Norwegian Cruise Line vs. Carnival Cruise Line

I am sailing solo (aka by myself) on the Carnival Dream out of New Orleans.

This will be my forth cruise but my first cruise with Carnival Cruise Line. My other three cruises were with Norwegian Cruise Line.

I understand that some people prefer one cruise line over the other. So I am NOT trying to start a conversation on which cruise line is better. I am just wondering what are the differences that I should expect on the Carnival Dream that NCL does or doesn't have?

We have been on the Getaway and the Carnival Magic (sister ship to the Dream). So I hope I can assist you. Both ships are both fairly new.

Rooms are similar size. Not sure what type of room you have on either but room size and bathroom are similar.

Dining. On Carnival we eat in the main dining room and that works out well. When we were on the Getaway we had a promo to eat in the speciality dining every night and all the dining options on the Getaway was great. Both have other food options than the main dining room and buffet. Buffets are typical buffet food. Carnival has a sea day brunch which is pretty good.

Entertainment. This is probably the biggest difference. Carnival shows are okay at best. Shows on the Getaway were great. We really enjoyed the duelling piano on the Getaway. Shows on the Carnival has the piano bar not quite the same but fun.

Crew. Carnival's crew always seems consistently friendlier. I have had numerous memorable occasions with Carnival members. Other ships they do what they are supposed to do.

Pool area. We never had an issue getting a chair. Both have an adult pool area. Both have fun water slides, Ropes courses, miniature golf. Norwegian has rock climbing.

Overall both ships are fun to be on, and I am sure you will have a great time. If you have other questions, let me know and I will try to assist further.

One nice advantage of Carnival ships over the Norwegian Getaway is Carnival's serenity retreat. It's somewhat similar to the Vibe Beach Club on Norwegian Getaway... except that on Carnival it is totally free. You have to pay a fairly steep extra charge to be able to get in to the Vibe Beach Club on NCL.

Another nice thing is that on Carnival you do not need to plan any of your activities in advance of the cruise sailing date. On NCL, if you do not make advance dinner reservations or show reservations, you may not be able to attend at all. It's kind of awkward on NCL to have to try to figure out -- weeks or months in advance of the cruise -- what you're going to do each night of the cruise. There is no need to do this on Carnival. Want to go to dinner at 7:20 PM? Just sign up for anytime dining and show up whenever you want, with whoever you want. Want to attend the comedy show at 10:30 PM... but you didn't figure this out until 10 PM? Just go do it on Carnival. On NCL, without reservations, good luck.

One negative Carnival thing to warn you about is that they just don't put a lot of effort in to the dinner buffet. If you want a decent dinner on Carnival, you pretty much have to go to one of the main dining rooms or to the steakhouse. They do the absolute minimum they can get away with in the dinner buffet on Carnival. For example, every night of the cruise, the only kind of potato they ever serve anymore is a baked potato. (And not a particularly well cooked one, at that.) On NCL, in the dinner buffet you may very likely see 3 or 4 different kinds of potatoes to choose from. But on Carnival, at dinner in the buffet, it's never anything but a baked potato. For a much wider set of dinner food choices on Carnival, go to the main dining room.

Wow fair question and understand you needing advice....I can help.

About me- I am going on my 60th cruise in two weeks, I usually go on Carnival and RC and a handful of Princess and NCL.

We went on the Breakaway one of their larger newest ships compared to their older ones, were were a party of 11, three generations and we all said we hated NCL, there are way too many negatives, I will explain some.

The closet hangers bang and cause a lot of noise during the night if there is no clothing on them all....the closets are the opposite direction than other cruise ships and cruise lines, in other words, when the ship goes up and down they bang.

Blowdryer, you must use the one they provide which is very good I must say, a few of us had brought our own and blew out the electric...but using theirs its located at the desk area and it is permanently plugged into the socket way down there so a person like me 5'6" had to sit on the small bench and lean my head over to dry it because there was not enough cord.

They only provide a meat carving on day 1 of the cruise.

If you need to be gluten free, the buffets mainly have nothing for you to eat (I am one of these people), the veggies, hot dishes all had sauces and gravies on them which contain gluten...there was only salad, cheese, rice, potatoes available for me to eat during lunch in the buffet area.

The staff we all found to be not friendly and this includes everybody...in fact, we found some that didn't speak english good and were served the wrong drinks such as we ask for jack and coke and got johnny walker and coke. Nobody was friendly, you would walk by cabin stewards and they all don't say hello what we are used to on Carnival...they simply ignore you.

This ship is large holds a bit over 4k people the pools are tiny and the outdoor areas are very cramped!

The specialty restaurants we tried them all...only Le Bistro was good.

The casino is very crowded mostly because when the main shows let out everybody has to walk through the casino to get out.

They nickel and dime you more than other cruise lines.

Two weeks after our cruise they stopped serving lobster.

You need to make reservations or wait for a very long time for a table in the MDR many times we had reservations and ended up still waiting an average of 20 minutes.

Most importantly, the ship DID FEEL TOO CROWDED!

My analysis:

Carnivals sea day brunch is very very good...on sea days they have a decent BBQ.

Entertainment- NCL but there are some you have to pay extra and you need to make reservations prior to the cruise otherwise you will be waiting in a long line and may not get in.

Crew- Carnival all the way!

Pool- Carnival believe it or not lol

Casino- Carnival

Staterooms- both same

Just so you know, we won't take another NCL cruise we have and waited a few years to go back and always say that it is our last and the Breakaway was our last NCL cruise.

For a solo traveler, the newer NCL ships have studios and the studio lounge. The NCL studio is maybe only 100 sq ft tiny but has a proportionate fare. Carnival's larger inside cabins are predominately 200% fare.

NCL studio lounge has a few perks like coffee and snacks, offers a place to mix and mingle, team up for excursions or activities, and there is staff available to organize dinner parties. Carnival has nothing comparable to these solo services.

NCL is also promoting freebies for Ultimate drinking, dining, free gratuities and comps for excursions. Carnival promotes casino fares if you are lucky to get invited.

I you want a studio and traveling solo go on the Allure, Oasis, Harmony or the Quantum of the Seas.

Yes, NCL is offering complimentary drink packages and dining packages, but lets face it you get what you pay for nothing is for free.

The closet hangers bang and cause a lot of noise during the night if there is no clothing on them all....the closets are the opposite direction than other cruise ships and cruise lines, in other words, when the ship goes up and down they bang.

So, when the ship rolls side to side all the other lines hangers will bang. There is an easy fix for this situation, but put clothes on them, or tie them all together with a wash cloth.

Blowdryer, you must use the one they provide which is very good I must say, a few of us had brought our own and blew out the electric...but using theirs its located at the desk area and it is permanently plugged into the socket way down there so a person like me 5'6" had to sit on the small bench and lean my head over to dry it because there was not enough cord.

 

Have you been on the Breeze?? This is the EXACT same set up, so this is not only an NCL problem.

 

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Sorry you hate NCL too much.

No need to be sorry, I have RC, Princess and even Carnival!

We took off the hangers actually my other half took down the entire pole in the closet, its not just the closet hangers its everything about that ship and cruise line...not having a friendly staff doesn't make a cruise pleasant, that is one reason why I love Carnival the staff is the friendliest!

Thanks for all the information.

I sailed on three different NCL ships (Norwegian Spirit, Norwegian Epic, and the Norwegian Getaway) and I loved each one. For my next cruise, I just want to try another cruise line just too see what it is like and decided on the Carnival Dream.

Havnt been on Dream class (LOOKING FORWARD TO OUR BREEZE CRUISE) but have been on almost every other CCL cruiseship

Have spent 20days on the Epic

As a Solo nothing compares to what NCL has done an the studio Idea but I have many solo cruises on Carnival;)

Buffet NCL is Better ALL DAY LONG

MDR is better on CCL ALL DAY LONG

but for MTD Ncl does it better than any other cruiseline

Carnival Steakhouse has been one of the best consistently on any cruiseline

Epic entertainment was one of the better at sea but you do have to reserve or wait in the walk up line

Usually CCL shows are good and the comedians are funny

The Epic had the aft for Adults Spice H20 that I really enjoyed and was free

CCl has the solarium which is alot smaller:cool:

I'm sure you will have a great time on the Dream

Thanks for all the information.

 

I sailed on three different NCL ships (Norwegian Spirit, Norwegian Epic, and the Norwegian Getaway) and I loved each one. For my next cruise, I just want to try another cruise line just too see what it is like and decided on the Carnival Dream.

In case you haven't noticed lyndamr is a little biased.:)

Clothes hangers banging? really?

A bit extreme taking the whole pole down don"t ya think?

Bill

I've sailed both NCL and Carnival. They're really very similar, with a few minor differences.

Food: The buffet is better on NCL with higher quality foods and more variety, but the MDR is generally better on Carnival. The flat iron steak is pretty sub-par, though, but the Indian vegetarian entrée is usually very good. Pizza is better on Carnival, if the pizza place is the updated one (the old pizza was terrible). The Carnival steakhouse is on par with Cagney's, IMO.

Announcements: NCL seems to have fewer announcements.

Entertainment (musical/shows): NCL is much, much better than Carnival in this department.

Spa and adults-only areas: NCL Epic and -away ships have a spa that is leaps and bounds better than Carnival's, but Carnival has the free Serenity area (which is very nice on the ships where it is actually isolated from the noise of the Lido, but is not so "serene" on the other ships).

SS Oceanlover you didn't read my entire post did you because I didn't just speak of the hangers...no meat carving is big to me, what a way to cut a lot of cost for them....nothing much for me to eat in the lunch buffet, I can't have gluten veggies full of it as well as all the dishes...just salad which was the skimpiest salad bar I seen on any cruise ship and cruise line, now thats another negative I failed to mention...then there was just some cheese, rice and baked potato...they are horrible when it comes to having food for people who could not have gluten...also the Breakaway (my 60th cruise is coming up within two weeks) she was the ship that was the MOST crowded.. 4k plus passengers with the smallest pools...horrible unfriendly overall staff and the list goes on so you need to re-read my post because its not all about the hangers making noise. Did I enjoy myself heck yes, its a cruise but would I go back on NCL no. Carnival for what its worth may not have decent food, or decent entertainment/shows but the staff is all friendly and we love the steakhouse which is always excellent and consistent. Carnival is my choice, now don't argue anymore with me I am here to answer questions for the OP like we all are ok? Lynda

Idlewise45- I have to say, depending upon which carnival ship you went on you could be right that the MDR food is better on NCL. Putting aside, my gluten problem and what I can or can not eat....if your comparing Carnival Fantasy buffet to NCL I agree NCL buffet is much better...but if you comparing Carnival Dream class ships to NCL, then I say Carnival.

Your correct, Carnival does give that flat iron steak, not a type of cut of beef I would eat....but your able now to get an upgrade steak a much better quality steak in the MDR and lobster for an additional charge of $20. On NCL I do like the idea you can get wings in O'Sheehans late at night, if the ship has one.

Entertainment NCL is better but we never go on a cruise for shows and such...and the dinner show meal was HORRIBLE but your able to get something better to eat after the show....this show there is a fee and reservations is highly suggested.

Carnival's serenity area is wonderful....and spa on both NCL and Carnival is very much comparable.

I gather it depends on what is important to the OP...food, entertainment, service, etc., that is my suggestion to the OP in how they want to decide.

Any day on a cruise is a good day!

Sailed on NCL (Platinum), Princess, RCI and Carnival. I find most of these lines to be very similar. Yes, there are some differences but not many.

Dining:

NCL dining is similar to Carnivals your-time dining. Main difference is that Carnival YTD is only in one dining room whereas with NCL you have a choice of a few different dining room options. Both have up-charge restaurants that you can pay to go to. Food is very subjective to the individual but I will say that I enjoy fine-dining to burger joints and I have always found food that I liked on both lines.

Entertainment:

I've had good and bad entertainment on both lines. The last few NCL ships I sailed had more live entertainers than I've seen on past Carnival ships. However I have heard that the Dream does have more live entertainers than some of their other ships.

Rooms:

I really can't say that one line has better rooms. They are all rather small and, for me, are a place to sleep and shower. They all have beds, showers and sinks which is enough for me to be happy with.

Staff:

I've had good and bad staff on both lines. I find that when I greet them with a smile they smile back. Never had to complain about a staff person on any line.

Adults Only / Quiet Areas:

DH and I are not inclined to sit right next to the pool deck and have always found quiet areas on any line without having to pay extra.

I am partial to NCL because I like free-style (contrary to what another poster said I don't feel that you have to reserve everything on NCL), but any cruise is a good cruise! DH and I pick cruises for the ports and price. I think you'll find the two similar. Go with an open mind and enjoy.

SS Oceanlover you didn't read my entire post did you because I didn't just speak of the hangers...no meat carving is big to me, what a way to cut a lot of cost for them....nothing much for me to eat in the lunch buffet, I can't have gluten veggies full of it as well as all the dishes...just salad which was the skimpiest salad bar I seen on any cruise ship and cruise line, now thats another negative I failed to mention...then there was just some cheese, rice and baked potato...they are horrible when it comes to having food for people who could not have gluten...also the Breakaway (my 60th cruise is coming up within two weeks) she was the ship that was the MOST crowded.. 4k plus passengers with the smallest pools...horrible unfriendly overall staff and the list goes on so you need to re-read my post because its not all about the hangers making noise. Did I enjoy myself heck yes, its a cruise but would I go back on NCL no. Carnival for what its worth may not have decent food, or decent entertainment/shows but the staff is all friendly and we love the steakhouse which is always excellent and consistent. Carnival is my choice, now don't argue anymore with me I am here to answer questions for the OP like we all are ok? Lynda

 

Idlewise45- I have to say, depending upon which carnival ship you went on you could be right that the MDR food is better on NCL. Putting aside, my gluten problem and what I can or can not eat....if your comparing Carnival Fantasy buffet to NCL I agree NCL buffet is much better...but if you comparing Carnival Dream class ships to NCL, then I say Carnival.

Your correct, Carnival does give that flat iron steak, not a type of cut of beef I would eat....but your able now to get an upgrade steak a much better quality steak in the MDR and lobster for an additional charge of $20. On NCL I do like the idea you can get wings in O'Sheehans late at night, if the ship has one.

 

Entertainment NCL is better but we never go on a cruise for shows and such...and the dinner show meal was HORRIBLE but your able to get something better to eat after the show....this show there is a fee and reservations is highly suggested.

 

Carnival's serenity area is wonderful....and spa on both NCL and Carnival is very much comparable.

 

I gather it depends on what is important to the OP...food, entertainment, service, etc., that is my suggestion to the OP in how they want to decide.

I simply don't understand your hatred for NCL.:confused: In your past posts you brag about specialty restaurants. You say you don't eat in the MDR's. I cannot visualize you going through their buffet and criticizing. Breakaway's buffet is huge. It must have been painful with your physical problems getting there and making your way through the line carrying dishes.

I'd be curious how you and hubby took care of clothes not hung up in the closet. If clothes were on a hangar, they wouldn't clunk.

The closet hangers bang and cause a lot of noise during the night if there is no clothing on them all....the closets are the opposite direction than other cruise ships and cruise lines, in other words, when the ship goes up and down they bang.

This is a deal breaker, we'll never sail with them!

Ruthlessbob

NCL is the only cruise line at the lunch buffet that did not have a meat carving (I need to be gluten free and I always able to eat the meat carving never had a problem)....the salad bar was extremely limited, at least with Carnival you get more items on the salad bar and there isn't any hot main entree items or veggies without sauces that I was able to eat...even the burgers had gluten in them fillers as I was told.....the staff never spoke friendly carrying any conversations with us- perhaps it was because the ship was from NY and were told not to socialize with the passengers but they were not friendly....Carnivals staff always talked to us, they loved telling us about their families back at home and they always talked to us in general......it was difficult for ALL us women to blow dry our hair, the cord just didn't reach us when we stood up we had to sit on that little bench/chair and lean our heads over to blow dry our hair....we were given wrong drinks many times it appears the staff didn't quite understand english as well and never in all our many carnival cruises did we ever get a wrong drink ever.......try walking and getting around a crowd, there was always traffic areas everywhere the ship has a poor layout and never had this issue ever on all the many carnival ships I been on.....all these things add up, when you go on many cruises like I do, surely there is no such thing as a bad cruise but you get to compare cruise lines and cruise ships they all different in many ways and for those few reasons I explained above I don't like NCL. Too many negatives more than other cruise lines, now it happens to be I love RC.

Here is how we felt the specialty restaurants were on the Breakaway, there were 11 of us from ages 22-75:

La Cucina Italian:

Beef Carpaccio had this mustard vinaigrette on it, its not suppose to have all that spice neverless mustard on it...meatballs full of filler, ribeye tough, veal shank not much meat, calamari soggy, service very lacking.

Wasabi- Excellent overall

Cagney Steakhouse- shrimp was soggy not good perhaps it was because we went there second to the last night...my steak was not cooked the way I had asked medium rare it came overdone and it was tough definitely didn't expect this at all here, crab cakes full of filler not much crab at all in fact you couldn't even taste any crab, father in law got the bison full of fat everywhere bison doesn't have really any fat whats up with that?, lobster tail extremely salty.

Moderno- they only came once with the sirloin (piranha) we had to ask for more and waited and waited for it lol... but they sure pushed the chick thighs, some type of sausage (now I believe they may added chorizo), the ribs hardly had any meat we had some good laughs about those lol....the salad bar was excellent with hard cheeses, spanish/italian meats, different types of grilled and marinaded veggies, a lot to choose from. I would go again just for the salad bar.

Shanghai's Noodle Bar very good but ALL OF US were so thirsty an hour or two afterwards full of salt, but this is not a place for dinner, a good snack or lunch.

Ocean Blu- Seafood was fresh and excellent, in fact we went to the raw bar there another evening for snack....my steak had the duck sauce on it so sweet ugh somebody made a huge mistake but steak was tender....monkfish was excellent, sea bass excellent, risotto excellent, service overall excellent, wonderful special drinks.

Le Bistro- all of us had nothing to say was bad excellent and my favorite place.

We did try the MDR one night on the Breakaway, service lacking for sure food was good typical banquet quality but good nothing more.

Allure of the Seas we only dined at the specialty restaurants

Carnival Valor this past May we went to the MDR one evening couldn't get us to go back after having the Steakhouse there.

Carnival may only have one specialty restaurant, the Steakhouse, but its ALWAYS consistent, excellent and never had a bad item in all our meals there and service ALWAYS excellent!

The hanger issue was only the last two nights, when most of our clothes are already worn and used and the hangers were empty, the last night in the middle of the night upon all that noise he took down the poll laid it on the floor in the closet nomore noise but the rest of the family in other staterooms didn't think of doing that lol.

This is a deal breaker, we'll never sail with them!

But you can. Just take out the hangars and don't forget the rod! I'll remember that trick:D

I do not respond any longer to any sarcasm...sanmarcosman, I not going to entertain your lameless and sarcastic comments!!! This goes to everybody sorry but this world I realize is full of nasty people, and I finding too many on this board and your not worth my time...I am entitled as everybody here to speak and say what I wish you don't like it skip over my comments and my posts if you have issues with me, block me!!!

But you can. Just take out the hangars and don't forget the rod! I'll remember that trick:D

This gives me a costume idea for a cruise during Halloween and I won't have to pack the rod. Halloween is the national gay holiday and going as Carol Burnett playing Scarlett O'Hara in GWTW has always been a dream of mine. Thanks for the inspiration!

NCL, and then Carnival, provide the best experiences for me and the way I like to cruise, but NCL has become too expensive for a solo cruiser on the itineraries I take. In my experience, both lines are great for a solo cruiser, with a slight edge to NCL.

I'm not sure about the Dream specifically, but in my experience Carnival buffets are one continuous line instead of separate islands like NCL has. It doesn't matter to me, but some folks don't like to wait in line. I remember the food in Carnival's MDR was better than NCL, but there was lots for me to like in NCL's MDR.

You'll find Carnival cabins much larger than NCL, in almost every category. Carnival bathrooms are larger, but NCL's showers (at least in the Jewel class) are bigger.

I found NCL's entertainment more...entertaining, but I wasn't bored on Carnival ships, either. Both lines have plenty of nooks and crannies if you need to seek aloneness. On Carnival ships, many of the small bars are empty and silent during the day. I liked hanging out in there to read.

If you like the itinerary (and how great it must be to leave from New Orleans!), then I don't think you can go too far wrong with either line. Have fun!