Celebrity vs Carnival - 7 day Oct out of Galveston

[phoenix_dream]

We are looking at taking a Caribbean cruise in October and Celebrity only has one option and the prices are outrageous. Heaven help us, we are considering trying out Carnival again after 20+ years cruising only Celebrity or Royal Caribbean. Some input please.

 

Being October, I expect there will not be a boatload of kids (at least school age kids), and I understand the décor will be a bit more old Las Vegas than Celebrity. We will miss the perks of being Elite+, but the price is fantastic which can make up for a lot of drinks. Our expectations will be set that the food will not be quite as good, nor the service. But what else would you consider the major differences? RCI has a couple ships sailing a similar route that I am trying to talk DH into, but he is looking at the price of Carnival and drooling:). I read through a similar post from last year, but it spoke more to shorter cruises. Any additional input would be appreciated. Thanks in advance!

[chessbriar]

I wish I could help recommend Carnival, but I did one cruise and never will again. RCCL and X handle my needs. I just don't have the experience on Carnival to help. I would go the RCCL route myself.

 

Good Luck

[wallie5446]

I was going to say take a look at the RCCL ship sailing out of Galveston. Princess is now sailing out of Houston with some dirt cheap specials this fall. The port in Houston is also a lot easier to get to than the hour shuttle to Galveston from the Houston airport.

 

Aas to food and service, you know the drill! We have friends that sail Carnival 75% of the time. They sailed the Ruby Princess and the Reflection with us the last two years. Said their Carnival cruises were better than Princess and as good as Celebrity.

Edited August 7, 2014 by wallie5446

[phoenix_dream]

Unfortunately there are no Houston trips for Princess for the weeks I am able to go.

 

On a related topic, can you give me more info about the options to get to Galveston from Houston?

[wallie5446]

Unfortunately there are no Houston trips for Princess for the weeks I am able to go.

 

On a related topic, can you give me more info about the options to get to Galveston from Houston?

 

We are a 5 hour drive due north in a sub of Dallas. We drove and parked at the pier.

 

When we sail out of Port Canaverial, we fly into Orlando and rent a car, and drive instead of useing the shuttle at $40 ea. You may take a look at this option there also.

[Honeybearhollow]

We are a 5 hour drive due north in a sub of Dallas. We drove and parked at the pier.

 

When we sail out of Port Canaverial, we fly into Orlando and rent a car, and drive instead of useing the shuttle at $40 ea. You may take a look at this option there also.

 

 

OP said Celebrity and I don't believe Celebrity sails out of Port Canaveral.

[Big_G]

OP said Celebrity and I don't believe Celebrity sails out of Port Canaveral.

 

...or Galveston.

[miched]

A few years ago we sailed in the Carnival Dream. For me it was no better or worse than a RCCl cruise. Service was good, food was good, entertainment was great as they had a lot of comedians in the comedy club every night. It isn't as quite or relaxed as a Celebrity cruise and I would cruise with them again if it wasn't for their smoking policy. I have also seen that they have eliminated table cloths in the MDR, don't know how that is affecting anything. Another is that their drink package isn't as good as Celebrity's but is available. I think it only includes alcoholic beverages and has a limit of 12 drinks a day. Bottled water, soda, and coffee aren't included. I never bought their package so it really doesn't mean anything for me. I enjoy it as a perk on Celebrity but wouldn't pay for it outright.

 

Happy cruising 🌊🚢🇺🇸🌅

[wallie5446]

OP said Celebrity and I don't believe Celebrity sails out of Port Canaveral.

 

...or Galveston.

 

Ya'll need to slowly read the Title of the thread, OP is looking at a cruise from Galveston.

 

And post #4, whe she ask "On a related topic, can you give me more info about the options to get to Galveston from Houston?"

 

In post # 5, I respond, we drive,then offered a suggestion on something to try, that we learned from reading Cruise Critic of all things, that would be comparable.

 

Gee whiz! Follow the comments, offer helpful tid bit's, or remain silent before you decide someone else is clueless.

EW

[rebeccalouiseagain]

I personally wouldn't cruise out of Galveston or Houston. There always seem to be issues with the weather and being unable to dock on time due to weather. Then the other issue is the Carnival track record for poor ship maintenance and break downs.

 

Spend a little more and go to Ft. Lauderdale- a huge hub with more choices. The port is easy to access from the airport, unlike Galveston or Houston. Carnival would probably be my last choice. Its made for families and you aren't traveling with kids. The ships are ugly and it just wouldn't suit my taste. I've done one- it was fine but nothing to write home about.

Edited August 7, 2014 by rebeccalouiseagain

[hcat]

Other than the need to book a cruise for Oct and a specific port, I just can't see an elite + being happy on carnival...at any price...so sorry I can't help. OP has already predicted how little she will enjoy...

 

What about an inside on X ,or hope for a price drop... or why not try an all inclusive or something a bit diff .....

Edited August 7, 2014 by hcat

[Big_G]

...or Galveston.

 

Ya'll need to slowly read the Title of the thread, OP is looking at a cruise from Galveston.

 

 

Title: Celebrity vs Carnival - 7 day Oct out of Galveston

 

Sorry but I'm not sure how my comment suggested the OP was clueless. Maybe if the OP identified the Celebrity cruise they were using as a comparison there wouldn't have been any confusion. My apologies to the OP if they felt slighted.

[NOSaints1]

I would Carnival with Guy Fieris burgers and the blue iguana cantina, there both to die for. I think there on the Freedom and the Triumph out of Galveston but not the Magic.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

[jerseycandyman]

Ok let me first say celebrity would always be my first choice but sometimes those great deals are deals I just cant pass up. Any time we have sailed on carnival I always go on with the lowest expectations and when I come off I rave about them this past march we were on the splendor out of NY. I must say we had the time of our life the food was great in the mdr. yes there ships are very gaudy but hey its just decoration. If he price is right and you

go on with the right frame of mind I'm sure you will not be disappointed

John;)

[jammen]

We are looking at taking a Caribbean cruise in October and Celebrity only has one option and the prices are outrageous. Heaven help us, we are considering trying out Carnival again after 20+ years cruising only Celebrity or Royal Caribbean. Some input please.

 

Being October, I expect there will not be a boatload of kids (at least school age kids), and I understand the décor will be a bit more old Las Vegas than Celebrity. We will miss the perks of being Elite+, but the price is fantastic which can make up for a lot of drinks. Our expectations will be set that the food will not be quite as good, nor the service. But what else would you consider the major differences? RCI has a couple ships sailing a similar route that I am trying to talk DH into, but he is looking at the price of Carnival and drooling:). I read through a similar post from last year, but it spoke more to shorter cruises. Any additional input would be appreciated. Thanks in advance!

 

 

This will have to be your call, I have had good and some bad ones on Carnival.

[bobsfamily]

Over the years with family in tow we have done many Carnival cruises and still do hop on the Fantasy as it's homeported about 15 minutes from the house. Now that the "kids" have left we choose to drive 10 hours to cruise with Celebrity and enjoy it a lot.

 

Just be aware that it is NOT Celebrity, go with you eyes open. You will not get the Elite+ perks but as you say the prices are great.

 

The drink package is 15 drinks per day, beer or booze. And they mean 15... if you hit that number you will not be able to even buy another drink til 6am the next day. Some have stated that you can start buying drinks at 12 or 14 and never hit the magic number of 15 as bought drinks don't count towards the package. This past May we cruised the Fantasy with about 20 other cabins and most of the group purchased the package - I think it's around $55 pp per day including tip - twice I saw someone hit 15, both times they were put to bed by their mate before 9pm! One other note, all persons over the age of 21 in a cabin must purchase the package unlike CC (or no one). It does not include water/soda, we always take a case of water with us.

 

The Magic is a "dream" class ship which is one of the large ones and it has all kinds of venues, a bit more "rowdy" that might be expected on CC but fun. If available you can purchase Faster To The Fun (FTTF) which allows you to board right after Platinum/Diamond guests and go directly to your cabin, no waiting til 1:30pm. They do limit the passes to between 15-30 and it's $50 per cabin. It also includes priority tendering (to land,not back) and express disembarkation.

 

The food can be great or can be hit or miss but I find that on any cruiseline. What does detract is the mass of people. With a ship that can hold almost 4000 passengers any venue is susceptible to overcrowding.

 

As another said only you can decide for yourself. I hope this info helps.

Either way have a wonderful cruise!

Edited August 8, 2014 by bobsfamily

[phoenix_dream]

Thanks for all your input. I was actually 'misremembering' why I wasn't able to take Celebrity. There was only one choice to choose from out of mainland US in October going to the Caribbean, and it was on the Summit, which I didn't want to take because we are going to be traveling on it this November.

 

I will pass along your input to DH and see if I can talk him back into RCI instead:)

[Cindy]

I've cruised on both RCI and Carnival from Galveston, and given a choice between the two, I would definitely opt for Royal Caribbean. I think the experience on the beautifully refurbished Navigator will be closer to the experience on Celebrity, and as your benefits cross over, you'll get the Diamond perks which include access to the new Diamond Lounge.

 

My Carnival cruises were fine, but I did see a lot of change in the product between our first Carnival cruise in 2009 and our last in 2011. Where it was most noticeable to me was in the MDR where our wait staff really struggled with the number of passengers to serve, and the entertainment was pretty bare bones -- mostly passenger led and not of interest to us. My big complaint, however, is their ships carry a much higher load than other lines and I always felt crowded.

 

If you choose the Carnival Magic, she gets very good reviews, and my understanding is that the décor is somewhat more subdued than on older Carnival ships. I have stayed away from the Magic because I've been able to get a decent fare on RCI, and that's my preference. My last Carnival cruise was on the Dream, which is the "older sister" to the Magic, and that was really the trip that made me decide I needed to go back to another line, because of the service and the crowds. The ship itself was pretty, and I would probably have enjoyed it with about 500 fewer passengers!

 

The only weather problem you need to be concerned with in Galveston in October is a late season hurricane, and it would be pretty rare. The "always" weather delays that Rebeccalouiseagain referred to are a winter fog phenomenon when cold water meets warm, humid air during one of our frequent warm spells. That's VERY unlikely to happen in October, which is a beautiful time of year in Texas!

 

Hope this helps. If you have specific questions about the Navigator I'll try to answer.

[TomTN]

Please do not listen to any of the CCL haters. Book the CCL cruise. You might love it and never cruise X again.

 

And Please report here after the cruise and let us know the good and the bad.

 

Honestly, I think some of the dislike of other cruise lines is caused by people getting in a rut and being unable to appreciate something different.

 

Disclosure: DW and I have never sailed on CCL.:p Please be our canary.

[jp30338]

Go to Walmart for a bit and evaluate your experience and what people act like, as that is what you can compare Carnival to, lol

 

I will NEVER cruise Carnival after my 2 cruises with them...

[bobsfamily]

Please do not listen to any of the CCL haters. Book the CCL cruise. You might love it and never cruise X again.

 

And Please report here after the cruise and let us know the good and the bad.

 

I concur

 

Go to Walmart for a bit and evaluate your experience and what people act like, as that is what you can compare Carnival to, lol

 

A bit harsh there?

[jp30338]

I concur

 

 

 

A bit harsh there?

 

Perhaps, but its the truth. Im a straight shooter that tells it as it is, even if it offends people. Carnival is called the walmart of the seas for a reason

[hawk/hornfan]

I have sailed CCL, Princess, and HAL and have enjoyed all 3 lines. Will be sailing X for the 1st time, in Sept 2015. Think of Carnival Corp like GM, you have Chevy, Buick, and Cadillac, and each is marketed to a different segment of the public.

 

CCL markets to FUN orientated crowd. The ships activities personnel try carry that out as well. Although we are in our 50's we have had blast on CCL and will cruise them again.

 

I have NEVER EVER, had a bad cruise or meal on a cruise. Some things I did not prefer, sure, that is life in general! When on vacation, YOU control your experience. If you think it will not be good one, guess what, you are right, you just convinced yourself.

 

But then again I do not cruise for perks, I cruise for the enjoyment, relaxation, and community. If I get perks, great. But then again I am not snobbish, elitist or entitled like so many seem to be on CC.

 

But remember, you always get what you pay for!!

[wallie5446]

Perhaps, but its the truth. Im a straight shooter that tells it as it is, even if it offends people. Carnival is called the walmart of the seas for a reason

 

It is?

[bobsfamily]

Carnival is called the walmart of the seas for a reason

 

If you think it will not be good one, guess what, you are right, you just convinced yourself.

 

I think the last quote hits the nail on the head.

 

Friends (made onboard), family and most importantly my wife is what makes ALL cruises great for me.