notscb

28 minutes ago, BlerkOne said:

Thanks for the laugh!

Anytime I guess 🤷‍♀️

10 minutes ago, jimbo5544 said:

If Carnival was going to follow that lead, they would have done it 10 years ago (or more), but the other factors were not play then.

They are different yet you can't ignore industry trends, which was my point.

That's exactly what Carnival is doing with Celebration Key and also what they're doing by committing to their new version of a mega-ship that will (likely) visit their new island destination.

Carnival is doing exactly what Royal has been doing to keep as much money with them.

13 hours ago, BlerkOne said:

Royal is irrelevant.

Just curious- How is Royal irrelevant when Carnival is following their lead in step and when Royal is Carnival's direct competitor in the U.S.?

11 hours ago, BlerkOne said:

I don't see this ever.

it’s simply logical especially with royal Caribbean group doing this already. It makes good corporate sense- keep customers within the CCL group and offer experiences that passengers want to try across the group to keep them within the group. I’d be shocked if carnival wasn’t already working on this. 
 

From what I remember, they were serving Italian in the upstairs of the buffet during lunch on most days. I can't speak to the steakhouse lunch, though.

11 hours ago, jimbo5544 said:

hey follow the money (like they all do).

Right, and following the money would make sense in what my interpretation was as well.

Why build another ship when you can get rid of your older smaller ships and integrate the vista-class vessels from your subsidiaries into your current fleet and call it something new, like they've done with Carnival "Italian style." Suddenly, these ships don't seem so old and offer a new product without Carnival having to build anything else. It costed Carnival a ton of money to do that branding work, I wouldn't be surprised if we didn't see another "Italian style" branded ship as the existing Carnival fleet grows older.

Just a different perspective. This thread had a ton of the same old, and I figured why not propose a different take.

I'm wondering if Heald's comment was more to say that if the corporation continues on its current trend, there would never be a reason to build another spirit class ship with the amount of ships in the CCL fleet that will inevitably be absorbed by Carnival and refurbished for the mainline brand.

I get that the vista class is bigger than the spirit class, but it seems like that's on trend. If Carnival continues to absorb Costa and Princess branded ships into their mainline brand, they've got the "smaller" ships covered as they retire some of the truly older ships in the fleet.

10 hours ago, shof515 said:

Oasis class ship only visited Canada once in 2022 and 2023

 Right, and it was perfectly timed with the "end" of Covid and return to cruising. Carnival missed that mark and when they did return to NYC they brought an off-brand ship. IMO, it was a mistake on Carnival's part.

Freedom Class is still a newer class of ships and are rightfully a better product offering than Carnival Italian-Style. Carnival needed to put their biggest and best on show in NYC and they just didn't.

On 10/17/2023 at 3:41 AM, shof515 said:

. It appears that the Canada/New England cruises is not popular

I feel like carnival really missed the mark with this one. RCL had an oasis class ship doing Canada/New England and has plenty of success. Carnival should have put one of their new and shiny (on brand, not “Italian style”) ships in NYC to really attract folks back from the NY market. 

8 hours ago, sparks1093 said:

I do hear what you are saying but "doing it right" means doing it before the deadline. Your way is simply a preference and everyone's preference will be different. 

Sure, which is also why I said

"Ultimately, everyone can do whatever they want. The arguments against doing it right away don't make any sense, IMO."

1 hour ago, Tiger0613 said:

only breaks it down after booking.

If you go make a mock booking, on the last page you can hit "show details", is there something missing from that that you'd like to see included?

I've attached a mock booking I just did to show what the mobile site shows.

2 hours ago, DallasGuy75219 said:

This happens on every cruise and has nothing to do with people who didn't go to their muster station.  

They'll leave a letter in their cabin to attend an alternate safety briefing and turn off their S&S privileges until they do so.

 

I don't get this obsession with dictating other people do their muster check-in immediately upon boarding.

I understand that the safety announcement happens on every cruise and ops are temporarily paused.

On the cruises I was on the CD specifically stated, after several threats, that they would be closing down hotel and restaurant operations until folks completed their muster drill and I was very much amused that they followed through with it. The CD also would come back on every few minutes with the number of folks who didn't do it to remind people to do it. Stateroom announcements and everything.

I also understand the alternate safety briefing process. It's still regulations that pax complete the drill in some fashion, and the folks who try to skip get the pleasure of an enhanced safety experience (usually in the theater).

Ultimately, everyone can do whatever they want. The arguments against doing it right away don't make any sense, IMO.

2 minutes ago, Mike45LC said:

A deadline means something.

Definition of Deadline: the latest time or date by which something should be completed.

You're right, the deadline exists as its the last possible time to do it.

It's so easy: You walk onboard, you ask someone at the first door you see where your muster station is and you go there. With your priority embarkation, the ship is less crowded thus making this process even faster.

Your argument that it takes too much time is completely invalid when you yourself add on the whole "go to my stateroom and eat lunch first" hour or two.

On 7/19/2024 at 5:49 PM, Mike45LC said:

and I need to break my fast more than doing an early muster check-in. 

I figured this was common knowledge, but please just do your muster check-in first and don't follow this advice. Muster check-in takes <5 minutes.

Carnival (and every other cruise line) can't leave the dock until every passenger has done their muster (USCG regulations I believe dictate this). On 2 of 2 cruises I went on last year, they had to close the bars, buffet and restaurants because some folks didn't do the muster check-in which takes all of <5 minutes. At one point they turned off the music on the lido deck as well.

7 hours ago, Pyrate13 said:

It's not transparency when you don't know how much you're being charged for each item, just one total price.

Does it not break it down at checkout so you can see it in an itemized way? I think it does. Nobody is hiding the itemized cost, they're just required to show the true cost upfront. IMHO, it saves a ton of time in researching which sailing I'd like to take.

4 hours ago, jimbo5544 said:

the bottom line is one state forced all of us to change. If it ain't broke, don't fix it.

That's not quite correct. This is also in response to new laws in the EU as well. Clearly a bunch of folks thought it was an issue.

@Hoopster95 amazing photos! I almost wish the island was a bit more...island than six flags if you know what I mean. I wish I would have had a chance to visit when it looked more like a Caribbean natural island 🙂 

6 hours ago, Pyrate13 said:

All change is not necessarily good. Might work for some but not for everybody.

I'm confused, how does showing the full price upfront (some would just call this transparency) not "work" for everybody, especially when cruise lines are notorious for bait-and-switching folks with their "low" cabin rates only to double it when you get to checkout.

On 7/19/2024 at 11:51 AM, n6uqqq said:

It got fixed in a rather timely manner, hours

You're talking about a minor system error versus re-coding the entire sales website to accurately reflect solo cabin pricing. It's a bit different, and John Heald has already commented that this is in fact an error that they are working to resolve.

On 7/19/2024 at 2:08 PM, audcc77 said:

If you have to figure taxes, fees down to the penny then you probably don’t have any business going on cruises. 

Some elitist stuff right here, eh? And I thought that sense of elitism was reserved for RCL cruisers.

*In all seriousness, I don't agree with your take. People should be able to know a price upfront. It's simple. Wanting all of the information upfront is responsible in many senses, including financially.

As others have suggested, I'd consider a different time of year. See when the kids have breaks and try to schedule around that (+- a few days). I'd also suggest the itinerary that doesn't require you to figure out excursions for 13+ people because that will be a legitimate nightmare, nor will you find a happy place between everyone involved. At least with Castaway Cay, y'all are going to the same place and can find things to do that each likes.

Mid-Ship forward is generally safe, but you really want to check the deck plans for the specific ship you're sailing. As @nwcruiselover pointed out, some of the Coves are under the Galley and that can be noisy throughout the day and night. As you get forward or aft there's definitely the sound of thrusters, engines, etc. that might be a factor.

When I was on the Dream a few years back we didn't have any cabin noise issues (other than the waves outside, which was wonderful) and stayed midship forward.

1 hour ago, Malamel said:

stay out of their way until they release the rooms,

Exactly. I've accidentally wandered down a hallway on a top deck (was wondering the outdoor areas at the front of the ship and couldn't enter anywhere else) on turnaround day and it's chaos for the housekeeping staff. Stay out of their way is the best advice one can give, or board after 1pm and your room will very likely be ready to go.

Many, many thanks for taking us along and for the laughs along the way. I'm already looking forward to your next sailing!

11 minutes ago, Trevor Fountain said:

and I really would have to cast doubt on there not being a non-alcoholic alternative available

There clearly was if OP was offered ginger beer. Also, is water not easily and readily available, if "just for the toast" it wouldn't really matter what was given to OP the moment OP said "no" to the alcohol. I'm confused as to why OP's choice is being downplayed as if alcohol somehow is more important than the guest?

12 minutes ago, Trevor Fountain said:

I'd love to here the Sommeliers version.

I wouldn't. A guest told them "no" and it should have been the end of the story.

I was on RCL Freedom of the Seas and went to a hibachi lunch where I asked for no alcohol, just water, and was pressured by crew to take the alcohol. I'm not surprised that OP had this experience, and it seems like a lot of folks on these boards are downplaying the idea of consent and the struggles folks have in life.