Carnival magic

[ttrmom]

Hi all- a few quick questions as I get ready for the cruise on the 28!

 

1) my check in time is at 12- is it possible to ask for earlier?

2)do they still have paper daily schedules or is it all on the HUB app

3) talk to me about  Grand Turk- all we want to do is sit on a beach all day- what is the nearest beach that offers chairs and umbrellas?

4) I havent been on a cruise since 2019 but I assume chair hogging is still an olympic sport? How crowded does serenity get?

5) what is open for lunch on boarding day?

6) any other tips and tricks are welcome!!!

[mz-s]

With regards to question 4 - Just move their towels - I do. I don't care anymore.

Edited June 16, 2022 by mz-s

[DCDragonfly]

They still have paper schedules, but you have to pick them up at Guest Services.

[MeganGC1983]

14 minutes ago, DCDragonfly said:

They still have paper schedules, but you have to pick them up at Guest Services.

And some other places like the coffee bar. 

[Essiesmom]

Beach will be right next to the pier.  Also pool at Margaritaville.  For Grand Turk.

Your arrival time is assigned, you can’t ask to change.  Has been that way since way before Covid.  Arrive early and you will wait outside in the heat.  
lido buffet and other venues on Lido open for lunch on embarkation.  Not sure about Pig & Anchor on Lanai.  EM

 

In addition to browsing this forum, read the Carnival website.  

[kona_wahine]

The chairs are free at Margaritaville or you can walk a few steps farther and pay for a chair and umbrella and the beer and rum punch are MUCH cheaper. 

[matymil]

1) Ive been on afew post pandemic cruises. Our check-in time was noon on the Magic, we got there at about 1145am and our friends in line told us they havent even started letting people on the ship yet. When people ask me my biggest cruise tip, its pick a check in time at noon or later. With everything going on these days in slows the process down plus everyone wants to check in as early as possible. I had a 1230 check in for the Liberty afew months ago and it took less than 10 mins to get on the ship from stepping off the bus.

3) Grand Turk is probably the best free beach day port there is outside of HMC. You dont even have to leave the port. You'll see it all as soon as you get off the ship

4) It changes on every cruise; we had no issues when we went but we were at about 60-65% totally depends on how full you are and the type of people. Youre going out of NYC? So good luck with that (im going out of NYC July 18th 🙂 )

5) Everything is open, including guys BBQ which not many ppl know. Its located outside on deck 5 across from the red frog pub.

6) My biggest tip- dont do an early check in lol!

Edited June 16, 2022 by matymil

[keywest1]

For our April cruise, they release a bunch of check in slots a week or two before our sail date.  Keep checking--you may be able to get an earlier slot.

[Cruise, J.D.]

Cucina (2nd floor Lido) should be open for lunch on embarkation day. It likely won't be busy.

[phoneman69]

I believe to others fully covered most of your questions. I will ad that Serenity does not have much shade areas. if you have a full or queen sheet you may want to pack it. A lot of people where using sheets on the over head timbers to create shade areas. Some of us used extra towels to create the shade area but had to keep adjusting them. Just a thought 

[Pellaz]

On 6/16/2022 at 12:33 AM, Essiesmom said:

lido buffet and other venues on Lido open for lunch on embarkation.  Not sure about Pig & Anchor on Lanai.  EM  

 

Guy's Pig & Anchor on the Lanai IS open on embark day, and then only on sea-days thereafter.  

They always say "go to Lido Deck for lunch" which is why P&A is typically not busy.

 

14 hours ago, Cruise, J.D. said:

Cucina (2nd floor Lido) should be open for lunch on embarkation day. It likely won't be busy.

And indeed it hasn't been busy in our experience.    We felt guilty going there upon embark because we were enjoying a stress-free meal (pasta made to order) in a restaurant with plenty of open tables, while one deck below the usual madness was taking place at the buffet.  

Upon embark I made a beeline to Mongolian Wok to beat the long line because it's worth it, then brought my bowl up to Cucina and joined the rest of my cruise-friends.   We slipped out to Pig & Anchor afterward and got something "small."  

 

[caribsun]

On 6/15/2022 at 8:58 PM, mz-s said:

With regards to question 4 - Just move their towels - I do. I don't care anymore.

What if passenger was in the pool or left to go to the restroom ? Not a good idea IMO.

[mz-s]

32 minutes ago, caribsun said:

What if passenger was in the pool or left to go to the restroom ? Not a good idea IMO.

 

In my experience that is rarely the case. You can tell when a towel has been sitting there balled up on a chair all day long versus they're in the pool and coming back in 20 minutes.

[BoozinCroozin]

I never though chair hogs were bad until I was on NCL. The same people put the same blankets on 4 chairs every morning by 6AM. It was there until the end of the night, every day of our cruise. Once people caught on to it, they started doing it as well. By 7AM most chairs were already taken.