WildBlueYonder64

Based on the blue towels, I'd say Royal Caribbean. 

We were able to book the big show reservations for our Jan 14 cruise on Oasis, but comedy shows are not showing up yet. Any idea when that might be available? Thanks in advance. 

On 10/4/2023 at 1:42 AM, beshears said:

So if I am reading some of these responses right, are plans are to fly into Houston/Hobby Airport, it is safer (we want to fly in from KC, MO the day before for just in case since it is February) to get a hotel closer to the Galveston area or what, since we will be cruising out of 

Unless you're landing at Hobby later in the evening, your best bet would be to grab an Uber or shuttle and head to Galveston and spend the night on the island. There's lots of great restaurants and you'll be less than 10 minutes from the Port on embarkation day. Much better start to your vacation!

It might be more accurate to think of them as "no sugar added" instead of "sugar free".  Depending on what the other ingredients are (fresh fruit, raisins, coconut, etc), it will contain sugar, albeit naturally occurring. 

We had excellent cuban food at the Latin Cafe 2000- Brickell a few years ago. It was about a 5 minute walk from the Hampton Inn.

Yes, Lyft has an exclusive agreement with the Port of Galveston. 

1 hour ago, Miss Abbi said:

I make sure all cabins are linked.  I’ve checked in 3 cabins at once.  You need everyone’s info that you need for yourself.  If you link them, they show up on the same page.

Yes, all cabins must be linked is correct. They are listed on same page in your cruise planner, however, you do have to click on each booking individually to check them in to select a time. That's why I had each booking open on a separate tab on my computer, so I could toggle between them quickly and get the same check in time for all. I didn't see anywhere you could check multiple cabins in simultaneously.

On 1/9/2023 at 8:21 PM, PrincessArlena'sDad said:

Does the link become active at midnight automatically, or did you have to refresh? How did it work out? Did you go back and forth, or did you finish one and then start the next?

 

What times did you get?

I can't remember if I had to refresh each page once it was midnight, but if I did, I didn't have to log back in or anything. I selected our time first, then once confirmed, clicked on each page after that to select the same time. Once I had everyone's time selected and confirmed, I went back to the first page and closed them all out. 

We had our choice of times beginning at 10 am, but decided on 11:00-11:30, and that worked out perfectly. We arrived right at 11, dropped our luggage, and literally walked past everyone who didn't have that check in time. We never stopped walking until we got to the check in desk. Those in our party who weren't platinum had about a 10-15 minute wait before they boarded. This was in Galveston.

Also, it's midnight EST. We're in the mountain time zone, so we were able to check in at 10 pm, MST.

9 hours ago, PrincessArlena'sDad said:

I have all 3 cabins on my cruise planner.  But, when I go to select an arrival time, can I do all 3 with one click, to make sure they get the same time?  Or, do I have to do them one at a time, and hope the same time is still available?

I started the check-in process for 4 cabins at the same time to make sure we all received the same check in time. I opened a window on my computer for each booking in order to be ready when check in became available, then clicked between the screens to select the desired check in time. That's all I did, as each cabin was responsible for entering the other required information, printing out documents, etc.

Agree that a signed form would be good to carry even you're off the ship. As a additional layer, I would make sure your parents are listed as authorized persons to drop off and pick up your children who are enrolled in Camp Ocean. The would show that they have your permission for that venue, as well.

We're staying at the Hilton Galveston Island Resort next week. Parking for the 7 days is approximately $65, and they do offer a shuttle to the pier.

2 hours ago, KruzingGal said:

So do they still charge the package for the complete cruise?

No, you're only charged for the eligible days. On a 7 day cruise, you're charged for 6 days, etc.

7 hours ago, StephPS79 said:

That's what I was hoping customer service could help with (or, what I initially thought the wedding planner could help with.)  I have all the booking numbers, and want to pay for all the reservations, didn't think it would be a problem.  Didn't think I would have this much trouble getting them to take my money lol.  I see what you're saying though.  

I just did this for our upcoming cruise on the Vista. I linked our bookings together, and selected those that would be attending (which was all of us, a party of 9). Everyone in our party has OBC, but you have a choice when you get to the payment page. We didn't want to use their OBC, so entered our credit card number instead to pay for everyone. I'm glad we did, as there were very few times available for seating a large group. If you're wanting to pay for everyone and sit together on a certain night, I would link the booking numbers and make 1 reservation for everyone yourself.

You can't accidentally access or spend someone else's OBC for another person. When prepaying something using OBC, that OBC is only available for those whose names are associated with that booking number. You have to actually check the box next to their name. 

We were able to do this very thing for our B2B cruise on the Mardi Gras last February. Both my husband and I had the RU2 offer, so we each were able to Cheers to both cruises for just a couple hundred dollars. Our PVP was able to add it to our existing paid in full reservations, she then charged our credit card for the additional amount that was due. 

Unless your flight is arriving later in the evening, I would recommend heading to Long Beach from the airport and spending your pre-cruise night there. There are a number of good restaurants in the area, and it would eliminate the possibility of any delays (accidents, traffic tie-ups, etc) getting to the port the next morning.

We are boarding the Vista on New Year's Eve. It's my understanding that even though it's embarkation day, it will be our first elegant evening with the Gala menu that John Heald posted a few weeks ago. My question is will the next night's menu (night 2) be what would typically be night 1 on a normal cruise? I'm assuming that the first 2 nights would just be swapped due to the holiday menu. Trying to make specialty dining reservations but don't want to miss some of our favorite MDR menu items.

We have a cabana rented for our upcoming day at Mahogany Bay. Do the servers accept credit cards when settling our bar bill at the end of the day, or is it cash only? Thanks in advance. 

3 hours ago, BigDog46202 said:

I was wondering though... if when I hit my "75" is when it kicks in since it will be 3 days into the Transatlantic? All good either way.

Carnival is actually quite generous with this perk. We didn't hit platinum until the second leg of our B2B, but we had all benefits from day 1 of our first leg.

28 minutes ago, Honolulu Blue said:

Thanks for the update.  It's very interesting that they staggered the shows that way.  I'll agree that it's something Carnival should consider implementing elsewhere, but do they have the extra room(s) available on the other ships?  

If I remember correctly from our B2B in February on the MG, at that time the Limelight was exclusively PG shows, and the Punchliner was adult shows only. 

We will be boarding the Vista on Saturday, December 31st. On our past cruises, New Year's Eve was always a formal night. Will that be the case with this one, even though it's the first night onboard?

We rented a clamshell at Half Moon Cay and it wasn't much use at all. The position of the sun was directly in front, which meant no shade, and it was oppressively hot in the clamshell.  For us it was a waste of money.

4 hours ago, RocketMan275 said:

Buyer Beware.

 

https://www.ridesharehouston.org/2022/06/24/is-saltwater-moms-personal-drivers-in-galveston-a-scam/?amp

I heard back from Galveston Saltwater Moms, and they replied that they do carry commercial insurance, and required by the Port of Galveston. 

21 minutes ago, RocketMan275 said:

Buyer Beware.

 

https://www.ridesharehouston.org/2022/06/24/is-saltwater-moms-personal-drivers-in-galveston-a-scam/?amp

Interesting, the commercial insurance is a good point. We've used them in the past, and love the personal service, so will continue to do so. But I think I'll send them a message regarding insurance.

3 hours ago, PaperSniper4 said:

We're never sailed from Galveston, couple of questions:

Q1 Anyone know what Princess charges IAH-ship-IAH? I've seen rates $30-$200 plus for shuttles. Any personal recommendations?

Q2 For those who have sailed from Galveston after a flight/drive, where did you spend your pre-cruise hotel if applicable? Near IAH or in Galveston?

 

Thanks

 Doug

 

 

 

1. Airport transfer information can usually be found under shore excursions, so check for your cruise on the princess website. 

We use Galveston Saltwater Moms. They're a private transport, and are great. To book, message them on Facebook.

2. If you're flight arrives by the afternoon, then definitely stay in Galveston pre-cruise. There are a lot of great restaurants, and easy to get around with Uber, Lyft or taxi. Just being near the water will get you in vacation mode!