CruiseCrazyCouple0611

Best Ever - Matt Mitcham , Donkey is close second and Skip Lyons

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Matt is wonderful! We’ve sailed with him a few times.

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I'm on the Vista now. He's going on a 4 month vacation (he mentioned it in the Morning show today).

 

 

 

Matt is AWESOME. We've had the best time!

Best cruise director in the fleet! Matt is amazing!

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We got the offer immediately after booking our October 2018 sailing yesterday, We took advantage of it this morning. One thing we discovered though was we only got the 10% discount on three of the four we purchased, one for each port we are visiting. We would suggest if you are booking more than three, get more bang for your buck by listing your three most expensive ones first then go back and add your others in your cart.

Never understood why Carnival gives a specific redemption time. Seems like it would make more sense (and save paper) if they just deleted a single bar charge off your sign and sail card.

Code Oscar is used to alert crew of man overboard. Just as Code Adam is used for missing child, code Bright Star for a death on board, code Alpha is a medical emergency, code Bravo is a fire.

Carnival has dropped Jim Beam from it's spirits inventory.

9. Ignore the above statement.

Agreed!

Ordering in room liquor and bringing on your own soda ( 1 - 12 pack of canned soda per person) makes more cent$. I just have to find some really big insulated cups so I don't have to keep running back to the cabin. ;p

you can bring one 12 pack per person, no age limit but remember you have to carry them on and will be subject to have the cartons searched for contraband, so make sure your little ones aren't pulling a fast one and replacing the sodas with beer. :o

yes, just put it in a bag you are taking off the ship yourself.

No. We can't. Because once we accept lower quality, then we have given up.

Once we accept lower quality, Carnival will lower the quality yet again.

Once we accept lower quality, then the standards will never rise.

 

Do not accept. Complain about the food. Complain about the lack of tablecloths. Complain about cold entrees Complain about the lack of service. Be heard.

 

I will not be complacent with my money. :)

The old saying "You get what you pay for" applies. Carnival remains one of the most budget friendly cruise lines. If you want fancy white table cloths and Michelin quality chefs, check out Viking or Seabourn but be ready to shell out some serious dough! No cruise is perfect, figure out your nonnegotiables for the standards you expect and pick one that will deliver. If you keep picking the same brand and are expecting a different result, than you have no one to blame for that but you or your wallet.

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I know every situation is different. We went out of Charleston on the Ecstasy last May. Uber took us from our hotel in Mt. P to port and dropped us off at the porters. They took our bags and we waited at the white tent. Then took a shuttle from there to the terminal. Once we arrived at the terminal, the bus driver asked for priority passengers to exit first. Being we had FTTF we did. We went in, there was a clearly marked line for FTTF as well as people standing there directing where to go. We went through security and up to the counter with ease. No line. Then went straight onto the ship. We got to the port around 10:30-10:45 and were on Lido by 11:15.

What a great experience! I'm hoping for the best!

I sailed from there in Nov on the Ecstasy and embarkation was a nightmare. Never seen any port so unorganized. Can't comment on parking, the hotel dropped us off.

We had FTTF and when we first got there we were fairly early and went through the white tent etc, left our luggage and walked up to get in line. We had been waiting about 45 mins and I saw other people going to a line far to the left. So I went and ask them why they were in that line and it was FTTF. No signage, nobody to direct us over there, nothing. It should be clear when you walk up so you know where to go.

I went and ask the guy at the front of both lines and he said they would open the line for us first.

As you can guess that didn't happen. When they opened the gates, it was a mad rush of everyone together. Once inside we did get in the FTTF and priority boarding line. After the lady checked us in and we got our S&S cards she directed us to the steps and said we could go right up and onto the ship. When we got to the steps these old fart men were stopping anyone from going up the steps because there were already too many people upstairs in line and we had to wait for about 10 mins. There were plenty of people that were not priority in the line. So I politely went up to the old fart and told him we had FTTF and he hatefully told me that no one was going any further until he was notified. Waiting doesn't bother me but paying $79 and not getting on board first and no separate line is what made me mad.

The only thing good was when we finally got on, we were able to go to our room as usual for FTTF.

I was so dreading debarkation. But that went very smoothly. Off in 10 mins.

So I guess what it comes down to if you get FTTF, makes sure you go the outer left line. Maybe something has changed and they have a sign to direct you and be prepared to be mixed in with others that haven't paid the extra. Hope,your experience will be better than ours.

Thanks for the heads up! I would hate to think we paid extra for nothing. I'm with you, I don't mind waiting, but Carnival should not promote the sale of FTTF in Charleston if they cannot work with the port crew to execute it.

We experienced similar issues when sailing on the Sunshine out of Charleston. I think it has more to do with logistics than anything else. Because Charleston does not have a proper passenger terminal, the port becomes challenged with the larger ships. I'm sure even a few hundred extra guests can alter the normal flow of the operation. :+ I've heard people complain of late departures as well but again, that is more to do with the tide ( water level) in the harbor, certainly nothing Carnival can control.

Thanks for the help!

Hey Guys, we just booked a cruise on the Ecstacy out of Charleston. We were given a port time arrival of 12:00P to 12:30P. Does anyone know if you purchase FTTF if you are allowed to arrive earlier? Everyone on these boards seems to have a wealth of knowledge and are so helpful! We appreciate the help!

As sad as this story is, it's another example of someone making bad decisions and paying a huge price for it. Whether she was intoxicated or not, we may never know. She may have simply went out on deck to smoke a cigarette and very foolishly thought she could climb up and sit on the railing. Again, we can all try to speculate what happened but the sad truth is, she was someone's wife, daughter, sister and mother. The one thing that bothers me is why a woman would be out on a deck by herself at 2 am. I think sometimes we use poor judgement when it comes to personal safety. If anything good can come from this horrible accident, is hopefully, people will think twice about making sound choices when on vacation.

Interestingly enough, I just saw a video on that "tube" site by Joe Somebody talking openly about boarding. He and his wife boarding the ship with a stomach virus. How did they get on if they answered the medical questionnaire honestly? I know this wasn't your cruise, but that is how these things happen. Obviously, those questionnaires are ineffective if people don't answer honestly or the cruise line ignores the information.

Thanks for the review. We will sail her right after dry dock. With only two weeks in the yard, we aren't expecting too much to be done. Basically a carpet replacement and some other minor sprucing and cleaning. Sorry to hear the food wasn't that great. I generally hit up the omelet station for breakfast and get made to order eggs. DH's palate is a little more forgiving than mine, so I'm sure he will partake in the buffet on Lido often. One thing I cant stand is cold food! Hopefully, your experience was isolated. Time will tell. We will go into it with an open mind, hope for the best and let everyone know how it turns out.

Enjoying your review so far. We will be sailing on the Sunshine in two weeks when she leaves dry dock and heads to Charleston. Those kids are absolutely adorable! Can't wait to hear the rest of your adventure.

We emailed FttFinfo@carnival.com on 4/15 for waitlist request for Sunshine sailing May,21st. We got an automated reply saying we had been added to waitlist. I will say that on our January cruise, we did the same thing and also had our Carnival Cruise Line Personal Vacation Planner watching it to help us snag a much coveted spot. Neither the waitlist nor the cruise planner contacted us when a few more opened up. I was vigilant at checking it in the morning and in the afternoon everyday. Finally on both cruises, I got lucky! Good luck....keep trying, if you watch it carefully, I'm sure you will have some measure of success;)

Thanks so much for doing this review. I am really enjoying following you along on your cruise experience. The pictures are awesome. Your daughter is adorable! What a wonderful family you seem to be. We will be sailing the Sunshine in just a few short weeks. Fortunately for us, it's the first sailing after her two weeks dry dock. Hopefully, we won't encounter any plumbing or other mechanical problems like you did. Good on you for maintaining a great attitude even when it would have been easy to allow your misfortunes to define your entire vacation. I can't wait to read the rest. Keep it coming please!:D

Thanks for the brief review. Looking forward to your pics. We will sail on her the end of May after she comes out of dry dock. We were on the Destiny many years ago so very curious to see what has changed.

Skype access and faster speeds, maybe. Details here: https://help.carnival.com/app/answers/detail/a_id/1152/kw/Internet/session/L3RpbWUvMTQ1MjAwMzMzNy9zaWQvb2lrM2hNRm0%3D .

Thanks for the help!