me-shel

The Imagination is in dry dock right now. Once complete, it seems the differences between the two will be pretty negligible.

From here:

Carnival Imagination Dry Dock: 9/04/16 - 9/22/16

In addition to routine hotel maintenance and cosmetic enhancements in lounges and public areas such as new carpeting, wall coverings, tile work and lighting, the following will take place:

Guy’s Burger Joint (replace food service: Off the Grill and Rotisierre)

BlueIguana Cantina (replace food service: Mongolian Wok)

RedFrog Rum Bar (replace pool bar)

BlueIguana Tequila Bar (replace pool bar)

Alchemy Bar (replace Pinnacle Bar)

Cherry On Top (replace Special Occasion)

Crew area renovations

We were just on Inspiration in July and are about to go Imagination. I'll have an actual experienced opinion in a few weeks. ;)

When we ordered room decorations, they were all up when we got to the room. Of course, I still had a copy of the email confirmation with me... just in case.

We just did the 3-day to Ensenada in July for our anniversary. Being summer, there were numerous groups of bachelor/bachelorette parties, birthdays, and family reunions that were recognizable during check in. That said, I never once felt like I was dodging through some crazy party.

The things I did notice:

1. Extra "WOO HOO-ing" during each step of muster. ("That's our life boat?? Woo Hoo!!!")

2. Full hot tubs on the Lido deck. (I think if everyone got out at once there would've been about 2 inches of water left).

3. Room service breakfasts being served to exceptionally dark rooms around 10:30am. (Recovery time!)

It seems like center of the Lido deck with the pool hot/tubs is really the only placed I noticed anything more "lively." Dining room, shows, activities, aft deck, atrium... everything else was pretty subdued and normal. I was a bit surprised to even see some very formal cocktail dresses/suits on elegant night.

I'm so sorry for your loss, and hope you find plans for Christmas that make it a little easier to get through the holidays.

My husband could LIVE off burgers and he thought they were great and couldn't get enough. He's a burger lover so he was excited to have a really well-made option. I thought they were really good burgers, but what I really liked was having the toppings bar so I could fix them just the way I wanted them.

If you want to see a video of someone making their burger - and the "atmosphere" - watch here:

Personally I wouldn't choose a cruise based on getting a specific burger (we've got 5 Guys down the street!), but when I see people recommending it I usually assume it's because a ship with Guy's would have the other 2.0 upgrades as well.

Just got some today! Thanks for the heads up.

I always see people talk about using over-the-door hangers to keep things organized. Does anyone have any examples (links) of what specific kinds you like to use?

They seem to get a love it/leave it reaction, but we're about to have 4 people in a cabin for the first time (all female!) and I feel like on this one we can use all the help we can get - especially in the bathroom!!

Thank you all for your replies. I guess I made it sound like we're jerks. I didn't mean to, but it does sound that way.

For what it's worth, the fact that you were worried about hurting their feelings in the first place gave me the impression that you weren't jerks at all - just trying to figure out the best way to deal with some unexpected changes and have the best experience for everyone. Especially after a year of looking forward to this trip! To be honest, I've had "buyer's remorse" before after inviting extra people to travel with us, then worrying that it would've been easier if we'd just gone on our own. Without fail it's turned out just fine, and I was stressing over nothing.

Enjoy your cruise!!

We just did the 3 day to Mexico in July with 2 people.

We're about to go on the 4 day to Mexico in October, originally booked with 3 people.

Even with (1) an extra person and (2) an extra day, the grand total was actually CHEAPER in October (3 people/4 days) than our cruise in July (2 people/3 days) in the same room category. As already mentioned, there's got to be supply & demand in play.

If you're comfortable with the terms of Early Saver (cancellation/change penalties!) you can book now and get a credit for any price drop you see in the future.

Congratulations on your son's graduation!

If you wait until you're at the port, it seems like you are trying to hide something and they might be offended or hurt.

Totally agree with this. If my travel mates told me ahead of time, "Oh my gosh, we couldn't resist upgrading to a suite! We're so excited!!" then I'd be happy for them regardless of how the rest of the logistics work out. If they didn't mention anything until we were at port it would be really awkward. Why was it a big secret?

To me, choosing to travel with friends isn't much different than choosing to travel with our kids, especially when they were younger - we just accept going into it that there may be comprises we wouldn't have to make if we'd gone alone. (And THAT is why we periodically ditch the kids and travel without them!!;)) The beauty of being with adult friends (or older kids) is it's much easier to separate and 'do our own thing' when we really want to.

Use the outside cam channel on the TV as your "window". It's dark at night and brings "light" to your cabin in the morning just like a real window.

We just sailed in our first inside a couple months ago on the Inspiration and this was the best tip I picked up from the boards here.

I thought the lack of natural light would bother me more, but it was fine. The thing I really missed was having a couch like we'd had in our balcony rooms. One little chair just wasn't quite enough to relax.

We got the same speech when we cancelled a person and dropped from 4 to 3 people in a room that held 5 max. He even "looked around" to see if there was a room he should move us to immediately, but ultimately left us where we were with the warning that we could be moved in the future if they needed our room. Nothing ever changed, and I assumed it was a piece of fine print they're required to cover just in case.

We were hoping these changes would be coming before we sailed! Thanks for the update. :)

Since it is next summer it might be worth getting a TSA PreCheck Known Traveler Number (KTN) to speed security or even spring for the more widely usable Global Entry if international travel is anticipated (other than just Canada). Last time I used PreCheck at Seattle going through security took less than a minute.

The last time we flew out of Sea-Tac (March) we were stuck in the security line over an hour & a half and missed our flight - along with countless people around us. We got TSA PreCheck for the whole family when we got home from that trip. $85 for 5 years, and worth every penny! I've had 4 flights since then and breezed through security in each airport.

Correct, they kind of "front you" for the days you will have at the end of the trip. So with 21 days/points so far, another 7 day trip will put you at 28 when it's all said and done so you will be Gold for this whole trip. As another member said you will be getting a free drink coupon, unfortunately it's only good on the last day of the sailing after 5pm. Very restrictive, I wish it was like a "welcome aboard, thanks for coming back" coupon and was good right away.

I'll turn Gold on our next trip, but it's only 4 days so it looks like I won't get that free drink at all! I would've been happy to use it on the last day. :(

DO NO DO IT!!! You get the balcony and put the 3 if them across the hall in an inside cabin. Give MIL a key to your room so she can enjoy balcony while you're out and about on the ship. The kids won't care about a balcony. They'll be to busy enjoying the ship and kids club.

What a wonderful DIL u are?

This will ensure after the cruise you will still love ur MIL! LOL!!

We had our girls across the hall from us in an interior. They spent enough time hanging out in our room to enjoy the balcony, but when I offered to switch rooms with them for one night I got a big, fat "No thanks!" They said they really liked their own space. Fine by me!! ;)

I've had this happen after both our long cruises (7 & 8 day), and it lasted at least a week or more each time. Unlike others I HATED it - especially at work - because it just reminded me I wasn't out to sea anymore. ;)

I never knew it had a name, and didn't know meds might help. The only advice I got before was to get back on a ship! Keeping that in mind for next time.

We just did our first interior on a quickie 3-days and it was totally fine, and we have another interior on our upcoming 4-day. Our other 3 were all balconies. If I was going for a week I'd definitely pay for the balcony! For me personally, that's a lot of time navigating crowds and I need some down time in my own personal space. We're in the planning stages for a 7 or 8 day next summer, and I'm only looking at a balcony (interior for the kids!)

I LOVED room service breakfast & coffee outside in the mornings in my bathrobe. Happy hour on the balcony before dinner. I think you're not *supposed* to, but I love having the door propped open at night and listening to the white noise of the water against the ship. And (if you're on the correct side) watching the ship dock in port.

Any room on a ship is better than not being on the ship... but I'd pay for the upgrade. Have a great time either way! :D

We have four on our upcoming trip. The 3rd and 4th passengers are at an equal/lower rate. We had even originally just booked 3 people, and when we added the 4th it was at the same rate as the 3rd.

Are the golf carts recommended for a family of 4 with an 8 and 3 year old? Someone suggested it to me, but makes me nervous.

Thank you. :)

 

 

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We obviously haven't traveled yet so I can't speak from experience, but 'ncovert' posted a video on a different thread that might give you some perspective. There's a little bit of golf cart "traffic" just after the 2min mark:

It may ultimately depend on your kiddos. My older daughter has always been pretty reserved and based on this video would've been fine at any age, but my younger daughter was a jumper at 3 years old and I would have been more nervous about her.

My daughter is excited about the idea of just cruising around Catalina Island on a golf cart. This is a pretty low-key, short trip so I'd like to take a break from planning as much as possible. Will we have any trouble just showing up on the island and grabbing a cart for 4 people?

OK, see what's happening? I have to even makes plans to not make plans. Which is why I need a break from making plans! ;)

Thanks! Sounds like cabs will be no problem getting there and back. Luggage is not an issue as this cruise begins in Vancouver and Seattle is just a port of call. Any suggestions for lunch in or around the Pike Place Market area? I see on tripadvisor there are many choices. Hoping for fresh fish/seafood...

Like CruiserBruce said, you won't have any trouble finding a good lunch! When we want to sit and relax, we usually end up at Lowell's in the heart of the market - we like the window seats overlooking Puget Sound. If we've wandered down to the waterfront, it's usually Ivar's or Elliot's Oyster House - both just past the Great Wheel.

Google has a nice 360* view of Lowell's here, though I've NEVER seen the market that empty. ;)

Elliot's is here.

On our last cruise:

OBC & gift cards were used first (I forgot to provide the gift cards at check-in, but stopped by guest services the next day & they added the value).

Our credit card was then charged for our balance beyond that.

I'd used the credit card to set up the on board account online before we left, so the $100 hold did show up the day we left.

Just got an email today for our upcoming October cruise: $20 to move up 3 decks in the same room type (interior Riviera to interior Empress).

Also got an email before our last cruise in July: $30 to move from an interior to an ocean view.

Fabulous, this is just what I was looking for! They've cruised on Carnival before and have their own log-ins, but I hadn't noticed the "Add a Booking" tab before. They've got the booking number, so it sounds like we know what to do now. Thank you, thank you!

We're sharing a room with friends, and I created the original booking. How do my friends enter their information and set up a payment account? I can give them my login if I have to, but thought there should be some way to do it on their own given the number of mixed parties that must sail every day.