Your Opinions Please.
Crabman
more reasonable if I presented it.
Clay
_______________________________________________________________________
I will admit I have the cruising bug. I would love to do a cruise every
six months; however, my bank book baulks at such an extravagance.
Now I ask you, those of you who have cruised far more than I. I have
cruised 4 times. Twice with Disney (Loved them!!) Once with NCL and once
with Carnival.
Carnival was my least favorite experience. I found the ship and food
sub-par compared to the Disney and NCL cruises. Yet.. Carnival is so
much cheaper than the other cruise lines! So hence my dilemma.
Do I take a Carnival cruise, that my previous experience says was
sub-par; or hold out for a more expensive and hopefully nicer cruise?
IF I go Carnival, I could do one a year. If I did Disney or comparable,
only one every 2 years.
So what was my beef with Carnival? Other than the food being sub-par, I
was mostly put off by the level of clientčle of the Carnival. The
Carnival Cruise I went on was the Miracle. The cruise director was
crass, in my opinion. He was unkempt (he purposely wore a mis-matched
outfit as part of his persona, he thought it was funny. I did not.) The
ship's idea of fun events were the 'hairy chest' contest, where women
were blind folded and asked to fondle (for lack of better word) men
they didn't know, in order to pick out their husband. Perhaps some
people find that amusing, I didn't. It isn't my idea of a cruise.
I saw more drunk people on the Carnival Miracle than ever before (and I
have been to several NASCAR Races). Our embarkation bus had a woman on
it, that was so drunk that the bus driver was teasing her she had missed
the cruise and was on the wrong bus and she had a fit. It definitely was
not a family atmosphere.
I know Carnival has the reputation of being the Party Ship Line. I am
not a 'party ship' type person. I like things more laid back. However I
can not gauge all of Carnivals ships by the Miracle. It would not be
fair. Yet, I am wary of going on Carnival again, because, maybe all
their ships are like the Miracle (with its crass ideas of humor}.
So I ask those of you that have been on several cruises, and of those
several - more than one Carnival cruise; are all Carnival cruises like
the one I described? Or are there some laid back relaxing Carnival
Cruises out there? The two Carnival Ships we are thinking about are: The
Glory and The Fascination. Do I chance one of them? Or do I save my
money for a RCL or another Disney Cruise?
I appreciate your thought and comments, thank you in advance.
Suzi
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Tom K
happy hour deals. On the website they may call them hot deals. If your
schedule is somewhat flexible, have your travel agent keep an eye out for
those. And sometimes you have to bite the bullet and go on a line the first
time... and then get on the past passenger list of specials.
There are other trade offs as well... such as inside guarantee cabins to
keep costs down. I'd rather be on a better ship in the lower level cabins
than on a lower grade ship in the higher digs.
PS... my one Carnival sailing was my first and last. There were enough
things about Carnival where I simply had zero interest in going again.
--Tom
"Crabman" <C...@dud.net> wrote in message
news:47cb67c0$0$24116$4c36...@roadrunner.com...
Charles
<C...@dud.net> wrote:
> Do I take a Carnival cruise, that my previous experience says was
> sub-par; or hold out for a more expensive and hopefully nicer cruise?
It does not make any sense to me that one would pick an experience they
consider subpar in order to save money. I think what you really are
asking is if Carnival really is subpar or your whether the one sailing
on Carnival was not representative. I can't help you much there because
my one Carnival cruise was also on the Miracle, had the same dumb
cruise director, and I also considered it a subpar experience and have
chosen not to cruise again on Carnival. I had been told that the class
of ship that the Miracle is in was the best Carnival had to offer and
wanted to be able to cruise on Carnival because I like to have many
choices. Alas it was not to be. However I did not think the food was
subpar. It was pretty good. The general ambiance was sub par. The
design, quality of the furnishings and trashy color schemes of the
public areas were not soothing to me and put me off. I am pretty sure
Carnival is subpar for what I want in a cruise but if you are not sure
then you should give it another try. On the expense question I think if
you really look you can find cruises on other lines like Royal
Caribbean, Princess and Celebrity that you can afford. The mass market
lines are not that different on pricing.
--
Charles
rieker
We have done two Carnival cruises and are booked on a third. We have also
done Princess and Celebrity.
From your description, I think that you would enjoy Princess far more than
any of your other experiences so far.
Having said that, I would also offer the following:
*Every Cruise Director is different. You may love the next one on Carnival.
(or not)
*The longer the cruise, the older the crowd. This can mean less offensive
behavior in public. (our next Carnival is 12 nights)
*Time of year can influence the crowd makeup. If you cruise at times when
school will be out, you can count on more weird, wild things happening.
*Even within the same cruise line, each ship seems to have a 'personality'.
I have read glowing reviews of the Carnival Spirit and Freedom, but less
than stellar comments on other ships of Carnival, RCL and NCL.
In our experience, the only rule seems to be that a blanket opinion of a
cruise line based on one experience does not necessarily reflect the whole
line.
Cruise Crazy
When chosing a cruise, one must do a lot of shopping and the internet is
invaluable for that. Carnival is not the only bargain. other lines often
have reduced prices on their cruises. Even the luxury lines sometimes
offer specials.
Check out www.vacationstogo.com for the time and place you would like to
cruise to. The site is easy to navigate and if you see something you can
then check other sites to compare.
I agree with your opinion of Canival. It's not everyone's idea of a fun
cruise. For a more upscale, yet reasonable, cruise try Princess,
Celebrity, Holland American.They are only a little more than Carnival
and less than Disney.
~~DORIS~~
________ / /___/ /___/ /_________
\::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::/
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Princess Star 3-30-2008
Princess Star 4-11-2008
Carnival Legend 9-7-2008
RCCL Grandeur 12-8-2008
sheree
celebrity, our carnival experiences were not the same as you. the best food
on 18 cruises was the carnival conquest. we dont participate in contests
and don't hang at the main pool. service has also always been up there. i
agree with the other poster, ship, time of year, length of cruise make a
difference.
check out rci and princess specials.
sheree
"Crabman" <C...@dud.net> wrote in message
news:47cb67c0$0$24116$4c36...@roadrunner.com...
Neal Eckhardt
We have done two cruises with our kids in the last 1.3 years. We did
the Disney Wonder 12/06 and the Carnival Freedom 1/08. The kids liked
the Disney cruise, though neither child (7 and 11 then) liked the kids
program. The 8 year old LOVED the kids program on the Carnival
Freedom, and everybody had a great time. We didn't even get off of the
ship on the last day and the kids were asking when we could go again.
On several occasions, I asked my kids whether they would prefer to do
the Carnival cruise again, or go to Disney World (their favorite place
on earth) and in every instance, the cruise was the clear winner.
I hear that the newer ships for Carnival provide a much better
experience, and we found nothing to refute that statement. I think all
cruise lines have some ships that are better than others. It probably
wouldn't hurt to read some reviews that people post on the various
ships before you book a cruise.
Neal
John Sisker
Your description of Carnival Cruise Line sounds a bit like the Carnival of
the past. My wife Deborah and I have been on quite a few Carnival cruises
ourselves, and in the past, we also encountered events such as the hairy
chest and beer drinking contests. But, that was some time ago. However, the
Carnival cruises we have taken over the past few years are now quite
different. Today, we have no problem in even recommending Carnival to our
customers; yet many times do have to overcome the past stereotype concept
that some still have of Carnival.
All this said, we have also been on the Disney Magic, which is a lot more
that just a family cruise with lots of kid programs. However, while actually
our preference, Disney is indeed more expensive - after all, it's Disney.
Likewise, NCL should be considered, and you may also want to take a look at
Royal Caribbean International. Others even suggested Princess, Celebrity,
Holland American, etc., but that doesn't quite fit your described profile.
Not only have we been on all these lines ourselves, we book all of them for
our clients, but all for various reasons. The goal of an agent is the match
the client up to the right cruise line - and budget of course. We, and many
others, can do that for you, but so can you if price is your only objective.
Many travel sites, including ours, allows people to do that comparison for
themselves, if they so wish, and for free.
Happy sailing...
John Sisker - SHIP-TO-SHORE CRUISE AGENCY
(714) 536-3850 or toll-free at (800) 724-6644 & (Agency ID: 714.536.3850)
www.shiptoshorecruise.com
"Crabman" <C...@dud.net> wrote in message
news:47cb67c0$0$24116$4c36...@roadrunner.com...
Chrissy Cruiser
> In our experience, the only rule seems to be that a blanket opinion of a
> cruise line based on one experience does not necessarily reflect the whole
> line.
Or the ship or w/e. Dump the Fascination, look for an over 10 day cruise on
the Glory preferably in the historically slow or down times each year. If
not, punt Carny.
Crabman
I to thank everyone for the great responses! I have been forwarding all
these comments to my bride. I will let you know what we end up deciding.
Clay
Brian K
I haven't sailed Carnival. I believe that you make your own vacation.
The people around you are a side dish. You can choose to notice them or
not. I also think that if you give people a chance their humanity will
shine through. Don't think that I'd be all Pollyanna on the Titanic.
I'd be the one running around yelling "Danger! Danger! Will Robinson...".
Even though they have the reputation of having mostly seniors, my choice
is Holland America. There's no cruise crew getting in your face to play
water volleyball. They'll just leave you be.
Brian K
Charles
<brian1...@earthlink.net> wrote:
> Even though they have the reputation of having mostly seniors, my choice
> is Holland America. There's no cruise crew getting in your face to play
> water volleyball. They'll just leave you be.
Have you ever cruised on any other cruise line than Holland America? I
wonder which cruise line you have been on where the cruise staff gets
in your face to play water volleyball.
--
Charles
Crabman
>
> I believe that you make your own vacation.
> The people around you are a side dish. You can choose to notice them or
> not. I also think that if you give people a chance their humanity will
> shine through.
>
> Brian K
That's not a fair comment. Sometimes people make themselves noticed and
they do "shine" good or otherwise.
A vote for Holland noted.
Clay
J Carnaghie
Crabman wrote:
> Brian K wrote:
>
>>
>> I believe that you make your own vacation. The people around you are
>> a side dish. You can choose to notice them or not. I also think that
>> if you give people a chance their humanity will shine through.
>> Brian K
>
>
> That's not a fair comment. Sometimes people make themselves noticed and
> they do "shine" good or otherwise.
>
> A vote for Holland noted.
>
> Clay
I've been on many lines over the years and I've
found that, regardless of the line, there are
"happy moments" and "less happy moments" on every
line. How you adjust to them will determine how
much you enjoy your cruise and the cruise line.
All of the "mass market" lines do a good job for
the money. (We really like Holland America) Those
that cost a bit more tend to have nicer amenities:
flowers and cloth towels in the public rest rooms,
a better grade of stuff in the bathroom, fluffier
towels, etc. If you on a cruise during spring
break you may experience some extreme events
typical of a college party. Summer time brings
lots of "rug rats" and shorter cruises tend to
have more families.
You pays your money and enjoys yourself, as long
as you are flexible, understanding and willing to
"cut some slack". We even found something nice
about the cruise where "Fish & Chips" were Fish
Sticks and Potato Chips! - the fryers broke down.
Cruising's still the best vacation going.
Cheers,
John in LALALand (On the Left Coast)
Jean O'Boyle
"J Carnaghie" <jcarnagh...@yahoo.com> wrote in message
news:JAozj.9877$6R.7234@trnddc04...
> I've been on many lines over the years and I've found that, regardless of
> the line, there are "happy moments" and "less happy moments" on every
> line. How you adjust to them will determine how much you enjoy your cruise
> and the cruise line.
> All of the "mass market" lines do a good job for the money. (We really
> like Holland America) Those that cost a bit more tend to have nicer
> amenities: flowers and cloth towels in the public rest rooms, a better
> grade of stuff in the bathroom, fluffier towels, etc.
<Snipped>
Well said, John....Do you hear that Charles and Tom? ;-)
That to me sounds more like the "pampering" that Tom K. often speaks about;
which is more than Celebrity provides unless you book concierge class.
--Jean
Rick
great product at a great price. But I have been on some bad Carnival
Cruises. There I bashed my favorite line. But I did return over and
over again. My top two favorite lines are Carnival and Royal
Caribbean. My third favorite is Princess. Only because I find the
line a little dull but love their Movies Under The Stars. My least
favorite line of all is NCL. I think the service is awful and its the
worst food I've ever had on a ship. That said now you know my likes
and where my opinions are coming from. You will find Drunks on any
ship of any line. So don't hold that agains Carnival. The Cruise
Lines have no control over who books what week so for all of us its a
crap shoot who you'll be sailing with. I've had bad food on all the
lines I've sailed. But have returned to each of them. I think
Carnival has the best food of all the major lines. Royal Caribbean
and Princess tried for Second. But this is just my personal opinion.
Cruising More Often? Some folks in this group book inside cabins
just so they can cruise more than once a year. Something for you to
think about. I don't think I would want to cruise without a balcony
but thats just me. Another option is to consider maybe 1 10 day
cruise. Lastly find a GOOD Cruise Only Agent. One who only deals
with Cruises and is up on all the specials being offered. Several
years ago my Agent got me 2 weeks back to back for less than the price
of 1 week. It was just before Christmas and it was a great deal. So
first find an Agent to work with.
Pool Deck Noise - I hate it also. So I tend to set up camp away
from all the noise and stupid pool game stuff. I do like watching the
ice carvings. Lots of other deck space to pick for quiet time and
sipping a cold cocktale watching the Caribbean flow by.
The more you cruise the more you will learn your likes and
dislikes. Don't give up on Carnival. Give them another shot. I'm
almost ready to give NCL another shot myself.
sheree
we just got off the ncl dawn. food was fine, not great but not awful,
desserts were great! lots of options, services was decent. better than my
worse carnival, but no where near my best carnivals etc
sheree
"Rick" <rick...@verizon.net> wrote in message
news:a4290f57-1e85-41dd...@e23g2000prf.googlegroups.com...
Rick
> Ricm
> we just got off the ncl dawn. food was fine, not great but not awful,
> desserts were great! lots of options, services was decent. better than my
> worse carnival, but no where near my best carnivals etc
> sheree
Sheree, The Dawn was the ship I sailed on. The italian rest. was
a joke.
I kid you not, it was just awful. The food in the dining rooms were
ok.
Wedding catering hall food would have been a step up.
The extra charge steak house was the best of the week.
Thats the quality I expected in the dining room each night. I hear
they
are trying to improve. I want to like NCL. It would give me more
options out of
NYC. Any improvement in service would be better than what we
experienced.
Our quickest dinner in 7 days was 2 hours 45 mins. Our longest was
3.5 hours.
Thats in the dining rooms.
sheree
we had quick service in aqua and venetian, my son loved the blue lagoon. we
typically ate around 6:30 if that makes a difference. salsa was good,
impressions was very good other than my salmon, bamboo was excellent.
service overall was good, our cabin steward wasn't the best.
when did you travel?
"Rick" <rick...@verizon.net> wrote in message
news:7407c210-8d4c-47bd...@i7g2000prf.googlegroups.com...
Rick
> wow what a difference.
> we had quick service in aqua and venetian, my son loved the blue lagoon. we
> typically ate around 6:30 if that makes a difference. salsa was good,
> impressions was very good other than my salmon, bamboo was excellent.
> service overall was good, our cabin steward wasn't the best.
> when did you travel?
>
of us so
we had a scheduled time in order to get a table to accomodate us.
Other tables
came and went and we just waited. No urgency for anything. This is a
true story:
One person in our group got up one night and went to Salsa and ate
between courses
then came back to the Venetian. I swear thats a true story. We
laughed about that
for months. He never missed a course. I stood at the lobby bar once
for 10 mins. waiting
for service. I was the only one there. The bartender thought it was
his job to refill the napkins
and swizzle sticks before waiting on a customer.
sheree
aqua and sala, no problems. (it was 12-14 yr olds too)
i guess from 5/06 to 2/08 they stepped up their game
sheree
"Rick" <rick...@verizon.net> wrote in message
news:36e056eb-9e1d-4539...@s19g2000prg.googlegroups.com...
Rick
> ouch! marty went to dinner with a group of 11 or 12 in both venetian and
> aqua and sala, no problems. (it was 12-14 yr olds too)
> i guess from 5/06 to 2/08 they stepped up their game
> sheree
It was just a solid week of bad service. I do think NCL has some
of the
best prices when it comes to cruises. Thats why I'd like to give them
another
chance.
But I have to say I've had bad service on all the other lines as
well - Except Royal
Caribbean. I can't recall anything bad about them.
I've been pretty harsh on NCL in the past. But I'm mellowing and
warming up to giving them
another chance....maybe next year.