AK Wife

We are traveling in April 2017 out of Miami how early do they let you pick your boarding time? We did our on line check in but there was no where to pick our boarding time. TIA

Carnival FAQ about boarding in Miami states 12:30 PM (through 3:00). :cool:

1. The limit placed on the program are for those that can't limit their alcohol input OR those who like to do a LOT of shots! ;)

2. Had Cheers! before they changed it. I am not a big drinker BUT I was on vacation. 1 drink before lunch, a couple to three in the afternoon, one or two with dinner, a couple after dinner and I was already at my "break even point" of minimum 6 (for the price point of less than $10 at the time). Spaced far enough apart that it didn't bother me too much.

3. Now that Cheers! has increased the drink price to "under $50" & allows the inclusion of coffee, shakes, & numerous other items, it is going to be much easier to meet my "break even point". :D

4. I NEVER had an issue with a server while using Cheers! as I hung out on the deck. I would lounge in the same vicinity every day and the servers in that area would use my name & remember my "go to" drink! It was heaven! I didn't have to look for a server when my glass was empty. By the last sea day they were arriving with my next drink before I took my last sip. I did not think to tip more at the time (per drink) but I did give an extra tip on that last day.

5. This time I will definitely be tipping extra for each drink as posters have suggested. Especially if I have gone over the "break even point". It makes so much sense. :cool:

6. LOVE having the package prepaid. Don't have to worry about that extra expense. For what I drink or purchase as extra, this package gives me that feeling of "all-inclusive". I have Bottomless Bubbles for the kids for the same reason. No surprise expenses. The only bill I will have is steakhouse, shopping, & pictures! :p

Should really have a CC manager delete this thread since it is mostly "outdated" info. I have purchased Cheers! & BB for our next cruise but went ahead & purchased the bottled water for our stateroom fridge so we can have chilled water @night. Worth the $ to me to already have a stocked fridge. Less than a pack of water in Alaska! :p

Carnival website states: (FAQ Cheers! Program)

CHEERS! is an all-inclusive beverage program that allows guests to enjoy a wide range of alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages by paying a flat daily rate. Guests must be 21 or older to purchase CHEERS! and everyone in the same stateroom must purchase the program.

We have enhanced our CHEERS! beverage program to include a greater variety of non-alcoholic beverages, as well as a wider selection of high quality brand-name spirits and wines by the glass.

The cost to purchase CHEERS! prior to your cruise is $49.95 USD per person, per day plus 15% gratuity. CHEERS! can be purchased online at http://www.carnival.com/Funshops or by contacting 'The Fun Shops' Department at 800 522-7648, Monday through Sunday, 8:00am-12:00am ET. Cut-off for pre-purchase is at 11:00pm ET, the evening prior to the cruise departure.

Once onboard, the cost for CHEERS! is $54.95 USD per person, per day plus 15% gratuity. Guests can sign up for CHEERS! at the Atrium Bar, Casino Bar or at the midship pool area bar.

Currently, we are not able to process the Carnival Gift Card for Fun Shop orders. If you wish to purchase CHEERS! with a Carnival Gift Card, you may do so onboard.

Price adjustments (up or down) implemented on the day of sailing will replace any previously advertised price.

The following beverages are now available within the enhanced CHEERS! program:

All spirits, including cocktails, cognacs, whiskies and other spirits, as well as beer and glasses of wine, with a $50 USD or lower menu price per serving

Zero-Proof frozen cocktails, sodas (including specialty sodas) and juices

Specialty coffees and teas served in the main dining rooms, specialty restaurants and coffee bars

Milkshakes

RockStar energy drinks, Powerade, Vitamin Water, Coconut Water and Honest Tea

500ml bottles of water served in bars and lounges

Large format (1 liter and 1.5-liter) bottles of water in the main dining rooms and specialty restaurants

25 percent discount off the menu price for any spirit, cocktail or wine by the glass, costing above $50 USD per serving

25 percent discount off the menu price for wine and champagne by the bottle and larger format water bottles purchased outside the main dining rooms or specialty restaurants

25 percent discount off the menu price for all beverage classes and seminars

Please Note:

Due to state laws, we cannot sell CHEERS! until the second day of the cruise for voyages departing from our Texas, Alabama and New York home ports.

Program only applicable for onboard purchases during regular operating hours.

CHEERS! is not offered on 2 day cruises, charter cruises, on ships sailing from Australia (Carnival Spirit and Carnival Legend) and beverage purchases made at Half Moon Cay in The Bahamas.

Beverages excluded from the program are:

Beverages promoted and sold in souvenir glasses

Bottles of liquor

Beverages offered at the gangway

Beverages offered through room service, mini bars and/or other in-stateroom beverage programs

Sharing cocktails, floaters, pitchers, tubes and buckets

Beverages offered through enomatic wine machines and self-serve beer stations

All other beverage-related programs including merchandise, cigars and cigarettes

Food items

CHEERS! Q&A's

The following restrictions apply:

Guests must be 21 years or older to purchase and agree not to give to minors.

Each adult assigned to the same stateroom must purchase the program.

Guests must purchase the program for the entire cruise - this program is not offered on a per day basis.

CHEERS! is non-refundable; if the program is purchased prior to the cruise, it is refundable up to 11:59pm ET, the evening prior to the cruise departure.

Price adjustments (up or down) implemented on the day of sailing will replace any previously advertised price.

Only one alcoholic drink at a time may be ordered using CHEERS! - sharing is not permitted.

Program allows for unlimited Zero-Proof beverages but only one beverage at a time may be ordered using CHEERS! - sharing is not permitted.

There is a 5 minute wait time between ordering drinks.

Guests may purchase a round of drinks for themselves and friends. One drink will count towards the CHEERS! program and the remaining drinks will be charged to the guest's Sail and Sign account.

Program allows for up to 15 alcoholic drinks per 24 hour period (6:00am-6:00am); once the limit is reached, the guest will not be served ANY additional alcoholic drinks.

Program only applicable for onboard purchases during regular operating hours.

All bottles and cans will be served opened

Carnival reserves the right to refuse service for any reason.

Applicable state and local taxes will be charged to the guest folio when this program is used within US waters. The tax is based on the state's tax structure and the cost of the individual drink purchased (not the daily program rate). For example: if the drink price is $5 and the tax is 10%, the guest's Sail & Sign card will be charged $0.50 for tax. This applies to all US ports (embarkation home ports and ports-of-call).

Due to state laws, we cannot sell CHEERS! until the second day of the cruise for voyages departing from our Texas, Alabama and New York home ports. Drinks purchased on the first day of the cruise will be charged to the guest's Sail & Sign card in the usual manner. When purchased on the second day of the cruise, guests are charged for the remaining days only (cruise duration less one day).

For those guests who pre-purchase CHEERS!, it will be activated upon boarding the ship (except for ships sailing from Galveston, Mobile and New York). Guests will receive a note in their stateroom advising them to go the bar to receive their sticker which is placed on their Sail & Sign card. In the event guests do not go to their stateroom, once the Sail & Sign card is swiped, it is flagged and the bartender will provide the sticker.

Group bookings (consisting of a minimum of 30 adults) can purchase CHEERS! prior to the cruise by contacting Group Event Planning (all adult guests in the group must purchase the program; all minors in the group must purchase Bottomless Bubbles program).

For pre-purchase orders, a message card will be placed in guests' staterooms on embarkation day with the following notation: "Please bring your Sail & Sign Card to the Casino Bar to activate this program". A sticker will be placed on the card for the use of the CHEERS! program. In the event guests do not go to their stateroom, once the Sail & Sign card is swiped, it is flagged and the bar staff will provide the sticker.

CHEERS! is not offered on the following:

2-day cruises

Charter cruises

Ships sailing from Australia (Carnival Spirit and Carnival Legend)

Beverage purchases made at Half Moon Cay, The Bahamas

I was just doing the online checkin for upcoming cruise and it says you must have a state issued ID to go along with a Birth Certificate, for 16years and up. My kiddo is 16 but doesn't have an ID yet. Does anyone know if this rule is strictly enforced?

If you don't have a passport for them, or a driver's license/permit, you can use a school id with a picture. :D

So tea coffee water juice & milk are all free at breakfast?

 

With you saying its all covered with Cheers, not sure if you meant having the above will come off your daily quota!

A lot of your ?'s can be answered @Carnival FAQ page. Here is the info for Cheers! https://help.carnival.com/app/answers/detail/a_id/1106/kw/drinks%20on%20ship

Only alcohol drinks count for your 15. Bottled water is not free but you can purchase a 12-pack at The Fun Shops for $3.99 and have it in your fridge when you board. The Lido buffet will have juices, tea, generic coffee. Specialty coffees from the coffee shop are explained in the Cheers! section.:)

Actually, My Cruise Manager will only show promotional OBC that is part of the booking rate. Any OBC issued as a result of price drops will only show on the invoice that they email you.

:confused: Not sure why it would be different for different people, unless it's because I book myself online or calling Carnival direct. My price drops prior to final payment were reflected as a balance reduction but after my final payment it showed as OBC. It should be listed on your travel documents. The key may be to go in and print a current invoice/updated documents. :)

We are going on the Carnival Triumph soon. Does anyone know if they have fountain soda or cans only? Also, how much does a soda cost? I don't think we drink enough for the bottomless bubbles deal.

At the cost of $6 per day it's like buying 2-3 sodas in a restaurant. If you drink at least 3 per day Bottomless Bubbles would work for you.

Posted on Carnival site in FAQ:

"Sail refreshed with Carnival’s Bottomless Bubbles unlimited soda program! Enjoy the ease and convenience of paying one flat price for thirst-quenching fountain soda and juice, all cruise long!

Child Rate (17 years of age and younger) $4.50 USD per day, plus 15% gratuity

Adult Rate (18 years of age and older) $6.00 USD per day, plus 15% gratuity"

As I mentioned in another thread this happened to me when I requested a ES price adjustment. One booking they raised the tip amount, the other booking they left alone.

 

I don't agree with this practice so on the cruise I'm going to have GS adjust the one booking's tips back to the original amount.

I believe your experience is due to the date of gratuity increase. The following is direct from Carnival site:

"Please note, effective for all cruises departing on or after September 1, 2016, the recommended gratuities amount will increase from $12.00 USD to $12.95 USD per person, per day for guests in standard stateroom accommodations and to $13.95 USD per person, per day for guests booked in suites. If gratuities are added to your booking by May 9, 2016 and paid in full by the final payment date, you will not be subject to the increased amount."

The increased gratuity is only for cruises ON or AFTER September 1. :)

Go to "My Cruise Manager" on Carnival website & then click on "Cruise Details" on the far right. The "My Billing" tab will show any onboard credit you have. The "My Activities Tab" will show if you booked FTTF or any excursions. Going back to the main "Cruise Manager" page you can click on "Print Documents" and then "Print General Information" in the pop-up window. The itemized charges page will show if you pre-paid gratuities, charges for excursions or FTTF, insurance, spa appointments, transfers, as well as any onboard credit. :D

I always tip $20 as soon as I see Steward to let them know "Hey my kids are in here, if you have ANY issues please let me know." The kids always had extra towel animals or something creative done with their glasses or other things laying around their room. :p

We booked the Hampton Inn Orlando International Airport. Actually already did this once in 2014 and booked it again for this summer. :D They have a package that includes airport transportation to hotel & round trip to Port Canaveral. They have breakfast too! We got to the hotel, checked in, went to dinner at a nearby restaurant (several within walking distance), enjoyed breakfast (included) in the morning, got our shuttle to the port (arranged by hotel) at 9:30 and we arrived at port by 10:30. We had priority boarding because of our Ocean suite cabin so we were on board in about 20 minutes (all documents were done on computer) and enjoying a Guy's burger by noon!:D

When we got off the ship 8 days later we were picked up by our shuttle and back at our hotel (we booked a night after our cruise as our plane didn't leave until the next day AND they gave us a deal for it!) by 9:15 AM! It was awesome! They had a room ready so we were able to drop all of our stuff off and then we turned around and got a taxi to Universal Studios for the day!

Loved the service and the rates at this hotel (T.G. Lee Blvd address) so we will be back in July. :)

Not a NOOB but could be a geek ;):D

 

Because I do wear my SS on my lanyard...I wear a lanyard at work to hold my teacher ID...I prefer it to the clip ID tags. I also 1/2 the time don't have pockets available. I could care less what others think..this gold geek is having a good time;)

Cruise Critic needs to get a "Like" button! :p I also am a teacher that uses a lanyard & I totally get it! Geeks forever! :D

Thanks. I'll go for the "Forgot my number" approach and then call Carnival...may be impossible having two teens find cards in their rooms!

 

I know I don't get credit for their sailings - however I want to make sure they get credits for their sailings, so if we start doing this more often they'll get closer to an advance status. Who knows - may help them down the line when they get out on their own or something noble like that :)

My son has been cruising since he was 8. When it came time to book his honeymoon cruise last year (at 23 yrs of age) I looked up his number & had him use it to book his cruise. He (gold VIFP) took his wife (newbie blue!) & had an amazing time enjoying their cruise he purchased & upgraded with VIFP perks! :cool:

I don't think you understand anything of what I said. After you purchase the cheers program, you would go back into cruise manager and change the dates back to the correct ones.

I don't think you understand the extent to which the information you put into your cruise booking & documents link together! :p Even if you put in the "wrong" dates to begin with, trying to change them back after the fact won't work. When you get to the port the people with the "incorrect" birthdays will HAVE to show identification which will NOT match. They look over ALL your documents & they will more than likely make everyone buy the package right then. Cards are pre-printed & all of your info is already in the system. When you check in they just activate it. If any of it has changed, you will be holding up the line getting everyone "fixed". Is it really worth it to try to buck the system? :confused:

Also, has anyone tried the Alchemy Bar yet? The drinks menu sounds really intriguing, and I'm wondering about the prices there too. Since each drink apparently holds several shots of liquor, I'm assuming the drinks will be somewhat higher than normal bar drinks, but if they are outrageously high we may just skip that. :p

The Alchemy Bar is included in Cheers! so that would be well worth it if you like those kinds of drinks. Check out the Carnival site for the Alchemy menu (no prices): http://www.carnival.com/~/media/Images/explore/onboard/bars/menus/alchemy-bar-menu.pdf

Looking to book a 4 day cruise out of Miami in Aug. 2016 aboard the Fantasy. Just noticed I have a VIFP number (from a past cruise) from all the junk e-mails I receive from Carnival. Entering the number on bookings does not seem to give me any reduction in price.

My question is. Should I make the booking as a new customer or use the VIFP# as a returning customer? I am booking an OV guarantee. Does Carnival advantage past guests when assigning rooms or the opposite (as happened to us on our first cruise on the Carnival Valor when we were upgraded to a Balcony from a OV guar.). I read somewhere they may upgrade new customers as a way to entice them. The way I see it the only advantage right now to being a return customer seems to be a bottle of water (please correct me if I'm wrong)

After logging into the Carnival website click on your name. The page that comes up shows your information, your VIFP levels, and there is a place on the left to click and see the offers Carnival has for you. I've gotten some good upgrade deals booking this way. :)

This year we're doing Aruba twice...the first time we arrive at 8 am but the second time we arrive at 1 pm so it probably is because of the distance from the previous port.

Are you doing a back-to-back-to-back?!:D How fun! I was just telling my husband I would LOVE to do a BTB! Now I'm going to start seriously looking! :cool:

This would actually be quite surprising if it were true. Most of the private excursion companies will not charge you if the ship doesn't dock.

Just a thought. I've seen it happen in other places, smaller companies, not a complete refund or any at all....just saying it seems like there has to be ANOTHER reason they are all up in arms! Seriously - to cruise that much & NOT understand what your contract says? To think they should be compensated because they are disappointed? Personally I would rather see them on air saying "I'm so glad Carnival followed protocol & we arrived home safely." :cool:

Ok so safety is second to their wants & wishes? They got $600 ($100 per PERSON OBC)? Carnival doesn't usually do that.

My thinking is this: they didn't book their excursion through Carnival (probably to save $$) & then didn't get their refund for being "no shows" since the ship didn't dock in Cozumel.

Oh & I'm ONLY gold but even I know you sail on a Carnival SHIP not a "boat"?! :p

Valor is heading to Aruba on October 25th getting there at 1pm. No other ships in port that day.

 

Bill

Hey Bill! October 25 is my birthday so have a drink for me! ;)

Yeah I'm on that itinerary this July - 1 PM Aruba & next day 8 AM Curacao. Also did this itinerary in 2014 on Liberty. There wasn't a lot to do on either island. Rode the city bus up the beach in Aruba & spent a couple hours there before returning to the spa & pool on board. In Curacao we walked the fort area & went back on board. We take this tour for the extra sea days. :D

I read this saying somewhere, I think on John Heald's page, and was wondering if it is actually on T-shirts. I would love to have one. Does anyone know if I can buy one or have a design I could use to make my own?

That's the line for the Toyota AYGO 2014 car.

Maybe it has to do with the time the port can accept them maybe it's not on CCL but more on the port. Just spitballing not saying any known fact of mine.

Sent from my iPhone using Forums mobile app

Some ports can only take a couple of ships at a time. Could be scheduling of ships and port issues, not cruise line specific. :D

I took my electric travel diffuser on our honeymoon cruise a couple of summers ago. I'm thinking about getting a second for my bonus girls in their inside cabin. They've never cruised so I'm thinking the lavender would be great for them at night. ;)

Maybe if our room steward wasn't so bad and the cruise director was more fun I still wouldn't feel the same.

I would like to know as well - what made the room steward so bad? How could the CD be more fun? What was missing? Thanks for the info.

Anybody know who the CD is on the Magic for the June 4th cruise? The list only goes thru a few months.

The list shows Eversen Bevelle until Oct 2016.