Carnival Sensation vs Monarch of the Seas

[mumom95]

Trying to plan a girls only 3 day cruise this spring to get away from the Ohio cold and our kids and husbands (not that we don't love them ).

I'm the only one of the group that has cruised, and I've just been on Disney (well, and on Princess and that was to Alaska, and if you've been on a cruise to Alaska, you know you are going for Alaska, not the cruise).

I'm looking at the Carnival Sensation and Monarch of the Seas. Mainly choosing those two because:
1. they are cheap
2. they leave out of Port Canaveral which is within driving distance
3. they have 3 day cruises, because as much as we'd LOVE to go for longer, we're already having to promise our husbands extra favors just to get the 3 day.

There are 6 of us, all married moms in our late 30's/early 40's. We love to just hang out with a glass of wine or margarita, gossip like girls, get a little loud when we're laughing and just relax and have a good time. We don't really care about the excursions, we'll just want to hang out at the beach. We care more about the quality of drinks and drink prices and the entertainment (we're more of a comedy, fun game show crowd versus broadway show type). That may make us sound like your white trash kind of crowd, but we're really more of your Ohio/suburban/SAHM type crowd

So, I'd love any input people have on the Sensation and Monarch, or Carnival vs RCCL.

 

[Jsme]

I have been on both and like the both for different reasons.

I think Carnival Sensation offers more to do. They have the Adult area is nice but they do not have a pool but you have 2 hottubs. There's no bar close by but they do have a button you can push and have bar service. Negatives are the fact you are located at a very hard to reach place. No good way to the Serenity area. You have to either go out a bar/nightclub venue or go down a level from the Buffet. Then you have the fact the pizza place is directly above you and you get to smell pizza all day. lol
I lke their new slides and resort style pools. The food is better on the Sensation. If you do anytime dining on the Sensation you pretty much can go anytime you would like without making a reservation. Another negative is the atrium that the Sensation has. This makes the ship difficult to get around. The Mongrolian Grille is awesome for lunch. The deli is good as well.


The Monarch does not have the slides but they do have a rock wall. Putt Putt is very windy. They do have a nice walking area. I do not think the food on the Monarch was nearly as good as the Sensation. Matter a fact some nights my daughter had a difficult time finding something to eat. Believe me she is not a picky eater but she had one night she could not find anything she enjoyed. We even went to the buffet and tired room service after that. I found something every night. They have a great salad in the diningroom for lunch. It is a must try. It is a chopped salad and you pick what you want in the bowl. Do not waste your time or money to eat at Jade. The shows are fun and I love the bar near the sound of music. If you like a dirty martini you can get them very cheap there and if you get to know the bartender you will get top shelf vodka. I enjoyed sitting there while my daughter was off having fun and I waited for the show to start. This was a mother daughter cruise and we did a B2B so we were on the ship 7 days. Anytime dining you must make reservations for. We forgot one night and we were lucky to get a time to sit.

Personally I enjoy the anytime dining on both lines. For us it was nice because we could go at anytime to eat. We did like Carnival anytime dining better because we did not have to make reservations for dinner and you really needed to on the Monarch.

I forgot to add that the Monarch does have an adult pool but it is right beside of the family pool and the rules are not enforced so kids are in both pools.

I know you said you are wanting cheap and you guys just want to hang out but do not compare either line to the Wonder or the Magic.

 

[LoraJ]

I have never been on the Monarch but I sailed on the Sensation about 12 years ago and had such a fun time. I went by myself and I was seated at a table with a bunch of other people around my age and we all hung out and had a great time.

I sailed alone on RCCL and was bored out of my mind. There did not seem to be a lot to do and the disco was dead at night. Mostly couples and families. This was a 7 day out of San Juan, so it probably had a lot to do with the cruise and not really the cruise line.

The Sensation has a new adult's only area. Not sure if the Monarch does.

The Sensation will be more glitzy and Vegas style while the Monarch is more subdued.

Since you will be with your girlfriends, you will all make your own fun! But for night time entertainment, go to cruisecritic.com and check out the message boards there. See if you can find the the daily run-downs of the itinerary you are on to get an idea of what they have to offer at night. I know Carnival's is called Carnival Capers, so perhaps do a search for "Sensation Carnival Capers." I cannot remember what RCCL's is called.

 

[mumom95]

Thanks for the info so far, very helpful!!

 

[Tracy Savage]

We were on Sensation and Majesty of the seas.

Carnival I felt was a younger crowd. The ship wasnt as elegant or as up kept as RC. The food was better on RC as well. Iam sure they have redone the ship since we were on it but the Sensation was 1970/disco-y to me. My vote is RC. And RC service was wonderful. Have fun either way!

 

[maslex]

I've never been on Carnival. But just went on the Monarch this past July. I have been on Disney and Norwegian as well.

I must say that I really did not care for the Monarch. Not that we didn't have fun, not that we didn't enjoy the cruise but I guess I was comparing it with the other 2 cruises all week long. The ship is a bit older than the others. It just didn't seem to have what the other ships had for some reason. The food was just okay. Probably not a fair statement though since we did not eat in the dining room all week (this cruise we did the buffet all week, probably wouldn't recommend it though LOL)

But if you DO go with the Monarch and want to just kick back and enjoy the beach than you MUST GO TO BLUE LAGOON BEACH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I for one am NOT a beach person but this place was absolutely my favorite place out of all three cruises!!! It's not very busy at all and so beautiful.

If you're looking for something similar to Disney, you won't find it on the Monarch. My opinion....others my vary. LOL

 

[mumom95]

I've never been on Carnival. But just went on the Monarch this past July. I have been on Disney and Norwegian as well.

I must say that I really did not care for the Monarch. Not that we didn't have fun, not that we didn't enjoy the cruise but I guess I was comparing it with the other 2 cruises all week long. The ship is a bit older than the others. It just didn't seem to have what the other ships had for some reason. The food was just okay. Probably not a fair statement though since we did not eat in the dining room all week (this cruise we did the buffet all week, probably wouldn't recommend it though LOL)

But if you DO go with the Monarch and want to just kick back and enjoy the beach than you MUST GO TO BLUE LAGOON BEACH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I for one am NOT a beach person but this place was absolutely my favorite place out of all three cruises!!! It's not very busy at all and so beautiful.

If you're looking for something similar to Disney, you won't find it on the Monarch. My opinion....others my vary. LOL

Not looking for something to similar to Disney, realize I won't find that on these. Honestly, just looking for a relaxing trip away to where it's warm and we don't have to cook or clean and will have some entertainment for a few days.

 

[supercarrie]

Both of them will be a great trip. I've been on Monarch and on the Sensation's sister ship (the Elation) which is identical in layout. RCCL used to do 3 night cruises out of LA, and so we routinely had to choose between the two lines (I used to live in CA).

I would choose Carnival based on your comments. Not that RCCL cruises aren't fun, but Carnival definitely has more of an emphasis on the type of fun you mention. The nightlife is also better on Carnival, with the bars more active in the evenings.

One major thing to note: cabin size. Monarch's cabins are TINY. Assuming you chose the cheapest cabin on each ship, you are looking at 119 square feet versus 185 sq feet on the Sensation. At that small, those extra square feet really make a difference.

However, you really cannot go wrong with either one. It often came down to price for us (and Carnival was usually priced cheaper)

 

[portocall]

I used to work for Carnival. I love the Sensation class ships.

Personally, I think that Carnival will offer what you are looking for, as they are plenty of places to do what you want to do. Loud is aloud, plenty of places to chill out, and if you go during the school year (and not a period where most of the country is on a break) children are minimal. We had cruises with a child count as low as 4-14 and as high as 490 depending on school sessions. The food is good and the entertainment is fun.

I would love to do a Royal Caribbean cruise, I like their line too. Although I will be taking the kids on Carnival to see where their parents met and what we did, I can't wait to go on a RC cruise.

 

[chisnpeke]

I have been on both lines but not on those ships.

Royal Caribbean keeps their ships in better shape than Carnival in my opinion. I also felt the service was a lot better on Royal Caribbean.

Carnival is fun and would work for you for a 3 night cruise but if I was picking I would pick Royal Caribbean.

 

[quentina]

I have done RC (I think it was the Soverign of the seas) and I have done Carnival.

RC was "prettier" than Carnival however, Carnival was much more fun.

Personally, I would do Carnival. If I sail RC again, I would only do the new, super big boats with the cities on them.

 

[Jsme]

I agree with the PP that made the notation about the cabin size. The rooms on Monarch are very small. That is another reason we like Carnival. You can get an obstructed Superior Oceanview room on the Monarch and it is much larger. If you chose the Monarch go to Photobucket or Webshots and do a search for cabin layouts. They have a picture of the layout of the rooms that are less obstructed.

I would say for what you are wanting to go on the Sensation. However, if it is about price then you need to look at which is cheaper. Either way from what you have said you will have a good time. You are not going to compare or be on Disney. Both lines offer different things but I think since it is all adult girls Sensation would be the better choice.

As I said in my other post I have been on both ship since August.

 

[puffkin]

I have never been on RCCL but I have been on the Disney Wonder (honeymoon) and the Carnival Elation (girls only trip).

Nothing compares to Disney, but I really enjoyed the Carnival trip, especially for the price! The ship is definitely a more "Vegas" type feel, but much nicer than I expected. The food was really good, I think it was definitely better than DCL. The cabin was nothing spectacular, but it was fine for the little time we were in it. We enjoyed the entertainment on Carnival but it was definitely more adult humor. The piano bar was our favorite spot to hang out, but we also did some of the activities and the casino was fun too.

Do both ships stop at a private island? We really enjoyed that day on our Carnival cruise. We also did a really fun excusrion in Nassau. It was a high speed boat ride through the harbor and then they dropped us off at a private island for a few hours of beach time. It was really nice because it left after lunch, so we had time in the morning to walk around Nassau and shop. Then we ate lunch on the boat before heading to the boat ride/beach. It was fairly reasonable priced too.

 

[momofsamandeden]

I would have to say the Carnival Sensation just for three things
Better food
Better beds
Better Cabins
The Serenity area really is rather nice and this ship also has balconies that are reasonably priced and some connect.