Just back from my first Carnival cruise

[Rick Niles]

I must start off by saying before this cruise on Carnival(Splendor) that my last 5 cruises have been with Princess and always enjoyed them. I am 38 married with 2 kids 10 and 7.

 

I read the forums quite abit and wasn't sure what to expect from Carnival as you here so much bad about carnival.....I must say I was plesently surprised....

 

The service was excellent everywhere except in the shops where we found the staff very rude and snobish(if thats a word).

 

The food in my opinion was very equal taste wise, I might give a very slight edge to Princess for the dinning room, but I found the buffet better on carnival if for the only reason was selection.....taste was equal. Carnival had more options to eat from around the pools.....mid ship and the rear pool areas.....

 

Entertainment in my opinion on Princess is better. Carnival realy pushed their Las Vegas type shows and thats it.....and then thay had 2 comedians that each only worked one night.....If I remember correctly with Princess if they had the Las Vegas style show on in one theatre then they had something else going on in another area like a comedian or magician or hypnotist...correct me if iam wrong.....

 

I guess the one thing that took some getting used to was the dress code is very much more relaxed......but yet the only thing that got me was when one passenger decided to be the fashion police and scold me for walking through the buffet to get from one pool to another with out my shirt on( you have to walk throught he buffet to get to the other pool)......

 

The kids program is by far supperior on Carnival.....

 

Thats enough for now......I would definatly go on either in a heart beat just some comparisons that might interest some....

 

Rick

[kooljamming]

Glad you enjoyed your cruise. I loved the MDR with the dancing on Carnival but prefered the buffet on Princess. I agree about the kids program on Carnival.

[roe2ship]

Thanks so much for posting this. I may be interested in one of Carnival's newer ship and this really helps from someone who has cruised on Princess a few times.

 

Can you please tell me why you felt the kids program was superior to Princess?? Is the water slide open all day or certain hours? Thanks

[mek]

Glad to hear you enjoyed your Carnival cruise. I always have a great time on their ships and enjoy them for what they are - fun and upbeat with very good food and entertainment.

[swom]

I was thinking about trying Carnival, just because their prices are so much better than Princess. This gives me more info, thanks!

I was very disappointed in the food on Princess this time and I'm not a food snob at all. Everything just tasted so salty..........

Even though I have mega points on my Princess card and a FCC, I just might try Carnival next time. We will see.

I still love Princess, but it sure would be nice to go to Half Moon Cay again...LOVE that island!!!

Thanks for your review.

[Charles 3]

I am glad to hear you say positive things about Carnival, especially on a non-Carnival board. I agree with you about the buffet comparison between Carnival and Princess, I think Carnival's is better. Glad you enjoyed your cruise!

[bjkTX]

Thanks for the post! After 6 wonderful cruises on Princess (last one was 2 weeks ago) we go on a 7 day cruise on the Carnival Conquest in 3 weeks with friends. Strike one is we have always had a mini-suite on Princess and we have a balcony on the Conquest :-) We'll survive that and we're excited to see what the differences are, good and bad. We have two more 14 day Princess cruises booked, but it's soooo easy going to Galveston and getting an a ship - and Princess stopped sailing from there :-(

[bphman]

I am pleased to see that the comments are quite civil. I feel that the boards have improved a lot recently with much less flaming than before. We have been on 16 cruises so far on 8 different cruise lines and can honestly say that all but one were enjoyable. Most (5) were on Carnival and we had a lot of reservations initially because of what we had heard but they had a lot to offer. We only sailed the newer ships and were pleasantly surprised. There are more similarities than differences in all of the mass market ships and found the embarkation port to have a great influence with the whole experience. The passenger mix sets the tone of the ship. Unless you spend for a true luxury brand, service and food will be the same. Some are glitzy and some are subtle. All give you your money's worth.

[barbaragrace]

I think Carnival does have the best food compared to the other cruiselines I've been on.

[Rick Niles]

Thanks so much for posting this. I may be interested in one of Carnival's newer ship and this really helps from someone who has cruised on Princess a few times.

 

Can you please tell me why you felt the kids program was superior to Princess?? Is the water slide open all day or certain hours? Thanks

 

First the water slides hours are in the caper(patter) but they are not set in stone. The first 2 days the lines were pretty short but buy the 3rd day and final day the lines got quite long......

 

Camp Carnival was buy far the thing I was impressed the most about......The kids were kept busy all the time not just baby sat....they did stuff all over the ship , went to the shows, learned to dance , went swimming, learned to make towel animals, lots of art projects, dinner if they wanted, on and on and on I could go......Each of our kids had a special night where they had a party after 10PM, the youngest of ours was 7 and it was on the first night at sea I think and they got to stay up till 1AM with tons of things to do....he loved it and he is the type to go to bed a 8PM........the oldest was 10 and the 2nd last night was his and they got to party until 3:30 AM YES 3:30 AM.....and they were walked back to their rooms by the staff....never even had to get out of bed to let him in.....Just great is all I can say.....

 

Rick

[plantlady104]

Just to counter opinion, our family thought the Princess Dining Room food was much better both in portion and taste. Additionally we did not care for the "dancing" waitstaff, as to us it came across as embarassing for the waitstaff to have to perform almost nightly. I would say the buffet food on Carnival was good, but the single line structure created longer than would like waits.

[Rick Niles]

Thanks for the post! After 6 wonderful cruises on Princess (last one was 2 weeks ago) we go on a 7 day cruise on the Carnival Conquest in 3 weeks with friends. Strike one is we have always had a mini-suite on Princess and we have a balcony on the Conquest :-) We'll survive that and we're excited to see what the differences are, good and bad. We have two more 14 day Princess cruises booked, but it's soooo easy going to Galveston and getting an a ship - and Princess stopped sailing from there :-(

 

Our last Princess cruise with the boys was on the Grand and we had a minisuite......this Carnival cruise was on the Splendor and the four of us shared a inside room!!!!!!!!!! Any room on a cruise is better than being at home working....lol

 

Rick

[bjkTX]

Our last Princess cruise with the boys was on the Grand and we had a minisuite......this Carnival cruise was on the Splendor and the four of us shared a inside room!!!!!!!!!! Any room on a cruise is better than being at home working....lol

 

Rick

 

Rick - agree! Even though we're both retired - it's still better :-)

[Rick Niles]

Just to counter opinion, our family thought the Princess Dining Room food was much better both in portion and taste. Additionally we did not care for the "dancing" waitstaff, as to us it came across as embarassing for the waitstaff to have to perform almost nightly. I would say the buffet food on Carnival was good, but the single line structure created longer than would like waits.

 

 

Everyone has their opinion on food and I guess I think unless you try it for yourself it is just an opinion......I have to disagree with the dancing as the 8-10 waiters in our area really seemed to have fun with it and so did most of our table......once again just an opinion no one is right or wrong....

 

rick

[Rick Niles]

Rick - agree! Even though we're both retired - it's still better :-)

 

 

I can't wait for retirement....lol.....Yesterday we got off the ship early to catch our 12:30 flight from LAX to SEATTLE.....then a 7 hour drive home to Kamloops BC Canada....got home at 12 midnight and was up at 6am to get to work!!!!!!!!!!

 

Rick

[kevinandrenay]

We just went on our 1st Carnival cruise at the end of September. We also had some reservations. We have cruised mostly RCCL but did our 1st Princess cruise 2 years ago. Since then we have been in another Princess cruise and have another one booked for January. We had a great time on the Carnival Pride. The ship was nice, a lot of activities, and a great staff. The only thing was that we thought the food was not as good as other cruises. I do know this kind of thing is very subjective. We thought the food in the buffet was very bland. I love rubens and had them 3 times. The 1st one was good but the other 2 were very fatty. I also think Princess has more variety in the buffet. The Caesar salad had a lot of dressing on it but was bland also. My wife and friends had pork chops and they sent them back. One was very under cooked and the other two said they tasted funny. We also found the food to be luke warm. I know they serve a lot of people but we have never had that even on larger ships. The one thing I can say was very good were the steaks. Seasoned very well and very tender. The pizza and the grill was also good but not as good as Princes. Maybe it was just that cruise but I did not think Carnivals food was as good as Princes'. It was a little disappointing because I heard very good things about the food leading up to the cruise and even since then. Again, we had a great time and trust me we did not starve. We just think the food is better on Princess.

 

Kevin

[mississauga]

I am pleased to see that the comments are quite civil. I feel that the boards have improved a lot recently with much less flaming than before. We have been on 16 cruises so far on 8 different cruise lines and can honestly say that all but one were enjoyable. Most (5) were on Carnival and we had a lot of reservations initially because of what we had heard but they had a lot to offer. We only sailed the newer ships and were pleasantly surprised. There are more similarities than differences in all of the mass market ships and found the embarkation port to have a great influence with the whole experience. The passenger mix sets the tone of the ship. Unless you spend for a true luxury brand, service and food will be the same. Some are glitzy and some are subtle. All give you your money's worth.

 

 

Well said!

[kooljamming]

To see a schedule go to www.beyondships.com. The link to Carnival Freedom will provide a activity schedule.

 

I felt at ease with the Carnival kids program because the age grouping with Children 2-5, 6-8, 9-11, Tweens 12-14 and Teen 15-17. I liked the fact kids of similar ages were group together. It was not baby sitting but a program about fun learning, challenges and more. The program seems to vary widely from ship to ship on Princess. I have the program schedule from Sapphire and Golden. Both times on Carnival the experience was very similar. If you have older teens, just being around each other is going to be fun.

 

Good Luck!

[gipper77]

I have been on the Splendor and I'm an uber elite with Princess. While I love the sapphire and would not go to Mexico on any other cruise line if Princess was going there. But if I needed a get away in the summer, I would go on this ship without a second thought.

The food was very good in the dining rooms. I too did not need the dancing waite staff. The buffet while different was very good. They offer different items. The omlets and the burrito at lunch are great.

The ship is different than Princess where I feel at home, but I would recommend the ship to anyone. That's my 2 cents.

[WinnieinWA]

I think Carnival does have the best food compared to the other cruiselines I've been on.

 

I agree the food was very nice. :)

[Clutterlady]

Only been on 1 Carnival cruise, but we really enjoyed it! Our opion on the food ranged from good to blah.....still we love to try another Carnival cruise:)

[Sanibel*Gal]

Our first cruise was on Carnival & that got us hooked & except for one, the rest were on Princess as we felt we found our niche. Must say that last summer we took a short 4 day on Carnival for my B-day and we were pleasantly surprised. Was it a Princess cruise - no, but we knew that and went with the flow. Food was very good and loved having the ice tea, lemonade, water or juice dispenser around the pool - for free. Also - our cabin was newly updated & the shower was huge! Crew was very friendly, had a great room steward and will sail Carnival again.

[Stacey779]

Great review! I have to agree with everything you said (although we don't have kids so I can't comment on the kids' program). We've been on Carnival, Princess, Celebrity, and Royal Caribbean - never had a bad cruise. I think it's good to try different things and I'm glad you were pleasantly surprised. I'm not sure why Carnival has such a bad reputation - I think they put out a great product at a great price. Sure, they're a little more casual, but the image of Carnival as a wild party boat is really exaggerated.

[Fabian52]

We have been on 3 Carnival cruises, 5 NCL and 1 Princess and 1 Costa.

We really like Carnival, I think their beds are great, the food has always been very good especially in the MDR. They have upgraded us twice and to very nice upgraded cabins. NCL has better coffee and in NCL you get coffee pots in every room.

We go on Princess in 6 weeks so will let you know after that how it goes.

Costa is the worst ever......:eek::eek::eek:

[TwinCruiserMom]

I hope this is not too off topic, but which Carnival ships do you recommend for a diehard Princess fan? Which of their ships would avoid?

 

We have only cruised on the grand class Princess ships and would like a similar experience if we were to choose Carnival.

 

Thanks!