cruisingbandmom

We did this last June.  We booked directly with George Inlet Lodge.  They picked us up and returned us to the ship.  The patrons on the cruise ship tour were all in a room and it was about 150 people.  We had just 12 people that booked directly with them at our table and had our own room.  So you can imagine that refills on crab and drinks came much sooner.  I was full and started to crack the crab for my husband.  He was very satisfied with this meal.  It is not unlimited alcohol, it is one drink.  You have unlimited tea and soda.  The blueberry cheesecake was amazing and just the right end for a delicious meal.

We stayed in an inside Havana cabin on the Mardi Gras, room 8267.  It is right below the sound room for the theater.  So every time there is a show or any other event in the theater, it was REALLY loud.  We were unable to get much rest.  Thanks to the ship not being full and the great work of guest services, we were able to be moved.  I won't book another inside Havana on this type of ship.  Lesson learned!

The cabin in nice.  It has a ramp to get out on the balcony that you have to be careful with.  It has less closet space than most cabins.  We managed by using hooks and other areas for storage.  You can always bring additional command hooks for jackets and such.

The location is near the elevator which is nice.  There is a steward closet next to the room which can create a little noise every once in a while.  As long as people don't congregate right outside your door to discuss where they are going, it is great.  A couple of times, we had to open the door and ask them to move into the elevator area or down the hall.  People were very apologetic.

The staff is amazing.  Our room steward Putu room 6234 was the best we have had in 20+ cruises.  The casino staff also stood out.  If you go, look up Richmond, he will bring a smile to your face.  He and the casino team were very kind and "patient" with someone learning some of the table games.

The only thing that we didn't like was that there was a staff smoking area just below our room on deck 4 and the smoke rose and was very bothersome on the balcony and came into our room.  We came back from an  excursion and our room smelled like a cigar.  Yuck!

Is Carnival offering the 20% off shore excursions for 72 hours after you book?  If so, I think I missed it.  Can anyone share a promo code?  This would be fabulous!  Thank you in advance.

Please share with us the location of the Quarantine Rooms in the Havana area.  We have a room booked in September.

Also, if you could share the Emeril's lunch/dinner menu with prices, that would be amazing.

Have a wonderful cruise.

How was Emeril's?  Does anyone have a menu with prices?  I understand that this is not free like Cucina and Chibang.

I would book this cruise in a heartbeat if the prices would lower a bit.  My husband and I are both vaccinated and ready to go.  

Just did a mock booking and there are hundreds of empty cabins on this sailing that is 11 days away.  Do you think there will be a last minute sail or will Carnival not fill this like they normally do since it is the first sailing?

Just received an email cancelling our Sept 19th cruise on the Panorama out of long beach.  It stated all Carnival Cruises are cancelled until September 30th.  We are so disappointed.

With the Spa special going on now thru 2/14, you won't find a cheaper price.  Book it now with VSPA20 code if you are interested.

Excellent Review!  Thank you!

Go to the Alchemy Bar.  Tell them what you like and they can make something not on their menu.  They are super creative and make wonderful drinks.

I have never heard of a Family Lunch Zone.  There is a Ol Fashioned BBQ buffet on deck 10 aft.  This is right above the lido buffet.  You can access this by the elevator or stairs that go directly into the lido buffet.  It is usually very quiet on embarkation day.  The food there is usually comfort food and really good.  Even if family members want to go grab food from the Lido, it is a great place to sit together and enjoy some family time.

Thank you for your lightning response.  This sounds like it may be much less crazy than being at the lido buffet.

What kind of food is located on deck 10 above the Lido buffet?  The floor plan that I saw says Ol Fashioned BBQ.

Make sure your cabin in not below the treadmills and weight room.  The noise starts before 6am and doesn't end until after midnight. (the crew uses it after 10pm) People would drop the free weights and our entire cabin shook.  We splurged for a Spa Balcony and had the most horrible cruise out of the 25+ we have done.  

The Spa itself is wonderful.  It was never crowded.

The steakhouse can accommodate your request.  Just tell them in advance.  My daughter loves the strawberry bisque soup in the MDR and we request this to be one of her appetizers on several ships the first night and have always had success.

They are supposed to respond within 48 hours. You have to have the excursion booked with Carnival first and then submit the request. Don't get too excited, we submitted a claim and the 110% guarantee turn out to be only $27 pp credit because the excursion left from the ship in Belize to a closer dock.

You can make that if you carry off your own luggage and take a cab. Don't mess around with car services that can be late.

We have used them twice and were very pleased with the hotel and the parking with shuttle service. I wish they had this in all port cities for cruising.

We stayed at hotel in Orlando and drove to the parking area in Port Canaveral the morning of the cruise.

Great customer service!

We were on the Sunshine at the end of May. It is still 21 and up. Most of the policing is done by the passengers. They pretty much yelled at any kid that thought they were going to get into the pool.

You had to get there early, like 7:30 am if you wanted a seat by the pool. Chair hogging was in full force.

My daughter is 5'8" and prefers the sofa bed to the pull out of the ceiling beds. She said that they are very comfortable.

There are so many options. We choose to stay cheap the night before so we have more $$ for while we are on the cruise. We stay in Gulfport MS. About an hour drive to the port. Usually able to get a rate around $100 night and don't have to pay for parking which runs about $20 extra in all hotels in New Orleans. Hotels are also 2.5 times higher in the city. Clawdaddy's in gulport has great crawfish. Not a sit down place, but some of the best I have ever had. We have parked in Fulton Street and the Port parking. Fulton Street is cheaper but reserve online ahead a time to make it a quicker process.

Disembarkation morning we head straight for Cafe du Monde. Coffee and the best beignets ever.