melz1010

Last year I went on the Vista for Christmas and opted for Earliest possible check-in and found it to be such a breeze that next time I want to check in early if I can help it. This year Christmas, we're cruising on Mardi Gras. Is embarkation a quick and smooth process or will it be extremely long wait lines and over an hour to get on the ship? Do you recommend an early check-in time or is later the way to go. The ship leaves port at 4pm, when is the latest to check-in. We're going December 2022. 

22 hours ago, mrak said:

Basically, I am trying to decide if it is worth buying Cheers for our July before May 1st when the prices increase. This will be our first time in Alaska, after doing 20 cruises to tropical ports, which tend to be more of a party atmosphere. But even if we arent partying on the Alaska cruise, if drink prices increase, it will only take 4-5 drinks average per day to break even.

I think the saying is, if you buy at least 5 drinks a day, you will save money. Between mimosas in the morning, drinks by the pool, drinks at dinner and then just hanging by the bar. You can exceed 6 drinks throughout an entire day. The only time it gets tricky is port days. You're not on the ship to utilize it as much BUT some will still have several beers or cocktails in the evening as well after a long port day. 

18 hours ago, Ilovesailaway said:

Maybe I just had bad luck but on a recent cruise I had terrible service the first night in the steak house. My dinner companions wanted to go that first night for that bottle of wine. I couldn't help but to think to myself, we all have cheers, why is a bottle of cheap wine weighing in on this decision of what night to eat in the steak house?

Don't get me wrong, I love a good meal in the steakhouse and usually get one. Again not sure if it being the first night played into that bad experience recently but I do know the value of the free bottle should not play into your decision of when to go.

Last year as my cruise approached, all time slots on the first night were booked. All I kept thinking, it must be so crowded and busy in the steak house. We're choosing the second night personally. 

21 hours ago, danny8826 said:

Hello,

 

We are looking at buying the internet plan, but needed some help from others who have use them before. 

Our ship, Carnival Miracle, offers 3 different plans:  Social, Value and Premium.

We wanted to be able to text and call on WhatsApp, watch YouTube, and stream music from Spotify while onboard.

Is Premium the package that we should buy or would the Value package works as well?

 

 

Thank you!

I had premium on the Vista. I Whatsapp video called my mom because she doesn't have iPhone. I facetime friends and posted stories to social media. Definitely go with the premium plan. 

For the life of me, I can't remember. I'm trying to think about a good time to schedule specialty dining which can sometimes be a 90 minute to 2 hour experience. I don't want to miss the shows. I know there's usually two shows. What time are they usually? I'm just trying to make sure I'm not booking dining during show times. We also like the adult comedy shows as well.

Any ideas?

Thanks guys. I think she'll be fine. Does anyone know how much a cup of soda is anyway? I'm guessing $2 or $2.50 and she will drink more lemonade and water more than anything. So no drink package for her.  Thanks for helping me make my decision.

On 7/16/2017 at 5:55 PM, Nic6318 said:

 

 

Hi

 

I agree with "hftmrock". Are you looking for people here to tell you it is alright for you to do something that you state is not allowed "but we can't share"?

 

You do know what you can do, as you also said "we can buy them a shake a day for what we would have spent on bottomless bubbles".

 

My telling you to do something that you know isn't right doesn't make it ok.

 

hope this helps

I ordered a drink and shake for my kid on my cheers package and no one cared and no one said a thing. Carnival could afford to lose the $4, trust me. I know we're talking moral and all of that but we're talking about milkshakes. It's not like you're trying to sneak a non-paying person on the ship. If your kids don't drink soda, don't buy it. You have 4 kids, bottomless bubbles for 4 kids is a bit much. Do they drink a ton of soda? If not, I'd skip it if I were you. Maybe I'd buy the package for the older two if they like soda but I wouldn't spend too much time worrying about it. 

9 minutes ago, cruisingguy007 said:

No, we've gotten it for the older kids several times (including last week) and it's always a bust in the end. They swear they will drink "a lot of soda" but never drink enough sodas to cover it. They have to stand in lines at bars to use it and it's inconvenient. Just let her buy one if she wants one. That is, unless she's huge soda drinker and you regularly stock sodas at home, I don't, my kids are water babies and soda is only for dinners out or at friends/families houses who buy/drink it. We drink bubble water almost exclusively, well besides milk and flat water.  

She's not a soda drinker either. I usually allow her lemonade or apple juice or something like that and of course water. On vacation, I'm anything goes kind of mom. We're on vacation so I won't tell her no to soda but it may not be worth it.

11 minutes ago, lennythenose said:

Lemonade, tea, water and juices (at breakfast) are available without the plan. We always bought Bubbles for our boys because they loved the fruit punch available at the bars. Plus  a soda or two and it’s was well with the $ for us. 

I heard about the milkshakes or Sundaes. I feel like I would get it just for that. 

This is always a debate for me. I've always booked balcony. I actually use my balcony. In the morning, I like to sit out and look at the sunrise. It's my peaceful time. I know some people don't bother but I love waking up and pulling the curtain and seeing the calm waters. However, there is significant savings in the interior room. I definitely want to try to it to see if I will like it. I just don't know if I want to be in a dark room with no windows. Usually the ocean view room and balcony room price difference isn't that much so for me it's just not worth getting an ocean view. If I ever see an itinerary with a significant and I mean a "can't refuse" type of deal on an inside room, I'll book it just to see what it's like and see if I can enjoy it. 

My daughter will be 8 years old when we cruise. Should I get the bottomless bubbles package for her? What does she get if she's not on a bottomless bubbles plan? Will this mean every cup of lemonade I will have to pay for? I guess I'm trying to decide if it's worth getting it for her or not. 

53 minutes ago, br76jook said:

Does the premium plan allow you to watch youtube, disney+, netflix?  

I had the premium plan. I do not know for sure if you can watch youtube, disney, or netflix. I wasn't trying to stream movies on vacation. However, I was able to do practically everything I want to do on my phone as if I was on a regular data plan or using wifi in my home or just simply on land. I was able to text, browse social media, facetime and whatapp video chat friends, posted videos to IG stories, check e-mail, etc. You cannot use those features on the other plans. I also use premium on my cruise when I travel on the Vista ship. It worked great. Sorry I couldn't be of more help but I think if I wanted to stream on those apps, I don't think the premium package would've told me I'm not allowed but I didn't try. 

19 hours ago, cruisemom2 said:

Here you go:

 

https://www.saintgregtravel.com/menus/

Rudy Seagrill isn't on the list

I know it may not really matter but specialty dining especially like the steakhouse or Rudy Seagrill is a longer dining experience. Do you feel you enjoy the specialty dining more on sea days or port days? On one hand I feel like what a wonderful way to in the day after a great excursion on a port is a nice dining experience. On the other hand, I wonder if we'll be too tired to enjoy it. What are your thoughts? Do you typically book specialty dining on sea days or port days and which days always worked best for you?

No. The 15 drink minimum is for alchol beverages only. Everything else is truly unlimited.

12 hours ago, itaaameeehello said:

when i try to book a room with the kids sail for 1$ promotion with 4 adults. my 3rd and 4th adults count as 1$ as if they were kids. even mock booking it all the way to the end after inputting DOB it still shows as 1$ for their fare. Am i able to book 4 adults into a room with the 4th and 3rd adult costing only 1$ or will this come back to me in some way? I'm not even trying to take advantage of the system here, i simply noticed that kids are only mentioned in the name of the offer and the offer itself says "for a limited time get great guarantee rates for 1st/2nd guests and 3rd/4th/5th guests are $1 per person for interior guarantee staterooms on select sailings through Fall 2022.." ... no mention of kids. I am about ready to book just feeling uneasy about this and looking for some guidance

I agree with the other posters. You want to do 2 to a room. Honestly 2 adults and 2 kids in a room is a lot. The most I would ever do is 3 to a room and even that's pushing it. 

On 4/17/2022 at 9:45 AM, ctlyf said:

Got this screen shot cruzely.com

 

This is true, however, you can buy a drink on the cruise ship out of Galveston, you just can't use the cheers package. It's weird, I know. I was on a cruise in December out of Galveston and I had the cheers package but I bought two drink day 1 of the cruise but day 2 and the rest of the cruise, I used my cheers package. From what I understand, this is not a problem on all of the other ships. The good news is you will not be charged for day 1. So if you are on a 7 day cruise out of galveston, you will pay for 6 days on the cheers package, not 7. 

I had the premium package on the Vista. It worked great and I was able to do everything I would normally do if it was on land. I can call, text, facetime, upload stories to IG, post on facebook, browse social media, check e-mail, check bank accounts. I debated for a while about which level I should get and in the end I just went all out. I figure why pay for wifi and be limited in what I can do. I was only hoping the internet worked well and it did. I'm cruising on the Mardi Gras in December and I'm going with the Premium plan again. 

It's like this. It depends on how you drink when you vacation. If I don't get the drink package, I will drink more moderately. I may have a mimosa for breakfast, maybe 2 drinks during the day and a glass of wine for dinner. I'll substitute alcohol for other drinks like water, soda, lemonade, etc. With the drink package, I'm more relaxed. I finished my mimosa before breakfast came to the table, can I get another please? I'm buy the pool, keep the drinks coming. For dinner, i'll have a glass of wine and I may have a cocktail at the show or during movie on the lido deck. I'll just drink more because I want to and I can and I'm not worried about how much it cost. Without the cheers package, I'm more mindful of how many drinks I consume. I can easily drink more than I spend on the cheers package and I can also drink a lot less. You decide how you want to drink on vacation. I will say that it makes cruising a lot more relaxing because you're not counting up the drinks in your head or looking at your account to stay within budget. If you get the drinks package, just make sure you get it before May 1 when prices increase. 

6 hours ago, JT1962 said:

Probably not worth pre-paying at this point for internet in 2023, but it is possible (likely?) it will go up again before your cruise.

If you want to save the money, purchase it now. That way you don't pay the higher price later. Personally, I plan to go with the premium wifi plan. I used premium on the Vista and it worked great. I had no issues. People complain about the internet but most don't pay for premium. I'm not sure if the level of internet service you get matters, but I didn't have any issues. The premium internet package price will not increase. 

6 minutes ago, keels81 said:

It’s REALLY bad.

 

Another option is a monorail tour and then taking the boat over to Wilderness Lodge — it’s absolutely BEAUTIFUL at Christmas. The character dining at Artist Point is incredibly unique - Snow White, Dopey and the dwarves and the Wicked Queen. You can time it to watch the fireworks from MK outside or watch them from the Poly Beach after dinner and see the Electric Water Pageant.

These are all great ideas. I can do all of this without entering the park. I think that's what I'm going to do. 

6 minutes ago, keels81 said:

 You mean FastPass?

 

That’s completely gone and replace with a process where you pay per person or per ride to cut your wait time down. So, add in an extra $15-20pp minimum to the cost of the ticket if you don’t want to wait two hours for Its a Small World. It’s ridiculous.

Omg, are you serious? Yes I meant fast pass. OMG, so now you have to pay extra if you don't want to wait in a long line for rides. Disney must be out of their freaking minds. 

1 minute ago, keels81 said:

I wouldn’t do it. Magic Kingdom will be a mess at Christmas and just going for one day would be a plan for frustration unless your only goal is to experience the joy of the holiday season in the park. 
 

Staying off-site, you won’t get the perks like early/extra hours or the jump on getting rides via the up-charge Genie+/Lightning Lane.

 

Also, your kiddos are at the age where they might get upset to only have one crowded day at Disney and that’s it. Disney Springs is plenty festive at the holidays, including the tree trail. You can do that, have a fun dinner somewhere like T-Rex or a character offering at a resort and still get a little bit of that Disney Holiday magic without breaking the bank. 
 

Resort character dining, I’d suggest Topolino Terrace.

Yea I love T-rex restaurant. I'm considering that. The price of the Magic Kingdom ticket is really making me think twice. And yes, you are correct. We only wanted to experience the holiday season, see the castle, watch the parade, and maybe get on a ride or two. Speaking of which, is the fun pass only for guests that stay on the resort. When we went to Disney we stayed in a disney resort so I'm not sure how it is for people that stay off the park grounds

5 minutes ago, Itried4498 said:

TBH, it’s a highly personal question & none of us know (or should know) enough about you to give you good advice.  My best suggestion is to map out the entire cost of the trip (use Excel or a similar program) and focus/discuss the Disney add on with your spouse.  The talking points should include: where in your budget are the funds coming from?  Less retirement savings, or college funds, etc.?  Or do you plan on cutting expense elsewhere (less eating out, maybe no/fewer excursions, etc.)

 

Here’s something else to think about: Disney World is a very beautiful experience during the holidays, as the entire property is fully decorated.  HOWEVER… you don’t have to go into the parks to enjoy it.  You can stroll Disney Springs and take a water shuttle to one of the area hotels.  You can ride the monorail and stop at each monorail hotel.  You can have a nice meal, etc.  In a couple days, you won’t run out of things to do, you will enjoy yourself and it won’t cost you a penny other than the cost to stay offsite.

 

 

I'm considering that too. The cruise will leave Saturday. So we were thinking, instead of flying in on Friday, let's fly in on Thursday. Get a good night rest and then spend the Friday in Disney with the kids. Saturday head to the cruise for embarkation. Disney want $149 per ticket for that Friday and that's just ridiculous. I was thinking maybe we can just go to Disney Springs. I just can't imagine spending $600 just to get into the park. 

Thanks Cole. Well I won't be in debt but as I'm planning it, I didn't realize the cost until as I started planning it. I have a vision for this vacation but now I'm trying to decide if it's worth it or not.