Best Carnival Alternative for European Cruise?

[Scooterpi]

First of all, I love Carnival. I've never had a bad cruise and I don't let the very minor little things that went wrong ruin a cruise because minor things can go wrong on any vacation.

 

That being said, my husband is wanting to try a "little more upscale" (his words) cruise line and also wants to take a trip to Europe. Since Carnival pulled out of Europe I thought this might be an opportunity to kill two birds with one stone. Let's break it down into some questions:

 

1. We've never been to Europe. Is cruising a decent enough way to see some Europe and some of the famous sites? He likes historical tours, etc and is highly interested in Rome and Paris. I think we could do Rome on a cruise and save Paris for later.

 

2. Favorite European itinerary?

 

3. Best cruise line to look into for this for a Carnival fan. I'm planning on dropping a bunch of money on a Europe trip of course since there is really no other choice but I'd like prices to be somewhat reasonable. For example, I skimmed NCL site for Europe and they seemed extremely reasonable to me.

 

The things we enjoy on Carnival are hanging out in the casino, the free room service, the comedy shows, and the ship size. The Freedom was my favorite ship so far as far as size and venues on board. When we are on board we hang out in the casino, lounge around on serenity, take naps, read books, and go to comedy shows and tea time. We are not big into the production shows. I love the MDR but am willing to try new things.

 

 

I'm basically just trying to figure out what cruise line to go to from here since Carnival isn't an option but I don't want a totally different cruising experience.

[kcwingwalker]

First of all, I love Carnival. I've never had a bad cruise and I don't let the very minor little things that went wrong ruin a cruise because minor things can go wrong on any vacation.

 

That being said, my husband is wanting to try a "little more upscale" (his words) cruise line and also wants to take a trip to Europe. Since Carnival pulled out of Europe I thought this might be an opportunity to kill two birds with one stone. Let's break it down into some questions:

 

1. We've never been to Europe. Is cruising a decent enough way to see some Europe and some of the famous sites? He likes historical tours, etc and is highly interested in Rome and Paris. I think we could do Rome on a cruise and save Paris for later.

 

2. Favorite European itinerary?

 

3. Best cruise line to look into for this for a Carnival fan. I'm planning on dropping a bunch of money on a Europe trip of course since there is really no other choice but I'd like prices to be somewhat reasonable. For example, I skimmed NCL site for Europe and they seemed extremely reasonable to me.

 

The things we enjoy on Carnival are hanging out in the casino, the free room service, the comedy shows, and the ship size. The Freedom was my favorite ship so far as far as size and venues on board. When we are on board we hang out in the casino, lounge around on serenity, take naps, read books, and go to comedy shows and tea time. We are not big into the production shows. I love the MDR but am willing to try new things.

 

 

I'm basically just trying to figure out what cruise line to go to from here since Carnival isn't an option but I don't want a totally different cruising experience.

 

You might consider the Norwegian Spirit........a truly unique ship with a capacity of about 1,800+.

[rhinomike]

We are in the same situation. After tons and tons of research we booked the NCL Spirit for our Europe Cruise this summer. Great itenerary. Only 2 sea days. Lots of Port Days. If you have any questions just let me know.

[Colorado Kat]

Last summer we did a Carnival cruise from Venice to Barcelona. It worked out very well. Of course, we wanted more time in each port, but it was enough to get a taste of each spot.

 

I've been to Europe several times, and it was a a delight to unpack once and travel to many different ports.

 

 

Economically, I think a cruise is a very good value in Europe.

[alrichards4003]

I agree that NCL is comparable to Carnival. We did the Grand Med. with Princess, at that time it was the only line that did that itinerary (now others do) it included Nice, Italy, Greece and Turkey.

 

I think it is a great way to see Europe, because instead of taking bus or train to next sitting, you are cruising.

 

The port days are so long, that on Princess there were not a lot of activities, but after spending 12 hours touring in the heat, we were not up for much.

[katisdale]

We are taking our grandchildren to Europe next summer on Princess. We will fly into London and spend three days there. Then we will take the Eurostar to Paris and stay there for two or three days. Finally we will (fly or take a train?) to Barcelona for a day or two before boarding. The cruise goes to Toulon, Florence, Rome, Naples, Athens, Mykonos, Istanbul, Kusadasi, and Venice where we will stay an additional day before flying home. This is a sampler cruise for them which when added to the land travel will give (imho) a nice overview. I have found Europe cruising to be quite different from Caribbean cruising. The cruises are so port intensive that there is much less time for ship activities. While there is night life it is much tamer and fewer participate.

Edited November 6, 2013 by katisdale

[golfadj]

Ask me in May. Doing our first Princess cruise a TA of 15 days.

[Essiesmom]

I have sailed the Med. on HAL and Celebrity. Both were great cruises. If you are looking for adult venues like Serenity, you want Celebrity. but remember, Med. cruises are very port intensive. You won't be spending a lot of time around the pool, etc. One sea day out of a 12 day cruise...Long days in port with a lot of walking. Choose your ship for itinerary, not amenities. Keep in mind, Venice has just announced (Tuesday ) that after Nov. 2014, they will not allow ships over 96,000 GRT to sail down the Giudecca Canal. this leave out all of the Princess ships that currently do the Med (their two small ships, Ocean and Pacific Princesses do not sail the Med regularly), and the Solstice class of Celebrity. EM

[Mulege]

Just completed a 10 day Celebrity cruise rt from Rome on Reflection. Awesome ship with a hip vibe. Great food. You said you like room service well X offers full in room dining. Not the normal cold entrees or continental breakfast but real hot food. Their Martini Bar is one of the best at sea. MDR and specialty restaurants much better than CCL.

 

You get Italy, Greece, and Turkey in one package. I strongly suggest the 11 day itinerary with an overnight in Istanbul, a fascinating city.

[Crusin6]

We are taking our grandchildren to Europe next summer on Princess. We will fly into London and spend three days there. Then we will take the Eurostar to Paris and stay there for two or three days. Finally we will (fly or take a train?) to Barcelona for a day or two before boarding. The cruise goes to Toulon, Florence, Rome, Naples, Athens, Mykonos, Istanbul, Kusadasi, and Venice where we will stay an additional day before flying home. This is a sampler cruise for them which when added to the land travel will give (imho) a nice overview. I have found Europe cruising to be quite different from Caribbean cruising. The cruises are so port intensive that there is much less time for ship activities. While there is night life it is much tamer and fewer participate.

 

We did this with our 4 kids in 2012 but our add ons were 5 days in Rome and 1 in Venice pre and 2 in Barcelona post. I so wanted to add Paris at either end or do a 2 day stopover in Dublin as we flew aer lingus but it really was prohibitive to add that extra.

 

We are in our 50 s and 60 s and have kids aged 13 to 23 so we do these big trips as often as possible and your grands are so lucky you take then We will probably be way too old to take our grands because that is so far off based on our kids ages.

 

Oh and next year we will have 2 in college!!! Ouch!

[dougandmo]

I haven't cruised Europe, but I have spent a lot of time there and it's hard to imagine doing justice to places like Paris or Rome in a day. Having been to most of them now I wouldn't mind cruising and spending a day in each to see my favorite sites again, but there's so much to see you really have to limit yourself if you only have 12 hours or so. Doesn't mean you shouldn't do it, just know that you won't possibly see everything!

[CarnieAddict]

You might consider the Norwegian Spirit........a truly unique ship with a capacity of about 1,800+.

 

That is the ship I would recomend. My mom and dad went on it on the 12 day cruise. Plus the Spirit will be allowed right in Venice cause of her weight.

[CarnieAddict]

Will they have the new canal and port for the large ships done in time for 2014 in Venice?

[Budget Queen]

I sail Europe every year, sometimes twice. :)

 

I have sailed on NCL and RCI. HAL and Celebrity have some excellent itineraries.

 

A significant priority I've found is TIME. Go for as long as you can afford. the 7 day sailings are just too short for me. Time in ports - longer is always better.

 

Reports are airfare is a considerable expense for this trip. Europe has a few "lower cost" airlines which I use, between areas, extending my travels. There are BIG differences however, if you use these- there are NO exceptions- that Americans seem to think they are entitled to. :) So if you use them read all the restrictions and extra charges. :)

 

I have also taken trains in the UK, Spain, and France. Another good option. I have driven on several trips- BUT not a good idea for some people with "different" side driving and non English language.

 

I am just back from Spain. Plenty to see and do all over. Take advantage of being all the way there, Europe is still a big trip for many Americans, take advantage of all you can. :)

[Scooterpi]

Thank you all for the awesome replies. We are both in our 20's and pretty active so port intensive doesn't phase me. I am ready to do a ton of walking. I am okay with just hitting the highlights in each port. Hopefully we can use this trip to figure out what we want to see more of and plan a more in depth land based trip later.

 

I think two weeks is about the most I can push to get off work at a time so I am torn between flying into Rome and staying there a few days before a 7 day cruise or doing an 11 day and seeing more places. Right now I am leaning toward the first option but I will have to price it and see. The May 2015 itineraries are not even out yet for NCL.

[freeholdfriends]

We went on the sunshine this past september. It was a fantastic trip. We spent 3 days in Paris and then flew to Barcelona for a day and then the cruise. Our itinerary was one of the best I have ever seen. We stopped on Monaco, rome, Naples, Florence, Venice for two days, dubrovnik and finally Messina and then back to Barcelona. We realized we would only get an overview but that was fine for us. we had never been to Europe so this was a wonderful way to sample many places. We know that we want to go back to Paris and Barcelona and Naples (Amalfi coast)

[wantocruisemore]

Thank you all for the awesome replies. We are both in our 20's and pretty active so port intensive doesn't phase me. I am ready to do a ton of walking. I am okay with just hitting the highlights in each port. Hopefully we can use this trip to figure out what we want to see more of and plan a more in depth land based trip later.

 

I think two weeks is about the most I can push to get off work at a time so I am torn between flying into Rome and staying there a few days before a 7 day cruise or doing an 11 day and seeing more places. Right now I am leaning toward the first option but I will have to price it and see. The May 2015 itineraries are not even out yet for NCL.

 

Definitely recommend RCCL as being the most similar to Carnival. I can't see much core difference in the lines.

 

We did a RCCL cruise out of Rome, Eastern Med, a couple of years ago. LOVED it!!! They also do Western Med itinerary. Please check into them, I can highly recommend it. Also, we stayed a week in Rome prior the cruise. We rented an apartment for the 9 of us. This made it a lot more reasonable than a hotel.

[sofietucker]

We have cruised the eastern & western Med on HAL, Celebrity, and RCCL, all for 11 days or longer. Depending on embarkation ports, we spend a few days* in or around that port in advance (Barcelona/Spain, Civitavecchia/Rome or Florence, Venice, Athens). Trains, etc. are easy in Spain, France & Italy; just do your research and make sure you are looking at a current schedule. They change from year to year/season to season. And find a calendar that lists all the various religious & national holidays for the countries you will visit, so you don't end up going when everything's shut, or stop in Livorno (Florence) on a Monday when all the museums are closed (BTW: many museums are closed on Mondays...).

 

As you can only do 2 weeks, for your first cruise I would rethink a short cruise & a bunch of land time. On a port-intensive longer cruise, you can see much more on day trips & then choose where you want to return on your next journey. Also think about choosing an itinerary with ports that are harder to get to on your own: an eastern itinerary with overnight in Istanbul is amazing! And Malta is also incredible (HAL, I think).

 

*I don't mean just flying in a day in advance to avoid delays & overcome jet lag. We always spend at least 2-3 days in say Florence or Rome--and then we also take the ship's shuttle back into those cities to see more! Never enough time to do it all.

Don't forget your history as a Carnival Corp. passenger carries over to other cruise lines but (not RCCL or Celeb); you won't get the "points" but may get perks like upgrades... Enjoy your trip, whatever you decide!

Edited November 6, 2013 by sofietucker