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CatlinSTJ

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Posts posted by CatlinSTJ

    Where will you be munching on the Carnival Vista?

    in Carnival Cruise Lines

    Posted

    I'm really excited about the food already, but then it's always a huge part of my holidays. It's pretty cheap and easy for us to get to the med (we live in Kent in the UK) so this holiday is for a proper break and I want to try everything the ship has to offer! We'll only be doing one full day off the ship and the rest will be either ship days or quick wanders to see the local area.

     

     

     

    First up will be Chef's Table. It sounds amazing. Has anyone been to one before?

     

    Definitely Bonsai as DS and I are sushi nuts.

     

    We have two small boys so will be at the Cat in the Hat breakfast and will no doubt overdose on pizza.

     

    We'll be trying all the places that are free on a lunchtime!

     

    And we'll definitely be at the sea day brunch. Reading the menu has made my mouth water.

     

     

     

    We're pretty big fans of American style food so this is going to be brilliant for us and a big reason we booked with Carnival. It'll be like having a European AND America holiday on one!

     

     

    We have done the chef's table twice now, both times were amazing. I'm not a fan of the current menu so we passed on our last cruise, hoping it changes again before we sail on Vista as we'd like to do it.

     

     

    Next cruise: Carnival Vista - July 2016

    Carnival Breeze 03/28 - 04/05 - Some Obervations

    in Carnival Cruise Lines

    Posted

    Thanks for the review! We will be cruising on the Breeze in June so really liked hearing your take on things. I guess my main question, which you already addressed, is cabin location. We have a cabin on Deck 7 on the starboard side and this is the 1st time being on a ship with that outside Promenade.

     

    I have read so many different opinions on being on Deck 6 or 7 balcony cabins that I'm driving myself crazy! Some people say that unless you stand up and look over, you can't see Deck 5 and that it's not an issue and others say it ruins the privacy of your balcony and it can get loud.

     

    Any other observations or opinions would be appreciated. I will of course enjoy my cruise regardless and can hardly wait but would just like to hear opinions from those that have cruised the Breeze recently...thanks!

     

     

    We had a deck 7 aft balcony and no issues. Just avoid the hot tubs below on the promenade and it will be fine.

     

     

     

     

    Next cruise: Carnival Vista - July 2016

    100% honest review of the Sunshine.

    in Carnival Cruise Lines

    Posted

    Thank you for the thorough review! We were looking at the Sunshine for this summer and I had a lot of concerns about the exact items you covered. We loved the upgrades on the Breeze, but trying to cram all of those plus the additional cabins on a smaller ship was a horrible idea.

     

     

    Next cruise: Carnival Vista - July 2016

    Carnival Vista/European Cruise

    in Carnival Cruise Lines

    Posted · Edited by CatlinSTJ

    You might want to consider a 4J. It has interior pricing (usually with an upcharge) a picture window and access to the "secret deck" is right there.

     

    Tom

     

     

    This is what we booked - looking forward to it! We have never sailed interior before, but with 4 of us I couldn't pass up the savings and the reviews of these cabins are super good. Depending on the sailing though, they may be gone though, we booked the last one on our itinerary.

     

     

    Next cruise: Carnival Vista - July 2016

    Why do you cruise, whether Carnival or any cruiseline

    in Ask a Cruise Question

    Posted

    It's the buffet of traveling - and I don't mean food buffet. We have very short attention spans so waking up in a different place everyday without having to physically pack up and move works great for us. As DH pointed out a few years ago, we have never taken a vacation to just one destination, not even our honeymoon. We were totally hooked after our first cruise and loved being on the ship and exploring all of the different ports.

     

     

    Next cruise: Carnival Vista - July 2016

    Would you revamp the MDR kids menu?

    in Carnival Cruise Lines

    Posted

    Our kids typically order off the adult menu or order a mix of items. Kids menus seem to be mostly an American thing. There's a time and place for kid food, but not every meal, every day. When we're cruising, we are typically eating most meals on the ship so we encourage them to try new things and be adventurous.

     

     

    Next cruise: Carnival Vista - July 2016

    Would you really leave Carnival if.....

    in Carnival Cruise Lines

    Posted

    This is a good question, and I don't have an exact answer for you. It comes down to, at what point does the cruise lose its value to me? No one little silly thing like chocolates or robes is going to do that for me, but a whole lot of them together might eventually water down the experience to the point that I no longer feel like I'm getting a good value for my money. Then I'd have to give it up, yes.

     

     

    Exactly - it's not one thing, it's all of it added up. If they're cutting the chocolates because for the most part they were going to waste, I get that. I'm not going to miss them, my kids wouldn't even eat them. Would have been nice to have them replaced with something else though rather than just eliminated entirely.

     

    I do think the little amenities being eliminated is starting to add up, but it's something that's happening across the industry in general.

     

     

    Next cruise: Carnival Vista - July 2016

    Is Carnival really that bad?

    in Carnival Cruise Lines

    Posted

    I think a lot of the people who bash Carnival and cruising in general have never actually sailed on the line, so keep that in mind. We're booked for cruise #6 and looking forward to it. I will say that I feel like we're "outgrowing" Carnival, but that's okay. We have not had a bad cruise, we're just maturing and our interests are changing :)

     

     

    Next cruise: Carnival Vista - July 2016

    Ship - Teenagers

    in Carnival Cruise Lines

    Posted

    It depends on the teens, the time of year, and what they like to do. My girls preferred the group activities on the Ecstasy to what they had on the Breeze. Things were much more organized and the chaperones did a great job keeping the kids busy and entertained. Last year on the Breeze there was more in general to do, but the teen club was a free for all and the guy running it didn't seem interested in monitoring anything going on. A couple of times one or both of my girls and their friends complained to him that he needed of step in because it got way out of control.

     

     

    Next cruise: Carnival Vista - July 2016

    Where do you splurge vs. scrimp?

    in Carnival Cruise Lines

    Posted

    Splurge:

     

    Specialty dining: We will dine in the steakhouse at least once when possible and we've done the chef's table twice and loved it, totally worth it to us. I'm a foodie, so dining if an experience to be savored.

     

    FTTF: Love it, though I'll probably skip it on the Vista.

     

    Photos: Not a lot, but we usually try to pick up a photo or two as a souvenir

     

    Scrimp:

     

    Soda: We usually bring a 12 pack of Coke onboard and will have leftovers. Our first cruise we paid for the soda card as we didn't know that tea and lemonade were free.

     

    Shore Excursions: We usually purchase one per cruise and plan out our own adventures otherwise. I like seeing something of the area we're in and getting to experience the local culture, which doesn't seem to be the focus of most excursions.

     

    Drinks: We're not heavy drinkers so we'll never buy Cheers. A glass of wine or DotD and we're fine.

     

     

    Cabins are neutral for us - I've never booked an inside cabin, but I wouldn't pay for a suite on Carnival either.

     

     

    Next cruise: Carnival Vista - July 2016

    Family Harbour suite - yes, no or maybe?

    in Carnival Cruise Lines

    Posted

    We considered it and opted for a 4J - for now at least. (I'm keeping an eye on prices, if we can get a family cove balcony for a decent price closer to sailing we may switch.) One of the big perks, for us at least, is that the kids eat free in the specialty restaurants. I have to wonder about the specific rules for that, what ages do they consider to be children? Our girls will be 16 and 8 when we sail, I assume that the 8 year old is included, but what about our teenager?

     

    We had the same concerns as other have mentioned as well. Have a feeling that the lounge area is going to be crazy with kids running amok unchaperoned rather than families spending time together. Our cruise is very port intensive - only one day at sea - so needing to keep everyone entertained onboard isn't a big concern. We also weren't thrilled with staying on deck 2. We did that once and it was very difficult for me to manage and we hated waiting for elevators. I have joint issues, so I can't take the steps, especially going up, for more than a couple decks at a time.

     

    This is our first time being booked on a ship that doesn't exist yet. Very strange not having specific reviews for the ship, rooms, etc. to read. :p

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