Carnival Cruisers out of Charleson SC

[sanmarcosman]

4 minutes ago, mz-s said:

Maybe Norfolk will go year-round and become more affordable. To date Norfolk cruises have been way too expensive for me to consider.

Norfolk has seen cruise ships port there for decades on an irregular/occasional basis and still doesn't have a secure parking lot for guests who drive to the port. This story covers the "suggested" parking lot by Carnival in Norfolk:

 https://www.wavy.com/news/local-news/norfolk/cruise-passengers-expected-to-pay-for-repairs-to-vehicles-broken-into-at-norfolk-parking-lot/

[Dthomas1]

4 minutes ago, sanmarcosman said:

Norfolk has seen cruise ships port there for decades on an irregular/occasional basis and still doesn't have a secure parking lot for guests who drive to the port. This story covers the "suggested" parking lot by Carnival in Norfolk:

 https://www.wavy.com/news/local-news/norfolk/cruise-passengers-expected-to-pay-for-repairs-to-vehicles-broken-into-at-norfolk-parking-lot/

Very interesting. Thanks for posting.

[sanmarcosman]

5 minutes ago, Dthomas1 said:

Very interesting. Thanks for posting.

You're welcome, and you'll read there Carnival's statement that tells the City of Norfolk that Carnival is considering their options if the city doesn't get a handle on this. Having attending school there for 4 years, Norfolk will never be on my travel radar. 

Edited August 12, 2022 by sanmarcosman

[Dthomas1]

1 minute ago, sanmarcosman said:

You're welcome, and you'll read there Carnival's statement that tells the City of Norfolk that Carnival is considering their options if the city doesn't get a handle on this. Having attending school there for 4 years, Norfolk will never be on my travel radar. 

From reading about all of the vandalism I wouldn't sail from Norfolk.

[mz-s]

14 minutes ago, sanmarcosman said:

Norfolk has seen cruise ships port there for decades on an irregular/occasional basis and still doesn't have a secure parking lot for guests who drive to the port. This story covers the "suggested" parking lot by Carnival in Norfolk:

 https://www.wavy.com/news/local-news/norfolk/cruise-passengers-expected-to-pay-for-repairs-to-vehicles-broken-into-at-norfolk-parking-lot/

 

I agree, Norfolk has some improvements if they want to be a year-round port. But if they're willing to I'm sure Carnival would love to replace Charleston with a similar drive-to port on the Eastern seaboard, albeit a few states away from Charleston.

[jsglow]

12 minutes ago, mz-s said:

 

I agree, Norfolk has some improvements if they want to be a year-round port. But if they're willing to I'm sure Carnival would love to replace Charleston with a similar drive-to port on the Eastern seaboard, albeit a few states away from Charleston.

 

Maybe.  I'm sure Carnival is always evaluating their home port opportunities.  But it's not necessarily true that if Charleston made the cut as, let's say, Carnival's home port #9 (which is probably accurate) that Norfolk would find itself in the same spot in the pecking order. I do think Carnival does see the marginal benefit of having one ship ported somewhere between Florida and Baltimore.  But does that marginal benefit evaporate too much when they get relegated to a secondary port along that stretch? Does San Juan become a better option, as an example?  No doubt they will crunch the numbers.  But ships can get deployed anywhere in the world and any SE location will need to sell itself, not just regionally but against all other options.

[mz-s]

6 hours ago, jsglow said:

 

Maybe.  I'm sure Carnival is always evaluating their home port opportunities.  But it's not necessarily true that if Charleston made the cut as, let's say, Carnival's home port #9 (which is probably accurate) that Norfolk would find itself in the same spot in the pecking order. I do think Carnival does see the marginal benefit of having one ship ported somewhere between Florida and Baltimore.  But does that marginal benefit evaporate too much when they get relegated to a secondary port along that stretch? Does San Juan become a better option, as an example?  No doubt they will crunch the numbers.  But ships can get deployed anywhere in the world and any SE location will need to sell itself, not just regionally but against all other options.

 

I'm not sure San Juan makes sense for Carnival these days. Blue card cruisers (Carnival's intense focus) want to drive to their cruise and they want to go to places they see on Instagram.

[mlshum]

We’re sailing out of Norfolk for the first time in Oct.  it’s actually closest to us.  Hoping for a good experience!

[ninjacat123]

2 minutes ago, mlshum said:

We’re sailing out of Norfolk for the first time in Oct.  it’s actually closest to us.  Hoping for a good experience!

What cruise line?

[proudpatriot07]

I live in Charleston and obviously love sailing from here. When our ship leaves, I don't even see us taking many more cruises. We'll go back to weekends away in Asheville and other land-based vacations, for the most part, and probably just cruise every few years.

 

It was fun while it lasted, and most Charleston residents were fine with the ships.  

[mlshum]

43 minutes ago, ninjacat123 said:

What cruise line?

Carnival Magic

 

i visited the battleship there several years ago.  I’m anxious to go again!  It’s a nice area...at least, as I remember it.

[simplelife]

On 8/12/2022 at 11:01 AM, Dthomas1 said:

3 hours and 40 minutes from Charlotte to Savanah. Not bad.

Would love to see Savannah as a port. Beautiful city and well-equipped to be a homeport. 

[dbrucern]

We have cruised out of Charleston 4 times as it is only a 3hr drive from home in NC. Usually stay in North Myrtle for two days prior (2hr drive) love the convenience.  Will be down there in December for the journey cruise and again in Jan of 2024 before they close the port. Hoping they open up Wilmington as a port. Great city and things to do prior to a cruise

[mz-s]

2 minutes ago, dbrucern said:

We have cruised out of Charleston 4 times as it is only a 3hr drive from home in NC. Usually stay in North Myrtle for two days prior (2hr drive) love the convenience.  Will be down there in December for the journey cruise and again in Jan of 2024 before they close the port. Hoping they open up Wilmington as a port. Great city and things to do prior to a cruise

 

I'd love Wilmington but they'd have to build a terminal. There is nowhere for a ship to dock. But it would be even more convenient for me than Charleston if it were to happen.

[ninjacat123]

9 minutes ago, mz-s said:

 

I'd love Wilmington but they'd have to build a terminal. There is nowhere for a ship to dock. But it would be even more convenient for me than Charleston if it were to happen.

Closer than Jacksonville, FL for me so I'd be good to go!😃

[Straitlover]

Hopefully doing an Oct trip out of CHS. Sister has a casino offer, and we originally going to do Port Canaveral, but if we do CHS, no need to drive down the day before and pay for a hotel. Freedom cruise is a tiny bit cheaper (around $50?), but we picked CHS. Drive to our condo in Little River, SC Sat AM then head to CHS early Monday morning (2.5 hr or so drive). Never been to CHS before, so we can do a little sightseeing when we get back Sat AM then head back to Little River late afternoon.

 

First cruise since Alaska in June 2018. First Carnival cruise since Feb 2016!

[bguppies]

Savannah has little to no shot. (Two hours closer to the Florida ports. Like somebody already said, only 2 hour drive from Jacksonville, with the same bridge problems and no terminal in place)

 

If Carnival was to have to kick in to help with a new terminal in Savannah, Norfolk or Wilmington, I'd think they'd try to get a terminal built in Jacksonville on the other side of the bridge, so they could use a bigger ship than Fantasy or Spirit class.

 

Norfolk and Baltimore are too far north to have a larger prescence. (Too much fuel to get to the easiest places, like Bermuda or the Bahamas.)

 

Living in Charleston for the past 22 years, it has irritated me to no end, at how perfect a town it is for crusing, yet to not be able to take advantage of this due to the SNOB's (rich people Slightly North of Broad St) trying to block the cruise industry at every turn. Yet now after years of fighting a new state of the art terminal at the docks, to replace the old shipyards there, that entire area in the past 2 years has been turned into eyesore after eyesore condos on the water. (which to me is way worse than a cruiseship being docked down there every couple of days until 4 PM._)

 

I think Charleston could have been a fantastic stop for ships in NY, Baltimore or Norfolk to stop at on their way south to the Bahamas or Caribbean.

There are lots of historical things to see a short walk from the ship., Market street, with all the local shops in the open air shops are a half block to the right when you disembark. The higher end shopping on King Street is 3 blocks over.

The boat to Fort Sumter is just a few blocks north at the Aquarium.

Boone's Hall Historic Plantation  (where the minseries North and South was filmed) and the other 3 historic plantations are on the other side of town, on Ashley River Road. All 4 plantations are a short 40-45 minute ride away from the pier.

Many beaches, also a less than a 45 minute drive from the pier. (although the beaches down here are mercifully undeveloped, unlike those I used to frequent on the Jersey, Maryland or Virginia shore back in the 80's-90's.)

It reminds me of stopping in Key West but with much more to do unless you just want to get drunk.

(then Key West is king)

 

Sadly an increase in the cruise industry in the area could have been a boon to the workers in the area and small business owners, but the rich would prefer more rich people living in the condos there, rather than a daily influx of tourists.

[ninjacat123]

36 minutes ago, bguppies said:

Sadly an increase in the cruise industry in the area could have been a boon to the workers in the area and small business owners, but the rich would prefer more rich people living in the condos there, rather than a daily influx of tourists.

Like a previous poster stated, maybe the SC Governor will step in (like the Florida one did for Key West) and rule that cruise ships can port in Charleston.  I hope so...

[Drazil65]

Wilmington, NC would be great.

 

THIS...I agree, we are about 2 hours from Wilmington. 

 

We have used Charleston port many times with the most recent being the last week of May this year.  Charleston is one of our favorite cities to visit and go a couple times a year even when not cruising.  We are trying to squeeze one more cruise in from Charleston before they close it down as well.   

[dbrucern]

On 8/15/2022 at 9:49 AM, mz-s said:

 

I'd love Wilmington but they'd have to build a terminal. There is nowhere for a ship to dock. But it would be even more convenient for me than Charleston if it were to happen.

I know that Wilmington at one point had something because they brought military equipment back on ships from Iraq thru Wilmington as my husband was temporarily stationed there. 

[Dthomas1]

2 minutes ago, dbrucern said:

I know that Wilmington at one point had something because they brought military equipment back on ships from Iraq thru Wilmington as my husband was temporarily stationed there. 

Move the Yorktown out to sea, carry on only and a ticket booth 🤣

[mz-s]

49 minutes ago, dbrucern said:

I know that Wilmington at one point had something because they brought military equipment back on ships from Iraq thru Wilmington as my husband was temporarily stationed there. 

 

They have plenty of places to dock ships, they're a fairly large port. But nowhere set up for cruise ships that can accommodate a modern Carnival ship.

[rrraydon]

On 8/12/2022 at 1:07 PM, mz-s said:

 

That's my feeling as well, I know Carnival's hands are tied in CHS so I don't blame them. But if CHS is off the table, pretty much means I'm flying to my cruise. And that really opens up my options.

 

Maybe Norfolk will go year-round and become more affordable. To date Norfolk cruises have been way too expensive for me to consider.

That’s my beef with Norfolk also, the cruises are too expensive. I wish they’d bring the prices down and add more cruises.