cruizinator Posted May 19, 2014 #1 Share Posted May 19, 2014 (edited) This morning returned from 10 day Alaska/Glacier Bay cruise on NCL Pearl. Having been a long time Carnival cruiser...I was looking forward to seeing if the "pasture was indeed greener on the other side". I had a wonderful cruise and if price and itinerary were right...I would definitely cruise with NCL again. I did notice some differences between CCL and NCL...so here goes: Rooms(balcony): Carnival's are noticeably bigger and beds are more comfortable. MDR: Carnival Buffet: NCL..more variety Entertainment: Carnival Crew friendliness: NCL Value: NCL..I paid less for the 10 day cruise than CCL's 8 day! So..that's MY opinion..yours may vary. I still love CCL...but NCL ain't too shabby! Edited May 19, 2014 by cruizinator Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
evanAction Posted May 19, 2014 #2 Share Posted May 19, 2014 Thanks for the comparison! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shukapaw Posted May 19, 2014 #3 Share Posted May 19, 2014 Thanks for your observations. Brian Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
champagne123 Posted May 19, 2014 #4 Share Posted May 19, 2014 We also recently boarded our first NCL ship and loved it. We have NEVER had a bad cruise on ANY cruise line. I am always baffled when one will only sail the same cruise line. Variety is the spice of life...and you have no idea what you are missing.:D Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WindsorFred Posted May 19, 2014 #5 Share Posted May 19, 2014 We also recently boarded our first NCL ship and loved it. We have NEVER had a bad cruise on ANY cruise line. I am always baffled when one will only sail the same cruise line. Variety is the spice of life...and you have no idea what you are missing.:D Our first cruise was on NCL and we loved it. Since then we have booked CCL mostly due to price and dates. Also as CCL is the only line that will open the balcony dividers and we cruise with our best friends and enjoy some quiet time with them enjoying cocktails after a busy day. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
winddawn Posted May 19, 2014 #6 Share Posted May 19, 2014 This morning returned from 10 day Alaska/Glacier Bay cruise on NCL Pearl. Having been a long time Carnival cruiser...I was looking forward to seeing if the "pasture was indeed greener on the other side".I had a wonderful cruise and if price and itinerary were right...I would definitely cruise with NCL again. I did notice some differences between CCL and NCL...so here goes: Rooms(balcony): Carnival's are noticeably bigger and beds are more comfortable. MDR: Carnival Buffet: NCL..more variety Entertainment: Carnival Crew friendliness: NCL Value: NCL..I paid less for the 10 day cruise than CCL's 8 day! So..that's MY opinion..yours may vary. I still love CCL...but NCL ain't too shabby! Thanks for sharing with us. I cruised NCL once a few years ago, also to Alaska. I had a junior suite and was amazed that it was so tiny! I agree that Carnival has roomier cabins. Heck, Carnival's lowest category of inside cabin is larger than the junior suite I had on NCL. I enjoyed my NCL cruise though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Georgiagolfer Posted May 19, 2014 #7 Share Posted May 19, 2014 This morning returned from 10 day Alaska/Glacier Bay cruise on NCL Pearl. Having been a long time Carnival cruiser...I was looking forward to seeing if the "pasture was indeed greener on the other side".I had a wonderful cruise and if price and itinerary were right...I would definitely cruise with NCL again. I did notice some differences between CCL and NCL...so here goes: Rooms(balcony): Carnival's are noticeably bigger and beds are more comfortable. MDR: Carnival Buffet: NCL..more variety Entertainment: Carnival Crew friendliness: NCL Value: NCL..I paid less for the 10 day cruise than CCL's 8 day! So..that's MY opinion..yours may vary. I still love CCL...but NCL ain't too shabby! Now this is really surprising. Our last few CCL cruises, the entertainment has been extremely lacking. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cruizinator Posted May 19, 2014 Author #8 Share Posted May 19, 2014 Now this is really surprising. Our last few CCL cruises, the entertainment has been extremely lacking. Mike, I will say that I haven't cruised CCL in the last 1 1/2 years...so I might be in for a rude awakening on my next Carnival cruise!:eek::eek::eek: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shaded Lady Posted May 19, 2014 #9 Share Posted May 19, 2014 OP thanks for the commentary. We considered a cruise on the Norwegian Epic for this cruise but it involved a flight instead of a drive which was the deciding factor... but one other thing that concerned me was the number of restaurants on NCL that we weren't eligible to eat at (wrong cabin type) or where we had to pay extra... did you find that was more the case than on Carnival? I'm not saying that was a deciding factor, and we'll probably try NCL someday, but it seemed quite a bit more limiting than on Carnival... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cruizinator Posted May 19, 2014 Author #10 Share Posted May 19, 2014 OP thanks for the commentary. We considered a cruise on the Norwegian Epic for this cruise but it involved a flight instead of a drive which was the deciding factor... but one other thing that concerned me was the number of restaurants on NCL that we weren't eligible to eat at (wrong cabin type) or where we had to pay extra... did you find that was more the case than on Carnival? I'm not saying that was a deciding factor, and we'll probably try NCL someday, but it seemed quite a bit more limiting than on Carnival... On Carnival...at least on MOST ships...you've got the MDR, the buffet and the Steakhouse. Thats it... and good enough for me. On NCL Pearl 2 MDR(same menu) the buffet and 8 dining venues that charged 15$-$30 per person. I didn't eat at the pay venues but many did. Really enjoyed the buffet...had eggs benedict or omelets daily. Desserts were ok but ice cream was...really good. Especially the hard packed..which was open about 5:00pm to 9:00pm. Also ..crepe station is open approx. the same time. The lemon sorbet in MDR was amazing! Overall...I enjoyed the food. Probably would've really enjoyed it ..if I ate at the pay venues. But...I came home a few pounds heavier and had an absolute wonderful cruise. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
erby2283 Posted May 19, 2014 #11 Share Posted May 19, 2014 We also recently boarded our first NCL ship and loved it. We have NEVER had a bad cruise on ANY cruise line. I am always baffled when one will only sail the same cruise line. Variety is the spice of life...and you have no idea what you are missing.:D Agree 100% - I've been on NCL, Carnival, Princess and RCCL and have enjoyed them all. Price is my deciding factor. :) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shaded Lady Posted May 19, 2014 #12 Share Posted May 19, 2014 On Carnival...at least on MOST ships...you've got the MDR, the buffet and the Steakhouse. Thats it... and good enough for me. On NCL Pearl 2 MDR(same menu) the buffet and 8 dining venues that charged 15$-$30 per person.I didn't eat at the pay venues but many did. Really enjoyed the buffet...had eggs benedict or omelets daily. Desserts were ok but ice cream was...really good. Especially the hard packed..which was open about 5:00pm to 9:00pm. Also ..crepe station is open approx. the same time. The lemon sorbet in MDR was amazing! Overall...I enjoyed the food. Probably would've really enjoyed it ..if I ate at the pay venues. But...I came home a few pounds heavier and had an absolute wonderful cruise. Thanks! Good to hear... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Crusin6 Posted May 19, 2014 #13 Share Posted May 19, 2014 Now this is really surprising. Our last few CCL cruises, the entertainment has been extremely lacking. I agree. The entertainment on Ncl is incredible!! A live bands and music all over the place. The main showroom is always above par too Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CrusieToy Posted May 19, 2014 #14 Share Posted May 19, 2014 This morning returned from 10 day Alaska/Glacier Bay cruise on NCL Pearl. Having been a long time Carnival cruiser...I was looking forward to seeing if the "pasture was indeed greener on the other side".I had a wonderful cruise and if price and itinerary were right...I would definitely cruise with NCL again. I did notice some differences between CCL and NCL...so here goes: Rooms(balcony): Carnival's are noticeably bigger and beds are more comfortable. MDR: Carnival Buffet: NCL..more variety Entertainment: Carnival Crew friendliness: NCL Value: NCL..I paid less for the 10 day cruise than CCL's 8 day! So..that's MY opinion..yours may vary. I still love CCL...but NCL ain't too shabby! thanks for the info. We are doing Alaska next yr. and we are considering that same 10 day itinerary on NCL Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Linda the Book Lover Posted May 20, 2014 #15 Share Posted May 20, 2014 OP thanks for the commentary. We considered a cruise on the Norwegian Epic for this cruise but it involved a flight instead of a drive which was the deciding factor... but one other thing that concerned me was the number of restaurants on NCL that we weren't eligible to eat at (wrong cabin type) or where we had to pay extra... did you find that was more the case than on Carnival? I'm not saying that was a deciding factor, and we'll probably try NCL someday, but it seemed quite a bit more limiting than on Carnival... Another poster gave you the best information on dining choices. Only suite passengers may dine in Cagney's for breakfast and lunch which is one of the suite perks. We loved the Pearl and have enjoyed our time on other cruise lines as well. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cruizinator Posted May 20, 2014 Author #16 Share Posted May 20, 2014 thanks for the info. We are doing Alaska next yr. and we are considering that same 10 day itinerary on NCL We enjoyed it so much....that if the price is right...we're gonna do it again next year! This was our first visit to Hoonah(Icy Strait) & Sitka. We liked Hoonah...but absolutely loved Sitka. In fact... we won't go on another Alaska cruise...unless it stops in Sitka! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SASA13 Posted May 22, 2014 #17 Share Posted May 22, 2014 We feel the same way, and cruise both lines. When the price is right, we go NCL, but our hearts belong to CCL Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pe4all Posted May 22, 2014 #18 Share Posted May 22, 2014 We have recently begun "wandering" to different lines. I found the entertainment on NCL Breakaway far above that on CCL. I also swore I'd never try freestyle cruising, or pay for dining experiences. We did the 3 restaurant deal on Breakaway, and loved it! We enjoyed our cruise so much that we booked the Gem and Epic, and will try their 7 restaurant deal on the Gem. ($119 pp - not too bad, imho). If we like it there, we'll book it for Epic. We are paying less for those cruises than we would on a CCL cruise- even with the ultimate dining plan added on. I am now at the point where I'll try any and all lines. (though I was not impressed with RCCL. Besides their outstanding entertainment, our only "highlight" was our Grand Suite, and we paid thru the nose for that! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Please sign in to comment
You will be able to leave a comment after signing in
Sign In Now