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Carnival's Behind the Fun Tour

Abram797

By Abram797,
in Carnival Cruise Lines

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Abram797

Abram797

Posted
Posted

Would like to get some comments from people who have done this tour on either the Valor or Conquest. Thought I might like to do it, but the price of $95.00 p/p seems a bit pricey. Looking for comments to see if it's worth it.

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Guest bahamamama1

Guest bahamamama1

Posted
Posted
What is the tour all about??? Im intrigued...

 

It is worth it, you get lots of pics.. plus a few extra goodies, and you get to see the bridge, take a pic with the captain, go to the kitchen/food storage, the laundry, and behind the scenes at the lounge..

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Cruiser@Heart

Cruiser@Heart

Posted
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Did the tour on the Valor just two weeks ago. Our tour was given by Emma, the Corporate Trainer. It was excellent and well worth the $95.00. Our tour ended up being 4 hours long. I have a backpack, baseball cap, lanyard, 3 photos (2 group shots - 1 at the front of the ship, 1 on the bridge with the captain and an individual picture with the captain), picture book with various photos taken by Carnival Crew Members, soap carving of a swan done by one of the pastry chefs and great memories. We had a lot of time to ask questions.

 

My tour was sold out within 30 minutes of boarding. I'm Platinum so I was one of the first ones to get on. In fact, I was the first one to purchase at ticket at the Shore Excursion Desk. The Shore Excursion Manager wanted to know how I even knew about it. I said Cruise Critic, of course! They did offer another tour and it sold out within an hour of the announcement.

 

One of the many highlights of my tour was when a lady on the tour asked the head pastry chef if they made all of the desserts fresh or did Carnval just buy them at Costco and have them shipped in. The expression on his face was PRICELESS!

 

Later in the evening, I ran into the Captain and he asked if I enjoyed the tour. That was pretty cool.

Edited by Cruiser@Heart
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Guest bahamamama1

Guest bahamamama1

Posted
Posted
Did the tour on the Valor just two weeks ago. Our tour was given by Emma, the Corporate Trainer. It was excellent and well worth the $95.00. Our tour ended up being 4 hours long. I have a backpack, baseball cap, lanyard, 3 photos (2 group shots - 1 at the front of the ship, 1 on the bridge with the captain and an individual picture with the captain), picture book with various photos taken by Carnival Crew Members, soap carving of a swan done by one of the pastry chefs and great memories. We had a lot of time to ask questions.

 

My tour was sold out within 30 minutes of boarding. I'm Platinum so I was one of the first ones to get on. In fact, I was the first one to purchase at ticket at the Shore Excursion Desk. The Shore Excursion Manager wanted to know how I even knew about it. I said Cruise Critic, of course! They did offer another tour and it sold out within an hour of the announcement.

 

One of the many highlights of my tour was when a lady on the tour asked the head pastry chef if they made all of the desserts fresh or did Carnval just by them at Costco and have them shipped in. The expression on his face was PRICELESS!

 

Later in the evening, I bumped into the Captain and he asked if I enjoyed the tour.

 

the pic in front on the Conquest is by the symbolic bell.. even though they no longer use it

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kthy66

kthy66

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Posted (edited)

We also did the the tour aboard Valor two weeks ago and it was fantastic... We learned so much about how the ship operates.Checking out the crew areas and the galley was really interesting and we spent about 15 minutes with the captain on the bridge asking questions and checking out the bridge.

If you can afford it I highly recommend it! and we also got the free gifts and pic's after the tour.

Edited by kthy66
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kthy66

kthy66

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Okay, so if you've already been on tours of the bridge and the galley (from the pre-911 days), is the rest of it really worth $95/

 

Is there that much more?

 

Can't say,.. you can judge for yourself...

Here is some of what we did.

 

We toured backstage in the Ivanhoe theatre and the manager of the performers and the stage manager spoke to us and showed us what goes on backstage.

We then made our way down the back stairway, checking out the brig and the morgue.

We then walked down "95" and were taken through the various operational areas. Walking 95 is definitely cool.

We then walked around the 3 crew dining areas and the Captains Dining room.

We were taken to the crew training room and Emma told us about how employee development and how promotions work. Very informative.

We walked around the laundry area... I was amazed in this area. I wish I had one of those folding contraptions!

We toured the crew galley, the main galley for the dining rooms and the galley for Scarlets. In the main galley they had a carving demonstrations and a were shown how to make flowers with vegetables and fruit. LOL

We also spent some time with the chef for Scarlets.

We also toured Engineering and had about 30 minute question and answer session with the chief engineer.

Then touring the bridge and question and answer session with the captain.

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ncbeachteacher

ncbeachteacher

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We really enjoyed our Behind the Scenes Tour a few weeks ago on the Legend. In addition to the bridge and galley areas, we toured and chatted with folks from the theater (Including dressing rooms, stage management), laundry, environmental operations, engine operations, I-95 crew areas, (lots of crew areas), pantries, storage areas, all sorts of places and activities.... And yes, we got a number of goodies that were a surprise but welcomed. The chocolate covered strawberries sent to our cabin were awesome as well.

 

Is it worth the $95 after previously viewing a bridge and galley before? We have done several galley tours on other ships. There isn't a comparison. We thoroughly enjoyed being on the bridge and we were there quite a long time. The captain was quite chatty and enjoyable. We will probably do another tour in the future on another ship,... so yes, it was worth it.

 

Here is my two cents: we are adults... I don't recommend the tour for children. (And I don't know if Carnival includes them in this tour).... High School age kids were with us and that was fine. But younger kids will probably get bored or tired... we did a lot of walking but it wasn't bad for us. I can just see younger kids getting bored or losing focus after awhile.

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djacobson

djacobson

Posted
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I have a question......were you allowed to take pictures during the tour?

 

You are not allowed to take pictures. You also can't bring a cell phone. You will be searched by security before taking the tour.

Edited by djacobson
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Guest bahamamama1

Guest bahamamama1

Posted
Posted
Okay, so if you've already been on tours of the bridge and the galley (from the pre-911 days), is the rest of it really worth $95/

 

Is there that much more?

 

I think it is, especially considering how expensive pictures are and you get 3

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Guest bahamamama1

Guest bahamamama1

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Also, I have heard that the tour involves a lot of stairs, and is not suitable for those with limited mobility. EM

 

this is true; NOT good for those with mobility issues

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abby and nathan's mom

abby and nathan's mom

Posted
Posted
We did the tour on the Dream... Great. You get to see all the behind the scene areas. Get to see the crew and Staff areas. Everyone should do this tour one time.

 

Leedm:):D

We will be on the Dream in June on the Eastern route...Where did you go to purchase this tour???How early did you have to get there to purchase it???What day was it on???It sounds really interesting!!!Thanks for your help!!!!

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kthy66

kthy66

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The chocolate covered strawberries sent to our cabin were awesome as well.

 

 

 

oh yeh! I forgot about the goodies! Those were super yummy! There was a plate for each of us with chocolate covered strawberries and cookies waiting in our room that night compliments of the chef... Very nice surprise!

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GlendaleCruiser

GlendaleCruiser

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Posted
Can't say,.. you can judge for yourself...

Here is some of what we did.

 

We toured backstage in the Ivanhoe theatre and the manager of the performers and the stage manager spoke to us and showed us what goes on backstage.

We then made our way down the back stairway, checking out the brig and the morgue.

We then walked down "95" and were taken through the various operational areas. Walking 95 is definitely cool.

We then walked around the 3 crew dining areas and the Captains Dining room.

We were taken to the crew training room and Emma told us about how employee development and how promotions work. Very informative.

We walked around the laundry area... I was amazed in this area. I wish I had one of those folding contraptions!

We toured the crew galley, the main galley for the dining rooms and the galley for Scarlets. In the main galley they had a carving demonstrations and a were shown how to make flowers with vegetables and fruit. LOL

We also spent some time with the chef for Scarlets.

We also toured Engineering and had about 30 minute question and answer session with the chief engineer.

Then touring the bridge and question and answer session with the captain.

 

Thanks! That's what I was wondering. Thanks for the info.

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airlink diva

airlink diva

Posted
Posted

I normally don't like to arrive early to the ship (prefer after 1:30 p.m.) but since I really want to take the Behind the fun tour, I guess that being at the port early is a must.

I always wanted to know what happens behind the closed doors!!!

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