cantthinkofanythingfun

I wish they'd open up Philadelphia again. :) Great airport proximity and worthwhile city to visit.

Philadelphia spent 12 years trying to land a cruise ship. I think the problem is that it is too close to NYC and Baltimore. My issue with Philly is that it's a city with the size and expense of NYC without all of the fun stuff. Baltimore would literally be dead in the water if we weren't 30 miles from Washington DC.

I love the idea of revitalizing the SP property, but there are currently two problems with the idea.

 

1) They could build the new terminal to solve the Key Bridge problem and there would still be the problem of clearance under the Route 50 Bay Bridge. Someone asked about a new ship in Baltimore at a CCL event Q&A and we were told that the largest ship in the fleet that can fit under those particular bridges are the Spirit-class ships. In essence they could build a brand new multi-million dollar facility, to accommodate the exact ships that currently embark at the port.

 

2) After Carnival unexpectedly pulled out and took $45 million in local cruise revenue with them, Baltimore and the State are less likely to invest that kind of money in that project right now. No one wants to be in Mobile's current position.

I thought the Bay Bridge was high enough to fit anything under it? Carnival pulling out of Baltimore certainly didn't last long, and it was really due to the ECA and not the port. They quickly changed their mind and put scrubbers on the Pride. She was only in Tampa a couple months. If they built a new port it would certainly require some kind of long term commitment from Carnival and any other line that would sail out of there. Even if they couldn't get a bigger ship in, they could expand the port and maybe get more ships in. Right now CCL leaves on Sunday and RCCL is typically Saturday or Thursday. The port can only handle one ship at a time and parking for 2 smaller ships total.

At one point there was rumblings here in Baltimore of moving the cruise port to the other side of the Key Bridge so bigger ships could sail from here. There is an abandoned steel mill area called Sparrows Point that could really use the revitalization. I don't know if there is still talk of that, but I think it's a great idea. Sailings from Baltimore always sail full, and you should see the prices on the RCCL Grandeur of the Seas. It's an old ship that doesn't look nice at all, and they are getting more for it than Oasis class ships. The Baltimore/DC market combined is like 3rd biggest in the country. It leads the country in median income. I'd venture to say it's probably within driving distance for 60 million people. The Pride is nice, but it would also be nice to get one of Carnival's newer ships. To me it would seem to be a better port than Galveston or New Orleans.

I had the exact opposite experience in the BA Haven last December. I was also in the 2 bedroom H4 room. I like it cold, and I thought the room was very cool. Granted it was December, but it still got hot outside in the Caribbean. I had Anoop as my concierge. I didn't use him much, but the little bit I did, he was great. Reading other reviews on this board, he is a bit of an NCL rockstar. I agree with your point about the sinks and counter space, but that's kind of what's in style right now. There was plenty of storage under the sinks. I got to port around 12:30 and as soon as they printed our cards, someone walked us on to the ship, got us an express elevator, and took us right up to the Haven. Anoop then went over everything with us and took us to our room. We then met, Carlos, our butler and he took notes about everything, although we didn't have many requests. He brought my son a birthday cake without us saying anything. He was great. It seemed that he really wanted to do more than what we asked of him.

The Haven area was very quiet, but again it was offseason. They did have seats reserved every night for Haven guests at the shows. I thought Julie was a fantastic cruise director with tons of energy. I thought Teppanyaki was pretty good. Japanese steakhouses aren't really authentic Asian food. It's more American food cooked with showmanship. It was just as good as any Japanese steakhouse I have been to on land, and I've been to a few of them.

Howl at the Moon was great. Late night was the best. Dueling piano bars work best when they can jockey hard for tips. NCL doesn't let them do that. I also had a family on board that tipped them to let their young daughter sing a Whitney Houston song. She was pretty talented for her age. I talked to her parents quite a bit during the cruise and they were the nicest people, as was there daughter. It made her cruise to be able to do that. Even if she was awful, I wouldn't be bothered with giving up 5 minutes of my cruise experience to make a lasting memory for a little girl. They also did the Frozen song. It's family friendly until about 10:00 I think. Also later at night the guitar player and drummer from Rock of Ages come down and play with them.

I'm going back to the BA in October for a solo cruise to Bermuda. I hope things are more like my previous experience and not like what you experienced. I won't be in the Haven, but I really don't want all of that for this trip.

Don't know how the discussion switched from Carnival sailing out of NYC to the comparisons of NCL and Carnival but I'll bite.

 

40 years ago nothing, and I mean nothing, was as grand as a cruise on Norwegian Cruise Line with their scandinavian staff, their spit and polish hand carved wood interiors, their 5 course meals where almost everyone had their own waiter, the old world charm. If you were lucky enough to sail Norwegian it was a "real" cruise and basically ruined you from ever thinking any other cruise could measure up. And then the fall...now the beautiful thing that was is the horrendously ugly, slightly grubby, ill-managed, ill conceived, NCL that can't begin to hold a candle to its own history. And that is where NCL has failed...it has fallen so far that many of us can't stand to even step on its decks because the new has completely obliterated the wonderful cruise line of old and we don't want our memories forever soiled.

 

If NCL were the only cruise line left to travel on my days of cruising would come to a complete halt where once upon a time I would have eaten chili for a year to get the chance to cruise with them. So sad!

I think the conversation switched a little because NCL is still an option for those wishing to cruise from NYC.

I was just a toddler at the time, but I'm pretty sure this whole industry has changed in 40 years. You can now cruise on the major lines for about the same real dollars as you could forty years ago. It's much more of an inclusive vacation for people from all walks of life. The Pacific Princess was a television star just under forty years ago, and now she is at the breakers awaiting being pulled apart for scrap. I'm sure there are still smaller cruise lines out there that have much of the same feel as your NCL cruises had forty years ago, but they probably cost substantially more than an NCL or Carnival cruise. The brand changed to a mass market cruise line and probably in response to the success Carnival was having doing just that. You still cruise Carnival despite them not having mahogany interiors, a Scandinavian staff, or five course meals. It's not fair to judge NCL so harshly for being nearly the same thing.

They should put a new awesome ship in nyc for sure, I've only sailed out of ny on rccl but that was a autism cruise with my son we got as a grant

 

I'm doing the pride again only because it's s journey cruise we got for free. I'd much rather be on a new ship

 

But I'm also not passing up a free cruise

The Pride is definitely a great ship for free. It's a great ship for what they charge for it. The balcony rooms are very reasonable. The 2.0 upgrades are great. The only problem is they make the 1.0 parts of the ship seem that much more dated.

Some people can't afford a flight on top of a cruise so they have to make do with cruising from Baltimore

This is true, but this is also why I think NYC is an important port. Airlines now charge baggage fees and they have become unreliable. You really have to fly in the night before and pay for a hotel. Because of the Key Bridge, a Spirit class ship is as big as it gets for Baltimore, but NYC can get the mega ships, which are obviously popular. If Carnival put a Vista class ship in NYC year round, it would sell out and sell for more than it would in Florida. Florida has tons of competition driving down prices. The local residents also earn less than those in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeast. NYC is also attractive for international cruisers. They come and stay a few days in NYC before or after. If I'm from another country and I want to come to the US for a cruise, I want to see the Big Apple before I see Miami. You also have the whole month of December where NYC is like no other place on earth. I'm from Baltimore, but I love everything about NY except their sports teams. It's a great place to cruise from other than their ridiculous parking fee, but Carnival isn't going to compete with Breakaway and Quantum class ships with a ship built last century.

Just to go on a tangent, I think a lot has to do with the North American Emission Control Area (ECA) and the required use of low sulfur fuel and having to bunker two different types of fuel. Leaving out of Florida you exit the ECA almost right away. Leaving out of NYC you are within the 200 mile limit going almost anywhere.

 

NCL also tends to "push" there ships more if you will. 7 day southern itinerary out of NYC for NCL is 7 days where Carnival will do almost the same in 8 never 7.

 

I believe NCL operates their ships at a faster speed?

 

 

 

When the ECA started Carnival cut a lot of their 4/5 Day Canada cruises. They did one on July 4th weekend and then a few in the fall at that was it.

 

Rarely do they to to Bermuda, NCL and RCL do all the time, they actually travel in sight of each other on some cruises out of NYC.

 

 

 

Even Princess has cut almost all of their NYC sailings. Kept their one way Quebec (each way) but not many Bermuda.

 

 

 

Guessing ECA played an impact on NYC.

 

FWIW

Carnival did initially pull out of Baltimore over this, but some kind of deal was cut and they put scrubbers on the Pride during dry dock. I was on the Pride in February of last year when they announced that they reached a deal to return to sailing year round from Baltimore.

Food is so subjective. I think in the MDR both lines have food of similar mediocrity. I think the specialty restaurants are great on NCL. I also think Carnival's steakhouse is great. Since NCL has more specialty restaurants I would have to give them an edge. A lot of people don't talk about lunch food, but for the ships that have Guy's burgers, I would give Carnival the edge there. It is a tasty burger. I do vastly prefer Freestyle dining, but Carnival does have anytime.

IMO, NCL gets a huge advantage in entertainment, and not just in the main theater. I like Carnival, but their entertainment is laughable. Their CDs will even call a show "hokey" in their announcements, and that's exactly what they are. I will say that my last Carnival cruise had much better lounge performers than previous ones. I enjoy live music. It certainly seemed like Carnival made a concerted effort to improve in that area. It used to be really bad. So that makes both lines equal in lounge acts, but NCL has the dueling pianos and an additional club with live music, which gives them an edge. I think Carnival has better comedy shows. NCL has gone with Second City Comedy Improv, and it's really not that good, and greatly depends on the audience. Stand-up works better on a ship.

Carnival has a better kid's club if you ask my 5 year old. I really like what they have done with the Dr. Seuss stuff. Much better integration than NCL with Nick, and they are losing that at the end of the year.

NCL blows Carnival away in the emerging solo cruiser market. They really cater to them. NCL also blows Carnival away for cruisers that want a true luxury experience with their Haven suites. Yes, you pay for it, but it's an option that Carnival just doesn't have.

Finally, I think you have to give an edge to NCL in the fleet itself. The Epic was a mistake. I've only seen pictures, but it is an ugly ship that apparently has a wired bathroom setup. It is of course no uglier than any of the Carnival -tion class ships. The onboard experience on the Epic still looks great though. NCL has a newer fleet overall, and they are pumping out a new ship nearly every year. I don't know what Carnival's plans are after the Vista. Since we are talking about sailing out of NYC, I can get on a fairly new NCL ship by driving. Flying adds to the cost of my cruise, and I would have to fly to get on any Carnival ship built in this decade.

Dollar for dollar I prefer NCL, but I'll still sail on Carnival out of Baltimore because it is sometimes incredibly affordable and it doesn't get more convenient.

Oh trust me, the UBP is no where near free.....the price is just hidden in your increased cruise price. Haven't been on the Gem but I can tell you the Epic sucks and the operations on the Sun are far lacking for the same size Carnival ship (Fantasy class).

I've sailed both Carnival and NCL recently. Both are more similar than different. I would give an edge in operations to NCL. I never went to an NCL bar that had less than two bartenders working it. On my cruise on the Pride last month, they kept one bar open on the Lido at night with one bartender. She also had to serve popcorn for the movies, and was obviously in the weeds.

As far as the free beverage package being hidden in the price, I have two NCL cruises booked with the promo and the price is less than a similar CCL cruise. I think the main difference between NCL and RCCL sailing from NYC compared to Carnival is that they are sailing newer destination ships from there while Carnival is sailing old ships. A lot of people will deal with the cold just to sail on a mega ship. They also run a lot of 9-14 day cruises, which gives people more time in the warm weather. IMHO catering to the largest population cluster in the country is smart business. NYC is morning of cruise drivable for everyone from Portland, ME to Washington DC.

Sorry i'm a from Denmark... What is PVP?

A nice name for a telemarketer

I hear you tHere. We sailed on the Pride last September in a balcony cabin, was nice to sit out there and enjoy a stick or 2. Sept was also the month before the ban on smoking went into effect. We also sailed Pride this past March on the relo cruise, and I'll echo what Cantthink... said about deck 9....was nice to sit out there..not balcony nice...but comfortable for a public space....was also near the Red Frog Rum Bar for needed beverages. John Heald hosted 2 Cigars Under The Stars nights in March......using the aft serenity area....those were very nic.

Being close to Red Frog is nice. I will say this, at night, it's the only bar open on the Lido. They only have one bartender there at night, and they also make her give out the free popcorn for the movies. Sometimes you have to wait a bit to get a drink. There really should be another bartender at night.

Go for it!!!

I think I'm going to book one of those solo cabins. I found out that you do get the beverage package for free with those. I'll miss the balcony, but I won't be in the room much. It looks like a good group of people on the roll call.

I am taking my daughter on the trip. She is 9 & will be entering 4th grade. Unfortunately due to my job, October and November are the times I am able to take a vacation. I figured they would just be reviewing things that early in the year.

My son is 5 and just going in to kindergarten. It's a new school and that's the only reason I'm skeptical about it. Maybe once school starts and he gets the hang of it I may be able to do it. I don't think that one will sell out. I was thinking of going solo. They still have those studio cabins, but I've never had an inside and they don't give you the drink package with that one.

The deck 9 area is nice. It has cushioned chairs, ashtrays, tables, and drink service. It's also glass enclosed so the wind isn't a big deal. Deck 10 is the sundeck. They have lounge chairs, and just those cigarette butt disposal canisters.

On the Pride a couple weeks ago they did have the lounge acts playing by the pool on the last sea day. The rest was all a very loud DJ. Noise never bothers me, and I like all music, but it was ridiculously loud. You couldn't hear people talking to you. Fortunately, they did have another pool with no music.

Single 31 Year old Female going to Bermuda on the Breakaway October 4th (My Birthday) Anyone else single & going?? :D

I looked at doing this one. I love the Breakaway and really want to go to Bermuda. They aren't offering any deals for solos right now. I would take my son, but I don't want him to miss school that early in the year.

All of which begs the question...why are you here? I just don't get why someone who is so anti-Carnival would hang around the Carnival message board.

 

Your job at NCL must be to convert Carnival loyalists.

So if you criticize Carnival at all then you shouldn't be here? I still sail on Carnival, it's not awful, but there are things they could do better. I mentioned that I think their sales are confusing and not very good. I just got one today where I could choose between a low fare, a low fare and some OBC, or a lot of OBC. I click on it, and I get the same 3 and 4 day sailings from Miami on the Kathy Lee Gifford boat that shows up for all of their sales. I don't see anything about any choices mentioned in the email. They would do much better with something consistent, like kids sail free or a free drink package. Of course Carnival treats their drink package like asking a NYC cab driver to find you a prostitute. It's like a big secret. You can't buy it ahead of time. It has all kinds of rules and limits to it. They would never dream of giving it to someone.

Good question Jimbo - changes by competitors (if those changes are positive and attract more business) tend to be mimicked so maybe Carnival will follow with some similar changes. It appears that RCI has determined that Dynamic Dining is a bit of a bust and Celebrity's choose your perk seems to be doing well since they rolled it out. Something that RCI does (and I think Celebrity also) is give double loyalty points to suite passengers - that is something I would like to see on Carnival (especially since their suite perks are pretty much nil). Otherwise, Carnival probably has to be careful to keep their overall pricing at their usual competitive level if they include any new customer inducements to the mix. Time will tell. ;)

NCL also gives you double points for being a suite guest. You can even earn up to triple points if you take a Latitudes Rewards Rate. NCL has also been offering a choice of free drink package, dining package, or excursion credit for the past 8 months.

To be honest, Carnival really isn't that great of a deal. Their sales and specials are confusing, and really not that good. I get emails from them every day about sales, but when you click on it, it is all of these obscure sailings on ancient ships, and sometimes brief cruises. I'm sorry, but $50 OBC (on select sailings) isn't a big deal for me. NCL has clear cut promotions across all sailings. I know the quantifiable value of a drink package. I know what kids and friends sail free means. I can get these deals on any NCL cruise I want, and not just a 4 day cruise to Nassau leaving from Jacksonville on October 15th on a ship that Kathy Lee Gifford filmed a commercial on.

None of these changes will make me cancel my upcoming solo cruise, but the lack of any "theme" and turning kids away from the kid's club will make mr look at other lines when traveling with my son.

And I'm not sure who would leave their child on a ship while in another country.

Apparently enough people for Carnival to offer the service. I didn't cruise with my child when he was that young, but at certain ports where there is really nothing more to do than shopping, I think it would be safer and more fun for the child to be on the ship.

Is camp carnival open during port days? What Iam asking is, can I get off the boat and leave my children at camp carnival while we explore the ports?

Yes you can.

He said service would improve with American workers? That is really contradictory to all conventional wisdom in the industry. And he was saying that an improvement in service with American workers was not wanted by Carnival? Virtually everyone in senior management at all the lines were hoping NCL's US flag ships would fail miserably, which they nearly did, because if they didn't, it would dispel the idea that Americans can't provide service.

 

Anyway, those "career pages" on the cruise lines' websites are more window dressing than anything, and typically don't provide anything other than experienced supervisory personnel. Most international crew at the lower levels are provided by crewing agencies in their home country, and the line will have a contract with that agency, so they can't provide labor from sources outside the countries covered by that agency.

He didn't say that service would improve. Someone mentioned this conversation about Carnival not hiring Americans, and that individual said that service could improve because there would be no language barrier. John Heald threw that opinion out there for discussion on his Facebook page.

Someone brought this topic up to John Heald, but used the angle that service would improve with American workers. That wasn't what I was saying at all with this topic. I've received nothing but excellent service from Carnival or any cruise line. I started the topic just questioning why Carnival doesn't even have an option for Americans to apply.

I was midship balcony on deck 8 and also received the complimentary vibrating bed. It didn't bother me at all. This trip seemed to have a lot more vibration than other cruises I took on the Pride before the upgrades. It's not like things are vibrating off the shelves. It's almost like a frequency issue. One day at the buffet, everything on our table was shaking, but all of the tables around us were fine. It's strange, but doesn't bother me.