R/C twice, looking at Carnival. Opinions?

[KmomChicago]

Great info here so far. For us it’s more about the specific ship than the line, all things being equal.   So in that case we’d do the largest, newest ship that fits our schedule and budget limits.  We do enjoy nice public spaces and various bells and whistles. We aren’t foodies and find all cruises have exceeded our admittedly lowbrow expectations.  

 

Since Carnival is often priced lower, sometimes you can do as others have mentioned and upgrade to a spa cabin or perhaps even a suite and end up with a nicer experience at a good overall value. This might take some comparison shopping.

 

I have found where 2 Carnival ships at the same time on similar itineraries sometimes have drastic differences in price. On one ship a specialty or suite may be only a couple hundred more than an inside and less than lower level rooms on competing lines, while on the other, apparently similar ship it might be double or more and more expensive than similar rooms with a different carrier.

 

Going during an off season and a longer itinerary shifts the demographics as others have noted, especially reducing the number of kids aboard. 

[tinkr2]

I have not cruised Carnival in a few years and have had some ok experiences and one poor. I had a great experience on breeze in a spa interior for dirt cheap. We booked 2 weeks out when I thought we were to broke to celebrate our anniversary. It was so fun and as everyone has mentioned, the numerous free daytime dining choices are really great. And no one beats a Carnival deck party. They're not full of crazy drunks, just lots of fun line dances and great energy. There are kids and grandmas and cousins, all dancing.

A friend has been trying to get me to cruise with her and I am joining her on Horizon with my family this July. Its a pretty darn expensive cruise so it is no money saver. It breaks all my rules, I never cruise on the very newest ship in the first year and never in summer. I hope it is great. Out of 37, they've all been pretty great. Book away, you never know till you go. 

[dreadpirate3]

7 hours ago, Ralphinsc said:

 

We really enjoyed our last cruise on the Elation. It was what we expected for the price point, which was the lowest per night average of any cruise we had been on. A fun hopping little ship that is super easy to get around on and never really felt crowded. I'd book a three or four day Bahamas cruise on her tomorrow if the dates and prices wound up right. Sorry your friends had bad experiences, but there's a reason that Carnival is re-investing in their Fantasy class ships and not getting rid of them. There's still very much a market for sub-Panamax cruise ships on the budget end. 

 

Some recent reviews on the Carnival boards state that the ships are not being maintained, with broken furniture in staterooms and leaking windows.

[Beav1279]

I've cruised RCCL twice and just went on a Carnival cruise a few months ago. I will say that RCCL does a much better job at "policing" the kids... RC has a curfew and I never see little ones running about after 10pm... on the Carnival ship, it didn't matter what time of night, I would see 8-10 year-old kids out without adults. Because I am an educator, I can only travel during school breaks so I understand there will be a lot of families on the ship, but I'd prefer if parents were required to take care of them instead of letting them run amok! (amok, amok, amok!) 

HOWEVER, we did have the BEST cruise director I've ever seen... so there's that..

Edited March 28, 2019 by Beav1279

[tinkr2]

4 hours ago, dreadpirate3 said:

 

Some recent reviews on the Carnival boards state that the ships are not being maintained, with broken furniture in staterooms and leaking windows.

You have been on these boards long enough to know that every single thing is blown way way out of proportion. I did however pass Triumph thats being redone into Sunrise and she looked pretty dicey. So if Elation is on the schedule for a refurb, I believe it.

[tinkr2]

2 hours ago, Beav1279 said:

I've cruised RCCL twice and just went on a Carnival cruise a few months ago. I will say that RCCL does a much better job at "policing" the kids... RC has a curfew and I never see little ones running about after 10pm... on the Carnival ship, it didn't matter what time of night, I would see 8-10 year-old kids out without adults. Because I am an educator, I can only travel during school breaks so I understand there will be a lot of families on the ship, but I'd prefer if parents were required to take care of them instead of letting them run amok! (amok, amok, amok!) 

HOWEVER, we did have the BEST cruise director I've ever seen... so there's that..

I got a good laugh of your amok, amok , amok😁😂

[KmomChicago]

On ‎3‎/‎28‎/‎2019 at 6:58 AM, dreadpirate3 said:

 

Some recent reviews on the Carnival boards state that the ships are not being maintained, with broken furniture in staterooms and leaking windows.

 

This is a good point. So, hello Original Poster, if you are still here. . . you have sailed on RC Freedom and Oasis class. These are newish, really big ships.  Carnival's closest comparisons are going to be Vista Class (Vista, Horizon, and the coming Panorama) and Dream Class (Breeze, Magic, and Dream).  Once Carnival Radiance comes back in a few weeks, it should be  nice and spiffy due to its rebuild, but still considerably smaller than the others mentioned at around 100,000 tons. 

 

To be perfectly honest I doubt you would feel any other Carnival ships are a good comparison to the two Royals you have done. In particular you should probably avoid Fantasy class unless you are specifically interested in trying a smaller, older ship while you still have the chance. There are 8 of these: Fantasy, Sensation, Elation, Ecstasy, Imagination, Inspiration, Paradise, and Fascination.  They are fine for people who want to cruise on a budget, are not terribly picky, and appreciate being able to sail from embarkation ports that are in close driving distance and have few, if any, other options.  They are kept in working order, but the fact is that they are showing their age in both their décor and their overall condition.  They have few balcony rooms and less wow factor than newer ships.  There is always a lot of speculation here at Cruise Critic of how much longer they can hold on before being sold, scrapped, or completely refurbished into a completely different type of cruise concept.

[KmomChicago]

1 hour ago, KmomChicago said:

 

  Once Carnival Radiance comes back in a few weeks, it should be  nice and spiffy due to its rebuild, but still considerably smaller than the others mentioned at around 100,000 tons. 

 

 

Sorry I meant to reference Carnival Sunrise which is currently undergoing a complete rebuild and will be back on line in a few weeks. Radiance is Not coming till next year.