diesteldorf

Thanks. I'll be curious to see what the cost is to upgrade from Premium to Streaming on my 7 day in December. Right now, it is $128 for Premium and $195 for streaming. When I added my package a month ago, premium was the highest option. I thought about upgrading pre-cruise, but as far as I know, both packages offer the same access to "regular" websites and I don't know how much I would sit in my cabin streaming TV shows/movies, even with the streaming package.

I was sharing my experience because if you add a guest and need to change the name later, it sounds like Carnival charges a fee. If you aren't sure of the name and don't add them until you are, you won't have to pay a fee. However, as others have stated, there is a chance, if the ship reaches maximum capacity, you may lose the opportunity to add additional guests. I suppose adding a guest during the initlal booking process would prevent this, even if you had to pay a fee to change later. Regardless, good luck and enjoy your cruise.

It's been awhile, but I routinely sail solo and am basically always paying double. One year my brother was able to get some time off and I added him within 3-4 weeks of sailing. Just had to pay the extra port taxes.

I would love this. I recently got an Amex credit card offer for $300 back on $1000 booking with Holland America. I decided to go for it. I always get Bottomless Bubbles on Carnival. On Holland America, you can choose between $8.00 per day for the Coca Cola package or $17.95 per day for the Quench package which covers up to 15 non-alcoholic drinks per day including mocktails and specialty coffees. The price seems quite reasonable and I wish Carnival would offer something similar.

I love fried oysters but have only seen them in the main dining room once or twice? Has anyone ever seen fried oysters offered at the Seafood Shack?

I always get the soda package and noticed right away that I was paying the same price as the 12 oz cans. Of course, I looked at it as a positive, since it was easier to get my money's worth, and justify the package.....and I was probably drinking less soda. I like soda but know it probably isn't the healthiest.... It actually bothered me that most of the bars I went to said they didn't keep Bubly oh hand, since I would've chosen it (flavored sparkling water) 75% of the time.

Thanks for pointing this out. On Carnival, one of the primary loyalty benefits for Platinum is free laundry and priority embarkcation/debarkation. I'm one of those wierdos that likes to hangout at my hotel, eat breakfast, get late checkout, if offered, etc, and get on the boat a little later, when cabins are ready and crowds have thinned out. However, I'll normally always take advantage of priority disembarkation and get off as soon as possible. I figured Holland had a similar system and gave those with the highest loyalty the option to get off first...while the peons (like me) had to wait. Glad to know it shouldn't be like that. Thanks again for the info.

Thanks. That makes me feel even better.....I avoided Miami for a reason...LOL

Thanks for all the feedback. I am glad to hear that it is best to avoid the Holland shuttle and just take a cab/rideshare. That was my instinct. Should I still go to Guest Services sometime before disembarkation to let them know I have an early flight? Will I need to provide proof? It may seem silly, but for 95% of my previous cruises on Carnival, I've either been a passenger in someone's car or a passenger on Amtrak, so I am not experienced with trying to get off early to catch a flight. I'm sailing the first week in December so I shouldn't have to worry about holiday traffic. If any of the connections fall through, it's not the end of the world, but it sounds like catching a 10:30 am flight out of FLL is not unreasonable. I built in a buffer day for embarkation, arriving in FLL Saturday afternoon for a Sunday departure, but wanted to avoid overnighting in FLL, on the way home, unless it was absolutely necessary. I really appreciate all the information.

Hoping I can get some feedback from those that have flown out of Fort Lauderdale, FL before. I'm Platinum on Carnival and have always taken advantage of the Priority Self-Assist disembarkation. However, this is my first time sailing with Holland America, I am on a 7-Day on the Nieuw Amsterdam in December and will disembark on a Sunday. We are supposed to arrive at 7:00 am. I have a 10:30 am flight with a 1:33 layover in Atlanta or a 11:30 am flight with a 39 minute layover in Atlanta. Both the 10:30 am and 11:30 am flight connect to the same flght, so I'll arrive at my final destination at the same time. I would prefer to take the 10:30 am flight and allow for more time to make my connecting flight (1:33 vs 39 minutes, but I am also cognizant that it may be wiser to catch the 11:30 flight to avoid missing my flight entrely. Since I don't have any status, is it possible to arrange early disembarkation through Guest Services when I arrive? I don't want to come accross as entitled, but would it be a reasonable request for someone with a 10:30 am flight? I have TSA Precheck and Clear, so I am hoping it'll be quicker to clear security, once I arrive at the airport. Would it be better to catch Uber/Lyft/Taxi to the airport, rather than relaying on Holland's shared transport shuttle? As an aside, I am traveling solo and booked an inside cabin. I don't think Club Orange would be worth it for me, unless it offered me a better chance to disembark early. However, I welcome any advice.

Are you saying that if you have $400 cruise cash left at the end of your cruise, guest services will give you cash?

Thanks. I'll be sure to post my results.

I purchased $500.00 cruise cash to help meet a credit card signup bonus quickly, and will have around $575.00 worth of credit on my account, after already paying for my internet and drink package in advance. However, I am planning to go to Cherry on Top and purchase 4 or 5 $100 CARNIVAL GIFT CARDS that I'll be able to use for a future cruise. So, cruise cash isn't risky unless you disembark without using the credit, but between gift cards and using your sail and sign card to deposit money to slot machines, cashing out after 1 or 2 plays, it is pretty easy to use. Does anyone know if Carnival gift cards can be used as payment on the other corporate lines, like Princess?

I have an inside cabin and know it comes with a table and chair, but the chair doesn't haven't back support. I have some work to do and sometimes would bring my laptop to the library or to lido deck, since there are chairs with back support. However, I think I'd be more productive in my cabin. Has anyone anyone asked their steward for a chair, or any outside furniture that isn't already in the cabin?

Does the Valor still have a library?