Tom-n-Cheryl

In the suite lounge, has anyone else ever had access? I knew suite guests (GS and up) did, but was not aware of Pinnacle folks. With Royal, I have not felt the need to purchase a drink package. Diamond gets you 4 drinks (per day!) on your card, and with the suite lounge open in the evenings - free drinks there! BTW, something else Carnival could learn here... I was able to reach Diamond early on (second/third sailing?) with Royal as I had already hit Elite with Celebrity. But, even being "honorary" Diamond - gets you all the Diamond perks ! Tom

I was pleased to see that the Allure, when she starts sailing the 3/4 night runs out of Pt Canaveral (replacing the Independence), has GS cabins for about $2k for the 3 nights, which is actually just a tad less than we paid on the Indy for 2-3 sailings. Not to mention that the Allure has a lot more to offer! I see some weekend cruises in our future on that ship.. I can skip out early on a Friday afternoon, drive 20 minutes, and be back in the office between 8-9 on Monday morning. 🙂 I certainly prefer longer sailings, but sometimes a quick fix does the trick. Tom

About the MAX (and it's the extreme end) you'll pay for a week on Carnival is for the Presidential Suite (about $10k). On NCL, Celebrity, and Royal, you can pay that much per person for multiple top level suites. If you want a Royal Loft Suite or an Iconic Suite, expect to pay (for two) ~$30-50K+ for the experience... gulp... Tom

For MANY years Carnival has teased at updating the VIFP program. I've always wondered why they break down points in two ways: Cruise Day Points & VIFP Points It's as if they initially set it up to (somehow) get additional VIFP points, over the standard Cruise Day Points. If not, then why have the second heading, which is ALWAYS the same number? There was talk that they might partner with other companies to generate extra points, and speculation that onboard spend, cabin category, or promotional sailings/bookings might generate more VIFP points. In the end... crickets... Tom

Just once Tom

Those all look like great ships!

Interesting - that's what's happening with our 30 yo. Played on ONE cruise 12 years ago (18th birthday), and get's more emails (my inbox) from BCC than I do. It would seem they want to get the younger/smaller players "hooked"! Tom

I have much less play time w/Royal, but yes - I'm still seeing a lot of "free" offers from them (perhaps 3-4 mailers/month). Carnival threw out some strong offers over the last couple of months, so I booked a couple (suites w/bev. package and up to $2,000 OBC), despite Carnival not being my "line of choice". Yes, they can buy my attention to some degree! Tom

The gravy train seems to have pulled to a stop, at least for now. About all I can bank on any more are the Go Green points. Scored 24 last month 🙂 Tom

I'd say not as many, though I expect to get future offers for "free" balconies from the BCC. For a period of time, I was getting emails for these things every few weeks it seemed. I can't say I've seen one now in at least 2-3 months. Unfortunately, with my schedule, they're usually not far enough out to take advantage of -- which is why the 60% off casino rates were so appealing. EDIT - perhaps it is more the lower level players still getting the offers... those folks who walked by the $25 BJ table and said "too rich for my blood". I don't think they'll get very much blood from those turnips! I don't play the number of hours I used to (when on "tilt"), but I still have hundreds in play on most hands. I got about 7,500 points each of the last two weeks. I'm not really sure what that translates to - but I've found that I'm usually underrated (hey, that wasn't meant to be a funny)... 😉 Tom

Playin' the field ! 😄 Tom

True - the Haven and Coastal Kitchens are both open for lunch on port days I believe - or were when we sailed last. On the Reflection, I had been looking forward to at least enjoying The Porch every day for lunch, but they cut that out on port days (from what they had been doing when we sailed earlier this year). Cut, snip, cut... Tom

I would seem that the Blue Chip Club has moved the bar. Whereas last year I could get Casino60 (%) discounts, now it's 10% (for categories higher than Sky Suites). That makes a huge difference. I inquired about the change and they said it was in the last couple of months or so. That, combined with some fare increases/spikes - resulted in this comparison: Two weeks on the Reflection this Thanksgiving in a RS for very close to $10k total. Looking forward to two weeks on the Reflection fall '24 and even to stay in a CS, it would be close to $20k for the two weeks. So, I'd pay double and drop a category. It's frustrating - tasting the (discounted) fruit, only to have it pulled away.... LOL I get it though, they have people apparently tripping over each other to pay what the market will bear, why "give" these gems away ! Tom

Thanks - I figured that might play a role. I'm guessing perhaps a bit more air flow on the one with the window looking aft. Tom

Yeppers ! Yes, I went ahead and held it, then filled in the info. Moral of this story, don't assume that the results you get are accurate! Tom

Another question, for those who've sailed in one of these - particularly the front S3's - those balconies appear somewhat closed in, do you still manage to get good airflow/breeze in those? Tom

It's good to stretch a bit, particularly in the morning. Of course, the smoking issue was OT as well 😉 Tom

I don't know... on Carnival (more so of late) it would appear that alcohol contributes to fights, where others may become injured! lol Tom

Yes, I see that frequently too. This situation is a little different - it's that my (at least) VIFP # seems to cause some cabins not to be available, for whatever reason. Tom

I'm looking at a sailing on the Mardi Gras in 2024 (3/16/24). I was at another computer so I was looking at the available cabins again, but this time just using the default browser (Edge), which didn't autofill my VIFP#. Under suites I saw both Excel corner and aft corner suites as available - in addition to a few other types. Those Excel suites were not there previously. I was thinking, "well - perhaps in the intervening couple of hours these became available". So when I got back over to my computer and checked (for discounts using my VIFP#), they were not showing any longer. Back to the other computer, I went through the process again (no VIFP#), and there they were again. Back to mine, not there! So, I cleared the VIFP field on my computer (using Chrome) and searched... there they were. So, when I search without the VIFP # there are Excel options. When I go through my regular search (w/VIFP#), they are not being offered to me. In the interim, I went ahead and held an aft corner (the only one), and there are 4 forward corners remaining. I'd be interested to see if any of you look at that sailing and see the same issue (dummy booking both with and without VIFP #'s). This is STRANGE, and makes me think that I've perhaps missed things (they've not been offered) in the past... or else this is an isolated glitch. Either way, STRANGE ! Tom

As long as we never outlive our $ !! Tom

I'm with you - but, at the same time, perhaps they should limit alcohol sales and trans-fats ! Tom

I didn't look into pricing onboard, I was just going by what it had online. I never heard/saw any promos onboard regarding it though. Tom

Just off the Reflection - and there were no breaks for purchasing entries onboard, just the reduced cost pre-cruise. Tom

Yeppers - might as well live it up from time to time (while at sea), as my non-cruise routine is quite mundane !! Tom