We love X, but are considering Carnival

[Bruin Steve]

Bruin Steve, nothing wrong with speaking the truth as you believe, even being blunt. Curious to know though how you are so certain that the passengers on carnival are not professionals, and the few who are choose not to cruise with them again. Is it possible these individuals picked up on your disdain for the line, and were just engaging in friendly banter? Unless you have access to the passenger manifest & incomes & education levels, type of employment etc are listed (or took it upon yourself to interview every passenger on board the ships you sailed) - then I think it is a case of looking at people and deciding what "class" they are. I don't imagine you were transformed into trailer trash for your 3 carnival cruises.

 

Also, if the reason for the different sort of passenger is price - from what I've seen of cruise fares lately there is not a lot of difference in fares between cruise lines. Especially when the discounting begins to fill a ship after final payment. Yes some carnival passengers do look and act rough around the edges. But you seem to be implying (and please correct me if I'm mistaken) the average passenger on board carnival is uneducated trailer trash wearing a wife beater, or nascar t shirt, to formal night - is silly. You may label me as PC, but I am speaking my truth just as you are speaking yours.

 

tink,

First of all, I would not need to "have access to the passenger manifest & incomes & education levels, type of employment" or "interview every passenger on board" in order to come to reasonable conclusions...(First of all, it would be virtually impossible in the course of a mere 8 night cruise to interview all 4,000+ people Carnival herded onto the Liberty! :) )...

 

While onboard ANY cruise ship, there is a certain cross section of the ship I DO talk to...people I am seated with at meals in the Dining Room, people I find myself on Shore Excursions with, people I speak with as we're all waiting over an hour to hold down a seat with in the crowded showroom...Typical conversational banter includes the basics like name, where you are from and what you do for a living...then it often moves on to things like "how are you enjoying the cruise?" and "How'd you pick this cruise?" ...

 

I really don't "interview" anyone...it is common cruise conversation...

 

One can also make certain observations about people based on all sorts of characteristics...

 

After three Carnival cruises, I have a fairly good idea as to with whom I am cruising...

 

As to conversations I've had with people who todd me they wouldn't be cruising Carnival again, more often than not, it was others who brought up the topic with me...People on their first cruise, people who were on Carnival because they were there with others who had made the choice of cruise...

 

Now I never used the term "trailer trash"...That is one YOU brought up...An I NEVER said EVERYONE on board fit a "lesser" demographic, I only said they made up a larger segment of the Carnival clientele...And, NO, every other cruise line does not have the same demographics. I just returned home from an Oceania cruise and I'd say with a fair amount of certainty that NO ONE on board fit that demographic...and, no, I didn't interview all 640 people on board that ship either...But, a sampling of who I did meet as well as my observational skills tell me I am correct on that point...That and the "price point" on that cruise line, even in a down economic year, tells me that they market to a different segment of society.

 

And again, *I* never said "the average passenger on board carnival is uneducated trailer trash wearing a wife beater, or nascar t shirt, to formal night "...You grossly mischaracterized what I gave as a singular observation and extrapolated it to the "average Carnival passenger"...Certainly, the NASCAR T-shirt couple was a "one-of-a-kind"...However, another two large tables near me had a majority of the diners sporting t-shirts that read something of the sort of "Jones Family Reunion-Carnival Liberty-Summer 2007"--on FORMAL NIGHT...Yes, there were also people who knew enough to wear actual formal wear...and some suits, though we were surprised at the lack of fashion sense and lack of formality in some of those suits, not that you don't see SOME of that on some other cruise lines...

 

Yes, it could be some of those wearing t-shirts were doctors and lawyers...Working a profession does not mean one has class...

 

Obviously, tink, you are one of those who love Carnival...and I m imagining that you are not, and do not consider yourself to be "trailer trash"...If Carnival works for you...if you really think it is as good a product as Celebrity, then, by all means, keep cruising with them...We all have different criteria and standards...If Carnival meets yours, good for you...it doesn't meet mine...

[ringram]

Wow :confused:, I was checking out Robin's post here to see what type of responses she was getting from the Celeb crowd (she had posted the same question on the Carnival site). And all I can say is, I'm extremely pleased to hear many of you won't be traveling on my next two cruises, which happens this time to be Carnival. I prefer the clientele I'm spending 7 days with to be friendly and just ready to have a good time. I really have no desire to be around people that think higher of themselves than warranted.

 

I don't have 30 or 40 cruises under by belt, but I've been on quite a few, and have salied RCL, CLL, NCL, X, and HAL (last two on X and RCL), and won't hestiate to travel with any of them again. To me there is no vacation as wonderful as a cruise. Maybe I'm just easy to please, but I like to think it has more to do with attitude. And I know everyone has an opinion, but I sure hope my opinions never become as critical as some of yours here. It is just beyond my compenhension how anyone can criticize an entire cruiseline the way some of you do. There are some ships and some iteneraries I would hestiate to return to, but an entire cruiseline?? I also understand that there are some individual cases when the experience and service may have been just horrible. But if this happened a lot would any of these cruiselines be staying in business? There are too many options.

 

WOW?!?

[Germancruiser]

Interessting thread, interessting to read the different experiences. Isn´t it great what great opportunities we have, from which everyone can choose the right cruise line for his taste, income and lifestyle. I started with RCL, tried Cunard ( very similliar to X) and Costa ( we did not like it, to loud, to noisy, to many announcments, to crowded, ship waaaaay to glitzy) and for years I am a X- Fan! I never tried Carnival- and after my Costa ( Mediterranea) experience I never will.

Michael

[CanWeGoYet?]

Working a profession does not mean one has class...

 

Nor does dressing in a certain manner, having a preference for one cruise line over another, or believing that said preference means one has higher standards than another cruiser who is happy on a different cruise line.

 

I like Carnival and have enjoyed my cruises with them. This does not make me a carnival cheerleader. When I hear of problems people have had on this line I am not one of the people blaming the victim, or acting as if the one who reports the problem becomes the problem. I would just as happily cruise with X, and plan to in the future.

 

As for comparing carnival to oceania, it's an apples and oranges comparison. A more reasonable comparison would be one between the mass cruiselines. Even celebrity might suffer if compared to oceania.

[lovesublime]

We have been on 7 or so X cruises, and have also recently been on HAL, and love both. We are planning an impromptu (read cheap) cruise with our 2 sons, 24 & 21 for the beginning of October. I am thinking that they will find no one on X or HAL, but will have much better luck finding friends on Carnival. As a family, we tried a very old Carnival ship in 1995, have been on about a dozen other cruises with them, and a bunch just the 2 of us. My 24 year old was on RCCL twice for spring break.

Considering that, how will their category 11 suite compare to a sky suite? Are there suite perks? How different is the food? Entertainment on X and HAL has not been very good lately, so it can't be worse, can it? What about the Casino? Is there a specialty restaurant? Anyone wear tuxes on formal nights? Any info or recommendations you could give me would be great. Thanks.

 

 

I'm not out to sound disrepecful, but we also have a 24 year old who has cruised three times with us-twice to the Caribbean and once (for him) to Alaska. We have an upcoming Panama canal cruise booked that he is comtemplating coming along with (if he can get the time off from work). I just don't get the whole concern thing about your boys meeting and making friends onboard. Sorry, if this sounds weird, but our son was still in college when we cruised Alaska with him and he had no interest in 'making' or 'meeting' friends onboard. He has a whole slew of friends here and around the country.

 

He spent his time doing his own thing or hanging out with us while on the ship and enjoying our excursions. He had no interest in meeting up with a bunch of dumb drunk strangers on a cruise ship. I guess I couldn't put it more bluntly than that.

 

If I were you, I just wouldn't be concerned about your boys meeting up with people and having 'friends' on the ship. Let them find their own fun. Just for the record, our son is no dork or dud as some would put it. He graduated college in '07 and is an airline pilot.

 

I mean honestly, if our son is able to make it on our next upcoming cruise-the least of my concerns (and his) are if he will be meeting people and 'making' friends and he would be the first to tell you that.

[irishgirl]

Celebrity has a much older fan base than Carnival. I was on the Solstice in February and noticed that I was one of the younger cruisers and I'm in my mid 50's.

 

Carnival is for people who want to be busy and have things to do all the time. The shows are usually very good and there's always lots of music throughout the ship. The casino is very busy most of the time.

 

Celebrity is for people who want to lay back and do nothing but relax. There are no announcements, no pool games, very little music choices. The casino was empty most of the time. Shows were just OK, not great.

 

I'm not going to go into the food, because everyone's tastes are different.

 

Service on Celebrity was excellent. On Carnival I've had service that ranged from excellent to very poor. You just never know what you're going to get.

 

I did notice that alcoholic drinks were extremely cheap on Celebrity compared to Carnival.

 

I never was able to get a chair on any deck on the Solstice, chair hogs everywhere. I have read they now have a chair concierge to help with this.

 

A cruise is what you make of it, I feel that any cruise is better than being at work.

 

Judy

[Bridge Maven]

Nor does dressing in a certain manner, having a preference for one cruise line over another, or believing that said preference means one has higher standards than another cruiser who is happy on a different cruise line.

 

I like Carnival and have enjoyed my cruises with them. This does not make me a carnival cheerleader. When I hear of problems people have had on this line I am not one of the people blaming the victim, or acting as if the one who reports the problem becomes the problem. I would just as happily cruise with X, and plan to in the future.

 

As for comparing carnival to oceania, it's an apples and oranges comparison. A more reasonable comparison would be one between the mass cruiselines. Even celebrity might suffer if compared to oceania.

 

Tink, I agree with everything you have posted. I am not a cheerleader of any cruise line either because they all have their strengths and weaknesses. I personally feel that the ship itself, as well as the itinerary, and time of year are more important than the cruise line. Your comments about "class" summarize the way I feel, as well.

 

I also agree that you can't compare any mass market cruise line, including Celebrity, with Oceania. It is like comparing an upscale boutique hotel with a large holiday inn.

[ccruiser2]

Wow :confused:, I was checking out Robin's post here to see what type of responses she was getting from the Celeb crowd (she had posted the same question on the Carnival site). And all I can say is, I'm extremely pleased to hear many of you won't be traveling on my next two cruises, which happens this time to be Carnival. I prefer the clientele I'm spending 7 days with to be friendly and just ready to have a good time. I really have no desire to be around people that think higher of themselves than warranted.

 

I don't have 30 or 40 cruises under by belt, but I've been on quite a few, and have salied RCL, CLL, NCL, X, and HAL (last two on X and RCL), and won't hestiate to travel with any of them again. To me there is no vacation as wonderful as a cruise. Maybe I'm just easy to please, but I like to think it has more to do with attitude. And I know everyone has an opinion, but I sure hope my opinions never become as critical as some of yours here. It is just beyond my compenhension how anyone can criticize an entire cruiseline the way some of you do. There are some ships and some iteneraries I would hestiate to return to, but an entire cruiseline?? I also understand that there are some individual cases when the experience and service may have been just horrible. But if this happened a lot would any of these cruiselines be staying in business? There are too many options.

 

WOW?!?

 

I agree with you. I was kind of thinking the same thing myself as I read through this thread.

We have sailed on several different cruise lines including 3 recent Carnival sailings. I probably fit into the 'demographic' (professional and older) that might send me off to HAL or Princess according to some folks on this thread, but manage to enjoy all cruise lines. Among my last year's cruises, I actually sailed once on X and once on Carnival. Interestingly, I find that the 'quality' of X is being downgraded over the years, while Carnival seems to be upgrading its experience.

Celebrity is somewhat quieter line without announcements, but announcements don't really bother me and sometimes serve as a good reminder of activities.

While X does attract an older crowd, I like the mix of ages on Carnival. I think it makes for a fun cruise. I am older, but enjoy seeing young people having a good time and also love joining in.

As far as food goes, the only bad food I've ever had on a ship was on X. While I consider the buffets on both X and Carnival as just OK, I now find the dining room on Carnival to put out a better product. At one time X was noted for their food, but not so any more. Also, I have never noticed lots of people in t-shirts in the dining room on Carnival. People were in casual attire on casual nights and dressed on formal night according to the ship's recommendations.

Different people look for different things in cruises and vacations and that is fine. I just happen to like people and have always found nice folks and fun on every cruise.

[Bruin Steve]

I also agree that you can't compare any mass market cruise line, including Celebrity, with Oceania. It is like comparing an upscale boutique hotel with a large holiday inn.

 

Actually, having cruised multiple times on each of Carnival, Celebrity and Oceania, I would say that Oceania and Celebrity are a far closer comparison than Carnival and Celebrity...

 

You know, it wasn't too long ago that I used to defend Carnival on these boards...I said a lot of the same things you guys keep saying...Then I guess I went on one too many Carnival cruises...It is NOT a good product in my mind...it is what it is, no matter how much Carnival fans refuse to admit it: It IS the "Walmart of Cruise Lines"...Of course, there is really nothing wrong with that...Walmart is very successful at what they do...they give their customers exactly what they want--the basic merchandise at the lowest price...Same with McDonbalds, same with Motel 6 (trust me, I know, I started out my career with Motel 6, Inc., then moved on to Denny's)...A very large number of people want the basic stuff at a low price...It's those same follks who love Carnival...it gives them exactly what they want...

 

And, their standards ARE lower...they are willing to be shoved onto a 110,000 gross ton ship with 4,000 other people...to get service where they have too many passengers for each waiter ...and, yes, that is exactly why the service can be so inconsistent--some waiters might really be scrambling...or helping you at the expense of someone else...But, on the whole, the service IS better than at Denny's...If you're expectations are at a certain level, just the fact they bring you courses and change your silverware is impressive.

 

But, yes, they do offer a product that is in demand...they give you a cruise with food, entertainment and activities...and an itinerary that takes you to the same ports as everyone else...And, of course, this is much better than the other 51 weeks a year when you are at home and working and making your own dinner or eating fast food or at chain restaurants and your entertainment is the TV or the local movie theater. It is exciting. It's fun. It fills a need. What is not to like?

 

However, is it as good as Celebrity? Or even most other cruise lines? I can say with some certainty that it is not...I could say that this is merely my personal opinion, HOWEVER, there is more objective reasoning to go by...I HAVE seen the financial breakdown of some of the cruise lines--how much money per passenger they spend on food, how many crew members they have in the dining room staff or other areas and what proportion that bears to the number of passengers on board...On and on, it becomes apparent that Carnival cuts more corners than anyone else (not that lots of cruise lines aren't looking to be more economical, Carnival is just ahead of the curve). If you actually analyzed the operation, you'd see exactly how Carnival does it...and what it is they attempt to do.

 

From day one in Carnival's history, they set out to bring cruising to the "common man". They entered an industry that was perceived to be for the wealthy only and opened it up to the middle classes. It was a brilliant stroke of genius. It worked incredibly well and started a boom in the cruise industry...They have improved their operation over the years, but they have not steered away from their target market.

 

I give them full credit.

 

And I also appreciate that Carnival is the "right" cruise line fit for many, many people...

 

I just don't think they are as good a product as most other cruise lines out there...

 

But, heaven forbid I state my opinion on these boards...Any time I, or anyone else, gives an honest, negative opinion of Carnival, people come out of the woodwork to attack...

 

Maybe, rather than try to explain their shortcomings, I should just write something cryptic like "I wouldn't cruise Carnival if I were you. I cannot tell you exactly why, just believe me."

But, I think people want the truth. They want the whole story. Of course, people will still cruise with Carnival no matter what I write. And they will still find Carnival plenty fine for them. And that is okay. I would never go onto the Carnival board and tell people not to cruise with Carnival. But, when we have a Celebrity cruiser asking if they should try Carnival, I've got to be honest with them...I do not think they would enjoy the cruise.

 

I am sorry if you Carnival loyalists find that offensive...that you think I think higher of myself than warranted" as one of you (ringram) stated or that you are happy I won't be on your Carnival ship because you only want to cruise with people who are "friendly and just ready to have a good time"...Trust me, ringram, I am very friendly and also just want to have a good time...I just found it hard to have too good a time on Carnival, no matter how hard I tried...It may be the perfect cruise line for you, it is not for me...and I doubt it would be for those who would typically cruise with Celebrity...which is the actual point of this thread...

[Bruin Steve]

I agree with you...We have sailed on several different cruise lines including 3 recent Carnival sailings. ...

 

WOW!

I am glad, for one thing, that my postings here have brought forth so much new participation on these boards. ccruiser2's only prior contribution to cruisecritic.com was a single post on the Carnival board over 2 years ago...and, obviously, he/she's a frequent cruiser having been on 3 Carnival cruises recently, yet has enough recent experience with Celebrity as well to opine that Celebrity has "downgraded"...

 

...yey, ccruiser2 hasn't posted a single time in two years until now...This must be a powerful thread to inspire this poster so strongly as to get him/her to post!!!

[cbreeze2]

WOW!

I am glad, for one thing, that my postings here have brought forth so much new participation on these boards. ccruiser2's only prior contribution to cruisecritic.com was a single post on the Carnival board over 2 years ago...and, obviously, he/she's a frequent cruiser having been on 3 Carnival cruises recently, yet has enough recent experience with Celebrity as well to opine that Celebrity has "downgraded"...

 

...yey, ccruiser2 hasn't posted a single time in two years until now...This must be a powerful thread to inspire this poster so strongly as to get him/her to post!!!

 

I'm sorry that my infrequent postings bother you. Just because one doesn't post often doesn't mean that one does not cruise and does not read these boards.

 

I didn't think I needed to write a resume here in order to give an experienced opinion. However, my cruising experience began many many years ago (Did I not mention that some might think of me in the HAL categoryif one categorizes folks?). They include all the lines you mentioned and claim to have sailed. Up to recently, I had not taken a Carnival cruise and only cruised other lines. It was really a desire to cruise with some friends of ours that introduced us to our first recent Carnival cruise. I found that most of the negative things that some folks complain about Carnival were not accurate and that led me to take two other cruises with them. I have sailed Celebrity more often than any other line and I have seen a deterioration of quality. At one time, I would have given them a big 'thumbs up', but not now. They are still a fine line, but not the Celebrity of a few years ago.

I find that cruise line varies from another, but also ships within the same line vary also. I think they all offer a good product and I would not put down any of them nor put down anyone for sailing on any particular line.

[woodofpine]

Factually to the point, Carnival's fleet is highly varied in age. It makes a difference. I can recommend the Spirit Class ships. If one wants to critically view ships; when on C. Miracle I looked over to X Connie from Miracle's teak floored veranda deck toward Connie's synthetic flooring knowing that my Miracle cabin had better bedding by far than X... or Princess... and even a bit better than HAL...

 

Carnival's food in the MDR may be better than X but may not be (ship, chef etc.) Buffet is less good. Service is less formal, it's 'fun time' Vegas style atmosphere.

 

Carnival ship decor is vibrant and interesting or garish and over the top... interesting either way. The overall style of Carnival ships is vibrant Las Vegas whereas X goes for a Euro-elegant product style.

 

As far as people go, Carnival's short cheap cruises attract a budget element. Dress is less formal and more Vegas like (true formalware will definately be seen though). And what is X socially? ;) Oh 60-80% of both line pax are the same. The loud status and standing posters on the X forum represent the socially and financially insecure contingent that have champagne taste and beer budgets. Carnival's 'cool jerks' are more of the loud casino nature. Just keep an open mind and make sure you select the ship and cruise carefully on Carnival.

[63galaxie]

Thank you for all your opinions. I got few responses on the Carnival board, and as you know, I would get different opinions each time I post the same question on different boards, because people always have their line that they love. As I don't list the cruises we've been on, I have tried Princess once, my husband didn't like it although I did. Also, their ships often don't have a basketball court set up, and that is something my sons like. We were also on one RCCL cruise, which we didn't care for that much either. We are mixed on NCL, because we used to like it, but do not like the free-style idea, and their cabins, unless you go to the much larger suites, are small.

Obviously, there are more in my kids age group who would be sailing during holiday times, which is what we did when we took them in HS. That is a time that works for us. My 24 year old works in finance, and need to take a full week off at one time before the end of the year, and other possibilities don't work. My 21 year old in college has 2 days off over Colombus day week-end, so he will miss very little, and he is in his last semester. Short of taking a holiday cruise once he's done, this is it. It turns out that from the roll call postings I see there are some schools that have mid-semester breaks that week, and I figured there could be young married couples too. They don't marry that young in NYC, but I know they do elsewhere.

I know you said you sailed on RCI once and didn't care for it, but we sailed on the Adventure of the Seas last year and we loved it so much we are going again this fall. It's a ship like no other. It has the Promenade (which is an inside avenue with shops, pubs, food, entertainment, and even cabins with windows that look out on the promenade. The Pub is very popular with the younger folks, as is the rock climbing wall, ice skating, in-line skating, minature golf, and the full-size basketball court. Add to that a terrific outdoor solarium pool, an excellent full-size workout gym with windows that look out over the sea, a huge indoor jacuzzi, all kinds of exercise classes, a jogging track, and very unique, tasteful, and expensive art work.

I suggest you do a search on the RCI board or go to webshots and do a search on the AOS. The pictures may sell you! And the prices for this fall are very good.

Karen in Kentucky

[Bruin Steve]

I'm sorry that my infrequent postings bother you.

 

No, they just puzzle me...

 

Assuming this is the same poster who posted earlier under the screen name ccruiser2, you are now posting under a completely different screen name...one you registered in July 2007 and only posted twice on.

 

Certainly, with your vast experience in cruising, something other than this thread should have prompted you to post...This sort of thread has been repeated thousands of times on these forums over the past two years. Why now? I am just curious...

[LINGBER]

I searched online for missions statements from Celebrity and Carnival to see how they really position themselves. This thread got my curiosity going. Interesting.....or not. I think it is time to unsubscribe from this thread. lol

 

"Carnival Cruise Lines prides itself on delivering fun, memorable vacations to our guests by offering a wide array of quality cruises which present outstanding value for the money. "

 

 

"All Celebrity Family Members play a critical role in helping us achieve our mission as "The Ultimate Premium Cruise Experience...with a Taste of Luxury."

[CanWeGoYet?]

.A very large number of people want the basic stuff at a low price...It's those same follks who love Carnival...it gives them exactly what they want...

 

And, their standards ARE lower...they are willing to be shoved onto a 110,000 gross ton ship with 4,000 other people..

 

This is what I object to, the assumption that liking Carnival means one's standards are lower. I like Carnival because I am an active person, I have been involved in ballet and jazz for most of my life. At least on my prior carnival cruises (hoping they still do this) there were dance classes taught by the ship's dancers. Only beginning level and huge, but at least something for the week I'm away from home. The celebrity cruise I was on had only ballroom, & partner dance is not the same thing to me. I asked if they could possibly add a beginning level jazz dance class, or lindy hop, anything besides ballroom. I was told "Look at the age of the people in this class & on the ship - you can see the only class they can do is ballroom."

 

And the largest carnival ship I've been on had a max capacity of slightly over 2,000 passengers. I don't even know of any carnival ships that hold 4,000.

 

If you're expectations are at a certain level, just the fact they bring you courses and change your silverware is impressive.

Wow. How rude.

 

...And, of course, this is much better than the other 51 weeks a year when you are at home and working and making your own dinner or eating fast food or at chain restaurants and your entertainment is the TV or the local movie theater. It is exciting. It's fun. It fills a need. What is not to like?

 

Even considering the source, I am surprised at how presumptuous this is. You assume I eat at Mickey D's or chain restaurants & my entertainment is movies or tv. I go to the ballet, or see live theater, generally speaking to see friends perform. Why do you assume anyone who likes a product, even a product you consider inferior, doesn't dine at nice restaurants? Steve, I don't know you and you might be a great guy in person, but on this board right now you are coming across like a total snob.

[woodofpine]

There are vacation consumers who are so in need of affirmation that they must classify 'their' line's passengers as superior to another lines due to table crumming, etc. Even though if one were to evaluate the businesses involved Carnival is infinitely superior to X. After all, Carnival managed its business so well that it (the holding company it funded) acquired all sorts of cruise lines from Cunard to Costa whereas X got so threadbare it ended up bought by RCI some 15 or so years ago. Now the above isn't the sum and substance of all things cruising but if everything is gilt and coin status why not hold to the argument for business sake.

 

Truth be told, the large ship mass market lines including X and Carnival are all more similar than dissimilar. True with passengers. Some of the rudest pax and worst service I've seen in on X. Oh sure, cruiseline styles are a little different. But will the Carnival bashers ever admit that their judgmental attitude is all fashion... style.

 

The point is... for Bruin & Co. there are Crystal-Silverseas-RSS cruisers that look down on cruisers of ANY of the RCI/Carnival/Star lines; we're all low class wannabes.

 

Then there are those that hold that if you actually vacation on a public ship rather than your own or a good friend's staffed giga-yatch, you're **** (but those public ships of Crystal and Silverseas are a good place for the help to vacation; lawyers, CPAs, and brokers must blow off plebian stress somewhere).

 

Ah yes - it never ends. And at the end of the day, the crew resupply the same toilet paper in the loos on all these ships.:D:D

[Bruin Steve]

And the largest carnival ship I've been on had a max capacity of slightly over 2,000 passengers. I don't even know of any carnival ships that hold 4,000.

 

tink,

Perhaps YOU are just not the typical Carnival cruiser?

 

The Carnival Liberty, the Carnival ship I was last on has a "double occupancy" capacity of 2974 passengers, but with all 3rd and 4th berths filled, it holds 3710 passengers...On my cruise, the ship was reportedly at full capacity. Carnival tends to fill far more of its 3rd and 4th berths than any other cruise line...And it is only a 110,000 gross ton ship.

 

The new Carnival Dream has an announced double occupancy capacity of 3656 passengers in 130,000 gross tons...I have not seen the "full capacity" figures published, but, extrapolating from Carnival's other shops, expect it to be around 4,560...

 

Just to compare, the new Celebrity Solstice Class ships are 122,000 gross tons with a double occupancy capacity of 2850 passengers...and Celebrity provides far fewer available 3rd and 4th berths and rarely fills them...

 

Now, tink, you might be the exception to the typical Carnival cruiser...Carnival is aiming at the cruiser who wants the low price, quantity rather than quality...they supply it and they supply it well...I am sorry Celebrity doesn't offer your prefered dance classes...I guess WE are all just too old for them...Sorry...

 

And sorry that I come accross to you as a "snob" and "presumptuous"...Sorry that you feel the need to insult me personally...I have never posted anything negative about YOU personally...I have spoken in generalization about Carnival's clientele as a whole, recognizing often that there are a wide range of people on board...that only a segment of that clientele would I consider somewhat questionable...I recognize that most are good people...Saying that someone has lower standards is not an insult--it is merely a recognition that different people expect different things...For example, someone who is okay with more crowded ships is settling on a lesser standard, someone willing to accept a waiter serving three tables of 8 at one time rather than 2 with the assistance of only one-half of an assistant waiter is settleing on a lesser standard...I am not calling the typical Carnival cruiser anything terrible, only addressing a truth...and I certainly was not calling YOU anything terrible...

 

However, for some reason, your response to me was personal. tink, you don't know me well enough...

[CanWeGoYet?]

Nope, I'm not all that special. I think the unflattering stereotype of what a Carnival passenger is, is the exception rather than the rule.

 

And I did not attack you personally. I said I did not know you, but your posts across as presumptuous and snobbish, in this thread.

[CanWeGoYet?]

Then there are those that hold that if you actually vacation on a public ship rather than your own or a good friend's staffed giga-yatch, you're **** (but those public ships of Crystal and Silverseas are a good place for the help to vacation; lawyers, CPAs, and brokers must blow off plebian stress somewhere).

 

Ah yes - it never ends. And at the end of the day, the crew resupply the same toilet paper in the loos on all these ships.:D:D

 

Thanks for lightening up the discussion & giving me a laugh.

[jackdiamond]

If your experiences on Celebrity have been CC (C-1) on M class and/or AQ on S class, then I believe that you will be displeased with the switch.

[Germancruiser]

I couldn´t agree more, a cruise is what one makes out of it. Woodofpine- loved your commenet about the toilet paper- soooooooo true.

The only reason that I have never tried Carnival is, that I do not like their ships when it come to style in decoration and my taste surely differs from that of Mr. Fargus or however the name of this guy is, who works for Carnival- Costa...etc.

I love to be " connected " with the sea- means looking out, i love it to see the sea go by.

Millenium class ships and Radiance or Vision Class ships have IMO the best options to be connected with the Sea. I felt kind of enclosed with Costa and on board the Voyager of the Seas.

This discusion of pax on either line. Oh my, there are rude, nasty and kind and nice people on either line I think! We should never put all into one drawer. No prejudices- agreed???

Michael

[niborHS]

Thank you all for making this such a lively thread, and helping me remember some of the reasons why Carnival may not be the best idea. Hairy chest and hairy leg contests are really not my thing. The constant announcements and overcrowding another. I am sure that there are times that are more crowded than others, and seeing as I have no idea whether they will offer $99 cruises at the last minute to fill the ship, you can never tell. I have no memory of service in the dining room, but I know that is something that is important to us, more so than the food. What I have always said when reading these arguements about food is that if I wanted good food, I would either stay home and eat out for 7 days, or go to a city that has great restaurants, I wouldn't be on a cruise ship at all.

As far as the person who suggested her 24 year old did not need to go on a cruise to "make friends", I can assure you that mine do not either, but part of having a good time is being with a group of people that are in on the fun. These are experiences they have had on their past cruises, and I know would make it a different experience for them. They love their parents, but keep in mind that an only child tends to have more of an ability to amuse themselves than does one who grew up with a sibling.

Now, for those who have champagne tastes on a beer budget, as anyone who has put 2 children through expensive private colleges without financial aid, one of whom wants to go to law school knows, you get somewhat tapped out at this point. And then of course it is the fact that my husband doesn't want a standard balcony cabin, not to mention that I am sure my sons don't want to be on a cruise filled with their grandparents.

My mother-in-law's favorite line was always, "That's why they make chocolate and vanilla ice cream." There is something for everyone.

[halos]

I haven't read all 3 pages of comments here. I stopped when the discussion became about 'class' and 'cheap cruises'

 

I have to say that when I first started cruising, we were in that stage (kids at home) where money was a bit tighter, so cruise cost payed a factor.

Then, we blessedly became empty nested :)

One month after dropping our youngest off to college we sailed Celebrity for the first time. We chose a 14 day Panama Canal sailing.

Because of the hype on these boards about how far superior X is to

'The Wal-Mart Cruiseline', our expectations were very high.

 

That was the last Celebrity cruise we've taken.

 

To some people a more formal atmosphere gives a feel of classiness...I guess I can understand that. But people who prefer a more relaxed, fun atmosphere are certainly not lacking class. We just prefer different things.

To be fair, we may have chosen the wrong itinerary to get a feel for Celebrity. We are in our 40's and were one of only very few people in that age bracket on this ship. Most folks were there celebrating 50 + years of marraige. The ship was subdued...way too subdued for us. The most exciting thing happening at the pool was the sorbet parade.

 

If you are happy with subdued, quiet cruises with older passengers then trying CCL may be a mistake. This isn't to say that you can't find a quiet spot on a CCL ship. You certainly can...but it won't be by the main pool in the afternoon.

CCL ships are pretty wild in design. I personally am not too thrilled with the decor ;) BUT I prefer the experience I have on Carnival.

I am not fond of the singing waiters...but I still prefer it to the stiffness of the crew on X. The crew on CCL and even more so on NCL are not stiff or formal. If you prefer the feeling of superiority over crew members, then stick with X. If you like your crew to seem like they are having fun and enjoying their jobs then CCL will work better for you.

(My feel of X crew was that they looked scared, as if they were beat on a regular basis)

The food on CCL is very good...far better than RCCL. For me, I found the evening entertainment on CCL equal to what I had on X.

 

The bottom line here is that these are two totally different experiences. I don't believe one is better than the other...just one line may be better for some than the other. I do want to make a point that CCL ships are not full of 'low class' citizens. They are full of people who like to have fun.

 

I firmly believe that each cruise line provides a unique experience and limiting yourself to one line is very boring. Having a nice quiet subdued cruise on occasion might be nicer if you mix in something a little more young-at-heart in between. I always suggest to give every line a try. Many people have been coming over to CCL from RCCL lately and have been pleasantly surprised. You don't know if you'll like a line until you try it yourself. :)

 

I do believe your 20-something kids will appreciate CCL a lot more than they would Hal or X,

jmo.

 

Happy sailing :)

 

tink,

Perhaps YOU are just not the typical Carnival cruiser?

 

...

 

What do you think the typical CCL cruiser is??

Post like yours may make others think that the typical X cruiser is a snob....very sad for the ones that aren't.

 

 

When you make Regent your cruise line of choice, you MAY have a right to be a snob. Until then, you just seem a bit foolish.

[Bridge Maven]

While the cruise director on our Carnival cruise made more announcements than the one midday announcement that is made on a Celebrity ship, they weren't non stop as some of the posts imply. An announcement was made when the ship received clearance on a port day to instruct passengers where to disembark, while on Celebrity you just go by the instructions in the daily. There was one at the end of a port day welcoming everyone back to the ship and listing the evening activities, which is not done on Celebrity. On the last day, there were announcements when a group was ready to leave the ship whereas on Celebrity it is up to everyone to just follow the instructions on their printed sheet. The other difference was that during sail away the cruise director pointed out various landmarks between the time we left the Port of New York and went under the Verazzano Bridge. While some people might find that annoying, other passengers loved the fact that the cruise director played tour guide since there is so much to see within the first hour of leaving that port.