Fantasy from New Orleans vs. Ecstacy from Galveston

[oliverweagle]

We live in Houston and will be on the Fantasy cruise from New Orleans at the end of the month. I believe that the Fantasy has received the refurbishment whereas the Ecstacy has not - yet the Fantasy is cheaper. Can comeone 'splain this to me? :confused:

 

I am more than happy to travel to New Orleans, but wonder why a cruise from Galveston would be more expensive.

 

Thanks!

 

Ollie:)

[*Mach*]

Hiya, Ollie!!!

Galveston is a prize for Carnival. The ships always sail full and the cabins command a high price.

That doesn't necessarily hold true in NOLA. Certainly, there are some time frames where sailings from NOLA command more money than cruises from Galveston but not that often.

Considering how close NOLA is to you the cost to drive there isn't that high at all making the Fantasy a real bargain for you!!! She's also quite lovely. They did a great job with the Evolutions of Fun upgrades.

:)

[BrendaB1]

Nola is my favorite port to cruise from even though Galveston is much closer. Cheaper prices & more food & fun before or after you cruise plus the trip down the Mississippi River is always an adventure. :D

 

Have fun. Fantasy is a nice ship. I've done it 3 times but not since the upgrades but have sailed on Inspiration since they upgraded & must say.....very nice additions. :)

[MrMileStoner]

Short cruises have a very high percentage of drive-in crusers. Houston has a larger population than New Orleans.

 

I do recall some reports of propulaion problems with Ecstacy - not sure if the issue was ever resolved.

 

Enjoy New Orleans!

[mrsbean1990]

I think that Galveston is popular because people sail out of there from all over TX....and it's a big azz state. If you live in Dallas or Austin or San Antonio, you're going to over double your driving time to get to NOLA, rather than going to Galveston. Plus, there's over 4 million people in the greater Houston area, with Ecstasy in their backyard. Most people in Houston aren't going to drive 6 hours to NOLA when they can be in Galveston in an hour.

 

We chose Fantasy over Ecstasy, even though we're in Houston, not necessarily because it was cheaper, but because it already had the upgrades, and Ecstasy won't be getting them until the Fall. Also, we've been to Galveston many times for day trips, and by going to NOLA we are turning our 5-day cruise into a 7-day vacation. However, if Ecstasy had already had the upgrades, we probably would have chosen to sail on her...the price difference was not that great for our cruise.

 

Plus, I love a road trip. :)

[LHP]

Hennie will be your ACD...tell him that his Cruise Critic fans all said HI!!!

[flounder315]

I love leaving so close to a cruise port, I just wish Galveston had more trips to choose from.:) Maybe we will get the Magic with Galveston as it's home port, I'm keeping my fingers crossed.:D

[Traveler353]

I love leaving so close to a cruise port, I just wish Galveston had more trips to choose from.:) Maybe we will get the Magic with Galveston as it's home port, I'm keeping my fingers crossed.:D

No way, the Magic is coming to NOLA or maybe it was the Dream.;)

[Robin & Dan]

We live in Houston and have cruised out of Galveston 4 times in the past 3 years. It is so nice and easy. But this summer we are road tripping it over to NOLA to cruise on the Fantasy. It was $700 less than Ecstasy for the same itinerary...so for us it is worth the longer drive. Plus I am excited for the Evolutions of Fun upgrades...the kids will love that.

[ShannonP]

We cruised on the Fantasy last month. Both the Fantasy and Ecstasy stop in the same ports at the same times, so we ended up meeting quite a few of the Ecstasy guests. Without fail, they all commented that the most fun people were on the Fantasy!!:)

[smurfm69]

Galveston is very nice and we have sailed out of their once, but you can't beat the food and fun down here in N'awlins! Hope everyone coming down has a great time in the Big Easy and a fun cruise.

[mrsbean1990]

Smurfm -- Are you familiar with Deanie's (I might be spelling it incorrectly) restaurant? It's a seafood place. We heard great things about it.

[GTVCRUISER]

I would go for the Fantasy , I did it a few months ago

[smurfm69]

Smurfm -- Are you familiar with Deanie's (I might be spelling it incorrectly) restaurant? It's a seafood place. We heard great things about it.

 

Yes I have eaten there several times and it's yummy.

[mrsbean1990]

Cool! I think we might be eating there the night before our cruise. :)

[oliverweagle]

Thank you all! We chose the Fantasy because of the upgrades as our 6 year old boy will love the new slides! No prob going to New Orleans either:)

 

Cheers,

 

Ollie.

[GTVCRUISER]

Fantasy Slide Photo

[poobears]

We were on Fantasy, ported in right next to Ecstasy. Fantasys lido/fun deck is much nicer. The upgrades make a huge difference.

[dimonzr4me]

We just did this cruise on June 27th! We had a great time and our 6 year old grandson and his Mom, aunts and uncles all loved the waterworks! Lisa

[Magic City Cruiser]

No way, the Magic is coming to NOLA or maybe it was the Dream.;)

 

The Triumph is comin' to Nawlins :)

[mrsbean1990]

I would go for the Fantasy , I did it a few months ago

 

Great shot with NOLA in the background. :)

[SCUBA Mark]

We live in Houston and just did a cruise on the Fantasy because of the cheaper prices. Parking is more expensive in NOLA but we stayed in a hotel that gave us free parking while we were on the cruise.

 

The Fantasy was just dry-docked and got the waterworks upgrade. Nice. Ecstasy gets that in September

 

all that said, NOLA is usually a lot cheaper than Galveston but we just got a better on the Ecstasy than we did on the Fantasy last month. Ya never know keep looking

[texastransplant]

The Triumph is comin' to Nawlins :)

The Triumph is coming to NO. We are booked on her in Feb 2010 to Belize, Roatan, and Cozumel. Sorry!!

[CJHAN]

We live in Houston and will be on the Fantasy cruise from New Orleans at the end of the month. I believe that the Fantasy has received the refurbishment whereas the Ecstacy has not - yet the Fantasy is cheaper. Can comeone 'splain this to me? :confused:

 

I am more than happy to travel to New Orleans, but wonder why a cruise from Galveston would be more expensive.

 

Thanks!

 

Ollie:)

sailing out of galviston is always more expensive for some reason.