests and we loved his Silent Film Skit.The staff seemed to be haveing a good time as well.

I'm sure you have valid reasons behind your opinion though.

Semper Fi Marine,

Mike.

Well, We actually enjoyed having our young cruise director named Emerson. (I believe that's his name anyways.). According to the comedian during the week, he is the first African-American cruise director for Carnival.

Actually, Malcolm Burn is an African American CD that has been around for awhile. He is pretty good too, imho. :D

For me, CDs have never made a difference one way or another. I guess I just don't interact with them much.

You just don't realize how much a good CD does to impact your cruise. The good CD's have happy smiling people working for them that have a real desire to please the passengers. They also are involved with alternate events in case a ship cannot stop at a port. They make sure the entertainment staff is prepared and that the schecule of events goes on as planned. Some even have their own shows in the theater. Malcolm Burn for example has his Silent Film Skit and it is fantastic.

If you had a good cruise and everything went as planned and lots of smiles chances are you had a very good CD. If everything was slightly off and the staff was grunpy, chances are you had a new or poor CD.

There is a lot more that the CD does but what I mentioned are the most important imo.

Hi all,

 

Although this is my first post, I have been reading threads here for quite a while and have found this website to be extremely useful for cruise planning. Since your insight and reviews have helped me so much, I thought I would share this spreadsheet I put together for relatively easy, at-a-glance comparison of all of the Carnival ships and their amenities.

 

Can't live without Guys burgers? Want to avoid ships with Playlist Productions like the plague? Forgot which ships have converted to the American Table/Feast MDR menu? Would love to pick a ship with no blaring Jumbotron and that has a pool in the Serenity area? Hopefully some of you will find this spreadsheet helpful for these type of questions and more...

 

I would love to have your feedback and any suggestions for changes, improvements or corrections.

 

Please note that I have saved the spreadsheet in an older format so that users of Excel 2000 and above (or an alternate viewer) should be able to open it without any problems. Also, due to the size of each row, this will NOT be printout-friendly.

Well done, thanks.