iamsteph

6 hours ago, cruiser man 60 said:

Also another Carnival line , Costa is restarting August but only for Italians at start and then Europeans so cruises in Europe look likely from August.

 

http://crew-center.com/costa-cruises-plans-re-start-voyages-7-ships-5-phases?fbclid=IwAR2Y_FsJ4bDOK9gkhn4ux_OVfQOfLBcqfToVBJd_bADtJqa2iCuNDRA30t4

I have a feeling that cruises in Europe will start a lot earlier than cruises from the US.  Europe (for the most part) seems to be doing a heck of a lot better with their infection numbers than the US.  If Europe can start up cruises and not have entire ships come down with covid, that at least makes me hopeful that cruising can start back up in the US if we get our infection numbers down. 

Per a crew member in another social media group, they were signing off crew in St. Martin. 

3 hours ago, firefly333 said:

My guess is that the 6 days and longer cruises fill up to whatever capacity they have set, as people want to get $600 obc, not the $300 obc. 

 

I know that's why I'm not looking at 5 days and shorter. 

 

Lots of people looking to rebook and get that obc. Prices are up on longer cruises for 2021 too.

OBC isn't determined by the length of the cruise booked, it's determined by the length of the cruise cancelled. I had a 5-day cruise in May that was cancelled. I'm rebooked on an 8 day for May 2021. We only received $300 in OBC for rebooking, not $600. 

I've stayed a couple of times in those extended balconies on the Pride (sister ship) and it's noisy during performances, but pretty quiet otherwise. 

I was able to extend the final payment for my now-cancelled September cruise to August 5. I did this by calling Carnival and speaking with a customer service rep - not a TA, not a PVP.  I only called a few days before it was due, so maybe that is key.  I would suggest calling back and speaking with someone different. 

2 hours ago, Jasalth said:

You will loose any promotional OBC for a booking no matter the rate, if that same rate isn't avaliable. 

 

 

I'm not sure that's completely true.  I had a September 2020 cruise booked under Early Saver that came with a $100 promotional OBC.  When I rebooked for February 2021, I booked Early Saver again, but under a reduced deposit.  The Carnival rep gave me the $600 OBC for rebooking, as well as the $100 promotional OBC  (even though I took a reduced deposit fare, instead of the $50 OBC fare they had going right now) from the cancelled cruise.  I didn't question it, but my confirmation email shows $700 in OBC. 

1 hour ago, Terab85 said:

Thanks for the info!!  Someone on our social media group said about the 6+ days being $600.  It definitely determines  what we will re-book.

I thought the OBC was based on not what you were booking to, but what you were coming from? So if you had a 6 day booked, you would only get $300 OBC, even if you rebooked a 7 day.

My Sept cruise on the Magic out of Miami is still showing up...

I'm currently set to sail September. My final payment date was approaching, so I called and asked for it set 30 days prior to my sail date, since they had not resumed sailing yet and covid uncertainty.  The rep had to talk to a supervisor, I was on hold for a short period, but it was extended.  My cruise manager reflects a due date of 30 days prior to sailing. 

On 6/10/2020 at 2:27 AM, SNJCruisers said:

To the OP.  I would escalate things to a supervisor at this point.  You said that after redoing the math, the difference that you believe is owed to you is 400.00.  Any way you cut it that is still a tidy sum not to be sneezed at and I would make sure that every T is crossed and every I  is dotted when the supervisor explains things to you.  Good luck.

I have to wonder if OP switched to this cruise from another cruise and paid the $50/pp change fee previously (I'm assuming at least two people per cabin here, and 4 cabins = 400).  

I switched from a cruise to one in May, paid the $50/pp change fee.  That $100 showed up as money paid for my cruise, but when Carnival cancelled my May cruise, that $100 was not transferred/refunded.  So while it looked like I paid $2000 for that cruise, $100 was a change fee, and only $1900 transferred/refunded. 

5 hours ago, Kellyann said:

The girl who doesn't want to go is requesting a credit on all the money she's paid into it which includes the taxes, port fees, tips, etc. from a 13 day paid in full Panama cruise amounting to close to $800 plus the $220 deposit paid on a second cruise that was cancelled.  I don't blame her but I feel badly for my friend who is basically screwed if they don't allow a replacement in her cabin.  It sounds like CCL is saying everyone on a booking gets a refund or gets FCC and onboard credit and they won't allow one person choosing one method and the other choosing something different.  

At least with cancellations since covid, the cancelled cruise requires that all guests under each reservation have to select the same option - either a 100% refund OR 100% FCC + OBC.  That is probably why the TA is saying both have to choose the same method. 

As you can see from my signature, I've sailed on the Pride nine times out of Baltimore - she's like home to me! 

Here are a few things I will mention:

Driving to the port - parking is limited at the port of Baltimore.  They have to unload passengers from the Pride in order to clear out the parking lot.  Until enough spaces clear out, they will queue up cars outside of the port fence.  There are no facilities.  My trick is to watch the marine tracker website or follow one of the social media groups to find out when the Pride docks and I'll plan to arrive 2-3 hours after that. By then, the parking lot has usually cleared out and they are letting new cars in. 

Sailing in October - I've sailed the Pride in October and other cool months.  Sailing out of the Chesapeake and around the outer banks of NC (so, the first night and early first sea day, and late your last sea day), the waters can be rough.  I love it but if you are prone to sea sickness, make sure to take your dramamine.  Coming home from Freeport, the Pride books it to make it back to Baltimore - even with calmer seas, you'll probably feel it a bit. 

The weather in October - Your first sea day and your last sea day (beginning around late morning) will likely be chilly.  Take a jacket! 
The ship - she is starting to show her age a bit, but the Pride is clean and the staff are THE BEST.  The Spirit class is by far, my favorite ship layout - no awkward dining rooms mid-ship that you have to go up or down to get around, three pools, one of which is dedicated to the Serenity deck; excellent passenger to space ratio where even when there's a crowd, it doesn't feel that crowded; you do not have to weave in and out of tables or loungers on the lower promenade deck; if you decide to do the Chef's Table, they hold it in the nightclub, which makes for an interesting feel (good, not bad!). 

The ports - I cannot speak on Princess Cays. I was on the Pride in January and we couldn't get in due to rough seas (it's a tender port like Half Moon Cay). Grand Turk: the port area (Margarittaville) and the beach closest to the port can be very crowded.  The chairs and umbrellas right closest to the port are supposed to be free; however, there will be chairs and umbrellas set up by the locals for an upcharge.  Make sure you know which ones are free and don't let the locals tell you you have to pay for the free ones.  I usually walk down the Beach to Jack's Shack, it's less crowded and a nice walk along the beach to get there.  Freeport: there's the port shops but the port is an industrial area (one of my favorite free things to do is watch the cargo containers getting moved around on the opposite side from the port shops lol) so you'll need to take an excursion/taxi to get anywhere fun.  

I'm sure you'll have a blast! No regrets!

Gluten free here.  Even in YTD, you can request the same wait team every night. So long as they have a table open, they'll seat you with that team.  If I find a team that understands gluten free and doesn't keep trying to serve me regular bread, I usually try to stick with them 🙂 

I have a September 6th cruise, you scared me!!

I use the price adjustment form and under comments, just write out "As this is prior to being paid off in full, please adjust the balance due to reflect the promotional fare of $XXXX + $XX OBC."

So has anyone received a refund? One would think that if they were working through the refunds, even if manually and on a reduced staff, someone would have gotten theirs by now.  

I cancelled shore excursions, internet, and water for my cruise before it was cancelled by Carnival, and I haven't received that refund yet.  Luckily, I'm not waiting for thousands of dollars like some of you, as we applied the funds from our cancelled cruise to our next cruise. Still waiting for that to happen too... 

Just be careful that it's not a phishing scam! Phone numbers can be spoofed to look it it's Carnival calling.  If you've ever posted on a Facebook with your real name, people know you were sailing - especially if you posted in a group for your specific sail date.  Many of those groups have a "where are you coming from?!" type posts.  And it's simple to search someone's name and location and get a phone number.  It could be that the "phone number" they want you to call back at isn't Carnival at all.  If you call back, make sure to use the number off of Carnival's website - (800) 764-7419. 

I don't think it means anything. My May cruise that was just cancelled did that in March. 

9 hours ago, Bowman1 said:

Well . . . this thread is truly misleading 

 

I was hoping for some wild stories, like:

 

COVID-19 was created by Christine Duffy to take-out NCL and gain CCL market share

 

Or

 

Coronavirus is a CDC fabrication created to force Carnival to eliminate communal tubs of butter

😀

Now THIS is what I came into the thread for :'-)

1 minute ago, quattrohead said:

Whichever option you select, it will apply to all guests on the reservation.

I get that, but if we select FCC and OBC, and we cruise separately, how does it apply? Would the FCC and OBC all go under my name, or does it get split, such that we each will have FCC and OBC if we take different cruises? 

Does anyone know how this applies to a booking for two people, if those people decide not to cruise together again or to cruise at separate times? 

Maybe they are waiting to hear from the CLIA? CLIA was the one who said, ok, no more cruises for a while.  So far as I know, they haven't extended it past the initial 30 days. 

They know what they are doing, so why are they keeping everyone up in the air?  And to say they'll give us info today and then go haha nah, maybe Monday? This actually makes me really angry? Annoyed? All of the above? 

Carnival Spirit, Alaska, May 2007.  We booked an inside cabin to save money for excursions (we were only in our mid-20s, and it was our first big vacation together).  When we checked in in Anchorage, we'd been upgraded to a window cabin.  By the time we bused to Whittier and checked in there, we'd been upgraded to an extended balcony. It was probably the best vacation ever. 

As you can see from my signature, we've stuck with Carnival ever since 😛 

I wonder what Carnival's CEO and Pres are thinking right now...