Help Appreciated

[lswilmot]

I received an offer from Carnival Cruise Lines. The offer is for a free balcony room, $400 OBC and $1,000 Funplay credits.  Since I have not sailed Carnival in at least 6 years, I am struggling about which ship/itinerary to choose.  Any suggestions?  All help is greatly appreciated.  TIA

[firefly333]

Are you driving or flying to a port. Which one. I'd start there. My favourite is dream class.

[TNcruising02]

The larger the ship, the more there is to do.  The largest ships are newer.  I have sailed on several different Carnival class ships and prefer the dream class, which is the Dream, Breeze, and Magic.  But some prefer the Vista class and others prefer smaller ships.  

If you could share some of the things that you are interested in, then it will be easier to give opinions.  Also, are there any ports that look interesting to you to visit?  Your interests and preferences will be helpful.



 

[firefly333]

I did vista in spite of a lot of bad reviews. Magic so far is my favourite ship, though dream is good too but magic got a few extras dream didn't.

 

Vista. They enclosed the promenade where on other classes you walk along and can see the ocean. One of my favourites is the bbq and on vista it was outside deck 5 in the heat. Conquest class they put it upstairs where fish and chips used to be. Didn't like it outside in the sun. Potato salad and Cole slaw are better not sitting in the sun. I join those who didn't care for vista.

 

But take whichever is most convenient 

[Bgcruising]

8 minutes ago, firefly333 said:

take whichever is most convenient

 

This

[lazydayz]

My picks would be Mardi Gras, Horizon, and Magic, in that order. 

[lswilmot]

We can drive or fly (from upstate NY).  Have been on many cruises, for the last few years mostly Royal Caribbean and ready to try something else.  Might like to try west coast/Pacific Ocean/Panama Canal.  I also have 2 people ( all three of us are 65 and older) that use scooters and we'll need a handicap accessible room.

 

Thanks

[TNcruising02]

Coming over from Royal, you might like one of Carnival's largest ships the best.  We cruised on the Panorama out of California last December.  It's a new ship and very nice with a lot to offer.  I am not sure about Panama Canal cruises though.  We are actually thinking of trying out the Mardi Gras next year. 

 In my opinion, Royal ships are a bit fancier, so I think you might like one of Carnival's newer ships such as the Panorama, Vista, Horizon, or Mardi Gras.  

[PhillyFan33579]

If you are picking by ship alone, I would go with either a Dream or Spirit class ship. In my opinion, Carnival ships don’t compare to RCI ships. Even older Voyager class ships are nicer than Carnival’s newest Vista class ships. It’s not even close comparing Carnival ships to Quantum and Oasis class ships. I don’t think you can go wrong booking a Panama Canal cruise. 

[xDisconnections]

If you’re itching to try a new cruise line and you’re coming from Royal, I’d probably recommend Celebrity or Princess for a bit more of an elevated experience. Although a free cruise offer is nice, I value my time more and would hate to waste precious time on an experience that doesn’t meet my needs. These days, my cruise line preferences are a mix of Royal and Princess so I can balance sophistication and entertainment as needed.

Edited August 4, 2020 by xDisconnections

[Essiesmom]

Are the three of you going to share a cabin, with two scooters?  I would first look for a ship with HC cabins for 3.  EM

[firefly333]

2 hours ago, lswilmot said:

We can drive or fly (from upstate NY).  Have been on many cruises, for the last few years mostly Royal Caribbean and ready to try something else.  Might like to try west coast/Pacific Ocean/Panama Canal.  I also have 2 people ( all three of us are 65 and older) that use scooters and we'll need a handicap accessible room.

 

Thanks

He cabins on rcl are about double the size of regular cabins. On carnival they are the same size as regular cabins, though regular cabins on ccl a bit larger than rcls.

 

Rcl HTC cabins are bigger, just be aware of this.

 

I too cruise both lines. 

[EZ1]

Carnival's Legend & Miracle ships are bit older but very comfortable & smaller. Many interesting places on the ships. They do Panama Canal, Alaska, Hawaii, & Europe.Very different ship experience than all the other Carnivals.

[drsel]

I received an offer from Carnival Cruise Lines. The offer is for a free balcony room, $400 OBC and $1,000 Funplay credits.  Since I have not sailed Carnival in at least 6 years, I am struggling about which ship/itinerary to choose.  Any suggestions?  All help is greatly appreciated.  TIA

Why there is a terrific offer!
I would go and see which is the most expensive cruise and choose that, provide it is close to my residence.
how much you normally play every day on a Carnival cruise?

[PhillyFan33579]

7 hours ago, xDisconnections said:

If you’re itching to try a new cruise line and you’re coming from Royal, I’d probably recommend Celebrity or Princess for a bit more of an elevated experience. Although a free cruise offer is nice, I value my time more and would hate to waste precious time on an experience that doesn’t meet my needs. These days, my cruise line preferences are a mix of Royal and Princess so I can balance sophistication and entertainment as needed.

I think you bring up a good point. I cruised with Carnival for years before cruising with RCI. While we enjoyed our cruises on Carnival, both my wife and I thought RCI was a definite step up. It got to the point by early this year pre-COVID we had 8 cruises booked, all on RCI and Celebrity ships. Doing it the other way around like the OP is possibly considering could lead to disappointment. I would never say I wouldn’t cruise on Carnival again since I have gotten to know a lot of crew members well over the years, but the experience on Carnival is definitely a notch below other cruise lines in my opinion. 

[kingston13]

These offers are usually for certain cruises. If you click into the offer on the site you will see which cruises the offer applies to.

[jerseyjjs]

As far as ease of scooter transport, I would say that the Spirit class ships would be the easiest.  Plus, the Vista class, and Dream class have a lot of features I think you wouldn't be interested in (ropes course, water slides, etc.).   Spirit class ships are a much more convenient size to get around without anything impeding an main arteries on the ship.

[xDisconnections]

29 minutes ago, jerseyjjs said:

As far as ease of scooter transport, I would say that the Spirit class ships would be the easiest.  Plus, the Vista class, and Dream class have a lot of features I think you wouldn't be interested in (ropes course, water slides, etc.).   Spirit class ships are a much more convenient size to get around without anything impeding an main arteries on the ship.

Sorry but a ropes course does nothing to impress me when the competition has Oasis and Quantum Class. Even Voyager class ships are more refined than Carnival’s newest. The OP is going to set himself up for disappointment by comparing it to Royal every step of the way. He should experiment with the next tier of upper mid-scale instead of downgrading to, well, budget minded.

[chasinraynbowz]

What ships are part of the offer?  

[canes20]

29 minutes ago, xDisconnections said:

Sorry but a ropes course does nothing to impress me when the competition has Oasis and Quantum Class. Even Voyager class ships are more refined than Carnival’s newest. The OP is going to set himself up for disappointment by comparing it to Royal every step of the way. He should experiment with the next tier of upper mid-scale instead of downgrading to, well, budget minded.

Why do you chime in if you do Royal and Princess? OP got a great offer and asking opinions for Carnival ships.

[xDisconnections]

28 minutes ago, canes20 said:

Why do you chime in if you do Royal and Princess? OP got a great offer and asking opinions for Carnival ships.

Because I also sail on Carnival. It’s just not my preference.

[jerseyjjs]

1 hour ago, xDisconnections said:

Sorry but a ropes course does nothing to impress me when the competition has Oasis and Quantum Class. Even Voyager class ships are more refined than Carnival’s newest. The OP is going to set himself up for disappointment by comparing it to Royal every step of the way. He should experiment with the next tier of upper mid-scale instead of downgrading to, well, budget minded.

 

 

 

I was referring to the OP's request of what CARNIVAL ship would be right for their group, a group that will be using scooters on board.  Don't understand your comparison at me.

[Radiioman46]

Now is not a good time to book a cruise on any ship or cruise line. Keep your money and wait this thing out. 

[lazydayz]

8 minutes ago, Radiioman46 said:

Now is not a good time to book a cruise on any ship or cruise line. Keep your money and wait this thing out. 

 

Disagree with this when Carnival is offering a free balcony and other goodies.  You just pay taxes and fees, which are fully refundable at any time.  So why not book, and if it gets cancelled, you get $600 in OBC added to your free room.  

[Radiioman46]

3 minutes ago, lazydayz said:

 

Disagree with this when Carnival is offering a free balcony and other goodies.  You just pay taxes and fees, which are fully refundable at any time.  So why not book, and if it gets cancelled, you get $600 in OBC added to your free room.  

Go ahead. You may end up on a cruise where the protocols are such that you hate every moment of the cruise in your free balcony. Who knows? That's my point. 

Edited August 4, 2020 by Radiioman46