Bonnie J.

And I'd do Carnaval over RCCL!

Also look at the ports, -1 or 2, ports?

To Nassau & Freeport or Cozumel, maybe Grand Cayman or other ports?

However, with 4 or 5 day cruises you may find a lot of partying, young people who can't spend $$ for longer cruise.

If you are going to Roatan on Carnival you will stop at Mahogany Bay. Carnival built this port. There is a huge beach on an island right next to the port. You can walk over a bridge or take a cable car there. You can go back and forth or the cable car for no extra charge after you pay once. Don't know what they charge for the cable car now, when we went, a long time ago, it was $5.

It is a LONG tender ride into Belize and there are no beaches near the port. You can take a ship's tour or a water taxi to an island with beaches. Or, go cave tubing. That is lots of fun. You have a 20-30 minute walk thru the rainforest to the river. You can do the same tour for a lot less $$ and fewer people than the ship's tour if you just google cave tubing, Belize.

In Cozumel, you dock with lots of shops, no beaches right there. A cab will take you to the beach you want.

Check out the ports here on CC. This will name beaches in each port.

It may or may not rain on your cruise. When does it rain it never lasts, sometimes maybe 10 minutes, It disappears and the sun comes back out!

Just get under cover and wait for the sun to come back out!

Everyone who is flying for a ship in Port Canaveral flies into Orlando. Orland is about 60 miles from the port, about an hour away. There are all sorts of ways to get to the port. Some people rent cars and turn them in in Port Canaveral, some take their cruise line bus (but you have to wait until it is full before you leave) and some find other shuttles to the port.

When you get off the ship there are lots of ways to get back to Orlando. There are big buses and smaller shuttles. No problems at all.

But he cannot use her card and the waiters make sure only THE cardholder can only use their card. She cannot buy him a drink with her card. If you don't get the package, ask for the house brand, don't just ask for a Gin & tonic or the waiter will get you the most $$$ for a bigger tip.

If you are a beer drinker ask for a bucket of beer. Think you get 5 bottles in a bucket of ice, less $$ than buying one at a time. A friend did this and took what he didn't drink back to fridge in his cabin to drink, cold, later.

Once we were parked next to an all gay men chartered ship. Only women we saw had same red skirts on, waitresses. Don't know how to find this type of cruise so ask around in gay bars, etc.

We have eaten with gay men and had no problem. They were great and who cares if they are gay or not, they are people like everyone else!

In ports just don't hold hands, act like straight men who are friends cruising together. Then there should be no problem in ports.

Quietly tell the Maitre'd and your waiter BEFORE the date of the birthday. depending on the ship, birthday people will get a candle in their desert and waiters will gather around them and sing Happy Birthday. Or, You can order a whole birthday cake, and pay for it, usually where they sell candy & wine, often the gift shop. But order a whole cake when you board, don't wait until the last moment. Waiters will again sing happy birhtday and don't tell anyone a cake is coming!

Keep in mind the Orient Beach is primarily a nude beach but they drop you off where there are few nudes but we saw nudes just walking down the beach,

I think this might be the same line that used to cruise past our house when we lived right on the Intracoastal Waterway in NC. But think it was the American-Canadian line. They used to sail up the Hudson River, then the Erie canal and would end up in Chicago or was it Detroit? It would stop for the night in Beaufort, NC.

Once when we were on a cruise in Nassau we saw the same ship and it had no passengers so were given a tour of the ship. They had a piano if a passenger wanted to play it and you brought your own alcohol. There was no entertainment at all.

The cabins were something else. The bathroom was so small, it had a curtain, not a door. And there was no room to walk anywhere in the cabins.

The ship had a bridge that would sink down so they could get under bridges along the Erie canal.

They had no pool just a deck to sit on.

It seemed like a ship for really OLD people. Sound fun to go up the Hudson River but, not on those ships!

But you can not share the drink packages. You and your husband EACH must have one on just about all ships!. He cannot buy you a drink or bubbles with his card. Only he can use it. And waiters make sure he doesn't give his drink away. Maybe same for bubbles and your kids. Check this out before you buy. And each of you may bring a 12 pack of sodas as carry-ons when you board. So each kid can bring their soda with them as they board. Don't check soda as you may never see them again, carry them on.

Don't drink beer but you can order a bucket of beer. for less than paying for each bottle/can. A friend used to take what he didn't drink & put in his cabin fridge. Then get one for later beer drinking. Ask cost of one bottle and bucket here.

I was told they go to the country of India. This is where all ships go, freighters, cruise ships etc. go. They are run up onto the beach, then they are cut apart for scrap. Just think, your water bottle or beer can may have been a cruise ship!

Thanks, I'll try that!

Carnival ships have a Serenity Deck. This is for adults ONLY and no smoking. Most also have 1 or 2 hot tubs and some have a pool. Kids are not allowed here and they mean it. So, only adults in hot tub or pool. And I have seen them testing the water in the hot tubs every day.

We call the lido deck pools Pee pools because of the kids in them- same with those hot tubs. Never go in them!

I always used to get new posts in my email after someone else posted after I had posted. That no longer happens. Did I hit the wrong button somewhere? How do I get this back? I enjoy seeing what others have to say after my posts.

The Ecstasy is the Carnival ship based in Charleston. The majority of their cruises are to Nassau & Freeport, 5 days, but they usually do have s 7 day every month or so. ( the Ecstasy is Carnivals 2nd oldest ship after the Fantasy.) It holds about 2100 passengers so is not big at all.

But other Carnival umbrella ships (Holland America, etc.) do use Charleston sometimes and ships that have been up north in the summer come back to FL in early Nov. Charleston can be a stop on their repositioning cruise back to their home port.

Check to see what other ships will be stopping there.

Next year, in May, 2019, the Sunshine (3200 passengers) is moving to Charleston as it's new home port!

We have seen games like monopoly, checkers, etc., in the ship's library and see people playing games there. Check out the library!

The only thing is suitcases are not x-rayed getting off the ship. We don't smoke but had a friend who said they put cartons IN their suitcase. He'd buy one, then she'd buy one and they took them home with no problems. And they took one in their carry off that could be seen.

When our daughter-in-law asked us to buy cigs, we said no- and she has now stopped smoking.

Meet a couple once sitting by the handicapped door to board. He thought he had his passport until they got to check in. He forgot it and their drive home was too long to go get it. They had checked all their luggage but don't know what happened about that and they were experienced cruisers. My husband always just has our birth certificates in his wallet if need be.

Most of the time in cabs we've had, they don't even have seatbelts! So child seats would do no good. But cabbies are good drivers. This is their income and they don't want to do anything to jeopardize their main income. Don't know your ports but some have beaches close enough to walk to. Google your ports to find this out or ask here about your ports.

(We've been cruising since 1984, 100+ cruises!)

The ONLY things at the port itself are shops built because the port was built. There is no beach at all. You have to take a cab into town-$5@. The free beaches are on the right with hotels. On the left are better shops and this is where you can get a tour (not necessarily a ship's tour) to snorkel and I think dive. Google tours in Freeport and see what comes up.

Do try to use it in port where you don't have to use the ship's system. I have done this and there is no charge for using the ship's system. If you're not in port, there will be.

We have stayed at what is now America's Best Value Inn in Cocoa- not Cocoa Beach. It used to be an Econo Lodge. We pay under $100, with the $5 charge for the shuttle to and from the port. Rooms are clean and there is a hot breakfast each morning. The shuttle comes at 10am.

We also stay here the night before a cruise from Miami or Lauderdale. It is very easy to get to from 95.

The local phone number is 321-632-4561. The address is 3320 N. Cocoa Blvd., Cocoa, Fl 32961. (this is US 1.)

Did you know Orient Beach is a nude beach? You are dropped off in an area with few or no nudes but we have seen them nude just walking the beach.

The upper bunks usually have a 'rail' so you can' fall off the bed. Ladder up is next to it. It will be folded up when the steward comes in the morning to make up the cabin and it will be pulled down at night.

Cheap is an inside cabin which we have no trouble with.