SDPadreFan

Couple of things to add. If you go to see the Cathedral (it's beautiful inside), do not fail to notice the "Star of David" incorporated into 28 stained glass windows. Legend has it that when the Catholics were building the Cathedral, they were quickly running out of money. A wealthy local Jewish family stepped in and provided the funds to finish the Cathedral. The 28 Star of David symbols was a way of thanking their wealthy benefactors. Walk a block further and go into the Pino Suarez Mazatlan Market. If memory serves, when you first walk in to market, it's all Mexican trinkets, etc. - but keep walking deeper into the market for a real eye opener (or perhaps gaze averter). It's a big building (occupies a full city block) but totally worth it to see it all. This is not Walmart shopping but a traditional Mexican market. Do not miss. Next up is the Plazuela Machado (at the corner of Constitucion and Carnaval). Pretty neat area with a lot of outdoor restaurants. Not a bad choice for lunch or a snack. Then head down Carnaval to the Teatro Ángela Peralta (aka Angela Peralta Theater). I believe they offer a tour but I haven't done it so can't really comment. My experience was limited to peeking in thru the windows. Looks beautiful. Finally comes my DO NOT MISS suggestion. A block further down Carnaval is the Nidart Gallery (free). Just a fascinating place to see. Wait till you see the Masks and other art. This is some truly special stuff. LIMITED HOURS, generally 9am-2pm so plan accordingly. Be the ones on your cruise that can tell everyone else what they missed. Take some pictures - and then be able to show them What They Missed. https://goo.gl/maps/JwxcEcJJyZcrQYGF6 I'll throw in one last off topic suggestion. Puerto Vallarta also has a pretty amazing church as well. Down at the far end of the Malecon (my opinion) is the Parroquia de Nuestra Señora de Guadalupe. It's beautiful inside and completely different from the Cathedral in Mazatlan. The interior is done completely in white offset by beautiful gold leaf accents. Definitely worth seeing. https://goo.gl/maps/bUcK18XjVNAmVDwaA A little further down the Malecon is the Isla Río Cuale (riverwalk). A beautiful oasis with shopping and food. Trinket pricing tends to be just a little higher than in town (probably due to the location and perhaps higher store rents). But if you see something you like, then buy it. Or perhaps spend endless hours wandering around looking for the same thing at a better price. You're on vacation. I made the "mistake" of telling my wife that if you see something and you really like it - then buy it. She really took that to heart. Subsequent vacations, she buys every thing she likes - whether in Sedona, AZ, Grand Canyon, AZ, Yosemite, CA, Solvang, CA, Alaska or anywhere else. But "happy wife ..." Further down the Malecon is just a sea of "toes in the sand" beach bars and restaurants - but what ever floats your boat.

If you want easy and close, that's simple. Solomon's Landing on the Marina Walk has great food and it's close by. Guy Fieri even did a show from there (although it was about their breakfast offerings). A little further away there is Pancho's on Calle Miguel Hidalgo (aka restaurant row), or nearby on Calle Cabo San Lucas (the block behind Hidalgo) but a little further down the street. It's probably the prettiest setting, but sometimes the food can run from "just ok" to great. We've always had good meals there. This google map will show you all 3 restaurants. https://goo.gl/maps/ZwnRddjDfvS4Y6XJ8

The other issue is that Cabo is a tender port. It is not unusual for Cabo to have to close their port due to rough seas - especially during hurricane season. If the tenders aren't running, you will have to buy some very expensive one way tickets back to the cruise home port to get your luggage and then home on another flight. Definitely not worth it. If you want to spend time in Cabo (overnight), plan a land vacation there.

We got the offer on our AMEX Blue Cash Everyday but now I have to figure out if I can even use it. We already have 2 upcoming fully paid for cruises (7 day Panorama in Nov/Dec & 12 day Carnival Pride Baltic next July). Those were paid for with FCC's due to COVID. Don't need Cheers on the 7 day and already have $600 OBC on that one. Already paid for Cheers on the 12 day Baltic next year but thinking of canceling that and using the money for excursions instead. We did Cheers on our recent 10 day Alaska on the Miracle and not really sure we got value for it. We are really better suited at a max 5-6 drinks per day so we may be better off just paying individually for drinks. Baltic Sea cruise is fairly port intensive with 7 port days and only 4 at sea days. Still contemplating that one. Hoping Carnival adds some Fall 2024 Hawaii cruises before the offer expires. Scored a Premium Balcony on the Miracle for our Hawaii sailing that got cancelled due to COVID so would love to be able to replicate that but those cabins go extremely fast. Would even settle for a bowling alley balcony like we had on Miracle in June on our Alaska cruise. But same thing - those obviously go fast as well.

To me - the unsettling part about their policy (as I read it) is that if you are age 11 or under, you are neither required to be vaccinated NOR provide a negative test result 72 hrs prior to boarding. So unvaccinated age 12 and up (to include adults) must still provide a negative test result 72 hrs prior to boarding. I totally get that. But if you are under age 12, and unvaccinated you DON'T have to provide a negative test result 72 hrs prior to boarding. Did I miss some announcement where the CDC has determined that while an 11 year old (or under) can get COVID-19, they can't spread it to someone else. Thankfully - I can't immagine a situation where I would find myself on an NCL ship. Just not my vibe.

Thanks for all the great info.

Will really depend on the itinerary. Most will just be 2 Cruise Elegant (Formal) nights. We just did a 10 day Alaskan Cruise on Carnival Miracle and we only had 2 formal nights even with 10 days. It depends on how they fit in the schedule. Even with 2 consecutive "sea days" they are not going to have Cruise Elegant nights back to back. So if you had an "at sea" day on your first full cruise day and then another one in the middle, you "might" be able to have a third but it's not going to be on your final "at sea" day because that is typically when everyone is packing and putting their luggage out in the passageways. You would typically need to have 2 full consecutive sea days at the end of a cruise in order to fit a 3rd formal night in.

On our recent 10 day Alaska, we had Grilled Mahi Mahi, Grilled Salmon ("from the grill" almost nightly), Grilled Tilapia, Pan Fried Striped Bass, Grilled Japanese Sea Bass, Blackened Tilapia, Teriyaki Salmon, and Grilled Barramundi. All were pretty much excellent. Think my favorite was the Japanese Sea Bass. Least impressive of the bunch was the blackened tilapia (but it was still quite good).

We always dress for formal night. There are 2 of them for this 10 day itinerary. I wore a sport coat, shirt, tie, slacks and dress shoes. Wife wore long dress. 2nd formal night I ditched the tie, switched the shirt color and went open collar with the Sport Coat. Also switched to grey dress slacks (from black). Wife switched to black valour (sp?) 3 piece pants suit. Don't recall seeing anyone in a Tux. Checked Lido Buffet after 2nd Formal Night dinner and it was fairly deserted so seems most people were eating in the dining room.

Red Frog Pub is just aft of the Phantom Theater (showroom), right next to Java Blue on Deck 2.

Just returned home from our FANTASTIC Miracle cruise tonight (Thurs). 10 hour drive home to San Diego (included meal, gas and stretching stops). Will hopefully start my review on Friday (later in the day). Will start it as a separate thread. Just a tease - saw the Sawyer Glacier calve FOUR TIMES.