Bahbert

I haven't looked at the Barclay card's benefits too closely, but they seem to be fairly minimal and won't cover all of the circumstances that might be covered by other trip insurance (such as cancellation for weather or work, missed connections, etc.). I'd have to compare a policy side-by-side with the card's benefits to determine whether I could get by on the card's benefit alone. Personally, I prefer to pay a little more for a more generous policy.

Edit: Found the card benefits here.

Ship: Carnival Fantasy

Deck: Main

Stateroom #: M167

Stateroom Category: 4C

Starboard or Port Side: Starboard (interior)

Quiet Stateroom?: Yes, this stateroom was relatively quiet. I booked it in part because of its location on a deck between two other stateroom decks (so no noise from kitchen, auditorium, engine, or deck chairs), and its location amidship. Nothing bothered us except the usual (occasional doors & talking from other passengers out in the hall), but even that wasn't bad.

Was stateroom a connecting stateroom?: Yes, it connects with M171, which is to the left of this room if you're in the hall and facing the doors.

NOTE: My wife and I had the king bed configuration and the only logical place for the head of the bed to be is against the connecting door (due to light switches & the TV), which made it unusable. In the two twin bed configuration, there's no problem using the door. Not sure if M171 would have the same problem (it's possible the bed can be placed differently there, but I didn't check and it seems unlikely as they were mirror images of each other).

Any specific problems with this cabin?: Nothing major. There was the aforementioned bed placement. The toilet stopped flushing briefly but a call to the room steward fixed that later and it didn't happen again. The shower temp was a little hard to dial in; it took careful adjustments. Everything else worked and was in decent condition when we sailed (May 2019). 

Other comments: The only possible downside to the room is that being on the Main deck put us a little farther away from most everything (except the doors on & off the ship). This just meant we used the elevators a little more (and one of those nearest us was out of service). 

There was a hair dryer (in one of the drawers?), and no refrigerator. The room safe let you set a combo by keypad (and did not require a credit card or the like). 

I haven't been to Carlos & Charlies, but the Money Bar might be another option. It's another free-to-use area so long as you buy drinks or food there. There's not much of a "beach" given the rocky coastline but stairs provide access to the water and there are lounge chairs on sand. They have pictures on their web site that will give you some idea of what to expect. Here's Trip Advisor's info on it.

37 minutes ago, Schoifmom said:

 

I think that @Bahbert's point was that it has to be carried on, not that it has to be in a carry on bag of a specific type.

Correct. You cannot put them in checked luggage.

If you're bringing soda or wine on with you, this also needs to be in your carry-on.

2 hours ago, crewsweeper said:

I think you need to stop at the ship's shore excursion desk first.  

I defer to your expertise. 🙂 

According to this site, all-day passes to the chair lift are now $14 per adult and $8 per child 4-12. Presumably you can still walk up and buy a ticket the day you arrive.

8 hours ago, c-leg5 said:

 

Cloak and dagger on whose part?

 

what concerns me is how they addressed  the problem from their own website. Did they answer this?

 

Is there a fresh water pool?

Due to the nature of the weather and the fact that we produce our electricity, it would be almost impossible to maintain required cleanliness standards for a pool. For this reason, we offer fresh water showers for our patrons.

 

 

They had to move the pool in the middle of the night to avoid undue attention.

it’s a salt water pool. 

1 hour ago, candigirl41 said:

I try to take an afternoon nap every day.  If I don't I am done around 9:00 pm.  I usually only sleep an hour but it makes a huge difference.  I also try to drink a lot of water.

Us too. Cruise naps are best naps!

1 hour ago, Butterbean1000 said:

Sargasso -sea weed?

Yup; actually sargassum. 

54 minutes ago, MisterOJ2 said:

No Alchemy Bar on the Fantasy. Which was a bit of a bummer. We usually like to get at least one drink from the Alchemy Bar when we're on a ship that has one.

No Alchemy Bar, but the Majestic Bar at the back of deck 9 (just outside the comedy club lounge) makes some great drinks, and the women tending bar there are fantastic! I wish I could remember their names now but they served us on both our December 2016 and May 2018 cruises, and said they've been there for years. They're kind of a kick to listen to when they're in a mood, too. 😄

On 5/29/2019 at 12:48 PM, MisterOJ2 said:

That's a great review. My wife and I are going on the Fantasy in couple weeks on the same itinerary.

We chose it specifically because it goes to Costa Maya so that we can go to Maya Chan and we wanted to celebrate our anniversary there. The last time we were at Maya Chan, Mark was telling us his plan to put in a pool, but I wasn't sure if he was being serious, or if he was just kinda BSing. I'm glad to know that we'll get to check out the pool after all on this trip!

If you get the chance, ask him to tell you about the pool's install. It took a bit of cloak-and-dagger work. 

I've sailed on the Conquest and the Dream, and have been on the Fantasy twice now (most recently about a month ago). My most recent cruise before the Fantasy was on the Dream, and I didn't notice a huge difference between the two ships (except that I didn't have as far to walk on the Fantasy). She's a fine ship with plenty of amenities. Does she have 6+ hot tubs or a BBQ place like the Dream? No, but I didn't miss any of that stuff.

The food is as good as on any ship; she has all the usual fare (MDR, buffet, pizza, deli, Guy's burgers, burritos). She doesn't have a steakhouse, but there is a tiny place to get fresh-made sushi (for extra $$) if you'd like.

Movement isn't really noticeable unless the seas are a little high, and then you'll feel it on many ships (I'm prone to get a little queasy sometimes and didn't have any problem on this last cruise, while I did feel it one night on the Dream). 

Some people have reported broken things in their staterooms (cabinet hinges and the like) but I think that's possible on any ship, really; I think that has less to do with the age of the ship and more to do with the people who have most recently sailed her.

Overall I choose my cruises for the price, port, and itinerary, and not so much for the size of the ship. We've had plenty of fun on the Fantasy and would willingly sail her again.

The Fantasy had the B on the roulette as well. And 6/5 blackjack. Definitely squeezing all they can out of casino players.

Just got back from this sailing a few weeks ago. We did excursions in both locations, but we've been to Cozumel many times. Both locations have a large port facility just off the pier where you can easily spend the day without venturing far from the ship or spending a lot of extra money.

Costa Maya has one of the largest of these port areas, with shopping and dining and other activities available right there (including a dolphin swim as someone mentioned). There's a huge pool that is free to use, and I think there's even a swim-up bar available from it. We didn't spend any time in this area as we made reservations at Maya Chan, a small resort about 20-30 minutes down the road. Maya Chan is owned and operated by Americans who have been on many, many cruises and cater to our demographic; they have great communication and will refund your money for just about any reason (they just want you to be happy). Next time we go I may consider staying in the port area (just because we didn't really get to explore it this time) but we did enjoy Maya Chan.

Cozumel also has plenty of shopping and dining available just off the pier, but Cozumel is one of the safer and easier places to venture out on your own from if you've a mind to. The port has a very organized and robust taxi service with established and posted fees to most anywhere on the island. One suggestion I'd offer is to catch a cab to the Money Bar; this is a small bar/restaurant not far from the port where you can sit in the sun (so long as you're willing to buy something to eat or drink from them while you're there). It's not a big place and is pretty laid back. There isn't a traditional beach to sit on (much of the Cozumel coastline is rocky) but there is sand where the lounge seats are and stair access down into the water if you wish to snorkel or swim.

If you do venture away from the port areas (and I do recommend it, at least in Cozumel), just be sure to keep a watch on ship's time, give yourself plenty of time to get back to port, and have fun!

As for pictures, that's up to you. Carnival gives you LOTS of photo opportunities, beginning at the terminal in Mobile; you can get professional pictures taken against different backgrounds every night on board the ship, all around the ship during the day, and with a cast of crazy characters at each port as you debark on the piers. My wife and I have always found at least a couple that we wanted to buy, and this last cruise (for my daughter's high school graduation) I think we bought 5-6 photos (something like two 8x10s and the rest 5x7s). They're not cheap (I think ours came out to about $125), but I'd won some money in the casino so I was splurging a little. You don't have to buy any of them but sometimes it's fun to get your photos taken and some of them turn out pretty good.

On 5/25/2019 at 3:00 PM, c-leg5 said:

It doesn't seem to be as bad as mainland Mexico.

 

I was searching this on Trip Advisor and if you go to Roatan and search sargassum searching in date order you will find some discussions - some in West Bay and West End.

 

However I did find this general, quite detailed, review which may be of interest generally and which I will bookmark

https://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowTopic-g292019-i4482-k12450028-Roatan_Trip_Report_March_23_30_West_Bay-Roatan_Bay_Islands.html

Good info. Thanks!

I just got back from a cruise to Mexico, where sargassum is washing up on shore and creating a mess. My wife and I will be in Roatan in September of this year, so I was wondering if the seaweed has been a problem on the beaches there at all. We were in Roatan in January 2018 and I loved snorkeling in West Bay. I am considering trying someplace else on the island this time but want to see if anyone with recent experience on Roatan might chime in on this issue before I book something.

Just got back from a cruise to Mexico that included Costa Maya, which isn't too far from Belize. The sargassum was an issue there, so I wondered how bad it's affecting Belize. My wife and I will be there in September and will be taking a boat out to one of the small islands for a beach day. 

I just got back from a 5-day cruise to Costa Maya and Cozumel, and wanted to post my experience at Maya Chan. Much of this has been said by others before, but I wanted to add my two cents. If you're not already somewhat familiar with this all-inclusive beach option and the people who run it, be sure to check out their website.

First of all, the owners and staff are fantastic. They are VERY good about communication; they provide good information before the cruise via email, and explain everything well when you get there. Jane, Mark, and David all made us feel welcome and did their absolute best to ensure we had a good time. Their staff were attentive and helpful, and timely with the drinks. 🙂 Jane was sweet in her email exchanges with me prior to the trip. Her son David explained the accommodations and activities that were available when we arrived. And Jane's husband Mark joined us in the pool for most of our stay, regaling us with stories of their adventures as cruisers and owners of a Mexico day resort. Needless to say, he's a character. And when their website says "we cruise" and suggests that's an understatement, it certainly is: Mark said they've been on 168 cruises to date, all over the world.

Another thing I need to talk about is the food. Of the resorts and tourist areas I've visited in Mexico and the Caribbean, their tacos were by far the best I've had, especially the pork. Mark said he's a foodie and I believe it. They made sure you'll enjoy your lunch. The drinks are delicious too. If you do visit them, be sure to try the Oreo Chan (a blended beverage made with Oreos).

The only down side to the visit was outside of their control: the sargassum seaweed on the beach. It has been a problem for many Caribbean locations for a while now (we saw it in Cozumel too), and theirs is no different; it is a little unsightly and the smell is unpleasant. But Maya Chan is up-front about it in all of their communication with us, both before we arrived in Costa Maya as well as when we got there. The woman who greeted us outside the port showed us a picture of the beach and gave us the option to cancel if we chose. When we got to our palapa we decided it was a little too close to the seaweed for our comfort, but thankfully they have a pool set back from the beach (with a bar right next to it). My wife and I spent our day at the pool, but our daughter and her friend ventured out near the beach for a while. We even saw some people get through the mess in order to take a glass-bottom kayak out into the water.

All in all, we had a very good day at Maya Chan and would definitely return.

13 hours ago, Saint Greg said:

They changed the debarkation process last year. They would’ve covered the new process in the debarkation briefing and you should’ve had documentation left in your cabin. Not having tags left in my room was the clue for me to read the sheet. The tags were probably out in a high traffic area. On vista it was at the entrance to lido deck. On Dream it was in ocean plaza.

Thanks for this! Cruising in less than a month and I was unaware of the specifics of this change. The pictures really helped understand what was going on.

On 4/21/2019 at 8:30 AM, Joebucks said:

If it were me, I'd want a credit. Maybe it's "you get $250 to do whatever you want". Spa, photos, excursion, etc? 

I'm putting together a goody bag with a number of things suggested in this thread, and I think a $100 gift card for each will be in there. We've already booked excursions and we'll pick up smaller things like sodas and coffees, but that'll give them some spending money for on-board shopping or photos. 

This should be fine, especially since it's new. Throw it in the carry bag with your husband's CPAP and they shouldn't look at it twice. 

Great ideas so far! Keep 'em coming!

2 hours ago, lab_love123 said:

The spa/mani/pedi is a cute idea. Are the girls in their own cabin? If not and you can afford that splurge, that might be a really fun surprise (or maybe a cabin upgrade if you're all sharing a cabin). Not sure what kind of excursions you have have planned, but maybe there's some sort of "add on" to one that could be a surprise?

 They already have their own cabin; that was as much for my wife and I as for them. 🙂

1 hour ago, Athankfulheart said:

Have something small delivered by the fun shops each day. You can set this up from your carnival account. Cookies, candy, a beach towel, etc...

Ooh, I like this idea. 

12 hours ago, louanne93 said:

I usually make a "cruise kit" for friends that we cruise with. Here is a list of things I put in a gift bag.

 

chapstick

gum

Mardi Gras beads

deck of cards

dice (for liars dice)

power cord

candy

used to do a highlighter but now its the hub app.

advil

sunblock

towel clips

 

Just did this for friends last week and they LOVED it!

 

Wonderful! I can make the tumblers we have part of this "kit."

My wife and I are taking our 18-year-old daughter and a friend on a cruise as a graduation present next month. I wanted to make sure she was happy with her gift so the cruise itself is not a surprise, nor are the excursions we'll be taking. However, I'd still like to surprise her in little ways whenever possible, so I'm turning to you creative folk for ideas.

I have purchased etched tumblers for both girls that I will give them when we board. Aside from that and possible cabin decorations/gifts, does anyone have ideas for ways to add a little extra something to their experience?

(We'll be on the Fantasy - which doesn't have a steakhouse - so surprising them with that is not an option). 

I believe they're roughly the same size, just laid out differently. You might find what you're looking for on cruisedeckplans.