Loyal Royals considering Carnival

[Cruising89143]

I have been reading your review and have enjoyed it. Seems like you enjoyed your experience. Carnival is no longer for us. We have certain things we look for in an overall cruise experience and Carnival comes up short but many enjoy them and it's great that we have so many options to choose from.:)

[goodml]

Try it you might like it. We have tried it three times and we keep saying never again. We have done one seven day and 2 short cruises. If you just have to cruise and only can do a short cruise they are better then staying home, maybe. We just are not going to try it again. Obviously a lot of people like it just not us. We like real entertainment, do not gamble and do not like burgers and fries while cruising. We may try Princess again or HAL someday.

 

Lol burgers and fries. I have never eaten a burger and fries on any cruise ship. That was your choice. Food is every bit as good on CCL as RCCL. Ships, big difference but it's all about mindset and choices and knowing what your buying.

[Rocket3D]

Did 2 Carnival cruises for the 'ports' a few years ago.

Wouldn't hesitate to do another for new 'ports'.

Glory and Miracle. Really liked the steak houses.

Not solo friendly...charge full double price for a solo.

They cut way back on live entertainment...no pool band.

Price is OK I guess..just not as a solo traveler.

 

Prefer Royal but would sail CCL for new itinerary.

 

:D

[maureencruiser]

s.

Not solo friendly...charge full double price for a solo.

Price is OK I guess..just not as a solo traveler.

 

My cruise had a zero solo supplement, so, it was a great cruise for a solo, you just have to hunt for good prices. I have finished my review, if anyone is interested in reading it. I am hoping Wrp96 will read it, but, she hasn't posted in 5 months. I hope she is OK. :confused:

[CruiseAwesome]

I haven't even been there (on Carnival) but won't even think of trying them. When you pull into port next to three Carnival ships and see generators strapped to the top decks near slide into the pool (I've attached a picture that shows the generator), that tells me they haven't fixed their generator problems and are relying on a generator to run their ships when their generators crap out again. Not for us thank you!

 

 

I agree with the above poster as well, they're taking action to ensure nothing bad happens again. They are not using that generator for everyday use it's simply a backup and that certainly gives me piece of mind. I think you're a little misinformed but that's okay :)

 

 

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[maureencruiser]

I agree with the above poster as well, they're taking action to ensure nothing bad happens again. They are not using that generator for everyday use it's simply a backup and that certainly gives me piece of mind. I think you're a little misinformed but that's okay :)

 

 

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Hi Awesome! I agree with you as well, if there were generators on the Sunshine, I certainly didn't notice them or care.

[Big_G]

Just and FYI, those generators would not have gotten Triumph back to port. I'm far from a Carnival hater but I wish they had actually stepped up their dry dock schedule to fix their ships. All they did was announce how much money they would spend on the fix. We enjoyed our Carnival cruises but once the crap hit the rotary wind making device and there was no sign of intent to expedite repairs, they dropped out of consideration.

 

Nice review Maureen. I enjoyed reading it.

Edited June 30, 2014 by Big_G

[Jay Sam]

From my experience in the last 4 years and 8 cruises, Carnival remains one of my favorites.

 

Carnival Legend 04/10

Celebrity Solstice 12/10

NCL Epic 04/11

H.A. Oosterdam, Alaska 05/11

Carnival Miracle 12/11

NCL Star 03/12

Carnival Freedom 04/13

Royal Adventure 12/13

 

Carnival's staff always makes me feel welcome, as do the staff on Royal.

The food offerings and service in the dining room on Carnival are a very close 2nd to Celebrity. The cabin service folks, bar staff and others are awesome as well. Their reservations staff are incredible.

 

Even with the polished service, excellent buffet layout and offerings, along with their nice evening meal offerings and service on Celebrity, I still would give the nod to Carnival, and also to Royal. Those 2 lines make me feel the most welcome, and give great customer service.

 

Never been on a Carnival cruise I don't remember with great memories.

[jebl]

As with any cruiseline I think a lot depends on the length of the cruise, itinerary, and time of year.

 

I've cruise CCL 4x, two great, 2 pretty bad. One of my favorite cruises was CCL Dream 12 Med cruise when she was brand new. Great itinerary, good food and a nice mix of pax.

 

One of my least favorite cruises was a TA on Celebrity Eclipse. In a word, boring!

 

We have recently stayed with Royal because of the perks like balcony discount, onboard coupons and Diamond and Concierge lounges.

 

I am trying Eclipse again only because it is a group cruise and the price was too tempting, plus the drink pkg is included.

 

I would not hesitate to sail CCL again if I saw a cruise I really liked at a substantially lower price the RCI.

 

 

BTW, Maureen, love your reviews and looking forward to your next.

[mompolo]

In recent years we have done 2 RCCL, 1 CCL and 1 Celebrity cruise. We felt the Celebrity was far superior to the others in food and service (although in service I would give CCL a close second). We found food on RCCL and CCL about the same. Service was the worst on RCCL and best on Celebrity (again CCL was a close second). We are booked in Oct. on the Allure (our first mega ship so to speak) and we really like the RCCL ships. I'm happy on any cruise and would cruise just about any line is the price and itinerary is right.

[NewYork8048]

Hello, my fellow Royal fans. I recently returned from a solo trip on the Carnival Sunshine and wanted to share my experience to help some of you who may be considering a cruise on Carnival. I am almost done with my review and the link can be found here.

 

 

We have only done RCCL cruises - but have become a little unhappy lately and we are actually looking at Carnival for our 2015 cruise. Good to have some Carnival input here. Right now we are looking at both RCCL and Carnival - I figure we have until the fall to make up our minds.

[Sat1]

Hello, my fellow Royal fans. I recently returned from a solo trip on the Carnival Sunshine and wanted to share my experience to help some of you who may be considering a cruise on Carnival. I am almost done with my review and the link can be found here.

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2049021

 

Thank you so much. Am a 86 year old widower, and now am looking forward to a solo cruise on Carnival.

[renza]

I have sailed on royal and carnival. Over the last 3 years we sailed carnival Dream and breeze twice. We had a great time on both ships. About 5 years ago we sailed Freedom of the seas royal. We had a bad experience from food to staff. My husband asked for just a house salad on royal and they looked at him like he had 3 heads. They said we cNt do that, it's not on the menu. Really a plain salad. We paid almost twice the rate as carnival and yet we were so I satisfied. Well next June we are booked for the oasis. For the amount we are paying we are hoping for a great experience. We love carnivals newer ships.

 

 

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[big al]

Different strokes for different folks...a great line from Sly Stone's 1969 song, "Everyday People", speaks volumes..after 29 cruises on RCI ( Diamond 12x), Carnival ( 6x), NCL (5x), Disney ( 2x), one each on HAL, Princess, Celebrity, and Celebration cruise lines, and being a cruise agent who has done another 50 ship tours, I can tell you Cruise lines have different perqs and certainly the individual ships vary-unlike the OP, we LOVED the Freedom Of The Seas and found service exceptional..conversely, we once waited FORTY-FIVE minutes for a salad in the Pinnacle Grill, HAL's $$ venue..45 minutes!!Funny thing is, we wanted to try HAL because of the so-called service & food..both were mediocre in OUR experience.. the Oasis/ Allure ships are very different from the Vision Class ( Enchantment, Vision Of The Seas, etc..) , and the Carnival Dream Class is very different from the Fantasy Class, and for me, Carnival's decision to use a DJ at the pool instead of a reggae band is VERY disappointing..I have read the DJ is loud & plays pretty bad music..I guess I would have to bring my IPOD and stay far away from the pool area...the NCL Epic , Breakaway & Getaway are very different from the Jewel Class , Sun Class, etc...same goes for Princess, HAL & Celebrity...many will have the same activities & games like: hairy chest or legs contest ( for men of course, I've suggested some contests for females, but so far no takers, LOL..), Bingo, Not-so-Newlywed game, etc...musical production shows vary and I have found Disney, RCI ( on Oasis/Allure, Liberty specifically) , and NCL new ships to be much better than Carnival, HAL, and Princess..Celebrity is improving, and they have entertainment all over the ship quite often. I have found service, which is somewhat subjective, for the most part on my 29 cruises to be anywhere from outstanding ( Disney) to very good ( RCI , NCL, Celebrity) to good ( HAL, Carnival)..on this website, FOOD & dining room, and Dress codes are THEE most debatable topics that keep going back & forth..I try not to post on those, as they get me angry, frustrated, and make me realize that some people have an elitist image of what they say or believe about cruise etiquette, food quality, dress codes ( big one there!), entertainment, service and another big one- loyalty to a cruise line ....what you think is good MDR food,I might think is mediocre or poor, and visa versa...I found HAL Westerdam MDR food very ordinary and so did my wife..shows were very ordinary, and the ship closed down at 10 pm- but, we still had a good time and it did have some very nice moments ( Half Moon Cay fabulous & cabin was very nice..)..point being that you should compare ships to ships because the crew is different, and I find each ship has a different "feel" or "vibe" to it..Disney ships have an AMAAAZZING feel to them..I am 61, no kids, and my wife & I have loved both our Disney cruises on the Dream last Nov & the Wonder 8 years ago.. the cabin was the best standard balcony cabin we've ever cruised in- 2 bathrooms, and a rain shower with room for Andre The Giant... Coconut Fried Shrimp & crab claws at the lunch buffet? Are you kidding?..All 4 shows on the Dream were spectacular,IMO..brunch at Palo's, the adult dining venue, was thee best meal we've ever had along with the best waitress, Maria, we've ever had..I almost called the medics after a few bites of this "don't miss" experience..I'm still trying to recover from that meal..I also had fabulous meals on NCL's Le Bistro, Teppanyaki ( Japanese Steakhouse), and Cagney's..BUT, that's me...just as I'm not loyal to one hotel chain ( prefer Marriotts, Sheratons, & Hyatts because of points & we like them) , also not loyal to one restaurant chain ( Outback, Chili's,etc..) ,I encourage you to venture out & try other cruise lines with an open mind & please don't criticize or even comment on that which you don't know nothing about- like saying,"we only cruise XXX, and we would never try XXX" ..it is a pet peeve of mine- people who compare 2 cruise lines or ships that THEY HAVE NEVER BEEN ON!! Would you comment on a restaurant you've never eaten in? Comment on a movie you've never seen? And be civil in your responses..too many wise guys sometimes...

[going2cruz]

I keep trying to leave Carnival and when I try something diffrent I keep seeing a lot of what Carnival does right. I really enjoyed Celiberty this past spring however the night life was dull and on Carnival you can't get it all in and the next thing you know it 4am and your still up......I just hate Carnival mostly because of the load scream TV playing all day long on sea days.....you cant even have a conversation when its on........

[maureencruiser]

-unlike the OP, we LOVED the Freedom Of The Seas and found service exceptional.

 

Hi Al, OP here, don't get me wrong, I loved the Freedom! But, I tore my ACL playing Quest and came home in a wheelchair, so, I have vowed to ;) get revenge ;) on my nemesis by sailing her again and NOT getting injured. :D (Really, it's just an excuse to go on another cruise;))

[DarthGrady]

I enjoy both lines for different reasons. Carnival is often cheaper, and I think their atmosphere/nightlife is more lively than Royal.

 

But Royals ships are nicer, and they have a MUCH better past guest program to entice customers to return. It must be working, probably 90% of my cruises are now on RCI.

[Dragonkeper]

I have been on both RCL and CCL and enjoyed the ships and ports equally. The problem I had with CCL was with the people(not crew or staff). While I know you are on vacation, I don't want to see you at breakfast in your robe and curlers in your hair. I don't want to see you with your pants hanging down or you having a do-rag on your head. I go on vacation to not see any of that.

I like that RCL has a separate club for the teens and adults, CCL, at least on the ship I was on, it was one club for 18 and above. I also like that RCL had more for you to do on the ship than CCL,(at least on the ships I was on).

[Sea Turtle]

I would not hesitate to sail Carnival again. :D

 

Well, look at Mcruiser sailing the Whale Tail. :cool: Once again you have delivered a delightful read with your trip report/photos! Thanks for sharing. :)

[DarthGrady]

I have been on both RCL and CCL and enjoyed the ships and ports equally. The problem I had with CCL was with the people(not crew or staff). While I know you are on vacation, I don't want to see you at breakfast in your robe and curlers in your hair. I don't want to see you with your pants hanging down or you having a do-rag on your head. I go on vacation to not see any of that.

I like that RCL has a separate club for the teens and adults, CCL, at least on the ship I was on, it was one club for 18 and above. I also like that RCL had more for you to do on the ship than CCL,(at least on the ships I was on).

 

I don't know when and which ship you were on, but now Carnival does have separate clubs for tweens (Circle C) and teens (Club 02). They also still offer the program for the little ones (Camp Carnival).

 

As for the clintele, I do agree that you see some oddities on the shorter cruises. I think thats more due to the weekend party-goer crowd. I've seen it on RCI as well, but not to the same extent. On the longer CCL cruises the passengers are closer to the same demographic you'd meet on RCI.

[Dragonkeper]

I don't know when and which ship you were on, but now Carnival does have separate clubs for tweens (Circle C) and teens (Club 02). They also still offer the program for the little ones (Camp Carnival).

 

As for the clintele, I do agree that you see some oddities on the shorter cruises. I think thats more due to the weekend party-goer crowd. I've seen it on RCI as well, but not to the same extent. On the longer CCL cruises the passengers are closer to the same demographic you'd meet on RCI.

 

I was on Carnival Victory in 2011 and I am talking about the night clubs. There was only one on this ship and it was for 18 and above. There was not a separate dance club for the teens.

[Gon2hwe]

I haven't even been there (on Carnival) but won't even think of trying them. When you pull into port next to three Carnival ships and see generators strapped to the top decks near slide into the pool (I've attached a picture that shows the generator), that tells me they haven't fixed their generator problems and are relying on a generator to run their ships when their generators crap out again. Not for us thank you!

 

The last time I noticed a generator on top of a ship was the Freedom of the seas. It was right after that other RCCL ship caught on fire.

Edited July 4, 2014 by Gon2hwe

[Gon2hwe]

I've been on 4RC cruises. 1Disney. 1 NCL. and One Carnival. I'm going on Carnival Breeze next month.

 

My first NCL cruise was in Hawaii. The ship was a floating hotel. We liked the casual atmosphere. Not having to dress up but still dress for dinner. Sometimes we would be exhausted after a long day on the islands.

On RC we were on Adventure of the seas, Freedom of the Seas, Allure of the Seas.and then back to the Freedom. I loved the itinerary on Adventure. The Freedom was just ok both times. The last being the worst of all. After that I began to reevaluate what I wanted out of a cruise and went with a really cheap Disney cruise. Hard to believe I know but they have the best military fare out there sometimes. So if we wanted to keep cruising for the price we decided to give Carnival a try. We went on the Carnival Dream repo cruise for 9 days for a really low price. Cheaper than any RC cruise we have been on. We had an absolutely wonderful roll call and everywhere we went we meet a lot of people that I alredy knew The food was really good. A lot better than RC. RC does a really big buffett. But Carnival had multiple places to eat all over the ship and it was all good. I thought their MDR was better than Disney

Carnival's cabins are bigger at lest more spacious. Balcony's about the same on all.

So now we're going on the Breeze next month . The price was wonderful and I know we're going o have a great time. What I'm paying for an aft wrap balcony I'd be paying for a oceanview on RC. I'm gonna have a great time on a great ship!

Edited July 4, 2014 by Gon2hwe

[matj2000]

Different strokes for different folks...a great line from Sly Stone's 1969 song, "Everyday People", speaks volumes..after 29 cruises on RCI ( Diamond 12x), Carnival ( 6x), NCL (5x), Disney ( 2x), one each on HAL, Princess, Celebrity, and Celebration cruise lines, and being a cruise agent who has done another 50 ship tours, I can tell you Cruise lines have different perqs and certainly the individual ships vary-unlike the OP, we LOVED the Freedom Of The Seas and found service exceptional..conversely, we once waited FORTY-FIVE minutes for a salad in the Pinnacle Grill, HAL's $$ venue..45 minutes!!Funny thing is, we wanted to try HAL because of the so-called service & food..both were mediocre in OUR experience.. the Oasis/ Allure ships are very different from the Vision Class ( Enchantment, Vision Of The Seas, etc..) , and the Carnival Dream Class is very different from the Fantasy Class, and for me, Carnival's decision to use a DJ at the pool instead of a reggae band is VERY disappointing..I have read the DJ is loud & plays pretty bad music..I guess I would have to bring my IPOD and stay far away from the pool area...the NCL Epic , Breakaway & Getaway are very different from the Jewel Class , Sun Class, etc...same goes for Princess, HAL & Celebrity...many will have the same activities & games like: hairy chest or legs contest ( for men of course, I've suggested some contests for females, but so far no takers, LOL..), Bingo, Not-so-Newlywed game, etc...musical production shows vary and I have found Disney, RCI ( on Oasis/Allure, Liberty specifically) , and NCL new ships to be much better than Carnival, HAL, and Princess..Celebrity is improving, and they have entertainment all over the ship quite often. I have found service, which is somewhat subjective, for the most part on my 29 cruises to be anywhere from outstanding ( Disney) to very good ( RCI , NCL, Celebrity) to good ( HAL, Carnival)..on this website, FOOD & dining room, and Dress codes are THEE most debatable topics that keep going back & forth..I try not to post on those, as they get me angry, frustrated, and make me realize that some people have an elitist image of what they say or believe about cruise etiquette, food quality, dress codes ( big one there!), entertainment, service and another big one- loyalty to a cruise line ....what you think is good MDR food,I might think is mediocre or poor, and visa versa...I found HAL Westerdam MDR food very ordinary and so did my wife..shows were very ordinary, and the ship closed down at 10 pm- but, we still had a good time and it did have some very nice moments ( Half Moon Cay fabulous & cabin was very nice..)..point being that you should compare ships to ships because the crew is different, and I find each ship has a different "feel" or "vibe" to it..Disney ships have an AMAAAZZING feel to them..I am 61, no kids, and my wife & I have loved both our Disney cruises on the Dream last Nov & the Wonder 8 years ago.. the cabin was the best standard balcony cabin we've ever cruised in- 2 bathrooms, and a rain shower with room for Andre The Giant... Coconut Fried Shrimp & crab claws at the lunch buffet? Are you kidding?..All 4 shows on the Dream were spectacular,IMO..brunch at Palo's, the adult dining venue, was thee best meal we've ever had along with the best waitress, Maria, we've ever had..I almost called the medics after a few bites of this "don't miss" experience..I'm still trying to recover from that meal..I also had fabulous meals on NCL's Le Bistro, Teppanyaki ( Japanese Steakhouse), and Cagney's..BUT, that's me...just as I'm not loyal to one hotel chain ( prefer Marriotts, Sheratons, & Hyatts because of points & we like them) , also not loyal to one restaurant chain ( Outback, Chili's,etc..) ,I encourage you to venture out & try other cruise lines with an open mind & please don't criticize or even comment on that which you don't know nothing about- like saying,"we only cruise XXX, and we would never try XXX" ..it is a pet peeve of mine- people who compare 2 cruise lines or ships that THEY HAVE NEVER BEEN ON!! Would you comment on a restaurant you've never eaten in? Comment on a movie you've never seen? And be civil in your responses..too many wise guys sometimes...

 

 

I wanted to read this but I started going cross-eyes.

Mix in some paragraphs next time......

[maureencruiser]

Well, look at Mcruiser sailing the Whale Tail. :cool: Once again you have delivered a delightful read with your trip report/photos! Thanks for sharing. :)

 

hey girl! I tried to get you to go!! Maybe next time.