Long Time RC sailer considering Carnival with some ?s

[ExilePA]

So, it has been almost 9 years since our last cruise with CCL and have some general questions about booking and ship selection. We are not "RC snobs" we just look for which ship/itinerary has what we are looking for and enjoy from there!

 

We are considering booking an Alaskan cruise for July 2015 and have narrowed it down to the Carnival Legend or RC Jewel of the Seas. Legend looks to have been refurbished more recently and has more "new" stuff. The Jewel does look like a beautiful ship but also recent reviews seem to lean toward it needing a dry dock to bring it up to date with some of the other ships in the Royal fleet. What is everyone's overall opinion of Legend?

 

Second, does CCL never offer any promos that give OBC or complimentary dining in one of the alternative dining venues? It seems plenty of travel agents give out perks for RC cruises but I can't find any OBC or other such offers for CCL. Does it just not happen? The prices of the cruise are pretty much the same aside from the perks we would get for going witn RC (pre-paid grats., OBC, free dining.)

[qsuzi]

Did you also post on the RCL board to get feedback from those who have been on the Jewel recently? The person I spoke with was on her a few years ago and said she was one his favorite ships and he has cruised extensively. Showing some signs of needing dry dock is not a deal breaker for us.

Edited July 1, 2014 by qsuzi

[Baby_Bear]

So, it has been almost 9 years since our last cruise with CCL and have some general questions about booking and ship selection. We are not "RC snobs" we just look for which ship/itinerary has what we are looking for and enjoy from there!

 

We are considering booking an Alaskan cruise for July 2015 and have narrowed it down to the Carnival Legend or RC Jewel of the Seas. Legend looks to have been refurbished more recently and has more "new" stuff. The Jewel does look like a beautiful ship but also recent reviews seem to lean toward it needing a dry dock to bring it up to date with some of the other ships in the Royal fleet. What is everyone's overall opinion of Legend?

 

Second, does CCL never offer any promos that give OBC or complimentary dining in one of the alternative dining venues? It seems plenty of travel agents give out perks for RC cruises but I can't find any OBC or other such offers for CCL. Does it just not happen? The prices of the cruise are pretty much the same aside from the perks we would get for going witn RC (pre-paid grats., OBC, free dining.)

 

We aren't allowed to give the names of individual TA's here, but the one I use offers an OBC equal to 10% of the base tariff, up to a max of $500 for CCL cruises. Obviously, you have complete flexibility in how you spend it. For RCCL, they were offering prepaid gratuities plus OBC of $100 (I think) plus one free dinner in a specialty restaurant. Seemed about equal to me in terms of what you got. I found this TA through Cruise Critic (they advertise on the site).

 

Never booked through the cruise line direct, but I've never heard of CCL giving you any perks to book with them. Not sure about RCCL, do they offer OBC and stuff if you book direct with them?

[timhoke]

CCL does occasionally offer OBC, for limited bookings, however it rarely happens on Alaskan cruises. They are one of the most popular & often are fully booked, so no need to entice you to book it from CCL's viewpoint.

[SadieN]

Just throwing this out there---

 

HAL and Princess have been doing Alaska the longest, have the infrastructure and usually a bit less than Carnival.

 

Milestone on Carnival and really enjoyed our two HAL Alaskan cruises.

[klaner64]

If you book a cruise and pay in full and the price drops you will get OBC that you can use for anything on the cruise. If you get the Carnival Cruise Credit card you can usually get some bonus points for signing up that can be used for OBC and you can earn points by charging your cruise and other purchases on it.

[NeuroQueen]

I have cruised on both, the Jewel a year ago. The best thing about Jewel and Alaska are the massive amounts of windows all over the ship. I can't think of a better class of ships than the Jewel to cruise a scenic area like Alaska. I cruise both lines so I am not a cheerleader by any means for RCI. The Jewel was in great shape just a short time ago. Have a fabulous time!

[092306]

I was on both the Jewel and Legend several years ago, and while I can't speak to what upgrades each has gotten since then, I agree that the design of the Jewel is ideal for Alaska. There is so much glass/windows on that ship, it must be amazing with the Alaskan scenery.

[jsfromsc]

We did the Baltic on the Legend last summer. The Spirit class ships are my favorites on Carnival. But I agree with the posters that said to consider other lines. I want to do Alaska, too, and while I've always been perfectly satisfied with Carnival, I would choose Alaska based on itinerary. Carnival doesn't offer Glacier Bay on every Alaskan cruise, and that is one place I really want to see. I think some of the other lines have good land packages as well. Don't get me wrong, I love Carnival, but do your research and decide what is most important to you, and then you'll know which line/ship best suits your needs. The Legend has a great Serenity area. It may not be warm enough to enjoy the pool, but you'll enjoy the comfy seating and the wonderful views if you choose the Legend.

[DarthGrady]

I've done both ship classes, and I enjoyed both. The Radiance Class (which includes Jewel) have a large amount of exterior windows that allow for great views from most areas of the ship. Even though she hasn't had the improvements her sisters have, she's still a very nice ship, I had a cruise on her just last year.

 

The Spirit Class CCL ships are also very nice, most long time CCL fans consider them to be the best in the fleet. They have much better passenger/space ratios, which is probably why Carnival never built more of them.

 

So I would consider the ships a wash, both have strengths and weaknesses. I'd shop more by price and itinerary than by ship or cruise line.

 

Also, if you do choose Carnival and have the funding for a suite I highly recommend the aft corner wrap around suites. We had 4228 and it was absolutely amazing for Akaka.

Edited July 2, 2014 by DarthGrady

[2Shoes2Go]

We just weighed these two ships out to choose our Alaska for 2015. Both are good choices. We did give Jewel the edge for all its glass. Price and itinerary won it for Legend, however. Check it out in our signature and on Carnival website. The Early Saver rate for balcony can't be beat for the 8 day itinerary. Tracy Arm and Glacier Bay are both included, somewhat rare.:)

[jenng1976]

Just throwing this out there---

 

HAL and Princess have been doing Alaska the longest, have the infrastructure and usually a bit less than Carnival.

 

Milestone on Carnival and really enjoyed our two HAL Alaskan cruises.

 

 

I second this. We loved our HAL Alaskan cruise. Great itin and prices were comparable. :)

 

 

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[sgttami]

Another vote for Jewel. As stated, the Radiance class ships on RCL are perfect for Alaska with all those windows.

 

I sailed on Serenade to Alaska. Another tip... Try to get cabin 9078, mid-ship hump balcony. It is huge! I've stayed in it three times, twice on Serenade and once on Radiance.

 

If I do Alaska again, it will be on a Radiance class ship!!

[S.S.Oceanlover]

Just throwing this out there---

 

HAL and Princess have been doing Alaska the longest, have the infrastructure and usually a bit less than Carnival.

 

Milestone on Carnival and really enjoyed our two HAL Alaskan cruises.

 

Agreed and was thinking the same thing.

 

Also not going to see Glacier Bay with either CCL or RCI unless you cruise on the first or last cruise of the season with CCL.

 

I wish I didn't have plans for this summer as i have been getting emails for Alaska cruises on Princess for $299.

 

Bill

[ronandannette]

Just throwing this out there---

 

HAL and Princess have been doing Alaska the longest, have the infrastructure and usually a bit less than Carnival.

 

Milestone on Carnival and really enjoyed our two HAL Alaskan cruises.

 

I second this. We loved our HAL Alaskan cruise. Great itin and prices were comparable. :)

 

 

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What are the ship amenities and entertainment like on HAL? We're well acquainted with Carnival & RCCL (and NCL, Celebrity and Princess) but are a little nervous that HAL would lack in these areas. I'd appreciate your take on the experience.

[jenng1976]

What are the ship amenities and entertainment like on HAL? We're well acquainted with Carnival & RCCL (and NCL, Celebrity and Princess) but are a little nervous that HAL would lack in these areas. I'd appreciate your take on the experience.

 

To be honest, we found it more similar to Carnival than different.

 

The ship was lovely - we were on the Zuiderdam - which I would say was comparable in size to the Spirit class ships. The balcony we had was WAY nicer than anything we've had on Carnival, with beautiful wicker furniture.

 

In terms of amenities and entertainment - there was pretty much everything Carnival has - main show room, casino, different lounges with live music. There wasn't a comedy club, but they did offer that at least one night in the main theatre. Also they had lots of Bingo, if you're into that (between the 2 of us, we won 3 times!!). One of the pools was covered if you wanted to swim.

 

We definitely weren't bored. Though we were definitely in the younger crowd (we were early 30's on our honeymoon) - we met lots of pleasant people during the cruise. It doesn't really matter to us how old someone is to talk to them!! And actually, I think we stood out more to the crew since we were younger since a lot of them tended to remember our names.

 

And of course, the ship was just a small part of how great a trip it was - since Alaska was the highlight! We loved sailing through Glacier Bay, and whale watching on a small boat in Juneau were two of the highlights.

 

I did write a review (in my signature) if you're interested in more - some of the details are kind of hazy now, haha, since it's been a few years!

 

I would recommend definitely giving them a look anyway - and don't discount it as 'the old person's cruise line'! They do offer terrific deals too - I just got an email offering rates as low as $299 including a free alcoholic beverage card!! :) One day we'll be back!!

 

Jenn

[SadieN]

What are the ship amenities and entertainment like on HAL? We're well acquainted with Carnival & RCCL (and NCL, Celebrity and Princess) but are a little nervous that HAL would lack in these areas. I'd appreciate your take on the experience.

 

 

We found HAL to be very similar to Princess. HAL is more 'Jazz' and Princess is more 'show tunes'.

The two lines are very similar.

 

Blurring the stereotype our last Princess cruise had a higher average age than our HAL cruises. Of course it depends on time of year and length of cruise.

 

The cabins on HAL seem to be larger than on Princess.

[RWolver672]

If you book a cruise and pay in full and the price drops you will get OBC that you can use for anything on the cruise.

 

I'm pretty sure that's only if you book Early Saver. If you book under any other category, once you are paid in full, that's it. You don't get any OBC if the price drops.

[GatorGirl57]

I am not sure why people keep claiming Princess and HAL have similar rates in Alaska to Carnival. I booked a 7 day HAL cruise and then when Carnival released their rates, I saved $800 and gained a day of cruising, plus went from a regular balcony to an aft - still the same time frame. Carnival was much cheaper. And the day I gained was to Tracy Arm, which is nice. This is the first cruise of the season, so it also goes to Glacier Bay.

[ExilePA]

Is an aft cabin somethig one would want for Alaska?

 

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[GatorGirl57]

Is an aft cabin somethig one would want for Alaska?

 

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I have been told by multiple people on the forum and on various cruises that aft balconies are the best for Alaska. It is the only way to get a panoramic view of the scenery from your stateroom.

[Stateroom_Sailor]

Unless you want to sail exclusively fun ships (and NCL has been ruled out), I don't think Carnival's pricing or diversity in Alaska is all that competitive. The Caribbean however, or even Mexico, Hawaii, and Canada, they've got some great prices and ports.

 

I agree with what others have said, after Celebrity we're going to sail HAL almost exclusively in Alaska.

[BallFour4]

Even with the platinum perks on Carnival I'd select the Jewel for reasons described above. I've been aboard all the classes of Carnival ships and the Jewel, and it's perhaps the perfect cruise ship for Alaska. Tons of viewing space on decks, fantastic casual dining area and what a view from the dining room. No contest.

 

 

.

Edited July 4, 2014 by BallFour4

[Oppalopa]

Thank you. I think I will go with the Jewel. :)

[ExilePA]

Definetly leaning towards Jewel!

 

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