Caribbean Princess or Carnival Victory?

[FrannyK]

Trying to decide between these two ships. Seems like they are both older, smaller, maybe in need of some TLC, both get mixed reviews. They are both close in price for the 5-night cruise we are looking at. Flying into Miami and Fort Lauderdale is pretty much the same price. Don't care what ports we go to, just want to relax and enjoy. We've been on quite a few Carnival ships but have never been on Princess so would like to give Princess a try. Just don't know if this is the ship to try? Any opinions? Anyone been on both?

[Thrak]

Depends on what you want in a cruise line. We sail Princess. We love the Princess product. We have no desire to sail Carnival - ever.

 

I've heard too many stories about the drunken young "adults" on Carnival. We know a couple who took their first (and last) cruise on Carnival. They will never cruise again because of that cruise.

 

Of course many people sail Carnival all the time and love it. My wife and I prefer the more sedate atmosphere offered by Princess.

 

As always, "your mileage may vary" and "past performance is no guarantee of future blah, blah, blah...)"

[joeyancho]

After over 15 carnival cruises and just one princess cruise, I would take any princess cruise over a comparable carnival cruise. Not that carnival is bad, princess is simply better.

[FrannyK]

Depends on what you want in a cruise line. We sail Princess. We love the Princess product. We have no desire to sail Carnival - ever.

 

I've heard too many stories about the drunken young "adults" on Carnival. We know a couple who took their first (and last) cruise on Carnival. They will never cruise again because of that cruise.

 

Of course many people sail Carnival all the time and love it. My wife and I prefer the more sedate atmosphere offered by Princess.

 

As always, "your mileage may vary" and "past performance is no guarantee of future blah, blah, blah...)"

 

We too heard stories about Carnival but never once had a problem with drunks, although we never cruise when the kids are off from school. As a family with young kids we enjoyed Carnival for their Kids Club which our children preferred over other lines clubs, their large cabins, their food in the dining room. On Royal we enjoyed their ships best, their serenity pools, their deeper cabin balconies and their buffet food (their dining room menu is blah IMO). We had our worst experience on NCL which kept us from sailing them for years until we had to choose them for a Hawaii cruise in January. Still, wouldn't choose them again unless I had to.

 

My husband and I are looking for a relaxing cruise this time, may not even get off the ship at all ports. We enjoy being on the ship. I've just read so many reviews that say the CP is filthy and it worries me. Although the reviews on the Victory say it's due for a dry dock too. Right now the fact that the CP has two pay-for restaurants besides the dining room puts it more in the running for us. I'm wondering if there is any shade around the adult-only pool and is there a charge for any of the pools?

[JF - retired RRT]

I've just read so many reviews that say the CP is filthy and it worries me. Although the reviews on the Victory say it's due for a dry dock too. Right now the fact that the CP has two pay-for restaurants besides the dining room puts it more in the running for us. I'm wondering if there is any shade around the adult-only pool and is there a charge for any of the pools?

We were on the Caribbean Princess last year and it was fine.

There is some shade at the Lotus Pool (below the Sanctuary and outside the exercise room)

There is NO charge for any pool on Princess.

[FrannyK]

We were on the Caribbean Princess last year and it was fine.

There is some shade at the Lotus Pool (below the Sanctuary and outside the exercise room)

There is NO charge for any pool on Princess.

 

I was told there IS a charge for the sanctuary pool on the front of the ship?

[2ndsailing]

I was told there IS a charge for the sanctuary pool on the front of the ship?

 

We were on the Caribbean Princess in January. No charge for any pools. My favourite pool is the aft pool.

[ne1travel]

I was told there IS a charge for the sanctuary pool on the front of the ship?

 

No charge for pool...charge is for the use of the Sanctuary itself.

 

http://www.princess.com/images/learn/virtual_tours/sanctuary_426510.jpg

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Forums

Edited January 24, 2015 by ne1travel

[pcsunlover]

I was just on the Caribbean Princess last month and the ship was fine. We noticed that our balcony needed a good cleaning, but we never brought it to the attention of our cabin steward. I'm sure if we had it would have been cleaned. We had a good cruise - good enough that we booked the ship again for this March. This will be our 4th time on this ship.

[FLUFFLULA]

We have sailed on Carnival ships and on Princess several times and enjoyed both lines. We have sailed on the Caribbean Princess twice, and the last time was in August 2014 with my BIL and SIL for their first cruise. I was anxious about the ship from some of the comments I read on these forums, but we found that it is still a beautiful ship and we would sail on it again. Yes, you can tell it is an older ship, but we thought it was very well maintained. My BIL and SIL loved the ship, and cruising, and my BIL, who was reticent about cruising at all, said, "I think all our cruises should be on Princess"! BTW, we are all in our late 50's-early 60's and Princess is a better fit for us now than Carnival which seems to appeal more to kids and young adults, especially with the water "parks" on some ships.

[john watson]

If you book Princess you will be shocked at the superb quality of everything, particularly the excellent polite service from all the crew. The standards all round are very high.

 

Regards John

[KruzeKrazy!]

We have been on both ships for Caribbean cruises. It's been a few years since the Caribbean Princess and longer since the Victory.

 

But based on our two cruises if we were to book one of them again now it would be the Caribbean Princess.

[blkspy]

My March 2nd cruise will be my 12th time on the Caribbean Princess.....I cruise ONLY princess....its a choice.....IMHO I would never cruise Carnival again over Princess......Im retired and past the drink till I drop stage. the ONLY thing the 2 lines have in common is they are owned by the same company---and liking that is another story.:eek:

[Hobbsey]

Trying to decide between these two ships. Seems like they are both older, smaller, maybe in need of some TLC, both get mixed reviews. They are both close in price for the 5-night cruise we are looking at. Flying into Miami and Fort Lauderdale is pretty much the same price. Don't care what ports we go to, just want to relax and enjoy. We've been on quite a few Carnival ships but have never been on Princess so would like to give Princess a try. Just don't know if this is the ship to try? Any opinions? Anyone been on both?

 

I was booked on Victory for a cruise leaving next Friday but switched at final payment to Caribbean Princess leaving this Monday. Besides the better pricing I got on Princess I am looking forward to a more refined experience on a somewhat newer ship leaving from Fort Lauderdale which I prefer over Miami.

 

Couple of things:

 

1. Same tour in Cozumel is $20 cheaper PP on Princess

2. You can order Beverage Package per person on Princess (It's per cabin as on Carnival).

Edited January 24, 2015 by Hobbsey

[JimmyVWine]

We too heard stories about Carnival but never once had a problem with drunks, although we never cruise when the kids are off from school.

 

??? Are you saying that you would expect to encounter more drunks on cruises during school vacation weeks? I didn't realize that grammar school children were such a significant source of drunken behavior. Or their parents. Not that there is any trend one way or the other, but to the extent that there may be, wouldn't "drunken behavior" be more likely during weeks when children are not on board and the demographic is child-free, care free adults?

[KruzeKrazy!]

Maybe they're saying kids on cruise ACT like they're drunk... :- )

[shredie]

I've just read so many reviews that say the CP is filthy and it worries me.

I was on the CB two years ago and she was in fine shape. I take reviews with a grain of salt. You will find as many saying the ship is clean as a whistle. I have been on Carnival and Princess, and neither lives up to its hyped reputation. Carnival is not all loud drunks, and Princess is not all old grumps in scooters. There are things I like about each line. That said, I would choose the CB for the trip since I think she is a fine ship, and I prefer most of the food on Princess.

[FrannyK]

??? Are you saying that you would expect to encounter more drunks on cruises during school vacation weeks? I didn't realize that grammar school children were such a significant source of drunken behavior. Or their parents. Not that there is any trend one way or the other, but to the extent that there may be, wouldn't "drunken behavior" be more likely during weeks when children are not on board and the demographic is child-free, care free adults?

 

Sorry for the confusion! I guess I need to clarify "kids" LOL. At my age "kids" encompasses high school/college, "children" elementary school. The only cruise we encountered quite a LOT of obnoxious drunks was an RCI cruise in mid summer. But I must say it was not only teens whose parents gave them drinks (saw this first hand on several occasions) but college kids and parents too. These parents were definitely "care free" LOL.

 

We have found cruising when schools/colleges are in session to be more relaxing just because of the lack of kids/children. For most cruises we've been on we are talking 100 children/kids versus 800+ during school vacations. Different vibe entirely.

[JimmyVWine]

Sorry for the confusion! I guess I need to clarify "kids" LOL. At my age "kids" encompasses high school/college, "children" elementary school. The only cruise we encountered quite a LOT of obnoxious drunks was an RCI cruise in mid summer. But I must say it was not only teens whose parents gave them drinks (saw this first hand on several occasions) but college kids and parents too. These parents were definitely "care free" LOL.

 

We have found cruising when schools/colleges are in session to be more relaxing just because of the lack of kids/children. For most cruises we've been on we are talking 100 children/kids versus 800+ during school vacations. Different vibe entirely.

 

I get it. I guess the disconnect derives from the fact that by far and away the most prevalent source of drunken behavior I have witnessed has come from the 25-40 year old crowd traveling without kids/children. That demographic would likely be predominate on cruises when schools are in session. I have honestly never witnessed drunken behavior from high school or college age passengers, but I have never been on a Carnival cruise, so maybe things are different there.

[FrannyK]

I get it. I guess the disconnect derives from the fact that by far and away the most prevalent source of drunken behavior I have witnessed has come from the 25-40 year old crowd traveling without kids/children. That demographic would likely be predominate on cruises when schools are in session. I have honestly never witnessed drunken behavior from high school or college age passengers, but I have never been on a Carnival cruise, so maybe things are different there.

 

IMO I don't believe Carnival lives up to it's wild reputation these days. As I said, we've never seen it and we've been on quite a few. I have only witnessed this behavior on Royal the one time.

[FrannyK]

Well, just made our reservation for Feb 21 5-night on Caribbean Princess :) So excited to try a new line. Thanks for all your help! I'll start reading up on the ship and it's amenities now :)

[Working 2 Cruise]

Well, just made our reservation for Feb 21 5-night on Caribbean Princess :) So excited to try a new line. Thanks for all your help! I'll start reading up on the ship and it's amenities now :)

 

Congratulations! I'm sure you'll enjoy it. Make sure to read the FAQ section of the Princess website, it will be very helpful.

 

If, after reading and checking the website, you have questions, we'll be happy to help! Enjoy your cruise!

[S.S.Oceanlover]

I was on the CB two years ago and she was in fine shape. I take reviews with a grain of salt. You will find as many saying the ship is clean as a whistle. I have been on Carnival and Princess, and neither lives up to its hyped reputation. Carnival is not all loud drunks, and Princess is not all old grumps in scooters. There are things I like about each line. That said, I would choose the CB for the trip since I think she is a fine ship, and I prefer most of the food on Princess.

 

I'm glad they spruced her up then. We were on her in 2012 and the balcony cabin we has was in rough shape.

 

Railings unvarnished to the point some parts were down to the bare wood, paint missing off the balcony chairs, which i have heard have since been replaced with new furniture, and light fixture on the nightstand was worn badly with a lot of the finish missing.

 

That being said we are booked for our 4th cruise on the CB.:)

 

Bill

[KruzeKrazy!]

We were on the CB in 2011 and found her in pretty darn food shape. We were in a full suite so perhaps they look after those more than the rest. For example our balcony railings and furniture (admittedly suite balcony furniture is "upgraded" to begin with) were in fine shape as were the cabin interior, lights, etc., etc., etc.

[FrannyK]

Congratulations! I'm sure you'll enjoy it. Make sure to read the FAQ section of the Princess website, it will be very helpful.

 

If, after reading and checking the website, you have questions, we'll be happy to help! Enjoy your cruise!

 

Sounds like a good place to start. Thanks.