MizDaisy

Since everyone's idea of "good food" is totally different....I hate liver, some love it.....I'll just list a few differences. 12 Disney cruises, 4 Carnival.

Menu in the main dining room:

Carnival has the left side of the menu with the new choices of the day, the right side has favorites or comfort foods.

Disney just has one new menu each night, along with a choice of vegetarian, a plain steak or a chicken breast, if nothing on the main menu strikes your fancy.

Carnival has more specialty dining, and not all are at an upsell price.

Disney has only the very upscale and expensive adult-only Palo and Remy.

Carnival buffet open longer hours, more food choices and more freshly made to order stations....such as the Indian food or the deli sandwiches.

A previous poster mentioned shellfish and I'm trying to remember how many times (on ALL of my Disney cruises) I was actually offered shellfish. Shrimp at the buffet, definitely on embarkation day....as far as the rest of the cruise, I'm not certain it was there.

Lobster night once, on the longer cruises. That's all I can think of.

Anyway....food is subjective. You'll be certain to find something you like, you definitely won't starve. If you like your meals on the "fancier" side, with lots of exotic sauces, etc, then you'll like your dinner on Disney.

In other words, it comes down to $$$$$$$$$$

As always.

yet, the poster who put that up never went on a carnival cruise. I like people who can think for themselves and not gain their experience via youtube.

 

All of those videos were from the 3-4 day booze cruises so that kind of behavior can be expected. Of all the carnival cruises i've taken (and on celebrity) i have never witnessed that nonsense but, then again, i don't go on booze cruises.

exactly!!!

Oops. My bad. Sorry.

You didn't do anything bad....weren't you talking about her signature about traveling around Europe with one suitcase for 3 weeks (or whatever it was)?

She just didn't understand what you were referring to.

I actually think that they could pull off one or two adult only cruises a year and have them be profitable. If they used one of the classic ships and ran the cruise during an off week just before a repo in the spring they could do a four or five night cruise with a double dip on CC and I think there would be enough interest to make it profitable.

 

Make it 18 and up and run it after college ends but before most schools get out and you've got a good market share of parents with college age kids who normally don't want to do DCL because their kids have aged out of most activities--but allow the 18-21 year olds to use the teen club and you've got a great solution to retain and attract a segment that you've lost or never had.

 

I'm surprised that the bean counters and marketing department haven't done any surveys to determine interest. I would think that it would be pretty obvious what the survey was about and we'd be hearing from people if they had.

They won't do it because people would be screaming their heads off. And then they have to look at whether or not someone (with kids) would sue them for discrimination. Seriously.

When they've done the few cruises that are for TA's or other groups only....or nearly filled the ships with them.....you should see all the complaints they've gotten.

??? Wrong thread?

Talking about your signature "See how I did it".....traveling Europe.

Here's a picture....the 4D's are the full deck above the lifeboats....the view isn't blocked at all.

I don't see a problem with being over the lifeboats. What were people complaining about, specifically?

Usually, you're looking out toward the ocean and horizon, not straight down.

Plenty of obnoxious folks on DCL, just like everywhere else in the world!

 

I noticed in your signature you're taking the three day Wonder next October. I wish there was a way on Cruise Critic to send you a message, but happy anniversary!

Thank you!!! We usually do a quick 3 night resort stay somewhere in Phoenix....one of the Pointe Resorts or whatever....but I really wanted to jump on this cruise. The price was actually pretty good on opening day.

Reasons you couldn't pay me to cruise on Carnival...

 

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VJ-5JpJwyqk

 

 

There are plenty more where those came from...

 

Add in floating cesspools and decor that looks like Vegas threw up all over the ship...

 

I'd rather stay home.

Pish posh! I've seen fights break out on Disney at the Pirate party because someone stepped in front of another person, blocking their view.

I had a friend who was in an accessible area for viewing a deck party, and a woman came up to him and was screaming at him, because he was "taking up space that her child could have used".....although it WAS a designated area, and her child didn't have special needs.

In 12 Disney cruises, trust me, I've seen plenty of drunks.

According to the cruises listed in your signature, you can afford to take expensive trips.....not everyone can.

The videos of the "new" Carnival Sunshine on Carnival's website are really a must-see. SO much more to do than on Disney.

No I'm not using any kind of discount. I love Disney but I don't know if I can afford it; I pretended to go through the process of booking; it was over $7,000 WITHOUT excursions!!! I'd love to go on Disney but my wallet doesn't agree :(

 

I thought about doing a 5 nt Carnival Fantasy cruise from Charleston since its so close but ive heard some stories about Carnival cruises that are less than 7 nights long.

 

EDIT: Now maybe a Carnival cruise from Miami? Looking at different options. grrr im so indecisive

$7000 is an obnoxiously ridiculous price to pay for any vacation!!

We did an all-inclusive resort stay in a beautiful spot south of Playa del Carmen for $3000 for two of us for a week. That was food, drinks, HUGE suite with two balconies.....

One thing to factor in, as far as going out of Port Canaveral or Miami, is the hotels and transportation to and from the port terminal. I think it's a little cheaper and easier in Port Canaveral. Although we're booked on the Getaway for next year, and got a package with NCL that includes hotel and transport, so it was a really good deal.

One nice thing about Carnival is that if the price goes down, and it often does, you'll get the difference back.

I've cruised with Disney 12 times, Carnival 4 times (and NCL and Princess)....the longer (one week) cruises on Carnival are really, really nice.

The Sunshine has just been totally redone, it has Guy's Burger Joint, the Redfrog Pub, Blue Iguana....all awesome places to get food, snack or drinks....

The "Serenity" area for adults is pretty nice, too...and the Waterworks and pools are great. I would have NO second thoughts about hopping on this ship.

Disney does have ONE soda fountain with milk, tea, coffee.....on the pool deck...so to me, it's really not all that convenient. Carnival allows you to bring your own soda onboard (I have to take my Pepsi!!) and a bottle or two of wine. But the alcohol carry-on thing with Disney doesn't make good sense money-wise to us, by the time you pay a couple thousand more for the Disney cruise, you could have bought an awful lot of drinks (even soda) on another cruise line!

Disney and Carnival both have "upsell" restaurants, like Palo on DCL and the Steakhouse on Carnival, but the upsell prices are cheaper on Carnival, food is EXCELLENT, and there are way more choices of places to eat on the newer Carnival ships. Carnival has more offerings in its buffet area and pool deck area, like made-to-order hot or cold deli sandwiches and salads, Indian food, omelette bars.....

I think you'd have a great cruise on either ship....truly.....but the prices for Disney have gone up so high, it just doesn't make sense any more unless they have a special running...or you grab first day prices.

ITA. The hotels close to the port/downtown are not great and super expensive. I also would avoid the area called "hotel circle." Old town has some cute hotels and it is a fun place to stay but they are also pricey. But there are the hop on/hop off tour busses from old town so it is easy to stay there and get all over SD. I think the best value are the beach hotels in the north coastal san diego area. Carlsbad/encinitas, and maybe even oceanside (30 miles north of the port).

I found this...it's not necessarily close to the port, but they do have a shuttle and a cruise parking package. We haven't decided if we're driving or flying yet, both have their plusses and minuses. But this place looks cute and clean, and the prices are quite a bit lower than most. They have an extra fee, but it includes a discount booklet with the Trolley Tour and other things, which we'd hoped to do anyway.

http://www.halfmooninn.com/

If you scroll down to the pictures of the Cat 5's...I have pics of 7638, which is identical to 7138, only flipped....bed and sofa on the other side of the room. I posted them in three posts so they'd load faster.

http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=1025732&page=1&pp=15

Sure would be nice, though. Depending on cost and itinerary, I'd go.

I know that on some of the longer cruises, they've had "adult" nights in the (old) kids' Lab. They got to make Flubber!!:D

My question wouldn't be whether it is "worth it" for the 4 year old (a great age!)' date=' but rather for the 9 month old. It might make sense to wait till the 9 month old is almost 3. At 2 years + 11 months, a child pays infant rates but if toilet trained, can participate in all 3 year old activities. That would make the 4 year old 6/7 which is not "too old" by any means.

 

Those prices are ridiculous and I'm shocked at how many bookings already exist. Still, I wouldn't be surprised if people drop reservations an deals become available.[/quote']

 

 

 

I agree. Very well said.

We have a vacation budget and as long as we aren't over it, we don't really care about the cost of one cruise over another--the money is there to spend. I imagine most people work it that way, other than shopping for a vacation and then trying to put it into the budget.

The reality is that most people have a tight budget for just the everyday things. Rent/house payment, utilities, food, clothing......and there isn't much, if any, room in that budget for a vacation category.

It's a good thing that there are plenty of choices for everyone, because not everyone is lucky enough to "not care what the cost is".

Maybe they'll leave her there and let a natural reef grow around her. St Lucia could use some decent reef for snorkeling....and diving if she's deep enough.

I remember that! We didn't go on her, but I did take pictures of the group as they were headed that way.

Since we are discussing pricing, does DCL lower your price if they drop the price of your cabin category?

Disney cruise prices very rarely EVER go down. I've heard of some that have, and people did get the difference as a credit, but they had to jump through hoops to do so.

The only time we've had "surprise" credits were when the port fees or taxes went down, then we were notified by DCL.

I had forgotten about the little girl in the pool area. I believe she is often seen and people hear her voice.

 

The real HMS Queen Mary is not a cruise vessel' date=' she is a real passenger liner, designed to carry passengers across the great pond at 30+ knots. The Atlantic is not known for its tropical weather during crossings, especially in the winter where she once was hit by a rouge wave which rolled her over to starboard over 30 degrees and crushed the foredeck to the extent it was lowered 10'. ( this incident is the seed of the Poseidon Adventure book and movies).

 

So a pool inside and on a lower deck makes sense.

 

 

AKK[/quote']

 

 

That makes sense. The pool reminds me of the old, old, old YMCA in the city I grew up in. My dad used to take us swimming there, and it was indoors, dark, and as a child, I always thought it was creepy.

We have a 12 pack of beer leftover from our resort stay- okay to carry on in our rollerbag if well cushioned and sealed in trashbag?

Yes. Absolutely.

I'm sure you know, you can easily disembark the ship on your scooter. They have a sturdy gangway that isn't at a huge slope.

They do have special wheelchairs with wide tires, but if you strictly use a scooter, then yes, it's almost all just beach activities. They have a couple of cute little shops that will sell exclusive Castaway Cay items, and the BBQ....but otherwise, that's about it.

There is an accessible cabana on the family beach, but again, other than go onto the beach or get in the water, there's really nothing else to do.

I'm finding the biggest (maybe only) downside to cruising out of San Diego is the price of hotels. We always arrive for every cruise the day before, in San Diego, we like two days ahead to look around a little.

We used to stay at the Holiday Inn on the Bay...which was right on the bay, straight across the street from the terminal. It is now a Wyndham, and the price per night is in the neighborhood of $300!! :eek:

There are other hotels, all similarly priced, not as close to everything.

And then there are some really crummy motels.

Decisions, decisions. If we drive over, we can stay further away, but then pay for parking, and also try to find (and pay for) parking while we tour around.

If we fly in, we have transportation costs also. More than we did before, when all we had to do was walk across the street with our bags, from the former Holiday Inn. :(