What’s so “fun” about Carnival?

[Bound4Bermuda]

I’ve been diligently reading this board for the past few months in preparation for my first Carnival cruise. (Usually a Royal cruiser.) And I keep reading over and over that Carnival is more fun than any other cruiseline. But the activities listed as examples—trivia, Love & Marriage, Quest, the assorted belly flop contest and other pool games, etc—are the exact same games you’d find on Royal. So what am I missing that sets this cruiseline apart as “fun”? 

 

This is not meant to be antagonistic. Simply excited for my Venezia trip in 17 days and want a little more detail on what I have to look forward to. I feel like I’ve missed picking up on the key differentiator here when i keep reading how FUN it is—but not sure what the posters mean by that. So far, the biggest takeaway from months of reading here is that there are more comedy shows (but fewer production shows), and people seem to be big fans of Guy’s Burgers and the other lunch stands.

 

So, is Carnival truly more “fun,” or did their Fun Ship marketing campaign just really take hold? 

[asalligo]

 

[May1cruiser]

I think most mainline cruises are more similar than different. "Fun" is subjective. Most of our friends are loyal RCCL and tend to "look down" on Carnival. Works for me and allows us to enjoy our cruise with people more similar to us. We are laid back and enjoy relaxing vacation time. 

 

Not sure how to answer you question, guess you will find out in 16 days. 

[Joebucks]

Carnival has a fun vibe. In general, most people don't take themselves as seriously as they might on some other lines. I believe a lot of people who snub their noses at the thought of people having fun on Carnival, choose other lines. 

[cantw82cruise]

I think any cruise is as fun as you want to make it. I don't know you will have more fun on Carnival it's more about you. If you are a fun person and like to get out and meet people and participate any cruise will be fun. If you enjoy being quiet and sitting by yourself and reading any cruise will be for you. I don't think it's really the cruise line at all it the passengers. For me I am very low key and have worked hard all my life to get where I am. I have been on 30 Carnival cruises and have loved every one of them. I won't say we have never had any issues come up but it's all how you handle the issues and take things that make the cruise. We have friends that are mostly RC fans, so we do not cruise too often together. We have tried several times but I am too cheap to pay an extra $800 - $1600 dollars to go to the same places. I do think RC has bigger ships (I'm not a fan of big ships) and they offer things I would not do like rock climbing or ice skating, so those things don't mean anything to me. I will say Carnival has great food for me and I'm sure the other cruise lines do as well but for me if it's not broke don't fix it. When I put my first group cruise together in 2006 one of the people going mentioned Carnival is ok but they do not offer white glove service this is one of the main reasons I love Carnival. The staff is very friendly and polite. We like to talk to them and get to know them a little bit and hear their story. I have no idea if it is the same on other cruise lines or not. So enjoy your cruise and make it one of your favorite vacations you have ever been on.      

 

 

[kdr69]

1 hour ago, Bound4Bermuda said:

the assorted belly flop contest

How far back are you reading lol....For me its not just the activities but the entire atmosphere on board feels FUN.

[ontheweb]

4 minutes ago, kdr69 said:

How far back are you reading lol....For me its not just the activities but the entire atmosphere on board feels FUN.

And they even call the assistant cruise directors "The Fun Squad".

[Honolulu Blue]

2 hours ago, Bound4Bermuda said:

I’ve been diligently reading this board for the past few months in preparation for my first Carnival cruise. (Usually a Royal cruiser.) And I keep reading over and over that Carnival is more fun than any other cruiseline. But the activities listed as examples—trivia, Love & Marriage, Quest, the assorted belly flop contest and other pool games, etc—are the exact same games you’d find on Royal. So what am I missing that sets this cruiseline apart as “fun”? 

 

This is not meant to be antagonistic. Simply excited for my Venezia trip in 17 days and want a little more detail on what I have to look forward to. I feel like I’ve missed picking up on the key differentiator here when i keep reading how FUN it is—but not sure what the posters mean by that. So far, the biggest takeaway from months of reading here is that there are more comedy shows (but fewer production shows), and people seem to be big fans of Guy’s Burgers and the other lunch stands.

 

So, is Carnival truly more “fun,” or did their Fun Ship marketing campaign just really take hold? 

I think Carnival is really more fun.  I'll try to articulate some of the reasons why:

 

• Their Brand Ambassador, John Heald, tries hard to be funny and sometimes succeeds
• There are lots of fun activities on the schedule day and night
• There are lots of announcements about what fun activities are going on
• The Cruise Directors tend to be very visible and perky
• Some of the CDs try to inject part of the fun sides of their personalities into their announcements
• The "Fun Squad" does the best with whatever roles they're given
• Comedians are fun and funny and Carnival has more on each cruise than any other cruise line
• The production shows I've seen are fun, if low-key
• SHOWTIME! is fun for some, and that's unique to Carnival and its little Italian brother
• The passengers I've seen are somewhat less serious, more open to fun, and do more things that are fun than those on other cruise lines.  YMMV.
• The other crewmembers that I've interacted with are a bit more fun and bellyache about their jobs a little less than crew on other cruise lines I've been on, but this is definitely YMMV

 

Have a good time on the Venezia!  I have no doubt that you will if you let yourself!! 🙃

Edited June 30, 2023 by Honolulu Blue

[davy jones]

Carnival passengers don't judge you by your frequent cruiser status.

 

[notscb]

Having been on Carnival and RCL in the past year- the overall feeling on Carnival's ships seems more relaxed/laid back and the party atmosphere is the priority. The cruise directors like to say that "the party doesn't stop, it just moves to another place."

 

In reality, the two lines are more similar than they are different. The "fun" is always what you make of it.

[Earthworm Jim]

8 minutes ago, notscb said:

In reality, the two lines are more similar than they are different. The "fun" is always what you make of it.

 

Yeah, I don't think you'll find it that different.

[Joanne G.]

Our observation after our first few Carnival cruises, mostly on Conquest class ships, was that without the amusement park features of Royal Caribbean or the newer NCL ships, the Carnival cruise director and his or her staff made a particular effort to get people involved in FUN activities - dance lessons, pool games, passenger talent show, and so forth.   I remember one cruise director saying, "We want you to do something you've never done at home."   

 

While other cruise lines may have similar activities, we were struck by the strong focus on passenger involvement on our Carnival cruises. (Our previous cruises had been on HAL and older NCL ships.)  One of the funniest things we ever watched on a cruise was on Carnival - an impromptu competition between a team of men and a team of women to choreograph a water ballet around and in the pool.  🤣

[steveknj]

The one thing I noticed with Carnival as compared to NCL and RCCL, which are the other two lines I've sailed is that the CD are much more engaged and visible, and it goes all the way down through the cruise director's staff.  The very first cruise I took with them on the Dream, one of the fun squad staff was with us for our safety drill on the first day, and she was always smiling making jokes and such, and that's how the whole staff was.   They just exude fun, and it puts people at ease and more ready for fun.   I sailed NCL last summer 2x and I was bored.  The staff was boring, the CD was boring, and there was little life on the ship.  The two previous CCL cruises that was never the case.  I remember singing myself hoarse at the parties (and I'm generally NOT a big party person).  It was just so fun.   We will be on the Venezia end of July and we wanted to do Carnival because we wanted to have fun and NOT be bored.   The downside is sometimes it leads to drunken fights.    I guess that happens on all cruise ships, but for some reason Carnival has that reputation.  RCCL has a lot of activities to do, but less of a party atmosphere.

[shof515]

15 minutes ago, Joanne G. said:

One of the funniest things we ever watched on a cruise was on Carnival - an impromptu competition between a team of men and a team of women to choreograph a water ballet around and in the pool.  🤣

i seen that a few times. i wish they brought that back. it was amazing

[sanmarcosman]

We still have fun on our Carnival cruises after the 32 years we have sailed with them. Are there some fun activities we miss? Sure. I miss para-mutual betting and the excitement of the poolside horse races and skeet shooting from the fantail. Today there are two comedy acts a night which is a fun tradeoff. With Carnival our experience has been when one fun activity is discontinued something fun takes its place. 

[StephPS79]

I'll echo what some others have said, the overall atmosphere is just more fun, it's hard to describe without experiencing it.  But yes, it's going to be subjective.

 

Possibly it's the cruisers, possibly it's the activities, possibly crew.  I don't know.  But I'll say with certainty, while I prefer RCI ships - some are beautiful - I always have more fun on a Carnival cruise.

 

I do think the cruise director and the Fun Squad have a lot to do with it.  In my personal opinion, they have a lot more character than for sure any cruise director I've ever had on RCI.  I hardly remember even seeing the cruise director on any cruise, let alone recall any of them.  

 

Also, I think the frequency of activities, is better on Carnival.  Yes, they have a lot of similar types, but the schedule seems to be a bit fuller.  There are a lot of lulls during the day on an RCI cruise, I find myself getting bored, which is fine, I don't mind, I'll just go relax in the Solarium.  But just don't feel that way when cruising Carnival.  

[StephPS79]

P.S. Carnival definitely wins at deck parties.

[pc_load_letter]

I miss sexy legs, hairy chest and belly flop contests.

 

And does Carnival not do Hasbro game show any longer? We enjoyed that.

 

And back on the Inspiration and Imagination ships, staff and crew would have pool volleyball contests on the lido in the main pool.

Edited June 30, 2023 by pc_load_letter

[Honolulu Blue]

Just now, pc_load_letter said:

does Carnival not do Hasbro game show any longer? We enjoyed that.

I've heard that they did not resume these after the restart.  You and I are about the only ones that miss it. ☹️

[ObstructedView2]

4 hours ago, Bound4Bermuda said:

excited for my Venezia trip in 17 days and want a little more detail on what I have to look forward to.

 

Hi @Bound4Bermuda🙂

 

Here are 'Fun Times' from a recent 8-day Venezia June 19th sailing for you to read. Click on the link below. 

 

Carnival Venezia June 19th Fun Times

https://www.saintgregtravel.com/carnival-venezia-june-19-2023/

 

 

Have a terrific voyage!

 

 

 

 

🍹

[Old Fart Cruisers]

Of course, you will always find people who associate having FUN with just being stupid drunk.  Carnival definitely has more of those then you will find on Royal.

[carohs]

It's very subjective. I actually found myself very bored on CCL. Maybe it's Alaska cruisers, but there weren't that many people participating and the activities offered aren't what I consider "fun." They're more like laugh at yourself doing normally embarrassing things or watching other people do embarrassing things kind of fun. Or Trivia which is meh. The comedians on-board went for some dirty humor rather than intelligent jokes so although funny if drunk, not sober funny. However, I will say the first time I was aware of a CD or the role of the CD is sailing on Carnival. The fun squad is very present and engages with the passengers a lot more frequently. I could see how a shorter Caribbean sailing would be very fun. But it's about the general vibe and what you make of it.

[cxr133]

LOL someone in Marketing makes hundreds of thousands of dollars a year for this monikor  🙂

[ProgRockCruiser]

To me, the most "Fun" aspect of cruising on Carnival is the people - the crew especially, but the other pax too, like the MDR dinnertime table mates we get to know over the course of the cruise (yes, we like sharing a table!).

 

The on-board and port excursion activities available are fun too, of course, but other lines seem to have similar stuff on offer.  So that isn't the discriminator.

 

When we look back at our photos, we enjoy the various activities/sites at the ports, or the sunsets, or the selfies while playing mini-golf, but we get the most "fun" out of the photos of the crew - Alchemy and other bartenders usually, because we kinda hang out at such spots a fair bit and get to know them, and they interact and get to know you.  But the rest of the crew as well.

 

Oh, and usually the PBE - we have a couple of faves, but most of the time they bring a great fun vibe, and I don't know if that is as predictable on other lines. 

[Drew B 58]

I don’t know how to explain this, but there is something about the experience on a Carnival cruise that erases self consciousness.  I think you get a vibe right away that your fellow cruisers as well as the crew are not judgmental and they all want to see you have a good time.  I find myself acting looser and more free on Carnival than anywhere else in my life, where I tend to worry about how I am being perceived.  Heck, I DANCED (very poorly, I might add) at my last sailaway party, and I never dance!