Kristi Williamson

Why not stop spending lots of money on a "new thing" and just up the stinkin' quality to what it used to be? I don't remember hearing people complain about the food back in the early 90's when we first started cruising. Everyone LOVED the food and couldn't wait until dinner. Stop serving prime rib that is thinner than paint and you'll see people flock to the MDR and rave about it again. (prime rib was only one example...)

Back in the day, the MDR was as wonderful as the pay restaurants. I like the pay restaurants and we use them, but the MDR food has fallen so far below what it used to be that it really does seem like Denny's. It's not awful, but it's not really good, either. There would be zero need for so many crazy changes if they'd fix that. (they don't have to serve Angus beef or Maine lobster to be good!)

I will probably get flamed for this, however.....

 

At breakfast this morning I was stuck behind one of those Mommys who felt the need to discuss every minute detail of every item on the buffet with her kid. She started with the cereal. I did not want any cereal, nor did I want to hear her 5 minute dissertation on fruit loops and raisin bran, so I moved past them. They were still discussing the cereal after I filled my plate and headed back to the table.

 

Sometimes the line just needs to be cut.

I don't view this as cutting, though. I see this as you DID stand in the line and you're just keeping the line moving while allowing others to take their time. As long as you stood in line and didn't actually just walk up and break in front of others who've been there for five minutes because you don't want to stand in line, I view what you did as a kindness and service to the others behind you just wanting to grab a pancake, sausage and syrup and get on with it. :D:o

Hey Momosbee,

Just wanted to let you know that they'll move this thread to the ports of call section.

Go to the home page, scroll down and you'll see an area titled: Ports of Call. Click on the Caribbean section and you'll see Grand Cayman in that list. They'll be tons of info there that is specific to Grand Cayman and lots of different excursion info. Good luck! :)

I LOVE when someone, even a "line cutter" takes the last of something. That way I get my pick of the fresh batch, that no passenger has breathed on, examined, or picked up and put down.

I know this is off topic but... One night we decided to grab a bite on Lido for dinner. The lady in front of us picked up a piece of fish with the tongs, sniffed it and PUT IT BACK!!!!! I lost it a little bit. Gross. Who does that?!?! We don't sniff our *^&*@# food and put it back AT HOME!!! :eek::mad::eek::mad: We left our trays and went to the MDR.

We always change in the evening, but I'd say we're still pretty informal. I wear a maxi dress or sundress and hubby wears nice jeans and a button-up. He will, occasionally, add a tie on elegant night, but nothing beyond that.

We like YTD. We eat when we're hungry and don't have to follow a "schedule" or someone else's time frame. We typically eat around 6-7 at home but depending on port and energy level we've eaten anywhere from 6-9 when we cruise. Love that!!

She did come across as a self indulgent spoiled brat, but IMHO, if you remove the attitude and the way she delivered the message, she did have some valid points. When she started by saying that she had taken a 5 night cruise out of Jacksonville, I told myself "oh boy, I know where this is going".

 

And it did. I wasn't surprised by what she said, although I didn't agree with the immature way that she said these things. Several of her negative observations where similar to what I experienced when I sailed from Jacksonville.

 

And I do believe it when she said that she had read reviews saying that it would be a wonderful experience and it all turned out to be lies. The way that some people review the Fascination, you'd think that you're about to sail on a Queen's Grill Suite aboard the Queen Mary 2!

 

People may love the Fascination because she's the local girl, delivering convenience at low prices, but let's be honest. She's an old, small, budget ship, sailing on cheap, short cruises to the Bahamas. Nothing wrong with that, but let's be objective here.

I think I would be more objective if she hadn't lead in with "...after doing TONS of research..." and then griping about having a connecting cabin, being surprised that Atlantis isn't free and OMG it's an old, small ship. Research would have told her all of those things in about 10 minutes flat.

I love how "high-class" people will pick a cabin on the oldest ship for a 5-day cruise and then act surprised when it's not "classy".

If you want a higher end experience...STOP PAYING 199.00 DOLLARS for an room for five days that includes a freakin' steak dinner every night and then whine about how "cheap" it was!!! Knucklehead. If you book it because it's cheap, it's pretty tough to complain when it IS cheap.

Carnival can't control the weather or the fact that she lied when she said she did research. If she had, she'd have known Atlantis isn't free and that she was in a connecting room.

After you have waited in line , and are now up to the food, go ahead jump over the slow pokes and fill in all the spaces and keep moving along. This shortens the wait for everyone!

This! As long as you have waited in line, then there's nothing wrong with moving past the people who can't make a decision or who must make food art. No need to wait behind a group waiting on a burger when all you want is a handful of fries. Also, if you've already been through the line and forgot silverware, butter, sour cream, etc...and need to grab one, then that's NOT breaking in line because you aren't going to stand in line.

Sometimes when people break, I say something, and sometimes I don't. Depends on my mood and how dang long I've stood there. If it's been 30 seconds, then whatever. If I've stood at the Mongolian Wok for 20 minutes, then no. Not a chance. Back of the line, buddy!

So do they deliver a menu each day that you can check and hang out (does it have breakfast/lunch/dinner/snacks all on one page)? Or is there a menu that I can order from at any time by calling their ph #? It seems to me that I usually just see a simple breakfast menu that we fill out and hang on the doorknob when we go to bed...how would I know about the BLT and choc cake options, for instance, in order to get them as a late-night snack?

There is a menu you can call in during the day/late evening and a door hanger that you can put out at night to be picked up by midnight and delivered at the time you specify the next morning for breakfast.

Sorry, I call shenanigans! I sail with 5 people all the time, we have never fit in one room, nor would we care to (there are a few that can hold 5, but not many) and they are certainly more than $1600 total. Are we talking a 7 night cruise here??:confused:

 

I also notice that when asked what ship this was on, OP has yet to respond. If they do, I plan to try to book it just to see.

 

They have no money, they have plenty of money?? If they have plenty, why ask for Help???:p

 

SHENANIGANS I say!!:eek:

Sunshine's 8 day mock booking that we did yesterday was 2460.00 dollars for an interior on Deck 1 with 5 people. I'd rather eat a dirt sandwich, but we're cruising on the seven day June 7th sailing and wondered about doing a B2B. At that price, we almost did it, but the days off work added to that amount made it more than we want to spend right now.

Just wanted to say that price CAN be done with 5 people, but it would be like sardines in a can. No thanks. ...just went and looked and had to edit... Also, this is a casino rate, not a regular promotion. That may matter, too.

We order coffee almost every morning because we don't want to rush to breakfast but we MUST have coffee within 10 minutes of being up. We sit on the balcony and just relax for a few before heading up. The coffee urn sits on the balcony table between us. :D

We don't order meals from room service but we have a fruit plate and cheesecake at least two nights before going to bed. The cheesecake from room service is AWESOME!!! We couldn't believe it. It is SO much better than that cakey junk they serve in the MDR and buffet. It's REAL creamy, thick cheesecake! (we like the chocolate cake, too and we may have ordered one of those to share after our cheesecake, on occasion...:o)

Yeah...I think it's like the Love and Marriage show. They pick those that are more vocal and seem like they'd be funny/entertaining on stage. Maybe see if she can get a group of her buddies that she meets on the ship to go with her and jump and scream when they ask for participants? And I agree that I'd get there early. That seems to be key, as well.

...I'll also add that the one we saw on the Breeze was kind of lame. I'm sure it's fun to participate in, but it wasn't much of a spectator sport, at least for us...

I assume, based on your post, that you've never taken kids/teens on a cruise?

I have four kids who've traveled a great deal and cruised 11 times. You will not have to worry about "entertaining" her once she's on board. You'll be more concerned if she'll ever shut up about when you're taking her on the next one more than likely! :p;):eek:

I didn't look at the offer page. Never have, as we always book by itinerary. In this case, we were looking for convenience's sake. LOL It just worked out!

 

I only have 71 casino points.

How can you tell the number of casino points that you have? :eek:

Another vote for Nachi Cocum. It's fabulous.

Enjoy....don't sweat the small stuff....try one new thing every day.

This.

Cruising is unlike any other vacation. You really ARE on vacation. Let it be just that and try things you wouldn't normally try. You won't regret it.

The Breeze is our favorite Carnival ship so far!! You'll have a blast!

Minor children who are not platinum can, of course, board with their parents who are. (Sorry, I thought that was a given.) Otherwise, no one can board with platinum guests unless they've also reached that status or higher. (Weddings and handicapped go before any of these.)

As a platinum guest you can have them join you for the priority check in.

No you can't.

We love Tortola!! Your pictures remind me why it's our favorite place in the whole world! :D

We shower and change simply because we carry our bathing suits on in our carry on and as soon as lunch is over, we change, order DOD's and start the fun!!!

Lido balconies are our favorites!!!!!

Same thing as other cruises. However, the Breeze is our favorite ship. She has a nice flow, pretty decor and fun extras. Hope you enjoy her!!!!

Haven't used a BC/DL in years to board a cruise.

Does the checkin 'form' ask for the expiration date of a DL?

No. We use DL/BC and when you get to the port, you show it to get your sail and sign. They basically glance at your pic, then you and hand it back. I seriously doubt they even look at the date.

They do look at the BC for a second, too.