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Just got Back from Carnival... Is Disney worth it?


firstcruiseever
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We had a blast on our carnival cruise, because we were on vacation and we had our kids with us. But my main complaints: The room was dirty. The food was bland and mushy. (comparable to Golden Corral, only I think their potatoes are better at the Golden Corral) And the entertainment was not only scarce, but cheap and uneventful. There were only 2 shows on a 5 day cruise. They had the same actors, so were basically a variation on each other. The rest of the entertainment "how to make towel animals" and "the love and marriage game".

 

MY QUESTION:

 

Is Disney worth it? It is twice the amount of Carnival of an equivalent itinerary (and then some on some trips). We LOVE cruising, but Carnival is just not for us... Will Disney make a big difference?

 

Thanks

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I have been on three Carnival, one Disney and one Royal Caribbean Cruise and I have enjoyed them all.

 

You mentioned dirty room, mushy food and terrible entertainment on Carnival, well that won't happen on Disney. If I'm taking my kids(8,4) its going to be a Disney Cruise, if its just me and my hubby its Carnival. I like to gamble and there is no casino on Disney, also the nightime entertainment ends early on Disney-which is fine when I have my kids.

 

To me having my kids happy and excited is priceless. My son still asks can we go back whenever he sees the commercials -he was 3 at the time.

 

So yes to me its woth it.

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We had a blast on our carnival cruise, because we were on vacation and we had our kids with us. But my main complaints: The room was dirty. The food was bland and mushy. (comparable to Golden Corral, only I think their potatoes are better at the Golden Corral) And the entertainment was not only scarce, but cheap and uneventful. There were only 2 shows on a 5 day cruise. They had the same actors, so were basically a variation on each other. The rest of the entertainment "how to make towel animals" and "the love and marriage game".

 

MY QUESTION:

 

Is Disney worth it? It is twice the amount of Carnival of an equivalent itinerary (and then some on some trips). We LOVE cruising, but Carnival is just not for us... Will Disney make a big difference?

 

Thanks

 

We are frequent Cruisers on Various lines.

Before you write off Carnival all together give another ship a try. Try one of the larger, newer ones. Breeze, Magic...etc.

 

You will find cheerleaders for various lines that will tell you that one is 110% better then the other. The only way you will know is based on personnel experience.

 

Try a few different lines then see which fits your family better.

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It's all up to the person and their preference/taste.

 

I would say try a 3 or 4 day cruise on the Dream before you commit to a 7 day cruise on DCL.

You may find the lack of casino or the constant Disney theming too much.

As vacation_junkie said, maybe the Carnival ship you cruised on wasn't for you and one of of the ships with a 2.0 upgrade would suit you better if that is the case?

 

DCL definitely is a lot more expensive and a lot of people will say thats because of XYZ. Some of it is the truth, and some isn't IMO.

You can get great entertainment on CCL and on DCL or RCI.

 

Your taste in what is provided is the determining point.

As for food, that is sooo open to subjection.

Guy's burger joint?!?!!!! I would be there every day if DCL had that!

 

I would say try a short DCL cruise first, and be aware it will be a hell of a lot more hectic than a longer 7 day cruise as the Guest's try to cram in every activity and experience in that short cruise.

 

It's a really case of each to their own when loving cruise lines!

All of them offer the same basic thing, it's just the extra things that make it great or worthwhile to each and every family worth it.

ex techie

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We just returned from our second Carnival Cruise. We had a nice relaxing time, but I compare it to staying at a Motel 6. Our room was teeny, tattered drapes, leaky window, no refrigerator or hair dryer, etc. it was clean and the staff was great. We found the entertainment good and food okay.

We've tried number of lines and have never had a bad cruise. They all have their good points as well as areas lacking. We will not look at Carnival as a top contender for future vacations, feeling our experiences were just not a relative value for what we spent.

I have toured the Disney Fantasy and am eagerly looking forward to cruising on DCL. Yes, it is very expensive. Whether it is "worth it" will depend on what you are looking for.

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We just returned from our second Carnival Cruise. We had a nice relaxing time, but I compare it to staying at a Motel 6. Our room was teeny, tattered drapes, leaky window, no refrigerator or hair dryer, etc. it was clean and the staff was great. We found the entertainment good and food okay.

We've tried number of lines and have never had a bad cruise. They all have their good points as well as areas lacking. We will not look at Carnival as a top contender for future vacations, feeling our experiences were just not a relative value for what we spent.

I have toured the Disney Fantasy and am eagerly looking forward to cruising on DCL. Yes, it is very expensive. Whether it is "worth it" will depend on what you are looking for.

 

Whilst I think that a leaking window/porthole is very unacceptable, DCL have also been criticised for having thread bare towels/linen's as well.

As for the footage in the cabin/Staterooms, and the lack of refrigerator or hair dryer, they are not specified as being within the cabin/Stateroom you booked with CCL and on that ship? 2.0 ships are a higher class.

I would say that both a refrigerator and a hair dryer (even the ones that the Wonder does have, those awful ones) are a considered part of booking a hotel room be it one at sea.

 

As you say, what you are looking for does depend on price.

 

ex techie

Edited by Ex techie
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I found the food on DCL very good (with a few exceptions). The cabin was amazing. I am very picky about sheets, pillows, mattresses, etc. and the DCL ones were so wonderful I wanted to bring the whole bed home with me! The shows on Disney were amazing. They were like a short Broadway play with the same caliber costumes, sets and special effects. Although geared for kids to enjoy, like most Disney productions, they also appealed to adults. There were also some adults-only entertainment. I would give DCL a try.

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As others have implied, if you pay Carnival prices, you'll get Carnival quality. Pay Disney prices and you'll get Disney quality.

 

We have rarely had stateroom issues; a quick mention to the host or a call to guest services will have any problem in the room take care of. Overall cleanliness is excellent.

 

Food...we've had better on Celebrity, but it certainly isn't bad. Adult dining restaurants (with an upcharge) are excellent. Main dining rooms good.

 

Entertainment excellent.

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Been on both lines and found that they each did things better than the other. Carnival had better MDR food than Disney but Disney had a much better buffet. Other than the class of cabin, they weren't all that different but we did like the separate shower and wash rooms on Disney.

 

We found the crew was great on both and had no problems. Disembarkation was much easier on Disney but we did need to get up earlier to do it.

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I'm curious as to which Carnival ships the posters were on that were so dirty and tattered? I've sailed with Carnival a few times (Disney 12) and yes, depending on what category you're in, some of the rooms are pretty small....but for less money on Carnival (and other lines) you can get a much larger room.

 

Anyway...curious as to which ships, because I've never noticed on my Carnival cruises that the rooms were in such bad shape.:confused:

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I'm curious as to which Carnival ships the posters were on that were so dirty and tattered? I've sailed with Carnival a few times (Disney 12) and yes, depending on what category you're in, some of the rooms are pretty small....but for less money on Carnival (and other lines) you can get a much larger room.

 

Anyway...curious as to which ships, because I've never noticed on my Carnival cruises that the rooms were in such bad shape.:confused:

 

As listed in my signature, I've sailed on the Valor and the Imagination. (Along with various lines for comparison.) The Valor was ok, but the Imagination cabin was the worst of any by far. It was a mid-range, ocean view (large window), so not even the lowest category. No matter what the category, the size, lack of amenities, torn drapes and leaky window were unacceptable.

I have not sailed Disney, but have toured the Fantasy.

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I'm curious as to which Carnival ships the posters were on that were so dirty and tattered? I've sailed with Carnival a few times (Disney 12) and yes, depending on what category you're in, some of the rooms are pretty small....but for less money on Carnival (and other lines) you can get a much larger room.

 

Anyway...curious as to which ships, because I've never noticed on my Carnival cruises that the rooms were in such bad shape.:confused:

 

They were on the oldest/smallest ship in the fleet:rolleyes: They posed on the Carnival board as well, and basically were told to try one of the newer ships, ie; Breeze, Dream, Magic. Clearly it was a bit "tattered"....:rolleyes:

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I agree that even the older ships should be "ship shape".....but unfortunately, it does make a difference.

 

We were on Carnival's newer Magic, and it was gorgeous. It had features that Disney hasn't even thought of yet, and I really wish they (Disney) would take a look at some of the other lines for ideas. Or at least, I wish they would have before they built the Dream and Fantasy. I'm disappointed that for a family cruise line, they didn't add more family staterooms, but rather removed the ones they did have, making it so that families of more than 5 people have to book two staterooms, which is more costly.

 

About 6 or 7 years ago, we were on an old ship of Norwegian's....which isn't even a part of their fleet any more. The only balcony rooms they had were Owner's Suites, 5 on one side of the ship, and 5 on the other. Very small....but shiny clean, and had the most friendly crew, from the Captain all the way down to maintenance. We loved it. So there's really no excuse for letting an older ship go to the dogs.

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They were on the oldest/smallest ship in the fleet:rolleyes: They posed on the Carnival board as well, and basically were told to try one of the newer ships, ie; Breeze, Dream, Magic. Clearly it was a bit "tattered"....:rolleyes:

 

Not sure what your rolling eyes are meant to convey or exactly who "they" are. Yes, i did post (pose?) on the Carnival board. :confused:

If you are referring to my posts here:

My expectations are that standards of maintenance and quality should be consistent fleet wide, no matter age or size. (Same expectations apply to restaurant and hotel chains.) If the staterooms were poorly maintained, I can only imagine the conditions behind the scenes. Evidently there are some Carnival loyalists that expect less.

We have sailed on the oldest and smallest of Royal Caribbean's fleet (Nordic Prince - no longer in service) and one of NCL's older, smaller ships (Sun). We did not experience the same issues and would book either company again.

Some cruisers prefer smaller ships as opposed to newer and bigger. Carnival should be able to deliver no matter which they are selling. Why on earth would we try another ship and hope it's better?

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I agree that even the older ships should be "ship shape".....but unfortunately, it does make a difference.

 

We were on Disney Magic last year, I could tell it was an older ship. We've only been on the new (at the time, lol) Carnival ships. As far as the ship itself, yes we could tell the difference.

 

Unfortunately, Disney is leaving the port of Gal and isn't in New Orleans. We'll likely be on Carnival in the future. I KNOW we'll have a blast, but I know we won't tip extra and we'll miss the magic. :(

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We were on Disney Magic last year, I could tell it was an older ship. We've only been on the new (at the time, lol) Carnival ships. As far as the ship itself, yes we could tell the difference.

 

Unfortunately, Disney is leaving the port of Gal and isn't in New Orleans. We'll likely be on Carnival in the future. I KNOW we'll have a blast, but I know we won't tip extra and we'll miss the magic. :(

 

 

 

I've heard a lot of rumblings lately that the Magic (DCL) was looking worn out. The ship just returned from drydock, and there were more complaints after than there had been before. So I don't think Disney is immune to having wear and tear, or even cleanliness issues.

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I will not pay Disney prices . I can do 2 cruises on carnival for 1 on Disney

 

That's why there are so many different cruise lines. Some people prefer quality over quantity, others are simply not price sensitive. Enjoy your cruise.

 

 

Autocorrect responsible for most typos...

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That's why there are so many different cruise lines. Some people prefer quality over quantity, others are simply not price sensitive. Enjoy your cruise.

 

In terms of service, I found Disney to be only slightly better than Carnival. Food was the same as Carnival, or perhaps worse considering the only late night buffet on Pirate's Night was pretty pitiful.

 

However, where Disney does excel is with the cabin design - the split baths, split room, and huge viewing window. Not to mention, the children's programs, child care, character meet and greets, Disney shows, and Disney flourishes to the ship.

 

If you're not a Disney fan or do not have kids, Disney prices may not be worth it. However, for families, especially those with young kids, I think Disney is an excellent choice.

 

I've heard a lot of rumblings lately that the Magic (DCL) was looking worn out. The ship just returned from drydock, and there were more complaints after than there had been before. So I don't think Disney is immune to having wear and tear, or even cleanliness issues.

 

The magic did not receive a full make over, it would be more accurate to call it a "touch up". Carpets, bedding, and some other cursory items were renovated, but otherwise the ship is pretty much as-is.

 

When we arrived in our room, a dresser was missing! There were "three" holes in the dry wall to greet us. Apparently the dresser fell over on the previous cruise due to shoddy workmanship at the dry dock.

Edited by mshe
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In terms of service, I found Disney to be only slightly better than carnival. Food was the same as Carnival, or perhaps worse considering there was no late night buffet.

 

However, where Disney does excel is with the cabin design - the split baths, split room, and huge viewing window. Not to mention, the children's programs, child care, character meet and greets, Disney shows, and Disney flourishes to the ship.

 

If you're not a Disney fan or do not have kids, then yes, Disney prices may not be worth it. However, for families cruising, I think Disney is a decent choice.

 

We don't see the need for a late night buffet as we prefer to not stuff ourselves and certainly wouldn't choose a cruise for it. We found the service to be exceptional, although we only sail DCL in concierge class suites. Personally I think the value received for the price paid on DCL is just about right.

 

 

Autocorrect responsible for most typos...

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