carib princess vs carn miracle vs explorer of seas

[valtandc]

We are taking a cruise from nyc next summer out of NYC. family with 2 kids ages 11,13 and 2 seniors ages 70. 3 in our 40's.

 

we are casual people and would rather not get decked out for dinner. kids won't use kids program but would be nice if we could take them to arcade or whatever ship has to offer. good food important but don't need top notch. just looking to have fun together. seniors won't lounge so sitting at a table around pool area would be helpful.

 

please advise. Thanks.

 

We sailed NCL dawn and all enjoyed it as a prereq to your answer.

[runnerodb83]

well, only been on carrib princess but just going of what i've experienced on other lines, sea days + princess + kids can be trouble. I think RCL and Carnival will have more for them to do on those days. That said, of the princess ships I've been on, the CB is my favorite, seems to be the staff's favorite as well, somewhat of a flagship.

[tcsmithh]

i have been on the Miracle, the kids (5) really enjoyed it. thought the layout was good, it is our favorite ship class on Carnival. Good luck!

[IKE]

I have been on all 3 and liked all 3 .All are slightly different but with kids, I think your best bet would be Carnival Miracle or RCCl Explorer.

[Yellow Lab's Rule]

My vote is Explorer of the Seas. I've been on both Explorer (2-3 years ago) and Carnival Miracle (June 2010). I like Explorer better because of the Ice Skating Show, Rockwall, etc. More stuff to do on Sea Day's.

[DonnaK]

Our cruise on the Carnival Miracle was the worst cruise we've ever taken. You can click on the link to my review in my signature for details, but in general, service was severely lacking compared to our Princess and RCI cruises (the waiter had more than 3 times the number of diners and the steward was responsible for twice the number of cabins compared to other lines, so service was spread very thin). The ship was dark, smoky and had a very awkward layout. It seemed very crowded compared to other ships, with a lot of kids running about instead of being positively occupied in the kids club. My kids were 10 and 12 at the time, and thought the kids club was boring - it was very underutilized.

 

We loved both the Caribbean Princess and Explorer of the Seas. Excellent service, very good food, nice entertainment. While I don't think you can go wrong on either ship, I'd be more inclined to select Explorer because there is more to do onboard especially for the kids. There are tables in the pool area on both ships.

[vmom]

I've been on the Explorer and the Caribbean Princess twice. I loved both ships. If I were traveling only with my husband or other adults, my vote would be for the Caribbean Princess. With kids tho, I think there are alot more kid oriented activities aboard the Explorer so I would give that my vote. Explorer has a climbing wall, arcade, Johnnie Rockets, mini golf, ice skating for when the ice isn't being used by the ice skating show, etc.