nic624

Hi all,

I'm new to NCL and will be on the Escape in just over 2 weeks.

I've done several Carnival cruises in the past and always find it absolutely freezing inside in the common areas (dining areas, theater, lobby, hallways/corridors, etc).

Has anyone cruised both CCL and NCL that can make a comparison? Just thinking about packing and how many sweaters to bring.

Thank you!

Nicole

Hi all,

My family is planning a trip for next spring, and as a group, we can’t seem to agree.

A little background: there will be anywhere from 4 – 10 of us going. It’ll depend on the dates, prices, etc. We are all loyal Carnival cruisers (between 3- 8 cruises), but want to try something different. The parents have tried Royal before (Freedom OTS) and loved it. We’ve also all cruised around a lot of the Caribbean, which is why we are opting for a Southern route out of PR. It will get us to some ports we haven’t been to (multiple times). We span a variety of ages, and have varied interests. We can all agree that we don’t have to agree, and don’t have to have the same plans while in port, so some might head to the beach, while other go on a snorkeling trip, or an island tour. Usually we all do a little bit of everything.

Now the dilemma. I’ve heard/read a lot that you should not chose the Southern option based on the ship because it so port intensive you won’t be sending a lot of time on it (compared to other itineraries). With that being said, the choices are Adventure OTS & Jewel OTS. Adventure has 1 itinerary while Jewel has 4 to choose from. I personally think the Jewel choices are a bit more appealing, but not all of the potential cruisers from my group agree with me.

I feel like the Jewel will be more similar to the Carnival ships I am used to (in size) whereas Adventure will feel much different (bigger than anything I’ve ever been on, and more activities/amenities). Those that want the Adventure say that if we are going to try something different (Royal) we might as well really try something different (bigger). I’m wondering if it really matters, because again, so port intensive. But I do definitely see their point. If Jewel’s size if going to feel like the mid-ship Carnival size, how different will it really be? And since we are trying to change things up…

Now I feel the ports are more important than the ship, but haven’t been to any except for St. Thomas (and Martinique, Dominica, and Barbados, about 16 years ago so it doesn’t really count). The potential ports stops are (depending on this ship chosen, and date) are: St Thomas, St Maarten, St Croix, St Lucia, St Kitts, Barbados, Grenada, Antigua, Dominica, Tortola, & Martinique. If you could recommend any other these ports, which would it be.

I realize that everyone’s opinion will be different, but that’s exactly what I’m looking for. I think a variety of opinions from people that have ‘been there, done that’ will hopefully help us choose. I’d ideally like to pull together the results and present it to my family, so we can make a decision sooner rather than later (we’ve been talking about this trip for months now).

Thank you all in advance,