jdkbrim

I will be sailing on the Seashore in a few months.  I thought I would finally take advantage of my free 1 hr in the thermal spa.  I’ve watched You Tube videos.  But, as I’ve never been in one before, all the options intimidate me.  So, I’m hoping some experienced users could help guide me in how I should use my hour with the showers/rooms/etc. since other than the hot tub, it’s all new to me.

Here you go 

I remember there being questions before we sailed the Mardi Gras.  Here is what my husband’s CPAP machine looked like along with where he plugged in the extension cord. Only a USB port is next to the bed.

12 hours ago, jcearth said:

Note about the sensory bag:  We got one for our 16 year old last month on the Mardi Gras.  Guest Services directed us down to Camp Ocean on Deck 4 to check the bag out.  The headphones in the bag had amazing noise cancellation properties, but were a very loud color (Bright Orange maybe?), so my son wouldn't wear them.  It also contained some fidget items and a lanyard that identified him as having sensory needs.

Thanks for the info..My daughter would have the same reaction to the headphones.  She would really benefit from wearing noise canceling headphones, but she always feels they would bring unwanted attention to her and refuses to wear the ones we own (and they are black).

Thank you everyone that has responded so far.  I didn’t know about a sensory needs bag being available at guest services.  It will definitely be helpful to provide my daughter with some different fidgets to use.

Also, thanks for the reminder to scope out seats before seeing a show.  I assume the main theater won’t be much different than what we are used to, but seeing shows in Grand Central will be totally new to us.

I’m sailing on the Carnival Mardi Gras in 3 weeks (first cruise post Covid) and have a few questions I’m hoping to get help with:

1)  For the first time we will be sailing with only one child and thus not have to have parents split between two cabins.  Are the Platinum laundry benefits per person or per cabin (i.e., can send out 3 or 6 bags of laundry)?

2)  For the Platinum cocktail party, is MG providing drinks at the party or putting the free drink credit on S&S cards before the party?

3)  We are not gamblers so I am clueless regarding using the $25 platinum casino funplay credit —

o  Is it automatically on our S&S cards or do we have to ask for it?

o  We’ll probably just play slots.  How do you know when the credit ends (i.e., just want to play the $25 and not any winnings if there are some)?  Are any winnings put on S&S card, or do you have to cash out?

4)  I have a teenage daughter who has faced some mental health challenges since the last time she cruised.  She can be around other people and can manage noise to a certain extent, but situations like a large deck party would be too overwhelming for her.

o  Are there any quieter places than the lido deck to watch sail away?  (We have an interior cabin, so a balcony is not an option).

o  Is there a midship outside covered deck with lounge chairs to relax on?  Other ships have had that by going out doors on the Guest Services level.  Wondering if that option is still available somewhere since the Mardi has that wall of windows in Grand Central.

o  How loud are the Production Shows in the theater and shows like “Celestial Strings” in Grand Central?  I’m wondering whether or not regular earplugs will tone the sound down enough for my daughter to enjoy them.

Thanks for any help that can be provided!

I've searched the boards and can only find information/experiences of people arriving to the port earlier than their assigned check-in times.  I have been assigned an 11am check-in time for the Divina from Port Canaveral in a few weeks.  However, my shuttle from my airport hotel to the port is not scheduled to pick me up until 11:15am (I cannot change the time).  Obviously, I will not make it to the port until after Noon.  My cruise documents say that my check-in closes one hour after 11am.  I am assuming that I might have to wait longer than normal to check-in.  But, I just want to confirm that I won't be denied boarding.  I know that embarkation closes 2 hours before the ship’s sailing.  I am not concerned about that, just whether or not there will be a major problem if I don't arrive during my 1 hour assigned boarding window.

My husband and I are hoping to finally go on a Mediterranean Cruise.  I am looking for recommendations on Mediterranean cruise reviews to read (from any cruise line).  We are primarily Carnival cruisers, but have also sailed on Royal Caribbean, MSC, and Costa.  I went to Europe years ago while I studied abroad in college and love the idea of going back without all the overnight train rides and constant switching of overnight accommodations.

I would also love to hear recommendations on favorite ports outside of the obvious frequent ones like Rome and Barcelona.  We don’t drink alcohol so are not interested in wine tours.  I especially love seeing unique things (whether museums or places) and participating in unique experiences that I can’t see/do anywhere else.

c-leg5, thanks for the Sol y Mar tip.  That was not one I had heard of and may fit our needs given the short port time.  What I meant by the double transfers was that apparently you can take a city bus for like $2.50 to West End and then for another $2ish get public transportation to West Bay Beach.  I'm just wary of the time frame in going that approach with our short time in port.

We will be stopping at Coxen Hole with a Noon to 6 port time.  Can anyone recommend an afternoon tour?  I don't care to see the sloths, etc.  I'm more interested in touring the island, snorkeling, or going to the beach for a couple of hours.  However, the prices I've found to just get to West Bay seem too high given the time that we would be able to spend there.  If we were going to be there all day, I'd go the cheap bus route.  But, the double transfers seem to be too much with the short port time.

We will be in Grand Cayman on a Saturday with a Noon to 6 port time.  Can anyone recommend a company that does an afternoon snorkeling tour?  With previous visits, I've already toured the island and gone to the turtle farm.  I'd like to snorkel this time since I won't have my kids with me, but the port time is limiting.

TXgalSAM...I'm going in with an open mind.  Honestly, MSC was our least favorite cruise of the ones we've taken because of how the kids' camp was for our kids 9 years ago.  But, an opportunity came up for a getaway and this cruise was priced the same as a 4 day on the cruiselines we've frequented more often.  So, we are willing to give MSC a try again.

Failed to mention that we will be sailing on the MSC Armonia in the Caribbean (in case that affects the answer).

I've searched the boards and can't find an answer to this question.  This will be our first time sailing on MSC without our kids.  When we have sailed with our kids on any cruiseline, we have always been assigned a table just for our family.  On Carnival we can email the Maitre d' beforehand to request a table for 2.  Is that possible on MSC?  If not, is there someone available upon boarding that can handle this request?

We just booked MSC Armonia for August.  We sailed on MSC once, but it was 9 years ago.  So, I'd love to get some information that was unclear to me when looking online:

- Is gelato free?

- We got the free drinks package with our booking.  It says drinks up to $6 when looking online.  We don't drink coffee or alcohol.  So, what drinks besides bottled water and soda are included?  I'm specifically wondering about Fancy hot chocolates, zero proof cocktails (like pina coladas), smoothies, milkshakes?

- Don't need reservations for the theater on the Armonia, right?  Online description says the theater is small.  How early do we need to show up to get a decent seat?

- We status matched to the Gold Level.  With this came 1 hr in the thermal spa.  Any recommendations about how/when to take advantage of this time?

- Does the ship change time during the voyage?  That's one thing I remembered from our previous sailing from them. 

- Suggestions about Roatan & Grand Cayman with such short port times (Noon-6).  I'm concerned about timing with trying to book a non-ship sponsored tour (which is of course my preference).

Thanks for any help you (or anyone else) can provide!

I have not been on either lines’ bigger ships, but I have been on midsize ships on both lines multiple times. The length of the production shows in the main theater are the same (45 min to an hour). Now that Carnival has gone to Playlist Productions, I think the quality of RCCL’s production shows is a lot better. We don’t visit the piano bars, but my observation was that Carnival had better venues for this (I.e., a separate room versus part of a lounge with different activities simultaneously going on). We have enjoyed singing groups, duos, and soloists on both lines. I find the quality is more ship specific versus cruise line specific. Carnival has better comedy shows with the separate venue for them, but as far as Headline Entertainment in the main theater, RCCL is better with their continuation of fly-ins versus Carnival’s guest talent show type entertainment on some nights (although I did enjoy Lip Sync Battle on the Sunshine). Carnival evening movie schedule is far superior to RCCL’s. We like to eat in the Dining Room at a fixed seating, and with RCCL the good movies would always start at 7...so too early for 6 p.m. seating and too late for an 8ish seating.

In the end, we decided our youngest was not ready for snorkeling. I wanted to do snorkeling from a boat versus the shore given these ports and we were worried she might not like knowing she couldn’t stand up. Anyway, it was the kids’ 1st time to all the ports besides Nassau, so they enjoyed the ports since they were new to them. You can’t beat exploring the conch graveyard, and the kids had a blast zip lining at Amber Cove.

Our family rode the zip line in Amber Cove during our Spring Break cruise this Spring. It did cost $20 each and I thought it was totally worth it. That’s cheap compared to anywhere else you zip line. I don’t remember all the rules other than you are supposed to be 14 and probably can’t weigh more than 250 pounds. We chose to wear closed toed shoes and throw a t-shirt on over our swimsuits. There was never a mention that we had to be dry. It’s a pretty long zip line that goes over the pool area. You can see the ship docked as well as the beautiful DR mountains. My son and husband rode it 10 times in a row. I did it 3 times at the beginning and 3 times at the end of the day. My girls each did it 3 times at the beginning. My advice is to do it first and/or last thing. There are hardly any lines then. It just seemed busier in the middle of the day. There are 2 zip lines side by side, so it’s not like waiting for 1 at a time.

Every time we have traveled during Spring Break, the 3rd person has always been higher than the first two. On the other hand, when cruising during the Summer, the 3rd person has always been less. I just think it is the time of year you are trying to cruise because they know it will be high demand. We booked this year's Spring Break cruise 11 months in advance and 3rd person was $20 more than the 1st two.

We are thinking of doing the Zip Line at the Amber Cove port with our kids. I was wondering if the lines are long to go on the zip line. In other words, is the zip line fun enough to want to do it multiple times and is it not a hassle to do it? I know the only option is to buy an unlimited pass, but I was wondering whether it's really feasible to ride it multiple times and still get plenty of pool and water slide time in.

Carnival does not do Express dinners. But, you can tell your server to bring your child's food out as soon as it is ready. Our kids would always finish eating before us and then my husband or I would go sign them in to Camp Carnival and then come back to the MDR to finish our meal. My experience regarding Camp Carnival the 1st night is that on 7 day cruises they had a Family Dance Party in the Disco and then were only open for paid watching after 10 p.m. However, on 5 day cruises, they opened up after the Family Dance Party was over. I'm not sure if this is still the case as my kids are now teenagers.

One of the things my DH and I like to do when we stop in Grand Turk is to walk around to the conch grave yard. When we were there this past May, it was a little trickier to walk there with a lot of debris piled up along the beach south of where the ships dock. We will be stopping in Grand Turk on the Conquest at the end of March. It will be my kids' 1st trip there, and I was wondering if anyone has walked around to the conch grave yard since the Hurricane and could let me know if the walk there had gotten any better or worse and if there are still a bunch of conch, etc. lying around. I know the kids can't take any shells back on the ship with them. If it matters, the kids will be 11, 15, and 17 when we sail.

I would totally do it to save $700. We sailed with 2 adults and 3 kids in one room several times before we had a 4th kid and did fine. The trundle mattress was smaller than the other ones. So, it would work for a kid but probably not a teenager. Use of the fitness area showers helps out with getting ready for dinner.

and catching the bus back? doable? where do you catch it?

What the above poster said. Another possibility if you go first thing in the morning like we did is that a taxi will offer to take you back to the port for the same price as the bus. They would rather go back to the port with fee paying riders than empty to pick up more cruise passengers to go to the beach.

If you need a 100% warm get away, you are flying to Baltimore, and/or cost is not a significant factor, then NO I wouldn't do a winter cruise on the Pride. However, we sailed on the Pride out of Baltimore in February 3 years ago and enjoyed it even though it was a different kind of cruise. The design of that Spirit class ship is great. You can walk all away around the deck by the dining rooms where on other ships the deck does not wrap around. On the last day home, the very top deck was blocked off, but I was able to walk outside on the rest of the outdoor spaces even though it was windy and raining. It was warm by the afternoon of the 1st day at sea. We stayed in an inside room so I cannot comment in a balcony. My kids swam in the pool every day but the last one. They can obviously heat the pool as one day it was jacuzzi temperature. But, I will say it wasn't always heated. We enjoyed the shows and played more card games and enjoyed exploring the ship more than we have on other cruises. Here are a couple other thoughts:

1. Port is easy to drive in and out of. Since we live in Virginia, it's a 1.5 hour drive to the port. So, unlike Florida, no long drive and no extra hotel costs.

2. Winter cruise = significantly cheaper! Normally we cannot afford to sail out of Baltimore as Spring Break and summer cruises can run twice the price as cruises out of Florida which adds up when you have 4 kids.

3. Sailing out of Baltimore and under the bridge in the dark is spectacular!!

4. It was pretty cool to see birds hanging out on ice patches in the port.