buckirj1

Thank you for the review. I was very interested in this cruise, but couldn't make it happen for one reason or another. Glad you had a fab cruise.

Carnival's website isn't very forthcoming. Do any ships still have the Rotisserie (upstairs from the Lido)?

I can see where cabanas might be a PITA to navigate on the Lido Deck, but I'm not fussed either at their existence or the fact that people pay to enjoy the use of them. I'm not at all sure that makes anybody a snob. Others have more money than I, or at least choose to spend money differently. I accept that without question. Not a big deal.

Very sad. I was hoping the initial reports would be proved false.

Folks on the NCL board have reported they have been able to take food from the buffet to their cabins. My own impression is that so long as you're a little discreet, and taking only a reasonable amount of food; i.e., a few cookies, a carton of yogurt, a piece of fruit, etc. the Lido staff aren't likely to care or even notice. Taking an entire tray back to your cabin is another matter entirely. Carry-out meals from venues such as O'Sheehan's or Blue Lagoon are no longer permitted. For hygenic purposes and our convenience. Uh-huh. I don't care as much about the policy change as I do about having smoke blown up my...well, you know.

My experience on Carnival is on the Triumph and later class ships, not the Fantasy-class or the Spirit-class. I don't think I'd care for the Spirit-class, so I never tried them. The Fantasy class doesn't go anywhere I'd want to go, so there's no point. My only experience on RCI was on a Vision-class ship, and I didn't like it either time...at all. Those slippery floors, even carpeted...I can't even...

That said, Carnival has bigger cabins, nicer linens and human-sized showers. I like that RCI has a sofa in every cabin, where Carnival has sofas only in some 1A's and in oceanview and higher cabin categories. Carnival's self-serve laundries are terrific! I like having them even if I never use them.

Carnival also has better food, but RCI's is perfectly adequate. Cabin service is about the same (very good) between the two lines, but Carnival has the better dining service. Wait staff on RCI don't seem to know what to do with solo cruisers; I was alternatively butt-kissed and utterly ignored. I liked the bar staff better on RCI; they cheerfully filled my unlimited soda cup, every bartender/every time. I got a whiff of attitude sometimes from some Carnival bartenders about refills, but most of the time bar service was fine.

RCI seems to have the better itineraries and port times, so far as I can tell. I love the option of going to Canada/NE in mid- to late-October, and I love the Alaska itinerary that has the long daytime stop in Victoria.

It could be the difference between leaving from NY as opposed to leaving from Baltimore, but I thought I was climbing the stairway to heaven to get onboard the RCI ship. The climb wasn't nearly so long or steep to reach the Carnival ships in NY.

I like that RCI gives double credit to solo cruisers, in most cases. If you're going to make me pay double, it only makes sense that I get double points. At least, I hope RCI is still doing this.

Most importantly (to me, at least), there's a vibe on RCI I just can't shake. Both times, I felt like somebody was always crawling up my butt trying to get me to do...something. It got downright stressful, and is the real reason I hesitate to try RCI again. I don't think I'd like the Radiance-class ships, but I think I'd like the Voyager-class ships a lot...if they'd just leave me alone. I realize I'm not explaining it very well, but it's almost a frantic feeling I've never experienced on any other cruiseline.

I guess it all comes down to individual situations, and how different folks like to cruise. It's no secret that what's fun to a family or a couple might not be so for a solo cruiser. I'm heavily driven by price, and Carnival almost always wins out by having the best solo price. Hope the OP makes the best choice possible, and has a great cruise.

HAL's Facebook page has a posting in tribute to the late BB King. A very classy thing to do.

I try to avoid the whole shebang by eating alone as often as possible. Back in the days of shared tables, I once became uncomfortable with the direction of a discussion comparing the cruiseline we were sailing with other lines. A table mate kept trashing the service of the line as if the dinner servers weren't even there. He was an entitled old fart, anyway.

My only disappointment in NCL recently has been regarding price, which is preventing me from sailing. I'm not greatly concerned about most of the recent changes, but I'm mightily offended by Del Rio's public statements about his "New Deal". That doesn't seem to be a big deal to most folks, though. As far as I can tell, none of FDR's arrogance has trickled down to the actual cruise experience, despite his comments.

It's been a few years since I've been able to cruise NCL, but I liked the MDR food. I didn't think it was as good as Carnival, but I thought it was much better than Royal Caribbean. Food isn't a terribly important consideration in cruising for me, but it makes the overall experience better if you like the food. Keep in mind good food and service might mean something different to you than it does for me.

 

This bothers me more than anything else he's done. In comparing the Real FDR's Real New Deal and what it did for the United States to NCL's blatant money-grubbing under his leadership, Del Rio displays an appalling lack of historical knowledge and a crude disrespect for one of the most important social programs in history. I've been disappointed in some of the changes, and concerned about the direction in which NCL has been heading, but I haven't been truly offended until now. I think I'll express my displeasure to NCL directly this time.

Trying to generate a little more light than heat here.

The only way the whole "bringing food from elsewhere on the ship back to your cabin" thing would be a dealbreaker is seeing passengers eating snacks in their underwear in the Lido instead of back in their cabin.

I'm having a hard time believing crew will care or even notice so long as passengers are reasonably discreet about taking stuff out of other food venues. On the other hand, if you're traveling in a herd and take back enough to feed the herd, you pretty much deserve what you get.

There are 2 tabs on the spreadsheet..did you go to the other tab? That tab shows all the cruises opening on May21...the tab it opens to are for the cruisetours.

Thanks! I should have noticed it. Found it:) Does/will the Regal sail from Brooklyn or Manhattan? The last I checked, Princess consistently sailed from Brooklyn, but I confess I haven't paid much attention.

The Canada land-sea tours that include Montreal and Ottawa are intriguing, though likely priced too high to be realistic. Looking forward to learning more about the 5 night Canada/NE cruises. I didn't see them on the spreadsheet.

Volendam has a mid-week departure. That has advantages and disadvantages. It's up to you to determine if the one outweighs the other, based on the way you prefer to travel.

I remember many years ago when the Italian specialty restaurant was no charge, but you still had to make a reservation. It wouldn't hurt to try, or check when you're onboard.

I can certainly see a teppanyaki/hibachi land restaurants doing that, because they usually have a lot more than 32 seats, but on the ships with the seating so limited and in high demand, I don't think it should be allowed. Just my opinion. I usually go to the Teppanyaki restaurant a couple times during each cruise and am always amazed how the real little ones enjoy the experience and how much of the food they actually eat and if they don't finish it, dad usually does LOL.

The limited seating in NCL's Teppanyaki restaurants is an excellent point. It's usually the first specialty restaurant to fill up.

Love this response!!!

As do I. But really, it's 25 bucks to make a very special night for the kid, eating food he loves. Seems to me it would take away from the kid's experience to eat off somebody else's plate, 5 years old or not. And Teppanyaki's a hibachi grill-type place, not a fancy restaurant-type place. Places like that are made for famblees. Is $25 worth of kid happiness really worth quibbling over?

Maybe it's because I'm the product of three centuries of central Maryland inbreeding, but maple syrup is way too strong a topping for pancakes. I prefer Baltimore's own King Syrup, but usually find myself going with the sugar-free alternatives on cruise ships.

I tend to check pricing a lot, once I figure out the cruises I might take if the price ends up being where I want it. I sail the same basic itinerary (Canada/NE) all the time, but either on a different ship or a specific itinerary that includes a new-to-me port or two. I'll read up on a new port or a new ship. I only book when the price is acceptable, and don't bother looking at it again. I wouldn't dream of making entertainment or dining reservations ahead of time. Same with shore excursions. I don't use any of that stuff very often, and wouldn't sulk if I got shut out.

This month's promo isn't any different from last month's promo. I still get $25 OBC. Fine by me, $25 will buy me a lot of diet soda. I wouldn't have used last month's promo even if I were eligible for it. YMMV.

The base price is still too high for what I'm looking for, though there's a geezer sale on right now for an earlier, similar, shorter itinerary.

Even though the majority of men wore suits, you never saw suited gangs of hooligans, roaming the halls, delivering beat downs on the less or more dressed minorities.

That's a visual that made me laugh out loud...(says she who never dresses up to eat)

Reminds me of one of those Royal Caribbean ships with the slippery hard floors. So many of HAL ships have seriously unattractive furniture. Doesn't bother me, so long as it's comfortable.

I believe NCL used to be very generous to passengers who took charge of Meet & Greets, until folks started hosting M&G's for the sole purpose of "getting stuff." I remember several years ago on the Spirit the M&G coordinator received many gifts: from daily food treats, to ship tours, to priority debarkation at ports, etc. Well deserved, she was so good at that sort of thing! She spent a lot of time writing thank you notes.

But I think people's greed put an end to that.

My only two cruises on RCI have been on a Vision-class ship, and I didn't like the cruise experience either time. There were a bunch of reasons for that, but one of them was that I didn't like the ship itself. I thought the Enchantment was way too bright, with far too many slippery hard floors. And those tiny showers--I can't even.

However, RCI has a terrific 11-night Arctic Circle itinerary in 2016 on the Serenade. I think I can make the service/dining/solo problems I have with RCI work if I make some changes in the way I eat and somewhat modify my expectations, but can somebody provide a basic description of what's different about the Radiance-class? What I've been able to find out so far leads me to believe they're just bigger Vision-class ships with more windows letting in even more bright light. Are there more carpeted areas? I gather inside cabins are a good bit larger, but are the showers still so tiny, or are they more Carnival, Cunard and NCL-sized? Curtained or clam-shell? How are the showers in the spa/gym area, if that should become necessary?