seekatz

We are on the NCL Escape visiting Florence in just a few weeks taking the train from Livorno to Florence. Since I am unable to see the transfers until I board, could you please let us know when you booked your NCL transfer that took you to the Livorno train station directly and how much it was? Do you book it through the shore excursion desk?

Wonder if someone wanted Italian food, Korean BBQ, Chinese food. My point is a rotation would be a good idea, but to think just because we like one of these foods it might be difficult to have all of them available. As noted the Sky and Sun are very limited on space. When they add a dish, they need to remove another.

We were on the Sun in May and September. The singers and dancers really work hard to give you a good show. On both cruises they performed multiple times on the 11 and 9 night cruises. The guest performers were different each cruise, but each night we had the choice of going to a show. The last cruise we were lucky enough to see a Lionel Richie type performer do 2 shows, both very good. Could not agree more with the concerns about the buffet, small and crowded, the biggest negative for the ship. A very good crew and the ship for its age is well maintained.

Based on my numerous cruises out of SF we find no problems unless a major storm is in the area. Of the most resent 5 or so sailings no issue and smooth sailings. Agree with other poster, rough sea conditions can be subjective.

Enjoy your cruise. For me I have worn a mask indoors at times during shows or crowded events and on the plane and busses as I have to be careful due to a medical condition. Everyone is understanding if you choose to have a mask on. On our 8 cruises since the re start I have not had COVID, but did get some sort of flu that was not serious. Our position is we need to get out and do the things we want. We were locked down in California and helped our grandchildren in remote learning, and they stayed with us for weeks at a time as my wife just retired before the pandemic. Have a great time.

We have a sizeable amount of OBC on our Celebrity coming up and have not cruised with them for awhile. Are you able to use your OBC to pay for your gratuities onboard?

We have a sizable amount of OBC for our HAL cruise coming up. In the past, we were able to use OBC to pay for our gratuities on our onboard account. We are just checking to see if this still applies.

Can any of the pro's help with the question. Our cruise leaves in a few months and we have OBC and want to book excursions but do not see how to do it using OBC. I know once on the ship we can do it, but do not want to risk the tour being sold out. Thank you.

If you have the time get a passport, as some travels require it and it makes international travel much more efficient.

Cabin # was 5206 and main difference in cabins on deck 4 vs 5 was the size of the window. The larger window was a nice feature, for little price difference on our sailing. Deck 5 cabins are only in the the front 1/3 of the ship so little hallway traffic. I would avoid the very front of the ship due to movement. I also forgot to mention on both sailings the beds we found to be hard, the room steward was able to add padding to make it better.

We are off the Sun in Alaska about a week ago and had a good cruise, we also sailed her in May so a total of 20 days. Last cruise was a picture window on deck 5, which was nicer than the porthole on deck 4. Both cabins were very quiet, some of the quietest rooms we have had in 40 cruises. The downfall of the ship is the buffet; its way too small and crowded, and the pizza is limited to lunch time for a few hours. Great Outdoors is more open, but we had rain most days so it was limited. The Bliss lounge is awkward, as it is also a major walkway so the use of it for presentations is not the best. Know its a smaller ship, but not a crowded feel except in the buffet area.

The sooner the cruise lines notify the passengers the better. If the line has a strong doubt they will not be able to do a full, or partial they need to say so prior to final payment. As others have stated, this is for some a reason for booking the cruise. Many people fly long distances for the lifetime chance of a canal cruise.

Agree, if internet is a must have, especially for streaming or Zoom calls it is not reliable enough. So many issues effect coverage, strength of signal and other factors.

Being on the Sun in Alaska earlier this year we saw very few families, and kids. The ship does not have Children activities that I saw, it seemed more geared to adults. The good part about the Sun in Alaska is the ship has long port times. If your goal is to do activities in port, this is a good choice. If it is to have a lot of ship board activity, another choice is better. As several have noted, the buffet and pizza offerings other than a few hour's at lunch are not what you find on more modern ships.

Yes logic would say your right, but on CC I see so many who discuss all their winnings in the casino and all of the free drinks and other comps. On he occupancy issue my point was the ships are sailing full which mirrors my recent experience as well as comments I read. Always great to share thoughts and ideas, thanks.

A few thoughts on cruise value/ pricing. -Our Alaska 1982 cruise was $ 1,000 per person for a very small porthole cabin, just an example as cruise prices in many cases are not that much different than many years ago. Inflation adjusted they are less. -Port fees are an issue not discussed often. Its common to see on some cruises the port fees being more than the cruise price. This sure has an impact on the all in pricing. -Occupancy just released is 107%. I am not sure why CCL corp. feels they need free casino offers as well as third and forth passengers free or with a heavy discount. Upon reading reviews a common concern is the ship feeling crowded or understaffed and slow service. We still find cruising to be a good value, but we look at the total price per day including the cruise price, port fees and gratuities.

Agreed, many do own 100 share, but a lot own more. The title of the thread is CCL high debt/ what is your opinion so I was trying to add my thoughts to the title of the thread. Thanks for the feedback.

Many comments on this thread are spot on regarding CCL stock. The debt went from 22 to 33 Billion from 2020 to this year, even more concerning is shareholder equity. A factor in this is also the over doubling of shares outstanding causing a massive dilution for existing shareholders. Carnival share holder equity for the quarter ending February 28, 2023 was $6.170B, a 40.16% decline year-over-year. Carnival share holder equity for 2022 was $7.065B, a 41.82% decline from 2021. Carnival share holder equity for 2021 was $12.144B, a 40.92% decline from 2020. Carnival share holder equity for 2020 was $20.555B, a 18.96% decline from 2019.

Seems to be random offer based on the feedback. I think it sends the wrong message for those who continue to pay market rate for their cruise knowing others cruise for only port taxes. As a shareholder I wonder with the current state of Carnival Corp. who thinks free cruises is a good idea when most ships are sailing at or new 100% occupancy. Even at on non peak sailings I am sure they can sell the cabin at a discounted rate after final payments are made.

We sailed on the May 11 th, 11 night cruise. Weather for us was very good, no rain and temp. in the high 60's to mid 70's during the day. We had an ocean view cabin, and enjoyed the Promenade deck for viewing as always had lots of space, and was covered when sailing to limit some of the wind. This ship has a wrap around deck, which some ships do not have The forward facing lounge was busy, but we could always find a chair, maybe not in the very front. Outside of the forward facing lounge was an observation area, and at most times it was not crowded. Agree with other posters, no blankets.

Thanks for sharing. This was a new site for me and had lots of valuable tools. Great to see the all in pricing based on port fees and gratuity.

Thanks for the great review, we were on the same cruise and thank goodness we had no plumbing issues on deck 4 in an outside cabin. We found the buffet lacking, so used the MDR and specialty dining where possible. The buffet is just to small, lacking in variety and even with the extra seating you so well described it is not up to NCL standards. The weather was great, the service was wonderful and time in ports being a full day was sure a plus. Overall a very good cruise. The only negative is coming home testing positive for COVID. We actually wore masks indoor and at the airport and on the plane (N 95). This is our 6th cruise since the re start and we are fully vaccinated/ boosted. Previous to this we have avoided COVID. On the 2nd to last day we sat next to a table with 2 people coughing, it was uncomfortable and we should have moved. I have no expectation for others to mask up, but I hope if people are ill they would self isolate and mask up to protect the crew and fellow passengers. I know people say its just like the flu, for many this is true, but I would not go into public settings knowing I had the flu either. My thanks to the many great people we met on the cruise.

Thanks for the post. If you only use part of the gift card for your fare, would the remaining balance not be still on the card? This could be used for your next cruise. The wording was Would you loose the remaining balance, or have it available for your next cruise? Thanks

From someone who lives 45 min from Monterey and used to work downtown I can tell you of the joy I use to see a ship anchored in the bay, on Highway 1 near Marina. The area was never crowded as mentioned, the ships came in offseason and added to the local economy. I am not an expert, but I really do not recall any major issues with the ships in the bay causing any issues. I think knowing the area, it is more of a "not in my backyard" issue. As stated the visits were not often, but the sight was awesome.