For Those Who Regularly Cruise Carnival

[Hog twisted]

For everything listed food,price,crew,which to me is great value

[siestakeys04]

I travel carnival because I compare prices and with a family of 4 it's just cheaper for me. Since our kids are older 21/17 we are now traveling by ourselves so we may try other line. 671 for our 4 day cruise was a good price for us.

 

 

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[PGBSAB]

We have sailed on NCL, Princess, Carnival and Royal. They all have their pros and cons. We continue to sail Carnival because the price is right and I can honestly say that out of all of our cruises with them (turning platinum on our next cruise) we have only had one ship that we could honestly say we did not like and was not as enjoyable. There have been cutbacks over the years, but for the price a cruise vacation is still one of the best values out there. We always compare prices and itineraries and would not hesitate to sail others, but have found that for the times when we travel (usually off season) Carnival seems to be our best alternative.

[wecamp]

Ports - we drive to 2 ports

Cost - we took an RC and paid the same for 2 people that I pay for 3 on Carnival. Same room, 7 day

 

We have only been on Carnival until we took an RC recently.

I found our room to be compatible, I did like on RC both people do not have to purchase drink package. Food was almost the same, a few times better on RC. But I found RC lacking in fun. There was not as much fun things to go to. I LOVE TRIVIA. And theirs was horrible. And I agree with the previous comment on pizza and ice cream. They actually shut the ice cream off at like 5pm.

And I felt like RC was an older quite crowd . In our 50s we were the young people.

I love the value of Carnival. (But I will go on any cruise husband will pay for!)

Edited August 10, 2016 by wecamp

[watermelonqueen99]

The price is right, the staff is amazing, the ships are fun, and we like the vibe. Good enough for us.

[JohnSpo]

My reasons for choosing Carnival are:

 

Ports

Schedule

Price

Ship/Cabin

Food

Entertainment

Great service from employees

Being Platinum

 

Also being familiar with the ship layouts, Carnival daily schedule/activities and menu is a big plus for me to keep returning.:cool:

[asalligo]

Price

[Jana60]

I travel carnival because I compare prices and with a family of 4 it's just cheaper for me. Since our kids are older 21/17 we are now traveling by ourselves so we may try other line. 671 for our 4 day cruise was a good price for us.

 

 

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Was the 671 per person or for All 4 of you?

[sheeniwoo]

I've only cruised Carnival but the cost is what keeps us going back. I'd love to try other lines but again cost is the determining factor.

 

 

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[tea4ular]

Not kidding, we have compared all the majors, price wise, and Carnival consistently comes in lower, by enough to make a difference.

 

We don't drink, so the others can't entice us with "free" drink packages.

 

We do love Cloud9 and will look for a ship with it, and book a spa balcony cabin.

 

We've sailed most of the majors, and while some were great (Celebrity in Alaska; RCCL to Hawaii) the costs are our #1 tipping point.

Edited August 10, 2016 by tea4ular

[Rinderoo]

I've sailed them all and some over and over again, but I keep coming back to Carnival. Reasonable prices, no excessive amount of extra costs once on board (such as specialty dining), friendly staff and a more casual atmosphere which is not stuffy. Plus they have guest laundry areas which means I can cut down on packing.

 

The Breeze was the best ship ever--until the Vista. Sure wish prices would come down on the Vista though! Love the spa cabins on Carnival ships and I don't think I've ever had a bad meal or bad service on board.

 

This year I'm sailing the Oasis and Princess along with Carnival, and I am looking forward to the Glory the most as it is a new ship for me and going somewhere I like.

[bakersdozen12]

We don't drink, so the others can't entice us with "free" drink packages.

 

 

Same here. My husband and I don't drink alcohol. So Norwegian's free drink package, for example, doesn't add anything of value to me when choosing a cruise/cruise line.

 

 

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[soozles]

Never had a bad cruise, and carnival is often cheaper than the other lines on the weeks we are able to go. I've been on most other lines, but to me it doesn't seem worth it to pay more for essentially the same product. I had just as good a time on NCL as celebrity as princess as carnival.

[BNBR]

You will get the same answers on the Royal Caribbean forum... just swap "Carnival" for "Royal Caribbean".

 

Ultimately, I think if you are able, try several lines. I also strongly suggest trying an Oasis class ship as well as the new Anthem if able. Royal Caribbean does a lot of things very right. Their ships are massive and really incredible. But the itineraries.... I like Carnival's better.

 

Carnival also seems to be a cheaper option and for us, their kids program is better for our kids age group (2 - 5).

[meatloafsfan]

For us, it's the overall feel of the cruise. It's fun and relaxed with enough stuff we enjoy doing and there's good food, comfortable cabins and great service.

 

For us, it's more what other lines don't have that keep us coming back.

 

For instance - on Celebrity - they don't have the movies that Carnival has (and we're not live show people - I'd rather watch a Dive In Movie); the casino isn't as nice (at least the slots); and we're limited to M class ships because the 3rd bed in accessible cabins on the S class are terrible. But we do love Café Al Bacio, their non-alcoholic drink package, their food is good, their service is good and I do like their solarium pool.

 

On Royal - I find their food a step down and their beds and bedding are terrible (I do however love the freestyle coke machines and the adult pool with stairs and the covered hot tubs).

 

On Disney - it's price, the fact that the queen bed doesn't split into 2 twins and their food is hit and miss on many nights. I love their movie theatre, their other adult and family activities and their service.

[cruise_girl2002]

I have found everything better on carnival. I sailed RCL (which was double any carnival cruise i have taken)and wasn't impressed. The ship (freedom of the seas) was nice, but the service was awful, food was bad, and the entertainment was boring. Our server on the freedom of the seas was terrible. We sat there with empty water glasses for 20 minutes until he finally came, they skipped our table with the bread basket and once we were eating and our water glasses were again empty, it took forever to refill. We went to adjust our gratuities and they said we weren't allowed to do that. I know what to expect on carnival. Have I seen the cutbacks with carnival? sure, but I have also seen things that they improved on and spent money on as well.

[Floridastorm]

Have you cruised on any other lines?

We love what Carnival offers for the money. It's a great deal and they are a great cruise line.

 

This year we ventured off to try RCCL, Oasis of the Seas. We LOVED it. But, still, at the end of the cruise, we missed Carnival.

 

The price was only $300.00 more, so that was no biggie, at all.

 

The cabins, balconies, closets, and bathrooms are much smaller on RCCL.

We found the pizza and ice cream to SUCK compared to Carnival.:o

The MDR was also worse than Carnival.

 

However, the pools were much bigger, and there were more of them. Never had a problem getting into a pool on Royal.

 

Loved the Solarium with the 16+ pool. Tons of HUGE hot tubs, and they were actually HOT.:D:D

 

Each line has their own thing that they do better.

 

I think it really comes down to a personal preference.......

 

I would LOVE to do another RCCL cruise, but next year, we are going to try out the Magic, in June. :D:D

 

We've only been on Celebrity Equinox on a Mediterranean cruise and Holland America Veendam on a Canadian cruise. We don't cruise a lot as I am on retirement income and do not have the funds to go on constant vacation. I envy people who do. Had a balcony on the Equinox and an Ocean View on the Veendam. Both were superb cruises. Could not find one thing wrong. But, I'm easy to please and complain about little. Since we're senior citizens our days of having to put up with kids, some young people, and noise, is over. I had gotten the impression that Carnival was mostly for families and young people who constantly party. However, I guess if we go in the fall or winter, during the week, and not during holidays, then maybe Carnival would be just like any other line. Also, probably the itinerary woulld determine what type of crowd there is. I do like the idea of better pricing, larger cabins, and that they do go out of Tampa and Port Canaveral which are both nearby.

[skywalkr2]

Please tell me why you would choose or not choose Carnival Ships over other lines. Is it the cabins, the food, the entertainment, the itineraries, or just the overall treatment on Carnival. I'm curious because I've never traveled on Carnival but they seem to have pretty good itineraries.

 

Convenience, Price, it meets my needs.

[sojodave]

I've only been on three cruises, my first was with Carnival, my last two were on RCI. We have a cruise booked with Carnival next May on the Miracle. I admit, after being on RCI, I'm a little nervous about Carnival.

 

We had incredible service with RCI on both the Oasis and the Vision. We thought the food choices were great and the quality was very good. I think the entertainment and the ships are much nicer on RCI. We were impressed there was always live music and things to do on RCI cruises.

 

There are many small things that concern me about Carnival. Only getting your room serviced once a day, the bacon police restricting your bacon consumption, you can't have just a single person on a drink package, cheesy shows at night, less food choices, ships that vibrate and bounce your drinks, etc.

 

My wife and are pretty easy to please, I just hope we have fun and and don't regret cruising on Carnival. It will be interesting to compare the two cruise lines.

[BNBR]

I've only been on three cruises, my first was with Carnival, my last two were on RCI. We have a cruise booked with Carnival next May on the Miracle. I admit, after being on RCI, I'm a little nervous about Carnival.

 

We had incredible service with RCI on both the Oasis and the Vision. We thought the food choices were great and the quality was very good. I think the entertainment and the ships are much nicer on RCI. We were impressed there was always live music and things to do on RCI cruises.

 

There are many small things that concern me about Carnival. Only getting your room serviced once a day, the bacon police restricting your bacon consumption, you can't have just a single person on a drink package, cheesy shows at night, less food choices, ships that vibrate and bounce your drinks, etc.

 

My wife and are pretty easy to please, I just hope we have fun and and don't regret cruising on Carnival. It will be interesting to compare the two cruise lines.

 

Interesting. Was on Oasis last month and while the MDR service was stellar, I thought the service throughout left a little to be desired.

 

I'm cruising Carnival in October - I think it'll be plenty fun - hard to have a bad time on a cruise, right? Just try not to get caught up comparing everything.

 

You will notice a lot of people do both, a lot, and if one was much worse than the other, that wouldn't be the case. Go have fun!

[stevec999]

We had always sailed Carnival until recently. We always get a good value and enjoy the cruises. We will continue to sail Carnival if the itinerary is interesting or the timing fits in with what we are looking for.

 

Carnival has not given us any reason to go elsewhere but we were looking for new itinerary. That lead to a HAL cruise last February (11 day Panama Canal). HAL is different than Carnival but I wouldn't say better. I think we actually prefer Carnival but would sail HAL again

 

We are looking to try new things and have a Oceania and Celebrity booked but will be back to Carnival in the future.

 

The lines are all different , just have to give them a try and see if you like.

[sgttami]

I like Carnival for now because I can cruise without flying, book a week ahead and be in NY in an hour. Sailed on Splendor 5x in 2014 and will be going on Sunshine for the second time in October. Don't care where I sail to.

 

I'm actually closer to (Cape Liberty) Bayonne but don't like jumbo ships that RCL has sailing from there. If the Radiance class were to leave from there or NY, I'd probably be the first booked (lol)

 

For years I avoided Carnival because I heard horror stories and now I'm very glad that I took a chance and went. No complaints!

 

Just wish that they sailed from NY all year as it's the winter I want to get away from!

[BNBR]

I like Carnival for now because I can cruise without flying, book a week ahead and be in NY in an hour. Sailed on Splendor 5x in 2014 and will be going on Sunshine for the second time in October. Don't care where I sail to.

 

I'm actually closer to (Cape Liberty) Bayonne but don't like jumbo ships that RCL has sailing from there. If the Radiance class were to leave from there or NY, I'd probably be the first booked (lol)

 

For years I avoided Carnival because I heard horror stories and now I'm very glad that I took a chance and went. No complaints!

 

Just wish that they sailed from NY all year as it's the winter I want to get away from!

 

 

Anthem is supposed to be spectacular. What is it about the large ships you don't like?

 

I've actually considered going with a very small cruise ship to give it a try (without the kids) - something like Seabourn. So I can get why you may prefer the smaller ships. Curious what you don't like about the larger RCI ships, in comparison.

[pink roses]

I like the cost and New Orleans is within driving family cruises. I am Platinum and like the boarding early and free laundry perks. I do want to try other lines but when I go to price them I just can not seem to anything close to the price. I have only cruised once on another line and it was a small ship so do not feel I have a fair comparison but have a sister that has cruised the all. When we cruise together she likes to go on Carnival for the free laundry perk I get and share with her. She says the food is high on her list in comparison to the many lines she has cruised. A good thread.

[Senoj84]

The itineraries, the cost, and the food for me.