Princess vs. Carnival

[JrMafia90]

We are booked on the Carnival Valor for August 28, but we don't know if we like the ship's interior. We are thinking of changing changing. We wanted to try Princess. What does Princess have that Carnival doesn't have, and vice versa. Which one is better for teens between 15-18. Also, anybody who cruised on both, which one did you like better. We like the movie screens by the pool on Princess. So what should we do?

[sarahuk]

Hi

I was the Golden Princess in April and the Carnival Glory in November. Princess food was better standard and more courses at dinner. The decor was more pleasing to my eye because it was paler colours but that is only my opinion. The sunbeds had padded cushions and generally about the ship it appeared a better standard and people were more dressed up at dinner. However on the Carnival Glory I had my teenage children with me and the whole cruise was more relaxed dressing, free self service ice cream and fresh fruit juices 24 hrs a day. Our standard balcony room had a lounge area with a settee like a princess mini suite and the bathroom was twice the size of Princess.Both had good points so I suppose it is what appeals to your taste.Personally I prefer the more refined luxury of Princess but my teenage children prefer Carnival as it is more relaxed dress code wise and in the dining room every night the waiters danced on the tables and got the passengers going as well. Like I said both have good points.I enjoyed both cruises.

[CruiseFever]

After cruising both lines I found that what I had to work to make happen on Carnival is just the way Princesss does business day in and day out for the most part.

 

Some easy to identify differences include:

• Princess Grand Class ships have Skywalkers- a nightclub that blows away anything Carnival ever thought of having
  
• Princess does a better job of breaking up huge, open deck space into smaller more intimate areas
  
• Carnival has FunVision, an in-cabin interactive system that lets you view your shipboard charge account, buy shore excursions and watch pay-per-view movies
  
• Princess has better, sometimes excellent food but lacks consistency
  
• You can buy cartons of cigarettes on Princess and they hold them until the end of the cruise, on Carnival you can have them when you buy them
  
• You can buy bottles of booze on Carnival and they hold them until the end of the cruise, on Princess you can order bottles from room service and have them right now
  
• Carnival has an incorrect reputation for being a big drunken party all the time (not any more), Princess has an incorrect reputation for catering to boring old people (that baton has been passed to Holland America, right or wrong)
  
• Carnival has a better kids program- Princess' is good but inconsistent from ship to ship
  
• Pricing is competitive, comparing numbers to numbers Carnival will come out less expensive but Princess can be a better value
  
• Princess ships all seem to have a similar layout and decor, each Carnival ship has a different theme
  
• Princess rules embarkation after you get into the terminal, Carnival is trying but still not there
  
• Carnival rules embarkation line management , Princess seems like it's the first time they've ever done it, every time we've boarded.
  
• Carnival has the reputation for the best shows, I rate both lines the same
  
• Princess sails to more places
  
• Carnival management is totally accessible, good luck emailing somebody important at Princess
  
• Princess employs more muted tones and promotes a subdued but semi-elegant ambiance, Carnival is very glitzy, Vegas style with lots of neon on older ships, not so much on the newer ones
  
• Stand in the middle of the atrium on any Grand Class Princess ship and you might not be sure which one you're on, Each Carnival ship has a distinct theme and individual personality
  
• After trying both lines I feel like Princess has more moaning, complaining passengers. Carnival's passengers are more there to have fun. Age is not a factor in either group.
  

I'm sure someone else can add more to this list but those are the things that jump out at me as being different. You be the judge if each one is a good thing or a bad thing.