tea4ular

We adore the Cloud 9 spa, and the spa balcony cabins. Love the quiet area of the ship. For the most part, no one's going up and down that hall unless they "live" there...and there's the "secret deck" all the way forward on deck 10. We've booked our 6th spa balcony cabin for Sept 2018...yep, worth it...to us.

We will be cruising to Nassau, Half Moon Cay, Grand Turk, and Amber Cove with kids ages 17, 15, and 11 next March. I have snorkeled only in Grand Turk. This will be my kids' 1st time snorkeling. I'm looking for recommendations for a good 1st experience for them given these 4 ports. Also, cost is a factor since this is times 5 people and we have to pay more in order to sail during Spring Break. I have looked at the Port of Call Boards but see more recommendations of companies versus a cost/benefit analysis across ports.

On Grand Turk if you take a "taxi" (really a mini van - about $8 p/p each way) to Bohio they offer snorkel equipment at $20 p/p. The water is shallow enough to tool around right off the beach.

What we liked about Bohio is that while it is a "resort" (less than 40 rooms) it isn't at all grand or snooty. What it does offer is anything you might want to do at a beautiful beach ala carte (kayak $20; stand up paddle boards $30; loungers $10) they have clean rest rooms, and showers -- we had a wonderful time there. My one disappointment is that they do have a lovely restaurant on site, with a highly recommended chef...but...the restaurant is for guests of the resort only :( so "food" was not a highlight there (literally chicken fingers and I think that was it - we didn't eat). We "bought" 2 loungers which we had set up under a palm tree for shade, one kayak, and 2 virgin pina coladas (which were amazing!). We spent a few hours enjoying the relaxing location with beautiful water. We bring our own snorkel gear, so snorkeled and enjoyed the time immensely.

Bring water shoes!

Your challenge is over before it began. There are no other options for a seven day cruise out of LA or SD during the month of September of 2018. If you waited until October, you could sail on the brand new Norwegian Bliss in a balcony cabin with a drinks package and 3 nights in a specialty restaurant including taxes, port charges and all tips for around 3000. So for an extra 800 you'd get two nice perks. Remember you still need to add tips onto your 2044 and if you drink....., plus you would be on a brand new ship that is 10 years younger and 50% bigger. But of course it's all a moot point because of your limited restrictions.

We "could" switch to October. Well we don't drink, so a drink package is not appealing, and turns that $800 into tips and 3 specialty dinners.

$1519 + taxes/port charges + tips per person (not offered on NCL right now...I "chose" internet & dining) - far and away more expensive than CCL.

Challenge for those who are saying I could do better than Carnival Splendor (financially speaking) -

My sail date requirement is the month of September 2018. 2 passengers. Los Angeles or San Diego departure (we don't want to fly this time...extra expense we won't agree to). Balcony cabin. We love Cloud 9 spa, so a ship with comparable (we are booked in a spa balcony). Itinerary is not important (although we would prefer warm climate...but for this challenge I'll open the gates). 7 nights.

Our fare (fare + taxes/port charges) is at $2,044.50

Go...

Ship name, sail date, category, departure port...

It's always seemed strange to me, the bathroom in the bedroom area. The cabins are small enough without adding that little twist to 'restroom privacy' - love the cabin otherwise.

Is there an age restriction?

For those who want to get an insider’s look at the inner-workings of a Carnival ‘Fun Ship’, Carnival has created ‘Behind the Fun’, a guided tour that provides guests with a unique insight into the company’s shipboard operations.

‘Behind the Fun’ is offered fleet wide. The informative tour offers participants a behind-the-scenes look at a wide range of shipboard venues that are normally off limits to guests. During the tour, key shipboard personnel, including the captain, chief engineer, chef de cuisine and other department heads, share their vast knowledge in their particular area of expertise.

‘Behind the Fun’ begins with a stop backstage in the main show lounge where participants can see exactly what goes into creating Carnival’s award-winning revues. The tour then moves on to normally restricted areas such as the laundry room, crew galley and dining room, crew gym and crew training center.

Next it’s on to the expansive main galley where talented culinary artists prepare upwards of 12,000 meals and snacks a day for Carnival’s guests. The tour also includes a visit to the ship’s bridge and engine control room and informative Q&A sessions with the captain and chief engineer, respectively.

In addition to a comprehensive overview of Carnival’s shipboard operations, ‘Behind the Fun’ participants receive a number of commemorative gifts, including a custom-made ‘Behind the Fun’ baseball cap and lanyard and even complimentary photos with the captain on the bridge.

General Information

• ‘Behind the Fun’ can only be purchased on board through the Shore Excursion Desk.
  
• Depending on the duration of the cruise, the cost is $55 USD to $95 USD per person and is approximately 2 hours to 3-1/2 hours long.
  
• Capacity is limited to 16 guests per tour.
  
• Tours are conducted on the last sea day of each cruise.
  
• Guests must be 8 years of age or older to participate; anyone under 18 must be accompanied by an adult.
  
• Guests are not permitted to have cameras, cell phones or video recording equipment on the tour.
  

We've done the "behind the scenes" back when it was free. If you've never done one, I would say it is "worth the price" - consider it an excursion, and budget for it. You'll never look at a cruise the same way again (in a good way) and you'll likely never consider removing the gratuities either. You will see just how many people are making that ship a success. It's not just the faces you see.

Try MSC.

I did, they're not sailing out of the port, dates, itinerary we want.

Thank you though. MSC is on my radar.

Splendor is 10 years old. NCL Bliss will be brand new when it first sails in the summer of 2018. That's not apples to apples, it's apples to a tangerine or something else.

Agreed. I was looking at itinerary, sail dates and spa balcony cabins as the apples.

aboard the Magic, which we're cruising on in November, I see there's a ropes course and a sky cycle

We were just on board Magic earlier this month...no sky cycle. There is a ropes course however.

I am talking about the iFly, more specialty dining, walking the plank, surf simulator, better "broadway" shows and that ball Royal has that lifts high above the ship. But yes like the rock wall etc.

Definitely Carnival isn't on this level; not even really close. But the price difference is staggering. Norwegian Bliss 7 nights, spa balcony (trying to compare apples to apples) same itinerary, $3,299 all in; Carnival Splendor spa balcony $2,044 all in - how can I justify the $1,000 difference? I can't. Even a couple hundred dollar difference I'd have looked twice. But not for a grand. :(

Yes they may be cheaper when comparing to other lines, but compare the innovation with other lines as well?

I'm not certain I understand your term "innovation" - to me the Cloud 9 spa is an example of Carnival's "innovation" -- a relaxation area, for adults only, with only a handful of passes available (no crowding) along with their spa cabins - different, more zen-like decor - their Punchliner comedy club is pretty innovative too.

Or are you talking about things like rock climbing, ice skating, etc.? Those types of things Carnival definitely hasn't caught up to, however for us 60 year olds, they hold little appeal for us.

I literally spent from 8:30 am to 2 pm yesterday turning every major line upside down and inside out, and when it came down to it, Carnival, with a Cloud 9 spa balcony cabin, was far and away a better cost than anyone. We continue to try to sail with the others, as we like a variety. But we also have a budget, and while not tiny (it is after all a balcony, in the Cloud 9 spa area of the ship - so we won't very likely see price drops) we continue to come back to Carnival (no complaints, we are Carnival stock holders, so we get that perk too!). We don't drink, so "free" drink packages don't attract us.

Have I missed something?

Yes, a balcony is mandatory. A nice spa is very important. An up-to-date ship is important.

Unlike some, and like others, we try to prepay as much of a trip in advance (including gratuities). Case in point, we just came home from a 7 night cruise and a 6 night after trip. I have $32 worth of "unplanned" charges due - tolls - that's it. That means coming home and not looking at the numbers afterward and wondering where it all came from.

Everyone has a different reason for doing what they do.

Sweet!

Thank you everyone!

if I need 6 sail days to become platinum - and I take a 14 day cruise, I am considered platinum for that 14 day cruise?

Does it include....

priority check in? (No need for FTTF?)

The laundry perk?

Thank you!

Make sure to comment about the free drink and limiting it to when and where.

The free drink coupon is good on the last night, after 5 pm, at any bar on the ship. We used ours in the comedy club. I enjoyed a vodka cranberry and my friend tried the Punchliner. Both were good and we enjoyed them. :D

Cranberry concentrated soft gels at the drug store are far superior to the cranberry "juice" you can buy in the store or on the ships. The cranberry juice at the health food store will come in bottles, and that's a no-no, even with a doctor's note.

https://www.amazon.com/Organic-Cranberry-Concentrate-Cranberries-Equivalent/dp/B01K224J9S/ref=sr_1_4_a_it?ie=UTF8&qid=1495300531&sr=8-4&keywords=cranberry+concentrate+pills

Thanks. Thinking of grabbing a cab to airport so we don't have to wait around once through customs.

I recommend grabbing a porter for luggage - they have their own queue and it flies! The porters make their $ in tips and want/need to get through as fast as possible. Our last cruise the customs guy literally took our form, smiled, waved. Done.

It's worth the $ to zip through.

Celebrity has one of the best at sea brunches ever...think the old days of carving stations, ice sculptures, etc. Yum (I could be very happy enjoying a decent brunch every day).

Celebrity still welcomes you on board with a glass of champagne or orange juice.

Celebrity is a minor cut above with their various tiers of cabin offerings.

Celebrity ships (pretty much) go to bed by 10 pm, and it's nearly impossible to find even a cookie to enjoy with your late-night cup of tea before turning in.

All that said...I love Celebrity, but their balcony class cabins are far more expensive than Carnival, and I really do need a balcony - I need my "own" outdoor space.

My two older kids (12 and 11) would like to try snorkeling for the first time, and while they're great pool swimmers I'm a little worried about an open ocean. Of course they'll have life vests on... but are there good snorkeling areas on HMC, Nassau or Grand Turk that would be in more shallow water but still things to see?

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Super fun and easy shallow snorkeling in Grand Turk at Bohio - it's a taxi ride (group taxi, about $8 p/p) and a sweet beach, with beautiful aqua water, and zero waves. I'm not a strong swimmer and thoroughly enjoyed it there. Bring water/coral shoes. We didn't have the problem, but there is a lot of shallow coral, and urchins, and I've read others complain about it.

Can anyone recommend a good company that offers snorkeling off the wall in Grand Turk?

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If you take a "taxi" (really a mini van - about $8 p/p each way) to Bohio they offer "snorkel on the wall" at $45 p/p.

What we liked about Bohio is that while it is a "resort" (less than 40 rooms) it isn't at all grand or snooty. What it does offer is anything you might want to do at a beautiful beach ala carte (kayak $20; stand up paddle boards $30; loungers $10) they have clean rest rooms, and showers -- we had a wonderful time there. My one disappointment is that they do have a lovely restaurant on site, with a highly recommended chef...but...the restaurant is for guests of the resort only :( so "food" was not a highlight there (literally chicken fingers and I think that was it - we didn't eat). We "bought" 2 loungers which we had set up under a palm tree for shade, one kayak, and 2 virgin pina coladas (which were amazing!). We spent a few hours enjoying the relaxing location with beautiful water. We bring our own snorkel gear, so snorkeled and enjoyed the time immensely. The folks who went to the wall came back very happy.

Which tour company operated this excursion?

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As this was a very new port to us, and new to the cruise industry we booked directly with Carnival. Normally we go independent but not with such a new destination.

Thank you for your review! I have been wanting to read more "independent" reviews as well and had the same trouble you were having. I also made the same decision and went ahead and booked it for my family (me, DH and 2 teenage sons) but we won't be going until June 2018. This reassures me that i made the right choice.

I hope you enjoy it as much as we did - I found their card and our crew included: "Rico Suave" (captain); Paulito (the best helper ever! His alias is 'Monkey'); Ivan (all around nice guy & helper) and Nicole (bar/lunch and an amazing young woman!).

:)

We are 2 women in our late 50s - we love to snorkel, we love to sail.

We booked this excursion even though there were not many reviews, and vowed to review when we got home.

Meeting the crew for our bus ride to the catamaran was easy - and we were on our way within a few minutes. There were 2 groups, and 2 catamarans, each with less than 30 passengers. This made for a lot of room on the cats.

The bus ride was nice - air conditioned and comfortable. It gave us a bit of time to see some of this beautiful lush country.

We got to the beach where the cats were waiting. Exquisite! I could have stayed there and been happy...it was THAT pretty.

We did have to walk in to the warm water (waist high), and on to the cat, and the crew was amazingly helpful with those who needed help - my friend has a bad knee, and they made sure she was safe and able to board. Crew on board were handed any bags to keep them dry as we boarded.

Once on board we went to our first snorkel - which was only a few minutes away. Everyone had life vests for buoyancy, and safety. Crew joined us in the water to feed fish and also for safety. We had a good 45 minute snorkel.

Back on board to spot 2, and again everyone had life vests for buoyancy, and safety. Crew joined us again in the water to feed fish and also for safety. We had another good 45 minute snorkel.

Back on board to a sandwich, fresh fruit, and salad buffet, as well as rum drinks, and non-alcoholic drinks. The crew never pushed liquor, which I appreciated. Classic rock played (not overly loud...which I hate) and crew engaged us to dance and sing, which was super fun.

Our group of passengers was mellow and fun. A couple of people got seasick, and the crew tended to them with loving care.

We had plenty of shade below the open deck, and a ton of space above - I rode the ropes and it was so much fun.

We sailed for about 90 minutes back to the ship (no bus ride back) and the sailing was incredibly fun.

Overall, we would recommend this excursion - I will add this caveat, on our Eastern Caribbean cruise we were disappointed in how sad the coral is - fish were plentiful, but the coral is in a very bad state. Of course Carnival nor the tour company is responsible - I'm just putting it out there...this would not be the tour to take if you want to see the gorgeous coral reef (Roatan, by far was the most beautiful coral reef we have ever seen).

Go, have fun, enjoy the ocean, enjoy the catamaran, enjoy the crew, lunch, and beverages.