NCL vs Carnival

[tjsmama]

Trying to decide between Carnival Glory and NCL Breakaway. We have cruised Carnival for so long and thought we wld try something new but are a little worried about the unknown vs the known/comfortable. Carnival seems to have more food and entertainment that is included in the cost vs all the things you have to pay for with NCL. Can someone shed some light on this subject?

Edited February 14, 2019 by tjsmama

[luvcruzing]

After about 15 cruises on NCL, we went on the Carnival Glory last January and the Carnival Breeze this past January, mainly to see some different ports.  We enjoyed having early assigned dining on Carnival with the same waiters every day. The shows in the dining room with the waiters also were a treat we never experienced on NCL. Food choices in the main dining room were better on Carnival, such as shrimp, lobster, escargot, which are never available on NCL. We enjoy being able to eat lunch in the main dining room at embarkation on NCL, instead of the buffet (lido). No need to drag our carryons around the ship.

 

Entertainment in the theater is much better on NCL. Casino is much better on NCL, especially since Carnival does not carry my favorite games. But the smoke in the casino was so much worse on NCL. We get our drinks comped in the casino while playing, but in my opinion the drink package is better on Carnival since NCL limits the price of drinks that are available on their package. Carnival’s package limits drinks to 15 a day, but isn’t that enough for the average person?

 

Comedy club: the venues were much more comfortable on Carnival.

 

Also, your experience will differ depending on if you sail on one of the smaller older ships, or one of the bigger, newer ships on NCL.

 

Just my opinion.

[FLAHAM]

Only 15 per day??  What am I supposed to do the rest of the day??

Edited February 14, 2019 by FLAHAM

[luvcruzing]

To the best of my knowledge - yes.

[ukbecky]

4 minutes ago, FLAHAM said:

Only 15 per day??  What am I supposed to do the rest of the day??

 

Limit of 15 alcoholic drinks with the package. No limit on non-alcoholic(and the drink package on Carnival is much more inclusive).

 

Just wanted to note that you don't have to do assigned seating. Anytime Dining works very well also.

[Son of a son of a ...]

But for NCL’s drink package promo,  I would go back to Carnival for a few cruises ... it has been a long time

[OCruisers]

On which Carnival ship and on which NCL ship can make a difference so it's hard to say without knowing.  

[zqvol]

2 hours ago, tjsmama said:

Trying to decide between Carnival Glory and NCL Breakaway. We have cruised Carnival for so long and thought we wld try something new but are a little worried about the unknown vs the known/comfortable. Carnival seems to have more food and entertainment that is included in the cost vs all the things you have to pay for with NCL. Can someone shed some light on this subject?

 

Having been on both numerous times I can tell you that they are more alike than they are different. NCL has more specialty restaurants, but also has more free options than Carnival. The entertainment is pretty much equal. The cabins on Carnival are a bit larger than on NCL. If you enjoy Carnival you should have no trouble adjusting to NCL.