Carnival leaving San Diego...again???

[mcrcruiser]

We will cncel the 14 night Hawaii cruise now going out of Long Beach  instead of San Diego . The difference is 27 miles to the SD pier vs 100 miles each way to the Long Beach pier & $23 per day to park in the parking structure in Long Beach Carnival pier  .for SD we could get UBEr for a fraction of the cost & not drive . now not worth it to us

[EddiesToys]

1 hour ago, mcrcruiser said:

We will cncel the 14 night Hawaii cruise now going out of Long Beach  instead of San Diego . The difference is 27 miles to the SD pier vs 100 miles each way to the Long Beach pier & $23 per day to park in the parking structure in Long Beach Carnival pier  .for SD we could get UBEr for a fraction of the cost & not drive . now not worth it to us

 

Dito  We would rather fly to Perth AU than go to Long Beach.  We've seen Carnival leave before...that's two strikes! 

 

10 other cruise lines depart from SAN.  Some are way over our budget, but we might look at the Koningsdam which stops twice on the "Big Island" vs Carnivals one and only stop.

 

Don't particularly like HAL's new cattle boats...

[DAllenTCY]

They can put 3 ships in Long Beach, but when the parking lot is full.....I await the complaints.

With 2 ships, often it has been sketchy.

David

 

 

 

[sanmarcosman]

8 hours ago, DAllenTCY said:

They can put 3 ships in Long Beach, but when the parking lot is full.....I await the complaints.

With 2 ships, often it has been sketchy.

David

 

 

 

Carnival made contingency parking plans as this letter explains when Panorama arrived in Long Beach  and the Imagination and Inspiration were also homeported there. At the time there was also another secured lot that was less expensive but rather than a shuttle we took the free Passport Bus in Long Beach right to the pier. We did drive our car to the pier first and gave our checked luggage to the curbside attendants before heading to the parking lot. No need to get a bus with bag and baggage 😉 It worked out fine and the same bus picked us up at the Queen Mary on our return. 

 

[embarkation75]

13 hours ago, DAllenTCY said:

They can put 3 ships in Long Beach, but when the parking lot is full.....I await the complaints.

With 2 ships, often it has been sketchy.

David

 

 

 

Gut feeling is there won't be 3 ships in Long Beach anyway or at least until some point later in 2022 as I'm doubting Radiance sails this year and possibly never from Long Beach now that they moved the Miracle. If that wasn't the case then why did they cancel the non-Hawaii cruises from San Diego rather than transfer similar to Hawaii cruises as their statement that they will run 4-5 day cruises with the Miracle doesn't match the fact they just killed all of them through 2023. 

[sanmarcosman]

39 minutes ago, embarkation75 said:

Gut feeling is there won't be 3 ships in Long Beach anyway or at least until some point later in 2022 as I'm doubting Radiance sails this year and possibly never from Long Beach now that they moved the Miracle. If that wasn't the case then why did they cancel the non-Hawaii cruises from San Diego rather than transfer similar to Hawaii cruises as their statement that they will run 4-5 day cruises with the Miracle doesn't match the fact they just killed all of them through 2023. 

Carnival said they rethought San Diego due to covid as they want to consolidate ports as much as possible. San Diego was suggested originally by Carnival's marketing department to drive sales and not because Long Beach wasn't an option. Carnival want to focus on limited terminals for now to streamline processing and baggage handling protocols in a few facilities until such time as well tested procedures are in place. Only then do they intend to expand their cruise terminal operations.

[tidecat]

I also wonder if the LA area had enough demand to keep both the Thursday/Sunday and Friday/Monday departures. I'm sure the original goal was to consolidate those on Radiance, but there are likely people with more rigid preferences for one set of dates.

[mpk]

On 1/24/2021 at 2:06 PM, Cushing985 said:

I lived in San Diego for over 35 years and have sailed out of that port and also Long Beach.  I've never understood why Carnival would choose to home port out of Long Beach over San Diego.  I would guess the proximity to Disneyland would be a major draw but there is no comparison to the beauty of San Diego as it cruises down the bay, past Point Loma and out to the ocean.

 

On 1/24/2021 at 3:30 PM, Cruiseboy06 said:

Carnival has been in THE LA area since mid 1980's and moved to Long Beach in mid 2000's....  thats why!!    more people fly into LAX 

 

And then sometimes, decisions are made by travel companies that make no sense.  For example, United Airlines.

 

United has the "test before flying, bypass Hawaii coronavirus quarantine" program.  But only out of San Francisco SFO, not Los Angeles.  The joke is that Los Angeles is a suburb of Hawaii, as there are so many that are born in the islands living in LA.  Lots of back and forth travel between LA and the islands.   🤷‍♂️     Separately, United has for years favored SFO over LAX for flights to Asia, also a big head scratcher that belies demographics.

 

My guess is that there are a lot of factors that are not obvious.  Docking fees/rebates, or even capacity problems for available slots.  Applies to cruiselines and airlines...

 

 

Edited January 28, 2021 by mpk

[sailingsusie]

On 1/24/2021 at 9:51 PM, mcrcruiser said:

Wow we just checked the Carnival Web site & our October 15 .2022 Hawaii ,15 night cruise from San Diego is no longer listed as a viable cruise  .So here we go shopping again 

 

 Need to phone the TA & let him know to get back our deposit 

We are booked on the Miracle to Hawaii Jan/22, in the email we received it says please give them till the end if Feb/21 before we make any changes and then if we dont like the changes we can get a refund. If we stick with it they will give $200 OBC per cabin

 

[loanshark]

On 1/28/2021 at 12:49 PM, mpk said:

 

 

And then sometimes, decisions are made by travel companies that make no sense.  For example, United Airlines.

 

United has the "test before flying, bypass Hawaii coronavirus quarantine" program.  But only out of San Francisco SFO, not Los Angeles.  The joke is that Los Angeles is a suburb of Hawaii, as there are so many that are born in the islands living in LA.  Lots of back and forth travel between LA and the islands.   🤷‍♂️     Separately, United has for years favored SFO over LAX for flights to Asia, also a big head scratcher that belies demographics.

 

My guess is that there are a lot of factors that are not obvious.  Docking fees/rebates, or even capacity problems for available slots.  Applies to cruiselines and airlines...

 

 

 

United's main hub on the West Coast is SFO, where they are the dominant airline, controlling almost half the market.  Alaska is 2nd at SFO with approximately 12% of the market.

 

There is no dominant airline at LAX, as the largest airline (American) only controls about 18% of the Southern California market.

 

Most airlines try to create hub cities to facilitate connections to smaller cities, essentially flying a hub-and-spoke model.  However, in the hub cities, they are also able to get higher fares on non-stop flights, especially in hubs that have little competition.

 

The biggest hub airports for the major US carriers are as follows:

American - Dallas/Fort Worth (DFW), Charlotte (CLT), Chicago O'Hare (ORD), Miami (MIA), Phoenix (PHX), and Philadelphia (PHL)

Delta - Atlanta (ATL), Detroit (DTW), Minneapolis (MSP), Salt Lake City (SLC), New York Kennedy (JFK)

Southwest - Dallas Love Field (DAL), Houston Hobby (HOU), Chicago Midway (MDW), Baltimore (BWI), and to an extent, Las Vegas (LAS), and Denver (DEN)

United - Chicago O'Hare (ORD), Houston Intercontinental (IAH), Denver (DEN), San Francisco (SFO), and Newark (EWR) 

 

Also, some of the hubs are used by the airlines for specific sets of flights.  Examples include' American's use of its Miami hub for flights to the Caribbean, Latin America and South America, and Delta's use of JFK for cross-country flights, in addition for flights to/from Europe.

[mpk]

12 hours ago, loanshark said:

 

United's main hub on the West Coast is SFO, where they are the dominant airline, controlling almost half the market.

 

You are right, United has focused on SFO in California.  LAX is sort of the backup, but always playing second fiddle to SFO as far as United goes.  LAX (and SFO) have the new revamped Polaris lounges, but the best flights internationally always seem to service SFO over LAX.

[jsglow]

On 1/26/2021 at 10:57 AM, sanmarcosman said:

Carnival said they rethought San Diego due to covid as they want to consolidate ports as much as possible. San Diego was suggested originally by Carnival's marketing department to drive sales and not because Long Beach wasn't an option. Carnival want to focus on limited terminals for now to streamline processing and baggage handling protocols in a few facilities until such time as well tested procedures are in place. Only then do they intend to expand their cruise terminal operations.

 

That's of course the answer.  Everyone needs to realize that it will be baby steps for many months.  Personally I'd be very surprised if there is ANY Carnival sailing in 2021 outside Miami, Port Canaveral and Galveston.

[Stockjock]

I am likely in the minority, but having Carnival leave San Diego again now puts them at the absolute bottom of cruiselines that I would consider in the future.  I would not rule out sailing on Carnival, but being a native San Diegan, it irritates me that they left the first time for Los Angeles and now a second time.

If recollection serves, Carnival put pressure on San Diego to add more and updated port space.  San Diego did that, spending millions to drastically change the Broadway pier.  Then, after SD did this, CCL pulled out, leaving the Broadway pier as a glorified spot to hold outdoor parties and such.

While this is not directly related, our former football team, the Chargers, pressured the city for a stadium expansion, which they got, then a new stadium before abandoning us for L.A.

I will guarantee that I'm not the only person who feels this way.  SD isn't nearly as large as L.A., but it is the 5th largest county in the USA with a population of roughly 3,400,000 residents.  I think a business has to consider whether or not they irritate a lot of residents before they make these moves.  Plus, as I mentioned before, SD is a heck of a lot more beautiful and interesting place to sail from versus Los Angeles.

Here is the port of San Diego versus the port of Long Beach (L.A.).  Take your pick.  Which port would you like to visit?

Edited February 2, 2021 by Stockjock

[sanmarcosman]

51 minutes ago, Stockjock said:

I am likely in the minority, but having Carnival leave San Diego again now puts them at the absolute bottom of cruiselines that I would consider in the future.  I would not rule out sailing on Carnival, but being a native San Diegan, it irritates me that they left the first time for Los Angeles and now a second time.

If recollection serves, Carnival put pressure on San Diego to add more and updated port space.  San Diego did that, spending millions to drastically change the Broadway pier.  Then, after SD did this, CCL pulled out, leaving the Broadway pier as a glorified spot to hold outdoor parties and such.

While this is not directly related, our former football team, the Chargers, pressured the city for a stadium expansion, which they got, then a new stadium before abandoning us for L.A.

I will guarantee that I'm not the only person who feels this way.  SD isn't nearly as large as L.A., but it is the 5th largest county in the USA with a population of roughly 3,400,000 residents.  I think a business has to consider whether or not they irritate a lot of residents before they make these moves.  Plus, as I mentioned before, SD is a heck of a lot more beautiful and interesting place to sail from versus Los Angeles.

Here is the port of San Diego versus the port of Long Beach (L.A.).  Take your pick.  Which port would you like to visit?

 

 

See my post #25 of this thread 😉 

[Stockjock]

49 minutes ago, sanmarcosman said:

See my post #25 of this thread 😉 

Hadn't seen that, but obviously, yes, you are absolutely correct.

[sanmarcosman]

35 minutes ago, Stockjock said:

Hadn't seen that, but obviously, yes, you are absolutely correct.

We live in North County O'side and think the same as you.

[Stockjock]

19 hours ago, sanmarcosman said:

We live in North County O'side and think the same as you.

I'm in PQ.

[Cushing985]

On 2/1/2021 at 10:02 PM, Stockjock said:

I am likely in the minority, but having Carnival leave San Diego again now puts them at the absolute bottom of cruiselines that I would consider in the future.  I would not rule out sailing on Carnival, but being a native San Diegan, it irritates me that they left the first time for Los Angeles and now a second time.

If recollection serves, Carnival put pressure on San Diego to add more and updated port space.  San Diego did that, spending millions to drastically change the Broadway pier.  Then, after SD did this, CCL pulled out, leaving the Broadway pier as a glorified spot to hold outdoor parties and such.

While this is not directly related, our former football team, the Chargers, pressured the city for a stadium expansion, which they got, then a new stadium before abandoning us for L.A.

I will guarantee that I'm not the only person who feels this way.  SD isn't nearly as large as L.A., but it is the 5th largest county in the USA with a population of roughly 3,400,000 residents.  I think a business has to consider whether or not they irritate a lot of residents before they make these moves.  Plus, as I mentioned before, SD is a heck of a lot more beautiful and interesting place to sail from versus Los Angeles.

Here is the port of San Diego versus the port of Long Beach (L.A.).  Take your pick.  Which port would you like to visit?

I couldn't agree more but to be fair, the picture of LA's port appears to be San Pedro not Long Beach.  Regardless, I still have family in San Diego and cruising out of that port, in my case, sure beats sailing out of LB or San Pedro.  Like you, I would look at the other lines sailing out of San Diego before considering Carnival.

[vwrestler171]

While I prefer San Diego to LA/Long Beach, flights are generally $50/pp cheaper into the LA/Long Beach area than they are into SAN.  That adds up and would have me leave Long Beach instead of SAN.

[DAllenTCY]

An a taxi from the San Diego airport to the cruise terminal is less than $12.  The city bus Route 992 is $2 and change (seniors $1.25) and gets you there in less than 10 minutes.  You can walk it in 40 minutes.

 

The least expensive way from LAX to Long Beach is going to take you more than 1 1/2 hours by bus and trolley.

 

The cheapest shuttle from LAX to Long Beach pier is $40 (not including tip).

 

Uber/Lyft will be about $30 plus.

 

 

So where is your savings?

 

David

Edited February 7, 2021 by DAllenTCY

[cruisingguy007]

On 2/1/2021 at 7:02 PM, Stockjock said:

I am likely in the minority, but having Carnival leave San Diego again now puts them at the absolute bottom of cruiselines that I would consider in the future.  I would not rule out sailing on Carnival, but being a native San Diegan, it irritates me that they left the first time for Los Angeles and now a second time.

If recollection serves, Carnival put pressure on San Diego to add more and updated port space.  San Diego did that, spending millions to drastically change the Broadway pier.  Then, after SD did this, CCL pulled out, leaving the Broadway pier as a glorified spot to hold outdoor parties and such.

While this is not directly related, our former football team, the Chargers, pressured the city for a stadium expansion, which they got, then a new stadium before abandoning us for L.A.

I will guarantee that I'm not the only person who feels this way.  SD isn't nearly as large as L.A., but it is the 5th largest county in the USA with a population of roughly 3,400,000 residents.  I think a business has to consider whether or not they irritate a lot of residents before they make these moves.  Plus, as I mentioned before, SD is a heck of a lot more beautiful and interesting place to sail from versus Los Angeles.

Here is the port of San Diego versus the port of Long Beach (L.A.).  Take your pick.  Which port would you like to visit?

 

Long Beach, it saves me (and any of us coming from north) a lot of driving. I love San Diego and try to vacation there at least annually, but to answer your question as far as ports, Long Beach most definitely. Five hours is much better than six or seven.     

Edited February 7, 2021 by cruisingguy007

[vwrestler171]

17 hours ago, DAllenTCY said:

An a taxi from the San Diego airport to the cruise terminal is less than $12.  The city bus Route 992 is $2 and change (seniors $1.25) and gets you there in less than 10 minutes.  You can walk it in 40 minutes.

 

The least expensive way from LAX to Long Beach is going to take you more than 1 1/2 hours by bus and trolley.

 

The cheapest shuttle from LAX to Long Beach pier is $40 (not including tip).

 

Uber/Lyft will be about $30 plus.

 

 

So where is your savings?

 

David

When I sail from LA/Long Beach, I am meeting friends who live in LA and they pick us up at the airport, so my savings is more since I don't need to shuttle from airport to the port like I would in SAN.  Plus there are more options for airports.  I usually fly into LGB which is closer to the port than LAX.

[pc_load_letter]

On 1/26/2021 at 7:45 PM, tidecat said:

I also wonder if the LA area had enough demand to keep both the Thursday/Sunday and Friday/Monday departures. I'm sure the original goal was to consolidate those on Radiance, but there are likely people with more rigid preferences for one set of dates.

 

The three and four day cruises from LBC were always full. They served customers who wanted either a first time cruise and those who wanted a quick getaway for birthday, bacherlorette\bacherlor, family getaway etc.

[pc_load_letter]

4 hours ago, vwrestler171 said:

When I sail from LA/Long Beach, I am meeting friends who live in LA and they pick us up at the airport, so my savings is more since I don't need to shuttle from airport to the port like I would in SAN.  Plus there are more options for airports.  I usually fly into LGB which is closer to the port than LAX.

 

San Diego airport to the cruise ship terminal is completely walkable for anyone in shape.

[sanmarcosman]

5 hours ago, vwrestler171 said:

When I sail from LA/Long Beach, I am meeting friends who live in LA and they pick us up at the airport, so my savings is more since I don't need to shuttle from airport to the port like I would in SAN.  Plus there are more options for airports.  I usually fly into LGB which is closer to the port than LAX.

Have you flown to San Diego to catch a  cruise ship? I live in SD County and I've heard cab drivers who have waited in long lines for a fare grumble when their ride only wants to go to the cruise pier! It really is that close 😉