sparks1093

Before COVID they very well may have absorbed the cost, as I understand it many cruise companies did just that. But given the amount of debt that the cruise lines amassed during their shut down it doesn't really surprise me that they are changing past practice. No doubt one of the reasons they have it outlined in the contract.

To be fair the other drinks need to be factored in only if the passenger in question drinks them. I rarely drink soda, so I don't include that in my calculations.

Yes, I've watched society deteriorate my entire life. Yesterday someone drove their vehicle through the front door of the funeral home. Crazy times. As for the story at hand, the Bahamas have been unsafe for quite some time and tourists have been told to be on the alert while there.

True, but getting someone to represent you becomes that much harder if the contract clearly covers things. Unless you are willing to pony up the legal fees and expenses up front, which will probably exceed any settlement offered.

No, it doesn't, but it was brought up in post #11.

They probably wouldn't step in any of those cities, either. Heck, we're in the middle of a crime wave here in our little village of 1700 people.

Given this language in the cruise contract, I doubt it: (a) In consideration for the fare paid, it is agreed that Carnival shall not be held vicariously liable for the intentional or negligent acts of any persons not employed by Carnival nor for any intentional or negligent acts of Carnival’s employees committed while off duty or outside the course and scope of their employment. Passenger assumes the risk of injury, death, illness or other loss and Carnival is not responsible for the negligence or wrongdoing of any independent contractors or sub-contractors.

Yes, you will be reported missing and yes, the authorities will be on the look out for you. At the very least when you return to the US you will likely be sent to secondary inspection since according to CBP's records you are on a cruise and now here you are, arriving by air. They'll be making extra sure that it is you, as well, and not someone who is taking your place. Since the entry requirements for a country are often different for cruise ship passengers then they are for those arriving by plane that might be an issue, too. Certainly nothing that I have on my bucket list.

This is the best reason for not planning something like this and other stories in the thread reinforce it. No port is guaranteed.

I wasn't being critical of you or your post, I was using it as a springboard to post thoughts for other people to consider, since there are other people reading this thread who haven't made up their minds. A lot of people will look at the "6 alcoholic drinks per day" and say "well, I don't drink that much so it's not worth it", without looking at everything else. I mean, it doesn't matter a wit to me whether or not they consider everything because it isn't my money, but we do try to be helpful here (at least sometimes🙂). At the end of the day we all have to make this determination for ourselves based on our own patterns.

One of the fallacies about Cheers is that you only break even by drinking only alcoholic drinks. Generally 6 mixed drinks on average will be the break even point but one isn't limited to only mixed drinks with Cheers. And I stress average because as you point out there are port days to consider (and also taking into account time spent on any of the private islands, since Cheers doesn't work there). We could do without Cheers, for sure, but we are on vacation and we don't like to limit ourselves or feel like we're scrimping. I have gone cruises without having any specialty coffees, but being able to order them when I want to makes the trip that much better. I could go an entire cruise just sipping on beer, but being able to order any number of cocktails when I want a change, again, just makes the trip that much better.

Usually you will need a photo ID and your cabin card to show to re-enter the port area. Depending on what we are doing I will bring a small amount of cash, if there is an opportunity to shop I'll add a bit more cash and a credit card. We normally remember sun screen and water. Beach days require a pool towel for each of us. We recently bought a backpack to make lugging everything easier. Camera and at least one cell phone (DW hate's to be without hers in any event). We have a couple of disposable ponchos as well. (Like a lot of people we leave passports in the safe and bring our DL's but different strokes for different folks on this one, many will bring their passports with them.)

If your documentation is sufficient to board then it will be sufficient to go ashore. There are some excursions that do require more than a birth certificate but those are usually ones that require one to cross a border (such as the railroad excursion in Alaska), but I don't think there are any such on your itinerary. Since this might get moved I will also add that some cruise lines require a passport for all passengers, but Carnival is not one of those lines (and some lines require a child traveling with only one parent to have a passport).

I've heard it from numerous insiders. It needn't be strictly about performance in any case. A manager in a service oriented business wants to know why a customer removed tips so he or she goes to the person that dealt with them for info.

Sometimes but I don't think it's the norm.

Not really the same. Still, far from being a volunteer.

The list itself is not shared, but if a passenger in the crew member's area removes tips their supervisor is informed and the crew member is then questioned about it.

Yes, but they are working for money, they aren't volunteering. The expectation is that the customer will tip them for their services.

Interesting. Never noticed that.

Except the control is completely illusory. It's like handing a waitress in a land-based establishment that pools tips a $100 bill with a tricky wink and saying, "this is only for you, don't put it in the tip pool". The waitress may assure you that she won't, but she probably will (although there are some who wouldn't, human nature being what it is). For me as a customer having the gratuities added to my account removes all of the guess work out of it since who is supposed to get a share of it, does. It also keeps me from having to carry a lot of cash around. Then if a crew member does something that warrants providing extra then I can do that, knowing that said crew member receives the full benefit of that extra.

I don't know if it is a function of my computer or of Cruise Critic but misspellings are underlined in red (and grammatical errors in blue). Posting too quickly is the weakness of computer forums, we post without thinking about it. Still, our posts appear to us as they will be posted, so I'm not sure an actual preview would help. If you meant to type "two" and typed "too" instead, then it was a typo.

But how many volunteer workers make their living at it?

That is what most errors do, especially typos. In ancient Rome when a conquering general was being paraded through the city a servant stood behind him holding a crown of laurel and repeating the words, "remember, you are mortal", to remind the general that the adulation he was receiving was only temporary. The typo serves the same function for us today.

In our for what it's worth department, our head waiter on our last cruise confirmed that she and her staff do share in the gratuity for drinks sold by them in the dining room and they get to keep any additional tip provided if someone has Cheers.

The way things change I doubt that much is valid after a couple of years, but I should have added "6 months of inactivity". If a thread is routinely active there is no need to lock it. But my suggestion wasn't adopted so it's a moot point.