Legend or Valor? Which would you recommend, and why?

[DonnaK]

They both have the same itinerary - one from Miami and one from Tampa.

 

We did not have a very positive experience on Miracle back in 2004, but due to the economy, we are considering giving Carnival another try. These are the two ships we are looking into, and would welcome opinions and suggestions.

[alexw]

I believe Carnivals spirit class ships are the best in the business of any line. The Legend has nothing but outstanings reviews. Plus when I sailed her last August, the cruise was simply amazing. Id say the Legend but im also very biased with that ship.

[Rickson]

I have never been on the Valor, but absolutely loved the Legend. It is a great ship and Tampa is a very good port to sail out of in my opinion.

[A&Jfamily]

They both have the same itinerary - one from Miami and one from Tampa.

 

We did not have a very positive experience on Miracle back in 2004, but due to the economy, we are considering giving Carnival another try. These are the two ships we are looking into, and would welcome opinions and suggestions.

 

I loved the Legend, but she is a sister ship to the Miracle. So, I guess it depends on what you didn't like about the Miracle - if it was the layout or Lido deck, then they are going to to be the same. The biggest difference in the ships IMHO is the Lido deck, which on the Valor is a multi-tiered, stadium style with big light blue plastic chairs that I don't care for. I like the more intimate feel of the dual pools on the Legend.

[CaribQween]

We'll be on the Legend in February which will be our first cruise with Carnival so I can't really give you an opinion based on experience. However, we were trying to choose between the Valor and the Legend also when we were planning our cruise. We love the aft and when we saw the huge wrap-around aft balconies that Carnival has we were very impressed. On the Spirit class, the wrap-arounds are category 11 suites and on all of the other classes they are category 9A balconies. We preferred having more room so we chose the Legend for the suite. But, with either one, we were really amazed that the wrap-arounds are not any more expensive than the other staterooms in the same category. If you like the aft, you might want to check out the wrap-arounds.

 

Of course, the Legend gets some really great reviews. A lot of people prefer the layout of the Spirit Class because they say it is easier to navigate than some of the other classes. We're also looking forward to cruising out of Tampa because the port seems really cool. We've never been to Tampa so we're going to take a few days pre-cruise to spend in the Tampa and St. Petersburg/Clearwater areas. Everbody raves about Clearwater beach so we definitely want to spend some time there also.

[pungo3]

I've sailed them both and, while I love both of them, I have to give the Legend a little edge. I really enjoy the layout of the Legend better than the Valor. I think it easier to get around. I just can't imagine anyone NOT liking the Legend.:D

[bjgraham]

The Valor hands down , it's bigger & wider :D. If you were already on the Miracle why not try the newer class of ships. The Legend is also older & the Valor has the big screen TV :D. Good luck with your choice . Have a good one :). J & B :cool:

[kwilliams137]

They both have the same itinerary - one from Miami and one from Tampa.

 

We did not have a very positive experience on Miracle back in 2004, but due to the economy, we are considering giving Carnival another try. These are the two ships we are looking into, and would welcome opinions and suggestions.

 

I have sailed on both ships...they both were nice, but i would pick the Legend. I love the spirit class ships vs the larger ships. also the Miami Port horrible vs Tampa's Port. Miami usually has a lot more ships there whisc means a longer line and Tampa usually only has one ship therefore you get on the ship a lot faster. Good Luck with which ever one you pick.

[summer08bride]

We were in a similar predicament and chose the Valor, although I dont think you can go wrong with either.

 

Take my opinion with a grain of salt though, our first cruise was on the Miracle in 2006 and we loved it!

 

We chose the Valor over the Legend because:

 

- we were able to get better flights to/from Miami

- we liked the order of the ports better

- we liked the timing of the ports better (one port starts at noon and ends at 7pm, which would give us an opportunity to sleep in without missing anything)

- we've been on a spirit class so we figured we'd try the conquest class

- the prices were a little better for the Valor for the week we wanted

 

not sure if Legend has the fish n chips or the big tv screen but our last cruise didn't have those and DH loves fried fish so again, thought we'd give it a try

 

With respect to the ships, I think the Valor is larger but has a slightly less convenient layout. I'm not sure what you disliked about the Miracle but I dont think you can really go wrong with either of these ships

[Hutchgal]

I will be sailing on the Legend for the third time in June. My son and I love this ship! Plus Tampa is a great port to sail out of! (Okay, I live in the Tampa area, might be JUST a bit biased here! LOL) So I'd say go for the Legend! No matter what though, have a GREAT cruise! :D

 

Karen

[DonnaK]

Thanks for all the informative replies....keep them coming!!!

 

Our issues with Miracle were probably specific to the individual sailing and that's why we're open to giving Carnival another try. For our Miracle cruise, the ship was only 3 months old and it was the first sailing at full-capacity. It didn't seem large enough for the number of people onboard. The crew was extremely over-extended and service was absolutely horrendous, especially in the dining room. Our wait team was responsible for too many tables and nearly 50 diners. As well, our cabin steward was responsible for 30 cabins. This is double or triple what we've experienced on any other ship. We also didn't care for the decor, but that's not as important to us as space and service. I'm hopeful that our experience on Miracle was an isolated incident.

[mumofsons]

We have sailed the Legend twice - once with and once without our kids. We loved the Legend without kids but with them ( at the time 12/14) I think they would have liked the valor better. (I prefer the spirit class ships). The adult only area is great at the back of the Legend, but the Valor has the big screen in the middle of the ship on the Lido deck. I liked going out of Tampa and sailing under the Sun Bridge - I think the Valor may be too tall. Sailing out of Miami isn't that bad but I prefer Ft. Lauderdale, Port Canaveral and Tampa much better.

We never felt any crowding on the legend and our last one was the week of July 4th. We also love the 7a obstructed view balcony rooms - you get a little more to spend in the casino but you still have a balcony.

[Cant wait until March]

They both have the same itinerary - one from Miami and one from Tampa.

 

We did not have a very positive experience on Miracle back in 2004, but due to the economy, we are considering giving Carnival another try. These are the two ships we are looking into, and would welcome opinions and suggestions.

 

Donna,

 

We were on the Legend in March and loved it. Tampa seems to be the better port to both get to and leave from. Miami is a very busy airport and quite congested at the best of times. Good luck and have fun.

[utopiahereicome]

We loved them both, but did have more trouble navigating around on the Valor. Loved sailing out of Tampa and going under the Sky Bridge, and also liked the adult only area at the back of the Legend. Also did the "open dining" option on Legend, and that worked out beautifully for us - no rush for dinner, never had to wait, met lots of interesting people...

I don't think you will be disappointed no matter which ship you choose! :)

[VABeach]

Just got off of the Valor and loved it! Both Miami and Tampa are nice. i would go by price.

[Ron_L]

We've only sailed on valor so i can't really compare, but we loved the Valor. I have heard folks talk about it being hard to get around, but it was pretty easy to figure out. Deck 5 will get you from bow to stern as will most of the deck that are cabins only, so just use those decks until you get to the elvator or stairs that you want. After the first day it wasn't a problem. The big screen was nice in the evenings. they would play movies just about every night and you could sit under the star and watch. Fish and Chips was great.

 

We'll probably try a different class for our next cruise just to experience something different, but I would also be very happy back on one of the Conquest class ships it is works out that way.

[DonnaK]

We've only sailed on valor so i can't really compare, but we loved the Valor. I have heard folks talk about it being hard to get around, but it was pretty easy to figure out. Deck 5 will get you from bow to stern as will most of the deck that are cabins only, so just use those decks until you get to the elvator or stairs that you want. After the first day it wasn't a problem. The big screen was nice in the evenings. they would play movies just about every night and you could sit under the star and watch. Fish and Chips was great.

 

We'll probably try a different class for our next cruise just to experience something different, but I would also be very happy back on one of the Conquest class ships it is works out that way.

 

I love your slide show Ron!!!

 

The price works out to be the same for both cruises - Legend is a little more, but the airfare is a little less, so it equals out.

 

Someone suggested the 7A balcony, which was available last time I checked at a great rate. I dismissed it, but now I'll reconsider it since it comes recommended. Anyone have a photo of it??

[mumofsons]

this is from room 5235

[gazingm42]

We loved the Valor in 2007. We headed back on her in 2010 on a family

trip. I would go on the Valor again.