Carnival Imagination Tips/Things To Knows/Random Facts First Cruiser Here

Hey everyone! Just wanted to start off by saying that you guys have a great site here. Very informative and intresting to read. I have already learned a lot from browsing. Also wanted to say that I am soooooo jealous of you guys. You are soo lucky to go on soo many cruises. Well I will be going on my first cruise this Febuary the 19th on the Imagination. I am very excited from stories from my friends and reading some on the boards here.

Now I did do a search and Ive browsed back some looking but I couldnt find anything. I was wondering if you guys could help me out with any tips, ideas, good things to know or just random information about the boat. I am really excited and I am doing as much research as I can. If I missed a previous thread, I am sorry but please direct me to it. Thanks for all the help. I hope that in the future I can become an avid cruiser like you guys. It seems that it is an addicting thing to do!!!!!

Another question is do they have pull out beds? Thanks.

Our third cruise was with our children to Grand Cayman and Calica. We liked the Imagination and really enjoyed spending time on the back decks while we were leaving the ports. The deck above the childrens pool is usually very quiet at that time of the day. The kids are getting ready for dinner and it is still light out. That was our time for 'Frou-Frou' drinks and catch our breath before dinner. I recommend late seating unless you have children also. lots more relaxed and allows time between shore time and dinner time.

Have fun!

On sunny days, the best place to use the hot tubs is up in the spa ... there's no one up there ... there are 3 hot tubs up there.

Thanks for the tips. Are there any secret rooms or benefits like on the other ships?

Not that I recall... it was a few years back... the biggest thing I remember is that they did not have satellite for ESPN and it was during football season and we were with a singles group that had a bunch of football fans and we couldn't watch the Patriots on the ESPN game on Sunday night:mad:

Hahahahaha, I think there was a good reason for that. They dont like to show crappy football teams on there TV's, they think that it might scare the visitors away.

Just playing with ya. I am a Jets fan here. Even though you are our rivals I must admit that the Patriots are a solid classy team with a lot of skill and a lot of teamwork. I admire them. Good luck in the superbowl. I think I will be routing for you guys instead of the Eagles.

Does anyone know the weather there in Febuary?

I hope they'll be showing the Superbowl; otherwise we'll miss it!

I am pretty sure they will. They would have a boatload of angry men if they didnt and that would get dangerous. When are you departing? Will you be at sea or in a port when the game is on?

They'd have a bunch of angry women, too. We leave this Saturday and will be at sea when the game is played. Going with a group, who I think didn't plan the timing too well.

I was on the imagination last week (Jan 22-27).

Had a great time. We were upgraded to M with an outside cabin. Originally, we had booked for R with an inside cabin. They were quite large rooms for a cruise ship. The cruise director Jeff will start to get on your nerves by then end of the trip, but he does have his funny moments.

Football was shown in several different places, including the giant screen on the lido deck in front of the pool. The pools are quite cold, and are salt water.

The food was fantastic. I ate like a pig. Can't say enough about the food. Waiters were Panin and Derek, and you are lucky if you get them. Make sure to go to dinner every night, the food is not to be missed.

As for excursions:

We did not stop at Grand Caymen. There is no port there, and the waters were too rough for the tenders to come out and pick us up. Although, there were 4 cruise ships there picking up some passengers who missed the boat in Miami because of flights that were cancelled due to inclament weather. We bopped around Grand Caymen for awhile, before going to the other side of the island to receive passengers.

I was travelling with a party of 6, and we all agreed we would never ever return to Jamaica. Perhaps it's an issue of personal taste. We took the "cool runnings" tour. The boat bounced in the rough water, nearly making us all sick. The streets are dangerous. People were washing themselves in ditches, and the houses looked more like tents rather than structures. Everybody, and I mean everybody, wants to sell you something. Everybody wants to take you for a cab ride, everybody wants to sell you drugs. You just can't enjoy yourself.

The casino: I found the blackjack dealer that we had to be quite miserable and outright rude. After telling my friend how he should and should not play, and after telling me to watch my language(I didn't swear, and everybody around me looked quite confused when he said that...but even if I had sworn, I'm an adult, we're in an adult only atmosphere), I told him he was rude and picked up my chips and did not return to the casino for the rest of the cruise. But, if you like to throw away money, you can put your sign and sail card directly into the slot machines, and they'll take that money for you.

I think that about sums it up...except, oh yes....make sure to go to the piano bar at least one night on your cruise. You'll understand what I mean when you go.

Anything else you would like to know?

Thanks for the tips. Are there any secret rooms or benefits like on the other ships?

There was a thread a while back "Carnival Secrets They Usually Don't Tell You About". It may have some of the information you're looking for.

My wife and I went on our very first cruise on the Imagination last fall. We had a great time, even though the seas were very rough the second night. We had early seating in the Spirit dining room, which worked out very nicely.

Things to consider:

Attend the super shopper seminars. They give away some decent door prizes, and are fairly entertaining if you've never been to one before.

Attend the shore excursion seminars, especially if you do not attend the super shopper seminars. They will tell you interesting and possibly important things about your destinations-- in between sales pitches for the excursions, of course.

Avoid the art auctions, unless you're just looking to get some free champagne. The art is nice, but not a great value.

Don't waste your time at the "free liqour tasting" outside the lounge the first night, unless you intend to take them up on some of the drink specials.

Do attend the captain's cocktail party. Try to carry a couple of dollars with you to tip the cocktail waitress. Also, if she isn't carrying anything that you like, don't be afraid to follow her back to the bar and order a drink there-- those are complimentary as well. Even if you don't drink, it's nice to see the ships officers, the hors d`oevres are decent and the music isn't unpleasant.

Try to eat in the dining room every night. Your wait staff will take very good care of you. Strongly consider the headwaiter's recommendations. Also, if you do not like something, feel free to ask for something else. If you get bad service, ask to speak to the maitre`d. He'll make everything better.

Buy something sweet in the gourmet coffee bar. It's worth it.

On the next-to-last day, the spa offers $1/minute massages. Treat yourself to one, you won't regret it, but book it soon after the special is announced-- space is limited.

Major sporting events are shown on the jumbotron screen on the lido deck and in the bar above the Spirit dining room. We watched the last couple of World Series games on the ESPN-Spanish feed.

Network television will be piped to the rooms when a signal is available. Three or four fairly new films will be shown on your television as well, but they will be edited for language and some content, so you might be better off skipping them unless there's nothing else to do!

I'll write more later if I can... gotta get back to work before they notice I'm devoting more attention to Cruise Critic ;)

Thank you guys for all the info.

China Doll

Thanks for the help guys. Answered a lot of my questions. Would anyone know if the oceanview rooms had pulldown beds too?

Mine had a pull down bed.

Thanks for the help.

I remember my most favorite thing on the Imagination was going as high up on the front of the ship at night.....totally dark....and admiring the Universe!

Doesn't get any better! Do they still have the sushi bar?

Lou

Yes, they still have the sushi bar...and yes the top of the ship at the very front is quite neat...but windy, very very windy.

Cardinalia, I'm going on the imagination 2/14... curious if they gave you any type of credit for not going to Grand Cayman???

Ahhh Sushi Bar. I love Sushi. Is there a basketball or volleyball court? Also do you guys think I can wear a gray suit on Formal Night?

Basketball court yes(always full of kids though). Volleyball court no. Grey suit yes(I wore beige).

As for the refund...our waiter told us we would probably be receiving our port costs back (i.e. port taxes or port fees). Carnival hasn't responded to my e-mail, so I've put the matter into my travel agents' hands. She said we should be receiving something back, but I doubt it would be much more than $25-$30 bucks. Which really kind of sucks because we travelled so far to see Grand Caymen, but were unable, and only got off the boat once. The trip probably would've seemed twice as long if we had gotten off twice.

Thanks. How old were the kids? Were the small enough to throw off the side of the boat? lol playing around. Did you think the ship was crowded with kids when you went or was it good?

No, the ship wasn't crowded with kids...the pools were full of them though. After a certain time of the day, you don't see them anymore. There really weren't that many anyways.