Almost Packed

Oh yeah...the sunglasses! He said he was wearing those because of the paparazzi...since he was so famous now from winning the golf game!! :)

Love it!

I wish Carnival would charge me a fee such as $40.00 and allow me to bring up to one liter of my favorite booze on board.

 

It could be as simple as you pay online and then print some sort of a form showing you are allowed to bring your one bottle on board.

I'd be willing to pay a "corkage" fee to bring my fave spirit on board. It makes zero sense to me to allow wine drinkers their wine but not others. I personally love to have Baileys in my coffee. I'd be willing to pay their corkage fee and purchase their cokes even...for my malibu lol.

they could make a killing on people who are so darn addicted to their cokes if they would not allow someone to carry on water and cokes. i say just ban them all or allow them all. Quit discriminating! :cool:

Seriously though, I wouldn't want the to take those liberties away, I'd just like it to be fair.

Loving your review so far....and thanks for the compliment on my fellow Texans. I'd be ashamed if you were not treated properly lol.

Can't wait to read the rest...and thank you for taking the time to write your review.

We love the Conquest. As of now, she's our favorite ship. We have the Breeze booked later this year so this may change our opinion. But for now, we love the Conquest and cruise her when we can!

You can always upgrade even after final payment.

yes, you can eat before debarkation. we usually head to the buffet and eat and then hang out there for debarkation.

I personally would love to be in your shoes...well, i kinda am lol.

I have researched river cruises as well.

Because I have a young son at home, I'm limited to what I can do and when. My job allows me plenty of time off, just the dh & ds don't lol.

I would love to do a TA cruise. That would be first on my list. I would spend a few days in a great city pre cruise (or post if leaving from the U.S.)

If those dates/iten. didn't work out for me, then I'd look at river cruising. For me, Viking seems to be the most reasonable for me. But again, this is something I would do alone, or with dh but NOT with ds.

Last, if the above didn't work out, I'd do a b2b if I was able to get to different itineraries that would be great on the same ship. If not, I'd be okay with actually switching ships in port, say....Miami, where one could easily go to the next ship just a ways down. But for that hassle involving packing up etc, it better be a good itinerary.

I have done plenty of land vacations. I love those too. But there's nothing like being on the ocean!

Good luck and have fun with whatever you choose. My choice if I had the $'s, time off etc would be Trans Atlantic!

That's great! It reminds me of the couple that were bragging about how good they were at the bean bag toss and how they had an "official regulation" set up at home in their backyard blah blah blah. I, on the other hand had never played before, made it to the finals as did the other couple and a kid about 13-14 yrs old. So the 4 of us were told to divide up and of course the couple immediately chose each other and I took the kid. I have never been more proud than the moment they awarded me and my new teen friend the 24kt gold plastic ship on a stick. It was great watching the "official regulation" couple lose to a first timer and a kid.

I love that he showed up with new jewelry around his neck...it looks great....:D

I froze on the Imagination too. If I was in my cabin, I was under the covers on the bed. But that was truly my only complaint as I enjoyed the cruise so much.

But yes, I froze everywhere. I ended up wearing the one pair of pants I brought with me a few times. :eek:

I have walked inside another cabin on embarkation day the moment the doors were opened. The cabin next to me (aft wrap) was open and I wanted to see it. Since no one was occupying it at that moment, I didn't see a problem. I just looked around, touched nothing, and walked out.

As others have stated, if I'm not "checked in" to my cabin and began to occupy it, not a big deal. However, if I have entered my cabin, now I have taken possession and it is mine for the week lol. Same as others. If the door is still open it's not ready for the next guest anyways.

Of course, this is only on embarkation day. I would never think of entering an open door after embarkation day. People be smart, close your doors lol.

Almost Packed - when was your cruise supposed to be?

It was suppose to be March 8th 2015...but now it's land vacation to Orlando.:D

I've sailed Oceania, Disney, Celebrity and Carnival. Last Memorial Day, my family and I went on a four day cruise on the Sensation. The company my husband works for was very short on pilots and he was rescheduled for more flying. Because his company scheduled him for so many hours, they had to pull his next trip! So, with extra time off my husband told me to book a family cruise. Disney, quoted me over $ 20,000 for a four day cruise I thought that was ridiculous' and the only other cruise that fit our time frame was Carnival!

 

We were shocked at how much fun our whole family had. The food was better then Celebrity's and Disney's. The service was better then Celebrity's and the price was amazing. I couldn't believe how much fun we had, even though it rained most of the day when we were in Nassau. We still had a blast. My husband and I were on the Summit in February. We booked an aqua class room as usual. We love Persian gardens, the steam rooms are so relaxing. We booked all of our excursions through them and they were all wonderful! Their coffee was wonderful this time, it was off on our last cruise with them. I fully planed on doing a full photo review of my cruise, but I didn't! Because the cruise was not good. We spent over $6000.00 more on this cruise then we did on our sensation cruise. Celebrity just didn't compare! Carnival wins, my daughter and I love folding towels now!

 

My husband and I were done with cruising! We decided that our next vacation would be on land. We booked airfare, rental cars and two hotel rooms in Poipu Kauai. Then we got the email, the one tempting us with ridiculously low interline rates. My husband said there is no way that the price is real! We were able to cancel everything for Kauai, we are now booked on the breeze. We just couldn't resist a deal after paying taxes, college tuition, dorm room, books, meal plan and our oldest son totaled the new car his grandparents bought for him. He was hit by an uninsured unlicensed driver. So we kicked in extra money to ensure he got a safe and reliable vehicle. The big brat threw a fit and demanded I return his new car because it didn't have a built in navigation system and seat heat. We live in the south, and our insurance company raised our rates a $1000.00 every six months. He is not coming on the cruise!

 

My husband and I will be traveling with our 7, 9,10 year old children! We are leaving the brat at home to take care of the house and dog! We booked two cove balconies that are right next to each other. I have just a few questions.

 

1.) Can the balcony dividers be opened to connect the balconies?

 

2.) What is there internet like? My husband has some work stuff on a sea day and I would love to spy on my brat and check on my dog. We were just planing on bringing our iPads. Should we bring a lap top as well?

 

3.) Do they offer bottled wine packages? They offered one on the sensation and we really liked it. We usually drink a bottle at dinner. We are not going to do the cheers package. We are traveling with our kids and we need to be responsible! To much alcohol and I'll want to sleep till noon! My children wouldn't be happy!

 

4.) Our 10 year old gets a little distracted and he sometimes wanders off. He is a very good kid, but he has so much energy. Any advice on ways to keep tabs on him? I definitely plan on watching my children and making sure that they are aware that other people are on vacation and that their good time doesn't interfere or disturb others. They are seasoned travelers and they always whisper in the hallways, well almost alway's.

 

If any one has any other helpful advice, it would really be appreciated.

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Forums

Yep, I got that interline email and said wow! i wanted to book several cruises immediately lol. Glad you were able to get in on it. We'll be on the Breeze in November, and no interline rate for us...we just booked ES for it. We were limited on spa cabins. Oh well....it's only money right lol. j/k of course. I love to save a buck! Have fun!

So, my husband and I usually avoid formal nights, we enjoy getting a little dressed up on other nights, but enjoy a little more casual dining during the formal nights. This year I'm thinking about going all out, I've never seen my husband in a tux, this would be the perfect opportunity. For those of you who have sailed on Liberty, were there many men in tux's and what formal night has the most participants, 1st or 2nd.

 

Thanks

We have sailed on the Liberty....I think more people dress up more on the first elegant night...

DH wears his tux! I love to see him in his tux. He owns 2 so we'll usually dress up for both elegant nights. There will be others in tuxes on a 7 day cruise for sure. It's fun dressing up, and it's even more fun undressing later. ;) :D

My now 9 yr. old looooovvvvveeesssss cruising on Carnival. He's been cruising since he was 6.

He always enjoys camp. He loves having dinner with his new friends in camp during dinner time. Sometimes we allow him to go with camp for dinner and sometimes we make him have dinner with us.

There's always something to keep them busy and they will always find friends.

But not always, as I have been on Elegant nights...in port. so it can change with every sailing if they choose lol.

I have cruised the same iten. and had formal/elegant nights be different.

Oh, and not that you asked, but since others chimed in, we always dress formal/elegantly. DH wears at the very least a suit, and most times he's in a tux. We enjoy dressing up since he's in a uniform all week long at work.

Enjoy your cruise!

Hey All,

 

I have a question, hopefully I don't get ripped too badly.. :) Going on a cruise with my son who is 2.5. I am more of a casual cruiser and don't go to the dining rooms. Would it be unfair to adjust the tips and give more to my room steward? If so how much adjustment would be appropriate?

 

Thanks.

Do what you feel is appropriate. I don't care what others say....IMO, the tipping onboard is completely crazy. Yes, in the MDR they earn their tips, although I'm not sure they even earn what they charge me for them sometimes.

It's crazy to assume your 2 year old is going to be requesting refils, more bread etc. You should be able to adjust your tips to whatever you feel like.

I'm not tipping someone in the buffet line who does nothing. They are being paid a wage from the cruiseline to clear the tables, not wait on me. I'm not tipping them to wait on me unless they actually do.

As far as your steward goes, the traditional amount charged should be sufficient....of course, if you have many requests and your steward has to do extra work for you or your child above his normal duties, then sure, an extra few bucks would be nice. But doing his standard duties should earn him his standard gratuity. don't let others on here bully you around. If i didn't eat the majority of my meals in MDR, I wouldn't leave tips for them. That makes no sense. You don't do it at home, why do it on the ship?

My dad decided to take us all on cruise Jan 2015. It will be my parents, myself, hubby and our 2 kids, who will be 7.5 and 4.5 at the time of cruise. We'll be on the Fascination for 5 nights and have 2 ocean view rooms on the empress deck. I *think* we're next door to each other. I know we have a LOT of time until we cruise but things have been on my mind so here it goes!

 

Ok, so a few questions...

1. Tell me about the camps on board and if my kiddos are of a good age to attend?

]Camp is awesome! Your kids are great ages to really enjoy it! My youngest started going when he was 6. He loves loves loves it and they are very safe. [/color]

 

2. Sleeping arrangements....right now it's set up to have my daughter (7 y/o) in the room with grandma/grandpa because we were concerned about how to sleep 4 in a room. *IF* she decides she doesn't want to stay in there with them, will they bring us an extra cot? or will we have to just put her on the top murphy bed?

Depending on your cabin set up, if you are in a cabin that sleeps 4, you will have bedding for 4. I don't know about them bringing a rollaway bed in.[/color][/color] But sleeping 4 to cabin is doable. Just be organized. There are tons of tips to help with that. My favorite thing to travel with for organization my over the door shoe holder. It keeps the little ones shoes all together in the bottom row, leaving me more space in the closet. I also give him a pocket or two to store his things. It keeps the cabin tidy and keeps everything neatly organized. We all know where everything is-in the shoe holder lol.

 

3. We have cruised before but it's been a long time. Is room service included?

 

Room service is certainly included. I sometimes order cookies and milk at night right before bed for my kiddo(s) and us too!

4. And that leads into another food question...do they serve kid type meals? You know, mac n cheese, grilled cheese, nuggets, hot dogs, etc. I am just wondering if my children don't like what is being served can they request these types of food?

 

]Absolutely! In the Main dining room, they have a kids menu. Also, with camp, the option is there for the kids to have dinner in camp with their new friends. We use to make sure our kids had dinner every night with us, but then they started begging to have dinner with friends at camp. So dh & I gave in. Now my youngest is 9 and almost always orders off the adult menu. He loves the fried chicken lol.[/color]

 

Thanks all! Any other tips for traveling with the kiddies would be much appreciated!!

Tips-we take a cheap air mat purchased from the dollar store to use at the beach. When we are done, we usually give it away to another child. I'm not sure if ya'll are flying or driving, but of course, things to keep the kiddos busy while traveling. We take a "makeshift" yahtzee game with us. it's a ziploc bag, 5 die and a pad of yahtzee score sheets and a cloth napkin to lay on the tabletop to keep the dice from banging and rolling around and clanking. We can play it on the plane, in the airport, we play on the ship and in our cabin before bed. It's fun and easy and fits in my purse.

Have fun, your kids will enjoy it, and you'll love the escape time while kids are in camp!

Free? Well, it is included in the price of your cruise. You have already paid for it. :) Enjoy it! I love the pig patty!

Not all sofas convert to a bed. And you must book a cabin for 3 in order to have a sofa convert.

Now you can easily remove the back cushions etc... and make a "bed" out of it but they are different.

I have stayed in cabins with convertibles. Not all balcony cabins with sofas convert.

So I went to make a payment toward my October cruise and instead of making a payment- I paid the entire amount. I called Carnival immediately to let them know that it was a mistake and to see if the charge could be reversed but the accounting department is not open until Monday at 9am.

 

Has any else ever done anything like this? What was the outcome?

 

 

Elation, April 2012

Fascination, September 2012

Fascination, September 2013

Dream, October 2014

I did this when I was booking a cruise online. I meant to pay deposits only and ended up paying for the entire cruise lol...which of course I never want to give the cruiselines all of my money until I absolutely have to. Anyways, I ended up just leaving it. I didn't mess with trying to have them reverse the charges.

Luggage handlers will need to put the extra ORANGE tag on your luggage if you qualify for Priority luggage delivery.

 

It will not be delivered early without it.

 

AND you need to stand there and physically watch them put the orange tags on.

 

We tipped David very well and made sure he knew we needed the orange tags (saw them hanging on the luggage cart) and reminded him twice that he would need to put the orange tags on.. (which means if they do not to this....you do not get this benefit you have earned OR paid for with FTTF).

 

This was at the Early Luggage collection. David assured me that he would put the orange tags on TWICE...and still did not do it.

so tipping well did not ensure good service. imagine that. sorry. that stinks.

Did they offer you any kind of compensation to change ships? I am booked on Conquest in March and I think that is what is going to happen to me but I haven't gotten an email yet.

I got the email today....my MArch 8th Conquest switched me to Splendor. I called and cancelled it just now. I tried to switch back to my original ship but they said no.

So that left me confused. The lady from CCL said maintenance issues???? I said...you have MX issues a year out and you know about it? So then I wondered, another dry dock coming up? She just got out end of last year i thought. But Conquest doesn't show up anywhere for the month of March. hmmmmm.

Just got off the phone with CCL. My cruise has been canceled by me...with full refund on my deposit.

Not only did they change my ship, they moved me down a deck. :mad:

I asked if I could be put back on the Conquest wherever she was at and they said no, it couldn't be booked. Is she getting more work done? :confused:

Anyways, she's our fave ship (but maybe not after we sail the Breeze in Nov.) so certainly don't want a "downgrade" to replace our fave ship.

I'm planning on canceling. I do not want the splendor. Had i wanted that ship, I would have booked it.

totally bummed..was booked...and the email didn't state anything other than the usual cabin confirmation....only when I looked at it closely did i notice my cabin was changed as was the ship lol.

Not sure what I think about it. The Conquest is our fave ship.

Hmmm. tired of being on hold with ccl. i'll try to call later.