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Mexican Cruise-Princess or Carnival


Lizzybell1960
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Hi-We are thinking of doing a 7 day Mexican cruise March 2019 with 3 generations. late 50s, mid 30s, 20 & 7 yr old.

 

There are not a lot of cruises to choose from as we need spec date & the choices are Carnival Splendor or Princess Royal.

 

 

I am hoping for a wonderful experience & vacation for all. None of us are heavy drinkers, & have heard Carnival is the "party boat" :)

 

It seems doing research that Carnival caters to the 7 year old, prob more than Princess...but not sure-please share with me your experience. Not so much the "drop off/babysit" but activities we can all do together and she loves to swim.

 

How are the kids pools and areas on these ships as if weather is good, that's where she will be :)

 

Part of our family is from Mexico, but have never been, esp our 7 year old who is very proud of her heritage and speaks Spanish. Any recommendations for cultural experiences & activities while in the ports is great appreciated.

 

Lastly, with all the media about the violence in Mexico recently, has anyone felt unsafe while onshore?? We will be stay in the main tourist areas & being sensible & aware- no off the beaten paths on this trip

 

Please share with me your thoughts on Carnival vs. Princess for our groups age mix.

 

Thanks very much

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Hi,

Let me take your last question first. There have been NO reports of problems/violence etc. that have affected any of the ports that the ships visit. I am not sure to what "media reports of violence" you are referring? It's like gang fights in any city here in the USA that folks read about in Europe and then think they shouldn't come here because someone will shoot them!!

We live in San Diego, close to the Mexican border, and there have been no problems for the thousands of people who cross the border back and forth every day.

We have taken a 7 day Mexican cruise every year now and we go on shore without a worry. We don't always take ship tours . Sometimes we go off on our own and sometimes we book something privately and sometimes we do a ship's excursion. There is lots of info about the ports and what you can see/do in them on this board if you read through old posts .

We are seniors and so are not "party people" but we have enjoyed our many Carnival cruises! We like the comedy shows and some of the musical offerings. We really enjoyed the wonderful spa area that the Splendor has but to use the thermal suite with the hot pool and steam rooms you either pay extra or book "spa " cabins. The children on board seem to enjoy the activities too.

I think Princess also does a great job . We are taking our first Princess cruise later in the year so I don't know as much about that line. I would read about the Royal Princess and see what it offers as far as pools,kids club etc. and then compare that to the Splendor.

Be aware also that they leave from slightly different ports. Splendor is out of Long Beach and Princess ships leave from San Pedro a short distance away.

I think that Carnival has a brasher feel than what I imagine Princess offers but both will give you a great time!!

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Hi Thank you for your detailed response, all info very much appreciated. RE the crime-its what has been on the news & I know it has to do with the drug wars going on. I did research on CC & no one has posted anything about violence in the ports, that I found.

 

I agree with your take on Princess re ages of cruisers. Even with it being Spring Break, I would guess a lot less kids on Princess.

 

I think the family is in agreement to try Carnival for the first time. We are excited about taking the cruise & thanks for your feedback.

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The Royal is a fabulous ship and we are booked for April. Just got off in April.

Have been on sister ship 3 times in the last three years. Many dining venues, the best buffet at sea, beautiful pools, fabulous outdoor movie screen,

Nice cabins. Very good choice for multiple generation families.

Show rooms have excellent shows and there is generally a lot of entertainment going on, but it is not wild and crazy off the hook entertainment but it is quite substantial they have a really fun deck party.

I have not been on carnival for several years, but well I will say they are a fun ship, but the Royal and the Regal and absolutely outstanding ships.

I’d say if there is not much difference in the price then I would definitely go with princess over Carnival. Princess really takes care of you everything runs more smoothly than my experience on Carnival.

I would think the seven-year-old will have a great time on board but of course it is dependent on how many other children are on board but I’ve been on some princess cruises with as many as 550 kids.

Regarding safety in the ports I generally feel safe as does my husband but there has been a lot of trouble in some places there. I think we’ve been on this particular itinerary maybe a dozen times now we love it

 

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

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  • 2 weeks later...

i have the same question as you! we'll be traveling with a 8-year old and are used to traveling on carnival but i wanted to do something new, a la princess.

 

i'm choosing carnival because of the splash pool and waterslide. the royal princess has neither. our daughter is not that fond of carnival camp now that she's getting older; she said they sat around on the wii and playstations and didn't mingle as much as when they were younger. my understanding is princess has a much better (educational/breadth of activities) camp; however, it seemed as though princess didn't have many kids to speak of (from watching videos and reading blogs). the splendor is not 2.0 yet which will be a downer for my husband as he is a guy's burger fanatic. however, with 3 sea days, we need something to do with our daughter and she loves to be in the water all day. we've decided to get the spa rooms and still came out cheaper than princess.

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