Drazil65

OP, tough lesson for sure! Moving forward you could just set a reminder for 7 days ahead of final payment date on your phone. Or, if old school then actually write it on your calendar, sometimes its the only way to stay on top of things when life gets in the way! Hopefully you will find another trip that meets your needs, good luck!

Last big extended family cruise we did was on Breeze 2019 before it got too hot (late spring time) and covid of course. Cruise ships are great for being with family and not being with family if you know what I mean. We generally ate dinner (YTD early so everyone could do what they wanted in evening) all together for the most part. Would discuss our days (some would do things together during day and some would do their own thing) and what was happening the next day as well. That way not too much was planned but those that wanted to plan something together could do so. We choose a bigger ship for the activities and since most of our extended family have previously cruised, the itinerary didn't matter as much for us I guess. We had a lot of fun but everyone felt they had plenty of options and control over what they did, their cabin choices, their eating habits etc. We made the ship and date choices with each family unit giving their time of year choices and majority ruled for time of year and month we chose. Then looked at the ships sailing from what ports and voted, once ship and week was decided it was up to each family unit to book their own cabins, flights (if needed) and anything else they needed to do at that point. We have found in the past that once the main decisions were made about the where and when, it is the best way to let everyone be responsible for their own bookings at that point. Family issues start when one person takes over all of the bookings and collecting money etc., so much easier to let everyone be accountable for their own family units. If they show up, great, if not, their loss...

Gatorade and Pedialyte both come in powder packets (10 packet's to a box) so very easy to take on a cruise (much cheaper too). We did this on our Sunshine cruise a couple of months ago and it was great as we just brought our water bottles with us to refill.

My fear exactly.... With my luck the second I moved someone's ***** they would show up and start a fight This...especially in todays world where everyone is mad about something and very quick to start something over these little life issues. If a chair is that important and you want a certain area then get up early and get your pick. If you choose to wait until later than take your chances and waste a lot of time policing and waiting on others to show up or not show up (strange way to spend your vacation imho). Its almost like there are those that go searching for a chair situation just so they CAN start something, guess they are that type and want the world to know it. Or, do what many of us do and get a balcony/or suite, guaranteed outdoor real estate with chairs/loungers...works great every time and no one can remove your stuff!!!

169 posts and you choose mine to complain about? If the shoe fits but applicable to all still whining and have nothing new to say! Just relax and enjoy a cruise cuz you can!!!

So what good did any testing do? Apparently with testing, positive people are getting on the ship. So is Carnival saying if they get off before the 6th day they weren’t infectious? Only if staying on a longer cruise, even one more day, the whole ship is suddenly in danger. So the testing for any length cruise is worthless. Two years into it, sure would be nice for you all to find something else to whine about. Point is, we are now cruising, those that want to under the conditions currently set out, get over it (virus won, game, match) and move on...new subject people...

Also on another note staying on deck 2 in the back of the ship, do you feel alot of rocking and get motion sickness? For my husband who has motion sickness (needs patch for cruising), ANYTHING in the aft of the ship is the worse place for motion/movement if seas are even slightly rolling more than usual. We do not even eat in MDR that night if that is the case due to a lot of rolling.

We (family of 3) have been doing YTD since it has been offered, we are regular ( between 5 and 6 pm) /traditional dinner eaters (it also works well for planning the rest of our night after dinner). We have never had an issue with getting a table (yes, only our family and are usually in booth type or round table layout) and have never been seated with anyone else. We also like that we can easily make other venue reservations if required for the dinner time we prefer, no issues with that as well. This all works out very well for us as we love to do some of the shows and comedy club or hang out in the casino when many others are having dinner later.

I understand trying to err on the side of safety. If you can really tell me having 3,000 people test three days before boarding only to hop in sealed metal tubes to fly into port means anything, then I would love to hear your side. Never has this industry been on the verge of bankruptcy then now. It's time to act or your staff will be looking for new jobs in a different industry. CCL will proceed in the way they feel is best for them at this time and if the crew/ passenger safety is how they choose to go for now, then so be it. Spend your money and your vacation time where you feel is best for you and your family. No one is telling you to stick with CCL, you have choices if you are not happy or frustrated with how they are handling things. BTW, not everyone flies to a port, a lot of us east coast people can (and do) choose drive to any of several ports and maybe that gives us an advantage in some sense when deciding to cruise, I dont know. Just dont understand the continued whining about something you (meaning anyone that is frustrated with the CCL covid decisions) can choose to move on from when you want to. I know in this world of instant gratification many people get frustrated with having to wait for anything these days. Relax and cruise (if you want to) while you still have the option (it wasn't too long ago we did not have the option)!

Yes, we ordered some yesterday. Be sure to check the expiration dates when you get them. Still seeing people getting the tests with a 8/21/22 expiration date (they sail after that in September).

Sorry to hear this as I know you were very excited about this cruise. We will be in UK next May for 8 day vacation and have tossed around adding a cruise on to that. DH on the fence cuz we have another cruise booked for this year and then one later next year. He said he is open to talking about it but your review is the 3rd one (in last month) that has not had a great experience with cruising CCL in UK. We are also looking at cruising from elsewhere in Europe in 2024 so maybe we will stick with that plan for now. Hopefully things will get better on this cruise for you, soon!

Thank you very much to all of you with the must-have balconies - you are a reason why we can sometimes get our insides and oceanviews so cheap LOL.. Our pleasure, glad we can help (and you're welcome)!

We watched the Deal or No Deal show on the Sunshine in May for a bit, not impressed with it compared to the Hasbro shows and it appeared many people were confused on how to play with the cards you purchase (it looked like many people bought the $40 package and received 2 cards?). They called people up from the audience (not sure how they were chosen) one at a time and as they would play the game (just like on TV) on stage the people in the audience would follow along on their cards. Lots of confusion from audience on how to win prizes, we left after the first contestant completed her run and they were looking for another contestant.

We are balcony (although not cove as we do not like lower deck cabins period) or suite cruisers. Its something we enjoy sunrise with our coffee each morning, wine before dinner each night after dressing and have read many good books over the years on the balcony of a cruise ship. A place to go whenever we feel like it and it always has a empty seat available. We spend plenty of time doing whatever we want to on the ship and have never felt like we had to spend extra time out there. Its just part of our whole cruise experience at this point and would be a deal breaker if we could not get one.

We typically do self debark BUT...if we dont we always use a porter for debarkation. You are right, some of the best money spent on the cruise!

You have no idea then what you are missing. LOL.. we travel often and have been to several continents and we certainly dont feel like we are missing anything at this point. Just not on our bucket list but I know many people who have enjoyed it so its nice they can get great deals right now.

DH and I both received some awesome offers for Alaska which is interesting since in 20 plus years of cruising, never once searched Alaska cruises (no interest what so ever). Oh well, guess they are desperately trying to fill the Alaska schedule? Good deals for someone, just not us.

Travelers under the age of 21 must travel with a relative or guardian who is at least 25 years old. Exceptions are made for legally married couples and qualified military personnel.

Thanks for all the MG info and pix, we are on the MG this December (corner suite) and 2023 in HC balcony. Looks like a blast (having the HC area pool to ourselves would be awesome!) and we are excited to get on MG. We are definitely fans of the bigger, newer ships and looking to book Celebration in the next year (so will be gathering info on that ship as well).

IMO, testing should take place on the ship if you're feeling symptoms, and then be confined to cabin LOL...funny, with all the people that have mentioned/indicated they would lie in some form to buck the system you honestly think people on a ship not feeling well will actually step up and be honest while cruising? Not happening, not in todays world. Have yet to pay for a Covid test pre cruise. Just stay in our vehicle get swabbed and the results in 30 minutes or less. Walgreens still doing it this way here in our area and not charging yet. Appts 3 and 4 days out.

I always go carry on but my advice is to check ON and carry off. i used to do carry on and off and then I realized just how nice it is to just have them take the stuff on for me Then you aren’t hauling your crap around and blocking hallways until 1pm 🙂 THIS^^^ We started consistently doing this about 10 years ago and are now quite proficient at packing for the week in each of our carryons and one tote/large purse or backpack type bags. We drive to port 99% of the time but use this method whenever flying as well (including Europe trips for more than 8 days). We have very versatile clothing and we lay out what we want to take then get rid of 50% of it before actually packing the carryons. I also am not crazy about having the ship do our laundry and if necessary, will either hand wash or since I get up very early every morning anyway, easy to throw a load in ships laundry room on deck and do it myself. Not a big deal and its done well before DH and DS get up.

Was on the Sunshine last week of May, the pizza place is near the buffet setups in lido marketplace dinning room. Actually kind of bad setup in that when the pizza lines were long the line kind of extended into the walking area to and from the buffets and the tables.

As far as covid, yes there are cases on your ship. If this bothers you don't sail. I am sure each trip has covid cases. What do you expect them to say. hey, we have three cases of covid. There is nothing else they could do. THIS...THIS...THIS The entire world knows (very first hand) about covid after the last 2 years. We should not still be talking about what to do, how to test, do we test etc...if you are cruising you should be well versed at this point in covid protocols and expect that there will be cases at some point along the way. The longer you are grouped together with a lot of cruisers or in port walking or riding around, the bigger the risk and you could be one of them, full stop! As someone else suggested in a previous post, if you dont know about covid and you need reminders, then maybe cruising should not be your vacation of choice...just sayin 🤔

Some of you seem to keep saying, despise children, etc… We love all the little ones, but would jump at the chance for kids free cruising…sometimes. ‘Last cruise was just DH & I, we’d have booked adults only for that one. ‘Next cruise is 2 adult kids and a granddaughter, so not that cruise. 2023 cruise is adults only it looks like, so…kid free ship would be most excellent. We consider ourselves quite versible and would enjoy either cruise. ‘The Costa ships do afford them a chance to try something new. We hope they do! Agree with this, no one is a child hater etc (or whatever the other references were that were posted). This whole idea is just an option, it would just be something different for current CCL cruisers especially and does not mean cruisers with small children are being targeted or whatever. It is just something new and may be a chance to find out if there is opportunity there for CCL. Each person could choose to take advantage or not, its not that hard. Not sure why anyone would be so against CCL trying something new and different given the right circumstances. Again the whole family thing is a ruse since CCL is all about drinking (with and without cheers), smoking (even in 2022 🙄) and gambling, many cruisers of late have complained excessively that with the altered kids club hours they have nothing for their kids to do (hmmm maybe these cruisers would love an all adult theme???). The Costa ships may present an opportunity to try something different, why not, options can be a good thing.

Carnival is a family brand. A mass market cruise line. They are not going to have adult only ships. LOL...OK...lets see, children witnessing lots of drinking and smoking certainly has its place in some families I guess. Oh yes, lets not forget the casino, lots of family stuff there!!! Please, you are speaking as if CCL is all about the family experience...its not Disney...they will get the money from wherever and convince you its all about the family (hey, if that works then why not, that is what companies do). If they thought for one minute that they could be profitable with a ship with an adult only theme they would be booking it in a minute (and there would be plenty of people ready to pay the deposit I'm sure).