Epic, Eurodam or Breeze

[buelah111]

My husband and I are looking to book a cruise for the week of Thanksgiving. I think we've narrowed our options down to the Epic (Ocho, GC, and Cozumel), the Eurodam (Private Island, Ocho, GC and Key West), and the Breeze (Grand Turk, DR, Curacao and Aruba).

 

We are in our mid-30s, no children yet. I've been on multiple cruises, but this will just be the 3rd for my husband. I love a relaxing sea day, but my husband definitely wants some activity going on.

 

Below are the pros and cons I see on the three choices. I'd love any input or thoughts on whether I'm off-base on any of these items.

 

Epic - Lots to do on the ship, but only three port days (my husband prefers port days). Am not sure about how good the non-specialy dining would be (was not impressed on the Jade a few years ago). Would likely book a basic balcony, which would be nice.

 

Eurodam - I love the relaxed atmosphere on HAL, especially all the comfortable quite places (inside) to curl up with a good book and an ocean view on a sea day. In my experience the dining and service have been excellent and the cabins are nice. I like the itinerary, but I'm a bit concerned there wouldn't be enough activity and entertainment on the ship for my husband. Would likely book a balcony based on the prices I'm seeing.

 

Breeze - We've done two carnival cruises (the only cruises my husband has been on) and they were enjoyable. We loved the comedy club and there was plenty to do on the ship. I missed having a quite place to relax outside the cabin, however, and have been thinking I'm ready to get my husband on another cruise line. That said, I really like this itinerary and it has an extra day (4 stops, 3 sea days). We would likely be in an inside, or maybe outside, cabin to stay in a similar price-range to the other two.

 

Anyway, I thought I'd throw this out and see if the very knowledgeable cruisers on these boards have any thoughts we haven't considered as we make our decision in the next couple of days.

 

Thanks for your input!

Stacy

[Topo Gigio]

I have been once on a Thanksgiving cruise (Carnival Dream) out of NY. Never ever again. 1300 children on the cruise. They took over the cruise!

[kcwingwalker]

Agree children could be a problem. So IMO:

 

1. HAL

2. NCL

3. Carnival

[Freckles83]

we took a thanksgiving b2b on the eurodam last year and had a great time. we are the same age as you and thought the itinerary / excursions offered were really great. stayed in a balcony on this ship too. i would do that cruise again in a heart beat.

[LadyShiva]

:) I think for OP, Eurodam is probably the best fit (itinerary, cabin choice, port call number, age of cruisers versus child load in that time of year, etc).

 

However, I'm chuckling to myself that we're (so far) not vehemently denouncing any choice other than an NCL ship. I rather think this speaks well of the board's sanity.

[coka]

Epic -Yes, there will be a lot to do on the ship mornings, days, and evenings...this ship has excellent entertainment options all throughout the cruise. I have not sailed her since 2010 so not sure about the current state of dining other than there are lots and lots of options! Find pictures of what a basic balcony looks like along with the room setup...in comparison to the other ships you selected, the cabin will be smaller and will be different, especially the bathroom and sink...which are right in the room itself.

 

Eurodam - I sailed the Eurodam and I too loved the relaxed ambiance of this particular ship. The crow's nest was so much better than the crow's nest on the westerdam and veendam...other Hal ships sailed....and I see you have sailed veendma and maasdam. There are even more quiet relaxing places all over the Eurodam and she is a beautiful ship! What type of activities is your hubby looking for during the day? I remember there were interesting lectures and workshops offered when I sailed.

 

Breeze -Yes, this is a great itinerary with an extra stop! I have sailed Carnival as well in the past but it was so long ago and it was not the Breeze. I will state I have been on plenty of Thanksgiving sailings and my guess will be a lot of children on this sailing as there will be with the Epic...however, the Epic has adult only locations such as posh and spice h20. The Eurodam also has cabanas for rent on the ship,but i will venture to guess they are all probably booked during this sailing. A plus to carnival is that you know the product as does your hubby.

 

So, I would say you are spot on with what you wrote in your original post! Good luck on your choice and let us know which one you selected.

 

Edited to add: HAL has recently changed it's bringing wine on board allowance...which you can do not anymore, I think....not sure if that is important to your decision or not.

 

coka

Edited October 4, 2014 by coka

[UPNYGuy]

I would say that the Jewel class ships are going to be most comparable to Eurodam IMHO. I have sailed on over half the HAL fleet, and have ventured over to NCL now. Eurodam = Jewel class.

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Forums

Edited October 4, 2014 by UPNYGuy

[cruisingcouple2010]

I will echo some of the above post. We are not "kid haters" but ours are now 20/18 and away from home. So we enjoy travelling with minimal kid interference ;) That said in our soon to be 16 cruises we almost always avoid going during times traditionally kids are off from school i.e. spring break, Xmas, Thanksgiving, Easter etc.

 

We have been on the Epic and Breeze. Epic was about 3 years old and we had a blast. We went on the Breeze when it was only 6 months old and LOVED IT!! But that's just us, someone else may bitch because the lobster was served at a temp 2 degrees less then their palette was used to ;) You cant go wrong with either of those ships. Good Luck and Have Fun!!!!

[Myscruf]

I have sailed on the Breeze 2x. One was your itinerary. We loved the Breeze. We always book balcony. Have never been on HAL but am going on Epic same itinerary in Jan. We sailed in April and July on the Breeze. The one in July had tons of kids but we never felt overrun by them. I do think Carnival is trying to lure more families and get away from the college party boat reputation. I am looking forward to trying Norwegian in January.

[LMM1801]

I would say that the Jewel class ships are going to be most comparable to Eurodam IMHO. I have sailed on over half the HAL fleet, and have ventured over to NCL now. Eurodam = Jewel class.

 

 

The only thing I think is comparable of the Jewel class ships and the Eurodam is the number of passengers. I have sailed twice on the Eurodam and it is a classy and beautiful ship. I went once on the Jade. Maybe the other Jewel class ships are better,but the Jade is a refit from when it sailed Hawaii. The decor is awful. I found the service to be okay. Eurodam service a thousand times better, but the biggest difference is the lovely little touches like teak decks and loungers on the Eurodam that the Jewel class ships don't have. Don't get me wrong, I sail on NCL when I can't afford HAL. But being anything alike, I just don't see it. The Jade has those torturous skinny corridors that make it impossible to pass. It is loud and people wear cut offs and bedroom slippers to dinner. Mostly you see people dressed elegantly and an older crowd on the Eurodam. Eurodam also has a great Crow's Nest. I found nothing like that on the Jade. Would love to hear about the other Jewel class ships but I consider NCL a mass market 2 star product. I think of HAL at least a 4 or 5 stars, lots more space but definitely not much night life. I know there are people who love NCL. I prefer HAL when I can afford it.