CARNIVAL VS DCL: The discussion and comparison thread!

[diseverestfan]

Alright guys! ROLL CALL!!!!!

I have just started the roll call at the end of post #1!

Let me know what Carnival cruises you have coming in 2018-2019-2020 and I will add them!

Carnival Elation, October 22nd 2018. First Carnival cruise after 2 with Disney.

 

[mevelandry]

Carnival Elation, October 22nd 2018. First Carnival cruise after 2 with Disney.

Added!

I don't know if I ever told you but... Let us know if you have any questions regarding your cruise. We'll be happy to help.

 

[cruiser21]

We disembarked from our Alaska cruise on the Wonder yesterday and it was a very nice cruise. The food in Cabanas has improved from our last cruise so that was a plus. Service was good to very good but I really hate the “Excellent” speech from the servers.

The Wonder looks great and shows were all typical Disney so all in all it was a great cruise and Alaska is freaking amazing!!

I did miss Guy’s and Blue Iguana and being able to grab some ice cream late night and hang out with my kids in Lido to talk about the day. Usually on DCL we’re able to hang out on deck and do that but in Alaska it was way too cold so we had to grab ice cream and we hung out in their cabin to end the day.

We did book a placeholder but don’t know if we’ll use it or not though. We do plan to try the new Disney ship in 2021 but think we’ll stick to Carnival and Royal Caribbean until then.

Let me know if you have any questions about the Wonder or Alaska.

Jack

I'm glad you enjoyed your cruise. I can understand your reluctance to sail on DCL in the future. We're at a point where we really need two rooms. 4 adults in one room is getting a bit too cozy. I say adults because one is 5 10 and one is 5 7...both still growing. Mentally not adults but physically they are. Even with the price reduction on the Quebec cruise it was still little over 5400 for two inside rooms. Our wbta next year is 5600 total for two rooms. These are both reasonably priced cruises especially the TA. There's very few cruises I'm going to find on DCL where I can book two rooms at a semi reasonable price.

 

[belle032]

Please correct me if I’m wrong but there is not any sort of beverage package on DCL, right?

DH and I usually get the beverage package on our Carnival cruises, mainly for convenience and no surprises at the end of the trip.

Just wondering what to budget for a 7 day DCL!

 

[diseverestfan]

Added!

I don't know if I ever told you but... Let us know if you have any questions regarding your cruise. We'll be happy to help.

Thank you so much! It really was from reading this thread that convinced me to give Carnival a try. It will be myself (Mike) and my two teenage daughters going on this trip. We are both excited and a little nervous...hoping that we're not disappointed after our cruises on the Disney Fantasy and Disney Dream.

That said, we've talked a lot about this, and we all realize that it's not really fair to compare the 2 experiences. I fully believe we're going to have an amazing time, and I know that my wallet is appreciating this trip a whole lot more than the first 2 cruises!

 

[cruiser21]

Please correct me if I’m wrong but there is not any sort of beverage package on DCL, right?

DH and I usually get the beverage package on our Carnival cruises, mainly for convenience and no surprises at the end of the trip.

Just wondering what to budget for a 7 day DCL!

No, but you can add onboard credit to your account. I always do this. I'd average about 10 dollars per drink. Disney does make the drinks strong if that's any consolation. You can also bring on wine and beer at every port.

 

[mevelandry]

Please correct me if I’m wrong but there is not any sort of beverage package on DCL, right?

DH and I usually get the beverage package on our Carnival cruises, mainly for convenience and no surprises at the end of the trip.

Just wondering what to budget for a 7 day DCL!

No beverage package. At best you can buy a wine package that will give you a certain number of bottles of wine but that's it.

 

[mevelandry]

Thank you so much! It really was from reading this thread that convinced me to give Carnival a try. It will be myself (Mike) and my two teenage daughters going on this trip. We are both excited and a little nervous...hoping that we're not disappointed after our cruises on the Disney Fantasy and Disney Dream.

That said, we've talked a lot about this, and we all realize that it's not really fair to compare the 2 experiences. I fully believe we're going to have an amazing time, and I know that my wallet is appreciating this trip a whole lot more than the first 2 cruises!

I agree. As I always say... You will not find Mickey on the Carnival ships. However, I believe the cruising experience on Carnival can be just as good (if not better depending on your taste and what you are looking for) as DCL and the money saved can definitely help you to upgrade certain areas in order to make it a memorable experience.

Once again, let us know if you need advices regarding this.

 

[mevelandry]

No, but you can add onboard credit to your account. I always do this. I'd average about 10 dollars per drink. Disney does make the drinks strong if that's any consolation. You can also bring on wine and beer at every port.

Same. Except I calculate 12,50$ per drink... because I like fancy drinks.

 

[we"reofftoneverland]

Thank you so much! It really was from reading this thread that convinced me to give Carnival a try. It will be myself (Mike) and my two teenage daughters going on this trip. We are both excited and a little nervous...hoping that we're not disappointed after our cruises on the Disney Fantasy and Disney Dream.

That said, we've talked a lot about this, and we all realize that it's not really fair to compare the 2 experiences. I fully believe we're going to have an amazing time, and I know that my wallet is appreciating this trip a whole lot more than the first 2 cruises!

What ports are you going to? One of the things I really like about Carnival is they go to so many different Caribbean ports.

 

[diseverestfan]

What ports are you going to? One of the things I really like about Carnival is they go to so many different Caribbean ports.

Nassau and Half Moon Cay. Been to Nassau before, looking forward to HMC.

 

[mevelandry]

Nassau and Half Moon Cay. Been to Nassau before, looking forward to HMC.

I'm supposed to go to HMC too in October. If it happens (because you know... hurricane season!) I will post a lot of picture and add a review/comparison with Castaway Cay right here!

 

[we"reofftoneverland]

Nassau and Half Moon Cay. Been to Nassau before, looking forward to HMC.

We just went to HM C last March. Loved it! Go get your tender tickets asap in the morning. Do not wait for them to tell you what to do. Find out where they are distributing them and just go there regardless of what floor you are on or however they try to break it up.

 

[cruiser21]

Same. Except I calculate 12,50$ per drink... because I like fancy drinks.

I alternate between beer and Martinis so it' evens out. I discovered on the last cruise I really like Belgium beer. If my dh is on the cruise we get the wine package which I think is a pretty good deal. I forget th mention to pp poster that there is a wine package. 7 bottles of wine is somewhere around 210. I can't remember the exact price. I do love a bottle of wine at dinner. Buying wine by the glass on DCL I find to to kind of a rip off. The pours are small and they charge a fortune.
I don't know if I could drink enough to justify a drink package, but I do like having everything paid upfront.

 

[trvlgirlmq]

I'm home!!! It was nice to get away for 2 weeks but a surly teen made some of the trip not fun. The woes of leaving your first girlfriend. Ugh.

I promised pictures from our cruise so I will try post a few.

We always do a door decoration. It's fun leading up to the cruise and makes it easy to find our room.

 

[trvlgirlmq]

Isla Catalina, Dominican Republic. This small island is a national park and there is not development other than bathrooms, bar/restaurant and a few shops. No one lives on the island. It was the most gorgeous beach I have ever been to.

 

[trvlgirlmq]

One more Isla Catalina

 

[trvlgirlmq]

The oldest synagogue in the Western Hemisphere is in Willemstad, Curacao. The congregation was started by Portuguese Sephardic Jews who gained asylum from The Netherlands after being expelled from Spain/Portugal during the Inquisition.

 

[trvlgirlmq]

The Synagogue has the original sand floor that was used in many congregations during and after the Inquisitions. Jews had to worship in secret so they used sand to muffle the sounds of the prayers.

 

[trvlgirlmq]

Eagle Beach in Aruba. It was VERY windy.