Honest description of a Carnival cruise

[Corvette Girl]

Can anyone tell me about your experience on a Carnival cruise. We see some good deals on them in comparison to other lines, but I always heard that they were the "bottom of the barrel" in the cruise pecking order and never considered taking one.

 

To be honest, kids are cool, but we have visions of hordes of screaming kids all over and a ship with a decor like day care. (flame suit is on)

[chrislynnet]

A lot of it depends on when you take the cruise and how long it is. 3-day cruises during spring break can be -- er -- lively. Having said that, my son (12 at the time) and I took our first cruise on the Carnival Paradise out of Long Beach. It was 5 days to Mexico and we LOVED it. No complaints at all. I don't care about gambling or the shows so we just did our own thing.

 

I'm checking out other cruise lines and am taking RCI Radiance this November, but will use Carnival to go to Alaska next year.

[fee]

I've been on 3 cruises with carnival and loved everyone of them. Ya they're kids aboard, but didn't bother me any. The only time you will see a lot of them is at the pool, but some ships have adult pools no kids allowed, so its cool.:)

[Grannycb]

The food was good, the room was better, the entertainment was great (when they had it), the decor and ship arrangement were awful. DH must have had fun as he was in the week in review video. :o We had 600 kids on our cruise but never saw them. They must have kept the little ones happy at Camp Carnival.

[Jenbo57]

No line is as good or as bad as its loyalists and/or critics would have you believe. We sailed once with Celebrity, then two on Carnival, and we did HAL in June. HAL was nowhere near as "premium" as the loyalists profess it to be, just as Carnival is not anything close to "bottom of the barrel".

 

We've met some fabulous people on our Carnival cruises, from all walks of life. The entertainment is top notch. The food is quite good. I've found the service to be excellent, from the dining staff on down to the plumber who fixed our clogged shower drain! I think the ships are beautiful, although some of the decor does cause some head scratching. The staterooms are the roomiest we've seen. Truthfully, I can't think of anything that I thought was below par on either of our Carnival cruises, and I can't wait to cruise with them again in December, on the Splendor! :D

[OCruisers]

No line is as good or as bad as its loyalists and/or critics would have you believe.

 

:D Love this comment! How so very true!

[chipmaster]

Can anyone tell me about your experience on a Carnival cruise. We see some good deals on them in comparison to other lines, but I always heard that they were the "bottom of the barrel" in the cruise pecking order and never considered taking one.

 

To be honest, kids are cool, but we have visions of hordes of screaming kids all over and a ship with a decor like day care. (flame suit is on)

 

In general you get what you pay for. The more $$$ you spend you'll likely get better food, service, amenities and a slight different crowd then the bargain cruises deal.

 

I've sailed carnival, enjoyed it, but if I had my preference I'd pay a little more. Not saying at all it isn't a good deal, but between the "fun" image, hairy man contests I find that other ships offer an ambience I prefer more for a vacation. Obviously they have a huge following so they are the perfect vacation cruise for many

 

Happy planning

[Essiesmom]

Carnival designs its cruises for short runs...the rare 8 day, frequent 7 day and lots of shorter cruises. If you stay away from the 3 day cruises, try to do at least five days in the lower seasons, you will have a cruise comparable to any other line. As you can see from my sig., I have sailed a variety of lines and I find the food to be about the same across the board. I don't have the money to sail a luxury line, so I can't speak to that. Carnival doesn't offer the educational options of the longer cruises on HAL, Princess, Celebrity, Cunard...those activities take place on sea days, and Carnival tends to be more port intensive. The decor...Well, I think if you could go back and cruise the biggies of the heyday of cruising and transatlantics, you would find that over the top...Joe farcus likes bright colors, and art deco...So I liken his style to Art Deco on LSD. I don't much care for art deco, but that's what you had on the ships of yesteryear. With the exception of QE2, which was/is very 1960s...also not my favorite. EM

[weLuv2cruz2MUCH]

I have had a lot better. The food and people were super - but the entertainment was scarce at best. If you like to be entertained by the theatre or lounge acts - forget it!! They had a few shows, mostly way too late for me and most of the lounges were closed. Not too many kids on board, we went right after New Years, room was okay - but I would go with Princess again without hesitation. Was the very best - next cruise we are going is with Celebrity - I heard it is even better than Princess. Can't wait.

[G'ma]

Can anyone tell me about your experience on a Carnival cruise. We see some good deals on them in comparison to other lines, but I always heard that they were the "bottom of the barrel" in the cruise pecking order and never considered taking one.

 

To be honest, kids are cool, but we have visions of hordes of screaming kids all over and a ship with a decor like day care. (flame suit is on)

 

Well, don't believe what you hear and read.

 

I just completed my 66th on Carnival...with 67 coming up soon. My first cruise on them, I was around late 30's. I'm now late 60's and still enjoying the heck out of the cruise experience with Carnival. Good food, beautiful ships, friendly staff, great itineraries and the best prices in the industry.....AND, there is no "nickle and diming" with them.

 

FYI: Over 32+ years of travel, I have around 250 cruises under my belt and have been on most cruise ships....including many now defunct. Each has it's own atmosphere, it's own fun, it's own clientele. I've never had a bad cruise whether it was RCCL, NCL, Princess, Cunard or whoever.

 

Most people who yap on and on about Carnival have never stepped foot on one of their ships or haven't cruised on them since the late 70's when they owned 3 tiny little ships and had a "party boat" reputation.

[Bonnie J.]

We are sailing on Carnival's Glory next Saturday. This will be our 11th Carnival Cruise. A few years ago we were NEVER going to go on Carnival again after a few cruises, mostly on their older ships. But my husband saw a price we could not pass up. Think it was like under $400, 8 days on the Legend going southern western Caribbean. (we are TIRED of Cozumel and this cruise didn't go to that part of western Carib!)

Wow, what a difference from other Carnival Cruises we'd been on! We enjoyed this ship so much we booked New Year's Eve on her. This class ship made quite a difference.

On New Years Bob Dickerson and his family were on board. He recently retired as Presidant and CEO of Carnival Cruise Lines and he chose the Legend.

We seldom see any kids and yes, have seen a drunk or two but see them on any ship.

If you decide to try Carnival make sure its a 7 day cruise and one of the newer ships. Short cruises, any line, have younger, party animals aboard as they can only afford a shorter cruise.

CRUISE LINES WE'VE BEEN ON:

Dolphin

Commodore

Regency

Premier

Cape Canaveral Cruises

Carnival

Royal Caribean

Celebrity

NCL

Princess

Costa

[uppitycats]

While I certainly wouldn't consider Carnival to be the "bottom of the barrell", after two cruises on Carnival, one of those "short" ones and a longer one, I'd not sail on Carnival again.

 

While people under 21 (kids) weren't really the problem, it was the "atmosphere" of Carnival. Seemed like everyone from 2 to 92 decided that they could disregard all manners, party at all hours, talk loudly, press their way to the front of every line, demand immediate attention to their issues or needs at the expense of everyone else... Combine that with the garish decor, the ridiculous "contests" like 'hairy man" and "belly flopping" and such..

 

we've opted for a more sedate and "adult" cruising experience, with a few more things of adult interest.

 

I should be clear, though: the staff were very attentive, the staterooms quite comfortable, the food certainly as good as any other we've encountered, so if those are issues for you, then Carnival would be fine.

[read52]

We went on Carnival for the first time in July. We had been on RCCL 5 times. We really loved the ship because the rooms were larger and we were able to afford a balcony for the first time. Since we were on the Pride (nude art) it did not a day care decor. It was also the first time that we did not have kids running in the halls. We will probably take the same ship because it leaves out of Baltimore and we are local.

[hubofhockey]

Can anyone tell me about your experience on a Carnival cruise. We see some good deals on them in comparison to other lines, but I always heard that they were the "bottom of the barrel" in the cruise pecking order and never considered taking one.

 

To be honest, kids are cool, but we have visions of hordes of screaming kids all over and a ship with a decor like day care. (flame suit is on)

 

Carnival does some things very well and other things very poorly.

 

The kid problem with me on Carnival relates to pools and hot tubs. Kids swim in hot tubs and your legs can get chopped. However, other than that, kids are under control and Carnival provides very good kids camps.

 

The Bad on Carnival

• Design of the ships is awful in terms of aesthetics and flow of people. These ships look like floating Vegas casinos. But the worst part is flow of people. There is one central very crowded pool area which is a mass of humanity. If you want a little peace and quiet on your vacation, fuggetaboutit!!!! Next comes the main dining rooms. Getting there is half the fun???? The central area can get very crowded and you may have to walk by smoke filled casinos to get there.
  
• The buffets, again, are another area of overcrowding. Congratualtions if you are lucky enough to get a table. Breakfasts are just plain awful compared with Princess or Royal Caribbean.
  
• Carnival handles original embarcation horribly. It's a long and painful experience. Disembarcations and embarcations at ports aren't much better.
  
• Entertainment choices are few and far in between.
  
• Pools are salt water, small, and very cold.
  

The Good on Carnival

• Cabins are very good size and you get a lot of bang for your buck and include interactive TVs with access to US Network television.
  
• Quality of dinners in the main dining room meets or excedes Royal Caribbean and Princess in terms of selections and quality.
  
• The big shows in the main theaters are better than I've seen on the other lines.
  
• Carnival doesn't nickle and dime you like other lines. The pizza is very good. There is free ice cream and frozen yogurt and lemonade always available. The sushi station before dinner is also not upcharged.
  
• I haven't had a better meal than I have at Carnival's specialty restaurant. On the Liberty, Harry's also has a dance floor and a live combo providing music to dance to. It beats other lines. Only problem here is that Carnival only has one specialty restaurant. Book it twice. It's that good.
  
• Carnival offers some of the best Caribbean itineraries out there.
  
• Carnival provides great value.
  

Carnival is not for everyone. In truth, without the kids, I wouldn't cruise on Carnival. But we all had great times on our Carnival cruises.

[Clutterlady]

Only sailed on Carnival once and would have to say I would definitely try them again. Just stay away from the short 3 and 4 day cruises, try sailing at off peak times. The decor on Carnival is very "Vegas" bright and a lot of glitz, the food ranged from good to very good, service was on par with other Lines. Try it, I'm sure you will enjoy Carnival:)

[carpman&Mrs]

Hi as with other posts I feel all liners have good and bad points, from my experience the service wasn't as good on carnival but the entertainment was the best ever...maybe because it was a new ship. There was live music everywhere....foyer, casino.pools, bars etc and the shows were best I've seen on a cruise.

The food was nice but not as good as RCI/Celebrity. Cabins/decor was great.

I would definately cruise Carnival again.

This is just my experiences but hope it helps!

[blindrid]

In general you get what you pay for. The more $$$ you spend you'll likely get better food, service, amenities and a slight different crowd then the bargain cruises deal.

 

I've sailed carnival, enjoyed it, but if I had my preference I'd pay a little more. Not saying at all it isn't a good deal, but between the "fun" image, hairy man contests I find that other ships offer an ambience I prefer more for a vacation. Obviously they have a huge following so they are the perfect vacation cruise for many

 

Happy planning

 

I disagree with the difference when one spends more unless you are talking about the more upscale lines and not the mainstream ones. There are many prices on a cruise, depending on time of year, etc. yet they are the same cruise.

 

I've had a blast on Carnival cruises and like any other line, you need to be careful as to time of year when the kids are out of school. Yes, cheaper pricing does attract more families but timing is everything. Carnival does seem to be a bit livelier but not to the excess that some think.

 

I typically do not take Carnival (as well as others) due to the rigid dining times. I try to take only cruises that have some type of anytime, freestyle (or whatever it's called) dining.

 

My suggestion is if it works, you'll enjoy Carnival just fine though.

 

As to Carnival itself, you'll

[DanJ]

Just came back from my third Carnival cruise, and it was a great time. The Pride is designed very well, and it definitely hid the 800 kids (2 of which were mine) well. I do remember thinking the Victory was a pain to navigate around, but the Spirit class has a much better flow. The decor wasn't over the top on this ship (on Princess we complain that the decor is the same from ship to ship LOL). Service was great, the cabin held our family fine, and we loved the entertainment. It was crowded on the pool decks, but I have no idea how you possibly solve that, short of not sailing in hot weather, or removing a couple hundred cabins and moving the buffet down a deck.

 

I disagree with you get what you pay for. In most cases, if compared similar size ships from Carnival to Princess, on a similar itinerary, Princess will be more for a balcony cabin than a balcony on Carnival. I know I can comfortably put my family of 4 in the Carnival cabin. I know that my previous Princess cabins would be a tight fit, with the beds on the floor having to be separated. Out and about on the ship, the 2 are comparable. Buffets are buffets, trivia is trivia, bingo is bingo

[cruiseapril]

We've been on 2 Carnival cruises in the past few years and enjoyed them both. In so many ways, a cruise is what you make it and what you bring to it.

 

We were on the Elation in 2007 to Grand Turk, Half Moon Cay, and Nassau. Totally enjoyed the itinerary- went to the British Colonial Hilton in Nassau. The ship was in good shape, the crew very good, and the food was far and above what we expected. The only concern we had was the use of the pools and whirlpools- too crowded.

 

Last year, we went to Nassau and Freeport on the Fascination. Again we had a good time- especially enjoyed the entertainment which we found better than on some of the other lines we've been on. The only problem we had was a long disembarkation- but this may be JAX.

 

Will return to Carnival and recommend the line to others.

[mizLORInj]

I don't give any a bad rap. Carnival was my first through third cruises, then I tried out Princess, RC, and Norwegian. I like all of them.

My personal feelings: shows I enjoyed most were on Carnival, food good on all (least good on the one RC I tried), Princess pizza is best with Carnival a second, all cabins nice, yes, some lines are larger for standard balcony cabins. Decor different on all. But I like that they're different. And I'm on a cruise vacation; what's not to like?!?

You'd need to try one for yourself to see.

ENJOY!!

[bojomitch]

We returned two weeks ago from our 50th anniversary cruise with 13 family members in tow (3 generations). We had a wonderful time. It was our first summertime and familytime cruise (usually go during school year). The food and service was excellent. Some of the best food I have ever had on a cruise ship, but food likes are relative. The entertainment venues that we attended were very good for the most part. The Conquest is not what I call a glitzy ship - the theme was French artists so it was rather subdued in decor. I have been on a couple of Carnival ships that required sunglasses in the public areas.

 

As I understand, there were 1100 kids registered with Camp Carnival. They were well behaved for the most part except for the last day of the cruise. The waiters and staff in the dining room were very attentive and nice to our two grandchildren (8 & 10). The waiter knew not to give our DGD a menu because all she would eat was PB&J with extra chips - they just appeared.

 

My only complaint was the noise. There was a huge outdoor screen on the Lido deck and it blared music 24/7. Of course, it probably doesn't bother others like it does me because there didn't appear to be a lack of people on deck. They did show a movie each evening on the deck.

 

I would go on Carnival again in a heartbeat, just not during family vacation times. This was our 10th Carnival cruise. ENJOY, ENJOY, ENJOY:):):)

[printingchick]

My BF is a Corvette guy!!

 

I haven't read all the responses here. You know that everyone has his or her own opinion and you should take both the good and the bad with a grain of salt.

 

I have cruised six times on Carnival and twice on Royal Caribbean. While I favor Royal Caribbean, I would certainly cruise on Carnival again. Some snippets of advice:

• If you want to avoid hoards of children, avoid school vacations and short itineraries. Adults tend to book 7+ day cruises. Families (my own included), typically book 4-5 day trips. It's a money thing. The more people you're paying for, the less trip you can afford.
  
• Avoid sailing on Carnival's older ships unless they've recently had a MAJOR overhaul. In my experience, Carnival does a poor job of maintaining it's smaller, older fleet. I took my son on a four day cruise on an older CCL ship. We experienced sewage odor on the lower decks, the "greens" of the mini-golf course were all torn up, and the cabin doors had never been retrofitted to accept the Sail & Sign card as a key, so you had to carry around your card and a separate key. We still enjoyed our cruise, but it was definitely the least satisfying one we've taken.
  
• Best main dining room food I've had on any cruise so far was on the Carnival Valor. She was only a month from her maiden voyage the first time I sailed her, but tried her out a year later and the food was still great. In my opinion, Royal Caribbean does a better job with the casula breakfast in the Windjammer, Carnival does a better job with food in the MDR.
  

[megr1125]

My mom and I have done 8 RCCl and we did one CCl in June...(pride from Baltimore...I redemmed Marriott Rewards points...)

 

There were a lot of kids, but we only had one quick issue with them...I guess Camp Carnival had them on a scavenger hunt and they were running but that was one time, and maybe 5-10 minutes of annoyance.

 

The issues we had were with the crew (many were rude) and the ship design (very narrow corridors, hard to navigate with a wheelchair...)

 

That said, there were a couple crew members (our server for one) that were outstanding.

 

The food wasn't bad, it could have been hotter...we only sent 1 thing back that we didn't like.

 

I think the passengers were actually nicer for the most part, often getting out of our way, or yielding the elevator to us....on most of our RCCL cruises, people ran us down....YMMV.

 

The decor of the ship (pride has lots of "nekkid cherubs" didn't really bug me, I just thought the whole thing was dark!

 

We did like our cabin (we had a 9A I think it's an extended balcony...) It was 200-odd square feet...about the size of the Junior Suites we are used to on RCCL.

 

It was fairly clean, and IMO, CCL does a better job maintaining the woodwork (ie, balcony railings).

 

I am glad we tried CCL...I was advised by long time CCL cruisers to try a newer, bigger ship....so maybe we will someday.

 

No cruise is horrible...this one had it's moments...good and bad. But, I went with an open mind and NO expectations...I thought it would be VERY smokey but it was not!

 

The prices are pretty good....but we have gotten good prices on RCCL-and I have gotten good prices in really fancy hotels too...(meaning, you don't necessarily get what you pay for....sometimes yes, sometimes you get a great bargain!)

 

I would give it a try.......I am glad we tried it....and it made us want to expand to other lines as well...

[mimi217]

We took our 14th cruise and first on Carnival in March. It was on the Valor out of Miami and a Western Caribbean cruise. We have been cruising for 18 years and had never booked a Carnival cruise because we had heard it wasn't as good as some of the others.We booked Carnival figuring "how bad could it be". I've got to tell you our cruise on Carnival ranked right up there with all the other cruises we've been on and we've cruised on ncl, celebrity,rc,princess and hal. We were happy we tried it and will go on carnival again.

[Earthworm Jim]

A lot has been covered here, but I would add that there are more similarities than differences between Carnival and the other mainstream lines, so if you like them you won't be far off from what you are accustomed too. therefore I'd advise you to give Carnival a shot. You may or may not find it to be your favorite line, but will certainly be enjoyable enough that you'll have a good time.

 

Then you'll have enough experience to decide for yourself if you want to go back. That's what we did, and given the price advantage, we've returned to Carnival. It's not my favorite line, but it's not that much different from my favorite and it's considerably less expensive.