Opinions/experiences appreciated

[cheermomof2girls]

Due to distance/expense traveling, we can pretty much only depart out of Galveston, which limits the cruise lines we can take to Carnival and Royal Caribbean.

 

Is one recommended above another? I know this is the carnival board, I will also post on the RC forum as well.

 

We have two daughters- 9 and 4 and sailed last August for the first time on Carnival Triumph. We had a wonderful time, the girls enjoyed the kids club. My youngest loved it, oldest is a bit more shy so she liked it but not loved it. I wish there had been more than one water slide. We only used the pool once, and then it was the aft pool- pools were just too crowded for the kids to safely enjoy. DH and I spent a lot of time in the alchemy bar and did enjoy the casino, but only play Texas Hold Em.

 

We had booked an Ocean View but we took an upgrade call to a suite with a balcony and now are convinced we have to have a balcony. We spent a lot of time in our room, just relaxing on the balcony, naps or downtime for the kids, etc. And, the a/c wasnt working great so the balcony saved us from sweating too much one night. (Called GS and they said they were experiencing problems ship wide) I believe my husband slept on the balcony that night!

[JaniceB]

The Breeze would be a great ship for all. I haven't sailed on RCI yet so I can't comment on that.

[KatieCharlotte]

Due to distance/expense traveling, we can pretty much only depart out of Galveston, which limits the cruise lines we can take to Carnival and Royal Caribbean.

 

Is one recommended above another? I know this is the carnival board, I will also post on the RC forum as well.

 

We have two daughters- 9 and 4 and sailed last August for the first time on Carnival Triumph. We had a wonderful time, the girls enjoyed the kids club. My youngest loved it, oldest is a bit more shy so she liked it but not loved it. I wish there had been more than one water slide. We only used the pool once, and then it was the aft pool- pools were just too crowded for the kids to safely enjoy. DH and I spent a lot of time in the alchemy bar and did enjoy the casino, but only play Texas Hold Em.

 

We had booked an Ocean View but we took an upgrade call to a suite with a balcony and now are convinced we have to have a balcony. We spent a lot of time in our room, just relaxing on the balcony, naps or downtime for the kids, etc. And, the a/c wasnt working great so the balcony saved us from sweating too much one night. (Called GS and they said they were experiencing problems ship wide) I believe my husband slept on the balcony that night!

 

Many Carnival ships have a waterworks area with more than one slide that your kids would enjoy. I believe the Breeze is coming to Galveston. It is much larger than the Triumph and has waterworks, Sports Square, and other fun features that your kids would enjoy. We haven't sailed RC yet, but my kids have always had a great time on Carnival, especially on the ships with newer features like the Sports Square (Breeze, Magic, Sunshine). You may find that the pools are less crowded in the mornings and other times when it's too cool for anyone but a kid to swim. The Breeze also has hot tubs on deck five that are typically not crowded.

[dacsmom]

Tough choice. At first I would have said the Breeze, but Liberty of the Seas was just refurbished to now have a really nice waterpark. I am now going to vote for the Liberty. I have been on her sister ship, the Freedom, and she is my favorite.

[Tyme2Cruise]

It's been years since I sailed on Royal Caribbean, so I can't comment on the ships out of Galveston. However, we have been on the Dream 3 times and have always had a good time. The Breeze is a Dream class ship, with several upgrades that the Dream did not have. If I had to choose, the Breeze would be my choice. :)

[chascougs]

Went on THe Breeze last Dec and had the best time I've had (12 cruises on Carnival and RC). Sailed Independance of the Seas (sister ship of Liberty OTS) 2 years ago and had an ok time. RC ships are beautiful for sure but we find we prefer both the food and the atmosphere on Carnival. My kids 14,11, and 6 loved the waterworks (much better than RC), the ropes course was a big hit as well and the mini golf, foosball, and pool tables in the sports square areas. While RCs inside areas are nice I prefer Carnival for the simple reason you can almost always look out window and see the water where on RC I felt like I was in a shopping mall. RC balcony is superior to Carnival standard balcony mainly due to the differences in the balcony doors and real shower doors! RC also has the Ice Rink with the Ice Show that is great. Breeze has Guys burgers (free) while RC has Johnie Rockets ( not so free) we preferred Carnival specialty dining to RCs as well. Would I sail RC again...absolutely but only if I find a great deal. We are booked on The Magic for this Dec which will mean we've been on all 3 of the Carnival Dream class ships and gotta say this class is my favorite now. Hope that helps some. Should add that I'm not a drinker at all (23 years sobriety) and have never had an issue with Carnival being a party boat so my preference has nothing to do drinking and that type of atmosphere.

Edited April 7, 2016 by chascougs
Additional info

[StolidCruiser]

If I'm not mistaken, RCCL only offers a few different Western Caribbean itineraries on the Liberty of the Seas of 7-8 day length.

 

Carnival offers several different Eastern and Western Caribbean itineraries on several different ships of varying length.

 

It would depend on the mix of what you are looking for in a cruise - price, ship features, itinerary, length, etc.

 

Carnival certainly gives you more variety to suit what you might be looking for while RCCL's offering is fairly limited. Price points for a comparable 7-day Western on either line are about the same (with RCCL a bit higher on average).

 

Your family could certainly enjoy RCCL the same if not more than Carnival. Give them a try and find out. If you don't like the one ship/itinerary they offer from Galveston, you can always go back to Carnival.

[bankofdad]

The Breeze is a great ship! Loved it, and it is one of my favorites! Lots of great recreation and included food options, this would be my choice for younger kids. We also enjoyed Carnival Liberty out of Galveston as well (similar to the Triumph in many ways) but the Breeze is much more feature rich by comparison (as expected - it is newer and larger).

 

That said, I did enjoy the RCI Freedom and Mariner very much (RCI Liberty is Freedom class)! They have added the flowrider and other features to a lot of the Voyager class ships now too. My teens enjoyed these ships immensely but for our youngest (5 at the time of Freedom sailing) he was too young to use a lot of what they have to offer.

 

Either way you can't go wrong. Kids clubs on both lines have been great, don't see much differentiation there IMHO. I would consider price and itinerary and roll with the best value.

Edited April 7, 2016 by bankofdad
clarify comments

[firegal2539]

I know this is a Carnival board. I have sailed pretty much every major cruise line. Since you have kids, Carnival caters to kids and younger adults but as a previous poster mentioned Liberty just went through a major refurb and added alot for the kids to do. You can Google the new Liberty and it shows and tells you what they have done and added. For me it would have to be the Liberty.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[Trumpster]

My 9 and 6 year old have been on both, they prefer carnival and loved the Breeze.

 

I liked the Breeze too and much prefer the Carnival kids club, hours, dinner with the club is great.

 

Royal will pick the kids up in the mdr but they preferred to eat with their friends at camp the way Carnival does it.

 

Next year we are going Royal for a specific set of ports, and both kids gave a sigh of OK, I guess.

[cruisecraze96]

Both the Liberty and the Breeze would be fun ships, now my youngest DD 6 doesn't care as long as she gets to go on a big boat :) but my oldest one who is now 13 loves Carnival for the teen program. I also liked how Carnival had the different parties at night for the kids where Royal did not, but they had other fun experiences such as the science lab and sports night.

I also liked the food on Carnival over Royal and was missing the Guys Burgers on the Breeze :)

[01sunworshiper113]

Due to distance/expense traveling, we can pretty much only depart out of Galveston, which limits the cruise lines we can take to Carnival and Royal Caribbean.

 

Is one recommended above another? I know this is the carnival board, I will also post on the RC forum as well.

 

We have two daughters- 9 and 4 and sailed last August for the first time on Carnival Triumph. We had a wonderful time, the girls enjoyed the kids club. My youngest loved it, oldest is a bit more shy so she liked it but not loved it. I wish there had been more than one water slide. We only used the pool once, and then it was the aft pool- pools were just too crowded for the kids to safely enjoy. DH and I spent a lot of time in the alchemy bar and did enjoy the casino, but only play Texas Hold Em.

 

We had booked an Ocean View but we took an upgrade call to a suite with a balcony and now are convinced we have to have a balcony. We spent a lot of time in our room, just relaxing on the balcony, naps or downtime for the kids, etc. And, the a/c wasnt working great so the balcony saved us from sweating too much one night. (Called GS and they said they were experiencing problems ship wide) I believe my husband slept on the balcony that night!

 

We are cruising AGAIN on the Breeze next February! My daughters 12 & 20 loved the Breeze last February, I have been trying to talk them into another ship or cruise line for something different....but haven't been successful so far. We haven't tried RCL yet, one day, the Liberty looks like a great ship!

 

If you do choose the Breeze, deck 8 with balcony (midship) was a nice choice for all 4 of us, lots of room, high enough from deck 5 that has hot tubs and the promenade (which close at 9pm so never a noise issue) with cabins above and below.

 

Let us know which ship you choose :)

[dolphin2012]

We have a cruise booked for the Breeze this summer. I reserved the Cove balcony which is on deck 2 with a great view of the water. My daughter is 18 and enjoys the rope course, mini golf, and dances at nite. She cant wait till shes old enough for the serenity deck. THe waterslides are almost empty in the early morn and late in the evening. There are a lot of trivia games during the day that we all enjoy too. The schedule you receive in your room every day will have something for everyone. Of course the dive in movie is all our favorite thing to do at nite. Enjoy!