A Firsthand Account Of Cruising After Covid
I retired from my job as a college professor five years ago and moved to Seattle to become a full-time cruiser, a Professor of Cruising if you will. But like so many, for the past year and change I’ve been stuck on dry land, after having three cruises cancelled, gazing longingly out my windows in downtown Seattle at our two vacant cruise piers.
But finally all that is about to change! Last week I booked my first post-pandemic cruise – the very first Carnival cruise scheduled to sail from Seattle this year on July 27th. I’ll be blogging about my experience starting now as I prepare for my cruise and receive updated information about my sailing from Carnival, during embarkation, onboard, at port, and all the way through debarkation. Follow along with me (using this link – I’ll be adding updates to this post) for a glimpse into how cruising to Alaska from Seattle will look in these first few months after Covid. And be sure to ask questions and share your own experiences in the comments!
6/09/2021, My First Communication From Carnival
Today I received this e-mail from Carnival:
This answered several questions I had:
- Will masks be required at the cruise terminal? Yes.
- Will masks be required onboard the ship? No.
- Will passengers be permitted to book excursions or explore ports on their own? Yes.
It did not answer some questions I still have:
- Will vaccinated passengers be required to show a negative Covid test prior to boarding and, if so, will the test be administered by the cruise line? (There was mention of this when I booked, but no details.)
- What happens if a passenger tests positive for Covid during the cruise?
- Will occupancy on the ship be reduced overall and/or in certain venues onboard? (I’ve heard that occupancy will be reduced initially and gradually scaled up over the summer, but I haven’t received any specific information from Carnival.)
6/10/2021, Researching and Purchasing Travel Insurance
I’ve always advocated for and purchased travel insurance for my cruises (except for that time I booked a cruise at 3pm the day before it was scheduled to sail and figured I’d stand firm and literal with the theme: “throw caution to the wind!”). With all the uncertainty around Covid and this being Carnival’s very first sailing from Seattle at the tail end (let’s hope) of the pandemic, I made researching and purchasing travel insurance a priority.
While I typically don’t purchase insurance directly from the cruise line, I was curious to see what Carnival was offering considering the increased (at least perceived) risk of cruising right now. Here’s what they offered:
While the “cancel for any reason” provision was appealing to me, I noticed that I’d only get 75% of the cost of my trip back in the form of a future cruise certificate. And the price seemed a bit high for the coverage offered.
So I went to my go-to place for purchasing travel insurance, TravelInsurance.com.* This site is simple to use and allows you to compare plans and get exactly what you need for the best price. I entered some basic information about myself and my cruise (age, state, cost, dates) and selected the particular coverage I was looking for.
It was important to me for this cruise that I have “cancel for any reason” coverage, so I included that option this time (I usually don’t). After comparing the plans that popped up, I went with a “Pandemic Plus Plan” for $104. It offered much better coverage than the plan offered by Carnival, was less expensive, got good reviews, and while the “cancel for any reason” coverage was still only 75% of costs, it would be returned to me in cash instead of a future cruise certificate (not that I really mind another excuse to cruise).
6/10/2021, Miracle Cruise Director Announced
Our cruise director has been announced: Jen Baxter
Jen is a red-haired British lass with a dry, raunchy sense of humor. She’s a blast – I’ve sailed with her before and she’s a great fit with Carnival’s culture, but is she right for Alaska?
I can kind of imagine her coming on the intercom to announce an “ocean fart at 3 o’clock!” (ocean fart = whale spout)
I’ve cruised to Alaska previously on Celebrity, Holland America, NCL, and Princess, but this is my first cruise to Alaska on Carnival. I’m really curious and excited to see how Carnival does Alaska, and particularly, how Jen does Alaska (VHS tape available to purchase onboard for those 21+).
6/11/2021, Claiming My Shareholder Benefit
Today I’m sending in my proof of ownership of Carnival shares for onboard credit.
Before you take my advice on anything (particularly related to finances), I should disclose that Mr. Cruise and I bought a bunch of Carnival and NCL stock RIGHT BEFORE Covid hit. So now I’m trying to claw back all our losses by booking as many cruises as possible and taking advantage of the onboard credit benefit for shareholders. I’ll only need to sail on 21 cruises to break even (#silverlining #goodproblem).
On Carnival, if you own at least 100 shares, you qualify for $50 of onboard credit for 1-6 day sailings; $100 for 7-13 day sailings; and $250 for sailings of 14 days or longer.
To request the credit, you must email, fax, or mail your name, booking number, ship, and sailing date, along with proof of ownership of Carnival Corporation or Carnival plc shares (photocopy of shareholder proxy card, a dividend tax voucher or a current brokerage or nominee). This must be completed no later than 3 weeks prior to your sail date (so you won’t be able to take advantage of this on last minute cruises).
If sailing on Carnival in the United States, mail, fax, or e-mail your materials here:
Guest Administration, 3655 N.W. 87th Avenue, Miami, FL 33178
Fax: 305-406-6102 (is faxing even still a thing?)
Email: shareholders@carnival.com
If you’re sailing on another Carnival owned line or are outside the United States, go here to find out where to send your request.
One little complication on my end, our Carnival shares are only under Mr. Cruise’s name and I’m sailing solo this time. I sent in a copy of my marriage license hoping that will do the trick. But if there are any cruise ship captains reading this, I hope that won’t deter you from steadying my wobbly legs at sail away, “need an arm, ma’am?” before sweeping me completely off my feet as you whisk me away to the ship chapel to exchange vows and embark on a life at sea together.
Based on the above paragraph, I feel the need to clarify two things. First, I am a modern woman with my own very non-lucrative career as a Professor of Cruising – Mr. Cruise just happened to be the one to buy our cruise shares, which is why my name isn’t on the account. And second, Mr. Cruise and I are in a traditional monogamous marriage (with one exception for cruise ship captains for me and Rashida Jones for him).
Anyway, I’ll keep you posted.
6/11/2021, News From The Very First Cruise Ship To Sail From North America Post Covid
Two passengers aboard the Celebrity Millennium (one of my all-time favorite ships – go here to read my review) have tested positive for Covid, despite the ship being 100% vaccinated. They are both reported to be asymptomatic and in isolation. Considering vaccination efficacy is around 95%, a few breakthrough cases should be expected. And despite the 40 calls from my mom today, I’m not worried about my cruise aboard the Miracle. But don’t tell my mom that – I just told her I cancelled so I don’t have to change my number or forcefully remind her that while I appreciate her concern, I’m a grown-ass adult.
I am a bit concerned about my father-in-law, who is a transplant patient, and other immunocompromised cruisers at high-risk for covid and for whom the vaccine may not be as effective. He isn’t scheduled to cruise again until September, so I’m hoping community spread will be so low by then, the risk will be dramatically reduced.
Update (6/12/2021): Here‘s an interesting first-hand account of someone onboard the Millennium to was quarantined because she was on the same excursion with the two people who tested positive for Covid.
6/12/2021, Did The Miracle Receive The Fun Ship 2.0 Upgrades Or What?
Today I triple verified that the Blue Iguana Cantina was, in fact, added during the Miracle’s drydock in February 2020 (and it’s just been sitting there collecting dust ever since!). A daily breakfast burrito and an arepa (or two) are absolutely essential to my Carnival cruise experience. True story:
During the $40 million overhaul, the Miracle also received all the other Fun Ship 2.0 upgrades: Guy’s Burger, WaterWorks, and the Red Frog Rum Bar.
And here’s one more burrito/arepa pic for those Carnival skeptics lurking on here all judgy like, “she booked Carnival for Alaska.” You may get free champagne on your fancy Celebrity ship, but we get the best Tex-Mex at sea!
6/13/2021, Miracle’s Current Location
The Miracle is currently located off the North American West Coast (coordinates 33.21189 N / -117.89216 W) cruising en route to ADRIFT (why do they have to make it sound so ominous?).
Go here if you want to obsessively track the ship with me (you can also use this site to track any cruise ship). Just go ahead and quit your job now, this is a much better use of your time until you board the Miracle for your cruise. Then you can spend the rest of your “retirement” as a stowaway (does anyone else have dreams about secretly staying on the ship after debarkation with, like, elaborate details about where you’d sleep and hide between sailings? Okay, just me. Got it.)
6/13/2021, A Whale Tale
I wasn’t really considering a whale watching excursion in Alaska because I’ve done several already, but it’s back on my list after reading about a lobster diver in Provincetown, MA who hung out in the mouth of a humpback for nearly a minute before getting spit back out, alive enough to answer hard hitting questions on Reddit like, “who would you want to play you in a movie?” To which he answered, “Matt Damon.” Which prompted another user to fancy an attempt at a blockbuster title, “Not-So-Good Whale Hunting.” This is a true story – you can go straight to the source here.
Can you imagine showing up at the MDR for dinner and your table mates ask what you did in Juneau and you’re like, “oh, nothing much. Just got Jonah’ed by a humpback while my kids started arguing over their inheritance.”
I’m totally going for it. Who’s with me?
6/14/2021, Mask Shopping For My Cruise
My latest communication directly from Carnival indicated that masks would be required in the cruise terminal. And I’m anticipating possible mask requirements at some port locations and on excursions, although I have no specific information about that yet. So today I’m shopping for a mask. But not just any mask (I live in a high rise in downtown Seattle where I’ve needed a mask to leave my apartment for well over a year. And I once lost my dog for 3 days when he got tangled and nearly buried alive in the giant pile of masks by our front door. All that is to say that I have a LOT of masks.), but the perfect mask.
I’m approaching this like a masquerade ball where I enter the cruise terminal three days prior to sailing, mysterious and captivating in my mask, prompting gossip among other passengers as they arrive, “who’s that crazy woman pounding on the embarkation door like she’s locked out of the bathroom and badly needs to pee?”
Then, once over the threshold, finally onboard, I’ll rip off my masks and toss it aside (only to run back to grab it because I only brought one) revealing my identity: “Oh, it’s that annoying B-list cruise blogger, Prof. Cruise.”
So yeah, I need the perfect mask.
My search got off to an unfortunate start when I entered “cruise mask” into the Amazon search bar and this popped up:
Wrong kind of cruise, wrong kind of mask, and just…wrong.
Take II, I try: cruising masks. I feared as soon as I clicked enter that something X-rated was going to pop up on my work computer and get me fired, “I swear I was just looking for something cute to wear as I go for a ride on a fun ship. Damnit, I mean…”
But thankfully I slowly and tentatively opened my eyes to peak at a selection of masks appropriate for a PG rated (well maybe PG-13, we do have Jen as our cruise director) vacation at sea. Here’s what I have to choose from:
I like this cruise ship mask, but note that it’s not a Carnival cruise ship and worry I might get beat up (this could take mask politics to a whole new level).
This one IS a Carnival cruise ship, but I don’t want Carnival loyalists to accidentally get the wrong idea about me before logging onto my cruise blog to discover I’ve been regularly cheating on Carnival since our relationship began over 30 years ago.
But here‘s one we can ALL agree on…
Or how about a simple classy, nautical theme?
You’re not classy? Me either. I mean this is Carnival. How about this one?
Okay, but if you scroll down a little further you get to the real gems. A cat/titanic theme? Yes, please!
But do I want people to think I’m a crazy cat lady (I am) or scare first-time cruisers?
I’m going to think on it. In the meantime, let me know which one you like best in the comments. Maybe I’ll let peer pressure make the decision for me (do NOT tell my 8 year-old I just said that!).
6/16/2021, Oh Canada! Or, NO Canada?
My original plan for Skagway was to find a nice hike that crossed the border into Canada, just in case I have to escape from Gilead someday (a Handmaid’s Tale reference for those of you who didn’t stay up until midnight last night waiting for the season finale to drop). But here’s the thing, while the Canadian border was welcoming to vigilante handmade refuges from Gilead, it’s not currently welcoming American tourists.
Canada doesn’t want our cruise ships until 2022 (which is why congress had to pass the Alaska Tourism Restoration Act, temporarily waving the requirement that foreign flagged cruise ships sailing from the United States visit a foreign port). And as of today, they don’t want us breathing on them either (I can’t really blame them, I had leftover Papa John’s bread sticks with garlic sauce for breakfast).
The Canadian border is currently closed until June 21 when we’ll find out if Canada will extend it for another month. A lifting of the ban will be welcome news for tourists and tour operators alike and will give everyone enough time to plan excursions that venture into Canada from Skagway. However, if they renew the ban for another month until July 21, we (and tour operators) will have to wait until just a week before our cruise for clarity and to firm up plans.
Anyway, yesterday I settled on a hiking excursion from Skagway and e-mailed the operator with a few questions. I wanted to share the exchange here, because it may offer a bit of color for others who are wondering about excursions (either ship sponsored or private) that normally venture into Canada.
Here’s my e-mail:
And here’s their reply:
So here are my two takeaways:
If I want to book this excursion, I’ll need to do so through the ship (even though that will cost me $60 more than this excursion normally does if booked privately) due to rules for contact tracing.
And second (and this one applies to everyone), even if your excursion currently describes a venture over the border into Canada (which several of them currently do), it may not happen. I’d recommend reaching out to potential tour operators directly if you can to ask about contingency plans.
I’ll keep you posted as I learn more.
*UPDATE (6/18/2021): The Canadian government announced today that the border will remain closed to nonessential travel until at least July 21*
6/17/2021, Lose to Cruise
Fun fact: Humpback whales eat up to 3,000 pounds per day. That’s also roughly equivalent to what I eat per day on a cruise.
So I usually try to drop a few pounds in advance of my sailing as a weak effort at mitigation. My normal strategy involves sucking on ice between giant meals and a half-assed attempt to seem enthusiastic, just in case Richard Simmons can see me through the TV (which obviously I know he can’t and he might actually be dead…is he dead?), as I sweat profusely even though I’m hardly moving to the oldies. I think I burned at least 100 calories typing that last, giant run-on sentence. Please hold while I grab a little snacky snack to refuel.
Anyway, none of that is going to work this time because I’m already lead-footing around an extra pandemic 20 and I recently moved into a new apartment with huge windows facing directly into a neighboring building. I feel like bungling simple 1980’s dance moves in my pandemic sweat pants isn’t the best way to introduce myself to my new neighbors, “oh, you’re that woman I saw doing jazz hands from your floor after getting knocked over by an unruly love handle.”
Instead, I’m thinking of calculating how many M&M’s I can eat for 1200 calories and then placing them across the room from the couch, allowing myself only 1 per trip over. Unless you have a better approach for losing a few pounds pre-cruise. Ideas, thoughts, suggestions?
6/17/2021, Have Fun. Be Safe. COVID-19 GUEST PROTOCOLS
Quick update on the first day of my diet: I logged exactly 1200 calories into myfitnesspal before I started gnawing on my own leg figuring I could both lose fat and gain sustenance. No pain, no gain…I mean loss.
In other news, Carnival just posted updated “Have Fun. Be Safe. COVID-19 GUEST PROTOCOLS.” Here they are:
This answered two of my lingering questions:
–Will Covid-19 testing be required before boarding for vaccinated guests? No (unless something is flagged in your medical screening).
–What will be accepted as proof of vaccination? CDC’s Vaccination Record Card
6/19/2021, Florida Versus The CDC And A Lesson About Cruise Door Decorations
There’s been a lot of buzz on cruise boards since Tampa-based U.S. District Judge Steven Merryday ruled that, starting July 18, the CDC can’t enforce it’s current “return to cruising “ rules on cruise ships sailing from Florida and that the prior rules would merely be considered nonbinding recommendations or guidelines.
I read the ruling and it doesn’t appear to have any effect on cruises from Seattle to Alaska, so I’m going to sit this one out and hope that the elephants and donkeys battling for their respective positions on Facebook and Cruise Critic don’t die of a heart attack before they ever get the chance to die of Covid on a cruise ship.
Now, onto something really important: cruise ship cabin door decorations and a cautionary tale. I haven’t decorated my cabin door since my first cruise to Hawaii when I covered my door in these cute, Hawaii-themed, seemingly innocent pineapple magnets.
Well after opening my door to four different gentleman who gasped and said “never mind” upon seeing my face covered in room service chocolate cake and my kid jumping on the bed, I figured something was amiss and googled, “what does a pineapple on a cruise ship door mean?”
Remember that show, “Wife Swap” (it was Mr. Cruise’s favorite show for reasons I still can’t fathom)? Well it’s like that except instead of platonically exchanging wives with dramatically different lifestyles, you all share the same “lifestyle” which involves swapping partners for S-E-X. And I guess a pineapple on your door means you’re, I dunno, ripe and ready?
So the lesson here is that hanging pineapples on random cruise ship doors would make for an awesome prank.
6/22/2021, Gifts and Gratuities
An update today posted by John Heald (Carnival’s Brand Ambassador) to his Facebook page included the following blurb:
“GIFTS FOR THE CREW – TIPPING: So many of you have warmed the old cockles of my heart by posting and asking if you can bring gifts for the cabin stewards and waiters and the crew? The answer is of course Yes. I know many you like to do this and your kindness is simply amazing. Of course after so long away from the ships they are ready to make money again to support their loved ones back home. So I do hope that as always you will continue to look after them if they provide you with the brilliant and fun service I know you have missed so much.“
I don’t know about you, but throughout the pandemic I’ve thought regularly of specific crew members I’ve met and gotten to know over my years of cruising and wondered and worried about them and their families. While I love cruising more than my dog loves sidewalk chicken bones (it took me approximately 4 hours to forcefully pry one from this his jaws on our walk this morning), there are certain things about it that have always caused me a moment of pause – crew conditions topping the list. But I also know that for many crew members a cruise ship job is their best option, the only way they can earn enough to support their families.
In any case, since I’m booked on the very first Carnival cruise out of Seattle post-pandemic, I’m anticipating many hiccups as crew (either new to ship life altogether or returning after a long break) implement new protocols for the first time. And while I may experience some minor inconveniences as a result, I can imagine how stressful this first sailing will be for many of the crew. So along with my buffet pants and Poo-Pourri (#cruiseessentials), I’m packing an extra large dose of patience. AND, I’m bringing these cards, which I plan to pass out to crew members with a personalized message and an extra cash tip inside:
I also logged onto my Carnival page and pre-paid my gratuities, which came out to be $97.93 for one person for a 7-day cruise. While pre-paying usually won’t save you any money (unless the daily rate is going up and they allow you to pre-pay in advance at the former rate), I always do it to avoid sticker shock when I receive my final bill for onboard spending.
To pre-pay, log onto your Carnival account and click on “Booking and Order Details.”
Then scroll down until you see “Pre-Pay Your Gratuities Before You Sail.”
Viola! Once my cards arrive, I’ll stop by the ATM and pull out a few hundred dollars worth of $20’s for my extra tips. Gratuities (even extra gratuities) are a small price to pay for how hard crew work to give me a relaxing, fun vacation. I hope we all treat them with kindness, patience, and respect as they adjust to post-pandemic life onboard.
6/25/2021, RIP Muster Drill
Sometimes in life we have to do things that suck, but are necessary for a big payout later. Like this, for example:
In order to do this:
And like this:
In order to do this:
That is, until your older cousin accidentally tells you there’s no such thing as Santa Claus and John Heald (Carnival’s Brand Ambassador) tells you there’s no more muster drill!
Today, live on Facebook, John announced that muster drill, as we’ve known and hated it, is no more. Instead, the following procedures will now be followed in order to brief guests on the safety protocols:
Step 1: Look on the Carnival Hub App or on your boarding pass for your muster station right after you board.
Step 2: Once onboard, within the first 1-2 hours, locate your muster station. Use the stairs if you can, as elevators may be shut down in a real emergency situation.
Step 3: Once you get to your muster station, check in with a crew member and they will let you know what you need to do to complete the safety protocol.
Step 4: Go to your stateroom and watch the safety briefing on the TV sometime before sail away.
Step 5: Retire your favorite cruise shirt which is now obsolete!
Step 6: Buy a new cruise shirt to celebrate!
John also made the following two announcements today:
-Guests who require oxygen or dialysis will not be permitted to sail for the rest of 2021.
-Crew members will be wearing face masks at all times, but will be wearing a large button with their smiling face on it.
6/28/2021, Good news for the lazy, introverted, and impatient! Bad news for flip-phones and line jumpers.
John Heald announced today on facebook three new uses for Carnival’s Hub App.
1. To make a reservation for breakfast, brunch, and dinner (if you have “your time dining”). You simply request a time and a table size and the dining room will notify you via the app when your table is ready. No more lines (sorry line jumpers, you’ll have find a new way to piss people off)!
2. To contact guest services with dumb questions you’re too embarrassed to ask in person.
3. To order pizza, burritos, and burgers for pick-up (to avoid standing in line) and eventually (this will be phased in) for delivery of certain food anywhere on the ship! Hangover breakfast burrito in your cabin? Check! Guy’s Burger in the bar? Check! Pizza while watching TV on a stationary bike at the gym (why would they call it a stationary bike if I’m supposed to pedal?)? Check!
All of this is welcome news. Unless you’re a flip-phone. You may be economical and good for fidgeting, but can you deliver an arepa to me at the pool?
6/29/2021, The First Cruise Ship Arrives In Seattle!
I burst into tears like I was thanking the academy or saying goodbye to my mom on her death bed when I looked out my windows and saw this today:
You may be wondering why this blurry cellphone photo caused me to also pee myself. Because it’s the first cruise ship to arrive in Seattle post-pandemic! It’s Royal Caribbean’s Ovation of the Seas docked at Terminal 91 to prepare for her Alaska season. And even though I’m not going to be on that one, I’ll be gazing out at her with renewed hope for a return to the thing I love most: cruising! It’s happening. It’s really happening!
6/30/2021, Food, Glorious Food!
Those of you bored enough to have been following along with my blog over the past few years know this about me: I love to eat. Now I know a lot of people say that, but how many of them have a pancake stack named after them? There’s a short stack of pancakes, a regular stack of pancakes, and a Prof. Cruise stack of pancakes. No seriously, order it at IHOP and watch a life-sized carby replica of the Leaning Tower of Pisa (I almost spelled Pisa, “pizza”… Freudian slip) emerge from the swinging doors balanced on the hands of all 10 waiters, the host, management, the janitors, and some guy who was walking by with his dog: “tie up Fido for a minute, we need your help!”
So I was VERY excited to hear this morning that there will be no changes to the buffet on Carnival. It will continue to be self-serve and I will continue to receive dirty looks for taking up three extra tables with my lunch plates as people circle looking for an available spot: “Is anyone sitting here?” “Yes, my mashed potatoes.”
7/1/2021, Somber News
For months, I’ve been checking in with John Heald’s Facebook page and counting on him to keep my hopes high and my cruise friends informed with his regular updates as Carnival prepares to resume cruising. I’ve also been living a bit vicariously through him for the past few days as he prepares for his first post-pandemic cruise scheduled for July 4th on the Carnival Horizon. I’ve even started drinking tea and speaking in a British accent which has really confused my family.
But today, when John showed up at the airport to board his flight to Florida, he was denied boarding by American Homeland Security due to American Covid-related travel restrictions. We’re still learning the details of why he (and others) were refused entry to the United States, but for now I’m sending him support as he processes what’s happened and charts a path forward. We’re a family. A big, at times dysfunctional, family of humans who love ships. And the sea. And each other. And when one of us hurts, we all hurt. We love you John! We’ll get through this and sail with you again!
7/2/2021, No More Fun Times And Other Updates
Those of you who read my prior post about the time I naively decorated my cabin door with a s**t ton of pineapples will understand why I was super relieved to learn that there will be no more fun times delivered to cabins. From now on, if you’re looking for an extra-marital rendezvous, you’ll need to sport one of these…
…and hook up in a public restroom, like a politician at the airport.
Wait, what? Oh, FUNTIMES, not fun times? As in:
Well in that case, how on earth am I going to know when the hairy chest contest is?
According to Carnival, while the daily newspaper/schedule will no longer be delivered to staterooms, it will be available on the Hub App and can also be picked up at Guest Services if you prefer a paper copy. The Lorax thanks you, Carnival (on behalf of the trees).
In other news:
-Cabin key cards will no longer be given out at check-in, you will pick them up on your cabin door after embarking with your boarding pass.
– While I can’t guarantee this for every ship, I have it on good authority that if you’re on the first post-pandemic sailing for your ship, your cabin will be ready at embarkation and you will be able to proceed directly to it. And please do if you’re on the Miracle – less competition as I seek to eat the first ever burrito at the new Blue Iguana Cantina on the Miracle.
-If you don’t complete the new Muster Drill procedure by the sail away, your ship card will be deactivated until you do (this should not be used by husbands as a way to curb the spending of their wives: “what muster drill, honey? I don’t think they do that anymore.”
7/8/2021, IMMEDIATE ACTION REQUIRED – VACCINE SURVEY FOR YOUR CRUISE
Today I received the following e-mail from Carnival:
When I saw the bit about my reservation being subject to cancellation, I was like, “oh hell no, I did not wait 17 months to cruise for my reservation to be cancelled.” So I immediately dropped what I was doing (I owe my mother-in-law some new wedding china as hers currently sits in a million pieces under the table I was setting when this e-mail came in) and logged onto my Cruise Manager. I found the vaccination survey under “My To-Do List.”
Here’s what the vaccination survey looks like when you click on it:
And here are the choices you have under the drop-down menu:
As I selected “yes,” I wondered why state governors aren’t giving out free cruises as an incentive to get vaccinated. I got vaccinated so I could pay to go on a cruise, but if I could win a free one, I’d get vaccinated every day and twice on Saturday. Instead of the “Fauci Ouchie” they could call it the “Shippy Shot.”
I also thought about that weird conspiracy theory going around about tracking devices being implanted when you get vaccinated. Whoever’s tracking me is going to think I got murdered and dumped in the ocean: “She’s been floating around the Pacific for 89 consecutive days, let’s turn off her chip and consider her neutralized.”
Anyway, I completed my survey and am one step closer to sail away!
In other news, John Heald was cleared to fly and made it to his ship in time! Yay John! And I took my first post-pandemic flight to visit my in-laws in New York. I was booked on a red-eye that was delayed until 2am and I missed my connection in Chicago. Thankfully I made it to NY just in time to celebrate the USA by almost burning a hole through foot after falling asleep with a lit sparkler in my hand.
7/12/2021, An Important Anniversary And A Big Day Tomorrow
Today I remember the most important day of my life. It’s the 10-year anniversary of my very first cruise (as an adult – I did go on one cruise with my family as a wee one). It was also the first day of my honeymoon, but as Mr. Cruise has learned all too well over the last 10 years, he’ll always come second to cruising (#sorrynotsorry). I mean if he can cruise with me, great. But if not? Buh bye! (His fault for having a real job.) Here we are on that first cruise though.
Weren’t we cute and young and…skinny? If I haven’t mentioned my pre-cruise diet in a while, it’s because I’ve given up on it. I’m just hoping everyone else will show up to formal night in their pandemic sweatpants too. I’m all in favor of ditching masks onboard, but I think some parts of pandemic life will serve us well far into the future. (As you may have heard, we do a lot of protesting here in Seattle. I’m thinking of making a sign and chanting down Pike Street, “Ho Ho Hey Hey, ELASTIC WAIST is here to stay!)
Anyway, tomorrow is a big day as I prepare for my cruise. It’s online check-in day! I plan on staying up until 9:00:01pm (yes, I’m normally asleep by then), because that will be the moment it becomes July 13 on the east coast.
Be sure to check back in tomorrow – I’ll be posting all the details on the online check-in process.
7/13/20, Online Check-In, CHECK
I’m a frequent Southwest Airlines flyer, so I’m conditioned to check-in for my flight EXACTLY 24 hours prior to the departure time in order to secure the best possible boarding position without having to pay extra (#cheap). So I decided to take a similar approach to checking in for my cruise. I don’t ever purchase Faster To The Fun (again, #cheap), but I want to get on the ship AS SOON AS POSSIBLE, so I always select the earliest arrival time available and, regardless of what time I get, I show up at the pier at 10am batting my eyelashes and hoping they’ll let me in. It usually works.
But this time, prior communication from Carnival suggested that with Covid protocols they may be more strict with turning people away who arrive before their assigned time. So I wanted to be DOUBLE SURE I got the earliest possible arrival time. So I logged into my account at EXACTLY 12am Eastern time (which, lucky for me, was 9pm in Seattle) and completed my online check-in, snagging the earliest arrival time of 10:30am. Success!
Here are screenshots of the entire check-in process. Most of this will look familiar to past Carnival cruisers, but there are a few areas that are new due to Covid.
7/16/2021, Food and Fun and a Question (Actually Two Questions)
One time in high school I strongly suspected that one of my teachers wasn’t reading our homework and was instead slapping a sticker (AWESOME JOB!) at the top and giving full credit to every student. So I decided to test my theory. I started off slow by slipping in an occasional “are you reading this” into an otherwise satisfactory effort. Yeap, another sticker and full credit with no additional comments. So I kept pushing it until I eventually turned in a profanity-laced essay on why it was well past time for this particular teacher to retire. And guess what? An affirming sticker (YOU NAILED IT!) and full credit! Which brings me to my first of two questions: Is anyone still reading this? Please drop a quick note in the comments if you are. Otherwise, I might start getting really spicy.
Anyway, Jen Baxter (our cruise director), posted some information about our Entertainment Team and Fun Squad, so I thought I’d pass it along:
But this brings me to a confession and my second question. Confession: I’m not that fun. And more than that, I’m kind of a nerd. My favorite part of cruising to Alaska (which I’ve done many times on every cruise line except Carnival – this will be my first Carnival cruise to Alaska) is creapily following around the ship’s naturalist so I don’t miss a single sea lion that turns out to be a rock while repeatedly telling them: “I wish I had your job!” Seriously though, I’ve loved listening to lectures, looking from the promenade deck for wildlife, and chatting with the naturalist onboard my prior Alaska cruises. So…does anyone know if there will be a naturalist onboard the Miracle?
Now, onto something MUCH more important. FOOD!!!!!
Ya’ll know by now how much I love to eat. I also like to stalk cruise menus prior to sailing to get excited and to have in my mind in advance what I might like to order so I don’t become paralyzed with all the choices and accidentally order, “one of each, except for the desserts. I’ll have two of each of those.” If anyone else would like to get an idea of the menus, I’ve posted the updated 2021 Carnival dinner menus here. I can’t guarantee that these will be the exact menus (or that they will be in this exact order) for our sailing, but they’ll give you a pretty darn good idea of what they will look like. Now excuse me while I hit the fridge. I’m hungry!
7/18/2021, Single Digits!
Guess what?
Single digits until I FINALLY cruise again!
My neighbors just knocked on my door to ask if I’d won the 1 million dollar grand prize in the State of Washington vaccine lottery (following my loud and prolonged screams of joy). And I was like, “no, better!”
Is anyone else in the single digits?
7/20/2021, The Longest Week, Prof Cruise’s Book Club, And Communication From Carnival
This is going to be the longest week since I labored and birthed my son (which was actually only 8 or so hours, but it felt like a week). Why? Because there’s one week until my cruise! And not just any cruise, my first cruise since February…2000 (gasp!). The closer it gets to embarkation day, t h e s l o w e r t i m e g o e s. So I’m trying to keep busy by writing a s**t ton of mediocre blog posts (consider that both a warning and an apology) and packing.
Now unlike some who like to carefully plan their outfits weeks, sometimes months in advance (I’m looking directly into the virtual eye of my MIL right now who showed me her “cruise closet” when I visited recently), I have no interest or taste in fashion and have cruised to Alaska so many times that I just bring the same pile of things that have worked for me in the past (you can see what I always pack for Alaska here).
What I do care about is reading material. Reading in a quiet spot with a view of the ocean is one of the things I love most about cruising (told ya…nerd). And I always try to select books that either take place on a cruise ship or feature one of the ports I’ll be visiting.
On my last two cruises I read The Woman in Cabin 10 by Ruth Ware (which takes place on a cruise ship) and The Great Alone by Kirstin Hannah (which takes place in Alaska). While I enjoyed them both, (spoiler alert) they were intense and people died.
This time, since I’m cruising solo and we’re just emerging (hopefully!) from a global pandemic that’s killed millions, I’m looking for something a little…lighter? Less terrifying? Less depressing?
All of those. But still cruise related. So I’ve settled on “The Jetsetters” by Amanda Eyre Ward. Here’s the basic premise: The matriarch of a dysfunctional family wins a free cruise to the Mediterranean and invites her adult children to join her.
This particular book speaks to me because one of the cruises I had cancelled during the pandemic was a Mediterranean cruise scheduled with my mother and brother. Plus I figure reading about a dysfunctional family will remind me not to miss Mr. Cruise and my son too much (I’ll still miss my dog though).
While this book is already a Reece’s Book Club selection, I suspect it will become wildly more popular (or more likely sales will suddenly tank) when it’s announced as the first Prof. Cruise Book Club selection. Feel free to get the book and join the club. I don’t care if you actually read it, I only ask that you not use it to hog a prime pool lounger. My reputation’s bad enough.
In other news, I received the following e-mail from Carnival this morning:
7/20/2021, Nervous Nelly
Is it just me or do you hold your breath and grip the table every time you get an e-mail from Carnival? I’ve had so many cruises cancelled over the past 17 months I keep expecting to see “we’re so sorry to inform you…”. And when I get multiple e-mails from them in one day? I put a call into my therapist and scrap the gym because while the rest of me is all Covid Curvy, my ass is steel from all the clenching.
Here’s the second e-mail I received from Carnival today regarding my sailing on the 27th:
7/22/2021, On Her Way! And Another E-mail From Carnival
Back before I discovered that cruises are a perfectly wonderful substitute for human relationships (pro tip!), I briefly dated someone I’d crushed on for ages before he swiftly dumped me. I was at that age where I grasped onto any hope of reconciliation instead of blasting Lizzo, drinking a few martinis while reading feminist memes on Instagram, and then moving the eff on. Instead, I decided to internet “stalk” this guy to see if I could find an “in.” Turns out all his social media accounts were public and he broadcast basically every aspect of his life. And I learned that EVERY DAY he ate eggs and bacon for breakfast, egg salad for lunch, and meatloaf and potatoes for dinner. I thought to myself, “this is way too easy” and “what did I ever see in this guy? He’s so boring!”
So what does this have to do with the Miracle? Well I’ve been stalking her exact location on CruiseMapper for MONTHS and every time I check she’s in basically the same spot off the coast of California en route to Long Beach (she never actually arrives there) or “adrift.” Boring. It’s like she eats egg salad every day for lunch (egg salad isn’t even that good!). But she’s a cruise ship and not a man, so I kept at it. And guess what? Today she’s on the move and she’s headed my way with an ETA in Seattle of July 25th at 1:00pm. And my hopes of a reconciliation with cruising are alive and well!
I also received ANOTHER e-mail from Carnival this morning. I wonder if Carnival feels the same anxiety sending these e-mails out that I do receiving them: please don’t cancel, please don’t cancel, please don’t cancel.
No fear, I could receive an e-mail from Carnival telling me, “we regret to inform you that the itinerary for your sailing has changed and we’ll now be docking at Chernobyl for the week,” and I still wouldn’t cancel. In any case, nothing about this latest e-mail was a surprise to me, but it confirmed a few things I’d heard elsewhere.
7/23/21, Housekeeping
In official Carnival news, the servicing of staterooms will be limited to once a day for now (for health and safety reasons), either in the morning or evening depending on guest preference. But I’d like to spend the majority of this update talking about a few of my own housekeeping items before I forget.
For those of you who have been so faithfully following along as I prepare for my cruise, reading through my seemingly endless drivel hoping eventually you’ll get to the “good part,” I have some bad news. Your hopes will be dashed on July 27th when this post will be permanently retired and will live out it’s days in obscurity with all the other things I’ve written – everything else on this blog, my dissertation, and my marriage vows (the hotel maid accidentally threw them away, so I had to wing it).
While you’ll never get back those hours you wasted on me, I have good news! I’ll be providing new links as I live blog the embarkation process, my onboard experience, and debarkation. I’ll post the first new link to this page on the 27th as well as to my Facebook page.
And if you want to waste even MORE time, I encourage you to follow @profcruise on Instagram where I’ll be spamming you with a million photos of the ship, ports, food, EVERYTHING! (Why did I just lose 90% of my Instagram followers?)
Speaking of housekeeping items, I’m leaving Mr. Cruise, my 8 year-old son, and my geriatric dog alone for 7 days and fear a notice from the health department on my apartment door upon my return. Despite my teasing, I love Mr. Cruise dearly and he works very hard to keep our family fed and loved and (most importantly) cruised. But seriously, I’m considering either hiring a cleaning service for the day before I return home or offering up our apartment to a local science class studying the fruiting structures of molds.
7/24/2021, The Miracle Is Back…But Where?
When I saw this photo of the entire Miracle crew on the Lido deck with signs that read, “CARNIVAL MIRACLE ALASKA 2021” and “WE ARE BACK” I got so excited I threw an impromptu party out on my apartment balcony complete with a Drink of the Day (unfortunately we only had a Capri Sun Citrus Rush and Crème de menthe in the fridge, which tasted like drinking orange juice after brushing your teeth) and entertainment (I had Mr. Cruise disrobed from the waist up and our dog compete in a hairy chest contest…Mr. Cruise won).
But when I paused the music to check the Miracle’s location on CruiseMapper, I spit out my drink because it was DISGUSTING, but also because I saw this:
The Carnival Miracle heading out into the Pacific in the opposite direction of Seattle! Like the Captain drank too much at the deck party and accidentally reset the course toward Hawaii. Excuse me while I pour myself another Colgate Capri and warn all of downtown Seattle to stay away from ships with fancy (whale) tails – they’re nothing but a tease!
7/24/2021, Course Correction And Final Online Health Assessment
Good news! The Captain has sobered up on some Lido “coffee” and has corrected course. The Miracle is once again headed for Seattle! The party’s back on (but don’t tell the Captain).
Also, I just received this e-mail from Carnival:
I logged onto my Cruise Manager right away to complete my assessment.
I feel like I’ve answered these same exact questions roughly 10 million times over the past 15 months. If I were Carnival I’d throw in a question like, “have you picked your nose in the car in the past 14 days?” and if someone answers “no” I’d flag them for a Covid test because they’re probably lying about the rest too.
7/24/2021, She’s Here!!!!!
The Miracle arrived in Seattle early this morning ahead of schedule and is currently docked at Pier 91. Of course I had to head right over there to attempt to climb the fence to sneak on her. You’ll recognize me at embarkation as the woman with the gruesome barbed wire cuts disguised under a bunch of my 8 year-olds Pokemon temporary tattoos with a mask that reads: “fresh out of jail and ready to cruise!” Before the police snatched me, I managed to snap a few photos:
7/26/2021, Thank You
With 0 days and 18 hours until I cruise, I’m going to retire this link and finish my preparations (do check back tomorrow morning though as I’ll post a new link dedicated to the embarkation process). But before I do that I want to say thank you. Thank you to everyone who made my first post-Covid cruise possible. To those who helped develop, test, manufacture, distribute, and administer the vaccines that made cruising again a reality (especially the two kind volunteer nurses who administered my vaccines at the largest civilian led vaccine clinic in the country) – thank you! To all the employees at Carnival and the crew of the Miracle who were tasked with doing what once seemed impossible – thank you! To my husband, Mr. Cruise, for embracing my love of cruising and holding down the fort while I’m away – thank you! And finally, and most especially, to all of you reading this – thank you! For coming along with me on this journey. For tolerating my weird sense of humor. For making me laugh. For teaching me so much. And for renewing my hope in the power of a shared love. That the sea and the sunset and especially Carnival Chocolate Melting Cake can bring people together. And with this quote to close things out…
I can finally declare…
Class Dismissed.
*Go HERE for my next live installment which will cover embarkation, muster drill, and sail away.
Following
Looking forward to your posts
Thank you, Polly! Let me know if there’s anything in particular you’re wondering about and I’ll be sure to pay attention and do my best to address it. Happy Cruising!
This is awesome what you are doing! Thank you for sharing your experience with us.
Sure thing – it will be fun! Let me know if you have any specific questions about anything and I’ll do my best to find the answers. Happy Cruising!
Hi! Maybe a dumb question, but how can I follow you to make sure your next posts aren’t missed? I am anxious to cruise again.
Hi Crystal,
If you just want to follow this one post as I update it, I’d probably just bookmark this page and check back periodically. You can also subscribe to the blog (there’s a spot to do that along the right side of my page), but that won’t send you updates to this particular post (just new posts). Hope that helps! Are you booked on a cruise?
Have you compared the travel insurance any of your travel credit cards provide to the policies from TravelInsurance.com to see if they are comparable? Thanks.
That’s a great question! I do have some free travel insurance coverage through the credit card I charged my cruise to, but it’s much more limited than what I want in this case. Thank you for reminding people to check their credit card policies and compare – that’s really great advice!
Great information. I’ll be following all the way through your cruise, as we are booked on the same one departing 7/27. Any recommendations on hotels to stay at the night before. We are leaning towards downtown rather than airport location. Also considering using light rail from airport, as opposed to Uber or taxi. Any thoughts on that. Thank you.
Hi Dean,
I’m so excited to be on the same cruise with you! I have a guide to cruising from Seattle with some of my recommendations for hotels downtown or near the cruise pier (which are also near all the Seattle Center sites like the Space Needle and several cool museums). I also include some information about the light rail to downtown. I live downtown and always take the light rail to and from the airport. You may have a bit of a walk depending on which hotel you pick, so map that out to make sure it’s doable for you. If you want to run any specific hotels by me, feel free! Here’s the guide: https://profcruise.com/comprehensive-guide-to-cruising-from-seattle-in-2021/ Yay! Happy planning and cruising!!!
Great Blog Prof Cruise. I especially like your search for just the right mask, they are difficult to find. My husband and I will be on the July 27th Alaska cruise and excited to hear that he might not insult our cruise director with his humor. While he always finds some like minds I usually counsel him on public behavior before we go. It sounds like I don’t need to do that this time. Looking forward to the fun.
LOL, I think your husband and I would hit it off. My husband has to counsel me on public behavior before we go too. See you onboard – I’m so excited!
I’ll be sailing on the Miracle August 31 and can’t wait. I look forward to your posts about how things worked, or didn’t, for your cruise. I booked that date thinking that would allow them to work the bugs out of our collective new cruising realities.
Very smart! I’m anticipating quite a few bugs on my sailing, which is totally understandable. I can be patient as long as I’m on a cruise ship! But I think going a bit later in August is ideal. I hope you have an amazing cruise. Be sure to report back!
I’m on the Miracle on September 14 so I will be taking good notes, Professor, on what to expect and look forward to!
Yay! I’m so excited for you! Enjoy your cruise! Let me know if you have any specific questions or things you want me to pay particular attention to while I’m onboard.
I thought of something!
It’s my boyfriend’s first cruise. And while I can (and would/will) eat breakfast at any meal of the day, he’s not into the eggs/bacon/french toast kind of breakfast. He prefers lunch/dinner food for breakfast. I told him we can grab a pizza or sub at the end of the night and stick it in the mini fridge and he can have that for breakfast, but would you please let me know if you see any non-breakfast items on Lido buffet or dining room menu? Thanks!
I would recommend eating breakfast at the Blue Iguana Cantina. They serve breakfast burritos, which are my go to. Also serve Arepas Huevos Rancheros. Excellent alternative to the Lido or MDR.
You read my mind!
Hi Debbie!
You can preview the main dining room and sea day brunch menus here (just scroll down until you see them):
https://profcruise.com/carnival-menus/
As for the buffet, I’ll be sure to check that out for you and report back. There is such a huge selection of items, I bet there’s something he’ll like. I also recommend checking out the breakfast burrito from the Blue Iguana Cantina (you can find the menu on that same link). I get one of those almost every morning for breakfast!
I saw the menus – I’m still figuring out what an arepa is! I’ve never had one. He’s not a big burrito fan unfortunately. I wonder if the MDR would allow up to take out an extra entree from dinner for him to eat in the morning.
Thanks!
I am so happy I found your website. I have now read all your lectures enjoy your humor and advice, and ready to take a test. On May 21, 2021, I booked NCL to Alaska out of Seattle departing August 28. Saw the announcement about Alaska, talked to the two friends I am sailing with, and within an hour it was booked. They have never been on a cruise and I have only been on 3 cruises in my life, but never out of Seattle, so am very excited to avoid jet lag, airports, and missing luggage. I think my August 28 departure is the 4th Cruise out of Seattle so hope there is plenty of time for NCL to work out any issues after the year long disruption. I have watched all the YouTube Videos on the NCL Encore and the personal videos on what you do with your luggage and the general boarding process. I am guessing it will be different because of the potential to need to do an antigen test, even though everyone is vaccinated? I notice your cruise line will not test you before you board? Hope NCL drops that requirement. Hate to get a false negative and prevent the 3 of us from boarding.
Hi Bucky!
I’m so excited for you! I love NCL. I was booked on the Encore last year, but it was cancelled. You’ll have to let me know how you like it! It will be interesting to see how NCL handles all the Covid protocols. I like the way Carnival is doing it on their fully vaxed sailings. I don’t think an antigen test is necessary unless something is flagged (like the person has a temp, reports any symptoms, etc). Hopefully things will go smoothly for you – like you say, they’ll have time to work out any kinks before it’s your turn. Have a great cruise!!!
I loved reading about your last minute booking on the Bliss! What an adventure. I think the Encore is a slightly newer version of the Bliss, so it should be similar?. Did you sign up for the “steaming WiFi package to use while on board? I am assuming you can get cell service when in Port, but rarely on Sea Days? Did you find the ship wifi reasonably fast?
At the Bell Street Pier, I assume you drop your big luggage with the Porters, then everyone goes through some sort of security, then onto Check In? Is that security like the metal detectors at the airport that does a body scan and xrays your “carry on”? ,My first two cruises were in the Caribbean on 2600 Passenger ships 20 years ago, and was a mess. My last cruise was 3 years ago in the Mediterranean with only 1800 passengers. It was much more pleasant and no line. Because this is a MegaShip, I am an introvert that can masquerade as an extrovert only when essential, and 4000 passengers seems a bit overwhelming, I took the opportunity to book the 3 of us into the best cabin in the Haven. The videos mention it is much more painless and someone actually escorts you on board? Do you think we can get on board if we arrive at 11 AM?
Hi Bucky!
Yes, the Encore is in the same class of ship as the Bliss, so it will be very similar. Yes, you’ll get cell service in port, but not at all when the ship is at sea. The wifi worked pretty good for what I needed it for (social media, work stuff), but I didn’t try to stream anything.
Yes, you’ll drop off your luggage with porters and then take your carry-on items through security. You’ll walk through a metal detector and your bags will go through an xray machine.
The Haven sounds perfect for you! I’m an introvert too and do find the large ships a bit overwhelming at times. I can’t speak directly to the Haven experience, but know people who have done it and they have LOVED it. You’ll have your own smaller dining room, your own pool area, a butler, etc. Lucky, lucky – I’m jealous! You’ll have to report back and let me know how you liked it.
I’m not sure how all the new safety protocols post-Covid are going to go at the Pier, but you’ll definitely be among the first to board since you’re in the Haven. I think planning to get there around 11am is probably about right.
Have an amazing cruise! I’m so excited for you!
Greetings Professor. I found some time to stop at the Bell Street Pier with my two travel companions and they were astounded at the size of the Encore! I was astounded too, but I managed to act relaxed and knowledgeable. They are now beyond excited as I pointed out what I think were the Haven Section of the ship just below the very top deck near the bow of the ship on Deck 17 & 18. NCL seems to still be developing their protocols for embarkation and covid testing and I am looking forward to the reports of the check in protocols reported by the cruisers just ahead of us. I believe we can request a boarding time, get tested, and board soon after. I think they are trying to schedule boarding times as to minimize the giant crowds of passengers that normally congregate at Check in. I also understand they are limiting their capacity to 60-70% and it looks like the cruise is currently sold out except for the Haven. I look forward to your report on YOUR embarkation process and the experience at the Port Cities and your excellent guidance after your cruise. We are already planning our hikes recommended by you in one of your other reports at each of the Port Cities. Thank you so much for creating this website for we novice cruisers and making your “lectures” so entertaining!
I’ve been gazing out at the Encore from my living room for over a week. She’s a beauty! I’m so excited for you!!!
a great read! good information. appreciate the travel insurance tip and i must try that AREPA. ‘never heard of it’ and had to look it up! with the exception of my very first cruise over 40 yrs ago, i’ve always made decorations for my cabin doors and happy to say, NEVER did i put a pineapple out there, and knowing what i now know, there NEVER will be! Thanks for the tips. i’m a new follower!
Yes, definitely try an Arepa! You won’t be sorry! I’m glad I’m not the only one who didn’t know about the pineapple on the door. Thankfully, you didn’t have to learn the hard way. Happy to have saved you that embarrassment. LOL. Thanks for your kind words and happy cruising!!!
We’re booked on Miracle for August 3 sailing and look forward to your updates. I love your sense of humor and appriciate you taking the time to let us know what is happening. We’re so excited about going cruising again.
Yay! I’ll wave to you as I’m disembarking and you’re embarking! Have a wonderful cruise!!!
We are on The Miracle August 3rd departure. Can’t wait. I just saw a news video from a Houston Texas TV station about the Carnival Vista that is set to sail out of Galveston today. Reporter said, “Carnival says for now, it’s entire fleet will operate at 70% capacity, then will eventually ramp back up to full capacity”. If that’s true, I’m looking even more forward to our cruise now.
Hi Steve,
You’re getting on as I depart (don’t be offended if I give you a dirty look as we pass, it’s jealousy speaking). Thank you so much for that intel on capacity! A few of us have been looking all over for that information, unable to find it. That’s very welcome news indeed! Thanks again and have an amazing cruise!!!
Yay! So happy for you. Not gonna lie I worried about our favorite professor.
Can’t wait to read all about about it.
Of course! Thanks for checking!
Hi again, We are on The Miracle (8/3/21 Seattle departure) the week after you. We want to reserve a dinner in the steakhouse but not on Formal night/s. Do you when formal night/s will be on this itinerary? Thanks!!!
Hi Steve!
I don’t know for sure, but on every other Carnival 7 day cruise I’ve been on, they have been on nights 2 and 6. I will double check though and as soon as I find out I’ll let you know (others feel free to chime in too, if you’ve heard for sure).
Hello there!
We’ll be on tge Miracle on the 27th with you. Really appreciated your Alaska tips and ready to enjoy! Looking forward to your posts!
Woohoo! See you onboard!!!
Cruising on the 17th on the Carnival Miracle so I am excited to follow your cruise experience!
Have a wonderful cruise!!!
You as well!
Oh my gosh – this blog may be the funniest thing I’ve read in forever. And all the great tips – especially the one about no pineapples on the door!!! I guess unless you are into that … hahahahaha. Thank you for the laughs and the thoughts about tipping the crew and all of it. Fabulous!
Thank you so much for your kind words. Happy cruising!
Your question: Are we reading this?
Answer: Yaaaasssss!
Thanks for posting the menus. I like to plan ahead also, or at least know my options. I hope to see you on the Miracle in (checks phone) 11 days and 19 minutes.
I’m glad I’m not the only one obsessively checking my countdown clock. Lol. See you onboard soon!!!
We are booked on the Miracle August 3rd, and like you, this will be our first cruise to Alaska on Carnival. So excited to cruise again and seeing the sights in Alaska. Love reading your posts and look forward to hearing how it goes once on board! Now off to check out your packing advice!
Oh how exciting! Circle back and let me know how it goes. I’m not going to lie, I’m going to be a little resentful of you while you’re waiting to board as I’m disembarking. Lol. Have an amazing cruise!
I would love to get a preview of the first “Fun Day at Sea” Fun Times! Want to schedule a couples massage for me and my guy but don’t want to interfere with the FUN! TIA!
I’ll be sure to post!
YES, I am reading this, I check your bog every week and always enjoy the content. Thank you, Sharon
Yay! Thank you so much for your kind words, Sharon. You made my Monday!
Loving your posts as always. Save travels! You are so close!!!
Thank you!!!
Another funny cruise book about a dysfunctional family is “The Floating Feldmans.” I recently read that one and had a good laugh
Thank you for the recommendation! I’m definitely checking that one out!
One I really liked was “Where’d You Go, Bernadette?” Apparently it was a movie too but I’m a fellow bookworm and it was a fun read! And there is a cruise tie-in.
Thank you, Debbie! I always love getting book recommendations from fellow cruisers and bookworms!
I am with you in terms of the anxiety I get every time I get an email from Carnival! We sail on August 10 and I’m beside myself! But also SOOOOO excited. Our last cruise was August 2019. Our cruises to the Baltic and the Caribbean last year (summer and Christmas) were cancelled. We’ve been to Alaska before – about 9 years ago on Disney when our kids were 4 and 5. Really looking forward to taking them at this age too. So happy for you!!! Can’t wait to read the posts on the new page or Instagram!
Thank you! I’m so happy for you too! I hope you and your family have an amazing time!!!
My husband and I are sailing 8/31 on the Miracle, so happy to have found your blog so we can know what to expect in advance. Hope your cruise goes smoothly and you savor every minute of being back on board. I do have a question, our flight times on our return home have been changed significantly and we are now departing at 10:45 am with no other later options. My question is will we be able to disembark early enough to make this flight? My quests would be being able to leave approximately 8am. I was not able to get an answer when I called Carnival. I look forward to seeing what time you will actually dock on return and your observations of passengers leaving the ship.