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basketballdad

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    Did Carnival Cancel my April 18 cruise correctly? Some FCC, some cash

    in Carnival Cruise Lines

    Posted

    Just got off the phone.. booked in Feb for April 18.  $1550.  

    When I cancelled just now they said I was eligible to get $900 as a FCC and they would put the balance of cash back on my credit card within 90 days.

    My daughter in law has Cystic Fibrosis  (high risk group) and was booked in an adjacent cabin.  They are calling next to cancel.  Heard their might be additional credit for all  of us.  I mentioned it and the Carnival Rep did not know anything about it.

    Did Carnival do this correctly?  Keep some back, refund some, and no on board credit for high risk groups?  Thanks

    Best way to book Carnival Sunshine

    in Ask a Cruise Question

    Posted

    I have a cruise in mind.  In the past I went through my credit card travel arm and got a ship board credit.  Another time I went through a new internet travel agency and got a gift in my room.  Another time I went right through Carnival and really did not get anything.  All seem to have about the same price.  Where would you go to buy your next cruise if you knew exactly what you wanted and wanted the best price and perks?

    Senation..what I wish I knew before

    in Carnival Cruise Lines

    Posted

    1 hour ago, grandmarnnurse said:

    Was this your first cruise? Because it’s well known that unless you are Platinum, Diamond or have FTTF, you cannot get to your cabin until 1:30. And most people know that cell phones should be kept on Airplane Mode unless you want to incur a high cell bill.

    Sometimes we post for ourselves, sometimes to give tips to others.  Ya, this was my first cruise...for this month lol.  You didn't read closely...of course you don't draw data on the ship without a plan...if you stay off cellular at sea you can pull data each day including the sea day, if you wait til about 4 pm.  So ya reading closely matters.

    Senation..what I wish I knew before

    in Carnival Cruise Lines

    Posted

     
    5 day Sensation Miami Nassau Half Moon Cay and Grand Turks.
     
    Embarkation fastest ever about 10 minutes.   Ship was at Port D if you take Uber.   Not allowed in state rooms until 130 pm so if u come early just know that.  Lunch is open of course.  Luggage took about an hour.
     
    Cabin steward came by and asked if we wanted morning or evening cabin service and his sheet also said both so we said both and he did.  Also asked for ice and he supplied a bucket of ice all cruise.  We tipped extra at the end.
     
    We had a back balcony which was good.  Most beds in most cabins run parallel to the ship, meaning as the bow goes up and down your foot end of the bed goes up and down slightly if that make sense.  However for the few cabins at the aft the beds run perpendicular to the ship meaning the bed goes up and down left to right instead of foot to head.  It was just weird to be rocked that way all night.
     
    Nassau is the only port on this cruise you need both your key card and I.d.  a driver's license is all you need for this cruise. No passport.  The other parts needed just your sign and sail card.  
     
    We walked 3 blocks south and 3 blocks east from the port and took a city bus on an unnarrated island tour for a buck and a quarter.  You pay at the end.  Bus 19 is a good one to see behind the scenes of you have done this island alot.  
     
    Private island... No tips...it was very hot.  Bring lots of sunscreen.  Excellent cell phone service. 
     
    Grand Turks.  It was so hot the locals were swearing badly.  There is limited free beach  chairs and cabanas and such right off the boat on the left of their pier so you want to be the first off.  The green umbrellas are free and the blue chairs behind them are free. First come first served.  The others are $25 for 2 chairs and an umbrella.  
     
    The 2nd night is formal night and an upgraded menu.  Be sure to try the rare finds like frog legs if that is your thing.  Most of the dinning room tables were for 8 to 12 people. Long gone are the days of tables for 2 and 4.  Every night they would stop service and the staff dance.  It use to be 1 night on cruised we took in the past.  Now everynight.  The background music is the same track each night.  We are dessert to Kenny g, entrees to a remake of Richard Marx, each night. It became a joke at our table.  Oh, this song is on, must be time for the bread..etc.
     
    By far the best part of the cruise was Deon the cruise director.   On 3 nights he had an event in the atrium about 845 pm. This is a must do.  It might be listed as name that song or something but just go. He had hundreds of people leaning over the edges of all the levels in the palm of his hand.
     
    IMHO one of the best vocalists at sea that we've seen is with the band Sixth Element.  They played most nights midship level 9.   Mostly standards from the 80s and 90s.  Some before.  They nailed so many songs so close that my phone app was showing the titles and original artist.  They have a new big fan   the crowds got bigger each night as passengers learned of them.
     
    The ship is old and worn out.  They have worked hard with upkeep but the price was right to overlook stuff.  The cabins have a hair drier and in the shower there are soap and shampoo dispensers.  One power outlet in cabin and 1 in bathroom.  We brought a very small splitter to charge 3 devices.
     
    Internet and cell phone...nassau if you have TMobile its local.  Others international plans work.  Half moon cay cell tower right by where dock is.  Turks the same.  On the sea day about 4 pm and off and on all night you are nearby towers on the islands you pass to get phone and internet.  In other words just make sure you are not on cellular at sea which is the ships towers, and you can stay connected without buying the ships internet package. 
     
    Overall a Nice cheap getaway.
     
     
     
     
     
     

     

    Power Snorkeling / Beach Excursion

    in Grand Turk

    Posted

    Love the detail.  I hate reviews that say "we had a lovely time" and love reviews that have details, what happened, what to expect, etc.  I appreciate you addressing the security of your times, locking them up, they unlocking them, etc.  Very rare and great review.  Thank you!

     

    • Like 1

    Is there Cell Phone Service on Half Moon ?

    in Private Islands

    Posted

    Is this a for sure?  or a probably.  (2 years ago I posted a question about being able to see the shore on a med cruise and several people said no or probably not and guess what- yes you could!) I saw other posts about cell service on other private islands and people were like " probably not" and my thought was " unless you absolutely know either way, dont post."  So, if you tried recently, Ill go with the 36,000 post answerman as for sure.  Anyone have any different experience? 

    • Like 1

    Anyone use Barcelona Day Tours?

    in Spain and Portugal Ports

    Posted

    We used them today. They are based put of the Netherlands and sub out their local work. We had a driver named paco. He took us to Andorra. Very good English. Picked us up right on time. We decided to cut things short and he did good and took us right to hotel. Since he got paid for 2 hours he didn't work by our choosing we thought he would feel that a nice tip. We could tell he wanted more so we tipped him some euros as well as 2 hours of paid time off. Outside of this the communication was good with this firm, their prices cheaper than others, and yes we would recommend them.

    What I wish I would have known MSC Meraviglia

    in MSC Cruises

    Posted

    The portions of good were fine. We ordered 2 deserts and such.

    Frankly I think the biggest issue is that it was different. Having to ask and clarify you get water, still water. Not the venues or music, but hey, they got 15 languages they are juggling. The crew was good. The ship awesome. The ports good. The food medium to poor, the activities generally poor.. a few great shows including the beatles, the magic friends, etc... but little else. No movies without paiYing 8 euro. The ropes course was fun.

    I think in warmer weather it would be more fun with the outdoor slides and pools.

    What I wish I would have known MSC Meraviglia

    in MSC Cruises

    Posted

    Enjoying your review[emoji846] I have two teens and are considering the same cruise next summer or fall 2018.

    Question- are you able to use your credit card to pay the vendors? I don’t like to carry around a lot of cash with me. Thanks!

     

     

    Sent from my iPhone using

     

     

    Forums

    In Barcelona yes, cabs to credit cards, etc. Everywhere else, except for stores and restuaruants, they want euros. We bought some candy on Rome and the store had a 10 euro min to run my card so we bought stuff we didn't want cause we were traveling with small amount of cash.

    More cash less credit cards is the matra here it seems.

    What I wish I would have known MSC Meraviglia

    in MSC Cruises

    Posted

    So finally we had something different on day 6 at the buffet. Seriously it is the same food every day. To the very inch. Except one spot called ethic food. Today it was Mexican and the nacho chips and guacamole were gone within the hour. People here are do wanting variety, at least the ones in our cabin. Here on an unscheduled stop in Palma... sure hated to miss Maltw, but it looks fun here

    Meraviglia cruisers, please!

    in MSC Cruises

    Posted

    Wow a rude comment above. If there are people pushing around m when I am at the front of the line to get on the bus, and we've been waiting for 10 minutes and they just got there, and I have my parents in their 80s withbus, yes I will put my arm on the bus and block the cutters from running over me and my aged parents. Who made me the line police, I did, thank you very much. And I'll go back to crystal, not carnival thank you. Has nothing to do with the ship, just manners.

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