I have allergies to perfumes and it's surprising how much of that "dab just behind the ears" transfers to a pillow even through a pillow case, especially to synthetic fiber ones. SO yes I always travel with my own pillow, like others have said just have something other than a plain white case on it and you should have no problems. Make it part of your carry-on only if worry about late delivery of checked luggage, but there is no reason that it can not also be packed to your check bag(s) either. 

4 hours ago, jsdst12 said:

Hi Maryred!  This is our first time sailing out of Port Canveral.  We have sailed out of Charleston before which is very small and pretty smooth.  I'm assuming Canaveral is much more intensive due to the size and number of ships.  We have booked a suite which comes with priority boarding.  So is there a different part of the terminal you have to go to?  Is everything laid out pretty clearly as to where folks have to go upon arrival to the terminal?  I'm sorry for the simple questions...I just like being as prepared as I can be!  Sail in eight days and I cannot wait! 🙂

See PhillyFan33579's answer. I can give you a great amount of details on embarkation from and about the terminals in NYC (either pier), Baltimore, and NOLA and a little about Tampa (plus lots on Cape Liberty NJ if ever sailing on other lines). But Canaveral is only a port of call to us, so no embarkation day specific procedures we've needed to follow.

At almost all terminals suite passengers wait with Platinum+ passengers in the Captain's Lounge if they arrive prior to the ship being cleared for boarding. Other types of priority passengers wait elsewhere. But once boarding has begun and these waiting areas are empty when someone with priority (regardless of what type) processes through the physical priority check-in they go right on board and rarely even see the priority lounges.

(At some ports like, NYC pier 90, the Captain's Lounge has a nicer set of seats and complimentary pre-boarding non-alcoholic beverages and snacks. While those that purchased Faster to the Fun wait in their own little waiting area that is more or less a section off part of the general boarding wait area, and special invitees of the cruise line or casino are in yet another different waiting room.)

17 hours ago, Schoifmom said:

Your Platinum friends will get a letter in their room detailing the procedures for your sailing.  Typically, they will meet in a specific room and then be escorted to the first tender.  I do believe that they are allowed to bring a certain number of guests with them.

17 hours ago, Miller_KC said:

No they just go to the Platinum window at guest services and they will be escorted to the next tender.  If it still works the same way, unlike the priority boarding,  they will be able to take a couple of guests with them.  No priority for the return tender.

 

Both procedures are true, and depend on the amount on board that are qualified for the priority status. In situations where there is a great number of priority eligible passengers a meeting point other than the GS desk will be used for the first hour or 2 of launches. After the backlog in the general boarding ticket distribution or waiting area dies down usually anyone can just head down to deck A or 1 to board, but if there is a small line once there sometimes there is a seperate section for priority passengers to line up at and board the tender first. 

17 hours ago, Frank12 said:

Yes. Everyone gets a ticket.

We are platinum and chose not to get off early recently so we did not go to the specified room at 6:45. When we went to get off at 11:00 am we still had to go to the casino and get tickets to get off even though there was no wait.

 

Never heard of Platinum+ passengers needing a ticket or sticker from the general tender distribution location to board outgoing tenders. Usually the color coded S&S card is your ticket.

13 hours ago, coevan said:

doesn't the OBC get applied to anything on your folio? I don't think you pick what to use it for. 

True you can't choose what it is applied to specifically, but Carnival can bar it from being applied to specific charges. If the service or item is excluded in the OBC offer terms then a passenger expecting the OBC to covered the charge might suddenly find out they may need an additional funding method for their account to cover said expense.

Mine is fantastic he does remember to call me when I make special specific notification requests like "Let me know as soon as Journey voyages out of Baltimore are published for 2021", but would never expect him to call me with more ambiguous requests like let me know about any last minute deals. He has on occasion called to let me know about new casino deals before I would receive the snail mail card (he knows I'm not big on email sale notices).

You may also want to know that Diamond, Platinum, and suite priority waiting areas are different from special invitee waiting which is different than the FttF guest waiting areas area at most ports. So even if priority check-in and boarding you may find your group split to various waiting areas based on why they have priority. 

2 hours ago, Kwaj girl said:

No shorts qualify as 'dress ANYTHING'.  Shorts are casual wear.  End of story.

Try telling that to Bermudian businesspersons and police officers.

10 minutes ago, Joseph2017China said:

One of the greatest mysteries of all time, is why they still follow a policy of ship time.  It requires people to be confused as they are visiting areas with multiple times.  Clock in the store says one thing, your phone says another, unless you remembered to turn off auto updates.  Maybe you have a watch, but some of them use GPS time clocks.  Outside of the Caribbean, the clock is always set at the local time. 

 

Let's bring all ships current and the policy changed.

The only problem here is if visiting 3-4 ports in 1 week do you really want the possibility of changing your watch each day?Especially if all the ports use different times (observe or not observe DST, or do so on the Euro which differs from the USA change over date).

A good private tour company that caters to cruise passengers as opposed to one that prefers resort/hotel guests will communicate with you in terms like the tour starts 1 hour after your ship's scheduled docking time if you ask them to. And there is a reason why most online excursion consolidation companies ask what ship are you arriving on, because they don't want to have to offer a refund or catch-up transport, if the ship gets in after the tour starts (or too close for you to get to the meeting point from your dock) or will end after your ship leaves.

Here's what I know about how Carnival handles time changes and a good portion of it comes from a conversation with E/CD that has "defected" to work on RCI. On closed loop cruises Carnival will change the ship's time to local time if and only if more than 50% of the total cruise's port of call time is in that other time zone and there needs to be at least 36 hours between when the time change can occur (during an overnight) and arriving at the port of call and continuing to the next port of call (in a different time zone) or returning to homeport to have time for passengers to adjust for it. If all the conditions can not be met they will not adjust ship's time to local time.

So in the case of a ship doing a 5, 6, or 7 day cruise with Bermuda being the only port the ship docks at for 36-54 hours, the time change will usually be announced on embarkation night by the Maitre D, the CD at shows, and comedy club host(ess) as well as noted as part of your printed FunTimes. So set your watch or other time piece ahead by an hour. For the return the night that you depart from the Royal Dockyard you will be reminded to turn you clocks and such back and hour in anticipation of docking at the homeport some 36-48 hours later. For the quick getaway 4 day or less cruises it's rare to do the time change, but it could happen depending on sail away and return docking times to the home port.

But in other cases where Bermuda is just a stop for less than 30 hours it will vary as to if they adjust to Atlantic time. It really depends on how many seadays you will have between your ports and what time zones the previous and upcoming ports are on. So say a Journey's cruise leaves from Charleston with stops in San Juan, Amber Cove, and Bermuda: there is a very good chance as all 3 ports are in the Atlantic Time Zone that there will be a time change (just be careful though Amber Cove does not observe daylight savings time so if an adjustment is made during the summer ship's time there will not be local time). Now using the same home port but instead the ship is going to Bermuda first then 2 ports in the Bahamas, it's less likely because the majority of ports are in the Eastern time zone. Again it will depend on the amount of hours between ports so it is always a possibility.

On open jaw type cruises such as a Transatlantic or repositioning cruise time changes for ports of call will really depend on what time zones your departure and arrival ports are in, and where along the voyage that the stop in Bermuda happens.

25 minutes ago, fdthird said:

Why do people keep referencing things you can do on other cruise lines?  Imho, it confuses folks asking about Royal.  

Celebrity is a Royal Caribbean International Ltd. owned cruise line. It does share many similarities of "onshore processing" (including the same IT) division and FAQs as RC Cruise Line.

12 hours ago, Wombservice said:

We’re sailing tomorrow on the Sunrise and just received an email stating that boarding will be delayed by one hour because of an in-depth debarking procedure by customs for the previous cruise.  My check-in time was 11:30-12:00 so that would’ve made it 12:30-1:00, but I have FTTF - what time would be an appropriate time to arrive?  Has this happened to anybody?  All I can picture is mass chaos!

On the surface it sound like someone on the current cruise made a very bad decision requiring intervention of federal authorities or there is a large turn over of crew requiring special processing to leave/join the ship to end/start their contracts and both the cruise line and the terminal want the building clear. Otherwise it's another case of very poor wording on the part of the cruise line's notification system.

Re-read the email or travel alert, does it state boarding of the ship or that terminal operations for check-in is delayed? If it says boarding, and if you are not opposed to waiting the extra time in the terminal then go ahead, since you have FttF, arrive at the cruise terminal building as early as the time listed at the terminal's website for when they open to incoming passengers. For NYC piers 88/89/90 this is usually 9:30am. Delay some, maybe targeting an 11am arrival, if driving in and parking, as the dock adjacent rooftop parking usually does not have spaces until 10:00am on cruises with normal debarkation and clearance procedures.

If the communication states the terminal's check-in operations or ability to process in is delayed then add an hour to to the normal times listed at the port authority's website. With FttF you do not have to follow your picked Arrival Appointment time, but there is no sense in having to wait on the sidewalk of the concourse for the building to open if they are closing it to civilians. Remember it's usually a clustercluck of traffic on 12th Ave (aka the Westside Hwy) getting to the terminal concourse entryway, from early morning until about 1:30pm anyway for any ship's turn around day, so pack your patience in your hip pocket.

Either way boarding of the ship will commence when all the federal and local agencies involved clear the ship for new passengers. The common boarding start time in NYC for embarkation day weddings is about 10:30am, with Diamond, Platinum, and suites soon following (15-30 minutes later). FttF priority boarding will commence after any special cruise line or casino invitees board. If you arrive after they clear the FtF waiting area you will just join the next group boarding the ship after processing in at the priority check-in counter.

Depending on the length of your cruise you get X number of bags per Platinum passenger; 2 bags on 3 – 6 day cruises, 
3 bags on 7-12 day cruises, 5 bags on a 12+ day cruises. So we usually have a bag for light colored clothing and another for dark clothing. Since they wash and dry using industrial machines in very, very hot water and air, nothing that has not been washed (to avoid dye leaks) or has a risk of being shrunk goes in the bags.  Another thing to keep in mind is they do not pre-treat stains, so having your own stain stick or pre-wash is a must because the hot water alone will set the stain. As another poster stated we use the service more or less to have clean clothing to return home with rather than use it to reduce the initial amount needing to be packed.

5 minutes ago, stevea36 said:

Bob, once again, you are correct.   All parties have to be booked with the same dining type in order for their reservations to be cross referenced  for dining.

 

Steve

OK so it is different than other cruise lines that do allow separate bookings without the same confirmed dining type to be cross referenced. Kind of surprising though since Celebrity allowed us to do so when we "clicked" with a couple on our rollcall and wanted to share a table but we had Celebrity select dining and they had the late seating. The Celebrity call center CS rep did say that cross referencing to the other couple's booking did help us move to the almost full late seating.

15 hours ago, Host Clarea said:

You need to change to the same dining type.

 

If you cannot do this pre-cruise by contacting whoever booked the cruise, then go to the dining room as soon as you board and request to change. 

 

You can also try to get on a waitlist for a dining type.

No only this but both parties should contact their travel professional or the CS # on their booking confirmation and have their dining preferences cross referenced or linked. This will insure that once the 2 (or more) bookings have the same dining time, especially if traditional set time, that they will already be penciled in to be seated at the same table for dinner, as the Maitre'D usually does the upcoming cruise's table chart a few days prior to sailing. Having the bookings cross referenced could help one party or the other get the group's prefered dining time, not 100% sure Royal does this, but on other cruise lines linked bookings get higher priority than singular bookings to get off any waitlist.

Here's my attempt to compare the Anthem (sailed once) to the Pride (sailed 6 times):

The Pride is an older ship (2001) lacking many of the bells and whistles of a a newer mega cruise ship like the Anthem (2015). But the Pride is not lacking in being a good experience if looking for a cruise in and of itself, so in all honestly it would be better compared to it's "dock mate" the Grandeur which I have yet to sail. 

Food itself is a subjective subject so I will only focus on variety and venues availability. Service quality in my experience has been equal on the 2 lines.

Pride: has a single MDR at the aft of the ship on 2 decks that services both traditional set time dining and Anytime Dining. Additionally the MDR is used for seaday brunch from 9am-1:30 pm offering full menu service for a variety of traditional and non-traditional breakfast and lunch items (and you can go twice during service hours, for each meal time). Also on every seaday about 3:30pm is the afternoon tea, not high tea but a nice lowkey social event with finger sandwiches and traditional sweet, lipton teas are the default choices but for an beverage charge you can upgrade to Art of Tea selections. On port days the MDR is open for a more traditional breakfast menu,  about 2 hours prior to docking (but no later than 8:30am) for about 2 hours before the door "closes" for seating. Set time dining is on the lower level at 6pm and 8:15pm, with ATD being open seating on the balcony level starting at 5:45 until 9:30pm without the ability to reserve a time.  The menu in general has 8-10 starters listed and 4-6 main course that vary every night, additionally there is a static "comfort" food menu that is the same every night and a port specialty recommendation with a starter and main that changes based on the itinerary. There are 6-8 on menu desserts offered every night with 3-5 of them changing daily (warm chocolate melting cake, fruit platter, and cheese plate are every night), but there are also a couple of hidden menu desserts you can ask about like the banana split (actually it's on the kid's menu).

As with most Carnival ships the Lido deck buffet is accessible 24/7 because that is where the all hours pizza (& ceasar salad) counter and soft serve ice cream machines are located along with the ever accessible gratis beverage dispensers. Nearly continuous counter service starts at 5:30am with a basic continental breakfast set up. By 7am the full hot breakfast stations are in operation (including the custom omelette counters), and this lasts until 10am, though I do believe the Blue Iguana breakfast burrito bar closes by 9:30am. After that there is a "late risers" breakfast which is more  or less a return to a continental option with a few hot item offers in chafing dishes. Around 11am stations they close 1 by 1 to clean and switchover to lunch choices, and Guys Burgers and the deli counter opens for the day. By noon all lunch options are open, and by 2:30pm most station are closing till dinner, but the deli and Guys (and of course the fresh made pizza counter) remain open. Around 5pm a few counters are open for dinner selections with all being available by 5:30pm, but unfortunately Guys closes by 6pm. Dinner options are replenished until about 8:30pm with all but the deli and pizza closing by 9pm. The deli counter remains open till 11pm, and about 11:30pm a counter across from the pizza opens with late night snacks until 1am. Between the indoor and outdoor poolside tables there is ample seating for all but embarkation and debarkation day use.

There is only 2 specialty restaurants on the Pride David's Steakhouse which is comparable to Chops and the Bonsai Sushi with it's a la carte menu. David's is only open from 5:30pm till 9pm and in my opinion well worth the upcharge. If not wanting the full steakhouse experience, in the MDR for a fee you can upgrade your main course to a steakhouse select option and this will be cooked up at David's and brought down to the MDR. Bonsai is open on seadays for lunch through dinner service but on port days the hours vary around the docking time. For those that that don't like sushi (but sailing with those that do) a braised beef dish or vegetarian option are available.(currently) is offering free room service though there are items that can also be ordered at an upcharge. After 10pm until 5:59am all of the room service selections have a per item charge.

Anthem: Has 4 MDRs, on Deck 3 the Grande and Chic used for traditional set time dining (which I believe are sat at 5:30pm and 8pm) and Deck 4, Silk and Icon for My Time Dining (open seating at 5pm until 9pm) with reservations taken until 2:30pm each day for that night or through your cruise planner for any or all nights. (On our first  night of MTD we were strongly "encouraged" to select the same service team or table for each night that we already reserved for.) The menu is the same at all 4 MDRs for that night's service, and there were less menu choices per night with more repeats of dishes offered especially on the starters and desserts. FOr variety we did opt a couple of nights for the Bistro in the Solarium for dining. Being a specialty yet included venue we found the lighter Mediterranean fare to be a refreshing change and  really enjoyed the self service tapa starters. In the mornings breakfast was available in Silk and Icon with a split type of menu, a few traditional made to order items but the rest of the selection came from a buffet style setup in the restaurant. Breakfast hours varied slightly but mostly were 7-9am. On seadays lunch was offered from usually from 11:30am-1:30pm but we did not attend so no idea on the menus or which of the 2 MDRs were being used for seating. 

On the Anthem we found the buffet setup a little confusing at first as it was not the traditional "start here" line type of station arrangement we are used to on cruise ships, plus the operation times were strictly segmented. Basically it was more like a Chinese Buffet (though the food was greatly varied in ethnicities offered) where you just grab a plate and walk up to the dish of your choice take what you want then go to another area for a different selection. Where we found fault is for each meal time the Windjammer was only open 2-2.5 hours and completely closed in between. Seating felt very limited since the service times were shorter for each meal, and often the 2 of us wound up sharing large tables with other small parties. Here I would have to say though the variety of menu items offered did offset the limitations of what was offered in the MDR and we frequently would enjoy a small portion as our appetizers instead of ordering from the limited menu offerings in the MDR. 

Promenade Cafe and the Deli at 270 is where we opted to have lunch most days.The Promenade Cafe on Deck 4 is the Anthem's 24/7 service counter with 4-6 sandwich offerings at lunch and dinner times and several desserts, but mostly pastries at breakfast. Here was the only 24/7 self service beverage areas which consisted of iced water in pitchers and urns with coffee and hot water for tea and to mix your own hot chocolate from powder packs. The freestyle soda machines were also located here for those that wished to carry around their cup from the beverage packages. Sorrento's pizza is adjacent and shares the seating area and is open most days from 11am til 2 am for slices of pizza, with tapas offerings at select times. On Deck 5 aft was the 270 deli, open usually for just breakfast, lunch, and seaday afternoon snack hours as the 270 cabaret theater is used for seating. Like the Promenade Cafe they offer 4-6 premade sandwich and plenty of sweets as options, but add in 1-2 fresh panini style choices and a fresh tossed salad area. 

As for specialty restaurants here's is where the Anthem really excelled, and please forgive me if I miss any. For seaday lunches you have both Chops and Jamie's Italian to choose from at less of an upcharge than at dinner time but a smaller menu but still beyond excellent service and food quality. These 2 along with Wonderland (a gasto-science nouvelle cuisine menu), Izumi sushi, and Michael's Pub all had at fee dining for just about every taste for dinner time. A Johnny Rockets is also available for lunch and dinner but we found it lacking the fresh taste for the burgers and fries compared to the ones we have visited on land.

Wow just noticed how long this comparison is will come back later to post about entertainment and activities.

Almond milk is available, along with soy milk, just tell them your preference. For those only avoiding lactose they have Lactaid but that sometimes the carton has to come up from the galley or ship stores so request it to be kept on hand on embarkation day if a frequent visitor to the coffee bar or Java Blue. 

It depends on why the OBC was issued. Certain booking promo OBC has restrictions in the "fine" print of the offer, with some even being restricted for use on charges from a single department (ie. excursion credits). OBC from ES price protection claims, port fee reductions can be used for anything charged on board including the auto-gratuities.

90 days before departure at 12:00:01am eastern time.

We've celebrated many anniversaries, birthdays, and congratulatory events while cruising with gifts. Trust me a gift bag stuffed with tissue paper is better especially if flying to the cruise with the gift.

Doubtful, since 2013 no Carnival ships have been homeported in Manhattan during the late fall to early spring (Nov- Apr.). Most Carnival ships reposition to NYC as seasonal port in mid-May and stay till sometime in Oct. with the exception of a few special cruises like the Vista"s US inaugural cruises in November of 2016.

If looking to cruise with Carnival in March you will either need to drive to the Baltimore for the Pride or fly further south. Or you could consider other cruise lines leaving from Bayonne in New Jersey (RCI) or New York (NCL).

For the first Elegant Night :

For the second Elegant Light:

or we will do matching Hawaiian Prints (sorry no pics). Me in a maxi dress and  DH in Dockers (navy or black) with a pair of Sperry.  

Here's what you do to forestall arguments from crew or Guest Services once on board. Simply visit Carnival.com and go to the FAQs to print out the current Cheers answer about 1 day before you leave for your cruise

Here's what is currently in Carnival's FAQs: (I've highlighted some areas that have been debated in this thread)

19 hours ago, erlyvon said:

If you have a combination of Cruise Cash, say $200, and OBC from other sources, say $300, which is credited first?  I assume OBC from other sources (ie Carnival, Travel Agent etc.) would be refundable if not used?

Basically funds are used in this order:

Non-refundable OBC that is department specific (like Bar Cruise Cash or Excursion Promo credits)

Non-refundable general OBC (including Cruise Cash and certain promo OBC)

Refundable OBC (including price protection OBC, reductions in port fees, and certain promo OBC)

Carnival Gift cards and e-certificates

Cash and travelers cheques

Debit and credit card(s) place on file

With that said TA and reservation website bonus OBC, when it is above and beyond whatever Carnival is currently offering, can come from various sources including the TA or website buying Cruise Cash out of their commission. More commonly though it's from blocking out an open group booking and using the group perks to "purchase" non-refundable OBC for their clients. Also to note many times these extra gifts will not show up on your on your Carnival cruise Manage my Booking pages nor the edocs.Your TA or the CS contact from the booking confirmation email should be able to clear up what type of OBC is being issue and also get a printout of the promise. Though Carnival Guest Services can't issue this 3rd party promised OBC they will allow you to call the TA office or CS rep free of charge (after day 2 on board) to inform them you have not receive what they promised.

While on the flipside of the coin, OBC issued as a promo by Carnival directly as part of one of their booking sales can be either non-refundable or refundable (as well as department specific or general) and that info is hidden in the terms of that specific offer, but will appear as to what type on your edocs somewhere around page 4 or 5 with prepaid gratuities, excursions, and spa appointments. OBC from ES price protection claims and fee adjustments is always refundable OBC. If you purchase Cruise Cash (or anything from the online Funshops) yourself you need to remember to opt-in for it to be listed on your edocs. Otherwise, even when bought yourself, Carnival will consider it to be a surprise gift and leave it off the edocs.

My last sailing out of the Manhattan terminal for pier 90 was the Vista's inaugural cruise in 2016 at that time there was no early/late line and those arriving before their check-in appointment time (as arrival appointments were called then) were turned away from the door. This lead to many just hanging out on the concourse being very grumpy and obstructing the door area. We wee priority at that time so I don't know how they ultimately handled all the early arrivals. We have also encountered similar when at the terminal for pier 88 boarding the NCL's Breakaway, and since we were the newbies for that line but hubby was using a cane they let us in but gave us a high zone number that we boarded 2 hours after finishing check-in..

Again in the 2.75 years things may of changed but since many that cruise from NYC are repeat passengers across several cruise lines you may want to post this query in your roll-call to get definitively current answers or glance through comment on other roll-calls around your sailing. 

Actually it's true about free casino cruise days not always being part of your VIFP total. My mom has 105 VIFP points but has cruised a 112 days with Carnival (difference being a free 7 day casino offer for taxes and fees that were almost covered by casino cash). Not sure it's reflected on her VIFP banner, so now I'm curious.