10 ways Carnival is better than Cunard and such.

[Thoth]

The travel magazines/ books/sites  don't tend to give Carnival much credit, but I happen to love the Fun Ships. Last year I had taken a trans-Atlantic crossing on the prestigious Queen Mary 2 . While I enjoyed the experience and therefore not knocking Cunard, I did find some ways that Carnival is better. 

1) DANCING :  On the QM2, just about all dancing was ballroom style which requires coordination & practice. At times things  could get snooty . On Carnival dancing is all about having a good time, so even those with two left feet can fit in... like me. 

2)  PRICE:  At 1/3 to 1/2 the price, Carnival delivers more bang for the buck.  Me having to pay that dreaded single supplement makes a huge difference., such as $450 + 450 = $900 as compared to $1250 + 1250 = $2500....Some of the "Fun Ship " rates seemed to be cheaper than a plain hotel per night. 

3) WATER SLIDES :  sure pools are great, but those mini- waterparks at sea sure are more fun. 

4) ACTIVITIES :  sure Cunard has good trivia, but so does Carnival plus the other games are a hoot.  There is the tower game, trivia pursuit, pool games, Sorry, Hasbro,  and Speak Out.  There is something crazy fun every sea day. Plus Carnival has different trivia for different interest. Being an American, of course I prefer baseball to soccer in sports trivia. 

5)  KARAOKE :   On Carnival it is at least every evening, and at times  during a day.  After the show I will go to the karaoke lounge and meet with the regular crowd.  On Cunard it was twice the whole week. 

6) SINGING WAITERS :  I enjoy the dinner song and dance . What fun ! 

7)  DIVERSE MUSIC :   Yes, I love classical music and show tunes. The soprano on the QM2 sang like an angel.   But I also like pop/rock   and country.  Carnival has a nice variety.

8)  DRESS CODE:  Carnival is much more understanding if your luggage gets lost and that tuxedo is lost somewhere in outer space. That's exactly what happened to me !! 

9)  SHIP ON STICK:  I have a hard earned collection ! These trophies are a wonderful souvenir.

10)  ALL AGES & BACKGROUNDS :  On Carnival I love to see kids, especially dancing with their grandparents.  One has not lived until you have marched through the atrium singing.. "Doctor Seuss on the loose"   .  It was a stoke of genius when Carnival discovered that blue collar types also like cruise ships.   

[meggymay]

Totally agree on everything thing but the singing waiters (I find it cringey) and I like a ship with less kids, which is why I only cruise when school is in session. 

 

I just really like the vibe of Carnival.  Enough of a party atmosphere to join in when you want, but not so much that you feel you can't get away from it if you just want to relax.

[jimbri]

We like Carnival too.  My main complaint would probably be loud music at times.  But otherwise, people, food and entertainment all good.

[Out of Iowa]

I've cruised both; admittedly, many decades apart.  As a child, we were sailing on the original Queen Elizabeth from Southampton to New York City (with a port call in Le Havre, France).  There were separate playrooms depending on which class of ticket you had!  I was served tea (the evening meal) and then left in the cabin while my parents went to dinner and dancing nightly...the cabin steward "looked in" on me.  That would never happen today.

 

Carnival definitely has the fun, the food and an atmosphere that helps me relax and enjoy vacation.  I'm delightedly nearing my single-digit dance for my next cruise 🙂

Platinum will soon be within reach.

 

[Joebucks]

I've met quite a few people that don't enjoy cruising. They thought it was boring. They also wouldn't try Carnival because it sounded bad, and was beneath them. If only there was an option that was fun....

[1025cruise]

And the reasons you state you prefer Carnival are the reasons those that cruise Cunard prefer Cunard. They choose that line for the experience.

I wouldn't call one line better than another, just offering a product that is different to appeal to a different audience.

[sanmarcosman]

You make several points I could have written verbatim. I enjoy the memory of my 5 day crossing from Southampton to New York in first class aboard QE2 in May of '88. Yet I keep coming back to Carnival for the relaxed times and variety of entertainment. Thanks for posting your comparison. 

[Tapi]

More than highlighting how Carnival is better than Cunard, I think your post highlights how different these two cruise lines are and how they cater to two very different demographics. My grandparents were huge Cunard fans and that’s the line they always sailed on. They loved the dancing, the dressing up, and all the pomp and circumstance that went along with a Cunard sailing. And they’d bring the whole family along to experience it with them. In fact, my first cruises as a child were aboard Cunard.

 

Yes, you have a great list if you’re a fan of the Carnival product, but putting my “Cunard” hat on, at least half the stuff on your list sounds like pure hell and reasons to avoid Carnival. 

You should post this same thread on the Cunard board to see what kind of responses you get. 😂

Edited December 19, 2019 by Tapi

[Eli_6]

People still know how to ballroom dance?

 

I took ballroom as a child and at my wedding had to dance with my Dad because, well, no one else knew how.   

[coevan]

1 hour ago, Tapi said:

More than highlighting how Carnival is better than Cunard, I think your post highlights how different these two cruise lines are and how they cater to two very different demographics. My grandparents were huge Cunard fans and that’s the line they always sailed on. They loved the dancing, the dressing up, and all the pomp and circumstance that went along with a Cunard sailing. And they’d bring the whole family along to experience it with them. In fact, my first cruises as a child were aboard Cunard.

 

Yes, you have a great list if you’re a fan of the Carnival product, but putting my “Cunard” hat on, at least half the stuff on your list sounds like pure hell and reasons to avoid Carnival. 

You should post this same thread on the Cunard board to see what kind of responses you get. 😂

 

 

Touche, we are sailing a river cruise in Europe this summer, no slides, no casinos, and thank goodness, no singing waiters.

[nybumpkin]

We spent three weeks on QM2 this past summer.  As I said in my post after we returned, comparing Carnival and Cunard is apples to oranges - completely different products. We loved QM2 - but if you're looking for water slides, games and the like, you won't find it on Cunard. Here are my thoughts on OP's list:

 

1. Dancing - DH and I love dancing, but OP is right - the dancers were downright intimidating. If you aren't a regular dancer, you'll get run over on the dance floor. We passed on the dancing and  spent our evenings listening to music in a lounge.

 

2.  Price - Certainly more than we usually pay on Carnival, but we found the inside cabins to be reasonable. We originally planned to fly to London, spend a few days touring, and then join the ship in Southampton - but it turned out to be cheaper for us to sail from Brooklyn to Southampton the week before and do a BTB. We had a balcony for the return trip and since our return was a two-week crossing via Iceland, the balcony was worth it - but for a straight 7-day crossing with no ports, I'd happily book the inside cabin again.

 

3. Waterslides - I used to do them on Carnival, but I can't manage them now. My sons are partial to the sports deck on Carnival, and QM2's sports deck is limited. The pools on QM2 are nice - two outdoors (one adult only) and one inside.

 

4. Activities - OP is right, you don't have the same type of games other than trivia. QM2 does have planetarium shows that are very good and lecture series on varied topics. We didn't lack for things to do - they were just different from Carnival activities.

 

5. Karaoke - We don't like karaoke so we didn't miss it.

 

6. Singing Waiters - We don't mind them on Carnival (I have been known to get out and dance😀), but we loved our wait staff on QM2.  And on the next to last gala night the Entertainment Director took time after dinner to bring out and introduce the galley staff, who parade out to (I think) "Rule, Brittania."

 

7. Diverse Music - I agree that the music is more "staid" on Cunard, but we didn't lack for variety. No country music - the Brits aren't into that. But we did have two jazz groups, two orchestras, a pop group, and a string group.

 

8. Dress Code - Yes, they're serious about the dress code - but some of the Cunard "purists" think they've loosened it too much. There was one night when a guy entered the dining room in a tux and a "joke" baseball cap (which would set off some Carnival cruisers); the cap didn't last long.

 

9. Ship on a Stick: No comparison. I love my Ships on a Stick. I do have a Cunard shot glass, though.

 

10. All Ages and Backgrounds - Aside from the 19 YO granddaughter of one of our tablemates, we were the youngest people at our dinner table for 10 on both crossings (we're 58 and 59). There were some families on QM2, but a midsummer sailing on Cunard is nothing compared to Carnival. I like a variety of ages, and I agree about the Seuss at Sea events. Two year ago on Carnival Pride I was near the atrium when the kids were lining up for the parade, and one of the entertainment staff handed me a pom pom and a noisemaker and said, "You're in the parade." I stayed in the lounge for the "Cat in the Hat" reading and it was fun. Still, I have to admit I enjoyed sailing on QM2 without lots of kids.

 

OP didn't mention food. I like Carnival's buffet better than QM2's King's Court. The lines are longer,  but Carnival (at least on the newer ships) has much better lunch buffet options. I missed Guy's Burgers. The Cunard buffet is fine, but not great.

 

On our Westbound crossing on QM2, one of our lecturers was Bill Miller, nicknamed "Mr. Ocean Liner." One comment he made during a lecture was about the state of the cruise industry, to the effect that it's great that the industry has developed so many options for people who want different types of sailings. I love my Carnival cruises and we have two booked, in 2020 and 2021. We also have a Danube River cruise booked for 2020. Bill also mentioned that if it wasn't for Mickey Arison and Carnival Corporation, there would be no Cunard. I'm looking for our next chance to sail Cunard.

)

[tinleypark andy]

Having washers, dryers, and irons for your use does it for me. 

[nybumpkin]

1 hour ago, tinleypark andy said:

Having washers, dryers, and irons for your use does it for me. 

The laundry rooms on QM2 were an adventure for DH, who assumed laundry duties for our trip. The washers and dryers are no extra charge, but you have to time your laundry visits. There was usually a line, unlike anything I've ever seen on Carnival. DH would try to get up early to be there when the door was unlocked at about 7:15 a.m. and he would not be the only one. Usually folks were good at recognizing that when a wash load finished, that person would have rights to the accompanying dryer - but one time, a poor guy was just about to move his wash to the dryer when someone came rushing in with an armful of wet clothes (apparently used the cabin sink to wash) and threw them in the dryer he was about to use. I'm not sure what happened to his wet laundry.😮

[grandmarnnurse]

On 12/19/2019 at 1:40 AM, Thoth said:

The travel magazines/ books/sites  don't tend to give Carnival much credit, but I happen to love the Fun Ships. Last year I had taken a trans-Atlantic crossing on the prestigious Queen Mary 2 . While I enjoyed the experience and therefore not knocking Cunard, I did find some ways that Carnival is better. 

1) DANCING :  On the QM2, just about all dancing was ballroom style which requires coordination & practice. At times things  could get snooty . On Carnival dancing is all about having a good time, so even those with two left feet can fit in... like me. 

2)  PRICE:  At 1/3 to 1/2 the price, Carnival delivers more bang for the buck.  Me having to pay that dreaded single supplement makes a huge difference., such as $450 + 450 = $900 as compared to $1250 + 1250 = $2500....Some of the "Fun Ship " rates seemed to be cheaper than a plain hotel per night. 

3) WATER SLIDES :  sure pools are great, but those mini- waterparks at sea sure are more fun. 

4) ACTIVITIES :  sure Cunard has good trivia, but so does Carnival plus the other games are a hoot.  There is the tower game, trivia pursuit, pool games, Sorry, Hasbro,  and Speak Out.  There is something crazy fun every sea day. Plus Carnival has different trivia for different interest. Being an American, of course I prefer baseball to soccer in sports trivia. 

5)  KARAOKE :   On Carnival it is at least every evening, and at times  during a day.  After the show I will go to the karaoke lounge and meet with the regular crowd.  On Cunard it was twice the whole week. 

6) SINGING WAITERS :  I enjoy the dinner song and dance . What fun ! 

7)  DIVERSE MUSIC :   Yes, I love classical music and show tunes. The soprano on the QM2 sang like an angel.   But I also like pop/rock   and country.  Carnival has a nice variety.

😎  DRESS CODE:  Carnival is much more understanding if your luggage gets lost and that tuxedo is lost somewhere in outer space. That's exactly what happened to me !! 

9)  SHIP ON STICK:  I have a hard earned collection ! These trophies are a wonderful souvenir.

10)  ALL AGES & BACKGROUNDS :  On Carnival I love to see kids, especially dancing with their grandparents.  One has not lived until you have marched through the atrium singing.. "Doctor Seuss on the loose"   .  It was a stoke of genius when Carnival discovered that blue collar types also like cruise ships.   

We actually feel the same. After 5 Carnival cruises, we decided to branch out and explore a couple other lines. We cruised 2 on RCCL and 2 on NCL. We were WOWED, as the first line promised, and loved our free drink package and Freestyle Cruising concept with the second line, but we missed that Carnival Fun! We returned to Carnival this past March on the Breeze, and are so glad we did. We fell in love with cruising all over again. The Fun was back! Along with a wide variety of music playing everywhere, and far less nickel and dimeing, as we were pressured on the other two. We will be leaving on another Carnival cruise in just over a month, and then another, a B2B in April for our 50th Anniversary. 😎🛳🌴🏖🍸🍹🍷 

[sanmarcosman]

46 minutes ago, grandmarnnurse said:

We actually feel the same. After 5 Carnival cruises, we decided to branch out and explore a couple other lines. We cruised 2 on RCCL and 2 on NCL. We were WOWED, as the first line promised, and loved our free drink package and Freestyle Cruising concept with the second line, but we missed that Carnival Fun! We returned to Carnival this past March on the Breeze, and are so glad we did. We fell in love with cruising all over again. The Fun was back! Along with a wide variety of music playing everywhere, and far less nickel and dimeing, as we were pressured on the other two. We will be leaving on another Carnival cruise in just over a month, and then another, a B2B in April for our 50th Anniversary. 😎🛳🌴🏖🍸🍹🍷 

How did Cunard compare to Carnival for you both? 

[evandbob]

I haven't sailed Cunard, but I'll guess at a few things that line does better than Carnival:

 

1) They handle embarkation and debarkation smoother than the Carnival process. (Actually, I've sailed MSC, Disney, NCL, Celebrity and Princess and they all do better than Carnival in this area and I say this from being a Diamond on Carnival)

 

2) Cunard enforces their dress code.

 

3) Cunard's enrichment lectures and discussions are superior since Carnival rarely has any (Alaska being an exception)

 

4) Food and menu selections are better on Cunard.

 

5)  Decor throughout the ship is classier than Carnival's. (Again, just about any other line puts Farkus' inspired decor to shame)

 

I'm sure if this would get posted on the Cunard thread, their devotees would have many more reasons to claim why their line of choice overwhelms a Carnival experience.

 

Since the subject is objective, preference depends on one's own experience and expectations.  On Carnival threads, we often hear posters say lower your expectations to have a fun cruise, I doubt that ever gets mentioned on Cunard threads.  The only time I used to hear "Exceeds expectations" on Carnival was back when the CD would beg pax to pick that choice when pencilling in their opinions on the cruise survey.

[sanmarcosman]

23 minutes ago, evandbob said:

I haven't sailed Cunard, but I'll guess at a few things that line does better than Carnival:

 

1) They handle embarkation and debarkation smoother than the Carnival process. (Actually, I've sailed MSC, Disney, NCL, Celebrity and Princess and they all do better than Carnival in this area and I say this from being a Diamond on Carnival)

 

2) Cunard enforces their dress code.

 

3) Cunard's enrichment lectures and discussions are superior since Carnival rarely has any (Alaska being an exception)

 

4) Food and menu selections are better on Cunard.

 

5)  Decor throughout the ship is classier than Carnival's. (Again, just about any other line puts Farkus' inspired decor to shame)

 

I'm sure if this would get posted on the Cunard thread, their devotees would have many more reasons to claim why their line of choice overwhelms a Carnival experience.

 

Since the subject is objective, preference depends on one's own experience and expectations.  On Carnival threads, we often hear posters say lower your expectations to have a fun cruise, I doubt that ever gets mentioned on Cunard threads.  The only time I used to hear "Exceeds expectations" on Carnival was back when the CD would beg pax to pick that choice when pencilling in their opinions on the cruise survey.

You assume a lot. 

[sanmarcosman]

1 minute ago, fyree39 said:

Have you been on Cunard? I've been on one line that absolutely has better food than Carnival, but you pay dearly for that experience. 

Please read my earlier post for the answer.

[linz98144]

Cunard is owned by Carnival Corporation. They aren't supposed to be the same or even compared. Apples to oranges. 

 

For reference Carnival also owns: Princess, Holland America, Costa, P&O, Seabourn, and Aida. Each offer their own pros and cons. 

[LandlockedCruiser01]

18 hours ago, Eli_6 said:

People still know how to ballroom dance?

 

I took ballroom as a child and at my wedding had to dance with my Dad because, well, no one else knew how.   

 

I know how to ballroom dance: box step, turning box, forward step, and promenade.   That's about it.  I'm sure many Cunard cruisers would blow me out of the water when it comes to waltz or foxtrot.

 

I never used my ballroom dance skills on Carnival.  But I know swing too, so I danced it with a few ladies I met.  It's possible to swing dance to most modern pop songs, since they're written in 4/4 time.  Plus, with faster music, you have a wider margin of error, and can recover from a misstep much more easily.

Edited December 20, 2019 by LandlockedCruiser01

[nissach]

On 12/19/2019 at 8:50 AM, 1025cruise said:

And the reasons you state you prefer Carnival are the reasons those that cruise Cunard prefer Cunard. They choose that line for the experience.

I wouldn't call one line better than another, just offering a product that is different to appeal to a different audience.

Agreed!  At some point in my life, I may prefer Cunard over Carnival, I hope not, but I might??  Good to have the different types of cruises for all the different wants and needs of passengers.

[SMSACE6]

I have never sailed on Cunard, but do not rule it out completely.  However I doubt that I ever will cruise on them, due to price and itineraries, as well as departure ports.  But I don't rule it out.  Before I would sail Cunard, I would likely venture back to 'Celebrity first because they do offer those ports and itineraries that interest me.  

 

As far as snooty passengers go, I have cruised mostly on Carnival, and have met a few snoots on there as well LOL, sailed once on Celebrity, and met just a few snooty people, most were just like us, and it was a good cruise.  sailed once on Norwegian long long time ago, and cant remember meeting anyone snooty or otherwise.  

 

I think that everyone has a type of cruise they are looking for, and with a little internet research they can find what kind they look for, we all have different tastes with everything, so it is a good thing that there are multiple cruise lines out there to suit every kind of preference.  That said, you cant please all the people , all of the time.

 

At this point in my life, where I cant cruise or travel at all, I would be happy to experience any of the the cruise lines, and hope to do so again some day.

 

[WhaleTailFlCruiser]

12 hours ago, evandbob said:

I haven't sailed Cunard, but I'll guess at a few things that line does better than Carnival:

 

1) They handle embarkation and debarkation smoother than the Carnival process. (Actually, I've sailed MSC, Disney, NCL, Celebrity and Princess and they all do better than Carnival in this area and I say this from being a Diamond on Carnival)

 

2) Cunard enforces their dress code.

 

3) Cunard's enrichment lectures and discussions are superior since Carnival rarely has any (Alaska being an exception)

 

4) Food and menu selections are better on Cunard.

 

5)  Decor throughout the ship is classier than Carnival's. (Again, just about any other line puts Farkus' inspired decor to shame)

 

I'm sure if this would get posted on the Cunard thread, their devotees would have many more reasons to claim why their line of choice overwhelms a Carnival experience.

 

Since the subject is objective, preference depends on one's own experience and expectations.  On Carnival threads, we often hear posters say lower your expectations to have a fun cruise, I doubt that ever gets mentioned on Cunard threads.  The only time I used to hear "Exceeds expectations" on Carnival was back when the CD would beg pax to pick that choice when pencilling in their opinions on the cruise survey.

Honestly never heard or seen someone say lower your expectations on a Carnival Cruise 

[Tapi]

8 hours ago, WhaleTailFlCruiser said:

Honestly never heard or seen someone say lower your expectations on a Carnival Cruise 

No? It’s a very common “suggestion” here on Cruise Critic every time someone, who’s new to Carnival, asks what to expect from their first Carnival Cruise. I think it’s solid advice if the Carnival first timer is coming from more upscale cruise lines. 
 

With that said, I’ve read similar advice on the Cunard board. People will tell those coming from cruise lines like Silversea and Regent to lower their expectations when sailing on Cunard for the first time. It’s all relative.

 

 

[babs135]

A few years ago our travel agent put together a Christmas and New year package consisting of to and from New York on the QM2 and a 'middle cruise' to the Bahamas on the NCL Breakaway. As we were not familiar with the Breakaway I asked a number of questions on the forum and was surprised how many people were shocked by the pairing. Apparently the fact that we are senior citizens also had some people raising their eyebrows. One person even suggested that we should try and change ships!  Well guess what - we had a great time and wouldn't hesitate to sail NCL again.

My point is that there is a lot of choice out there and it probably pays to try other cruise lines otherwise you could be missing out.  Maybe if we find the right ship and itinerary we will try Carnival at some point in the future and you'll find me here asking lots of questions