havanadaydreaming

my tip on Panorama is a very random one. the Guy Fieri bbq place had Blanton's and Col EH Taylor bourbon. i almost bought a bottle of EH for the room since i can NEVER find it back home.

The American storm model has the storm posing a bigger threat to land than the European model. ive ridden out tropical storms and Cat 1 hurricanes on vacations but anything bigger and im evacuating...

MSC matched us, i think we were Black. that was the highest level they had. we had a great time, but it was definitely a different experience than CCL and NCL. good luck!

i agree with JT - water is definitely not the crystal clear postcard type. we went to place run by Ex Pat. good service. can't remember the name but looks comparable to the Krazy Lobster pics.

we had noon check in on Conquest couple weeks ago. walked right on board, no line. im amazed how quick embarkation is nowadays. we used to wait in line for 30-40 minutes, or so it felt like.

best thing about the panorama is the elevator system. you punch in your floor ahead of time and get assigned an elevator car. no more line jumpers! its a nice ship. have fun!

definitely saw multiple people/day refilling water containers at the buffet on last cruise. most really struggled getting the ice in the cup. (we ate at the buffet for dinner each night and, oddly, we sat by the water station each time.

I saw them a week ago.

I have three $100 gift cards for Carnival, does anyone know how to add them to My Booking? We usually print them out and go to Guest Services, but if i can do it beforehand i would like to do so. Thanks!

Quick recap: i survived the Inside experience. All in all not much difference than oceanview cabin. Room felt a bit smaller and i missed sunlight...but it was perfectly serviceable. I slept in longer due to not setting alarm and sleeping in near total darkness. I REALLY missed a balcony and fresh air in the morning but c'est la vie.

Im a terrible AC cruiser. Been there 3x and we dont make it past the pool in port facility. Gimme some lively tunes, cool water and a frosty beer and im a-ok for the afternoon.

I like guys pulled pork. Any Guy burger. Jiji noidle bowl. Salmon nigiri. Buffet grits with brown sugar. I always clear plate at MDR. Dont remember items ive ordered. Love the Latte. Im a drip guy on land but i splurge at sea. Id love to see pie o the day on CCL. Mmmmm, pie.

Just off a 4 nt cruise, we ate at buffet every night. We wanted a very casual, relaxed experience. Anyone else have tips to maximize buffet experience on carnival? Here's my two cents: *cake options at lunch far superior to dinner dessert options *the beef strip at carver station was pretty rare, fyi. (I was trying to stick to chicken and fish for dinner) im a med rare guy but those medium+ fans might want to get a peek at the beef before gettimg a slice. *surprisingly no indian or chinese entrees during our trip. Im just begun experimenting with indian dishes, was looking forward to tasting new to me dishes. *big winner was shrimp creole i put on top of the jambalaya. Deeeeee-licious. *the deli was very busy at all times. I wanted to try new steak and cheese but didnt want to wait 15-20 mins *the black bean soup was my 2nd fave item on buffet. *shredded cheese no longer on salad bar??? *my preferred lunch was a Guy burger, no bun and no fries (trying to cut calories) followed by sides from buffet. *the daily potato salad looked good. I was hoping to see a mustard potato salad one of the days but the salad bar items remained constant day by day. *only made breakfast 2x but bacon was available and plentiful both days. *cheesy jalapeno mashed taties were solid.

Debarkation 2 days ago in miami was easy breezy. We were off the Conquest by 830am. Took 5-10 mins. Grabbed van shuttle on street $20pp to FLL. Used Delta porters to avoid gate agent line. TSA no line. We were at gate way in advance for 1138am flight. Like 75 minutes early.

Headed out soon to drop dog at "spa" (kennel). Its her veterinarian, groomer, and boarding all in one. Then its off to the airport. Went cheapo on the flight tix so not expecting to be seated together on a discount airline. Only hope is if a Sun flight isnt fully booked. Most of ours have been past 12-18 months. At least its a direct flight! 2 podcast episodes should provide enough entertainment to pass the time nicely.

Love the Horizon. i cant quantify why we like it better than Panorama,Breeze, Magic....but we do!

The BtF is fascinating option. Ive always deferred being someone concerned it would ruin the "magic" for me. Totally illogical. Especially when i disclose i used to work at Walt Disney World entertainment and i highly recommend folks do the tour of the employee corridors(tunnels) under the park.

thanks mondello. 24 hours until flight down and i'm already jonesing for some south florida food. and cuban coffee the morning of embarkation.

we use this service every cruise. it's very nice to go home with clean clothes instead of "dirty". the only items that i, personally, do not include are shirts that i fear might shrink. my sleepy shirts i send since they are older and only worn in cabin.

the Mrs consistently buys 4-5 cartons of cigs on cruises. MOST of the time we find the best deals in port shops. sometimes prices vary, significantly, from shop to shop in same complex.

Has anyone made a large purchase when sailing CCL? my wife has a couple more decades experience cruising and has told me she has seen folks buy really nice jewelry many times. i have made two that could be considered large-ish. I've always enjoyed going to the art auctions and watching folks "win" art. of course, i know the art is almost always overpriced prints...but one voyage we came across a metal print that was hand signed by the artist that we both liked. i had just earned a decent quarterly bonus at work and decided what we would be comfortable paying for the item. it was muuuuuuch lower than the purchase price we were quoted but offer was accepted after a little while. it still hangs in our living room the other was an excursion. we were taking our three adult children and their guests on a family cruise and decided to get a hillside bungalow overlooking the pool at Amber Cove. i anticipated the kids using the unlimited zipline but none of them rode it. they were enjoying the pool/bar too much. ha!

This will be a mini travelogue for my first inside cabin cruise on the luxurious Carnival Conquest. I won't have wifi access onboard so the updates will be a bit random. It's a short 4 nt jaunt from Miami with stops in Key West and Cozumel. We had a very inexpensive fare along with free airfare (rewards points). We're off to a hot start, i forgot to prepay for luggage so i did that yesterday. $57 pp one way! i'll be sure to load up on Margaritaville swag and tequila/mezcal bottles from Mexico!!! we'll head to downtown miami hotel for night before embarkation, looking forward to getting some seafood and/or late night pizza.

The Magic felt a little worn when we sailed but still had a great time. Its a fun ship. Its itinerary wins by a large margin.

We usually tip $1 for two drinks on the drink package since we've prepaid gratuities at 18% rate. IF i'm in the casino and on a mini-roll (ie not losing rapidly) i'll tip a buck a drink. almost always get speedy service...i don't think too many others are "extra" tipping.

one of my pet peeves, on most all cruise lines. my wife will sunbathe but i just skip it. we do try to hit some resorts for a day when on land, which i enjoy. since there are so many chair hogs i'd be just fine eliminating all chairs and pools on lido and building something funtastic.