Debate on Cruise line between friends

[Daisymae14]

Planning a trip for bday. I am a loyal RCCL girl, and so is my bff but my other 2 friends have only and always done Carnival.  Due to  bad things I hear so much of Carnival,  I wont cruise with them.

With that said...Can someone give me opinion on other cruise lines -that they have tried and really enjoyed as much as RCCL? We are going to meet in the middle and try something different. TIA! 

[mickiemac]

I have only cruised princess and Carnival and enjoyed both.

[Daisymae14]

Thank you! How was the food on Princess? I'm sure its hit it miss on different ships/cruise lines, but my friend that started cruising just RCCL after Carnival said how much better food was. So that is a big thing for all of us too..

[Heatherco]

I wouldn’t totally discount Carnival, but I would definitely try to book one of their newest ships.  We have sailed them before and had a wonderful time.  We also loved Princess and Celebrity.  We did, however, find Celebrity to be a little too quiet for us but that could have been the ship that particular week.

 

You may want to give Norwegian a try.  I know a lot of people that only sail  them and love it too.  But I would also only want to go on their newest and biggest ships. 

 

I do love RCCL ships, but I am confident that with the right ship, itinerary and group of friends you can have an amazing time.

 

I guess my suggestion is to pick the newest ship with the itinerary and price that fits your budgets best.  I’m sure it will be a wonderful trip!

Edited January 28, 2020 by Heatherco

[Daisymae14]

Thank you @Heatherco!  We are in much debate at the moment...lol We all love fun and sun, not full on day and night drinkers...just casual girl fun and relax!  Trying to pinpoint best itinerary, food and price. 5 day is perfect for us. ( age group 45-50 )

[cb at sea]

There's nothing wrong with Carnival....but a newer ship is the better choice.  Honestly, they are all more alike than different, until you get into the  "luxury" lines.

[Canadian Cruiser98]

While I wasn't the biggest fan of Carnival, I also wouldn't shy away from cruising with them again if the price was right. You do have to adjust your expectations, since the MDR food was not the same level of quality as RCCL, and I found the activities to be somewhat lacking. However, there were things my group enjoyed more with Carnival - they've got some great casual dining options on the newer ships (we thoroughly enjoyed the Blue Iguana Cantina and Guy's Burger Joint) and our cabin felt very spacious and well appointed (though this was on the newest ship at the time, so not sure about older ships). At the end of the day, Carnival's lower pricepoint remains its biggest plus for me.

 

And for the other cruise lines, we really enjoyed Celebrity and Princess - I found both their food, service and ship upkeep were very much in line with RCCL. Wouldn't cruise with Norwegian again, though, since we really didn't enjoy the MDR food or service there. Might've just been an unlucky experience, but it seemed to us like to get a good dining experience with NCL, you have to pay more for the specialty restaurants.

Edited January 28, 2020 by Canadian Cruiser98

[Crazy planning mom]

How about Celebrity?  They are a sister line to Royal and have very good food.

[Want2Cruise 701]

3 minutes ago, Crazy planning mom said:

How about Celebrity?  They are a sister line to Royal and have very good food.

I agree.  Plus if you only have sailed on Royal, you status will carry over.  If you are Diamond on RC, you will be Elite on Celebrity.  The only thing is they don't offer much by the way of shorter itineraries.  They have a few, but most will be 7+ nighters.  

[Daisymae14]

Wow! Thank you guys! Carnival does have the price point that is better and I guess I cant discount it. I haven't tried Celebrity or MSC either. I was always curious of NCL, but again heard food didnt live up to expectations and felt they wanted what they paid for. They felt cruise price was on higher end and food was so-so.

[Daisymae14]

Great to know @Want2Cruise 701!!!

[John&LaLa]

Carnival Mardi Gras

[Another_Critic]

3 minutes ago, John&LaLa said:

Carnival Mardi Gras

 

Song of Norway

[John&LaLa]

2 minutes ago, Another_Critic said:

 

Song of Norway

 

Carnival recycles names.

It's their new LNG Mega ship out of PC

 

If I was going for nostalgia, I would have used Carnivale😉

[cruiserhal]

In order of preference:  Celebrity, Holland America and NCL in the Haven only.  Hope this helps.

[Heatherco]

I would also add..when are you going? Ages?

 

Like I mentioned in my earlier post, I do think Celebrity is a quieter, more refined cruise line.  The ships are beautiful, but I prefer the activities on Royal and Carnival.

I would look at the Voyager or Oasis class ships on Royal.  You can see pictures, etc on beyondships.c-m.

Edited January 28, 2020 by Heatherco

[SewMuch]

Royal cruisers who have never cruised Carnival: "All Carnival ships are full of obnoxious drunks". Not True.

Carnival cruisers who have never cruised Royal:"All Royal Caribbean ships are full of stuffy people who hate to have fun". Not True.

If you go with an open mind and a good attitude you will have a great time on either cruise line. TRUE

 

[cruisinfanatic]

1 hour ago, Daisymae14 said:

Planning a trip for bday. I am a loyal RCCL girl, and so is my bff but my other 2 friends have only and always done Carnival.  Due to  bad things I hear so much of Carnival,  I wont cruise with them.

With that said...Can someone give me opinion on other cruise lines -that they have tried and really enjoyed as much as RCCL? We are going to meet in the middle and try something different. TIA! 

Like what?

[jakeil7]

I don’t trust the management at CCL which is why I won’t sail any of their lines. But I’m probably overreacting. 
 

The one thing you should pay attention to is density. How many people versus the gross tonnage and the crew to passenger ratio. Carnival ships seem to pack far too many people on board. 

[Cruiser_1977]

I think it's a bit unfair to judge a whole cruise line based on hearsay. I have sailed Carnival, NCL, RCCL and Princess (all since June 2018). I have reviews of each in my signature. They all have their bright spots. I'd be glad to answer any specific questions. 🙂

[jakeil7]

15 minutes ago, JennyB1977 said:

 

I think it's a bit unfair to judge a whole cruise line based on hearsay

 

Which hearsay are you referring to?

[mom2tcdx2]

I have to say I have sailed the most on Carnival and the least on Royal.  Personally I found all lines to be more similar than different.  We have done NCL, Princess. MSC, Disney, Carnival and Royal.  MSC has some stunning ships, not as crazy about their food - have found some excellent bartenders though and their shows are pretty awesome.  NCL I prefer their specialty dining and don't do their main dining rooms.  Other than Disney the best service we have had among any dining staff has been on Carnival (we tend to do mostly 7 day or longer cruises).  

 

There also is a completely different atmosphere on say 3 to 5 day cruises than longer ones.  I found our 3 day cruise on Royal to be as much a party ship as any 3 day cruise on Carnival.  

[Cruiser_1977]

@jakeil7 OP stated "Due to  bad things I hear so much of Carnival,  I wont cruise with them."

[jakeil7]

13 minutes ago, JennyB1977 said:

@jakeil7 OP stated "Due to  bad things I hear so much of Carnival,  I wont cruise with them."

Now I understand. But you kind of have to go with the heresay because taking cruises isn’t our full time job. Unless someone here knows of a job opening 😝

[Cruiser_1977]

@jakeil7 I agree to an extent. However, all mainstream cruise lines get bad reviews. They also all have die hard loyalists. I suppose I am just the type of person that wants to experience and determine for myself before I write something off completely. While Carnival is not at the top of my current list, for a fantastic (in my opinion) itinerary and price, I'd sail them again.