CentralNY1

On 8/18/2023 at 2:17 PM, jimbo5544 said:

Thanks, I will be posting live (internet permitting).

Internet has been great. No issues at all. 

2 hours ago, wxtrix said:

 

i’m on one of the 2024 sailings and am curious about the dailies for the sea days, if you write a review upon your return.

 

the photos i’ve seen from yesterday and today are gorgeous. so happy to hear that the seas have been calm.

I've never done a full review before but I will do one with photos when we get back home. 🙂

One important thing to add. Mosquito nets are an absolute must have in Qaqortoq. Wasn't an issue at all in Nanortalik. 

Carnival has done really well on this Journeys cruise by adding many activities, lectures and an extra comedian. There was plenty to do during the 5.5 sea days which was our biggest concern. We've also had the most remarkable sea conditions I've ever experienced.  The sea state was amazingly calm and ZERO wind. Food has been mostly good with extra variety in the menu.  If anyone has any specific questions, I'm more than happy to answer.

4 hours ago, jimbo5544 said:

Would love to hear more about your cruise

Cruise has been wonderful so far. I'll will post more later. Just wanted to pop in to inform everyone that tendering was excellent today. 

We're on the Legend. The problem is that there was only one small dock that the tenders could use at Nanortalik meaning only one could unload/load at a time. If you were fortunate enough to have a tender ticket of 1 through about 15 you were ok. People with tender tickets in the high 20s or 30s didn't get to shore until mid afternoon. Got in line to go back to the ship at 2:48 and didn't get on a tender until 4:13. CCL was using 4 lifeboats but with 1 dock it rendered 2 of the 4 lifeboats useless. Things seem better this morning. Have tender ticket 14 and they have already called it and it's only 7:55 local time. 

12 hours ago, audcc77 said:

Yes. This is exactly what I did.  I reached the 25 milestone on a 5-day $250 inside on Sunshine a few cruises ago.  Next week we are in an ocean suite on Mardi Gras.  
 

You must call the milestone department ahead by a few days. They wouldn’t do it too far in advance because in case you end up upgrading.  I just called yesterday and she flagged my account.  
 

You cant be within 30 days of the cruise when you request your credit.  Sadly, I'm speaking from recent experience. 

To us, there are several that make the cruise more enjoyable.  Dr. E, in particular, is one that would make us book a cruise on a ship that he is on just because he is the CD.

Was on Enchantment 12/23 and were told by our dining staff that crew are only permitted to go ashore at Cococay. Asked our room steward and dining staff if they needed anything from the store while we were in Nassau and they said they were well stocked since their contracts had just begun. 

1 hour ago, Cruiser24 said:

How many passengers are on this cruise?

1400

On 12/27/2021 at 11:14 PM, VTSKIandCRUISEGUY said:

Is dinner offered in the Windjammer?

Yes.  The Windjammer has been open for dinner each night from 1800-2100.

1 minute ago, livingonthebeach said:

 

Nice.  Enjoy the rest of your cruise!  Good to hear there are ships out there with no issues. 

Thanks!  Heading to my fourth feeding of the day now!

2 minutes ago, LorraineP said:

Any updates to cabins or public areas. I did read that the outside of the Enchantment was painted which it desperately needed. 

Everything is clean and in working order. Looks like the ship was painted when in drydock. 

4 minutes ago, karena1 said:

We were on Freedom and in port with you at CocoCay on Sunday!

 

Other than the pool being so icy cold it was a great day!  Glad we got to spend it with you 😉

4 minutes ago, livingonthebeach said:

 

Did you leave from Baltimore?  What are the other scheduled ports?  Glad you are having a good time -- that's not the case for some others on other ships. 

Left from Baltimore and went to Port Canaveral, Cococay, Freeport and then Nassau tomorrow. Two days at sea and back to Baltimore on Friday. 

2 minutes ago, livingonthebeach said:

 

@ticketsunlimited I cruised back in September and I'm not at all opposed to cruising.  However, one should also be realistic without being a Negative Nellie or Debbie Downer.  I personally wouldn't pay a premium on a cruise around the holidays to find out once on the ship that there are no shows, no activities, supplies ran out, ports closed, big lines, crowding everywhere and worse, covid everywhere. I don't care if the ship runs out of cocktail mixers -- that I could live with but the rest, not so much. FYI, Jimbo beats me by light years in the pessimistic department.  I choose to be optimistic with a realistic bent.  

None of what you described has occurred. Quite the opposite...it's been a great holiday cruise. If not for people wearing masks, I wouldn't even realize we were still going through a pandemic. Everybody views the world differently. I see it as being half full and Royal Caribbean filled my glass right to the top this week. 

On Enchantment now and are in Freeport today as scheduled. The only deviation to our itinerary was that we went to CocoCay instead of Key West but we found out about that change months ago. The cruise has been absolutely perfect thus far. Great weather, great service and great food. 

9 days until Enchantment!  Finally single digits!

Do you still get the double points if you didn't book directly through RCCL?

On the current sailing of the Pride right now and ate at the Steakhouse last night.  Had a wonderful meal.  Can't comment on the lobster but I had the Ribeye and my wife had the NY Strip. Both were seasoned and cooked perfectly. The food and service always seem to be better on the Pride than any other CCL ship. 

I was on the Magic 8/21 and I didn't see any Self Serve soda fountains.  They do have the Self Serve for pouring yourself a beer. 

Just wanted to add that there is a small bar that sells juices and frozen drinks at the back of the straw market. By far the best Pina Colada I've ever had!

23 hours ago, cruisehappyinJune said:

Did you reserve a golf cart in advance or just walk off the ship and find a rental?

Walked to the end of the long pier and a guy was renting them right there. Asking $60 for the whole day and negotiated to $50. Didnt even take my name or anything. 

1 hour ago, matymil said:

Ive heard that theres basically nothing by the port. Is there anything to see or maybe any stores nearby if you just wanted to get off the ship for like 45mins?

We were just there on Wednesday on the Magic. There is absolutely nothing near the port. We rented a golf cart for the day and explored the entire island.  There are many pristine and quiet beaches to stop at and a small straw market area. Had a wonderful day. Do not be fooled by the taxis that will "take you into town" for $5 a person. They will only bring you to that small straw market. To anyone looking for a beach dont spend the money on the Resorts World beach...save a bunch of money and rent the golf cart and drive as far as you can go on the only road and you'll find a perfect beach. 

3 minutes ago, Moonstruck705 said:

 

It is very discouraging to see no Carnival ships even LISTED here...  

I guess technically they do not intend to sail in/from US waters during the No Sail Order but its certainly discouraging to see other cruiselines/ships have already achieved green or provisionally green status.