Alegeeter

I’m thinking of what Carnival has added to newer ships that they could move to Pride. 

- Shaq’s chicken

- A new specialized bar like the Fortune Teller - Aft on Deck 3 is an underutilized bar (on Spirit it was NEVER opened)

- New production shows

- Guy’s Smokehouse and Brewhouse - the Red Frog pub is HUGE on this class ship and is also underused

A little tease from John Heald on Facebook about the upcoming dry dock.

”… it’s going to be a fascinating drydock before she starts a European season, and I will be sharing much more about this and actually visiting the ship in Europe to show you before she starts to cruise again. Thanks so much, stay tuned and I’m here if you need anything. Thank you please have a wonderful day and please have a fabulous cruise.”

Surely “fascinating” implies something more than what her sisters got, removed casino bar, updated carpeting, etc. right?

I just changed my room number last week within the same category for an upcoming CAS booking… I’d try calling again and getting a different representative!

I heard a rumor that after the 4 announced ships they’d look for a buyer or to be acquired. I hope it’s not true but I wouldn’t be entirely surprised. The pandemic affected their start and they’ve been struggling with an incredible product.

To me, it sounds like you’d be a perfect match for Virgin. I check a lot of the boxes you listed and had the best time on Virgin. The fact that your TA is so quick to poo poo it shows me either that 1) they have their own interests at heart over yours, 2) they have not done their research and are a bad TA to begin with, or 3) both!

Joanne, I think I’m on your cruise (7/21-28?) and we would also like to book a Portree excursion. Perhaps we can book one together?

They’ve finally caught on. Got this email today and looks like referrals are ending NEXT WEEK!

The LGBTQ meet up is in the pool every day  from 11-sundown :). Agreed with what others said, nothing formal but it was easy to find people and mingle. I loved that we didn’t need an organized time to find each other.

Sea Day Brunch used to be one of my favorite things about Carnival. It was always such a nice way to start a relaxing day. The cutbacks on that menu have been so stark that I think the regular breakfast menu in the dining room is better. On my Christmas cruise, we went on our first sea day to Sea Day Brunch and never returned. Huge disappointment. 
 

And  yes, I always looked forward to the chia seed pudding and that was one of the many things I wish was still on that menu.

Brilliant Lady

7 Night 

San Juan Mermaiden over New Years

San Juan | Tortola | Guadalupe | Barbados | St. Lucia | Antigua

12/30/23-1/6/24

https://virg.in/JADu

10 hours ago, Jamman54 said:

So it is now official as we got the email as well. It is a Vista Class ship built in 2019. They will start converting her in December. We aren't happy as the Vista Class isn't a favourite of ours, especially since it doesn't have the Havana area. We'll probably still go on our B2B in September,  just hope we are given our bowling alley balcony like we had booked on the Magic. 😎

It looks like they're going to be doing some sort of Havana-like area, called Terrazza Carnevale. Carnival's website explains that it'll be an exclusive area and, like Havana, guests need to be 12+. I wonder if they'll add a pool or something during the 6-month conversion. To charge this much more for just more seating space in a prime location seems silly.

Come join me for a Thanksgiving Feast!

Valiant Lady

8 day - Eastern Caribbean Antilles

11/19-11/27

https://virg.in/oHmi

But would they switch whose band an access which room? I am booked in Room A but want to sleep in Room B, can my band access Room B?

Hello,

Looking to plan my first VV cruise and I am wondering if anyone has any experience swapping cabins with other passengers once on board. I know other lines allow it, but say I have two comp cabins but the sailors the comps are under would ultimately like to sail together would Guest Services allow the swap for you once on board?

On 5/4/2022 at 11:06 PM, D.B. said:

I was on this sailing as well.

 

As soon as CD Jerry went missing on day 2, I assumed there was likely Covid onboard. (Which now seems to be the correct assumption.) Between a likely outbreak combined with rough seas, it wasn’t surprising that most of the stage shows were cancelled. But I was surprised there wasn’t a better “plan B” in place.

 

And, btw, there were several Haven Restaurant waitstaff missing by the last night of the cruise. Staff from other venues, still in their outfits from the other restaurants, filled in.

 

Not sure how I feel about the apparent secrecy of it all — it seems irresponsible.

 

However, I must say that despite the challenges and poor weather, I had a nice time onboard.

I did notice some staff in their Q uniforms up in the Haven restaurant and how the service up there seemed much slower and high stress than usual. Our waiter was running around like a mad man. Makes sense given what you described 

7 minutes ago, UKstages said:

 

 

 

 

as for understudies, i have a lot of friends who have worked in shows on cruise ships... they've never had understudies. i'd be really surprised to learn that NCL shows have understudies. i'm not saying it's not so... i'm simply stating that i'd be surprised. in any case, understudies are rarely a viable option in the case of covid on board ship, if the entire cast has to be quarantined due to potential exposure.

The Broadway shows on the Breakaway and Breakaway+ ships absolutely have understudies. From Rock of Ages back when Breakaway first started to Six, those shows all have a few covers. I can confirm from Instagram and one I’ve seen live that they’re there. The older shows like Blazing Boots, I’m not so sure.

Good point about them having to quarantine though. It’ll be interesting to see if the shows are pushed to later in this week’s sailing when quarantine would end or cancelled again altogether.

I was on this sailing as well. Footloose and Elements were cancelled because dancers came down with COVID and there weren’t enough others to go on and cover the track. CD Jerry also tested positive for COVID and ACD took over midday on Day 2. This was confirmed by several different crew members who also told me they were not supposed to say anything except that there was an “accident” and that they had to wait until returning to NY to get new dancers. NCL Broadway production shows sail with understudies so I didn’t buy this reason anyway. Additionally, the Beatles cover band had COVID last week and their shows were cancelled then so it seems something is going around the entertainment staff.

I understand the risk of traveling during this time but really did not appreciate NCL having crew lie to us about the reasons shows were cancelled (my butler alone gave me two different explanations on two different occasions). I appreciate transparency and it seems NCL just wanted to prevent any news headline. However, it would have been respectful to know if COVID was known to actively be spreading so those who felt they needed to could take extra health precautions.

Oh, and they were so desperate for entertainment that one night the show was…a movie in the main theater. Again, things happen and I get that but we never got a letter in our cabin, an acknowledgement, a true explanation, or anything. I do think it would have been a nice gesture to extend a small amount of OBC given the circumstances, acknowledging that NCL was unable to deliver any amount of the main entertainment they are known for. Only 2200 passengers so it wouldn’t have put them out much and would have left passengers in much better spirits.

That said, the ship was beautiful and the crew exemplary! We made the best of non ideal situations 

On 3/27/2022 at 12:20 AM, Markmom18 said:

 

 

There is no way you’re taking out that shelf to hang up a bar. It’s just part of the unit.  So, not sure what you are referring to …
 

 

 

My apologies - this was NOT the room I had!

the one I had was the aft extended and it was just like a regular balcony cabin set up. Yes, I agree with the above posters, the upcharge is for the Havana access and amazing wrap balcony! Try to take advantage of that and enjoy the cruise!

I just stayed in 8467 on the Panorama last month. It’s a great room, you’ll love it. Take good care of her!

The wardrobe area has 3 doors. Behind door 1 is a bar with hangers. Behind door 2 is another bar with hangers, but there is an optional shelf you can lay down half way to lay things on, which then creates two levels for hanging clothes. Behind door 3 are some shelves and drawers.

I would in no way call this a walk in closet but I found it did provide more than ample space for a week.

Here’s the Panorama’s menu from last week. It was a terrific menu and experience!

3 hours ago, Itried4498 said:

i was on the same cruise as you.  On Sunday, the app was very clear that we needed to set our clocks forward an hour.  On Monday, a banner appeared on the app reminding us that the ship’s time had moved an hour forward, and that the ship’s time may differ from the local time.  During the week, Christian’s announcements were very clear - adhere to the ship time, as it may differ from the local time that your phones may sync to.  
 

We loved Christian.  Yes, I agree that he did it seem to be aware of which time zone each stop was in, and how that differed from the ship time (this was his third cruise on the Panorama IIRC), but does it really matter?  The instructions were very clear - stay on ship time (which is on hundreds of digital clocks throughout the ship), not the local time.  I’m sorry if this was confusing to you :).

Yes, the communication about the time improved after he mucked up the PV time announcements. Whether it’s his third cruise or his last he should know this without batting an eye whether the ship time matches port times. You’d think with his hourly 7-minute long announcements there would be time to clarify this instead of just overselling Deal or No Deal cards.

I’m glad someone found it clear, all the conversations I overheard in the theater and walking through the Lanai were confused. Luckily for me I had cruisecritic and new what to expect but think I would have been lost had I not done my research beforehand.

I also wonder why Carnival doesn’t inform you on the itinerary, especially for those planning independent excursions. Or maybe it’s just that, they don’t want you to 😉 

I’m also glad you liked Christian as CD. Different strokes. I found him insufferable and more concerned about gaining Facebook followers than anything else. 

Just off the Panorama and the ship time does NOT match local time in PV. The CD and his staff did a horrible job communicating this and people were confused all week. In fact, after the confusion in PV CD (Christian) was asked if ship time would match local time in Cabo (which, it does) and his answer was "I do not know what the time is there just stay on ship time." I was shocked at how unhelpful and disorganized he was. Worst CD I have ever sailed with. Nothin was made clear in the Fun Times or in the Hub app either. I've been on numerous cruises with time changes and have never seen so much confusion. 

Anyway, PV is 2 hours earlier than Pacific time and Cabo/Mazatlan are one hour earlier so when the clocks change after the first sea day PV is just one hour earlier than ship time and Cabo/Mazatlan match.

The Panorama last week had 3200, so 80% double occupancy 63% max.

CD said when we debarked they had over 4000 (100% / 78%) on the 2/19 President's week sailing. 

I am leaving on it in 2 days and will let you know - it looks considerably more full compared with past weeks based on the number of cabins available at this time (last week's sailing had many available just two days before and this sailing only has about 175). But I know there can be last minute cancellations so anything can happen! 

They've been moving around a lot of people on Deck 2 since they're saving sections of Deck 2 for COVID cases. perhaps they can move you to another cabin in the same category. that you were upgraded to.