Promised to "tell" about our Carnival cruise, so here it is!

[newms]

Penny,
Thank you for your posting. We took a initial cruise in December and, while we enjoyed Disney, I have wondered about our lines.
You've widened our perspective and I'm impressed to read about it in the Disney forum.
Tell us about the shows. That is the one area of the Wonder I really liked- what does Carnival offer for entertainment? Unfortunately we had horrible weather (no CC, no pools) so the shows were ALL we had.

 

[Muushka]

I will have to seriously consider, though, whether I will comment in the future about my other cruiseline experiences.

Now this to me is just plain sad. I always enjoy hearing about other people's experiences, and the world does not revolve around everything Disney.

 

[nswift]

Thanks for the great trip comparison! We just returned from the 7day Western DCL, but are planning a Carnival cruise next time. Nice to hear you had a good time
NSwift

 

[ksouma]

Originally posted by Ashley24
ksouma,
Thanks so much for including that link. That was enough to convince me to stick with DCL!

Glad I could help….. I figured I was going to get bashed for posting information that is contrary to the “first hand experience” (roll eyes) but it is hard to ignore the thousands of other cruisers who swear to never ride Carnival again. It is also hard to ignore the postings, not only from the board I posted, but several others that list the same info…

Originally posted by Muushka
Now this to me is just plain sad. I always enjoy hearing about other people's experiences, and the world does not revolve around everything Disney.

My deepest apologies… I did not realize I was not allowed to post information that might help others avoid getting groped, bothered, harassed, or that might help others avoid having their children exposed to the type of activity that is listed on most Carnival boards… I now will bow out of this thread and to the mighty hilltopfamily.....

My advice to anyone would be to do some research before booking on Carnival especially if you have children…

 

[hilltopfamily]

Originally posted by ksouma
I figured I was going to get bashed for posting information that is contrary to the “first hand experience” (roll eyes) but it is hard to ignore the thousands of other cruisers who swear to never ride Carnival again.

Not sure what you mean by "roll eyes", but it does seem offensive and directed to me. And I haven't seen "thousands" of people coming here saying their CCL trip was bad, quite the contrary from many, many people here.

It is also hard to ignore the postings, not only from the board I posted, but several others that list the same info…

I went to the message board you linked, and I noticed the offensive threads were not replied to, just as the very negative post on the Disney forum at that VERY same board was not replied to. I would find any postings on that board suspect. For people who REALLY want to investigate all of the mainstream cruise lines, I would suggest Cruisecritic, Cruisemates, and Cruise@addicts are the largest and most well respected cruise forums (and of course this site where you can find, for the most part, informed and thoughtful postings (along with some fun ones as well!) And no, you will not find only positives there, but some negatives as well, which I find very useful in my cruise planning. And no, not all people will love Carnival, just as not all people love Disney.

My deepest apologies… I did not realize I was not allowed to post information that might help others avoid getting groped, bothered, harassed, or that might help others avoid having their children exposed to the type of activity that is listed on most Carnival boards… I now will bow out of this thread and to the mighty hilltopfamily.....

Not sure about "the mighty hilltopfamily" comment, but again seems offensive to me.

 

[4nana]

I now will bow out of this thread and to the mighty hilltopfamily.....

That was totally uncalled for!!


Hittop family ~

Again, thank you very much for all the information and advise. After much research, including a trip to the book store and lurking on several Carnival boards we decided to book. We have tried RCI and highly recommend, Disney - which was not all magic and we did encounter some problems, and now we are ready to try something new. I believe life and vacations are what you make of them ~ we are going with a positive attitude and am sure we will have a good time making some special memories.

~ Sandie

 

[jodifla]

Well information is power, isn't it? That's why we post on boards -- to learn and swap information and educate ourselves.

As OP pointed out, (and several others) they took their kids on Carnival and had a great time! Many have even commented the kids clubs are better on Carnival. And Carnival takes children in diapers into their kids clubs, which will fill a need many parents have.

I've never been on Carnival in my 8 cruises, but am taking my first Carnival cruise with about 30 others in the fall. Since we live in Florida, we know many people who have been on Carnival and they find it's a changing cruise line, moving from a party line to a more family-friendly line. If all goes well in November, most likely, I'll take DS and DH on a Carnival cruise next spring. (We plan a DCL cruise in Sept. with DS.)

Thanks to the OP for posting, even though there are ungracious and close-minded people on these boards who can't even allow the idea that a family might have a nice time on a non DCL line.

 

[ksouma]

Originally posted by hilltopfamily
Not sure what you mean by "roll eyes", but it does seem offensive and directed to me. And I haven't seen "thousands" of people coming here saying their CCL trip was bad, quite the contrary from many, many people here.

Not sure about "the mighty hilltopfamily" comment, but again seems offensive to me.

I find it amazing that everything posted that does not agree with your point of view is an insult or offensive.

I am not naive enough to have your point of view forced down my throat. I have read many, many reviews and many Carnival message boards. I did not come here to attack or bash your cruise. I offered a different point of view for others to consider before taking their children on a Carnival cruise. I have been attack, called names and bashed for offering a different point of view….. Sad how you people are when someone does not agree with your views getting forced upon them…..

Originally posted by jodifla
Well information is power, isn't it? That's why we post on boards -- to learn and swap information and educate ourselves.

Why then is someone attacked when they offer a different point of view?????


Thanks to the OP for posting, even though there are ungracious and close-minded people on these boards who can't even allow the idea that a family might have a nice time on a non DCL line.

I have read nothing about travelers on DCL offering drink till you puke contests, offering $500 an hour private ‘massages’… I have also not read of anyone on a DCL cruise getting groped or attacked…. All of these are common on Carnival… At least according to ‘first hand’ reports from other Carnival cruisers I have read….

I will not respond to this thread again because it is very obvious that a different point of view is NOT welcome…. Have a nice day and enjoy whatever cruise you go on………

 

[luvmk]

I have am glad to see this thread. My dh and I have been on two ccl cruises and enjoyed them very much. We are looking into a dcl cruise this fall. The comparisons between the two have been very helpful. For those who are considering a ccl cruise, I would say do your research. We didn't have any problems. Oh, we did see a topless lady, but she was on the topless deck. From all of the reading I have done, most of the complaints stem from the western carribean 3-4 day cruises. They are on the older ships and are very inexpensive. They tend to attract a college crowd. The newer ships don't seem to be that way. As far as the link for the message board. I think we all know there are plenty of people who will start a thread to get a rise out of people. I tend to look at how many responses they are getting to see if the majority is behaving the same way.



Rachel

 

[markmyboy]

ksouma

I think most will agree that this Forum is quite a bit different (usually) than most other message boards. There are quite a few members here who are held in high regard by many of the other posters. There seems to be a mutual respect for each other, whether we agree or disagree. Even going over to some of the other boards on Cruise Critic is a bit different than the DIS boards.

When you are asking members of this message board to go over to an unknown Forum & take the work of those members as truth, it is a stretch. In this instance, yes, first hand experience is the entire reason for the OP post!! You relaying what you yourself said was a slightly ad-libbed telling of events does not compare to the OP's first hand account of THEIR experience.

When I first went over to the Cruise Critic boards to ask a few questions about my past & future cruises, I did not know who were the "regular" posters & who were the trolls. It is difficult for us to go to a new message board & believe everything that is written there.

My family was never offered in room "massages", we were not approached by any swingers, we were not groped, or hit on, heck we never even felt the pressure to buy drinks. I am not saying Carnival is for everyone, heck, it is a little difficult for me to believe that not everyone would enjoy a Disney cruise, but there are people out there who do not.

I do not think that anyone needs to spend extra money on DCL for peace of mind. Maybe you pay more for the family shows, or the extensive kids clubs, or the adult only areas, or for Castaway Cay, or a million other things that Disney does really well, but I never felt threatened or scared in ANY way while on Carnival, and I think it is a bit extreme to try and make folks feel that way without having experienced ANYTHING from Carnival.

Any of the things you are claiming about Carnival could just as easily happen on a Disney ship if that same passenger ( or anyone similar) switched ships.

You are certainly entitled to your opinion, just don't try to state it as some sort of proven fact.....I truly think you would be pleasantly surprised by what Carnival has to offer, but I definitely respect your opinion not to try it. Heck, nothing wrong with being selective about who you cruise with, if we had our way, we may have never strayed from DCL, but we just didn't have the means to do so for a couple of years, I am glad now that I tried different cruiselines.

Everyone smile....we are ALL extremely lucky to be able to enjoy cruising!!

 

[hilltopfamily]

Originally posted by newms
Tell us about the shows. That is the one area of the Wonder I really liked- what does Carnival offer for entertainment? Unfortunately we had horrible weather (no CC, no pools) so the shows were ALL we had.

Back to answering questions! We only saw 2 shows on DCL and portions of 4 shows on CCL. The DCL shows were definately much more kid/family friendly and really targeted to that audience---we saw Morty the Magnificent and Disney Dreams while onboard. As you probably know, Disney Dreams is fabulous. CCL was targeted much more to adults, we saw a singing/dancing show of broadway melodies which was of very high caliber, but the costumes may not be acceptable or appropriate to all people (read: a little skimpy on the females). We saw a very funny comedian (his early show was "safe" for families and his 2nd show later was just for adults). They had an adult talent show which was VERY entertaining--- but had some adult humor at the end that was unexpected for us. Another night they had a singing/dancing show which was primarily "country" in nature (remember this ship sailed to/from Galveston, TX) that was very well done with talented singers and dancers. Hope this helps!

 

[Daisy5115]

Wow! I'm really glad that you posted because I just cruised on the Carnival Celebration Feb 5 of this year for the 4 night cruise. It is interesting to see another recent cruiser's point of view. I have been on two RCCL and now two CCL cruises with a Disney Cruise coming up in a few weeks. I think that even for Carnival, the Celebration is a very old ship. I read on cruise critic that they will be retiring this ship in October and I must say it felt like it was ready.
I went with a group of my old girlfriends for our 40th birthday celebration and we are not all able to afford an expensive cruise and several of them live in Texas so we went cheap. Being from Texas originally, I liked the fact that it was a lot of Texans.
However, the "wagonwheel" buffet dining was not nearly as nice as past cruise buffets, the entertainment and food in general was just "good" and the most fun was had at the quiz shows and scavenger hunts, etc. Our weather was terrible so the very large casino was where we spent way too much time and I, of course, lost too much money. They do alllow 6 bottles of any alchohol or beverage to be taken aboard.
I read reports in advance that you can really feel the motion on the Celebration and boy did we! The patch for seasickness saved me. I also think that the shorter the cruise, (The lower the price) the less classy people will be on board as well. We had a high school trip on the ship! So, anyway, not to knock Carnival, but just to say you'd probably really love their newer ships if you liked the Celebration.

 

[aprilgail2]

Originally posted by Daisy5115
I I also think that the shorter the cruise, (The lower the price) the less classy people will be on board as well. We had a high school trip on the ship! So, anyway, not to knock Carnival, but just to say you'd probably really love their newer ships if you liked the Celebration.

I had taken a 7 day Carnival cruise some years ago and it was terrible....I had such a bad time that I don't think I would ever sail them again but that is jut my opinion...I had a guy at work sail them with his family and they loved it...to each his own. When I went it was like a 7 day drunken frat party atmosphere and that is not what I am into. We did spend the whole cruise getting hit on but that is because we were single and there were a LOT of singles on that cruise!

 

[MommaluvsDis]

I thank God (yes I said God) that we live in a country where we can all voice our opinions freely. Many people have died to give us that right!

DH, DS,(16) and I took our first cruise aboard the Carnival Cruise ship Jubilee last summer. We weren't expecting much because it was "the cheapy cruise". Let me just say that we had a fantastic time. We'll be sailing on DCL this July and are very excited about that trip as well. For us, we felt as if we could not beat the wonderful time we had aboard the Carnival for the price. It cost us about 1/3rd what the DCL is going to cost us. But, we are anxiously looking forward to our first Disney cruise as well.

Would I sail on Carnival again? YOU BET! We're going again next spring and looking forward to it. The world doesn't revolve around Disney but it sure makes it a lot more fun!!

 

[PizzieDuster]

Originally posted by markmyboy
ksouma

I think most will agree that this Forum is quite a bit different (usually) than most other message boards. There are quite a few members here who are held in high regard by many of the other posters.


This is true. I keep waiting for their own message board to start! They can't possibly respond to all posts!

I like to step out of the box and read a comparison thread now and then. I'm happy when I don't have to click off this site to step out of the box to read a review of another cruise line. Hey, I've got 2 sons who are waiting for me to GET OFF THE COMPUTER.... so I like to browse quick!

My sister was thinking about booking her 30 year wedding anniversary on a 3 or 4 day Carnival.... she was asking all of us to book along. I'll see her on Easter and I'd like to do more research on this.

I appreciate everyones comments!

Here's hoping everyone has a great Easter!

 

[afcgirl]

Hilltopfamily, thanks for your honest review.

I cruised on Carnival last July (the newer Conquest ship) and had a great time.

I was not groped or attacked by anyone. If gropes or attacks were common on Carnival ships, they would probably be out of business by now.

There was a wide range of passengers, from singles to families to older couples. The nice thing was that if you were in the mood for adult activities, such as the casino or a vegas-style show, you had the option. If not, you could enjoy dinner and a tamer evening. In my experience, drinking and other excesses were not "in your face" and could be avoided.

I am looking forward to our first Disney cruise in the summer but I have to admit I would like at least one night to kick up our heels without the kids!

 

[floridaminnie]

afcgirl, just to let you know that you can kick up your heals without the kids on DCL. See DCL is the ONLY cruise line I've been on (4 times now), but I'm going to step out into the unknown world this summer and cruise on another cruiseline.