My three cruises in the past year - HAL vs Carnival

[edmusic]

Having sailed with HAL in 2011 and 2012 and Carnival in 2012, I have reached a conclusion: I prefer Carnival. By a lot. Here's why - I go on vacation to get away from it all and have fun and Carnival delivers the 'fun' ten-fold over HAL. For this review, I am focusing on the on board cruising experience itself, not taking into consideration the itinerary and ports of call.

On my most recent cruises, here are some comparisons:

Embarkation: HAL - lots of waiting around

Carnival - constantly moving process, has it nailed to a T.

The ship: HAL Oosterdam - very nice. Easy to find way around. Learned the whole ship in a couple of days. Not as run down as many say.

Carnival Splendor - incredible Wow factor. Unbelievable atrium. Is like Disneyworld with HAL being like Legoland. So many lounges and public rooms. Discovered new ones everyday.

Fellow passengers: HAL -definitely a much older crowd, not too many families on board. Ship is almost deserted after 9pm.

Carnival - many more families and expect kids of all ages to be traveling. Lots and lots of kids. If that's a problem for you, consider another line, especially HAL. Many, many partiers up until midnight +.

Stateroom: HAL - nice, nothing special. Very comfortable bed. Decent closet space. Liked the full size tub in the bathroom and love the Elemis bath gel.

Carnival - very nice room. Seemed more roomy than HAL even though about the same sq ft. Way more shelving in the bathroom and larger vanity. Small, triangle shaped shower very disappointing. Water leaked out behind the shower curtain every time the shower was used. Definite design flaw. Loved the bath gel. Much more closet space that HAL. Also, the interactive TV was nice to view your onboard account

MDR: HAL- very disappointing. Food was not that good and the service was absolutely horrible. Empty plates stayed on our table for 20 minutes before being removed between each course. Portions were very small. Finally gave up after 4 nights and ate dinner in the Lido for the remainder of the cruise.

Carnival - a complete 180 from HAL. The food was fantastic with more flavor and seasoning and the portions were much larger. And, Carnival knows how to cook a steak. Comes out the way it is requested. On more than one occasion with HAL, my medium well request came out rare to extra rare. The prime rib on Carnival also is far superior to the pr on HAL. I don't know what part of the steer it comes from, but it doesn't look like prime rib on HALs dinner plate, looks more like a slice of roast beef.

Lido: HAL - fine, no complaints except for the rude passengers who belittle the servers because they don't prepare the food they way they're used to having it at home. Come on people, grow up! Great omelet station. Average variety of foods. Not much to offer for a late night snack.

Carnival - incredible buffet with lots of variety. Never got tired of it. Wonderful international dishes like Sicilian fish, Burrito Bar, New York Deli, Rotisserie chicken, Mongolian Grill, 24 hour pizza. Lots and lots of variety every day.

Service: HAL - wonderful room attendants. Called us by name which we appreciate. Overworked and understaffed waiters (the reason for the 2 1/2 hour average dinner time). Cordial and nice front desk.

Carnival - wonderful room attendants. Asked our names the first day and remembered to call us by them from then on. Head waiter did the same. Greeted us by our first names each and every night. Table waiters were very friendly and interested in making sure our meal was to satisfaction.

Entertainment: HAL - the big shows really shine. Lots of top shelf singing and dancing. Garage Band the big hit for me. Juggler/comedian Barnaby was one of the most entertaining, funniest shows I've ever seen. Don't miss him. Spent 45 minutes one night waiting to laugh at least once from a comedienne named Julie Something. Really a dud (and she knew it too). Best entertainment on the ship is up in the crow's nest listening to the mellow acoustic singing of Matt Murphy, who knows how to entertain a crowd with his guitar and voice.

Carnival - where do I start? There were so many things to see it was hard to decide what and where to go. We ended up listening to the four (count 'em , four) comedians they brought on board during the cruise. They really were funny and they interacted with the audience fantastically. I like to do karaoke and Carnival knows how to do it right. You get to sing with a live band that rocks (unlike the toned down HALCats) and there is a karaoke host who interacts with you onstage while you sing; really adding to the moment. There was a night time deck party that was fantastic with the band playing hits from the 50's and 60's and the ship's dancers dressed up in skirts and bobby socks for an old fashion sock hop. It was a whole lot of fun! My family even got picked to play 'Family Feud' in the big theater and we won!

Casino: while I don't gamble, I like to watch other people do. The casino on HAL was hardly ever used except by the elderly sitting at the slot machines. The casino on Carnival was jam packed with action every night at the blackjack and roulette tables and the Texas Hold 'Em table as well as the usual slot play and the elusive 'Casino Vault'.

 

The Carnival Splendor cruise was much more to my liking and I will choose Carnival as my cruise line of choice from now on.

[Swayde]

Thanks for the comparison. :)

[stormynow]

Think u nailed it. My experience exactly b/t the 2 lines.

[Guest LoveMyBoxer]

Thanks for that. Saw that you posted it on the HAL, awesome!

[firefly333]

I like spicy food and find all cruiseline food to be bland, and always thought it was on purpose. Im surprised you find Carnival food flavorful. Their spicy fried chicken is so bland, I couldnt tell it was spicy. Jerk pork .. I don't just want a sauce poured over it.. I want the pork to taste like jerk pork.

 

.. I think food tastes are individual. My friends love HALs food.

 

The best thing about the food on Carnival is it is plentiful and I know no danger of going hungry. Cant wait for my two cruises next month.

[golfadj]

Thanks for the comparison

[CJinFLA00]

I ran into a couple of gents on my Carnival cruise that were discussing cruise lines. They had mentioned that they HAL cruise they did had so many scooters running around. Did you see the same? They also mentioned HAL was dead very early. They wanted to be on a "Fun" ship. BTW, these guys were in their late 60's.:D

[Guest LoveMyBoxer]

I ran into a couple of gents on my Carnival cruise that were discussing cruise lines. They had mentioned that they HAL cruise they did had so many scooters running around. Did you see the same? They also mentioned HAL was dead very early. They wanted to be on a "Fun" ship. BTW, these guys were in their late 60's.:D

 

I believe it depends on what time of year you cruise. All cruise lines have a higher "older" crowd when schools are in session or on longer voyages. Have sailed HAL with our Son where there were plenty of "younger" people on board.

[mrpayroll]

Thanks for your comparison but i don't think HAL tries to attract the same clientel as Carnival. Complete different market.

[jonbgd]

Thanks for the comparison. Ive been on the Westerdam(sister ship) Basically a Spirit class ship with a more elegant decor

 

I agree with your comparison and it was a little surprising walking the ship in the evening. It was like we were on a private cruise:D

[idiebabe]

I've cruised HAL twice and one was on the Zuierdam this past March (my first HAL cruise was in 2005). I have two more booked with HAL in 2013 and four with Carnival for 2013.

 

HAL's Ships are smaller even the Zuierdam which is the Vista Class and their larger Class Ship. It is under 2000 passengers.

 

My experience on HAL was different than the OP's.

 

I found the food to be way above Carnival's in the MDR. (This wasn't the case back in 2005 when I thought they were more on par.) Carnival's bread though is the best! Cheese Plate goes to HAL! Menu selections go to HAL as well...won't find Meatloaf on the menu!

 

Steakhouse: Both Carnival's Steakhouse & the Pinnacle Grill on HAL are excellent. The Pinnacle Grill is open for lunch though as well for a $10 fee.

 

Lido on HAL: The Deli is much better on Carnival although it is very good on HAL (just have to ask for extra meat and they will accomodate). Pasta and Potato Salads...Carnival has the edge!

 

Entertainment: After this past year with Carnival...HAL's is better! Lounge acts are better as well! They have a "Crew Show" in the Show Lounge which was excellent! Piano Bar on this past cruise with HAL was the BEST we've ever seen out of 35 plus cruises. The Piano Player was amazing! It was packed every night!

 

Night Life...quieted down around Midnight and not by 9:00 p.m. so maybe depends on the Sailing. Disco was packed every night on HAL as was Karaoke. Comedy Shows definitely go to Carnival!!!

 

Afternoon Tea: HAL has Carnival beat by a mile!

 

Embarkation: We're VIP on Carnival and not on HAL. No problems getting onboard and waited about 15 minutes in a Zone to board. Advantages: Can go straight to room as the rooms are ready. We were on the Ship before Noon, too.

 

Nice touches on HAL: Hot h'ordeuves served in Lounges for pre-dinner drinks. There's a T.V. channel that gives ALL the announcements if you want to hear them. This was especially great for debarkation, Tendering (as you get a ticket and can go back and wait in your room), the Ship being cleared in the Ports, etc. No interactive though for S&S...but Front Desk will happily oblige and give a print out.

 

There are no "hairy chest" contests, etc. They have really nice things to participate in though! They have a Culinary Center onboard that has Cooking Demonstrations as well as Cooking Classes with Guest Chef, etc. They also had where you can eat Dinner with the Guest Chef in the Pinnacle Grill or with the Piano Player the one night. They also have Wine Tastings at various times throughout the cruise.

 

We had a Superior Suite which is equal to the Ocean Suite on Carnival. The Ocean Suite is definitely a bit nicer with the dressing area on Carnival but other than that both rooms are on par. HAL though gives three pillows: Soft, Medium & Firm to "find what works for you". Nice touch! The Bathroom also has a shower stall in addition to a whirlpool tub/shower where the OS on Carnival it has only the whirlpool tub/shower.

 

It definitely is a completely different market and we'll continue to sail both Carnival and HAL! :)

[Pee-ah]

Having been on both I would have to agree with you. Carnvial :)

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1410513

[Winnigirl]

I ran into a couple of gents on my Carnival cruise that were discussing cruise lines. They had mentioned that they HAL cruise they did had so many scooters running around. Did you see the same? They also mentioned HAL was dead very early. They wanted to be on a "Fun" ship. BTW, these guys were in their late 60's.:D

 

My husband and I noticed that very thing - it was like they had special "scooter" parking - and a lot of those people were very aggressive on the scooters. I had to jump out of the way on more than one occasion. It's definitely a much more "sedate" crowd. My husband still talks about the "Signature Caesar Salad" on Hal - the "signature" part was that it was totally devoid of any flavour whatsoever.

 

Thank you for the interesting comparison.

[Busy Barge]

like hal better than carnival overall. but not the mdr. the reviews had us believe the food was going to be fantastic ... it wasn't. we found carnival's mdr food just as good if not better

 

what we liked about hal - shows, piano bar, hot breakfast, dutch flavor, general flow of the ship, lido deck layout, room setup, general ambiance

[hannahsmomtoo]

As someone who is leaving on the Splendor in a few weeks.. I am thrilled by your comparison :D

Thanks for posting !

[SMSACE6]

question for edmusic!

 

I still like Carnival, but am looking to branch out and try another line. Have been looking at HAL and seems to be ok to me. I cant travel now due to illness in the family, but hopefully next year I will get a chance to have a week or so away.

 

My question about HAL is; with regard to the ship being quite dead after 9pm; does that include the casino? I enjoy a bit of casino slots after dinner, but find Carnival's casino too crowded and smokey. Is it different on HAL? Is the casino also quiet or dead after 9pm?

 

Thanks

[westview1]

I've cruised HAL twice and one was on the Zuierdam this past March (my first HAL cruise was in 2005). I have two more booked with HAL in 2013 and four with Carnival for 2013.

 

HAL's Ships are smaller even the Zuierdam which is the Vista Class and their larger Class Ship. It is under 2000 passengers.

 

My experience on HAL was different than the OP's.

 

I found the food to be way above Carnival's in the MDR. (This wasn't the case back in 2005 when I thought they were more on par.) Carnival's bread though is the best! Cheese Plate goes to HAL! Menu selections go to HAL as well...won't find Meatloaf on the menu!

 

Steakhouse: Both Carnival's Steakhouse & the Pinnacle Grill on HAL are excellent. The Pinnacle Grill is open for lunch though as well for a $10 fee.

 

Lido on HAL: The Deli is much better on Carnival although it is very good on HAL (just have to ask for extra meat and they will accomodate). Pasta and Potato Salads...Carnival has the edge!

 

Entertainment: After this past year with Carnival...HAL's is better! Lounge acts are better as well! They have a "Crew Show" in the Show Lounge which was excellent! Piano Bar on this past cruise with HAL was the BEST we've ever seen out of 35 plus cruises. The Piano Player was amazing! It was packed every night!

 

Night Life...quieted down around Midnight and not by 9:00 p.m. so maybe depends on the Sailing. Disco was packed every night on HAL as was Karaoke. Comedy Shows definitely go to Carnival!!!

 

Afternoon Tea: HAL has Carnival beat by a mile!

 

Embarkation: We're VIP on Carnival and not on HAL. No problems getting onboard and waited about 15 minutes in a Zone to board. Advantages: Can go straight to room as the rooms are ready. We were on the Ship before Noon, too.

 

Nice touches on HAL: Hot h'ordeuves served in Lounges for pre-dinner drinks. There's a T.V. channel that gives ALL the announcements if you want to hear them. This was especially great for debarkation, Tendering (as you get a ticket and can go back and wait in your room), the Ship being cleared in the Ports, etc. No interactive though for S&S...but Front Desk will happily oblige and give a print out.

 

There are no "hairy chest" contests, etc. They have really nice things to participate in though! They have a Culinary Center onboard that has Cooking Demonstrations as well as Cooking Classes with Guest Chef, etc. They also had where you can eat Dinner with the Guest Chef in the Pinnacle Grill or with the Piano Player the one night. They also have Wine Tastings at various times throughout the cruise.

 

We had a Superior Suite which is equal to the Ocean Suite on Carnival. The Ocean Suite is definitely a bit nicer with the dressing area on Carnival but other than that both rooms are on par. HAL though gives three pillows: Soft, Medium & Firm to "find what works for you". Nice touch! The Bathroom also has a shower stall in addition to a whirlpool tub/shower where the OS on Carnival it has only the whirlpool tub/shower.

 

It definitely is a completely different market and we'll continue to sail both Carnival and HAL! :)

 

We recently sailed on the Veendam and our experience was similar to yours.

 

The MDR food was better on HAL but the service was slower. We thought the Lido was better and the omelet station was awesome. Canneletto was very good and the Pinnacle Grill was very good as well, it is also $25 per person so less expensive than Carnival.

 

I feel that HAL has spent more money on the talent. The sets were simple but the vocalists were top notch. On Carnival the sets are elaborate but the singers were not as good.

 

But we will sail both lines again. The experience on HAL is different, more subdued than Carnival. It's like comparing apples to oranges. We didn't see many scooters, but we sailed in August and we were in Bermuda for 4 days so the itinerary isn't friendly to anyone who is mobility impaired.

[golfadj]

My husband and I noticed that very thing - it was like they had special "scooter" parking - and a lot of those people were very aggressive on the scooters. I had to jump out of the way on more than one occasion. It's definitely a much more "sedate" crowd. My husband still talks about the "Signature Caesar Salad" on Hal - the "signature" part was that it was totally devoid of any flavour whatsoever.

 

Thank you for the interesting comparison.

 

Have seen some on scooters who think if they dont run over someone every trip they are going too slow. Quite a few of them on Carnival

[Flatland]

We won't ever go back to HAL, at least not in the next 30 years. :eek: It was a floating nursing home. We were told by the CD late one evening (9 PM) the average age on our cruise was 70.5 years. Never saw but a few passengers ever past 9 PM. I think they were having trouble sleeping.

 

After our one and only HAL non-event, we met an elderly couple on our next Carnival cruise that were really fun and outgoing.

 

The 78 year old fella asked us, "Do you know what the average age on Holiland America is?"

 

We shook our heads and said, "No."

 

He replied, "Dead!"

 

True story. :)

Kev

[JUGGER]

Having sailed with HAL in 2011 and 2012 and Carnival in 2012, I have reached a conclusion: I prefer Carnival. By a lot. Here's why - I go on vacation to get away from it all and have fun and Carnival delivers the 'fun' ten-fold over HAL. For this review, I am focusing on the on board cruising experience itself, not taking into consideration the itinerary and ports of call.

On my most recent cruises, here are some comparisons:

Embarkation: HAL - lots of waiting around

Carnival - constantly moving process, has it nailed to a T.

The ship: HAL Oosterdam - very nice. Easy to find way around. Learned the whole ship in a couple of days. Not as run down as many say.

Carnival Splendor - incredible Wow factor. Unbelievable atrium. Is like Disneyworld with HAL being like Legoland. So many lounges and public rooms. Discovered new ones everyday.

Fellow passengers: HAL -definitely a much older crowd, not too many families on board. Ship is almost deserted after 9pm.

Carnival - many more families and expect kids of all ages to be traveling. Lots and lots of kids. If that's a problem for you, consider another line, especially HAL. Many, many partiers up until midnight +.

Stateroom: HAL - nice, nothing special. Very comfortable bed. Decent closet space. Liked the full size tub in the bathroom and love the Elemis bath gel.

Carnival - very nice room. Seemed more roomy than HAL even though about the same sq ft. Way more shelving in the bathroom and larger vanity. Small, triangle shaped shower very disappointing. Water leaked out behind the shower curtain every time the shower was used. Definite design flaw. Loved the bath gel. Much more closet space that HAL. Also, the interactive TV was nice to view your onboard account

MDR: HAL- very disappointing. Food was not that good and the service was absolutely horrible. Empty plates stayed on our table for 20 minutes before being removed between each course. Portions were very small. Finally gave up after 4 nights and ate dinner in the Lido for the remainder of the cruise.

Carnival - a complete 180 from HAL. The food was fantastic with more flavor and seasoning and the portions were much larger. And, Carnival knows how to cook a steak. Comes out the way it is requested. On more than one occasion with HAL, my medium well request came out rare to extra rare. The prime rib on Carnival also is far superior to the pr on HAL. I don't know what part of the steer it comes from, but it doesn't look like prime rib on HALs dinner plate, looks more like a slice of roast beef.

Lido: HAL - fine, no complaints except for the rude passengers who belittle the servers because they don't prepare the food they way they're used to having it at home. Come on people, grow up! Great omelet station. Average variety of foods. Not much to offer for a late night snack.

Carnival - incredible buffet with lots of variety. Never got tired of it. Wonderful international dishes like Sicilian fish, Burrito Bar, New York Deli, Rotisserie chicken, Mongolian Grill, 24 hour pizza. Lots and lots of variety every day.

Service: HAL - wonderful room attendants. Called us by name which we appreciate. Overworked and understaffed waiters (the reason for the 2 1/2 hour average dinner time). Cordial and nice front desk.

Carnival - wonderful room attendants. Asked our names the first day and remembered to call us by them from then on. Head waiter did the same. Greeted us by our first names each and every night. Table waiters were very friendly and interested in making sure our meal was to satisfaction.

Entertainment: HAL - the big shows really shine. Lots of top shelf singing and dancing. Garage Band the big hit for me. Juggler/comedian Barnaby was one of the most entertaining, funniest shows I've ever seen. Don't miss him. Spent 45 minutes one night waiting to laugh at least once from a comedienne named Julie Something. Really a dud (and she knew it too). Best entertainment on the ship is up in the crow's nest listening to the mellow acoustic singing of Matt Murphy, who knows how to entertain a crowd with his guitar and voice.

Carnival - where do I start? There were so many things to see it was hard to decide what and where to go. We ended up listening to the four (count 'em , four) comedians they brought on board during the cruise. They really were funny and they interacted with the audience fantastically. I like to do karaoke and Carnival knows how to do it right. You get to sing with a live band that rocks (unlike the toned down HALCats) and there is a karaoke host who interacts with you onstage while you sing; really adding to the moment. There was a night time deck party that was fantastic with the band playing hits from the 50's and 60's and the ship's dancers dressed up in skirts and bobby socks for an old fashion sock hop. It was a whole lot of fun! My family even got picked to play 'Family Feud' in the big theater and we won!

Casino: while I don't gamble, I like to watch other people do. The casino on HAL was hardly ever used except by the elderly sitting at the slot machines. The casino on Carnival was jam packed with action every night at the blackjack and roulette tables and the Texas Hold 'Em table as well as the usual slot play and the elusive 'Casino Vault'.

 

The Carnival Splendor cruise was much more to my liking and I will choose Carnival as my cruise line of choice from now on.

HI---IRENE AND JOHN (JUGGER)HERE--YOU SAID IT ALL----AFTER 51 CRUISES ON CARNIVAL-----PLUS 3 ON HOLLAND-AMERICAN--CARNIVAL IS OUR SHIP---WE ARE SENIORS----BUT-----SAILING ON HAL----NEVER SAW SO MANY SENIORS-(OLD people) ON ONE SHIP---IN ALL OUR LIVES--VERY DEPRESSING--AND THE SHIP DOES CLOSE DOWN AT 9PM---FOR US THE NIGHT IS JUST BEGINNING------HURRAY FOR CARNIVAL--IRENE AND JOHN

[edmusic]

question for edmusic!

 

I still like Carnival, but am looking to branch out and try another line. Have been looking at HAL and seems to be ok to me. I cant travel now due to illness in the family, but hopefully next year I will get a chance to have a week or so away.

 

My question about HAL is; with regard to the ship being quite dead after 9pm; does that include the casino? I enjoy a bit of casino slots after dinner, but find Carnival's casino too crowded and smokey. Is it different on HAL? Is the casino also quiet or dead after 9pm?

 

Thanks

My experience on both the Nieuw Amsterdam in March 2011 and the Oosterdam in June 2012 was that the casino was dead after 9pm. Who knows what you'll experience. Could be different. Have you considered Celebrity Cruise Line? I have friends who cruise a lot and rave about Celebrity. I'd like to give them a try next myself.

[DaveRRT]

doing a Carnival after 20yrs in Nov, Have done 3 HALS prior. Last cruise was Westerdam S carribian and we had a great time. Had a VD balconey and it was huge, and at the time the cheapest. Unilimited wine even though I left a box wine in the fridge at the hotel doooh. Food great entertanment great, the art work was wonderful. Was not much going on during the sea days and at night it was tough getting the craps table going, but after 2 days we had a regular group every night. Will let you know what I think of the Pride when I get back.

[SMSACE6]

My experience on both the Nieuw Amsterdam in March 2011 and the Oosterdam in June 2012 was that the casino was dead after 9pm. Who knows what you'll experience. Could be different. Have you considered Celebrity Cruise Line? I have friends who cruise a lot and rave about Celebrity. I'd like to give them a try next myself.

 

Thanks good to know. I have sailed once on Celebrity 10 years ago, and it was a great cruise, and yes would like to cruise on them again some day. My parents have cruised on Celebrity many times and is their cruiseline of choice. I guess I just like the European appeal of HAL. I dont mind senior ciitizens, as my work revolves about them, and I enjoy my work. So would not mind a vacation where the majority were elderly and quiet or slow. I also like some of HAL's itineraries. But nothing wrong with Celebrity either. Thanks for the info!:)

[treasure4two]

Thanks for that. Saw that you posted it on the HAL, awesome!

 

I bet the HAL ripped you!! I have had 3 cruises on HAL and will not go back unless the fares are real low.

[Guest LoveMyBoxer]

I bet the HAL ripped you!! I have had 3 cruises on HAL and will not go back unless the fares are real low.

 

It was the OP who posted the same on HAL. Actually they are being very civil over there and somewhat supportive! My experience with HAL was when there were a lot of young families on the ships, so it was a different experience than when it's just the "older" crowd!