virginiab

we like to take small bags of pretzels. The stick version (versus the knot shape) packs small. 

I entered my wife's birthday wrong when I booked the cruise on Carnival.com.  No issue at checkin but when we got our room keys, mine was platinum and hers was not. Then she was unable to log in on the onboard app.  Once she tried the most obvious date transposition, she was able to log in using the mistaken date I had used. That was the first time we realized the error that had been made.  we went to guest services and explained that it was our error. The man there corrected it in the computer and issued a new sail and sign card in platinum.

we've had cabins right in front of elevator lobby with few problems. Your mileage may vary.

I always use any remaining balance on gift cards to pay down my cruise balance. It's a good way to use them up. I rhink you will find a difference between paying your fare with gift cards (probably still allowed) and using visa gift cards for onboard expenses (apparently not currently allowed). 

We used just under $400 on an 8-night cruise. Tips, some sushi, one steakhouse entree in the main dining room, some soft drinks and a few small purchases in the gift shop.  No excursions, no steakhouse this time, no alcohol. We were happy to pay the tips at the current $14.50 per person per day, so that was our biggest expense.

Once again, I need to say thanks to Cruise critic members for sharing information. Over the years, I must have saved thousands of dollars due to thing I learned here.

This time, I am grateful for those of you who said we could use non-refundable credits to buy Carnival gift cards at Cherry on Top. We had $600 pandemic credit plus $100 shareholder credit and I bought a $300 gift card that we will use on our next cruise so we can spread out the credit. As we were doing a very low-activity cruise, we really did not need $700 to spend on the December cruise.

I'm sorry that I don't remember who talked about the gift card possibility, but you have my gratitude!

Thank you so much! I'm looking forward to enjoying the sauna. I had forgotten the hot tub in the spa; it will be nice to try that out again.

We're sailing soon on the Spirit. I think I remember enjoying a sauna on the Spirit years ago. At that time there was no fee to use the sauna. Can someone tell me if there is still a sauna and if there is now a fee for it?

Thanks for any up-to-date info you can provide!

Virginia

Last week on the Pride we got a call to our room a few days before our chef's table event. The caller wanted to confirm our attendance and ask about any allergies or food sensitivities. I think they asked again when we checked in for the dinner.

on the Pride sailing out of Tampa April 17, there did not seem to be a capacity crowd. Capacity is 2600-ish. The last night at dinner the maitre 'd said his crew had served 1200 dinners a night in the dining room. I don't know how to factor folks who ate dinner elsewhere, but 'd guess we were around 50%.

Different port and different circumstances, but a few years ago we were sailing out of Port Canaveral and totally messed up on the drive from Cape Canaveral to Port Canaveral. We misjudged how long it would take AND we got distracted at the nature preserve and left later than planned. Traffic was moving very slowly and we were in panic mood. I called the Carnival number for those have problems getting to the port and asked the latest time we could arrive and I think they told me 3:30. I called the rental car company and asked about just leaving the car at the port for them to pick up or driving to their locarion (very close to port) and having someone just hop in the car with us to drop us at port. They assured us they could get us to the port. By the time we were approaching the car rental place I had already called Carnival a second time. The car rental guys got us to port around 3:45. The last of the luggage handlers were packing up their gear and they told us to take our luggage into the port building with us. As soon as we got into the building, someone took our luggage from us and pointed to an office in the corner where someone would check us in. There was a family ahead of us checking in and we got to sit while we waited, then sit at a desk while a person checked us in. When we got aboard they directed us to go up the stairs to the dining room for the safety briefing which was about to start. A crew member saw us two gray-haired ladies and grabbed our carry on bags and hustled up the steps with them, We followed up to the briefing. There was no place left to sit but we were SO glad to have gotten aboard that we didn't mind too much. I think we ended up boarding around 4:15. It was bad planning plus bad traffic luck, and they did know we were on the way, bur I will never put us in that situation again!

I always cruise with two gel icepacks and a neoprene band to strap the ice around my ankle. I also bring a leakproof soft cooler. I ask the room steward to keep the cooler filled with ice and I keep my icepacks in rhe cooler when I am not using them. They are not as cold as in the freezer at home, so each treatment is of shorter duration, but I still find them useful to have along. All my icing gear goes in my checked luggage when I fly.

I bought a set of stencils at Michaels craft store and used acrylic paint to put a feather design on each side of each of our bags: front, back, both sides, top, and bottom. No matter which way it is facing, it is easy for me to identify. I hope it will also be easy for someone else to see that it is not their bag!

I, too, love the prepaid laundry serice on Holland. The Carnival "stuff the bag" option that is free for platinum or suites and offered as a special for others is just wash and fold service. The folding is not great. I haven't had issues with cleanliness of the laundry, but it is sometimes very badly folded (and once it had been folded while damp.) I have learned to open those bags as soon as I can and to refold as needed.

You can get better service (wash/press/hang or fold) akin to Holland's service, but it is priced on a per item basis with each item costing several dollars. I don't have a copy of the price list. It is on the same form you fill in when you fill the bag for the free service.

We use the free service for sleepwear, socks, undies, and playclothes. The other stuff either does not get washed or is handled with a mid-cruise visit to the laundry room.

A hot water bottle will be a great substitute for a heating pad, especially as you are only looking for 30 minutes of heat at a time. You may have to refill once after 15 minutes, or you may find that it stays hot enough for the entire time. It is also easier to pack, and no worries about extension cords and such.

I just booked an hour ago. We got an outside. There were also balcony and inside cabins available when I looked.

Here's a story about a small bill. My friend was working for the local power company 40 years ago when a customer came in waving a cutoff notice that said her power would be cur off in 5 days if she didn't pay the balance shown on the enclosed bill. The bill amount was $0.00.

The clerk working the desk wanted her to write a check for $0.00 in order to clear up the account. The customer was enraged and confused by this request. Finally, she got hold of herself and told the clerk she preferred to pay it off in cash. Now the clerk was confused, but she gathered her wits about her and issued a receipt for the payment of $0.00.

About a year ago we booked the Legend to the Panama Canal for December, 2020. I expect that will be cancelled, so a few months ago I booked the same cruise (with a change from Legend to Pride) for December, 2021. Then I saw the six day cruise just before that so I added a booking for that, so I am hoping for a back-to-back in 2021. Then I saw a Journeys cruise in Nov-Dec, 2022 and snagged a porthole (PH) cabin for that. So one way or another, we are going to see the Panama Canal. I suspect we will have plenty of time to read the history of the canal between now and whichever cruise works out.

Wow! Maybe I wandered onto the wrong site!

While looking for some other info on the Carnival site, I found this on the FAQ pages. So now it could save money to book with a travel agent, assuming you are using a credit card. This is new, right?

Accepted payment methods for bookings made directly with Carnival Cruise Line include:

• A credit card surcharge of 1.1% for Visa and Mastercard and 2.3% for AMEX will apply to direct bookings made through our website and call centre. Surcharges do not apply to debit cards. Please contact our Customer Service department to make payment over the phone.
• PayPal: We accept the following digital payment methods if your cruise reservation is made directly with Carnival. This form of payment can only be made online by accessing  'Manage My Booking' on Carnival.com.au and choosing 'Pay Now'. Secure shopping made faster. Choose whichever payment method you prefer to make your purchase (credit card, debit card, bank account or PayPay balance).
• EasyPay: Choose Carnival EasyPay during checkout and the rest of your cruise payments will happen automatically, giving you even more time to spend counting down the days till you cruise. Credit Card surcharges apply as outlined above. Find out full details here.

I'm 74 now and I seem to recall that when I went to Europe when I was in college, you needed to have the smallpox vaccination. I think you needed it to re-enter the USA. Once a vaccine baecomes widely available, I would not be surprised to see a bunch of countries having a similar requirement for current Covid 19 vaccinations.

We booked 5243 for a cruise last winter on the Legend and were very pleased. As SD Padre Fan nates, the balcony is shallower than the higher deck version of Premium Balconies, but it was fine for us. The additional length of the balcony made it very comfortable for us. We had no problem with elevator noise. 

We currently have upcoming bookings for 5243 on the Legend and for 5243 and 8237 on the Pride. We hope that we will be able to take those cruises and enjoy those lovely cabins.

You can absolutely do this. I have done it myself.

My most recent cruise was on the Legend in 5243, which was a delight to us. I peeked around the barrier and the 9A next door seemed to have just the same view. We don't mind the obstructed view cabins on the Spirit class, and they save considerable money. 

On our cruise last November we had the additional experience on a port day of having the crew's lifeboat drill involve "our" lifeboat being lowered part way and then returned to its position, which was fun to see.  We have booked the same cabin for our next two cruises, which we hope to ba able to take as they are a while into the future.

2 hours ago, shof515 said:

Looking forward to your review . i am sailing the legend in may

 

if you have your time dinning, where is the check in desk? does the legend support your time dinning check in/requesting a table in the hub app like on other ships

I was on the Legend in December. Your Time dining check-in is at the maitre 'd desk at the front of the upper level dining room. We ate around 6:00 each night and never had more than 2 dining parties ahead of us in line. We also noticed that it was significantly quieter on the upper level than on the main level where the fixed-time dining folks are. We asked for and got the same servers each night. Well, after the second night, we didn;t even have to ask.