richmke

1 hour ago, Nettiebell said:

Can you interact between the medallion and your cell phone with the ship's wifi - so keeping your phone on "airplane mode" and not using the internet.  So being able to order drinks on your phone,  find other friends/family on the ship on your phone -  without internet.

 

"Airplane Mode" will turn off your Cellular connection, and usually also turns off your wifi. After putting in Airplane Mode, you need to turn back on your wifi and connect to the Ship's wifi. Then you can use one of the Ocean apps to order drinks from your phone, and a different Ocean app to find your friends/family.

Medallion is free. If you don't order it in advance, you pick it up when you check-in/board.

It replaces your cruise card. You are not tied to your phone. The Medallion provides your location information to the ship so certain Ocean Apps can "enhance" your cruise experiences. For instance, you can order drinks from your phone (and they know where to deliver the drink), or locate other people in your party. Your choice if you want to carry your phone for those features.

You will need the Medallion to unlock your cabin door, charge stuff to your account, and get back on the ship after a port day.

> If they want everyone to have one why don't they just ship them out automatically? 

If you are not expecting the Medallion, you might leave it at home. It also gives them the opportunity to upsell you one of the medallion holders. You also have to complete the check-in process in order to have it shipped to you. So, if you don't complete the check-in process, no Medallion in advance.

1 hour ago, Denali2003 said:

I know you can set up your information with the Ocean Ready App.  However, do you HAVE to scan your Passport to your phone?  If you don't does that make for boarding more complicated?  Not really comfortable about having my passport on my phone.

Using the Ocean App, the passport is scanned BY your phone into the Ocean system. It is not retained on your phone (not saved in your photos). No different from Princess scanning your passport into the Ocean system, or you entering the information into the Princess (your princess account) or Ocean system.

I keep a copy of my passport scanned on my phone, just in case I loose the passport. You can show that to the Embassy/Consulate office to get a new one, or to Immigration/Passport Control to help get back into the USA.The only sensitive data is your birthday. If you are worried about that, cover the birthday before saving it to your phone.

Any stats on upsell from Interior to Ocean View?

11 hours ago, Ombud said:

I'm on the same cruise but it still doesn't recognize me. When should I call them to find out why?

Are your trying through a browser or the app? I had problems using the app version to recognize the cruise, but the browser version worked fine (www.ocean.com) . Once the online version recognized it, I logged out of the app, and then logged back in. The app then recognized the cruise.

Since tipping includes the waitstaff does that mean you don't have to tip the MDR waiters at the end of the cruise?

Anyone you should consider tipping (other than bars, spa, casino)?

We have a 7-day eastern Caribbean cruise booked with EZair (they had the best airfare).

With cruise lines trying to get you to book your next trip while on board, how about booking the 2nd week of a back-to-back cruise (western Caribbean portion) and Princess moving the EZair return flight out a week?

I'm hoping if they have space on the ship, they would be willing to give a nice price for the 2nd week.

I cruised on the Imagination on Jan 1, 2017 for 4 days. Stops were Catalina Island, and Ensenada, MX.

This was our 2nd cruise, the first being a 7-day Caribbean cruise on the Glory. The Imagination is smaller than the Glory. About the main difference is that it did not have the specialty extra cost restaurants.

For the most part, it was an enjoyable cruise. Most issues were things Carnival doesn't control (weather). My few complaints are:

1) The bathroom in our cabin (U117) has a slight sewage smell. You would think that a newly refurbished ship would not have that problem.

2) The magnet holding the main cabin door open was quite strong. I put a paper envelope over it to provide some separation to make closing the door easier.

3) The 110v plug in the bathroom has a device that pushes out plugs. Loose fitting plugs are a problem.

4) There is a Cabin Light switch that is above the bed. When in king-bed configuration, it is easy to hit, which is annoying. I'm guessing that when in 2 twin configuration, it is between the beds.

5) The 220v socket does not have the 2 round plug option (like the Glory did). I did not bring the correct adapter. The 220v looks like a 110v 3-prong, but the prongs are sideways instead of vertical.

6) Temp control of the Cabin consists of moderating the amount of cold air coming through the vent. The air flow is quite noisy, and there is no way to heat up the cabin (air coming out is cold).

7) In the public areas, the handicapped stalls (Men's room, don't know about Women's rooms) have a sink and blow dryer for the hands. A nice touch. However, the blow dryer is right above the Toilet Paper, so after a little while, the TP gets quite wet. One solution is to install a baffle above the TP so the water doesn't blow onto the roll.

8) There are fake 110v/USB sockets at the Internet Stations. It would have been a nice feature - A nice quite place to read and charge my device early in the morning.

10) This cruise seems to be the classic annoying younger party crowed that Carnival is known for (we are in our 50's). The Glory cruise had better behaved passengers. Maybe because it was a New Year's Cruise?

11) Annoyed at how much of the entertainment is risque (comedy, main stage, other shows). Even the early comedy shows that were rated "R" were really "X".

12) I originally booked Early Dining, then Wait listed for Late Dining after friends cancelled. We eventually were confirmed for Late Dining, but no one told the Imagination. Cards and MDR still had us at Early Dining. No problem switching since Early Dining was the more popular choice.

13) I used the Carnival chat app on my Iphone 4s. It kept logging me out without any indication that it had. So, I had to make sure that I kept logging back in to get messages when I was expecting them. It worked fine on an Android 6 phone.

Food was fine, and for the most part, unremarkable. No free lobster on Elegant night. Prime Rib was good, but cut too thin for my taste. I did like the Pizza because it had a thin crust. One person at our table had the $20 Steak and Lobster - Didn't look worth it. The Soft Serve Ice Cream was runny during one of the dinners. The Frozen Yogurt was never working when I tried. There was a Beer Vending Machine. There is a LIDO Buffet that is outside which had much shorter lines than the inside LIDO Buffet.

On our first cruise we were on the Riviera Deck (lowest), Outside Cabin. We liked the lower deck much better for the view. I like to see the waves up close. The Upper Deck you just see a typical view of the ocean.

This 4-day cruise was a mini version of our first 7-day cruise. A lot of the novelty wore off, and it was just more of the same, even the main stage shows. The purpose of the cruise was to relax, so that part was fine (other than the colder weather). Maybe next time I will pick a cruise line that has more "talks" for entertainment.

Cruised on Jan 1, 2017, and it was the same shows: Divas and Epic Rock.

Do Grand Suites on the Inspiration get priority check-in? According to Carnival: "... those traveling in deluxe suite accommodations with special check-in privileges.". Do Inspiration Suites get "special check-in privileges"?

Is 2:00 pm when suites are available, or are they all available earlier (unless you have FTTF, Platinum status, etc)?

I am in an OV, and by daughter is in the Suite (her kids are coming too!!!). The reservations are linked. Any chance they will let us on with them?

Inspiration is getting upgraded in Sept, just in time for our trip in Jan - Woot!

What time does check-in start, and when do they usually start boarding? Carnival says boarding is 1:00-4:00pm for the 5:30 departure.

Finally, any hotel recommendations for the night before embarkation.

Thanks!

Dear richmke: it's a pity you hadn't gone back and read many of the prior posts; ...

I was getting that impression. The purpose of my post was to give a possible insight on "why Indian" vs any other vegetarian fare. With a lot of staff from India, it make sense that Indian is the chosen style.

So, back to the thread: anyone have an experience recently while cruising with Indian cuisine? Good? Bad? Why/why not?

I was on the Glory about a month ago. Once I figured it out, I started ordering Indian as a 2nd entree. Some nights it was quite good (awesome curry dish), some nights, not so great (have no idea what it was). Another table mate did what I did, and he had a similar response. I didn't feel bad not eating what was not so great.

I have no idea if it was "authentic" or not. All I really care about is: How does it taste to me? A nice steak as the main entree, and a nice spicy Indian side dish - I'm a happy guy.

We did this cruise in 2014. We experienced very cold outdoor temperatures (33 F, 1C) after we entered the northern Pacific toward Alaska.

Thanks for the info. I'll save a few bucks and get an Outside View.

How did you like the cruise? I'm flying to Asia to visit family, so I thought taking a cruise back would help with the recovery from jet lag.

I am thinking of the Transpacific Cruise on the Millennium. Departure date is May 7, 2017. It spends a day in port, and then leaves Tokyo on May 8, 2017.

I looked up the Millennium's schedule, and it has a 2 week cruise on April 8, arriving Tokyo on April 22. I couldn't find anything between April 22-May 8. Are they refurbishing the Millennium?

Also, what would be the boarding time on May 7?

Does the Millennium have educational classes, or other things to do during the many sea days?

Any guess on the weather during that time (May 7-21)? Should I get a forward Balcony (+200/person) or stick with the Outside View?

The challenge is unless you are retired and financially well off, it is one of those 'wish I can have it' things.

Jan-Feb, Jun-Aug, and Nov-Dec, I have a lot of flexibility to take off work, especially with a month or two notice.

I'm thinking around October, I will start looking for cruises in the Jan/Feb time frame, and jump on any in the $60/night range (outside view). If I can get a cheap airfare (bidding on priceline, or through the cruise line), then I'm off.

Although, I am intrigued by MCS. They have a balcony special, and I can book for next year for $650/person for a week. Hmmm....

Let me first apologize for not reading 19 pages of responses.

IMHO, the reason Indian is chosen is because of Staff. Most of the staff is from Indian and Philippines (1,000+ people on a large cruise ship), including the cooking staff. So, if they are making food for staff, it is easy to scale it up a little more to offer a "vegetarian" dish for the customers. Plus, the cooking staff, being from India, is likely to have Indian food as one of the better (authentic) cuisines they make.

I thought the "All spirits, including cocktails, cognacs, whiskies and other spirits, as well as beer and glasses of wine, with a $50 USD or lower menu price per serving " was a typo...

 

But according to Carnival, it is not!

I read somewhere that there might be some specialty drinks that are in the $60-$80 price range (rare scotch???). Otherwise, all other drinks are under $20. So, for PR purposes, they can say $50, that is, until they offer a $25 drink.

Fresh off my first cruise, and now I am looking into my next one.

I visit my parents who live in China, which led me to trans-pacific cruise. Wow! $70/night/person for an Ocean view on Celebrity. It would be great for the return, which kills me with the jet-lag. It takes me 1-2 weeks to fully recover, so the 2 week cruise is just perfect.

Looking around, I found a 20 day cruise on NCL from Chile to San Francisco. 799/899/999 per person for inside/outside/balcony. Trouble is: the cruise departs April 9, 2016. too soon.

So, I think the next time I cruise, I'll just watch the sales, and go where I can get 2-3 weeks around $50-$70/night/person. If I can get a decent flight off Priceline, I'm gone cruisin!

Was this a free or paid upgrade?

If the current offer from Princess to the general public is $x with $y of OBC, one would think that you should be able to get that deal.

If Princess is giving you an upgrade opportunity that is not available to be booked by the general public, that's a different story.

As provided in the Passage Contract, guests agree not to bring alcoholic beverages of any kind onboard for consumption, except one bottle of wine or champagne per adult of drinking age (no larger than 750 ml) per voyage, which will not be subject to a corkage fee if consumed in the stateroom. Additional wine or champagne bottles are welcome, but will incur a $15 corkage fee each, irrespective of where they are intended to be consumed. Liquor, spirits or beers are not permitted. Please remember that luggage will be scanned and alcohol outside of our policy will be removed and discarded.

http://www.princess.com/learn/faq_answer/pre_cruise/bring.jsp

> before we head out to supper

As stated in their policy: "which will not be subject to a corkage fee if consumed in the stateroom.". So, if you consume the wine in your stateroom before supper, there will be no corkage fee on the first 2 bottles of wine (one per adult) brought on-board.

If you bring the bottle to the table, there will be a corkage fee.

That said, we have brought a glass of wine to the table, and were not charged a corkage fee. They have no way of telling if you bought the glass from the bar (comedy show right before dinner), or not.

Note: If you bring on more than 2 bottles, and are charged a corkage fee upon embarkation, I have no idea how to tell your waiter so that they don't charge you another corkage fee if you bring the bottle to the table.

They felt the cost justified the savings of soda cost. I think it was common core math at play.

Sounds like "New Math" to me. The right answer is not as important as how you feel about your answer.

Wouldn't the Ship Mate App require Internet package ($25/7 day cruise assuming it is included in Social Media)? whereas the Carnival Hub App does not ($5/cruise).

I would have both loaded prior to departure, and see if the Hub App works.

I was in a three person room with a trundle bed. Room service once a day meant that they did not put the trundle bed away at all. It was out in the middle of the inside room we were sharing all day.

 

Not having service more than once a day many that we (three girls one a teenager) were reusing towels which sometimes were not dry after returning from Port and wanting to get ready for dinner.

Food for thought: Isn't the "recommended tipping" on a per person basis? If so, the CS is getting 50% more tips with a 3rd person in the room (or 100% more with 4 people). Seems like having the extra people in the room would justify the twice a day service (when it is most needed).

And what makes you an expert on the value of the USD?

I stayed at a Holiday Inn Express last night.

Even if I was a Currency Trader, my opinion about where the USD/CDN is going more than an hour from now, is worthless.

All I know is that currencies tend to have long trends. The USD has had a long run since 2011. Could the USD reach the 1997 highs? Nothing is impossible. If you look at the trend line of the declining peaks since then (1997, 1999, 2010), the 2016 peak is in line with the long-tern trend.

If the Trend is your friend, the USD will decline for a year or two before rallying to another lower high. There will be short-term peaks and troughs in the meantime.

IMHO: If I have a bag of clothes for the evening/night, 2 bottles of wine, and a case of pop, I'll take the chance and ask to leave them in the closet (out of the Cabin Steward's way, and out of sight of people who might want to steal it). That stuff has little value.

Regarding money, jewelry, passports, etc.: Ssk the CS if you can lock that stuff in the safe.

This isn't rocket science, and we are asking to drop off a day bag in an out of the way place, not unload all the luggage.

I'm sure "Stewart" was thrilled to drop everything he was doing to take care of your rule-breaking request.

I have a written list of what I want (ice, wine glasses, empty the mini fridge, etc.), and give it to the CS with a tip. That makes him more than happy. I'm sure adding leaving bags in the closet would not ruin his day.

Just got off the Reflection in Miami on Feb 6th. Had prebooked a car with Budget. Used location "Port of Miami, SE 2nd St". Waited about 10 minutes for shuttle. He did not wait to fill up, as no one else was waiting. So it was just my sister and me on the shuttle. 10 minutes to rental location. 20 minute wait for car.

I dropped off a Budget car on the way to a cruise. We dropped off around 11:00 am, and there was a line of people waiting to rent a car (waiting for cars to be dropped off?), and for the shuttle to the Port.

My point being: Given the comments about waiting for a car, you might want to have one person Self Assist Debark to get the car ASAP and avoid the lines.