jungle1

I submitted the request last week.  Saw today on the website that the cruises had moved but hadn't been sent an email.  I just called in and requested the confirmations.

All was good including pricing - up $100 for higher fees/taxes but that was to be expected.

My experience....

I had called earlier this week to take advantage of Cruise with Confidence and had cancelled the Liberty sailing they moved me to and was awaiting my $500 FCC for the deposits.

After receiving this note, I called in today and was able to undo that cancellation and move the reservation to the Symphony for the same week with price protection.  Costs went up a bit for higher taxes but not a big deal.

It did take about 2 hours on the phone with them.  Most of that on hold as they were figuring out how to process it.  They had to:

- create new Symphony reservations

- manually apply the price protection

- figure out how to get my deposits out of cancellation and applied to the new reservations

Wish this was the original deal but for those that have already acted it seems that there is a process to switch over to one of the new options.

American changed my flights by about an hour and a half several months ago for a March flight.   I didn't do anything at the time since I could make it work.

When Covid hit I took advantage of the ability to cancel these flights with full refund due to the time change.  I had no problems.  Cancelled online and submitted my refund online (different web page) and got my money back no problem.

Even during the NCAA tournament they had 1 channel that had basketball on, and it would jump around between games.  You could catch the first half of a game then they would switch to another game at halftime and never come back.  We ended up bringing laptops to Playmakers and watching on that...drew a bit of a crowd all huddled around the little screen.

1 hour ago, dkmk529 said:

We were looking at the Carnival Sunrise and then we ruled it out because of its size. I prefer a larger ship to a smaller and it is half the size of Harmony.  What specifically did your kids like about Magic?  I'll read the review you attached.

They liked the ropes course, the water slides, entertainment (piano bar, production shows, trivia), loved the quick serve food options (Guys Burgers beats anything we've had on Royal).  They aren't kids club kids so no comments on that.  They also loved the 24/7 pizza and ice cream.

Not to complicate things, but if money is a major driver you might consider one of the Dream class ships on Carnival.  We just did our first Carnival cruise (on the Carnival Magic) over the holidays and my kids (16 & 14) enjoyed it about as much as their RCCL cruises (Harmony, Symphony, and Oasis pre-refurb).  I was hesitant to try it but it was about half the price so we gave it a shot.  While I still prefer Oasis-class I had a great time and would definitely sail Dream class again on Carnival for the right price/itinerary.

More detailed thoughts here...

2 hours ago, ctsharpie05 said:

Great review! We sailed her in July & are sailing her 2 times this year! 

I do have a question though: This time we are taking the kids. Wondering how ya'll spent your time on the balcony? Did they bring you extra chairs? Were the kids fine sitting on the floor? I love putting my feet up and reading on the balcony but I also want to be with my kids. Thank you! 

My kids weren't really interested in hanging on the balcony much - no more than 5-10 mins at a time and it was usually standing at the rail looking at the ocean or chatting.  There didn't seem to be any room for additional chairs so we didn't bother asking.

I’m a long time reader, infrequent poster, and first time reviewer (please be gentle!).  I devoured everything I could find here before our cruise and wanted to give a little bit back.

We just got back from a 6 night NYE cruise on Carnival Magic.  We went to Half Moon Cay, Amber Cove, and Grand Turk.  About us – we are early to mid-forties with a 15 yo son and 13 yo daughter.  This was cruise number 8 for the family (my wife and I have done a few more without the kids).   This was our first time on Carnival as a family after 4 on Disney and 3 on Royal Caribbean (all Oasis class.) 

I wanted to give a quick rundown of things that our family cares about (and doesn’t care about) on a cruise so you have some context for the comments.  Since we all travel so differently things that might matter to you (like an amazing spa or chair hogs) make no difference to me.

Things we care about:

• Entertainment options
• Trivia
• Production shows
• Breakfast & lunch quality/options
• Main dining room quality/variety
• Walking/jogging track
• Balcony size
• Crowds

Things we don’t really use:

• Spa
• Pool loungers (we prefer to hang on our balcony or in adult area)
• Specialty dining
• Nightclubs
• Bingo
• Casino
• Anything after midnight (other than sleep!)
• Formal dress

Overall, we had a very enjoyable trip and Carnival compared very well to our experiences on RCCL.  We would cruise Carnival again on the right itinerary/price.  We felt that there was much more in common than different between the two lines.  This won’t be a full play by play but happy to answer any questions you might have.

Pre-Cruise Hotel

We stayed at Embassy Suites Ft. Lauderdale and we wouldn’t stay there again.  The staff and location were great but the rooms really show their age (who doesn’t have HDTV in the rooms now?) and it was just way too crowded.

Embarkation/Debarkation

We had a port arrival time of 12:00-12:30 at Port Everglades and a boarding group of A02.  We had to check out of our hotel at 11:00 so we just headed over to the port to try our luck.  We arrived at the port around 11:30 or so and they just waved us through.  No lines, quick check in, and we were on the ship by 11:45.  Couldn’t have been smoother.

Debarkation was a bit less smooth.  They had to stop the process a couple of times and were running about an hour behind the expected time.  Once we got off there was a long customs line but it kept moving.  No major issues getting an Uber – took maybe 15 minutes from clearing customs until we were on the road.

The Rooms

• We had a balcony cabin and inside cabin on deck 8 toward the front of the ship on the starboard side.  I was concerned about noise coming from the promenade deck/hot tubs but it generally was a non issue.  We also couldn’t see the promenade when seated which was nice.  I would be careful about getting a cabin above the smoking section (think it was port side aft) and wouldn’t want to be on deck 6 with the noise/privacy.  I’d also recommend avoiding rooms near the atrium as there was quite a bit of noise in that area.
• Cabins were plenty spacious, beds were comfortable, showers were tiny but sink/bathroom storage was good. 
• Cabin steward was good and we got twice daily service (he asked us to fill the form). 
• TVs are pretty small but that isn’t a big deal for us. 
• Balcony is pretty small as well – miss having the footstools from RCCL – but adequate.

The Food

• I don’t like the layout of the Lido Marketplace – seemed to encourage long lines.  I much prefer the different stations on RCCL.  We avoided the Lido after the first day there for breakfast other than to grab some desserts (the cakes were pretty good – much better than RCCL or Disney.)
• We went to the dining room for breakfast most days and the service was good – good variety, made to order, reasonably fast.  That was really the first cruise we’ve done that and we will probably do that more going forward.
• Loved the variety of free options at lunch – had lunch twice at the pasta bar, had more Guy’s burgers than we can count (we thought they were great – esp. the fries), had a few tacos/burritos from Blue Iguana (also really good) and even got some BBQ from Guy’s (it was OK – nothing to write home about but I still ate it.)
• My pizza loving son hated the pizza – had one piece and never went back for more.  RCCL win’s big here in his eyes.
• My ice cream loving daughter loved the 24/7 ice cream options – can’t get that on RCCL.
• Main dining room was OK.  The service was good and fast (which we like).  The quality was hit or miss but we didn’t go hungry. 

The Bars

• We are moderate drinkers and were paying by the glass.  We brought on our two bottles of wine (and ordered two more at dinner).  We also ordered a liter of whiskey for the room. 
• Drink prices seemed reasonable compared to other cruise lines.  
• Bar service could be quite slow at times.
• The candy straws are pretty terrible – get very floppy before I could even finish a drink.  Not a fan.

The Entertainment

• We enjoyed the production shows – thought the cast in general was pretty good and we liked the music.  We saw 88 Keys (although technical difficulties meant they basically just did the singing), Flick, and America Rocks.
• Simon London was the cruise director – I’m not sure that guy ever sleeps but he seemed to do a good job engaging the crowd.  CD doesn’t really play a major role in my enjoyment of the cruise but we liked him well enough.
• Loved the piano bar – Scott Lyles was amazingly talented.  Ended up there a few nights.
• We didn’t make it to the 18+ comedy (tried once but couldn’t get seats) but saw both comedians do the PG shows and they were entertaining.

The Ship

• The ship is showing it’s age a bit.  I know it spends it’s life in salt water but I was surprised at the amount of surface rust all over the hull, rails, etc.  I remember constantly seeing people on Disney touching up the paint during the week and didn’t see any of that on Carnival.  It didn’t really detract from the vacation but it is very noticeable.
• Interior finishes are also a bit worn but it was much less noticeable.  Again, didn’t really impact the trip for us.
• The pools were always very crowded but I think that is just part of cruising.
• Really liked the promenade on Deck 5 and you could always get a lounger on that deck (at least on the shady side of the boat).
• We didn’t love how small the jogging track was so we just used Deck 5 for our sea day walks and it worked fine.
• Seemed to have plenty of elevators for the crowd although being in the middle of stuff on Deck 8 (and eating lots of cheeseburgers) meant we usually took the stairs to everything.
• Never felt overly crowded except for the buffet and the pool deck.
• Casino was pretty smoky – we generally tried to avoid the whole area.
• We liked Red Frog Pub – played a few board games, shuffleboard, foosball
• Trivia could be hard to get seats on occasion but generally the space was large enough
• Sports deck was fun – water slides were OK, kids loved the ropes course, played some mini-golf.
• Serenity deck was nice – went up there for a couple of hours on a port day when our balcony faced another ship on the dock.

Again, overall it was a fun trip.  Had just as much fun as the RCCL trips (and therefore a bit higher fun/$ ratio).  Our next cruise is on NCL (Baltics 2020) but I am sure we will be back to Carnival again.

Thanks to those who made it this far and if I missed any topics or you have questions let me know.

We had to make a similar decision for our December 2019 cruise (Carnival Magic vs. NCL Breakaway).

We ended up picking the Magic but went back and forth quite a bit.  What finally sealed it for us was avoiding the tender ports of Great Stirrup Cay and Grand Cayman on the Breakaway.  We much prefer being able to dock at port and not spend a ton of time in line and on the small boats needed to tender.

We enjoyed it.  Didn't eat there but watched quite a few games as we were there during March Madness.  One thing to note is that the games they had on were somewhat limited based on whatever is showing on ESPN Caribbean or whatever other channels they have.  They will likely not have access to every game as you would see in a land-based sports bar.

For March Madness it was one channel that would move back and forth between games.

19 hours ago, Johnamac123 said:

This looks amazing. Their site shows $150 for a 6 hr, 2 snorkel reef excursion incl lunch. Their cat looks like new too. The price is a little high but for a 6 hr tour and *****, I'm booking them on my next Roatan cruise. TY jungle1...

No problem.  It was first class all the way. All home cooked food, snacks in the morning, lunch, fresh watermelon waiting for us when we got back on the boat from the first snorkel stop.  Great rum punch and local beers.  Nothing like having someone bring you refills as you lounge on the front of the boat. 

As you said - a bit pricey but totally worth it. The crew are all great folks too. 

Hope you have as much fun as we did. 

20 hours ago, VPIcruiser said:

Was your ship time 2 hours ahead of Roatan time?  We have the same excursion booked. 

It was.  We were able to get off the boat about 7:30 local time (9:30 ship time).  Our driver was easy to find and was waiting for us when we got off.  We had about 6 hrs on the boat and they got us back in plenty of time. 

Their boat oat is docked about a 30 minute drive from the pier.  They plan to be back at their dock 2 hrs before all aboard which gives plenty of time to get back to the ship.  

17 minutes ago, ValerieJo said:

 

I just looked at their website but was trying to understand the cruise ship pricing.  It's showing 4 passengers for $750!  I'm not sure I interpreted their site correctly.  Can you tell me the cost of your excursion and did you have a group?  There are only two of us and it looks perfect but the price seems a bit high.  Thanks.

Not sure what current pricing is, but when we booked it was $144/pp for adults and $72/pp for 12 & under.  We had 10 of us, so we ended up chartering the whole boat for $1,500.

It is a bit pricier than some large group snorkel excursions but was in line with what I've paid for private small-group trips elsewhere.

Just back from Roatan last week.  We booked a sailing/snorkeling charter with Amavi charters (www.amavicharters.com).

It was one of the best excursions we have ever been on.  They only take 10-14 passengers and have 4 amazing crew members waiting on you hand and foot.  We did two snorkeling stops with a fantastic barbecue lunch cooked on the boat in between.

Couldn't recommend more highly.

We have done it twice (once on Harmony and once on Oasis).  In both cases, the liquor and mixers were waiting for us in our stateroom.

They are 375 ml bottles (a little over 8 drinks assuming 1.5 oz/drink).  We had the Bacardi rum & cokes which was $45.  It worked out to a bit over $5 per drink, so not cheap but better than what you will pay at the bar (and no gratuity on the $45!)

We like to be able to pour a drink and sit on the balcony so we will be doing it again on our next cruise.

We are on the 3/23/19 sailing of Symphony and were able to start booking shows right around Thanksgiving (so about 120 days out)

Wow, funny I never saw it till now nor have I seen any posts about it and I'm here almost daily.:confused: They aren't offering more than rum and gin. Kind of discriminating against other alcohol types. I don't drink either of the 2 offered. Bummer.:mad:

For my sailing they had 4 options: Absolut Vodka (w Sprite), Bacardi Rum or Johnnie Walker Red (w Coke), and a Gin (think Bombay) and Tonic package.

Had to click through into packages then drinks to get the scotch and vodka to show up. Took a couple tries to get to the right screen.

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I just booked on Wednesday for a March cruise on Harmony. I was able to make all the activity reservations but it only let me book my time dining for 1 day. Every time I went to add in another day it erased my previously booked dining. I am assuming this is an IT glitch and will try again. But then again maybe I am doing something wrong?

You may need to check out for each one individually. At least I did - I couldn't make multiple reservations at once. Had to go all the way trough the checkout process and then go reserve the next day.

Also, I noticed that when I first signed up the times were very limited. When I went back in a few weeks later, many more times were available.

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Assuming you can afford the deposit, you'd be best just booking now if you like the price.

When the new "sale" comes up, price it out again. If it is lower, it just takes a call to RCL to have them apply the current price to your reservation. I've done it 3 times so far on my Mar 2017 cruise. Price dropped about $500 or so since I booked the first time.

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My Harmony sailing in March 17 was a bit cheaper ($150), but my Oasis sailings in March 2018 were significantly more expensive. But I'll take a few bucks for the price of a phone call.

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