Carnival vs DCL Wonder...3 night to Nassau?

[VinnyNYC]

Has anybody been on both cruises??? The price difference is about half in August 2008. I understand the Disney experience, but the price difference for a family of 4 is $2800 to $1300??? Carnival has a great promo right now.
Any thoughts, positive or negative would be great.
PS-I want to add this cruise to our Orlando vacation

 

[kcminnie]

Is the Carnival 3 day over a weekend? Be careful with the short and low priced Carnival cruises. We did a 4 day out of Tampa in 2005 that was Thur-Mon. It was a party cruise with 80% young/single people. They kept dropping the price till an inside cabin was $200 pp. I personally would rather spend more $$ & do Disney before spending money on Carnival again. The 7 day Carnival are better with the newer ships & more family. Also compare the ships. How old is the Carnival ship? We had the highest Cat Suite on the Carnival cruise and my Disney Cat 5 was much nicer.

 

[misseulalie]

If it's the Carnival Sensation, RUN AWAY!!!!!!!!!!

We have done both, and I know Carnival's larger, newer ships are probably much nicer, but the Sensation is a toilet and even if if it was free, we would not go back. I have heard the Fantasy is the same.

I think a great in-between is RCCL's Soverign of the Seas for a cheap 3 day getaway.

If you want specific details, you can PM me or search previous threads.

Jennifer

 

[haywardranch]

I totally agree. I went on the 3 day Carnival Fascination and it lacked everything scared1: including taste it was 80's relived). Two years ago we went on the 4 night Wonder and what a whole different experience it was 1000 times better. It is a beautiful ship and you get to stop at Castaway Key (Carnival has nothing like that on the 3 day) and there are so many things to do. I have also been on a short cruise on RCCL which was much nicer than Carnival but it still was not the Wonder.

As a matter of fact we are now counting down 13days until we board the Wonder again...

Good Luck!!!

 

[sparty]

My wife and I went on the Fantasy a few years after it was introduced and it was very nice, however, we sailed twice in the last 5 years and both cruises were terrible. We both vowed never to cruise Carnival again. There is a reason it is half the price of a Disney Cruise. Disney is by far superior to any Carnival Cruise. In my opinion DCL is in a class of its own. We are Cruising with DCL on the 4 night Easter cruise next week. I would highly recommend DCL. This will be our third time on the Wonder and it is worth every penny we spent. Carnival has become a party ship with poor service, food and hospitality!!!

The old saying "You get what you pay for" definitely fits here.

 

[kctwinmommy]

Carnival has become a party ship with poor service, food and hospitality!!!

The old saying "You get what you pay for" definitely fits here.

I know I'm pretty much the only one on here who actually enjoys their Carnival cruises! Once again, as I've said before, we've had great service, wonderful good, and great hospitality on our Carnival cruises. While I will agree that Fantasy and the other older ships aren't quite as nice. We loved the Glory that we took this past November though!! It was a wonderful time. I completely understand that not everyone can afforde DCL and so there are plenty of other lines out there that can provide a great trip too.

Anyway, I think there's a site (cruisecritic.com maybe?) that discusses all the different lines. It may be better to ask there. I just find that, obviously, most people here will only recommend DCL. Either way - have a great trip!!

 

[bubba's mom]

I think a great in-between is RCCL's Soverign of the Seas for a cheap 3 day getaway.

If you want specific details, you can PM me or search previous threads.

Jennifer

We were on that ship 4 years ago! Had a good time, altho i remember thinking it needs "updating"......

 

[aes74]

Is the Carnival 3 day over a weekend? Be careful with the short and low priced Carnival cruises. We did a 4 day out of Tampa in 2005 that was Thur-Mon. It was a party cruise with 80% young/single people. They kept dropping the price till an inside cabin was $200 pp. I personally would rather spend more $$ & do Disney before spending money on Carnival again. The 7 day Carnival are better with the newer ships & more family. Also compare the ships. How old is the Carnival ship? We had the highest Cat Suite on the Carnival cruise and my Disney Cat 5 was much nicer.

I cannot second that enough....
As soon as we boarded our "cheap carnival cruise" it was a bunch of drunk singles running around in bikinis. Not such a great family atmosphere.
The only things to do onboard were gamble, go to raunchy comedy clubs and drink. It was a long weekend.

 

[misseulalie]

I know I'm pretty much the only one on here who actually enjoys their Carnival cruises! Once again, as I've said before, we've had great service, wonderful good, and great hospitality on our Carnival cruises. While I will agree that Fantasy and the other older ships aren't quite as nice. We loved the Glory that we took this past November though!! It was a wonderful time. I completely understand that not everyone can afforde DCL and so there are plenty of other lines out there that can provide a great trip too.

Anyway, I think there's a site (cruisecritic.com maybe?) that discusses all the different lines. It may be better to ask there. I just find that, obviously, most people here will only recommend DCL. Either way - have a great trip!!

I would agree and disagree.
Though I love DCL, I would definitely try RCCL again. We have Celebrity booked for New Years and I heard great things about Princess. Once my girls get older (10+) we will most likely switch to RCCL since they have more activities for the older kids.

There is just absolutely no comparison though to Carnival's Sensation or Fantasy vs. the Wonder. It is like comparing a Motel 6 to the Ritz or Bellagio.

Again, if you are looking for a cheap weekend, Soverign is a good choice. Yes, it is a little dated, but the atmosphere is more family oriented and you don't feel like you walked into a frat party.

 

[Maria311]

RUN!!!! I'm not a die hard "Disney Cruise or Nothing" person but I can promise you that there is NO comparison between Disney and Carnival.
I would rather stay in the smallest crew cabin at the bottom of the ship than stay in a suite on Carnival. TACKY, DIRTY!!! Just a horrible experience on two seperate (free bonus from work) occasions. We've been on the Magic once and the Wonder twice. My daughter cried buckets at the end of the last trip because it was so much fun and she didn't want to leave.
Trust me. It's worth the extra money.

 

[bmalonef45]

Can't really compare to Carnival but we have taken both the SOS (bad initials for a ship by the way) and the Wonder. One with kids (DIS) one without. The ships aren't even close. The SOS was nice but warn. The cabins were smaller and the service, while good, not anywhere near Disney quality. More of a party atmosphere and a much younger (adult) crowd. The shows were nothing compared to Disney quality and the theaters reminded me more of a lounge. SOS was a lot cheaper but you get what you pay for in my opinion. I don't know about Carnival but I don't think they have their own private island. At least RCL does have that. Can't wait to compare CC to it since we missed CC on our 3 day.

 

[ricka47]

We've sailed all the major lines except Carnival and plan to keep it that way. We sail DCL often only because of the Florida resident discounts. For the difference in money, you may want to consider the Sovereign. We were on her when she was the newest and biggest and then again when she was much older. But, she has been refurbished since then and, despite being crowded, you will enjoy it. While DCL would be better in this instance, it's not so much better as to be worth the price of two cruises.

We're taking 5 people in two cabins for 7 nights on the Mariner of the Seas for $2850. You are thinking of three nights for four people in one cabin for the same money. Personally, I wouldn't do that.

 

[scottishwee35]

Hi

I have been sailing with Carnival and DCL Wonder.

My choice is DCL Wonder!!! as it was best and everything was great.

Carnival was good well but prefer to DCL.

Scottishwee35

 

[ivanova]

There is just absolutely no comparison though to Carnival's Sensation or Fantasy vs. the Wonder. It is like comparing a Motel 6 to the Ritz or Bellagio.

Picking a cruise really should not be based soley on the price ... if you are used to staying at Ritz Carlton, but to save money you book a week at the local Motel 6, you'll be sorely disappointed.

If you're looking for a weekend getaway and that's all, maybe Carnival then. If you're looking for a family vacation that the kids will RAVE about for months and years afterward, you really need to rethink Disney.

Some things to consider ... What room categories are you comparing between the two ships? Can you downgrade with DCL to save a few bucks if money is an issue? Are you a first time cruiser? If not, what cruises (cruise lines) have you cruised with in the past? Did you enjoy them? Was there anything you did NOT like about past cruises? What types of hotels do you typically stay at for land based vacations? What kinds of activities does your family enjoy while on vacation?

 

[NancyIL]

Sorry - double post (stupid boards)!

 

[NancyIL]

I still haven't sailed with Disney (and no current plans to do so), but I've been on 3 RCI cruises and booked a 7-night southern Caribbean cruise on Carnival Destiny for March 2008. My last RCI cruise was a 4-day on Monarch of the Seas out of Los Angeles in March 2006. It was a great cruise, but any time you have a short cruise over a weekend or during holiday periods - you're going to get a lot more "party folks." Disney may be the exception because of its family emphasis and its HIGH cost during spring break!

I had a 4-day Bahamas cruise booked on Majesty of the Seas out of Miami for the week before Easter 2008. After reading that there were quite a few drunk college kids on the 4-day THIS March - I searched again to see what longer cruises were available. Other cruises the same week were high. However, I ran across the Carnival Destiny out of San Juan, so I decided I would give Carnival a try for the ship's great itinerary and price. I'm hoping that having to get to San Juan will be somewhat of a deterrent to the average college student!

 

[NancyIL]

I still haven't sailed with Disney (and no current plans to do so), but I've been on 3 RCI cruises and booked a 7-night southern Caribbean cruise on Carnival Destiny for March 2008. My last RCI cruise was a 4-day on Monarch of the Seas out of Los Angeles in March 2006. It was a great cruise, but any time you have a short cruise over a weekend or during holiday periods - you're going to get a lot more "party folks." Disney may be the exception because of its family emphasis and its HIGH cost during spring break!

I had a 4-day Bahamas cruise booked on Majesty of the Seas out of Miami for the week before Easter 2008. After reading that there were quite a few drunk college kids on the 4-day THIS March - I searched again to see what longer cruises were available. Other cruises the same week were high. However, I ran across the Carnival Destiny out of San Juan, so I decided I would give Carnival a try for the ship's great itinerary and price. I'm hoping that having to get to San Juan will be somewhat of a deterrent to the average college student!