ray98

Yay!  I know Megan will give us a good look at the Celebration.  I hope to book it next spring.

On 8/21/2023 at 10:23 PM, pirate4me2 said:

Last comparison for today, and it’s a biggie…has to do with FOOD. 

Mom and I didn’t really want to dress to Yacht Club standards for dinner after our day on the island, so we wandered down to “gen-pop” to check the buffet offerings on deck 8. We made a few rounds and picked up a few things to try…and promptly proceeded back to the room to freshen up for YC dinner. I was so disappointed in MSC’s main dining buffet. Carnival always has a wonderful salad bar, and MSC’s was about half the size and just not as diverse in ingredients offered. I also love Carnival’s deli, and the “sandwich” station here had tuna salad, egg salad, or chicken salad to offer. I would have loved a Carnival caprese sandwich tonight! The pizza was good, I absolutely loved the flavor of the sauce, and the cheeses on the meat & cheese board were good, but overall I CAN see why people may complain about the food on MSC if this was all they experienced. Carnival definitely wins the food war as far as buffets go. 
 

I DO like how MSC has their buffet set up though! They had multiple stations all around, with 2-3 offering the same things, so you do not have to wait in a line like on some Carnival ships. That was a nice touch. 

 We had a similar experience with the buffet.  We were on Seaside in May, the MDR service was horrendous with a minimum 2 hour service so we decided to try the buffet.  It was a huge disappointment.  If you went the first night you would know exactly what would be served the rest of the week.  The dishes simply had no imagination and they were unable to maintain any sort of proper service temps.  Everything was cold and the few meats they had were dry.  

One thing I can count on with Carnival is on the dinner buffet they will have some selections that are also being served in the MDR that evening.  MSC does not follow that thought process.  I am not a picky eater at all and I left there less than satisfied every night, one night I swear the best thing was the chicken nuggets.  It was something I had never experienced on any other cruise line.

It has always been like that for us.....pick the most popular time and it comes with a longer wait.

Not really.  Everything seems to be sailing pretty much at capacity right now so there is no need to discount.

A basic mixed drink will have no cost over the spirit price + the 18% gratuity.  For example, a rum and coke is the same price as a shot of rum.

P&A no longer has the daily dinner specials.....just the subpar BBQ.

Peace and quiet is my choice.

Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn't.  It is unintentional by Carnival when it does.

On 8/12/2023 at 10:49 AM, cbfb said:

Thank you for the clarification. I am being told conflicting things. Some say the 5:30-7:30 seating has an arrival of 5:30 and you are done at 7:30.  Others are stating you get a specific time within that time frame which is better as I am hoping for at least 6:00 at the earliest. 

That information is completely wrong.  Bella and Fantastica have assigned times.  There are 3 seatings, MSC considers the first 2 early and the other late.  If you request early they will attempt to assign you to either the 5:30 or 7:30 seating as they see fit but it is not guaranteed, you could still get late..  

We did the Seaside in May and got the earliest time, we had to arrive at the dining room at 5:15.  We attempted to change it as that is way to early for us but had no luck.  The problem with 3 seatings is the majority want the 7:30 slot.  Few want to be getting ready for dinner at 4pm and most have no interest in the 9:30 seating especially when the service time is close to 2 hours.

Filthy.

The AT&T plan basically does not give you internet, look at it a phone only.  Yes.....they include data but it is a minuscule amount that will be used in a very short time.

I will add myself to the list....wifi calling has NEVER worked on Carnival in my experience.

Could be the best balcony on the ship, could be the worst.

That has to be miserable.  We had a trip around 10 years ago on the Fantasy which is why I always travel with a fan to this day.  We had an inside with an A/C problem they were unable to fix and it was widespread enough they were out of fans.  They sent maintenance several times and could not get the cabin below 82f.  That temp was very uncomfortable with no moving air.

You roll it around with you.  That is why there is a process to check bags at the terminal.

1 hour ago, LynnTH said:

Correct.  I had the offer on 2 Separate cards. One of mine and one of my husbands.  So, did 2 separate orders with the cards at $800 each to get $120 back on each card.  

Ahhhh......that is awesome.

54 minutes ago, LynnTH said:

I just went online and ordered 2- $800 Gift Cards.  On separate purchases.  Will get $120 back on each. Both went through just fine and looked on my Chase Account and it comes through as Carnival Cruise Lines.  

I believe the max rebate is $129.

19 minutes ago, Moparfiend said:

8 day from Baltimore (Sept '23)
priced at more then 8,000 dollars for a suite
$2,900 for an interior
$4,800 for a balcony 

This is on an older ship (Legend), 2 people

Carnival will price themselves out of the market if they continue this path

If they are sailing full as they appear to be then they are in their market.  The market is what people will pay for something.

3 minutes ago, thesmiths said:

So spend about $860 to get the max$129 back?

 

 

The total price for a 7 day is $990.  15% off if $148 so it will max it out.

I have the offer too on my Chase card, I went ahead and booked Cheers for our next cruise which will max out the rebate.

If the category is sold out then there is no price claim.

Why would they do that?  The industry standard is gratuities are optional just like they are on land.  Including gratuities in the published prices only puts you at a disadvantage to the competition and takes away the choice from the customer.

The P&A is a great bar on the Mardi Gras.

It is really too many to list.

2 hours ago, Colorado Beach Bum said:

I really liked the daily special menu we had the first couple of times on MG. Too bad they changed it.  It’s not as great of a dinner option in my opinion.  

I agree.  For us the BBQ is usually sub par.  The nightly specials on the other hand were usually awesome and made it worth the trip.