Pellaz

Mardi Gras is unique in its lack of late-night dining options. The panini place (think "deli") closes at 10 pm, not 11 pm as on most ships. After 10 pm there are no included/"free" dining options except pizza...not even Late Night Snacks on the buffet. 😮

While Grand Turk IS a Carnival-built port, it's clear they are allowing other lines to dock there -- and presumably charging a pretty penny for the privilege. And why not? GT is one of the best purpose-built cruise ports around. Might even be some extra revenue for Carnival when they need it. Carnival did this -- and might still be doing this -- with Amber Cove also, another nice port they built in the D.R. Other cruise lines were being allowed to dock there, likely because the new cruise port over by Puerta Plata had not yet been completed. I've been on a Royal ship to Grand Turk, a big music charter (60 bands, 4 stages) on the Indy. At the time the Jack's Shack said it was the biggest ship ever to make port there. It almost looked like the stern of the ship was in front of Jack's. It wasn't....quite. 🙂

Huh, I didn't know that either (but it makes sense). I've always just assumed Carnival's CFAR insurance was higher than other insurers and got mine through InsureMyTrip, but I'll have to look a bit more closely in the future.

Yep, and if they aren't there or you missed one, you can ask them to print out a copy for each cruise-day.

Someone stated in a different online venue that LNG-fueled ships also have to use 10% diesel as some sort of "spark plug." Any truth to that? It sounded, if you'll pardon the pun, a bit fishy.

Wow. Now THAT's kinda terrifying to contemplate.

Let me add that the Mayan Temple part of Aquaventure opens at 10 am, and the Power Tower side (farther away from the Coral Tower entrance) opens at around 11 am, but you may be able to get into the Rapids River ('the Current") a bit before 11. The tube slides on the Power Tower are probably the most thrilling slides in the waterpark...but you must acquire a tube in the Rapids River before going there.

The hotel will issue a pink card for each paid person on the room reservation, including kids AFAIK.

Yes indeed. They are used to this procedure. As soon as you arrive by taxi you can get your pink cards; then you walk over to Atlantis (probably to the Royal Tower lobby, but DO ask and make sure) and get your wristbands.

I usually get in line nice and early, or make a beeline for the Wok as soon as I board the ship. I like it THAT much; I'm a Mongolian BBQ/hibachi FIEND. 🙂 I can't see them doubling the size because I don't think they can increase the linear distance that's used for it along the buffet (i.e., how much counter space it takes up). It also MUST be in close proximity to high capacity wash-sinks, and if you've ever watched the continual dance of the employees as they rotate the woks from the cooking station to the wash-sinks and back, you'll understand why. Many newer ships have Jiji's Asian, which has the same complimentary Mongolian Wok offerings for lunch but in a sit-down, fill-out-the-card-with-your-choices setting, which was awesome. Mardi Gras also includes this at Chibang! as well as an expanded Asian menu. Caveat: Chibang! is not open for lunch on embark day on Mardi Gras, whereas on other ships, Mongolian Wok and Jiji's ARE.

Same here. Even though I have Cheers, I'll fill in a tip, typically $1.00 for alcohol and $.50 for a soda. It's great to see the bartenders' appreciation when they see the tip and their faces light up.

Guy's Pig & Anchor on the Lanai IS open on embark day, and then only on sea-days thereafter. They always say "go to Lido Deck for lunch" which is why P&A is typically not busy. And indeed it hasn't been busy in our experience. We felt guilty going there upon embark because we were enjoying a stress-free meal (pasta made to order) in a restaurant with plenty of open tables, while one deck below the usual madness was taking place at the buffet. Upon embark I made a beeline to Mongolian Wok to beat the long line because it's worth it, then brought my bowl up to Cucina and joined the rest of my cruise-friends. We slipped out to Pig & Anchor afterward and got something "small."

As cruise line-built ports go, Grand Turk is one of the best IMO. Much better than RCI's Falmouth (blech) and somewhat better than Labadee. An easy beach day, but there's also some island history for those who want to dig deeper (John Glenn recovery, plus one of Adm. Lord Horatio Nelson's few defeats). Until the markets tanked and my 401k got hit, I was considering retiring on Grand Turk. <sigh>

Ehh. "Sunset" implies the ending of a good thing, to me. They may well use that name anyway, but it would always get a mental asterisk in my mind ("no, not REALLY the end!") when I heard it.

I wonder which cruise line it was that "refused to help." That's pretty cold.

It wasn't acceptable to me either, years ago on the Liberty for a 6-night sailing. Our room wasn't being A/C'd, in the sense that the air wasn't being dried or "conditioned." It was humid. After several back-and-forths to Guest Services and a visit from Engineering ("it meets our standards." "Yes, with the cabin door propped open, I noticed") I invoked the Vacation Guarantee. They were able to move me and my medically challenged sister to a different room, and all was well. Balcony, too, instead of our oceanview. If the room is too hot or humid for comfortable sleeping, I flatly won't accept it, especially on a long cruise like that. Fast forward to last February, similar issue on the Sunrise. I mentioned the warmth to my excellent steward. An Engineering crewman showed up within 20 minutes and fiddled with the air vent. I could hear the change in air-flow. "Let me guess. Damper?" "Yes, sir. Damper!" And that was that! 😄 We're booked on Horizon in October, so I hope her A/C issues are resolved by then.

With all the alternate "free" (included) dining options offered on Carnival my visits to the buffet have slacked off...not from any specific hatred of the buffet, just that there are other, usually tastier options that beat the crap out of, say, my sailings on Royal's Freedom-class ships. 🙂 -- For breakfast, the omelet station, the hashbrowns, the eggs benedict, the link sausage, and on ships so equipped the breakfast burritos at the Blue Iguana Cantina. (Or Shaq's Big Chicken, of course.) -- For lunch, Mongolian Wok (or Jiji's or Chibang) if equipped; also the carved meat station, shawarma (on Mardi Gras), and the salad bar. While I love Carnival's caesar salads, I also love to make my own masterpiece every once in a while. (See also Fresh Creations salad bars on ships so equipped.) I'm leaving out the Cucina since it's generally one deck above the buffet -- a fact that we make great use of on embark day. -- About the same story for dinner except subtract the Mongolian Wok and its fleet equivalents.

Yes indeed, we've seen those FEC (Florida East Coast) RR locomotives on our Virtual Railfan camera in Cocoa, FL. Really nifty to see LPG in use that way. On the Mardi Gras, there are also smaller exhausts (or something) spaced along the top of the ship. Not as tall as the funnel but presumably involved with LPG fuel in some way. I did the Behind the Fun tour on the Vista back when the ship was relatively new, and when we were in Engineering Control a kid asked what exactly was located on the funnel and how it worked. Now, Vista's control room has a really cool digital "chart table" -- basically a touch-screen flat display. Reminded me of a starship's bridge. 🙂 When the kid asked the question, our host (second engineer) pulled up a graphic display of the funnel and showed us exactly which exhaust port was for each...and it was exactly as you described above. DGs, incinerator, emergency generator, etc. That was a great visit. (And y'all, if they ever bring back the BtF tours, definitely do it on a Vista-class! He even showed us a live underwater camera view of one of the azipods.)

Comfort Suites Paradise Island is not, to my knowledge, owned by the Atlantis folks, but it's certainly true that it's a lot cheaper -- and IMHO, better -- than Atlantis. I've stayed there 7 years in a row aside from 2020/COVID. For cruise passengers, you MUST "book your room" at CSPI in advance, for the night following your arrival. The room price may well be lower than Atlantis' day-pass prices for 2-4 people. Upon arrival at Nassau... Take a taxi from the port to CSPI, check in, optionally check out right then, get your pink Atlantis cards, then walk up the hill to the Coral Tower entrance (there's an exit from inside the Comfort Suites that's the fastest way; follow the signs). The kiosk location where you get your wristbands seems to vary; in the past it's been in the Beach Tower lobby or in the Royal Towers lobby; be sure to find out before you head over to Atlantis. Armed with your wristbands, the entire facility is yours except Dolphin Cay and the private pools at the Reef and the Cove Towers. Note that Atlantis is not all-inclusive, but prices for meals and snacks at the Aquaventure water park kiosks are surprisingly reasonable compared to say, Six Flags or Disney (around $12 for an entree, side-snack and an all-day useable soda cup). I've got quite a few Atlantis reviews posted over on CC's related travel site; if anyone has questions about the waterpark, get in touch.

The staffing and visa issues are quite real. On my last cruise (on the Sunrise), I was chatting up the bartender at the aft pool bar. He said they were 30-40 crew short on food-and-bev service, and 20-30 crew short for hotel/room stewards, mostly due to visa issues. It's not just Carnival, of course. On a Certain Other Major Cruise Line's CC board, there's a current mention of shows being cancelled because the performers were not able to join...due to visa issues. 😞

The Georgia Cyclone had gotten so rough that a friend of mine cracked a rib on it, and I flatly refused to ride it. They re-made it into a hybrid steel coaster a few years ago, as "Twisted Cyclone," and it's easily one of the most thrilling coasters at the park now...and with steel track, it's pretty smooth. The Great American Scream Machine (an A.C.E. landmark) was closed down much of last year for re-tracking. It will still be a classic "woody" coaster, but apparently smoother. It had gotten really rough as well. Scheduled to reopen any week now, in fact.