Princess beat Carnival this time...

Princess is running $1 deposits today only. I have never seen this before. And while the cruise we are looking at (Mexican Riviera) is more expensive, in the long run it is worth me spending $4 to hold the rooms I want, without any bind to ES to get a reduced deposit or shelling out $1000 on a past guest rate. Also, it is the Star Princess with the Caribe deck with the huge half covered balcony, so there is no direct apples to apples comparison.

There is something to be sailing the original Love Boat on the Love Boat's itinerary...but I will miss my Platinum status. At least DH will be Ruby and two cruises away from Platinum on Princess (which IMHO isn't as good as Carnival Platinum).

 

There is something to be sailing the original Love Boat on the Love Boat's itinerary.

The original Love Boat (Pacific Princess) was sent to the breakers in 2013.

What fun! I sailed on the Grand some years ago and really enjoyed it.

Hope you have a great cruise.

The original Love Boat (Pacific Princess) was sent to the breakers in 2013.

I know. We saw it in port before she was scrapped...very tiny.

Nice to know you were able to book. Many have waited for this one-day event.

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Thanks for sharing!

Enjoy! Princess is an entirely different experience from Carnival (which you know) and is the great thing about brand differentiation. :D

Just booked with this sale. It is great because I can afford to loose a dollar :cool: if necessary. Unlike early saver.

I asked DW if she was willing to sail in an inside on a more upscale line and she said no so we passed.

$1 deposits? I just may book one even though I really wasn't intending on cruising again for a long time. Maybe I'll change my mind.

$1 deposits? I just may book one even though I really wasn't intending on cruising again for a long time. Maybe I'll change my mind.

Unfortunately it was only for one day but they did have itineraries through April 2019.

Unfortunately it was only for one day but they did have itineraries through April 2019.

Yeah - I just discovered that darnit!

We have been doing mostly Princess these days and think it is overall a better experience.

Do miss the free laundry and other perks of Diamond on Carnival though

We have been doing mostly Princess these days and think it is overall a better experience.

 

Do miss the free laundry and other perks of Diamond on Carnival though

Since the cruises I saw were so much more than a Carnival cruise I certainly hope you have a better experience.

...but I will miss my Platinum status.

Ironically, we were treated better as Princess first timers than as Platinums on Carnival.

Since the cruises I saw were so much more than a Carnival cruise I certainly hope you have a better experience.

It will be a better experience if you notice and care for the small details, When we sailed on Princess, it was for our 10th wedding anniversary and we chose them looking for a bit more upscale experience to conmemorate our special celebration. Princess didn't disappoint. They were absolutely fantastic and truly made our anniversary very special.

However, they would not be my first choice if traveling with our small children in tow or if budget considerations are at the top of my list. With that said, you can find good deals on Princess with some flexibility and creativity. Interestingly, when we sailed on Princess, there was a similar Carnival sailing departing on the same day from the same port at almost twice the cost.

Another thing to consider is that, with a little bit of research, you may further reduce your savings on Princess just by familiarizing yourself with their ships and categories. For example, we chose an "obstructed oceanview" stateroom which was considerably cheaper and priced like an inside. With deck plan in hand and a little bit of online searching, I pinpointed a stateroom that had zero obstruction. The savings were substantial and we had a great stateroom.

It will be a better experience if you notice and care for the small details, When we sailed on Princess, it was for our 10th wedding anniversary and we chose them looking for a bit more upscale experience to conmemorate our special celebration. Princess didn't disappoint. They were absolutely fantastic and truly made our anniversary very special.

 

However, they would not be my first choice if traveling with our small children in tow or if budget considerations are at the top of my list. With that said, you can find good deals on Princess with some flexibility and creativity. Interestingly, when we sailed on Princess, there was a similar Carnival sailing departing on the same day from the same port at almost twice the cost.

 

Another thing to consider is that, with a little bit of research, you may further reduce your savings on Princess just by familiarizing yourself with their ships and categories. For example, we chose an "obstructed oceanview" stateroom which was considerably cheaper and priced like an inside. With deck plan in hand and a little bit of online searching, I pinpointed a stateroom that had zero obstruction. The savings were substantial and we had a great stateroom.

I can't wait until the day comes when we can shop around and have a little more flexibility when booking because we'll be able to try out the other mainstream lines. I know that DW wouldn't settle for an oceanview, either:o. Until that day comes I am not willing to pay substantially more for "small details":).

Since the cruises I saw were so much more than a Carnival cruise I certainly hope you have a better experience.

Having been on Princess before, we do know it is more our speed. The passengers tend to be more classy (not snobby) and well mannered. It is missing the people that drink to excess and all that results from that. It also has much less of that "me first" and "it's my vacation so I will do what I want" mentality.

And yes, we are paying more but also getting a huge balcony (9x9 that is half covered) that isn't available on CCL. It would be closest to say an aft on CCL and for a comparable price.

And the great thing about the $1 deposit is if we decide we want to save some money, we can always go back and choose Carnival.

One thing that I have noticed with Carnival and the ES rate is - at least when we travel- the lowest prices are up front when the schedule is first released. We haven't had price drops on Christmas or Spring Break in quite a few years. Princess however still continues to run sales at all times and I am pretty confident that the rate will drop over the next year or so.

I understand that many cannot afford the higher rate. But for us, it isn't all that much at the bottom line. We don't do Cheers but may have several drinks a day...and when Princess charges $5.50 for the same drink that Carnival charges $9, we "save" $200 on alcohol which cuts the price difference between the two cruises almost in half.

I love Carnival. My kids love Carnival. But yes, Princess is a better "experience."

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Since the cruises I saw were so much more than a Carnival cruise I certainly hope you have a better experience.

We are both bored with Caribbean and lately doing mostly European cruises. Carnival has very little to choose from.

As long as you stick with inside cabin pricing is not much different. Booked a Med yesterday that for an inside was comparable but balcony was total of $ 2500 over inside price

We are both bored with Caribbean and lately doing mostly European cruises. Carnival has very little to choose from.

 

As long as you stick with inside cabin pricing is not much different. Booked a Med yesterday that for an inside was comparable but balcony was total of $ 2500 over inside price

DW would never consider an inside, even to sail on Princess.

Ironically my husband and I have 2 comped cruises from a land based casino on Carnival we haven't booked yet because of the taxes and fees we have to pay up front, but I was able to book 4 cruises in one day in the $1 sale! Now back to saving up those taxes and fees...!

DW would never consider an inside, even to sail on Princess.

Understand. We found that on several TA's we got very little use out of balcony, too windy so not worth the extra cost.

We've used Princess for 2 bucket list cruises: Combined Italy/Greece and an Alaskan cruisetour. Even if Carnival had similar itineraries, I would have picked a more upscale line for these once in a lifetime experiences.

Princess was a great choice for us and we were happy to have booked them. In both cases, in Rome and Whittier, we checked in and were aboard and in our cabin in maybe 20 minutes total, so my Carnival VIFP priority boarding perk wasn't even missed. Debarkation was also easy, while the seamlessness of the Alaskan cruisetour had amazing meshing clockwork that had us maximize our experiences there, with a minimum of idle or wait time.

On Princess I hardly missed my Carnival perks that I look so forward to when I sail a Carnival ship. I can state that if I didn't have those perks, I wouldn't sail Carnival as often as I do now But not having those perks is not a deterrent when sailing .another line like Princess or Celebrity.