ksmcdonald

Black Friday price is definitely not a deal!  I have the Escape booked  ($200 OBC, dining and drink package) for Mar 24 and the price is now $173 more than when I booked in August.    So,  it not only cost $173 more for the Black Friday sale, but I would also lose my $200 OBC, so essentially it would cost me $373 more with their so called sale.  Smoke and mirrors.

I'm booked on the Escape March 24th and currently have $200 OBC.  On August 29th they offered $100 Free on Board Spending and $100 Past Guest offer.

Breakaway has the worst chairs!  The  main theatre seats have a metal bar that runs through the seat without enough padding to make sitting there for more than 20 minutes very uncomfortable.  The out side bar stools at H2O and Maltings are so shallow and hard wood that your legs with all your weight hang over and hurts to sit.  I really think whoever designed the chairs was thinking "something that would make people stay for a very short time"!  Dining room chairs are the wrong height making impossible to cross your legs with your legs under the table.  I had to sit sideways in the chair just to cross my legs,

On 10/22/2018 at 3:11 PM, fourofakind said:

I was one of those people walking out of this show on the Breakaway. I had high hopes for the show and I'm all for adult humor, raunchy, suggestive etc none of that bothers me. I walked out because to me this show was a real snoozer! I made it about 20 minutes in and thought wow this show is so lame what am I doing wasting my time here when there is other fun stuff to do. That is why I left because it was boring and I imagine all those others felt the same.

 

Burn the floor on the other hand I thought was fantastic and I have seen it every single time I've been on the Breakaway.

Funny how different people have different opinions!  We've been on the Breakaway three times and would not think of missing Rock of Ages!  We tried two different times to sit through Burn the Floor but couldn't get through the first 10 minutes either time.  We just kept thinking "I'm so bored, wish we were out having fun somewhere else on the ship"!

Just off a Carnival cruise in June and they definitely did NOT have three zeros on the roulette table. I played every night so I would of noticed if they did.

I'm pretty sure that Carnival charges NYC sales tax on beverages until they get into international waters. For me it's no big deal. I buy Cheers in NY and pay for 1 less day. The $110.00 we save we buy what we want. Embarkation we are usually tired and are fine making that our light drinking day.. When on NCL we get the drink package as a perk so we don't feel like we have to drink a lot on day one to get our moneys worth.

We went out of NYC this year, NCL in March with drink package all 7 days, and CCL in June with Cheers only 7 of the 8 days. We usually like to drink the most on night one, so we spent more than the $110 we saved by only purchasing a 7 vs 8 day package. It's not really a big deal for us either. Just think Carnival is being more cautious and playing it safe.

That makes sense. Wonder how NCL gets around this law in NY ?

I heard NCL found a loop hole in the law. NCL passengers still pay tax on drink package while in port. Carnival is not willing to take the risk so they just start their Cheers the next day. It is something to do with the unlimited drinks. Some NYC restaurants just had to stop the "all you can drink" brunch that included mimosa.

Does the $100 past guest obc only apply to certain cruises? I booked Hawaii on the Pride of America last night and only received $100.00, which was part of the current promotion. This is my second cruise on NCL.

It might be certain cruises. On the page where you pick either Inside, Balcony etc. there are little colored squares next to the price that indicates which specials are offered for that cruise. There is a legend down at the bottom explaining what each color represents. My included Past Guest Offer (double points plus $100), Free at Sea and Free Onboard Spend ($100) giving me a total of $200 OBC plus the double points.

Only thing is, My Cruise Planner is only showing $100. Does it take a while to show up? The sale supposedly ends tonight and I would feel better if I saw it on my account.

Yes, it is combinable; you get all the OBC currently offered!

If you complete the mock booking while logged in into your NCL account, you'll see how much OBC you'll get.

 

JB

Thanks! I just called and I now have $200 OBC!

When booking a cruise on NCL website, they have when you hover over the price of cruise, the Specials pop up on what they offer for that individual cruise. Does anyone know if NCL gives you the $100 for Free Onboard Spend and the $100 for Past Guest Offer for a total of $200? Seems like if they are offering $100 to everyone, even first time cruisers, that they should apply another $100 if you are a past guest.

I've been on hold for over 45 minutes with NCL, and thought I would ask on the boards while waiting!

ncl screen dump.pdf

Carnival was late to the party on this. You won't find them on Royal or similar cruise lines, either.

 

On the bread basket we have always had on the table, and I do like the cranberry something breads. Delish. And you can still get real butter packets.

Do you have to ask for the butter packets? I used to love the European butter that was served on Carnival cruises, but on the Horizon last month they served whipped butter in a little dish on the table. Really missed the "real" butter. So you are saying you can ask for the real butter?

Hi there,

 

I want to do the same. Were you able to buy the drink package online with these e-gift cards?

I did buy them and everything worked out fine. Since then I’ve bought another $800 and no problem. First time was e-certificates, second time actual cards through the mail. No problem at all.

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Why are you guys arguing over the laws and cruise ship rules?

Why do you feel the need to reprimand us for sharing information. Nobody here is arguing! Thanks mom!

Can you only book one comedy show for an entire 7 night cruise and then you have to wait in line to try to get into all the other shows that they offer? If that is the case, what is the likelihood of getting seats at the other times the comedians perform?

On the Breakaway, we booked every comedy show they had on board (some were repeated early or late, we only booked one of these). It wasn't every night, but we saw three or four different shows. Go to the box office as soon as you board. Check out the dates and times on the NCL app so when you get to the desk, you can just ask for each person in your party to be booked for whichever shows you want. They definitely let you book more than one.

Carnival does not allow those under 21 to drink alcohol, even on European or Mediterranean sailings.

Also the waiver mentioned for NCL only covers beer and wine by the glass and it is not an option offered on all itineraries. The parent or legal guardian whom must be on the same sailing, may need paperwork to prove relationship or legal custody, as a casual guardian or chaperon can not legally assume the medically or financial liability clause the waiver. The waiver, when allowed, is only available at the Customer Service desk and subject to possible security review.

I was on the Breakaway March 2017 and my son was 20 years old at the time. They definitely let us sign a waiver for him to drink beer and wine. Then I asked to pay the service charge and they issued him the Caps & Corks all you can drink package. I think we paid around $99 for the service charge. So it definitely was not "by the glass". They even printed him a new Sail & Sign card with the alcohol package on it.

The bliss does by the volume (of for pay) restaurants. I think counted 15

 

 

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We sailed Breakaway this past March. We boarded, then ate lunch in the MDR (no charge). My kids ate in O'Sheehan's. Buffet line was not crowded either, we just don't like buffets. When you have more free dining options, the lines are manageable in all the venues. Spreads people out.

Don't like lines? Willing to pay a little more? BUY FTTF. Beat the lines at the food venues on embarkation day. The staff that would normally be working in the MDR and some of the other closed venues are pushing wheelchairs, delivering luggage, answering questions, and all of the various other tasks that are limited to embarkation day. I think that it may be unreasonable to expect them to "staff up" to the level required to have everything open on embarkation day, when the additional staffing is only necessary for one day.

NCL has their MDR open on embarkation day....maybe they have more staff per passenger ratio? Not sure how they do it but Carnival can't.

And not everyone on the ship can buy FTTF. You do realize that buying FTTF is only good to make a small number of people get food without a line. The other 95% of passengers still have to wait in long lines, which I agree is not acceptable for your vacation.

The lines for comedy shows are just as bad!

Didn't know that the Holiday had balcony's either.

 

Didn't sail CCL until 1998 mostly on Fantasy class when we started cruising and those ships didn't have balcony's except for their verandah suites but they were nothing more than what a regular balcony on one of todays ships is.

 

Bill

We definitely had a balcony, and we definitely paid $700. Actually it was our first balcony we every had. Never went back to insides since that cruise!

And the important point is you are paying the same OR LESS than what you paid 15 years ago. It is completely unreasonable to expect the same product 15 years later at the same price.

 

Carnival has changed their demographic and no longer even attempt an elegant experience - they aim for family fun. If you want elegant, then you pick a different line and pay the higher costs of cruising with that line.

 

The great thing is there is something out there for everyone. But I get so tired of people complaining about "cutbacks" without recognizing that those changes are done to keep you cruising cheaply.

I totally agree! The same people that don't like the cutbacks would not like it either if Carnival increased the prices over the last 20 years to keep things the same. Either pay higher prices and get everything from the past or pay same prices and pick what you want to pay extra for. Accommodates a bigger range of people, ones that want to spend less and ones that are willing to fork over more money. All on the same cruise!

If my memory serves me correctly they are both the same price, and Seafood Shack offers 2 types of lobster rolls--a Maine lobster roll and a Connecticut lobster roll. As far as I can tell, the lobster on both is cold water lobster (the same lobster on both rolls), and the difference is the Maine lobster roll is chilled with mayo and the Connecticut lobster roll is served warm with drawn butter. The warm Connecticut is MUCH better.

Just off the Horizon and that Seafood Shack;s menu just said "Lobster Roll" - it didn't specify Connecticut or Maine. Do you just have to ask? I ordered one and got the Maine, thinking that was all they had. I would of much more preferred the one with drawn butter.

My husband was issued DOU card on day 4 of our 8 day cruise last month. We just booked another cruise for May of next year. Will he know before we leave if he will get another DOU card for the new cruise, or does he have to earn points on the new cruise to qualify for the card again? With this new cruise being a 14 day, we are debating whether to buy Cheers or pay as we go.

I never cruised on the Jubilee so didn't know that she even had balcony's

 

Bill.

I was on the Carnival Holiday in 1988 for a 7 day cruise out of Miami and paid $799 pp for a balcony guarantee. Not much less than I'm paying now for a 7 day cruise, lowest balcony price.

LOL Okay, you have a point.

 

But seriously? It's not that. I don't want a wall, I just want what I paid for. To relax in an area that is reserved (until 7pm anyway) for only those staying in that immediate area. If people can get up in arms about the mere thought that someone would *gasp, the horror* share a beverage package? I don't think it's too much to ask that just anybody not be allowed back in Havana when that's not what the rules state. Personally, I would never dare try to sneak in there if I wasn't staying there, but that's me.

We did see one Havana couple what looked like bringing in another couple. The Havana couple we recoginized, the couple with them did not have wristbands on. Of course I should of just been enjoying my cruise and not worrying about other people but I kept watching them! Waiting for someone to come over and ask them to leave. They looked very uncomfortable, as they should be, and didn't stay long. I guess it was too stressful thinking someone was going to discover them at any minute. You kind of get used to the faces and you can tell when someone else doesn't belong.

one thing I just remembered with the Havana talk. One afternoon we were taking the elevator down to 5 and there was a group of three in their late teens/early 20's in bathing suits, with towels. They then walked thru Ocean Plaza loudly proclaiming that they'd better be let into the Havana area, with all the Carnival cruises they've been on, they deserve to hang back there. I was really tempted to follow them and see what happened :giggle:

 

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I think I remember a group coming in that we only saw one day. Because the area is so limited, you kind of recognize the people that should be there, you see the same faces everyday. But one of the sea days that we couldn't find a chair, there were a group of people that was not there days before or after. I heard from other Havana guest the next day that they saw staff ask that group to leave. I noticed two women had on beige wrist bands and we were all issued neon green wrist bands for our cruise. We had the beige ones for the Vista. So they must change the color so people don't give their old wrist bands to friends/family going on a cruise to access the Havana area. But as soon as you order a drink and have to show hour S&S card, the bartender will ask you to leave if you don't have a "Havana" sticker on your card. We did see staff ask a few people to leave during the cruise. Some people asked if they could just walk out to look, and they usually let them do that.