Towel Critter

Absolutely! Isn't it great that there are so many different food stations and choices so that any one can find what they like and avoid what they don't?

 

I love diversity!

:)Yes it is!

I've only tried the pizza once or twice in 32 Carnival cruises (same with Guy's burgers, and I never ate whatever kind of burger there was before Guy's came on board).

The pizza would never sell in the Bronx Italian neighborhood I grew up in, same with the LaCucina dinners.

I don't doubt that. I like them though. That's all that matters.

Thanks. Sounds pretty good.:) I'd still have to ask for pepperoni on it though.:D

Another vote for the 4 cheese white pizza. Wife and I split that for dinner one night, with some caesar salad.

 

In our little jerkwater town, 'Atlanta', this pizza is pretty much identical in taste and quality to what the allegedly fine pizza establishments are serving. We've had it on two Carnival cruises and it was never similar to cheap frozen pizza.

I'll have to try that one! I always get the pepperoni. Do you know what the four cheeses are?

Now that's funny!

 

 

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Yes, it IS funny! It's also a gross inaccuracy. If one ever wants to start a lively debate, mention one of four things: politics, sex, religion, or PIZZA.:D For the most part, pizza preferences boil down to liking what we are accustomed to. Eaten Pizza Hut pizza all your life, you won't care for authentic pizza and vice versa. I can say with honesty and accuracy though, I've never gotten a single Carnival pizza that even remotely looked or tasted like a cheap frozen pizza. You may not care for the Carnival pizza and that's perfectly fine, but don't try and influence the OP negatively by exaggeration.:cool:

Am I the only one that thinks this looks plaid :confused: Just doesn't resemble a good pizza to me ?

 

Now this is a pizza :cool:

 

Real pizza does tend to look somewhat "plaid," as you call it. The cheese on a real pizza doesn't come powdered or grated from a jar or plastic bag. :D

It's yummy! I don't like a lot of toppings so cheese it is. The bottom one looks fine if it was all cheese, but it costs a lot more than the one on the ship!

The tops pics look more like a real pizza to me. :cool:Needs some pepperoni though.:D BTW, I've had pizza on MSC, an ITALIAN cruise line, and while it was good, the Carnival pizza tastes just as good, if not better.

Very thin and soft where the cheese is, crispy around the edges. I compare it to a cracker. It's super yummy and I can't wait to have more. Is it the best in the world? Nope. Is it good? Yep. Best part is I can get it 24 hours a day with no extra money out of my pocket. I am a Chicago style pizza girl through and through since I'm originally from the Midwest, but for thin crust, it's delish.

You had to go and post those pics! Now my cruise seems even farther away! Seriously, this pizza is one of the highlights of cruising for me. Our tradition is to get it late, after the crowds have died down, and enjoy it in relative isolation in the cooler night air. Having pizza with my wife, there by the aft pool, are some of my fondest cruise memories. Odd how it's the little things I remember best and most fondly.

Pizza preference, as with all foods, is relative. I see contrasting posts already. But to my taste buds, the Carnival pizza is the best at sea. In fact, I enjoy it as much or more than any I've ever had on land. Basically, if you like deep dish style pizza (which to me isn't really pizza), then you will be disappointed with Carnival pizza. If, on the other hand, you enjoy a thinner hand tossed crust with some crispness and char (a more traditional pizza), then you will like it.

As this thread grows, it won't be long until someone chimes in with, "why would anyone cruise during hurricane season? I would never do it." Well, good for you if cost isn't much of a concern. But basically, for us (and plenty of others)) hurricane season is the most affordable time of the year to cruise, especially as prices continue to creep upward. A good 1/3 of our cruises, I would guess, have been in September or October, the peak of hurricane season. We've been fairly fortunate so far. We've missed a total of 3 ports of call. We did sail right through a tropical storm once on the NCL Dawn. To this day I'm not sure how that happened. I suppose the storm must have abruptly changed course or the captain made a bad guess. Who knows? But 99% of the time there can be a large storm in the Caribbean and your cruise will still be smooth sailing, as your captain and all those assisting him will steer clear of it. Other than that one 12 hour stretch on the NCL Dawn, it's been smooth sailing for us.

 

In contrast to sailing during hurricane season, we have missed three times as many cruises and three times as many ports because of sickness in the family than we have because of storms, a total of three complete cruises and nine ports of call. I say that to illustrate that NOTHING is certain. Sure, the risk of missing a port, or having your itinerary completely changed, is greater during hurricane season, but it can happen anytime of the year. Been there, done that. For us, the savings of sailing during hurricane season are worth the increased risk of missing ports of call. As the cost of cruising increases, I see even more Sept-Oct cruises in our future.

 

One caveat. I am noticing the savings aren't as great as they were a few years ago. As demand has increased, the steep price drops during "off season" that we once enjoyed have all but disappeared. But for now at least there are still significant savings to be taken advantage of. It may be that the savings will completely disappear in another two or three years. I hope not. Those savings have afforded us twice the number of sailings over the years than we likely would have been able to enjoy otherwise.

 

Happy September/October cruising!

 

 

 

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I am not excited about having to part with the stamps I've collected thus far :loudcry:

 

They will return your old passport eventually. It will have holes punched in it, but your stamps will still be there.

We applied by mail for renewals about three weeks ago. My wife got hers back in exactly one week! I got mine in two weeks. We did not go the expedited route, but paid the regular rate. The weird thing is how the pics turned out. I took both pics with the same camera in identical lighting. I was careful, since they insist on accurate skin color. My wife's pic still looks fine, but in mine I look like I fell asleep in a tanning bed for a few hours. My face is bright red/magenta. Hmmm... So much for accurate skin color.

Cash will be much appreciated... not so sure about other gifts. Crew quarters are small with limited storage and they are usually working to support a family back home... so yeah, cash. JMHO.

A cookie? :D

I do not have Chrome, FF, AB, or any of the other trendy programs... just good ole IE and I have yet to see/hear these ads. Not saying they don't exist, just that I have not experienced them. And I've been on that site a good bit this week.:confused::D

I will stop cruising when I can no longer afford to do so, or am physically unable to travel, whichever comes first.

Nope. I can't imagine that anyone would do that (no matter how bad they say the experience was after it's over).

This is correct. There is no fan that you switch on like in your bathroom at home, but there are large exhaust fans that pull air from whole blocks of cabin's bathrooms 24/7, so it's like your bathroom fan is always on.

 

You may also notice a bad odor from the bathroom when no one has used it. This is typically caused by the A/C drying out the water in the bathroom floor drain trap (not the shower drain, but there will be a floor drain outside the shower, either a gutter type at the door, or a round drain tucked under the toilet. A glass of water poured down these drains daily will eliminate these odors quite quickly.

Nice tip about the floor drain. Thanks. :)

 

PS. Why is it that sometimes the toilet is difficult to get to flush? Is there a quick solution for this too? I often have to press the button several times before anything happens, and this isn't specific to one room. It seems to be common on all ships.

48 days until B2B on the Victory.

Either the Breeze or the Magic; my preference was the Breeze. Stay away from the Miracle - RUN!

Ship preferences are no less relative than food preferences. For every cruiser that only sails on the newer ships, you'll find at least an equal number that prefers the older ones. I've seen lots of folks post that the Spirit class ships, and in particular the Miracle, are their favorite. Me, I like the Conquest and Destiny class ships, but I've sailed on the Miracle twice and enjoyed her both times. Are you basing your "run" advice on the ship or on experiences on her? I'm curious why you would offer such advice.

I can't speak for others, but we've never spent anywhere close to our cruise fare. Maybe a third, including sail and sign bill, excursions, and purchases at ports of call.

On my second cruise I learned I prefer Carnival to Royal Caribbean.

 

On my second cruise I learned that I enjoy a balcony cabin much more than an ocean view.

 

On my second cruise I learned you can request a table for two in the MDR.

 

On my second cruise I learned I don't have to go to the MDR for dinner every night for dinner, that the Lido buffet is an acceptable option.

 

On my second cruise I learned that it's the little things that make my cruise memorable and I don't need a lot of bells and whistles.

 

On my second cruise I learned that I can communicate telepathically with flying fish.

 

Just kidding about the last one.:D

That's true. The bad ones can be really bad and in that case, it would be less hassle to do it yourself or take your chances with the CSRs that answer the phone :eek:. Luckily we don't have that problem ;)!

Yep, the CSRs would be the very last option I would choose. Some of them are clueless. At least one anyway. I was unlucky enough to get her when I called to do a 24 hour hold once. I'll spare you the boring details, but it was a MESS. So now, my method of booking, in order of preference, is 1. A GOOD PVP ;). 2. DIY. 3. CSR. 4. Stay at home. :D

All my bookings are simple and I never anticipate any surprises (really, who does?). But things can and do happen. It's easier to call my PVP, tell him what I want and bam! Instant email confirmation. No guesswork, no trying to see if the website is cooperating or not that day. It is just less work IMHO.

I'm not discouraging the use of a PVP at all. In fact, there are advantages. I mentioned a couple. I'm merely pointing out that in some instances it is just as easy to book online. If someone is lucky enough to get a good PVP - such as you and I have - it's definitely the way to go. There are some... hmmm... less than good ones though. I've had one. In that case it's just as easy, if not easier, to do the booking yourself. The less than good one I had a few years ago was really bad about calling continuously trying to make a sale. That was annoying. At any rate, I'm glad I have a good one now. I'll likely continue to book through him.

I have seen many people lidg that their PVP is amazing. Is it so much better than booking online?

Whats the difference?

I think it depends on the situation. If it's a simple booking and you know that you know you are getting a good location and there won't be any unpleasant surprises, then booking yourself is perfectly fine and safe. If, on the other hand, you need to book multiple rooms, a B2B, or there are questions you have, then a PVP is probably the way to go. One advantage of a PVP is that they can see available cabins that aren't showing up on the Carnival site.