Anyone sailing on 5/1/07 ?

Fred

Yes, we have exclusivly for the last 5 cruises, we have been on 2 RC ships that were very nice also but we have found no differences on the newer ships and Carnival has better pricing.

Wow, what a first cruise to go on, your going to love it, it's our first cruise in Europe though, we are from the US, pretty excited also as time gets closer , will you be spending anytime in Rome before the cruise?, we are going 3 days before to see what we can in Rome.

Fred         

Fred,

Yes, we will be traveling for two weeks before the cruise.  We are going to visit some friends in Berlin and work our way down to Munich, Innsbruck, Florence, and then to Rome for 3 days before the cruise.  We arrive in Berlin on April 18th.  We can't wait either.  I check on the cruise everyday.  How do you feel about shore excursions?  Some of them seem pretty pricey and others don't seem so bad.  I'm just not sure which ones to choose?  We are going to be traveling so much before the cruise, it will be nice to just be able to unpack and relax. 

Where in Rome will you be staying before the cruise?  We have reserved a hotel in central Rome about a mile from the Colosseum.  This is my wifes first trip to Europe and my second trip although I was in England and Scottland on my other trip over there. 

Where in the US are you from?  We are from San Diego.  I can't believe how quickly this is coming up.  This will be a vacation of a lifetime I think. 

Dan & Betsy

Hi Dan and Betsy,

We booked Carnival shore excursions in every port, I suggest you don't wait too long to decide as some of the more desireable excursions can be maxed out, I believe our Carnival Vacation planner told us this.The following are what we booked:

Amalfi Drive & Pompeii - Naples

Evening Gondola Ride - Venice

St Marks Experience - Venice

Best of Dubrovnik - Croatia

Tamormina & Mt Etna - Messina

Montserrat & Barcelona - Spain

Nice & Eze - France

Florence & Pisa with Tower Entrance - Livorno

I know this is very busy schedule but we figure that we want to make the most of this very expensive vacation and see all great things Europe has to offer.

We live in New Jersey, we didn't book any formal excursions in Rome, I read that everything is fairly close, I have yet to read the book I bought on Rome, I plan on reading on the flight over.We are staying at a hotel near the airport, if your interested, maybe we can meet in Rome for dinner or a day in Rome touring, it would be nice to be with another couple from the states, let me know.

Fred & Jean

thanks for the tips on the shore excursions.  We were thinking about a couple of them that you are already on.  I think I'll get them booked this week for sure.  As for meeting up in Rome, that sounds fun but I'm not sure how we could go about it since we will be traveling for two weeks before we get to Rome.  I won't have my computer with me and I don't know what my phone number will be when I get over there.  It would be tough to set up a time and place to meet without having contact.  If we can't find a way to meet in Rome, I know we would definately love to meet up on the ship for sure.  I really can't believe how quickly this is coming up.  I wish we could leave tomorrow. 

How long will you be staying after the cruise?  Are you flying home right after?

Dan and Betsy

Howdy Fred,

Richard & Jenny here. We will be taking our very first cruise on May 1st aboard the Carnival Freedom. We will be celebrating our 25th anniversary on this trip. I asked Jenny where in the world she wanted to spend our anniversary and she said Italy. What could be more romantic than Rome, Venice, Naples and Tuscany.

We are from Mesa, Arizona. We hope to make some new friends aboard ship seeing the sights of the Mediterranean.

Rich

Hi Dan & Betsy,

No problem, we'll meet on the ship, we plan on staying over night at the hotel and fly home the next morning, too stressfull trying to make a 10:00AM flight the day we depart from the ship.

Fred & Jean

Hi Rich & Jenny,

Congratulations on your 25th, what a great way to celebrate this milestone, this year we are married 35 years. We would like to get together and make friends on board also, I suggest we leave our names and cabin number at the information desk when we board then we can get together along with Dan and Betsy also, what do you think?

Fred & Jean

That sounds great.  We are leaving the day after the cruise but we have to get back to Berlin.  I found the airfair was much much less expensive flying to berlin than flying into Rome.  Thats how we decided to take the extra time to work our way down to Rome.  Betsy and I will be celebrating our 4 year anniversary this year.  We have a litte ways to catch up with you guys but we'll make it  :).  We are very much looking forward to meeting up.  How do we go about leaving our info?  do we do that upon check-in??  Talk to you soon.

Dan & Betsy

Dan & Betsy,

After you board the ship and get settled go the "Purser's Desk" and ask for a message left by Fred & Jean for Dan & Betsy, we will give you our cabin #, give us a call at that number and we will meet on the main deck. If you get there before us, leave a similar note and we will call you , Richard & Jenny should do the same thing,  I think this should work. We are looking forward to meeting all four of you, 6 more weeks to go, can't wait.

Fred & Jean

Fred & Jean,

Thanks again for the info.  We'll definately do that.  We're looking forward to meeting you.  Thanks for all your help with the shore excursions as well.  I've booked excusions on almost all the stops and most of them are the same ones that you booked.  It's funny because those were the ones I was already looking at before you wrote back.  We are more than excited especially this being our first cruise!  We aren't really sure what to expect but I think its going to be unforgettable (especially on the pocket-book).  I'm anxious to see if anymore people on our cruise will respond to these posings.

See you SOON!

Dan & Betsy

Dan & Betsy,

You can expect to gain about 7 to 10 pounds from all the great food you will be eating.

You'll spend about $200.00 probably even more over 12 days, on photos, Carnival starts taking them even before you even get on the ship, plus every port you go to, each formal night, and the wife will insist on these, plus many candid shots taken through out the cruise. I must say that they are very good at taking pictures, I'm an amateur photographer myself and I admire the great shots they take.

You can run up a large bar tab if you not careful, mixed drinks are constantly offered where ever go throughout the ship.

You don't use cash on board, except in the casino,you use a card issued to you before you get on board, every thing you buy on board will be payable at the end of the cruise, it always surprises me how high this is at the end.

You can expect to meet nice people at dinner each night, everybody is happy and friendly on a cruise.   

I was told to wear comfortable shoes as we will be doing a lot of walking.

I believe after this cruise you will get hooked on cruising, I know we are, how can we not have a great time with great countries we will be visiting, impossible. 

It would be nice if others responed to this posting, I think many people stumble on to the site even though Carnival mentions it on their home page, we still have 6 weeks to go, I think we will hear from others.

Well take care for now

Fred & Jean

Hi Fred,

I will be on the exact same cruise Oct 16 - would love to hear about your experience when you return.  We are not staying in Rome prior to the cruise, but we have hired a private limo to take us from airport - tour Rome/Vatican and then take us to ship.  This way we do not have to wait for the Carnival Tour to fill-up before we depart the airport.  Here are the shore excursions we plan to book:

Naples - Pompeii, Sorrento & Capri

Venice - 1st day on our own, 2nd day - Verona: City of Romeo & Juliet

Dubrovnik - Classical Sightseeing or Best of? - not sure

Sicily - Messina Tour

Barcelona - Highlights & Shopping

Cannes - The Colors of the French Riviera

Livorno - Florence & Pisa

I can't wait for this vacation - This will be my sixth cruise on Carnival - love them!

Deborah

Hi Deborah,

Yes, I would enjoy posting our thoughts on the cruise, look for it after May 15th.

I had to stop watching the Travel Channel on TV because they were showing a RC cruise with all the great sites we are going to see, I know it different when your actually there but I don't want to see videos before I go, I want to be surprised somewhat, you know what I mean ?

It looks like you picked some great excursions to go on, I see your a frequent floater also. 

 I think it's a great idea taking a private limo through Rome, too bad you couldn't get there a couple of days earlier to see more, so much to see, so little time.

Going in October should be as nice as going in May, the kids will be back in school and it shouldn't be crazy crowded in Rome.

Well, thanks for writing and I wish you the greatest vacation ever.

Fred