cherbear4000

Don't stress about the dress code, you will see all sorts of clothes on a Carnival cruise. No tank tops on men in the MDR at anytime. My 16yr nephew was turned away from breakfast in the MDR for wearing a nice sleeveless shirt. Tank tops on men are fine walking around the ship and at the Lido buffet. I always see plenty of men wearing tank tops.

Nice shorts, jeans and t-shirts are allowed in the MDR for dinner on casual nights. I notice people do still tend to dress nicely for dinner, but the more casual attire is permitted.

Shorts and t-shirts are fine in the MDR for breakfast (and even dinner on casual nights despite what others will tell you). Tank tops on men are not allowed in the MDR at anytime. My 16yr old nephew was turned away from breakfast in the MDR because he had a sleeveless shirt on.

Are you still able to check your S&S balance on your TV? I usually just check it once a day to make sure everything looks ok. I don't bother with the receipts. I have to say, I have never had an error on my S&S.

I have been sitting on the Lido eating a Guy's burger as early as 11:30am.

There is a body wash and shampoo dispenser in the shower. I don't know the brand, but I always use them and think they are fine. You will need to bring conditioner.

The work week leading up to a cruise is pure torture.

The very first thing I go when I get on board is head straight for Guy's Burgers.

There are tables for 2 during early/late dining so it is possible to get one. Obviously, there is a limited number so chances are you will be put at a larger table with other people.

When I sail with my extended family, we always choose the early dining. There is usually around 20 of us so it is easiest to have a set table at a set time. When it is just DH and I, I do prefer YTD. I like getting ready for dinner at my time. Sometimes, I eat a late lunch and am not hungry at 6 or we were on an excursion and don't want to have to rush getting ready for dinner. It is just personal preference.

It is customary to tip the person that brings you your room service. It is even mentioned in the Fun Times. You can add a tip to the receipt and put it on your Sail & Sign. Personally, I tip $2-$3 cash.

By giving tips, you are the judge who decides how tips should be distributed. Do you go around your city each night and hand out cash to all of the waiters in every restaurant? It's not their fault that you decided to eat in another restaurant. They are ready to serve you also.

A cruise ship is not a land restaurant. Things worked differently on a cruise ship than on land. Tipping works differently on a cruise ship than on land. I am surprised you did not know this.

I am not a fan of the calypso bands. When I was on the Liberty a few months a go there was a very talented singer with his guitar playing on the Lido. I would rather hear a live singer or a DJ. No calypso/reggae/steel drums!

Do you walk into a restaurant on land, tip a waiter and walk out without even ordering anything from that restaurant?

First, it is not a land restaurant. It is a cruise ship. Things work differently. Also, the MDR staff bus the tables on the Lido during lunch and breakfast. So even though I didn't eat in the MDR, they still in some way assisted me. I look at the auto gratuity as part of my cruise fare. The staff work hard and deserve it. Who I am to judge who deserves tips and who doesn't when I don't know all they do behind the scenes. Besides, it wasn't the staffs fault I didn't eat in the MDR. They were there ready to serve me. They shouldn't lose money they were counting on because I chose to eat elsewhere. I guess I am not as cheap as some people. Also, we had YTD so we didn't waste a table.

I would just like to say that on my last cruise DH and I did not step foot in the MDR. All of our meals were eaten on either the Lido, steakhouse, or room service. I still left all of my gratuties on my account. I didn't want the MDR staff to lose out on money just because I chose not to eat there. I know I couldn't work as hard as they do for such little money.

I can't remember the last time I saw someone wear a tux on a Carnival cruise.

I find it easiest to just bring my own corkscrew. The corkage fee has nothing to do with the actual opening of the bottle. It is charged if you take your own bottle of wine into the MDR. To avoid this, just keep the bottle in your stateroom. You can carry a glass into the MDR since it would be assumed you purchased it from one of the bars on board.

I recently had 6481. It is one of the L shaped cabins all the way aft with the extra long balcony. I loved that cabin. The balcony is huge! The bed faces the ocean. There is no couch in the cabin like other balcony cabins, but I didn't miss it.

The service is the MDR has gone down hill and takes forever. They need a lower server to guest ratio.

Liberty. Definitely our favorite Carnival ship.

 

 

 

All standard cabins on the Liberty are identical in size to the Sunshine. The Liberty is an evolved design of the Sunshine/Destiny.

Good to know. I thought I had read in reviews that the Sunshine cabins seemed smaller than other ships.

I like to book ES and then check daily for price drops. There is usually a Florida resident sale shortly before sailing which is cheaper than the ES. I then file the form and get the difference as an onboard credit.

I really like the Liberty. It is one of my favorite ships. We have the Sunshine booked for this summer, so I can't be of help on that ship yet. I also prefer to sail out of Port Canaveral. The only reason we chose the Sunshine this summer instead of the Liberty is because the Sunshine has the big water slides and we will be sailing in a large group that includes quite a few children.

Although I am interested to sail the Sunshine since I have never been on it, I personally would have preferred the Liberty due to it being a larger ship with slightly bigger cabins that include a fridge.

My sister left her I-Pad in her cabin and didn't realize it until after she had left the ship and was collecting her baggage after our cruise on the Breeze out of Miami. She was allowed back on the ship to retrieve it. Once you exit customs, you are not allowed back in the terminal for any reason.

I had 2 bottles of wine and a 12 pack of Coke in my carry on. They didn't even look at the wine, but check each and every Coke can.

Yes. You can bring water and whatever type of non-alcoholic beverages you would like. My sister always brings juice boxes for the kids. Security will go through each and every can/bottle to make sure you are not trying to sneak alcohol onboard. They even checked the bottom of each can of Coke I brought onboard to make sure non of them had a fake bottom where drugs could be hiding.

There is no special kids menu. You will need to pay the $35 and chose from the regular menu. As to whether or not kids belong in the steakhouse I think as long as your 6 yr old is well behaved and not cause a distruption to the other patrons, I don't see an issue. Only you know if your 6 year old is mature enough to handle a 2 hour dinner in a quiet atmosphere.