StephPS79

At 1500 points?? Those hosts must have been feeling generous...

Good ol' AA! We got married on the ship in port in New Orleans last year. New Orleans makes you appear in person for the marriage license, so even though embarkation was Sunday, February 5th, we planned to head to NOLA on Thursday night, because we had to get to the courthouse on Friday. Wouldn't you know, our original flight was delayed and we would miss our connection. They got us on a later flight, and we got to Charlotte (connection), but low and behold as soon as we looked at the board in Charlotte, we saw our flight to NOLA was cancelled. They said it was cancelled because of "weather," but looking at the board, it was the ONLY cancelled flight. Of course it was the last flight out that night. They couldn't rebook us until 10:30PM the next night which meant we would miss the court house. We got to the hotel that night around 12:30am, and then got up around around 5:00am the next morning to try and get on stand-by. We eventually were able to get on an 11:30 flight, which would put us in NOLA around 12:30pm (thank god for the time difference!), and then ran to the courthouse. We made it with about an hour to closing. Lol. At least we have a story, I guess.

I had a TBA until check-in, with no penalty. Adding a name from TBA and changing a name will be viewed differently. If you have a name entered, you cannot update the name on the website I believe past final payment. But if you leave at TBA, this isn't considered changing a name. I have never heard of a cruise being cancelled because of a TBA, but it could be policy that isn't enforced often.

I cancelled a cruise by accident once, oof! I called and they reinstated it for me with no penalty. All you can do is call and be honest and ask nicely, and hope for the best.

I definitely would not do this without proper authorization. I would contact Carnival to see if it is allowed. As mentioned, previously it hasn't been, but sometimes policies change. Some lines to authorize this. If they authorize it, great! If not, 100% I would not attempt it.

Oasis class ships are beautiful, no doubt. I still have more fun on Carnival. Everyone is different.

Curious, how were you notified this was added?

I got blocked once too, after I loaded some funds and then decide I didn't want to play the stupid Dancing Drums anymore, and left before spinning. Which seems silly, because I was just trying to go to a different machine. But yes, the host told me just to spin a few times, and it would prevent it from happening, I think as long as you spin once you're fine.

I'd probably be more offended by the grandma.

We were on deck 2 on Horizon, no noise complaints at all, and as @mz-s said, the ease of getting to and from the gangway on port days was super convenient. I wouldn't hesitate to book a lower deck. Adding though, no, I wouldn't take the upgrade offer for that price. I probably really have to put some thought into if I'd even take a balcony at that price though.

I haven't been on Vista, but I've been on Horizon, which is similar. I have been on Magic. I would 100% choose Horizon over Magic (all other things similar), so I'd have to say I would chose Vista over Magic. The first time I was on the Magic, I don't know why, but I didn't really care for the ship. For one, I think the decor is unappealing, but of course that is preference. I like most of the Farcus ships, but this green and brown color scheme just isn't for me lol. I liked the Magic a little more on the second trip though, but it still wasn't my favorite. I really like the Vista class ships though.

There are points to each. I think yes, the Celebration would have more families with kids, but I think it has more to do with the length of the cruise than where it leaves. There would probably be a lot less families with kids on a 10-day. If that doesn't matter to you at all, I would say Celebration, mostly because I think it is closer to the Carnival brand than the Venezia. Venezia has a few quirks, as it was built for Costa. I haven't sailed on Venezia yet, and would really like to in the future, it does look like an intriguing ship, but I don't think I would pick it for my first Carnival cruise.

My vote would also be to book for 2. I’d probably leave the second guest as TBD until it’s confirmed she can go. You can always add her name or a different person later, or if no one goes, just have it be a no-show.

I do like John Heald, but he has been known to not always be accurate. I would prefer to see this in policy somewhere. Edited to add: The Cheers FAQ very clearly states: Program allows for up to 15 alcoholic drinks, per 24-hour period (6:00am - 6:00am). Once the limit is reached, the guest will not be served ANY additional alcoholic drinks So I do find it odd nothing about 15 drinks is listed under the Beverage Policy.

Interestingly, I just reviewed Carnival's FAQ, and there is no indication of the 15 drink limit on the beverage policy. It does make mention of it in the Cheers Program details... Can anyone provide sourcing to where it is documented that it limited to 15 without Cheers?

I'd pre-order some for the room.

I don't think they plan much for shared tables during YTD. It would involve several people who want to be seated with others requesting a table at the same time. Sure, it's possible, but it's probably less likely to happen than not. As someone else stated, we prefer YTD because we would prefer to not be seated with others, I'd imagine this is the case quite a bit.

While yes, I agree that not having a cabin assigned before sailing is unacceptable, I don't think there is any chance the ship would have sailed if there was even the slightest possibility that there wouldn't be enough cabins. I'm sure this has happened a time or two, but I doubt it is a common occurrence for the ship to sail before all rooms are assigned.

There's no requirement to complete. If you don't feel comfortable providing the information, skip the survey. To answer truthfully, it would be the amount that you typically budget per day.

We actually love Bimini, but it's going to be specific to what you enjoy. We did do an excursion and did a snorkel at the SS Sapona, which was a lot of fun, but short. Afterwards, we had a lot of time left, so we rented a golf cart and just drove around the island. There isn't going to be really a lot to do, other than I think the majority of people go the Resort World or whatever it is. But we actually had one of the best days just driving around in the golf cart. There are some beautiful beaches. We stopped at a few of the local "bars" for cheap beers and great views. As mention by @jsglow, very "local" vibe, and very chill, but if that isn't your thing, you might not like it. The Hilton is probably the most exciting thing.

I've no-showed a guest booked under my offer code with no issue, but never no-showed the guest who received the offer code. Personally, I think it would be risky, but I'm sure people have done it. There's no guarantee though.

Definitely the part where Carnival thinks they can sell your cabin. It's whatever is going to maximize the profit.

Very, lol. Good ol' Coki Beach. I think mostly stay by the restaurant area though.

We have this room booked for November this year - I'm extra excited for this cruise!

As unfortunate as this is, and it certainly is unfortunate, I, like the others, don't see a way around this. I'd agree, possibly reach out to John Heald, but the company can't be held responsible for the agent scamming people. I don't imagine they will say this will be resolved without the charge-back amount being accounted for.