R Prim

We are not currently in the stock market but would really like to take advantage of Carnival's low stock price. Anyone purchase Carnival Stock on your own? If so, how?

18 hours ago, JohninDC said:

I do not recall seeing them previously mentioned on this board.

 

Cocoa Beach Shuttle, Go Port Canaveral and Cortrans are the most often suggested shuttle providers between Orlando and PC.  Prices generally start at about $20 per person each way.

 

I would also look at using one way car rentals; we prefer rentals, allowing to stay, shop and dine where we want the night before the cruise.

Thank you. We have used Cortrans in the past and have been very pleased with them. We have also rented a car in the past which works well also. This time there are 8 of us and Orlando Sun Transportation states that it would be picking only our family up and taking us to our Hotel in Cocoa Beach and then picking only us up after the cruise to return to the airport. Not having to wait on other stops has its appeal.

Checking to see if anyone has used this service and would you recommend them. The reviews that I have read are good but most of them are over a year old. There are 8 of us flying into Orlando the night before a cruise out of Port Canaveral.

3 hours ago, BBigfoot613 said:

 

Where was it? Was it close to where you get off the ship or did you have to walk a ways to the pickup spot? Also were there signs?

Yes it was very close. Actually right as you get off the ship and go through customs.  It's just across the street.  As long as you can understand your Uber driver they can tell you right where they are parked.  Uber also gives you a description of the vehicle.  We are sailing in a couple of weeks and are using Uber to get us from the Port of Miami to FLL.

We have, much cheaper the then Carnival shuttle if there is more than one traveling!  We had a little difficult figuring out where we were to meet the Urber driver but quickly figured it out.  You should be fine.  

Thank you jag.wsfd. We honestly have yet to get a bad deal using Hotwire or Priceline considering the cost.

Ended up with this hotel on Hotwire. Has anyone stayed here or have an opinion?

I just booked an extended balcony on the Miracle. Price was great! Have had a regular balcony many times and just curious whether, under normal circumstances you would pay for the larger space. There is just two of us.

We always fly Southwest and need to check in and print boarding passes 24 hours before the flights. We buy the 24 hour Internet package which includes the use of the printer. Complained about the fact that we had to spend $16 dollars to use the Internet for a few minutes. They used to offer cheaper packages, I think it could have been so much a minute.

Just booked this cruise as well. Balcony cabin at OV rates! Got an extended balcony which we've never had. Would never spend the extra money for it but it was like $20.00.

My husband plays all the time on Facebook but I had to set him up with a special account without friends. It will blow up your friends timelines. Also is there a way to know early enough when a cruise, any cruise becomes available. For free we would go out of any US port, on any ship, going anywhere but by the time we see them, they are already sold out.

How are you getting from MCO to your Orlando hotel and the theme parks? :confused:

 

I would rent the car for two days, use it while in Orlando, and then drop it off in PC and ride the agency's free shuttle to the port -- easy! :cool:

 

Post cruise, unless your flight leaves after about 2:00 I would not bother with a rental and just use one of the shuttles to get from PC to MCO.

I agree!

Got a really cute pair on the ship for $15.00

One question is whether there will be a substantial upcharge for renting a car in Pensacola and turning it in somewhere in Mobile. An alternative would be to return the rental car to the Pensacola airport and from there take Uber/taxi transportation straight to the cruise terminal.

 

Google Maps indicates the distance as 56.6 miles. I have never used Uber and can't speak to that experience, but entering Uber Pensacola into Google leads you to the "fare estimator" on their local website and a "$79-$104" esimtated cost for the 1-hour ride. Another option is regular taxi service.

 

So you might compare that cost to the upcharge for turning in your rental car in Mobile, plus any costs involved in getting from the car rental facility to the cruise terminal. Then again, there is the convenience factor of being delivered right to the cruise terminal without the hassle of first turning in a rental car in Mobile. Just an option to consider. :cool:

Thank you so much for your input. I will definitely look into the Uber option from Pensacola - that thought never even entered my mind. It looks like we can rent a car at PNS and drop it off at the Mobile airport for about $80 total. Then probably take an Uber from the airport to the cruise port (which would all have to be done following the cruise as well).

Thank you! Looks like not a lot of options in Mobile.

Sorry for the long title but wasn't sure how often this topic had been covered. We are flying into Pensacola (seeing our grandson in the Navy). We will be renting a car at the airport and would like to drop if off near the Mobile Cruise Port. Anyone done this? What are our options? While we cruise often, never been our of Mobile before - a new adventure!

I think the rooms right in the middle are a little bigger then the ones on each end. I couldn't find any pictures either.

Thank you so much for your response. There are actually a couple of aft rooms available on the Empress deck as well but I was concerned about the noise.

We are looking at booking the Fantasy for January and are considering OV rooms facing the back of the ship (M265 & M267). Anyone ever stay in rooms facing the back of the ship (verses on the sides)?

What a wonderful cruise. We have been loyal Carnival customers for a long time but this trip sealed the deal! Carnival certainly went way beyond what anyone could have expected to keep us safe and "happy". I also want to mention Southwest! 13 of us changed our return flights 4 times and never received an additional cost. In fact I got points back. And lastly our shuttle service QLS. We made the decision to leave the ship on Tuesday night at the very last minute. I called QLS to shuttle us back to FLL and our driver was there within 10 minutes. Yes, we spent the night in the airport BUT even there, volunteers came around with blankets and water - can you believe it! I am feeling blessed and thankful!!

I have been following this thread closely from the beginning. My heart goes out to all those affected by Harvey! We often cruise during hurricane season so we certainly know the risks but you kinda think it's never going to happen to YOU! I will preface the next statement with telling you that we are pretty much loyal Carnival cruisers (Diamond status) but have cruised most of the larger lines. I decided this morning to read both Carnival's weather alert and Royal Caribbean's. Doing so has strengthened my loyalty to Carnival! If you have a moment, check it out! Feeling really bad for those RCI cruisers.

I will brag for just a moment...on our last cruise we were on deck 3 watching people board the ship (I think we were in Cozumel). A very intoxicated young woman fell into the water between the ship and the dock. My son-in-law ran and grabbed a life preserver from the rail and threw it to her before most people knew what was happening. The crew helping her said, "I thought that life preserver just fell from heaven". Thank you Senior Frogs!

We have used SAS in the past and they have been great. This time there are 13 of us and we are going with QLS based on the recommendations on these boards. It was cheaper to reserve a private shuttle (average $11 per person) then it was to go with a shared shuttle on SAS or Jiffy Jeff.

We have used SAS in the past and they were fantastic. There will be 13 of us traveling from a FLL hotel to the Port of Miami. Their pick up times are 9:30 or 11:30, our boarding time is 11:00. Does anyone know how many passengers their vehicles hold? If we are a full van and pick the 9:30 time won't that get us to the port too early? Isn't it just a 30 minute trip. If 13 people do not fill the van and other stops are made I would assume the 9:30 time would be perfect. Has anyone asked SAS for a different pick up time?

We have used SAS in the past and they were fantastic. There will be 13 of us traveling from a FLL hotel to the Port of Miami. Their pick up times are 9:30 or 11:30, our boarding time is 11:00. Does anyone know how many passengers their vehicles hold? If we are a full van and pick the 9:30 time won't that get us to the port too early? Isn't it just a 30 minute trip. If 13 people do not fill the van and other stops are made I would assume the 9:30 time would be perfect.