New to cruising...

september2007 · February 10, 2007

I'm planning my first cruise with a bunch of friends for September, but we all live in different areas and will be booking separately. Some will share rooms, though, and we've talked to the cruise people about how to do this. I have some questions about this, though, and cruises in general. We're going on Carnival Imagination that'll port in Key West and Calica.

Will they care if we switch the rooms up a little? Like if 3 people are in one room and 1 person is in their own room, will they care if one of the three goes to sleep in the room with the single? I hope that makes sense.

What are some "hidden" costs of the cruise? I was under impression all would be needed to pay was for souvenirs in shops, casino, alcohol, and tipping, and on shore things if we want (lol is that all?). Is all food included? What about non-alcoholic drinks? Can you bring your own alcohol onto the ship?

Off of that, why is tipping so necessary? I'm not cheap, but I can't afford to spend 100 dollars for 5 days of service to everyone on the ship. What is recommended for tipping (who and how much)? I'm already paying a lot to be on the ship to begin with that it doesn't seem like I should have to give that much in tips, but I know it's common curtosy and these people do work hard. What happens if someone doesn't tip? (I would never not tip at all, but I can see one of my friends in particular doing this..) I really hope this isn't coming across as me being cheap, but I am a college student, and I want to have the money planned as well as I can by September..

Has anyone been on the Imagination? Or ported in Key West or Calica? Any general suggestions for these? What age group might be expected to be on this ship in general?

What about clothing? How "formal" do you have to get? It's a bunch of girls, and sure we'll all dress up, but I don't know if that would be considered prom gown-esque or if it's closer to just a nice dress that could be worn during the day as well.

Any other suggestions for things I might be forgetting?

This is long, lol, so I hope people actually read this, btu thanks for any help you have to offer!

jaschem1 · February 10, 2007

Hi and welcome. When you get your tickets, you should also get a booklet with all the information. Everything above food, like drinks, pop, coffee in shops, etc. are extra. Other than the resturants, they will have food of sorts set up all over the ship, maybe a bbq on the top, ice cream, goodies, all free. These are all considered food. I think the only free drink is ice tea in the buffet. Absolutely no alcohol. We always used to hide one in our luggage, now they scan and our last ship said they will catch and destroy. It is not worth hasseling with. Whenever we cruise, if possible, we just have the ship put all the tips on our bill and we will give our cabin boy a little extra. As far as switching rooms, just go to the website of your cruiseline and email them asking additional questions. Also, pop is expensive on the ship, so every time we port somewhere, we pick up a liter of pop for our room. They do give the rooms ice. Enjoy and have a good time.

september2007 · February 10, 2007

Thanks! I will definitely see about them putting the tip on ahead of time, that way I don't have anything to worry about lol. Also, I wasn't really looking to sneaking alcohol in anyway lol I just wasn't sure if it was allowed or not. We're booking our cruise next month, so I just wanted to be sure on some details. Thank you for your input!

jaschem1 · February 10, 2007

If you call the cruise line of the ship you are taking, they will answer all your questions. There will be a free phone number on their website for you to use. They are great to talk to and very helpful. Every time we book a new cruise, we have new questions to ask.

september2007 · February 10, 2007

Thanks, I was thinking they might answer the questions based on what you "want" to hear. Obviously they can't sugar coat the fact that soda is expensive, but they might say other things differently, that's why I came looking for more objective people, but I'll definitely call them back and ask some more!

GottaCruz · February 10, 2007

We've sailed on the Imagination several times and loved the ship. It's large enough but not so large that you can't find your way around . I would say that all ages are on that ship. If you're going in September, once school is in session, there probably won't be loads of little kids running around like there are during the summer , Spring Break and Christmas week. As far as clothing, you'll see everything at night, from gowns and cocktail dresses on formal night and even slacks with nice tops and then jeans after dinner , if you choose. Carnival is pretty laid back so almost anything goes. Simple dressees and nice slacks are perfect for the evenings . Since Carnival offers the buffet every night, there are people who don't even go into the dining room so many don't get dressed up at all. Do whatever makes you feel comfortable.

On our Carnival cruises, they automatically put your dining room tips on the bill. If you don't eat in the dining room, you can get that adjusted.

As far as switching around the occupants of the rooms, I would check with Carnival on that. That could be tricky since the stewards know how many people are occupying the rooms that they're servicing.

Please feel free to ask any other questions you may have. Maybe you can get your cruise companions to sign up here also and ask their questions. The more the merrier. :biggrin:

Welcome september2007[/size]

Gregswife · February 10, 2007

Sept., I have been on the Imagination - in fact all of my cruises have been on Carnival. The recommended tips will be added to your Sail & Sign card, which is what you use to buy anything on board the ship, as a room key and also as your pass to reboard the ship in ports. If you want to change the amount that is added in the way of tips, you have to go to the Purser's desk and have it adjusted. You asked about changing rooms - I am not sure of the answer to that, I think Carnival would answer you honestly if you called and asked them. It would be better to book 2 in each room, rather than 1 in 1 room and 3 in another, because the person who is booked in at a single is going to pay a premium price, as the rates are based on 2 to a room and she may have to pay for 2 people for her cabin. Several of us here use the same trip planner at Carnival, Jennifer Martins. If you are interested in talking to her, you can PM me and I will give you her number.

Suzila · February 10, 2007

Like everyone else said, Carnival will put the tips on your sail and sign card automatically, and it breaks down as follows: http://www.carnival.com/CMS/FAQs/Gratuities_Tips.aspx

The reason the cruise lines started putting tips on the sail and sign card right off the bat is because they had so many high school and college students spending all their money on alcohol, that they ran out of money before the got to the tips. This is the way they 'fixed' that problem.

So, for 5 days of sailing, it will cost you about $45-$50/person. Believe me, for the amount of work they do on the ships and the great service they give you, $9/day is super-cheap for tips.

We switched rooms twice because our kids were not old enough to cruise alone...one of us had to be booked in the room w/ them. But we never put more than two people in the room. The rooms are extremely small and cramped, unless you're getting suites, and you said money is tight. What type of room are you booking for the one where you want to put three people? If it's an inside cabin, make sure it has a bunk bed.

Also, keep in mind that if anyone is under the age of 21, the other person in that room has to be age 25.

You're college students...believe me, 'anything' you wear for formal night will be fine. Wear a nice dress, and it'll be okay...doesn't have to be a gown.

september2007 · February 10, 2007

Thanks for your help everyone. We've come to a problem realizing one will only be 20 at the time of the cruise.. I guess we all assumed that 18 and up would be fine. There is one person in her 40s going, so he'll have to book with her, I guess, but we planned on getting two rooms anyway, so we might just have to switch around or something. The only thing is Carnival says that the person over 25 must be his legal gaurdian, and she isn't that, so I don't know what we're gonna do :(