Considering Carnival--will we be disappointed?

[keithm]

keithm - just to be clear, when I said NCL was a step up, I said that in reference or comparison to Carnival. I think that the whole of NCL is better than Carnival; however, the Haven on NCL is much nicer and comparable to Suite Class on Celebrity.

Sorry, I misread that & thought you meant Celebrity. Still the standard NCL cruise is pretty basic. The Haven, however really shines. Like the Yacht club on MSC it's kind of like a "ship within a ship".

[killarneylady]

I did one Carnival cruise after many Celebrity and RC & 1 NCL. My advice is NO to Carnival. Doesn’t compare favorably to Celebrity in any way. Whole atmosphere different. Crowded, noisy, Ship we were on felt like it was an old pirate ship ! I know that seems a strange, statement but central lobby area and buffet restaurant had a dark dark feel. Small dirty windows , dark wood. You would not know you were at sea. I knew when booking that we would find it a drop in standards and accepted that due to price BUT no matter how cheap it was I would not consider another cruise with them. That is obviously just my opinion and others may feel differently. I was tempted by the price like OP but what a mistake! I found NCL (Epic) better but still quite a bit below the Celebrity ‘feel’.

 

 

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[MightyMike]

We like a lot of activities.

Our typical sea day:

Buffet

Sun on the deck (not necessarily at the pool)

Burgers by the pool

Poker tournament in casino

Trivia

MDR

Show--usually only comedians

"Game shows"

Casino

Dancing in the club to dance music from 70s-today.

(and our kids like most of these activities too)

 

When we go on shore, that is when we like a beach & relax (tho with young adult kids--18, 20, 23--they like a lively beach)

 

To my eyes, that list has Carnival written all over it.

 

Buffet and burgers are just fine on Carnival. I actually think they have more variety than Celebrity in that regard. Some people swear by Guy's Burger Joint.

 

As long as you don't insist on a deck chair right at the pool, you will always have plenty to choose from.

 

Keep in mind Carnival allows smoking in their casino.

 

Carnival still cares about the MDR experience. I'm not saying that Celebrity doesn't, but I don't think NCL cares much anymore. We were very disappointed in NCL's MDR. They want you to go to their (additional fee) specialty restaurants instead.

 

Carnival has the Punchliner Comedy Club. I doubt you will find more comedy anywhere else.

[OCruisers]

We have done Celebrity our last 4 cruises & have fallen in love.

That being said, we have done RCCL & Princess and would cruise them again in a heartbeat.

(also did DCL...probably not again with kids being young adults now & how expensive they are).

Looking at Xmas cruise & flights to Galveston are very reasonable, and Carnival is by far the best priced cruise.

We have found our cruises to be more alike than different...and we are pretty easy going.

Our son has said NCL is a step down from our other cruises but still good. (my thought is any cruise is a good cruise!)

Thoughts?

 

If your son was not happy wih NCL, he will probably not be happy with Carnival.

Hopefully, he'll try Carnival with an open mind ... considering the price point.

[riclop]

We have done Celebrity our last 4 cruises & have fallen in love.

That being said, we have done RCCL & Princess and would cruise them again in a heartbeat.

(also did DCL...probably not again with kids being young adults now & how expensive they are).

Looking at Xmas cruise & flights to Galveston are very reasonable, and Carnival is by far the best priced cruise.

We have found our cruises to be more alike than different...and we are pretty easy going.

Our son has said NCL is a step down from our other cruises but still good. (my thought is any cruise is a good cruise!)

Thoughts?

Don't look for same service etc.

[maxsales]

We have done Celebrity our last 4 cruises & have fallen in love.

That being said, we have done RCCL & Princess and would cruise them again in a heartbeat.

(also did DCL...probably not again with kids being young adults now & how expensive they are).

Looking at Xmas cruise & flights to Galveston are very reasonable, and Carnival is by far the best priced cruise.

We have found our cruises to be more alike than different...and we are pretty easy going.

Our son has said NCL is a step down from our other cruises but still good. (my thought is any cruise is a good cruise!)

Thoughts?

 

If you really enjoy Celebrity you most likely will be disappointed with Carnival. You usually get what you pay for.

[beachys]

We just got off the Carnival Vista and it was far better than we anticipated! The main pool area was chaos, but were were in Havana, it's 12 and over private area and it made the cruise. The staff were so nice and the food was great. I'd recommend it!

[phoenix_dream]

IMHO anyone who says no cruise is a bad cruise has never sailed Carnival! But it really all depends on what you are looking for. We cruise to get away from it all and relax, so we want a generally quiet and refined atmosphere, which I think Celebrity delivers better than any other mainstream premium line. We have sailed Carnival in the past when our son was young, but would never, ever, ever, ever sail them again. In fact, if someone gave me a free cruise on Carnival I would gift it to someone else (really!!). But if you're more into partying, activities, and other loud activities and are willing to sacrifice some quality in service and food to get that, then Carnival may be for you.

[Fogfog]

Agreed with OP NCL IS a step down from Celebrity. Even our adult "kids" who have cruise many times (DCL, Carniva, Celebrity, Regent) say the same.

 

Carnival does not offer perks like Celebrity in rooms... There aren't concierge/suites like on X and Celebrity's loyalty program is better.

The beverage package is convenient on Carnival like Celebrity

Serenity adults only deck is great

Carnival Dining is very standard though the Carnival Steakhouse is excellent and a great value.

The Carnival Chefs Table Dinner with gallery touring etc is exceptional and well worth the price of admission. FAR better than the Celebrity one (both in meal/value/experience)

Carnival is a "louder" ship experience.

 

We do look at Carnival and price shop comparing ports/price + bev for each sailing we do..and often Celebrity beats Carnival.

It may be port dependent.

IMHO try Carnival --- for a family getaway.

[Mike981]

Boy, this is such a personal choice. I get some people say "never again", or "I wouldn't take a free cruise". Well I have cruised Carnival many times and if it was a free seven day cruise and I could cover the air, I would take it in a heartbeat.

 

 

If your family can reset their expectations and understand the difference between (using a restaurant example) a fast casual, or a fast food restaurant to what you would term Celebrity is, and all are good with it, go for it.

 

 

Again, only you can truly make the best choice. You are on a Celebrity board asking if you should go on Carnival. Have you asked the same in the Carnival board?

 

And that is my 2 cents. Your mileage may very.

[some_body]

I have averaged about two cruises a year for the last decade or so scattered across DCL, X, RCCL, NCL. All of them were chosen for some specific reason - itinerary, ship, family, etc.

 

I likely would not book a Carnival cruise. Not for any reasons I have seen in this thread, but rather because I never have. Same goes for the other half dozen or so mainstream cruise lines. Part of the vacation for me is knowing that I will get what I am expecting, by artificially limiting my choices. Am I likely missing out on something? Sure. But for me, the familiarity I have with the Solstice ships, for example, is what I have come to value from a cruise.

 

As a side note, my parents did take a Carnival cruise and had a blast. It was on a ship that, at the time, had only been in the Carnival fleet for a year or so - the Carnivale. (yes, I know this is not terribly relevant, just a little tongue in cheek)

[raudacruise]

DH & I took one Carnival cruise (Breeze) over Christmas. We were in a fancy suite and never ate in the MDR. I would say Carnival was not "our cup of tea" (brash and loud) but we still had a good time.

[MJSailors]

To the OP

A few thoughts...

DH and I have sailed mostly on Princess,but also Cunard, Celebrity and NCL.

We did not care for NCL, but enjoyed cruises on the other lines.

You could ,and maybe you already have, read reviews of theCarnival ship you are considering.

If the Carnival cruise suits your family’s time frame and interests, then try the cruise.

If you find the experience not to your liking, you do not have to book another one.

If you do choose the Carnival cruise, I would suggest that you do not compare the ship or experiences with those that you have had on Celebrity or other past cruises.

It may come up short.

Focus on being with your family on vacation.

It would be interesting if you post on CC after your Carnival cruise to see your impression of the experience.

[Queenk2]

DH & I took one Carnival cruise (Breeze) over Christmas. We were in a fancy suite and never ate in the MDR. I would say Carnival was not "our cup of tea" (brash and loud) but we still had a good time.

 

Years ago we went with our children on a carnival ship..it was new and we thought we might like it,.....it was awful. The food was inedible, the ship was loud and not our type of vacation or what I wanted my children to see or hear. It might have changed for the better. My family never returned. We have been on many lines, including celebrity, azamara, Hal, Cunard, rccl ,princess, Oceania,etc. we enjoyed almost all. I dont think I would suggest Carnival.

[go Utah Utes]

We have sailed 8 times on Carnival. We just got back 2 weeks ago. It has really gone down hill. The best thing was the staff as they were outstanding. We went on Celebrity last year and really enjoyed it. We will not be going back to Carnival. We are in our 50's and feel we have out grown Carnival. Celebrity was great and it is more upper class. We will pay the extra money to get great service and beautiful ships.

[lenquixote66]

We have done Celebrity our last 4 cruises & have fallen in love.

That being said, we have done RCCL & Princess and would cruise them again in a heartbeat.

(also did DCL...probably not again with kids being young adults now & how expensive they are).

Looking at Xmas cruise & flights to Galveston are very reasonable, and Carnival is by far the best priced cruise.

We have found our cruises to be more alike than different...and we are pretty easy going.

Our son has said NCL is a step down from our other cruises but still good. (my thought is any cruise is a good cruise!)

Thoughts?

 

We were on Carnival once and had no desire to go back.We have been on 6 cruise lines .

[skiorcruise]

Full disclosure - I have only cruised with Carnival. My DW has booked a Celebrity cruise for April 18 because she was "tired of the orange staterooms."

 

We have fully enjoyed Carnival on our previous cruises. Food has been good, service has been good, etc. Over the past 10 years we have seen things go a little downhill, as costs and corporate bottom line have reared their ugly head.

 

Many have compared Carnival to the "Walmart of the Seas." It is probably a fair comparison. A reasonable product for a reasonable price. The biggest complaints seem to be children running crazy. That can happen to line at any time, but to avoid it you need to plan your trip for times when school is in session. And set your trip to 7 days or longer. (Our last cruise was an 8 day to Alaska in late August/early September. They announced that we had 67 children on board.)

 

My parents sailed several lines, but were more than willing to take Carnival cruises with us. They are gone now, but we have enjoyed all of our cruises on Carnival. I will attempt to find this thread after our April 19 Celebrity cruise and update my opinion.

 

Bottom line - a day at sea is much better then a day at work. Each line has it's positives and negatives. You need to find what works for you, and ignore the noise that everyone else screams at you. Go with an open mind, have fun, and explore the world.

[maxsales]

On 8/23/2018 at 6:04 PM, KKB said:

We have done Celebrity our last 4 cruises & have fallen in love.
That being said, we have done RCCL & Princess and would cruise them again in a heartbeat.
(also did DCL...probably not again with kids being young adults now & how expensive they are).
Looking at Xmas cruise & flights to Galveston are very reasonable, and Carnival is by far the best priced cruise.
We have found our cruises to be more alike than different...and we are pretty easy going.
Our son has said NCL is a step down from our other cruises but still good. (my thought is any cruise is a good cruise!)
Thoughts?

Most likely you will be dissatisfied

[4thgrade]

I have sailed on Celebrity and NCL in the Haven.  A group of my friends wanted to go on their first cruise, and chose Carnival based on the cost.  I am going with them, totally expecting Carnival NOT to be Celebrity or the Haven, and that is okay.  It is what it is, and as long as you are aware of the differences and they are not things that would ruin your vacation, go for it!  If I was expecting Celebrity Concierge or the NCL Haven, then I would not have a good time, but I am taking it for what it is-an Alaskan cruise with a bunch of friends!

[SoCalTraveler]

We cruised out of Los Angeles on the Carnival Inspiration.  At least one of the prior posters here said that Carnival had a reputation as the "Walmart of the Seas."  I believe my review of that cruise said that Carnival was not like the good Walmart. 

We had bad service in the dining room.  Even when the maitre'd intervened and promised we would get our drinks before the main course, Carnival had trouble delivering.  (Here's a tip:  if you serve folks drinks right away, they might order a second round.)  One morning it was a multi pronged effort to get a cup of tea.  Another day my son wanted tater tots, but they would only deliver two at a time.  (I ordered two for everyone in our group to solve that.)  Another time Carnival could not deliver French Fries.  My son got up, went to the buffet, got French Fries, and returned.  The maitre'd chastised him for bringing food in.  The maitre'd did nothing about the missing French Fries.  (They were on the menu that day for lunch.)  We're still waiting.

On the Inspiration that cruise, the outside cabins were kept at a steady 55F.  (January in Los Angeles)

The kids next door would not stop pounding on our walls, even after an officer intervened.

Entertainment one night was watching a couple (this is a family site) in the other Jacuzzi.  Staff did not care.

We went to a show one afternoon which ran late, so they let the bingo players in and sold bingo cards from the stage, making watching the show impossible.  The cruise director said, "Bingo must go on as scheduled."

Carnival sells beer.  Much like Justice Kavanaugh, I like beer.  What I don't like is sitting on or stepping on beer caps around the pool areas.  Carnival staff did not care.  You could watch them (when not watching the couple in the other Jacuzzi) walk past caps, bottles, empty glasses and assorted other debris.

This is the only cruise I have ever been on where I removed tips.  We gave cash to our steward, who was barely OK, and cash to our waiter/assistant on the theory that we would have tipped 5-10% on shore for their combined bad service.

Would I take Carnival again?  Yes, if it met my schedule and went somewhere I wanted to go.  For this cruise, it was the opportunity to get 12 relatives together.  However, I'd have my eyes open.

And if you like even a bad Walmart, well, then, Carnival is for you.

 

 

 

[lexdog]

I have sailed on rcc,celeb,princess and carnival and 2 worse cruises out 30 have been on rcc one oasis class.I think it is what you make it.If you choose carnival get a havana cabin and you will enjoy the privacy of only havana members.

[OuiOnboard]

Variety can be great. Give Carnival a shot. You might like it.

[laprof]

We have sailed on 33 Carnival Cruises.  We have sailed on every Carnival Ship and have yet to have a bad Carnival cruise. I have 3 more booked.  They are what you make of them.

[jobryan56]

It’s like they say,”you get what you pay for!!!” I understand that looking at Carnival and seeing the low price tag, and low price for going out of Galveston, but be reminded that it’s a long bus ride from IAH, depending on traffic, I’ve read on CC, that it can be up to 1.5 hours! Each way mind you! Your bus might not have a restroom! Carnival has lots of loud, obnoxious people who are there to party 24/7 and don’t have much social or civil decorum! Their kids are worst! Nothing like a bunch of loud crying kids in the Main Dining room, and the maitre’d that does nothing about how it’s affecting other diners who are trying to enjoy their dinner and cruise! Paper thin walls in your cabin, so you can hear conversations and other things going on next door! People yell at each other down the hall! Food is pretty good, but service is slow in MDR! Buffet is good, especially Indian and stir-fry stations, salad bar selection, etc. lots of kids running around at late breakfast, lunch on sea days, and in the evenings. Their parents don't do anything to control them! In a nut shell, avoid Carnival! If Celebrity is too much, try NCL or RCCL! Avoid the insanity, please!

[KikisDad]

We are Celebrity Elite plus and will be Carnival Platinum on our next sailing. We prefer Celebrity, but, with the right attitude, always have fun on Carnival. Don’t sweat the small stuff, ignore the four times a day sales pitch, enjoy a Guys burger and you will have a good vacation. They are the fun ships for a reason. Vista over freedom.