Best place to book a cruise?

[mstng86]

I am on the side of a cheap room. On our cruise, it was jist a place to fall asleep and change clothes. The whole sitting on the balcony, drinking, and watching the waves can be dine in numerous places on the ship

[Gtracer]

Another thing, if you get a room without a window it will be very easy to lose track of tome. You will take male and whatnot so make sure you use alarms on your phone or something.

[mstng86]

Another thing, if you get a room without a window it will be very easy to lose track of tome. You will take male and whatnot so make sure you use alarms on your phone or something.

I will not take male.

[Ted]

i will not take male.

liar!

[BP]

cruisecompete.com will have the absolute lowest prices. If it's your first I'd recommend a 5 day, which would be on the Carnival Triumph. It stops in Cozumel and Progreso with two sea days. They also do 4 day cruises to Cozumel only. There isn't much of a price difference and Progreso is a good port if you like Mayan ruins.

I'd say book an inside cabin as close to the center of the ship as possible and as far away from stairways, laundry, crew doors and elevators as possible. Also try to book on a deck where there are cabins above you. It's a little more walking but a whole lot better than hearing chairs slide around all night from the top deck.

The Magic is still Carnival's newest ship and it sails out of Galveston. The 7-8 day ones can be pretty rough though if cruising isn't your thing.

[CRASH]

My wife and I went on our first cruise for our 10th anniversary back at the beginning of October and it was one of the best times we've ever had.

We went on a 7 day cruise on the Carnival Conquest and had a blast. There are TONS of things to do on the ship, if you like to have a good time and let loose. We went to Montego Bay, Jamaica, Grand Cayman, and Cozumel....in that order. We left out of Galveston too, by the way.

We stayed on the 7th deck in an interior room, and were about midway between elevators and it was perfect ! Neither my wife nor I take naps during the day, we don't tend to stay up very late, and we don't usually sleep late. The interior room was perfect for us because we both like COMPLETE darkness.

It cost us $1356 or something like that to get on the ship. Then we did an excursion at each port, and we only spent about $350 on the ship. Neither of us drink, so that may or may not make a big difference in what you spend on the ship.

Take AT LEAST a windbreaker, or light jacket. At night, the wind was blowing so fucking hard it was actually pretty cool. I almost bought a light sweatshirt in the gift store just to have something to wear on deck after the sun went down.

All in all, we will DEFINITELY do it again. We even met a couple on the ship that we've kept in contact with that have two girls, one about the same age as our little girl. They live in Austin, and even came up and had Thanksgiving with us.

Montego Bay was a shithole, even the "tourist" part. Wouldn't hurt my feelings to not go back there. It was a toss up between Grand Cayman and Cozumel which one we liked the most.

-Aaron

[A_A_G]

BP & CRASH (Aaron) thanks for the advice/info!

[JC316]

My wife and I went on our first cruise for our 10th anniversary back at the beginning of October and it was one of the best times we've ever had.

We went on a 7 day cruise on the Carnival Conquest and had a blast. There are TONS of things to do on the ship, if you like to have a good time and let loose. We went to Montego Bay, Jamaica, Grand Cayman, and Cozumel....in that order. We left out of Galveston too, by the way.

We stayed on the 7th deck in an interior room, and were about midway between elevators and it was perfect ! Neither my wife nor I take naps during the day, we don't tend to stay up very late, and we don't usually sleep late. The interior room was perfect for us because we both like COMPLETE darkness.

It cost us $1356 or something like that to get on the ship. Then we did an excursion at each port, and we only spent about $350 on the ship. Neither of us drink, so that may or may not make a big difference in what you spend on the ship.

Take AT LEAST a windbreaker, or light jacket. At night, the wind was blowing so fucking hard it was actually pretty cool. I almost bought a light sweatshirt in the gift store just to have something to wear on deck after the sun went down.

All in all, we will DEFINITELY do it again. We even met a couple on the ship that we've kept in contact with that have two girls, one about the same age as our little girl. They live in Austin, and even came up and had Thanksgiving with us.

Montego Bay was a shithole, even the "tourist" part. Wouldn't hurt my feelings to not go back there. It was a toss up between Grand Cayman and Cozumel which one we liked the most.

-Aaron

Lol, that is pretty much exactly what I told you. If you go to Jamaica, go to the all inclusive beach resort, it's the best way to fly. Keeps you away from the shithole areas. Anyway, my thoughts mirror Aaron's.

[CRASH]

BP & CRASH (Aaron) thanks for the advice/info!

No problem man ! You'll have a blast !

Lol, that is pretty much exactly what I told you. If you go to Jamaica, go to the all inclusive beach resort, it's the best way to fly. Keeps you away from the shithole areas. Anyway, my thoughts mirror Aaron's.

Yep ! You pretty much nailed it on the head ! Thanks for the tips !

Every fucking dreadlock-headed mother fucker we saw asked if we wanted weed or reggae CD's in Montego Bay ! I couldn't wait to get on the ship and get the hell out of Jamaica.

-Aaron

[JC316]

No problem man ! You'll have a blast !



Yep ! You pretty much nailed it on the head ! Thanks for the tips !

Every fucking dreadlock-headed mother fucker we saw asked if we wanted weed or reggae CD's in Montego Bay ! I couldn't wait to get on the ship and get the hell out of Jamaica.

-Aaron

Lol, no one ever asked me if I wanted to buy weed, but the two fuckers that lurk at the docks demanding to take pictures and then want tips were bugging me.

I am booked on the Magic for next year, skipping Jamaica completely and I don't care.

[RWhite]

We talked directly to the cruise line to make reservations. They can tell you where the best locations on the boat to stay, the time of year when the rates are the lowest (by week) and when to take the cruise if you want to have the least number of rug rats running around. We went in the period between spring break and the start of summer vacation (first week in May). The only rough water was the final day coming back from Mexico to Galveston. If you come that way, make sure you stay up (or get up) when they navigate at night thru the oil rigs out in the Gulf the Sunday before arriving in Galveston. You will be amazed at the 100’s of wells out there, all lit up and very pretty. They have to slow down and steer thru these rigs. All hands are up and watching for problems.

Since we were younger old farts then, we went just to relax. You younger guys and gals probably will spend more money than we did taking in all the sights, excursions, etc. Wish I could go again. I would try the Eastern Caribbean cruises if I could. I have heard those are thru spectacular scenery.

[BP]

Also just so you know Carnival's website is sneakier than most. They only show a hand full of cabins available in each category and if you are shopping the price always goes up and the selection goes down the more you look. I price out the same cruise through aa.com just to make sure their site isn't hosing me.

For a wealth of info checkout http://cruiseforums.cruisecritic.com/index.php
and http://johnhealdsblog.com/

The time you are looking is pretty much their peak season due to school scheduling, it's going to be expensive and smack dab in the middle of hurricane season. I've always booked in September, which is even riskier for hurricanes but the prices are better and there aren't many kids on it.

Also if pricing is a consideration check out New Orleans cruises, it's a longer drive but they are usually $100 per person cheaper. The Conquest sails out of there now and for me the Mississippi river is way more exciting than the oil rigs. If you pick the right day you'll pass two other cruise ships on the way out. It doesn't look like it but New Orleans is nearly 200 miles inland, it's 8-10 hours before you hit open water. Not to mention that the city is a whole lot more fun than Galveston.

[dmh165638]

cruisecompete.com will have the absolute lowest prices. If it's your first I'd recommend a 5 day, which would be on the Carnival Triumph. It stops in Cozumel and Progreso with two sea days. They also do 4 day cruises to Cozumel only. There isn't much of a price difference and Progreso is a good port if you like Mayan ruins.

I'd say book an inside cabin as close to the center of the ship as possible and as far away from stairways, laundry, crew doors and elevators as possible. Also try to book on a deck where there are cabins above you. It's a little more walking but a whole lot better than hearing chairs slide around all night from the top deck.

The Magic is still Carnival's newest ship and it sails out of Galveston. The 7-8 day ones can be pretty rough though if cruising isn't your thing.

Another vote for cruisecompete.com. Booked both my cruises there and got some nice upgrades and room credits. Most of the pricing with cruise agencies will be very close so look for the extras thrown in to sweeten the deal.

[A_A_G]

Also just so you know Carnival's website is sneakier than most. They only show a hand full of cabins available in each category and if you are shopping the price always goes up and the selection goes down the more you look. I price out the same cruise through aa.com just to make sure their site isn't hosing me.

For a wealth of info checkout http://cruiseforums.cruisecritic.com/index.php
and http://johnhealdsblog.com/

The time you are looking is pretty much their peak season due to school scheduling, it's going to be expensive and smack dab in the middle of hurricane season. I've always booked in September, which is even riskier for hurricanes but the prices are better and there aren't many kids on it.

Also if pricing is a consideration check out New Orleans cruises, it's a longer drive but they are usually $100 per person cheaper. The Conquest sails out of there now and for me the Mississippi river is way more exciting than the oil rigs. If you pick the right day you'll pass two other cruise ships on the way out. It doesn't look like it but New Orleans is nearly 200 miles inland, it's 8-10 hours before you hit open water. Not to mention that the city is a whole lot more fun than Galveston.

Thanks again for the additonal info. After browsing a much wider search for cruise dates, I may want to go in April or September (seems to be the best months for rates).

Also the New Orleans trips caught my attention because of the cheaper rates overall. We're actually going to fly to New Orleans for the weekend for my B-day in March (a B-day present from her to me). Its another first we'll be doing together, but she's never been on a plane before lol.

[03mustangdude]

got this for carnival triumph

Stateroom: 6227
Deck: UPPER

is it a good choice for basic interior or should i request something different?