EdmundXXIII

4 minutes ago, TooManyWakeUpsTilWeSail said:

Outright lie there my friend 

Um, that is literally what happened.

We can debate all day whether what the CDC did was right.

(I think it was absurd.)

But denying the facts of what they, in real life, did… that’s crazy talk.

1 minute ago, LHARTWICK said:

This was our experience when we turned Platinum as well.  😁 For comparison, RCL made us wait until the next cruise to begin taking advantage of the perks of turning Platinum - booooo!!!!  OP - welcome to Platinum and HAVE A WONDERFUL CRUISE!  🚢

Thanks!

5 minutes ago, Mike Dante said:

If you turn platinum during the cruise that you are booked on you automatically have those benefits available to you on day one. That being said there is no priority embarkation for platinum. Them allowing you to check in two days ahead of the general population will allow you an earlier arrival time to the pier.

Yup. My question was about accessing the check-in early. It's not appearing on the website early for me.

6 minutes ago, kids-in-2-centuries said:

Someone in my 9/4/21 Horizon FB roll call said that they were turning Platinum during the cruise, but had the 14 day check-in instead of the 16 day.  This person said they were able to call their PVP and get it adjusted to 16 days.  I don't know this for a fact, just what I read.  Good Luck and welcome to the Platinum club!

That's helpful! I'll ask my travel agent to ask about it if he's on the phone with Carnival sometime this week. Definitely don't want to make a call (or ask him to) only for this, though. I've heard wait times are 2+ hours on the phone!

1 minute ago, Tom-n-Cheryl said:

 

So, I'm guessing that you'll hit the Platinum level during the cruise? I would have thought that they'd extend the early check-in times for you, but apparently that's not the case. Someone else will have to chime in as to the timing of those benefits (and you could always call and inquire - assuming you reach someone that is in the know)!

 

Tom

Thanks!

I thought about calling, but given the long hold times, it's not that important.

In the past, they've usually given VIFP benefits on the cruise on which you attain a particular level. Not that they HAVE to do that. It's their club. Just curious if anyone has had experience with this since cruises resumed post-COVID.

Just now, tarps14 said:

I don't remember them ever giving the benefits for the new level while on the cruise in which you turn that level.  Maybe someone else will come along and correct me, but, I do remember this being an issue with one of my sons and they were told no, it doesn't apply until the first full cruise under that level.  Even a back2back they wouldn't allow it.

In the past, it's been the benefits apply beginning the cruise on which you turn the new level. So, for example, in my cruise documents, it lists me as Platinum.

Just now, Timeout2cruise said:

We will be sailing on August 7th, and checked in today at 12:01am.  haha

 

So, that is 16 days and we are platinum. Hope this helps. 

 

Prior to today, did your cruise manager list today as when it would be available, or did it just sort of pop up as available at 12:01?

13 minutes ago, AtSeaWithChris said:

I turn platinum on the next cruise. My check in is also 14 days from embarkation. A friend in a similar situation got his check in capability 16 days before. When I asked John Heald he said I would not get early check in. We shall see what happens. Our cruise is Oct. 30

In the past, all VIFP benefits were given on the cruise on which you turned that level. I would be a bummer if Carnival chose not to give the early check-in time to those who are turning Platinum during the cruise.

On 7/11/2021 at 6:38 PM, Tom-n-Cheryl said:

 

Agreed - and those Platinum and Diamond guests, should they prefer an early time (we do!), at least have the benefit of choosing their times two days earlier than those not yet at that tier level.

 

Tom

My August cruise will be my first at Platinum... any idea how the benefit of choosing the check-in time early works? Currently in my cruise manager, it just says that online check-in is available on Aug. 1, which is 14 days prior to sailing.

I'm booked on the Horizon for the August 15th cruse. So stoked to cruise again!

It will be my first cruise as a Platinum guest, and I had a question about the early online check-in...

According to Carnival's website: "All guests will need to complete Online Check-In, which will open 14 days prior to sailing. Platinum and Diamond guests will be given two days advance access to select their preferred Arrival Appointment."

However, on the Cruise Manager page, it shows Online Check-In as being available starting on August 1st, which is 14 days prior to sailing. Shouldn't it be July 30, or am I missing something?

I'm hoping to schedule the earliest possible boarding time, to maximize our vacation!

Thanks so much if anyone has experience with this and knows the answer!

For those who have cruised this year…

Are they enforcing the assigned check-in times? It’s all well and good to select an early check in time, but one YouTuber I saw who was on Horizon claimed that a lot of people came early, before their time, and were not turned away; which led to 2 hour long lines.

I hope they get this right! Otherwise, it’s unfair to those of us who show up during our correct time.

I hope they do send the Magic (or some other ship) to Norfolk for sailings in 2021. We love sailing from our hometown, and it would be AMAZING to get a newer ship like this!

Norfolk has the Sunrise in Spring and the Radiance in the Autumn of this year (2020), but nothing scheduled for 2021 so far, as far as I can tell.

The Magic is scheduled for New York in the Summer season for 2021, and Norfolk usually gets Spring / Fall; she does have some gaps in her schedule for May/June and October, so maybe that'll be the ship for Norfolk. That would be exciting!

I am on a cruise scheduled to be in Freeport on October 18th. As far as I know, they are actually going. Carnival is resuming ports of all to Freeport with other ships at an earlier date.

I have a few questions:

Are there any car rental companies that operate at the cruise port for pickup / drop-off? If so, are they still operating post-Dorian?

I was planning on renting a car for the day and going to Gold Rock Beach. Does anyone know if this is accessible / safe?

What about crime on the island? I've seen a lot of news about crime on Abaco, but haven't seen much about problems on Grand Bahama.

Thanks!!

My first Carnival cruise was in January, 2011, on the Pride.

I'm at 65 VIFP points.

I'm currently booked for my 10th and 11th Cruises; I'll by turning Platinum on my 11th Cruise in October, 2020.

The Carnival Sunrise arrived in Norfolk, VA early this morning.

They are still doing some post-dry dock work on her. Crane & workers were visible.

Her first sailing is tomorrow!

I’ve attached a pic of the ship docked at the cruise terminal, taken from Norfolk’s Town Point Park.

I take the train with some frequency between Virginia and New York. It would be wise to train in the day before. Stay in a hotel that night. It’s not as if every train is hours late, But delays do happen.

And don’t feel guilty about leaving the little ones. We have four kids, and never take them until they’re about eight years old. For them, a week with the grandparents is probably more fun at that age anyways.

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Color me thrilled. I’m on the Triumph next year after the dry dock.

I know the Sunshine gets mixed reception. Some people really didn’t like the changes. But I really enjoyed sailing on her. The refurbishment of guest areas they did is a great way to continue to make an older shop appealing. And many of the amenities added are things I particularly like.

The Havana Bar at the back is great. When the Lido buffet area gets crowded (which happens often due to its now smaller size) there’s usually seating and a great view available back at Havana.

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It depends. Some ships fly it in by helicopter from Papa Johns. The rest deliver direct from Pizza Pirate on board.

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As a mom who has cruised a bunch with kids of various ages, sizes and maturity levels, my advice to you is to wait until you are onboard and experience the 2 clubs first. You may be fighting for something ahead of time and find out onboard that the "culture" of the older club is all wrong for your daughter. I have been on sailings where it was a good fit to move my 14 (almost 15) up , and they did. I have also been on sailings where Id rather my 17yo be a level down (they arent going to do that and I wouldnt ask) so we skipped the club on those sailings.

 

So much depends upon the staff and the actual teen passengers.

 

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Best advice here!

There is nothing wrong with asking for a child or teen to be moved up if appropriate.

This is something that exceptions can be made for. It isn’t like asking if your amazing 18 year old can go to Serenity. It’s about finding the best fit in the kids club.

Jus scope it out once onboard and if you think a change is warranted, speak to the appropriate crew about it and see if they are willing to accommodate the change.

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With the damage to Club Orient, is the beach at Orient Bay still clothing optional?

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Generally speaking, no.

They typically have a service on board for major holidays of major religions.

Beyond that, if there happens to be a clergy person onboard who wishes to offer a public service, they MAY accommodate that and open it to whoever wants to attend.

I’ll give an anecdote from personal experience. We did cruise on the Sunshine in 2016 with about 20 people from our Catholic Church, including our Pastor. We contacted Carnival in advance through our travel agent. We were advised that for a group of our size, we should just wait until we were on board, and check in with guest services. When we did that, they were very helpful. They offered to let us use the piano bar to celebrate mass on Sunday mornings. For the record, if they had not been able to accommodate us, we would have been happy to have just assembled in someone’s cabin. One couple had a suite. We could have all crammed in there if we needed to. In any event, they let us reserve the piano bar for several different dates, for our services. Although it was not publicized in the ship’s bulletin, word got out on the ship pretty quickly among fellow Catholics. In addition to our own church group, we ended up having a lot of other passengers join us, as well as quite a few crewmembers.

I would not expect anything. But, you could always check in with guest services. Ask if there is any religious group of your affiliation that will be celebrating ceremonies on board. If so, I am sure you would be welcome to join them. If not, just enjoy your cruise.

If you really felt compelled, you could spend some time by yourself on a Sunday morning observing your faith as you see fit.

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Splendor!

I just love the layout of the ship. It’s similar to a Conquest class, but with a few improvements, IMO.

And she has the best thermal suites / spa in the fleet.

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My wife and I have sailed just about every major line. We enjoyed them all. Each line tends to have certain things they do really well.

As far as Carnival, we’ve always enjoyed our time on board. We like the ships and the ports. The price is a factor, but not a huge one since you can find comparable sailings with several other lines. They’re also the only line that homeports near us, so we end up taking a lot of cruises with them just because they’re so convenient.

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Given the kids ages, I’d recommend the Vista or the Oasis. Carnival and RCCL both have great kids programs. Don’t know about Norwegian. Princess and Celebrity are wonderful, but more adult-centric.

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