CARNIVAL VS DCL: The discussion and comparison thread!

[Club Disney Chandler]

I won't sail on a Fantasy class ship on Carnival (their oldest), it's more for accessibility for my mother but still. I prefer the Spirit class (your should check out the Miracle out of Tampa starting next year) or above. We're cruising on the Sunshine in May, the Carnival Magic in November and the Carnival Pride in January.

Not a big fan of Royal but if I had to cruise them again, I'd prefer a Voyager class ship (medium sized); the Freedom class was nice too but so much we didn't use as we're not sporty people.

I want to try one of the Spirit Class ships so bad but I can't talk my wife into it. Can you help me sell them to her? What makes them so great?

 

[cruiser21]

I wish Carnival kept a ship in Europe. I would really love to have a less expensive option in Europe. I don't need a fancy pants ship on a port intensive cruise. We've cruised on the Magic twice in Europe. The Magic is great ship, but there is nothing about it the warrants the huge price tag. The Horizon's itinerary's doesn't excite me since we've been to the Med.

 

[cruiser21]

Plumbing issues are never good. When we boarded our Carnival ship in 2013, our room toilet would not flush. We called maintenance and they accessed the panel in the hall. They left us a note that we had flushed items that clogged the toilet! Hello, we just boarded -- maybe you might want to blame the previous passengers since the toilet wouldn't flush first try. UGH

I was talking to an officer about it and he said it's always been an issue on the Magic. The can't really fix it since it's a infrastructure problem and not cosmetic. The maintenance team does a good job of running around fixing toilets. I've seen a few toilets overflow out into the hallway on deck 2..gross. We've only had to call maintenance a couple of times because our toilet wouldn't flush. Luckily nothing over flowed. I believe the problem is mostly on deck 2. I have heard complaints of sewage smell in concierge area. I've never been up there so I don't know.

 

[mevelandry]

Plumbing issues are never good. When we boarded our Carnival ship in 2013, our room toilet would not flush. We called maintenance and they accessed the panel in the hall. They left us a note that we had flushed items that clogged the toilet! Hello, we just boarded -- maybe you might want to blame the previous passengers since the toilet wouldn't flush first try. UGH

Wow... :/

 

[PrincessTrisha]

I want to try one of the Spirit Class ships so bad but I can't talk my wife into it. Can you help me sell them to her? What makes them so great?

You can go right through each deck (no galley in the way where you run into a dead end);
Dining room is 2 levels at the back of the ship - great views from those rear windows and a very open feeling to the whole thing;
Mid ship pool has a retractable roof for inclement weather;
Dive in Movie Screen is placed lower so it's easier to see and it's located under the retractable roof;
They have a great Adult Serenity area at the back of the ship including both a hot tub and an adult only pool;
2 family friendly pools;
Upgraded waterworks area including the Green monster slide (where the floor drops out and you go whoosh!);
The Carnival Pride has all of the 2.0 bells and whistles including the Red Frog Pub, the Alchemy bar, Guy's, Blue Iguana, etc;
The buffet area has one of the best set ups - individual pods so no waiting in long lines;
Great passenger to space ratio (one of the best I've felt on any ship);
Great service since there's also a great crew to passenger ratio.

They are a small ship with a big ship feel.

 

[PrincessTrisha]

So the Sunshine is a newer ship? That's the one we're taking in September for the NE/Canada cruise. We did the Carnival Glory and loved it.

Yes and no. She started out in 1996 as the Carnival Destiny, but she had a complete overhaul and refit in 2013 and became the Carnival Sunshine. She has all the Funship 2.0 options and most seem to really enjoy her.

When the Destiny was scraped down to it's hull and redone as the Sunshine, they added some new cabins (along with a bunch of upgrades); due to the timing, these cabins were built far more accessible than anything on the earlier ships. We were able to snag an aft cabin for 3 (where the 3rd bed is a couch) with a fully accessible washroom and roll in shower on deck 5 (the same deck where a lot of the action takes place). While I'm not crazy about staying that far aft, I do love the look of the cabin and the overall location.

 

[Club Disney Chandler]

You can go right through each deck (no galley in the way where you run into a dead end);
Dining room is 2 levels at the back of the ship - great views from those rear windows and a very open feeling to the whole thing;
Mid ship pool has a retractable roof for inclement weather;
Dive in Movie Screen is placed lower so it's easier to see and it's located under the retractable roof;
They have a great Adult Serenity area at the back of the ship including both a hot tub and an adult only pool;
2 family friendly pools;
Upgraded waterworks area including the Green monster slide (where the floor drops out and you go whoosh!);
The Carnival Pride has all of the 2.0 bells and whistles including the Red Frog Pub, the Alchemy bar, Guy's, Blue Iguana, etc;
The buffet area has one of the best set ups - individual pods so no waiting in long lines;
Great passenger to space ratio (one of the best I've felt on any ship);
Great service since there's also a great crew to passenger ratio.

They are a small ship with a big ship feel.

Thanks that helps a lot. I would either do the Miracle or whichever ship is replacing her in Long Beach. It's only a 6 hour drive from AZ so no airfare.

 

[mevelandry]

Hey... I've been thinking about it. I haven't sailed with NCL but we could use an NCL comparison thread like this one.

 

[cruiser21]

The NCL Bliss will be doing some Mexican riviera cruises next year. It aligns very well with Fall breaks. I really want to try that ship.
Maybe I'll have to reconsider Carnivals older ship after reading above post.

 

[mevelandry]

The NCL Bliss will be doing some Mexican riviera cruises next year. It aligns very well with Fall breaks. I really want to try that ship.
Maybe I'll have to reconsider Carnivals older ship after reading above post.

After seeing a video of the Bliss, I would go for it before any old Carnival ship!

 

[cruiser21]

After seeing a video of the Bliss, I would go for it before any old Carnival ship!

It does look nice doesn't it. Way too many ships I want to try. I don't know why the Royal ships never appeal to me. I cruised Royal years ago pre kids and it was just ok. I couldn't even tell you what ship it was. I didn't do another cruise for years and that was DCL. DCL is what got me to like cruising. We decided to give Carnival and NCL a try, and I liked them both. My youngest did not like the kids club on NCL, but my oldest loved the teen club. I've been waiting until my youngest turns 13 to give NCL another go. I booked the Baltic cruise on the Breakaway next year. Honestly I'm pretty undecided. I'm waiting to see what the WBTA is on DCL. If it's something spectacular at a great price that could change everything. I had booked the Bliss in ALaska, but the port days are so short. I was so enamored by the ship I didn't look at the itinerary when I booked. I think we would leave Juneau at 1pm. I really want to try that ship. I would love to do it out of LA. I'm waiting on DCL to release Fall 2018 before I decide anything.
I really like the 50pp refundable deposits NCL offers. It's nice to book a cruise without having to put hundreds or thousands down on it.

 

[RedSox68]

It does look nice doesn't it. Way too many ships I want to try. I don't know why the Royal ships never appeal to me. I cruised Royal years ago pre kids and it was just ok. I couldn't even tell you what ship it was. I didn't do another cruise for years and that was DCL. DCL is what got me to like cruising. We decided to give Carnival and NCL a try, and I liked them both. My youngest did not like the kids club on NCL, but my oldest loved the teen club. I've been waiting until my youngest turns 13 to give NCL another go. I booked the Baltic cruise on the Breakaway next year. Honestly I'm pretty undecided. I'm waiting to see what the WBTA is on DCL. If it's something spectacular at a great price that could change everything. I had booked the Bliss in ALaska, but the port days are so short. I was so enamored by the ship I didn't look at the itinerary when I booked. I think we would leave Juneau at 1pm. I really want to try that ship. I would love to do it out of LA. I'm waiting on DCL to release Fall 2018 before I decide anything.
I really like the 50pp refundable deposits NCL offers. It's nice to book a cruise without having to put hundreds or thousands down on it.

I agree with that. It is hard for a lot of people to shell out $500 plus to hold a reservation on Disney. Many other cruiselines offer reduced deposits and it is an attractive feature.

 

[KashasMom]

Thanks for sharing this. I get SO tired of Disney fanatics putting down other cruise lines especially Carnival. I find that many of them have never even tried another line.

 

[mevelandry]

I agree with that. It is hard for a lot of people to shell out $500 plus to hold a reservation on Disney. Many other cruiselines offer reduced deposits and it is an attractive feature.

I agree with that statement. When I book with Carnival, I tend to pay my whole half of the trip (it's just DH and I and we pay everything 50-50%) right away. Something I cannot do with DCL.

 

[KashasMom]

It does look nice doesn't it. Way too many ships I want to try. I don't know why the Royal ships never appeal to me. I cruised Royal years ago pre kids and it was just ok. I couldn't even tell you what ship it was. I didn't do another cruise for years and that was DCL. DCL is what got me to like cruising. We decided to give Carnival and NCL a try, and I liked them both. My youngest did not like the kids club on NCL, but my oldest loved the teen club. I've been waiting until my youngest turns 13 to give NCL another go. I booked the Baltic cruise on the Breakaway next year. Honestly I'm pretty undecided. I'm waiting to see what the WBTA is on DCL. If it's something spectacular at a great price that could change everything. I had booked the Bliss in ALaska, but the port days are so short. I was so enamored by the ship I didn't look at the itinerary when I booked. I think we would leave Juneau at 1pm. I really want to try that ship. I would love to do it out of LA. I'm waiting on DCL to release Fall 2018 before I decide anything.
I really like the 50pp refundable deposits NCL offers. It's nice to book a cruise without having to put hundreds or thousands down on it.

We've done the big NCL's - Epic, Breakaway, and Getaway and the big RCI's - Oasis and Allure. Two of the most important things for us (as a family) - pools and shows - were so much better on RCI. I would definitely recommend giving one of the RCI Oasis ships a try - especially with teens.

 

[RedSox68]

Thanks for sharing this. I get SO tired of Disney fanatics putting down other cruise lines especially Carnival. I find that many of them have never even tried another line.

True -- they are only going by what they have heard or seen in ads or other's trip reports and find them horrible. There are some loyal DCL cruisers who simply cannot fathom risking their money on another cruise line and if it makes them happy, they should do it. But you're right, if others are finding it more financially attractive to branch out, we should also be allowed to do the same.

 

[mevelandry]

Thanks for sharing this. I get SO tired of Disney fanatics putting down other cruise lines especially Carnival. I find that many of them have never even tried another line.

But I can relate to that. I remember that I felt very cocky during our first DCL cruise (which was our first cruise ever), comparing with other ships in Nassau and I was all "Our ship looks so much better than the other ships. We're sailing on the best ship! ".

Then on the second DCL cruise I thought: "Hey, this one looks pretty good. And it's less expensive to be on this one than ours. Maybe we should give it a try" (It was a RCCL ship, I think... Not sure which one.) ...

Now that I have sailed on the Carnival Victory, I actually feel bad that I was so snotty about non-DCL cruise lines. While I was blinded by the older appearance of some of the non-DCL ships, we were missing out the great service, good food and fun experience that we got to experience on the Victory. What a shame.

I'm much more open minded now. I feel like we have so many (attractive) options offered to us... And it won't break the bank! It's quite a relief.

(When I think about it, there was a similar competition between WDW and Universal Orlando. According to some WDW fans, Universal is dirty, the food is not good, the CM are rude, the organization is not good, the Universal Hotels not as good as WDW, etc. I went and I found that it was quite the opposite. While we love the Disney bubble, we find the Universal parks has the best rides, the Harry Potter immersion unbelievable --I was emotional during the Forbidden Journey ride... The CM were nice and we now have favorite restaurants in Universal. And the hotels are GREAT!!)

 

[RedSox68]

But I can relate to that. I remember that I felt very cocky during our first DCL cruise (which was our first cruise ever), comparing with other ships in Nassau and I was all "Our ship looks so much better than the other ships. We're sailing on the best ship! ".

Then on the second DCL cruise I thought: "Hey, this one looks pretty good. And it's less expensive to be on this one than ours. Maybe we should give it a try" (It was a RCCL ship, I think... Not sure which one.) ...

Now that I have sailed on the Carnival Victory, I actually feel bad that I was so snotty about non-DCL cruise lines. While I was blinded by the older appearance of some of the non-DCL ships, we were missing out the great service, good food and fun experience that we got to experience on the Victory. What a shame.

I'm much more open minded now. I feel like we have so many (attractive) options offered to us... And it won't break the bank! It's quite a relief.

(When I think about it, there was a similar competition between WDW and Universal Orlando. According to some WDW fans, Universal is dirty, the food is not good, the CM are rude, the organization is not good, the Universal Hotels not as good as WDW, etc. I went and I found that it was quite the opposite. While we love the Disney bubble, we find the Universal parks has the best rides, the Harry Potter immersion unbelievable --I was emotional during the Forbidden Journey ride... The CM were nice and we now have favorite restaurants in Universal. And the hotels are GREAT!!)

Too funny -- we did that in every port for our first four cruises -- no other ship looked better than Disney's. I still think Disney has some of the classiest ships in the market, but not worth the price. Even when we are in port on another ship and see the Disney ship, it always looks better. Some of the cruise line ships are so boxy and white and undefined. I will give NCL kudos for the paintings on their ships' bows -- it sets them apart.

 

[mevelandry]

Too funny -- we did that in every port for our first four cruises -- no other ship looked better than Disney's.

Meanwhile, we can only judge by the exterior of the ships... Some ship look pretty good from the inside and aren't perfect on the outside (Victory among them). I saw videos from The Sea Cruisers on youtube of the Royal Princess. My jaw dropped.

I remember seeing the NCL Breakway in NYC and the NCL Sky in Nassau. Gorgeous. (And the Bliss looks awesome!). I looooove their designs, if not more than DCL. It's all a matter of taste.

 

[cruiser21]

We've done the big NCL's - Epic, Breakaway, and Getaway and the big RCI's - Oasis and Allure. Two of the most important things for us (as a family) - pools and shows - were so much better on RCI. I would definitely recommend giving one of the RCI Oasis ships a try - especially with teens.

I think we would like the RCI ships. It's the ports that are just so blah....like the DCL ports. I know most of the islands in the Caribbean look alike, but I still like going somewhere new. If I'm going to sail on a Cozumel/Jamaica or St Thomas/ St Martin cruise it's going to have to be in a Havana Cabana, Haven, Royal suite or some kind of experience that makes it new and exciting. Don't get me wrong those ports are fantastic, and were fun the first time and second we did them, but I like new things.