Holiday Opinions Requested Please

[teacher2cruiser]

I've never cruised with Carnival, but my mother (who's never cruised before) and I are thinking of booking the Holiday for November. I understand it's a smaller ship, and my concerns are the feeling of the movement while sailing, and a few negative things I've read. I read negative things about the Grandeur of the Seas (RCL) before we were on her, too, but honestly we LOVED it! I'd like to hear opinions of what some of you Holiday veterans think of it for my mom's (almost 70) first cruise. I know she will spend time in the casino, and I enjoy sitting in the sun. I'm familiar with Cozumel, but haven't been to Progreso? I appreciate all opinions, positive or negative. THANKS!

[RVman]

I think for another hundred dollars I would cruise on the Inspiration out of Tampa instead. It's a whole lot nicer and just came out of dry dock.

 

The Holiday for me was like visiting Graceland in Memphis, it looked as tho you were back in time. It was old and out dated.

 

Our experience on her wasn't very good but others love her.

 

As far as movement goes, I thought she cruised smoothly even tho the Gulf was rough due too tropical storms near by. .

[bamacruisenqueen]

We love it. My husband and I go two times a year. We are taking our two boys with us this time (they're first cruise) The food is good, The service is good and it has become our regular getaway.

[LSUcajunmom]

Yeah, but how many 100s of dollars to drive to Tampa and back. Gone are the days of jumping in the car for a road trip. I don't know about y'all but I want to be able to have alot of spending money on the cruise, not spending money to get to the cruise.

[RVman]

Yeah, but how many 100s of dollars to drive to Tampa and back. Gone are the days of jumping in the car for a road trip. I don't know about y'all but I want to be able to have alot of spending money on the cruise, not spending money to get to the cruise.

 

Well I guess it depends on where your coming from doesn't it. I happen to live in Tallahassee Fl and I wan't be driving North anytime soon, I do know that.

[poobears]

We have recent experience with Holiday. Fantastic staff, absolutely could not have asked for better. Like you said it's an old ship, they had water dripping the last couple of days but I know it was taken care of before the next cruisers got on. It was very clean and the beds were sooooo comfortable. The rooms were bigger than we expected and lots of storage space.

 

We had some rough seas and there were times where we had a hard time walking straight and we don't drink. LOL Others were also having problems so I know it wasn't just us. I got some bumps and bruises but nothing major. One day it was rough enough they had to close the pool because the water in the pool was slamming against the side too hard to swim.

 

If you hit rough seas it may be the same on a bigger ship, I don't know. I'm sure someone else will though. We would definitely sail her again. She's small enough you can get around the ship and not get worn out. Everything is easy to find and close by.

 

The port is super easy to park at and get through customs. So that was also a big plus. Embarking and debarking were a breeze.

[arom729]

DH, myself, and friends had an pretty good experience on the Holiday this past March. We had very bad weather, and the ship rolled very very much. However, that is pretty unusual to have that bad of seas, I think.

 

The ship is small and is not hard to get around. There was never that long a wait for the elevators either. All of us really enjoyed the food and we had great service from our waiter and room steward.

 

For the value, it is a good cruise. However, I will not be returning as it is just too small for my personal taste.

[teacher2cruiser]

Thank you for the honest responses. I hope to hear from others. I really am glad to have this site from which to gain information.

[VolzCruiser]

There are a few things I would like to warn you about when it come to the Holiday. First of all get a cabin in the front of the ship cause there is a bad vibration that is constant no matter what the ship is doing except when docked, it can cause sleeping issues at least it did for us. She won't have a lot of the amenities that even the Grandeur of the Sea has, but she is an older ship. There is a brown water issue that you might be able to over look. She does rock a bit more then some of the larger ships but that is to be expected. As much as some will tell you that the service is above all other Carnival Ships I didn't find this to be true I actually found that service lacking. As someone has already pointed out you might want to consider a different ship in the Carnival Fleet if your budget can afford it.

[LSUcajunmom]

We cruised her May of 2006. We were all the way at the bottom on the Riveria deck, all the way at the back. The only time we felt a shimmy was when were docking. Not one time did we experience brown water. We had 2 cabins and not any of us ever had the problems that others have mentioned. The reason I wanted to cruise her for Mardi Gras next year was because of the great crew. I think we had better service on the Holiday. Not saying service was bad on Fantasy, I just felt more personal service on the Holiday. Just wanted you to see that everyone has their own experiences. Make your own. A day at sea is always better than a day on land.

[illin]

Correct me if I am wrong...but I believe the Holiday has the highest customer feedback rating of any ship in Carnival's line. I think I even saw that on Carnival's website someplace.

 

Something must be going well.

 

That being said, when I saw the Holiday docked in port...it looked, well, old and pretty run down.

 

If you thin the reviews from the cruise divas that no one can please, the reviews look quite good.

[Cotton]

Teacher - There's a thread a few pages back titled "Motion on the Holiday"...some good replies on that thread. See is you can find it. I gave my slant, which was basically that she's my favorite ship.

 

I had a cruise booked for like NOW, but I broke my foot yesterday morning falling down some stairs.....so had to cancel last minute.:( My timing is terrible. Anyhoo, it would have been my sixth cruise on the Holiday...so something must be right.

[Cotton]

This is my reply on the thread I mentioned above:

 

I'll be glad to share my thoughts on the Holiday. She's the oldest and smallest of Carnival's present fleet; however, she's been kept up very nicely and well; otherwise, I wouldn't have had so many cruises on her.:)

 

I believe the food to be the best of any ship I've sailed on. The staff and crew are very friendly and helpful. The two big production shows have been very entertaining, and I always leave smiling.

 

The Holiday doesn't have all the fanciest of areas like the newer ships, as in no atrium, but that has no bearing for me. I've always enjoyed the smaller ships, something intimate about it. You can make your way around her very easily.

 

ENJOY!:)

[Magic City Cruiser]

I've been on Holiday, Fantasy, Sensation and Fascination. Holiday is my favorite. Big boat (particularly if you have nothing to compare it to:D ) great food, wonderful staff. I have never noticed vibrations, brown water, smells, rocking and rolling. etc. It didn't look "worn" to me. I've been going on a girl's cruise, booked the 3rd recently. We had been on Holiday and Fantasy but all chose Holiday again. Loved the Fantasy, just preferred the smaller Holiday.

Cotton, we're going October 16th, wish you would join us!

Donna

[nofishforme]

I was on the holiday this past Feb. and had a great time .It was my third cruise and the smallest ship i have been on to date but that didnt matter i had a great time . the service was good as well as the food .The ship was i good shape for her age the crew was constantley working on her to keep her ship shape . yes i had some brown water i just let it run for a minute and it went away . I would cruise on the holiday agian and recomend this ship to anyone i know

[cod]

We had a great cruise on the Holiday a couple of years ago. We've since been on the Fantasy twice and enjoyed it too. Yes, the food. staff etc on the Holiday were wonderful and I would go again in a heartbeat.

 

However, I would NOT take a guarantee for fear of being in the very back of this ship. We were a few cabins forward of midship on a lower deck and there was a little more of a 'shimmy' than I remember feeling on other ships but we were not bothered in the least. But I would not want to be far aft on, say, the Riviera deck. I've heard from folks that have been that keeping items on a shelf in their bathroom was just not to be. THAT is a lot of motion in anyone's book!

[pascalburns]

it is an old ship,with good food and service.

if you look for something wrong,you will find it.

go enjoy your cruise.

 

 

ncl pearl 2/08

 

grand princess 11/07

 

carnival holiday 9/06

 

grand princess 2/06:cool:

[Chigirlcruzin]

I'm going to be Debbie Downer here. I sailed on Celebration, Holiday's sister ship 12 years ago, fresh out of a complete refurb. Never again on a ship that small. I don't care for the layout, and it just seemed old to me. And this was 12 years ago - I can't imagine what it would feel like now (yes, I know Celebration is no longer part of the fleet, but the Holiday is even older). I feel that there are too many options out there to pick a cruise on Holiday unless it's in your backyard. We don't know where you're from, so I don't know how much of consideration that is.

[Magic City Cruiser]

I'm going to be Debbie Downer here. I sailed on Celebration, Holiday's sister ship 12 years ago, fresh out of a complete refurb. Never again on a ship that small. I don't care for the layout, and it just seemed old to me. And this was 12 years ago - I can't imagine what it would feel like now (yes, I know Celebration is no longer part of the fleet, but the Holiday is even older). I feel that there are too many options out there to pick a cruise on Holiday unless it's in your backyard. We don't know where you're from, so I don't know how much of consideration that is.

 

Ah, different strokes! We preferred Holiday BECAUSE it was smaller! We really loved the little outside bar on the back of the ship.

Donna

[cod]

I think she's from my neck of the woods (I live in MS) based on the cruises she's been - and will be - on. I know where she is coming from by picking these particular ships/ports because we too are trying to sail from a port we can easily drive to...sans 2 Fantasy cruises last year (with a Hawaiian repositioning in between) the Holiday the fall before, the Fantasy next month and the NCL Spirit in December.

 

It would be so nice to have a another option or two from this area. I wish RC would bring another ship back to NO but that's doubtful for a while at least. I was working part-time at a travel agency when the Granduer was still sailing from NO and RC was almost giving away 7 night cruises for the last couple of months...something like $300 (including port!)...in part because it was still too soon after Katrina to entice folks back to NO. Thank goodness NCL has the Spirit here for 5 months or so each year, otherwise Carnival would be our only choice(s) if we want an easy port to get to.

[Magic City Cruiser]

I think she's from my neck of the woods (I live in MS) based on the cruises she's been - and will be - on. I know where she is coming from by picking these particular ships/ports because we too are trying to sail from a port we can easily drive to...sans 2 Fantasy cruises last year (with a Hawaiian repositioning in between) the Holiday the fall before, the Fantasy next month and the NCL Spirit in December.

 

It would be so nice to have a another option or two from this area. I wish RC would bring another ship back to NO but that's doubtful for a while at least. I was working part-time at a travel agency when the Granduer was still sailing from NO and RC was almost giving away 7 night cruises for the last couple of months...something like $300 (including port!)...in part because it was still too soon after Katrina to entice folks back to NO. Thank goodness NCL has the Spirit here for 5 months or so each year, otherwise Carnival would be our only choice(s) if we want an easy port to get to.

 

I agree. I'd love to have more options out of NO and Mobile. Other ports are much farther and have the same iteniary. As much as i hear that "bigger is better" I just don't think it would be enough to compensate for the much further drive or flying. And, as much as I love cruising, DH isn't much on ports and I think five days are plenty for me so another reason I prefer to stick with NO and Mobile.

Donna

[ala-kat]

I agree. I'd love to have more options out of NO and Mobile. Other ports are much farther and have the same iteniary. As much as i hear that "bigger is better" I just don't think it would be enough to compensate for the much further drive or flying. And, as much as I love cruising, DH isn't much on ports and I think five days are plenty for me so another reason I prefer to stick with NO and Mobile.

Donna

 

You are spot on. There is no one size fits all in cruising. I LIKE the smaller ships, I like driving cuz I'm just not going to pony up the cost/aggrevation of flying. I'm not hard to please (most of the time). I go to the beach and I can get a decent place at a decent price, or I can get an awesome condo at a much higher price. I'll have a good time in both. Unless the place is an absolute dump (and the Holiday is NOT), I don't pay that much attention to the details. Some do, just not me. It is more about the people around me that make or break the deal.

[Monkeythyme]

We are going on our third Holiday cruise in October, and we are still searching for the "brown water". We had a slight orange hue one day, but never brown. Maybe we'll get lucky this time.:D

Seriously, though, we have sailed both Holiday and Fantasy, and had a great time on both. If the atrium is important to you, be advised Holiday does not have one. Otherwise, the two are quite similar. Our "tally sheet" shows the atrium a plus for Fantasy, and debarkation a big plus for Holiday. Getting off the Fantasy was like getting onto a ride at Disney World, "The Line King".:rolleyes: It took 2 hours from the ship's exit to the customs station.:(

[Monkeythyme]

Ah, different strokes! We preferred Holiday BECAUSE it was smaller! We really loved the little outside bar on the back of the ship.

Donna

When you get a bigger ship, you also get a bigger crowd and longer debarkation process. Debarkation is the last thing you experience on a cruise, so we try not to make it too much of a downer. That leaves Miami out of our choices. They have elevated rudeness to an art form down there.

We found Canaveral and NO personnel on a par with Mobile's, but they have to debark twice as many people in the same turn-around time. If you take a look at the space ratio [GRT divided by passenger capacity], you find that all Carnival ships are in the same ball park, you just don't get as many choices on the smaller ships.

[teacher2cruiser]

YES - we're from MS also - We're going to drive to Port Canaveral in March, but my mom and I actually booked the Holiday today for November. We're looking forward to a mother/daughter cruise! Thanks for all the opinions!