It's a Ship!!!

Good morning Carnival lovers.

 

Continuing my Cruise Diversity Programme I booked yesterday a cruise on Carnival Dream in and out of New Orleans next year.

 

Currently flights are 'out of range' but when they become available I'd like to know times/routines for disembarkation in order to ensure I have sufficient time to get to the airport.

 

Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

Carnival's guidelines state that your flight should leave no earlier than 11:30 AM. Now as you can see here a lot of people recommend taking a later flight because things can happen. Fog and traffic are both possibilities out of New Orleans that can slow down the process. Sometimes there can be a hold up in customs as well.

If you have a flight on the early side, you can do self assist for disembarkation. That just means that instead of leaving your luggage outside your door on the last night, you keep it with you and then take it off the ship yourself the next morning. They call disembarkation by zones, but self assist goes before the regular zones are called. I have seen it start as early as 7:15 AM.

You can also purchase transfers through Carnival if you don't want to try to deal with a cab or other service. Transfers in New Orleans are $23.50 per person each way. The first bus leaves around 7:45 AM and then then they have buses every 20 or 30 minutes. They do wait for the bus to become close to full.

Thanks for posting about your experiences on the Glory. Your menu thread last time was really helpful. I will be on her on November 12th and I just had one question. I read on a thread about the Conquest that there is now something called Pizza Pirate Plus, which has extra items like lasagna and meatball sandwiches from 11:00 PM to 1:00 AM. Have you noticed that on the Glory?

I think this was a really good comparison. My opinion differs a little bit on a couple of things, but that's how opinions work. I will say that as far as cabin sizes, you see it more in the interior and ocean view cabins than the balconies. The interior on Carnival is the same size as the balcony (minus the outside part). Interiors on Royal are significantly smaller, and interiors on Norwegian are almost the size of a linen closet. Carnival's ocean views are definitely some of the biggest as well.

Just wondering if there will be any Halloween celebrations onboard the Vista?

The kids will be missing all the candy at home!

It depends on the cruise director, but when I did a Halloween cruise they had decorations up the whole cruise. Then on Halloween itself they had a pumpkin carving contest on the Lido deck, a costume contest later that night, special desserts in the dining room, and I'm pretty sure there was some type of trick or treat/Halloween candy event for the kids. I didn't go with kids so I didn't pay too much attention to that part, but I thought I remember hearing about it.

Just noticed that the Magic doesn't appear to have a Sports Bar. Any other bars have TVs to watch football?

The Casino would be the best place. The Sports Square near the mini golf area has a TV that will sometimes have a game on, but it will be hit or miss. For Sunday and Monday night football, they will most likely show the games on the big screen outside.

Good evening all,

 

I'm currently booked on the Carnival Magic in April for what will be my 8th cruise all with Carnival. As the years and cruises go by, the dress in the main dining room has definitely changed. I've have always been a dress slacks and button down shirt with dress shoes on casual nights and Full Suit and tie for the elegant nights. As I watch and see what comes through the dining room these days, I'm wondering is khaki shorts with a button down shirt or polo with a pair of boat shoes is considered acceptable on today's casual dining nights. It would def help me cut down on my packing and also would def be a little more comfortable, but I don't want to look like a bum. Feedback would greatly be appreciated.

 

 

You will be absolutely fine. What you used to wear on Casual nights is now what I wear on Elegant nights. I don't like to wear shorts to dinner, but I do wear a nice pair of jeans and a button down shirt on casual nights. Then on formal nights I wear a button down shirt and slacks. All I have to do is change back into jeans after dinner and I'm ready for the rest of the night's activities

Has anybody ever had this scenario? Booked a cruise and paid deposit. Then bought insurance from Allianz a couple of months later before final payment is due. Then a family member that is going to travel with us has a car accident before final payment is due. Not sure if the injuries are going to keep us from going or not yet. Final payment is due soon and want to know how if insurance will cover the trip if it is determined after final payment that we can't go.

I've used Allianz before and they have been pretty good. Since the injury occurred after you bought the insurance, they should be covered if it is determined by the doctor that they can't go.

The one thing I'm not completely certain on is if your family member would count as a traveling companion, which would allow you to cancel your cabin as well. They allow you to cancel if there is an injury or illness to a family member who isn't a traveling companion, if that family member is hospitalized, has life threatening injuries, or needs your care. I think that would have to mean during the time you would be taking the trip, so if they are better but still unable to go on the cruise, they might be able to cancel, but you would not.

Allianz defines a travel companion as someone whose name appears on the travel arrangements with yours and will be accompanying you on the trip. So if you aren't in the same cabin with them they may not be considered a traveling companion.

All that being said, you do want to call Allianz to make sure that what I have said is correct, because I'm just a random person on the internet and they are an actual insurance company.

Agreed but normally you would be moved to a higher level cabin

They have to move you to an equal category or higher. So if the reason you booked a 3 person room in the first place is because there were no 2 person rooms in that category, then you will be placed in a higher category. That isn't always a good thing if you chose your cabin for a specific reason. That being said, it is pretty rare for them to actually move you, but they have to tell you it is possible so you don't get angry if it happens.

We leave in less than two weeks to celebrate my parents' 57th anniversary. Just read that Zika has been confirmed in the Bahamas. My pregnant daughter, son-in-law and 4yo grandson are booked to travel with us. This is my son-in-law's first cruise and they have been so excited.

That's really unfortunate. I would have her contact her doctor. They will be the best person to advise if just staying on the ship is a viable option. I don't know if insurance would cover this kind of thing, but of course you can always call the insurance company

Don't cruise lines have a responsibility to disclose such information. I am traveling on Carnival and understand their vacation guarantee is good for 24 hours and most club venues don't open until the 2nd night of a cruise. I think that is rather deceptive, especially for 1st time cruisers.

 

Please share and suggestions or any thoughts you may have.

Thanks for reading my post.

Julien

The cruise lines probably should disclose it, but they don't. You will never know if you just book online and don't do any other research. However, a good travel agent will always give you that information. Also if you book over the phone you might be told about it if the rep is a good one. You do have a few options to rectify it depending on when you find out.

If you find out ahead of time, then you can cancel your cruise, move your cabin to a different location in the same category (if possible), or upgrade to a new category with cabins in a better location.

If you don't find out until you get on board you can invoke the 24 hour guarantee, go speak to guest services and see if they can move you (very rare), ask for some ear plugs, or just stay out all night. I don't know where you got your information, but the possibly loud venues do actually open on the first day. In fact, that is usually when those kind of things are the loudest because everyone is ready to party and be on vacation.

There is no cabin of doom on a cruise ship. You will survive. Just because it's a little louder than you like doesn't mean you can't have a good time the other 16-20 hours of the day.

You can do the online check in immediately after booking. I picked my check in time 10 months before my cruise in November.

Does anyone know if the Saints vs the Falcons on Monday Night Football September 26 will be broadcasted on the Dream Sailing out of New Orleans?

It will definitely be on the TVs at the Casino bar, and it will most likely also be on the big screen outside. I took a cruise out of Galveston, and they showed the Cowboys on the outdoor screen for a Monday Night Football game.

Check daily for early saver rates. Have gotten $100 OBC on 7/12 early saver promotion. Today there was a fare drop for $20 so I submitted the form and it was approved. But when I went to check my booking, I only had $20 in OBC and not $120 in OBC. Called Carnival and the agent said I was booked in a different ES promotion on 7/12 and this ES promotion would only give me $20 in OBC. While I gained a $20 drop in fare, I basically lost $80. I explained to the agent my confusion that I thought ES is ES. I should be able to keep my $100 in OBC and she said not when you go from one ES promotion to another ES promotion. And it's spelled out in the terms and conditions which I accepted. I've never had problems with ES in the past and keeping OBC. I'm so confused. What am I missing? Thanks!!

The problem is that the $100 in OBC you got was attached to the specific promotion that you originally booked under. When you do a price match with early saver, it carries over every part of the new promotion with the lower price. If that $100 in OBC was from price drops you would have kept it. Unfortunately that's just how early saver works, and it's how it has always been.

Another thing to think about is if you had paid a reduced deposit, and the new promotion had a full deposit, you would have to pay the difference or your booking would be cancelled.

Call Carnival back and tell them you want to go back to your original promotion. Most of the time they should let you do this if you explain that you were confused. If they don't, call back and get another agent.

They won't let you in the building if you get there before your check in time, but you can get there anytime after your check in time and they will let you in without a problem.

If you can change to an earlier time, then that would be a good idea. If you can't change, then Galveston has the Strand right across from the terminal. It's a street with tons of shops, bars, and restaurants. You can usually find live music with a fun atmosphere in a lot of the bars and restaurants there. So it may cost you a few bucks to have lunch and a drink or 2 there instead of on the ship, but it's a cool little area.

The Victory has the Alchemy Bar, which has lots of great drinks that are usually on the stronger side.

Otherwise, anything frozen tends to have less alcohol in it. Martinis are always strong, even if it is one of their specialty martinis that has other things mixed in. The Blue Moon Martini has pineapple juice and blue curacao, so it is sweet, but definitely still packs a punch, and you can order top shelf vodkas like Grey Goose or Belvedere.

Hello,

 

We have booked a cruise on the Carnival Inspiration.

Our cruise disembark at 7:00 AM at Long Beach.

 

If we book a flight at 11:00 AM with JetBlue out of Long Beach Airport, would we be able to make it to our flight?

 

 

Thank you.

Danny

Carnival's flight guidelines for the Inspiration show the earliest return flight out of LGB should be 11:00 AM. So you are still within their guidelines. It is cutting it close, but it is doable. 99% of the time you will be fine if you do self assist. Of course there is always the possibility of a delay to the ship or to you getting off the ship, but you just have to decide if you are willing to risk it

As a travel agent I can tell you it happens all the time. People don't realize this, because most of the time the 3rd and 4th people in the cabin are less, but Carnival has hundreds of cruises sailing every year with prices that change all the time.

Since I look at cruise prices all day every day, I see it a lot. It usually happens on the more popular times for families like Summer, Spring Break, Christmas, and Thanksgiving. It also happens a lot when someone is looking at last minute cruises and there isn't much available.

Print out paper. Take paper to the pier. Fold Paper. Ask porter for stapler or tape and attach to luggage. Tip porter

Great start! I'll be on the Glory later this year on the same itinerary, so it's great to read a review on her.

I've been on the Dream and Magic which were sister ships and I think you are able to go out on deck 4 but I don't specifically remember doing that. However, if you look on the deck plans there are openings that look like doorways in several spots along deck 4.

For breakfast I like omelettes, for lunch I like whatever they have when it is Caribbean day, and I don't go to the buffet for dinner.

However, my absolute favorite food on any ship is the Indian food from the Tandoor that is near the deli on Dream class ships. If that counts as part of the buffet it wins hands down.

There is a weird perception that the new menus have less to choose from, when in fact they have more options. I will say that on Elegant night there are less appetizer options than normal, so maybe that is where people are getting that? They also did a test run and the original menus had less options, but they were changed to the current menus with more choices.

To put it in black and white.

Old Menu: 10 appetizer/soup/salad choices including everyday items, 10 entree choices including everyday items, 4 side dishes that are the same all week, and 8 dessert choices

New Menu: 11 appetizer/soup/salad choices including everyday items and new port of call item, 11 entree choices including everyday items and new port of call item, 11 possible side items (6 choices each night), and 8 dessert choices.

So basically the new menu has more choices in every category except dessert, but I think they combined a category from the old dessert menu. Instead of having selections for both ice cream and sherbet, they have "selection of ice creams" and I'm pretty sure sherbet is an option.

To answer the original question, the menu is basically restructured with a couple of changes. They removed some items and added others. They now have a port of call section with one appetizer and one entree from the region you are in. They have less appetizer choices on elegant night, but in my opinion those nights are when they have some of the best appetizers, so it makes up for the lack of variety. For example on one elegant night they have the pork tenderloin and braised kale tart which I've heard is really good, and on the other they have crab cakes and my favorite stuffed mushrooms.

I can't really say about the children's menus but it looks like they have a bunch of items that are the same every day with 2 choices that change every day.

I'd give her an 8 when I sailed her, but it would probably be bumped up to a 9 after the dry dock with the upgrades.

Thank you for the reply. I know if I went Dream, I would miss Guys burgers and the Pub that's true. Sadly all the 4J cabins are sold out, so it would be either a interior or Ocean View.

 

My only concerns of the Breeze and maybe im over thinking it. The cost of transportation from Hobby AP to the port, heard its very expensive. Also not being able to use my drink package I always prepurchase till day two, would be a disappointment because that would be like 50 bucks extra, or so. I try to pre pay Everything minus some things. Some call me cheap or calls me Mr. Budgeter, lol

 

As far as the ports, which is a better. Cozumel, Belize and Routan Or Dreams Grand Cayman, Jamacia-the one other than Falmouth- and Cozumel.

 

Thank you again!

The cost for Carnival's transfers from the airport to the pier and back are $37 per person each way. So you are looking at a total of $74 if you used Carnival's transfers. There are also private shuttle or car companies that can get you there as well. I think Galveston Express is $30 per person each way, so you'll save a little bit there.

There is the Cheers restriction out of Galveston, but last time we went, my friend and I just took our bottle of wine, and bought a few drinks that night, and ended up spending less than $50. You can always pre purchase on board credit through the fun shops as well if you want to pre pay for that one night.

As far as ports it depends on what you like to do. Roatan is easy if you want to do a beach day, since you can just walk right down to the free beach and relax or rent various equipment like snorkels or kayaks. Belize has a long tender ride, and there isn't much to do right at the pier. However, they have a lot of good shore excursions like Mayan Ruins, Cave Tubing, Snorkeling the second largest barrier reef in the world etc. Grand Cayman has 7 Mile beach which is a short cab ride away from the pier, and is a really nice beach. They also have a swim with giant stingrays excursion which is really fun if you like that kind of thing. I would recommend doing an excursion in Jamaica, even if it is just one that takes you to a beach. The locals can be really pushy, especially to a single guy traveling alone, so it's better to have a guided excursion. Dunn's River Falls is a lot of fun but is a long drive and can be physically demanding.

You can't really go wrong here. The Breeze is the better ship because of Guys, the ropes course, and the Red Frog Pub, but sailing out of New Orleans is a lot of fun. If you plan on coming in a day early, New Orleans is a great place to be.

I prefer the MDR for any meal that it is open, unless the ship has Guy's, Blue Iguana, or the Tandoor available for lunch. I have nothing against buffets, and will happily eat there for lunch on port days. However, if I can sit in a place with a nice atmosphere and have a server take care of me at no extra cost, I will choose that option every time.