RWolver672

This is just my opinion.  According to the FAQs on the Carnival site, you can reduce the gratuities on your "onboard account".  Seeing how prepaid gratuities don't show up on your onboard account, the answer would be that it can't be done.

What can be done is going to Guest Services and report a problem that you feel deserves a lesser gratuity.  That will go on that person's record.  If several people complain about that person, they may not get a new contract if they aren't doing their job correctly.  Carnival can't correct the problem if they don't know about it.

When booking with an outside company, it's best to ask ahead of time if they refund your deposit or payment if the ship doesn't make that port.  We've been on several cruises where the captain got almost to the pier, then decided he couldn't dock and went back out for a sea day.

Several excursion companies will just take your credit card number to hold the excursion, then put the charge on it when you show up.

19 hours ago, GTO-Girl said:

Of course there is always a worry of a positive result, but the way I look at it is if I get a positive I am still at home and haven’t had the expense of driving to the port.

 

I will so glad when the vaccinated no longer has to test at all!!

Not everybody has the luxury of driving to the port.  Some fly in a day ahead of time and stay at a hotel.  If test positive, now you have a flight and a hotel that you have to pay for and can't use.

7 hours ago, Joebucks said:

I get the stress of all of the travel and potentially you or another party member testing positive. What would you do in that case?

 

However, to cancel over a "what-if" is excessive. Everyone and their mother offers rapid tests these days.

It may be excessive for you but not for the OP.  Everybody's stress level is different.  There has been a lot of postings on here where people are having a hard time finding the tests or even having trouble with the home tests.

5 hours ago, GTO-Girl said:

Guys stop stressing yourselves out and just order the online home test.  They are so easy and you don’t have to worry about anyone canceling  on you!!

 

 

Even with the home test, there's still the worry of if you're going to test positive.  If you do, then there's a cancelled cruise, cancelled hotel, maybe cancelled flights.  The canceled test is only one part of the stress.  

I see that as a smart move.  We were suppose to cruise on the Mardi Gras in February.  After all of the cancellations, it would have been her second or third cruise.  With Covid going hot and heavy right then, we wanted to cancel it.  Fortunately for us, it was cancelled.

We too fly in a day ahead of time.  We cruise with my brother and sister in law.  All we could think of was what would happen if we all got to the port and then one of us tested positive.  All four of us would be denied boarding and we'd be stuck at the port for two weeks of being guaranteed before we could fly back home.

It's disappointing not to be able to go on a cruise but until this mess is behind us, we won't be cruising again for a while.  Makes us mad because we turned Platinum on our last cruise.   

22 hours ago, EL Pitman said:

 

THIS!!!!!  I mean, really!!  I can barely remember a new co-worker's name and here are people who memorize TONS of names WEEKLY or MORE!!!!!!  It is not like my husband & I are very memorable people, either.  I simply do NOT get it!

For our first cruise on the Destiny when she still smelled new, our assistant waiter kept calling me "Sir".  I detest that title and just said "You can call me Dick."   I laughed when he said "It's easier calling people "Sir" than trying to remember everybody's name."  

We always cruise with my brother and sister in law, Jim and Diane.  The have always put us together in a booth.  On one cruise, the waiter kept calling my wife Linda, Diane.  After the third or fourth time of correcting him, she just let on like she was Diane.  

Our last cruise on the Horizon, our waiter kept calling me James.  Same there.  After a while I just smiled and let on like I was a James.

13 hours ago, nlktx49 said:

Be worth a try! I don't understand why they did away with trays in the buffet, have to make multiple trips to get your food, your drink, your dessert, your cutlery and napkin.  Less for the staff to deal with when cleaning off the tables? 

 

 I remember when they eliminated them.  The "reason" they gave was that they didn't want the buffet to be like a cafeteria.  They wanted it to be more of a dining experience.  The bottom line is less things to have to wash and restock.  

On 10/1/2021 at 10:24 PM, IntrepidFromDC said:

I think we're getting Gold level pins if my memory is correct.  Didn't we used to get "non-ship-specific" pins when we were Gold?

I just checked ours.  From 1999-2015 it was just the ship's name.  In 2017 on the Paradise, it said VIFP 2017.  We were Gold through all of those.  Our last cruise (Platinum) on the Horizon it said Horizon, VIFP and 2019.

I think it depends on your cabin steward.  We've asked them to open them and sometimes they will.  Other times, we've had to go to Guest Services and request it through them.  In our case, it was my brother and SIL in the adjoining cabin and we both had to go to Guest Services before they would OK it.

1 hour ago, SNJCruisers said:

Here is a link to a video that was posted by a family that was on the Mardi Gras.  At about the 1045 mark and later in the video, you can clearly see that the grandmother is in a motorized wheelchair and is obviously on oxygen.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DJk89ieh5DQ

There are six other videos from that sailing that were posted and you see her again in a few of them.

6 minutes ago, BoozinCroozin said:

Love how people think the rules don't apply to them. Wish they found out after the headed out and then had her removed at her expense by helicopter. This is the problem in our country. People think they are above the rules and regulations. You're darn sure they would have filled a lawsuit if DB granny died on the cruise.

That video may have been taken before Carnival made the ruling that you couldn't cruise if you were on oxygen.  I don't recall exactly when they made that decision but I know it was after cruising started back up.

I never started collecting the models until our fourth cruise.  I went to the Roll Call site for the three specific ships and ask if anyone would be willing to buy and ship one of the models for me.  I guaranteed that I would pay for the model, shipping and give them more for their time and effort.

In all three cases, I got my models.  They would tell me that they bought it and what it cost along with how much to ship.  I then sent them a cashier's check with an extra $10 and they mailed me the models.  

As a matter of fact, it one instance, they shipped it before I paid for it with the bill inside of it.  Talk about trusting fellow cruisers.  😉

I found this on another post.  At least this proves that as long as you are vaccinated and don't take an  unvaccinated person with you, you are able to get off the ship. 

Posted by outdoors27

We sailed on the Horizon August 1st. In Amber Cover my wife took my 12 year old on a Bubble tour while I took my older daughter and her friend on another excursion. My wife and 12 year old had a great time. It was Monkeyland excursion I believe. I'm Not sure if it would have to be an immedaite family member who woukd have to accompany your 11 year old. 

On 9/5/2021 at 9:19 AM, Momma Mojito said:

How much do you have to spend in the casino to receive DOU offer?

 

I limit myself to $100 a night.  I have been getting all kinds of offers daily with everything from free room, free WiFi, free DOU in the casino, Free DOU everywhere on the ship, Cruise cash, Reduced rates, etc.

I think at this point, if you are in their system as a gambler, and haven't got a cruise booked, they'll offer you anything to get you to book.

4 hours ago, SNJCruisers said:

Have you read any of the current live threads on Carnival? Particularly the ones by Saint Greg and WhaletailFLCruiser on the Mardi Gras?

I think they enjoyed themselves and both had high praises for the new Jewel of the line.  But, what do they know, they just have first hand experience with testing, masking and current cruising.  

You have to remember that each person's perception of fun is different.  What do the above two that you mentioned do for fun?  Nothing against what they both said but just because they enjoyed it doesn't mean that I will.  I think in most cases right now, the people are more worried about if their cruise will be cancelled before it sails. 

Do you go through the hassle of booking flights and hotel rooms not knowing if you'll be able to use them or have to go through hoops trying to cancel them.  Do you put in for vacation a year in advance in some work places only to find out your cruise is now cancelled and it's too late to make other plans.

In reading these posting through this mess, it started out that everybody was taking the FCC with the great OBC.  After many cancellations, a lot decided that it just wasn't worth it and decided to just take their refund and wait until things got back to fairly normalcy.  

What has always bugged me is that before this, the only time we ever got great offers was when we already had a cruise booked and you couldn't apply it to your booked cruise.  If we didn't have one booked, we never got great offers.  Now we get them every day.  Free cabin, DOU both in the casino and everywhere on the ship.  Free WiFi.  Free OBC, etc.  The one thing I did notice when I have looked at them is that most were for three or four day cruises.  A few were for Australia with $1000 OBC.

They received my renewal on June 10th and the last e-mail I received said that it has been sent and  I should get it in the mail on August 30th.  That was with regular processing.  First e-mail from them said it might take 12-16 weeks.

22 hours ago, PaperSniper4 said:

Hope so. My final payment is quickly approaching for our 9 December cruise from NOLA........

 

How are people find out about these? I'd think Carnival would send emails to those affected, but all I get from Carnival is that danged offer to purchase their Cheers package....which I get almost daily. Perhaps I need to log onto Carnival's web site to see the protocols? That's fine as long as I know I must do that, but an email direct from Carnival would be appreciated my many who don't regularly log onto Carnival.com.

If and when your cruise is canceled, you will get an e-mail from Carnival giving you the options of what you need to do.  

On 8/21/2021 at 10:47 AM, shoppingfever said:

. Is it Your mileage may vary on who is giving the info when it comes to refunds/applying amount paid to another cruise or having to book a new cruise or  being charged a cancellation fee?

A lot has to do with what rate you booked your cruise under.  Any non-refundable rates will cost you if you cancel before the cruise is canceled.  

11 hours ago, ProgRockCruiser said:

There are some destinations that require passports even for cruise pax.  I don't remember them off hand, maybe Panama or in that area.  But the usual itineraries do not require passports.

 

EDIT: From Carnival.com:

 

For cruises that visit Martinique, guests going ashore are required to carry a valid, unexpired passport. .  

When we sailed on the Paradise to Cuba, a passport and a VISA was required.  

16 hours ago, AtSeaWithChris said:

Guys didn't really wear short shorts back then did they? lol

Yes we did and they were a lot better at keeping you cooled off than the ones today that go down to your knees.  Same with swim trunks.  Now you get out of the water and you take a gallon of water with you.  I wish they'd go back to the shorter style again.

We have noticed that the service gets slower towards the last couple of days of a cruise.  That's because more and more people are hitting that mark where they get free drinks while playing.  On our last 8 day cruise, by day 6, it took forever to get waited on.  If you did get your order in, it sometimes took a half hour before you saw your drink.  And to make it worse, unknown to us, it turned out to be a Premium cruise where so many people already had the DOU to begin with.

7 hours ago, DAllenTCY said:

Michigan offers EDLs for an additional fee. 

 

Not all Michiganders have EDLs.

 

David

This is true.  DW and I went to get our Driver's licenses renewed.  We were going to get the EDL and took our passports as additional ID which was required.  The DMV person told us not to waste our money getting the EDL as we already had passports.  The additional fee was $45 above what the renewal fee was.  We just have the star on our licenses.  As a side note, we always  have just used our passports when ever we flew anyway.  

On 8/5/2021 at 2:33 PM, tbone77 said:

but I don't want to get the awkward stares from other diners.  

 

Thanks in advance

Robin D

This reminded me of when I was maybe 7 or 8 and my Grandfather took me out to a restaurant.  I told him that I felt like everybody was staring at me.  His response was "If you weren't staring at them, you wouldn't know they were staring at you."

11 hours ago, firefly333 said:

I see this all the time. I was in Aldi the other day and someone paid in cash $25. The clerk finally pulled out a hand calculator to figure out how much change. 

 

A clerk in tom thumb didnt know how much half of $5 was .. well it was $4.99 but still it's not hard math. 

 

 

I was selling 50/50 tickets at our local festival.  One ticket for $1 or an arm's length for $5.  I had a guy ask if he could buy both the single ticket and the arm's length.  Naturally, I said yes.  Then an older couple that was with him (I guessed his parents) did the same thing.  Logic doesn't run far in that family.

We were scheduled for what had turned out to be the second cruise of the Mardi Gras in February. In December, that was cancelled.  We were offered the $600 OBC carrot to rebook for a later date.  At the time, we had no idea of when cruising would start back up again or even if it would.

We took our refund and never looked back.  We have no intention of booking another cruise until if and when it gets back to normal.  

We were fortunate that something in the back of our minds told us not to book flights or hotels right away.  We were kind of waiting until the first of the year before we did.  Luckily, we didn't have to jump through hoops to cancel those.

And now with American cancelling flights left and right and Spirit doing the same, how much longer is this going to be going on.  No, for us, we too are done with cruising for a while.

7 hours ago, clo said:

AFAIK you can renew your passport any time you want. Years in advance. Again AFAIK.

You are correct.  Mine expires in February, 2022.  Knowing how long it is taking, I mailed my renewal in on June 10th.  They said it would take 10-12 weeks for the renewal.  

I just checked the passport site to see the status and this is what it said:  "You requested routine service when you applied, which we are currently processing within 12 weeks. Our processing times do not include mailing times, which could add 6 weeks to the door-to-door time."

I strongly suggest that if anyone's passport expires within the next few months, that they renew them now.

4 hours ago, chefchick said:

 

The large, mainstream lines IMO have more in common than you’d think… frankly my advice is…try as many as you can and judge for yourself!

This is where we differ.  We save up for our cruises.  Before the virus hit, we would cruise every other year.  Between the cost of the plane tickets, hotel the day before and a day after and the cruise, we usually spend roughly $5000.  

Knowing that we will have a great time on Carnival, we would rather stick with them.  After spending that much money and looking forward to our cruise for two years, we don't want to take the chance that we might not like another line.  We found that out once and don't want to risk it again.