staceyglow

I love being on deck 1. Very few people roaming the halls down there, and it is easy peasy to get to the disembarkation point for port visits.

Thanks for clarifying, but I believe the original question was whether or not you can buy a wine package at a 25% discount with Cheers, and the answer appears to be "no".

Why would the class of ship determine the quality of the food?

I base my expectations for Princess cruises on Love Boat reruns.

The odds are in your favor. I have been on 20+ Carnival cruises and spend nearly all of my deck time on Serenity, and have never had an experience with loud obnoxious people there.

The OP titled this thread "Security needs to monitor the foul language". That is what I was responding to. You can' be loud and obnoxious without using any foul language, and that alone is disruptive behavior.

Should using four-letter words at a normal volume be considered "disruptive behavior", just because someone not involved in the conversation doesn't like it? Of all the things Carnival security should stay on top of, naughty words should be waaaaay down the list.

Good point. The crew has never, ever done anything about anyone who breaks any rule. Better to just continue to cruise on Carnival so that you have more stuff to post about afterwards. 🙂

Actually, as someone who does swear (not usually in public, though) I subscribe to this theory: https://www.sciencealert.com/swearing-is-a-sign-of-more-intelligence-not-less-say-scientists

This. It amazes me the number of folks who come onto Cruise Critic to gripe about multiple issues about their trip, yet did nothing to remedy the problems in real time.

Are you sure about that? If I am remembering correctly, if you click on any activity (including the shows), it takes you to a page that describes it in more detail.

They do sell the metal straws at the bars

My son has helped train contraband-sniffing dogs, and the newbies sometimes get excited because they know they are going to get their reward (usually playing with a toy), They eventually learn to "act cool". 😄

I have been on over 25 Carnival cruises, and I have never been on an Excel class ship. But it's not because it's out of my comfort zone. I cruise based on destinations and price, and there has never been a cruise on an Excel ship that went where I wanted to go at the price I wanted to pay. Someday, I hope to at least try it. But right now, I am not one of those people who are willing to pay a premium to do it.

I believe she is talking about villas on HMC, not cabins on the ship.

I have never seen more than one service dog on a cruise at a time. I am sure it is reasonably easy to avoid them if you are allergic, just like service dogs on land.

My guess is that they considered every option before going to the candy straws, as I am sure they cost more than the wax ones.

Of course not, but space on a cruise ship is very precious, and it doesn't make sense to have an non-revenue activity on board that requires 250-300 square feet of space per person. That's more space than most cabins.

If you think the complaints about lounge chair hogs are bad, imagine if 100+ people book a particular cruise ship because it has pickleball when only 4 people at a time are able to play?

True 🙂 But unlike a pickleball court, at least the art gallery is a source of revenue.

Seems like an awfully large area (well over 1,000 square feet) to take up for something that only 4 people can use at a time. I can't think of any other current activity on Carnival that is that inefficient of a use of space. People who are nuts about pickleball know where they can play at home. They don't really need to play on a ship. And I say that as someone who likes to play pickleball.

My guess is that they become available as people change their mind and cancel their booking.

The Pride is one of our favorite ships. We have been on it several times and have a 21-day B2B in Europe scheduled for this summer. Spirit class has the highest square footage to passenger ratio on Carnival. It never feels crowded. Love the layout of the ship. It doesn't have every single bell and whistle as some of the newer ships, but it is fine for us.

As an FYI, several of the major networks have free cell phone and data usage in Mexico. I have AT&T, and that is the case. If there are Mexican ports on your itinerary, and you don't need to be in touch 24/7, it is an option when you are in port.

If you consider price and itinerary vs. Celebrity, and go in with a positive mindset, you should be fine, If you get onboard expecting Celebrity service and amenities at Carnival prices, you will probably be disappointed.