Things you learned the hard way?

They say "experience" is the one thing you always get right AFTER you needed it. Do you have any well-earned "experience" you can pass along to the newbies?

Here's a couple things I learned the hard way on my recent Fantasy trip From New Orleans to Cozumel and Progreso...

Stand up before flushing on board! ESPECIALLY if you're a fatty who creates a good seal. The seat risers create a little "whistle room", but if you're not done, that first flush will scare the rest out of you! Sorry Honey... no courtesy flush on board.

In Cozumel, it is perfectly acceptable to paint road signs on the side of whatever building happens to be closest to the corner. And if you don't see that one-way sign on the side of the taco hut, the locals will certainly let you know. I don't know Spanish, but I definitely got their message!

Avoid booking a hotel on Canal Street during Mardi Gras, and whatever you do DO NOT move the police baracade blocking access to the hotel. The local police get VERY upset - and just a little "physical" over that.

Do not get so plowed that you don't remember buying those conch shells (that's actually from DH's girls-only cruise on the Celebration last year). "All you can drink rum punch party boat" is NOT supposed to be taken as a personal challange.

So what "experience" do you wish you had about five minutes earlier?

When you first get on the ship and get started on the DODs, remember they are not Kool Aid and you will remember the rest of your first day.:o

Ok I admit to really laughing out loud about the toilet!!! LOL

I learned when I get on the ship... start my cruise THEN! We used to walk aroun... exploring blah blah. Now we get on board, go to the lido pool bar and find a seat and have a DOD. We meet people right then and there... start to relax and unwind. You have plenty of time trying to get somewhere to explore.

Now that I am 16 Carnival cruises in.... we cross the threshold in the lobby... sit at the lobby bar and have a drink before going anywhere. We watch the people getting on and their excitement and awe... try it some time it's great!

I like that idea!! Just go sit at the lobby bar and watch other people arriving. Plenty of time to explore. Of course I am with a big group, and sigh....I won't much want to be left alone....although..hmmm....I might :D

That neighbors like to look around at other peoples balconies. Of course I don't care who sees but not sure that is what they expected to see.:eek:

The cruise line issues each person in a cabin with their own S&S card.

That's so You The Individual can and should walk with it at all times, once you're not in the cabin!

Not my clever wife though.

Oh honey, you have yours so I won't carry mine (we're joined at the hip?)

Turns out that sometime later a grandchild also on the cruise needed to borrow my one and only card

to go back to our cabin to retrieve a comb or something reeaally important

took ages to get back with my card(scatterbrained teens!)

- by which time I got impatient and things started going quite haywire!:cool:

Result: one rather angry wife, who somehow precipitated the whole sorry mess

by not walking with her S&S card. :confused::confused:

i.e. had we both had our cards, the kid coulda borrowed one of ours

and it woulda bin no big deal.

Oh no no - Life's not that simple. :)

Now isn't that just the strangest marital story you ever heard?

___________________________

WALK WITH YOUR CARD

-no matter who also has theirs

The jetted tub in the Cat 12 will blow your B*** out of the tub with the pressure! :eek: Also, if you are "larger than average" good luck fitting in. My 6'2" hubby's head had 1" of clearance when he was in the shower...and he would have NEVER been able to sit in the tub!

Dying with laughter about the toilet! People ask about the noise on ships on certain decks. The noise from a cabin mate using the toilet in the middle of the night is about as bad as it can get.

As long as you started the toilet thing, I learned the hard way that if I want to use a restroom in some of the port cities, I must carry $1 bills with me at all times.

our first cruise, our honeymoon, we were not aware food was 'included' nor were we aware that it was available 24x7 via room service and then most of the day at the windjammer cafe. so we get off the plane hungry, get on the shuttle hungry and get to the ship hungry. when we got to our room we were, you guessed it, hungry. we had the late seating (8 something) so it would be a while before we got to eat. we sat in the room and ate saltines (just happened to be in one of our bags) and peanuts (from the flight).

while finally eating in the dinning room (at 8 something) we learned that we could have ordered room service or gone to the windjammer.

the menu didnt have prices on it but i was young, on my honeymoon and had a pocket full of cash so no worries. i was slightly embarrassed at the waiter's response when i asked for the check at dinner in front of my tablemates.

our first cruise, our honeymoon, we were not aware food was 'included' nor were we aware that it was available 24x7 via room service and then most of the day at the windjammer cafe. so we get off the plane hungry, get on the shuttle hungry and get to the ship hungry. when we got to our room we were, you guessed it, hungry. we had the late seating (8 something) so it would be a while before we got to eat. we sat in the room and ate saltines (just happened to be in one of our bags) and peanuts (from the flight).

 

while finally eating in the dinning room (at 8 something) we learned that we could have ordered room service or gone to the windjammer.

 

the menu didnt have prices on it but i was young, on my honeymoon and had a pocket full of cash so no worries. i was slightly embarrassed at the waiter's response when i asked for the check at dinner in front of my tablemates.

Awww...that's a sweet story! ...one you can tell your grandkids one day!

 

Now that I am 16 Carnival cruises in.... we cross the threshold in the lobby... sit at the lobby bar and have a drink before going anywhere. We watch the people getting on and their excitement and awe... try it some time it's great!

From a people watcher....That sounds like a GREAT idea!! I'll have to test that theory in june....

(that's actually from DH's girls-only cruise on the Celebration last year).

 

So what "experience" do you wish you had about five minutes earlier?

I wish I knew five minutes earlier that DH is "dear husband", not "dear wife". Whoops...

I wish I knew five minutes earlier that DH is "dear husband", not "dear wife". Whoops...

RFLMAO! I wondered about "Fatboy" having a DH, but hey, it could happen.

Then I thought maybe you were a Harley fan. :D

I wish I knew five minutes earlier that DH is "dear husband", not "dear wife". Whoops...

Not that there's anything wrong with that..:D

I wish i had known before my last cruise on the splendor 31st jan,that if i had arrived 10mins earlier I would have gotton on the ship and missed the bomb scare that left us sitting in the "hanger"{as we called it}for over 9 hours,ironically it was my first platinum cruise:(

I am LOL at the toilet comments--too funny. One thing I learned very early on is that I am only going to use 1/20th of what I "think I need" and about 1/10th of what I actually pack, so now, I pack accordingly. I pack VERY lightly for a cruise. And man, is it nice not dragging those heavy bags through an airport.

I wish i had known before my last cruise on the splendor 31st jan,that if i had arrived 10mins earlier I would have gotton on the ship and missed .........sitting in the "hanger"{as we called it}for over 9 hours...........:(

Same here but we had that on the MLK sailing of the Paradise when a couple decided to get off the ship in the middle of the ocean.

We learned to take some food with us even though Long Beach is only an hour away.

On our first cruise, my dh brought everything...including a hard-side cooler, duct tape, and yes, even pliers. (You can take the engineer out of his elements, but you'll never take the engineer out of my dh...LOL):eek:

Anyway, after making him carry all that junk around the Lido deck while we waited on our room, he started to realize a theme...no one else had a cooler!!!:cool:

I'm happy to say, he did not bring one last year and will not be bringing one in a couple of weeks!;)

Oh, and ladies, that toilet thing...be warned...if you flush while sitting on the toilet and do not create a complete seal...hold on to something because eventually your booty will become sealed to the seat!:o

They say "experience" is the one thing you always get right AFTER you needed it. Do you have any well-earned "experience" you can pass along to the newbies?

• Negotiate the cab fare before you get in...
  
• That nifty ride to Dunns River falls in the front of the tour boat will get your Canon 30d soaked with saltwater
  
• A soaked 30d needs cleaning before you get another rum punch
  
• If you eat breakfast or lunch in the dining room never respond when asked what you do "I am in health care." They have opinions or questions about fungus, infections and menopause within five minutes... Trust me
  
• You will see the same inflatable FUN letters at the show on every cruise the first night
  
• Elegant night has a wide range of interpretation from fellow passengers, don't sweat attire
  
• The ships on a stick are not that cool on the mantle once you get home
  

A Fat Boy partner could be a Soft Tail or a Hard Tail. Even a Road King...

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RFLMAO! I wondered about "Fatboy" having a DH, but hey, it could happen.

 

Then I thought maybe you were a Harley fan. :D

I'm new to this, so I'm still learning the shorthand. "DW" saves a whopping 2 characters over "wife". As much as I gripe about those silly kids with their silly text messages (one of my kids set a personal best with 18,300+ texts in February), maybe I should just forego the shortcuts and stick with English.

And yes, I AM a Harley fan! I don't own one, but I poured two courts of oil in my driveway under my Goldwing so I can pretend it's a Harley until I can afford one!

The jetted tub in the Cat 12 will blow your B*** out of the tub with the pressure! :eek: Also, if you are "larger than average" good luck fitting in. My 6'2" hubby's head had 1" of clearance when he was in the shower...and he would have NEVER been able to sit in the tub!

I'm not sure which word got bleeped... If it'll blow *oobs out of the water, I bet that's fun to watch. If it'll blow *alls out, I'm not sure your husband would want to try it anyway! :eek:

I'm not too worried about vertical clearance, but I do have some horizontal... um... challenges. The showers on the Carnival Fantasy were a little more forgiving than the RC Majesty of the Seas.

I sometimes still get shocked as a veteran cruiser overtime, lol! It makes me laugh everytime i go on a cruise and especially if I am with a first-timer. haha. Those are the BEST no-clog toilets I've ever seen!

Speaking of which, now in the public bathrooms, they got another surprise to some of us: extreme hand blowers.

Check out this funny video by World-reknowned Cruise Director Legend John Heald about the first blower on board, lol http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_CphKwJUf_g

And also, seriously, I think one of the main things that surprises everyone is the "smallness" of the cabins in general. But we should realize that Carnival Cruise Lines actually has the largest cabins at sea. They have always been known for that since the 1980's. Other than this, a cruise is what you make it, so do what you want to do to have fun and by all means have fun on the "fun ships"! :)

Hey Fat boy! Instead of pouring those two QUARTS of oil on the ground, send them my way! Both our Harleys need oil changes, and neither one has ever leaked! M DH's bike has an antinque plate on it too! A friend of ours has a Goldwing, aka Leadsled, that leaks like a seive! Go figure! He always has to ride at the back of the group, and can't park next to anyone. I keep telling him to buy a real bike!

Things I learned the hard way: Even planning everything down to the last minute detail won't get you to the ship on time if Mother Nature has her way!

That nifty ride to Dunns River falls in the front of the tour boat will get your Canon 30d soaked with saltwater

Ouch!! :(

I have learned that slot machines just. DO. NOT. LIKE. ME. Why do I insist on sitting at one everytime?? :rolleyes:

This is a great post! Going on my first cruise in 15 days. I will warn my family not to sit and flush - never read that anywhere before - how funny! :eek: