Lisl123

What does the thermal suite run for a 7 day? I always shy from the extra cost, but this time I'm cruising alone and will have time to use it.

Thanks for the feedback! Since we purchased the cruise as their Christmas Presents, I was hoping to make it all inclusive for them.

Wow! Nice present! Are you looking for friends and family? ;):D

Seriously though, I would call Carnival and see what they can do in advance of the trip.

Slap a pair of khakis or dark denim jeans and a clean t-shirt on him and he'll be fine. When my son was tiny we used to dress him to the nines for dinner, but now he goes in khaki shorts (or really any color other than denim) and a nicer matching t-shirt. He's 8 and I probably won't deviate from that plan this trip. I see no point in packing a formal suit for my son to wear for 45 minutes of the entire cruise, when he gets zero enjoyment from the exercise of dressing up. I enjoy it, so I wear cocktail dresses and heels basically every night of the cruise. For a younger kid, I think anything is fine, so long as it is clean and tidy and not swim attire. As long as the parents are following the dress code, the child's attire goes mostly unnoticed, unless they are tiny children in suits and dresses that make them supremely adorable - then everyone notices :)

Keep the balconies. If for nothing else that everyone has somewhere on the floor to sleep. Those darn upper berths make the room feel SO small and frankly, I'd never feel safe with my son climbing up and down that ladder in the middle of the darn ocean :P

I agree as well that just having two bathrooms is worth more than a grand suite. Your balcony will be awesome - we had one of the mega triple long balconies with no connecting single balcony and it was ridiculous - I slept out there a few nights after dozing off on the lounger. Life is rough ...

Subscribed and looking forward to the rest of your review. We have a lido balcony over Christmas - no spa access. Are the spa areas worth the extra $149 add on in your opinion?

Also, have to say I won't miss the tablecloths either - and not to run the risk of objectifying anyone, but physically accosting bar waiters might be one of the highlights of some of our cruises ... soooo .... :D:p:eek:

I have my booked my first cruise and have been reading all the great information on this site. I have learned so much! I have also read a lot of negative things that make me a bit nervous about our cruise. I notice that most everyone here has been on lots and lots of cruises - I love seeing the list in your signature lines. So, I would like to hear why you love going on a cruise so much. What are some of the best things about vacationing this way?

 

Thank you!

Cath

We love cruising for several reasons - the main being that it is similar to an inclusive resort vacation, but we can go to many locations without sacrificing the consistency of comfort and service. When you go to resorts it can be a hit and miss affair. While some cruises are better than others, they are all generally very clean, service is good to excellent, prices are consistent from trip to trip ...

Having a younger child, I find the child care to be much better on Carnival cruises than I have found at resorts, and it is included in the price. You get a full sit down meal every night for dinner, and lunch and breakfast as well if you choose to go that route rather than the buffet or one of the included specialty options.

Also, while there is the drawback of not having tons of time in any one location, this can be an advantage in that you don't have to spend a fortune at port - you can just get off the ship, go to the beach, shop a little and hang out ... we like the relaxing quality of cruising ... I don't have to put any real effort into planning extensive tours ... we just get off the ship and explore - maybe take a cab or bus somewhere close.

So yeah ... we like cruising and when you get a good price, it is very worth it!

It's possible they would really do this to keep people from giving their free casino rooms to others. Otherwise anyone who gets the "free room" offer could give it away (or even sell it) simply by booking and no showing. They offer the free rooms to people who gamble large dollar amounts regularly when they cruise ... so it makes sense that the promotion is only extended if that person is on the ship. Though, yes, I would also be irate if this happened to me and it was genuine that my friend invited me, I paid my room fees and taxes and then got stock with hundreds of dollars more in fare because my friend no showed. It would be upsetting if you had to fly in for the cruise. Often our cruise fare is only half as much as our flights ...

Just pushed together and made up with king linens (there might be some sort of padded cover - but you can tell it is two twins). Comfortable enough, and if you prefer to sleep together, the king set up allows for more open floor space in the cabin (unless you are in an inside - then the twin set up will put both beds on the wall with a wider space in between).

We finally booked a cruise on the Breeze. I am second guessing the decision due to reading some very mixed reviews. Anyway I am looking for reviews on the kids club. We have a 2 year old and a 9 year old. Thanks in advance!

I've not been on the Breeze yet (we're going in December!) but my son is 8 and started cruising at 7 months old. We've yet to have a Camp Carnival experience that was anything but stellar. My son has nut allergies to boot, and they ALWAYS handle it much more professionally than I can say our local school district or camps ever have ... it is fantastic and my son asks to go. Camp Carnival is his favorite part of his cruise experience. Last cruise (when he was 6) he didn't even want to eat dinner with us because he missed camp, so I had him come to dinner and eat while we had appetizers and then brought him to camp in between courses. It was fantastic since we were able to enjoy a nice dinner with the kiddo and then finish a full, grown up, leisurely 4 course meal with dessert and coffee. It was pure heaven to this stressed out mom!

Also, for what it is worth, the teen programs seem to be a bust on basically EVERY ship, and that may be where the bad reviews come from. I imagine the popularity of those programs depend more upon the number of kids in that age group attending, since most of the kids can sign themselves out voluntarily, I'm not shocked they choose to do something unsupervised, even if it is just swimming or eating too much ice cream and burgers. I wish my parents had taken ME on a cruise when I was 14 :)

FYI Camp Carnival does do diapers - they don't page you to change your little one the way some cruise lines do. It's a definite perk!

The Sunshine is the only Serenity deck that has a pool. Hopefully Carnival will keep that going with Vista.

Totally agree - I loved the serenity deck on the Sunshine. Lots complain about the noise from the bandstand, but I liked the option to be by the pool and waterfall and hear what was going on, or using the upper level serenity decks. We hung out up there as a very large group (most of the people still awake at 2am) after the club closed too ... it really is a ship that caters to a more grown up atmosphere.

We're going on the Breeze next, and I'm looking forward to the Lanai hot tubs.

Hahaha ... I did have occasion to go into the shops for something, and they DID have superglue. That night feels like it was yesterday ... too funny.

I was seriously concerned that we had made a mistake after seeing the reviews. I believe you find what you are looking for. We all wanted and needed a wonderful vacation and that is what we received.

We're booked on May 2nd - we booked a casino player's club deal, and since it was cheap and use frequent flyer points for our flights, we feel the same way. I didn't realize it was a refurb, and thought it was a new ship - so I was momentarily concerned - but hey, it really is what you make of it - there is always plenty of food and service is always better than doing my own dishes at home! :D I do appreciate how it feels when you've spent a few years of vacation savings and end up with a boatload of disappointment though - you can't always overlook the things that just aren't up to par, especially when you are looking for them.

My advice for those booked on the ship and maybe second guessing it - stop reading reviews - the more you are LOOKING for the less than perfect parts of the cruise, the more you will find them. And from the sounds of it - plan to have a cocktail in the comedy club before the show so you get a seat :) BTW I was on the Liberty twice and had difficulty getting a seat, but in the tiny club on the Spirit you could walk right in, half the guests couldn't FIND the comedy club :)

 

 

As an aside, did a timeshare presentation in Cozumel, Mx during our Freedom cruise, as we wanted the free resort day in return. My DH's first language is Polish. We decided that he would only speak Polish in an attempt to shorten the presentation-I would defer to him as the decision maker. Well I'll be dipped if they didn't pull a 20 something Polish man out of there *%# to give DH the presentation in Polish. You have got to be kidding me?! In Mexico!:D They are good. . .very good!

Ok, that's just awesome ... one of the best time share anecdotes ever ... "Polish? Oh yes ... hang on ... we have a translator for you!"

I would rather hang out at the airport than on the ship on debarkation day ... it is mostly people pushing and shoving and just trying to get their crap together after a whole week of being lazy :D It is not as easy it it sounds for some people.

Get off the ship in a timely manner - since you have time, linger over breakfast and debark when you are called (you can ask for the LAST baggage tags, so you know you will be the last to be called off the ship - they unload baggage in zones so that those with early flights or tours can get off quickly). You can also carry off your own bags if everything you have is small and can be managed by stairs if necessary.

Ft. Lauderdale is nice and you could easily enjoy a day there ... driving is not hard (IMO) and some car rental services offer port and airport shuttles (Alamo used to - you would have to call them). You can also find tours through the cruiseline or privately from Port Everglades, just the same as you find them at other destination ports. Just make sure part of the package is drop off at the airport and taking care of your baggage.

Some airlines participate in the checkthrough service - you can check all of your baggage from the ship straight through to your airline - you never touch it again until you get home. That would free you up with just a backpack or whatever for morning essentials (you set out your bag the night before) to hop in a cab and enjoy Ft. Lauderdale. Check on this service as well before you go - don't just plan on it being there - not sure if every airline or every ship/port participates.

Hope this helps!

If I wanted to take ds-7, what would be a great tea for him to try? How should I fix it. okay...prepare it. I'm in the south, we fix things...everything lol.

Maybe an herbal tea to avoid too much bitter and caffeine ... but if he likes sweet tea, just pick an orange pekoe and sweeten it - good hot as it is cold (not my opinion, as I gag on sweet tea, but people who like it like it warm as well from my experience :P) . I personally have luck with my 4 year old drinking mint teas - but he loves mint - we have to beg him not to swallow his toothpaste! LOL

I would stay away from Earl Gray, it has a heavy bergamot flavor (especially the brand they serve on Carnival - Bigelow), so he probably will see it as tasting perfumey. You can take him up to the Lido deck and have a tea tasting on the first night of the cruise ... then he will know what to select! Same teas in the caddies on the Lido as what they typically have at teatime.

Chicken salad on baguette is my favorite little snack. My son loves the cucumber sandwiches, which is amazing since the rest of the cruise he eats hot dogs and chicken tenders :P

I wish I liked tea. This sounds amazing, and relaxing.

Bring a cup of coffee down from the buffet with you ... no one will shun you, promise! :D:p

I go to tea time every cruise with my little boy (first time he was 7 mos, this time he is 4, and 4 cruises in between :D) He loves it ... it is a good chance to get personal service and a relaxation break ... also a good way to meet fellow passengers, since many people attend alone or with only part of the group they are sailing with - great chance for interesting conversation and learning inside tips about the next port from the crew as well!

It was the Celebrity Summit and I've since found out that cabin is approx $5000 p.p. for a 7 night cruise. There is another hot tub inside the cabin and those stairs (white, square area) are for your private butler to use.

Gasp.

Wow ... well I've just found a new goal in life ... :D:p

To think I was pleased with my super extended balcony room ... it's the length of three normal balconies - I mean, that's somethin'! hahahaha

I've been to the WM twice in PV. The first time was because I thought it would be interesting to see how a store that I shop at compares to the same store in a different country. I thought it was pretty interesting. The second time my firiend needed a new bathing suit. The first time I thought it was really interesting that the sodas didn't come in 12 pack containers. They were just single cans.

You know, I remember (and I'm not that old) when we could buy soda by the can at the grocery stores in the US ... weird how that has changed and we are just required to buy more than we want or need :p That's the way everything is packaged in the US now though ... sometimes I feel like I'm shopping for a blizzard or a hurricane!

We'll probably go to WM for a giggle, and to pick up anything we need for the remainder of the cruise.

Although I've only needed them once, I always have a bottle of ginger pills with me. You can get them at any drugstore (Walmart, CVS, etc) where the vitamins are. If you're susceptible to motion sickness, or cruising during a storm, take these instead of dramamine. They work better and no side effects.

 

We were on a ship once with 12-15 foot waves. All four of us took our ginger pills and headed to the dining room for dinner feeling fine. It was empty because a lot of people were sick or sleeping from the pills they took. It was one of the busiest nights the infirmary had seen.

 

Last cruise, we didn't need them but one of our tablemates was feeling ill. He didn't even make it to dinner the first night. We ran down to our room, gave him a handful, and got a "thumbs up" everytime we saw him on the ship after that.

 

Sorry for the long response, but I can't say enough about the ginger pills (similar to drinking ginger ale for an upset stomach). Don't sleep your vacation away if you are someone prone to motion sickness.

So very true! I swear by them as well, and have only had one bout of stormy seas to use them in. If all else fails, eat foods heavy in ginger or ask the sushi bar (if the ship has one) for some pickled ginger. I met a woman on one ship that ate frozen yogurt with ground ginger sprinkled into it - she swore it worked as well as the pills. Good excuse to eat ice cream everyday at any rate.

I always bring a liter sports bottle (the non-disposable kind) for water. Great by the pool, on excursions, nursing a hangover :eek:, whatever. I go with a bright color so that it cannot be confused and tossed out by staff, or carried away by another passenger who thinks it is their bottle (this is the trouble with refilling a water bottle from the room). This is the ONLY thing that saved us during a sweltering day in Cozumel (well over 100 in the shade). Bottled water becomes increasingly expensive on days like that. It is also nice not to have to drink the water from the cabin sink if you don't want to pay $3 to quench a 3 am thirst. Squeeze the air out for packing - I can fit 4 into the front pocket of my suitcase.

Also, for thrifty cruisers - you can often find T-shirts at the Walgreen's in any given port that has the store. Usually 2 or 3 for $10. Good for getting t-shirt gifts for little ones at the very least.