Help - will I be disappointed with Carnival?

[bplazo]

You have to go with an open mind.

 

I have sailed on 4 different cruise lines and you know what? I have loved all of my cruises.

 

I agree with you. I am enjoying trying each cruise line.

[SMSACE6]

I agree with you. I am enjoying trying each cruise line.

 

Me too, agree , agree!:)

[DizneyGal]

We went on carnival fantasy from charleston and had a blast! You won't be disappointed!! ESP. If you have Matt as the cruise director!

[thomarvin]

I ment that CCL has more choices during regular hours, deli, mongolian wok, chinese, pasta stations, sushi, plus the buffets, and MDR for lunch and I think alot more choices on the dinner menu in the MDR, Overnight CCL does have pizza only but free room service. RC doesn't have anything open all night. I believe that RC also charges for room service after 2.

[cruzzza]

I rarely can afford to cruise, have been on RCL twice and spoiled by the balcony rooms and great service! Am looking to cruise from Charleston on Carnival - to save some money. Will I be disappointed - should I save my money and fly down further south for one of the Royal Caribbean cruises? Hubby hasn't been to the Bahamas so would like to go there next.

 

I cruised on Carnival 25 years ago. Just to give you a laugh, room service at night had two choices for a snack; cream cheese and olive sandwiches, and something else which I forget. My how things have changed!

 

Thanks for your input on Carnival. I live in Maine and am looking for the best possible prices. Norwegian to Bermuda is our only choice in Boston. The only cruises I see in Maine are those Canada cruises - good grief, if I wanted to go to Canada :eek:, I'd drive there

 

Thanks for any thoughts!:D

 

I have only been on Carnival, and I don't know what ships you've been on with RCI, but I can't say that the Fantasy is where you need to start if you want to try Carnival. It is not a "balcony" ship either. Unless you want to pay for a suite (based on your post I'd say not) then you'll have to settle for a window.

 

Really, it's old and compared to the newer ships, it's just not as good. I can't think of any reasons to suggest it over other options you've got available to you. If it's strictly price that matters, and it's the cheapest - I say why not? I'ts not a bad ship, but please realize that the Fantasy isn't even close to the best of what Carnival has to offer.

 

p.s. I've sailed Fantasy twice and enjoyed both cruises.

[gatorodie]

Hubby and I just returned today from our first Carnival cruise - our previous two were on Royal Caribbean. I went in with an open mind and even tried the same port (Tampa). Our last cruise on RCCI was our last with them for a while - food was horrible and staff were actually fighting!

We had just the right amount of activities...comedy club, casino, serenity deck, food, naps, etc -- hey it's a vacation!

I have to say the staff were extremely friendly and the ship was always being cleaned - room steward was very attentive!

Keep an open mind and look at the amount you are saving - maybe you can go on an excursion you've been dreaming of with the savings :)

Enjoy - I will post my full review tomorrow or the next day...still haven't finished unpacking or washing clothes :rolleyes:

[Sunburns]

I rarely can afford to cruise, have been on RCL twice and spoiled by the balcony rooms and great service! Am looking to cruise from Charleston on Carnival - to save some money. Will I be disappointed - should I save my money and fly down further south for one of the Royal Caribbean cruises? Hubby hasn't been to the Bahamas so would like to go there next.

 

I cruised on Carnival 25 years ago. Just to give you a laugh, room service at night had two choices for a snack; cream cheese and olive sandwiches, and something else which I forget. My how things have changed!

 

Thanks for your input on Carnival. I live in Maine and am looking for the best possible prices. Norwegian to Bermuda is our only choice in Boston. The only cruises I see in Maine are those Canada cruises - good grief, if I wanted to go to Canada :eek:, I'd drive there

 

Thanks for any thoughts!:D

 

Here are my thoughts...since you asked ;)

If you want to have a good time you will.

If you nitpick the whole time and only concentrate on imperfections, you probably won't.

It just depends on if you are a 'half full' person, or a 'half empty' person.

I'm happy just to roll out of bed knowing someone else will make my breakfast and my only responsibilities are dressing myself and having a positive attitude ;)

I hope you go and have a wonderful cruise!!

[SNJCruisers]

Thanks for your input on Carnival. I live in Maine and am looking for the best possible prices. Norwegian to Bermuda is our only choice in Boston.

 

Have you considered cruising from New York or New Jersey? There are more options then Carnival. NCL Breakaway, a new ship will be sailing out of NY next April. Celebrity and RC go from NJ. I am not inpressed with Carnival at all. My humble opinion. :)

Well Janetz...the OP wants input on Carnival, she wants the best possible price and I am inferring that she wants something different than Bermuda. You offer her 1) an option on the very expensive NCL Breakaway, which goes to Bermuda. 2) You mention Celebrity out of NJ, which only goes to Bermuda and 3) RC, which primarily goes to Bermuda out of Bayonne, but it does include some Caribbean sailings, but, they are not the "best possible prices" that the OP is looking for.

[SNJCruisers]

I rarely can afford to cruise, have been on RCL twice and spoiled by the balcony rooms and great service! Am looking to cruise from Charleston on Carnival - to save some money. Will I be disappointed - should I save my money and fly down further south for one of the Royal Caribbean cruises? Hubby hasn't been to the Bahamas so would like to go there next.

 

I cruised on Carnival 25 years ago. Just to give you a laugh, room service at night had two choices for a snack; cream cheese and olive sandwiches, and something else which I forget. My how things have changed!

 

Thanks for your input on Carnival. I live in Maine and am looking for the best possible prices. Norwegian to Bermuda is our only choice in Boston. The only cruises I see in Maine are those Canada cruises - good grief, if I wanted to go to Canada :eek:, I'd drive there

 

Thanks for any thoughts!:D

You need to factor in all of the costs involved before you make your decision. Are you going to fly to a port or drive? If driving, you're limited to NYC metro area or Baltimore. Can you get cheap airfare out of Boston to Ft Lauderdale in order to cruise out of there or Miami or to Orlando to cruise out of Pt Canaveral? If you liked your previous RC cruises in a balcony, I would try one of the newer, larger Carnival ships that have more bells and whistles, such as the Dream out of Pt Canaveral or the Breeze out of Miami. If you sail in January or between Thanksgiving and Christmas, you can save money as well.

 

Whatever you decide, best of luck.

[mrsd912]

You need to factor in all of the costs involved before you make your decision. Are you going to fly to a port or drive? If driving, you're limited to NYC metro area or Baltimore. Can you get cheap airfare out of Boston to Ft Lauderdale in order to cruise out of there or Miami or to Orlando to cruise out of Pt Canaveral? If you liked your previous RC cruises in a balcony, I would try one of the newer, larger Carnival ships that have more bells and whistles, such as the Dream out of Pt Canaveral or the Breeze out of Miami. If you sail in January or between Thanksgiving and Christmas, you can save money as well.

 

Whatever you decide, best of luck.

 

We live in Maine as well and flew out of Boston for our cruise two weeks ago. I can't stress enough that it's not worth the savings, and DH and I were agreeing that next time we'll fly out of Bangor (which we live ten minutes from). We ended up spending more money flying from Logan than we would have from Bangor due to gas, extra hotel stays, and food, so if you're looking at entire cost, travelling a few hours away to a different airport maybe cost you more in the long run.

Of course if you're driving make sure you factor in gas, hotels and food. Maybe check Amtrak too, just to comparison shop. You might be pleasantly surprised!

[parolski]

You folks are an absolute wealth of information. Thanks for all your thoughts. Of course - I should go into this with an open mind. I'm a "glass half full" type of person, have been all my life - why should this be any different. I guess because I can't afford to travel a lot, I get selfish in my wants; Royal Caribbean's balcony rooms are fabulous and I think that's my only absolute. I'm glad to hear such good reviews on Carnival. I'll give it a try. I'll consider the ports you all suggested. Driving in NY sounds like about as much fun as driving in Boston....but there I go again being negative. I just got over my fear of flying since losing a friend on the plane out of Boston on 9-11; flying is a second option - I'd prefer to drive to a port if possible.

 

For those of you who haven't been to Maine - you might consider RC's cruise to Canada. We moved here after the kids got out of college and winterized our summer lake camp to year 'round. "The way life should be" is Maine's motto, and it sure is true. I have no desire to go to Canada, I guess because it's in my back yard, but the rocky coast of Maine is just outstanding (seen nicely from a balcony 8-) ---- I dunno, maybe some day I may even go on it myself when we've been to the other places on our bucket list.

 

Thanks again to all. Your suggestions are appreciated and well taken!

[funinthesun1964]

RCI

Buffet breakfast much better, includes fresh ham each day, two different type potatoes, decent bacon, scrambled eggs cooked alot better. Lunch buffets exceed carnivals they offer more meat entree dishes, choices veggies, larger salad bar with more items. What I like about the buffets here is that they have mini stations so you not have to stand in a very long line waiting, the flow of the buffets are so much better (layout). MDR better quality meats, get actual vegetable portions/servings.

Service overall excellent!! Cocktails less costly than Carnival. Fresh water pools and larger pools. Balconies larger in length. Most ships give you two specialty dining which are excellent. They have a 24 hour promenade cafe which serves, pizza, finger sandwiches, salads of different types, marinated veggies, mozzerella, proscuitto, pastries, cookies, etc. Love the viking crown lounge on top of the ship. Most ships have shower doors and not curtains. Entertainment excellent broadway production type shows.

 

Carnival:

Breakfast buffet always running scrambled eggs, greasy as heck bacon, hate those fried tiny little round what they call hash browns. Lunch buffet mostly consist of fast food type foods or inexpensive foods such as pasta, sandwiches, chicken fingers,etc. Usually only one choice vegetable they do have wok station and carving station. Salad bar just the same old typical items. MDR dinner inexpensive cuts of meat such as flat iron steak, 3-4 pieces of vegetable on plate such as broccoli, green beans and carrots not a serving at all. Desserts always much better. Late night only pizza, calzones, ceasar salad nothing else. More fun slot machines. Salt water small pools, balconies smaller in length.

I am only basing my experiences on Carnival with the fantasy class ships. Service always a hit or miss. Have not been on a ship yet with specialty dining will go next week on our first one, we have four evenings confirmed there. Entertainment most of the time for us is fair nothing better, the typical juggler, magician, game shows if your into that.

 

We going on the Dream next month and hope that since its a newer ship and larger we get more selection/variety and better options. Do like Punchliners comedy that they added. I also heard that ice cream is offered 24/7

 

I am going on the Dream next week because we been on the FOS/LOS 6 times in the past four years and just want to go out of Pt. Canaveral and just want a change of scenery. We have no other choices, never would consider a disney cruise, and then there is the Dream. We never had a bad Carnival cruise, but we know we get better on RCI.

 

 

Late night 11:30 - 1:00 am you can also have grill foods (hamburgers, hot dogs, fries, maybe more). Room service available at n/c 24 hours a day - at least this was true on the Glory July 2012.

Yes, ice cream is also 24 hours.

[janetz]

Well Janetz...the OP wants input on Carnival, she wants the best possible price and I am inferring that she wants something different than Bermuda. You offer her 1) an option on the very expensive NCL Breakaway, which goes to Bermuda. 2) You mention Celebrity out of NJ, which only goes to Bermuda and 3) RC, which primarily goes to Bermuda out of Bayonne, but it does include some Caribbean sailings, but, they are not the "best possible prices" that the OP is looking for.

 

 

Well thank you for your insight, but I know exactly what sailings are from these ports :) The OP is closer to NY and NJ and that was my thought. Breakaway also does the Bahamas, in case you did not know.

[janetz]

You folks are an absolute wealth of information. Thanks for all your thoughts. Of course - I should go into this with an open mind. I'm a "glass half full" type of person, have been all my life - why should this be any different. I guess because I can't afford to travel a lot, I get selfish in my wants; Royal Caribbean's balcony rooms are fabulous and I think that's my only absolute. I'm glad to hear such good reviews on Carnival. I'll give it a try. I'll consider the ports you all suggested. Driving in NY sounds like about as much fun as driving in Boston....but there I go again being negative. I just got over my fear of flying since losing a friend on the plane out of Boston on 9-11; flying is a second option - I'd prefer to drive to a port if possible.

 

For those of you who haven't been to Maine - you might consider RC's cruise to Canada. We moved here after the kids got out of college and winterized our summer lake camp to year 'round. "The way life should be" is Maine's motto, and it sure is true. I have no desire to go to Canada, I guess because it's in my back yard, but the rocky coast of Maine is just outstanding (seen nicely from a balcony 8-) ---- I dunno, maybe some day I may even go on it myself when we've been to the other places on our bucket list.

 

Thanks again to all. Your suggestions are appreciated and well taken!

 

One option for you going from NY or NJ is to drive to Albany, NY for the night before and then take the Yankee Trails cruise express bus from there to the cruise. The parking at Yankee is secure and free. Here is the link just in case. ;)

 

 

https://www.yankeetrails.com/travel_packages/category.asp?categoryid=55

 

 

 

 

[mondello]

I'd consider flying to south Florida, you have so many more options. You can fly and cruise in the non-summer/non-holiday period. You can save money flying from Boston or elsewhere and save money. Sometimes it is often cheaper to fly to Florida and shuttle or grab a rental car to get to your actual destination. You can find great fares on early Dec. cruises. I like 7 nights after the hassle of getting down to Florida. You can take whatever you can afford. Best of luck on your plans.

[mondello]

[quote name='janetz'][SIZE=3]One option for you going from NY or NJ is to drive to Albany, NY for the night before and then take the Yankee Trails cruise express bus from there to the cruise. The parking at Yankee is secure and free. Here is the link just in case. ;)[/SIZE]


[SIZE=3][URL]https://www.yankeetrails.com/travel_packages/category.asp?categoryid=55[/URL][/SIZE]





[/quote]
Thank you for posting, this is the first I've heard of this great idea.

[janetz]

[quote name='mondello']Thank you for posting, this is the first I've heard of this great idea.[/quote]

[SIZE=3][COLOR=red]You are welcome. :)[/COLOR][/SIZE]

[Winnigirl]

Here I am in the Tampa Airport after getting off the Carnival Legend this morning - our first Carnival cruise. It will be our last. I was extremely leary of Carnival and most of my fears came true.

On the "Serenity" deck - where some joker proclaimed he was the Mayor - his lovely inebriated wife threw a beer bucket at another woman - calling her a "*itch" - while security stood by and did nothing - evidently " "serenity" has a different meaning on Carnival. It means get as drunk as you possibly can and behave like an idiot. In fact - that pretty much seems to be the Carnival motto. Just like advertising "slightly used blow-up doll" for sale on your cabin door. Go ahead - call me a snob.

The food on the Lido Deck was disgusting. The orphans in "Oliver" certainly wouldn't ask for more of the gruel they served as oatmeal in the morning. I found a hair in the chinese vegetables.

The Art Auction was held in Satchmo's Bar - the smell of cigar smoke was so strong we couldn't stay.

Nothing came easily on thiis cruise; information was a closely guarded secret. If you wanted information you were on your own to hunt it down. There was no feeling of service at all. I don't expect much - but don't go on a Carnival cruise if you are expecting those little "extras", like a smile.

Dining Room Dress Codes were a laugh. I saw cut-offs, flip-flops, dirty T-Shirts - all welcome here. The food in the dining room wasn't horrible - it wasn't good either. It just was. Oddly, it seemed that the further you went into the dining room, the worse the service was. It was pretty good at the front of the room - at the back the servers bickered with each other who served coffee, who got ketchup, who poured water. One woman at our table - requesting some cocktail sauce for her shrimp was told that they would have to go "way up to the Lido" to get it for her - intimating that she was making an unreasonable request.

Like most Carnival rules - smoking was also overlooked. A lady we spoke to said she had to ask 4 people to leave the non-smoking pool area. No staff in sight.

Here's what was good - our extended balcony room was fine - nothing special - but our steward (who we never saw) kept it clean. We had no complaints but it certainly wasn't terrific - like most everything on Carnival it just "was". Our upstairs neighbours basically held Open House in their room 24/7.

The Steakhouse was very good - the food was declicious and we enjoyed the service which was impeccible. I wish we could have eaten there every night.

The elevators were numerous and fast - that is one thing I have to give to Carnival - fast and convenient elevators.

I'm sure I'll get plenty of replies from Carnival fans - I certainly understand that everyone expects something different in a cruiseline - Carnival simply isn't for us.

You ask if you should save more money for a differnt cruiseline - frankly we've sailed on Celebrity, Princess, Norwegian and HollandAmerica and none were that much more than Carnival. A couple, I'm sure, were less. OK - Disney was definitely more. But I've always gotten off those cruises feeling like my money was well spent. Can't say that this time. No more Carnival for us - party on Serenity Deck!

[SNJCruisers]

[quote name='Winnigirl']

You ask if you should save more money for a differnt cruiseline - frankly we've sailed on Celebrity, Princess, Norwegian and HollandAmerica and none were that much more than Carnival. A couple, I'm sure, were less. OK - Disney was definitely more. But I've always gotten off those cruises feeling like my money was well spent. Can't say that this time. No more Carnival for us - party on Serenity Deck![/quote]
[SIZE=3][FONT=Comic Sans MS]Sorry that your experience was a bad one and there are @$$holes like the "mayor" you met on every cruise line. If you're comparing cruise lines at the same time of year, I severely doubt that you can cruise on Celebrity, Princess or Holland America for a cheaper price than what you got on Carnival, unless of course you're making a comparison between mid summer on Carnival versus early January on one of the other lines. [/FONT][/SIZE]

[Winnigirl]

[quote name='SNJCruisers'][SIZE=3][FONT=Comic Sans MS]Sorry that your experience was a bad one and there are @$$holes like the "mayor" you met on every cruise line. If you're comparing cruise lines at the same time of year, I severely doubt that you can cruise on Celebrity, Princess or Holland America for a cheaper price than what you got on Carnival, unless of course you're making a comparison between mid summer on Carnival versus early January on one of the other lines. [/FONT][/SIZE][/quote]

I can honestly say that I have never seen antics like we saw on this cruise on any other cruise we have taken (10). Honestly, I am not a snob, or miserable or crotchety. I love having fun - but I'm always conscious that "my fun" doesn't infringe on others. That certainly doesn't seem to be the case on Carnival. If people are ok with that - that's terrific. If not, then maybe Carnival isn't for you. You are correct about sailing the Caribbean in the summer - the other lines simply don't sail then - that was why we were on the Legend - there really wasn't another choice. However, if the OP is concerned about her experience I was just suggesting that it might be a better idea to choose another cruiseline and time.

BTW - what the heck is up with the "Urns"??? on the Legend - it was like we were carting cremated remains all over the Caribbean. Very odd.

[Sailor_Sally]

Our last two cruises on Carnival elegant night was a joke . I saw very few people dressed up and lots of t -shirts in the dining room . The food was mediocre but the service was great . We only travel when the kids are in school so that eliminates that problem. I feel it is really time for the cruise lines to raise the prices and up the quality .You can only do so many cut backs . Our last cruise was the Carnival Glory out of New York and most of the cruisers were late 40's and up .We had a great time but would be willing to pay more for better food . I hate cold toast .

[PapafromMaine]

We have cruised on Carnival 7 times and we have another booked on the Freedom for the second time in February. We have LOVED everyone of our cruises. We sailed on the Legend last winter and it was absolutely beautiful. I thought the urns added a lovely touch to the decor.
A bit of advice...Never listen to complainers like the above posters. Some people you can never please no matter what. You be the judge. Like I said, we have been on 7 Carnival cruises and the worst one was wonderful!

Papa:)

[Winnigirl]

[quote name='PapafromMaine']We have cruised on Carnival 7 times and we have another booked on the Freedom for the second time in February. We have LOVED everyone of our cruises. We sailed on the Legend last winter and it was absolutely beautiful. I thought the urns added a lovely touch to the decor.
A bit of advice...Never listen to complainers like the above posters. Some people you can never please no matter what. You be the judge. Like I said, we have been on 7 Carnival cruises and the worst one was wonderful!

Papa:)[/quote]

I am not a complainer. And I am very easy to please. Every word I wrote was the truth. Ok - perhaps the Urns aren't full of ashes.

[PapafromMaine]

I have dealt with your ilk before. 'Nuff said.

[Winnigirl]

[quote name='PapafromMaine']I have dealt with your ilk before. 'Nuff said.[/quote]

"my ilk?" Just how would you know what "my ilk" is? Because I dared to complain about a Carnival Cruise, I have an "ilk"?