Fascination or Liberty 5 day cruise

I'm struggling. Booked 5 day Fascination out of JAX. Family cruise, my parents paying the tab (which is awesome). I had a choice of 2 - 5 day cruises that fit in the budget. Fascination out of JAX 2 sea days, Nassau and Half Moon OR pay a little extra (out of my pocket) 5 day Liberty out of Pt. Canaveral - Freeport, Nassau and Half Moon.

I personally could care less, I have been to Nassau numerous times, but my dad can't get around well and my brother has never been to Bahamas. We took him to Cozumel in January of last year so let's face it 5 day cruises only go either Cozumel or Nassau.

So the only thing I have going for me is the ship. I have been on SEVERAL of the Fantasy Class ships and like them just fine. Haven't been on Liberty, but have been on Destiny and Legend.

My parents have ONLY been on Fantasy Class ships. They don't know any different because they have nothing to compare to. My 7 year old is going so I chose Fascination over Liberty because of Water Works.

Did I make a good choice/bad choice.....has anyone been on both for comparison purposes??? Any help would be great!

Thanks!!

I would choose Liberty. Larger ship, more things to do, full 2.0 upgrades. Piano Bar, Alchemy, Punchliners, Guy's Burgers, Blue Iguana, etc.

Take care,

Mike

Thanks Mike. Do you think it's worth an extra $700.00?? That's total for 3 families but I would be the one paying the difference.

I would also choose the Liberty. DH and I have been on the Fascination many times because we live close to Jacksonville. However, it's an older ship and doesn't have all the newer bells and whistles the Liberty has. We loved the Legend cruise last year and the Liberty is on par with it. I think the Fascination would be a disappointment after sailing on the Legend and Destiny.

I've been on the Ecstasy and the Liberty, and if I would have to choose, I would hands down choose the Liberty. The liberty has so much more to offer. Especially with the ports not being all that exciting, you want a ship that is exciting and the Liberty has all the 2.0 stuff. I think $700 for 3 families doesn't sound bad??

I want to check out Liberty because of the reasons listed above, so I understand her appeal. We've done several family cruises on Fantasy size ships. One on the Glory. The smaller ship made it easier to "meet up" & also, "run into", so relax & enjoy. A great way to vacation with family! Have fun!

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Been on both. One is my favorite Carnival ship. Absolutely a great experience. The other one provided such a mediocre experience that it almost turned us away from sailing on Carnival ever again.

Go with the Liberty. WELL worth the extra money.

Been on both, Liberty is much better. I think it's worth it, but then again the $700 isn't coming out of my pocket

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let's face it 5 day cruises only go either Cozumel or Nassau!

You can take a 5 night on the Carnival Victory and sail to Grand Cayman and Ocho Rios. Or, if you don't need to stay loyal to Carnival, you can always do a 5 night on Royal Caribbean and visit Labadee and Falmouth. Or you can take Princess and sail to Grand Turk and Princess Cay.

You can take a 5 night on the Carnival Victory and sail to Grand Cayman and Ocho Rios. Or, if you don't need to stay loyal to Carnival, you can always do a 5 night on Royal Caribbean and visit Labadee and Falmouth. Or you can take Princess and sail to Grand Turk and Princess Cay.

We thought about the Victory or the Conquest out of FLL but my parents don't want the extra drive :(

Love Liberty! I would go with the Liberty. Fascination was just okay. I don't think I would sail that ship again unless the price was just too good to pass up and I could get to Jacksonville easily and inexpensively.

Another vote for LIBERTY!!!

Been on her twice and would book again if could right now. Great family variety, for food, entertainment and the staff are great. The 2.0 improvements alone are worth it. My DH will not cruise unless he can have Giys and Iguana Cantina and Comedy Club.

Fascination was just okay. I don't think I would sail that ship again unless the price was just too good to pass up.

I was thinking about that too. If the price was just too good to pass up, I'd sail on the Fascination again. In the OP's case, the price is FREE. If that's not the definition of "too good to pass up", I don't know what is! :). So under those conditions, I'd probably skip the Liberty this time and go with the free cruise on the Fascination.

Yes I agree that the Liberty is the (much) nicer ship, but with the right attitude and realistic expectations, the Fascination should be fun for a family cruise.

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we thought the Fascination was a nice ship. The WaterWorks is something that she has that Liberty does not have. I know she's older, but everything was well maintained, and the kids lived at the waterpark. On the Liberty there is just the one twister slide in the middle...

We are sailing the Liberty in October and we are looking forward to that ship too! I think you will have fun on either one, and maybe instead of spending the 700 extra on the cruise, you could rent a cabana on HMC($229) ...that was one of our favorite ports!

The only cruise I have been on has been the Fascination (122 days till sunshine though). I would have to say choose the liberty.

The Fascination seemed like a good ship for first experiences but we honestly got bored of the ship by the 3rd day.

There really is not much to do and it was very very crowded. On sea day the entire serenity deck was full by 8:30 am.

The highlights of the ship though are:

Beverly Hills Bar

Piano bar is ok depending on what set he is playing. His second set would put an ADHD child that had just drank three cups of coffee to sleep

The live band is good if you are ok with hanging out in a smoking area.

Pizza station, amazing (my 13 year old ate almost 50 slices in 4 days)

Circle C director was great.

The Deck right outside of the Verandah suites was nice as almost no one was ever there.

One hint of warning, stay away from the lido deck window openings during embarkation. Smelt like we had stepped into a sewer.

Well, I guess I look at it a bit differently. On the Liberty now, and she is an awesome ship, with all the bells and whistles mentioned above, and she is perfect for the longer itineraries to more distant ports. But for the Nassau / Half Moon Cay run I prefer the smaller, more intimate Fantasy Class ships. I would rather be tendering to and sharing HMC with only 2,500 other passengers, then say the nearly 4,000 passengers that the Conquest Class (or Larger) bring. JMHO. :)

I know Guy's Burgers are good, but I don't think I could eat $700 worth in five days!:eek:

Well, I guess I look at it a bit differently. On the Liberty now, and she is an awesome ship, with all the bells and whistles mentioned above, and she is perfect for the longer itineraries to more distant ports. But for the Nassau / Half Moon Cay run I prefer the smaller, more intimate Fantasy Class ships. I would rather be tendering to and sharing HMC with only 2,500 other passengers, then say the nearly 4,000 passengers that the Conquest Class (or Larger) bring. JMHO. :)

This was my thought. For the money we have saved I booked my parents and my brother FTTF (I'm Platinum) and booked a cabanna at HMC and still have money left over. I have just decided to stay with Fascination and use my money on other perks for the trip. Thanks for everyone's feedback and help. I wish my parents could do a nicer - bigger ship but for a 5 day to Bahamas only a 6 hour drive and the price range exactly where we needed it, I think the Fascination is the way to go. Thanks again!!

Well, I guess I look at it a bit differently. On the Liberty now, and she is an awesome ship, with all the bells and whistles mentioned above, and she is perfect for the longer itineraries to more distant ports. But for the Nassau / Half Moon Cay run I prefer the smaller, more intimate Fantasy Class ships. I would rather be tendering to and sharing HMC with only 2,500 other passengers, then say the nearly 4,000 passengers that the Conquest Class (or Larger) bring. JMHO. :)

This was my thought. For the money we have saved I booked my parents and my brother FTTF (I'm Platinum) and booked a cabanna at HMC and still have money left over. I have just decided to stay with Fascination and use my money on other perks for the trip. Thanks for everyone's feedback and help. I wish my parents could do a nicer - bigger ship but for a 5 day to Bahamas only a 6 hour drive and the price range exactly where we needed it, I think the Fascination is the way to go. Thanks again!!

By the time I got to the botom of the thread, I see you've made your decision. I'm going on the Liberty for the 3rd time next month. But, in your situation; I'd have stuck with the Fascination as well. I agree with Jamman54 and you saved money to spend wisely elsewhere. In addition, for me; I'd rather have 2 sea days instead of 1 sea day and Freeport.