Carnival Liberty review Port of Calls

We were on the Liberty from 11/26 to 12/4. It was our first cruise, so I
have nothing to compare. The ship was absolutely gorgeous from top to
bottom. It may have ruined me for any other ship.

I won't bore you with the details of embarking, but it was horrendous. We
were supposed to ship out at 4:00, but didn't leave 'til 5:00.
Experienced cruisers said this was normal. I learned never to arrive at
the lifeboat drill too early. We had to line up against a wall and there
were 4 rows deep in front of us. My husband almost passed out from the
heat.

The stops: Monday, 11/28 - We went to Costa Maya instead of Cozumel. I
was very disappointed because there were places in Cozumel I really wanted
to see. We were supposed to go snorkeling in Costa Maya, but the waves
were a little rough. Since it would have been our first time, the guide
suggested we not go. We did get our money refunded. They offered 15
tours there ranging from 39.00 to 199.00. The high priced one was for fly
fishing.

There's a shopping area that sells all kind of stuff. I didn't buy
anything there because I just saw souvenir stuff, however people were
buying, so maybe it was just me. An American looking and talking man
tried to get us in his store by saying "hey, come in here and let me cheat
you just a little". We laughed. A lot of people were interested in a
very nice looking cigar shop with the right humidity, and enclosed glass
room, etc. selling authentic Cuban cigars. There was a swimming pool
there and 1 person jumped in it, but the pools on the Liberty looked more
appealing. We arrived at 8:00 and left around 6:00.

Tuesday, 11/30 - Limon, Costa Rica. Arrived 10:00, left about 6:00. They
offered 17 tours ranging from 33.00 to 129.00. Our tour was the Bus,
Caribbean Train and Boat for $79.00 each. The bus took us to an old
train that used to go though the rich areas of Limon. It was very slow
moving, but we had fun anyway. We were given bottled water and a
photographer from the ship took pictures. These were then posted on board
and could be bought for, I believe $8.00 apiece. Of course we bought
them. We boarded another bus to take us to the Tortugero Canals. We
boarded a covered open air boat and headed down the canals where we saw a
few monkeys, sloths, bats, and beautiful blue butterflies. When we came
back, we were provided a fruit buffet, small calypso band singing Day O,
and bathrooms. Then we boarded buses again and went to a banana
plantation, which was really quite interesting. We enjoyed the day over
all. Some of our friends went on bike rides and some went to a sloth
sanctuary where they held a baby sloth. Everyone seemed to like whatever
tour they were on.

Thursday 12/1 - Colon, Panama - None of the tours looked interested to us.
We wanted to see the canal, but the ship tours were too expensive. When you
get to the port there's a building to go through with a lot of Carnival
approved shops. After you go through there, you are inundated with men who
want to drive you someplace. Police are all over the place. These guys
don't take no for an answer. We finally got away from them and looked
around the shopping area, but didn't see anything I was really looking for,
which was a good bargain.

10 of us decided to hire a van to take us to a gated shopping area that only
tourists and business owners can go to, but locals are not allowed. It was
raining hard at the time and the driver took us the long way around (we
found out later). We couldn't see much anyway because of the rain. Anyway,
when we got there, it looked not too safe and we told the driver to take us
back. We thought he had taken us to the wrong place. (It turned out to be
the gated shopping area). He took us back and it cost us $10.00 a piece to
go nowhere. One couple stayed on the van and said they were going back.
They later came back with tons of bargains, jewelry, clothes, linens,
glass, boxes of shoes and unbelievable prices. If I ever go back to
Colon, that will be my first trip.

4 of us decided to hire another van to take us to a shopping area to buy rum
and other yummy drinks. We negotiated a price of $20.00 a piece and off we
went. He took us to a kind of strip mall where the alcohol was really
cheap. While the men were in the liquor stores, I checked out a couple
women's shops. I saw cute two piece outfits for $15.00. Very nice, but the
sizes were very small. The salesperson told me they were Thailand sizes.
From there our driver took us to the canal where we watched a ship slowly
making it's way through. The people on board were waving at us. I felt
sorry for the people from our ship who paid $175.00 for this view. Our
driver came with us and explained what we were seeing and it's beginnings,
etc. We took a lot of pictures and left.

Our driver took us on a little tour of his own, showing us a market place in
Colon. He said everything was very cheap there, but he wouldn't advise us
to go. As Americans, we are not too popular there. He said we would have
to not talk, not wear jewelry or look affluent in anyway to get by there.
He said politically, they are afraid that George Bush will invade Panama by
saying the Canal is in danger of terrorists and will send troops down to
defend it. He took us by some rich housing areas, gated of course, and some
of the nicer areas of Colon. There aren't too many nice areas
unfortunately. All in all, our driver gave us a great time. He did give
me his card in case we come back.

We then did a little shopping near the ship and I went into a jewelry store
called Gemas Glamour S.A. PLEASE NOTE: This store is a rip off - They will
try to pass off gold covered silver jewelry as 18k gold. I was looking at a
necklace I was considering buying and had my Visa card near my hand on the
counter. The salesperson swiped my card and I told her I didn't want the
necklace as they was no karat weight on it. She said 721L was the way they
do karat weight in Panama. I said cancel the transaction and I took the two
receipts and left. When I got home Visa had approved the transaction. It
is now in dispute. They had tried to reach me, since they thought my card
had been stolen and then put a hold on my account. We then couldn't pay our
bill to get off the ship with that card and had to use another.

I learned many things on my first cruise. First thing: call your Visa,
MasterCard or Discover and tell them you are going on a cruise and to where.

That's all for now about the port of calls. Lots of things to talk about
the things to do on board, but too tired to type anymore right now.

Barb

wrote in message
...
We were on the Liberty from 11/26 to 12/4. It was our first cruise, so I
have nothing to compare. The ship was absolutely gorgeous from top to
bottom. It may have ruined me for any other ship.

I won't bore you with the details of embarking, but it was horrendous.
We
were supposed to ship out at 4:00, but didn't leave 'til 5:00.
Experienced cruisers said this was normal. I learned never to arrive at
the lifeboat drill too early. We had to line up against a wall and there
were 4 rows deep in front of us. My husband almost passed out from the
heat.

The stops: Monday, 11/28 - We went to Costa Maya instead of Cozumel. I
was very disappointed because there were places in Cozumel I really
wanted
to see. We were supposed to go snorkeling in Costa Maya, but the waves
were a little rough. Since it would have been our first time, the guide
suggested we not go. We did get our money refunded. They offered 15
tours there ranging from 39.00 to 199.00. The high priced one was for
fly
fishing.

There's a shopping area that sells all kind of stuff. I didn't buy
anything there because I just saw souvenir stuff, however people were
buying, so maybe it was just me. An American looking and talking man
tried to get us in his store by saying "hey, come in here and let me
cheat
you just a little". We laughed. A lot of people were interested in a
very nice looking cigar shop with the right humidity, and enclosed glass
room, etc. selling authentic Cuban cigars. There was a swimming pool
there and 1 person jumped in it, but the pools on the Liberty looked more
appealing. We arrived at 8:00 and left around 6:00.

Tuesday, 11/30 - Limon, Costa Rica. Arrived 10:00, left about 6:00.
They
offered 17 tours ranging from 33.00 to 129.00. Our tour was the Bus,
Caribbean Train and Boat for $79.00 each. The bus took us to an old
train that used to go though the rich areas of Limon. It was very slow
moving, but we had fun anyway. We were given bottled water and a
photographer from the ship took pictures. These were then posted on
board
and could be bought for, I believe $8.00 apiece. Of course we bought
them. We boarded another bus to take us to the Tortugero Canals. We
boarded a covered open air boat and headed down the canals where we saw a
few monkeys, sloths, bats, and beautiful blue butterflies. When we came
back, we were provided a fruit buffet, small calypso band singing Day O,
and bathrooms. Then we boarded buses again and went to a banana
plantation, which was really quite interesting. We enjoyed the day over
all. Some of our friends went on bike rides and some went to a sloth
sanctuary where they held a baby sloth. Everyone seemed to like whatever
tour they were on.

Thursday 12/1 - Colon, Panama - None of the tours looked interested to us.
We wanted to see the canal, but the ship tours were too expensive. When
you
get to the port there's a building to go through with a lot of Carnival
approved shops. After you go through there, you are inundated with men
who
want to drive you someplace. Police are all over the place. These guys
don't take no for an answer. We finally got away from them and looked
around the shopping area, but didn't see anything I was really looking
for,
which was a good bargain.

10 of us decided to hire a van to take us to a gated shopping area that
only
tourists and business owners can go to, but locals are not allowed. It
was
raining hard at the time and the driver took us the long way around (we
found out later). We couldn't see much anyway because of the rain.
Anyway,
when we got there, it looked not too safe and we told the driver to take
us
back. We thought he had taken us to the wrong place. (It turned out to
be
the gated shopping area). He took us back and it cost us $10.00 a piece
to
go nowhere. One couple stayed on the van and said they were going back.
They later came back with tons of bargains, jewelry, clothes, linens,
glass, boxes of shoes and unbelievable prices. If I ever go back to
Colon, that will be my first trip.

4 of us decided to hire another van to take us to a shopping area to buy
rum
and other yummy drinks. We negotiated a price of $20.00 a piece and off
we
went. He took us to a kind of strip mall where the alcohol was really
cheap. While the men were in the liquor stores, I checked out a couple
women's shops. I saw cute two piece outfits for $15.00. Very nice, but
the
sizes were very small. The salesperson told me they were Thailand sizes.
From there our driver took us to the canal where we watched a ship slowly
making it's way through. The people on board were waving at us. I felt
sorry for the people from our ship who paid $175.00 for this view. Our
driver came with us and explained what we were seeing and it's beginnings,
etc. We took a lot of pictures and left.

Our driver took us on a little tour of his own, showing us a market place
in
Colon. He said everything was very cheap there, but he wouldn't advise us
to go. As Americans, we are not too popular there. He said we would have
to not talk, not wear jewelry or look affluent in anyway to get by there.
He said politically, they are afraid that George Bush will invade Panama
by
saying the Canal is in danger of terrorists and will send troops down to
defend it. He took us by some rich housing areas, gated of course, and
some
of the nicer areas of Colon. There aren't too many nice areas
unfortunately. All in all, our driver gave us a great time. He did give
me his card in case we come back.

We then did a little shopping near the ship and I went into a jewelry
store
called Gemas Glamour S.A. PLEASE NOTE: This store is a rip off - They
will
try to pass off gold covered silver jewelry as 18k gold. I was looking at
a
necklace I was considering buying and had my Visa card near my hand on the
counter. The salesperson swiped my card and I told her I didn't want the
necklace as they was no karat weight on it. She said 721L was the way
they
do karat weight in Panama. I said cancel the transaction and I took the
two
receipts and left. When I got home Visa had approved the transaction. It
is now in dispute. They had tried to reach me, since they thought my card
had been stolen and then put a hold on my account. We then couldn't pay
our
bill to get off the ship with that card and had to use another.

I learned many things on my first cruise. First thing: call your Visa,
MasterCard or Discover and tell them you are going on a cruise and to
where.

That's all for now about the port of calls. Lots of things to talk about
the things to do on board, but too tired to type anymore right now.

Barb

Well Barb, it sounds like you got the first time cruiser and from what it
appears, first time out of the United States initiation.

About credit card usage. The ship wants one to charge your on board
purchases and from what they say, they lock this card from any further
purchases until you pay your bill the last day of the cruise. Therefore,
you do need another card if you are going to charge your purchases. We try
to do cash on our purchases unless of course it's an item of high value and
we need a record of it.
Once they have your credit card number, you cannot be sure if they will use
it for some other shady deals after you leave. I NEVER trust anyone with my
CC number outside the United States. On the good side however, you can
dispute your charges like you are now doing. With today's id theft and hate
generated in foreign countries by our Government, we must be very careful.
When we travel overseas, mainly to Europe, we try not to look American. No
American Flag t shirts or other flag wear, and try to meld with the locals
as much as possible. I speak some German too, so that also helps. Yes,
Panama isn't very friendly towards us and I've heard about the fear of
invasion a long time ago from someone else that was down there in the
military.

As for your tours, you lucked out and discovered the beauty of going off on
your own. It doesn't always work out as well as your excursion did. We
hired a driver in Bermuda and Jamaica and got the five star tour on the
cheap and I even got to use their cell phones to call people I know on those
islands. We were on the Victory, therefore our ships were identical except
for maybe a thing or two. Yes, those are beautiful ships, BUT with 3,000
passengers, it makes for a crowded atrium shops area and deck areas. Also,
when we arrived at Grand Cayman, there were no less than five large ships
anchored with us. The tenders were tendering their engines off. The sixth
ship was a Cuban cruise liner and they decided to remain on board until the
Yankees departed.
When we reached shore, the pier area was hot as hell and you could hardly
move with literally thousands of people milling about trying to find their
tours. Needless to say, the Grand Cayman stop was a disaster. We couldn't
wait to get back on board.

Americans are cautious when taken to seedy looking areas, and for good
reason. You should have shopped at your first shopping stop in Colon
instead of being fearful and departing. If you are in a large group of
people, you are as safe as you can be. The only thing you would have had to
put up with would be pickpockets and kids with their hands out begging. But
then you said the area was fenced, therefore, that wouldn't have happened
and you would have got some great bargains yourself. If at all possible, DO
NOT shop where all of the tourist are shopping. Have a driver or guide take
you to 'town' and shop where the natives shop. Sure, they are going to
inflate the price, but not near as much as those tourist traps. I rarely
buy in those shops. As a matter of fact, I bought a $600 ring for my wife
aboard ship - that way I have a guarantee and VISA protection. If I bought
it ashore, even for less, I would have been stuck except for the VISA
protection and I don't want to have to deal with that.

Now prepare for your next cruise. Carnival will be bugging you weekly.
Upgrades, low rates, etc. Try another cruise line next time like NCL or
Royal Caribbean. Once you do about four, you will favor one over the
others. We have only cruised NCL and Carnival. So far, I like NCL better
mainly because it was a smaller ship (NCL Dreamward - before it was expanded
and renamed Dream.).

In article , Poncho
Liner wrote:

About credit card usage. The ship wants one to charge your on board
purchases and from what they say, they lock this card from any further
purchases until you pay your bill the last day of the cruise. Therefore,
you do need another card if you are going to charge your purchases. We try
to do cash on our purchases unless of course it's an item of high value and
we need a record of it.

That is not true. They don't lock your card from further use. That said
I think if you have two cards that it is best to use a different card
for shore purchases than the card used for sign and sail. That way if
you lose your card or it is stolen while on shore at a port you won't
have a problem with your onboard account.

Once they have your credit card number, you cannot be sure if they will use
it for some other shady deals after you leave. I NEVER trust anyone with my
CC number outside the United States.

Why would you trust them within the United States with your Credit Card
number? Numbers can be and have been skimmed anywhere.

--
Charles

Charles wrote:

In article , Poncho
Liner wrote:


About credit card usage. The ship wants one to charge your on board
purchases and from what they say, they lock this card from any further
purchases until you pay your bill the last day of the cruise. Therefore,
you do need another card if you are going to charge your purchases. We try
to do cash on our purchases unless of course it's an item of high value and
we need a record of it.


That is not true. They don't lock your card from further use. That said
I think if you have two cards that it is best to use a different card
for shore purchases than the card used for sign and sail. That way if
you lose your card or it is stolen while on shore at a port you won't
have a problem with your onboard account.

Charles is right. We always use the same cc for our onboard account
and for any purchases we make on shore that we want to put on our
card. We have never had a problem, but do carry a second card just in
case.

sue

Sue and Kevin Mullen wrote:


Charles wrote:

In article , Poncho
Liner wrote:


About credit card usage. The ship wants one to charge your on board
purchases and from what they say, they lock this card from any
further purchases until you pay your bill the last day of the
cruise. Therefore, you do need another card if you are going to
charge your purchases. We try to do cash on our purchases unless of
course it's an item of high value and we need a record of it.



That is not true. They don't lock your card from further use. That said
I think if you have two cards that it is best to use a different card
for shore purchases than the card used for sign and sail. That way if
you lose your card or it is stolen while on shore at a port you won't
have a problem with your onboard account.


Charles is right. We always use the same cc for our onboard account and
for any purchases we make on shore that we want to put on our card. We
have never had a problem, but do carry a second card just in case.

sue

I agree. We did the same thing. Maybe it has something to do with your
limit or whatever. It's strongly advised to use a Credit Card anyway so
you can dispute a charge, especially in third world countries where they
just might slam your card for some extra Pesos.

Charles wrote:
In article , Poncho
Liner wrote:


About credit card usage. The ship wants one to charge your on board
purchases and from what they say, they lock this card from any further
purchases until you pay your bill the last day of the cruise. Therefore,
you do need another card if you are going to charge your purchases. We try
to do cash on our purchases unless of course it's an item of high value and
we need a record of it.


That is not true. They don't lock your card from further use. That said
I think if you have two cards that it is best to use a different card
for shore purchases than the card used for sign and sail. That way if
you lose your card or it is stolen while on shore at a port you won't
have a problem with your onboard account.

Well that's what Carnival told us. We didn't try and find out either
since we used a different card for our shore purchases. We used our
Debit Card for Sign and Sail. Credit for all others. Now what do you
think they would do if in fact you limited out the card you used for
your Sign and Sail account? Keep you on board to wash dishes?


Once they have your credit card number, you cannot be sure if they will use
it for some other shady deals after you leave. I NEVER trust anyone with my
CC number outside the United States.


Why would you trust them within the United States with your Credit Card
number? Numbers can be and have been skimmed anywhere.

BECAUSE, it's been my experience that your card is more likely to be
used without your approval in a third world country than in the United
States. Maybe your experience is different. Now tell me, whom would
you trust to keep your card overnight for safe keeping? Joe at the
Shady Palms Hotel in Miami Beach or Jose at the Chevy Lounge in Tijuana,
BC? Both sound bad, but I personally would take my chances with Joe
since I can get back to him and maybe not to Jose. I can prosecute Joe
but not Jose.

In article , Poncholiner
wrote:

Well that's what Carnival told us. We didn't try and find out either
since we used a different card for our shore purchases. We used our
Debit Card for Sign and Sail. Credit for all others. Now what do you
think they would do if in fact you limited out the card you used for
your Sign and Sail account? Keep you on board to wash dishes?

We were talking about credit cards. Debit cards are another matter. If
you use a debit card they will put a hold on an amount of the funds in
your bank account. That is how they protect payment. That is why it is
probably a bad idea to use a debit card for sign and sail. What if you
wrote checks on your bank account and don't keep a large sum in the
account. There is the possibility that your checks will come up agianst
the blocked amount and bounce. Then you get charged a bunch of fees. Of
course when you you use a credit card they do something similiar, but
it uses a part of your credit limit, the difference is if you exceed
the limit your card is refused, maybe that is what you mean by not
using your credit card, maybe you have a low credit limit or high
credit card debt, mine limit is higher than I have ever come anywhere
close to using, and I pay off the cards every month so I never think
about the limit, but with the credit card and limit you are not
bouncing checks and incuring overdraft fees like if funds are blocked
in your bank account..

BECAUSE, it's been my experience that your card is more likely to be
used without your approval in a third world country than in the
United States. Maybe your experience is different. Now tell me,
whom would you trust to keep your card overnight for safe keeping?
Joe at the Shady Palms Hotel in Miami Beach or Jose at the Chevy
Lounge in Tijuana, BC? Both sound bad, but I personally would take
my chances with Joe since I can get back to him and maybe not to
Jose. I can prosecute Joe but not Jose.

Knock on wood but my card has never been used without my approval
anywhere. So I can't judge where it is likely to be used without
approval. But since I use the cards a lot and it has never happened the
odds appear to be low of that happening anywhere. I don't think it is
more likely I could get back at either Joe or Jose. I don't think I
would be prosecuting either. If any fraudulent charge occurred I would
have to go to the credit card company.

--
Charles

Thus spake Poncholiner :

Charles wrote:
In article , Poncho
Liner wrote:


About credit card usage. The ship wants one to charge your on board
purchases and from what they say, they lock this card from any further
purchases until you pay your bill the last day of the cruise. Therefore,
you do need another card if you are going to charge your purchases. We try
to do cash on our purchases unless of course it's an item of high value and
we need a record of it.


That is not true. They don't lock your card from further use. That said
I think if you have two cards that it is best to use a different card
for shore purchases than the card used for sign and sail. That way if
you lose your card or it is stolen while on shore at a port you won't
have a problem with your onboard account.

Well that's what Carnival told us. We didn't try and find out either
since we used a different card for our shore purchases. We used our
Debit Card for Sign and Sail. Credit for all others. Now what do you
think they would do if in fact you limited out the card you used for
your Sign and Sail account? Keep you on board to wash dishes?

They put a credit hold on your card. In much the same way that they
put a hold on your debit card. They ARE going to get your money
first.
--
dillon

666 permissions of the beast

Just to set the record straight, when you give a credit card to a company
to hold they put through an amount as a placeholder. So if you rent a car
they might put a $1000 hold on it. Your card is not charged $1000 but your
credit is lowered by $1000. So if you only have $1000 credit limit left on
your card, your credit is maxed out and you will be locked out. This is to
insure that after giving your card to hold you do not go and max it out so
if they have to put through a charge the card is not accepted. If you have
a low balance ask the cruiseline how much of a hold are they putting on the
card.