salty dingo

The problem with Cheers is that both adults in the cabin have to purchase it.

Yep, agreed. In my case, DW rarely has even a glass of wine. I have bought the soda package for her in the past, but I don't think she drank enough from that to make it a deal. Plus they served little glasses of soda from the tap rather than full cans. A la carte is most economical for us.

I do wish Carnival would reconsider the policy... basically cruisers traveling solo can buy a solo package but when I travel as a couple, I cannot buy a solo package. Seems unfair to couples.

One loophole I can think of... if a couple is traveling with kids and they get two staterooms, the cruise line generally wants an adult booked in each room, even though they don't stay that way. Since the package purchase is based on each adult registered in the room, in this case there would be just one, and a solo drink package could be bought.

This is heartbreaking. So very sorry for those affected!

Family next door to us is on the Celebrity ship, and just posted to Facebook that they almost went on the excursion with the bus crash, but changed their mind. Neighbor said seven people died. We are very relieved they are OK, but they are very saddened by the tragedy.

Helpful tip - before you leave the ship be sure you sync your watch with the ship's time. I would not trust my smartphone to tell the time.

Cruises do get cancelled, due to drydock or ship charters. If that happens you get a full refund, a mea culpa, and a deal on some other cruise, I expect.

I wonder what qualifies as biodegradable? I expect most wood or ferrous metal containers would not last long in the corrosive salt water.

Anywhere except the pool... unless the wine glass is plastic.

That's a good idea - pre-download videos to watch on the cruise. I think if you tried to live stream without the prior download it may be a problem. Bandwidth on a cruise ship is limited and expensive. They may even block it, not sure.

Enjoying the review! Can't wait to read about the ship and ports!

We have sailed out of Charleston a couple of times. The parking lot opened at 11:00 if I recall correctly. We queued up on the street near the parking entrance waiting for it to open.

They collect the parking fee for the week, and then direct the cars to drive inside a warehouse, where they are parked.

We collected our bags and walked to the outside of the warehouse where a trolley waited to take us to the check-in. It was a very painless experience.

I was just thinking about this. I think I will wear a dress shirt and tie but no jacket. I just can't see myself packing a sport coat on a trip to the southern caribbean in August, only to wear it a couple of nights to dinner. Maybe if I were planning to get a professional photo... but I'm not.

I almost always order two appetizers and skip the salad. That's never a problem.

I usually book through a cruise travel agent... have used one I found through Cruise Critic and had great experience. This next cruise I booked directly with Carnival because the price was right and so was the itinerary and cabin.

My advice is to shop around and don't think you have to book through Carnival to get the best deal... but if the deal looks good to you, go for it.

I'm not going to risk ordering a Philly Cheese Steak anywhere that far from Philly or at least South Jersey

I agree. Why tempt fate. When at sea, eat like you are not at home.

I will be happy to take the $50 cabin. In fact I will go as high as $75. And I don't snore. Much.:p

If I remember correctly, balconies which can connect are usually secured so they do not. The room steward or other employee can unlock the divider but it is not something a passenger can do. You have to request it upon meeting the steward.

It depends on where and when you want to sail. Go in the summer when the kids are out of school, pay a lot more. Go in September when kids are back in school, pay a lot less. May have more hurricanes though.

I think ports that are close and not in South Florida also get a premium price, because people can drive there.

We just booked a dirt cheap cruise on Fascination for Aug '18. The reason is that San Juan is a port people can't drive to, unless you live in Puerto Rico.

reminds me of a song "Too Much Time on Your Hands"

Styx. They still tour a lot. Go see a show and tell Tommy Shaw I sent you!

You can always speak to the Maitre d' after you board. They have a lot of discretion to accomodate your requests.

I recommend you hand-carry the children. It is not recommended to pack them in the carry-on. :p

Considering the 10 pm departure, departing after check in will be very common. It is much less common in Miami, for example.

That's a really good location. We're booked in an interior on the same deck. If you look at the deck plan, you will see that above you is the spa (your cabin is below the ladies' room) and below you is "nothing", which I believe is actually the ship's officers' cabins. Both of these will be really quiet at night.

There is an out of the way deck at the forward of the deck (down the hall and through the doors) which is over the bridge, and includes the bridge wings. A great place for someone in an inside cabin like us to watch the outside activities.

I like the deck in general. Great location.

[edit] Just realized after posting this is an old thread. Well, better late than never :)

Correct. I copied the official policy statement from Carnival's website.

Guests are prohibited from bringing alcoholic beverages on board with the following exception - At the beginning of the cruise during embarkation day only, guests (21 years of age and older) may bring one 750 ml bottle of sealed/unopened wine or champagne per person in their carry-on luggage.

395 Long Days!! But at least there is a light at the end of the tunnel!

Personally, I would fly. Miami is a long way from NC, and that's a whole lot of driving. Factor the cost of gas and wear and tear on your vehicle and you may find that flying actually costs less.

A couple of reasons you may want to drive:

• You have a suburban and 5 kids
  
• You want to buy a ton of stuff on the cruise and it won't fit in luggage and/or is expensive to ship
  
• You are afraid to fly
  
• You have a ton of time and would enjoy breaking each way into a two or three day trip and see the sights, stay in a hotel at night and relax, etc.
  

The BEST plan is to fly in the day before, get a hotel near the port and get in the cruise frame of mind in South Florida. On the return trip I usually fly back same day. If flight is in late afternoon, I grab a shuttle to airport as soon as I disembark, pick up a cheap rental car, and go sightseeing around Miami for the day.

Thank you for the replies. I think I will have to resort to the telephone to get this sorted. It takes away from the booking experience to see website problems, so I do hope Carnival takes this seriously.