GlendaleCruiser

 

Everyone has to decide how they want to spend their money, when they want to eat out, how many cruises they can afford. We each have different priorities.

Exactly! The same people who ask me how I can afford to cruise have cleaning ladies, lawn services, buy their clothes at Macy's and have someone detail their cars.

I clean my own house, water and mow my own lawn, buy my clothes on sale or at the thrift store and wash my own car..................

.....................and cruise once a year...............

Hello there,

We just took our first cruise to Nassau on Royal Caribbean and we are thinking about going on a Carnival ship for our next cruise because of pricing. We are already planning ahead and so I need some recommendations on which Carnival ships are the best ones to cruise on based on what they offer on board, food selection/quality etc. Ive hear the larger ships are better so interested in all suggestions.

We are going to do a western caribbean cruise this time around. Thanks

I loved the Breeze. Lots of amenities.

I notice on the website document that it is valid through July of 2014. Do they normally update these documents or is the program ending?

I hope they are just updated regularly because I have a cruise scheduled for August of 2014 and I'd like to use the benefit..................:confused:

I put together a dry-dock schedule for all of the Carnival ships. The schedule includes the last known dry-dock and the upcoming dry-dock (if one is scheduled) for each ship.

http://www.embarkandaway.com/carnival-drydock-schedule.html

 

The schedule does not have what all of the ships are getting because this information has not yet been made public for all ships. I compiled the information using Carnival's website, go CCL, and John Heald's Blog/Facebook.

And of course, the information is subject to change (Carnival can change their mind!)

 

Let me know what you think! Hope this helps someone!

THANKS for posting this! I love it. Going on Legend in August just before she goes to Australia and wondered when the dry dock was going to be.

is there a miniature sized deckplan I can print up prior to our Breeze cruise?

I sometimes take screenshots of the deckplans on the CCL website and use them to familiarize myself with the ship and decide what else I want to see.

Just off Sunshine yesterday we got the tumblers.

YAY ! I'm getting on Sunshine in 19 days was hoping for that.:D

Hmmm wonder if I can find everything for a banana split

NO NEED!

If you eat in the MDR, ask for a Banana Split.

It's on the kids' menu and you can order off of it, too.:D:D:D

Early risers this morning as we booked a 9:00am excursion to "Swim with the Dolphins" at UNEXSO in Freeport, Bahamas through Carnival.

After Audra picked up her coffee from the coffee cafe we had a quick breakfast at Blue Iquana before heading off the ship. We had time to look around in a few shops in the port area while we were waiting. We did check in with our tour guide first. Soon it was time to load the bus to town. I have been wanting to swim with the dolphins for about 20 years, it was like a bucket list item for me. Audra has been to Discovery Cove to the dolphin encounter however, she was also very excited about swimming with them. The bus drive was about 20 minutes or more and our driver talked no stop. He did provide some interesting facts but, I found him annoying for the most part. Once we checked in at the UNEXSO facility, we received our wrist bands & were given a free UNEXSO blue tote bag each & a scratch off coupon to use in the gift shop. Our boat ride to Sanctuary Bay was a pleasant one through the bay area. Our driver was cool and did not try to give us a "tour talk", which I appreciated. He did point out an old pirate ship that had the word "GHOST" on the side. Once we arrived at Sanctuary Bay they gave instructions on what would happen next, what not to do etc, One thing I missed or they did not tell us that is very important to know; if you are doing the dolphin swim...do not touch the wires on the side of the dock when you get in water. substance on the wire may cause skin irritation (itching). There are twelve people in our group. Only six allowed in the water at a time. If you can not swim or if you are not a good swimmer, life jackets are provided. Everyone must use the flippers. If you can swim in ten feet of water I do recommend that you bring a snorkel mask and skip the life jacket so you can dive under the water. While the first group of six were in the water we took photos for them with their cameras/smart phones on the dock area. The trainers were very friendly, patient and informative. Three female dolphins were in the water with us, Proballa, Coral and Cayla. Proballa was 8 months pregnant and weighed about 600 lbs. Note: She did not seem to like the color red. Two men in our group wore red t-shirts and she was reluctant to hug or kiss them. Cayla wanted the fish the trainers were rewarding the other two with, so she would try to swim with the people in the water when it was not her turn. I thought this was too cute. She popped out of the water twice unexpectedly and surprised (scared) both Audra and I ...we loved it. When it was our groups turn to enter the water for our free swim, Audra swam with Proballa and I swam with Coral. Only two people are allowed to do the free swim at a time. (the other four wait by the dock in the water) The trainers told us that the dolphins enjoy diving. I dove under the water five times with Coral. Each time she swam right beside me within arms length distance and followed me back up to the surface. I could hear her making clicking noises underwater as well. This was just incredible to me. We were told to rub their sides to let them know they were doing well, while swimming next to them. They followed us around in a big circle right beside us the whole time. After our free swim, the six of us lined up cross-ways. We patted the water in pairs to send the dolphins over to us and the trainers gave us a signal to give the dolphin to perform a trick. (talk, turn in circles, wave or splash). The second time we were able to pick our favorite trick when the dolphin came over. I picked talk because it was so cute to hear them talk. Audra picked splash. After the tricks, we all took

photos with the dolphins. One with the two of us swimming beside the dolphins together, one individually hugging the dolphin and one kissing the dolphin. When it was my turn to kiss the dolphin Coral was sent over to give me the kiss but Cayla (who is Coral's mom) decided to join her. I have a photo with both dolphins kissing me. This of course just put the icing on the cake for me (so to speak). After the photo session we got out of the water for our own little private dolphin show. All three dolphins flipped and did big tricks in the water together. My disposable camera ran out of photo space and the man taking photos for us used his daughters camera to take some more for us. His daughter and I exchanged email addresses for her to email them to me. Awesome fellow passengers :-) After our dolphin swim we were able to walk around the facility to see the large Cockatoos and Parrots. A man brought two birds over to us and placed one on Audra's head and another on her arm. Then he moved the bird to my arm. They were beautiful birds. He said they could talk but they did not talk to us. Bathrooms and a small snack bar area are available here to purchase chips, sodas, hot dogs or bottled drinks etc., The boat ride back was in the open water passing the beaches etc., Beautiful scenery. Once back at the UNEXSO facility we had time to shop in the gift shop and view & or purchase photos taken by their photographer. I did purchase a magnet in the gift shop for my collection. Audra purchased the photo of her kissing the dolphin. Note: Bring extra money or your cc to purchase the photos while you are there. I waited till I got home to buy them on the internet and the photos were more expensive and much smaller. This excursion was the highlight of our cruise. I can not say that enough... it was an amazing wonderful experience. One of the absolute best moments of my life. I had planned for us to go to the beach after we left UNEXSO. We had told the bus driver we would not be returning with him and would find our own ride back to port. Audra was hungry so, we decided to eat at the Dive-In Marina & Grill at the UNEXSO facility. The outdoor seating in the shade was really nice. I ordered the Conch Fritters and Audra ordered a Grilled chicken flatbread. We also ordered a fruity beverage from the bar that was delicious and very strong. So strong in fact that we both could have taken a nap right there at the table. Our waitress told us where the public access was to the beach down the street. We walked in the direction of the beach. I stopped to purchase a straw fan with the word "Bahamas" & flowers on it from one of the vendors. Then Audra questioned when we were suppose to be back on the ship. I told her we had 2 1/2 hours (plenty of time to spend atleast an 1 1/2 hours at the beach). All she could remember was them telling us to be back at 3:30pm in Key West. I explained to her that we had till 4:30pm in the Bahamas. So, I stopped to ask some other fellow passengers who obviously were also confused about what time it was and when to be back. I was never confused about it however, after debating with Audra for several minutes and not getting any closer to the entrance to the beach... we decided to turn around & walk back to the bus at UNEXSO. (just to be safe) Earlier the bus driver had told us when he would be taking the 2nd group of the day back. We found him and let him know we changed our minds and would be riding back with him. Once arriving back at port I wanted to do some shopping. I found a place that sold shot glasses for $1.99 and key chains for $1 for souvenirs for people back home. We boarded the ship early and went back to the room for a shower, a nap and to get ready for dinner. For dinner we sat at a table for two, very close to other tables and in between several retired couples on their "multiple number" cruise this year (and #19 plus cruise in their lifetimes). We enjoyed talking to all three couples. I ordered the shark and lanqoustino firecracker roll, assorted seafood newburg style, and bitter and blanc (which I could not wait to try). Audra ordered the braised lamb shank in burgundy sauce and the tiramisu. She probably had a Cesar salad as well but, I forgot to take photos of our food except for the dessert. Our dinner guests were so entertaining I forgot all about my camera for once. The shark and lanqoustino firecracker roll was not one of my favorite things, I shared some of it with Audra. She really liked her lamb, which surprised me. She was great about trying new things. My seafood newburg came with mussels in the shells and clams. I do not eat either of these but enjoyed the shrimp and scallops. One of the ladies to our left mentioned that mussels are really good in garlic sauce and encouraged us to try one. I was not up to this challenge however, Audra jumped right in. The look on her face after one bite was priceless. I tried to get her to recreate it so I could take a photo to remember. Atleast we all got a great laugh out of that one. The bitter and blanc was exactly what I expected...DELICIOUS. Audra tried it as well and liked it also. After dinner we went to the second half of Hasbro the game show. (we missed the first half). After that we went back to our room to rest for awhile and change into something casual for the RedFrog Carribbean Beach party. Audra actually wanted to stay up a little later. Once on the LIDO deck we ordered a Guava Margarita to share from the Blue Iquana bar. (Audra has a hard time finishing an entire drink.) This was my favorite drink on the ship all week. I remembered to take a photo as well. The entertainment staff passed out red beads to wear, floral barretts for our hair, glow in the dark bracelets, bandannas etc., They started off the party with a limbo competition. I actually enjoyed the Caribbean music that the dj played. Gary (our favorite) and his staff led everyone in a Congo line, which I stepped out of since it involved the stairs. I joined Audra once she made it back to the deck for the group dances. This was alot of fun and something I promised myself I would do on this cruise. I never go to clubs and dance but heck... its vacation right? I took dance class when I was a teenager but, 30 years out of practice made the group dances challenging. It was a blast anyway. Time for bed after all that activity. Towel animal was a frog. I moved it over to the desk area and decorated it with the beads, floral barrett and my sunglasses. Our steward, Bukuri, left it there forme to enjoy for several days. (until Audra messed it up or moved it or something) I think he finally got the idea that I liked the towel animals and he started putting them on my bed instead of Audra's. I appreciated this since I had to rush to get a photo before she tried to toss it off her bed. :-D

Would love to read your review but just cannot.

PARAGRAPHS!

I loved the closet space because all of our suitcases fit in one of the closets, getting them out of the way.

They also fit perfectly under the beds! :)

never mind. lost the link.

I somehow left behind a camera card with 173 pictures of my Mediterranean cruise on board. It either went behind the drawers or got thrown away or went home with a cabinmate (they said not), but I sure didn't get home with it.

Luckily, one of my cabinmates took almost identical pics as mine so I got a copy from her of all those places.

Steward and CD (who I knew) checked a couple of times but they were never found in cabin or turned in.

So, if you ever find yourself in 9362 on the Carnival Dream, will you please look behind the drawers and see if my camera card is there?:(

I'd like to see Vista homeported in Los Angeles and making runs to Hawaii (14 days round trip) and Alaska (14 days round trip)

When you book a Princess cruise, they ask if you are celebrating an occasion. There was a nice little sign once. many doors saying, "happy birthday" or "Happy Anniversary" with blue and white balloons on their mailboxes.

Not fancy, but ni

I'm pretty sure I used S&S card on Magic. I know I did on Breeze, but I think I did on Magic, too.

I've never done it either but this post and some others sound extremely condescending to the OP.

 

I've never seen any decorating on NCL except for a small wreath on a Thanksgiving cruise.

I agree. The post is VERY condescending to the OP. I guess the poster has never toured for 8 hours, eaten dinner and faced a quarter mile of doors that look alike. I'm not a child or elderly, either.

I must say that I am surprised with all the problems on the Sunshine Inaugural. It sounds like it truly was not finished. I hope all these issues are resolved by the time we get on for the Transatlantic November 1st.

I was on the inaugurals for the Dream and the Breeze and the second time out for the Magic. On all three of those voyages it was clear that they had pulled the best and most experienced to make the inaugural season a success.

Can't wait to sail on her. Hope she's ready....................:D

11 pages of basically useless junk. If you brought even 1/10 of the stuff listed on these pages, you would have to go naked most of the time as there would be no room for any clothes. Also, you would be so far above your 50# limit that your baggage costs would be as much as your cruise costs.

 

DON

I've never gone over the 50lb limit yet, coming or going home. Most of these items take up little to no room.

I wouldn't bring a serving tray, though.:cool:

72 days

I agree with those above that "don't" decorate their cabin door....I "don't" decorate my hotel room door either ;)

I don't feel the same way about hotels. They don't follow me around on vacation. But when I get to my cabin on a cruise ship, the first thing I say is.................

"HONEY, I'M HOME":D:D:D

Well, I've expressed my opinion about Jamaica, but if you want to be beaten up by the rah-rah-rah Jamaica cheerleaders who get snarky if you don't love Jamaica like they do, then here's the thread for you:

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1485967&page=11

Helps to find the cabin and I love that.

Also, it's fun. I usually am the only one who does it. My friends are usually not interested (they do appreciate being able to find the cabin, though).

It also provides the finder the information that the house may be vacant! A simple phone call by the finder might spell disaster for some people, far worse than a lost camera.

 

john

I don't worry about that. When I cruise, my house is never vacant and the people who are there are heavily armed. I pity the fool who tries that.:cool:

What is the Lanai? ( and hello to a fellow Zonie ! )

Hey, Zonie,:D

It's a fancy name for a deck, which acts like a patio or walkway all the way around the ship. It's great for exercising because you can walk around and around without obstructions and the view is good from there. You can also access the Ocean Plaza which is a public area in the middle of the ship where there is a small open lounge, a dessert and coffee bar and tables to play cards.

Around the ship on the Lanai are several big hot tubs that kind of project over the side.

Will you tell me your favorite things about the Carnival Magic??

Thank you!

The Lanai! You can walk around the ship completely without ever having to go inside or up and down stairs. I love it and I love that the Ocean Plaza opens up to the Lanai on both sides.

Love the decor.

Love the waterslides.

Love the big screen--don't miss watching a movie under the stars!

Has anyone stayed in this cabin recently? I am trying to find out if it has 2 lower beds. I have seen some earlier posts about cabin 6393 but not specifically for cabin 8357....Thanks for any help you can provide.

Deck plans say that it has one lower bed and one upper bunk. If that is not acceptable you need to call someone ASAP.

http://www.carnival.com/cruise-ships/carnival-conquest.aspx