Conquest News

[wanman]

Hello from the Conquest. Todd Whitmer announced at the Past Guest Party that the Conquest will be going back to NOLA in 2007 and the new Carnival Freedon will be sailing from Galveston for the Winter Months and in Europe on the Summer months. I know that this will make a lot of people in NOLA happy and make us Texans happy as well!

[selucrey]

That's good and bad news. It's great that ships will be cruising out of NOLA again but we were looking forward to a new ship. Doesn't matter really, the important thing is that we will have any ship ! Thanks !!

[BrendaB1]

Another happy Texan here. :D I love the Conquest & sailing out of Nola but a new ship in Galveston would be great.

[MERVYN BREMMER]

Another happy Texan here. :D I love the Conquest & sailing out of Nola but a new ship in Galveston would be great.

Wonder when they are going to get a ship out of Chicago or Detroit so that I don't have to drive so far;) :D

[aggieastrosfan]

Wow, that would be awesome!

 

I may have to book my first inaugural cruise if that happens! :D

 

ETA - Well, first Galveston cruise, anyway. I'm sure it'll start in Europe.

[corina27]

I never thought id hear myself say this but Woo-hoo way to go Texas!!!:) :)

[cheshyrkat]

That would be something! They probably wouldn't have trouble filling a newer ship out of Galveston like they have seemed to with Conquest...

[Jabee]

That would be something! They probably wouldn't have trouble filling a newer ship out of Galveston like they have seemed to with Conquest...

 

Actually...I think the problem is that the ship has been overbooked since arriving in Galveston. When we left, we had to wait because they had over 500 more than capacity on board the wek before us...our week it was 100 more, and the next week was over also.

 

Just for interest...I looked up the Conquest for the Jan. 8 sailing..and found a total of 8 rooms not booked....sure does not sound like it is running empty to me.

 

I will be interested in seeing what happens with two big ships that close in the Gulf....I don't see myself bypassing NOLA for Galveston, and I doubt that folks in Houston would travel to NOLA.

[Rowan555]

Actually...I think the problem is that the ship has been overbooked since arriving in Galveston. When we left, we had to wait because they had over 500 more than capacity on board the wek before us...our week it was 100 more, and the next week was over also.

 

Just for interest...I looked up the Conquest for the Jan. 8 sailing..and found a total of 8 rooms not booked....sure does not sound like it is running empty to me.

 

I will be interested in seeing what happens with two big ships that close in the Gulf....I don't see myself bypassing NOLA for Galveston, and I doubt that folks in Houston would travel to NOLA.

 

 

There were people on the Conquest last week saying that they had been on more than one Conquest sailing in the past 6 weeks or so because they kept getting emails saying they could cruise last minute for $299 per person. I talked to quite a few people who had gotten in on this deal during our sailing. I NEVER found deals like that when cruising out of NOLA. Perhaps with a large ship in each port there WILL be more last minute Conquest deals in New Orleans. I just hope there aren't TOO many, because I want the ship to do well when it returns!

[big_duck]

There were people on the Conquest last week saying that they had been on more than one Conquest sailing in the past 6 weeks or so because they kept getting emails saying they could cruise last minute for $299 per person. I talked to quite a few people who had gotten in on this deal during our sailing. I NEVER found deals like that when cruising out of NOLA. Perhaps with a large ship in each port there WILL be more last minute Conquest deals in New Orleans. I just hope there aren't TOO many, because I want the ship to do well when it returns!

 

Actually, according to the OP, demand will be articficially increased out of TX, because the ship will only be there in the winter.

 

Although I certainly hope this comes to pass, I am going to wait until Carnival officially announces before I will get too excited.

[babaloo41]

Wonder when they are going to get a ship out of Chicago or Detroit so that I don't have to drive so far;) :D

 

Can't you book passage on the Edmund Fitzgerald? I know there's no suites, but a cruise is a cruise, right?;)

[cheshyrkat]

I am going to wait until Carnival officially announces before I will get too excited.

 

Ditto on that...No use to go get excited about anything until I hear it from the horse's mouth.

 

And Jabee, I based my statement on information like what Rowan555 shared. I merely said it seemed that Conquest was having trouble filling up. Otherwise why would they have to bother with all those last minute "deals." I'd imagine some of the overbooking would have to do with the fact that Carnival is advertising Texas resident specials near the sail date and for a price like $299 for a 7 day that I'd have had to pay at the VERY least $499 if I booked ahead of time...there are probably loads of people wanting to get in on the deal! Just my speculation, though. Never represented it as a researched fact.

[texas greeneyes]

... and I doubt that folks in Houston would travel to NOLA.

 

I would love the opportunity to do cruise out of New Orleans, as was planned for our 11/20/05 cruise before Katrina hit. Leaving out of Galveston was more convenient for this Houstonian, but I still want to experience NOLA for the first time...pre-cruise, of course! :)

[GoinCruisin]

I would love the opportunity to do cruise out of New Orleans, as was planned for our 11/20/05 cruise before Katrina hit. Leaving out of Galveston was more convenient for this Houstonian, but I still want to experience NOLA for the first time...pre-cruise, of course! :)

 

Exactly! Alot of people from that area cruise from NOLA!! People don't always cruise from their homeport. We had people from all over TX on the S&S 1 cruise last October... and when they switched our port from NOLA to Galveston for the Conquest next year, most of the NOLA people didn't cancel. Just because someone lives near a port, does not mean that is the port they will always cruise from ;) NOLA is a city that people go to days before a cruise, and stay for days after a cruise... they didn't have to discount the fare real deep to get people to book cruises... and they don't need a new ship there in order to sail full each week (although I was hoping they would get one, and maybe they still will :D)

[BrendaB1]

There were people on the Conquest last week saying that they had been on more than one Conquest sailing in the past 6 weeks or so because they kept getting emails saying they could cruise last minute for $299 per person. I talked to quite a few people who had gotten in on this deal during our sailing. I NEVER found deals like that when cruising out of NOLA. Perhaps with a large ship in each port there WILL be more last minute Conquest deals in New Orleans. I just hope there aren't TOO many, because I want the ship to do well when it returns!

 

I had a friend in Biloxi that used to catch Holiday for those awesome prices all the time when it was in Nola. He's a 30+ times cruiser & single so Carnival would call him the day of & he would be there within two hours to board the ship & sail away.

[aggieastrosfan]

Did he happen to say what Galveston would have in the summer? Will Galveston lose 7-day sailings in the summer and only have the Ecstasy?

 

If that's the case, it would seem to me that maybe Galveston is not filling up well, and can't sustain a Conquest-class ship sailing year-round.

[Rowan555]

I had a friend in Biloxi that used to catch Holiday for those awesome prices all the time when it was in Nola. He's a 30+ times cruiser & single so Carnival would call him the day of & he would be there within two hours to board the ship & sail away.

 

 

I took the kids on a Holiday last minute deal - I think we paid $353 total for the 3 of us for a 5 day cruise. I always HOPED to get a deal like that on Conquest, but it never happened!

[cheshyrkat]

I took the kids on a Holiday last minute deal - I think we paid $353 total for the 3 of us for a 5 day cruise. I always HOPED to get a deal like that on Conquest, but it never happened!

 

WOW now that's a deal!!! Wish I could find something like that!!

[Rowan555]

WOW now that's a deal!!! Wish I could find something like that!!

 

I would definitely do it again, even if I had to drive to Mobile for the deal! Holiday was my least favorite ship, but $350 for a 5 day vacation for 3 is NOT bad at all, no matter what ship you're on!

[brn2crz]

I could be wrong..I really have not put a lot of thought into it..

But maybe there were just a lot of people that cancelled when Conquest was sent here,and since the issues with Coz and the other areas hit,are still going on...Maybe folks are not willing to risk sailing the Western right now...Face it..Coz and Grand Cayman are the "best", meaning most popular choices....anyway..Just a thought..

 

Now..Freedom to Galveston...Yes that would be great....But I really wish we could get a great ship here for the summer...Not just the winter...

Although..I would probably say Conquest would be a "great" ship...As long as it goes to "great" ports of call..

 

Oh well..Seeing as we are doing Okinawa next year...We wont be cruising until 07 again anyway...No telling what will be going on by then:D

[TexasFyre]

As long as the Conquest sits in Galveston for my cruise, i am one happy camper! Or Cruiser in this case! Glad they will replace her when she leaves!

[pholter]

Another happy camper here if this is true!! :) I would love to see a different itinerary than the norm though and later hours in the ports of call.. Only time will tell, but I will be booking if the Freedom comes to Galveston for sure!!! :D

[brn2crz]

:confused: I just saw an add...For a 5 nighter,on the Ecstasy...Starting in Jan to the Bahama's??

 

Thats definitley different from Galveston..

Not that the Ecstasy would entice me..But its good to know they are figuring out other options..

[TxStacey]

:confused: I just saw an add...For a 5 nighter,on the Ecstasy...Starting in Jan to the Bahama's??

 

Thats definitley different from Galveston..

Not that the Ecstasy would entice me..But its good to know they are figuring out other options..

 

That's interesting since the Ecstacy is in NOLA until March '06...Was that ad for Jan '06? We are sailing the Elation on March 11, '06 and were told that the Ecstacy would not return until it is refurbished which would be April. Could the Fema contract be ending sooner? Just curious.

[arlydion]

Any idea what month the conquest will be back in NOLA? Would it be AFTER the Freedom gets to Galveston in April? I have a cruise booked for Jan 2007 and was really hoping they would switch from galveston to NOLA.