houstoncruisers2001 Posted January 24, 2012 #1 Share Posted January 24, 2012 OMG!!! Did I make a BIG mistake. Having cruised on the Oasis last year, we decided to try the new Carnival ship, the Magic since we live 60 miles from her home port. Somebody please slap me upside the head. Of course, there is no comparison. That being said, the Magic lacks in many, many areas. I had a better cruise experience on the Carnival Conquest in 2009 and I disliked that cruise too. The Magic was not a well run ship. The food, the service, the shows, the pools, the hot tubs were all lacking in one way or another. Kids ran amuck all week, completely taking over all pools & hot tubs. No adult pool, adult area was a joke, so were most of the shows. Seems like Carnival just wants to get you on board and hold you captive for the week. Don't even get me started on the horrible buffet or so/so MDR food.:eek: If Royal Caribbean had a Red Frog Pub and serves its own brand of good beer I'd be in heaven. I'll give Carnival credit for that. but that's all. You'd have to tie me up and take me kicking & screaming back on ANY Carnival ship. I'm not going, EVER. I'm sorry Royal Caribbean, I should have known better. Please forgive me. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gelo7 Posted January 24, 2012 #2 Share Posted January 24, 2012 Thanks for sharing your thoughts. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
passion?cruising Posted January 24, 2012 #3 Share Posted January 24, 2012 I had to giggle when I read your post. My friend feels the same way. I've been on a couple Carnival cruises and had an ok experience but I just don't enjoy the structure of the ships. RCI ships are so much easier to get around from front to back on every deck and are decorated much more elegantly. My friend makes fun of their ships when we're in ports next to them. I just laugh. I try not to be too critical because I know many folks that are loyal to Carnival as much as I am to Royal Caribbean. I just don't understand why. :confused: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MonaCK Posted January 24, 2012 #4 Share Posted January 24, 2012 Different strokes for different folks. Sorry you had a bad time. Hope your next cruise is better. :) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sailingawaysoon Posted January 24, 2012 #5 Share Posted January 24, 2012 We tried the Dream once and realized that we prefer Royal altogether. I'm sure you'll enjoy your cruise though. It beats working. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Eng23 Posted January 24, 2012 #6 Share Posted January 24, 2012 Consider it a lesson learned. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cruisemama1 Posted January 24, 2012 #7 Share Posted January 24, 2012 OMG!!! Did I make a BIG mistake. Having cruised on the Oasis last year, we decided to try the new Carnival ship, the Magic since we live 60 miles from her home port. Somebody please slap me upside the head. Of course, there is no comparison. That being said, the Magic lacks in many, many areas. I had a better cruise experience on the Carnival Conquest in 2009 and I disliked that cruise too. The Magic was not a well run ship. The food, the service, the shows, the pools, the hot tubs were all lacking in one way or another. Kids ran amuck all week, completely taking over all pools & hot tubs. No adult pool, adult area was a joke, so were most of the shows. Seems like Carnival just wants to get you on board and hold you captive for the week. Don't even get me started on the horrible buffet or so/so MDR food.:eek: If Royal Caribbean had a Red Frog Pub and serves its own brand of good beer I'd be in heaven. I'll give Carnival credit for that. but that's all. You'd have to tie me up and take me kicking & screaming back on ANY Carnival ship. I'm not going, EVER. I'm sorry Royal Caribbean, I should have known better. Please forgive me. very cute post!:) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
klingoncruiser Posted January 24, 2012 #8 Share Posted January 24, 2012 lol.... bad Dobby, bad bad Dobby. :D Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pcur Posted January 24, 2012 #9 Share Posted January 24, 2012 Consider yourself headsmacked; welcome back!!! :D Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gadaboutgal Posted January 24, 2012 #10 Share Posted January 24, 2012 Don't beat yourself up over it. We tried Carnival once -didn't like it; but then several years past and we thought 'it couldn't have been that bad,' and, besides, you can have a bad experience on any cruiselines, so we tried them again. Ooops, our first evaluation was not incorrect-and now we know for certain that Carnival is just not for us. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Langley Cruisers Posted January 24, 2012 #11 Share Posted January 24, 2012 Agreed, don't beat yourself up for it. Many of us try other lines for whatever reason. Some of my philosophies are "Don't sweat the small stuff.", "Pick your battles.", and "We are blessed to be able to cruise as often as we do." I think all of these apply to you. ;) There are just as many people on other boards who will never cruise RCI again, right? Sorry you didn't have a better time. :( There will be no scolding or high-fiving from me. No one wants to feel their hard-earned money and vacation time have been wasted. :( . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Desert Cruizers Posted January 24, 2012 #12 Share Posted January 24, 2012 Have never been on a Carnival Ship and have no plans to, Royal suits us the best. We have sailed on Princess and and had enjoyable cruises with their lines, but for overall cruise experience, prefer RCL. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MyBad Posted January 24, 2012 #13 Share Posted January 24, 2012 OMG!!! Did I make a BIG mistake. Having cruised on the Oasis last year, we decided to try the new Carnival ship, the Magic since we live 60 miles from her home port. Somebody please slap me upside the head. Of course, there is no comparison. That being said, the Magic lacks in many, many areas. I had a better cruise experience on the Carnival Conquest in 2009 and I disliked that cruise too. The Magic was not a well run ship. The food, the service, the shows, the pools, the hot tubs were all lacking in one way or another. Kids ran amuck all week, completely taking over all pools & hot tubs. No adult pool, adult area was a joke, so were most of the shows. Seems like Carnival just wants to get you on board and hold you captive for the week. Don't even get me started on the horrible buffet or so/so MDR food.:eek: If Royal Caribbean had a Red Frog Pub and serves its own brand of good beer I'd be in heaven. I'll give Carnival credit for that. but that's all. You'd have to tie me up and take me kicking & screaming back on ANY Carnival ship. I'm not going, EVER. I'm sorry Royal Caribbean, I should have known better. Please forgive me. Why don't you tell us how you really feel - lol.;) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tahoemc Posted January 24, 2012 #14 Share Posted January 24, 2012 OP, loved your post. Nothing wrong with trying something else, cruising or otherwise. You can now make an informed decision the next time you book:D Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jonbgd Posted January 24, 2012 #15 Share Posted January 24, 2012 Wow it was that bad.... Ok ..... Ive heard some things from Carnival loyalists as well It definatly isnt my favorite class of ship as I prefer the Sprirt class (Radiance) for CCL but Im still going to cruise on It. I havnt found a ship I dont like just some of the things that happen on them I dont like Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ryano Posted January 24, 2012 #16 Share Posted January 24, 2012 I will never consider the Dream class ships because of the crowding issues but that doesnt mean Carnival is crossed off my list forever. Im not sure which class of ship the Legend is in (Spirit class maybe?) that sails out of Tampa but people really seem to like that class of ships. I love Royal Caribbean but I will take that cruise some day. My dates are flexible and I have seen that a lot of times I can get a balcony cabin on the Legend for what I have paid for a inside PR on Freedom. My first cruise was on Carnival, on their oldest and smallest vessel at the time. I had an absolute blast. To me, other than the ships, the two lines are more alike than different. To each their own though :) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare graphicguy Posted January 24, 2012 #17 Share Posted January 24, 2012 I say this without allegiance to any cruise line or ship. I think there is such variety in ships, and lines, that there truly is something for everyone. Personally, I like the change, from one cruise line ship, to another. Having been on both Carnival (liked them) and RCCL (liked them, too) they offer similar but different experiences. I think if you went over to the Carnival boards, they'd have a similar reaction to yours regarding RCCL cruises, but for different reasons. As others have said, we're so fortunate to be able to cruise. I'm slated for the Allure in May. Should be interesting. But, I will also book Carnival, and NCL in the future. They are all unique in their own way. I like that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kidsgoneletscruise Posted January 24, 2012 #18 Share Posted January 24, 2012 Hmmmm, well, different strokes for different folks I guess. I've tried RCL, CCL and NCL and feel that CCL meets our needs the best. I also feel that a cruise is what you want it to be. I would never allow someones children ruin a vacation or a bad meal. We try to pick our battles; overall Carnival comes up the winner with us! :) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kruzerci Posted January 24, 2012 #19 Share Posted January 24, 2012 Carnival isn't for us either. At least you had a vacation though! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nyyhoneybee Posted January 24, 2012 #20 Share Posted January 24, 2012 I sailed the Valor on her 6th sailing and came away wishing I didn't for a lot of the same reasons why you didn't like the Magic. It would take a super good deal to get me back on CCL again! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rjrpar Posted January 24, 2012 #21 Share Posted January 24, 2012 We usually cruise with RCCl but we were on the Carnival Magic for 2 weeks in the Med. in Sept. There were some issues on the Magic, however, the food on the cruise was better than our last 2 rccl cruises and we had a great time. No matter how many times CCL and RCCl are compared on cruise critic, the differences that are always highlighted are really not very significant. Both are mass market lines operating within the same general price range and both attracting tens of thousands of passengers each week. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sinppu Posted January 24, 2012 #22 Share Posted January 24, 2012 I'm sorry Royal Caribbean, I should have known better. Please forgive me. I'm sure Royal is a forgiving soul. You'll be welcomed with open arms ;) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
av8tr21 Posted January 24, 2012 #23 Share Posted January 24, 2012 The atmosphere on Carnival ships seems to be like the atmosphere on the Carnival boards on here :eek: ooops, did I say that? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare graphicguy Posted January 24, 2012 #24 Share Posted January 24, 2012 Good point....a cruise is what you make of it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ksadonnab Posted January 24, 2012 #25 Share Posted January 24, 2012 Have never been on a Carnival Ship and have no plans to, Royal suits us the best. We have sailed on Princess and and had enjoyable cruises with their lines, but for overall cruise experience, prefer RCL. I've never been on a Carnival ship either but am sometimes tempted by their fares. :) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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