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Carnival Celebration inaugural question

wanman

By wanman,
in Carnival Cruise Lines

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jimbo5544 "Live from...." Rare

jimbo5544

Posted
Posted
28 minutes ago, wanman said:

I just booked this cruise due to my family having to cancel a Christmas cruise.

 

I have never sailed on an inaugural cruise. What can I expect? Anything special happen or is it just "another cruise"?

I am not so sure past history is a good indicator, but there will be a ceremony, a godmother named and there is usually some chotski items given away and champagne flowing, at least that is what memory serves me.

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kwokpot

kwokpot

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26 minutes ago, jimbo5544 said:

I am not so sure past history is a good indicator, but there will be a ceremony, a godmother named and there is usually some chotski items given away and champagne flowing, at least that is what memory serves me.

The naming ceremony will probably be on October 20th, the day she comes into Miami from the TA. The inaugural voyage is the day after on the 21st. 

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jimbo5544 "Live from...." Rare

jimbo5544

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19 minutes ago, kwokpot said:

The naming ceremony will probably be on October 20th, the day she comes into Miami from the TA. The inaugural voyage is the day after on the 21st. 

It is usually two sep events.  We have done many naming ceremonies but only a handful inaugurals, good ;oint..  

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CruisingWalter Great Review Rare

CruisingWalter

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Posted
11 hours ago, wanman said:

I just booked this cruise due to my family having to cancel a Christmas cruise.

 

I have never sailed on an inaugural cruise. What can I expect? Anything special happen or is it just "another cruise"?

 

The big thing I would caution is that inaugural cruises were delayed and canceled even before the pandemic and supply chain issues. I'm not sure if any of the ships launched since the restart have actually had their maiden voyages on time. I hope the TA and the Miami cruise happen on time, but be aware they could be delayed or cancelled. 

 

As for what to expect, you'll probably get some sort of swag in your cabin and there could be some items available for you onboard that's only for the inaugural sailing. You may or may not be a part of the naming ceremony for the ship. That might happen in Europe before she transits to the US or it could happen somewhere in the US. Sometimes it happens as part of the inaugural sailings but it can also happen a few weeks into the ship's service.

 

For sure everything will be brand new and you can expect things to not go as smoothly as they should because everybody onboard the ship will be new, and the ship will most likely be short staffed based on our experiences on the Mardi Gras. So you'll have to bring a LOT of patience to this cruise. This is why we usually don't book a cruise until a ship has been in service at least 4 months to allow them to work out all the kinks. But I'm sure you will have an amazing time. The Mardi Gras was a fun ship and I really like what Celebration has done with the Terminal area. I like that design and use of the space much more than the French Quarter on Mardi Gras. 

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jimbo5544 "Live from...." Rare

jimbo5544

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42 minutes ago, WheresWalter said:

 

The big thing I would caution is that inaugural cruises were delayed and canceled even before the pandemic and supply chain issues. I'm not sure if any of the ships launched since the restart have actually had their maiden voyages on time. I hope the TA and the Miami cruise happen on time, but be aware they could be delayed or cancelled. 

 

As for what to expect, you'll probably get some sort of swag in your cabin and there could be some items available for you onboard that's only for the inaugural sailing. You may or may not be a part of the naming ceremony for the ship. That might happen in Europe before she transits to the US or it could happen somewhere in the US. Sometimes it happens as part of the inaugural sailings but it can also happen a few weeks into the ship's service.

 

For sure everything will be brand new and you can expect things to not go as smoothly as they should because everybody onboard the ship will be new, and the ship will most likely be short staffed based on our experiences on the Mardi Gras. So you'll have to bring a LOT of patience to this cruise. This is why we usually don't book a cruise until a ship has been in service at least 4 months to allow them to work out all the kinks. But I'm sure you will have an amazing time. The Mardi Gras was a fun ship and I really like what Celebration has done with the Terminal area. I like that design and use of the space much more than the French Quarter on Mardi Gras. 

Fair point, we were on the original MG from Copenhagen which was delayed a few times due to production issues.  Hopefully they planned for potential problems in the scheduling.

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kdr69

kdr69

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1 hour ago, WheresWalter said:

The big thing I would caution is that inaugural cruises were delayed and canceled even before the pandemic and supply chain issues.

Given that she only has 3 days left to her Sea Trials i hope this to not be the case.  usually they are delayed due to production/construction/supply issues.

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Buck64

Buck64

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21 minutes ago, kdr69 said:

Given that she only has 3 days left to her Sea Trials i hope this to not be the case.  usually they are delayed due to production/construction/supply issues.

Good point.  Exactly what I was thinking!  As long as the sea trials go smoothly I don't see any reason for a delay.

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ohioNCLcruiser Great Review Rare

ohioNCLcruiser

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3 hours ago, Buck64 said:

Good point.  Exactly what I was thinking!  As long as the sea trials go smoothly I don't see any reason for a delay.

I have high homes there are no delays but the sea trails are just part of it. Can still have quite a bit of the hotel/resort side of the things needing to be finished like outfitting, interior décor elements etc.

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kwokpot

kwokpot

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Posted (edited)
2 hours ago, gopackgo21 said:

Does anyone know if some of the specialty restaurants will be complimentary like they are on the Mardi Gras?

Although there hasn't been Official word it is 100% certain that Chibang and Cucina will operate as it does on the Mardi Gras since all the reasons stated that they are free on the Mardi Gras (whatsmore there's actually MORE cabins and thus more passengers on the Celebration than the MardiGras) and for the fact that if you go and try to reserve Specialty restaurants on the Celebration Chibang and Cucina don't come up as choices. There's absolutely no way the two main dining rooms on the Celebration can accommodate all the passengers for dinner without using both Chibang and Cucina.

Edited by kwokpot
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ngrund

ngrund

Posted
Posted
8 hours ago, kwokpot said:

Yes, wrong dates, lol. I'm on the inaugural cruise, and it's an Elite casino cruise to boot! 

This may be a little off topic, but you are probably the right person to ask-

 

with the Carnival vouchers given out by the land based casinos I have two questions-how long are they generally good for and can they be applied to an already booked cruise?

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kwokpot

kwokpot

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29 minutes ago, ngrund said:

This may be a little off topic, but you are probably the right person to ask-

 

with the Carnival vouchers given out by the land based casinos I have two questions-how long are they generally good for and can they be applied to an already booked cruise?

Free cruise vouchers will always have a validity dates printed on them. Usually a booked by and sail by dates. Normally they are for new bookings only but some cruiseline casino departments are more lenient than others and may allow you to change an existing booking offer code. Royal's Casino Royale  is one of those that are quite generous with allowing changes to an existing comped cruise booking. All I can say is it doesn't hurt to call and ask, although you probably will need patience in getting through the reservation lines. Good luck!

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ngrund

ngrund

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24 minutes ago, kwokpot said:

Free cruise vouchers will always have a validity dates printed on them. Usually a booked by and sail by dates. Normally they are for new bookings only but some cruiseline casino departments are more lenient than others and may allow you to change an existing booking offer code. Royal's Casino Royale  is one of those that are quite generous with allowing changes to an existing comped cruise booking. All I can say is it doesn't hurt to call and ask, although you probably will need patience in getting through the reservation lines. Good luck!

Thanks-I'm just evaluating if it is worth going to pick one up.

 

My wife has been getting mail offers from Bally's AC to get a voucher for Carnival,  but we are already fully booked  (4 cruises, 2 with carnival) for 2023. What are the chances it would be good until 2024 when I'm retired and can go whenever I want?

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