bigman01

I can't help you with the Cheers part, but he should be able to go to Guest Services on his birthday and show his id. They should be able to update his Sail & Sign card info so that it doesn't show as "under 21" in their system. That way he won't have to show his id every time he wants to purchase alcohol. I could be wrong but I don't think I am.

The first thing I did was offer to pay for the whole thing, but she said she didn't want that. I'd do it in a heartbeat, though! Thanks for your thoughtful suggestions!

I would insist on her staying in New Orleans with me after the cruise, if I could afford it. I wouldn't have it any other way...I wouldn't give her the option of going home after the cruise. Would you regret not insisting she stay if, heaven forbid, something happened to her in the weeks/months after the cruise? If the answer is yes, then I think you have the answer to your dilemma.

Hope y'all have a wonderful time!

I've done this twice in the last 4 years - once for my dad in 2013 and once for my mom last year. Both times, I had a biodegradable urn and we simply threw (dropped) it into the sea. It can be very windy, so I'm not sure I'd want to actually "scatter" the ashes. With that being said, last October when we did it for my mother, we were waiting in the lobby at the chosen time. The environmental officer approached me and said he was waiting on word from the bridge as to wind speed and direction. Then he noticed I was holding the urn, and said "Since you have an urn, wind speed/direction doesn't matter, so if you're ready, let's go." That told me that "scattering" of the ashes is possible, but again, I'm not sure I'd want to do that.

If you have any questions about the process, feel free to email me (jamesloyd at gmail dot com). And, I'm very sorry for your loss.

James

I get the whole thing on making money and there are rules and such but the thing I don't understand is why it matters to them. Even if you share you're drinks they are making the same amount. They have that 15 limit so you aren't getting more than 15 drinks out of that package no matter what. If someone doesn't drink in the cabin and is above 21 then what should it matter to Carnival. Even if they DO drink and you decide to share with them they are getting the same money for those 15 drinks. Any outside of that (before you hit their silly no more than 15 wall) you are still paying for.

 

I love Carnival but some things they do seem silly to me.

Sorry, but your thinking is wrong. Yes, they'll get the same amount of money from you, however, the more alcohol you drink, the more it costs Carnival, ie the less their profit is. So no, they don't make the same amount of money no matter how much you drink.

Absolutely 100% no way around it as long as all passengers are over 21.

I am looking to book a cabin on the lido deck and my husband tells me this is a bad decision. Cabin numbers available are 10288, 10289, 10284 and 10285. Has anyone been in these cabins or location? Is my husband right that I am crazy booking this location?

I've stayed in 10287 & 10283 on the Magic (same layout), and loved it. I always try to get in that area every time. You're literally 5-10 seconds from being by the pool. In my opinion, your husband is the crazy one for not wanting one of those cabins :)

We're looking into added a 6th person to our booking. Right now we have 2 rooms that are 2 and 3 person only rooms so we were looking at adding a 3rd room which would necessitate changing the 2 rooms we have now. Does anyone know what the penalty would be for switching things around?

Technically, as far as Carnival is concerned, you won't be "switching things around", you will be cancelling and re-booking. So the penalty depends on when your final payment is due. If you're before final payment, the penalty is $50 per person, and the rest of the deposit will be held in that person's name for a FUTURE cruise. Unless you get lucky (which has happened to others), you will have to pay a new deposit on each person you "switch". If you're after final payment, standard cancellation penalties apply (and the closer to sail date, the higher the penalty is).

As Sweet Dutch Girl said, Early Saver has no bearing on this since Carnival cancelled the cruise. According to Carnivals terms, the OP is entitled to a full refund of the monies he/she has paid on this cruise.

They weren't given the option by the person their PVP.

 

Bigman posted in post #33 the link to the contract that states they should be offered a cash refund for canceled cruises.

 

As most on here will jump all over somebody when they complain about their ports being swapped out or other things like that and tell them to "read their contract" the contract in this case seems to be in the favor of the OP.

 

Hopefully the OP comes back with good news and is booked on the 6 day Vista.

 

Bill

Bill, I don't think we've been told the WHOLE story. It's pretty simple that if Carnival cancels the cruise, guests can get a refund, should they want it. What I suspect the issue is that Carnival offered some sort of "price protection", where they will allow the guest to transfer to a comparable cruise and honor the price originally paid. But now the OP wants to transfer to a 6 day on the Vista, and Carnival is saying that's not a comparable cruise, which it isn't. So I think the OP is actually wanting to pay the difference between what they originally paid and the current rate for a 6 day on the Vista. It's pretty clear that they could get a complete refund if wanted - but they don't want a refund...they want the "price protection" to transfer to the Vista and then pay the difference. I could very well be wrong, but I suspect that's what the issue is.

I probably didn't explain that well enough, but hopefully you can figure out what I'm trying to say.

You can't, as far as I know. You should have received an email confirmation for each purchase - print that out and take it with you for proof of what you've purchased.

According to Carnival's "Legal Notice" on their website, if a cruise is cancelled, guests have the option to receive either a cash refund or a future cruise credit.

https://www.carnival.com/about-carnival/legal-notice/port-cancellation-policy.aspx

Laughing! The cancelled cruise is a year out. Why would anyone think they should receive anything for something they haven't even had to pay for yet. And getting "upset" over 25 bucks....

I think you misunderstood the original post. The OP is not upset because of the 25 bucks. And he/she isn't expecting anything from Carnival due to the cancelled cruise. However, he/she IS upset because apparently Carnival isn't allowing them to book a more expensive cruise (and they are very willing to pay the extra $$$). According to the OP, Carnival is saying they must book a "comparable" cruise, ie a 4 day for a 4 day. They were originally booked on the Victory, and from the sounds of it, the only "comparable" 4 day that works for them is on the Sensation. To me, the two ships aren't "comparable", and I'd be upset too if I wasn't allowed to pay more money and go on a different cruise.

as Pyrate13 asked why can't you get your money back? Even if cruise is paid off you should be able to get all your money back unless you booked ES.:confused:

 

Bill

Even if the OP did book ES, Carnival should allow them to cancel and get a refund without penalty. I may be wrong, but I believe in the past when something like this happened, Carnival has given passengers 24 or 48 hours to request a refund. I would definitely be climbing the ladders until I got some satisfaction. As the OP said, the two ships aren't comparable, and a complete refund should be issued if the OP asks for it.

 

I see where we got derailed. I responded to the post of if you have FTTF or Priority you enter a different door. I was stating they don't separate the three until you get past security. And my everyone, I meant all three groups of priority.

 

In Ft Lauderdale last week they kept FTTF downstairs and had diamond and platinum up the escalator ready to board.

 

They also had the boarding photo cue away from the flow of the line. We were able to breeze past and not be held up by the photographers.

 

Flying home from Ft Lauderdale was not so smooth...

 

.

Ahhh, ok that makes sense. Sorry for the confusion. We're on the same page now haha. Never sailed out of Ft. Lauderdale. Galveston is my most frequent departure port. But I've sailed out of New Orleans a few times, and Mobile once. But I've sailed from Galveston probably about 8-10 times.

 

We only sailed 4 times last year, so I guess I'm wrong. There is one door, one that is marked priority, it's right by the three step stairs that lead up to the the entry from the outside. It has a sign that says Priority. A staff member checks your documents and then you enter the foyer of the terminal. This is before you go in the security line, which is also the same for diamond, platinum and FTTF. That line takes a perimeter ring around the cue and steps up to the security screening.

 

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That's correct. Priority (Diamond, Platinum, FTTF & Suites) enter through the door that says Priority. Everyone else enters through a different door (before you get to the door that says Priority). So in the case of the OP, she will enter the terminal through the door that says Priority since she has FTTF. But her sister, who does not have FTTF, will enter the terminal through the other door. In your other post, you said everyone enters the terminal through the same door, which isn't true. At least not from my experience.

It was not when we sailed most recently in November of 2016. We entered a separate door. We even went through a security line designated for priority.

 

This might vary depending on which terminal is being used.

That's exactly the way it's been for me since I've been platinum (about 4 years). We enter through a separate door, and have a separate line for security. I wasn't that clear in my first response - everyone goes through the same security check point, but Priority has their own line and go through it quicker non-priority guests.

In Galveston it's the same door to enter the terminal.

No, it's not. Once you get inside the terminal, everyone goes to the same security check point. But Priority guests (Diamond, Plat & FTTF) enter the terminal through a different door than the others.

When you cancel an ES booking, for some reason Carnival considers the whole deposit (in your case, $250 pp for the first 2 guests and $179pp for the 3/4 guests) as a "penalty", even though you're really only losing $50 pp (providing you go on another cruise in the next 24 months). The other $200pp will be held for a future cruise. As far as the rest of what you've paid, they will probably refund it back to the card you originally used to pay for it. But I'd probably call my PVP just to double check if I were you.

I'm from Louisiana so my math isn't the greatest, but it looks like your future cruise credit should be $200 + 200 (first two guests) + 129 +129 (3/4 guest), for a total of $658.

I probably didn't explain it that clearly, but hopefully you can figure out what I'm saying.

After you get off the ship, you'll have to go through the customary souvenir shops. Once outside the building, there will be buses to take you down the pier into down.

The rules are that each person must buy a meal, no sharing. However, in Nov., 2015 I took my mother on the Magic for what would end up being her last cruise. She had been battling breast cancer for the prior year - chemo, radiation, more chemo. By the time it was cruise time, she had practically no appetite. Like you, she'd only eat a few bites then she was done. On the day we boarded the ship, I went to the steakhouse and explained the situation to them and asked if it would be ok if I just gave her a few bites off of my plate. They were very understanding, and said yes, no problem. Whether this is something they do frequently or was just a rare occasion I don't know. But my advice is to go talk to them after you board and explain the situation and see what they say.

Good luck with your battle with cancer!

Thanks so much for the help! I booked it through my reservations and they did ask for her info! I can't wait!!!!

Cool deal. Glad it worked for you. Have a great cruise, and I hope your mom has a special 80th birthday!

thanks I'm going to try it through mine right now.....

Ok cool. Hope you can get it to work.

You actually can purchase it for her cabin under your booking. I've done it several times. After you add it to your cart, go to checkout. Enter your information, then on the next page, enter your mother's first and last name, and her booking number if you know it. If you don't know it, just go to the box that says "sailing month", and it should find your mother's booking. Click continue and finish filling in your info.

We are a group of 9, so prices for excursions can really add up. Is it possible to find a nice beach on our own? or is using one of Carnival's excursion the only way to go?

Not sure if you are going soon or not, but as another poster has mentioned, Freeport suffered extensive damage from Hurricane Matthew in October. They are slowly getting back to normal, and I'm not sure how things stand at the moment.

Last time I was there, I took a taxi to Taino Beach Resort & Clubs. Had a great time, and would highly recommend going there (if it's open when you go, that is). I know they have been closed since the hurricane, and not sure if they are open yet or not. But I'd definitely suggest checking them out. They also have a facebook page, so look for that. Here's their website: http://tainobeach.com/

My wife is in a wheelchair but she uses a walker around the house for stability. Can I check the walker in as luggage on our next cruise or do I have to carry it with me while pushing her wheelchair. Anyone experience this?

My only experience with this was in Galveston. And it was no problem checking the walker and pushing the wheelchair. I would imagine it's the same in each homeport. Just make sure to put a luggage tag on it in a place where it won't come off - it might even be a good idea to put a couple of luggage tags on it in different places on the walker.