gem114

Thanks so much! That's definitely helpful. I was planning on dresses and skirts for dinner, so I'm glad to have that confirmed too. :]

As for questions about the Pride... haha, I honestly have more questions than I can even imagine. This is our first cruise. Any tips would be helpful!

Thanks for the info!

I'll be on this cruise also!

 

I've gone out of Baltimore about a half-dozen times. It's a great port. I'm a slow typist, so I'll just send you here for your questions:

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1361443

 

Security screen similar to airport; carry-ons go through scanner, walk-through scanner for passengers.

 

Enjoy!

Thanks so much for the link! I only went through the first few pages so far, but you are very thorough! Can't wait to read the rest.

He said Dockers too when I said he'd need long pants. Would those be okay for the more "elegant" nights? Dockers and a button up, and I could get him to bring a tie. Not sure if I could get him to put on a full suit, especially given that we assume it'll be rather warm in the Bahamas.

Polos and shorts for casual dinners is what I'm imagining from Lulu's comment.

That makes it sound to me like the gift cards are definitely the better option.

We're going to be on the Carnival Pride going to the Bahamas. :]

Sailing out of Baltimore on the Carnival Pride July 6!

I was wondering what we should expect at the port and while boarding.

1. How close is the parking to where you need to be to board?

2. Is there somewhere to wait or do we all just line up outside? How early should we arrive?

3. How early do they take your checked bags from you? (any recommendations about what to have in carry-ons would be great!)

4. What's security like? Metal detectors? Full-body airport x-ray scanners? Do they actually go through each bag by hand?

5. How long is the whole process? How long between boarding and when we get our luggage back/get access to our rooms?

I am going to be buying some gift cards to use for my cruise (because of the current 10% deal). I still need to set up my onboard account.

 

Can I set it up online as cash, then when I board give them the gift cards and a credit card to cover any amount over the cash? I don't want to have to go back to add cash or anything but I want to make sure the gift cards get used before my credit card. Thanks

Does anyone know if there's a reason to choose Cruise Cash over the gift cards? It seems to make more sense to me to do the gift cards since you get the extra 10%.

My boyfriend and I are going on our very first cruise at the beginning of July! I've already accepted that I'm going to use this as an excuse to buy new summer clothes and over-pack (we're not flying, so no weight limits!)

The problem is my boyfriend is super casual and would bring like two pairs of shorts and all t-shirts if I let him, but I don't want him to be under-dressed.

What's typical men's attire for during the day? for casual dinners? for "elegant" dinners? How many outfits do men usually bring for a 7-day cruise?

If anyone has a men's packing list, that would be amazing.

Any suggestions would be helpful!

I know! It seems weird, but I'm okay with it :) more money to spend on drinks that I've already budgeted for!

Good news! Even though they wouldn't give me OBC because we didn't book Early Saver, they DID upgrade us to a BALCONY room!

Thanks so much for the advice!

My husband and I just called and did that! We now have $216 OBC! It's better than nothing! It was super easy & she told me to keep calling to check if it will go lower until we sail at the end of July!

Haha, this seems too easy to be true! You just call and ask for the current rate? That is awesome, especially because Carnival is doing an "East Coast" special or something that came up because we live in New Jersey.

Hi all! I'm sailing on the Carnival Pride in July. We already paid our balance, but someone pointed me to the Cruise Critic Price Drop page, and it looks like our fare went down! Is there a way I can get Carnival to honor the new price? Do I just call and ask? I have no idea how this works, but if I could get some money back that would be great. If I need to call, what do I say so they actually give it to me instead of just telling me they can't do anything about it?

I would also like to know the answer to that.

When I called, they said if the excursion was listed as an option for your cruise that means they have worked out the time frame to be okay. It just seems like we won't be able to do anything else at that port.

How much I consume is different than what I pay for. I bring my own wine, smuggle my own booze so I only buy a mixer or use juice from room service, and will probably have one to two cocktails an evening. My next cruise is 14 days, I'll probably end up having 30 cocktails/martinis.

How do you smuggle booze? I'm a first-time cruiser (sailing in July), and I've heard that they actually go through your luggage to make sure you don't have any alcohol. I'd love some tips! :P

Hi all,

I'm trying to plan excursions for my trip on the Carnival Pride in July. We'll be at Freeport from 7am-1:30pm, and my boyfriend and I are really interested in doing the Freeport Kayak and Nature Experience excursion. The problem is that it says on the site that the excursion is 6hrs long. We're only AT Freeport for just over 6hrs. Is there any way to fit in this excursion, or do you recommend we choose something shorter?

Thanks!