Carnival Booze Cruise or not ?

[never_cruised]

What are Carnival like , I was a little put off and haven't really considered them because a few friends told me they generally catered for younger travellers hence my title booze cruise.

 

My username is a little out of date now as we've cruised twice however both have been short ones on Monarch of the Seas and the Disney Dream.

 

We are a family and would like to try a different cruise line however not sure on Carnival whilst I'm asking what about NCL. Probably looking at a 7 day cruise and prefer warm weather it's cold here in the UK.:D

Edited July 10, 2016 by never_cruised

[joeyancho]

On a seven day cruise when the kids are in school, you should have a civilized crowd. On shorter cruise people tend to enjoy themselves more, to put it diplomatically.

[Crusin Hogs]

3-4 days cruises may be booze cruises ,mainly weekend cruises , but 5-7,8 days are not , we are late 50's year olds ,10 cruises with Carnival ,never seen a totally wasted cruiser.. Just normal behavior that you would see any where else people gather in public . Mainly friendly , people , gracious to each other

[elliair]

My experience has been a little different with Carnival. and it does depend on which cruise you take. There's no guarantees that you and your family won't end up on a booze cruise as Carnival does sell booze. Booze is any cruiselines money maker. It's unlikely you'll see boozin brawls on Alaskan cruises, whereas Mexican or Caribbean cruises it's a different story. Visit this thread http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1705800&page=10 I left some youtube videos on that page with drunkin brawls on Carnival. The whole thread (10 pages) is all about Carnival's bad reputation. But it isn't just Carnival either, google "Cruiseline brawls/drunks" and you'll find them on NCL as well. Cruise ships are a floating city and not exempt from stuff happening.

[SadieN]

Truly depends on the time of year and length of the cruise.

 

That being said, our wildest cruise was a three day Princess cruise in November. Only onboard fight was in a HAL laundry room.

Our 13-15 day Carnival cruises have rivaled our HAL and Princess cruises in age, mellowness and mobility devices.

We mainly sail West Coast out of Los Angeles. Many say our cruises are completely different than the typical Caribbean cruises.

 

 

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Edited July 10, 2016 by SadieN

[jimsnapple]

I'm 61 and I have done 37 on carnival and I have been on other lines. I don't think it's about younger cruisers It's about having a good time on vacation and you will.

[laumicmah]

About to go on my 9th cruise, 8th on CCL. I have been on a 2 day, a 3 day, two 4 days and two 5 days (and a 7 day)...the shorter the cruise, the more wild. The 2 day was out of Baltimore (after cancelling a cruise due to Hurricane Sandy) and it was a little wild. Then one of our 4 days (in Feb or March) was a little bit of a party cruise. It was out of Jacksonville and was over a weekend. There were several bachelor and bachelorette parties on board. I think if it is short, includes a weekend and is a cheaper cruise (so short and/or on an older ship and/or goes to Nassau/Freeport and the such) then it will have some young partiers. Spring break is probably not the best time to choose either. But overall I tell folks that it's a misconception that CCL is for young partiers. We are 43 and enjoy it and we have friends who are late-40s and extremely religious (non-drinkers) and they LOVE CCL.

Edited July 10, 2016 by laumicmah

[winddawn]

What are Carnival like , I was a little put off and haven't really considered them because a few friends told me they generally catered for younger travellers hence my title booze cruise.

 

My username is a little out of date now as we've cruised twice however both have been short ones on Monarch of the Seas and the Disney Dream.

 

We are a family and would like to try a different cruise line however not sure on Carnival whilst I'm asking what about NCL. Probably looking at a 7 day cruise and prefer warm weather it's cold here in the UK.:D

No guarantees on any cruise on any line, but keep in mind, shorter cruisers from certain ports tend to be more like party cruises. Like Miami cruises tend to be more party crowd, northern embarkation ports are more likely to be a family crowd. The time of year plays a role too. Spring break and summer time you'll tend to find more partiers, especially on shorter cruises. For example a 7 night cruise out of Baltimore tends to be quiet with mostly families, while a 3 night out of Miami will likely be partiers.

[freedomcruiser891]

I agree with what everyone else said basically short and weekend cruises are bad. 7 day and up there's still a slight chance you'll see somebody having too much fun. On 7 day freedom cruise last March a girl didn't know what cruise ship she was on in Cozumel (there were 5 ships in port (3 carnival)). Needless to say she almost fell off the pier several times and it was really weird. I think she's the exception because we've never seen anyone trashed before on a 7 day and up cruise.

On 4 day cruise from Galveston in May it wasn't a drunk crowd either really. I think it just depends on time of year, length of cruise, and luck

[dacsmom]

What are Carnival like , I was a little put off and haven't really considered them because a few friends told me they generally catered for younger travellers hence my title booze cruise.

 

My username is a little out of date now as we've cruised twice however both have been short ones on Monarch of the Seas and the Disney Dream.

 

We are a family and would like to try a different cruise line however not sure on Carnival whilst I'm asking what about NCL. Probably looking at a 7 day cruise and prefer warm weather it's cold here in the UK.:D

 

I am coming back to Carnival after a few years with RCI, the Monarch was a favorite ship. You will have partiers on all the mass market lines but less on the longer cruises. Why not compare the Allure/Oasis of the Seas and Carnival Vista? Both lines would be good for families. I cannot comment yet on NCL, I am looking to see what that line has to offer in March.

[beachbum6264]

Like others have said, it depends. A 3 or 4 day Caribbean cruise during Spring Break? Any cruise is going to be a booze cruise no matter what line you're on. A 10 or 12 day cruise in the fall on Carnival is going to have a totally different type of passenger. You never know who is going to be in the cabin next to you, it's the luck of the draw. The worst most obnoxious drunks I ever saw on a cruise were on a Royal Caribbean ship. I've never seen any of the drunken behavior that people think Carnival is "famous" for on any of the cruises I've been on.

That being said, a cruise is what you make it, so go with a great attitude and you'll have a great cruise. Enjoy!

[loxley]

Why would you believe the people here over your friends?

[jdemps]

I have never been on any cruise that doesn't have a varied and mostly senior crowd so the ships are pretty much dead around 10pm. If there is a cruise line that caters to a young crowd, I would love to try it. We're night owls but still have fun with the 20 or so people awake past 11pm.

 

Some people get pretty tipsy around the pool on sea days but I just count that in as part of the entertainment package. :)

[smarks]

From personal experience, I think Carnival got the reputation as the booze cruise or party cruise back in the late 80's and early 90's. Spring breakers in the early 90's taught me to never book a cruise in June after graduation. That was in the 1990. Lot's of things have changed since then. The ages of the crowds are mixed and I have cruise friends from 40 to 90. I take my great grand kids on 5 day cruises with no problems. Camp Carnival takes such good care of them that they don't want to leave. I have several cruises under my belt now and have never seen a fight on Carnival. No pushing or shoving. I did hear a couple of heated conversations that didn't last long. I think a 7 day cruise is a great time for family. Give it a try and make up your own mind. I have friends that have come from Royal and like Carnival and have stayed with them. Whatever you decide, have fun. That's what is important. Happy Sailing.

[Club Disney Chandler]

We recently finished our first Carnival cruise, (8 night Mediterranean on the Vista), our 4 previous cruises were all on Disney, (Dream, 2 on Fantasy and 1 on the Wonder). We were a little skeptical to try Carnival as well, based on the rumors we've heard as well. We had a fantastic time on an amazing ship, with a great crew. We've another Vista booked for 2017 and will probably be on Vista II in summer 2018. Here is a link to the review I wrote http://www.disboards.com/threads/thoughts-on-the-new-carnival-vista.3521334/

It is written from the perspective of how the Vista compares to DCL.

 

 

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[never_cruised]

Wow thanks for all the responses it's much appreciated.

 

So it looks like I'm as well going for a 6 day plus cruise , just to be clear I'm not against drinking and enjoying myself it's just with a family I don't want to be swamped with a boat load of drunk 20 somethings.:D

 

I like the look of Carnival Vista any thought or opinions on this ?

[never_cruised]

We recently finished our first Carnival cruise, (8 night Mediterranean on the Vista), our 4 previous cruises were all on Disney, (Dream, 2 on Fantasy and 1 on the Wonder). We were a little skeptical to try Carnival as well, based on the rumors we've heard as well. We had a fantastic time on an amazing ship, with a great crew. We've another Vista booked for 2017 and will probably be on Vista II in summer 2018. Here is a link to the review I wrote http://www.disboards.com/threads/thoughts-on-the-new-carnival-vista.3521334/

It is written from the perspective of how the Vista compares to DCL.

 

 

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We've looked at Vista so thanks for your comments , sadly I couldn't get your link to load.

Edited July 11, 2016 by never_cruised

[conwakr]

My experience is that because the price point is lower on Carnival it does attract a younger crowd and the pool scene has typically been a heavier drinking scene than Royal or Celebrity or Princess in my experience. Outside the pool area, we've not noticed any significant differences (other than the age thing which for us is a positive as we're well...older). I've never been on NCL, so can't compare that to Carnival. We took the kids on Carnival out of Galveston quite a few years ago and we (about ten of "us" passengers) requested they stop the foul language rap coming from the speakers on the aft pool as that seemed to be where the families went and no one was "enjoying" listening to that. Bottom line, the pools seemed to self select with the younger party bunch at the main pool and the families on board at the aft pool. We are taking Carnival again as our next cruise with no kids and I am curious what the "pool scene" will be like.

[Bookbug53]

What are Carnival like , I was a little put off and haven't really considered them because a few friends told me they generally catered for younger travellers hence my title booze cruise.

 

My username is a little out of date now as we've cruised twice however both have been short ones on Monarch of the Seas and the Disney Dream.

 

We are a family and would like to try a different cruise line however not sure on Carnival whilst I'm asking what about NCL. Probably looking at a 7 day cruise and prefer warm weather it's cold here in the UK.:D

 

 

DH and I are retired, don't like the wild party scene (though we like the piano bar!), and we are about to embark Oct. 1 on our 15th Carnival cruise. Taking along our friends that are in their 60's for the second time. That had so much fun on their first one! They in turn are bringing a total of 4 additional people that have never cruised! Two older and two just engaged.

 

We have number 16 booked for January. :p

 

Can you find the booze? Yes.

Is everyone drunk? No

Is somebody drunk? Probably

Are there families? Yes

Singles? Yes

Parties? Yes

Quiet areas? Yes

 

Now, quickly name me any vacation that does not have the same answers. Religious retreats do not count!

 

I have cruised two other lines and can answer the same on all questions.

 

They are big ships. Find your own place and have fun.

 

Myths are perpetuated by those that never experience the real thing.

[Bookbug53]

Why would you believe the people here over your friends?

 

Maybe they are looking for the opinions of people that have actually cruised on Carnival?