lab_love123

May 18th of this year (2019)? You're within the final payment date, so prices tend to drop a little if the cruise line is trying to sell cabins. What class of stateroom are you pricing? You could look at a lesser cabin (like an inside or oceanview if you were pricing balconies), that might save you a few dollars.

The other consideration when you put off booking, is whether or not you have to fly to your embarkation point. If you wait too close to sail date to book airfare, it's likely to be much more expensive. So while the cruise price might be lower, there's a chance you're making up for the difference with the air.

I'm really enjoying your review. I've never given much thought to cruising from NOLA because the Florida ports are much easier for me to get to. However, after reading all of your fun pre-cruise activities I'm going to have to reconsider!

4 hours ago, Grenouille21 said:

Private island is Princess Cays.

Princess Cays is very nice, but not quite as nice as HMC in my opinion 🙂 So, I would be more likely to go Western Caribbean in this situation.

If the private island were Half Moon Cay, that would HEAVILY favor the Eastern Caribbean itinerary for me. It's a beautiful stop. If you don't typically sail HAL or Carnival, you're not likely to make it back there; whereas, Roatan and Belize are becoming quite popular on the Western Caribbean itineraries so your chances of making it there are greater.

Don't worry! I understand the anxiety - and only actually sailing and going through the cruise will completely set your mind at ease. But, you'll be fine with loungers on both, although you might need to be a little more pro-active on your RC cruise to the Bahamas just because it's a shorter cruise and your fellow passengers will be looking to maximize their Lido deck time. However, since you stated you're ok being a little away from the pool, you'll have plenty of success. I like to go one deck up from Lido (pool); there are usually plenty of loungers up there. Find out if your ship has an "adults" only sun deck - this is usually a nice quiet area but can fill up on sea days.

You'll find wait staff milling around the decks by the pool and at shows taking orders and delivering drinks. They'll approach you or don't hesitate to flag them down. You'll also have no problem going up to the bar for a drink. I've never had to wait a long time doing that.

IMO, I wouldn't say you needed to eat dinner early to ensure a good seat at a bar/lounge. There are generally multiple places and activities going on at any one time, that many people tend to move around throughout the evening. Sometimes arriving early to a show will help with your available seat choices, but for the most part if you're just out and about socializing, you really won't have an issue.

On 3/18/2019 at 3:28 PM, murfturf said:

Bringing this topic back to the top! 

 

I've been browsing for a new suit and thinking about trying a two piece - not a tankini but maybe a high waist bottom with a flounce top. So I've looked at Torrid and they have some really cute pieces I may order.  But when I looked on Lane Bryant I was NOT impressed with what they had to offer. The suits didn't look good on any of their models. 

 

Any great finds for the 2019 season? 

I had some really good success at Kohl's this year - I got two new suits for a great price. See pics. One was a swimdress that I NEVER thought I would like but it's really cute! I've had success in the past with Venus.com. They have a selection of cute plus size suits - although some show a little more than I like. Tankini tops run small (especially for the large busted), but everything else I've tried has been true to size.

Yes, typically you can use US dollars. Change is usually given back in local currency though, so it is beneficial to have smaller bill denominations ($1, $5, $10) so you don't have to get quite so much change back in a foreign currency. 

I don’t remember if the balance can be prepaid. We paid the remainder day of when we arrived at Mr. Sancho’s. They accept cash or credit card (I used a cc that doesn’t have a fee for international charges). 

I'm not entirely sure E249 is actually directly under the dining room. Looks more like there's a walkway area that wraps around the aft of the ship that would be over top. Not sure how noisy it would be, but if it's one of those "secret" not well known public areas, it's probably pretty quiet. Being under a dining room is ok, you'd probably get some noise at dining times, but otherwise it's pretty quiet. The carpet does a fair job of absorbing noise. Probably just want to avoid being under the galley.

Regarding cabanas, you'd probably have to call the shore excursions dept., or possibly someone on these boards is on that sailing and can tell you if there are still any available. I don't know anyone but the cruise line would know specifically how many might be available.

Once final payment is due, rooms usually open up. HOWEVER July is very busy so there is a good chance nothing will open and the cruise will be sold out. If you really want to go, you'd be better off booking a lesser cabin now and hoping for an upsell or something to come available later if you don't want to miss the cruise.

Warm chocolate melting cake, without a doubt.

The piano bar on ship is often overlooked, but one of my favorite evening activities.

Elegant/formal/whatever you call it night in the MDR. The wait staff usually has a song and dance for you and it is highly entertaining. I think the other lines do this as well, but not with quite the same... enthusiasm... as I've seen on Carnival!

Well it wasn’t a cruise, but I remember my parents doing something similar for my sister and I. We had a sleep over at my grandparents one Friday night, and when my parents picked us up Saturday morning, they surprised us with a trip down the shore for a few days. It’s one of my fondest memories. 

(hopefully they load up in this order)

#1 - sail away from Miami

#2 - balcony view on a sea day

#3 - view of Half Moon Cay from ship

#4 - docked next to Carnival Ecstasy in Nassau
#5 - view of Atlantis in Nassau

#6 - view of downtown Nassau

14 minutes ago, Organized Chaos said:

My wife doesn't think connecting rooms will be a problem, especially since it's family. Even so, I'd still kind of like to avoid it, but I think I've been outvoted. Funny how that can happen when there's only two votes. 🤨

Well that’s because her vote counts for more! 😁😉

I can’t answer all your questions, but I’ve got a few answers for you! 

1. I’m not aware of any sales necessarily, although these things typically come with a “discount” if you purchase pre-cruise. Sometimes Carnival will run specials, so just keep your eye out. 

2. Yes, typically there are 2 show times each night with times accommodating the early and late dinner seatings. 

3. Not as far as I know. 

4. ??

5. ??

6. The buffet, pizza place, Guys burgers, Blue Iguana, Pig & Anchor. Maybe others. 

7. Definitely Blue Iguana IMO. I don’t really utilize the specialty restaurants though so no advice there. 

8. Comedy shows are usually worth the effort. I always enjoy the piano bar as well. 

9. ??

10. Nothing else from me LOL

I'm curious what your PVP tells you. I just booked and I asked the question about changes. Basically, I was told that before final payment I would be able to transfer my deposit to another sailing. There'd be a $50 admin fee, and then obviously any difference in fare. It is entirely possible that I misunderstood the information though.

In regards to itinerary - if you think the itinerary is worth the extra $300 then I would switch. I've done oceanviews several times and they're fine. I like the natural light. It's not a huge window and you don't have as amazing views as in a balcony, but I like being able to look out. I'm more amenable to an OV on cruises with fewer sea days. If there are a lot of sea days, I reeeaaaallllyyyy like the balcony. 

I had a connecting cabin on my recent cruise on the Victory. I noticed very little noise - I had quiet neighbors I guess. I heard mild hallway noise during the day, but nothing from next door. I had a good experience, so I'd risk it again. If the next experience with connecting is bad, I'd reconsider my attitude about it.

Regarding elevators - I've been near and far from elevators and never had an excess of noise. Sometimes a loud walker or talker, but they keep moving. It's never been enough to keep me awake if I'm trying to sleep. I would be more concerned about it if I were staying on a deck with public areas - like the Lido deck because I feel like the noise would be more constant.

I will caveat this all by saying I grew up in a row home (like a townhome) in a major city with lots of neighbors close by and traffic noise; so I might not notice noise as much as others.

Another "elder millennial" here. This is an interesting thread. As long as there were options with variety other than the buffet such as Virgin's model, I would be okay and it wouldn't stop me from cruising. Although, I might consider an all-inclusive resort type trip first. I enjoy the MDR experience, with a set dining time; I like having the same table-mates and wait staff each night. I like making those connections and I would definitely miss it if I were on a ship with no MDR.

Landing that late, and with a 6 year old, I would probably stay around FLL then travel to POM in the AM. Uber or Lyft is readily available, and on a Saturday traffic into Miami shouldn't be too horrible.

Throwing my vote in for Key West & Cozumel too. The short amount of time in Key West is a big negative to me, but it's better than a day in Freeport in my opinion. I prefer Cozumel to Nassau. Air temps are usually okay in the Bahamas in January but the water can be quite chilly. Better chances of warm weather and pleasant water temps in Cozumel as well.

To answer your question about what to do between hotel check out and 3pm... you could do a tour or something. Your hotel should be able to hold your bags for you so you're not lugging them around. I would do an early tour though.. even if embarkation is 3pm, check-in probably starts sooner. For me, getting onboard around 3pm wouldn't be a wasted day unless it were a very short cruise. Regarding Cheers, you used to be able to wait until the second day to purchase so that might be your option there.

Whether the whole thing depends on a lot of factors.. if it's an itinerary and/or ship I've been really wanting to do, I'd probably stick with it because the issues would probably be somewhat inconvenient, but nothing I can't live with. If it were another shorter cruise to say the Bahamas, I'd probably look for another itinerary just because it's so readily available.

You can bring your ship towel ashore, just make sure to remember it when you get back onboard otherwise you'll get charged for it. If I'm going to get charged for a towel, I want to actually have the towel at the end :-D

I like staying downtown/Brickell. Lot's of restaurants/bars within walking distance and it's a reasonable distance from both MIA and the cruise port. I have stayed several times at the Hampton Inn in Brickell - it's so convenient and is a really nice hotel. If you are redeeming hhonors points, it's a reasonable # of points too - a little more than airport hotels but nothing crazy.

I have flown out of MCO in the evening a few times. It's always just as crowded as earlier in the day. Just pack your patience. I've never had any bad experiences, just slow going.

Yahtzee! It travels well. I also always bring a deck of cards.. takes up so little room in the suitcase. Gin or rummy (or any version thereof) are good games for a thinker, and I definitely played as a 12/13 year old. I've found travel sizes of some games such as monopoly and scrabble.

It will be pretty cold for at least the first and last sea day. By the second day, you'll be passing the Carolinas and it will start warming up. The first and last days, you'll want to dress for whatever the NY/NJ land temps are - likely long pants and a coat or sweater. In my experience, I've worn jeans and a sweatshirt the first day, and was able to transition to capris for the second :-D