Tracey,

I forgot about that great Carnival pizza! I look forward to it every time we cruise with Carnival. Delicious! The deli too. Good corned beef.

quote:

Originally posted by Frase:
doulabug:

First of all, despite making a serious comeback after the ban on DDT, bedbugs are still a rare occurance.

I have never encountered any insect problem on any cruise I have been on.

Also, I have never encountered a rude crew member on any cruise I have been on. Sure, I seemed to notice some that appeared to be tired and over-worked; but never rude. I can't say the same about the passengers, however.

By the way, for wise2u:

It was Bobby McFerrin who recorded the song "Don't Worry Be Happy".

Bobby Darrinwas a 50s crooner who performed the song "Beyond the Sea", which recently appeared in TV commercials for Carnival cruiselines. Also, the actor Kevin Spacey portrayed Bobby Darrin in a recent movie also titled "Beyond the Sea".

You are so right. Just a few incidences this past year. It seems that New York and New Jersey are having the worst time of it. We seem to forget that even though we eradicated bed bugs in the States years ago, they still flourished overseas and now that travel back and forth is so easy....these little critters will be coming back.

The good news is that there is a spray called "Sleep Tight" that is around $15.00 for a spray bottle. It is currently being used in about 500 warehouses around the country. It is completely safe and natural (actually a deviative of toothpaste) and safe for the water supply.

The downside is that it must be sprayed on the actual bug to kill it. And since they only come out when they sense the body warmth when someone is sleeping, I don't know how effective it will be in "general spraying" for prevention.

But as you said, with the huge number of ships sailing every week this "problem" is really more of a rare nuisance than a problem. (I guess, unless you are the unlucky person who gets bitten...then I guess that would change the "importance" rating!)

It was odd that as I recall all 3 incidents were reported (on 3 different cruise lines) in July.

Hey Dave!

Ya know, I didn't even hit all the food venues on the ship! Disgusting because I love to talk about everything I see and want to experience everything on the ship so I can answer questions. I didn't hit the deli! When I saw it, it was too late BUT I did hit one food line by the bar which was Southern Fried Chicken day.... A guy (American) said to me with a thick accent, WHY WOULD I WANT FRIED CHICKEN? I said back to him "I'm canadian, and I want to taste your fried chicken!" he nodded in agreement that a Canadian should definitely try Southern Fried Chicken and it was TO DIE FOR! The deli subs coming out of that line was amazing looking and the mediterranian restaurant lineup smelled TO DIE FOR ALSO! Ok I have a break down of what everything cost because when I checked daily the folio and saw it going up and up, I wondered why. I took my 1500 cash and dropped a few bucks each day on my Sail and Sign card which was actually secured with my credit card. Here was my bill for two people:

Alcohol: $360.27
Casino: $61.80
Shore Tour: $382.00 (2 people x 3 shore tours)
Mandatory tipping: $160.00
Transfers: $56.00
Portraits: $89.93
Giftshop: $81.80 (5 bottles of alcohol to bring home and other things)
Candyshop: $8.20
Internet: $136.45
Wine: $28.75
In Room Movie: $8.99
Golf shirt at Golf shop: $50.00

Total $1424.19 and all money well spent.

Ok gotta jet, Talk to you all soon!

Tracy

Yikes!! Bed bugs! My first cruise is coming up Dec.3, Carnival Valor.I was very excited til I came on this chat bored. I'm going to pray every night that I don't see any bed bugs. Maybe I should bring my own sheets and blanket. I hear you can bring bed bugs home with you. Awe jeez!

Tracy, thank you so much for the break down of what you spent. That helps so much!!

Tracy, your review of the cruise got me totally excited again! Thanks. I can't wait...Now I'm going to try and post a ticker.

Yeah, great review, got me remembering fondly.
thanks for the trivia correction...i knew it was Bobby McFerrin but couldn't remember his last name at all. For a one hit wonder kind of guy he sure had the right attitude.

You are most welcome! I didn't review everything I wanted to so if you have questions out there, ask away!

Bed Bugs, PPPFFFTTTTTTTTT I can't say that enough! My god! I checked all through the bed, no bedbugs, And if you plan on bringing your own blankets, if your bed has them, you will be giving these pesty things a nice comfy vehicle to infest your house with. Just go on your cruise, and if you are freaked out by the talk on bedbugs, then look at your bed when you get there, and also, learn on the internet how to look for them. ITS SO EASY!

Enough of that talk, I've never slept in a cleaner room than Carnival Victory...... AND I've stayed at the nicest of hotels in North America. (And some not so nice....)

Hi Tracy,
Have you come down to earth yet?
You sure had a fabulous time. I have read ALL your posts with interest and from what questions you asked and the replies you got I have learnt a great deal for our upcoming voyage in May next year. So thank you for that.
I have one question for you. Can you tell me what the average cost of the drinks were on board.
Thanks
Peter

Ptur, on our cruise the Ecstasy, they always had a special drink of the day, for 5.99. The usual drinks were between 6-7. They were perfectly made. In fact every drink we had was perfect. Great balance of liquor, which I promise they don't cut you short on.
We had free drinks at the captains gala, and we had Whisky sours, great, martini's yuck, my husbands favorite, wine, manhattans, yum, and anything else you wanted. We tried them all. It was the first full day at sea, with formal night right after. We had samples of all the luquor the ship was selling so you could sample before you buy. We are all stocked for the holidays.

Ptur,

A bucket of Coors light 4 cans were 14.23 total (13 plus gratuity) the drink of the day was 6.95 with a refill of 5.99, and a regular drink (Not like what sherri is talking about ) vodka and orange etc, that stuff was about 4.40 and something like a caesar or bloody mary was about 10 for 2 drinks..... Cheappie. We did bring a bottle of vodka on at Panama and had gone to the grocery store and picked up some Bloody Mary mix. noone stopped us but if they had it wouldn't have been a big deal. I put the vodka into my bag and the bag went through the scanner, then I walked over to the elevator! NO PROBLEM MON. hahah

Thanks Tracy for that useful information.
Peter

Hi everyone.

Yeah! My ticker worked. I'm taking a seminars of the seas cruise, and I was hoping to meet other body workers that were going to be on the cruise. Any advice as to how to meet these people?

Hi all...
We too took liquor on board. We went to the drug store and got large cough syrup bottles and I put another lable on them. Put our expensive stuff in those. Worked great. But we also stopped and got a few cheap things that we could drink while getting dressed for the evening. Ordered room service for snacks before going. They came on board with our luggage and nothing was ever said.

Boy. That sounds like we are heavy drinkers... But we did bring some back home. Some.....

Regarding taking liquor on board, here's what I have done on several cruises..take cab to pier,ask cabbie to find you the best porter and tip him $20 and ASK him if he can make the bags beat you to the room. He will slip a VIP tag on the luggage and it WILL beat you to the room, without inspection. In MIAMI port, ask for "BIG JOHN" who will also have all your bags waiting in one spot when you return!

I just got back from a post cruise extended stay for a few days. They say the bed bugs set in a few days after. Well, I have been itching really bad after leaving the ship. But it is because I am itching to book another cruise

Back to your statement about conch fritters... here is my favorite Key West restuarant - they serve C.F.'s at lunch. Also try a Mojito! http://www.louiesbackyard.com/

quote:

Originally posted by doulabug:
Just booked our first cruise - we are going to KW and Cozumel with a bunch of neighbors and friends. I have read some AWFUL reviews about Carnival and am very worried. People getting sick, rude staff, bed bugs(??!!) terrible food. Any expert reassurance out there?

Thanks

i was on the sensation 1 1/2 years ago staff was great all but 1 , no bed bugs just wife snorring, great food , i felt great. best time of my life it was 10 year annv, 1 st cruise , i just booked again going on the 23 nov .fantasy! i cant wait.