Expert: Linda - 9/1/2007

Question
My daughter and I are taking a 5-cruise to the Eastern Caribbean in November. Because this is my first time I am absolutely worried that something might go wrong. Should I get the Carnival Cruise Vacation Protection plan.  How are the excursions? Is the price on the excursion per person?  How is the food and are drinks included.  What is the weather like in the Caribbean in November?  Please help me find Peace.  Thanx a million.

Answer
Rita, first of all...BREATHE....your cruise will be great!  I do believe in getting the Protection package, my reason is...it's insurance, you never know. You or your daughter could get sick or a loved one.  If you could not go for whatever reason,you wouldn't have a vacation, OR the money, without the insurance.
It will give you some peace of mind.
On the excursions, yes, price is per person.  You don't say how old your daughter is, Carnival has great kids programs that she'll enjoy.
If she's older, she'll like hanging out with Mom.  The food is all included.  Want TWO lobsters?  Just ask!  Want 4 desserts, that's fine...no problem.  Don't like the steak and want to order chicken instead?  Go ahead, no charge!  Want breakfast in bed? Call and order, give $1.00 tip for delivering...it's all included.  All NON alcoholic drinks are included as well with your meals.  You can always get coffee, tea, punch etc throughout the day on the upper deck, again no charge.  If you/daughter drink a lot of sodas, you can buy a soda card on the first day of the trip. Then you just take your card to any bar, order the soda and it's included in the price you paid for the drink card.

For your first cruise, you chose the Eastern which is a great start to cruising.  Rita, really, just relax, all you need to do is pack, get on the ship, unpack and spend 5 days doing as much or as little as you want.  Eat and drink when you want, sleep in ...or not, it's all up to you.

Ask away if you have any more questions.  

enjoy your cruise

Since this is your first cruise, take the tours thru the ship. Which ones to take all depends on your interests.  You can also log into cruisecritic.com, sign up to be a member (free) and then you can find the carnival message boards.   You can read about the excursions, join in discussions with those that will be on the same cruise, ask any other questions you may have and multitudes of people will respond. It's a great site.

The weather is great in the caribbean in Nov.  Our favorite time to cruise is the week after Thanksgiving.  The ships get decorated for Christmas, weather is cooler (living in Florida remember, 80 is COOL).  It's at the end of hurricane season.