TheLargeFamily

I wonder why they only do this for lunch. I also wonder if I would have enjoyed my food there better had I gotten the lettuce wraps. Does anyone else think that it's weird to have corn and tomatoes in egg drop soup?

I heard from a woman on the ship to try Dream's spa! I wouldn't hesitate to book dream if they had a ropes course because my kids enjoyed that dang ropes course so much.

Part 2... Thanks for reading! I enjoy hearing your responses. There's not much organization here, so thanks for bearing with me. - One perk to Family Harbor was having a coffee machine a few steps away, and it made better coffee than in the Lido. It had options for lattes and whatnot, but I always got an Americano. I brought my own favorite creamer (nutpods) to put in the coffee, but I didn't even need it, it was so good. There was also a buffet every morning but I do not eat breakfast typically. This is great for families with kids under 6 or 7. I don't think we'll need this perk long in the future. I do wish we had kids old enough to qualify for the Havana area- that looked amazing! Our youngest need to be 12, however. FH did NOT include bottomless bubbles.That would have been great. - Speaking of no trash cans, they seem to do well to prevent waste. The cups are all smaller than restaurants on land. The portions are normal (except in Bonsai Teppanyaki and Guys Burgers). They utilize cloth napkins even in casual dining. Candy straws are not my fave but the kids loved them. They come in three flavors- Chocolate, strawberry and Lemon Lime. I did bring a few straws from home but always seemed to leave them in the room. You really only require a straw for frozen beverages, which I rarely get anyway. - The Hub app is good for planning your day, making reservations, and viewing your photos, but useless for staying in touch with other cruisers. I did not want to buy an internet plan for myself, but just bought it for 24 hours on two of the sea days for $25 or $35 a day. That said, I didn't really need it. Whenever I needed my husband and he wasn't already with me, I usually found him at a blackjack table talking to an old guy named Pops. He made lots of friends in there and lost $600 over the course of the cruise, but had a great time. Apparently there were a lot of elite gamblers on our ship and he liked hearing their stories. - The hub app needs to add booking functionality! Do you think Carnival would cash in if their guests could plan another cruise while on a current one? - I was hoping to play pickleball, but it was only offered one time at 9pm. CC please let me know what ships offer more pickleball? - You still pay a corkage fee even if you open your own bottle. It's only $15 and we weren't mad about it, but I see a lot of other cruisers recommend that you open your own bottle before taking it to a restaurant. We took a bottle to Cucina del Capitano on night 1. In Galveston, Cheers does not begin until day 2. - Here's where we ate each dinner: ---Night 1 at Cucina- great idea, very few people in there with us on night 1. Service was excellent and food was good. I have some picky eaters and they were all very happy here. ---Night 2 was elegant night. We went to the MDR and were seated by the kitchen. It was so loud in there, even away from the kitchen. It had a chaotic feel to have servers walk by our table constantly. Next time I will wait for a better table. The lack of table cloths probably don't help the noise situation. That said, I ordered off the Emeril's menu and it was delicious. The kids ordered the same pasta they got at Cucina. We never returned to the MDR after night 2. Long meals are less fun with kids hehe... --- Night 3 we ate at Guys Pig and Anchor which turns to a sit down restaurant at night. You're given a little sheet where you mark your choices. We loved this place. Even as Texans who are used to good brisket, the brisket here is great! I loved the pork and all the sauce choices. The Mac N Cheese is excellent. The vibe is fun with live music. It's a few steps away from 2 foosball tables and whatever that game is where you slide disks back and forth (help me out??). The bathroom and Swirls is also close. --- Night 4 we had Bonsai Teppanyaki reservations which is absolutely delish! Our server/cook was so fun but I wish he tossed food into our mouths. The saketini was one of my favorite drinks on ship. Definitely get that if you like coconut and umami flavors. If you go with kids, ask them to split their entrees!!!! We wasted soooo much food b/c our kids filled up on the amazing fried rice. The server asked us if we wanted a box but (obvs I couldn't warm it up) I said no. I hate wasting that much food. The dessert choice bento box is fun but the desserts were hit or miss in there. Thankfully they were all bite-sized. --- Night 5 we had Pig and Anchor again --- Night 6 we had ChiBang. Meh. They put corn and tomatoes in egg drop soup. That should be a crime. I did enjoy my son's kung pao chicken a lot, but my entree was the mole chicken which tasted like absolutely nothing. I had read/watched that they bring you chips when you sit down but they don't do this. I had to ask and they acted confused. --- Night 7 we ate all over the place... some in the Lido, some at Coastal Slice. I had a reservation for Rudi's but I ended up canceling it b/c everyone had so many last-minute things they wanted to do elsewhere. -We had the Dr Suess Thing 1 and 2 breakfast on day 7. It was adorably decorated but they did not offer many character sightings at all. We only saw the Cat in the Hat and Thing 2. The music was so LOUD you couldn't think. The food was so colorful it turned off most of my kids. I expected the color but didn't know my kids would hate that. Despite my criticisms, we really had fun together here. I just don't think we'd do it again. - We dislike the QRcode menus. We asked for paper menus everywhere we went and some restaurants have them and others do not. Our kids do not have phones- we're old school about phones and kids. Often we'd go to a restaurant and have only 2 tiny phone menus to share with 8 people. - I wandered up to Loft 19 to see what we're missing one early morning and it's gorgeous and the views are fantastic. That said, we had a couple of days over 90 on the ship so I don't know if most people want to lounge in an expensive cabana on hot days like that. They do have a pool but the views are limited from there. - I am resigned to know that my kids just don't love kid club experiences, they prefer mom and dad, which is great, but can burn us out sometimes. We tried with the camp ocean, following all the recommendations which included to go there on day one and night one. But this was a spring break cruise and there seems to be no ratio limits at all. My 4yo twins did not like camp ocean. One of them cried a lot and I had no way of knowing. Night one on spring break had too many kids in there. We brought the twins back later in the cruise to do a craft and left them in there for almost an hour and they never got around to doing the craft that was in the hub app, so the twins were disappointed. The counselor gave us the supplies for them to do in our stateroom instead. My boys loved checking themselves in and out of the kids club for the first few days but suddenly stopped and aren't giving us details as to why. I don't think anything bad happened, but they are 9 and 11 and enjoy going all over the ship together. They also did the ropes course a gazillion times. My 7yo daughter went to camp ocean twice and wasn't super impressed. My 13yo daughter never got the nerve to try CircleC. Mom and dad did get some downtime b/c my 13yo doesn't mind watching a movie with the little girls in the room every now and then. Yes, we brought 6 kids. haha... - One surprise was how much I loved the photo opps! We got tons of adorable photos and I bought the most expensive package! No regrets! I think that's all I've got for now... LMK if you have any questions. I think we may try Carnival Breeze next. Wonder what that'll be like after all the bells and whistles on Jubilee

I did a ton of research before our first Carnival cruise- the Jubilee. We had previously cruised on 2 RCI ships pre-covid. We stayed in the Family Harbor area on deck 4. We had 2 rooms- a suite and an interior. Here's what surprised us- - No trash cans. You just put your garbage on a dirty table. You set your glasses or dishes wherever. Yet, they keep the ship absolutely spotless. I watched a crewmember vigorously yet meticulously polish the edge of the summer landing pool edge for at least 3 hours one day. - Suite benefits we enjoyed included free laundry, priority embark (they allowed our interior cabin family to come in as well), robes (super handy), and my girls were surprised with embroidered pillows with their names on them! We had elemis products, but not conditioner. The tub was big enough for my teen daughter to enjoy- it was quite deep. There was something banging on the exterior of the ship all night for the first two nights. We still don't know what it was, but a crew member (a bartender lol) told us that was normal. They did a bag of laundry for us, but they folded 3 pairs of damp pants. - I got a wonderful deep tissue massage. I came to the spa an hour early to enjoy the thermospa. I had not realized it wasn't included. I asked if I could just use it for 30 minutes and they allowed it. Thank goodness I didn't pay for it. It was tiny and the crowd in there was LOUD. They also did a poor job of designing the women's locker room. It is completely visible into the women's locker room from the co-ed sauna. They jerry-rigged a plastic shower curtain to provide a tiny bit of privacy. I wonder if they'll build a wall. - All the doors to common areas and restrooms are opened by a wave of a hand. Some of the handicapped ones are confusing to lock and close. I walked in on a poor woman who did not understand how to lock them. Stop and read the sign!! - We saw a "dive in" movie but there was no swimming. - There are swirls ice cream machines all over the place!! - Coastal slice is delicious... way better than Sorrentos. Ok, I am too tired to include more... part 2 tomorrow? Anyone into it?

Yes you can do water shoes. And they're also not as strict as the book regarding the age rules- ie- they will allow a 11yo to ride with a 13yo. Just off Jubilee today. Have fun!

I'd like to be able to book out as far as possible, which would usually be 18-24 months in advance. However, our kids go to a diocesan school and the diocese won't tell us our breaks until July right before school starts. Anyone know of any strategies to deal with this? How can you book and then move your trip? Will that always risk the price you had? Taking the kids out of school is not a great option for us, as we have 2 teens and also elementary kids.

I saw a Pic on fb! Looks INCREDIBLE!

Good luck! I would say to it from your cabin because you don't know if someone will walk right into the break room. I think that is so nice that they are offering that space for you. I'm sure whoever is interviewing you will give you a little bit of Grace given the fact that you're on vacation mode.

Oh u are making me wish we had a balcony next week! U definitely utilize yours to the max! I hope I can see runners from our windows. Passion island looks lovely! Have u been to paradise beach? If so, please compare. I'd love that twister boat if my neck can handle it.

Love it!

Ohhhh what a beautiful day! Great photos too! I'm wondering, does the dolphin experience accept walk ins at all?

If you want a cabana bed book quick. They were gone before I booked it!

I booked paradise beach instead and I am just as excited!

I was getting really concerned about all the reviews I was reading. Search The Forum because I actually came on here and asked a question about it and ultimately decided to cancel the Excursion for a refund. I can't remember if I posted in this forum or if I posted in the Cozumel forum.

Hey Dee! Have u tried seafood shack?

It's OK! Thanks for your thoughts! ❤️I'd rather travel with passports but it wasn't gonna happen this time. And considering I paid for 8 people to cruise, I almost feel grown up 😂 I'm 3 days from vacation mode so nobody can get me down! 😁

Actually this is the first time we've ever done this with birth certificates. This is the first time we've traveled post covid and everyone's passports expired during that time except for one of my kids. But yes, after birthing six children I should probably think about growing up LOL 🤔😂😘

I'm sliding 8 birth certificates into plastic sleeves as some are getting worn. Will I need to remove the paper certificate from the plastic sleeve at checkin? If so, I am gonna hold off.

Oh my goodness they make those bubbles virgin! I can't wait to see my kids faces with those! Those costumes are incredible!

Happy wife, happy life...

I'm enjoying your photos! Despite the wind, your balcony coffee photo looks incredible!!! Did you buy anything in the spa? I am getting a massage there next week and hate the hard sell, too! UGH... trying to anticipate if I need anything. Does it feel like a lot of kids? Next week is spring break, so I am sure we'll feel the kid energy bigtime!!

Love it! My son plays violin so I'll need to check them out. Music gets me, too 😢

Bummer about the wind! Hope u have nice weather at Port tomorrow! What did u do for lunch? Did I miss that 😂

We booked a 2 hour excursion directly through Daniel johnson to hold sloths, etc and it should only be 2 hours (didn't book any extra bells and whistles) do I truly hope we get plenty of time at carnivals beach! Looks like some cool photo opportunities on the little nature path.

Hello! Thanks for your information. How long was the walk to meet your ride? Was it easy to find? We will be coming from carnival. Thank you