Carnival vs Royal Caribbean vs NCL

[winterpeg2004]

Doing some research for our cruise next year.

 

The cheapest rates I have found is Carnival, but RC and NCL are not much more.

 

What would be the biggest difference you would notice between these three.

[kcwingwalker]

It depends on what you want and wish to pay.

 

Carnival is usually cheaper. All 3 lines are similar in many ways.

 

Carnival and NCL allow smoking on the balconies, RCI does not.

 

Food is similar on all 3. NCL's deserts usually get a thumbs down.

 

NCL usually gets the nod for entertainment.

 

Carnival rooms are sometimes bigger, but not by much.

 

NCL has excellent suites with great perks and well priced.

 

Compare itineraries and figure up what it will actually cost. If you can drive to a port, you will be well ahead.

[mizLORInj]

I would need to know which ships specifically are being compared.

 

Carnival's cabins are indeed larger than the other two lines.

 

Food is similar--my personal preference is NCL.

 

Agree that NCL has the better edge on entertainment.

Edited November 10, 2013 by mizlorinj

[NMLady]

Doing some research for our cruise next year.

 

The cheapest rates I have found is Carnival, but RC and NCL are not much more.

 

What would be the biggest difference you would notice between these three.

 

I've cruised on all three. You've gotten some good replies. The only thing I would add is that Carnival and RC have formal nights. NCL does not. Their "Norwegians Night Out" is strictly optional for dress up.

 

RC and Carnival have an option of Assigned Dining or some form of Anytime Dining, but it is space limited. All of NCL dining is Anytime Dining.

[Karysa]

If the itinerary is fantastic and I had a balcony I would go on Carnival again. This past summers cruise on the Valor from San Juan showed me that I had clearly out grown the activities on Carnival. The food was still very good though. My last Royal cruise was in 2011 and I really love the Royal ships and activities and amount of live music. The food was too salty and the desserts too jelly -like for my liking. NCL is my favorite line as of late. To me it offers me what I want which includes a caribbean band by the pool, decent shows, lots of choices for food ranging from good to excellent and lots of live music and dance classes.

[cemetery-man]

We always take our 2 young grandchildren with us on vacations so it's important to us to keep them occupied/happy for the duration. Can't say anything about Carnival but RCCL seemed a bit lacking on children's activities and areas but hey, there was a pool and that's all they cared about. Other than that I would still book with RCCL without hesitation. Will find out what NCL has to offer on Feb 8,2014 but it looks like their new ships are very child friendly. Maybe Carnival later down the road and after that we will decide which CL we will dedicate ourselves to.

[Aquahound]

Doing some research for our cruise next year.

 

The cheapest rates I have found is Carnival, but RC and NCL are not much more.

 

What would be the biggest difference you would notice between these three.

 

This is definitely a comparison that can be better made if we knew what ships you were considering. These cruise lines, especially RCI, have ships that are very different from one another.

[weltek]

This is definitely a comparison that can be better made if we knew what ships you were considering. These cruise lines, especially RCI, have ships that are very different from one another.

 

I agree. Particularly in the last five years or so, you could be trying to compare WILDLY different ships, and thus see very different experiences and costs. I think that's something new cruisers don't think about and why this board is so helpful!

[Chadr135]

I've never been on Carnival but friends/family have said bad things...I'm assuming they are the cheapest for a reason! We love RCCL and Celebrity.

[98Charlie]

I've never been on Carnival but friends/family have said bad things...I'm assuming they are the cheapest for a reason! We love RCCL and Celebrity.

We heard the same thing and so took our first 15 cruises on Celebrity, NCL, Princess & Royal Caribbean.

 

Finally for #16 we tried Carnival and found none of the problems that others had talked about. Carnival Cruise #12 is booked for next September:)

 

There is nothing I can say bad about the other lines and have sailed them as well since my first Carnival. But I do enjoy the Carnival product and the fact that it is less expensive most of the time doesn't hurt either.

 

Charlie

[Ladyinflight]

Been on Carnival 3 times. Never had a problem, so don't understand all the complaining about them:confused: Been on NCL 3 times. Enjoyed the anytime dining, but don't feel anything else is special about them. Been on Costa Atlantica for a transatlantic cruise. Felt that was the best cruise of all:) Lots of European passengers, therefore they did a lot of extras I had not seen on Carnival or NCL. Going on Royal Caribbean for the first time next week. Looking forward to it:D

[Capt_BJ]

I worked in 'the industry'

 

I would NEVER sail Carn' ... have not and will not (I worked in the industry)

 

Sailed NCL several times but most recent experience told me they do not care about customers at this time ....

 

RCCL - sailed last month

[CruisingThom87]

I have sailed royal Caribbean and carnival both similar sized ships and can honestly say I find them both very comparable! I would have no hesitation in booking either as have always had a great time. Yes there are small things I prefer about RCI but then there are also little things I prefer about carnival. In general I find them very similar from my experience can't comment on ncl as haven't done this yet.

[Shilee11]

I can't comment on NCL, but I prefer Carnival to RCL. The service was 100% better on Carnival! The one and only good thing that I can say RCL ship was classier, but it lacked in everything else! Next cruise I booked is with Carnival :)

[Dancer Bob]

Unless you're looking for a something specific, all three will be comparable. I've found individual cruises vary mare than the cruise lines, I've been on B2B cruises that were so different I wondered if I was on the same ship. It's possible somebody may have had such a bad experience on one single cruise to recommend against taking the risk, but generalising to an entire fleet over an entire year for a broad range of interests isn't valid.

[98Charlie]

Unless you're looking for a something specific, all three will be comparable. I've found individual cruises vary mare than the cruise lines, I've been on B2B cruises that were so different I wondered if I was on the same ship. It's possible somebody may have had such a bad experience on one single cruise to recommend against taking the risk, but generalising to an entire fleet over an entire year for a broad range of interests isn't valid.

Truly the best answer to the question as posed.:)

 

Charlie

[cruzeluver]

Ships within one cruise line can vary widely in terms of what they have to offer, but if comparing ships of similar ages and amenities, I would take Royal first, NCL second and Carnival a distant, distant third.