I am now a Carnival fan! Please help find my next cruise!

[TurnLeftKasey]

1 week after getting off of the Elation, I have not stopped bragging on Carnival. I have cruised twice before (Monarch and Majesty) and was impressed with RCCL, very impressed. But because of money and dates, I picked the CCL Elation to be our honeymoon cruise - Nov 15-20th.

 

I am now a 100% Carnival fan. FUN FUN FUN is just the beginning. The food was great, the broad selection of food choices impressed me, I loved the Mongolian Grill by the pool, we ate there everyday!

 

We am now interested in cruising w/ Carnival again, and we wanted ideas on ships/itineraries - I have been to Nassau, Cococay, Cozumel and Calica (PDC). Looking for somewhere new :) We have decided that the ship means more to us that the islands we visit. I've figured out, to me at least, they are so interchangeable, same ole crap, people hounding you, etc. We get more out of the ship :)

 

Must be 5-7 nights, and be on a fun fun fun ship! I was impressed with the Elation, and we will probably like any other Fantasy class ship too, just wanted ideas! We are wanting to sail next Oct/Nov for our 1 yr anniversary. :)

 

Thanks in advance for any help :)

[firefly333]

Are you close enough to drive to any home ports .. thats where Id start.

[TurnLeftKasey]

Living in Nashville, TN - I would not mind driving to FL, etc. But I am more interesting in having an awesome ship - I would fly to So Cal too - we are just late 20s, newlyweds, not heavy drinkers, but do want to have a great time - new to CCL and looking for another great ship :) Thank you!

[Tapi]

Living in Nashville, TN - I would not mind driving to FL, etc. But I am more interesting in having an awesome ship - I would fly to So Cal too - we are just late 20s, newlyweds, not heavy drinkers, but do want to have a great time - new to CCL and looking for another great ship :) Thank you!

 

I can honestly say that no matter which ship you select, you'll have a wonderful time! Carnival is very consistent across the fleet in their service, entertainment, food and activites.

 

We love the Fantasy class ship, but our favorite is the Conquest class ships! If you're coming from Nashville, You'll have the Carnival Conquest sailing out of New Orleans very soon!

 

Everything on the Conquest is on a larger scale, including the ocean view cabins (230 sq ft on the Conquest, 185 sq ft on the Elation). You also have the choice of booking a balcony stateroom (60% of the ocean view cabins on the Conquest have balconies).

 

In addition to more bars and lounges, you also have more pools. The aft pool under the sliding glass dome is a great location if you are looking for a quieter place to enjoy the sun. The atrium area is much more welcoming (the Elation is narrower with two glass elevators and an compact atrium bar. The Conquest will have a wider atrium area with 4 elevators across and an atrium bar that is much more inviting for an afternoon drink while enjoying live music).

 

If you enjoyed going to see the shows at the main theater, the theater on the Conquest is more state of the art and larger (3 decks instead of 2 decks on the Elation). Sight lines have been improved so you don't have as many obstructions.

 

Overall, everything that you loved on the Elation, you'll find on the Conquest class but on a larger and newer scale.

[Kudos2Fly]

Well Florida would be closer and many more ships to pick from. Our ports are Tampa, Jacksonville, Port Canaveral, Fort Lauderdale, & Miami. The only port that doesn't have the LARGE ships is Tampa. They have to get the ships under the Sky Way bridge, so that limits the size. That ships they have there now only pass by a few feet. :eek:

 

But 5 days cruise from Florida are a little boring for us. We mainly do 4-5 days just to take a break. :p So the ports are not that important to us. Which you have the Bahamas, Key West, Grand Cayman, Jamaica, Cozumel are the ports most of the 4-5 day cruises go to. If you do a 7 day that opens up a lot more choices. But it also depends on your price range also.

 

So far my hubby and I like the Western Caribbean cruise better then the southern. But that's what we fine. We are not big drinkers either and LOVE Carnival. They are laid back but also give you good service....

 

Of course one of these days I plan on us doing a cruise on the West Coast. Right now its so easy for us to drive to the ports. But even now I don't want to drive down to Miami or Ft. Lauderdale unless we are doing a 7 day cruise.

 

Hope you have fun on the your cruise.

[mariamherrera]

You have GOT to try a spirit class ship!!!

 

Me and hubby sailed the Spirit last year and had a blast and this year just got off the legend and had a blast!!! Next year we are sailing the Miracle for our Anniversary in November 2011! we are 27-28 and also not heavy drinkers but drink here and there

 

We are torn between a-

 

8 night to Aruba,curacao, dominican republic, and grand turk

8 night to St kitts, st thomas and St Lucia

8 night to panama, costa rica, and cozumel

 

All are on the Miracle in November and all are out of Ft.lauderdale! :D

 

I also highly recommend the one we jsut got off which is a 7 night on the Legend out of Tampa stops in Belize,Isla Roatan Honduras, Cozumel Mexico and Grand Cayman Island! it was fantastic!

 

Whoops EDIT: one of those cruises is on the Freedom- we are probably going with one of them on the Miracle thought since we like the spirit class ships so much

[clinthi]

Don't forget about sailing out of Charleston SC-- there are some GREAT bargains there!

[triplee]

Hi,

 

Congratulations on your wedding and I hope you celebrate many, many anniversaries. My wife & I celebrated our 25th and 26th anniversaries on the Carnival Spirit out of San Diego. They were our first and second cruises, and like you, we became (I became) hooked on cruising.

 

If you have the time, I would suggest you try a cruise on the West coast. If you cruise to the Mexican Riviera, you will see how different the scenery is between the Pacific side and the Caribbean. If you dock in Acapulco, don't miss the cliff divers. They are well worth watching, especially the night dive.

 

We found that fellow passengers can really make a "plain vanilla" cruise into something special. We cruised from Tampa in March 2009 and there were many college students on Spring break. The "kids" (your age) made the ship really come to life. We older, more reserved folks, really enjoyed the life that the students gave to every party/happening aboard the ship. I did not see any of the students get falling down drunk. They just had a really good time.

 

You can also go with some of your close friends. We just came back from a cruise and there were 10 of us. Some of us knew each other from previous cruises but we all met online and planned the cruise together. It was a lot of fun.

 

Welcome to being hooked!

[Frank12]

I too, recommend the Miracle.

[Frenchsnowhite]

I hear over and over that the Liberty is the best ship ever. Do not know if it's true, but I can tell you that the Dream is pretty fun and a great size:D

[Tapi]

Well Florida would be closer and many more ships to pick from. Our ports are Tampa, Jacksonville, Port Canaveral, Fort Lauderdale, & Miami. The only port that doesn't have the LARGE ships is Tampa.

 

and Jacksonville...;)

[RBCL]

Congrats on being a Carnival fan!!

 

I think you should join us on our cruise, Carnival Fascination for 5-Nights, March 12-17 2012. It goes to Key West and Nassau.

[marym933]

May I suggest the Legend out of Tampa. I've sailed out of Tampa twice before I moved to the area. Cruise #3 from Tampa will be in January 2011. Now I live 30 minutes from the port.

 

It is a very easy embarkation port located right downtown. Parking is in a garage across the street.

 

We've taken both the Legend and Miracle from here. They are both Spirit-class ships, which in my opinion, have the easiest to navigate deck plan.

[Irishlinny]

My first votes would be for the Legend out of Tampa...the intinerary is great, the ship is large enough, but not overly large, staff is wonderful; or the Miracle which sails out of Ft Luaderdale at that time of year (Spirit Class ship, like the Legend). We have sailed the Legend in Oct/Nov 3 times...weather is nice at that time of year.

Or you can join our group on the Freedom on Nov 5th for an 8 day;) Larger ship, but not as large as the Dream. (I still prefer Spirit class, but sometimes you have to change it up a bit).

Congrats on your wedding, and welcome to the Carnival addicts!:D

[Mekamax]

How about the brand new Carnival Magic they will be bringing into Galveston next November? That way you can also visit Galveston Texas - fun beach town as I live close by and go periodically to spend the night and walk the beach... I agree though that after the Elation I'd try a newer larger ship and see what you think. Conquest will be going to New Orleans and the Magic coming here. Either one does a Cayman, Cozumel, Jamaica route that is fun. Just an idea.

[billieholiday]

it depence what day you can strat your cruise saturday or sunday.

 

i suggest carnival freedom he strart on sat. or sunday they have three different kind of cruises east carrebean, mid west carrebean or the wwest carrebean. the port is fort lauderdale.

 

from the Netherlands also all the good wishes for your wedding.

 

greetings from The Netherlands