If you can't take a disney cruise, which one would you take?

[kackie]

I'm trying to plan a quickie cruise for May, but when i checked, disney only had cat 4,5 ,6 available. Too Too pricey for me.

I need a cruise fix to get me through until my 99$ cruise next Oct.

I've only sailed with disney, any suggestions for other cruises from other lines.

Prefer to leave out of Port Canaveral, but will travel if nec. for the right one.

Thanks for any info:

Kackie:smooth: :smooth: :smooth:

[lynetteSC]

Well, the only other options you have out of Canaveral are Carnival and Royal Caribbean!

1st off , neither will really "compare" but they will get your cruise fix solved:)

Carnival ship is the Fantasy is VERY "glitzy ... flashy" than the Wonder or Magic! Royal Caribbean has the Sovereign of the Seas in Canaveral!

Royal Caribbean: More brass and glass ... smaller cabins than Carnival or certainly Disney. Around 135 sq foot until you get into suites! Tad older looking than the Fantasy appears. Goes to Nassau and private island

Carnival: Fantasy was just refurbished last yr. It has larger cabins than Royal but not as big as DCL. More kids ... they do
have good kids programs. More Las Vegasy.
Nassau and Freeport on 4 nt ... no private island

Service & food will be comparable on both but certainly not DCL.
Adult nightlife btter on Carnival.

If you looking at 7 days ... the Carnival Pride is brand new (as in Jan 02) and everyone I have sent on it has had GREAT reports for me! Certainly not DCL but from what I hear, very nice. It does have KEWl western itin that stops in Belize:)

:) Good Luck with whatever you decide! Just as long as you go into the deal knowing it won't be exactly like DCL. We have sailed several cruiselines and as long as we know what to expect before hand, we dont get too disapointed ... hard to sail (or SELL actually ... lol) anyone else after DCL! In fact, I just won FREE cruise on another line and dh not to looking forward to it ... :rolleyes: DCL just has AWESOME product!

[Horace Horsecollar]

Looking at May 2002 for cruise ships operating from Port Canaveral, other than the Disney ships...

The brand new Carnival Pride (2002) operates 7-night cruises, with alternating Eastern and Western Caribbean itineraries.

The Carnival Fantasy (1990) operates 3- and 4-night cruises, going to the Bahamas.

The RCCL Sovereign Of The Seas (1988) operates 3- and 4-night cruises, going to the Bahamas.

[pbans]

I've never cruised any other line, but did just book a three day on the Carnival Ecstacy out of LA.
My husband calls it the "Midlife Crisis" Cruise....just me and four girlfriends! I know it won't compare to DCL, but it will serve the purpose of an escape and some serious "girl" time!!

[FLeisure]

Sovereign of the Seas has to be the choice. Great ship with better food and better facilities than Disney.

[kackie]

Thanks so much for the opinions, it really does help me decide what to do.

Any others are also appreciated!

Also, it helps me to know the differances between DCL and the ........others. I want to prepare Dh.

Kackie

[aprilgail2]

I would take the non smoking carnival cruise....I just priced one for the end of next year and it was only 1300 for 3 of us!

[dbcruise]

I have booked the wonder for $99.00 in Oct too. But yesterday i booked The Sea Princess for $99. for 3 nights La to Vancouver . But of course I live on the West Coast so i only have to have airfare 1 way and Thanks to SOUTHWEST I can do a $99 . one way airfare So with Taxes and transpotation from Vancouver to Seattle $300. to $400 for this cruise fix a price I can afford . It;s my 6 th cruise and 1st princess but I know it will be great . kackie I hope you find a great deal too . Good luck .

[Kajunswty]

my vote would have to be CCL Fantasy! after sailing CCL several times and then trying RCCL SOS I would not sail her again. Food and service aside ~ the night life was non-existent! By midnight everything was shutting down. Carnival definately has the fun! and the food - service and prices aren't bad either! if you can't afford DCL I think the Fantasy is your ship!!

[miksicnarf]

Paige, I just did the Ecstasy 4-night cruise with my 12 year-old daughter, along with a friend and her daughter. Our only previous cruising experience was the Magic. I mentally prepared myself for a much older ship, less service, etc. but I have to tell you, we were very pleasantly surprised. Other than a little wear and tear in a few spots, I thought the Ecstasy compared favorably to the Magic. And I thought the food was better!

Happy cruising!

[wdwobsessed]

The only cruise I have ever done other than DCL was the Fantasy and we will never, ever go back to the Fantasy.

Food was awful, limited activities, bad entertainment. We were bored out of our skulls. All we had to do was gamble and drink.

Now, in Carnivals defense .... Hubby got this cruise through work ... as a sales incentive. We met alot of other people who also had "won" the cruise or something.

My TA told me .. it was probaly a no-frills charter cruise. Not the normal line up.

But in our defense ... our tablemates on DCL had also done Fantasy as well .. and did not like it anywhere near as much.

Our sever had also worked for Fantasy ... and did not last long there.

We had a "fantasy bashing" party at dinner ..lol...just kidding.

wdwo

[Bev J]

We have sailed 10 times, our last on the Wonder.Our next cruise will be back to RCI. We had a great time on the Wonder but were very disapointed in the food and the activities for adults. RCI has great food and service and DOES compare well with disney. The kids programs are great also. You would have more choices if you are willing to drive to ft. lauderdale or miami for a 4-5 day cruise on the monarch or majesty of the seas. You might check royal carribbean site there are some sailings out of Tampa also.
If you check out the sites that sell cruises you may be surprised for how little you can sail we have gotten offers from www.mytravelco.com for really great prices on RCI.
We have never sailed on Carnival so can't compare.

[Bev J]

We have sailed 10 times, our last on the Wonder.Our next cruise will be back to RCI. We had a great time on the Wonder but were very disapointed in the food and the activities for adults. RCI has great food and service and DOES compare well with disney. The kids programs are great also. You would have more choices if you are willing to drive to ft. lauderdale or miami for a 4-5 day cruise on the monarch or majesty of the seas. You might check royal carribbean site there are some sailings out of Tampa also.
If you check out the sites that sell cruises you may be surprised for how little you can sail we have gotten offers from www.mytravelco.com for really great prices on RCI.
We have never sailed on Carnival so can't compare.

[akid@hart]

I'd pick Voyager of the Seas RCL - out of 18 cruises, my favorite ship!!!

Next cruise: Disney Wonder

[FLeisure]

I agree...Voyager is the best ship in my opinion. It's got nicer finishing touches than Explorer of the Seas its sister ship. For food and service though, I'd have to go with Celebrity.

Isn't it great that we live in a day and age where we have so much choice and so much opinion :)

[akid@hart]

VOS was far superior, doing Celebrity Mercury in the fall thru the Panama Canal, my second choice would be the Golden Princess.


Celebrity Mercury 2002
Disney Wonder 2002
Celebrity Zenith 2002
Regal Empress 2002
Regal Empress 2001
Golden Princess 2001
Voyager of the Seas 2001
Regal Empress 2000
Carnival Esctasy 2000
Regal Empress 1999
Carnival Inspiration 1997
Ocean Quest
Vera Cruz
Cunard Countess
Cunard Princess
Cunard Countess
Cunard Princess
Premiere Royale
Premiere Oceanic
The Florida 1966

[FLeisure]

Akid,
Tell me.....haven't done Princess yet.....how do you rate them in comparison to RCCL ?

Good idea to list ships :

Explorer of Seas 2002
Disney Wonder 2001
Celebrity Summit 2001
Voyager of Seas 2001
Sovereign of Seas 2000
Carnival Destiny 2000
Carnival Paradise 1999
Big Red Boat
P&O Oriana 1977 & 1978
P&O Canberra 1976
Northern Star - Shaw Savil Line 1973, 74 & 75

[akid@hart]

I give both high marks. We were on VOS 6/24/01 and Golden Princess on her inaugral cruise from Ft. Lauderale in Sept. 01 I believe. Both had excellent entertainment, both had excellent food - the Golden was a beautiful ship and the staff friendly. The VOS was awesome in its size and layout.
Am looking forward to our first Disney cruise although it is considerably more pricewise than the other ships we wanted to experience it at least once. We go to the parks several times a year because we are only two hours from it and are Disney fans.

[FLeisure]

Yes, might give Princess a try later this year or early next. The only downside is the way they handle things at Fort Lauderdale.....wasn't impressed by the delays on Celebrity having been off the Voyager and in my car in exactly 8 mins !

Explorer was more difficult getting off this year due to the extra security measures but still a very fast and efficient process overall. Got to say, I do think Disney gets it right......have breakfast and amble off at your leisure rather than waiting for bag tags to be called.

I know what you mean about trying Disney. I was really keen to try them out as I have many guests ask me for my opinions on cruises. Got to say that Disney doesn't come out too well compared to RCCL/Celebrity/Cunard (just realised I've missed Countess of my list !). C'est la vie !

[lynetteSC]

Akid~ ok, whats the deal with Regal! I see you have been on it several times! Could you tell me your feelings on Regal?!?!? Thanks bunches!!! :)

[akid@hart]

Have been on Regal often because it sails from only 30 minutes from our home. We like the destinations and it is a fun ship, also very reasonable. It's an old ship, built in 1952 I believe, but refurbished. It's small compared to the big mega ships we have been on, but the crew are very friendly and the food and entertainment are good. The cabins are smaller than the new ships, but we don't spend a lot of time in them anyway. They have some amazing fares. We were on it last in January and will probably go many times since it is so close to us.

[lynetteSC]

akid~ Yes! I have heard service & food were great! We have had mixed reviews. We actually have a client that loves it because he knows everyone by day 2 and servers/waiters know exactly what he wants. He loves the service & hospitality! And you are right, prices are great! Just curious!!!! :) :) Thanks!!!

[Bev J]

We sailed on the Sea Princess after we had sailed on the Grandeur of the Seas. Both ships were beautiful, but RCI wins on this one. Cabin was larger on GOS, same catagory with a balcony, food better on GOS, except deserts better on SP. Service was great on both, but more friendly on GOS. The officers and upper staff were a bit stuffy on SP. We were a group of 18 and seated at 2 tables next to each other and our table had find service but the rest of the group and the next table were not happy at all. On GOS the staff went out of their way to make us happy. Older group on Princess so seemed less adult activities were offered.Our next cruise is on the Navigator of the Seas or Voyager, whatever is west carib during the week we want.
PS sorry for the double post above

[tlt]

If you really want to sail out of Port Canaveral and can afford the time and money...I would go with the 7night nonsmoking Carnival Pride...it is great. If you only want to go for 4nights...then I would recommend Royal Caribbean Sovereign of the Seas. We have been on Carnival's Fantasy (one time) and Royal Caribbean's Soveriegn of the Seas (two times) and we thought Soveriegn of the Seas was much nicer. Plus, we love Royal Caribbean's private Island (Cococay) much better than Carnival's private island. You will not be dissappointed with any of the 3 ships I have mentioned...if money is a factor, I would go with the cheapest.

[lynetteSC]

tlt ~ I agree with Pride ... I have heard lots of good things regarding the newest Carnival ship!

Nice to "meet" someone near us! I actually grew up in Goose Creek!!!! :) Right down (or up) the road from you! It is a small world after all!!!! :)

[Werner Weiss]

Originally posted by tlt
If you really want to sail out of Port Canaveral and can afford the time and money...I would go with the 7night nonsmoking Carnival Pride...it is great.
You're thinking of two different ships that both start with the letter P.

The Carnival Paradise (http://www.carnival.com/Ships/ships.asp?select=PA), which sails out of Miami, is Carnival's non-smoking ship -- and "the world's first and only totally smoke-free cruise ship," according to Carnival.

The Carnival Pride (http://www.carnival.com/Ships/ships.asp?select=PR), which sails out of Port Canaveral, has the usual Carnival smoking policy. Carnival allows smoking in all staterooms and through much of the rest of the ship, although not in the dining room, showroom, and other designated non-smoking areas.