Just booked first cruise

[Bruenor]

Hello everyone. I just booked a room on the Carnival Imagination, sailing out of Miami on May 23. This is really exciting because it will be my honeymoon. The ports of call are Grand Cayman and Ocho Rios. As a first time cruiser I have a couple of questions.

 

Should I book shore excursions with Carnival, or with an independent company?

 

How are the massages on the cruises? Are they worth it? How fast to they fill up?

[K.T.B.]

First of all, congratulations on your upcoming nuptials! :)

 

As for your questions, in reverse order:

 

Massages and spa treatments definitely fill up fast. I recommend going on the spa tour before the ship leaves port. That way you can judge what's there and if you want to book anything. Definitely be there the first day if you or spouse need something special done, like a manicure.

 

As for excursions, I usually play it safe and book it through Carnival. You will not miss the ship that way. :) I'm sure someone on here can provide you with reliable info concerning non-Carnival excursions.

[jleq]

Should I book shore excursions with Carnival, or with an independent company?

 

 

Like the previous poster....congrats on your honeymoon. For a first time cruiser, I'd book my excursions through Carnival. Granted, they are somewhat more expensive (maybe 25-40%). But the added cost is "money well spent" for their doing all of the work.

 

Should you consider cruising in the future, you might want to save the money and book independently. By then, you'll be more familiar with the "do's and dont's" involved with shore excursions.

[hstrybuf]

Congratulations on both your upcoming wedding and booking your first cruise! :)

 

I think it's a good idea to book excursions through the ship the first time you cruise. Much safer and gives you some knowledge of how things work. Plus, if something happens that causes the tour to return late to the ship, most likely they will wait for you. That is not the case when booking independent excursions.

 

Keep reading the boards and asking questions. We were all first-timers once and there are a lot of knowledgeable people here who are glad to help.

[TinaB]

Congrats on your booking & upcoming wedding.

 

I just sailed on the Imagination last weekend. Had a great time.

[sharon p]

:D :D :D CONGRATS!!!!!!!!!!You will have a WONDERFUL time ;) ;)

[stlrboo]

Imagination was my first Carnival ship, and we keep coming back.. :)

Congrats... GREAT! Been there, but got married in Ocho Rios..

I agree with the other posters.. Do the ship tours the first time to get your feet wet and to learn the procedures, then the next time you'll have a feel for what happens in port, and can plan accordingly.. :D

[seajan]

Congrats on your upcoming marriage. Recently I read a post from another bride who was having trouble with her "name change" for her honeymoon cruise. Seems like her Travel Agent had messed up on something and that she would be sailing under her maiden name, which really had her upset. So, you might want to check into marriage license, proper name on ID, booking name, etc.

[awsmrn]

Let me add to the congrats on both your upcoming wedding and cruise!!! You are sure to have a wonderful time. Seeing how this is your first cruise and your honeymoon at that, book the excursions with the ship, less to worry about. Gives you more time to think about your new spouse without the worries!!!!!

[Bruenor]

So if I book the excusions with the cruise, do I wait until we get on board, or can I book them ahead of time?

[Nando]

Congratulations! I'm sure you'll have a wonderful honeymoon on the Imagination. I was on this same cruise two years ago (my first also). We had a great time on the ship, but unfortunely the weather didn't cooperate (January) and we had rough sea's in Grand Cayman (but still went snorkeling with stingray's through Caption Marvin's, an unforgetable experience and then took in the underwater boat ride, can't remember right now the name). I had booked us a full day of excursions in Ocho Rios, but we were unable to stay due to another day of rough sea's, bummer! Anyway, to just be different than everyone else, I'd have to say that if you have the time to research, I'd book excursions on your own before going. That's what we did because I figured with this being the first ever cruise, I wanted to make sure we weren't going to be disappointed in any way (didn't plan on the weather messing things up though).

 

Good Luck!

[hstrybuf]

Bruenor, you can book excursions as soon as you board the ship. You can also check Carnival's website beforehand for descriptions of the tours so you'll have some ideas before you get there.

[MS QUEEN]

CONGRATS to you on your very wise decision to take a cruise!!!! It will be MOST wonderful!!!....oh yeah, and I guess the marriage thing is a good idea too, but mainly the cruise!

[awsmrn]

yes book when you board the ship. Also you can call Carnival & have them fax you the full shore excursion list.