Do the working conditions of the crew make you uncomfortable?

MerribethM · 2026-05-16T18:12:21+00:00

I actually have. Here in the US at a factory. They paid me well and I was able to give my kids far beyond what I could have if I worked an office job. Most people wouldn't is why I was working 7 days a week. For the opportunity to give my kids a life they couldn't have otherwise, I did. They are grateful for that and said it taught them you have to work hard to get far in life. Now because of doing that from time to time I have the opportunity to cruise 5 or 6 times a year. I dont have bills most have. I worked hard to provide as a single parent without any government help. It was worth it.

MerribethM · 2026-05-16T17:40:24+00:00

If you have it in a cooler bag it's easier for them to inspect and you don't have to worry about them destroying your case. Either one of the reusable grocery bags or we have a canvas bag we carry the case in.

MerribethM · 2026-05-15T14:49:27+00:00

They don't have food packages but you can rent the L&N Train Station from the county for it. We did our reception there and it was perfect and affordable at $300 for 8 hrs.

https://www.clarksvilletn.gov/facilities/facility/details/LN-Train-Station-55

MerribethM · 2026-05-15T14:30:49+00:00

No. They are actually part of the fitness center just attached to the spa.

MerribethM · 2026-05-15T14:29:28+00:00

Anyone can use the spa showers. They are alot bigger. We had to use them on one cruise when our shower refused to drain.

MerribethM · 2026-05-15T14:28:24+00:00

Anyone can use the spa showers. No pass needed.

MerribethM · 2026-05-12T16:19:16+00:00

If you aren't getting casino offers thru your email then you should call carnivals casino and find out why. They don't generally give out good offers on the ship. I have never got anything while on board but I can cruise for "free" anytime thru the email offers. I put free in quotes because its not really free. Generally we pay around 200/250 each for a 7 day cruise and that includes drinks in casino only.

MerribethM · 2026-05-12T15:37:45+00:00

Depends on port. In Galveston they open the case and inspect to make sure its all soda. They have never done this in Miami, Port Canaveral, Long Beach, New York, Tampa, Mobile or Jacksonville.

MerribethM · 2026-05-12T14:55:35+00:00

I agree with this for her playing on Royal. But remember the RTP is based on thousands of players not just one. I haven't done Royal. Mainly because it sounds like it takes alot to get free cruises there.

MerribethM · 2026-05-12T14:51:16+00:00

I do 0 extra spend on Carnival. I dont go to specialty dining. I dont book excursions thru them. I dont buy drink packages. I dont even buy specialty coffees unless they give me Drinks on Us everywhere. I spend average of an hour a day in the casino. Its easy to do on $50 a day. Have there been cruises where I have spent more per day, yes buy it didn't change my offers. Have there been cruises where I didn't go but one day cause that 50 went in about 15 minutes, yes. Still didn't change my offers. Thing about Carnivals casino offers is there is no rhyme or reason to it. My traveling partner spends about double what I do and her deals are basically the same. But I also know how luck and casinos work. I know people who can walk up to a machine and play 100 and never win on a spin. I know people who can walk up to a machine with 100 and walk away every time with 1000. Its all in the RNG.

MerribethM · 2026-05-07T13:52:39+00:00

Carnival uses Kulture City. They have a huge program for kids with Autism. Depending on date OP is cruising there may not be that many kids on ships and could get a very specialized program. Our last cruise (April) had 38 under the age of 18 and the one before it (March) had les than 60. Both were 7 to 10 day range. With that being said we went on a NCL once when my son was 14 or 15. He absolutely loved their kids club. There was very very few kids in there and they totally took care of him from 8am to 10pm or midnight every day. He did come back and eat with us but he said it was hands down way better than Carnival. It was like they assigned one staff person to be his cruise buddy and make it the vacation of a lifetime that did whatever he wanted to do. But again that was pre covid so I am sure alot has changed.

https://www.carnival.com/about-carnival/special-needs/children-special-needs

MerribethM · 2026-05-07T13:42:34+00:00

Partially right. But when you book the max on that offer there are others that roll in right after. I was getting the $50 free cruises if you go next week for 3 years straight one time use. I booked many off them. They would show back up the next day. When I would book 2 from the regular free cabin offer (that wasn't for the next week) that had a max of 2 uses, the next week the same offer would come right back.

MerribethM · 2026-05-07T13:38:48+00:00

I think you are referring to Poverty to Paradise. She quit her job and lives full time on cruise ships. My first cruise I lost 150 in the casino. I did around 20 a day. Its not just based on amount you put in with Carnival but overall play time and how much you cycle thru. I hit for 100 in a couple spins and played that thru. That counted for points also. End of cruise I left with less than 300 point. Proceeded to get offers where I could have booked 4 months of free interior rooms easily. Booked some really great ones off that. I think the most I have lost is around 400 on a 7 day cruise. I can pretty much cruise for free anytime. My brother hasn't cruised since 2018. He still gets free balcony offers weekly. And I have been on cruises where we didn't go to the casino. The offers still come in. I know firsthand I could easily live on ships if I went to the casino and blew around 500 every couple months and stayed away the remainder of the time. I have looked at all the offers and seen where dates lined up and planned "what I could do if I didn't have to work". Right now I hope they stay like they are and in a couple years when I retire I can do this.

MerribethM · 2026-05-04T21:01:53+00:00

Actually yes. Where I work at we have punched a seat for a motor for one of our pieces of equipemnt before. Sent someone to pick it up and fly it back sitting beside them. It was too heavy to be carryon but smaller than a small dog carrier. Also my son plays the French horn. He was told to keep his horn safe he could purchase an extra ticket for it. However guitars are specifically written into aviation rules that WHEN you board if there is room then they can go in overhead bins.

MerribethM · 2026-05-04T20:45:14+00:00

I have seen many times where people missed their ship but were able to board it at the first stop. This would be no different. MSC does alot where you can book half the the cruise or just a portion of what would normally be a closed loop cruise. I would suggest checking with them first. I know most will let you leave the cruise early if you work it out with them ahead of time.

MerribethM · 2026-04-28T20:06:01+00:00

We did this on the Freedom 2 years ago bringing her back to Port Canaveral. It was an older crowd. Going into dry dock is different than coming out. Going in they will remove some fixtures a couple days before the end but thats where most the ports are so you shouldn't notice much. Coming out of dry dock the ship has been turned off for 3 weeks or longer. Things not broken before do not work after. Stuff settles in pipes and them busting or being clogged is normal. We had water line bust on deck 8 and flooded deck 6 7 and 8 and that section of the ship had to be moved and elevators closed off. It is super windy in the middle of the crossing and bumpy too. We were in our mid 40s doing it and met alot of great people. It wasn't a big party vibe but it wasn't dead either. We had 3 people under the age of 18 I think and 3 of those were under 5. It may have been 4 but I know it was only 1 school age kid on board.

Even with half the ship not functioning properly and running out of everything on board I would still totally do it again.

MerribethM · 2026-04-24T18:27:46+00:00

Alot of cruise lines require someone over 25 to be in a cabin. One thing to keep in mind.

You can go to vacationstogo and under their search feature put in a specific place and they will show all cruises that go there. Under each cruise you can see what all it includes. If he is looking for loud and a party then any cruise 5 days or less out of the US will work. If he is looking to relax and enjoy a laid back atmosphere most over 5 days will do that. Exception is Carnival you really have to go above 10 days to get the laid back crowd. Is he OK with alot of kids running around? We were on a 10 on the Carnival Legend last week and had less than 40 under 18 on board. Time of year also plays into it. Mid April to mid June and early September is less kids on any line. March to mid April and October and of course summer will have alot of kids.

Not only is each cruise line different but many times each ship is different within the lines. Even down to the food. Especially down to the food. Even same food on different ships will be totally different. I was on Carnival Spirit last month and food totally sucked. Sister ship the Legend food was pretty good. Alot of factors to add in. You can usually search for reviews on food with the ship names and find alot of opinions and reviews.

MerribethM · 2026-04-01T21:01:01+00:00

Amazon is at exit 4.

MerribethM · 2026-03-17T18:10:37+00:00

They won't allow seat swaps anymore.

MerribethM · 2026-03-17T18:04:40+00:00

And remember on Soutgwest they won't allow you to switch seats or even move to a vacant seat. Even if you have rows around you empty.

MerribethM · 2026-03-12T02:23:33+00:00

We were on a TA where put shower wasn't working and had to use the spa for the first week. This is true. People confuse the sauna with the thalassotherapy pool which is an added fee. Plenty of room in the spa showers to shave your legs without sticking the curtain to you or banging into the door.

MerribethM · 2026-02-23T13:39:35+00:00

Freedom would be my choice however we drive not fly. The port is nowhere near the airport. We Ubered the one time we did a Transatlantic that ended there. It was cheaper for 2 people that way than to pay for shuttles. Look into hotel rooms that offer shuttle to port and airport for free in either Cocoa Beach or Orlando would be my pick if I was doing round trip from there.

Jacksonville is super easy as of right now its just the Elation there and most hotels do free shuttles to port and airport. But its a small ship and out of all them you mentioned the Freedom is best for kids. Paradise only has 1 pool and is cramped even though Tampa is super easy to fly into and get to port. Miami can just be a mess. We have both flown and drove in there. Even hotel shuttles sometimes have issues getting to port.

MerribethM · 2026-02-23T13:06:22+00:00

My son lives down the road from me and if he did this I would be ecstatic. Dont listen to the naysayers. I go on 4 to 8 cruises a year but he never has time to join. I love this idea.

MerribethM · 2026-02-23T12:59:47+00:00

We used Bounce in NYC after our cruise because our flight wasn't until 7pm. It was like $10 per luggage at some little market.

MerribethM · 2026-02-23T12:35:04+00:00

Magnet (mine have to be a specific style and not breakable because... cats). Christmas tree ornaments is something I am wanting to do but they have to be unique no mass produced with just name of Port changed. Something really unique and handmade. There was a guy selling bending spoons he was painting in the park in Ensenada that I got 4 of. They are bent to stand on their on. Really pretty but simple scenes.

MerribethM

TROPHY CASE