Miss Kellybean

The best part is that the wedding and activities are as long as your cruise. We were fortunate enough to have 30 friends and family members sail with us after our embarkation day wedding and it was a 3 day cruise - 3 day reception!

Hi Tortola cruisers,

My family and I will be visiting Tortola for the first time in June and as I was planning our "non-cruise line" excursions, I kept hitting a brick wall with a lot of options already sold out in Tortola. Last night, while searching the web, I came across Celtic powerboats. The reviews on TA all seem great, the price is right and the Captain responded quickly. We are all in and I was just wondering if anyone else had any experience with them.

Cheers!

Kelly

I was on the Monforte and loved every minute of it! There was a ladder out of the water that you have to climb and the sea was very calm.

I can't speak about the Glory but I was on the Splendor and the Magic in 2016. We absolutely loved everything on the Magic. The Splendor was meh. I would choose the Magic in a heartbeat over the Splendor. The Magic had ultimate service, was super clean, had better dining and drinking options and the entertainment Fun Squad was high energy and engaging. We found the Splendor stinky at nearly every turn, lacking in attention to detail (no coffee at 7am, Art Gallery paintings always left in the hall near their storage room, average to below average service with just 1 exception in the dining room). I didn't find either layout confusing - they are pretty much all the same in my opinion.

You can't lose with either itineraries, though - both are amazing. Also, I am a big fan of Port Canaveral. Much easier than Miami.

Does anyone know if non sailing guests have to pay for parking?

 

 

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Our non-sailing guests from Port Canaveral on the Carnival Victory did not HAVE to pay for parking. They just told the attendant they were day guests for a wedding and were directed into a specific lot.

I did this on the Carnival Liberty a few years ago and it was great! We did Dunns River Falls, White River tubing and Fern Gully. We also drove around instead of going to the beach since we were pretty much done with water at that part. It was great and flexible and our driver kept the vendors from harassing us too much at our stops. We are going back in June and I plan on booking again with Know Jamaica!

Thanks for posting. Great video and I love the black halter suit!

Can you all believe that our wedding year is coming to a close? I was in full force preparation mode at this time last year and this year we all get to ring in 2017 with our new hubbies! Congratulations, fellow brides! And cheers to our first anniversaries in the new year!

I suppose it makes a difference if you want a private moment or not but here is an idea. On the first formal night, go to one of the picture areas and do it there. You will have the photographer capturing the moment and you will both be looking your best. Then remember to tell EVERYONE you just got engaged and enjoy the excitement!

Although it wasn't our first cruise, my husband and I just returned from our honeymoon on the Splendor and I can offer a few tips about honeymooning and the alcohol question. :)

1. Let people (the crew) know it is your honeymoon.

2. This will particularly help with the question about alcohol. We actually had to pack some of our bottles to bring them home. We had guest services buy us a drink one night, John Heald sent us champagne and strawberries, we also ended up winning a bottle of champagne in a trivia game.

3. As to saving on those drinks! We have done it several ways in the past. Buying a la carte, buying Cheers and so forth but we think we really figured it out last time. We each brought on a favorite bottle of wine. We also had a bottle of vodka and a bottle of gin sent to the room with some sodas for mixers. Between the 3 bottles of gifted champagne, 2 bottles of wine and 2 bottles of liquor, we were more than set and saved so much!

My grandson who was 12 on our last cruise, always picks out an out of the way bar and makes friends with one or two of the bar tenders who always remember him after the first day - they often give him his drink and one for his younger brother, who is with him sometimes but doesn't drink enough soda to warrant getting him his own package because he is usually in kids club. The first cruise I took him on was at age 9 and he insisted on getting a $10 bill the last cruise evening so he could tip his favorite bar tender - he was pleased to be able to do it and the bar tender acted like it was a $100 bill when thanking my grandson!

This is cute.

We were on the splendor with the new process and I didn't like it as much but not for why many people think. First of all, the cards are not tied to your credit card. They are tied to your guest account (folio). It is a subtle but important difference. If there was a erroneous charge, it would first go to your folio and it would not even touch your credit card - assuming you are not an idiot and review your folio balance at any point during your trip or even after.

 

Secondly, the cards don't go into the mailboxes until the end of the process. It really wasn't that big of a deal. And as others have mentioned, getting a drink was easy. Just use your paper pass.

 

What bothered me was the check in not being perfected yet. You know how the "old way" was that first you go through security and then to the agent counter? Well, it is all done up front in security now. Meaning many guests had to wait outside just to get through the security queue. When we arrived shortly before noon, there were half of the security area agents just sitting there waiting for their shift to start. Once we passed through and went upstairs, you see a huge waiting area and counter that was empty. Unfortunately the terminal just isn't set up for the process to run as smoothly from the guest point of view.

 

But, all in all, it doesn't matter. This is the new way and eventually someone will change it down the line again so we may as well just get used to it and I will prepare myself to have the possibility of standing in line in Miami in June outside, when we sail on the Vista. I don't suppose it matters much about first impressions. I wasn't a fan. But I get what I pay for.

One more thing... they have a dedicated GS line for issues with the process. I paid attention to this since we were hanging out in the lobby bar and there really didn't seem to be more than 1 or 2 people at a time over there before sail away.

We were on the splendor with the new process and I didn't like it as much but not for why many people think. First of all, the cards are not tied to your credit card. They are tied to your guest account (folio). It is a subtle but important difference. If there was a erroneous charge, it would first go to your folio and it would not even touch your credit card - assuming you are not an idiot and review your folio balance at any point during your trip or even after.

Secondly, the cards don't go into the mailboxes until the end of the process. It really wasn't that big of a deal. And as others have mentioned, getting a drink was easy. Just use your paper pass.

What bothered me was the check in not being perfected yet. You know how the "old way" was that first you go through security and then to the agent counter? Well, it is all done up front in security now. Meaning many guests had to wait outside just to get through the security queue. When we arrived shortly before noon, there were half of the security area agents just sitting there waiting for their shift to start. Once we passed through and went upstairs, you see a huge waiting area and counter that was empty. Unfortunately the terminal just isn't set up for the process to run as smoothly from the guest point of view.

But, all in all, it doesn't matter. This is the new way and eventually someone will change it down the line again so we may as well just get used to it and I will prepare myself to have the possibility of standing in line in Miami in June outside, when we sail on the Vista. I don't suppose it matters much about first impressions. I wasn't a fan. But I get what I pay for.

Do you happen to have any photos of the menus and fun times? I will be boarding in a month and curious to see what they have going on.

I have the Fun Times and can upload them in a few days. The menu's were the same as any other 7 day cruise. I didn't get a copy of them but seem to be learning them as I cruise more and more.

We were on the same cruise and I agree that there was a lot of attention to detail that was missing. Our first impression was that the Splendor lettering was on the side of the ship was busted and falling off but it looked good enough. And pretty much that was what my impression of the ship was. Busted but good enough.

We did like Curacao but didn't get enough of it. We arrived at 2pm Curacao time and it took an hour to get off the ship and get our car that we had rented. We drove to the North shore to Shete Boka and only had a little over an hour there before the park closed for evening. We were there for so long but it wasn't good timing. Most stores were closed as we returned from exploring. I would have preferred to skip DR and have a full day in Curacao. That is probably an unpopular opinion, tough.

Before booking, call Hampton Inn to ask about renovation. They should be done by then. They offer a complimentary breakfast and quite possibly brand new rooms! There is a free Universal shuttle that runs about every hour.

Highly recommend this hotel!

When I get to go to the future cruise desk!

For what it is worth, we were on the Magic in connecting rooms 8331 and 8328. According to Go CCL and our PVP, our balconies would not connect. We just asked the steward and he did it for us. No problem.

Could they be using your passport photo as your sail and sign photo? This system may be a pain for us, as my first stop is usually at guest services to put cash on our account, and they ask for the card then. Now we would have to stop at the cabin first. Ugh.

My first stop is at the lobby or Lido bar for a welcome aboard drink. How do I pay for it? I hate to sound like a drunk but I know I am not alone here. Do we use credit cards or cash? Not being platinum or diamond, I don't get into the room until 1:30.

This is great! I wonder if it all has to be on one charge. For example, we will place the deposit and then ot the balance in a few more months.

We did this same itinerary in June and had a great time snorkeling with Fury charters in St. Thomas. We saw different fishes and the coral but the highlight was seeing the sea turtles! Highly recommend them!

Thanks for the feedback. I just heard back from Jolly Pirates and I am (unfortunately) correct. Our ship will be arriving as the tour departs (8 for the ship; 9 for the island) so we won't make it. Pity. I really was hoping to do that excursion. I guess I will just have to return to Aruba and stay on the island. :)

I am on my first spa cabin cruise as well and am wondering if the Elemis products will be enough for two people on an 8 day trip. i have seen other posts stating you get just 1 sample size of each. If this is the case then, I will still need my regular stuff since i don't like the dispenser products either.

Hi cruise friends,

I think I have figured out the answer to my question and want to see if you all agree with my thought process.

We sail on November 5 (the night of the time change) out of Miami on the Splendor. Since we fall back (presumably) and Aruba does not, when we arrive in Aruba at 8am, it is really 9am Aruba time and the ship stays on Eastern time. Is this correct?

The reason I ask is that I want to do a non-Carnival excursion there that starts at 9 and it obviously won't work if that is the time we arrive to the island.

Thanks!

I will be on the Splendor 3 weeks from this very moment. I am happy to see if it is going on during out trip and I'll let you know when we get back. :)