LaRue1975

Our group is all linked but we all made our specialty dining reservations separately for the same day and time. I keep forgetting to ask my PVP if they will see that we are cruise companions and automatically seat us together. Regardless I’ll probably check in with the restaurants the first day and let them know. First time we’ve cruised with a group, can’t wait!

Wow, this is not good, especially for the PVPs, it’s hard to believe that this won’t push some of them out the door. I always do all my own research and when I settle on a cruise, cabin and offer to go with it I put it on hold and call my PVP. I don’t need him to “sell” me a cruise but I absolutely need him to help me manage my cruises, making changes as needed, especially with the casino offers which are constantly changing. He is also handling the NYE cruise we are doing with 4 other couples this year. I have 9 cruises for 70 days on the books right now and plan to book another one as soon as the new offers come out March 1st. Of course that date is not a coincidence, I’ll bet a lot of Carnival casino cruisers are planning to put a cabin on hold and call their PVP if they like the new offers. Carnival can do what they think is best for their business model but I am not sure they have thought this one through. It will be interesting to see how it all shakes out.

The rooms are all the same except for the ones with upper berths which usually accommodate 4. The difference between a balcony cabin for 2 or 3 is a capacity issue, the rooms are the same with a couch that converts to a single bed. What I have experienced three times this past year is they release the unbooked cabins designated for 3 or 4 people to a 2 person booking about 3 to 2 months in advance of the sail date if they are still available. I went ahead and booked a 2 person cabin I was ok with initially and moved to more a desirable cabin a few months ahead when it showed online I could now book it. This seems to work well if you desire a lido or above balcony and the bulk of those are held back for families. If it is a time when not many children are on board it is likely they will not be booked and released to couples. I had trouble the first time I tried this through the 800#, even though I could make a new booking online the agent said she couldn’t move me there because it was a 3 person cabin. I now have a PVP, he moves me without issue. I did this on the Vista last April, Panorama in October and was able to recently snag a premium balcony for our September Alaska Journeys cruise.

I sent my and my daughter’s boarding pics to guestsolutionssupport@carnival.com. This was in 2020, I saved the e-mails.

I used a boarding picture from my 1991 cruise on Jubilee to get credit for my first cruise. If your friend has anything from the cruise that proves she was on it like a sail and sign card, folio number or fun times that might work too. I did the same for our daughter, took her on her first cruise on the Elation in 2000 when she was 18 and it wasn’t in her account. The e-mail to send it to is guestsolutionssupport@carnival.com. Good luck, she deserves a red card for your upcoming cruise. Edit to add she doesn’t already have a past guest number, she will get a new VIFP number and they can add the previous cruise to it.

When we were on Panorama with our 9 year old grandson in October the kids were in the buffet area having dinner from 6 to 7. I don’t think Camp Ocean actually closes from 6 to 7, they just move it to the buffet area and feed the kids pizza. They have an area roped off for them and you can even check your kids in there during that time. Our grandson loved eating dinner with his Camp Ocean buddies, he would have done it every night if we let him. I would not cancel the Chef’s Dinner, just confirm the first day with the Camp Ocean staff and if it won’t be available you can cancel. I don’t think it will be a problem, my daughter and SIL did it and said it was amazing, enjoy!

If you do a mock booking the offers are still there so they are not gone, just missing from the Today’s Deals list. It must be a computer glitch, not as bad as when a fully paid cruise disappears!

Deck 5 aft is the Havana area, definitely not a crew or smoking area. It will be a quiet area below you, enjoy! There is a public smoking area on deck 5 but it is forward.

I totally agree, it’s the only way I would I would do it plus the second cruise is a 6 night which makes the upgrade even more affordable. I’m paying $3600 for the suite which is about $3000 off the non casino rate plus free Cheers comes with all my offers now. I have had my eye on the Exel Aft Suites since the Mardi Gras came out but I didn’t think we would ever be able to afford one. This is most likely our best chance so I grabbed it! I’m with you on the forward corner suites, no way, it would be like cruising in a wind tunnel, lol!

Wait, people have cash left on their account on the last night they need to cash out? Are you sure, have you actually seen this? You definitely don’t have “degenerate” gambler credibility, good for you! :)) I thoroughly enjoyed your review, thank you for taking the time and effort to put it together. I recently booked a B2B on the Celebration for May 2024, used a casino free balcony offer for both cruises and our first is the same itinerary as yours so very helpful. I had the same extended balcony booked for both but after reading Jimbo5544’s review I upgraded the second leg to a 15th deck Exel Aft Wrap Suite, got a great price too I think, whoo-hoo! Thanks for all your gambling tips, the hubby and I returned to cruising last April after a 14 year break so we are newbies to the casino, they didn’t track play back then. In the meantime we were in Vegas a lot, main reason we stopped cruising so are familiar with the comp game. I have stuck with the lower to mid level bets mainly because we are retired now with a smaller bankroll and it’s worked out well, very happy with the comps so far. I am sure it won’t last so I am booking as many as I can, seven in 2023, good thing we are retired! Thanks again for the informative and fun review, I like your style!

Thanks for the review, looking forward to the rest of the story!

On the Radiance it was $12 total for the cruise, the offered popped up as soon as I logged in the first time.

On the Radiance 4 day it was $12, I think I bought the Value Plan before the first price increase. I am hoping to do this with all my upcoming cruises.

We still have no Carnival excursions listed for La Paz, looking forward to seeing what they will be. No matter what I will be swimming in the Sea Of Cortez, not sure yet if it will also involve sea lions, seals, whales or other assorted sea life. Except sharks, definitely no swimming with sharks! Other than Rhythm Of The Nights this is the only excursion I’ll book or maybe there will be a nice beach we can taxi too. I have yet to do any research on LA Paz, I have 5 cruises coming up before the New Years birthday bash. A side to side on the Vista and Breeze for our 47th anniversary in April, the 4 day Radiance in May, our first Journeys cruise on the Miracle 14 day to Alaska in September and back on the Miracle in November for a 5 day in a Vista suite. Retirement life is absolutely the best life, every day is Saturday. You’ll get there and it is worth the wait!

Thanks for sharing your experience, we are so looking forward to it! We board on the 30th so NYE will be on the normal first formal night and it’s an 8 night cruise with a stop in La Paz which is a new port to us. In October it was unbearably hot and humid in Puerto Vallarta and Mazatlan and just plain hot in Cabo so we are looking forward to better weather and whales. Hopefully lots and lots of whales!

Oh no. sorry your family Christmas was Covid cancelled! Our son, DIL and granddaughter all had it too so we didn’t get our full family Christmas. It was the first time for all three but my granddaughter was born in mid December 2020 in the height of Covid. Last year was the only year that we were able to enjoy Christmas together and even that wasn’t the same because we were outside on the patio and ordered a restaurant meal. Hopefully we are done now and the holidays will be 100% back to normal next year. You definitely need to get a NYE cruise in but you have plenty of time. Heck, we waited until we are on Medicare, lol! Thanks again for the great review and happy cruising!

Thank you for the great review! We have been on the Vista, Panorama and Radiance since our return to cruising last April. Panorama was the best by a country mile, can’t wait to sail her again in December for our first NYE cruise. Hubby will turn 70 on NYE and four couples will be joining us, we’re all in Havana cabanas and balconies. Most will be first time cruisers and I booked the tailgate party cooking class for the group which should be fun. Everyone is getting the Cheers package, we can’t afford not too! In October we found the Pig & Anchor bar the best and my daughter and SIL spent just about every night in there. It was the happening spot on our cruise, the bar staff was fabulous and the drinks were tasty and STRONG. I did my research on the elevators so tried to explain to my family that we needed to push the floor number five times for our party but they wouldn’t listen to me. They even had a crew member stationed next to elevators when we boarded and I asked her to confirm we needed to push the floor number for every person getting on, she said no, just push the button, grrrr…. By the third day everyone seemed to figure it out, I guess they got tired of the doors opening to already packed elevators, lol! It was our 9 year old grandson’s first cruise, he had the time of his life and is now completely hooked. Camp Ocean was amazing, they do such a good job and the tears started when I picked him up the last night. He cried again at breakfast, walking off the ship and half way home in the car and is constantly asking when are going to take him on another cruise. Thanks for sharing your positive experience with the Family Harbor area. I have been getting free balcony offers so think I will book a cabin there when he is with us. Rhythm Of The Nights gets excellent reviews but you really brought it to life in your review, I am definitely going to recommend it to our NYE group. It will be prime whale season then so we might get the bonus show too, I hope so! Thanks again, I am now even more excited for the Big 70 cruise!

Here is the large coffee mug. I lost the wine cup in the casino on the Radiance and the water bottle who knows where on the Panorama before that. I liked them so much I ordered another set for our Vista cruise in April, I am determined to hang on to them this time! 😜

Scroll down and you’ll find it. https://www.carnival.com/special-occasion-gifts-cabin-decor?q=:featured:category:gift-ideas&sort=featured&page=1

Yes, they are high quality and I am very happy with the purchase. We use the large coffee mug to get coffee for the room from the buffet. I grab a couple of mugs and it’s enough for two large cups or three small cups. We also use it to get ice for the room. I use the wine cup for wine and beverages purchased on the ship, I like it better than carrying around a tumbler.

I am thoroughly enjoying your review as usual, thank you! Super excited to see the Amber Cove Cabanas, you sold me on them in a previous review. I recently booked a back to back on the Celebration for May 2024 and the first thing I did was check for the cabanas and they were already available. I couldn’t get one it my cart fast enough, lol!. Oh, and I also have my Mahogany Bay Beach Cabana coming up in April thanks to you, can’t wait!

The hubby and I enjoy it, we get the three cards for $50. On our last cruise we won $30 Fun Play on all three cards, it was loaded onto hubby’s S&S by the next day. We it more entertaining than bingo which is boring and takes too long. Plus a lot of people buy a bunch of extra cards which makes our odds of winning go way down. I wish they would have Deal or No Deal twice on a 7 day cruise.

Actually the return crossing is from October 12th to November 6th so they will probably just reduce the first cruise to four days instead of five.

Shoot, I was looking to book a back to back 5 and then 6 day on the Panorama starting November 5th, guess those aren’t happening now. I noticed she was off the schedule for a couple of months prior and presumed it was a dry dock. I’ll keep looking, hoping the Costa ship will be on the West Coast by Fall 2024.

The name Steve Cassel came to mind right away but I don’t really remember him, juggling or a fiddle. I was shocked when I saw Jamman54 mention the name too so I did get it right. I am pretty sure he was the cruise director on my first three or four cruises and I was bummed because I wanted to see what the others were like too. This would have been the Jubilee, Imagination twice and the Elation.