ober134

Reporting for duty to a Jamman watch party. We've been looking at Havana cabins on Vista class but haven't pulled the plug yet. I hope this review pushes us over the edge.

On 4/27/2024 at 5:06 PM, Saint Greg said:

These guys at the bar saying Miami is the worst airport ever. I shouldn’t comment maybe since I haven’t been to MIA yet but I wanted to throw Orlando into the mix. He starts comparing Miami to Nashville im like yeah. I could say San Angelo is the best ever they have one gate.

MIA was a huge mess after our cruise in March. TSA precheck security line was 45 mins..... regular line was almost 2 hours from what we could see. FB group complained about missed flights. Agents didn't appear to give a rat's behind.

I haven't been on here in a while. Glad I logged in to see your review. This is my favorite class of ships, and we did the 8 day southern on Horizon couple years ago; was one of my favorite cruises. Next is Firenze in September. Have a great trip and I look forward to the commentary and pics.

22 hours ago, Saint Greg said:

 

You can check here. The most recent one I have right now is from a month ago. 

 

https://www.saintgregtravel.com/fun-times/

 

 

I was just going to say - search Saint Greg. He knows all!

Josh Weinstein, Carnival CEO gave an interview on CNBC. Said operations to transit to Norfolk temporarily. I'm sure this situation is fluid and this could and probably will change.

It's not the kids that bother me as much as the parents that let their kids run wild and create havoc in hallways at night and clog up all the hot tubs. No offense intended, I raised mine to be respectful... I guess times have changed.

just know... Arrival time DOES NOT equal boarding time. If you arrive early, you may avoid some congestion in the port, but you will most likely be sitting in the terminal waiting for your boarding class to be called.

8 hours ago, Crusin Karen said:

Great idea. Question: where do I find an inexpensive watch? Here in NE NJ you can’t find too many inexpensive things! 🤯😳😣

I think we actually bought one at Dollar General and one at the $10 sale on board a ship

slightly off topic but... we don't use cell phone for clock while cruising. Get an inexpensive wrist watch and set it to ship time. no need to worry about ship time vs port time.

agree with all the above... And depending on the day at MCO, it will be loaded with people and children (Disney traffic) making transit through the airport difficult at times.

We were also on this sailing. After many cruises, we decided to do things differently and much more casually. We didn't even try MDR for any meal. In the past we've enjoyed SeaDay Brunch... but skipped it this time. We did Bonsai Sushi and Emerils. I agree with you on the casual eating places were good and getting drinks never seemed to be much of an issue (no Cheers for us either). We also enjoyed the entertainment. Celestial Strings was good. And we went to quite a few Trivia games - also new to us and we found fun (no ships on a stick for us).

The other thing I saw on the book of faces groups: complaints of weed use and room stewards. Our steward was fantastic and responsive. We asked him to check our 'frig cause it didn't appear working; he got it changed out for us, got us extra towels when requested. And our inside cabin on 10 forward, we had no issues with any small of weed.

The only thing about the cabin - I think this was the absolute smallest bathroom we've ever had on a ship. I mean it was TINY!

No. No sales on cheers for many years. Your best bet is to purchase in advance using discounted gift cards

Thank you for the feedback. We are platinum so will self debark as early as possible. We have passports and TSA precheck. First choice is Southwest 11:45 at LGB. Backup choice is United at 2:10 at LAX. Cruise isn't until Sept so I feel we can wait a bit to decide. Weve already booked SW to arrive day prior and overnight stay at the Queen Mary. Its just that flight home that has us puzzled. We have companion pass on SW so really want to go that route IF its feasible.

1 hour ago, Hoosierpop said:

If you mean the guy who is on there now, he was unwatchable. Because it was so crowded. By far the best piano bar entertainer. Even though he did play the Alice song. But hey, if people are going to pay him to play it, I’m not gonna argue. 

For one of the largest CCL ships, this venue is far too small.

Thank you for the review. We are booked on a cruise out of Long Beach this fall. I am wondering about debarkation and transportation to LGB for a flight at 11:45. There are no later flights. based on your experience we should be OK??? We fly back to Pa and really want to avoid LAX or a red-eye. thoughts? TIA

following... will be at all these stops for the first time later this year. 

following. we are also hitting those ports later this year. First time for all of them

We booked a 7 night on Firenze for later this year. We have never sailed from the west coast or have been to any of the ports: Cabo, Puerto Vallarta or Mazatlan. I've read thru Venezia reviews and my guess is Firenze will be "Carnival-ized" similarly. Does anyone know what changes are being done? We've already booked airfare to LGB day prior and overnight stay at the Queen Mary. Still looking for air on debarkation day... it's ugly to fly to EST and flights are limited and wish to avoid one of those red-eyes. any tips on anything relevant please - TIA

I have no experience with transatlantic or repositioning cruises. But as a 60-something I can speak to your concerns re: Carnival's reputation as a party ship. We aren't big into drinking, night clubs etc. And you can always find a quieter sedate spot on board. We bring a book or two to read, have never witnessed really bad behavior as seems to be the prevalent discourse. yes, we have seen a person here or there who was loud or acted entitled, but I have also seen that in my local community shopping center. We enjoy the mix of entertainment, food options and those quiet spots. Currently we have 2 Carnival cruises booked without hesitation.

51 minutes ago, ninjacat123 said:

I think there should be table signs that state tables are open for lunch from 11-2 and 5-8 only for meal consumption and that games are welcome at hours after that.  Games during those hours can be played at designated areas.

There are signs at Serenity indicating 21 and over area and I don't see children hanging out there.

Same thing happened to us on RC to NE/Canada. Only it was mah jongg. So much mah jongg

We live in Pennsylvania, so flights from Ca to East coast are rough. We've never sailed from California but really want to sail on Firenze later this year. We have SW points and companion pass. But the latest flights on SW are 11:45. Is this doable? Otherwise LAX is an option but arrival home is soooo late. I know, 1st world problems. TIA

I once had a PVP (no longer at CCL) who made a cabin change on the booking at our request, whatever he did ended up resulting in a cancelation message by email. I called him and he got it rebooked. However, it was one of those pandemic deals where we got 20% off Cheers. Because of the cancelation... we lost the Cheers deal and it was refunded. He refused to help us get the deal back as it wasn't his job...ugh. after much time and effort with CS was able to get it back. was done with him after that.

4 hours ago, depplep said:

It's enough for the last few years in my opinion.

Truth. Our son relocated to KC a few years ago from here in Steeler country... I'm over it. although secretly he still cheers for black n gold, but when I saw him in Chiefs gear #$!*&^

2 hours ago, kdr69 said:

Mine doesnt even call me 

Same. We tried a TA this time and ditto no contact since initial booking 

Oh - forgot to mention we've never received a gift or perk