Carnival Cruises' vs Disney Cruises' Need help deciding

[bratray]

i have been on several cruises with carnival & have enjoyed & so have the kids DS17, DD16, DS5

i am now getting ready to plan a 7 day disney cruise but notice the prices seem to be higher then the carnival 7 day cruises

trying to justify the extra cost-

anyone who has been on both cruise lines:

please tell me why you enjoyed the disney cruise more

OR

please tell me why you enjoyed the carnival cruise more

what are the major differences between carnival & disney (besides the characters )

thank you in advance for any and all opinions!

 

[Bethipooh4]

I'm not sure if I can be much help...we recently went on a 3 night Disney cruise as a family...DS's 7,14,21 We actually did a land sea combo package. All 3 boys loved the Disney cruise, so much we are going again next summer.

My daughter (20) and I are leaving 3 weeks from today to do a Carnival cruise on the Fantasy.

I really can't compare the 2 yet, but from my experience, if you have kids Disney is the way to go. My 14 yr old had a blast with the teen club and recommends the teen junkaroo jam around Nassau. We only saw him at dinner. 7 yr old we never saw, except for dinner. He loved Oceaneers Club, and we have some cool crafts he made there. He was actually upset because one night we went to pick him up at Midnight and he informed us he had another hour before it closed. I was afraid our 21 yr old would be bored, but he managed to have a good time, he hung out with us during the day, and the went his own way at night.

I would love to hear about Carnival, I am worried I will be disappoined after Disney.

 

[jellybungsters]

We've cruised both and DCL is definitely more expensive.
For the higher price, you get:
1. Bigger staterooms
2. Better shows
3. Better dining scheme
4. Castaway Cay
Put it this way, from our experience, DCL is either better or at least as good as Carnival in every category you can think of. And if you're a Disney fan, there's no substitute for the Disney experience.

Please don't get me wrong. I'm not saying Carnival is not a good cruise line. I actually think they're excellent. But we'd rather spend the extra $$ and go DCL again.

 

[TheWog]

Have not cruised on Carnival, but Disney has Castaway Cay. Which you can at least say you have been to after you go. It is a tropical paradise all for you (and 2,000 of your closest friends ).

 

[CindyandBrice]

I just did a 7 day Aug 21 on Carnival Glory with my 6 year old son. I did Carnival to save money over Disney. However, I will do Disney in the future. THe kids activities were "lame" as my son put it, and any activity past 10 pm cost additional. The food was better in my opinion on Disney, and of course Disney has more activities that we could attend together. The biggest drawback was missing Castaway Cay. This is well worht the additional money. The layout of the Disney ships is more welcoming. I am all for Disney!

 

[mickeymom923]

I've done 8 Carnival Cruise and 2 Disney Cruises. I could do a 7 day Carnival Cruise for the same amount as a 3 day Disney Cruise. I would rather do the 3 day Disney since cost is a factor. My son is 18 and my daughter is 17. With late seating, we got out of Carnival's dining room around 1015 pm. The teen club started around 930 and at 1030 anyone under 18 was kicked out. There were no activities during the day. My son would basically find other teens walking around during nothing also (carnival) and they would all walk around together doing nothing. Last year I tried Disney and my teens loved it. There is a teens club open mostly all day with planned activities are they could just hang there with other teens. They had basketball, ESPN lounge, and lots of teens. I just did Disney again and we still all loved it. The food is good; the shows are great; the people working on Disney seem like they really like what they are doing and like it's not just a job; the attitudes are different. If you want more info pm me or email me. I would definitely do Disney over Carnival.

 

[AspiringCindy]

I too have done DCL and 2 different Carnival Cruises! I MUCH prefer DCL over Carnival! In fact my 2 Carnival cruises rank #6 & #7 out of my 8 cruises!
*The children's programs can't even be compared! Not only does DCL have longer club hours, but the staff is friendlier, the activities are more age appropriate and extensive and the facilities are grandiose compared to Carnival!
*The food was of better quality on Disney's Ship, and I thought the selection was better too! Plus, I like rotating from restaurant to restaurant!
*The shows were spectacular on DCL. Magic as only Disney can produce!!!
*I also prefer the atmosphere and decor of DCL. Pure elegance with all the brass and marble!
...and NO Mickey on Carnival!!!

 

[bigsky]

I think it's a matter of taste. I've always cruised with Carnival and we just did Disney. Now, this was my kids first cruise, so THEY can't compare. They are 13 and 15. They love cruising, but thought the teen club was ok. They did spend lots of time there each night.
But what I've seen and heard, the Carnival cruise lines have things going on for the kids as well. I've heard rave reviews from teens on RCCL.
Personally, we won't ever do a Disney cruise again. The Carnival ship we went on was much nicer than the Disney cruise. Much more classy than Disney. The older ships aren't as nice. So it depends on the ship.
I liked the food much better and the food selection. I"m not speaking of meal time. Disney had places you can snack on during the day...more kid food than adult. Carnival, (The Pride) had an awesome selection of food all the time and late night...instead of "kid" food.
I liked the shows much better on the Pride. The shows were more geared toward kids on Disney.
I feel the Disney cruise is very geared toward little kids or people that are die hard fans of Disney.

I just felt we got so much more for our money on Carnival than Disney. It depends on what you want out of a cruise.

We're going on The Mariner, (RCCL) for the first time. I'm anxious to compare Carnival and them.

You know..on www.cruisemates.com they have a section for teens on their message boards. Go to message boards..then People..hit that down arrow and find teens. YOu might want to post there to get their opinions since you have two teens.
It completely depends on your kids. They may be bored on Disney or not.
But it comes down to money. You have to pay for it. I just think you get much more for your money with Carnival. I'd go with a newer ship if I were you as well.
If you have any questions, feel free to email me.

Laura

 

[bratray]

Thank you all for the great tips & opinions

i think i will take the plunge & try disney this time

ya only live once & ya can't take it with you
now, if only i could convince my DH of this moto!!

 

[CPM]

Originally posted by jellybungsters
We've cruised both and DCL is definitely more expensive.
For the higher price, you get:
1. Bigger staterooms

Not true. The newer Carnival ships, Oceanview staterooms are 220 SF.
I think Carnival is a much bettter value. I found the food to be much better then DCL as well. Service has been better also.
We will probably do one more DCL cruise so my younger son has a chance to remember it. DCL is very kid friendly, kids club is a lot nicer then Camp Carnival too.
Howver I just booked a 7 day Western on the newest Carnival ship. For the same price as an oceanview on DCL I got two balconey cabins on CCL. I can't justify the cost of a DCL cruise.
I will wait to take my son on a 4 day when DCL releases next year's FL residents rate.
I bet if you posted this on a CCL board you will get a different kind of response

 

[raysnkaysmom]

I'm working on planning my first DCL trip in Feb...still trying to justify the price difference myself...but I want the kids to have the best experience. I've been on Carnival once and Royal Carribbean once. RCCL had their own private island which was the best...but I prefer Carnival overall. Both those are DEFINITLY much cheaper and not disappointing at all. Is it true there are no 'casino rooms' on DCL? Not that I care much...hubby hates it...LOL
We'll see if it's worth the extra money... I'm thinkin it will be

 

[disneybride96]

Atmosphere!
Yes... Carnival is the "Fun Ship'. If you enjoy drinking, gambling and smoking, then Disney may not be your thing. You can enjoy Carnival with doing those things, but the last Carnival cruise I was on seemed like a lot of people overindulging to the point of being obnoxious.

I also noticed that the Carnival ships are looking quite worn and out of date. (At least some of the smaller ships). Seemed like they were trying to keep with that disco theme and not keeping it up real well.

 

[PlaneJoy]

Originally posted by CPM
[. The newer Carnival ships, Oceanview staterooms are 220 SF.
I think Carnival is a much bettter value. I found the food to be much better then DCL as well. Service has been better also.
We will probably do one more DCL cruise so my younger son has a chance to remember it. DCL is very kid friendly, kids club is a lot nicer then Camp Carnival too.



This was my exact thoughts as well after going on Disney. We will do another one once my youngest (now 2) is old enough to enjoy it. One of the things I noticed most on Disney, was that we were always dodging cleaning carts in halls of the cabins. Something I have never had to do on Carnival. Maybe we have just been lucky!


We have never be on RCCL, but I've heard it's the best for those with teenagers.

 

[antmaril]

We are taking our first Disney cruise in February. One reason why I chose Disney is because you can book a three or four night cruise and get a nice ship. On the other lines, it seems they don't offer their newer ships for the shorter cruises. In order to get a nice, new or almost new ship, you have to book at least a seven night cruise. We have cruised on Carnival, The Big Red Boat (when our son was four years old) and NCL. We like cruising, but we don't LOVE it. Four nights is enough for us and I think the Wonder will be perfect. We are taking our son and his girlfriend for their senior trip. They are looking forward to it. I'm sure they will have a good time and we will too. I think it's a pretty nice senior trip. I think I would have enjoyed a cruise with my boyfriend (now husband of 30 years) when I graduated from high school in 1969.

 

[Mjasp]

I am very happy to see people posting postitive things about other cruise lines here.
We are thinking of trying a new line in 2005, and going back on DCL in 2006.

I can't quote everyone here because I only know how to quote one person at a time, BUT my DD 8 also did not like the clubs, she went when we went to Palo's and late night shows we wanted to see, but she mostly stayed with us and played in the pools and game room which we didn't mind at all.

We are going to look at one of the NY departing ships for August 2005, but the beauty is the closer to sail time the cheaper with other lines. So we don't have to tie up our money and commit more than a year in advance.

As far as the shows go, I am not in LOVE with Disney's shows bu thought they were OK. I did really enjoy the Golden Mickeys show, I think Disney Dreams is OK So I am glad I am not the only one, it IS all a matter of opinion.

Now as far as getting stuck at sea for 10 days, I was VERY pleased with the way DCL handled the situation.

Joanna

 

[SCOTTOHIOCPA]

We have been on two Carnival 4 nighters (2000 Fantasy and 2002 Imagination) and the Wonder 4 nighter (2004). All three ships are about the same size and age.

Disney was better than Carnival:

Embarkation/debarkation fast and efficient

Shows were interesting to kids as well as adults

Castaway Cay was great!

the breakfast at topsiders was better than carnival - not just the standard eggs and bacon - Disney has made to order omlettes and Mickey waffles.

Disney's 3 pools let you choose whether you want all kids, some kids, or no kids.

the ship's stabilizers made the ship VERY steady. Carnival was good, but Disney's is the best

Carnival was better than Disney:

the elevators weren't so tiny and getting up and down was better

the Pizza and ice cream were open 24x7, on Disney there were times when no food was available except room service

Gambling was available

the clubs were full of people having fun right up until 1:00 am, on Disney the clubs were empty by 11:00

Carnival had more late night buffets

Rooms were bigger than the cat 11 we had on Disney

Comedians in the clubs weren't afraid to tell a few off color jokes

there were more repeat cruisers who understand how things are at sea


In my opinion, the Disney cruise was worth a premium of 10% if traveling without kids, and 20% with kids. When I was researching the cost of our Disney trip, I noticed that Disney really gouges the prices during the weeks kids are out of school. For instance, if we had gone the week of spring break instead of the week after spring break this year, the same cabin would have cost us $4000 instead of $1800. I compared that to Carnival's costs of $2000 and $1600 for the same weeks. It was certainly worth $200 more for the Disney trip, but if we had been forced to go on spring break week for some reason, I don't think I would have been willing to spend an extra $2000.

 

[CPM]

Originally posted by disneybride96
Atmosphere!
Yes... Carnival is the "Fun Ship'. If you enjoy drinking, gambling and smoking, then Disney may not be your thing. You can enjoy Carnival with doing those things, but the last Carnival cruise I was on seemed like a lot of people overindulging to the point of being obnoxious.

I also noticed that the Carnival ships are looking quite worn and out of date. (At least some of the smaller ships). Seemed like they were trying to keep with that disco theme and not keeping it up real well.

It REALY depends on which ship and when you go! The older ships are cheaper and attract a spring break crowd. You won't find that on the newer ships. Keep in mind that Carnival's fleet is about 12 times larger then DCL's! There are a lot of ships and ports to choose from. I have only experienced that spring break crowd on ships like the Imagination, Fascination.
I would like to try RCCCL some times too, I hear teens love it!

 

[CPM]

BTW,
If anyone is interested. I booked the Carnival Valor July 24th at a group rate. It's a good deal. My cabins are booked, but anyone can add onto my group rate. If you are interested you can email or PM me. I can forward you the info. You don't have to be part of my group but can enjoy the rate. We're doing a family reunion.
It's a Western Carribean cruise.