smokesmom

Really going to miss that relaxing start to my vacation.

Used to buy several bottles on board every cruise because we drive to port and don't worry about packing them. But after long line and chaotic morning of the last cruise of them trying to find the order, never again unless they go back to delivering the night before. Not worth the hassle.

I got an interim bill today to check out how the SBC is being handled. Here’s what it shows:

- the drink and service charge is charged to the account

- a credit equal to the drink and service charge is credited to the account.

 

That means the SBC covers the service charge. We got ours as part of the Explore 4 promo, so I’m not sure if it is different if just purchased on board.

 

Also, I have been drinking a shiraz that is listed on the bar menu as costing $8.00. It has been covered by the SBC, so the card does cover drinks that cost $8.00 or less before adding the 15% service.

 

Dave

I'm glad to hear the charge is the actual menu price of the drink.

The HAL rewards card details state that one option is to use your points toward a cruise discount. We are only interested in using the card for this purpose. For those who have experience with the process, will you please comment about how it works. I walked through adding the points and discount and all the other information but did not finish the processing. I want to know if it comes off the credit card balance or you are sent a coupon. If sent a coupon do you give the confirmation number to your travel agent at time of final payment and the discount is applied?

I've used points to get a $500 cruise discount on 2 different cruises. Each time it was after final payment of the cruise. About 7 business days after I submitted the information, I received a $500 credit on my HAL visa bill. Very easy.

Maasdam, March 29, 2016, 11 day Caribbean

When will the cruise/land tours be available?

Just off the Paradise. No scavenger hunt for our cruise. Was disappointing as we have enjoyed those in the past.

Having read of all your reviews I feel like I've lost a friend I never got to meet. My deepest condolences to you and your family.

Me too! Been waiting for weeks. Cruise a week away. Yay!

I'm so very sorry for your loss.

Thanks for the update.

 

Do you happen to know how it will work when you apply the points toward payment of a cruise?

In the past I have made my final payment, then redeemed the points. The credit was applied on the same bill as the charge. Worked like a charm.

I'm hoping it will still work that way, as the $500 in on-board credit would be excessive.

I redeemed enough points to get $500 off my upcoming Noordam cruise. I called them, gave them the booking number. They operator told me that it might be 2 or 3 billing cycles to show up on my account but a $500 credit was on my next statement. Very easy.

Thank you. We are very excited. Our first time to the Southern Caribbean.

Ok, after twenty cruises, eleven of them with HAL, almost nine and a half years on Cruise Critic, and over 1,680 posts, I never thought I'd be asking this question...

 

We haven't received our Stateroom assignment for our upcoming Collectors' Voyage on the Noordam.

 

It has never been this long. The roll call members on the first leg have been receiving their cabin assignments for three days, and now the roll call members on the second leg are getting theirs.

 

This has never happened to us.

 

By now the cabin is assigned, boarding passes and luggage tags are printed, and everything is stowed safely in my cruise notebook.

 

We leave for Ft. Lauderdale a week from today.

 

My Travel Agent is on a Trans Atlantic.

 

Goodness, this sounds like whining! I am just a very routine comforted cruiser that likes to have all her fingers on the buttons.

 

I'n not sure if it is time to be concerned or not.

 

Any advice? Has anyone had something go wrong? Am I worrying for no reason?:confused:

 

Thanks in advance for help :)

I know just how you feel. I am just obsessing over it. Checking my reservations 2 or 3 times during the day. Just crazy. I think embarkation is stressful enough so I hope I don't have to add getting a room assignment at the pier to the mix.

I tried the seabands and had no luck with them. Only remedy for me is Bonine taken every 12 hours. Most people can take one every 24 hours.

Sound advice I had the thought to bring my computer to upload daily but talked myself out of it.

We are pretty sure we left our camera in a golf cart that we rented while on the island. Contacted the rental people and they didn't find one so our hope is that it fell out between Jack's shack and the cruise port.

 

 

Sent from my HTCONE using Forums mobile app

There is a posting on Jack Shacks Facebook page about finding a camera. They posted pictures to see if anyone recognized the people.

My DH and I are both 54 and have sailed both lines in the Caribbean. I like aspects of both lines.

Carnival Likes - Deck dance parties, Cheers package, movies, comedy shows, Marriage Game, friendly people, friendly staff, casino, wearing shorts/shirt to main dining room in the evening,

Carnival Dislikes - Chair hogs, loud Lido music, rude people, Disco, limited room service menu - especially breakfast

HAL Likes - Lectures, classes, happy hour, movies, stage shows, really dressing up for formal nights, friendly people, friendly staff, lots of choices for room service, Disco, casino

HAL dislikes - limited late night activities except Disco/Casino, wearing slacks/tops or sundresses to main dining room when I would like to wear shorts/shirts in the evening, rude people

I've been able to find food I like on both lines (I gain weight every cruise) and the beds to me are very comfortable on both lines. I think they both offer a nice array of excursions and they both go to Half Moon Cay. :D

I don't bring jeans to the Caribbean so I can't remember if jeans are allowed in MDR on HAL.

Know you will have a great time on either line.

Well actually, the only thing I can find on Carnival's site that touches on my question is in the FAQ section "Guests must purchase the program for the entire cruise - this program is not offered on a per day basis." This is why I'm asking the question here. There seems to be conflicting answers.

 

Does anyone else with experience purchasing Cheers on the second day want to chime in?

We went on a 7 day cruise. Decided to buy the Cheers program on the morning of the 2nd day. We were charged for 6 days. Hard to look at that big charge at the very beginning but was nice to know we wouldn't get a shocking bar bill at the end. :)

What Carnival means about the program not being offered on a per day basis is that you can't purchase a day program for Monday, skip Tuesday, purchase for Wed, skip Thurs and Friday, and purchase for Sat. You pay for all the days whether you drink on all the days or not.

We thought the program was definitely worth the cost to us.

We were there last year and went to one one of the nearby beaches called Mambo beach.It was ok,but not great.We are going back this year and intent on going up to Playa cas abou beach about a 30 minute ride.We will be in Curacao from 8 am to 9pm.There is a taxi stand where you can hire a cab to take you to see the sites .As soon as you leave the pier area is where you will find it.I read that the fares are government controlled but you be the judge.They did seem to have a set price for similar sites.If you know what you want to see and do you can set it up with the driver.Depending on time and if the cab is in good condition.I would not get in a cab if it looked like it was in demolition derby.We saw many cruisers setting up itineraries by the stand

Thank you. I appreciate these recommendations. :)

We'll be here all day. Would like to take a highlight tour and then time for snorkeling. Recommendations for a company to contact?

Smokesmom - Noordam - 03-Nov-14 10-Day Southern Caribbean Seafarer

DH doesn't swim, so when I mentioned snorkeling in the Caribbean he was more than skeptical. We did a couple of things that made all the difference:

 

1. We called a dive shop and took "lessons". It was cheap, the owner spent just a few minutes showing us a few things, then let us play around in the shallow end of the pool while he taught his scuba class. Perfect.

 

2. Buy your own equipment. It's not really that expensive, and you can get feel secure with it. Be sure to get a DRY SNORKEL. Unlike the rental snorkels that are just a little tube, a dry snorkel has a top that will almost always stop water from coming in, so you don't have to fear getting a mouthful of water. This makes a huge difference. DH even has his own vest because he feels more secure with it.

 

We've had a ball snorkeling and are actually considering scuba lessons now!

I agree. We had a couple of bad experiences so we bought our own equipment with the dry snorkel and took a beginner class in Cozumel as an excursion. Instructors were great and I felt comfortable with my own stuff and vest. Great snorkeling times ever since.

Not to make this more confusing, but I was told (by Carnival) that if you buy on the second day, it is applied retroactively and the drinks from the first day will then be applied to the Cheers program instead of being billed separately. It also says that you must buy the package for the entire cruise, that it cannot be purchased for a portion of the cruise.

 

I've also seen posts from people on here that stated that's the way it was for them as well, they bought on the second day and it was for the entire cruise, so even if you buy on the 2nd day of a 7 day cruise, you're still charged for 7 days, not 6.

We were on the Legend for 7 days and bought the Cheers package on the 2nd day. We were charged for 6 days. The drinks we purchased on the first day were billed separately to our account. We waited until the 2nd day to purchase because we boarded late on the first day and knew we wouldn't get our money's worth that day.

Who was the Cruise Director? Did you like him or her?

The cruise director was Willie Lee. I thought he was great. Very personable. Very visible at the events. I also thought his assistants were very good. Pleasant and smiling even when confronted by people not so pleasant.

I can't remember but does everyone in the room need to buy this or is it just one person need todbuy it for the whole room

Thanks

Only one person needs to buy it per room.

Enjoyed your review. I liked cruising on Halloween on the Legend. I've never been on the Breeze but there were people on the Legend who felt the same as you.

My DH had gall bladder issues which were hard to diagnose and would happen at random times so I understand what you went through. Hate that it happened on your cruise.

Hope the next cruise will be better. Will be looking forward to your next review.