cruisinqt

Check your prices. Our cruise dropped by $600 (total for all four of us) and after my call our TA got right on it. Just got our email reflecting new lower price. :D It's the biggest single price drop we've ever had. Sooo happy! The new "Upgrade Your Summer" sale is awesome and it doesn't end until 5/26.

We have a balcony cabin on the freedom this August and our price dropped $600! My TA did the price adjustment for us yesterday and we are so happy! Everyone should check their prices, the upgrade your summer sale is awesome and doesn't end until May 26th. :D

We are from Texas also and love sailing out of Galveston. We really miss the Conquest, one of our all time favorite cruise ships that was there. :) That being said, we have cruised out of numerous ports and agree with you about New Orleans. It's a very crowded, congested port that's hard to navigate. :( But we have fallen in love with sailing out of Ft. Lauderdale. The airfares from DFW to FLL are very good and there's lots to do and see there pre and post cruise. And the port itself is very new, well managed, and easy to navigate. A close second favorite is cruising out of Orlando. They have a newer nicer port too. Hope this helps.

When we have connecting flights we always bring along the largest carry on allowed in addition to our normal luggage. With American Airlines it's 22"x14"x9". Then in that carryon we put the bare necessities in there that we couldn't survive without like a swimsuit, sandals, a pair of shorts, a pair of pants, a shirt, etc. like at least one of each thing. That way we have enough to survive on. And if your luggage is lost carnival will give you credits in their store on the ship and allow you to purchase a few items to help you get by, we had that happen to friends. Hope this helps. Good luck.

Any alcohol brought on board from ports are to be declared and will be taken and held until the last day of the cruise when they return it to you. Bummer. :cool:

No waterworks but huge upgraded arcade called the warehouse and bigger upgraded candy store too.:) And yes, I would still pick the bigger newer Freedom over the older smaller ships. But I really like the bigger newer ships with all the extras. Some people love the smaller older ships because they are less crowded and easier to navigate. I guess it's up to your personal preference. But as far as kids go my kids love the bigger newer ships because they have nicer kids facilities and there's more stuff to do.

We cruised her sister ship the Dream last year and loved our spa balcony. I never even noticed the open balcony. It wasn't overly hot or anything and we sailed in August. :) We were on deck 11 and never noticed much motion. I think it's because the ship is so big. ;) Plus you are guaranteed to not have neighbors smoking on the balconys next to you. That's a big plus for us. I hate not being able to use my balcony because of the smoke from next door. And the spa is amazing. The hot bubbly mineral water in the Thelasso therapy pool is wonderful. I say go for the spa balcony!:)

We loved the Freedom so much we are sailing her again this August. I would choose the Freedom because it's a much bigger newer ship with the 2.0 upgrades and we like the ports better too. The beaches in Grand Cayman look like a postcard and swimming with the stingrays is a must if you haven't done it. In Ochoa Rios there's lots of all inclusive beach resorts to choose from. :)

Sorry, budget is what I'm using for my upcoming Vegas trip. Got things mixed up. :o Charlie's car rental is pretty close to the pier in San Juan and offers free shuttles. They're pretty reasonable too. We use them when we go to San Juan. Good luck. Hope it works out for you.

We have the same problem, our flight leaves at 4:15 pm when we return from our cruise. We rented a car for just $45. We take a free shuttle from Budget to their location nearest to the port and return it to the airport. We will be able to go sight seeing, enjoy a meal at a nice restaurant, and even shop a little. And it's not much more than what we would have paid for a taxi to the airport for a family of four. :)

We went on the Dream last year and loved it! My favorite slide was the big toilet bowl flush styled slide. :) My kids loved the tall twisty slide. We all loved the 18 hole putt putt golf course. The huge arcade with all of the "cool" games, as my kids put it, was where my kids lived. :rolleyes: There's also a larger nicer candy store, we all made plenty of purchases there. :D You will love the Dream!

Don't sweat it too much. These local tour guides are usually waiting for numerous people off of the ship. They know you won't be let off first so they will wait, they're used to it. Chances are you will rush to get off of the ship then end up waiting with your tour guide for the rest of the group. It happens to us every time. :rolleyes:

The Dream is newer with a few more upgrades. We cruised on it last year with a spa balcony cabin and it was great. :) We loved the hot bubbly Thelasso therapy pool with mineral water. :D

They offered it to us mid week. It's $15 for as much as you can stuff in the bag. And the bag can hold several pants and several shirts. You usually get it back the next day. :)

Both of my girls love tea time. Btw, if you ask they will bring hot cocoa. My girls aren't fond of tea but they loved the hot cocoa. It's a great bonding experience with the kids and yours won't be the only little ones. There's usually a handful of young ones all dressed up for tea time with mom. :)

I haven't encountered children on the serenity deck on any of my cruises. There's plenty of signs posted at the entrance and I usually see staff nearby watching. :)

You will probably get better responses to this on the Belize board in the ports of call section. But I've done private Belize tours several times without a problem. We were there the exact same hours as you were and did the cave tubing and got back with plenty of time to spare. :) Just try to be one of the first off the ship. Your tour operator will be sure to adjust your schedule to get you back in time. Btw, the cave tubing is awesome!:D

They have sales throughout the week. I usually book one. I loved the hot stone massage. :D

There's no standard service fee to upgrade from one category to the next. It all depends on the ship, how full it is, and how many cabins are available in the category you're looking to upgrade to. The more availability the lower the price. The less availability the higher the price. I just go to carnival and do a mock booking (up until payment is required) and I can usually see what it will cost to upgrade myself to the next category. I hope this helps. Enjoy your cruise. :)

We love the Embassy Suites on 17th street. It's just a couple miles from port and they have two room suites with fresh hot free breakfasts. And I'm not talking about the cheap little breakfasts most hotels have. I'm talking about ordering your omelet your way and getting fresh made hashbrowns and bacon added to the plate. All free. :D it's a huge buffet! And they have a very very large pool too. In the evenings they have their receptions with free snacks and drinks. And yes, they are free alcoholic drinks. ;) The rooms have a separate living/dining room with sleeper sofa so you can put your kids in a separate room which is a big deal for us. And there's a kitchen area with sink and fridge. We booked the Embassy Suites this summer for $108. When you add in the cost for a nice hearty breakfast that will keep you full for hours the price is pretty darn good IMHO.

Most shuttles will charge you $15 per person each way. For our family of four it would be a little pricey. It would $60 before the cruise and another $60 after the cruise for transportation. So we usually book a car. Several rental car companies have locations just a mile or two from the port at both Ft Lauderdale and Miami with free shuttles to the port. We booked a full sized car through Budget this summer for just $47 (total). We pick it up at the airport and do a one way rental to the location nearest the port. Then we take the free rental car shuttle to the port. And it's nice having a car to stop by and get wine and other essentials or eat out or sight see. I hope this helps. :)

We always research everything and plan it all out because we sooo look forward to our annual cruise every year. But I'm thinking a last minute cruise may not be possible because of customs and security issues. Every cruiser needs to clear a full background check. Your best bet is calling the cruise line you're interested and asking them.

Oops just saw that you are going to port of Miami from ft. Lauderdale. We rented a car last time we did that and it was just $35 total for the whole day. We stopped and got some wine and other essentials at the store and even had a nice meal at a cool restaurant before we headed to port for our cruise. Several car rental places has locations just a couple miles from port with free shuttles to the pier. Hope this helps. :)

I wouldn't do the shuttle for $15 per person. You can do a taxi for just $15 total for your group. And it doesn't make you wait for 10 or more people till it's full like a shuttle. And shuttles stop at every cruise line so if carnival is the last one on the list to stop at then it takes a while. I would definitely do a taxi. There's plenty of them at the airport and it will take you straight to the cruise port. It's only a ten minute ride.

Yes they make you stick to the rules. 12 pack per person only and it can't be in your luggage or you get it confiscated. It has to be in your carry on. The good news is you can buy more soda at the ports you visit. We love the cokes at Cozumel, it's made with real sugar, not syrup. The flavor is amazing. :)

I agree with the other posters about the water. The water on cruise ships is all filtered and tastes great. No nasty tap water with added chemicals on cruise ships. Yay for that. ;)