? on different cruise lines

[2luvmickey]

We only went on one cruise (so far) and loved Royal Caribbean. Looking at going on Liberty of the Seas or Oasis for Spring Break. Lots of things to do for my DS16.

 

[pinkxray]

Great thread. We just returned from our first cruise ever on dcl and really enjoyed it but the eastern caribbean cruises are just too much right now. We are considering rcl Freedom of the Seas or Ncl. I will have to check out Carnival, the island sounds great.

 

[Belle & Ariel]

We have had a lot of great cruises on Celebrity and Holland America.
We tried NCL and both times the food was really really bad and recycled day to day because no one ate it. They were always out of cups, plates, silverware in the buffet, empty towel bins at the pool every time you checked--room steward missed more than half the times, used plates, cups, and food rolling around the pool deck, really bad.
We call it the Neveragain Cruise Line because so many reviews on cruisecritic are titled Neveragain on NCL or worst cruise ever.
NCL is like staying offsite at a Motel 6 where Celebrity, Holland, and Royal have the great service, cleanliness, and friendly staff you find onsite at Disney. Ironically prices are often very close.
Our kids have enjoyed the youth programs on HAL and Celebrity. Sadly the youth workers on our NCL cruises did not show up many times throughout the week. We joked that Freestyle must include an option of going to work or not as adult activities had many crew no shows as well as our room steward.
I will say that formal nights and dressing for dinner are expected on both lines I reccommend. The freindly crews with great service and food are worth it.

 

[jdyer09]

For a budget cruise we always use carnival and have never had a bad time or a bad experience. We tend to cruise in Jan/Feb months, its so nice to leave the ice cold for a warm sunny beach just for a bit. We have done the Eastern and Western Itins and loved the Eastern, western would be great if you could take Jamaica out of there (Scary!...like stoning pigs on the side of the road scary! )

We havent ever tried RCL just because of the signifigant price difference from our closest home port to the same islands, it doesnt make a whole lot of sense to pay more for it. And Galveston is getting the new Magic, so I wouldnt count out Carnival unless you have a specific reason for it. We took kiddos too who absolutley loved the Camp Carnival Kids camp! She still talks about her experinces there!

Good luck, and I second the cruisecritic websiste. Very very helpful for info, just dont get too caught up in their "popcorn" threads, they can get pretty heated.

 

[Disney On A Dime!]

Here's another vote for RCI's Freedom Class or Oasis Class ships! We have cruised three times on the Freedom Class...and it is great...for everyone. We booked Oasis of the Seas for next August...can't wait! Again...more for everyone to do! Check out the Cruise Critic site...good info...both for cruiselines and port info.


Enjoy your cruise...whatever you decide to do!


Crystal

 

[disney4us2002]

We have had a lot of great cruises on Celebrity and Holland America.
We tried NCL and both times the food was really really bad and recycled day to day because no one ate it. They were always out of cups, plates, silverware in the buffet, empty towel bins at the pool every time you checked--room steward missed more than half the times, used plates, cups, and food rolling around the pool deck, really bad.
We call it the Neveragain Cruise Line because so many reviews on cruisecritic are titled Neveragain on NCL or worst cruise ever.
NCL is like staying offsite at a Motel 6 where Celebrity, Holland, and Royal have the great service, cleanliness, and friendly staff you find onsite at Disney. Ironically prices are often very close.
Our kids have enjoyed the youth programs on HAL and Celebrity. Sadly the youth workers on our NCL cruises did not show up many times throughout the week. We joked that Freestyle must include an option of going to work or not as adult activities had many crew no shows as well as our room steward.
I will say that formal nights and dressing for dinner are expected on both lines I reccommend. The freindly crews with great service and food are worth it.

I wish there was a thumbs down!!!!!!!!! What a crock. NCL is NOTHING like a Motel 6. There is a huge loyal fan base at cruisecritic so I have no idea what you are talking about with the neveragain remark or horrible reviews. Horrible reviews are made over there on every line occasionally.

I have cruised many times and generally I find most are quite similar although none have the dining options of NCL and allow for relaxed clothing attire. My dh and sons do not want to take suits on vacation. People buy into the hype that Carnival is full of crazy drunks. Not true. Some of the best times we had were on Carnival. You may want to price out several options and let your travel partners agree where they want to spend their money. If Royal Carib is chosen, expect to pay at least 20-30% higher than the other lines. Of course RC is not nearly as crazy expensive as Disney Cruise line.