How will Carnival Compare- Loved Celebrity and Royal

[Travel luv]

Although I am not new to cruising, I have never sailed with Carnival. We have cruised with Royal Caribbean (loved the experince and activities and overall experience) and Celebrity (loved the food and service of Celebrity).

 

I booked a short 4 day cruise on Celebrity Constellation for Feb 2014 that included a beverage package, however I am realizing that we could travel with Carnival (Victory) for about $300 cheaper.

 

This would be a quick trip, so I am considering it, although I have heard negative things about Carnival. For those of you that have sailed both, please share your thoughts/opinions. By the way, we are foodies, so good quality food is an absolute must, although this is an area that RC has gone downhill on with the exception of specialty dining.

[kitty9]

A four day cruise on Carnival will be very different than a four day cruise on Celebrity. For some reason, Royal Caribbean and Carnival's short cruises tend more toward party til you drop attitude. And if you're a foodie, while the food on Carnival isn't bad, I don't think it's nearly as good as X.

[mcrcruiser]

Stick with Celebrity ;).You will be quite disappointed in Carnival:o . For one the food is 2 notches below Celebrity quality & presentation :(.

 

You will see hundreds more people & when the dining room lets out wow what a crowd .

 

entertainment We will take Celebrity any day of the week .:D

 

We have 59 cruises under our belt & 7 of those where on Carnival .We avoid Carnival regardless of price :p.Princess is a far better choice;) if you are thinking of a Carnival Corporation cruise line

[theopup]

The last cruise we were on was an eastern carribean on the Carnival Liberty. We are foodies as well, and really disliked the food the whole cruise.

[teecee60]

I almost let myself get talked out of an 8 night cruise on Carnival Splendor by all the Carnival bashing done in some venues. I did have a GREAT cruise...BUT I would never even consider an itinerary of 7 days or less on Carnival.

 

The line markets to, and attracts, a completely different demographic than Celebrity and I think you might be more than just a little let down.

 

The food wasn't bad... it just wasn't good, a good bit below Celebrity. The Splendor WAS spotlessly clean (MULTIPLE 100%'s on inspections) and the service was great.

 

Splendor is now doing 8 nighter's to Florida and the Bahamas out of NYC and some of the departures in Nov-Jan are priced at 249pp!

 

I agree with the poster that suggested you might give Princess a try. I just did a 14 nighter to Alaska in September on Diamond and wouldn't hesitate to book with them again.

 

Good luck on your decision...

[COMBOY]

Look, you pay for what you get. Well, of course Carnival is $300 cheaper and there is a good reason. It doesn't not offer the quality upscale experience of a Celebrity ship. While the food isn't bad on Carnival and in many case reasonably good; it's not going to be like Celebrity. If you are a foodie then you will be very disappointed. Stick with what you know and like. Carnival is good if you are looking for a quick cheap get away and/or a party cruise with food not a 1st priority. Their ships are nice and clean and have fairly large cabins, tons of nice lounges & bars. (think floating Las Vegas). Celebrity caters to the upscale cruiser that likes good quality food in a refined unstuffy atmosphere. (think upscale New York hotel). It's like comparing apples to oranges. They offer different cruise products to a different client base. Carnival ships are very different then RCI. I think RCI has some of the nicest ships in the mass market cruise product. Then again, RCI is not Carnival. Carnival ships are bright, bold, and in some case down right gaudy with lot of quirky designs and features like neon. Whereas, RCI ships are modern, elegant and refined. Celebrity ships are just an upscale version of RCI ships and a bit more sedate & elegant within your own design. Just know if you go on Carnival; it won't be like Celebrity. Then again, Carnival offers a very good product for the price.

[Mama24]

I will tell you what my daughter said to me when she got back from her first Carnival cruise: "Mom, you would hate it." She must think I'm a cruise snob or something. :p

 

I know her big complaints were the food and how crowded the ship seemed. She said there were always "traffic jams".

 

I have not been on X yet. We're on Silhouette next March. But I have been on Princess and RCI, which I loved. I would probably try Carnival depending on price and length of cruise.

[bplazo]

We did a five Day cruise on Carnival and it was not bad but it lacked the touches of rccl and celebrity. Reayy cannot comment aboutmthe roof be UAE I am niot a foodie althougbi didmlike the chicken strips and burgers at the pool grill. I would do another Carnival cruise.

 

 

Love celebrity.

[wallie5446]

Our 1st cruise was in 1987, have yet to sail Carnival, BUT:eek: we sailed the Ruby Princess last Nov with friends that sail on Carnival more than any other line, and said the Ruby was no where close to the Carnival ship's they have sailed. It has been over 15 yrs since they sailed X, and will be with us again this Nov, so we will have a good comparison in 4 weeks.

[terigo]

The 4 night market in general attracts a different crowd than the longer cruises. I find Carnival to be a nice little getaway for a reasonable price, but be prepared that on ANY cruise line the short cruises tend to be the "party hearty" people. Celebrity, though upmarket from Carnival, is not that much better for the short cruises.

[Cindy]

I've cruised on Carnival, and while they wouldn't be my first choice, I would sail with them again if the circumstances were right. However, I wouldn't take a shorter cruise with them, for some of the reasons stated above.

I haven't taken my first Celebrity yet, but in comparing RCI and CCL, the two most obvious differences are décor and crowds. The difference in the number of passengers is VERY noticeable to me. It's compounded by generally poor ship design (lots of dead ends) and smallish public spaces relative to the passenger load.

[steveweese]

We have taken one Carnival cruise. Had a great time. But we were prepared for it to be Carnival, not Celebrity.

[CruisingGatorGirl]

A 4 day Carnival cruise will be a party and the food will not be great. Of course, food is subjective. I did a 4 day Carnival cruise this past summer for my bachelorette party. I decided, the only way I would ever sail Carnival again was for a party, back to college feeling. The food is nothing to write home about.

 

I did a review/comparison of Carnival and Celebrity here:

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1885849

 

 

edit: I agree with the PP, you just have to go in knowing this is NOT Celebrity. You get what you pay for IMO.

[PattyG12]

Will be sailing our first on Celebrity in 2015 but have sailed Royal and Carnival. We found the decor terrible on Carnival, the Crowds to be overwhelming and the service the worst. It was almost impossible to get from one place to another without looking at a map!

[cynbar]

Well, the OP has to consider that this is a Celebrity board so the opinions are going to be skewed. Carnival still has a lot of fans, whether we agree with them or not. I haven't been on Carnival in years, but I gather it is still a party atmosphere, very different from the sedate and elegant atmosphere on Celebrity. We love Celebrity but sometimes cruise other lines for a variety of reasons --- itinerary first, sometimes convenience, sometimes to accompany friends, and so on. We also feel that it can get a little boring to cruise only one line, menus and shows and atmosphere are pretty much the same on all the ships. So, if an opportunity came to sail Carnival, we might grab it and try to remember that all the lines have strengths and weaknesses. The OP doesn't lose much by trying a short Carnival cruise and making up his/her own mind. Just, as mentioned above, remember it is not Celebrity and shouldn't really be compared.

[Ship's Wake]

By the way, we are foodies, so good quality food is an absolute must, although this is an area that RC has gone downhill on with the exception of specialty dining.

 

Well....the most acclaimed food item on Carnival is a hamburger (Guy's Burgers). That in itself should tell you alot about the food.

[Cruising5650]

Carnival is a floating party. If you want to get drunk and act like an idiot you will LOVE carnival. I am not bashing Carnival, back in my younger days, this was all for me ... in fact, I was the drunk idiot by the pool. I was on a carnival cruise back in June and the drunk idiots are just not for me anymore. On deck by the pool they had burgers and pizza. Again, if you want burgers and pizza both were excellent.

 

If you want Luxury and good food, avoid carnival and stick with celebrity.

[PSCruiser]

If you like live music in various venues, don't expect it on Carnival. They've gotten rid of most bands and replaced with recorded, or a guy with a guitar. Like many details on Carnival, management must assume you won't notice if tipsy most of the time.

[spookwife]

Although I am not new to cruising, I have never sailed with Carnival. We have cruised with Royal Caribbean (loved the experince and activities and overall experience) and Celebrity (loved the food and service of Celebrity).

 

I booked a short 4 day cruise on Celebrity Constellation for Feb 2014 that included a beverage package, however I am realizing that we could travel with Carnival (Victory) for about $300 cheaper.

 

This would be a quick trip, so I am considering it, although I have heard negative things about Carnival. For those of you that have sailed both, please share your thoughts/opinions. By the way, we are foodies, so good quality food is an absolute must, although this is an area that RC has gone downhill on with the exception of specialty dining.

 

 

my personal opinion, Carnival is a step down from Royal in almost every respect. the food was okay, but not outstanding.

[Cruising5650]

my personal opinion, Carnival is a step down from Royal in almost every respect. the food was okay, but not outstanding.

 

I disagree that Carnival is a step down ... it depends on what you are looking for.

 

If you want an inexpensive party, getting drunk and eating pizza and burgers Carnival is WAY better.

 

If you want luxury and better food, it costs a little more, but Celebrity is WAY better.

[miched]

We sailed on Carnival 15 times before sailing on Celebrity. We enjoyed Carnival but was always curious about X. After sailing on X it became our line of choice for now. We still sail on Carnival and while they are enjoyable cruises we only use them as a cheap get away to extend our time in FL when we are there for a Celebrity cruise. We drive from Mi and it is cheaper than staying in a condo or hotel during the winter months so it gives us another week or so in nice weather, but of the price is not that much different we do another Celebrity cruise instead for what we perceive as a better value.

 

Can't say that the food is that much different, both have their good and bad. Neither one seem to have any deserts that taste better than they look. The best we have had was the chocolate melting cake, but that is a instant cardiac arrest.

 

If possible do both and then you can campare for yourself.

 

What sold us on X:

 

their no smoking policy. 🚬

 

better drinks and drink packages 🍻 🍸 ☕

 

not as much rah rah rah 🎉

 

more sophisticated atmoshere 👕👗🎩

 

a little quieter and relaxing 💤

 

.🎃

[OCruisers]

Although I am not new to cruising, I have never sailed with Carnival. We have cruised with Royal Caribbean (loved the experince and activities and overall experience) and Celebrity (loved the food and service of Celebrity).

 

I booked a short 4 day cruise on Celebrity Constellation for Feb 2014 that included a beverage package, however I am realizing that we could travel with Carnival (Victory) for about $300 cheaper.

 

This would be a quick trip, so I am considering it, although I have heard negative things about Carnival. For those of you that have sailed both, please share your thoughts/opinions. By the way, we are foodies, so good quality food is an absolute must, although this is an area that RC has gone downhill on with the exception of specialty dining.

 

It's short cruise and you could put up with anything for 4 days so it would give you the opportunity to see what Carnival is like for yourself. ;)

 

Problem is the food. While food is very subjective, we just really don't like it on Carnival. We looked forward to our port stops so we could get something decent to eat. :D

 

Note: Agree with you on RCCL food in the MDR ... but do love their specialty restaurants.

On Celebrity, Princess, and HAL we like the food well enough in the MDR not to have to go to a specialty restaurant EVERY night.

 

Enjoy your cruise whatever you decide. :)

 

LuLu

~~~~

[steveweese]

One thing i forgot to mention is that we ate at the steakhouse every night, I think it is "Harrys". It was outstanding! as good as we have had on any ship.

[Cruising89143]

Although I am not new to cruising, I have never sailed with Carnival. We have cruised with Royal Caribbean (loved the experince and activities and overall experience) and Celebrity (loved the food and service of Celebrity).

 

I booked a short 4 day cruise on Celebrity Constellation for Feb 2014 that included a beverage package, however I am realizing that we could travel with Carnival (Victory) for about $300 cheaper.

 

This would be a quick trip, so I am considering it, although I have heard negative things about Carnival. For those of you that have sailed both, please share your thoughts/opinions. By the way, we are foodies, so good quality food is an absolute must, although this is an area that RC has gone downhill on with the exception of specialty dining.

 

I cruised on the Victory back when she was doing seven night cruises out of Miami. The ship has the old Joe Farcus design and if you like the color green then you will love this ship. It's everywhere. The theme is seas from around the world. I personally think that it's gaudy but then IMHO most Carnival ships are but that's one thing that makes them different from the rest of the cruise lines.

 

The biggest turn off for me are the ships themselves. Crowded and poorly designed compared to RCI and Celebrity. When it comes to food and entertainment I won't comment as it's subjective and it's been a while since I cruised with Carnival but in the end there are so many better options out there that I won't even look at Carnival. They are the bottom of the heap for me. They are so far behind the competition when it comes to imagination and innovation that they are now trying to catch up. This is not knocking or bashing Carnival as some like to try and state but it's just my two cents.

 

This article is a good example of the current status of Carnival.

 

http://www.seatrade-insider.com/news/news-headlines/a-carnival-refocus-on-customers-and-innovation-with-product-news-to-come.html

[Aquahound]

I booked a short 4 day cruise on Celebrity Constellation for Feb 2014 that included a beverage package, however I am realizing that we could travel with Carnival (Victory) for about $300 cheaper.

 

This wouldn't even be a consideration for me. I've never cruised Victory, but I have been aboard the ship. Ugly doesn't even begin to describe it. This ship and her sisters are some of the gaudiest ships afloat. Factor that in with the crowd you would get with a cheaper 4 day cruise, and there is no way I would book. Stick with what you know you like. JMHO.