dioxide45

That's so sad. Seems like there's always something happening on the Dream.:(

It does, there was a helicopter medivac on our Dream cruise back in 2011.

Take a look at this fairly recent thread.

WHy does it have to be kept to a single thread? There are many things on this board discussed in more than one thread. Besides, the initial thread is many months old and pages and pages long. Plus THIS thread was discussing the fact that they aren't available for purchase. Not the program in general.

 

Other vendors who offer these cards have been mentioned. AARP, Fridays, Southwest. So the information is out there. Not understanding why the need to vent when people are trying to be helpful to one another about a popular rewards program. If the moderators want the threads merged, THEY will do it.

Lets see, here are the two other threads on the Verizon gift card topic that were on page one when I posted. Both have ample discussion about how Verizon consistently runs our of the egift cards.

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2160142

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2081176

I am all for helping people, but I am also up for people helping themselves instead of starting additional discussions on the same topic instead of just continuing the other one. I certainly don't expect to have the threads merged by moderators. It rarely happens from what I have seen. They seem more concerned about deleting topics where people are complaining about the poor showing in CC Roll Call threads.

There are a lot of threads and topics to wade through here, it would be much easier to follow if the same thread wasn't started once every few days. I have done it myself before when I searched and turned up nothing, but others were quick to point out that the topic had come up many times before. I wouldn't have said anything if the other threads were buried pages back, BUT THEY WERE ON THE FIRST PAGE!

Log into your Verizon account and then select the rewards on top left side of page to redeem for many different items. Some are free some items are reduced in price by redeeming a certain amount of points. As for the Carnival e cards, you could purchase 50, 100, or 500 to use to pay towards your cruise or to have as OBC. You save 10%, so if you select the 100 Ecard it actually only costs you $90.00. After you purchase an e-card you simply log onto your carnival account and apply as payment. If you want for OBC you take on ship with you and either redeem at kiosk or go to guest services to apply to your sail and sign. There have been a few other threads on this if you need any more info.

 

 

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One note, you can only apply them to the cruise online if you booked through Carnival. If you booked through a TA, you can't add it toward final payment online. Not sure if you can do it through your TA though.

What is the advantage of these cards?I have over 183,000 pionts

on my Verizon account.Is it that use save 10% per.cent of purchase.

If it works like one of my other reward programs, if you buy a $100 gift card you use $90 cash and 10 points to pay for the difference. Buy a $500 one and pay 50 points and $450 cash. Of course Verizon may work differently. It is like an additional 10% savings on a cruise.

Currently there are three threads on the first page of the Carnival forum about these Verizon gift cards, which BTW are not Verizon gift cards at all, but just Carnival eGift cards that you can buy through the Verizon Rewards program. There are also other rewards programs where you can buy these cards, not just Verizon.

Guess I am just venting, why can't we keep this topic to a single thread?

The port hole cabins are those what is considered upper/lower I'm confused.

The porthole cabins we are staying in are on Fantasy Class, some are upper/lower, but they also have convertible twin/king.

That's a great deal, I'd go for it!! Our first cruise was an inside and the following a balcony. Before the balcony when I read comments from cruisers like, "I'm never going back from a balcony." etc, etc. I just thought they were just exaggerating. But NO, after that second cruise, the balcony really is an amazing feature to enjoy. Your own private view to easily step out on whenever you want. Just make sure it's located in a good area (not under the galley, for example) and you will not regret the decision to switch!

Our first cruise was in an OV room, though our second was a balcony and we have pretty much been in balconies ever since. Our next three cruises will be in inside cabins. We will have to see how that goes. Two of them are porthole, so we will at least have a little sliver of light to know what time of day it is. Kinda seems like a downgrade, but since we have never sailed in an inside, we don't know until we try it.

Our first cruise was a three night on the Sensation back in 2009. We have since sailed on the Paradise. We will be back on the Paradise and then on the Elation this year. Like the Serenity at the back of the ship. Something great about sitting there and watching the water the ship leaves behind.

We have had a regular balcony (actually Spa) and a cove balcony on the Dream. We actually preferred the regular balcony higher on the ship. The cove was very enclosed and didn't seem as large. We had guest in the next cabin and it wasn't easy to talk to them between balconies like it would be with a regular balcony.

Carnival must be using an auto dialer for these PVPs. They aren't dialing your number and calling you, the system is calling automatically and their computer brings up your your account when they call. Collection agencies use the same technology...

There are other options than just Carnival and a local "human" TA. I am thinking that most people would consider the major online cruise consolidators to be travel agents also? It pays to shop around. Some of these larger companies buy up blocks of cabins and thus can sell them for whatever they want. Sometimes beating Carnival pricing. Often times they will offer some perks that you can't get directly through Carnival, like OBC. Though these are fairly rare now.

We booked two cruises for this year and were able to get both for less through our online travel agent for less than if we booked directly through Carnival. One was $200 cheaper and the other was $500 cheaper for two people. I can't explain it other than they are purchasing cabins to sell. In most other cases the prices we see the online cruise consolidators are the same price we see on Carnivals website.

It pays to shop around at the many other online cruise agents. Just be careful as some of them have cancellation fees and may even charge a fee if you need to make a change. So you need to know when you book if you think you are getting the best price or not.

I asked a similar question about a 12:20pm flight here.

Thank you for all the ideas everyone, I appreciate it. Still not sure what we will do during each stop but these ideas have given us things to look at. We have also checked out rental car options. Any thoughts on that?

We have sailed the Sensation twice and will shortly have sailed the Paradise twice. Will be on the Elation this fall. We do enjoy the smaller ships.

I concur with others. I would be renewing it now before the May cruise. It is best to have six months validity on the passport. Not required necessarily but if you need to fly back and somehow require a stop over somewhere that isn't in the US, you may need that six months.

You need the passport for the fall trip, so it seems pointless to worry about using your current one for the spring.

In all reality a passport IMO is only really good for 9.5 years. Over a 200 year period you will have bought only one extra passport, though I doubt any of us will live that long to have to worry about it.

We have three cruises scheduled this year, each one stopping in Cozumel. We have done a beach break on a past trip and are not really interested in that. We are considering a Beach Hop for one of the stops, but not sure what to do at the others. Perhaps a Playa del Carmen self walking tour? What else, any ideas?

I think the important thing is that they have a copy of their birth record as recorded with the county in which they were born. Not a certificate provided by the hospital for decorative purposes. The official copy is usually referred to a long form birth certificate. You will never have your hands on the original. It is usually recorded and retained by the county or district where it is recorded.

This is one reason we won't bother bringing anything back from our Magic cruise. Not worth the hassle and it would erase much of the savings of duty free.

It is different for every itinerary. You will need to provide that information for someone to be able to assist you.

I would avoid vanilla in Mexico. Here is an FDA warning about vanilla in Mexico. It often contains Coumarin which is a substance that is banned in the United States. It doesn't even come from the vanilla bean. Really no different than the imitation stuff here.

Just buy the good stuff here north of the boarder. You can usually get it for a pretty decent price at the warehouse clubs like Costco or Sam's. It can be kept indefinitely and won't go bad. So no worry about having to buy a big bottle.

It was my understanding that Early Saver was not transferable and non refundable? So I don't think someone else can go in their place.

A friend of ours gave each of us a Carnival gift card for Christmas. I think she got them at Kroger here in southwest Ohio.

I see that my Credit Card company offers Carnival Gift Cards also. Do you know if they can be used to buy cruise cash, towards Sail and Sign, etc. or is it only for payment of the cruise? I have already paid for the cruise and would love to be able to get them for cruise cash. Thanks for your help and happy cruising. Bonnie

This is what the T&C indicate when I view the details of the egift card on my CC portal.

Treat this e-card like cash. E-card recipient bears all risk of loss in the event this e-card, or its information, is lost, stolen, damaged or used without e-cardholder's permission. In no event is CCL Gifts, LLC or any parent, subsidiary or affiliate responsible or required to replace any e-card value. Card cannot be redeemed for cash unless required by law. Complete terms and conditions available at carnival.com/giftcardterms. Use of this e-card constitutes acceptance of these terms and conditions. This e-card does not expire. Digital gift card is non-refundable and will not be replaced if lost, stolen or destroyed. TRAVEL AGENTS, AGENCIES OR ANY OTHER TRAVEL INTERMEDIARY SERVICE CANNOT BE USED IN CONJUNCTION WITH THIS DIGITAL GIFT CARD. Digital gift card is NON-COMMISSIONABLE at redemption.

I don't know if the part in ALL CAPS means that I can't use them toward final payment through my TA?

I checked with my TA as to what I can use the gift cards for, and she said pretty much everything except the initial deposit. Don't know why that is.

 

Roz

It may just be how their system works. I know if I purchase a cruise online through an online TA, there is only a credit card payment option to make the deposit.

If your luggage fits inside if each other, such as the carry on in the medium size checked bag, put the pieces inside of each other before stowing them under the bed. Should easily be able to fit four checked bags under a king bed, if not six.