Going on Carnival for the first time

[babydid]

We are looking at going on a Carnival Cruise. We went on RC last year. It is going to be two lady's and two young girls(7&11). We are looking at going on the ship Elaton. Does anyone know about this ship and how does Carnival compare to RC? Thanks.

[taszmom]

The differences between the 2 cruise lines are minimal. You will find opinions about likes and dislikes about both. You will have a great time on Carnival! Enjoy!

[yarlenna]

Elation is one of Carnivals middle-aged ships of the Fantasy class. The decour is a bit over the top. The food is good and the entertainment should be at least as good as RCI. RCI's ships varry by class as well. It would be easier to compare if I knew which class of RCI ship you sailed on.

[cruisinqt]

If you're looking at the Elation, it's out of Galveston. So your choices in the same price range in the Galveston port would be RCCL's Rhapsody Of The Seas, Carnival's Elation, and the Norwegian Sea. Princess has a few sailings out of Galveston this fall and the prices aren't too bad either. You might want to check them out. I went on the Rhapsody this last January and had a blast. The Elation is also a lot of fun. I think the differences between these two ships is very little. Both are about the same size at around 70,000 tons. Both ships have great food and service. The Elation is a little older and slightly worn, but I think their shows are much better than Rhapsody's. Though Rhapsody's adults only solarium with a pool and bar is absolute heaven! There are a lot of pros and cons on both ships. You might look at some of the reader reviews of both of these ships here at CC to help you make up your mind.

The Norwegian Sea is a little smaller than the Elation and Rhapsody. But they have freestyle cruising which is appealing to a lot of people. There is no set time for dinner and you can eat whenever you want to. I didn't really care for it, but I know others who absolutely adore it. Their shows are nice and the food is good. But I found them a little slower paced than Carnival with less activities to do. If you're looking for a laid back ship where you can relax, this is the cruise for you. If you want things a little faster paced and are really into food, go on the Rhapsody. If you want a young, fun crowd, and are really into the Vegas style shows, go on the Elation. I hope this helps. Happy cruising!

[DeckCadet]

technically, Rhapsody entered service in 1997, while Elation did in march 1998. :)
Fantasy class ships are very easy to navigate, fun, and generally great vessels. Elation was next-to-last of this class and the decor is probably a lot less gaudy than some of the earlier ones. I came to Paradise (the next ship of the class) fresh off of 3 of RCI's voyager ships in the space of a year and a half. I found CCL to be an improvement in a lot of categories. So far I've seen a lot of good opinions of Elation from former RCI cruisers.

[JonV]

I was on the Elation during its maiden voyage from Miami to San Francisco and then just on last September during its final California voyage and I absolutely love this ship. Since my first time on the Elation I traveled on Rhapsody of the Seas and also love that ship. I took many pictures on my Elation voyage and have compiled them on my website.

[url]http://home.earthlink.net/~jonv/elat.html[/url]

The two lines are similar but I liked the food choices better on Carnival. I did think that Rhapsody of the Seas was a stunning ship with plenty of green glass out to the sea and the pool deck on Rhapsody was much better laid out.

I do hope you will enjoy your cruise on the Elation and hope the girls will love it too. I see lots of happy children on Carnival.

[babydid]

Thank you all for the information. I will do my checking and let you guys know what we decide. Thanks again.