Carnival Vista , Harmony of the Seas or Norwegian Escape ?

[never_cruised]

Group of 8 looking to do a Caribbean cruise next year , two children aged 11 and 15 with the rest of the group aged between 40-70.

 

I'd like to hear peoples pros and cons for each ship rather than the ports of calls. It would be good to hear from some who've done all three if there is any.

[never_cruised]

Looks I must of posted in wrong section lol.

[FLUFFLULA]

My DH and I are in our 60's and have sailed on both Vista and Harmony this year; Vista for New Year's 2017 and Harmony in May, 2017. Both ships are beautiful and have lots of activities for all age groups. There are so many and varied activities on both ships that there is no way to do everything you want to do on either ship. We enjoyed both ships a great deal, but I am partial to Royal Caribbean so we have sailed all three of the Oasis class ships. Unfortunately, we enjoyed Harmony less than Oasis or Allure because there were about 1,000 more people on Harmony even though the ships are about the same number of tons. We found the Vista to be very crowded too and we were always trying to avoid the crowds. In fairness, I don't know if the crowds on Vista were due to it being the New Year's cruise or if it was the usual number of passengers.

Sadly, we will not sail either these two ships again because of these concerns. If crowds don't bother you, though, Harmony is amazing and I would choose it over Vista. We haven't sailed on NCL so I can't offer any info on that line.

Finding a cruise a family can be a challenge, so good luck!

[stacy11]

This is my exact situation and question - did you decide? Get more feedback? Ever begin a thread elsewhere? Would love to hear more feedback on this as we've only ever been on RCI. Thank you!

[Aquahound]

Ref crowds, Norwegian escape was, by far, the most crowded ship I've ever sailed. It was a good cruise and a nice ship, but the public areas were always very chaotic due to the crowds.

 

I'm partial to RCI's Oasis Class. There's just no other ships like them and their entertainment is the best at sea. I would choose Harmony.