pjcoach
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If you use $10 as the price of a drink (with tip and tax) as an average, you would need to consume 83 drinks between you and your wife for you to break even as opposed to doing a la carte.
I’m sure others look at the breakeven differently , but that is how I figure it out.
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My family and I rented cabana 8 last week. Very happy we rented a cabana, we loved it along with the amenities that came with it (snorkel gear, snacks and beverages).
When looking at the cabana map it appears that the cabanas and villas are much more spread out and farther from the tender port, they are not. I would suggest cabana 8 or higher if you want to be on a somewhat quieter portion of the beach.
Happy to answer any questions.
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Does anyone have any pictures of the new waterpark that was mentioned in the following article?
Thank you.
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https://www.cruisecritic.com/news/news.cfm?ID=8350
Live From Half MoonCay: Six Cool Things About Holland America's Private Island
January 19, 2018
…A newchildren's water park with slides and water sprays is being built (the old onewas torn down) and it will open in late February 2018.
I was there last Sunday. It is not open as of yet.
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My wife and two sons sailed on the Jolly Mon with Jennifer and Chuck this past week and had a great time. I would highly recommend sailing with them. They only carry a maximum of 6 guests, so it is great for avoiding the overcrowded boats you see. We did the half day with lunch and the food and drinks were both great. It was very convenient, only about a 10 minute walk from our cruise ship dock in havensight to where Chuck picked us up with the zodiac to bring us out to the Jolly Mon. We had a very fun sail over to Buck Island ( it was a windy day, according to Chuck about 20 knots). When we got to Buck Island we could snorkel s wreck there or just swim or hang out on the boat. The lunch, especially the chicken was great.
Our sail back was fun as well, and the day ended to quickly. Happy to answer any questions. Book the Jolly Mon before someone else does.
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Just got off the Glory today and figured I would give a quick review. It was my wife and two sons, we had inside cabins on deck six. Some background for context around my review: my wife and I have been on about a dozen cruises (princess, Royal Caribbean and Carnival). We go in with very realistic expectations, for example, I expect the food to be the same as a good diner. Overall, as usual it was a very good time. The service by all of the crew was great as well as all of the food.
We ate all dinners in the main dining room (late seating) and we also ate all except for one breakfast in the main dining room. For lunch, we ate at Guys, BBQ, Deli and Blue Iguana. I also had pizza once as a snack.
Two things in regards to dining, in the future I would probably switch to my time. This is based upon the various activities going on. I also get a little frustrated at the lido buffet for breakfast due to the flow of lines, it seems the omelette station holds the lines up.
I would be more than happy to answer any specific questions about food, entertainment or the ship in general.
As far as shore excursions, here goes:
Half Moon Cay
We rented cabana 8. I would highly recommend getting a cabana if you can. It was well worth it. It included snorkel gear, towels, soft drinks (2 per person), 2 liters of water, tortilla chips, guacamole, salsa and crudités.
Cabana 8 we thought was in a perfect spot. On the map it looks farther from the tender than it actually is, so if you want to be on a little less crowded part of beach go for cabana 8 or higher.
St. Thomas
I rented the Jolly Mon sailboat for a half day sail and lunch. If you google jolly mon you will find them. Jennifer and Chuck were great. It was like spending the day with friends. The lunch and other snacks were fantastic and the painkillers were really good. We sailed right from havensight where we docked (about 10 minute walk from ship) to Buck Island where you can swim and snorkel. The best part is that it was only the four of us on the boat. They will only carry a maximum of six, so if you do not want to be with the crowds, book the Jolly Mon.
San Juan
We did the rainforest horse back riding booked through Carnival. This was a good excursion , the guides were nice and the horses were very responsive. The ride was very relaxing and the scenery was ok.
Grand Turk
We did the ATVs through Carnival. This was very good. Great way to see the island and very fun to ride. The guides were very professional and safety conscious. The ATVs seemed brand new. Highly recommended doing this.
If you have any questions please ask and I will try to answer.
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We are going to Belize for the first time in April does anyone have any suggestions for an excursion to take, it looks like there are a lot of water excursions but we really don't want that. Also are there any shops, restaurants in the area close to the ship.
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I know you said no water, but we did the cave tubing and had a blast. You are definitely in the water but it’s not like snorkeling or diving. Highly recommend the experience.
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When making final payment, can you pay online with gift cards or do you have to call PVP?
Yes you can make final pay with gift cards on line. I did this about a month ago, but I did it a couple of days before the due date. Not sure if it matters if you wait until the due date.
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I just found out about these two rules, curious if I was in the minority of not knowing.
1) carnival considers 25 years old to be an adult for purposes of supervising a minor
2) a minor under the age of 18 must be in a cabin within three cabins of an adult
Came during a conversation regarding guaranteed rooms that I had with an agent
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Tortola
Rebel yell catamaran trip to Jost Van Dyke
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Tie between helicopter tour in Alaska that landed on a glacier and Catamaran lunch sail and snorkel in Barbados
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We are booked here in 2 days pre cruise on the Summit, Thanksgiving the 23rd and 24th. Stayed in San Juan about a dozen times, never here at the Renaissance. Will let you know about the hotel and surroundings.
We have been canceled by Caribe Hilton, Embassy Suites and InterContinental.
Wife and I spent 3 Days there last summer. Very nice, we enjoyed our stay.
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Thank you all for the quick replies. Enjoy!
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Lyndamr
The only thing I noticed that I felt needed repair/touch up were spots are the hull that were rusty. In the past I felt that at every port we were at, someone was always painting the hull. In terms of other parts of the ship there was nothing that stood out that seemed as if it needed repair.
The lunch buffets were fine, but keep in mind with this itineary, we were usually out of the ship until about 4pm, so when we came back, we typically grabbed a sandwich at the deli, or something from the grill to just hold us over until dinner.
After 11pm, I really can't speak to eating. We had late seating, so I was pretty stuffed after dinner, and was usually in bed by midnight. I know there were a couple of late night parties on the lido which I believe had food.
I thought the food in the MDR was good. SOme things were better than others, but plenty of choices every night. However, I am not very picky. My expectations are that it should compare to good dinner food, and it is usually better than that. I am also pretty easy since I enjoy steak, an dif I wanted, I could get some form of it every night.
Yes, theer was live music every night. Before dinner, teher was a band in Winston's, there was also a band outside the casino, and on some evenings there was a band later in the evening on the lido deck.
Texasgalsa
Sorry, no pictures, I am technologically challenged.
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My family was on the Calabazza last week, and had a great time. It was probbaly the highlight of our entire vacation. The Calabazza is a fantastic catamarran, the crew could not do enough for us, the food snacks and drinks were great (rum punch was best ever). With a limit of 12 people on board, you can not go wrong with this trip. We didn't see that mnay turtles, maybe 3, but it ddin't matter. It was a great day.
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My family and I used Island Man (Kurt) on February 19th and had a great time. He drove us from the pier to the Pitons. ALong teh way we stopped at various spots (bannana plantation, scenic views). All along teh way he told us about the island. We also stopped at the mudbaths, a waterfall, lunch at a very good local restaurant and a beach. Kurt was a great driver and was very safe. If I went back to St. Lucia, I would definitely use Kurt to drive my family. For the four of us, the cost was $160. We were with Kurt from about 8:15am to 4pm. Our additional costs were entrance to the mudbaths ($22 for 4), entrance to waterfall ($12 for 4) and lunch ($35 for 4).
Go with Island Man, you will not be dissapointed. He will also help you arrange water transportation to Lalouise Beach if you desire. I beleieve it woudl have been $50 per couple for the roundtrip.
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Check out Island Man (Kurt). I just used him on February 19th and can't speak more highly of him. He will take you wherever you want. He does all the tours himself, provies drinks along the way and is a very safe driver. Very reasonable prices.
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Friday - St. Kitts
We woke up to some cloudy skies in the mountains, went to breakfast and then met up in the Ivanhoe at 9:30am fro the Skyfari Zipline Tour that I booked with Carnival. It was nice that they had you do all paperwork in the Ivanhoe so that you did not need to do it at the loaction. We were escorted outside to a van that drove us about 20 minutes to the zipline. After a safety presentation and equipment orientation we were ready to go. My family has ziplined before, so we were familiar with the process. I would say that I felt extreemly safe with the equipment that they used, si if you are hesitant, I would think you would feel very comfortable compared to some other equipment that I have used. That being said, there are only 5 lines, including the first line which is only about 50 yards long and is used as a training run and equipment test. After doing the first line, the group piled into a pickup truck for the ride up the mountain. As we got higher, it started to rain. By the time we were ready for the second line, it was pouring. This is the longest and best line. On a clear day, the view must be great, in the pouring rain, not so much, but it was a different experience. Overall, my family enjoyed this excursion, but we all wish that there were a couple of more lines.
We got back to the ship, had some lunch and took a nap in one of those big oval shaped longe chairs on the serenity deck. This was very realxing.
Saturday - St. Martin
This was originally going to be a beach day at Divi Little Bay, but since our kayak excursion was cancelled in St. Thomas, we decided to do the mangrove kayak tour here. Our tour was scheduled for a meeting time of noon on the pier, so we had the chance to sleep in and relax in the morning. After we met on the pier, we were escorted to a van that took the group on about a 20 minute drive to I believe Simpson Bay. We were briefed on teh tour and giving a quick lesson in kayaking. We paddled for about 30 minutes towards the magroves, on the way we passed through the marina where all the private yachts were docked. It was pretty cool going by all of them. Some of the paddling was strenuous, due to the wind and current, but not crazy. Once at the mangroves, teh guides told us about teh ecosystem and some history of St. Martin. We then headed back the same way we came, but now headed across the bay to a greta beach (I believe Simpson Bay Beach). We spent about 30 minutes swimming here, the water was fantastic. We wished we could have spent much more time here. We then paddled across the bay to our strating location and the guides bought us a drink at the bar. Very nice way to end the tour.
Got back on the ship, ate lunch and went for another nap in the serenity area.
Overall, this was a great trip. No major complaints. Boarding and disembarkation was easy (we did self assist and were off the ship and in a taxi by 8am). I'd be happy to try and answer any questions about something I described or if you hav eother questions about the ship, meals or activities.
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We never made it to the piano bar, so I don't know who was playing. Theer were a total of four comedians, 2 were on the ship at a time for a total of 2 days for each pair. They were all good, but one was very good (Jim Brick). He he is on your cruise, be awre if you sit in front, you will be fair game.
Monday - St. Thomas
We woke up at 7am so we could go to the dinning room for breakfast before we met our Kayak, Hike and Snorkel tour that we booked with Carnival. The meeting time was 8:30am in the Ivanhoe Theatre. The skies were cloudy and it was raining, but I assumed it would clear up. When we got to the Ivanhoe, we were told that the tour was not going out as scheduled due to the weather, we could get a refund or see if it would be able to happen at 11am. We decided to wait, ans were told to meet on the pier at 11am. When we arrived at 11am we were told that the tour ws cancelled and we could book another tour going out at noon or just get a refund. We thought we would get a refund and head to the beach, but the tour operator said that they expected heavier rain throughout the day. So, we just got the refund and decided to go downtown to just walk around. We hoped on one of the safari buses for $4pp (one way) and spent about an hour and a half just walking around. We are not big shoppers, but it was good to just walk around. After returning to the ship, we did some of your typical onboard activities and got ready for the evening. I won't spend much time talking about activities on teh ship or meals, but if you have specific questions, please ask.
Tuesday - Sea Day
Beautiful day. We did a lot of laying out on deck and took advantage of some activities.
Wednesday - Barbados
Woke up to another beautiful day, still a little windy, but no problems. I had booked us on the Calabazza lunch cruise. If you don't know about Calabazza, look it up for specific details, but it is a catamaran with a crew of 3 an dthey limit the numbe rof guests to 12. We met the transfer company of the pier at 9am and got transported to the Calabazza. The drive was about 10 minutes. So, the lunch cruise is 5 hours long, 9:30 to 2:30. As soon as you step on board, theer are snacks available and a full bar. We sailed down the coast and back. During the sail the crew provided some delicious fish cakes to snack on and got you a drink at any time. After cruising back up the coast, we stopped to go snorkeling over some ship wrecks for about 40 minutes and then moved to the snorkel spot to see the sea turtles. We only saw about 3 sea turtles during our time theer, but it was pretty amazing. After that, lunch was served, and was very good. We spent teh remainder of the time anchored in this spot so you could go swimming or just realx on the deck. The crew is also taking pictures the whole cruise, which are then sent to you via email. This excusrsion was probably the highlight of our entire vacation. FYI, teh cost was $110pp, well worth it.
After returnning to the ship we got ready for the first formal night.
Thursday - St. Lucia
I booked a private tour with Island Man Taxi (Kurt). We woke up early and got off teh ship as soon as we could after eating berakfast. Kurt was waiting for us as we exited the terminal. We were with Kurt from about 8:15 till he returned us to teh pier at 4pm. He took us to see the Pitons, the mudbaths, a waterfall, a local restaurant for lunch and a beach near Souifere (teh town right next to the Pitons). Kurt was fantastic. The ride out to the Pitons is about 1 1/2 hours. He stopped at various spots and told us about the island. Some of the spots included vendors, but I never felt pressured to buy. Kurt loves his island and will tell you all about it. He also might be the safest driver on the island. It is a long day, and not my familiys typical excursion, we like to be very active. However, this was a very good tour and we all enjoyed it. The price for Kurt's services was very reasonable. We paid $40pp for the entire day. The additional costs were entrance to the mudbaths ($5.50pp), waterfall ($3pp) and lunch (I think our bill with tip was about $35 for the four of us.
Next up is St. Kitts.
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My family and I just returned from the Valor and had a great time. I will provide a pretty quick overview, if you have any questions I will try to answer. Just some background, this is my ninth cruise (I think), sixth with Carnival. I am not very picky and my expectations I feel are pretty reasonable. I go on vacation assuming theer will be issues and things will not be perfect, I am not one to look for things to ruin my good time, that being said, I do expect things to be clean,and well run.
We arrived in San Juan on Saturday and spent the night at the Milano Hotel on Fortaleza Street. This is a great location for Old San Juan and walking distance to the pier. The room is very small, but clean. Go into it with the expectation that it is the location that is most important. We ate dinner at Barrachina (Birth Place of the Pina Colada). The food was very good. The next day we got up went for a quick breakfast and checked out of the hotel at about 11:30am and walked to the pier. We were eating on the Lido deck by about 1pm. Very easy boarding process.
ALthough we had late seating (8:15) the first night is anytime dinning due to the lifeboat drill at 9:30. We went to dinner at 7pm so that we would not be rushed through dinner due to the drill. We set sail at into the fog.
I will continue with our arrival in St. Thomas shortly.
possibility to check in early?
in Carnival Cruise Lines
Posted
I sailed out of Miami last Saturday, may not be the same as Long Beach, but we had 11:30 to 12 assignment and got there about 9:30. There was a line for early/late (meaning before or after your scheduled time) for us to get on. After about 30 minutes or so they started letting people into the terminal including us and other guests. We were given boarding group 1 as we entered. We then proceeded to wait in the terminal for about an hour and a half or so before getting on the ship. Diamond/platinum and FTTF got on before us but only by about 15 minutes.
So, based upon my experience, yes you can get into terminal early and get on ship quicker than if you showed up at your scheduled time, but you still might need to wait a little.
Have fun
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