new to carnival, lots of ?????'s

[ocean waves]

we've been on disney and rccl but due to scheduling the only cruise my daughter and i were able to go on together will be the pride in april. we are traveling with a church group. so here's some ?'s... can you carry on water and soda? do they have adult only pool areas? how are the shows? i assume there is a buffet daily for breakfast and lunch but how about dinner? are there formal nights, we are very casual people. is there parking in the port of baltimore and what is the daily cost? i know i'm throwing out a lot of ?'s but the cruise is less than 30 days away (we just booked ) so i want to get as much info as i can. thanks.

[chachi]

You can carry on water and soda. Some of the ships have an adult's area, but I don't know of any that have a pool.

You can eat all your meals at the buffet or there is a main dining room that serves breakfast and dinner daily. They serve lunch on sea days. There is elegant night. Some people get very dressed up but most don't. I feel fine in black pants and a nice top. Welcome to Carnival I'm sure you'll have a great time.

[chachi]

I forgot to mention that depending on what ship you are on you might have a Mongolian grill, pasta bar, deli, and sushi. You will always find pizza and an outdoor grill with hotdogs and hamburgers. You won't go hungry and will have no trouble finding something to eat if you don't want to go into the main dining room.

[lilone]

we've been on disney and rccl but due to scheduling the only cruise my daughter and i were able to go on together will be the pride in april. we are traveling with a church group. so here's some ?'s... can you carry on water and soda? do they have adult only pool areas? how are the shows? i assume there is a buffet daily for breakfast and lunch but how about dinner? are there formal nights, we are very casual people. is there parking in the port of baltimore and what is the daily cost? i know i'm throwing out a lot of ?'s but the cruise is less than 30 days away (we just booked ) so i want to get as much info as i can. thanks.

 

 

I believe the parking is $15 per day at the port of baltimore.

[LuvBaloo]

We're going on our first Carnival cruise next week, so I've been reading lots and have got answers for some of your questions

 

1 - you can carry on reasonable quantities of water/soda. Not allowed in checked luggage. Generally seems to be that a 12pack of water/soda per person is fine.

2 - I've only done DCL before and from what I've seen on here and in reviews is that the shows are not the same high qualty as Disney and are not as family friendly. Many people comment on thongs often being part of the costume.

3 - the don't have formal night, instead they have "elegant night" which is more casual that the Disney formal night. My husband usually takes a tux on Disney (he was given one, so may as well use it) but will just be taking a suit on our Carnival cruise. Suits are not required though.

 

Not sure on the other answers.

Not sure on the age of your daughter, but apparently the kids clubs is not open as many hours as on DCL.

Reading cruise capers, it looks like Carnival has more activities later in the day compared to DCL.

 

Have a great trip!:)

[littlesnit]

From Carnival's FAQ page at http://www.carnival.com/CMS/FAQs/Dress_Attire.aspx

 

Casual attire is the order of the day. We suggest shorts, sundresses, tank tops, etc. for the ladies, and for men; shorts, polo shirts, T-shirts, etc. will do. We suggest you wear rubber-soled, low heeled or flat shoes for extra traction while onboard. The use of any footwear with wheels, including but not limited, to Heelys© shoes, is prohibited on board our ships. For dining you may want to dress up a bit and/or bring along a light sports jacket or cardigan.

Most evenings we have a Cruise Casual dress code, but there are those Cruise Elegant evenings one or two nights throughout your “Fun Ship” voyage, where you will have the opportunity to showcase your more elegant attire. For those who want casual attire for dinner time, the Lido Restaurant is open nightly, and has a more relaxed theme. However, shirts and shoes/footwear (flip-flops) must be worn at all times inside the Lido Restaurant.

Both dress codes for the dining rooms are described below.

Cruise Casual Dining Dress Code: Gentlemen - Sport slacks, khakis, jeans (no cut-offs), dress shorts (long), collared sport shirts; Ladies - Casual dresses, casual skirts or pants and blouses, summer dresses, Capri pants, dress shorts, jeans (no cut-offs).

Not permitted in the dining room during the Cruise Casual dinner for ladies and gentlemen: shorts, gym shorts, basketball shorts, beach flip-flops, bathing suit attire, cut-off jeans, sleeveless shirts for men and baseball hats.

Cruise Elegant Dining Dress Code: Gentlemen - Dress slacks, dress shirts. We also suggest a sport coat. If you wish to wear suits and ties or tuxedos, by all means we invite you to do so. Ladies - Cocktail dresses, pantsuits, elegant skirts and blouses; if you‘d like to show off your evening gowns, that's great too!

Not permitted in the dining room during the Cruise Elegant dinner for ladies and gentlemen: shorts, gym shorts, T-shirts, beach flip-flops, bathing suit attire, jeans, cut-off jeans, sleeveless shirts for men, sportswear, and baseball hats.

Special Sailings

For Canada/New England/Alaska cruises: Sweaters, lightweight jackets and raincoats are suggested. Casual clothes that can be layered easily are highly recommended. Bring a heavier sweater if you are traveling to the glaciers, along with a raincoat and umbrella, because it is often cold and windy in such areas.

For South America and Europe cruises: Comfortable shoes and a just-in-case raincoat. Bring a sweater if you are traveling to the glaciers, along with a raincoat and umbrella, because it is often cold and windy in such areas. Special note: It is essential that you wear the proper apparel when visiting the Vatican and other religious sites (no bare legs or shoulders).

[canner2u]

There is pizza as well as soft serve ice cream available 24 hours a day. There is also room service with a limited menu, but is available 24 hours a day as well.

 

[DocF]

We were on the Pride last August. Save yourself grief and effort and get a soda card if that is your beverage of choice. The water on the Lido deck is fine, cold and tasty. The coffee, though can be challenging, although I did manage to find an urn that made decent coffee. IMHO there is nothing more stupid than paying for ordinary Atlanta tap water in a bottle.

 

All meals are served on the buffet on the Lido deck, but why not enjoy the experience of dining in the dining room. The service is usually much better than in a good restaurant on land. The food is comparable to a banquet facility in a good hotel. It is part of the cruise experience.

 

Now you say you are casual people. This is a major bone of contention with me. There are two "cruise elegant" nights on Carnival cruises. We carry my tuxedo and white dinner jacket and DW carries a couple of her fancy dresses. We find being dressed up, getting the photos taken by the photographers, Having people tell us how nice we look, trying to avoid spilling on our nice clothes, etc. is part of the enjoyment of the cruise. People no longer care what they look like. Believe me, we need all the help we can get.:p The majority of the passengers on our cruise dressed in suit and tie and nice dress for the elegant nights. There were many tuxedos and formal dresses and even a couple of dress military uniforms.

 

Yup, the shows do not cater to the prudes among us. I also found that the younger kids did not even notice the skimpy costumes. I did hear a little one, about three years old, look at one of the many nude paintings and say to Mommy, "That lady is playing with herself."

 

The after (back) pool area is adults only and it seemed to be enforced when we were on the ship. Chair hogs also seemed to be at a minimum.

 

Say hello to Jaime, the cruise director if she is aboard when you go. Tell her Doc said Hi!

 

Doc

[mikeandbecky5]

The pool at the aft of the Pride is adult only. We have sailed the ship twice and love it!

[SugarCharlotte]

Last Spring on the Pride we spent all of our on-deck hours at the aft adult only area.

The main pools had very loud and shrill music which was over-amplified and painful to even walk thru (I am not a fuddy duddy- I go to see live rock bands several times a month). Plus it was crowded with kids, even during a school week :confused:

The aft area however had lite and classic rock (like MIX 106) music thru speakers at a perfect background volume, and was very serene and plesant, with a shady area to relax, and a non crowded peaceful pool with pleasant folks relaxing.

Cant wait to be there again... a couple more months!!!

[ocean waves]

thanks for the information. we're really getting excited about going.

[murphalina]

we've been on disney and rccl but due to scheduling the only cruise my daughter and i were able to go on together will be the pride in april. we are traveling with a church group. so here's some ?'s... can you carry on water and soda? do they have adult only pool areas? how are the shows? i assume there is a buffet daily for breakfast and lunch but how about dinner? are there formal nights, we are very casual people. is there parking in the port of baltimore and what is the daily cost? i know i'm throwing out a lot of ?'s but the cruise is less than 30 days away (we just booked ) so i want to get as much info as i can. thanks.

 

Have a great time! As others have said, you no longer have to do black-tie formal for "cruise elegant" night, but you do have to dress up to eat in the dining room. If you're not interested in dressing up, you can always eat at the buffet on those nights (should be 2 nights in a 7 night cruise).

 

The food on Carnival is very good. The Pride is a nice ship. You may not find some of the shows "church group friendly" but you can use your own judgment there.

 

Have a great time!