your first Carnival cruise that kept you coming back!

[Stick93]

First cruise was on the miracle in 2013 by accident. Booked one of the back corner suites because we needed connecting rooms with the kids. Never knew that was was not a standard room and that the deck was much larger than many rooms in the ship. Loved the cruise and the experience. Wish I understood what a great the room was when I booked it - I have now been in many more cruises and wouldn’t book a suite at this point because it not important to me and I rather save money for the cruise. It’s true in my opinion that seasoned cruisers know how to make the dollars stretch farther and I do that so I can cruise more often!


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[BrianMD]

My first cruise was a honeymoon cruise on the Festivale in May 1989 departed from San Juan and visited St. Thomas, St. Marteen and Martinique. I took a 17 year hiatus (life got in the way) and resumed taking several cruises with great friends and family mostly on Carnival but also RCCL & NCL. 

[Cafedumonde]

Our first Carnival Cruise was on the Vista.  We had been on two other cruise lines, but Carnival won our hearts.  We were very surprised about this because we had preconceptions about Carnival and never thought we would like it as much as we did.  However, it is by far our favorite line.  We love Carnival for being quirky and unpretentious.  We love the food options and availability.  Carnival definitely has the best staff, and the customers tend to be “real” which we love.  The Vista wasn’t a perfect ship but the entire experience was so so fun.  The cruise directors on Carnival also really enjoy life which is just infectious (It helped that Matt was our first cruise director—- what a great personality).  I am so glad we gave Carnival a try.  

[cruser3]

First cruise was on the Miracle in October, 2006.  I was like a kid in a candy store the first time I walked on the ship and looked around.  I don't know what I expected, but I was amazed that so much could be built inside a ship.  We had booked an inside cabin but somehow were lucky enough to be upgraded to a balcony (restricted view).  We wanted for nothing and were treated like we were the most important passengers.  Fell in love right from the start.  Our cruise was around Halloween and so we had the added bonus of watching other passengers dress in costume.  We tried another cruise line once just to see what it was like.  It was not bad, few ways of doing things that were different from Carnival.  Carnival is familiar and affordable, I don't see any reason to fix what isn't broken.  We are booked for an August cruise on the Horizon.  We will more than likely pass on cruising this year, just to be sure the health crisis has passed.

Edited March 24, 2020 by cruser3

[mouche]

Carnival Fascination 2008 ( I fell in love with cruising)

[wolft927]

First Cruise was as a Child on the Carnival Fantasy back in 1990. Cruise several times as a child and then in my early 20's went and worked on board NCL as Cruise Staff working my way up to Cruise Director.....Was by far the best time of my life. Now turning 40 I still cruise at least once a year and this year will be cruising twice. 

 

 

[sw33twif3]

First cruise of the "modern" era was Carnival Conquest out of New Orleans when it was first launched and New Orleans was her home port.

 

Loved the ship and crew. And had a blast with my wife on this first cruise together.

 

Every time the C. Conquest has come back to New Orleans we have sailed on her. 

 

Still my favorite ship.

[crusinpsychRN]

When I was almost 16 y/o my grandmother, brother and I went on a 4 day cruise to the Bahamas. I met a guy who was 18. We fell for each other right then. He lived in Ohio, I lived in Miami.  He came to visit just before he went to Vietnam. We wrote daily. I dated another guy who told me I was marrying him, not the guy in Vietnam. So George and I lost touch. Got divorced and at age 30 I found George and he moved in with me. The first week was great. Then he drove me nuts. We broke it off.  Got together again when I was 48 which lasted a few hours! Not really meant to be. I believe he's married now and till in Ohio. We cruised some but not a lot due to jobs, cost.

Edited March 24, 2020 by crusinpsychRN

[cmukid87]

March 2014 - Carnival Legend

 

My really good friend and I booked on a semi-whim.  This was my first ever cruise while he had been on a Princess cruise about 8 years prior.  We were both young, dumb, broke, etc.  Booked the first ship I saw that I could fly to for a fair price even though the cost of our room was high in hindsight (highest per person rate I've ever paid!)

 

We were leaving on a Sunday and we were supposed to have a nasty snow storm in the evening of the Saturday.  We were flying down to Tampa that Sunday morning but decided it was too big of a risk and flew down the day before.  Landed in Tampa and had nowhere to go so I found the cheapest nearby hotel on a discount travel sight.  We got to the hotel and went for a walk, ended up walking right into the production area of Cigar City Brewing and nobody even batted an eye.  Got a few beers in us and went back to the hotel to crash.  Next morning we got up and realized we couldn't even afford breakfast really, so we settled for stale continentals at the hotel.  Not knowing any better we headed off to the port at like 8:30am.  Needless to say we were waiting for about 3 hours.

 

Got onboard and immediately bought the CHEERS! package, effectively maxing out my credit card.  Thankfully my paycheck hit my bank on Monday and I could payoff a chunk of my credit card so gratuities could be paid.  

 

We drank our way around the ship that week and had an awesome time.  We met some really awesome people none of whom we kept in touch with but that's okay.  It leaves a little bit of that nostalgia by never being able to replicate the cruise.  

 

Since then I am a bit more financially savvy and have been a good handful of cruises.  That 7 days on Legend hooked me though and I will forever love cruising.

[Silent Penguin]

After several Disney cruises, our first Carnival cruise was in 2012 on the Pride.  Honestly, the only reason we gave Carnival a try was because dh and I really craved a cruise but it had to be a cheap one. We live an hour from Baltimore, so the obvious choice was the Pride.  I think, if that cruise had been our first ever, we would have been wowed.  We weren't, but it was still a great vacation.  We've stuck with Carnival because of the flexibility it provides.  We can go rock-bottom, budget-level (inside room, no add-ons) when that's all we can comfortably afford or  splurge a little, like we did last cruise,  booking Havana category, aft balcony, FTTF, spa appointments,etc.).  

[Joebucks]

I was a late bloomer who didn't start until 2017. Just completed my 8th Carnival Cruise! I wanted to try one for years. It just never worked out. Finally, we saw a 4 day on the Victory that went to Key West and Cozumel and decided it was time. I had been to Key West and knew I'd enjoy it, and would get to try one new Mexican island. Seemed like a safe enough bet to try and see if we liked it. Plus, Jay Leno was performing on this one, and I had always wanted to see him live. We loved everything about this trip. The amount of fun and convenience with such a reasonable price was tough to beat.

 

It's crazy to hear that the Fantasy class was once amongst the largest at sea. Now that concept is almost laughable.

[psk2347]

My first cruise was March 20th, 2004 on the Carnival Sensation out of Tampa. I was 14 years old and it was the vacation of my life. I didn't cruise again for another 11 years when I could star paying for my own cruises and now I am completely hooked. There is no better or more relaxing vacation then a cruise. 

Edited March 26, 2020 by psk2347

[SRQbeachgirl]

Carnival Holiday in 1992, when she was still just a "baby" ship (we were still "babies" too, based on our photos! 😆). We thought she was the biggest thing we had ever seen. Had so much fun on that cruise. We have sailed Royal Caribbean as well, but Carnival will always have a special place in our hearts.

[thenexus2k]

I like this thread! My first was on the carnivale in 1990. Had my first pina colada. Watched “when Harry met sally” in the ship’s theatre. My first taste of a casino anywhere. Was only a 4 day cruise, but gave me a taste for it. Fortunately my wife has developed a taste for it too.

[SMSACE6]

thank you all for your responses, memories, and photos.  I am so enjoying all the responses.  makes being unable to cruise right now, a way that I can, and hopefully we all can still stay in the cruise mode, by enjoying these posts.  Thanks again for all the responses.

 

[siestakeys04]

Our first time was 2008 Inspiration, out of Tampa. It was also our first time flying. We ate breakfast in the dining room every morning, we were on the riviera deck ocean view. I always wanted to go to the cayman island ever since I saw The Firm. I thought I was on a large ship until we docked near a larger ship in Cozumel. We were hooked. The next time we cruised we took our kids 10 and 14 my mom and brother on the glory in 2010. Relaxing way to vacation to us.

[crusinpsychRN]

SRQ--great pics!

[tandemcruzr]

Oct 2004, Fantasy 4 day with neighbors. They had a cruise with 4 couples and one had to cancel and we were invited to take their place. We so enjoyed ourselves that we started choosing cruise vacations rather than renting condos at a beach.

 

We are now at 49 cruises and have 50, 51, 52, 53, 54, 55, 56, and 57 booked.

 

Fingers crossed going forward.

[marshabear]

The Carnival Destiny in 1997!  Our first balcony and 1st time to Western Caribbean!  We had the best wait staff and the food was outstanding! We have now cruised on 45 cruises  and are platinum on Carnival, soon to be Diamond!

 

 

 

Marsha

[N7786W Flyer]

On 3/20/2020 at 11:51 PM, Tapi said:

Just to get overly technical and cruise nerdy because I’m super bored,  Fantasy, at 70,000 tons, was the largest ship in the Carnival fleet at the time, but the title of largest cruise ship in the world in 1991 was held by Monarch of the Seas at 73,937 tons. Her slightly smaller sister, Sovereign of the Seas, was the first cruise ship to ever break the 70,000 ton mark in 1988. Carnival regained the largest cruise ship title when they launched Carnival Destiny in 1996, which was the first ship to break the 100,000 ton mark. 🤓

 

Just to get overly, overly technical and cruise nerdy 🙂 , the Norway was the first CRUISE SHIP to break the 70,000 mark when she entered service in June 1980 at 70,202 tons.  However, previous transatlantic liners, Queen Elizabeth, Queen Mary, and Normandie all eclipsed 80,000 tons when built in the 1930's and 40's.

 

Garnett

[N7786W Flyer]

1984 July, Mardi Gras.  Here's our picture before boarding.  However, while this was our first Carnival cruise, it was our 5th overall at the time.

 

Edited March 29, 2020 by N7786W Flyer

[ober134]

Great thread. We cruised twice in the late 90's,  one when Paradise was new and  non smoking!! Life and jobs got in the way... So eventhough  we weren't cruise virgins, we got hooked when we - on a whim - booked Elation out of NoLa in 2012. We have  cruised 2-3 times each year since then. Sadly this year will probably be an exception due to the situation. Our Cruise next month cancelled... Still keeping fingers crossed for the late fall booking.

[crusinpsychRN]

On my first cruise with my grandmother and brother we were going to Europe for a 3 week tour. The first night I got lamb and the waiter asked me if I wanted (something unintelligible).

 

3 times I asked him to repeat himself then gave up and said yes. He poured this horrible green sauce all over my perfectly good lamb. Of course, it was mint sauce. I backed up from the table and immediately went to our cabin.  The waiter later brought me an apple and asked if I wanted a tour of the ship.

 

I was only 13 y/o. If that happened today he'd be in a lot of trouble.  He was a perfect gentleman and I got to see all over the ship.

[marshhawk]

I cruised as a child on the Cunard lines, but it wasn't a vacation, but a form of transportation (we moved from the US to France for two years in the early 60's).  The second time I got on a ship was in the early/mid  00's.  These two "cruises" were on the MWA (Maine Windjammer Association).  I have great memories of these trips, you could sit, or you could work (assist the crew)  and I was young enough to enjoy the work, (for about two days).  I didn't really even consider a cruise at all, until a friend decided to get married on a cruise  in 2008 and invited me and my then boyfriend to attend the wedding.  She told us where to stay so that all our cabins could be together, however, we ended up being the only ones from the group who booked a balcony on the Sensation.  Three days, Halloween, a lot of drinking (not me) a lot of drunks, a lot of major partying.  I am not a party animal, and for two days thought, I would never survive! 

 

And then on that last day at sea, while the beau was gambling, I sat on the balcony and watched the waves, the small Bahamas islands, the flying fish, the colors of the sea, and I was hooked! .I discovered something about myself, I understood the phrase, if you cant change the wind, adjust your sails.  That was 14 cruises ago ,-all Carnival,  the beau is now my husband ( as of 2009), and we have booked another future 5 cruises-all on Carnival.  We are no longer young by any means, but being on a cruise allows us to be young at heart.

 

We don't book balconies anymore, we just choose cruises and cabins we can afford, but life is short, and there are many paths to choose.  And I want to see more of the world, and cruising for us is the best way to do it.

 

Thank you for this thread.

[Tapi]

On 3/29/2020 at 1:06 PM, N7786W Flyer said:

 

Just to get overly, overly technical and cruise nerdy 🙂 , the Norway was the first CRUISE SHIP to break the 70,000 mark when she entered service in June 1980 at 70,202 tons.  However, previous transatlantic liners, Queen Elizabeth, Queen Mary, and Normandie all eclipsed 80,000 tons when built in the 1930's and 40's.

 

Garnett

Fellow cruise nerd 😀:

 

Your stats are correct, but I don’t consider the Norway a cruise ship, even after her conversion. She was, and always will be, remembered as an ocean liner.