Jumping ship to Carnival

[kangforpres]

Well after I take my next 3 HAL cruises. They made me an offer I couldn't refuse. Free Balcony on a 22 day trans-pac from Brisbane to Seattle in April/May 2023. Just had to pay taxes an fees. They gave me matching casino status with Caesars rewards. So I'm a Very Import Fun Person with them even though I have never cruised on them.

 

It's the Luminoso  which was a Costa ship. So I'm sure it won't be the typical Carnival vibe given that it a very long duration cruise for that line.

 

Happy Sailing to all, no mater what cruise line makes you the best offer.

 

-Paul

[brovol]

Cruises are like pizza and s*x, even when they are not the best, they are still really good.  We've been on multiple cruises with each of the mainstream cruise lines, including Carnival; and while Carnival isn't our favorite (or even in the top three), we have always had a great time on our Carnival cruises.  I find Carnival a little more crowded than most, and probably a rowdier passenger base, but the ships are very nice, good entertainment, and the food has always been very decent and sometimes excellent in our experience.  When we see a good deal on a Carnival cruise, and cant find a Princess, or other cruise that comes very close, I don't hesitate to book the Carnival ship.

[kangforpres]

I think since it's a 22 day trans-pac there will not be any of the traditional Carnival 3 day cruise party types on board, they have a new passenger code of conduct just in case. Lots of sea days between Tahiti and Hawaii and then Hawaii to Seattle

[shipshape sam]

4 hours ago, kangforpres said:

Well after I take my next 3 HAL cruises. They made me an offer I couldn't refuse. Free Balcony on a 22 day trans-pac from Brisbane to Seattle in April/May 2023. Just had to pay taxes an fees. They gave me matching casino status with Caesars rewards. So I'm a Very Import Fun Person with them even though I have never cruised on them.

 

It's the Luminoso  which was a Costa ship. So I'm sure it won't be the typical Carnival vibe given that it a very long duration cruise for that line.

 

Happy Sailing to all, no mater what cruise line makes you the best offer.

 

-Paul

Enjoy trying Carnival.  I can only relate that we have had great cruise and good cruises.  If you sail any line long enough, the odds of going from a great to a good cruise rise.

 

We are on HAL and this will be our 3rd HAL, with last one over 10 years ago.  We did do a Carnival cruise to Key West and Havana just before the reinstated ban.  The ship was old and the mixed drink selection was limited to what they had on a sheet of paper, the itinerary was great.  We like Princess, Celebrity and Royal Caribbean too.    We are more into itineraries/pricing now, but you do have to dig into the pricing to make sure you do NOT assume feature/benefit is there and get a bad surprise once onboard. WE did not fully understand the 'included' speciality dining perk, but would most likely gone to both restaurants plus Rudi's.

[atexsix]

We won't do it again unless it's an itinerary we can't pass up, free or not.  While Princess took great care of us the one and only time we strayed, it was NOT the familiar HAL ship/routine for us.  Although the Princess crew were excellent! 

 

But believe me, you'll notice you're not on HAL the moment you walk into the terminal. 

[AFNavigator]

2 hours ago, kangforpres said:

I think since it's a 22 day trans-pac there will not be any of the traditional Carnival 3 day cruise party types on board, they have a new passenger code of conduct just in case. Lots of sea days between Tahiti and Hawaii and then Hawaii to Seattle

That 22 day length is the key plus the fact that airfare will be pricier than round trips to most US ports.  This won't be anywhere close to the traditional Carnival 3-7 night Caribbean party cruise or holiday cruises with 1,000+ kids onboard (we were on the Breeze during Christmas 2018: 3,690 dual occupancy capacity, 4,800+ actual passengers onboard with tons of strollers).

 

This should be a fun, relaxing cruise with very few first-time cruisers and relatively few kids.  Carnival will still make sure to make the ship have a fun party vibe, just not the out-of-control party crowd they have been experiencing lately on a number of their Caribbean cruises.

[FlaMariner]

2 hours ago, atexsix said:

We won't do it again unless it's an itinerary we can't pass up, free or not.  While Princess took great care of us the one and only time we strayed, it was NOT the familiar HAL ship/routine for us.  Although the Princess crew were excellent! 

 

But believe me, you'll notice you're not on HAL the moment you walk into the terminal. 

 

Our experience as well.....

 

We "left the reservation" and cruised Princess last March....never again.  

 

[rkacruiser]

I have been very pleased with all 4 of the Carnival cruises that I have sailed.  My traveling companion has only HAL and Carnival experiences and she has been pleased as well.  The "vibe" is different.  Whether the Carnival Luminoso retains the Costa "vibe", who knows.  The ship's decor won't change, I am sure.  But, from what I am learning, Carnival is returning to its Italian roots as to staffing, etc.  That's good, in my opinion.  

[Stateroom_Sailor]

We did a 14 night Carnival cruise, and it was an older more mellow crowd.  At least, that's how it started... 

 

Too many 7 night people doing their first longer cruise, got frustrated and irritable the longer the sailing went along.  The majority had top status, so some didn't like their express lines being longer, or having to wait for lower tiers to disembark for excursions.  The last day ended with line cutting and shoving, profanity wars, someone rubbing their snqotty hands over the buffet Jello, and spousal abuse was out in the open.  One passenger even threw a plate at staff because she wouldn't cook an omelet, at a station with no such equipment.

 

That''s besides the poor maintenance and food quality.

 

I would honestly rather do a 5-7 night fall cruise if I had to, where the crowd isn't wild, and lots of enthusiastic first time cruisers.

 

Edited October 26, 2022 by Stateroom_Sailor

[JeffElizabeth]

4 hours ago, FlaMariner said:

 

Our experience as well.....

 

We "left the reservation" and cruised Princess last March....never again.  

 

Why didn't you like Princess? We did a Princess cruise in October and loved their suite. Only complaint was three specialty restaurants were closed. The food was not as quality as Holland America but still OK. Did a Holland cruise in October to Hawaii.  Same size ships, but the Konigsdam was more full. 

[FlaMariner]

8 hours ago, JeffElizabeth said:

Why didn't you like Princess?

 

 

1) Had to beg nightly for fixed dining, same waiters. (we did it but wore us out)

2). No decent live music (even jazz club band was not what I call jazz)

3). Had to arrive at 11am if wanted to eat at the pizza restaurant (that was not as good as the rave reviews)

4). Room was sparse....balcony cabin with open closet, no furniture to sit on, smaller deck space

5). Lido buffet was a treasure hunt daily.....had to go here, there and yonder.....difficult to get eggs....slow service...could not grab coffee/water.....orange juice glasses were tiny....food not good.

6). no decent laundry package.  dorm room DIY haul your undies down the hall. LOL. 

7). Medallion to do stuff did not work......was a marketing joke IMO....Medallion pre cruise was a frustrating waste of time and energy I can never get back.

8).  Key card is the size of a quarter....lost it on day 2

9).  Pool deck does not have retractable wall...could not use when bad weather

10.) Lido burgers were like school carnival

11).  Breakfast in the MDR had limited menu with just one daily special.

12).  Internet did not work (lots of growling passengers)

13). Nowhere to walk when raining (no promenade walk around deck...tried it once and got reprimanded for being out there)

 

That's off the top of my head.....I'm sure there are more.....This was from our Princess Sky TA in March. 

 

Staff was good.....but can't explain why but HAL staff is a notch above...that is there "secret sauce" in our opinion. 

 

....nothing fits us better than Holland America Line.....We've sailed Carnival, Celebrity, NCL and Princess over the years and we know where home is for us.  

 

 

 

[Hlitner]

As one who has cruised on 16 different cruise lines (including many with HAL and 3 with Carnival) I would respectfully caution the OP that there are some major differences between Carnival and HAL.  The target groups for those two lines are completely different.  That being said, DW and I have enjoyed nearly all of our cruises and we are good at adapting our schedule, wants, and needs to each line and ship.  But we have also seen many other fellow cruisers who do not adapt well and find themselves miserable when on a line not of their liking.  

 

I will be very honest and say that we would not suggest Carnival to most HAL cruise lovers.  While we found Carnival fine for a family cruise (and we were somewhat younger at the time) it might be a shock to one used to HAL :).  For HAL cruisers looking to try another line we would suggest Celebrity, some Princess cruises, MSC's Yacht Club, Azamara, Oceania, and any of the luxury cruise lines.

 

Hank

[FlaMariner]

10 hours ago, JeffElizabeth said:

Why didn't you like Princess?

 

14) The atrium was like being at the food court in the mall or the Cleveland Marriott lobby

15) Lido/pool deck is LOUD with movies and gambling stuff playing even during the day

16) hydro suite pool is tucked in the inner area of the ship with no windows....hyrdo pool not as good as Pinnacle HAL.  not nearly as nice as HAL with the seating areas, windows, other features (ice bucket), etc. 

Edited October 26, 2022 by FlaMariner

[rkacruiser]

9 hours ago, FlaMariner said:

hydro suite pool is tucked in the inner area of the ship with no windows....hyrdo pool not as good as Pinnacle HAL

 

The Royal Class ship's hydrothermal pool/thermal suite is lacking in comparison with HAL's.  Vista, Signature, Pinnacle Class ships:  all were more pleasing to me than what I experienced on Royal Princess.  But, the Pinnacle Class hydrothermal pool has been improved with a seating ledge near the steps into the pool as well as a more convenient placement of the buttons to get the bubbly-bubbly feature of the pool restarted instead of one of the bathers having to get out of the pool and push the buttons.  

 

11 hours ago, FlaMariner said:

Staff was good.....but can't explain why but HAL staff is a notch above...that is there "secret sauce" in our opinion. 

 

This has been their "secret sauce" for decades!  It is the nationality of the majority of their crew:  Indonesians and Filipino.  When another nationality of Stewards was introduced in the Pinnacle Grill, several years ago, their service was "cold/impersonal" and that "experiment" didn't last too long.  

[JeffElizabeth]

Fair points. I was just curious.  My wife and I can't even agree on lines. She prefers HAL, I prefer Oceania.  So we are going on a 35 day cruise on the Zuiderdam next July. 

[FlaMariner]

I'd probably prefer Oceania too but that's way above my pay grade......

 

Enjoy the Zuiderdam!

[Stateroom_Sailor]

4 hours ago, FlaMariner said:

I'd probably prefer Oceania too but that's way above my pay grade......

 

Enjoy the Zuiderdam!

 

We're eyeballing Oceania too, I got a slew of mailings from them over the summer.  Some of their sailings seem very reasonable for the itinerary and what's included, more expensive than HAL, but cheaper than their direct competitors.  I purchased a future cruise certificate for Azamara on my last Celebrity cruise, and it doesn't make much of a dent in the price difference.