I Miss the Carnival Holiday!

[centerpoint]

Yeah, she was old and small, but honestly that's what I liked!  Parked next to some of the larger cruise ships, we felt really small but I really enjoyed this class of ship.  I guess it's purely business that Carnival's ships are getting so big.

 

Considering a cruise on the Pacific Princess (the Love Boat) just to recapture that small ship experience...

[sanmarcosman]

It seemed big enough when we sailed her, different times then. 

Pacific Princess, what was left of her, was scrapped in 2014.

Edited July 5, 2019 by sanmarcosman

[Jamman54]

3 minutes ago, sanmarcosman said:

It seemed big enough when we sailed her, different times then. 

 

We sailed on her when she was brand new in 1985. Hard to believe that when she was launched there were only two cruise ships bigger than her. The Norway and the QE2. She was also our first cruise and started our addiction to cruising!

[centerpoint]

5 minutes ago, sanmarcosman said:

It seemed big enough when we sailed her, different times then. 

Pacific Princess, what was left of her, was scrapped in 2014.

Yes, the Pacific Princess sailing today is not the same one, is it!  Still, a much smaller ship...

[HeidiHo]

My first cruise was in 1985 on the Festivale which was wonderful back then but on the day we sailed, the Holiday was in the Port of Miami right next to us. She was brand new and either on her first or second cruise. I remember looking at that big, beautiful ship and wishing I could have been on it (it was more expensive than the Festival which is why we didn't choose the Holiday). Two years later I did get to sail on the Holiday on my Honeymoon so it does hold special memories. Of course by that time she wasn't the newest ship in the fleet but was still pretty new. The Celebration had come out since then.

[evandbob]

I sailed the Holiday back in April '04, and am glad it is now a long ago memory.  I was disappointed with it then, seemed old, small, rusty and bouncy in the ocean.  

 

But for others it may bring back fond memories, that's what's nice about cruising, there's a ship to fit any ones needs.

[sanmarcosman]

5 minutes ago, evandbob said:

I sailed the Holiday back in April '04, and am glad it is now a long ago memory.  I was disappointed with it then, seemed old, small, rusty and bouncy in the ocean.  

 

But for others it may bring back fond memories, that's what's nice about cruising, there's a ship to fit any ones needs.

When you sailed her she was old 🙂

[centerpoint]

8 minutes ago, evandbob said:

I sailed the Holiday back in April '04, and am glad it is now a long ago memory.  I was disappointed with it then, seemed old, small, rusty and bouncy in the ocean.  

 

But for others it may bring back fond memories, that's what's nice about cruising, there's a ship to fit any ones needs.

 

Okay, being a Navy vet, I will say that it was the motion that I most enjoyed.  However, I got treated a lot better on the white ships than I did on any gray ship! 🙂

 

[SRQbeachgirl]

She was our first cruise back in the early 1990's and we've been hooked on cruising ever since. 

[Thorncroft]

You can still sail on the ship as CMV Magellan.  By all accounts it's a beautiful ship, although nearly unrecognizable as the old Holiday. Almost every Carnival landmark, except the funnel, has been scrubbed from the ship. 

[sanmarcosman]

44 minutes ago, Thorncroft said:

You can still sail on the ship as CMV Magellan.  By all accounts it's a beautiful ship, although nearly unrecognizable as the old Holiday. Almost every Carnival landmark, except the funnel, has been scrubbed from the ship. 

What gave it away, the big photo in the first post? 

[Thorncroft]

9 minutes ago, sanmarcosman said:

What gave it away, the big photo in the first post? 

 

LOL.  Not really. It's no secret that CMV has had the ship for at least the last 3 or 4 years. 

[Betsybill]

We sailed on one of her last trips out of Mobile. Remember being in bed listening to creaks and groans, wondering if we

would make it back to Mobile. Pipes breaking and flooded corridors. Then we saw her again in Barcelona painted all white

and named the Iberian Holiday.

[Essiesmom]

3 minutes ago, Betsybill said:

We sailed on one of her last trips out of Mobile. Remember being in bed listening to creaks and groans, wondering if we

would make it back to Mobile. Pipes breaking and flooded corridors. Then we saw her again in Barcelona painted all white

and named the Iberian Holiday.

She sailed for Ibero Cruceros, but she was named Grand Holiday.  You can still sail her sister, Grand Celebration, from West Palm Beach.  

[PaperSniper4]

3 hours ago, HeidiHo said:

My first cruise was in 1985 on the Festivale which was wonderful back then but on the day we sailed, the Holiday was in the Port of Miami right next to us. She was brand new and either on her first or second cruise. I remember looking at that big, beautiful ship and wishing I could have been on it (it was more expensive than the Festival which is why we didn't choose the Holiday). Two years later I did get to sail on the Holiday on my Honeymoon so it does hold special memories. Of course by that time she wasn't the newest ship in the fleet but was still pretty new. The Celebration had come out since then.

My wife and I sailed on the Mardi Gras, in 1988 or 1989. It was our first cruise since I was a wee lad returning from Italy on the SS Independence in 1958. Lovely old ship. So different from the mega-structures of today. I saw Carnival has another Mardi Gras coming out. I like the smaller ship better.
 

 

Back in the days when a cruise ship actually resembled a SHIP, not a tall hotel laying on its side. 😢

[BTromboneFrack]

You can also sail on the Grand Celebration, out of Palm Beach, for a pretty nice price.   We did that a few years ago, and since the Celebration was a sister ship of the Holiday, it was like going back in time.   We even found some of the same hots spots for catching rays on the upper deck during the day.    

 

[Frank12]

Never sailed Holiday, but loved the Celebration. 

[RobinCruiser]

3 hours ago, SRQbeachgirl said:

She was our first cruise back in the early 1990's and we've been hooked on cruising ever since. 

 

She was out first cruise too!! 1995... it was out first cruise and our honeymoon!!

[d1k]

What about Empress of the Seas? It's a tiny ship and amazing service.  Very love boat like.

[scmom77]

The Holiday was the 1st cruise I ever went on.  It was 1986 and I was 8 years old and I remember it being the best vacation ever!!  

[Bases5]

We never sailed the Holiday but did sail her sister. Jubilee. Loved that class. RCL sails a small ship out of Miami. Empress of the Sea

Edited July 7, 2019 by Bases5

[The4Cruisers]

Our first two cruises were on Celebration in 05 & 06.   Really enjoyed that ship.  The only thing I didn't care for was the lack of an atrium lobby. 

Cruised on Holiday in 2009 and she was just fine, especially for all of the heat that the snobs gave her.  We had a good time and would have sailed her again if they put her in a decent port (yes I have NO love for the port of Mobile).  

 

Now we enjoy our 4/5 day jaunts on the Fantasy class ships.  The larger ships are fun on our 7 day cruises, but I do enjoy the smaller ships more.   

 

 

[Thorncroft]

1 hour ago, The4Cruisers said:

 (yes I have NO love for the port of Mobile).  

 

Mobile is a hospice port.  It's where Carnival ships go to die, with as much dignity as they can muster in their geriatric state. 

 

 

 

[PaperSniper4]

7 hours ago, Thorncroft said:

Mobile is a hospice port.  It's where Carnival ships go to die, with as much dignity as they can muster in their geriatric state. 

Maybe so, but I would be ecstatic if Princess or RCI or someone would home port a ship there with cruises longer than 7 days! We much prefer 10-14 day cruises, but that means flying at an additional cost of about $1300 for the flight and hotel the night before. Mobile and NOLA are just an 8 hour drive for us. Competition is also good for the industry; just compare prices between NOLA and FLL for similar cruises.........

[BlerkOne]

Holiday lives!