sailingwithfriends

On 7/26/2022 at 7:00 PM, MattVegas said:

First, to set a baseline: this was our second cruise ever... the first being a trip to Alaska with Princess. We had intended to book the exact same itinerary - and dates - with RCL, but because of our group's ages and cabin requirements we had to go with Carnival and their more lenient booking policies for the under-21 crowd. My wife and I were traveling with four teens (19, 17, 17, and 15). We booked three 'spa balcony' rooms close together on the port side of deck 10. 

 

Pre-Cruise: We opted for the at-home proctored Covid tests from eMed. Super simple, easy to use, and affordable. Highly recommended. And using the Verifly app to have everything sorted in advance made check-in at the terminal a breeze. One fail on my part: I did not print our boarding passes at home. This meant we had to stand in another line and delayed our entry to the terminal by about ten minutes. We also forgot to bring face masks - but there's an employee out front that will provide you with one.

 

Embarkation Day: The whole process was very easy and well organized. We had requested an early boarding time, which I would suggest - it makes lunch a lot more enjoyable. This cruise was at capacity, so long lines were common for food. Embarkation day is a good time to try Big Chicken or the BBQ place, because they are located further aft than all the other food options and the crowd isn't familiar with the boat yet. We walked right up to Shaq's at noon, no line at all. By the time we were done and walking forward to explore the boat, the line for the burger place was about 100 people long. 

 

Food: As advertised. Chicken/Burgers/Blue Iguana were all quite good. MDR was variable in quality but most dishes were successful. Fahrenheit 555 was booked solid a couple of days before departure, so book that early if you want to eat there. We did order a couple of steaks from there as an add-on in the MDR and they were fantastic. The 'Indian vegetarian' option that is on the menu nightly was completely inedible. The ability to reserve your 'any time' table through the app was a welcome way to avoid standing around in line outside the restaurant.

 

Staff callouts: Annalynn was our server on the first night. She remembered all six of our names throughout the cruise when we would see her in other areas of the ship, despite only having us that one time. She is incredible. Bambang is another MDR server who we loved. Our room steward, Ganda, and his assistant Andi are amazing. Zsolt, the Hungarian wizard behind the bar at Alchemy, was great as well. This is, by far, the best bar on the ship. Gabe, the cruise director, is a hoot. Also a hell of a dancer.

 

MDR Dress Code: This is where things start to go sideways for me. Carnival needs to either enforce their dress code, or do away with it altogether. It is nothing more than a suggestion. On 'Cruise Elegant' night, we saw baseball hats, t-shirts, flip-flops, a muscle shirt, even a teen in pajama pants. The hands-off approach to this issue is a brand decision, and it dumbs down the experience for everyone. One of the comedians called this a 'section 8 cruise' in his act. It felt like it much of the time. There were a lot of times during this four days that I felt like I was in a Walmart. I f%$#ing hate Walmart.

 

Catalina: The tender process is a total mess if you wait until the numbered group tickets are gone. We stood in a winding line through the hallways of deck one for 40 minutes. My advice is to go early. If you're going to rent a golf cart, make a reservation (one of the companies allows this on their website). They were all rented out when we finally got onto the island and there was a line of 30 groups waiting for carts to come back. Cute place, though. The brew pub is awesome and has a unique beer that is brewed with local wild black sage, picked on the hills above town. Highly recommended.

 

Ensenada: well covered by others on these boards. It's what you make of it. Be prepared to stand in a shockingly long security line if you return to the ship at the end of the day. Photo below. That night, Gabe hosted a dance party on the deck. It was well attended and lots of fun.

"Fun day at sea": It was pretty weird to be on a cruise ship that was just floating in the same place all day. This is clearly a three-day itinerary that they're stretching out to make a little more money.

 

(lack of) Oversight: The hands off approach around the dress code is, unfortunately, seen in other areas of the ship's operations. Security seems non-existent. There was an altercation between passengers, screaming profanities at one another and spitting on one another in the center of the Lido deck one afternoon. It went on for several minutes with no intervention. It was appalling. Speaking of the Lido deck, see the attached photo of one of the hot tubs, which by my count had 23 people in it. Including two kids eating ice cream cones. And clearly a life guard above thinks this is all just dandy. Kids running up and down the halls yelling at 3AM on two of the four nights. Groups of kids blocking the stairs by using them as a seating area on multiple occasions. There was just a ton of behavior that was completely disrespectful and selfish. This behavior is tacitly accepted by Carnival - they are sending a message that they won't interfere with your FUN... and you get to decide what fun means to you.

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Maybe we're not in Carnival's prime demographic. I don't know. But none of this felt refined to me in any way. If the ship wasn't booked so full, maybe it would have been better. I don't know. What I do know is that their current business model feels like a race to the bottom. And if you don't expect your guests to act with class... many of them will not. I don't see a scenario where I would sail with them again.

We sailed this 5 day cruise on the Radiance in March. Things must have really changed. It was a very, very quiet ship.  I guess when school is out it gets more like your experience.

They will have laundry detergent for sale.  I have also read that some people bring a laundry pod and a dryer sheet with them.  If you do this, I would make sure it is stored in a container that will prevent it from being squished.  

In 2018, our motorcoach trip from Princess Mt. McKinley Lodge to Princess Denali Lodge took 2.5 hours.  There were a couple of stops for photos and rest room stores.  We arrived at the lodge around 12:30 PM.  If you are traveling by train, I'm not sure.

It has been a while since I have booked Faster to the Fun on Carnival.  Is it still listed under Shore Excursions?  I keep checking daily for our March cruise and nothing has shown up yet.  I'm hope it will.  I just want to make sure I'm looking in the right place.

My travel agent received the email letting my group know about the cancelled cruises.  We haven't cancelled and rescheduled our airfare yet, but will do so in about 2 weeks when the new flights are available. Can you tell me how you went about get a reimbursement for the cancellation cost?

My husband wants to rent a jeep at one of the ports. I have so many things I want to do at all the ports that it seems like Kona seems to be the best option.  We may just have to miss Volcano National Park and drive around to see other spots. 

I am currently in the planning stage for our May 2020 cruise on NCL Pride of America. I would like to rent a jeep in Kona to take to Volcano National Park. When I look at excursions offered by outside companies, most of them go to Volcano Nat'l Park from Hilo.  Has anyone been to the park from Kona? 

Check you balance a few time during the cruise.  We had some first time cruisers with us a few years ago. They just kept buying things in the stores (including jewelry, candy) and drinks.   I think they were a little amazed that their balance was close to $1000.00 at the end of the trip.  Because you don't use cash, it is just easy to put it on your account.

Also, if you have black luggage, just know so does 80% of the other people on the ship.  When you get off the ship and have to collect yours, you will be given a zone to pick it up.  It is much easier to locate your luggage if a bright ribbon is tied on the handles.  All the luggage in your party should use the same ribbon. The stranger the ribbon, the easier to locate.  Lots of people use red ribbon.

On ‎1‎/‎23‎/‎2019 at 11:04 AM, Panthers65 said:

Greetings all, great forum, I've been reading and learning a lot. I booked a "last minute" cruise a couple days ago and we leave on Valentines day. It won't be my first cruise, but it's my first time planning a cruise (it's been 20 years and I was 12). My wife(first cruise) and I are leaving on Carnival Fantasy out of Mobile and I've got a few questions I'm hoping you all can help with:

 

Parking: I"m assuming the parking is pretty self-explanatory, I think I added it up to around $100 while we're gone, pre paid? Just put the 201 Water St. address in the GPS and I'll get there?

 

Departure Time: This is my really dumb question, but since Mobile is Central time the 4:00 departure and 3:00 last board is CST too, right? We'll be leaving from Atlanta around 9:00est that morning, and it's a 5 hour drive, getting to Mobile around 2:00EST/1:00 Central. I've prechecked in and choose the latest checkin time (1:30-2:00), so the extra hour would give us a bit more buffer.

 

Drinks: I'm going to bring a couple bottles of wine with me (and some cokes), Does Carnival have any restrictions on the wine glasses that we can bring (Glass vs plastic), or will they provide us some? Not saying I wouldn't drink from a dixie cup, but if I take a glass of wine to dinner I'd rather not. 

 

Mr Sanchos- Has anyone ever done this in Cozumel? Seems like a good deal, all inclusive for $50/person. I'm worried about the beach in February, getting to/from the beach without booking through Carnival, ect... Would your recommend this? 

 

Thanks all, surprising my wife with this trip, so I'm tring to get the little details taken care of and tell her as late as I can. 🙂 

We live in the ATL area. I would leave at least two hours earlier than you planned. Remember, the ship will not wait for you.  If you get there earlier, you can stop and enjoy the area.  You just never know when a wreck or something will prevent you from getting there on time.  We were coming home from Mobile a couple of years ago and were in a lot of traffic due to rain and car accidents. It took us 7.5 hours to get home.

There will be wine glasses in your cabin. Make sure your wine isn't larger than 750 ml.  You can bring up to 12 canned soft drinks. You must physically bring these on your self.  They can't be checked in your luggage. 

A cruise is a wonderful vacation so I know a great time will be had by all.

5 hours ago, GeorgiaMomof4 said:

 

I was enjoying your Sunshine review from a few years back and wanted to ask if you remember where you

purchased your battery operated doorbell or what brand it was?  That's an awesome idea and I wouldn't have

thought about it!

I purchased it at Lowe's. We use it everytime we have a balcony and sail with friends. I only put it out side the door when we are going to be on our balcony.  Sorry, I don't remember the brand. I found it in the section with the normal wired door bells.

I believe the Sunshine might be different than other ships with the aft balconies, not just the aft-wraps. My friends were in the cabin next to ours. They were on the very back next to the aft-wrap on Deck 6. We opened the divider between the two balconies. They had an overhang that was almost the entire length of the deck.  

3 hours ago, ProgRockCruiser said:

 

Not sure what you mean.  On Liberty/Sunshine, there is an overhang that covers maybe 1/4 of the balcony.  Lemme see if I can find a photo - I just posted one in a related thread yesterday...ah, here we are.  This is deck 7 on Liberty (Sunshine is very similar), looking directly to the port side - i.e directly left is "aft".  You can see there is a little bit of overhang from the aft cabins on deck 8.  They have more of an overhang from the Lido deck above them:

 

 

Does that help you?

On the Sunshine, the higher up you go, the less overhang you have.  Deck 6 aft and Deck 5 (aftwrap for sure) are covered almost completely.  If you look at my signature, I did a review on Sunshine. It has a photo of the wonderful Deck 6 aftwrap.  I will try and find those photos to post here.

1 hour ago, GeorgiaMomof4 said:

This is great to hear - I was hoping there would be somewhat of an overhang for my husband at least.  Thank you!

I am now a little worried.  My friends were in the Aft Wrap. I am not 100% sure about an overhang for an aft cabin on the rear.  I hope someone else will know that answer.

2 hours ago, GeorgiaMomof4 said:

So excited!  This will be our first aft balcony and my Platinum cruise.

 

We will be on the Sunshine on deck 5 and it is an ambulatory accessible cabin (5344) since my husband has

mobility issues.  

 

Can any of you tell me what I should expect and what will be different from a regular balcony and this

aft balcony cabin?  I'm really hoping that we will spend lots of time out here but I'm concerned about the 

heat and lack of wind/air since we will be aft.  I love the sun - not so much the heat, but my husband

isn't a big fan of the sun.  Just wondering if we will be able to both hang out there and maybe me be

in the sun and him in the shade.

 

Any info you guys have will be appreciated.  This is a Mom and Dad cruise only - leaving all 7 kids at

home for some much needed R & R and that's exactly what we plan on doing!

 

Also, any added tips for Aruba would be appreciated as well.  Our first time to Aruba and Curacao.

 

Lots of firsts for this cruise.

 

 

 

 

We have been on Deck 6 Aft on the Sunshine and will be in the same cabin in February.  The Aft Cabins on the Sunshine are different than any other ship. They were added during the major overhaul.  We had some friends in one of those cabins and they loved it.  It does have an overhang so you will not always be in the sun. On some aft cabins, there is no overhang so it is too hot to be out there during the day. Not on Deck 5 & 6 of Sunshine.

The second evening (the first full sea day) is usually on Sunday. That is the first formal night.

We were on a tour at the end of May and had a wonderful college student named Morgan drive our bus. He pretty much told us that if he starts a story with, "legend has it" or "it's been said", it's just stuff that is made up or stories that have been passed down without facts to back it up. He gave us quiet a few laughs with those stories. He also told us a lot of facts also. One of the best tours I have been on.

Following. I was planning on $10.00 per person but would love to know what is appropriate.

We did both in 2015. We took the Tram first thing in the morning and then went to Mendenhall. We also had lunch at the Red Dog saloon and did some shopping. Then we rode the tram again. I will say the crowds were much larger waiting to ride down the tram in the afternoon than they were in the morning.

When we were in Vancouver three years ago, we were able to purchase tickets at our hotel. This year we are staying at the Sandman. There is a stop right outside our hotel. Does anyone know if the hotels can still sell the tickets or can they be purchased when we try to board the bus?

I might can answer some of your questions. Food at restaurants is very expensive. I checked a menu at a restaurant in Talkeetna yesterday and the breakfast entree would be about $20.00+. In Fairbanks, a sandwich with fries started at $15.00. The temperature will probably range between mid 40's to high 70's. Yes, there will be vendors offering excursions at each port. If there is something that really interest you, I would either book through cruiseline or check on trip advisor for suggestions. Some of the ones we booked a few weeks ago have already filled up. Sorry, I can't help with details of the hotels. Look them up on Trip Advisor and look at reviews.

We sailed on Radiance to AK three years ago. I believe the clothing you talk about is fine for non-formal nights. Things may have changed in the 3 years but I remember many, many people dressing very formally on the formal nights. I wore maxi dresses with heels, but I felt underdressed. Lots of sequins and tuxes. Not everyone, but a lot.

I purchased a knife for my dad in Ketchikan in the store that is next to the Lumber Jack show. My uncle was with me and said it was a good deal. The store wrapped it in bubble wrap and lots of tape. When I reboarded the ship (Royal Caribbean) the people checking us in said I could take it to my room but to not open it. I was a little surprised but that is what I did.

I can only share my experience. We sailed to AK in 2015 from Vancouver. It was to be a once in a life time trip. I loved it. The scenery from the ship was amazing. I enjoyed very town. We added on one day in Seward that wasn't part of our cruise. Seward was my favorite part. I spent so much time out on an open deck taking in the views. It is so different from a Caribbean cruise where you are surround by the ocean (which I also enjoy.) There is something amazing to look at for 360 degrees. I knew when that cruise ended that I had to see inland. Now three years later we are sailing again but adding on 5 days land tour. Because of the difference in cost, we chose to get an inside cabin. We ended up being outside almost the entire time. We are using the savings to add on the land portion, fly in a helicopter to Mendenhall Glacier and fly in a seaplane in Ketchikan, plus several other great excursions. I've never been in an inside cabin, but I've also never got to experience the helicopter, sea plane and land portion. I decided that with my budget, the experiences beat the cabin. If we had done the land portion on the first trip, I would have saved a lot of money by not having to fly in and cruise again.

I really enjoyed the Duck Tour. I found it very funny and informative. I also like the Lumber Jack Show. It was a little corny, but I found myself laughing a lot.

I can answer a couple of your questions. When riding the train in Skagway, ride on the left side going into Canada and on the right side coming back into Skagway. You can also go outside on the observation deck to take photos. On the train ride from Seward to Anchorage, it is hard to pick which side. There are great views on both sides. When you are in Seward, try to take an excursion that takes you into the Kenia Peninsula. Great way to see marine life, including whales.