Tom.Terrific

We live on the coast in Alabama and have plenty of great fresh caught seafood (that we enjoy) here all year.  So when we travel we're not looking for more fresh seafood.  Our restaurant of choice in Galveston is Miller's Seawall Grill.  They serve great seafood as well as a myriad of non seafood selections.  For breakfast, lunch or dinner, you can't miss.  You can see their menu here.

Thank you everyone for your input.  I'll give our PVP a call tomorrow.

All, We're cruising to Alaska from Seattle next August (8 months from now) and considering booking our flights through Carnival's "Fly2Fun" program.

Should we book now, or wait a few months and see if the cost of flying decreases as we get a little closer to sail away (fly away). 

Also, can you add your flight costs to "EasyPay" or do you just have to remember to pay for your flights before your final payment is due?

Thanks!

Dang it.  I'm so excited about this cruise, I had us embarking about a month early.  We sail away April 21

23 hours ago, ZoeyVictoria said:

We use a KYSS bag (Keep Your Stuff Safe).  It has two zipper tabs and a heavy-duty chain with a combination lock.  We run the chain through the frame of two loungers and lock it any time we leave the area.  It is available in different sizes and also as a backpack.  It is great to use on excursions and at water parks.  

We bought our KYSS bag seven years ago. When we're traveling, it goes with us, everytime.

We love Cove Balconies.  Easily preferred to a "conventional" balcony.  As long as you're not under the galley, you should be good.  The only downside to those deck 2 cove's is, when you leave your room, you're almost always walking to an elevator.  You're hardly ever walking up or down a flight or two of stairs.

19 minutes ago, helene109 said:

There are no laundry facilities on the Mardi Gras only a iron 

Yep.  Celebration, Jubilee, and Mardi Gras don't have laundry rooms.  Your stateroom steward is your hookup for valet laundry service at $15 / bag.  Guess we'll have to pass on anything over 7 days on these ships.  (At least until we make Diamond!!!)  Whoo!!

Carnival Horizon has lots of dining options available on the Lido Deck.  Guy's Burgers, Blue Iguana Cantina, Pizzeria del Capitano, Seafood Shack ($), and the Lido Marketplace.  This is where the fun, (and the crowds) are going for lunch.  I'd probably see if the "Captain's Pasta Bar" is open for this first meal and a chance to relax.  Enjoy your cruise!

We have our first MSC cruise (10 day) coming up in March.  We're excited to give them a try.  This all sounds very encouraging. 

Yes, gratuities are included in the price of your meal.  DW & I have both worked in the service industry and know how important tips are to these workers.  As a result, we're generous (sometimes to a fault) when we have an opportunity to tip.  Uber/Lyft drivers, Hotel workers, Wait staff, Baristas/Bartenders, Ship & Airport porters.  The list goes on.  The extra bucks out of my pocket isn't going to hurt my bottom line, but might really help the service worker.

On 8/9/2022 at 11:00 AM, MeganGC1983 said:

We love the cove balconies up front under guest services or shore excursions. 

We love cove balconies.  Below Guest Services and the Shore Excursions desks should be your first choice location for a cove.

We have a 5 day cruise coming up in just 3 weeks.  This will be our 19th cruise, and our first cruise in 3 years. We're jazzed beyond belief.  However, with the new protocols for cruises 5 days or less, I'm wondering how many of us were previously unable to cruise due to failed covid tests.  Are the new relaxed protocols due to anticipating low number of infected persons on board, or are cruise lines just following each other down the rabbit hole?

Regardless, we'll be masked when appropriate.

16 hours ago, TravelBluebird said:

 

I’m honestly worried about my November cruise being cancelled; it’s out of Mobile and the boat is only scheduled to start cruising the month prior.  Booked it because I can drive to Mobile and I’m trying to avoid getting back on planes as long as possible (crowds, huge TSA lines, expensive flights, masks on flights...or so I’ve heard).

 

If that is cancelled, my next one is February.

 

We're also booked to cruise from Mobile this November.  (An easy drive)  I think there's just a couple of short cruises before ours.  I'm hopeful we'll get to go but if not, our next cruise is to Alaska from Seattle in May.

Also. Princess Cruises Extends Pause of Guest Cruise Vacations Through May 14, 2021

Our first cruise stop at Key West was on a ship with fewer than 2000 guests and we were the only ship in port.  We had a fun day exploring.  Lunch, drinks, key lime pie.  It was lovely.  Our last visit was on a ship with nearly 3700 guests and there were 2 big ships in port that day.  We should have stayed on board and enjoyed a ship day.  The crowds ruined any chance for a good time.  It was like walking in downtown San Miguel de Cozumel.  I'm surprised the residents have tolerated the big ships as long as they have.

We'll still visit.  Probably not as often, but we'll stay for a few days when we do.  I'm looking forward to it already.

On 4/20/2020 at 4:08 PM, LHARTWICK said:

We would LOVE to be in a Muster Drill right now!!!  Never thought I'd miss it so much.  It's just a small price to pay for such a wonderful vacation!  Thanks for posting this!! 😍

 We'd do B2B Muster Drills if we could cruise again!

We can't wait to cruise again.  Probably have to do something special like a Transatlantic, or Southern Caribbean or Florida / California via Panama Canal, maybe Alaska again.

Saw this article on TMZ.com and thought it sounded great since we have 2 cruises with Carnival coming up this summer.

I'm not familiar with this source, and since it's an "exclusive" I wouldn't know how to verify the validity of the article.

I haven't heard John Heald say anything about this.  It's not mentioned in the "Travel Advisory" at Carnival.com

Anyone?

Thanks,

https://www.tmz.com/2020/03/01/carnival-cruise-line-full-refunds-credit-coronavirus-patients/

Well...It depends on the ship.  They don't all have the same venues.

On our next cruise (Carnival Breeze from Port Canaveral) we'll be choosing from

Guy's Pig and Anchor Smokehouse

Cucina del Capitano (Pasta Bar)

Blue Iguana Cantina

Lido Marketplace

Seafood Shack $

Guy's Burgers

Pizza Pirate

Deli

Probably going to check out the Pasta Bar first.  If it's to busy, the Seafood Shack will be our next stop.

19 minutes ago, matymil said:

Is it really that bad at night? Figured that nobody would be in there after dinner is over?? 

There wasn't a lot of noise under the galley to bother us during the evening, but kitchen activities for breakfast begin around 3:00 in the morning.  Pans being knocked around, machines (mixers?) running, didn't hear voices, but lots of loud banging sounds.  Maybe we just got lucky.  And it happened every morning.  

Just an FYI... But I looked Jack's FAQ (Feb 11, 2020)  https://www.jacksshack.tc/faq 

Says lounge chairs are complementary and umbrellas are available for rental @ $10

We've had coves on Magic and Dream, and have one upcoming on the Breeze,   But like others have said, you want to stay out from under the galley.  We shoot for under the excursion desk or guest services.

We took our first cruise on Fantasy in April '18.  And to be frank, we were less than enthralled with the Fantasy in our new home port.  Our experience being just "ok".  We' were pretty let down with the whole experience.  We then cruised on Carnival Dream last fall, and then with RCL in Feb '19.  (Both 7 days and fabulous cruises) and then we were looking at a 15 month stretch before our next cruise on Carnival Breeze in May 2020.  No way were we going to be able to wait that long.  We had the time opportunity, so we decided to try the Fantasy again just two months ago. Just a five day to Costa Maya, and Cozumel.  Because we've been to both of these ports multiple times,  we stayed on the ship both port days and had the best time.  The food was really good everywhere on the ship.  The ship was super clean like I've never seen on any ship.  Service was excellent on all accounts.  We felt genuinely welcome by staff and crew.  We had a great cruise!

And I know it may sound crazy... But with the exception of our first cruise on RCL Rhapsody of the Seas (the one that hooked us forever), and the magical experience we had on Emerald Princess (Princess Cruises) in Alaska, this may have been my favorite cruise ever.  Take a 30 year old ship, with no steakhouse, no Cucina Del Capitano, no Bonsai Sushi, no Mongolian Wok, no Pig and Anchor, only a handful of suites with balconies, (can't afford) and smaller everything.  Mixed it with a fabulous crew, good eats and drinks, and some Carnival magic, and suddenly it seemed like everyone onboard was smiling and having a great time.  

We definitely made friends with Carnival Fantasy this last trip.  We're looking forward to seeing her again next September.

It's reasonable to assume that you'll dock at the Puerta Maya pier since Carnival owns it.

We enjoyed a wonderful cruise on Fantasy last month.  Wait stations in the MRD appeared to be well organized and clean.  But I can't think of a time when the MDR didn't look good.  All the serving areas in the Lido buffet were kept as spotless as possible.  Spills were rapidly cleaned up, tables were pre-bussed and cleaned quickly after being vacated.  Even saw crew cleaning the recycling stations inside and out, as well as the underside of the self-serve beer stations.  Seemed like there was always someone hovering around the condiment statiiions ready to clean anything outside Guy's and Blue Iguana.  Clean seemed to be the order of the day every day.