berniez

There is no way any cruise line will ban anyone for a credit card dispute in these Covid19 times. Besides, the credit card company is actually making the refund until the cruise line refunds back to the credit card company. All cruise lines will be begging for people to book cruises in the near future when they are allowed again in the US. In most cases they had customers full payment 70 days in advance of a 7 day sailing for Carnival to use as they saw fit. Now that they need to pay it back, they want you to wait 90 days. This has to be a cash flow issue with Carnival. I can imagine sending millions of dollars out all at once would kill the bottom line. But the US government is doing it as I type this. This is not an agent issue. All of these things are computerized today. But if you are the finance guy at these cruise lines, your head has to be spinning.

Thanks for the info.

10 hours ago, Luckiestmanonearth said:

Been Carnival for a few cruises now and quite frankly the only 2 benefits that I think most people actually get and notice is

1. Priority boarding

2. Free laundry

 

We don’t go to the Platinum party anymore as it’s usually scheduled when we’re still enjoying the pool.  Also the party has become kinda lame

 

Other than that, you’re treated the same as all the others

Do they still put the free 2 liter bottles of water in the room. If not I will need to pre order a 12 pack of water. In the past because my wife and I are Platinum, there was always 2 free 2 liter bottles of water placed in the room.

9 hours ago, Ilovesailaway said:

Sheraton Suites Fort Lauderdale at Cypress Creek 02/01/19 for $95

Btw, I also booked a full size car with Alamo for this date for $20. 

 

Was the rental direct with alamo or priceline or hotwire. Did you have discount codes?

I wonder if this became a legal issue. You have paid for your cruise already based on current rules, and they change the rules after you paid. I am not a lawyer but I wonder if this is breach of contract. Wonder if complaints and asking for refunds changed this.

1 minute ago, CC Rider 69 said:

I always fax from home. I usually receive an email from CCL within 24-36 hrs.

Do you remember the phone number you faxed to or is it listed on Carnival website somewhere.

On 12/14/2018 at 9:32 PM, CC Rider 69 said:

Using mine twice in February, once early in the month and the other on the 28th. I already have the confirmation email and the OBC shows on my statement.

Did you do via email or fax. I did mine last year via email. I assume the email address is still the same as last year.

How up to date is this info. If you go on the florida toll website, it shows tolls west bound on the Dolphin expressway. Am I missing something.

I am sure this has been asked before. I am arriving at FLL airport, renting a car, staying in FLL  and the driving to MIA airport the next day. Trying to avoid tolls. It appears you can take 95S to 826 Palmetto Expressway to 948e to NW 42 South. Does this avoid tolls.

I was on the Splendor last year which had a Guys bbq. It was only open on sea days. Is the bbq only open on sea days on the Conquest. The reason we ask is we are going on Glory which is the same as Conquest and they have the same bbq on that ship as the Conquest.

On 10/17/2018 at 5:11 PM, Mntbiker2008 said:

A few notes about our room that I don't think I mentioned:

Room 1327- We were on the first deck and I really wish we weren't because at about 6:30 every morning and throughout the whole day until around 10, there was this sounds that sounded like a snowplow directly under us.  It was so loud and would wake you out of a dead sleep.  It also would send vibrations through the bed. I still have no idea what it could have been. 

Our steward's name was I Ketut. He was great! He made sure we always had ice in our room and he loved interacting with our daughter.  Whenever we would pass him in the halls (I don't think this guy ever took a break) without our daughter, he would ask where she was. He and his assistant knew our names and would ask how we were every day. 

Mat and Marty were excellent and made the cruise very lively.  There was another lady that would help them out who I didn't really care for and I will explain why in a minute.  Mat has a very good attitude and was around from basically sunup to sun down.  He had this laugh that was contagious.  Marty (pronounced like Mawty) was hilarious as well.  This guy sweat like a pig! He even made a joke one day that his shirt was like one of those Del Sol shirts and that it changed color when it was hot out! The lady I didn't care for too much was good overall but every time she would talk or make an announcement, she would talk in to the microphone so loud and with the speakers as loud as they are, it was almost ear piercing.  Now, my hearing is terrible to begin with but when we were in the Punchliner club waiting for karaoke to start and she started talking, I had to cover my ears and many other passengers got up and left covering their ears as well.  Don't even get me started on how it sounded when she joined in on the singing..... that's when we left. 

Overall, I thought the cruise was great.  I do wish there was a little more to do on the ship that was kid friendly.  Looking at the Sunshine when it was parked across from us, they had the slides (my daughter LOVED the little slide they had on our ship), the ropes course, and all the other goodies. I liked that she wanted to go to the kids club so often but I also wish there was more to do so we could have had some more family time.  

Food-wise, the burgers were awesome and the MDR was hit or miss.  We could always count on the Lido buffet to have something good.  The Blue Iguana taco bar was pretty good.  I only had it once because I felt it was a little bland (wish the meats had some seasoning to them).  The Guy's BBQ joint was ok. It was in a weird spot and kind of difficult to get to so I only had that once as well. The sweet and spicy sauce was delicious though! As always, the pizza was great and the guy that worked there didn't gripe at me when I asked for the whole pizza. 

 

I hope you enjoyed reading this! Feel free to ask any questions!

Where exactly was the BBQ joint location

Ok, going to start the "formal" review. I still need someone to help me with the posting pictures. So, please, help me.

 

Ok, onward. We check out of our hotel and arrive at the port at 10am. We unloaded the car and parked in the garage. We are super excited, as this is the largest ship we've sailed on so far. We arrived in the terminal and was in line to go through security, and we hear the announcent, "Ok, now Faster To The Fun, It's time to board." This was 10:30am. On our cruise on the Paradise, the wedding parties were not called till after 11am. Oh well, we went through security with no problems. We had purchased FTTF two days before our sailing. We got the the priority line and they did not have our cabin number listed. We got the the desk to get our sail and sign cards. The lady took our boarding passes and crossed off the FTTF logo. I asked her why she did that, and she said "our website obviously made a mistake." I asked her if they would refund my money and showed her my receipt. She said, "You didn't pay for it." I said "Yes I did." And pointed to the receipt. At that point she put a FTTF sticker on the back of my card.

 

We are on our way now, got on the ship and was sitting down with lunch on the lido by 11:30am. We ate at the lido buffet, they were carving Roast Beef and it was good. We then walked upstairs to Cucina and split a plate of fettuccine alfredo. It was delicious. We walked around a bit and headed to our room to unpack.

 

Our muster station was A3, the main show lounge. DR. E made the muster fun with his different accents. We made our way to deck 11 for sail away.

 

We did not eat any meals in the MDR, instead ate at the LIDO buffet and those venues around Lido. It was nice and relaxing just sitting with our feet up watching the ocean go by. We attended the welcome aboard show then headed to bed.

 

Let me comment on room service. Every night I would order 2 bags of cookies 4 cartons of milk and a plate of potato chips. That order was never correct. Each night was an adventure in what we'd receive. Sometimes I received 4 bags of cookies, 4 milks and 4 plates of chips. I know Carnival recently started charging for room service after 10 pm. I believe they stated it was because of food waste. I really think they need to look within because our order was never filled exactly the way I ordered it.

 

Sea day and Cozumel day is in my next installment..

You made the right choice eating on the Lido. WE ate almost every day in the main dining room for dinner. We kept hoping the food would improve. It never did. Food was not good. Almost always cold. Our wait staff was generally very good. I suspect the food on the Lido would have been hotter. We loved the ship, but the dining room food was generally awful.

Do you pay a flat fee of $2 per person in Costa Maya or do you tip on top of that. Haven't been there before.

Is there anywhere to buy 12 packs of soda pop in cans at Port Canaveral near the ship dock for Magic

You do not have to lug it in your carry on. We brought it on in a CVS bag. Not a hassle at most ports to buy it at or near the dock. You can even check in drop off your carry on and go back off the ship and buy the soda. There are no lines once you are already checked in

Where can you buy soda pop at Port Canaveral.

Removed

Can you get off a ship and through customs in time to grab an 8:15AM shuttle. We are doing the same thing and want to book an 8:15AM shuttle but are not sure even with self assist that we can make an 8:15AM shuttle. So can we make that shuttle or should I book the next shuttle. Looking at Goportcanaveral.com shuttle service

When people refer to the engine are they talking about the actual electric motor that drives the prop or are they talking about the engines that run the generators. Just curious.

Anyone have an idea of what these services would cost. We are doing the same and we are three people.

 

Thanks!

If you are flying into FLL the day before your cruise and sailing out of Miami the next day, I personally would rent a car at FLL , choose any hotel, return the car to MIA the next day and then take the free shuttle supplied by car rental company to the Port of Miami. This is very effective for a smaller group the fits in 1 car. You need to rent from National, Alamo, Thrifty, Enterprise only. They offer the free shuttle. There may be other options such as Uber. Most of the shared ride services like to pick up at airports only and transfer to the port. Generally if you can manage to get back to FLL a shuttle ride is about $15.00 a person from FLL to port of Miami. Probably a wash in cost to a rental car. I am doing the same thing as you and rented a full size car from Alamo for $32.00 plus gas for a day.

Would like a hotel with transfer to POM but don't want to rent a car but husband wants to go to bass pro shops lol where do I start?

 

 

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Since you are flying into FLL and sailing out of Miami, I really think a rental car is the best choice. You pick up the car in FLL, then pick any hotel you want between FLL and MIA. You can shop, do whatever you want. Then drop the car the next day at MIA rental return and take free shuttle to port from MIA. Free shuttle is only provided by National, Alamo, Enterprise, Thrifty. None of this works though if renting a car does not work at all for you. Just thought I would know this option is a possibility. This is the least expensive option. Uber is probably next.

need some guidance. Sailing on the Vista on April 16, after a few days in Orlando. We are planning to drive to Miami the day before and stay overnight. The rental car needs to be returned at the Miami airport. Here are my options...

 

1- keeping the rental car overnight at the yet-unbooked hotel in Miami, and returning it to the airport on the day of embarkation, and take a taxi to the port OR

 

2- return the rental car at the Miami airport on Sat, find a way to the hotel Sat, then a way to the port on Sunday. (hopefully, yet-unbooked hotel has a shuttle for air/sea port, or both. Also hopefully, yet-unbooked hotel is near dining and such).

 

It will be myself, hubby and my 12 year old son, and we have FTTF and love to board early, so I'd like to get to the port ASAP.

Option number 1 is a good choice. We are flying into FLL on Saturday, driving to Miami, staying overnight at the Laquinta Airport North (free parking) right near MIA airport, dropping our car at the airport rental return on Sunday and taking the free shuttle from MIA airport to the Port of Miami. Be forewarned I believe only Alamo, National, Enterprise and Thrifty offer the free shuttle.

The poster never said he was flying into Miami. He wanted some ideas about staying in Miami. I am staying in Miami pre cruise. But I am flying into FLL. I just wanted to poster to know this in the event he was not flying into Miami.

Not only that. But I have flown into Miami, rented a car at the airport, went to a hotel in the area, went out to dinner, then the grocery store and the returned the car to the rental return the next day and taken that same free shuttle. Just wanted to make the poster aware of their options. Nothing more, nothing less.

Hey Everyone [emoji112]

I was wondering where is the best place to stay when I fly in the day before? Near Miami Port or at Miami Airport??

I'm trying to make the most economic decision based off of shuttle cost, cost of hotel and also activities near by. Any suggestions and or tips?

Thanks in advance!!!

 

 

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In our case, we are flying into Ft Lauderdale the day before. We rented a car from Alamo. We are then driving to Miami. We got a hotel room through Hotwire for the overnight near the Miami airport. We are dropping the car at the Miami airport car rental return center and taking the free shuttle from the Miami airport to the Port of Miami the next day. So you can see how this works for us. If you fly into Miami, your choices may be different.

$100 cards still available on both sites. Just bought 5 around the time of this post.

I was able to get 2 $500 cards this morning around 7:05AM eastern time. Guess I was lucky to check my email so early as I am subscribed to this and the aarp thread and saw them for sale.

Bernie