cdubmom

Our tests are booked for Aug 6 for our Aug 8 cruise!! Hopefully we can cancel! $40/each at Shoppers Drug Mart - just a money grab since we could technically contract Covid during our flight or hotel stay on Aug 7… but we’ll do anything to get back onboard!!

On 7/6/2022 at 6:50 PM, MeganGC1983 said:

Our shuttle situation worked well last time, so if isn’t broke, don’t fix it. 
We will stay, this time, at the Courtyard Marriott Orlando Airport. They have 24 hour shuttle service to and from MCO. Monday morning, we will shuttle back to the airport to join a 9am Airport Canaveral Shuttle to Port Canaveral. I do have to note that they changed their prices since March. Last time, it cost $15 per person each way. This time, $20 per person plus a $4 fuel charge. What can ya do?! 

 

This is BRILLIANT and the exact information I needed!!! Thanks for this suggestion - better than renting a car AND booking a hotel! 

 

I was shocked to hear that they are closed on Saturdays and Sundays for MSC Canada & USA! 

We got a great deal for 3 (DH, DS age 8 and me)!! $1900 for midship balcony Fantastica experience !!! So excited! We've only cruised with Carnival so we're excited to try something new. We loved Carnival despite having read so many negative reviews! Hoping this will be the same! :)

Thanks for posting this! I got a midship balcony for three for $1900!!! Phenomenal deal!!! :) I had originally booked the Black Friday deal and though $2600 for three was great, so this is out of this world!

 

We will be driving from Canada to get onboard!!! Summer road trip! :)

Thanks for the link to that site! Sounds perfect for us! :)

 

AlbertaMom - I just came across this answer for you: wifi for $10.99! :)

 

What's Included:

Accommodations

Motorized sports

Items of a personal nature

Wireless Internet access available for $10.99 for the day

Holy! Just priced out a cruise and with the 0.9 exchange rate, we'll save $700 Canadian compared to our US credit card!!! So glad I saw this thread. We have a Carnival cruise booked but with the great exchange AND the free beverage package, we're going to jump ship and try our first NCL cruise!!! :) Thanks all!!! :)

I hear you, OP. I'm booked on the Dawn to Bermuda in July.

 

No airfare. Better exchange rate for Canadians (saved us $530). The UBP thrown in for free (value of around $900 for the 4 of us). Also received a price adjustment of $700 as a result of a sale.

 

Sure, the Dawn is an older ship, but given the price and itinerary, it was a no brainer!

 

 

How did the exchange thing work out, if you don't mind me asking?? Did you call and ask them for a deal? The online doesn't seem to change it for me. I have 145 days to decide whether we go through with our cruise on the Dream. We're having to drive to NOLA. With free drinks and closer port on NCL, the better exchange would seal the deal! :)

 

 

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How far out are you? Sorry if it's in you signature...can't see with app! Hoping they release more for July's Dream!!!

 

 

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Yeah my last casino expired in December right before Christmas, but I checked again today and it was back and this time it includes summer cruises. The one before was only for cruising prior to March. I only spent about $50, too, but kept winning enough to keep me playing daily. Definitely didn't get the free drink card in terms of points, though.

 

Thanks for all of the advice!!! Will check on the specifics of each rate. There must be some negatives to ES?? It seems to go to be true??

 

 

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Wow!! Thanks! Had no idea you could do that!!! :)

Needing some help on which rate to book:

 

Early Saver Rate: $3112 (Mid Balcony - Upper/Veranda/Vista/Lido or Pano due to upgrades included

 

Casino Rate: $2952.92 (Mid Balcony - Upper)

 

I read about all of these price drops and such with Early Saver, but still not 100% which rate I should book.

 

Wish the Casino Rate was free so I wouldn't have to decide!!! :rolleyes: LOL

This thread speaks volumes about the adults on our cruise who acted I appropriately and we're just plain rude. Negative behaviours I noted in the MDR did not come from children, but adults. Too bad there isn't some type of camp they could attend.

As for our experience, our table for 3 was always accommodated and the servers definitely helped to entertain our son. Making origami creatures from pages of the menu, napkin animals, offering to bring food faster if we wanted, etc. The dancing during the meal is excellent since the wait staff encourages everyone to get up and moving. We also bring stickers, paper & pens for tic-tac-toe and guess the word, in addition to the colouring book and crayons.

We find the lido buffet is too wild and distracting which stresses us out, so we avoid it. We also feel we eat healthier options in the MDR! :)


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We did YTD and always got a table for 4 for the 3 of us. Two nights we had to get a pager since there were no tables of 4 available and we didn't want to join people at a shared table. The wait was maximum 20 minutes, if that. The pager works pretty much all over the ship we were told, so we just wandered until called. There was never a wait for a table for 4 for breakfast, brunch or tea. :)

 

 

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Calvin has been john healds personal assistant. I think this may be his first full contract as a cd. The videos ive seen of him and john together are very funny.

 

 

We had Calvyn on Pride in July and WOW he was awesome! He mentioned it was only his second cruise as CD and we were shocked. He connected with everyone, young & old. We found ourselves making sure we never missed anything he or Benjamin Buttons were running which was certainly not the case on our last cruise, where we didn't even know who the CD was.

 

We thought he was hilarious, yet serious when it came to things like muster drill and getting people on and off the ship efficiently.

 

Deck parties were a blast with his high energy!! :)

 

 

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Was on Pride July 13 and made a point to watch what people were wearing. People wore what was comfortable and this was encouraged by Calvyn, the CD and Benjamin, the assistant. I saw some sandals, flip flops, running shoes, heels, etc. and no one looked out of place.

 

The one table who wore ball-gowns and tuxedos for formal night did look out of place, but that was because of the telling of racist and homophobic jokes, as well as lewd language.

 

Bottom line: just because people dress up, or wear what people consider "appropriate" shoes, doesn't mean their behaviour suits what I consider to be minimum MDR behavioral expectations. I'm more concerned about loud and obnoxious people interfering with our meal rather than what people have on their feet or the clothes they opted to wear.

 

 

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We were on the same cruise! I plan on doing a review, too...although I set the same goal for last summer's Glory cruise and never did get that review done!

 

We had a few hiccups at the beginning, but Guest Services handled everything so professionally and also gave us a complimentary bottle of wine!

 

We had Faster to the Fun and would HIGHLY recommend it to anyone who can get it! We thought it was worth it just to pass the embarkation lines, but its value continued to increase as we made use of the FTTF pass throughout the week!

 

We also liked the decor and cleanliness of the ship was good, too. I didn't see the run-down areas that people often mention...except for some rusty patches on our balcony.

 

The shows were great! Calvyn & Ben - wow - what else can I say!!?! Amazing cruise directors!!! Still can't believe it was only Calvyn's 2nd cruise as a cruise director! :)

 

Still can't believe what a beautiful shade of blue the seas are in the south - we've never been to the Caribbean before! And YES - the seas were so smooth!!! :) Cannot wait to get back to Half Moon Cay! Gorgeous - especially with the weather we had!

 

 

 

 

 

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It's from the ship mate app.

 

 

This is why I love CC! How did I not know about this app?! Thanks!!! :)

 

 

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What is that screen shot from? Which site or app I mean?? Thanks! :)

 

 

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Be sure to read the fine print about who's illness can qualify you for a refund. Nieces are not close enough relations and a year with no history of condition is required to cancel. Wishing I would have taken the "cancel for any reason" when I called to book my cruise, but I thought it was a quick money grab since it was the first time I had heard of it and chose to investigate different options. She told me I could call back and add insurance which I did, but then when I tried to cancel, we didn't have the right coverage for a niece with a pre-existing condition. :(

 

To put me at ease, though, I did call several insurance companies and provided the scenario just to check about coverage since I was feeling ridiculous about not getting the proper package in the first place , and only one said I might have qualified for a partial refund.

 

I will never book another Carnival cruise without the "cancel for any reason."

 

 

 

 

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We're on the same cruise with FTTF too. We plan on arriving around 10:30-11:00am too. Not a big deal if we have to wait, but want to be there so we can maximize our time for sure! :)

 

Hello all. Family is cruising on carnival Pride on July 13th. We cant wait! Question for you all. We purchased the faster to the fun. Carnival said we would probably board around 11:00 AM. I live about an hour away. If we got to the port by 10:30 would that be enough time as far as checking in? I want to be there a little earlier, but wife thinks 10:30 should be fine. We have never sailed out of baltimore. I drive a semi for a living and im always thinking "Beat the traffic". Just looking for feedback. Thanks

 

 

 

 

 

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We were on Glory last summer! It was our first cruise and we loved every minute...so much so, we booked another cruise for this summer! I'm hoping we love the Pride as much as Glory! :) We found everyone so friendly and the food was delicious! :) I'm sure you will love it! :) Like everything in life, it's easier to complain than to compliment! :)

 

 

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Did you use a credit card for payment?

Some cards have travel insurance built-in if you use the card to purchase the trip.

 

Prayers for your niece, hope some doctor figures it out.

 

 

Thanks! I paid with my US credit card so no travel insurance. Had I paid with my Canadian card, there's insurance, but again not for a niece or pre-existing issues.

 

 

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Thanks all! Appreciate the good ideas. Tapi, I called Carnival again today and they said that two passengers could be changed, but since I booked it with a casino rate under my name and my husband didn't get that offer, I would have to be on the ship for the rate to apply. So the transfer idea was great, but won't work in our case.

 

I tried to move it. Nope.

 

I tried to get 1/2 back as a future cruise credit. Nope.

 

She was so rude that I called back and tried someone else. Nicer, but same result.

 

So...we've decided to play it by ear. Keeping the reservation and hoping that things work out. If not, we will be no-shows. I told the rude Carnival lady it would make me feel better that Carnival won't be able to re-sell the cabin and make double the money since they are unwilling to be accommodated. She then proceeded to tell me that was such a terrible thing to do. I said we're praying when July 13 rolls around, we'll be celebrating again!

 

The tumour is actually benign, but keeps growing. It was 20cm when they removed it last time, and it's up to 15cm again. The issue is that no one seems to know how to control or eliminate it. They even told us, if it was cancerous, they would know how to proceed. :(

 

So sorry to hear of the other similar situations. I know they have a business to run, but.... :(

 

Thanks again all! :)

 

 

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Here's our situation...we booked a cruise since our 8 month old niece went through some wild health issues, but then was given a clean bill of health. Our family decided to celebrate by booking a last minute summer cruise. We thought why wait...you never know what tomorrow could bring. Today we learned that the tumour has grown back very aggressively, against all odds. Even the surgeons cannot believe it. We're not sure of next step yet since two other hospitals have been contacted for consultations.

 

We are 17 days out from cruising.

 

I didn't take the insurance when booking (so can't quality for the any reason insurance claim), but called back to add the regular insurance. Now when I called to cancel, I learned two things that cause us to be denied a claim: it was a pre-existing condition that we were aware of. I was told that they look back at health records for 1 year AND since she is our niece and not immediate family, this is not covered.

 

So options are:

 

1) Cancel before day 14 arrives and lose $1460, but get back $825.

 

2) Hope for the best that maybe we can still go, but run the chance of not going and losing all of our money. My sister wants us to go and not change our plans, but you all know that we will obviously not be going if things are not going well.

 

I asked to Carnival transfer the booking to friends, but at least one original name would have to stay on the booking and that's not really feasible.

 

I am so torn as to what to do with so many things in the air....what would you do?

 

Thanks for prayers for our little one. Hoping a skilled doctor has some answers and can fix her!

 

 

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