RCCL Freedom class VS Oasis class compared to Carnival

[HMH G]

Helllllllo! It's been way too long since I've been here.

 

A quick history, I've only taken 2 cruises. Royal Caribbean's Allure of the Seas (first cruise!, we go big) and absolutely LOVED it, and Carnival Triumph from Galveston (did NOT like at all). It's years later and we now have two 3 year old girls and am thinking about a big family vacation. I have a couple of questions...

 

IF we drive and leave from Galveston we can do a Freedom class ship. Will this feel more crowded than Oasis class? We didn't feel crowded at all when we were on it (May). Will it still have plenty for little ones to do or did we spoil ourselves too much with our first big cruise?

 

My next question is about the Galveston port. I don't even know how to ask it without maybe being insensitive so here goes. I don't know if it was because we were on a Carnival ship, or if it was the Galveston port itself but the Carnival Triumph was one big drunken cowboy party ship and I would NOT want to take my kids on it. It felt way more crowded and we actually hated the ship itself. I found the Carnival decor to be tacky, the rooms were outdated and dirty, and the layout was frustrating. I'm still trying to sort out the reasons that we didn't enjoy that cruise (mostly the ship? cruise line? departure port?) but if we leave from Royal Caribbean on a Freedom class ship, can we expect the same type of thing? Drunk Texans and nonstop booze cruise? Is this a Galveston thing? A Carnival thing? Or a ship class/size thing? Honestly if that had been our first cruise, we would never want to cruise again.

 

Also, it seems like October has the best prices, is this because of hurricane season? How much of a concern is this?

 

And lastly, when is the best time to actually book it? Are there any times of the year with amazing sales going on? I've been watching it for some time now and the prices don't seem to change much from what I can see. Do you recommend calling the company directly? Or finding a travel agent?

 

Thank you in advance! I know that was a lot of random questions and thoughts. :confused:

[SuiteTraveler]

Freedom class is more upscale than any of Carnival's ships including their newest one. They have a great water playground for little kids onboard and they offer babysitting in the children's club so mom and dad can go out to dinner.

 

The older Carnival ships are typically the ones that are booze cruises - that and any ship doing a 5 day or less itinerary. I would avoid those. 7 day cruise on Freedom should be very nice for your family. Of course, on any cruise ship you will have those who have been over-served, but you can easily avoid them on Freedom. Also the cabins on Freedom have just been refreshed. I recommend you book your cruise yourself either through the RCCL website or via an online travel agency. But remember, if you use the travel agency they OWN your booking and that makes it harder to change or upgrade. The only reason to use an online travel agency is if you can some online spending, otherwise, prices should be similar to RCCL's website. Right now RCCL is offering 60% off the second guest and 30% off the 3rd and 4th guests. That's a decent deal - not great but not bad either.

[taglovestocruise]

To quote Patrick Henry.. "Give me liberty, or give me death!" if he were alive today he would be referring to the Freedom class ships. It's not a Galveston thing, it's a older smaller Carnival booze cruise thing. No you will not be crowded unless it's summer or spring break. . My guess would be you were on a short cruise. Your kids will love the kids club and all the activities onboard. Not to put down Carnival, but imop Rccl has much better quality of life onboard. Go with Liberty and you won't be sorry.. happy cruising. PS: as stated above RCCL is having a great sale right now, book it and you will have 90 days to switch your reservation over to a TA if you find one giving added OBC, pre paid gratuities, or specialty dining. happy cruising

[catou2428]

Hi, I'm a french canadian and we will be on allure of the seas in January 2018. For those who have been on this cruise, I'm a little bit concern about his age. built in 2010. Did you noticed that? It is looks old?

 

Sorry for my English, hope you understand :)

[taglovestocruise]

We did a 14 night transatlantic in Oct. 2015 and at that time the ship looked as good as day one. Rccl keeps their ships in tip top shape. Not sure about your French Canadian situation. Viva Trudeau. happy cruising

[taglovestocruise]

Nous avons fait un 14 nuit transatlantique en octobre 2015 et ? ce moment-l? le navire semblait aussi bon que le premier jour. Rccl maintient leurs navires en forme de pointe. Je ne suis pas s?r de votre situation au Canada fran?ais. Viva Trudeau. Heureux croisi?re PS: vous allez adorer le navire

[catou2428]

Thank you for your quick response!

 

We hesitate with allure and Harmony but Harmony is more expensive. So if you say that allure is a beautiful ship, we will go with that one!!

[HMH G]

Thank you for the replies!

[taglovestocruise]

Thank you for your quick response!

 

We hesitate with allure and Harmony but Harmony is more expensive. So if you say that allure is a beautiful ship, we will go with that one!!

 

 

Have you tried youtube, you can find lots of current traveler videos. Allure est absolument magnifique. Heureux croisi?re

[heislord5]

IMO Royal Caribbean is a more elegant cruise line with more things to do/see. More in the way of shows (ice skating, water show, acrobatics show, broadway plays). More mature crowd.

 

Carnival has much better pricing for families (3rd & 4th passenger), although every once in a while RCCL will have a kids sail free deal.

 

OASIS class ships (ALLURE) is the best ship I've been on, hands down. The only one where 7 day cruise actually wasn't long enough to do everything I wanted to do.