Tom-n-Cheryl

Well, that sailing (the one before ours on 11/20) is a BLISS CRUISE - complete with " Multiple play areas to meet your level of comfort and interest ". That might help to explain the full ship. Tom

This is what we do, but I go with English Breakfast tea. We even go as far as brining our small Yeti to keep the ice, well, in ice form as long as possible! Tom

errrr.... SUMMER '21 🙂 Tom

Right there with you! I will say, however, that I was able to eat cilantro, brussels sprouts, and cauliflower for months following my crossing paths with COVID (supper '21). Tom

Yep - I've learned that the hard way with the Chase Sapphire Reserve card. Parking at Pt Canaveral seems to never show up as TRAVEL, and I get the 1%... Miami and Ft. Lauderdale have theirs coded/configured such that it goes though as TRAVEL. Tom

I just wanted to be sure, before I cancel the CHEERS I purchased for our cruise (months ago before the drink package price increase). THANKS, Tom

... ahem.... my guess is a big NO on that ! 😄 Tom

This is where a small debate will ensue regarding raw oyster eating styles.. I probably didn't eat my first oyster until I was nearly 30. That was in the Florida panhandle (Tallahassee). "Around those parts", we ate them on crackers with cocktail sauce... the more horseradish, the better! Well, I found that on Carnival (Seafood Shack) they'll look at you like you've got two heads if you ask for crackers and the cocktail sauce is ultra bland. Fast forward to our trip back on the Liberty a few weeks later, and we came armed with our own crackers and horseradish from home to jazz things up. Unfortunately the oysters, while large, were not as fresh as I'm accustomed to and, with seafood, freshness is everything. I probably won't try them again. Fried next time for sure! Tom

Yes - the fish-n-chips place upstairs/Lido on the Conquest class ships. I enjoyed that too, much more than the "BBQ" place that replaced it! Tom

I opted for an actual Kobe ribeye (6 oz, I think) when we dined at Prime (Bellagio) several years ago. The casino was covering my F&B, so I went all out. I think the steak alone was something crazy like $200. It was just "OK", certainly nothing to write home about - I'm glad I wasn't paying. Then again, I really WAS paying, it's just that the casino was sending them my money, after keeping some for themselves too! Tom

Thanks - I'll give them a link to this thread 🙂 Tom

Interested in that as well 🙂 Tom

Am I the only one who lost our uploaded avatar (yes, it was probably getting dated anyway!) during all the login issues the last couple of days? Tom

After receiving the email from Carnival yesterday, I opted to go ahead and reserve/pay for our 12/22 Liberty sailing, as well as two I just booked (fall of '23) on the Celebration and Pride. Everything was at $42. By the time evening rolled around, and I got to our 5/23 Celebration sailing, I saw that Rudi's was still at $42, but the Steakhouse had already increased to $48. Not the end of the world though! With all those prepaid dinners, I managed to save $252 🙂 --- actually, more than that owing to the AARP Carnival gift cards I just "discovered" thanks to you guys ($500 gift card for $450), that translated to at least another $150 in savings... so... over $400 "off". WOO HOO Tom

Check your Carnival casino offers... Admittedly not Haven/Yacht Club.. but a deal is a deal

We had just under 900 in February, I know we won't be so lucky come Thanksgiving ! Tom

That is VERY good to know - whew, almost purchased a few for our cruise next month. I went in and took a closer look at that and saw that they are indeed much more restrictive ! I picked up 10 of the Carnival "cards" last night. Do they offer these things all the time, or do they just pop up on the radar for a few days/weeks and then disappear for a time? Also, if you use one of these to pay off a cruise - what happens to those $'s if you end up cancelling (prior to final payment, w/refundable deposit booking)? Tom

Celebrity offers the option of purchasing casino credits ahead of time online. They'll give you 10% more than you pay for (basically pay for $50 in chips and get $55 once onboard). Using these gift cards towards that sounds like a very good deal... and, I suppose, the 2% cash back on my credit card for the purchase of the cards (since AARP would not fall under travel expenses or dining).... 10% + 10% + 2 % A few more "angles" like this and I can travel for free, LOL Do these cards have an expiration date? Tom

NICE !! That's better than the 3% cash back I get on my credit card for travel charges... though not as sweet at the $50 gas cards for $40 at Publix when they're running that promo, lol ! 🙂 Tom

So, let me get this straight (I have not read the whole thread), but if I purchase these I can use them to both pay towards my cruise fare and/or utilize as OBC? I see that they also have them for Celebrity (coming up in 3 weeks for us)... same general idea? Any downsides to this (not worried about Carnival going under any time soon, lol) ?? How many can you purchase? I mean, can you purchase 10+ of the $500's ? THANKS, Tom

We found the Disklavier rather glitchy. I should have asked if they'd send someone to play in the early evening for us... lol Tom

Thanks. Yes, that's a place I came across as well - but it only goes out a week. Tom

FWIW - my final payment was due tomorrow. I opted to save the $14k and skip the Prima for now - just seems a poor value (to only have 250 minutes of internet and a "regular" drink package to boot)... oh well ! Tom

I was pleased when Carnival recently shifted their new builds (starting with the Mardi Gras) to Meyer Turku from their long time builder: Fincantieri. Perhaps it was just me, but anything they had built there seemed a bit cheaper. Not sure why they switched, but glad they did. Of course, what do I know !! Tom

DARN... looks like the Reflection is going to be sailing from #29 again this season at Ft. Everglades. Shuttle, here I come... Tom