All things "Victory"

[HiiPocket]

Hi there,

 

I will be on the Carnival Victory on August 30th with my BF. Who else will be joing us ;-)

 

What time can we board the ship? Can we check in Sunday morning, leave our bags then come back later during the day?

 

Rosi

 

Hi Rosi, welcome to cruising. My wife and I will be on that ship as well. YOu should be able to check in around 11, possibly a bit sooner. Depends on when the ship clears customers upon its return and they can get all passengers off the ship.

 

Yes, you will be able to leave the ship to enjoy San Juan. Happy cruising.

[breezy1200]

Those of you that have sailed the six port intinerary on the Victory... Were passports or photo ID required at any of the ports? I typically have carried a photocopy of my passport and prefer to leave my original passport onboard the ship.

Edited August 26, 2009 by breezy1200

[beentravelin]

What time can we board the ship?

 

 

Typically around noon to 12:30.

[dz63]

Hi there,

 

I will be on the Carnival Victory on August 30th with my BF. Who else will be joing us ;-)

 

What time can we board the ship? Can we check in Sunday morning, leave our bags then come back later during the day?

 

Rosi

 

Although you can board the ship earlier, your stateroom will not be available until 2:30 pm.

[dz63]

Those of you that have sailed the six port intinerary on the Victory... Were passports or photo ID required at any of the ports? I typically have carried a photocopy of my passport and prefer to leave my original passport onboard the ship.

 

When we cruised the Victory in July, we were told that our S & S cards plus photo I.D. (Passport) is required at all ports. However, at every port we only needed to show our S & S cards. Although we carried our Passports with us, they were not needed. I'm not sure if this is always the case, maybe when there are more cruise ships in port they ask to see them. It is still a good idea to carry either photo I.D. or your passport with you. . .just in case.

[welldone60]

On most ports we visit we use our drivers lic for photo ID and leave our passports on board. If we are doing a private tour that is long, we will take our passports just in case something dreadful happens.

[flyingandcruising]

Great thread, ive enjoyed reading it and viewing all the pictures.

 

OK so my wife and i decided on this cruise for xmas (Dec 20-27)(anyone else who is on this cruise come join us on the roll calls http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=931422

 

Anywho,

 

Ive got some questions that hopefully can be answered. Sorry if these are long but i just want to prepare for this stuff. Im the worry wart of the marriage.

 

1. I see that we give our luggage to porters at the terminal? do they have Carnival uniforms on? and do we tip them? (i want to make sure that the luggage makes it on the ship)

 

2. Once we board the ship at around noon or so, and assuming that our room isnt ready until after 2-3pm, what can we do with our carry on stuff should we want to leave the ship and roam OSJ? are there lockers or something?

 

3. We will be on a honeymoon (delayed 2nd part of our honeymoon, our 1st part was a few weeks ago) does the ship have any perks? like decorating your door (other than the ones you pay for on carnival.com) what about a tour of the bridge? i know that RCCL does that sometimes.

 

4. We will be in cabin 9294 on the lido deck, i hear that this is a great cabin. Any pictures from the balcony looking aft? it looks like accoring to the deck plans theres an extended lip about 15 ft aft from the cabin and i want to make sure that we have a good view. Anyone else experience? 9293 is also the same cabin if anyone has experience there.

 

5. Since there arent any seadays, does the pool stay open during the port days? what are the hours generally?

 

I cant remember any other ? but thank you very much to all that reply

 

and happy cruising.

[VABeach]

<sigh> Seems like yesturday that we just got off this boat. Can't wait until Christmas to go do it again.... <sigh>

 

7 days is just not enough time! :p

[beentravelin]

Although you can board the ship earlier, your stateroom will not be available until 2:30 pm.

 

On every one of my seven cruises including the Victory, I took the stairs down to my room (sometimes the elevators are busy with luggage) and went on in and left my carry-ons.

[dz63]

Great thread, ive enjoyed reading it and viewing all the pictures.

 

OK so my wife and i decided on this cruise for xmas (Dec 20-27)(anyone else who is on this cruise come join us on the roll calls http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=931422

 

Anywho,

 

Ive got some questions that hopefully can be answered. Sorry if these are long but i just want to prepare for this stuff. Im the worry wart of the marriage.

 

1. I see that we give our luggage to porters at the terminal? do they have Carnival uniforms on? and do we tip them? (i want to make sure that the luggage makes it on the ship)

 

2. Once we board the ship at around noon or so, and assuming that our room isnt ready until after 2-3pm, what can we do with our carry on stuff should we want to leave the ship and roam OSJ? are there lockers or something?

 

3. We will be on a honeymoon (delayed 2nd part of our honeymoon, our 1st part was a few weeks ago) does the ship have any perks? like decorating your door (other than the ones you pay for on carnival.com) what about a tour of the bridge? i know that RCCL does that sometimes.

 

4. We will be in cabin 9294 on the lido deck, i hear that this is a great cabin. Any pictures from the balcony looking aft? it looks like accoring to the deck plans theres an extended lip about 15 ft aft from the cabin and i want to make sure that we have a good view. Anyone else experience? 9293 is also the same cabin if anyone has experience there.

 

5. Since there arent any seadays, does the pool stay open during the port days? what are the hours generally?

 

I cant remember any other ? but thank you very much to all that reply

 

and happy cruising.

 

The porters at the cruise terminal are independent from Carnival. They wore red shirts when we were there in July. We gave our large luggage to a porter outside the terminal and tipped him $2/bag. However, once we entered the terminal, we saw people putting their large bags on the conveyor belts by themselves. If we would have known that, we would have done it ourselves and not used the porters.

 

Although we never decorated our stateroom door, I do remember seeing doors that were decorated with posters or signs that people had put up themselves.

 

The pools and hot tubs do stay open during the port days. They are opened from 8:00 am - 8:00 pm. The Siren's Aft Pool, which is an adult-only pool is opened from 8:00 am-midnight.

[breezy1200]

Thanks Welldone60 and dz63!

[swtygrl]

Do the cabins have phones where you can make calls to other cabins?

Is there a fee for this?

[dz63]

Do the cabins have phones where you can make calls to other cabins?

Is there a fee for this?

 

Yes, the cabins are equipped with phones.

I don't think there is a charge to call other cabins. We called the Purser's Desk and did not get charged for that! However any outside calls you make to the U.S., Canada or the Caribbean will cost $6.99 per minute. International calls are $9.99 per minute.

[flyingandcruising]

Thank you dz for the response.

 

anyone able to answer the question of cabin 9294? thank you

Edited August 28, 2009 by torontomale26

[Bru92]

Great thread, ive enjoyed reading it and viewing all the pictures.

 

OK so my wife and i decided on this cruise for xmas (Dec 20-27)(anyone else who is on this cruise come join us on the roll calls http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=931422

 

Anywho,

 

Ive got some questions that hopefully can be answered. Sorry if these are long but i just want to prepare for this stuff. Im the worry wart of the marriage.

 

1. I see that we give our luggage to porters at the terminal? do they have Carnival uniforms on? and do we tip them? (i want to make sure that the luggage makes it on the ship)

 

2. Once we board the ship at around noon or so, and assuming that our room isnt ready until after 2-3pm, what can we do with our carry on stuff should we want to leave the ship and roam OSJ? are there lockers or something?

 

3. We will be on a honeymoon (delayed 2nd part of our honeymoon, our 1st part was a few weeks ago) does the ship have any perks? like decorating your door (other than the ones you pay for on carnival.com) what about a tour of the bridge? i know that RCCL does that sometimes.

 

4. We will be in cabin 9294 on the lido deck, i hear that this is a great cabin. Any pictures from the balcony looking aft? it looks like accoring to the deck plans theres an extended lip about 15 ft aft from the cabin and i want to make sure that we have a good view. Anyone else experience? 9293 is also the same cabin if anyone has experience there.

 

5. Since there arent any seadays, does the pool stay open during the port days? what are the hours generally?

 

I cant remember any other ? but thank you very much to all that reply

 

and happy cruising.

 

Some of your answers....

1. A tip is appropriate for the luggage handlers at the dock. They will approach you as you show up with luggage. If you fly through Carnival and take their bus transportation on the day of the cruise, you will be instructed to leave your luggage at a truck at the airport.

 

2. When the cabin is not ready, the public areas of the ship are open, including the lunch buffet. There are no lockers for your carry on items. Keep them with you until cabins are available.

 

3. You can purchase honeymoon packages including decorations but often if you let your Maitre'd know you are on honeymoon, he'll do something special one evening at dinner. Reward him at the end of the cruise with a tip if he does.

 

4. No help on the cabin.

 

5. Pools can be sporatic based on maintenance and weather. Morning through early evening. I do know they try not to close both pools at once unless seas get rocky.

 

Mike

[Bru92]

Do the cabins have phones where you can make calls to other cabins?

Is there a fee for this?

 

No charge to call within the ship!

The phone can give you a wake up call also.

[Jagger11379]

I don't have a picture from 9294 but I have one from 9290 which is the next one forward.

 

 

The lip is the Lido enclosed seating area.

 

Don't wory, the view is awsome, even with the lip. And the cabin location is excelent, is the last one on the port side, right next to the exit door to Lido. Very quiet corridor.

[flyingandcruising]

Thank you for the replys, they will come in handy.

 

Thank you for the picture, its good to have a better perspective now.

[terryde]

I am sure I am not getting the name right, but on previous Carnival cruises we had an express service that was about $15 pp. You put your luggage outside your cabin door as usual the last night and didn't see it again until your home airport. Are they doing that on the Victory?

[rpetrillo]

Hi

I will be on the Victory for the 12/27 cruise over New Years Eve with my wife Laurie.

 

I have been to St Thomas, St Kitts, Antigua and San Juan before but St Lucia, Barbados and Dominica are new.

 

Here is what I plan to do - if anyone has any comments, suggestions, feel free!!!

 

The only ship excursions that I booked were the "Tiami Sail, Turtles & Beach" in Barbados. It's a catamaran cruise to a snorkeling site with Sea Turtles then they sail the catamaran onto the shore of a beach for swimming, etc. I also booked the "Whale and Dolphin Safari" in Dominica. The last time I went on a whale watching trip we saw didly squat. According to the reviews, most people see lots of whales and dolphins year round. Dominica is suppose to have an abundance, more so than most other place in the caribbean.

 

As for the other islands, I will probably do things on my own

 

St. Thomas: Coral World -Sea Lion Swim/Encounter and then Coki Beach next door for swimming, snorkeling and relaxing.

 

St Lucia: I'm looking into a 6 hr guided island tour with Cosol Tours, a company that I found on the web with good cruise critic reviews.

 

Antigua: Probably just go to Dickenson Beach. People on the board have said that they have a Horseback Riding stable on the beach and you can haggle to about $20-$25 an hour for a ride. Last time here we did the Stingray encounter and highly recommend it.

 

St Kitts: Might do Cockleshell Beach in the morning and then return to the ship and hang out by the pool

 

San Juan (Pre-Cruise): Arrive a day early (got a room at Hojo for $100, walking distance to the pier), dinner at Barrachina's, a 2 hr "Night Tales in Old San Juan Walking Tour". Next day, rent a car for the day from the Sheraton at the pier ($50) and drive to El Yungue rainforest and perhaps a horseback ride at Hacienda Carabali. Board ship by 5 PM. We've been here twice before and have seen the forts and did a self guided walking tour of Old San Juan. Also went to Bacardi's - I dont recommend it since you dont actually see the rum being made unlike other distillery tours. If you are ever in Tennessee, you HAVE to go to the Jack Daniels tour.

 

Rob in NYC

Edited August 31, 2009 by rpetrillo

[beentravelin]

Hi

I will be on the Victory for the 12/27 cruise over New Years Eve with my wife Laurie.

 

I have been to St Thomas, St Kitts, Antigua and San Juan before but St Lucia, Barbados and Dominica are new.

 

Here is what I plan to do - if anyone has any comments, suggestions, feel free!!!

 

The only ship excursions that I booked were the "Tiami Sail, Turtles & Beach" in Barbados. It's a catamaran cruise to a snorkeling site with Sea Turtles then they sail the catamaran onto the shore of a beach for swimming, etc. I also booked the "Whale and Dolphin Safari" in Dominica. The last time I went on a whale watching trip we saw didly squat. According to the reviews, most people see lots of whales and dolphins year round. Dominica is suppose to have an abundance, more so than most other place in the caribbean.

 

As for the other islands, I will probably do things on my own

 

St. Thomas: Coral World -Sea Lion Swim/Encounter and then Coki Beach next door for swimming, snorkeling and relaxing.

 

St Lucia: I'm looking into a 6 hr guided island tour with Cosol Tours, a company that I found on the web with good cruise critic reviews.

 

Antigua: Probably just go to Dickenson Beach. People on the board have said that they have a Horseback Riding stable on the beach and you can haggle to about $20-$25 an hour for a ride. Last time here we did the Stingray encounter and highly recommend it.

 

St Kitts: Might do Cockleshell Beach in the morning and then return to the ship and hang out by the pool

 

San Juan (Pre-Cruise): Arrive a day early (got a room at Hojo for $100, walking distance to the pier), dinner at Barrachina's, a 2 hr "Night Tales in Old San Juan Walking Tour". Next day, rent a car for the day from the Sheraton at the pier ($50) and drive to El Yungue rainforest and perhaps a horseback ride at Hacienda Carabali. Board ship by 5 PM. We've been here twice before and have seen the forts and did a self guided walking tour of Old San Juan. Also went to Bacardi's - I dont recommend it since you dont actually see the rum being made unlike other distillery tours. If you are ever in Tennessee, you HAVE to go to the Jack Daniels tour.

 

Rob in NYC

 

Your gonna love this cruise Rob!

[Vicki22]

We are booked for March and are working on flights right now. What would be the earliest return flight you would attempt? My friend just emailed and was looking at a 10:05 am, I don't think that is feasible the next one that is an ok price is 1:45pm.

 

We haven't done San Juan in a few years b/c of the airport and I think she has forgotten this fact.

 

Thoughts?

[caribbean dreams]

We are booked and are working on flights right now. What would be the earliest return flight you would attempt? My friend just emailed and was looking at a 10:05 am, I don't think that is feasible the next one that is an ok price is 1:45pm.

 

We haven't done San Juan in a few years b/c of the airport and I think she has forgotten this fact.

 

Thoughts?

 

Hi Vicki, we are also booked on the same cruise, you should come loin our roll call, if you haven't already...anyway i was looking at that same early flight, I have done Southern a few times and am seriously looking at that departure time but i keep thinking about the "what Ifs" I'll probably go with the 1:45, i just hate that long wait at SJU.

We are flying in 3 days early so i don't need to hang out anywhere waiting for my flight.

I called Carnival and was told i could make the 10:05 flight if i self disembarked......but as i have learned in the past...What do the people at the other end of the phone actually know!

 

Maybe i'll see ya on the plane...LOL!

Edited August 31, 2009 by caribbean dreams

[Cigar Dude]

One week from today we'll be in St. Thomas! Woo hoo!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[rpetrillo]

Thanks Rob - Im sure I will love this cruise - as I always say, a bad day on a cruise is better than a good day in the office!!

 

Ive never done a cruise with 6 ports and no sea days - it sounds exciting yet tiring. Which is why we may make St Kitts just a sea day with a quick beach stop.

 

Im also curious to see how Carnival does New Years Eve at sea. Last year we were on a 10 night Caribbean Cruise on board Royal Caribbean for New Years Eve. Each area of the ship had its own party. We enjoyed the pool deck party with steel drum music. As my family and friends were back home in an ice storm on New Years Day, I was swimming at the beach at Virgin Gorda.