A friend who is not on Reddit is cruising out of Miami in June. On Embarkation day if she can’t get early check in what can she do to pass the time? Also she is budget conscious ( I know it doesn’t exactly go with Miami). What are some things she can do on the extra day her and her sister booked to stay in Miami afterwards. TIA

In 2004, Carnival Corporation initiated a development program for Carnival's new ships, the Pinnacle Project, calling for a 200,000 GT prototype, which would have been the world's largest cruise ship at the time. The ship was cancelled, but they then developed a project called Next Generation. The class was planned to be larger than the Oasis class ships.

I am in Canada right now and was planning to get my ass on a cruise at the the end of the year. But I don't know, should i book it right now or wait for summer. I am tight on a budget so what expenses, other than ticket, i can expect?

Does the prices are gonna get higher or lower towards 2026?

I was recommended cruise lines from Carnival and Royal Caribbean, but I have no idea which one is better and is there any difference at all?

Follow up to this post a few weeks ago: https://www.reddit.com/r/Cruise/comments/1j61yut/9x_carnival_cruiser_1st_time_on_virgin/?utm_source=share&utm_medium=mweb3x&utm_name=mweb3xcss&utm_term=1&utm_content=share_button

Virgin has better food and the service involving food is top notch. Virgin is cleaner. Virgin is more peaceful and relaxing. Virgin has a better sail off party. I thought the docking experience for Virgin was smoother, and the docks and locations themselves felt unique to Virgin (major plus because I've been to both islands on Carnival). Virgins fitness centers and workout outlets were more varied. Virgins events and games felt age appropriate. The music on Virgin seemed geared towards one specific group and ruined the party experience beyond the sailing off party. I've been to topless resorts and it felt like Virgin wants to lean into that kind of atmosphere, but never truly does. Overall, Virgin is a high quality traditional vacation experience (relaxation, varied food, and great accommodations).

Carnival has better variety of music and in general it's just more diverse from crew to sailors. Carnival has better hot tubs (hotter and larger), pools (warmer), and overall water experience. Carnival has better "atmosphere." This one is really hard for me to describe, but Carnival feels more foreign to everyday society, it could be the upbeat "choose fun" aspect of their advertising. Both cruises had socialites but Carnival wins in socializing and in general how often strangers want to interact. Carnival really knows how to maintain party energy and accommodate everyone. Overall Carnival is more of a high energy getaway meant to break up the mundaneness of regular life and the name "Carnival" really fits.

I like both cruise lines for different reasons. If I want to enjoy my money and rejuvenate, I will book Virgin. If I want to go all out and have a high energy time (party), I will book Carnival.

NCL seems to be notorious for canceling ports. Currently on the NCL Escape - it's my first NCL in about 15 years. We actually tendered at Great Stirrup Cay the first day, and were told by an officer that it was the first time in 5 weeks they've been able to do that. St. Thomas was no problem. Tortola - again, no problem, even though I had heard that was another frequently canceled port. Well, today was supposed to be Puerto Plata and about 30 minutes before we were scheduled to dock, the dreaded announcement came. Canceled due to high winds. Very disappointing, but they have the right to do that.

But I do wonder how they compare to other cruise lines. I've been on 30+ cruises (only 1 other NCL) and that's never happened to me before. We almost missed Monte Carlo one trip because of rough seas that would preclude tendering, but a few hours later they decided to give it a go.

All in all, it's been a nice trip. Le Bistro was great, we have Cagney's to look forward to tomorrow. Food in the MDR has been pretty nice. The MAS wines are a bit lacking, but we've found a few that are ok. The pool was ridiculously overcrowded today - people were quite literally cheek-to-cheek on the edges of the pool and inside. Five minutes after the port cancelation announcement, 100% of the pool deck chairs had towels on them (and only about 10% had bodies). I did manage to score a seat on the deck above in the sun for a few hours, but it was one of a very few left.

I just don't know that I could consider NCL again if they have such a habit of canceling scheduled stops.

Part of the April Fool’s Massacre at HHS was CDC’s entire Division of Environmental Health Science and Practice. This division includes the Vessel Sanitation Program, responsible for oversight of everything from sanitary design of the ships at the design stage through construction and onward to onboard practices and disease surveillance.

Are there any Brio or Brio compatible trains available on the ship or in any of the ports? That would be a perfect souvenir for my little grandson. Thanks!

I’ve been on 12 or 13 cruises now. I’ve always picked my room while booking. I had an opportunity to take a few vacation days so I picked a last minute “pack and go” rate on carnival,with them picking my room for me.

I’m now a week out and they still have not assigned a room for me. I called Carnival and they told me they have until the morning of the cruise to pick a room.

I really was expecting them to say it could be up to 72 hours before the cruise, But I’m not assigning me a room until the morning of makes me a little nervous.

My question is,

has anyone who used a “pack and go”rate not been assigned room a week before the cruise, Or is not receiving your room number until the morning of the cruise. Truly the norm and that’s what everyone does.

Or is the morning of the last possible time and most people get it a day or two before they leave?

I really do not want to drive to the port without a room number.

Hey all! We’ll be disembarking at the Manhattan Cruise Terminal on Monday, April 7, 2025, and I’m trying to decide the best way to get to LaGuardia (LGA).

The cruise line offers a shuttle for $38 per person, but I’m wondering if it’s better to just grab a cab or Uber/Lyft once we’re off the ship instead. We’re not really in a rush — immigration opens around 7 a.m., and we’d like to be at the airport by 11 a.m. so we can enjoy the lounge (flight isn’t until almost 2 p.m.).

Would love to hear from folks who’ve disembarked here recently: • Is it easy to get a ride (cab or app-based) from the terminal on a Monday morning? • Any idea how long the ride typically takes to LGA? • Is the cruise shuttle worth it for the simplicity, or more of a time/money trap?

Appreciate any tips or recent experiences!

We are Canadians, and I want to know what we should do. I know it is strange to ask 'strangers' about this, but we are worried. Mostly because we are not US Citizens.

We spent most of our winters and vacations in the USA. I spent all my life between the two countries because we had family in the States of NY and FL. But with the current political situation, we wonder if we should forget about the large deposit we gave for a 17-day cruise next October.

We had bought an RV 1 month before they closed the border, and we sat on it for 2 years. I am not getting any younger (75), and I don't think that I can wait for everything to pass so we can go without worries.

I am reading all kinds of horror stories about people being detained for frivolous reasons, and it makes my wife more nervous than ever before. She just wants to cancel everything, even if it means losing a large sum of money.

For myself, I consider waiting until the June date, where the final payment is owed to make up my mind.

I know there isn't much you can tell us to reassure us. But it does feel nice to say what is weighing on my heart.

Thank you for having read this.

Got a free cruise certificate but there are no availability’s! …

We're thinking about a cruise in July that visits Amber Cove on Island Princess, but I see Carnival Mardi Gras will also be there at the exact same time. That's a ship which can hold 6500 passengers compared to Island Princess at 2200. Is the pool area going to be absolutely packed?

We don't want to do an excursion for this port. Is there an adults-only area or some other option besides a cabana that won't be so busy?

This is our first river cruise ever! We’ve been on several ocean cruises & are a huge fan of Celebrity. We knew it would be a big difference from 3,000ish guests to 110 guests, but there’s less than 25 guests on this ship. So far only 12-15 people on each excursion. The welcome meeting said we’d have about 3 staff members per guest 😱

Well we’re loving it so far 🤩 Amazing service, great tours, delicious food, beautiful new ship. It’s on the Riverside Cruises, which we know is a newer line (taking over from Crystal). My question is, how do we replicate this again? 😅 imo it’s worth it to pay extra for this more intimate, personalized experience. Is it because the cruise line being new? Or the time of the year? Has this happened to anyone else?! Cruise line & dates, please if it has 🙏

I´m gonna enter a trainee cook program for a european river cruise ship company, the ships are 4-5 star so i assume they are at least nice restaurants(from what I´ve seen it´s only sit down restaurants they have, no buffet). The thing is the program is only 1 month, which i feel is somewhat low? The expected position after this program is commis de cuisine, which mean "cook helper", which in my interpretation is washing dishes while learning. I only have 2 month experience in a buffet style events business, I think I understand cooking techniques very well and that´s about the only thing I´ve got going for me, I prep things slowly, haven´t plated anything etc. Has anyone entered a program like this? I would like to know how it is to prepare myself, since it is a huge job oppurtunity if I pass the formation. What do you guys with actual cooking experience expect I will be learning. yes the program is towards people with little experience like me. Thanks in advance.

Hi! My spouse and I are childless and in our 30s. I’ve always been kind of afraid to go on a cruise (I blame a true crime documentary I saw in middle school and know it’s silly), but my spouse really wants to go to Alaska and a cruise seems like the best way.

What cruise line would you suggest that would be best for us to both go on a cheaper, short trial run from a Florida or Texas port and then later use to go to Alaska if it goes okay?

We don’t mind kids and would take families over an older demographic, but also really don’t like loud or party environments. I also have a gluten intolerance that would need to be accommodated.

Thank you in advance!

Edit: After reading through all the comments and watching lots of YouTube videos on the different cruise lines, I think we figured it out! I’m going to skip the trial cruise and just go for it. Probably with Virgin Voyages’ new 7 night route that starts next year!

I just booked my second cruise (Princess, June 14, 2025, NYC -> Canada -> NYC, 10 days)

The last stop before getting back to New York City is Boston.

If we decide we’re ready for the trip to be over, what exactly is the consequence of just getting off the boat in Boston? I think I’d tell someone (guest services, I suppose) but is this a bad idea for some reason?

Update:

Either y’all are wrong, or the other side is wrong. I’ve never before gotten LESS of an answer than I have here. There’s a TON of comments saying that doing this is horrible (lifetime ban & humongous fines). But there’s also a ton of comments saying “yeah, it’s fine.”

So… I guess I’ll just have to ask them. 😂😂😂

We have a cruise coming up where we have these 2 new to us ports. We wanna choose one of these 2 ports to do an excursion and 1 just hang around the port area. I was wanting some input on this from people that have been to both. From what I've seen Grand Turk looks like a cool port to just make our beach/pool day with Maragritaville there and stuff. There doesn't look like there is as much to do in the Amber cove port area. Would love some thoughts!

I’m considering transferring my cruise reservation to a travel agent with only a few days left to do it. So how do I find a reliable travel agent who also has enticing onboard credits/perks/whathaveyou. I feel like I’m blindly searching.

Going cruising soon and wanted to do something on the dare devil side of fun.

Hi all,

We’ve previously cruised with P&O and Marella, where our flights have always been included. We’re looking at Celebrity cruises, but they don’t include flights at the time of booking- I’ve seen some cruise companies allow you to book flights through them at a later date, but I was just wondering the following:

• How do you know the cost of the flights if you book after you’ve paid for your cruise? What if the flights are way out of your price range? • Is it better to book flights independently and not go via the cruise company? • Is it better to book via a travel agent and pay all at once?

Thanks guys

Hi! Going on a cruise with my family and in-laws next April, leaving from Rome, and stopping in Naples, Crete (Chania), Kusadasi, Mykonos, and ending in Athens.

I was wondering if anyone had some good insight on things to do in those ports. How far away are the city centers? We like history, food, wine, and beaches. We’ve just started to do some of our own research (since we’re a year away), but wanted to check this sub for any fun ideas or things outside of the box.

Thank you in advance for your help!!

Hi everyone,

We’re cruising on Odyssey of the Seas and planning excursions in Santorini and Naples. In Santorini, we want to climb the steps and tour Oia, and in Naples, we’re hoping to visit Positano and Amalfi.

Since these excursions involve a lot of walking, we’re concerned they might be too much for our kids (ages 4 and 8). We asked Royal Caribbean about Adventure Ocean hours on port days, but they couldn’t give a clear answer.

Does anyone know how long the kids’ club typically stays open on port days? Our Naples excursion is 8 hours, and Santorini is 4 hours, so we’re trying to decide if we should book.

Any insight would be greatly appreciated—thanks in advance!

What are your thoughts on best cruise lines for adults? We did a Disney cruise with grandkids that was great, but that was our first and not very adult focused. I did hear avoid Princess and celebrity.

I've got a cruise coming up on Carnival where I'll be going to specialty dining most nights, but I don't want to miss out on their amazing warm chocolate melting cake.

Is it okay to just go to the main dining room and ask for dessert only?

Hello! My wife and I will be going on our honeymoon next month. First time cruising and first time to Alaska. We have an excursion booked in Juneau through Princess, to take us to Mendenhall/Whale watching. We are in port from 2-10pm, but our excursion is from 3:15-8:15pm. I’m worried we won’t have enough time to explore Juneau on our own, as we’ll be on the tour most of the day. How long do places in Juneau stay open?

Should we cancel our booked excursion, and book a shorter whale watching only tour so we have time to explore Juneau and walk around? Or is Mendenhall a must see? Any tips or recommendations are appreciated!