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Bringing Back Behind The Scenes Tour

sunonfire

By sunonfire,
in Carnival Cruise Lines

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nybumpkin

nybumpkin

Posted
Posted

We've done it twice - Conquest in 2010 and Horizon in 2018. We loved both tours, but I don't think I'd do it twice on the same class of ship. It was worth going on Horizon because she is that much different from Conquest. The engine control room alone is worth the price of admission - but then, DH and I are boat geeks and oldest son has been Chief Engineer on a Navy ship.

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Pellaz

Pellaz

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Posted (edited)
On 1/6/2023 at 4:13 PM, tweak89 said:

We've done it on each new ship class we sail and it's always a fun experience.  We'll jump on it for the Vista if it's available for out Feb. 4th sailing.

 

Oh, you definitely want to do that.   I can confirm what was said below:  

 

On 1/6/2023 at 6:10 PM, nybumpkin said:

We've done it twice - Conquest in 2010 and Horizon in 2018. We loved both tours, but I don't think I'd do it twice on the same class of ship. It was worth going on Horizon because she is that much different from Conquest. The engine control room alone is worth the price of admission - but then, DH and I are boat geeks and oldest son has been Chief Engineer on a Navy ship.

Absolutely this!   The Engineering Control Room looks like a starship's bridge on the Vista-class.  

Looking forward to October and our cruise on Horizon so I can behold that again!  

 

I've done the BTF tour on every Carnival sailing I've done except the post-COVID ones, so about 9 times.  I've learned something new, or seen something new, on every last one of them.   

You never know what you'll get:

Group photo by the ship's bell?  Yep, once or twice. 

Get to see into the Captain's cabin?  Yep, once (very quietly as we tiptoed past).  

Captain's private dining room (like a wardroom on a naval ship):  yep, once.  

Actually step into a 2-person crew cabin and look around?  Yep, once (they happened to have one open). 

Spend wayyy too much time in Engineering Control because Chief Engineer Testa was enjoying our questions so much?  Yep.  (We were perilously late getting to the Bridge.)   

 

It's not for everyone, and it is a lot of walking, but for anyone who wants to see "behind the curtain," it's well worth it.  

 

 

 

Edited by Pellaz
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tweak89

tweak89

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Posted
50 minutes ago, victory2020 said:

What about galley walk in /food storage areas? My DH is a refrigeration technician & would love to see more than they offer on the "galley" tours

Unless they have changed something you see it all.  We walked into the areas where all the drinks are stored, saw the cold storage areas, the crazy huge washer/dryers in the laundry area.  You see pretty much all the support areas of the ship.  It's really cool.

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sunexpress

sunexpress

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12 minutes ago, shof515 said:

only can be purchased onboard the ship by going to the shore excursion desk 

This is what we did, on the Conquest a few years ago. I am not sure about the process now, as I don't think then it was an advertised tour/excursion that showed up on the excursion list.  Go to the excursion desk once onboard and ask about it -They only take a small number ( usually less than 20). Sometimes they will not know exactly the day/time the tour will occur, but should write down your information and get back with you asap.

I think we paid 75.00 a person. The tour took about 3 hours, and you have to wear closed toe shoes - they will not let you attend with sandals/flip flops. We did walk down a few steeper staircases also. we really enjoyed it.

 

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jb58

jb58

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I know my adult daughter would love this.  She has mobility issues. Basically had a stroke before she was born.  She has a left side weakness and not always sure footed.  Do you think that this would be too much for her?  Would they even allow her to go?

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Tom-n-Cheryl "Live from...." Rare

Tom-n-Cheryl

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Interesting - might give that a go on the Mardi Gras next month.

 

For some reason, I thought that used to be an included Diamond perk (am I losing my mind?). Perhaps it was, but was discontinued as the ranks of Diamond guests swelled.

 

Tom

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ShakyBeef

ShakyBeef

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1 minute ago, jb58 said:

I know my adult daughter would love this.  She has mobility issues. Basically had a stroke before she was born.  She has a left side weakness and not always sure footed.  Do you think that this would be too much for her?  Would they even allow her to go?

 

I'm sorry, but I don't think the tour would work for her.  But only you and she could judge this for certain.  A lot of walking is involved, and sometimes some fairly steep stair cases that are metal mesh tread type.  You could ask at Guest Services or Shore Excursions once onboard for details of what's involved on your specific ship.  Good luck!🙂 

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FTLCruiseGal

FTLCruiseGal

Posted
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3 minutes ago, jb58 said:

I know my adult daughter would love this.  She has mobility issues. Basically had a stroke before she was born.  She has a left side weakness and not always sure footed.  Do you think that this would be too much for her?  Would they even allow her to go?

There are a lot of stairs on the tour. If she is good with stairs, it should not be a problem.  It’s been a while, so I cannot recall if some of the stairs are a tight fit where she might have a bit of trouble.

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ShakyBeef

ShakyBeef

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Posted (edited)
7 minutes ago, victory2020 said:

OK, I must ask why, I usually wear dresses

 

Open mesh staircases, I'm guessing.  Skirt look-up possibilities?

 

ETA:  I also almost exclusively wear dresses and skirts and had to make sure I packed pants and closed-toed flat-soled shoes for this tour.

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Pellaz

Pellaz

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14 hours ago, sunexpress said:

This is what we did, on the Conquest a few years ago. I am not sure about the process now, as I don't think then it was an advertised tour/excursion that showed up on the excursion list.  Go to the excursion desk once onboard and ask about it -They only take a small number ( usually less than 20). Sometimes they will not know exactly the day/time the tour will occur, but should write down your information and get back with you asap.

It is virtually always on the last sea-day, and always around 9 am.  If it were early in the cruise you wouldn't be able to tour, e.g., the soda and beer cold-room because...it would be FULL of soda and beer.  🙂  

 

14 hours ago, sunexpress said:

I think we paid 75.00 a person. The tour took about 3 hours, and you have to wear closed toe shoes - they will not let you attend with sandals/flip flops. We did walk down a few steeper staircases also. we really enjoyed it.

Also, no cellphones or cameras are allowed.  Security will "wand" you before you start, and a security officer will "shadow" the group on the tour, for obvious reasons. 

 

Booking the BtF Tour is one reason why I have always tried to get FTTF, because the tour almost always sells out...sometimes very quickly.  

 

12 hours ago, FTLCruiseGal said:

There are a lot of stairs on the tour. If she is good with stairs, it should not be a problem.  It’s been a while, so I cannot recall if some of the stairs are a tight fit where she might have a bit of trouble.

On the newer ships, the crew-area staircases have been almost the same "pitch" as the guest-area stairs, and are fairly wide.   They are utilitarian in design and appearance but not overly hazardous.   However, on the Fantasy-class there WAS one "staircase" that was basically a ladder -- very steep.  (I think it was from Deck A down to Deck B...it's been 11 years. 🙂 )   

 

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Tom-n-Cheryl "Live from...." Rare

Tom-n-Cheryl

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2 hours ago, Pellaz said:

...  However, on the Fantasy-class there WAS one "staircase" that was basically a ladder -- very steep.  (I think it was from Deck A down to Deck B...it's been 11 years. 🙂 )   

 

 

Yes - I recall that one. Not as exciting as climbing the ladder into a C-5 Galaxy (w/rucksack) but flashback "fun" nonetheless! Oh the memories!

 

Tom

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sunexpress

sunexpress

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4 hours ago, Pellaz said:

It is virtually always on the last sea-day, and always around 9 am.  If it were early in the cruise you wouldn't be able to tour, e.g., the soda and beer cold-room because...it would be FULL of soda and beer.  🙂  

 

Also, no cellphones or cameras are allowed.  Security will "wand" you before you start, and a security officer will "shadow" the group on the tour, for obvious reasons. 

 

Booking the BtF Tour is one reason why I have always tried to get FTTF, because the tour almost always sells out...sometimes very quickly.  

 

On the newer ships, the crew-area staircases have been almost the same "pitch" as the guest-area stairs, and are fairly wide.   They are utilitarian in design and appearance but not overly hazardous.   However, on the Fantasy-class there WAS one "staircase" that was basically a ladder -- very steep.  (I think it was from Deck A down to Deck B...it's been 11 years. 🙂 )   

 

 Thanks 🙂 It has been awhile since I have done it, so my memory may be sketchy lol - I do remember when I signed up they couldn't tell me at that time when it would occur, maybe it was just the person working at the excursion desk at the time - he said they would contact me -but makes sense it is on a sea day.

And I do remember no cell phones/cameras now - if we went to the restroom during the tour, we had to get scanned by the wand again.

 

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