Short cruise-- best ship... Holiday, Sensation or Inspiration?

[want2go]

Friends are trying to settle on a short cruise... between Holiday, Sensation and Inspiration. They are happy with all of their itineraries and departure ports and prices. Biggest concern is the ship.

 

You travelers are the best for passing on information... and many of you may have sailed on a couple of them... for direct comparison.

 

Any remarks you can share would be wonderful!

 

Thanks for your help!

[Cotton]

There are several of us here that absolutely LOVE the Holiday. Some don't. She was in drydock in December, had work done, as well as new carpets and bedding in all cabins. I can't wait to board her again and see the new duvets, etc.

 

The Holiday is an older, smaller ship, but the crew and staff are extra-ordinarily great! The food and service are fantastic. Smaller ships are so much easier to get your bearings on. I will be sailing on her again - will be my fourth!

 

I haven't been on the other two ships you mentioned. You know the Holiday will be homeported in Mobile with the first cruise from there Oct. 16, right?

 

Festivale 1987

Carnivale 1988

Mardi Gras 1989

Pacific Princess 1990

Norway 1994

Holiday 2001

Holiday 2002

Holiday 2003

 

[celbercrz333]

We are going on Fascination. Never been on a Carnival cruise. Our first cruise, which was last Fall was on Celebrity Zenith.

--Joanne

[jimmy627]

Inspiration.This is the newest.

also is a nice ship 2nd choice would be the sensation

 

 

 

 

 

 

11/27/2004 CARIBBEAN PRINCESS

 

cruisemates1@aol.com THE MIRACLE 2-13-2005

[judyf]

I was just on the Inspiration and it was a great cruise. The ship is in good shape, foos was good and we had no complaints with the ship.

 

Judy

CCL Inspiration 4/4-4/11/04

NCL Sea 4/14-4/27/03

Wonder 5/16-5/19/02

Wonder 5/3-5/8/01

Fantasy 2/15-2/18/01

 

[Vidimom]

You may want to consider where they sail from first. You are looking at different ports. If you live outside of FL and plan on driving, go on the Holiday out of Jacksonville. It's the closest and although the oldest in the fleet, she is still a favorite.

 

If you want to go out of Tampa, go on the Sensation. Personally, I love this ship. The staff was great as was the food.

 

Last but not least the Inspiration which I think is still doing 7 night cruises at this time. It also sails out of Tampa. I really haven't heard much about her.

 

 

You may also look at the ports of call. Key West is always a favorite. If you want the Bahamas, you also can choose the Fantasy out of Port Canaveral.

 

 

Look at it this way, any cruise is better than working!

 

Sensation 9/98 10th anniv.

Big Red Boat 5/99

Ecstasy 10/00

Destiny 9/01 The week of 911

Victory 10/01

Imagination 12/20/01

Imagination 2/4/02

Zuiderdam 9/6/03 - 15th anniv.

Carnival Legend 11/27/04

Happiness is being on a cruise

with the one you love!

 

Legend Here We Come 11/27

[SUSANITA]

I just had this same dilemna, and finally decided on Sensation.

 

I liked that it was a Thurs-Mon cruise, the rates were some of the lowest, my airfare was cheapest to Tampa, and believe it or not I LOVE that it's in Cozumel from 7am until Midnight. I'm looking forward to not having to feel "rushed" all day. We also got a great rate at the Tampa Hyatt Regency on Priceline for $48.

 

Suep366394@aol.com

NEXT UP~SENSATION 5/6/04!

MARINER~ 9/19! MIRACLE~FEB 13,2005!

http://community.webshots.com/user/upstatedon OUR CRUISE PICS!

 

 

[Cotton]

Originally posted by Vidimom:

go on the Holiday out of Jacksonville. It's the closest and although the oldest in the fleet, she is still a favorite.

_____________-

 

Huh? The Holiday doesn't sail out of Jacksonville.

 

She's homeported in N.O. until she relocates to Mobile, AL. As I mentioned above, the first cruise out of Mobile will be 10/16/04.

 

Festivale 1987

Carnivale 1988

Mardi Gras 1989

Pacific Princess 1990

Norway 1994

Holiday 2001

Holiday 2002

Holiday 2003

 

[NikkiFer]

We have sailed on both the Inspiration and the Holiday. Of the two, we would recommend the Inspiration. Of course the departure port should factor in to your choice. The Holiday is just not up to snuff, IOHO.

 

Have fun either way!

 

Nikki

(O.A.T.C. & Proud of it!)

 

<marquee direction=right width=45%>Mariner of the Seas 09-19-04!</marquee>

Carnival Miracle 02-13-05!

 

 

Triumph 09/08/01, Holiday 04/17/02, Inspiration 01/19/03, Triumph 05/10/03, Ecstacy 09/15/03, Conquest CONQUESTADORS!! 01/11/04

 

Check out my pictures!

http://community.webshots.com/user/nikkifer

 

[Cruzmama]

I've been on the Inspiration and the Sensation, and I would say of the two the Inspiration is definitely the nicer (newer) ship. A friend of mine who was on the Sensation with me just got off the Holiday. She said it was definitely not as nice as the Sensation. So, to put it order of preference - Inspiration, Sensation, then Holiday. But whatever you choose, I'm sure you'll love. A cruise is a cruise...!

[Tom-n-Cheryl]

Definitely the SENSATION... We have done the 4-day 3 times in the last year, and will be going again over the July 4th weekend!

 

She was in drydock in December - and cleaned up nicely! Plus the 4-day (Cozumel only) out of Tampa is in port a LONG time... until midnight, so you can really take in the sights! It makes for a nice long weekend!

 

Tom

 

Sensation - July 1st, 2004

 

Legend - THANKSGIVING - Nov. 19th, 2004

 

Miracle Spring Break, March 20th, 2005

 

 

 

MIRACLE.......3/05

LEGEND.......11/04

SENSATION.....7/04

GLORY.........3/04

SENSATION.....1/04

SENSATION....10/03

GLORY.........7/03

SENSATION.....7/03

INSPIRATION..11/02

PRIDE.........7/02

FANTASY......10/01

FANTASY......10/00

FANTASY.......8/00

SENSATION.....6/00

DOLPHIN IV....3/00

FANTASY.......9/99

 

[waterbound]

Just got back from Holiday today and we had a great time!!! Honestly I didnt even notice anything bad about the ship.. Yes its smaller than the newer larger ships and there isnt all the thrills but still a nice ship... we had an inside guarantee and were upgraded to an outside window and loved it!! I dont think I can ever stay in an inside cabin now.. I think Im spoiled.. We had to do a little manuevering to get to certain places.. such as going up one floor and then walking down further down and then going down a flight of stairs, although we had to do this on the Conquest too..

 

Pride- 07/06/02

Jubilee- 02/22/03

Conquest- 10/19/03

 

4/15-- Holiday--Surprise cruise for my boyfriend!

 

5/15-- M&M at Rawlings All American Grille

03/13/2005- Conquest with the kids

[want2go]

Thanks for all your replies! I love seeing that people have sailed on the new beautiful ships... but still can have a fabulous cruise on the older ones too! In the short market... there is not an option for a newer ship.

 

Waterbound... I read in your Conquest review about the motion... how did the Holiday compare to that?

 

Thanks again!

[HOSKI]

I've done Inspiration and Sensation and my favorite of the two is the Inspiration. We will try out the Holiday this fall. I love old ships, new ships, big ships and little ships. My two favorite were the Norway (oldest) and the Legend (brand new when we sailed).

 

Fascination 1997 Destiny 2000

Victory 2000 Sensation 2001

Norway 2002 Legend 2002

NCL Dawn 2003 Inspiration 2003

Victory 2004 Holiday 2004

[momofmeg]

I was on Inspiration in Dec. It is a nice ship still in good shape a Fanasty class ship-it was almost as nice as the Miracle-though it had no supper club, coffee bar,oriental food station as Miracle. The food was better on Miracle and so was the entertainment but as we paid more for a our 3 day cruise then we did for our 7 day cruise I expected it to be.

 

Inpiration is still a nice ship and still a good value. One thing though. The ship's air is set like 65 degrees so be sure to bring a couple of sweathers..

 

Carnival Tropicale 10/15/98

Sovereign of the Seas 11/22/99

Carnival Fascination 09/23/00

HAL Statendam 05/20/01

Sovereign of the Seas 11/08/01

Pacific Princess 09/29/02

Carnival Inspiration 12/14/03

Carnival Miracle 04/09/04

[momofmeg]

Cotton vidomon just made a mistake. As you said Holiday does not go out of Jacksonville but come November it will go out of Mobile, AL. which is probally what she was thinking or else she meant Jubilee which is I think the same class as Holiday. Have any of you been on the old Tropicale? I am just wondering how Jubilee and Holiday compare to her. I have read many bad things about Tropicale but I loved her myself-ofcourse she was my first cruise so I had nothing to compare her with at the time.

 

Anyway come Sept. Celebration will go out of Jacksonville instead of Jubliee. Maybe some of you can tell me if any of these ships are decent. I loved cruising out of Jacksonville- an easy port for me to get to and really don't mind doing an older ship if the food is still good and the entertainment good.

 

Carnival Tropicale 10/15/98

Sovereign of the Seas 11/22/99

Carnival Fascination 09/23/00

HAL Statendam 05/20/01

Sovereign of the Seas 11/08/01

Pacific Princess 09/29/02

Carnival Inspiration 12/14/03

Carnival Miracle 04/09/04

[Cotton]

Originally posted by momofmeg:

Cotton vidomon just made a mistake. As you said Holiday does not go out of Jacksonville but come November it will go out of Mobile, AL.

______________________________________

 

 

Actually, as I stated in two different posts above, the first cruise the Holiday makes out of Mobile is October 16.

 

Festivale 1987

Carnivale 1988

Mardi Gras 1989

Pacific Princess 1990

Norway 1994

Holiday 2001

Holiday 2002

Holiday 2003

 

[mollie jo]

Just had some friends return from the Holiday. They loved her! No complaints. I'm sailing on her in October out of New Orleans. My mother is sailing on her the next week out of Mobile. We have both been on the Glory which is a huge ship and very beautiful, but we plan to have just as much fun on the Holiday. I'm sure you'll have a great time whichever ship you choose. Good Luck!

Mollie Jo

[waterbound]

want2go... Our cabin was on the Riveria deck and I never noticed much motion in the cabin.. I did notice it here and there on the higher decks,but it wasnt that bad as far as I was concerned.. There was one night they had barf bags (sorry sounds gross, but thats what they were) laying upright on the floors all over the decks for anyone who might need one, because it was a little worse at that point but it was extremely windy and we ran into just a bit of rain.. When we cruised on Jubilee last year I thought the motion and vibration were worse..

 

I absolutely loved this ship.. I went knowing that it was about like Jubilee was and wasnt expecting anything fancy, but I was very impressed with her... If I had the chance to cruise her again I would do it in a heartbeat, unfortunately this was an unexpected trip and I wont be able to cruise again until March next year, so its out of the question, but I had a great time..

 

Pride- 07/06/02

Jubilee- 02/22/03

Conquest- 10/19/03

 

4/15-- Holiday--Surprise cruise for my boyfriend!

 

5/15-- M&M at Rawlings All American Grille

03/13/2005- Conquest with the kids

[momofmeg]

Cotton- I can see you are one of those who go to messageboards just to see how nasty and hateful you can be since you feel it does not matter as you will never meet any of us in person.

 

I did not like the way you BLASTED the poor woman-that is all -BLAST away at me I am thick skinned and yes I am NOT PERFECT and I do make MANY mistakes so you put out all the little quote marks on what I say that YOU WANT if it makes you feel any better.

 

I had not actually checked the sailing date but I had looked at both ports for a young couple that are friends of mine. They wanted to do an affordable cruise that was close enough for them to drive to and as they know my family cruise alot and as they don't have internet to check themselves they asked me. I had checked for September because that is when they wanted to go but they also wanted to go to Cozumel not the Bahamas-so I had found if they waited until November they could cruise on Holiday to Cozumel. I suppose at the cruize company I was checking these cruises were either already sold as I found no dates for October or maybe I just missed these cruises as simple as that. As I said I DO make mistakes

 

Anyway I am sorry I DID NOT READ all of your posts-I was simply pointing out the person got mixed up which ship-as both of these ships are leaving from new ports, it is posssible most of us who make mistakes to do this.(Not you ofcourse-you are perfect aren't you?)

 

I like the other post live fairly close to both these ports. We had driven to both Pt. Can. Tam. in the past-which is a long drive. These other ports are a good 2 to 4 hours closer.

 

Anyway you could word things a little nicer-most people dislike the quotation mark thingie-especially when you are saying something negative about their post.

 

Carnival Tropicale 10/15/98

Sovereign of the Seas 11/22/99

Carnival Fascination 09/23/00

HAL Statendam 05/20/01

Sovereign of the Seas 11/08/01

Pacific Princess 09/29/02

Carnival Inspiration 12/14/03

Carnival Miracle 04/09/04

[HOSKI]

I'm going to jump to Cotton's defense here. He/she did not blast anyone but wanted to ensure that someone needing an answer got a correct answer. I've been on this board for a long time and that doesn't even come close to Blasting and you should not personally critize someone who is trying to be helpful.

 

Fascination 1997 Destiny 2000

Victory 2000 Sensation 2001

Norway 2002 Legend 2002

NCL Dawn 2003 Inspiration 2003

Victory 2004 Holiday 2004

[BrendaB1]

I have sailed on Inspiration and loved it. Will be on Sensation in Oct. I will not do Holiday again. We were very dissatisfied with crew, food, cabin steward, and ship itself. Whatever you choose...have a wonderful time.

 

Valor 10/05 Miracle 2/13/05

Sensation 10/04

Conquest May 2003

Holiday Sept 2002

Inspiration 2001

Celebration 2000

Crown Princess 1999

Oceanic (Big Red Boat) 1998

 

Days til Miracle Partae Pirates Cruise from Tampa

[halos]

We loved the Holiday...haven't been on the other two ships. Quality of food and service are what is important to me on a cruise and the Holiday excelled with both. I'm sure you'll have a great time no matter which ship you choose...pick the itinerary that suits you the best.

 

I believe in Miracles

MIRACLE JUNE 19, 2004

Calm Seas, Good Friends

[Cotton]

Hoski - Thx. BTW, I am female, as well as a "lady", as I hope to show in the following reply:

________________________________________________

 

Originally posted by momofmeg:

Cotton- I can see you are one of those who go to messageboards just to see how nasty and hateful you can be since you feel it does not matter as you will never meet any of us in person.

 

I'm sorry you misinterpreted my postings. I went back and read them, and I just don't see what you are referring to. I have never 'blasted' anybody on this board. I don't believe anybody here can say I've ever been mean or hateful.

 

I did not like the way you BLASTED the poor woman-that is all -BLAST away at me I am thick skinned and yes I am NOT PERFECT and I do make MANY mistakes so you put out all the little quote marks on what I say that YOU WANT if it makes you feel any better.

 

I had not actually checked the sailing ... I found no dates for October or maybe I just missed these cruises as simple as that. As I said I DO make mistakes

 

As you said, you had not checked. I HAVE checked, and always try to make sure my comments are factual, before I post a reply. I try ONLY to be helpful and informative, and if I see an error that could make a difference in somebody's cruise, then YES, I do say so - in a nice manner, as I did in my posts.

 

...it is posssible most of us who make mistakes to do this.(Not you ofcourse-you are perfect aren't you?)

 

No, actually, I'm far from perfect. But I am a nice person, and I've never blasted anyone the way you have me.

 

Anyway you could word things a little nicer-most people dislike the quotation mark thingie-especially when you are saying something negative about their post.

 

I'm sorry about this 'quote method', but this is the only way I can answer your accusations.

 

Maybe you're just having a bad day. Hope it's better tomorrow.

 

Festivale 1987

Carnivale 1988

Mardi Gras 1989

Pacific Princess 1990

Norway 1994

Holiday 2001

Holiday 2002

Holiday 2003

 

[NikkiFer]

Coming to Cottons defense here, I don't see any Blasting at all. Cotton is a vital part of our boards. I agree that someone is just having a bad day, because I can't see any blasting from anyone other than the poster who got a little upset. Just MHO

 

To get us back on topic. . . The Inspiration would be our choice of the three ships listed. We haven't sailed on the Sensation. Personally, if it came down to it, I'd sail on the Holiday again (only as a last resort!! LOL!) but my husband would not. With any of the choices you can't really go wrong. You are still on a cruise which is the best thing in the whole wide world

 

Peace and love people!

 

Nikki

(O.A.T.C. & Proud of it!)

 

<marquee direction=right width=45%>Mariner of the Seas 09-19-04!</marquee>

Carnival Miracle 02-13-05!

 

 

Triumph 09/08/01, Holiday 04/17/02, Inspiration 01/19/03, Triumph 05/10/03, Ecstacy 09/15/03, Conquest CONQUESTADORS!! 01/11/04

 

Check out my pictures!

http://community.webshots.com/user/nikkifer