notscb

(deleted)

My tip would be in contrast with the popular opinion maybe, but I believe it's best to not arrive early. Choose a later boarding time and you, in most cases, will not have to deal with the thousands of your newest, closest friends all trying to get on the ship at the same time. Start your vacation with truly less stress- fly in the night before, enjoy your morning and get on the ship after 1pm so you can continue vacation mode and not have to go back into high stress mode.

I'm sorry that these items have been misplaced- especially ones of sentimental value. As i've read through this thread and seen your replies, I'm wondering if when you repacked your bag you may have left your jewelry wherever you were staying the night prior? Where did the decision to put your carry on items into your checked luggage take place? Your bag was tossed around while being loaded onto the ship, so it's not surprising to find it a bit messed up once you get it to your room (have you seen the way bags are handled? It's not pretty).

If you're already in Europe, you should be fine as there will be other flights you can jump on to get there (at your expense). Royal has a department for day-of travel emergencies that you can call in an absolute last case scenario to make plans to meet the ship if possible. Linked here.

As you head south the weather will absolutely get warmer and more comfortable. I will say, though, that on the Radiance in May it was downright cold on sea days out on the top decks- although that didn't seem to deter any children from having fun and doing the slides. Granted, the Radiance doesn't go as far south as the Panorama, but just to give some perspective

Question: Is your cruise during a spring break week for many schools as it's in March? The easiest (and somewhat reliable) way to tell is to go to a mock booking and see if your cruise costs more than the others during that month. If so, you'll be competing with not only cruising crowds at MCO but also Disney crowds which can make security back up to the tune of a 3 hour wait. Next question(s): Do you have travel insurance and did you book refundable/flexible tickets with WestJet? In the case you don't make the 11:15, how confident are you that WestJet can just get you on their next flight? I'd be considering all of this before saying that you'll make it for that flight. MCO has a reputation for a reason.

This, 100%. Especially in the days of electronic processing. Businesses shouldn't get a pass for holding on to people's due refunds.

This is the most anti-consumer perspective I've ever read on these boards and I honestly can't believe what I'm reading. You pay for a service and you cancel that service that claims it's refundable- businesses have a responsibility to refund their customers in a timely fashion. 3 weeks isn't exactly timely, nor is it unreasonable to complain about waiting three weeks for a refund.

Send one of their maintenance crew to fix it. I'm not sure why you wouldn't report the shower door issue, especially when it's the kind of issue the shipboard maintenance crew are there to deal with and likely have a lot of experience handling.

If it's Deon, Deon was on the Radiance up through May and is a pretty entertaining CD overall.

They're really being strategic about this- they absolutely needed the adults only area on the island, plus now that Celebrity will be docking there (+$$ to RCL Group), the added space is also needed. 10/10 on RCL groups' part on this one.

There are big group tables on the Lido deck at the very aft of the ship that you can arrange and are often not very busy. You could even pull one or two of them off to the side and it would be private enough I think.

The only draw back that I've experienced with a cove is that in bad weather, sometimes the spray from the ocean leaves salt residue all over the balcony which makes it very unpleasant to use until it's cleaned. Otherwise, I think it's an amazing option and offers a really unique view, plus some private shade depending on time of day/direction traveling.

Thank you for sharing with us! I've been wanting to take a Cruise on the Elation or Paradise before they are sold for scrap. These older ships just have a charming look to them, IMO. How did they do serving 14 of you at dinner? Were you all at the same table?

As someone else mentioned, trying a different browser can help. Also, disable any ad-blocking add-on's/extensions.

... That's kind of what I'm saying. It may just not be beneficial for everyone, or you specifically, depending on your unique situation on vacation. For others of us, at the right price, it's a good value in the right circumstance.

There what is?

You're not really "missing" anything- It's really just about the circumstance you find yourself in as to whether or not it's valuable to you. When I went solo on Freedom, being able to drop off my carry-on to a valet, be one of the first folks on the ship, eat a great lunch and meet new people right away and have premium wifi (which I would have paid for anyway) made it worth it. As someone who has done tender ports on other lines, I wish I would have gotten their version of this as well. It's all in your personal needs when planning and going on vacation, although I don't get the hostility about The Key on these boards.

I guess i'm wondering what conclusions you're hoping people draw based on the commonalities you point out...

I cannot tell you how it felt to hold my breath until the page loaded from the forum homepage, just to feel the relief and joy to see you say this right off the bat! I had a great time on the Radiance in May and am really eager to get back onboard, even for the same itinerary. It sounds like you made the best of your cruise (even with some cancellations). Was Carnival helpful at all with rebooking you for a different excursion in Ensenada? FWIW, I don't remember ever really seeing the Italian place open when I was onboard- it was always really empty and when walking by on deck I think I saw people in there eating one night.

According to Carnival's FAQ, >a valid, unexpired government-issued photo I.D. for all guests 16 years of age or older >Also acceptable for cruise travel (for cruises that begin and end in a U.S port), U.S. citizens can show proof of citizenship, such as a birth certificate issued by a government agency and accompanied by government-issued photo identification. I've never heard of a "lifetime" ID being issued by any state, even non-drivers ID's usually expire. I'd have your sister-in-law double check what they have before heading on your vacation.

I hate to say this, but in your two examples given you're flying from major citiy-> major city on what is considered an ULCC airline with less of a route network than the majors. If i were in Chicago and going to FLL (or anywhere, really), I'd definitely fly a mainline direct. The mainlines also have a more robust network and rescheduling options than Southwest. I agree with you that flying in the day before is overall a better option, but not everyone is in a position to do that.

Not surprised, but this looks really cool. I've always wondered why they don't do golf off of the ship with those bio-degradable fish food golf balls. I'm sure they don't want people thinking they can just throw anything overboard, but I love the creativity of the skeet style activities.

Excuse me, but I really need you to expand on this- I need details- and I also might need Carnival to bring this back.

Having been on Carnival and RCL in the past year- the overall feeling on Carnival's ships seems more relaxed/laid back and the party atmosphere is the priority. The cruise directors like to say that "the party doesn't stop, it just moves to another place." In reality, the two lines are more similar than they are different. The "fun" is always what you make of it.