Very Disappointing 2017 Sailings from Norfolk

Carnival just updated their website to show the sailings out of Norfolk, VA for 2017. We are a seasonal homeport and typically get a ship in the Spring and Fall for about a month.

Usually there's a mix of 5 to 6 day Bahamas sailings along with one or two longer options like Bermuda or Eastern Caribbean. Not for 2017 though. They are only offering 5-day Bahamas to Nassau and Freeport.

I've got to admit, this is pretty disappointing. I have sailed out of Norfolk every year (except 2014 when they temporarily pulled out) for some time. But I don't think I'll bother in 2017. Nassau and Freeport and two of my least favorite ports.

It really baffles me that Carnival didn't give us some better options to choose from. Every time they do a sailings from here to somewhere more interesting, it sells out like crazy. Grrr. :mad:

Carnival just updated their website to show the sailings out of Norfolk, VA for 2017. We are a seasonal homeport and typically get a ship in the Spring and Fall for about a month.

 

Usually there's a mix of 5 to 6 day Bahamas sailings along with one or two longer options like Bermuda or Eastern Caribbean. Not for 2017 though. They are only offering 5-day Bahamas to Nassau and Freeport.

 

I've got to admit, this is pretty disappointing. I have sailed out of Norfolk every year (except 2014 when they temporarily pulled out) for some time. But I don't think I'll bother in 2017. Nassau and Freeport and two of my least favorite ports.

 

It really baffles me that Carnival didn't give us some better options to choose from. Every time they do a sailings from here to somewhere more interesting, it sells out like crazy. Grrr. :mad:

They only released a very small portion of post April 2017 sailings, there are still lots more ships to be added, so there maybe more. I wouldn't be too worried about it in 2015.

I'm reminded of the phrase "Beggars can't be choosers"

That is disappointing. We were thing about a Bermuda cruise for 2017 and Norfolk would be easy drive.

Don't get upset yet. 2017 is a ways away. Also the Pride has at least one Bermuda sailing showing. Just a few of hours from Norfolk via Rt. 13. You may not always get what you want from a port that only hosts cruise ships a couple of months a year.

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Based on the awful traffic mess this past October, I'm not sure I want to sail from there again unless they get their act together. :(

Still, I like the port. I like being able to drive there.

But as with other East Coast ports, you can only get so far (and back) in the typical 7-night cruise. Don't have many options other than the Bahamas.

Based on how well the Bermuda itinerary sold, and the prices they were able to get (and get them early), I'm a bit surprised there isn't anything. But let's not forget that Bermuda isn't exactly begging Carnival to send more ships. They may have their berths filled for their seasons way into the future. They don't exactly seem to want multiple ships in port every day, all summer. Since they actually have a thriving economy, they don't need to pack the islands with mobs of tourists daily.

Carnival just updated their website to show the sailings out of Norfolk, VA for 2017. We are a seasonal homeport and typically get a ship in the Spring and Fall for about a month.

 

Usually there's a mix of 5 to 6 day Bahamas sailings along with one or two longer options like Bermuda or Eastern Caribbean. Not for 2017 though. They are only offering 5-day Bahamas to Nassau and Freeport.

 

I've got to admit, this is pretty disappointing. I have sailed out of Norfolk every year (except 2014 when they temporarily pulled out) for some time. But I don't think I'll bother in 2017. Nassau and Freeport and two of my least favorite ports.

 

It really baffles me that Carnival didn't give us some better options to choose from. Every time they do a sailings from here to somewhere more interesting, it sells out like crazy. Grrr. :mad:

No sympathy here, sorry. :)

We have to fly to every port, except for the two cruises on Glory from Boston to Saint John, NB.

How I'd relish a cruise from Boston to Nassau and/or Freeport.

No sympathy hear either. Carnival only does Alaska and the Mexican Riviera on the west coast. Alaska isn't my thing and Riviera will get old.

It is quite early for schedules to be completed for 2017!

We here in California are also unhappy that there are no 7 day cruises shown out of LA for that year!

We are hoping we'll get another ship here and not just the ones that do the 3 and 4 day cruises to Mexico!

No sympathy here, sorry. :)

We have to fly to every port, except for the two cruises on Glory from Boston to Saint John, NB.

How I'd relish a cruise from Boston to Nassau and/or Freeport.

Who is asking for sympathy? OP only stated the facts thus far regarding the sailings out of Norfolk. And your posting is how helpful?

They only released a very small portion of post April 2017 sailings, there are still lots more ships to be added, so there maybe more. I wouldn't be too worried about it in 2015.

I'm pretty sure that's it for Norfolk, though. We are a seasonal port. A selection of June / October sailings is what we would expect. I'm just surprised that they aren't offering more varied itineraries, like usual.

I would jump on a 5 Day Bahamas if the price were low enough. But I'm more likely to skip 2017 or possible sail out of Charleston or Baltimore.

I used to live 30 mins from the Norfolk port. I'm about 2 hrs now.

Honestly, I'm surprised Norfolk got Carnival to come back. Norfolk just doesn't get it. I park a huge ship on your doorstep with 2000-4000 potential customers and you're CLOSED! The mall...CLOSED! Restaurants....CLOSED! All the excursions go to other cities.

I was on a ship pulling into Freeport. Watched the port area go from dead to fully open before the gangway was deployed.

That said, I did a CTN out of Norfolk and loved it, but like an earlier poster said, you can only get so many places from Norfolk. :( Just checked Baltimore, they don't seem to do much more than Norfolk does.

2015 was my first time sailing out of Norfolk. If it wasn't so close it would have been my last. A closed tunnel and ridiculous workaround, then horrible traffic, the whole parking and bus thing that took way too long, long lines. I had never been so happy to see a platinum lounge as by the time we got there my blood sugar was plummeting.

But that said, our 2016 group had to fight to keep our cabins as the ship is already full and Carnival took everything back that they could, leaving us to believe it will be a very full ship.

So I too am very disappointed that 2017 won't see even a chance at Half Moon (not that we would stop there anyway), or Grand Turk.

I also think the Splendor was a better choice than the Sunshine because of the retractable roof (after the very wet 2015 cruise). And the prices...wow. You could drive to Florida and cruise from there and probably break even.

That said, I did a CTN out of Norfolk and loved it, but like an earlier poster said, you can only get so many places from Norfolk. :(

I'm always baffled when I hear this. Last time I checked, Norfolk was much closer to the Caribbean than Baltimore. And you're in the Atlantic WAY sooner than having to traverse the Chesapeake Bay for approx 12 hours one way going from/to Baltimore so this makes absolutely zero sense to me. If you can get there from Baltimore, you sure as heck can get there from Norfolk and saving a full day round trip to boot.

That being said, I see no reason why Carnival can't offer 7 day cruises possibly including Key West (not the greatest place, but better than the stinking Bahamas), Half Moon Cay, and Grand Turk. If they can do it from Baltimore, they can do it from Norfolk.

I cancelled my Norfolk cruise from this past May and went out of Miami for the following reasons:

Price. It was cheaper for me to cruise for 7 days on the Glory solo in an inside room than to share an OV with my mom. After factoring in airfare, I broke even and got 2 extra days on the ship.

Better ports. I am tired of the Bahamas. Love HMC and Grand Turk. While it's true I cruise 80% for the love of relaxing on the ship, I do like to get off sometimes and go milling around the stores or maybe hit up a beach. The Bahamas are just OK. Been there done that way too many times.

I'm always baffled when I hear this. Last time I checked, Norfolk was much closer to the Caribbean than Baltimore. And you're in the Atlantic WAY sooner than having to traverse the Chesapeake Bay for approx 12 hours one way going from/to Baltimore so this makes absolutely zero sense to me. If you can get there from Baltimore, you sure as heck can get there from Norfolk and saving a full day round trip to boot.

My point was that you won't find a Canadian/New England cruise or a Western Caribbean. When I looked yesterday, it looked like Baltimore and Norfolk were pretty much running the same cruises except that Baltimore had some 8+ day itineraries that Norfolk didn't.

I'd love to see a Bermuda cruise from Norfolk that didn't have a ton of sea days attached though. :)

My point was that you won't find a Canadian/New England cruise or a Western Caribbean. When I looked yesterday, it looked like Baltimore and Norfolk were pretty much running the same cruises except that Baltimore had some 8+ day itineraries that Norfolk didn't.

 

I'd love to see a Bermuda cruise from Norfolk that didn't have a ton of sea days attached though. :)

I hear ya. But surely Carnival could do better than what they currently offer. It can be done, but I feel like they either don't try very hard or think that we will be content just going to the same old places. Well I won't be cruising from here anymore with these lame itineraries. Especially at the prices they charge.

I hear ya. But surely Carnival could do better than what they currently offer. It can be done, but I feel like they either don't try very hard or think that we will be content just going to the same old places. Well I won't be cruising from here anymore with these lame itineraries. Especially at the prices they charge.

I feel the same way about Baltimore. Same two itineraries year round, prices sky high. At least Norfolk gets a variety of ships. Baltimore apparently can only accommodate the Pride. I know all about the bridge, but I thought for sure a fantasy class ship could pass under it. Guess not.

Baltimore is offering one sailing so far to Bermuda for 2017. Prices starting at $1k pp for an inside. Now I have been to Bermuda. It's beautiful. But that cruise would cost my little family of 4 $5,000 +! EVERY year I run the numbers to sail from NY or Baltimore versus trekking to Florida. It's never cheaper. I might break even on the normal itineraries but the rare Bermuda cruises, forget it. Of course I could travel in the middle of January or February for less. But no thanks. Too many variables to make it worth whatever savings you might get.

I feel the same way about Baltimore. Same two itineraries year round, prices sky high. At least Norfolk gets a variety of ships. Baltimore apparently can only accommodate the Pride. I know all about the bridge, but I thought for sure a fantasy class ship could pass under it. Guess not.

 

Baltimore is offering one sailing so far to Bermuda for 2017. Prices starting at $1k pp for an inside. Now I have been to Bermuda. It's beautiful. But that cruise would cost my little family of 4 $5,000 +! EVERY year I run the numbers to sail from NY or Baltimore versus trekking to Florida. It's never cheaper. I might break even on the normal itineraries but the rare Bermuda cruises, forget it. Of course I could travel in the middle of January or February for less. But no thanks. Too many variables to make it worth whatever savings you might get.

A Fantasy class ship can pass under the Bay bridge and Key Bridge I believe. Don't quote me on it, but I think the requirements to be a Panamax ship are the not only fit into the locks, but to fit under bridges as well, and the think the Chesapeake bridges fall into that. It's just that all of the Fantasy class ships run their itinerary yearround. I always wondered why they sell these Long Beach 2 nights for $25, or how they can sell a 3 night for $110 in desperation, but keep the two ships there yearround.

If they sent Imagination back over, they could replace the Fascination. With the balconies, the Fascination could spend summers from Norfolk. Easy 2000 pax ship to fill to the Bahamas in the summer for families. Northeast cruises are great, but 10 times easier sold when the kids are out of school. In the winter she could do something in the Caribbean. That's always been my thought.

As stated above, I think if Norfolk went into late June, and the first cruise from New York would be over the 4th of July, that would be perfect. Many families would seriously benefit from cruises leaving later in June. The itinerary wouldn't necessary matter, it would fill up easily, and hopefully get new people to cruise from Norfolk. But as for itineraries, I do think Norfolk could be upgraded. Maybe one 6 night, and then an 8 night during the season. 6 night could have Nassau/Half Moon Cay/Freeport, and the 8 night could have San Juan/St.Thomas/Grand Turk. The Cruises to Nowhere being banned really hurt Norfolk.

I would love to see more options and dates out of Norfolk. I'm 45 minutes away in Williamsburg and have only been on 1 cruise which was out of Port Canaveral. I'm OK with higher prices because it would be about the same cost as either renting a car to put miles on or driving 12-15 hours, hotel room, gas, meals/snacks, etc. I would like to see at least a few during summer months. My wife is a teacher and because they have winter and summer break they are not allowed more than 3 straight days off without a doctors note which eliminates anything late August through mid June. No sailings from Norfolk mid June through August or during Christmas/new years

The Cruises to Nowhere being banned really hurt Norfolk.

Not really in my opinion. There were only 1-2 in the spring and maybe another 1-2 in the fall.

What hurts Norfolk in my opinion is Norfolk. The city just doesn't get it. If they did, Carnival and the other cruise lines would be there year round.

That said, I miss the CTNs. :(

I sailed from Norfolk for the first time in May...I was watching the prices on the particular sailing I was interested in and only booked when it was acceptable to me. I ended up booking a 1A guarantee at $399pp instead of rates $549+ for a regular inside. I looked at the current Norfolk offerings and am not impressed with itineraries or prices. I'd rather buy airfare to a Florida port for a longer cruise or pay to go to Bermuda in the summer from NYC or Boston then to pay the ridiculous prices for a 5-day to Nassau and Freeport! I'd even rather drive farther to Charleston (I'm in NC) and sail on a Fantasy-class ship then pay the prices to sail from Norfolk!