RTRMom

My kids do not like the MDR. So they eat at the Camp Carnival every night and they love it. They get to eat with their friends and get to eat quickly and get food they like. We also enjoy a "date night" every night for dinner in the MDR. :)

We loved the Havana Bar also! I am definitely going to Jijis next time too! This ship has definitely spoiled me, and I'll never book a future cruise without some serious comparison.

Same here!

We ate back at the Havana bar every day for breakfast and lunch. Always plenty of seating and we usually got the booth by the window.

I just don't understand how people think its ok to be insensitive to a problem that they may never have had or will have. Maybe one day you will see the need for things when you can not do things for yourself.

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This. I also never understand why some people have a problem with others getting accommodations that can help make things easier for them. You don't know what that person is going through...what they have to go through day in and day out. Why judge? Just enjoy your vacation and move on.

We get the same question and usually "Another cruise huh?".

I always reply back with the "you love going to the beach every year right?". Cruising is our yearly thing and it is usually cheaper than a week at the beach in a condo. ;)

I would check with the special needs department with any concerns. We were unable to get the FTTF for our cruise last month. My son has special needs, so we spoke with the special needs department.

We got priority embarkation even with staggered check in at Port Canaveral. We were treated wonderfully! As soon as we got to the port they let us in and got us checked in quickly and sat us somewhere quiet. (He can get very anxious). Then they had someone escort us onboard when priority boarding started.

ETA: I see this wasn't an upcoming trip. Oops...well my reply is for those that have an upcoming trip. Just letting them know they can contact Special needs with any concerns. :)

Anytime was easy and we never had to wait. As soon as we got the ticket we headed down to the dining. Now, we would always eat around 6 every night.

What type of room did you have?

How was the ropes course?

What specialty restaurants did you eat at

We went on the Sunshine last month...

The ropes course is a lot of fun. It is best to try it when you first get on board or during port days. They usually had it closed during sea days.

We ate at Jiji's and LOVED it. Worth the money.

Go for it. We always travel during the school year for one of our long vacations. I will take advantage of it, while they are still in elementary school. I don't see an issue with one week out of school. Our school system doesn't mind, we just fill out a form before to advise why they will miss a week.

Now high school...that is different. ;)

Do they give the kids something similar to what the adults get - where it lists everything going on for the kids in camp? I've found a handful of images through google, and it showed REALLY generic descriptions like "games" or "art fun" and there were no descriptions of what they'd actually be doing. I'm hoping we get more info than that.

 

 

Sallee, we're on the same sailing as you, but our daughter is 9. Only 23 more days!!!!

You can get the schedule for the whole week on the first day. It is pretty generic activity descriptions though. Not really detailed, but my kids were entertained enough and loved it.

The arcade uses sail and sign cards and I think dollars.

I don't know about Circle C, but the camp for the older kids had various activities. They played games, did crafts, played video games, watched movies...etc

We have done 8 cruises with driving the day of. Sometimes 8-9 hours..we would just leave very early and take turns sleeping.

But on our 9th cruise a couple weeks ago, we took a day off before and just left around 7am, arrived at a hotel on the beach in Cocoa Beach right next to the pier. Had a wonderful dinner on the pier and great sleep. It was nice waking up and taking showers and taking our time. We had no traffic to port canaveral. Took just a few minutes to get there. I will always stay the night before from now on.

We just sailed the other week. I don't have the schedule and my kids were in the 6-8 and 9-11 group. But, I think the 2-5 followed the same open times. They were usually open at 10am on sea days. They closed anywhere around 2-4pm. Then opened back up for dinner at 6pm and closed at 10pm. (Anytime after that was a charge).

Port days were different depending on the port.

We had anytime dining the other week on the Sunshine. Never had to wait. As soon as my husband checked in...we went down to the MDR and got seated.

We were on this sailing as well and we had a great time. Thanks for the review and I am glad you guys had a good experience as well.

We were on the Sunshine last week and it has the reputation for being crowded. But, we only had one day out of the 8 that we couldn't find two chairs together. We also never went to get a chair until after 10am. I guess it helps when it doesn't matter where the chair is for us. As long as it is in the sun...we were good to sit anywhere.

We haven't cruised on Carnival in quite some time. We are taking the grandkids on their first cruise in December on Ecstasy. We have purchased FTTF and am wondering what will be open for lunch after we board. Thanks!

 

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A lot is open as soon as you get on. I am not sure about the MDR for lunch, but the buffet, Guy's,Pizza, Blue Iguana..etc were all open. Have fun!

I had not seen this before and is informative and helpful. Thank you for posting it. I am not concerned about formal night, as we are prepared for that. My main concern is non-formal night. It looks like we will be fine.

We wear shorts every casual night in the MDR, haven't tried flip flops...but there were plenty of people wearing them. I am sure you will be fine. You could always bring some sneakers just in case.

What's the charge for using it?

Free to just use the other features, but $5 per device for the texting.

I was curious if it worked. When we sailed Sunshine in May, it never worked. Not just that it was slow or spotty, it actually never loaded. I got my money back at Guest Services and they acknowledged it wasn't working. We sail on Sunshine again in 3 weeks and I would love to do this with my daughter, if it works! Looking for people's experience. Thanks!

Yes, we were on the Sunshine last week and had the app. The texting feature worked well, I was definitely happy with the whole app.

We enjoyed trying some things from there. They had a section of it as a salad bar around lunch. It was nice to catch a quick fresh salad. They also had chips and salsa! Went well with my margaritas. :)

Bring a pop up hamper for your dirty clothes. It keeps the room tidy!

I hear you on the comedy. We could only go to the earlier ones and we usually showed up about 30 mins early and sat down. It will fill up quickly. One of the comedians was funny and the other was a little too controversial and didn't get as many laughs.

We never got around to trying the taste bar but will try to next cruise.

 

 

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Definitely try it, they have all different kinds of food throughout the day.

I do have a question. Is this allowed?

 

MDR. Bar waiter comes to take drink order right after we sit down. I order a Coke to drink immediately. At the same time, I order a glass of wine to come with the main course.

 

I don't want both drinks at the same time. Yet I want a pop to sip throughout the meal and a glass of wine with my entree.

We would actually bring a drink to the MDR, since it can take a while to get your drinks. Then as soon we sat down, we would order the next drinks. :)

-I usually eat the chicken tacos at the Blue iguana cantina..every day for lunch on the cruise. Love them!

-Turkey on country roll is always a good option, for those times everything else is closed.

-I don't eat at the buffet, but I do like the little cookies they have. Pair that with the hot chocolate and I am set!

And on our cruise last week, I found some great chips and salsa at the Taste Bar for the last few days. It was so good. I wish I checked for them earlier in the 8 days.