Fantasy Only Questions ...

[arm2msm]

Just 6 more. :D

Dave

 

I am jealous... but i have to wait until tax season is over. then i don't want to have to remember any of these past 3 1/2 months.. Just give me New Orleans and the cruise

[Rowan555]

Dave - please let me know whether you are successful in getting to your cabin immediately upon embarkation as a Platinum guest. Also, if you have a chance and think about it, would you ask the steward, or purser's desk, whether this is an official "perk"? We're such chickens, I'll be nervous about opening those fire doors unless I'm "sure" it's okay with the people in charge ;)

 

Have a GREAT cruise and take good care of the ship for me!!!

 

Susan

[jetskier]

Dave - please let me know whether you are successful in getting to your cabin immediately upon embarkation as a Platinum guest. Also, if you have a chance and think about it, would you ask the steward, or purser's desk, whether this is an official "perk"? We're such chickens, I'll be nervous about opening those fire doors unless I'm "sure" it's okay with the people in charge ;)

 

Have a GREAT cruise and take good care of the ship for me!!!

 

Susan

 

Hi Susan,

I will check into it for you. Hopefully Robert is back from his cruise and we will get to see him at the terminal.

Dave

[arm2msm]

It is almost time I leave Next Friday for New Orleans.. then Crusin time:cool::p

[jetskier]

It is almost time I leave Next Friday for New Orleans.. then Crusin time:cool::p

 

One more day for me.:eek:

Dave

[Rowan555]

One more day for me.:eek:

Dave

 

Have a GREAT cruise, Dave, can't wait to hear all about it!

 

Susan

[arm2msm]

Double on that Have a great cruise. Can't wait to hear your review when you get back

 

Aud

[Sweet Home Alabama]

Our dining time is the early seating at 5:45. Does anyone know which dining room starts as this time?

My Mother is in a wheel chair and I am trying to figure out the logistics of all of that!!

thanks :confused:

[jetskier]

Our dining time is the early seating at 5:45. Does anyone know which dining room starts as this time?

My Mother is in a wheel chair and I am trying to figure out the logistics of all of that!!

thanks :confused:

 

5:45 and 8pm are in the Jubilee dining room.

 

Dave

[nedac]

I am sure they do but...

 

Is there ironing service on the Fantasy? I would like to have a shirt pressed as it will surely be wrinkled.

[endlsop]

Yes there is press only if you want or an Iron in the laundry room. i had to use it last year I ironed a couple of things the first day on so I wouldn't have to worry about it later. Some one posted the price sheet for all the pressing and dry clean services yesterday. Can't remember what thread though.

[nedac]

Yes there is press only if you want or an Iron in the laundry room. i had to use it last year I ironed a couple of things the first day on so I wouldn't have to worry about it later. Some one posted the price sheet for all the pressing and dry clean services yesterday. Can't remember what thread though.

 

Thanks, I wasn't going to iron my formal shirt as I know it will be all wrinkled after the luggage deliverers get ahold of it.

 

The Celebration and Victory had it, so i figured the Fantasy had it.

[cantwait2cruise0614]

My husband and I are celebrating our 20th anniversary with a Fantasy cruise on 6/14/08. This is our very first cruise so we have a ton of questions and would appreciate any help!!

 

We have booked a OV on the main level - does anyone have any opinions about those rooms?

 

Also, we would love any recommendations about excursions. We have already decided to use Carnival for booking, even though I have read that it is more expensive. We are just so inexperienced and thought that it wouldn't be a good idea to "wing-it" our first time.

 

Any suggestions would be most helpful. Thanks!!:)

[Rowan555]

My husband and I are celebrating our 20th anniversary with a Fantasy cruise on 6/14/08. This is our very first cruise so we have a ton of questions and would appreciate any help!!

 

We have booked a OV on the main level - does anyone have any opinions about those rooms?

 

Also, we would love any recommendations about excursions. We have already decided to use Carnival for booking, even though I have read that it is more expensive. We are just so inexperienced and thought that it wouldn't be a good idea to "wing-it" our first time.

 

Any suggestions would be most helpful. Thanks!!:)

 

Well, I'd have to say that "winging it" in Cozumel is not nearly as scary as it sounds! There are tons of options for how to spend your day, and lots of those options can easily be done without booking a ship excursion. I recommend you check out the Cozumel port board for tons of ideas. In Progreso, you can take a tour of Merida for $25 per person through AutoProgreso, the bus company that shuttles passengers from the ship to the little market drop off spot in Progreso. Or, if you prefer, you can just take the free shuttle and walk around. If you want to go to the ruins, booking through the ship is your best bet. Otherwise, no need to pay the ships OUTRAGEOUS prices. One important tip - do NOT book the Corona Beach Break through the ship - it is a TOTAL rip off. You can get to the beach on your own for free, and the beers are very cheap. I haven't yet heard one person say anything good about taking that excursion.

 

Hope you guys have a wonderful time. The Fantasy is my favorite ship, and we're going on a cruise in ONE WEEK - woohoo!

[cantwait2cruise0614]

Thanks Rowan - I didn't realize that it was that much more to book through Carnival. We may need to re-think that and do a little more research. Do you know which excursions you are doing next week? I would love to hear back from you on which ones you did and what you thought about them. Also, how far in advance should we book them?

 

Thanks for all of your help and I hope you have a wonderful and safe trip!

[Rocknsoul]

Also, we would love any recommendations about excursions. We have already decided to use Carnival for booking, even though I have read that it is more expensive. We are just so inexperienced and thought that it wouldn't be a good idea to "wing-it" our first time. Any suggestions would be most helpful. Thanks!!:)

 

DH and I sailed on Fantasy last September. We had spent much time researching what to do at Costa Maya & had to change our plans last minute for Progreso. We couldn't agree on any of the Carnival excursions...we felt like they didn't seem to be a good value, so we got off the ship in Progreso & walked around. We found a woman at a kiosk selling tours, and asked her whether we had time for the ruins to Dzibilchaltun. We were nervous, since we had no idea who these people were! But we took the risk.

 

For $50.00 a taxi drove us half an hour (very fast) to the ruins and waited for us to finish our tour, then drove us back (more slowly upon our request) back to the ship. The company was mayayucatan.com.mx, and we were very pleased. At the ruins, Julio Canche (he's a tour guide at the site--unrelated to mayayucatan) offered us a mini-tour ($20 for both of us)since the time was short, and it really was a moving, spiritual experience. You can climb the ruins & swim in the cenote…I highly recommend this tour. My understanding is that the Carnival tour is more structured, while we got to walk through at our own pace & learn amazing facts about the site. Then we swam, which was wonderful in the heat. It's not as well known as some of the other ruins, but we loved it. We were back in plenty of time before the ship left. I think it's worth the trip even if you do go with Carnival.

 

In Cozumel, we took a taxi to Chankanaab...I had booked the Dolphin Royal Swim, which was awesome, but even if we hadn't done that, we spent a great day snorkeling, relaxing, & eating a yummy lunch. We bought some beer for the mariachi band & enjoyed their company for a bit.

 

Whatever you decide to do, I hope you have fun!

[Rowan555]

Thanks Rowan - I didn't realize that it was that much more to book through Carnival. We may need to re-think that and do a little more research. Do you know which excursions you are doing next week? I would love to hear back from you on which ones you did and what you thought about them. Also, how far in advance should we book them?

 

Thanks for all of your help and I hope you have a wonderful and safe trip!

 

 

We're going to Paradise Beach in Cozumel, so no need to book anything, and in Progreso we're doing the Merida City bus tour through AutoProgreso - no need to book that one ahead of time, it's $25pp and you pay them at their station at the pier. The customer service rep told me they leave 2 to 2.5 hours after the ship docks.

 

Last time in Cozumel we did an ATV Tour through an independent operator - we booked it a week ahead of time - when we got there, there were only 6 of us on the tour, and they would have let people walk up and book right then and there. We loved the ATV tour, by the way, and would do it again.

[jetskier]

Susan,

Look at what I got. :)

 

 

They got them in FINALLY three weeks ago. To answer your question about the room, it is not published as a benefit. We had a great time. Time to go get a nap.

Dave

[Rowan555]

Susan,

Look at what I got. :)

 

 

They got them in FINALLY three weeks ago. To answer your question about the room, it is not published as a benefit. We had a great time. Time to go get a nap.

Dave

 

A FANTASY PIN? I'm in shock.

[Rowan555]

OK Dave, I have to ask you a question. We normally arrive at the terminal at 10:30, and are in the building shortly thereafter. Of course when we board usually varies based on how many weddings are happening, among other things. Now that we're platinum, would you recommend arriving a little later since we'll go to the VIP line? Or is it still a good idea to get there early on? I guess we still have to wait in the long line to have our bags x-rayed, so it's best to get there early to avoid the long lines there.

 

I can't wait. For some reason this whole platinum thing has me all excited, like it's our first cruise all over again :)

 

 

OOOH, one more thing - did you do self assist? If so, what time did you finish up with customs? I need to give my dad an idea of what time to pick us up. I know last time we were at customs by 7:30, it was fabluous - and we weren't platinum then, lol. Of course I know this varies from sailing to sailing, I'm just trying to get an idea of how it worked for you.

[jetskier]

OK Dave, I have to ask you a question. We normally arrive at the terminal at 10:30, and are in the building shortly thereafter. Of course when we board usually varies based on how many weddings are happening, among other things. Now that we're platinum, would you recommend arriving a little later since we'll go to the VIP line? Or is it still a good idea to get there early on? I guess we still have to wait in the long line to have our bags x-rayed, so it's best to get there early to avoid the long lines there.

 

I can't wait. For some reason this whole platinum thing has me all excited, like it's our first cruise all over again :)

 

 

OOOH, one more thing - did you do self assist? If so, what time did you finish up with customs? I need to give my dad an idea of what time to pick us up. I know last time we were at customs by 7:30, it was fabluous - and we weren't platinum then, lol. Of course I know this varies from sailing to sailing, I'm just trying to get an idea of how it worked for you.

 

I would get to the terminal at around 10:45. Being Platinum, there is a seperate line to go through which bypasses all those waiting to get to the screening equipment. It puts you at the head of the line. Once through the equipment, you go to the room on the left to be processed instead of the counters to the right.

 

From there they (we got Robert) will escort you to the center area to be seated. The wedding parties and all others go all the way to the far side to be seated. Once they give the all clear, the wedding parties go on, followed by the VIPs and then the rest.

 

As for as disembark, we turned our luggage in. We were able to get escorted off the ship past those still doing self-assist. Now they dont take you all the way to the baggage area like they do in Mobile. Only to the folks logging the cards off. Once you get to the luggage area, the porters will get your luggage and take you to a seperate line in customs. If you dont use the porter, you have to get in the regular line which is still crowded with those self-assisting.

 

We were in our car by 9:00am after I had to pay my duty on my liquor. The tax is now $2.85 per liter. They started doing self-assist at around 7:30am. So if you get up early enough to be in the waiting area per the Platinum letter, you should be able to get off fairly quick. Really it is up to Customs as to when to start.

 

Dave

[jetskier]

A FANTASY PIN? I'm in shock.

 

Not only is it a Fantasy pin, it has the ship's new name....Carnival Fantasy. The last Fantasy pins was in 2001.

 

Dave

[arm2msm]

this is an excur ? we are taking the dune buggy exr after we are done is it worth taking a taxi to merida or just get back on the ship

[jetskier]

this is an excur ? we are taking the dune buggy exr after we are done is it worth taking a taxi to merida or just get back on the ship

 

It will take you 35-45 minutes to get to Merida depending on traffic. It would depend on what time your excursion ends. Remember you have to be back on the ship 30 minutes PRIOR to the sailaway time.

 

Dave

[Rowan555]

We were in our car by 9:00am after I had to pay my duty on my liquor. The tax is now $2.85 per liter. They started doing self-assist at around 7:30am. So if you get up early enough to be in the waiting area per the Platinum letter, you should be able to get off fairly quick. Really it is up to Customs as to when to start.

 

Dave

 

How many bottles of liquor did you buy? It sounds like they are being stricter on that now, maybe? Last time we had 6 bottles and they waved us through without paying anything. The savings on the things I'm buying really aren't great enough with the $2.85 per bottle duty to even worry about the hassle of bringing them home...