Whether you use a travel agent or not, make sure to maximize your credit card points when paying for the cruise by using a credit card that offers extra points for travel purchases. This could be the Chase Sapphire Reserve, which offers 3 Ultimate Rewards points on travel and dining (excluding the annual $300 travel credit). There's also the Chase Sapphire Preferred Card, which brings 2 Ultimate Rewards points on travel and 3 Ultimate Rewards points on dining. It all starts with the boldest cruise ships at sea — and ours have won awards for everything from world class dining and spectacular entertainment, to record-setting onboard thrills and groundbreaking innovation.
Port Canaveral (Orlando), FL
If you're sure you know what sort of cabin you want, on which ship, on which itinerary — and about a dozen other things — you can head over to Carnival.com to book directly. As you might expect, pricing for ships will generally be lower during offseason periods such as September, October and parts of November. During the evenings, there is an official dress code, but it's pretty laid-back. Most nights are designated "cruise casual," which means just that — khakis or jeans, polo shirts, sundresses, etc. Super casual items such as cutoff jeans, men's sleeveless shirts, T-shirts and gym shorts aren't permitted.
Carnival Venezia
Carnival fans are quite peeved about this, and you should be, too. Nonalcoholic drinks in glass or plastic bottles are not allowed. Note that you'll be charged a $15 corkage fee if you want to bring the wine or Champagne to an onboard restaurant or bar to drink. Drinks brought on board must be carried in your carry-on luggage. Older kids (aged 15-17) are grouped into what's known as Club O2 and have their own lounge for meeting up, listening to music, dancing, singing karaoke and other activities. Passengers can learn to cook everything from Carnival's classic warm chocolate melting cake to its popular saffron risotto during one- to two-hour classes that cost $30 to $59 per person.
CRUISE SHIPS
Dubbed Carnival Kitchen, it's located near the ship's main restaurants and is a seriously tricked-out venue complete with nine state-of-the-art, marbled granite cooking stations for two and a dedicated dining area. On one of Carnival's newest ships, Carnival Panorama, there's no RedFrog Pub, but the Smokehouse Brewhouse has a stage that's home to live music nightly and some of the ship's karaoke sessions. When it comes to raucous, though, nothing on Carnival ships quite compares to the frequent karaoke nights on board. Sometimes held in a secondary lounge or a shipboard pub, karaoke on Carnival draws a big crowd. Passengers come prepared with rehearsed songs and sometimes even their own guitars.
Shipboard Health and Safety
Aimed squarely at Americans, its trips are all about cruising close to home at a reasonable price. In 2001, Carnival transferred their first new build, the 1982 built Tropicale to Costa Cruises. Through the rest of the decade, the line would continue to sell, or transfer the other 1980s built ships to other lines, with the Jubilee in 2004, Celebration in 2008, and Holiday in 2009. You’ll do more than just pass the time as you sail from port to port. You’re about to discover just what awaits you on a Carnival cruise.
Entertainment and activities
Start by exploring the incredible ports we visit… and the fun things to do, both on the ship and ashore. Earn your wilderness badge as you cruise between the Alaska glaciers, pan for gold in prospecting towns, and trek across the rugged tundra on an Alaska vacation. And savor a burst of flavors throughout culture-rich ports in the Mediterranean, the British Isles, Scandinavia and beyond on an unforgettable cruise through Europe. No matter where in the world you choose to wander, cruises can take you deep into top-rated cruise ports and off-the-beaten-path gems, so you can experience each one like a local.
Who sails Carnival Cruise Line
They are roughly 35% bigger than the line's next-biggest ship. One more ship in the series — Carnival Jubilee — will arrive in December 2023. Guy's Pig & Anchor Smokehouse Brewhouse, notably, has its very own in-house brewery you can see behind glass walls — something still relatively rare on cruise ships. It makes house beers including Parched Pig West Coast IPA and Parched Pig Toasted Amber which you'll find on many Carnival vessels in kegs and cans. This is a notable change for the brand from just a couple of decades ago.
That's about 40% smaller than the biggest ships operated by Royal Caribbean. Where you won't find Carnival ships, notably, is in Asia, South America or, for the most part, Europe. Unlike other big cruise brands such as Royal Caribbean, Norwegian Cruise Line and Princess Cruises, Carnival doesn't spread its vessels around the world to draw a fly-in crowd.
For Europe sailings and guests who have pre-purchased transfers, this information will be required. If you're sure Carnival is your line, look for a travel agent who specializes in trips with the brand. You want someone who understands all the little quirks that are unique to Carnival's cabin categories and, preferably, has done ship inspections to see the cabins firsthand. The second-to-highest tier, Platinum (75 points), brings such perks as priority check-in and boarding, priority debarkation, priority dinner reservations, priority spa reservations and priority water shuttle boarding. Platinums also get complimentary wash-and-fold laundry service (with a limit of two to five bags, depending on the length of the cruise).
However, it's not as difficult as it might at first seem to hit the more rewarding higher-level tiers in just a few years if you're cruising a lot. As is typical with cruise line loyalty programs, lower tiers don't bring all that much in terms of truly valuable benefits. One or two nights a cruise, there will be a more formal "cruise elegant" night where men are expected to turn out in dress slacks and a dress shirt, preferably with a sports coat, or even in a suit. The suggested attire for women on such nights is cocktail dresses, pantsuits, elegant skirts and blouses. Carnival allows you to bring one bottle of wine or Champagne per person onto ships at boarding plus up to a dozen standard cans or cartons of nonalcoholic drinks such as sodas. The social and value plans cost $18 and $23 per day, respectively, when bought onboard a ship.
On the West Coast, sailings to Mexico, Hawaii and Alaska are the norm. Carnival's biggest operations are out of PortMiami and Port Canaveral in Florida; Galveston, Texas; Long Beach, California; and New Orleans — all major cruise hubs. You'll also find Carnival ships in such secondary cruise ship ports as Baltimore; Charleston, South Carolina; Mobile, Alabama; and Jacksonville, Florida.
In 1996, the new Destiny class was introduced, with the Carnival Destiny. At 101,000 GT , it became the largest passenger ship in the world at the time and first to exceed 100,000 tons. The Destiny-class platform continued to be used in various iterations all the way to the Carnival Splendor in 2008. The same year the veteran ship Festivale, the last of the original second-hand fleet, was retired. That said, given the complexity of booking a cruise — there are a lot of decisions to make during the booking process; trust us — we recommend you use a seasoned travel agent who specializes in cruises.
Other popular venues found on some Carnival ships include RedFrog Pub, which serves up Carnival's tasty housemade beers on tap, as well as plenty of other choices. Every Carnival ship has a casino, usually smack in the middle of the main entertainment deck. Carnival is also well known for the Punchliner Comedy Clubs on its ships, which draw quality comedians and can get a little raucous late at night with adult-only performances.
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Sail a few longer voyages, like a transatlantic sailing, and you could reach it even sooner. All vessels operate on a "cashless system," with any onboard purchases you make posting automatically to your onboard account. You'll receive a Sail & Sign card that you can use to make charges. Most vessels have standard North American-style, 110-volt outlets in rooms, as well as European-style, 220-volt outlets.
Carnival has been rolling out faster Wi-Fi systems across its fleet in the last couple of years, such that you can now stream video on some ships. Pricing changes over time, but the fastest "premium" service on Carnival vessels was recently priced at $21.25 per day when bought in advance ($25 per day when bought onboard). The arrival of Mardi Gras and Carnival Celebration over the past two years has marked a major turning point for the line. At around 180,000 tons, they rank at No. 15 and No. 13, respectively, among the world's largest cruise ships — the only Carnival ships to crack the Top 20.
Carnival trips are all about letting loose and having a good time. Maybe you'll drink a little too much, eat a little too much, play a little too much — but in the end, you'll say it was your best trip ever. Carnival is the undisputed leader among North America-based cruise brands when it comes to affordability, which makes it popular with vacationers on a budget.
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