Pellaz

Carnival Imagination (r.i.p.), 2012.   My second cruise ever.  

Does the surcharge also apply to Guy's Pig and Anchor?  They seemed more lax, and didn't require reservations for dinner when we sailed on Mardi Gras.   
(Moot point for us; our experience there at dinner was....decidedly sub-par.)  

I used the soda dispensers on Mardi Gras and thought they were okay-y-y-y....   But you had to be careful since there was a time-limit.  Get your ice before scanning your card (tick-tock-tick-tock), and then scan your card once, quickly.  If the system thinks you scanned it twice it will interpret it as a second, too-soon visit and have to wait before trying again.  

I generally prefer Carnival to Royal, but soda packages are an area where Royal beats Carnival handily, especially with the Freestyle Coke machines.  

On 7/29/2024 at 6:49 PM, RoperDK said:

I'm assuming that LaCucina on non Excel ships still has the full menu?  We were disappointed that the menu on Mardi Gras was quite a bit smaller than other ships. 

Wow.  We weren't disappointed at the choices on Mardi Gras, so now I'm curious as to what we've missed (not that we're likely to pay for specialty restaurants anyway; it's not our style).  

My friend John, who grew up in Italy, thought the offerings on Mardi Gras were quite good and reasonably authentic (although our consensus was Nonna's Meatballs weren't as good as his 🙂 ).  Since he's an accomplished cook, this was high praise indeed.    

On 7/29/2024 at 5:30 PM, nc762shooter said:

I used to have an inert pistol cartridge (bullet, casing, no powder and in place of the primer was a metal loop with a little chain) on my car keys. It went through security on 4 cruises and numerous other places for years without more than a glance to confirm it was indeed not a live round and impossible to be a danger to anyone (unless I threw it really hard I suppose😆). 5th cruise the lady at security check told me I couldn't take it on board and had me throw it in the trash can, so go figure.

I used to have a small set of fingernail clippers attached to my key-ring.  I travelled domestically and internationally, no problems.  Went through security at Six Flags Over Georgia for years...no problems.    

--Until one day when security at the gate saw them and had me throw them away. 

I guess they were afraid I might give someone a surprise manicure or something.   "Okay, everyone, stand back!  I have a set of nail clippers here and I'm not afraid to use them!  I'm gonna give that ride operator a manicure he'll NEVER forget!"   😄 

I checked the official Six Flags page and sho' 'nuff, fingernail clippers were listed as verboten.  Go figure.  

On 7/27/2024 at 10:33 PM, BlerkOne said:

Personally I'm fine with either one 

I really didn't notice the difference when I cruised last year on the Horizon.  Maybe if I were more of a foodie...  🙂 

10 hours ago, kdr69 said:

Mine doesnt even call me 

Mine doesn't either unless I contact her first (and I'm fine with that), but she does email me with offers. 

My friends booked our last cruise without involving my PVP (they booked direct), but for our intended 2025 cruise I want to book through her.  

OP, thanks for the review.  A friend of mine surprised me today when he posted he was boarding Elation for his very first cruise, so it's good to hear a mostly favorable report on her.   Hopefully he'll have a good time.  

4 hours ago, Earthworm Jim said:

 

The math could work the other way too. For example, if they are selling 75% of available FTTF slots at $100, that's more profitable than selling 100% of the slots for $50.

Oh, sure; that's why I used the cabanas as an example based on the poster's experience ("ten or more still available" just prior to embark).   

That's a serious drop in demand.

FTTF is a different story, since it's basically "free money" with not too much at risk and no real concerns about unsold inventory such as cabanas and villas.  Or the Private Oasis, and I don't EVEN wanna know how much THAT costs nowadays.  🙂  

2 hours ago, BlerkOne said:

I am still amused by some insisting on standing in the priority line because they can, when the regular line is non-existent.

I had FTTF on a cruise just prior to COVID and went down to Guest Services.  There was one non-priority person being helped at the counter by the lone Guest Services officer and no-one else waiting.  I just got into the regular line.  When the officer called me up she said, surprised "Sir, you COULD have gotten in the priority line; you DO have Faster To the Fun."   
"Sure, but there's only one of you and there was really no need."  

She was taken aback, but clearly pleased.  "That was very nice of you, sir.  Most would have gone to the priority side."

Sadly, 'tis true.  

11 minutes ago, Joebucks said:

"The beards" aren't the ones in charge of this. There are likely corporate data analysts in charge of this. Likely viewing different data sets, trends, etc. When something constantly sells out quickly, you have clearly underpriced it. You jack up the price until you find that equilibrium. Who's to say that selling out in advance is the best method? What if it costs $700 in advance to "secure your spot" and there are still some left for $400 when you get there? Some people might buy that on the spot. 

Some might, but Carnival doesn't generally do "dynamic pricing," whereas, e.g., Royal does.  

From a supply-demand perspective (as well as good ol' fashioned ruthlessness), it would make more sense to sell cabanas at, say, $500 up to a point, and when there are just a few remaining, jack up the price to $700.   

Maybe it's a good thing Carnival doesn't do dynamic pricing.  😄  

22 hours ago, Momma1980 said:

Are you asking what could have been done to prepare the pup?  If so, I could think of multitudes of things. Too many to list. 

Well, then it shouldn't be too hard at ALL for you to list, say, five things the owners could have done to prepare their canine for the terrifying rigors of cruise-ship travel.  Please enlighten us. 

22 hours ago, Momma1980 said:

The owner of the dog would know best how to prepare him for a trip away from home for multiple nights in strange circumstances.  

So, perhaps the owners of the dog "knew best" that little or no preparation was needed for their well-trained dog?  

5 hours ago, Jamman54 said:

It's possible. Same for the cabanas. We are going to HMC on the Vista in April,  and there are still over 10 of the regular cabanas remaining. They have been available for almost a year. They used to sell out quickly. $700 is just too much for most people,  including us. 😎

So when "the Beards" see that cabanas are no longer selling out, they should do some math:  "Is selling 6 cabanas at $700/each better than selling all 16 cabanas at $400 each?  No?  Maybe we should drop the price a bit."

I said "should," not "will."    Time will tell.  

I WILL say that my interest in going to HMC has waned a great deal since the prices there skyrocketed.  

As for FTTF, I just turned Platinum, so I don't have to care about the lesser beings in steerage anymore.  😄  

On 2/10/2024 at 6:27 PM, mz-s said:

That legitimately looks like an advertisement from Golden Corral.

Works for me....    I legitimately like and enjoy Golden Corral.  🙂  

On 2/11/2024 at 3:09 PM, bafinegan said:

Just off the Elation 2/20/24.  Didn't see this.

The mystery deepens.  

On 2/11/2024 at 3:28 PM, jimbo5544 said:

In my (what some would say) Jaundiced view, being this large take away from what is so important to us in cruising.  That is being in touch with the sea and going to places that emphasize that.

That was one thing that struck me two weeks ago on Freedom of the Seas...along with the surprising lack of "free"/included dining options compared to even one of Carnival's older Conquest-class ships.  😮 

You simply DON'T easily feel a connection with the ocean on Royal's ships.  Carnival and Norwegian have included outside or "lanai" decks closer to the ocean on their new-builds.  On Freedom, while there is an infrequently-used, utilitarian outside promenade deck, that's basically it.  The interior promenade is basically a large shopping mall, and the upper outside decks are pretty far from the sea surface.  We really enjoyed the lanai-style decks on the Magic, Vista,  Horizon and Mardi Gras.   

On 2/10/2024 at 8:44 PM, peggisue said:

I was considering doing this for my mom as she loved cruising.    With going through Carnival, you have to be 12 miles offshore before you can scatter your ashes.    My mom couldn't swim and I didn't think that she would like this so we are going with another option.   

This would be the case with any cruise line; for environmental reasons it would need to be done at least 12 miles offshore.  

22 hours ago, thesmiths said:

It is that easy!

 

We always ask for the same servers and the last cruise they gave us the same table each night!

We eat when they open at 5:30 ish.

Our group of 6-9 people always gets YTD on Carnival and it's worked great...and it's a no-brainer on the Excel-class ships.  

If we get a really good serving crew, we ask for them on future visits.  This can sometimes be a challenge for the staff, but they have gone above and beyond trying to accommodate us...even, in one case, sitting our group in a different section, but served by the same crew.  We tip cash rather handsomely on the last night, too.  

12 hours ago, S.A.M.J.R. said:

Which won't really help for situations where they take it somewhere else to scan (think waiter).  I try to use a detachable lanyard, and hand over the clip part.  Or I hand over the entire lanyard.  MUCH easier to know if I've gotten mine back. 😉

Of course, I was referring to a stolen or misdirected ship-card and whether an unscrupulous user could make purchases with it until it was reported as lost or stolen to Guest Services.   

Do the point-of-sale systems onboard have a way of determining that the card is not being used by the valid user?  Does your photo show up when they scan your card so they could see that someone else is using it?  

I was disappointed with my cruise on the Freedom last week, but first, a caveat:  it is a charter cruise and it's pretty obvious that Royal up-priced many things on us, and expended less effort on others.   

• For the first time in 20 cruises, 9 on Royal and 11 on Carnival, I did not tip my stateroom attendant...because I didn't even see him until the third day.  I've never had that happen before on any cruise.  
• My SeaPass card was not in the "inbox" on embark day, but my two roommates' cards were.  They brought a new card to me in the room, but it took 30 minutes and of course, I couldn't leave.  No idea if my original card was stolen or just overlooked, but that also has never happened before.  I was hoping that when a person buys a drink or something, their photo pops up on the display to foil card thieves.  Does anyone know if it does?  
• MDR service was lackluster.  Granted, this was a charter cruise with open seating on the first level (only) of the MDR, but it didn't seem like the staff really wanted to be there.  The menu was limited, too:  I went on "Caribbean Night" and I ended up getting the standard steak item because I'm not a fan of jerk spiciness.  Nothing for us diabetics on the dessert menu either, except a cheese plate.  No fruit plate offered.  
• The shore-excursion process was an absolute cluster.  All excursions had to gather in the main theater, get assigned a sticker with a number on it, sit in the assigned numbered area, wait for a while....   Keep in mind that the ship had already been docked and cleared.  Then we were led out onto the dock and to the usual gathering spot right past the duty-free shop.   This process took 45 minutes...when they could have simply had us go to the gathering spot onshore and look for the tour operators' signs.  This extra wasted time cost us the "beach break" portion of our snorkeling excursion -- as the tour operator was careful to point out.  
• There WERE a few bright spots:  service in Chops Grill was exemplary, the little sandwiches in the Promenade Café were much improved from last year, and the Windjammer options were also a bit better.  

4 hours ago, Tree_skier said:

This was my thought to.  I have cruises booked from now to the end of scheduling and the most expensive one I can find is Icon Dec 2024.  On that cruise they are currently charging 23.99 for a single device.  It goes down to 19.49 for two devices and 18.49 for four.  I can't imagine 27.00 a day. 

Oh, if the price had been THAT low I'd have purchased it for two devices and helped out a friend with his access, since he'd just been laid off before the cruise.   

He ended up booking the wi-fi onboard...at $1 less per day than the pre-cruise price.  Still WAYYY overpriced for the lousy speed we got.  Two, count 'em, TWO cheers for Royal.  

6 hours ago, Tatka said:

I cruise 5 times per year and always have internet, so I’m always hunting for it. I never seen packages with $27 per day per cruise. 
Is this for several devices? 

No, one device only.  $27.  

This WAS a charter cruise, however, and Royal soaked us for as much as they could.  $15 for the soda-only package, and of course no alcohol package was offered since this is the biggest-drinking cruise at sea.  Even the excursions at Taino Bay/Puerta Plata seemed overpriced.  

4 hours ago, not-enough-cruising said:

pre punched card stock is significantly more expensive

That surely must explain all the cutbacks on Carnival.  😉  🙄

It was $15/day for our cruise last week on Freedom, and I thought it was worth it.  I easily had enough sodas daily from the Freestyle machines to make it worth it.   Of course, it also included Powerade, etc. from the machines as well as sodas.  

Go to Guest Services and ask them to punch a hole.  On the Freedom this past week there was an employee with a big hole-punching machine, and a sizeable line of people awaiting same when I got there.  

Why Royal doesn't have the cards already pre-punched, like Carnival does, is a mystery.  

On 2/3/2024 at 12:31 AM, Tatka said:

This seems like slow. I usually get much better speed. More than enough for browsing, watching YouTube etc. Whether it is worth $27 per day… well… I pay $50 per months for cable internet with 450… If you buy multiple days price is cheaper. Before cruise for 11-12 dayer it’s aeoynd $17.99

Sorry, no.  It was $27/day for us when bought pre-cruise.   It was one dollar cheaper per day if purchased onboard, but even at that huge discount, most felt it simply wasn't worth it.  

On 2/3/2024 at 1:46 AM, Biker19 said:

That was very likely a temporary issue. Even the most throttled ships usually get at least 4 Mbps download speeds. Also, for most browsing, it's that latency that counts a lot even though it is also a bit high (usually less than 100ms -lower is better). Pre-Starlink, latency was running at 200ms at best.

Not, it was not a temporary issue.  I posted these speeds in the charter's largest FB group (3,000+ members) and the overwhelming consensus was that speed had been THAT slow throughout...with a smattering of "I couldn't get ANY service in my cabin at all" posts, likely due to a lack of nearby wi-fi gateways or access points.  

I didn't ask for any sort of discount or credit, and perhaps I should have:  One person posted they had received a full refund when they went to Guest Services to complain.  

As a follow-up, this was the speed we achieved on the Freedom this past week.  I performed this test and another one (similar results) after departing the Dominican Republic for Miami. 

Our consensus as a group charter was "not worth the $27/day price."