Carnival - "Walmart of the Seas"

[evandbob]

I've enjoyed my NCL cruises, on both the Epic and Breakaway twice. I think the MDR food is comparable on both lines, but the specialty restaurant variety on NCL beats CCL, while Cagney's is comparable to Carnival's Steakhouse.

 

The entertainment on these two NCL ships was way better than anything I've seen in 31 Carnival cruises. I also enjoyed a 14 day RT sailing from NY, my home port, something I can't get on CCL.

 

I'll be trying an older NCL ship {the Dawn} next year and also the Horizon. I keep an open mind about cruising and am not a cheerleader for any 1 line. I'll be looking to do Celebrity again as well, the Edge previews look quite impressive.

 

I don't get offended when the Carnival/Walmart comparision is made, that's someone's opinion and they are entitled to it. I personally don't shop at Walmart, but that's my choice. In fact I try to avoid all department stores, but Walmart would be my last choice if I was forced to shop in one.

[skyeman27]

I'm platinum at Wal Mart, getting close to diamond...

[bUU]

i'm platinum at wal mart, getting close to diamond...

lol

[rotchill]

I have heard Carnival being referred to as "Walmart of the Seas" on several occasions, so we decided to try a different line this year, since we had only been on Carnival and had nothing to compare it to, but we knew we have always loved Carnival.

So we just got back from our Norwegian cruise. We were completely bored. The crew was rude. The food was hit or miss (we actually preferred the buffet to the MDR). They did not have comedy clubs (which we love). Other than the beautiful ports, we were just not impressed. Now don't get me wrong, we didn't have an awful time, just not as good as we were used to.

So needless to say, we have decided to stick with Carnival since we have never had these issues, and are already planning our next 2 cruises with them.

Guess we just like Walmart!!!;p

I have to admit I have heard this quote and have been steered away from Carnival in the past. I have cruised RCCL, Celebrity, Princess, And NCL in the past 4 years. I am going to try my first Carnival cruise later this year, partially because I have recently met a TA that specializes in Group Carnival cruises. Looking forward to formulating my own opinion later this year. PS I do shop at Walmart regularly

[Breadman54]

I have cruised with Carnival and only Carnival.When I started cruising 8 years ago I checked all the cruise lines for product offered and of course price.Carnival was the "ONLY" cruise line at that time who offered military discount,and it was a nice discount $500.00 off our cruise.My wife and I are going in June on our 29th and 30th cruise with Carnival(B2B).I have called other cruise lines since and some still don't offer veteran discounts or what they offer not as good as Carnival,so I;ll stay with the one that takes care of me,I'll help try to help them.Yes I shop at Walmart and it's OK.Nobody holding people hostage to cruise Carnival,if you don't like Carnival don;t cruise,go some where else,us Walmart people don't care.

[pascalburns]

have cruised on carnival and ncl.both have there good and bad points.both could be considered as Wal Mart of the

Seas.

[maxydu]

Thank goodness for the folks who dress differently or are piled into their bathing suits.....part of the cruise experience is people watching. Sitting poolside would be boring otherwise...lol! Heck, when I get off the ship I feel like a 60 year old stud who still has a babe for a wife......Lighten up folks....Life isn't a dress rehearsal; you get one shot!

[siestakeys04]

Just shopped at Walmart Saturday!! I will be sailing on the Walmart ship in July!! Happy sailing for me!!

[HillBilly Bob]

I like Walmart for a lot of things.

 

.....but you don't have to get all gussied up going to Dollar General.

[Out of Iowa]

We are quite content with Carnival; we like the product and the price. Yes, there have been some changes. We have weighed our options and remain Carnival cruisers. So much is what you make of the voyage!!

 

A dear friend tried Norwegian and said the food was not as good, there were upcharges at every turn and they prefer Carnival. That's good enough for me. Platinum, ho!

[saraandnick]

My two cents worth:

 

I agree that cruise ships have the best people watching. In fact, on sea days I consider it part of the free entertainment. [emoji23]

 

My family has sailed carnival, NCL & princess. My husband & I are both college educated, dress appropriately on the ship (as does my daughter) and out of the cruise lines we prefer carnival. Here's why: the people. My family tries to chose different ports to sail out of to add to the experience. A couple of years ago we sailed out of New Orleans. My daughter was in line at the buffet and was passing by the grits with her nose turned up. The lady in front of her asked if she ever had grits before and my daughter said no. The lady explained that the dish is a southern staple & suggested my daughter try the grits and went on to explain different ways to flavor them. My daughter did as the lady suggested & enjoyed the grits. On another cruise I chose the dining where we were seated with other families. My husband initially did not like that idea. We were seated with two other families. It seemed that carnival took care to seat groups together with children of the same age. One family was not our favorite but the other we have kept in contact with several years later even though we live on the other side of the US. My husband now is a fan of being seated with "strangers."

 

My point? Each cruise we have come away with a positive experience because of the people we meet. Carnival is our favorite because of the people, price and because of the many activities. Life is what you make of it and my family is taking advantage of the one life we have. 31 days until we cruise Hawaii on NCL and a little under a year until we cruise on the Vista.

 

 

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[mom2tcdx2]

There is no such thing as overdressed, just under-dressed :D

 

Norwegian is right out for me, as they serve Pepsi and that is a deal breaker for the wife. I know it is small beans to many, but she really likes the coke.

 

Well now sometimes I have gotten really dressed up, only to feel like I was in the minority. I really don't like to stand out and so I often question my dress as to whether it is too dressy or not dressy enough. I know I am overweight so I try to wear clothes that aren't too small for my body type, etc. I would never in a million years think anyone would want to see me in a bikini LOL.

 

Now as for Pepsi, it is one of the main reasons I actually like NCL - I can actually get Mountain Dew without needing to bring my own onboard. I can't stand coke products.

[FlaMommy75]

My two cents worth:

 

I agree that cruise ships have the best people watching. In fact, on sea days I consider it part of the free entertainment. [emoji23]

 

My family has sailed carnival, NCL & princess. My husband & I are both college educated, dress appropriately on the ship (as does my daughter) and out of the cruise lines we prefer carnival. Here's why: the people. My family tries to chose different ports to sail out of to add to the experience. A couple of years ago we sailed out of New Orleans. My daughter was in line at the buffet and was passing by the grits with her nose turned up. The lady in front of her asked if she ever had grits before and my daughter said no. The lady explained that the dish is a southern staple & suggested my daughter try the grits and went on to explain different ways to flavor them. My daughter did as the lady suggested & enjoyed the grits. On another cruise I chose the dining where we were seated with other families. My husband initially did not like that idea. We were seated with two other families. It seemed that carnival took care to seat groups together with children of the same age. One family was not our favorite but the other we have kept in contact with several years later even though we live on the other side of the US. My husband now is a fan of being seated with "strangers."

 

My point? Each cruise we have come away with a positive experience because of the people we meet. Carnival is our favorite because of the people, price and because of the many activities. Life is what you make of it and my family is taking advantage of the one life we have. 31 days until we cruise Hawaii on NCL and a little under a year until we cruise on the Vista.

 

 

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I love this, great post!! :)

This describes my family perfectly also and why most of the time we choose to cruise CCL.

[CruisingFamily2005]

I'm platinum at Wal Mart, getting close to diamond...

 

Loved this. My husband probably right behind you, lol!!!!

[eyewannacruz4eva]

I've cruised with Royal, Celebrity and of course Carnival.... with that said I love Royal's beautiful larger ships, Celebrity wasn't my speed as it seemed to cater to a much older crowd at the time anyway. But I certainly don't hate/dislike either cruise line. I will be on Carnival next month out of Baltimore, our daughter graduates from High school this month and asked for a family cruise as a graduation gift. I'm sure we will see everything the OP described, just as I've seen on the other Cruise lines as well. your appearance, your weight, your appetite is just that "YOURS" I don't care at all just don't affect my vacation and we're good. As for the walmart reference, It's funny I always tell my husband "I never see the people of walmart when I go" :') ..... and it's probably because just like cruising I don't care about your appearance, weight etc....my family and I always dress appropriately for dinner, that's just who we are. Everyone doesn't feel the same way and that's ok.

 

To the OP, I hope your future cruises with whatever line you choose are more favorable in clientele for you. We did the Greek Isles on a private yacht (not ours we were guests) try that and you'll never worry or care about clientele again:D

[torcruise]

As a professional dancer, I have the type of body that is typically concidered fit, but I love any woman who is confident enough to wear a bikini! Bikinis for everyone!

[bnorris10]

As a professional dancer, I have the type of body that is typically concidered fit, but I love any woman who is confident enough to wear a bikini! Bikinis for everyone!

 

Believe you me bikini's are not for everyone

[abisha]

We have been on 8 Carnival cruises is the last 7 years and noticed a continuing decline in the overall quality in the food and in particularly in the level of service . Not to the point that we won't consider Carnival for future cruises but they ain't what they used to be.

Last May we were on the NCL Escape and the experience was outstanding. Food ,Service and entertainment could not be beat.

 

I feel the same. I like switching things up a bit and trying other lines. I have always enjoyed all of our Carnival cruises..no complaints except I definitely do see the decline in some areas...the entertainment for one is not like it used to be. The buffet seems to grow smaller and smaller (and quality is so so), but I still cruise Carnival due to the value. However, what makes them stand out is the fact that their crew. Their stewards are super nice and friendly and go out of their way for you and know your name from day 1. They are always visible and you can always find them if you need them. Their dining staff is also terrific and you can talk to them about anything. They definitely add to the onboard experience and making you feel special. On Royal and Princess, they are mostly all business (I hardly even saw our steward on Royal..he did a great job, but I just hardly saw him).

 

I think that on all cruise lines, there are some areas that may be a bit lacking whereas they excel in others, which sets them apart.

 

I, too am trying the NCL Escape in four weeks..cannot wait. I tend to like the big ships the best.

 

Do I think Carnival is the "Walmart of the high seas?" YUP! But I still cruise on them! LOL!

[abisha]

We HATE NCL, never would go back after going on the Breakaway a handful of years ago. We had family last year going on the Getaway, we hated the Breakaway so much we couldn't bring ourselves about to join them, there are way too many negatives to mention and I agree the staff was rude! At first I thought perhaps there was a rule that the staff cannot socialize with the passengers but was told there was no such rule.

 

Please try Royal Caribbeans Oasis class ships, trust me, they BLOW AWAY the NCL newest ships in a heartbeat and you never feel crowded like the Breakaway felt. Please don't let this NCL experience stop you from trying RC largest ships, there is certainly a huge difference.

 

On another note, yes, I prefer Carnival over NCL.

 

Sailed on the Allure...what an incredible experience to be on such a massive ship. The unique shows alone were amazing! I am booked on the Harmony for next year. I hope I like the Escape though...we shall see.

[Alaskan Joe]

I have been on both NCL and RCCL. With NCL I felt they nickle and dime you on a lot of stuff. The biggest thing for us was the bingo (the DW loves bingo) NCL did bingo a progressive jackpot, we (pax of the pearl) built this jackpot up too $9,000 by the end of the week. First off when the progressive jackpot grows so does the number of balls called, you start at 48 numbers called and move your way up. However on the last day they still were only calling 48 numbers:confused:?? In fact you could only win the $9,000 if you hit in 48 numbers, after which they continued to draw numbers for the $1,000. I was like $1,000 where in the hell does the other $8,000 go????? It's not like they still did not make money on the bingo. One guy did ask them about the rest of the money and this is what he was told and i quote "Well sir since no one hit the jackpot the money goes over to the NCL Sun", what the ??????? I jumped in and said doesn't the Sun do their own bingo?? Why would they move the money, the jackpot should have gone to one lucky winner or do 8 $1,000 winners people would have been happy about that. Or at the very least rolled over for the next cruise. I'm sorry to rant and rave here but these cruise lines make so much money why do they need to steal the bingo money too.*getting off my soap box now* Now on a happier note we did sail on the Oasis of the Seas by far the best ship we have sailed on and yes you did not notice all the people they did a fantastic job there. However pound for pound we feel Carnival is just as good for the money we save.

[Spraygun]

I don't know about you, or anyone else, but I ONLY cruise with super models and athletes and we ALWAYS wear our finest custom coture...

 

On a serious note, to those who feel offended at what others wear and how they take care of themselves. Go use all of your fabulous wealth and buy your own boat to cruise in...problem solved!

That's a good one. You may know my neighbor, in my marina ,here in Galveston. He just put his boat on the market for $1,700,000.99. I can assure you, you can eat anywhere you want on this boat. Clothing optional. I'll try and post pic.

 

Sent from Samsung Galaxy using speech to text

[ryano]

That's a good one. You may know my neighbor, in my marina ,here in Galveston. He just put his boat on the market for $1,700,000.99. I can assure you, you can eat anywhere you want on this boat. Clothing optional. I'll try and post pic.

 

Sent from Samsung Galaxy using speech to text

 

Wow, what a beautiful yacht! Hatteras?

[Spraygun]

Viking 64.... he said the

$0.99 is negotiable.

 

Sent from Samsung Galaxy using speech to text