Wanting to plan our next cruise - which cruiseline?

[2preschoolers]

We just went on our first family cruise (Carnival Liberty). I've been on Carnival 2-3 times prior to this, but have yet to go on NCL or RCCL. (Been on Celebrity once as well....) Next Jan we plan to go again....with extended family. Our kids will be 3 and 5 and the other family will have a 4 yr old and a 7 yr old.

 

I LOVED Carnival - Camp Carnival was awsome. Food was awsome. Service was awsome. Staff was awsome, etc. No complaints - except the lack of a pool for the little ones. I know Carnival has a few ships with pools for toddlers (not sure which ones though). I'm not OPPOSED to Carnival again - but it's become a bit predictable. (Even though this last cruise was the first for me in about 8 yrs - menus didn't seem to change much, etc)

 

Just wondering for those experienced cruisers - should I stick to Carnival or will we be just as happy with NCL? (Or RCCL...but some of the ships on NCL as well as the pricing are intriguing me.) We want to go on either Eastern or Southern Caribbean.

 

Any suggestions? How are the kids clubs on the other cruise lines? NCL is appealing to me b/c of the "freestyle" dining. My kids did NOT do well with the assigned dining on Carnival. They were very tired by that time of day (refused to take naps b/c they were too excited to go to Camp Carnival) and 2 hr dinners just weren't working.

 

Any ideas/suggestions/tips??? THANK YOU!!!

[sprockie]

I too just got off the Liberty - a week after you. We had our 3.5 and 8 year old. This was our first time on Carnival. The kids had a great time and Camp Carnival was excellent. Overall, we were very pleased with the cruise, service, food etc. but I don't think Carnival is the best "fit" for us.

DH and I have been on 5 HAL cruises pre-children. We decided to try Carnival because you can't beat the price and this time, we were bringing the kids. I think next time, we will try HAL with the kids. I have heard their kids club is very good - less busy, but that's okay with us. Although there are generally older passengers on HAL, we've always enjoyed a quieter, more relaxing vacation with them. I found the pool area on Carnival to be super over-crowded and loud and impossible to find a chair at times - never so on HAL in my experience. The schedule on HAL is more in tune with our lifestyle too - we're up around 6, and ready to call it a day by 11. We're not big nightlife people and really enjoyed an earlier dinner, followed by the show and maybe a nightcap somewhere.

HAL also has some fantastic itineraries including Half Moon Cay and good prices on 3rd & 4th passengers. They also now have anytime dining.

Anyhow, just my opinion and 2 cents.

[cb at sea]

If you like your first experience, why make a change? RCI is a good alternative, tho!

[wone3]

if you like certain things ...why change...Carnival does show anytime dining so you wouldn't have to do "fixed" time dining.

[RoadTripFanatic]

if you like certain things ...why change...Carnival does show anytime dining so you wouldn't have to do "fixed" time dining.

 

FYI: Not all Carnival ships have anytime dining! Only certain ships have adopted this policy.

 

In all honesty we cruised on NCL when DD was 2 1/2 and 4 1/2. She had a blast in their kids center. We were very happy with the care that she received. Also with the anytime dinning you can make reservations so you can eat when you want and not wait.

 

DD has used the kiddie centers on Carnival, NCL, Holland America, Disney, Princess and Costa. I have been happy with the kids centers on all of these ships. If you want excellent food I would go with Holland. :) They have the best! If you want to avoid the 2 hr dinner drama I would skip Costa. They have an ultra-limited nightime buffet (think two types of pizza and 4 side dishes) or you have to eat in the dinning room. DD (9) begged us to eat in the dinning room because she was sick of pizza.

[boulders]

Have a look at the RCCL ships, especially the Freedom or Oasis classes. Tons of things to do, and, especially for Oasis, tons of places to eat. Also, Disney's new ship, the Dream is coming out next January. Although DCL has tended to be expensive in the past, the fares on the Dream are much more in line with other cruise lines. Your kids will be the perfect ages for a Disney cruise!

[cruisinwithboys]

Our kids have been in both kids programs on RCCl and Carnival and we liked Carnival just a tad better. I thought the workers were just a little more outgoing and fun for the kids, but RCCL was great too. We really loved the Waterworks pool on the Freedom of Seas for out 3 and 4 year olds. Either way they are both excellent and pretty much on par with eachother.

[Julienatul]

We are Carnival regulars only because we are very happy with them and the kids have a great time and the price is right. We have sailed RCL and NCL and found we enjoyed Carnival a bit better although they were olde ships so I would definitely like to try some of their newer ones. We are going on our 1st Disney cruise in a few months so I am excited to try something new. Its nice to mix it up every once in a while!!

[lolakat]

I do like the free style dining on NCL for little kids which is why I've been sailing with them since my DD came along. All the staff have been super friendly to her and accomidating in the dining rooms. The suites are great and I really enjoy the less crowded dining and pool available with the courtyard suite area. It is a lot easier to mind a toddler there than on the main deck. DD is 2.5 yo now and we will soon be doing our first trip where she will be able to participate in the kids club. Once DD is older than 3 and potty trained I am looking forward to checking out RCCL and DCL. They seem to have a lot of activities for older kids.

[sjmarante]

We just went on our first family cruise (Carnival Liberty). I've been on Carnival 2-3 times prior to this, but have yet to go on NCL or RCCL. (Been on Celebrity once as well....) Next Jan we plan to go again....with extended family. Our kids will be 3 and 5 and the other family will have a 4 yr old and a 7 yr old.

 

I LOVED Carnival - Camp Carnival was awsome. Food was awsome. Service was awsome. Staff was awsome, etc. No complaints - except the lack of a pool for the little ones. I know Carnival has a few ships with pools for toddlers (not sure which ones though). I'm not OPPOSED to Carnival again - but it's become a bit predictable. (Even though this last cruise was the first for me in about 8 yrs - menus didn't seem to change much, etc)

 

Just wondering for those experienced cruisers - should I stick to Carnival or will we be just as happy with NCL? (Or RCCL...but some of the ships on NCL as well as the pricing are intriguing me.) We want to go on either Eastern or Southern Caribbean.

 

Any suggestions? How are the kids clubs on the other cruise lines? NCL is appealing to me b/c of the "freestyle" dining. My kids did NOT do well with the assigned dining on Carnival. They were very tired by that time of day (refused to take naps b/c they were too excited to go to Camp Carnival) and 2 hr dinners just weren't working.

 

Any ideas/suggestions/tips??? THANK YOU!!!

 

I highly recommend RCI! GReat pools, children programs, activities to do as a family, and more out door play. The staff is great and the food is awesome. You can't go wrong with Royal Caribbean!