​          Carnival Cruise Line's main dining room experience is not complete without ordering dessert! There are several desserts on the American Table or American Feast menu that I recommend trying even if you are already feeling a little full. Although the desserts offered during a cruise depends on the length of the cruise, one dessert you should be on the lookout for is Carnival's Chocolate Melting Cake. This cake used to be referred to as Warm Chocolate Melting Cake, but is now commonly referred to on the menu as Carnival Melting Cake or Chocolate Melting Cake. 
          Carnival's dessert menus usually do not have a detailed description with the Chocolate Melting Cake. The dessert consists of a layer of chocolate cake on top and runny warm chocolate under the top layer of cake. Ice cream is available on request, but most waitstaff will automatically bring a small scoop of vanilla ice cream. If you want more ice cream or want to be sure that ice cream is brought, I recommend asking your waitstaff when ordering dessert. 

​Overall Rating:
             On a scale of 5 stars (5 = highest rating and 1 = lowest rating) I would give this dessert 5 stars. Here are my reasons for giving this dessert the highest possible rating:

• Good Combination Of Cake & Melted Chocolate - If the dessert is properly prepared you should get a good mix of chocolate cake and runny melted chocolate underneath. Almost every time I eat this dessert the top layer of chocolate cake is between 1/4 to 1/2 of the bowl and the rest of the bowl is filled with melted chocolate. 
• Portion Size -  Carnival serves the Chocolate Melting Cake in a generous portion. Due to dessert being at the end of the meal and already being full, by the time I have the Chocolate Melting Cake I barely able to eat the whole thing (or not able to finish). Carnival serves a good portion, but if you decide you want even more you can ask your waitstaff for another Chocolate Melting Cake.  
• For me, the main reason why I like this dessert is the taste of the chocolate cake and melted chocolate. The vanilla ice cream is a great side that can be poured into the cake or eaten separately. Despite this being a popular dish, some cruisers do not like it for various reasons. 

Common Questions:

• Is this served on all cruises?  -   Yes, this dessert is one of Carnival's most popular dessert menu items and has been around for a long time. I think it is fair to call this dessert a classic Carnival menu item! 
• Does Carnival serve this dish on the buffet?  -   I have only seen this dessert served one time on Carnival's Lido buffet. It is not typically served and probably will not be on your cruise. If you really want to try this dessert, make sure you order it in the main dining room. 
• Can this dessert be ordered through room service?  -  This dessert is not on the current room service menus. 

​The review of this dessert reflects my opinion. If you have food allergies or dietary restrictions please do not use this review to make any decisions about whether this item is suitable for your consumption, because this information may not include all ingredients or facts related to the food dish. Consult Carnival to get a full listing of ingredients. 
​Also, food items and menus served vary by cruise and the length of the cruise. 

       Today RyG's Cruise Guide is celebrating eight years of being online. On March 11, 2013 I officially purchased a website domain and published RyG's Cruise Guide for the very first time. The past year has not been filled with much cruising due to the pandemic, but I am optimistic about the future and looking forward to the day cruise ships can set sail with guests again. I have not been actively writing new posts over the past year, but I have been planning some changes for the website that I hope to launch soon. 
       Over the past 8 years, I have greatly enjoyed posting cruise tips, articles, reviews, and photos. Thank you to everyone that has visited throughout these years as well as sent me questions, comments, and information about dry-docks. Also, thank you to my family that has offered ideas, suggestions, and edits to improve the website.
​         When I created RyG's Cruise Guide I wanted to have a place where I could help as many cruisers and potential cruisers learn about the cruise industry. This has been a fun hobby for me and I have greatly enjoyed helping people plan & prepare for their upcoming cruise vacations. I hope to continue writing more cruise tips, reviews, and answering questions as time continues. Thank you again to everyone for their support! ​

       Royal Caribbean recently announced the Allure of the Seas is scheduled to sail from Galveston starting in November 2022. The Allure of the Seas will be homeported from Galveston to primarily sail seven night cruises after a third cruise terminal is built in Galveston to accommodate the Allure of the Seas' size. When the Allure of the Seas arrives in Galveston it will be the largest cruise ship to ever sail out of Galveston. 
           When Royal Caribbean announced the homeporting of the Allure of the Seas from Galveston, the press release stated the ship is scheduled to sail seven night itineraries from Galveston to Cozumel, Roatan, and Costa Maya. However, after looking at the Royal Caribbean booking engine there are a few shorter 4 & 5 night cruises available on the Allure of the Seas in December & January, but the ship is primarily scheduled to sail seven night cruises. Royal Caribbean has cruise departures for the Allure of the Seas out of Galveston scheduled through April 2023. It is unclear if the Allure of the Seas will continue sailing from Galveston after this point in time because Royal Caribbean has not released itineraries past this time yet. 
                 The Allure of the Seas was launched in 2010 and is 1,187 feet long. The ship is 215 feet wide and is 225,282 gross tons. Onboard the Allure of the Seas, there are 16 guest decks and 18 total decks. There are a variety of different onboard venues and amenities on the Allure of the Seas. Due to the ship's size, click here (will take you away to Royal Caribbean's press website) to check out the ship's fact sheet. There are too many different dining, entertainment, and onboard amenities for me to list them all out!

For more information about the Allure of the Seas' deployment from Galveston: Click Here (This link will take you away from RyG's Cruise Guide to Royal Caribbean's press website)

             Galveston's cruise industry grew in 2019 and was expected to grow in 2020. However, the coronavirus pandemic had other plans and the cruise industry out of Galveston was abruptly halted in March 2020. Now that 2020 is nearly over it is time to start looking ahead at what 2021 might hold for cruising from Galveston. 

Already Cancelled From Galveston
                As of the time of writing, all cruises that were scheduled out of Galveston for January and February 2021 are cancelled. Both Carnival Cruise Line and Royal Caribbean International have North American departures cancelled through the end of February 2021. The cancellation dates are probably going to change (I hope not), but as of the time I wrote this post this is the latest information. 2021 will not be a normal cruise year out of Galveston, but I am hopeful the rest of the year can be salvaged in some way once cruising resumes. 

Carnival Cruise Line
​                     Just like early 2020 and 2019, Carnival Cruise Line will continue having three year round ships departing Galveston. The Carnival Vista will continue sailing seven night cruises from Galveston. Additionally, the Carnival Dream will remain sailing from Galveston, but will transition into sailing longer itineraries in May 2021. The Carnival Breeze is scheduled to be repositioned from Miami to sail 4 & 5 night cruises from Galveston in 2021 to replace the Carnival Freedom. 
                       Originally 2021 was supposed to be the year of Carnival sending a fourth ship to Galveston. However, during the coronavirus pandemic shutdown the Carnival Radiance's itineraries from Galveston were cancelled and instead the ship will be going to Long Beach, CA. 

Royal Caribbean
                        Royal Caribbean will continue sailing year-round from Galveston during 2021. Originally, Royal Caribbean had the Allure of the Seas scheduled to sail from Galveston by the end of 2021, but this repositioning was cancelled due to the cruise terminal construction being delayed. As a result, Royal Caribbean decided to keep the Liberty of the Seas deployed from Galveston throughout the year to primarily sail 7 night cruises. 
                           Besides the Liberty of the Seas, Royal Caribbean will have the Adventure of the Seas sailing from Galveston in March & April 2021 as well as November & December 2021. During this time, the Adventure of the Seas will primarily sail 4 & 5 night cruises. During the middle of the year the Explorer of the Seas is scheduled to sail 4 & 5 night cruises from Galveston. 

Disney Cruise Line
                   Disney Cruise Line will sail from Galveston again seasonally during 2021. The ship was originally scheduled to end its 2020-2021 Galveston deployment season in early January 2020, but this has been cancelled. The ship will return in November 2021 for its next winter season deployment from Galveston.

Overall:   The year 2021 is one that is still uncertain for the cruise industry. If you are booked on a 2021 cruise, I recommend closely following your cruise line for updates regarding sailing status or any changes in procedures that occur. It will be an interesting year ahead and I hope to once again see sailing cruise ships from Galveston again very soon. Happy New Year and thanks for reading!

​For more information about itineraries, sailing dates, and for the most up to date information please visit each respective cruise line's website. ​All this information was compiled from the individual cruise line's websites.
​                           

       Hurricanes can be a major disruption to any cruise vacation because these storms can make seas choppy, close ports of call, force itinerary changes, and damage many destinations. The 2021 Atlantic Hurricane Season runs from June 1 through November 30 and the Eastern Pacific Hurricane Season runs from May 15 through November 30. The time for hurricane season is upon the United States and many other places in the world once again.
         While many people will cruise during hurricane season without any severe weather or disruptions to their cruise voyage, there always seems to be some cruises each year that have itinerary changes or rough seas because of hurricanes. The goal of this post is to help you plan for a cruise that could be potentially disrupted in some way by a hurricane or tropical storm. 

Part 1:  On The Ship During A Hurricane Or Tropical Storm
​This section is designed to give information and tips if you are on the ship during tropical weather. 
​
​              If you find yourself onboard your cruise ship during a hurricane or tropical storm you do not need to panic. Many cruise ships will make an effort to avoid sailing into the storm and instead keep the ship in calmer waters. This is for the comfort of all passengers and the safety of the ship. However, this does mean cruisers onboard will not feel any motion. You may feel the ship rocking, but it should not be nearly as bad as the waters directly affected by the storm. The closer you are to the storm the worse the waves will be. Furthermore, most modern cruise ships have stabilizers that can help the ship minimize rocking while the ship is in rougher seas. Stabilizers are mechanical and help the ship stay better balanced. However, even if the ship's stabilizers are being used the ship could still face rocking and swaying. 
           Your cruise ship may close the outside public decks as a safety precaution if winds are too high, the ship is rocking too much, or the ship deems there is a safety concern with letting people freely walk on the outside decks. Be prepared for this possibility, but keep in mind there are probably other things you can do in the interior spaces of your cruise ship. If there is rain outside most people will probably stay inside anyways. 
            Some cruise ships will make weather announcements during the cruise if severe weather is expected. This is dependent on the captain or cruise director on your ship. If your ship is not making weather announcements during the cruise and you want to know the weather you have a few options to try and get information. The first option is you can ask the Guest Services desk. In my past experiences, I have asked the guest services desk for weather information and the crew member working the desk was able to give me an update on the wave heights, expected precipitation, and temperatures. Another option for weather information is to pay for internet on your cruise ship and look up weather information relevant to the area you will be sailing to. 
                  In order to avoid hurricanes and tropical storms cruise ships may have to operate on an altered itinerary. In the past, cruise lines have cancelled ports of calls and made that particular cruise day a sea day. In other cases, when possible, cruise lines have swapped a port of call with another port of call. There are many factors that go into a cruise line's decision when making itinerary adjustments such as wind speeds, wave heights, and whether the ship can be safely docked in a port of call. Sometimes the local authorities will make the decision to not allow a ship to dock because of weather conditions that could hinder the process of safely docking the ship. When the local authorities of a port make the decision to not allow a ship to dock, they will often communicate this decision with the ship and cruise line. 

Part 2:   Before Cruising
This section will give advice for before a cruise if you are expecting a hurricane or tropical storm to impact your vacation or ship's homeport.

Before Cruising:  Could The Cruise Be Cancelled & How Would I Find Out? 
           Many cruise lines will make an effort to avoid cancelling a cruise, but in some cases cancelling is the only option a cruise line has. A decision to cancel a cruise could be based on the storm's expected landfall, how close landfall is to a cruise's departure date, port authority storm procedures, and more. 
              Many cruise lines will email guests about a cancellation or post information online. There are a few cruise lines that use a text alert system to give notifications to subscribed guests. If you feel like you are missing important information and a storm is likely to impact your voyage in some way, you should call your cruise line directly. Make sure your cruise line has correct contact information on file in order to communicate with you. If your cruise line has on online check-in process this is often a way to gather accurate contact information. As you enter your contact information double check you enter all information correctly in order to insure the cruise line's records are accurate. 

Before The Cruise:  Can I Voluntarily Cancel? 
            The specific answer to this question will depend on your cruise line. In many cases, your cruise line will allow you to cancel, but not receive a refund. This is because you are voluntarily cancelling on a voyage that is still going to sail and you are held to the cruise line's cancellation policy. In some cases, cruise lines will show compassion and allow cruisers to cancel without a penalty, but this does not happen with all cruise lines. However, if the cruise is cancelled by your cruise line they should be providing you with a refund and compensation. 

Driving To A Cruise Homeport Where The Storm Is Expected To Hit: Things To Do
           If your cruise is still sailing and the storm is expected to make landfall around your departure port there are a few things you can do: 
-  Parking:   Flooding could occur at the place you park your car. If you can, try to park in a covered parking garage on a level higher than the ground. This will help protect your car from some flooding, but is does not guarantee your car will be 100% safe. Your car could still be damaged by water in many ways, including higher than expected floodwater. Don't forget that the wind can damage your car or blow objects into the glass. 
-  Take Valuables Out Of Your Car:   Before leaving your house to cruise, take valuables out of your car. You should not leave valuables in your car at any time, but in this case your car could be washed out from flooding or looted after the storm. 

If You Live In the Storm's Impact Area -  Prepare Your Home 
           If you live in the area the storm will affect or potentially destroy, you need to prepare your home before cruising. I recommend doing tasks such as unplugging electrical devices from the walls to minimize your loss from a power surge, boarding windows, and storing objects that could be damaged easily in a safer place. There may be other tasks you must complete depending on your home's location and your own personal storm preparation plans. Some people have to deal directly with flooding, high winds, and other things. Make sure you prepare your home to minimize any damage that may occur while you are gone. 
                You know your area's potential for hazards the best. Make sure you properly secure your home and exterior belongings pre-cruise. Monitor your local weather and pay attention to instructions from local officials. 
               

       Carnival Cruise Line's 2022 newbuild, the Carnival Celebration, is under construction in Finland. The Carnival Celebration is one of Carnival's XL class ships and is a sister ship to the Mardi Gras in Carnival Cruise Line's fleet. Carnival recently posted the Carnival Celebration's deck plans to include some virtual tours of some of the ship's public areas. Once the ship enters service and has completed cruises, I am sure we will see many Carnival Celebration cruise reviews with pictures, but at this time Carnival has given us some virtual tours of a few public areas to enjoy. 
    

​Viewing these virtual tours is extremely easy. I will give you a step by step tutorial on how to find these virtual tours on Carnival's website: 

1)   Go to Carnival Cruise Line's official website. The Carnival Celebration has its own separate ship page & profile that contains a variety of photos, information, deck plans, and more. To make this easy on you, here is a direct link to this page: https://www.carnival.com/cruise-ships/carnival-celebration.aspx    (Link will open in a separate window) 

2)  Once you are on the Carnival Celebration's page on the Carnival website look for a page called "Deck Plans". When this first comes up you may have to click another button that says "View Deck Plans". If this is the case for you click on "View Deck Plans". When you have the screen below appear you will be in the right place: 

5.  After clicking on "360-view", you should see a message that says, "Click Here And Drag For Virtual Tour". After you click your mouse on that, you have the capability to scroll around and look at the view Carnival has provided.

These Areas Have The 360-View Virtual Tours Available On The Deck Plans:
These areas have 360 views (in no particular order): 
Deck 4:  Family Harbor Lounge
Deck 5:  Cloud 9 Spa & Thermal Suites
Deck 6:  Theater, Cloud 9 Spa, Piano Bar 88, Java Blue Cafe, & Cherry on Top 
Deck 7:  Theater (same view as Deck 6), Casino, & Fahrenheit 555 Steakhouse 
Deck 8:  Havana Bar, Bonsai Teppanyaki, Bonsai Sushi, The Watering Hole, Guy's Pig & Anchor Smokehouse, & Patio Pool 
Deck 16: Blue Iguana Cantina, Beach Pool, Red Frog Tiki Bar, 
Deck 17: Red Frog Tiki Bar (same as Deck 16) & Guy's Burger Joint
Deck 18: Serenity Adults Only Retreat, Sportsquare, & Carnival WaterWorks

Some Additional Notes:
These 360 views (virtual tours) Carnival has provided are of renderings. The ship is still under construction, which means the actual public areas are not finished yet.

     Thank you Carnival for providing this feature on the Carnival Celebration's deck plans! While these are only renderings, cruisers can still use these to tour the ship and get excited about their upcoming vacation. ​

        This week Carnival Cruise Line announced the cancellation of remaining cruise vacations that were sailing from Miami and Port Canaveral. The cancellation of these cruises came less than a week after the CDC released the Conditional Sail Order. Carnival's social media release stated the company will update guests after analysis and a plan to comply with the CDC's directives are undertaken. 
                 At this point in time, there are no Carnival cruises with guests scheduled to depart the United States for the remainder of 2020. It is unclear when Carnival's ships will be allowed to re-enter US waters due to having to comply with multiple requirements.
             Cruises from homeports other than Miami and Port Canaveral were already cancelled through the end of 2020. The ships with newly announced cancellations are the Carnival Conquest, Carnival Horizon, Carnival Sunrise, Carnival Breeze, Carnival Elation, and Carnival Liberty. 

For the latest information please check Carnival's Health & Safety updates page:  Click Here  
If you are looking for more information on cancelled cruise voyages: Click Here
              

      Today the CDC announced the No Sail Order will expire as scheduled on October 31st and a framework for a Conditional Sail Order will begin. The CDC's Conditional Sail Order offers the opportunity for cruise lines to have a phased in approach for returning to passenger operations in US waters. 

Highlights of the CDC's Conditional Sail Order:
​1.   Cruise lines will be required to hold simulated voyages before being able to obtain a "Conditional Sailing Certificate" from the CDC. On these simulated voyages The CDC will want to see that the cruise line's plans are designed to mitigate the risk of COVID-19 spreading onboard. The Conditional Sail Order had specific requirements for the simulated voyages that will test various aspects of the cruise experience such as dining, embarkation, debarkation, activities, shore excursions, and more. 

2. The CDC is requiring the cruise lines to conduct laboratory testing of all passengers and crew on the day of embarkation and day of debarkation. 

3.  Cruise lines cannot sail or offer cruises that are longer than 7 days. The CDC reserves the right to shorten or increase the number of days the cruise is permitted to sail. At this time, it is unclear how long this is in effect or if this stipulation pertains to all cruises.

If you would like to read the full Conditional Sail Order please click here. This link will take you directly to the CDC's website and the Conditional Sail Order can be found under the 10/30 guidance. 

Cruise Line Responses To Today's News 
               Now that the CDC has allowed the No Sail Order to expire and has implemented a framework for the Conditional Sail Order cruise lines can have a higher degree of certainty for planning a return to cruises. I expect in the coming days and weeks more information is going to be released. Both Carnival and Royal Caribbean posted statements are after the release of the Conditional Sail Order on their websites:

Carnival Cruise Line: 

Besides cruise lines issuing statements, Cruise Lines International Association ("CLIA") posted a press release discussing the release of the framework for the Conditional Sail Order. CLIA anticipates the previously announced Health Sail Panel's recommendations to serve as a foundation for the return to service. If you would like to read the full press release click here (link will take you to CLIA's website). 

The Main Thing To Keep In Mind Right Now
             There will be a lot of communication from cruise lines coming in the upcoming days and weeks. Cruise lines have likely been planning for a return to service and now will incorporate this new information into their plans to come back. There are a lot of moving parts to the process to get the ships back sailing, but as we get closer to the day cruises begin again with guests we should learn a lot more.

         Yesterday Carnival Cruise Line announced the cancellation of some November and December 2020 cruises following the CDC's decision to extend the No Sail Order. Carnival cancelled cruises for all US homeports except for Miami and Port Canaveral. 
UPDATE:  Carnival has now cancelled the remainder of November 2020 cruises. There are no cruises scheduled for Carnival in November 2020 anymore. 
                    Carnival's press release stated that Miami and Port Canaveral are where the company is focusing on its initial return to service when cruises are able to begin. The cruises scheduled out of Miami and Port Canaveral during this time frame are not cancelled, but Carnival should have sent guests on these cruises a letter stating options if guests wish to voluntarily cancel. Carnival has kept these cruises open while options are being evaluated. 
                   For US cruises not out of Port Canaveral or Miami, unfortunately Carnival has cancelled all sailings through and including December 31, 2020. Guests on these sailings should have been notified with options. Based on Carnival's website it appears the options offered were either a full refund or a combination of 100% future cruise credit paired with onboard credit based on the cancelled sailing's length. This is just an overview of the options so please consult Carnival or your travel advisor for more information if you are on the cancelled cruises. 

Ships With Cruises Not Cancelled From Miami and Port Canaveral:

• Carnival Conquest
• Carnival Horizon
• Carnival Sunrise
• Carnival Breeze
• Carnival Elation
• Carnival Liberty

For the latest information please check Carnival's Health & Safety updates page:  Click Here 
For information regarding the cancellations discussed in this post please check out Carnival's press release: Click Here

        Getting around your Carnival Cruise ship can be made easier if you have a copy of the ship's deck plan. For those that are not familiar, a deck plan is essentially a map of the ship that shows which lounges, attractions, or areas are on on each deck of the ship. 
             This first part of this post will give links to Carnival's online deck plans for each ship. This will allow you to look at your ship's deck plans pre-cruise. The second part of this post will share ways to use deck plans while on your cruise. 

Pre-Cruise: Viewing The Ship's Deck Plan
              Before your cruise I highly recommend taking a quick look at your ship's deck plan. Carnival's website has interactive deck plans available as well as a PDF copy of the deck plan that should be printable. The interactive deck plan is a helpful tool for pre-cruise research. Carnival has a feature built into the interactive deck plan where you can type your stateroom number and it will pull the stateroom up on the deck plan. 
                     The PDF deck plan is great because it is printable. If you are a first time cruiser or have never been on the particular ship before, I highly recommend printing out the PDF deck plan. 
                       Each of the links below will take you away from this website to Carnival's website. The  "PDF Deck Plan" links are directly to PDF documents that can be found on Carnival's website of the deck plan. All links will open in a new window. Your computer will need to have the ability to open a PDF document if you try to view one of the PDF deck plans. If a link has changed or is broken please let me know! 

Carnival Ecstasy                    Interactive Deck Plan               PDF Deck Plan
Carnival Sensation                 Interactive Deck Plan               PDF Deck Plan
Carnival Elation                      Interactive Deck Plan                PDF Deck Plan
​Carnival Paradise                   Interactive Deck Plan               PDF Deck Plan
Carnival Sunshine                  Interactive Deck Plan               PDF Deck Plan
Carnival Sunrise                     Interactive Deck Plan               PDF Deck Plan 
Carnival Radiance                  Interactive Deck Plan               PDF Deck Plan
Carnival Spirit                         Interactive Deck Plan                PDF Deck Plan 
Carnival Pride                         Interactive Deck Plan               PDF Deck Plan
Carnival Legend                     Interactive Deck Plan               PDF Deck Plan
Carnival Miracle                      Interactive Deck Plan               PDF Deck Plan 
Carnival Conquest                  Interactive Deck Plan               PDF Deck Plan
Carnival Glory                         Interactive Deck Plan               PDF Deck Plan
Carnival Valor                         Interactive Deck Plan               PDF Deck Plan 
Carnival Liberty                     Interactive Deck Plan                PDF Deck Plan 
Carnival Freedom                  Interactive Deck Plan               PDF Deck Plan 
Carnival Splendor                  Interactive Deck Plan               PDF Deck Plan 
Carnival Dream                      Interactive Deck Plan               PDF Deck Plan 
​Carnival Magic                      Interactive Deck Plan                PDF Deck Plan
Carnival Breeze                    Interactive Deck Plan                PDF Deck Plan
Carnival Vista                       Interactive Deck Plan                PDF Deck Plan 
Carnival Horizon                   Interactive Deck Plan                PDF Deck Plan 
Carnival Panorama               Interactive Deck Plan                PDF Deck Plan 
Mardi Gras                            Interactive Deck Plan                PDF Deck Plan 
Carnival Celebration             Deck Plans have not yet been released. This is Carnival's 2022 new ship. 

During Your Cruise:  How To View The Ship's Deck Plan Once On The Ship 

Option 1:   Carnival Hub App
                Carnival's Hub App is a useful tool for information onboard your cruise and once you have the app connected onboard you can view the ship's deck plan from the app. This app is free to download and is available for both Apple & Android phones. Once you are onboard the ship look for instructions on how to activate the app because most features of the app are not available until you are on the ship, in airplane mode, and connected to the ship's wi-fi network. 

Deck plans are a useful tool for finding your way around the ship. If you still cannot find something on the ship after looking at the deck plans, ask a crew member or at guest services! Most crew members know the ship's layout well and should be able to give you directions to what you are looking for.  Have a great cruise!