CA_Cruzing

4 hours ago, Keys2Heaven said:

 

Your hospital needs a better IT budget.  Windows CE?

Windows CE. Crappy Edition. 

Vista, due to itineraries, crew, dining options, deck plans, bars and the ships stability. We felt no waves at all on two Vista cruises. Off season was better than high season, of course, but we had a great time both times sailing her. 

We’re looking forward to Panorama coming to LB. She’ll make sailing the MR much more enjoyable. 

Here’s the link to my pic and Cabo marina and getting to Medano. 

1 hour ago, Gettys84 said:

All the juices are for charge now, and are NOT included in the Cheers package. $5 each. 

Those are specialty justices. IIRC you can still get grapefruit, orange, and other juices at SDB in the MDR. Just ask your server. 

This: 

49 minutes ago, PlanoDebbie said:

You'll want to find out what time and where to be to request Tender tickets.  We were just in Belize last month, but didn't book any tours this time.  I'm not a fan of the tender boats in Belize because it's a good 20 minute ride.  Keep in mind that folks who are Platinum, Diamond or have FTTF will have priority over you.  If you had booked your tour through Carnival, that would have given you priority.  On our cruise, I believe the first tenders started around 8 am.  It was probably around 10:30 when they announced that tender tickets were no longer required.

 

Go to either guest services or the tour desk on your first sea day to find out what you need to do.  They should be able to tell you what is the earliest time you can pick up tender tickets, where to go and if you all need to request your own tickets, or if you need their S&S cards or what.  Don't wait until your ship is anchored in Belize to find out.  Most likely one of the lounges will be where you go to pick them up.  You might also want to be sure your tour will wait for you if you aren't the first one off the ship.

 

Follow Debs advice for the win! Spot on and correct. 

14 hours ago, JennPVMX said:

The marina area, is it just beyond the port area? Is there a decent beach option close? We don’t have FTTF or priority status, so with the tender I don’t know if we will have time to do Land’s End? We may just have to wait and see on this one. 

Just google maps Cabo: Cabo San Lucas
Baja California Sur, Mexico
https://goo.gl/maps/wi9VS5e5dzr

Cabo’s is easily navigated and compact. 

Pay attention when on board for when they will release tender group numbers. Grab an early number (physical tag) and you get an earlier tender position. 

IIRC, the tender tags will be on deck 5 just past the casino heading aft on this ship, starboard side. 

If if you’re waiting before they release the group tags at the specific location (confirm with guest services, FUN Team or the excursion desk) you’ll score a low group number as in tags 1-3. 

For future reference, always buy travel insurance within a week of making first deposit. If you think there’s even a chance of cancelling, buy the “cancel for any reason” optional coverage. 

Congrats on on your good news and hopefully everything works out great for you guys. 

For 2 people we paid USD$10 each way total for both the GZ in Mazatlán and to/from Secrets Resort in PV. In PV we exited the cruise terminal and took a non-white, regular cab. We did have to negotiate the price though in both ports. 

Taxi drivers were asking USD$20 one way for wife and I and we just stuck with telling them USD$10. After they asked three times for more, both drivers agreed on $10. We tipped the drivers in addition. 

This was March 2019. 

we disembarked on 16Mar and we're still too full to eat.

water, salad and more water is our fare for now 😀

6 hours ago, CruisingFromLA said:

Just got off the Carnival Splendor and wanted to share the most recent funtimes and menus. Enjoy.

Carnival Splendor Funtimes.pdf 2.59 MB · 31 downloads Carnival Splendor Menus.pdf 2.65 MB · 52 downloads

very well done presentation! thank you.

We own 4 sets of these and they are fantastic. We have the full face masks too and found they made my wife an I nauseous whe snorkeling on excursions. 

We we just prefer traditional masks now along with these modern snorkels. The snorkels themselves make a huge difference in that you’re not drinking the ocean. 

HEAD X-One Bungee Adjustable Mask Fin Snorkel Set, Small/Medium, Yellow https://www.amazon.com/dp/B076NZYPJK/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_tai_8OBLCbA1QERCK

1 hour ago, thesmiths said:

We did this in La Romana and had a blast.

 

Aruba we went Horse Back Riding! Private Ride with Gold Mine. EXCELLENT!

Curacao we hired Taxi Max for the day.

Grand Turk golf carts to the light house and every other part of the island then topped it off at Jacks and one for the road at Margaritaville.

 

We are going on the Horizon next May to the ABC's, can't wait.

Havana Aft Wrap again.

 

Woodwind snorkeling tour in Bonaire is a must do if you like being in the water. Best snorkeling we’ve ever done.  woodwindbonaire.com

On 3/19/2019 at 8:16 AM, lele100 said:

We are going this May same Itinerary same ship.  For La Romana, I have been there before and we did a private tour through Seavis Tours, it was called the Saona Special.  It was so much fun.  You take a boat that takes you to a couple famous stops one is the national park and the other I believe was the mangroves, and they give you some history on those, then they take you to the beach, where there is snorkling included if you want and a really good lunch, there were loungers there and drinks included. Then back on the boat to the "natural pool" which is a sandbank so beautiful you jump in the water and there are starfish everywhere you get to take pics, and they serve drinks from the little boat while you are in the water, if I remember correctly they also served rum cake.  It really was alot of fun.

I 2nd Seavis Saona Special. My fam and I had a great time on this tour. 

We we went to Jacks Shack on GT. Great Jerk Chicken, strong drinks and we snorkeled right off the beach there. 

Aruba we went to Eagle Beach and just chilled. 

And on Curaçao we took a cab to Playa Porto Marie for beach, snorkeling and they have a great bar and restaurant on the beach. The snorkeling was great and we swam out to the shelf. Flora and fauna were nice and some great fish too. Water was crystal clear and warm. 

Downtown Curaçao is a very pretty down with some nice shops and local foods to experience. By far Curaçao is our favorite of these 4 ports. 

I can’t speak for the Imagination but we just got off the Splendor, MX Riviera 7 day cruise and YTD had some long waits at times. 

In my past 4 cruises it was the longest YTD waits ever experienced. I think it had more to do with Splendor than anything else. On the Vista (2x) our longest YTD wait was 10 mins. That’s both as a 2 top table and cruising with friends as a 10 top which were seated as 2 5 tops.

Happy 15th! And enjoy yourselves! 

At Secrets right now and the resort is all that and more. Service is excellent, food is excellent and the drinks stiff. The most beautiful Mexican resort we’ve ever experienced. 

Everything worked out on email and we showed up and registered for the day. 

If if you’re seeking a top shelf experience, this is it. 

March. I’m in PV right now on MX Riv cruise and this is the best weather we’ve had in 4 Riviera cruises. 

And whale watching in Cabo was incredible. Early March is better than late March per our whale watch guide. 

Summer too too hot and fall IMO was too cold. 

WWC in Cabo. Great Trip Advisor reviews. 

Whales! We’ll be in Cabo 11Mar doing just that. Then shopping and tequila tastings. 

if your budget is wide open, book Havana area cabins. you'll have access to the Havana pool which is less crowded in the daytime than the rest fo the ship.

if you're seeking more value, then regular balconies will do just fine. 4 people in a cabin could be less expensive than 3 people in a cabin (with 2 cabins) but check your booking rate by doing a mock booking for a 2 and 4 in two cabins. 

depending on when you're booking for, that will determine how close each cabin will be to the other cabin. not all cabins sleep 3 or 4. people. pull up the ship's deck plans to see which rooms sleep 4, 3 and 2 people.

personally, because of your traveller's ages, i'd avoid Family Harbor (mostly younger kids and could be noisy with little ones around (jmo).

since your booking scenario is a little more complex and you're less experienced, you might want to book directly with Carnival and then transfer your booking to your preferred Agent.

ask away! you'll get mostly good feedback on CC. 

wife and i don't buy cheers. we cruise bringing two bottles when we board (wine and or bubbly), and maybe in a 7 day cruise we'll drink a total of 12-14 drinks in addition to our two bottles we bring on board. the math just doesn't work out for us at all. we usually drink more when in port either free on an excursion or at a local restaurant enjoying local food.

36 minutes ago, plunker said:

Aruba Bonaire and Curacao 

Our fave itinerary. If you like snorkeling, this one is a must do. Our best excursion ever in ABC: https://www.woodwindbonaire.com/

We sailed Vista to ABC and had a great time. Ask away. You’re set for a fun trip. 

I’d prefer they off some dishes without carbs on them and more proteins. That’d save me from ordering a 2nd entree just to have more proteins. 

Example, when we order the seafood pasta, I only eat the seafood and never the pasta. And wait staff won’t serve just a steak or salmon without all the sides on the plate. These rules generate waste. 

I wish Carnival would allow more paleo style plating options than just carb loading those who don’t seek carbs. 

8 minutes ago, plunker said:

Can you eat lunch in the main dining room after you board?  It's nice to have a sit down lunch and stay away from the packed buffet.

No MDR on embark.  Avoid the buffet and hit a specialty like JiJi or Cucina del Capitano or the BBQ place or Guy’s Burgers. 

Welcome me to the ships that are alive past 10PM. 

Which itinerary are are you sailing?

7 minutes ago, fyree39 said:

Where I live, we have Denny's and Mexican food diners.  I can see the look on the Denny's hostess if I slid her $20 and asked for a table by a window.

Qualifier was “nice” restaurant. 

Your geo location says SoCal. I’m pretty sure there’s more upscale dining in SoCal than just Lenny’s and taco shacks. 

I can can suggest some places for you if you’d like to explore some new venues.