FamilyOfSix

I've cruised a handful of times.  Most recently my last 2 cruises were on Carnival.  I loved them.  While nothing fancy the price was right, and the food, entertainment and comforts were good.  Staff has always been fantastic.  I have my eye on a NCL cruise (Vision of the Seas).  I am wondering what can I expect in terms of the 2 cruise lines around dining, service, fees, entertainment, or other policies and things that are noteworthy as someone who knows a fair amount about Carnival (e.g., the Carnival Hub app, My Time Dining, Room Service).

These are all great replies. Thanks so much!

I have been a Costco member for years but always forget about checking there for some reason.

Just about to go on my first Carnival cruise, 3rd cruise ever. I'm wondering if anyone has any tips or tricks they use to ensure they get the best price on a cruise. Do you book early or last minute? Via travel agent or on your own? Any other tips you want to share?

Is there any way to tell the free chairs from the chairs they provide?

I like the trolley up to the forts, as it’s a pretty good uphill incline the whole way, and walking back down; as someone said it’s an easy walk back with great views of the ships and the port area.

 

 

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I would recommend Uber or Lyft in your case. The problem is that most shuttles go from MCO to Orlando hotels or to the Canaveral cruise port but not Canaveral hotels.

The other option is a car rental. There's a decent amount of overhead -- dropping off and picking up -- but it provides the greatest amount of flexibility.

Hello All,

 

My family (dh,me,ds (14), ds(11)) will be traveling on the Carnival Sunshine out of Port Canaveral on March 16. We are flying into MCO early on the 15th, and from everyone's recommendations we have decided to rent a car for the day and return it at Port Canaveral. I have been researching Orlando hotels, that are reasonable in price (100-150), clean, and close to food (planning on possibly going to Downtown Disney, and maybe outlet shopping if I can convince my family :D). My head is about to explode...I don't know which hotel to pick!! Could you please help me out, and give me your recommendations, I would really appreciate it.

 

 

Thanks so much,

Molly

What a small world. We are also flying into orlando on March 15 and heading out on the Sunshine on March 16. Since we are arriving late into Orlando, no car rental or sightseeing

for us. We are using Cortans shuttle service to go from our MCO hotel to the cruise port.

As for hotel, we simply used Hotwire. Used this list of known Hotwire hotels in Orlando to help figure out which hotel we were going to get. Ended up getting the Best Western Suites, which is great for us. Rooms are newly renovated, large suite, free breakfast, shuttle from airport. Everything we wanted for $80/night which was on the lower end of our price range. Just know that Hotwire reservations are non-refundable and cannot be changed.

Out of curiosity, do you guys have any excursions or reservations planned? We are going to be eating at the steakhouse (sans les enfants) on the first night to take advantage of the half price wine selection.

Just wondering if anyone who has cruised the Sunshine know if you can order multiple bottles when they have 50% off wine the first night? I have a reservation and would like to get a few bottles, including a bottle of Dom Perignon. We'll probably have 2 bottles the first night and the rest throughout the cruise in the MDR if we can.

It always amazes me when cops or security try to take phones away from witnesses.

Thanks! We're sailing with 5 soon. Note that the picture doesn't show the trundle bed which will be there in the middle.

She can always go to the Casino and charge funds to her room on a slot machine. Then go cash out and she'll have the cash.

Brilliant. We're in a similar boat (haha, see what I did there?) and may need to use this.

This is a wonderful thread. Please keep the posts coming!

There's no rule that says you have to have a carton. You can have up to 12 cans, which means you can have 11 also. This would imply 11 singles or an open carton. In other words, you're fine.

I love how passionate this topic becomes. I always read the topic of gratuities regardless of the different cruise lines. The truth is the system is broken. The companies want as many people on the these mega ships with as little staff as possible. It’s a losing recipe as they allow people to remove the wages they pay the staff. The staff morale goes down as the tips are removed and in turn the product suffers. If the cruise lines want to make a difference make it part of the fare and bring back some services and pampering of the very people who are spending on the their vacations. Saying that people should have more money to pay gratuities because they have enough money to pay for the cruise is also wrong as people don’t always have money and are spread thin - so they book a cruise vacation because they may be cheaper.

 

In all the system is to blame - kudos to the people tip. But the people who do not lets remember they are doing nothing wrong because the system allows them to do it.

 

 

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Well said. I agree 100%. It is the system's fault, and by "system" I mean cruise lines and the cruise industry. Why not simply charge $13 more per person per day and simply pass that on to the staff? Don't cruise lines care enough to give their employees a living wage? And yet it's somehow the passengers' fault they don't make a living wage? Of course people are going to opt out -- for whatever reason, some valid and some not. The cruise lines set the policies, not the passengers.

I think the daily gratuitie for adults is $12.95 per day....... Do you pay the same amount for kids 6 and 10 years old?

Remember, tips are voluntary and you can have any amount removed that you feel is appropriate. Feel the need to remove the entire tip for your kids AND adults? Carnival gives you that option. Just go to the customer service counter on your cruise and have it removed. I'm not saying you should or shouldn't, just conveying information that Carnival publishes on its own site.

What beach did you go to in San Juan?

Congratulations. I enjoyed the video.

I think either one is great. As my father used to tell me, this is a good problem to have.

Personally, I'd do the Sunshine. The destinations look great and you get an extra day of cruising.

If it makes you feel any better, we are squeezing 5 of us in an interior room on deck 1. Yes, 5! Main bed (king), 2 upper pull outs, and a trundle.

I always like to bring a light jacket or sweater, just something to cover my arms when I'm out at night.

It took me a while to figure out what the single digit dance was. I thought you were sailing on your own but you mentioned 'we' in your comments. Figured it out eventually.

Congrats and enjoy. I'm still a ways away for my cruise.

I've only been to South Beach once, and it was for about 2 hours. From what I saw, this place is very young, hip, ultra-cool, and a bit pretentious. I had a lot of fun here (and would go back in an instant) but I also felt out of place a bit. Not sure if that makes sense... maybe if I was 15 years younger, slightly better looking, had more expensive clothes, a better car, and more cash in my wallet, I'd feel a bit more at ease. LOL. Anybody else feel this way?

It's a very personal choice. I suggest you keep doing research to find out what you would prefer.

For me, I would do Miami by a landslide. I've been to both. Montreal will have a few historic sites that are worth visiting, but otherwise its not a whole lot different from any other major Canadian city ... speaking in very broad brush strokes.

Miami, on the other hand, is a very stark contrast to Vancouver. Goodbye firs and cedars, hello palm trees. Goodbye grey skies and rain jackets, hello sunshine and t-shirts.

As has been discussed relative to Pier 35, the old terminal, BART goes about 2/3-3/4 mile away from the Terminal. It is a flat walk, but not a whole lot of fun dragging bags. But it can be done. BART runs people to both SFO and Oakland airport, so no problems with luggage.

 

You can take a cab from BART to the terminal, or the F Street car, which may the biggest hassle with your bags.

This is good advice. If your luggage isn't too heavy and you're new to San Francisco, its an amazing walk along the Embarcadero.

If you're cabbing it from BART, traffic can be heavy and slow sometimes. Give yourself an extra 5 or 10 minutes.

How close to the Pier do you want to be? What is your budget?

Hotel prices in San Francisco can fluctuate wildly, so if budget is a consideration, you might have to settle for something further away. Last time I stayed in SF, I got the Hyatt Regency on Priceline for $85. See list of known Priceline hotels in SF: http://www.hoteldealsrevealed.com/hotelinventory/priceline/ca/san-francisco

I was blown away by the Hyatt Regency. The location was ideal too... just off the Embarcadero, Bart access, and right on Market Street. Its roughly 1 mile away from the Pier, so I'd guess it's about a $10 cab ride ... maybe more in traffic.