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Help!!! Which Carnival Ship?

Eckleburg

By Eckleburg,
in Carnival Cruise Lines

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Eckleburg

Eckleburg

Posted
Posted

Hello All!

 

I am a brand newbie to cruising and am trying to decide on my first cruise in Jan. My wife and I have narrowed it down to 4 cruises but don't know which one to pick. They all end up being about the same price,so that doesn't matter. Any Insights would be greatly Appreciated!

The Ships Are:

Elation - Galveston, Progreso, Cozumel, Belize; Galveston,

Conquest - New Orleans; Montego Bay; Grand Cayman; Cozumel; New Orleans

Valor - Miami; Belize; Roatan Island; Grand Cayman; Cozumel; Miami, FL

Glory - Port Canaveral; Key West; Belize; Cozumel; Progreso; Port Canaveral.

Thanks!

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Littlegoo75

Littlegoo75

Posted
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Our first cruise together ( the husband and I ) was on the Pride out of Port Canaveral - which has been replaced by the Glory. I thought that was a great cruise for the first time cruiser. We will actually be doing that one again - and bringing our friends who will be first timers together. I think the itinerary offers a little of everything - Key West - party town, Belize - rugged adventure port, Cozumel- something for everyone, and Progresso - a great place to explore ruins.

Some people might say that a smaller ship would be good for first time cruisers, not me - I say start big. Why not? I can't wait to cruise on the Glory in November - it looks like a really fun ship. We'll probably do the Valor in 2005.

 

Carnival GLory 11/06/04

Carnival Legend 2/03 ( had to cancel at last minute)

Carnival Pride 4/27/02

Sitmar Fairsea 4/ 1983 ( I was just a little kid!!)

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Littlegoo75

Littlegoo75

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I think another factor to consider is where are you leaving from? For some reason, I find that the Elation rates are very low, but the airfare to get to Houston, and then the pain of getting to the port outweights the low rate, and older ship. I have read that the Port of New Orleans is a hassle, but if you have never been to N.O. before, it might be a great way to visit there and have a pre-cruise or post cruise party! I have also found that the airfare to get there is outrageous. On the other hand, Orlando is a cheap place to fly to, and you could do a few days pre or post cruise to do Disneyworld, Universal Studios etc. I found that Port Canaveral was a pleasant port to sail out of, and it's easy to hop on a bus to get from the airport to the port.

 

Carnival GLory 11/06/04

Carnival Legend 2/03 ( had to cancel at last minute)

Carnival Pride 4/27/02

Sitmar Fairsea 4/ 1983 ( I was just a little kid!!)

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pgmrdev

pgmrdev

Posted
Posted

Of all the visited ports you've listed, Grand Cayman was my favorite in the Western Caribbean.

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<font color="#FF0000">Grand Princess 2-2001</font>

<font color="#0000FF">Grand Princess 12-2001</font>

<font color="#FF8000">Carnival Paradise 3-2002</font>

<font color="#FF00FF">Carnival Destiny 10-2002</font>

<font color="#008000">Golden Princess 10-2003</font>

<font color="#0000A0">Carnival Legend 6-8-2004</font>

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</body>

</html>

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janey829

janey829

Posted
Posted

I loved Grand Cayman (gotta see the stingrays!) AND I loved Jamaica too. We were at Ocho Rios and not Montego Bay, but I'm sure they are somewhat similar. Also, the conquest is supposed to be a wonderful ship. That would be my vote!

 

You'll have a wonderful time, whatever you choose!

 

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<a href="http://www.escati.com/counter98/free_time_codes.htm">

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my destiny awaits.

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PINEVIEW01

PINEVIEW01

Posted
Posted

I agree with Littlegoo75, Elation is older, the airfare higher and a harder to get to port than the rest. We ruled it out last cruise for those reasons.

But, I didn't find New Orleans to be a hassle at all. We did a night pre-cruise and a day post. Loved it and Airport to port was the same as Miami or Tampa.

Port of calls, Grand Cayman, sting rays, and Cozemel are my favorites. I prefer three to four ports so, Conquest would win for me. If you prefer four I'd do Valor. I didn't care for Belize at all and have never done Roatan Island.

 

Check you air and transfers to make sure all four are still in the runningicon_smile.gif You'll love any cruise you go on.

 

Melody

 

Paradise, 9-5-04

Holiday, 4-10-04

Inspiration, 11-30-03

Inspiration, 1-26-03

Victory,3-31-02

Sensation, 11-28-98

Holiday, 3-19-94

 

 

 

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kymburley

kymburley

Posted
Posted

I recommend NO carnival ships. Go with Princess or Royal Caribbean. I just got off the Inspiration yesterday & it was a nightmare!!! It was my 3rd Carnival cruise. The 2nd one was bad and this one was worse!

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Littlegoo75

Littlegoo75

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A lot of it depends on you. If you like Eco-adventure type activities, you are going to really like Belize ( I heard Roatan is similar) IF you are more into shopping and glitz- you probably won't like Belize.

There are people out there that will say, "Carnival? Ewww... don't sail them". I had heard that over and over and I swore I wouldn't sail on Carnival. When we were doing research on cruises, we found the Itinerary on the Pride and really wanted to visit Belize, so we decided to give it a try. Now that I know Carnival isn't scary or low class as many had made me believe, I'm weary to try any of the other lines becuase I might not have as much fun. Personally, I would stick to the seven day or longer cruises and the newer ships because I'm not sure I would like the older ones as much, but that's just me. I think any of the ships would be fun, but it all comes down to personal preferance. Good luck!

 

Carnival GLory 11/06/04

Carnival Legend 2/03 ( had to cancel at last minute)

Carnival Pride 4/27/02

Sitmar Fairsea 4/ 1983 ( I was just a little kid!!)

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pkievet

pkievet

Posted
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Personally I did not enjoy Belize. I have been on two Carnival ships and ready to go on the Triumph later this month. I find the ships to be similar and would make decisions based on ports.

Bon Voyage!!!!!!!!!!!

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Littlegoo75

Littlegoo75

Posted
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From what I've read, it seems like people either love or hate Belize. I think the best way to prepare for Belize is to go in there knowing that it is a third world country, and that it isn't very developed. Also, unless you are planning on doing a shore excursion, there really isn't much to offer. There are a lot of fun excursions offered for Belize, for all levels of activity - it offers some of the best diving and snorkeling in the world from what I have read.

 

Carnival GLory 11/06/04

Carnival Legend 2/03 ( had to cancel at last minute)

Carnival Pride 4/27/02

Sitmar Fairsea 4/ 1983 ( I was just a little kid!!)

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palmtre2

palmtre2

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Glory and Valor are both newer ships. The Elation was docked next to us in Cozumel and I thought she looked alittle run down. I'd recommend the Glory - she was our first ship with the western itinerary and we couldn't have been happier.

 

countdown.cgi?trgb=000000&srgb=00ff00&prgb=00bfff&cdt=2004;4;10;16;0;00&timezone=GMT-0500

4/10 Easter aboard the GLORY

 

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kymburley

kymburley

Posted
Posted

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><font size="-1">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by PINEVIEW01:

Kymburley, what happened?<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

 

We were on the Empress deck, cabin E171. The air conditioner doesn't work well - you can feel the difference in air temperature as you walk down the corridor. The toilet didn't work for 2 days. The cabin next to mine, E169, and E171 had water running down between the walls. Their quick fix was to stuff towels in between the walls to soak up the water. Then they left the towels there and it molded and mildewed. The room stunk horribly and they told me that they couldn't smell anything. The ship was full so there was nowhere else to put us. They said they would shampoo the carpets and they never did. They said they would bring in a fan and they never did. My daughter has asthma and ended up in the red zone (for those who don't know - the red zone is an emergency situation) and we couldn't do anything in Belize or the last fun day at sea stuff.

 

Their "compensation" was 2 drink coupons and 2 5x7 photo coupons.

 

I am highly dissatisfied and would recommend for everyone to look into a different cruise line.

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dianacatherine

dianacatherine

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It depends on where you live. I don't think the Elation is difficult/stressful/expensive to get to, because I live in Texas and can just drive down, no airfare. However, I have not been on that ship yet so I can't rate it.

Any cruise you go on will be fun though, I'm sure. I would go for cheapest, but I'm stingy like that!

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alaskamt

alaskamt

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I am one of those that does not like Belize. Belize City was ugly, dirty and unsafe in the 70's and I hear it hasn't gotten any better. I am on a cruise - western Caribbean itinerary - in May/June and we will just stay on the ship and have the entire big boat to ourselves. Unless you dive, I would not recommend Belize. The NOLA itinerary would be my choice - I like all the ports - plus you get to start and end in NOLA. Any cruise can be fun, though.

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cruisinfamilytx

cruisinfamilytx

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I would take in to consideration where you live in relation to these 4 ships. We live outside of Houston. So, we did Galveston this time and would probably drive to New Orleans sometime to try the Conquest. Not having to fly made it so much nicer!

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Littlegoo75

Littlegoo75

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Kymburley,

That sounds horrible! I can't believe Carnival would only compensate you with pidly old coupons and a photo. They're lucky you're not suing based on what your daughter had to go through. You should have been reimbursed for the cruise and offered a discount on a future cruise. I can't blame you for not wanting to sail on Carnival again after that, but since I have had nothing but good experiences, I'll keep sailing with them until I don't. Every cruiseline has mishaps, and there are more chances of that on the older ships. That's why I stick to new ones.

 

Carnival GLory 11/06/04

Carnival Legend 2/03 ( had to cancel at last minute)

Carnival Pride 4/27/02

Sitmar Fairsea 4/ 1983 ( I was just a little kid!!)

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yst347

yst347

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For a January cruise I would choose the Valor. Leaving farther south is the best insurance against bad/cold weather in winter. Miami can have a cold snap now and then but is much more likely to be warm and sunny than even Port Canaveral.

 

We like to enjoy the warmth and sunshine all seven days not just the middle five.

 

Elation 11/2003

Conquest 01/2003

Jubilee 11/2002

Victory 02/2001

Destiny 02/2000

Geotide 11/1992

United States 06/1962

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Littlegoo75

Littlegoo75

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I would love to cruise out of New Orleans, but for some reason, everytime I try to find airfare to New Orleans, it's always super high. I can save several hundred for the two of us to fly to Orlando instead. It was the same thing out of New Mexico, when I lived there.

When we sailed out of Port Canaveral, it was a breeze. A smaller not so busy port, easy shuttle bus from the airport, and a couple days at Disneyworld or Universal Studios is always a nice way to spend the money we saved by sailing out of there instead.

 

Carnival GLory 11/06/04

Carnival Legend 2/03 ( had to cancel at last minute)

Carnival Pride 4/27/02

Sitmar Fairsea 4/ 1983 ( I was just a little kid!!)

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