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Carnival Miracle/ Carnival Legend to Hawaii

NOSaints1

By NOSaints1,
in Carnival Cruise Lines

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NOSaints1

NOSaints1

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I know Carnival is only in U.S. Dollars and being from Canada it kind of sucks. What're the ships like, the food and if there's enough dining options with rotating food in the Buffett, i know the entertainment lacks on Carnival. What new features did it get in drydock if any, is it better to sail out of BC or Long Beach and if you've been to these islands in Hawaii, is it ad beautiful as we could imagine.

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riffatsea

riffatsea

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I've been to 3 of the islands on land vacations and yes they are gorgeous!!

The tone of your questions is not very positive so I have a hard time answering you.

I enjoy the Miracle very much as a ship!

To me the buffet has plenty of options and many change daily. I also enjoy the food in the MDR a great deal!

We enjoy the Comedy Club on the Miracle too and also the piano bar. Sometimes the shows have music we like and sometimes they don't.

I have never sailed out of BC so I cannot tell you anything about that.

We don't cruise to Hawaii because we'd rather spend more time on land on the islands and we don't like to sail across the Pacific.

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leenieweenie

leenieweenie

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We did the Miracle 15 day to Hawaii last January. We were very lucky to have smooth sailing both going over and coming back. the Miracle is one of our favorite ships but we sailed on it before the drydock, so can't speak to any new improvements on it. The food is good and we greatly enjoyed all the Hawaii themed activities on our way to the islands. All the islands were wonderful and each different in their own way. However, I must agree that seeing the islands on a cruise just doesn't give you enough time to see everything! You must make choices and sometimes be disappointed that you miss something you really wanted to do. Definitely do a luau, it was a highpoint for us,we loved it. It was a great cruise and we had a wonderful time on the ship but we wouldn't cruise again to Hawaii.

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N7786W Flyer

N7786W Flyer

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We did the Miracle 15 day to Hawaii last January. We were very lucky to have smooth sailing both going over and coming back. the Miracle is one of our favorite ships but we sailed on it before the drydock, so can't speak to any new improvements on it. The food is good and we greatly enjoyed all the Hawaii themed activities on our way to the islands. All the islands were wonderful and each different in their own way. However, I must agree that seeing the islands on a cruise just doesn't give you enough time to see everything! You must make choices and sometimes be disappointed that you miss something you really wanted to do. Definitely do a luau, it was a highpoint for us,we loved it. It was a great cruise and we had a wonderful time on the ship but we wouldn't cruise again to Hawaii.

 

Completely agree with this post.

 

My wife and I were on the same cruise and had almost the same exact observations...especially, the part about not having enough time to see everything. Out of the 15 day cruise, 8 or 9 of them was spent at sea just transiting between Long Beach and the Hawaiian Islands.

 

As far as the cruise itself goes, I would go again in a heartbeat, but I would book many more excursions than I did on the previous cruise so I could see as much of the natural beauty of the islands as possible...and definitely, a luau needs to be in your itinerary...IMHO.

 

Garnett

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N7786W Flyer

N7786W Flyer

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Relative to your other questions (they weren't asked of me, but I'll volunteer nonetheless), we did not book our airfare through Carnival as we came into Long Beach (flew to LAX and took a shuttle to Long Beach) a couple of days prior to the cruise.

 

We stayed on the Queen Mary for the 2 days, which was a pleasant experience in itself. One added perk to staying on the QM was that the day of the cruise the staff from the hotel came to our room, picked up our bags, and transported them over to the Carnival Miracle, which made for a very easy transition from the QM to the actual cruise ship.

 

As far as the decor of the Miracles goes, we were on the ship prior to its drydock so I don't know what was changed during that process. I can say that prior to the drydock, I thought the ship was very nice relative to the accommodations and overall appearance.

 

Garnett

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N7786W Flyer

N7786W Flyer

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Did you find it expensive to do everything?

 

 

I guess it depends upon your definition of 'expensive'.

 

Personally, I think ALL excursions, whether they are in the Caribbean or Hawaii are over priced. If I recall, the luau was about $130/person, but in my mind, you can't go to Hawaii and not experience a luau. Some of the other excursions may have been as cheap as $60/person, but the average (best that I can remember) was in the $85/person range...but again, this is Hawaii.

 

On this cruise, we spent more on excursions and pictures than normal. Seems like our total S&S bill was around $1,000 for the 15 days...and there was no alcohol on the bill as we do not drink.

 

Don't know if this gives you any guidance or not though...

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N7786W Flyer

N7786W Flyer

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I didn't check with airfare through Carnival as I had USAir Frequent Flyer miles to use for the trip.

 

As far as NCL goes, you might want to check the fares for the cruise there. For comparison, we only paid about $3,600 ($1,800 per person) for a 15 day cruise in an outside room (no balcony). If memory serves, I think the NCL-America cruise from Honolulu (if that's what you're referring to) is about the same rate for a 7 day cruise.

 

Garnett

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leenieweenie

leenieweenie

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I agree with Garnett! We had a 15 day cruise for the price of a 7 day on NCL. And airfare to Long Beach was cheaper than a flight to Hawaii! If you can -stay a few days before the cruise in Long Beach. We had a very nice time there and set the mood for a great cruise.

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Nic6318

Nic6318

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Do you know if you can book in CDN dollars

 

 

You can book in CDN$ if you book through a Canadian agency. You wouldn't be getting a discounted rate. It would be the cost of the cabin converted to CDN$.

 

I did see that some cruise lines ( ?NCL ) had a discounted conversion rate, but not Carnival.

 

We sailed on the Miracle out of Long Beach a few years ago and enjoyed the trip very much. You have to be well aware that out of 15days at sea there were only 5 stops in Hawaii with a brief stop in Ensenada. If you don't like being at sea for a prolonged period this isn't the cruise for you.

 

You don't say where you are flying from. That would obviously influence your cost of flying. We are close enough to Detroit to make that a preferred departure airport compared to Toronto. If you can fly out of a U.S. airport you will save hundreds of dollars. I can't see the point of booking air through Carnival since you should get to the port at least a day before and they typically charge a premium. You would easily be able to verify that yourself.

 

As far as cost, I found the cruise cost was more than fair for a 15 day cruise. We rented a car, I believe in each port (a few of the ports, getting to the car rental was the most challenging part because there were so many people trying to get on the shuttles...you might be better off just taking a taxi). Your costs don't have to be unreasonable depending on your choices, but you are travelling half way across the Pacific and unless you are planning on returning saving a few $$ and not doing something you wanted to would be silly. So now because of the dollar it will cost 30% more. It's not the first time the CDN$ has been this low, I know it's been lower. Compared to the Euro it still has retained its' value...you could consider a European cruise.

 

If you look at the Hawaiian port of call threads you will get lots of useful information and of course the departure port thread will tell you about your hotel options pre cruise. I would say it is well worth planning ahead for those stops.

 

Good luck

Have a great cruise

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kdinkus1

kdinkus1

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We did the Miracle 15 day to Hawaii last January. We were very lucky to have smooth sailing both going over and coming back. the Miracle is one of our favorite ships but we sailed on it before the drydock, so can't speak to any new improvements on it. The food is good and we greatly enjoyed all the Hawaii themed activities on our way to the islands. All the islands were wonderful and each different in their own way. However, I must agree that seeing the islands on a cruise just doesn't give you enough time to see everything! You must make choices and sometimes be disappointed that you miss something you really wanted to do. Definitely do a luau, it was a highpoint for us,we loved it. It was a great cruise and we had a wonderful time on the ship but we wouldn't cruise again to Hawaii.

 

My DH and I are doing this trip in January and am hoping you will share more about your trip. For me, it is overwhelming trying to figure everything out. For instance: Is there a certain Luau you would recommend compared to the others? What kind of Hawaiian themed activities did you experience? Any info on the islands would also be nice (what you found worth your money and what you didn't), etc... Thanks!

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