Mom2sml

We will be on the 6/6 sailing and we have 2 balcony rooms. Does anyone know if the partitions can be removed to join our two balconies?

If so, Who do I contact to request it?

 

Thank you!

We were on deck 7 (Empress) and they did a balcony cleaning one day. They opened all the partitions so when we looked out the door, we could see down the entire length of the deck.

Talk to your cabin steward about opening the partitions and have people from both rooms present.

Has anyone ordered a bottle of wine or champagne from room service once on board? Were you able to get it the first day? I know if you order from Bon Voyage ahead of time they won't deliver it until the next day (at least that's my understanding when you sail from Texas).

I don't know about ordering from room service but you are right that Bon Voyage liquor orders aren't delivered until the next day. Texas has some picky liquor laws and TABC makes sure they get their alcohol taxes. In order to sell alcohol in Texas, it must be bought in Texas and have the tax stamp or you have to pay the tax and get the stamp. This is why during the first day, the alcohol selection onboard is limited. You can get that rum and coke but may not be able to get a Bacardi and coke.

It's been awhile since I worked in a bar, but I don't remember wine and champagne having the same requirements as distilled spirits and you may be able to get them the same day. Hopefully someone with first hand experience will be able to tell you for sure.

Never heard of a VIP escort for suites. Maybe for the Penthouse suites but that is it. You would also get to use the priority line at Guest Services. You would also be able to go to your cabin as soon as you get on the ship.

Booking a suite gets you on and off the ship faster but that's about it. You get to board after/with the Diamond and Platinum guests. FTTF will add on faster luggage deliver, access to your cabin as soon as you board, priority tending if you port at a tender port and use of the Diamond/Platinum line at guest services. This is from my personal experience with booking suites.

3) the family of the deceased deserves any assistance Carnival can provide, and I am confident that they will. The reason I say this is even for a burial at sea, for guests, they charge nothing. The provide a time and place, staff to accompany you, and without request, a letter memorializing the event with a large photo of the ship in an album. If they are so generous when essentially doing a guest a favor, I am confident they will take care of their own.

We did a burial at sea in August and received the letter but nothing else. I hope Carnival steps up to the plate and helps the deceased family.

My suggestion would be to proceed with caution. I talked to a florist about delivering some flowers to the ship and was told they won't do it anymore. On multiple occasions, the flowers were delivered but the intended recipients never received them. The florist said that she even personally handed the flower arrangements to the proper people at the port and only some of the people received their arrangements on that trip.

I can see both sides of the issue. We will be spreading my mother in laws ashes during our next cruise. For us, it will only be the 4 of us and that's what we want. We already had her memorial service a couple of years ago and the ash spreading is the final step. It will be a somber occasion for us but only briefly as the rest of the cruise will be a celebration of birthdays and a graduation. We have no desire to do more and she wasn't a cruiser.

Now if this had been many, many years ago when my own mother passed, it could have been a different story. My mother loved cruising and met her second husband (an entertainer) on a ship. I think a celebration like the original poster mentioned would have been perfect for her but it would have had to have been done a year or two after her passing so it would be more of a celebration and the pain would have not been so deep.

Interesting idea.

Thanks for the information. I'll fill out the form and see what happens.

Can you give up your assigned cabin and take the price reduction and go with the GTY under early saver?

The rate I'm looking at lets you pick your own room. We can't do a GTY room rate because we have minors in another cabin and must be within 3 cabins of them.

Ok, we booked our trip over a year ago under Early Saver. We have a 5 day cruise planned in August and since our sail date is now less than 3 months away, the Early Saver Rate is no longer an option. The current "Spring it On" rate is just under $40 cheaper than what we booked our cabin at and of course, the fine print says the offer is for new bookings.

Does that mean that the price reduction wouldn't fall under the Early Saver guarantee? In order to get that rate, do we have to cancel our original Early Saver booking and then rebook under the Spring it On rate?

I have similar question. We are cruising with my daughter and her boyfriend. Can they be in same cabin with no hassle? They are 22 and 21 . And rooms are 6 doors apart. I booked separate with me and her in a room and grandma and him in a room . The rules say they have to be 25 to have own cabin. Will this be an issue if I change once onboard? I don't want problem .

Shouldn't be an issue.

we did jewel out of houston too, had the free UBP, were able to use it the whole time while in texas waters, although we had to pay port taxes and fees on it (Which were like 10 cents a drink) I think we were out of texas waters by 7 or 8

 

And I wouldnt understand how galveston would be any different than houston, its the same WATER and same port fees and taxes...

It probably has more to do with Texas liquor laws and what different ships are willing to do. All alcohol sold by bars in Texas must be poured from a bottle with a TABC tax sticker. The bottles must be bought in Texas through a distributor in order to have the sticker. Getting caught selling alcohol from a bottle without a sticker results in fines and possible loss of permits.

Now I haven't asked but I would speculate that Carnival has a limited amount of liquor that falls into the cheaper well category that would have the stickers that they can sell from until they are in International waters. Once there, they could switch out the bottles and start selling the premium liquors. For example, you could probably get a rum and coke but not a Bacardi and coke until in international waters. Now that wouldn't prevent them from selling the Cheers package on the first day but since they are probably offering a limited selection, they may just be opting to wait until all choices are available. It's also possible Carnival makes more money by not selling Cheers on day 1 since all alcohol on day 1 is paid for individually.

Again this is all speculation on my part based on my personal experience from working as a bartender in Texas for a few years.

The casino as well as guest services. There is an upcharge if you use you SnS card at the tables in the casino so I try to only use cash there.

So according to this, every bottle of liquor on a cruise ship leaving Texas has to have that sticker. That wouldn't affect why the Cheers package can't be bought until day 2 - ANY drink sold on day 1 would have to be from a bottle with the tax sticker. I highly doubt they switch bottles for one day!

Having been a bartender for a few years and dealing with TABC, I'm pretty sure Carnival does switch the bottles. Not every bottle on the ship has to have the stickers, just the ones being used while in Texas. You can get drinks made with the inexpensive well liquors (rum and coke) but if you were to ask for say a Bacardi and coke, you would probably be told they can't sell that until they get into international waters. That way they only have to have some liquors with TABC stickers. Beer and wine don't require TABC stickers.

This is from Carnival's website

Please Note: Alabama and Texas Liquor Laws restrict us from delivering select alcohol products at Embarkation. The items will be delivered the following day.

No, it's not a Sunday thing, it has something to do with unlimited alcohol not allowed to be sold here...or something like that. At any rate, it is second day on all cruises out of Texas, regardless of embarkation day.

It has more to do with Texas Liquor laws that require alcohol being sold on board has to be bought in Texas and the bottles must have a TABC tax sticker. Texas is big on getting their share of liquor taxes and the TABC is very strict on the issue.

We had a balcony on our last Disney Cruise with our 2 year old daughter. The balcony doors have a safety latch at the top far out of reach for a child. I have never had a balcony on a Carnival ship, do that not have any similar saftey latch or lock on them?

On our last cruise, we couldn't get the safety latch to work most of the time while at sea. In port it worked fine.

Has anybody here done the beginner scuba diving excursion in Cozumel offered through Carnival? My kids (18 & 16) really want to do it but hubby doesn't. I don't mind staying on shore with hubby while the kids have fun but I'm not a fan of them going on the excursion alone, besides, I would imagine that since one is a minor, we will have to sign some sort of release. Will we be able to tag along on the ride there or will we have to find our own transportation to the site? I don't mind calling the company directly but I don't know who operates the excursion. Any input?

http://www.onestepahead.com/Dri-Nights-Waterproof-Mattress-Protector-1.pro

This is a bit more pricey but it's what we used for my kids. They had medical issues that resulted in occasional bedwetting for years. We loved it because it was easy to throw in the washing machine, I would hang it to dry and it tucked under the mattress so it stayed in place during the nighttime tossing and turning.

Yes, you can buy FTTF before final payment. I bought mine for my August cruise and I hadn't paid anything other than the deposit. I don't know the answer about getting a refund if you cancel.

Yes you can. There would most likely be a single sofa bed, the two twin beds, a Pullman and a trundle. If you're not attached to having a balcony, you may want to check out two connecting interiors or ocean view cabins and see if that might work out cheaper for you.

We will be aboard the Carnival Triumph in August and my oldest will have turned 18 a few days before we sail. Since she will be of legal drinking age in Mexico, I promised her she could have a drink while we are in port. I figure something frozen and sweet or fruity would be the best to try. She's not big on anything sour and hates coconuts. Any suggestions for what drink to try? I'm thinking I'll try and order a non alcoholic version before we cruise to see if she likes it. Also, where is the best place near the docks to get said drink?

It looks like a good location. Don't be surprised to find an extra door in your room when you get to your cabin since 1330 is listed as a connecting cabin.

This is copied from another post on these boards from February 2013. I wanted to link to the actual post but don't know how.

Laundry locations on the Triumph...

Name: Launderettes

Location: Riviera Deck 1 - midship / across from 1351 and 1353

Main Deck 2 - midship / across from 2365 and 2367

Upper Deck 6 - midship / across from 6389 and 6391

Empress Deck 7 - midship / across from 7339 and 7341

Verandah Deck 8 - midship / across from 8349 and 8351

Lido Deck 9 - midship / across from 9268 and 9270

Hours: hours posted on the door to the Laundry

Function: Self-Service Launderette

2 or 3 washers

2 or 3 dryers

1 iron and ironing board

Vending machines dispense small boxes of detergent and water softener

For this cruise, we've decided to go with an ocean view room. I currently have a room on Deck 1(1295), per a recommendation on this forum earlier. Any thoughts about this room location?

I personally have never stayed in that cabin but since it is midship and there are cabins above it, I would imagine it would be pretty quite. The only downside is that it is the farthest deck from most of the action. If you don't mind the occasional elevator wait or trek on the stairs, then it's a good cabin choice with a nice low price.

I believe they only show about 10 cabins even though there may many more than that available. It's a little early for the price to drop right now.

I agree about booking deck 7. We were there last year and will be again this year. It is the deck that all the suites are on and we found it to be pretty quite. Last year we were forward and this year we will be midship.

We also found that there could be long waits for the elevator at times (especially during debarkation) and by being on Deck 7, it was only two flights of stairs up or down to get to the decks where we spent most of our time. A couple of times we found it quicker to catch the elevator going up and surprisingly it didn't stop on deck 7 on the way back down.

We found the food to be decent but we only ate in the main dining room on elegant night. We felt the Lido deck buffet met our needs but some items (scrambled eggs) could be hit or miss. I would choose the omelets but the line can get long. My hubby loves the pizza and could be found there many times during the day. Guys burger joint serves a decent burger and I had a couple during the cruise. Unless you're a major foodie than I'm sure you will find plenty of good stuff to eat.

We really enjoyed the adult comedy show but it was very crowded so get their early if you want a seat. We tried one stage show but found it a bit boring so we left.

There is lots to do in Cozumel and the ship offers a wide variety of excursions. Progresso has less excursions but offers lots of tours especially to the ruins. Unfortunately, in August it's just too hot for me to do lots of walking among the ruins. We're not interested in partying or the beach and the one excursion that I though would be interesting didn't interest the rest of the family so we opted to stay on the ship during our stop in Progresso last year and will do the same this year.