Port of Tampa for Carnival - Which terminal? And... is there disability services within the terminal?

[BarbieGee]

From the Port of Tampa website:
"Cruise terminal #2 is a state-of-the-art passenger terminal home to Carnival Cruise Line. Parking is located directly across the street with valet services also available. Before or after your cruise you may want to visit Sparkman Wharf or The Florida Aquarium which is directly on either side of the terminal."

Yet I've seen photos of the Paradise at Terminal 3. Perhaps a change was made?

 

What disability services are there within the terminal? We will have 3 'walking challenged' persons in our party. Are there golf cart type services available such as those offered in airports?

[Elaine5715]

38 minutes ago, BarbieGee said:

From the Port of Tampa website:
"Cruise terminal #2 is a state-of-the-art passenger terminal home to Carnival Cruise Line. Parking is located directly across the street with valet services also available. Before or after your cruise you may want to visit Sparkman Wharf or The Florida Aquarium which is directly on either side of the terminal."

Yet I've seen photos of the Paradise at Terminal 3. Perhaps a change was made?

 

What disability services are there within the terminal? We will have 3 'walking challenged' persons in our party. Are there golf cart type services available such as those offered in airports?

No. there are loaner wheelchairs to board the ship.  

[Schoifmom]

If you are concerned about them being able to navigate the boarding process, chances are that they will have difficulties on board.  Do you have a plan for them on board?

 

Carnival offers wheelchair assistance for boarding.  Just grab the first Carnival employee you see and they will direct you regarding where to go and who to see to get said assistance.  On board, they will take you to the Lobby deck or Lido deck, depending on how busy they are.

[Bostwick girl]

Hopefully the wheelchair assistance is better now than it was just prior to pandemic. We waited over an hour for one along with several other people. We finally gave up and DH carefully and slowly walked on board. That was the last straw for him. When we got home we purchased a mobility scooter.

 

 

Edited August 22, 2022 by Bostwick girl

[BarbieGee]

We have wheeled walkers for on board. Short distances aren't a problem but if there is a long walk through the terminal then this would become an issue. Long, continuous walking presents problems.

 

I am not familiar with Port of Tampa at all and am not even sure which terminal from which Carnival sails. Terminal 2 or Terminal 3. If anyone is familiar with these terminal perhaps their personal experience can tell me how long a walk it is?

 

We've got time, our cruise is not till Feb 6. 2023. My first cruise with Carnival! It has been 6 years since my last cruise and I am so excited! Guess I just want everything to be perfect.

 

[BarbieGee]

Just an FYI....

 

Called Port of Tampa [313.905.7678] and Carnival is sailing from Terminal 3.

Port of Tampa's website had Carnival embarking from Terminal 2.

 

 

[Homosassa]

Be prepared to sail from one terminal and return to a different one.

 

If you are driving, drop the passengers and then park the car.

 

Here is a link for the Tampa  port:

 

https://www.porttb.com/

 

 

[groundloop]

5 minutes ago, Homosassa said:

Be prepared to sail from one terminal and return to a different one.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Every time I've sailed out of Tampa on Carnival it's been Terminal 3, and we've never returned to a different terminal.  Just for the heck of it I did a quick check of the cruise schedule from the Port of Tampa website and every single Carnival listing I saw was for Terminal 3.

 

If anyone has problems walking you'll want to drop them off at the terminal at the same time you drop luggage since it's a bit of a walk from the parking garage (maybe the equivalent of 3 city blocks or so).  Or else pay extra for valet parking.

 

 

[Homosassa]

2 hours ago, groundloop said:

 

 

Every time I've sailed out of Tampa on Carnival it's been Terminal 3, and we've never returned to a different terminal. 

No surprise, I live an hour from the Tampa port so we have cruised out of Tampa a number of times.

 

We have had the sail from one terminal, return to another terminal scenario several times on different lines (RCCL, NCL, Carnival). It does happen.

 

It is no biggie if the switch is between Terminal 2 and Terminal 3 and one has parked a car in the port garage. However if one leaves from Terminal 6 and returns to 2 or 3 or vice versa, it is a longer walk from Terminal 6 to retrieve a car left in the port garage, or to get the car from the Terminal 6 lot from Terminal 2 or 3.

 

FYI: We have also have terminal switches in Fort Lauderdale where we sailed from one terminal and returned to another terminal.

Edited August 23, 2022 by Homosassa