SCAnthony

True! And We will have fun, we are not too hard to please. And we thought Carnival was way better value for the money than RC and had better food and entertainment. But maybe that's just us.

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We have only sailed on bigger ships(Carnival Dream and RC Liberty) but we are looking forward to trying a smaller ship. I read a lot of negative things about the Elation but I looked at pictures and videos and it already looked pretty nice to me. Can't wait to see it after the renovations. We are doing the 5 day Oct 7 sailing to Nassau and HMC.

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Does anyone know when they usually announce what will be done during ship refurbishments / dry docks. We are booked on the Elation this October and I read where it will be dry docked for nearly a month just prior to our sailing. Wondering what all will be done.

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Sounds great, Thanks!

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We will be on the Elation on the Oct 7 sailing to Nassau and Half Moon Cay. We were supposed to do a 7 day E Carib this spring on the Magic but had to cancel due to a major health issue with my dad. Now we are booked on the Elation and at first I was reading a lot of bad reviews but didn't worry too much. Then I read about the dry dock right before our cruise and that got us pretty excited. Anyone know what they will be adding / changing or when they will announce it? Can't find any info, just that it will be dry docked most of September. Also, what it HMC like? Looks nice but don't really know what to expect, never been to a private island before. Thanks

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Thanks.

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Are there any beach clubs close to the port in San Juan? Something similar to the beach clubs/beach bars in Cozumel that has beach chairs/umbrellas for rent and clean facilities? I've looked on tripadvisor and other sites and can't find anything?

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Didn't mean to start any arguments, enjoying all the responses though. [emoji3]

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I think we will stick to Carnival and RC. I just wanted to see if there was something I was missing when comparing the prices. I know a lot of people will pay extra just for the Disney name....I'd bet good money that all else being equal, if Disney Cruises changed their name to something not Disney related, they'd be out of business in a short time

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I doubt the person in the MM costume on the ship is a college kid.

Ha! True.

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Different stroke for different folks I guess. Doubt I will ever spring for a Disney cruise but was wondering what would make it that much better. Thanks for the input.

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I'm sure there are a bunch of topics on this but can someone give me one good reason to pay 3-4x the money to cruise on Disney over Carnival(or any other line). We went on the Dream last year and are going on the Magic in March. Had a great time on the Carnival Dream (good food, entertainment, great service, nice room)and are looking forward to the Magic. Priced a similar cruise with Disney before booking our March cruise on Magic. It was literally 3x times the cost for same room type(mid ship balcony). Just can't see how it would be worth it to pay $5-6 thousand more to see some college kid in a Mickey Mouse costume.

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Does anyone know if there are places to rent snorkel gear or possibly do an intro scuba class at the cruise center / beach area

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Hmmmm, what to expect? We've decided to avoid any Carnival cruise during any type of "peak" period. Carnival's target demographic is families and the "budget" market. And at this, they excel. They will cram as many kids into as few cabins as possible. At least, it certainly seems that way. But I have seen sales specifically for the third and fourth guests in a cabin. Crowded shows is an understatement - we've been standing in line for shows early and still couldn't get a seat. The rush of the crowd was unbelievable! I've actually talked to the CD about Carnival's lack of crowd control. Fortunately, Carnival's focus on the passengers entertaining themselves (the game and audience participation shows) results in entertainment worthy of being missed.

 

The number of unruly kids really multiplies when school is out. DW, who gets up early, has seen unruly drunk teenagers still partying on deck from the previous night. I think the parents regard a cruise as an opportunity to take a break from parenting.

 

Good luck. You have been warned.

 

 

Bennett of BennettandDebbie

We are a budget minded family with 2 kids, so we should fit right in.

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Thanks for the replies.

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We have only been on one Carnival cruise (Dream, 7 day out of New Orleans in November of '15). We have our next one planned for this coming March 25 on the Magic. Was wondering what to expect as far as things like getting in to the shows, bingo, etc. being that it will be spring break for a lot of people. On the Dream in November we would show up about 10-15 minutes early and sit wherever we wanted. Will it be a lot more difficult to get in and get a good seat being that it is Spring Break? Or or are most cruises that are booked pretty full gonna be about the same regardless of time of year? Thanks

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We have been to Cozumel twice. Once we did Paradise beach and once we went to Chankanaab. Paradise beach was OK, not great, but it was pretty cheap. The beach was nice but in the water the bottom is rocky. There is a pool and nice facilities. Chankanaab costs a bit more but was a great place to spend the day with lots of stuff to do also with pool, etc. The beach there is nice but not a typical "walk in" beach. There are places to go in the water down steps, gets deep really quickly but is great for snorkeling right off the beach. There are lots of beach chairs and umbrellas. Both were easy to get to on your own, just go grab a taxi from the port. Taxis also readily available for return.

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Thanks for the update!

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We are booked on the Magic on 3-25-17. Wondering what the theater shows will be like. We were on the Dream in Nov '15 and really enjoyed the shows(there was an 80's night, Motown, etc). How often do they change up the themes and do all the ships do the same shows or what? I see a lot of people criticizing Carnivals entertainment but we really enjoyed it and went to the show just about every night. Much better than the RC cruise we went on a few years ago, IMO.

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Thanks!!

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We will be on the Magic for a 7 day E Caribbean cruise in March, '17. We have a group of 11, my brother will be in a cabin by himself and my parents will be in a cabin. Question: Can they move my dad to my brothers cabin for purposes of getting the drink package(my mom wouldn't want it, drinks very little) but my dad still be able to have a key to the cabin with my mom? Not trying to break any Carnival rules or anything, just want to know if there is an easy way to do this so my dad and brother can get the drink package without my mom also having to buy it with my dad.

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