_beachgirl_

Great review! I'm considering doing a side by side very similar to this next year (Escape and Vista) so I was very interested in what you had to say.

Also we were on the Glory with you last month. Had a great time as well.

Thank you very much for your thoughts.

Just did it in Miami. There was one area set up for Americans and one set up for non-Americans. Just head over to the other line. Nothing else was different at all.

Unfortunately you won't be able to do the pigs. They are not in Nassau but Exuma. It would be quite a trek to get to them.

I used motioneaze on my last cruise. They were out of any sort of pills etc and I was desperate. It didn't work at all for either my husband or myself. If anything, the smell of the oil made my nausea worse.

You could try Norwegian or Carnival. They tend to be a tad cheaper and there are lots of activities and things to do.

I just did this very same cruise last month. We booked privately and saved a TON of money doing it that way.

What kind of shore excursions are you looking at doing? Beach Day? Tours? Water activities? Zip lining?

As for the second part of your question. We were at Mahogany Bay and LFK had transportation lined up there for people walking off the ship and booking with them. I'm sure it is similar at Coxen Hole.

They have a website so maybe you could secure something through that if you are worried and they offer that option.

I'm happy to try to answer any questions to help you that I can.

I'll give an estimate since no one else has replied to you yet. I wasn't paying close attention to the time but my guess would be about 20 minutes give or take.

I wish I could give you a better answer but we just drove past both places and I wasn't timing anything. Hope that helps you out a little bit.

The airlines are Tropic Air and Maya Island Air in case you wanted to look into them. They were my back up plan in case of emergency getting back to the boat.

Hi Kathy,

You do have to take a water taxi. We used Belize Water Taxi. http://www.belizewatertaxi.com

You can buy the tickets beforehand or at the dock. We waited until we got to the dock to buy ours. I'm don't think they are guaranteed and it was pretty full both times. On the way over to Caye Caulker it looked like a lot of people were going to work (uniforms) and on the way back it looked like a ton of travellers were picked up at other places and we were a stop so it was already crowded when we got on. I could definitely see how that could be a problem, though it wasn't a big deal for us. They just asked people to move over and squished everyone on.

There are 2 water taxi services that go to Caye Caulker. Also 2 airlines that run daily in case you get stuck.

Hi Lou,

If you go to that social networking page we aren't allowed to mention here that starts with an "F" and ends with "book", you can find him there and send him a message. He usually answered me within a day or two, sometimes quicker.

We are looking at the same type of excursion. Were you happy with the company you used?

We used Caveman Snorkelling tours which I booked privately and it was AMAZING!! It is rated and the #1 water activity in Belize on Trip Advisor and I can definitely see why. We got so much personal attention (we had a group of 4) and the trip included water and fresh fruit.

Ronnie, our tour guide stopped to make sure each person in our group saw every fish he pointed out. He named them and gave us some information about them. It was very educational and a ton of fun.

Hi :) Thanks so much for the advice and the insight. I am too late to get FTTF as it is sold completely out for my cruise. I am, however, monitoring ir so if there are any cancelations I can grab one. As for being a longtime cruiser with many voyages under my belt---Carnival does not count any of mine prior to 2002, so I am only a gold member. :( If nothing else, I will MOST DEFINITELY be freakishly early to be among the first, if NOT first, in line to get tix so I've done everything in my power not to be late for Shark Ray Alley.

Darn it about the FTTF. Hopefully you'll get lucky and one will pop up in the next few weeks. I'm sure you'll have a fantastic time in Shark Ray Alley regardless and the early morning will be worth it. It was a ton of fun. :)

I haven't sailed on either ship but like you we really love Roatan. Ocho Rio is just meh unless you do Dunn's River Falls and I haven't been to Falmouth so no opinion on that port.

Whatever you decide, I hope you have a great time!

I just noticed that you have a ton of cruises under your belt. If you are diamond or platinum I believe you also have access to priority tendering so it might not be an issue for you at all.

We met in the dining room in the morning (FTTF and Diamond/Platinum) and were all escorted to the tenders together. It might not be in the same place on your cruise but that might be an option for you as well.

Hi Almitra,

We just ran into this same issue on our cruise a few weeks ago so hopefully I can offer you a little help. We booked privately and went to Caye Caulker (and shark ray alley) as well. You have a couple options. First if you haven't looked into FTTF I totally recommend it. You get priority tendering which is what we used and we were on the first tender boat out. It was awesome. There are other perks for this as well and you only purchase it once and the entire cabin is entitled to the benefits. This sells out quickly so if it is available still for your cruise I would definitely snap it up.

Your other option is not as great (unless of course you are an early bird) but they hand out stickers with numbers on them that morning. If you are up very early in the morning and are among the first to get your stickers you will be on a very early tender which will work just fine.

No matter what you choose, I hope you have a fantastic trip!

If you have any questions I'm happy to answer them for you.

I heard the same thing. I think you still have to pay the tax for the state because you are technically still in it.

Hi UFLaw,

I just used Caveman Snorkelling for our trip in January. How long will your ship be in port for? The 5 hour tour might be a bit of a tight squeeze unless you have a lot of time in port. Do remember that Belize may be in a different time zone than the ship depending upon where you leave from. Also that it takes about an hour to get there and another to get back.

I'm happy to answer any question you have. I did pretty extensive research before going and we had a great day!

Apparently it came from Guest Services. Here are pictures of the inside and outside of the card.

Was the gifts from the casino? That sounds like them, not Carnival.

I don't think so. We've never spent even a dollar there. I may still have the card around here. I'll take a look around and see if I can find it in my paperwork.

We will direct our comments directly to the OP :). Like the OP we have also taken many cruises (on 14 cruise lines) and just happen to live in the Northeast (some of the year). One year we decided to take a late November RCI cruise (we now avoid RCI...but for other reasons) out of Bayonne. We happened to find a real good last minute deal, did not have to deal with air or a pre-night hotel in Florida (or elsewhere), and could drive to the Port in about 3 hours. So one late November day, with snow on the ground (but not on the roads) we jumped in our car, drove to Bayonne, parked at the port, walked onto the ship, and let the fun begin. It snowed a little that afternoon and it was the only time we have been on a ship with snow on its decks. For us it was a bargain cruise, no airline hassles, and the convenience made it all worthwhile. And when we returned to Bayonne it was easy to wheel our luggage over to our car, and head home in time for lunch. Again, no airline hassles, no worries about winter weather and the airlines, etc.

 

Would we do this again? Probably....but preferably on Celebrity or perhaps Princess. Although RCI used to be our favorite cruise line, many changes in their overall philosophy no longer make this line an attractive choice.

 

Hank

Hi Hank,

Sorry for the off topic question but I would really be interested to know what changes they made that you were not fond of. If you are willing to share that is.

I've tossed around cruising on Royal and have really been wanting to but I find that they are just a bit more expensive than NCL and Carnival so I haven't yet.

Interested in your opinion of them.

My sister and I are going on our first cruise in October and we were wondering what the benefits were for FTTF and if it was worth it.

 

One particular question I had is with boarding times. New Orleans is implementing staggered check-in. Does this affect when you can check in if you've purchases FTTF after you've selected a check in time?

 

Any info you can give me on FTTF is greatly appreciated.

We just had FTTF for our cruise and few weeks ago and LOVED it! You'll be assigned a check in time but if you have FTTF, you can show up whenever you like. If you are there early, you will be among the first people to set foot on the ship. You can also go right to your room to drop off your baggage as your room will be one of the first ones cleaned! That was another great perk.

Not sure what ports you are going to but if they are a tendered port, FTTF is definitely worth it for that too.

The other thing we really liked was the dedicated guest service line. It was so nice to not have to wait in a long line (especially on the last day). Also you only purchase one and it is good for everyone in the entire cabin!

Any specific questions, I'm happy to answer for you.

It is not likely you are going to find 'sale' prices for cruises in 2017 for a while. They are still trying to sell loads of cabins for 2016 cruises. To think Zika Virus will influence 2017 prices now doesn't seem probable.

 

Darn it! :p

Where are you thinking of cruising?

The Med?

Caribbean?

Alaska?

 

Zika and terrorist attacks might influence travel to some locations but certainly not the whole world..... for most of us.

 

I'm tossing around all of the above right now. Not really sure where I want to go. Price wise, I'm leaning towards the Caribbean but I'm honestly open to go anywhere (next year).

Hi Callierose,

We just celebrated my husband's birthday in January on a Carnival ship and I wasn't expecting them to do anything. On one of the first evenings when we returned to our cabin there was a card and a tin on the bed with 2 gift certificates in it. One was for the spa for $50 and the other was for a bottle of wine. Certainly was a nice surprise.

We were booked in an inside cabin so it definitely wasn't a suite perk or anything like that. Our friends who were also celebrating a birthday the same day received the gift as well.

I thought it was a very nice gesture on Carnival's part. I hope you'll find the same thing on your cruise!

Hope you have a great time!