Considering a Carnival cruise, have only sailed Royal Caribbean before

[CupcakeSusie]

I haven’t been able to find a Celebrity or Royal cruise that suits the time we have available, but I’ve found a great deal on Carnival in a Cloud9 suite which ticks nearly all of our boxes. We are empty nesters, it will be school holiday time (so the Cloud9 being 18+ only will suit us) … is there anything we should take into account in making a decision? 
 

Thanks for any advice! 

[rkmw]

1 hour ago, CupcakeSusie said:

I haven’t been able to find a Celebrity or Royal cruise that suits the time we have available, but I’ve found a great deal on Carnival in a Cloud9 suite which ticks nearly all of our boxes. We are empty nesters, it will be school holiday time (so the Cloud9 being 18+ only will suit us) … is there anything we should take into account in making a decision? 
 

Thanks for any advice! 

Carnival is a good company and the currency onboard is AUD not like Celebrity or RC and I presume you’ll be on the Carnival Splendor and being school holidays there’s a lot of kids onboard 

 

Being in a Cloud 9 suite not sure it qualifies you for priority check in but it will tell you when you check in, Platinum and above check in 16 days before departure and everyone else checks in 14 days before departure and a good idea check in opens at midnight when your allowed to check in to get early boarding of 11am

 

Download the Hub app when you can and once onboard you can access the hub app once you get your sea pass card which opens your cabin door and with the hub app you can check your account and what’s going on around the ship and if wanting to have breakfast in the MDR you book a table by the hub app when your ready to eat

Edited October 17, 2023 by rkmw

[CupcakeSusie]

Thank you so much! It would be the Luminosa, sailing from Brisbane. 
 

excellent tips, really appreciate it. I didn’t know it was Aud, that’s good to know! 

[Cruisers47]

2 minutes ago, CupcakeSusie said:

Thank you so much! It would be the Luminosa, sailing from Brisbane. 
 

excellent tips, really appreciate it. I didn’t know it was Aud, that’s good to know! 

We were on Carnival in OZ about 8 years ago with our family.   It was their first cruise and they really enjoyed it.

 

we have booked Carnival cruises for 2024 OZ winter (there is not much choice). I am sure that it will be fine.   We are RC and Celebrity cruisers but am hoping these cruises will be ok.  Just want out of Melbourne during the winter.!
 

Eileen

[rkmw]

13 minutes ago, CupcakeSusie said:

Thank you so much! It would be the Luminosa, sailing from Brisbane. 
 

excellent tips, really appreciate it. I didn’t know it was Aud, that’s good to know! 

You should enjoy the Luminosa and it’s a smaller ship compared to the Splendor and check your booking and it will tell you when you can check in, 16 days or 14 days and if you want early check in set your alarm for midnight or stay up late 

[rkmw]

20 minutes ago, CupcakeSusie said:

Thank you so much! It would be the Luminosa, sailing from Brisbane. 
 

excellent tips, really appreciate it. I didn’t know it was Aud, that’s good to know! 

Another thing if your driving to the port and require parking depending when your cruising check out https://www.wilsonparking.com.au/parking-locations/queensland/brisbane-international-cruise-terminal/brisbane-international-cruise-terminal/ and you can book in from 6 months out and car park P1 or P2 is only a short walk to the terminal, just download Wilson’s app and book in 

[aussielozzie18]

Luminosa is a beautiful ship.  It’s has a nice layout, easy to get around.  The adults only area is the Serenity Deck at the rear of deck 9. Unlike the Splendour, the Luminosa doesn’t have water slides so it doesn’t attract as many families as the Splendour does.  Their paid specialty dining venue is Fahrenheit 55 which is popular. If you select “anytime dining” sorry forget the official name, we found the free Carnival Hub app very easy to use to book a table for 2 in the MDR each night at a time to suit us.   

Edited October 17, 2023 by aussielozzie18

[aussielozzie18]

Btw, you can take one bottle of wine or champagne on board per person. 

[Jedi_Laz]

I normally use RCL, but have found Carnival enjoyable (I prefer Carnival to Princess except MDR).

Go for it.

[MMDown Under]

3 hours ago, rkmw said:

You should enjoy the Luminosa and it’s a smaller ship compared to the Splendor and check your booking and it will tell you when you can check in, 16 days or 14 days and if you want early check in set your alarm for midnight or stay up late 

I agree you will enjoy Luminosa, which is a beautiful medium size ship. 

[MMDown Under]

Would love to cruise on Luminosa again.  I cruised on her in 2022.  However, I couldn't find any cruises which excited me.

 

Does Luminosa do any longer cruises from Brisbane to -

NZ,

Fiji or more distant South Pacific Islands, or 

North Queensland, in winter. 

[arxcards]

39 minutes ago, MMDown Under said:

Would love to cruise on Luminosa again.  I cruised on her in 2022.  However, I couldn't find any cruises which excited me.

 

Does Luminosa do any longer cruises from Brisbane to -

NZ,

Fiji or more distant South Pacific Islands, or 

North Queensland, in winter. 

For now, Luminosa isn't here in the winter. She arrived a few days ago and departs again in April.

They do very few cruises longer than 1 week. Yes, there is at least one NZ cruise, and there is an 11-night PNG cruise.

 

There are some clues that Brisbane could have a year-round Carnival ship in 2025.

Edited October 18, 2023 by arxcards

[arxcards]

50 minutes ago, MMDown Under said:

Would love to cruise on Luminosa again.  I cruised on her in 2022.  However, I couldn't find any cruises which excited me.

 

Does Luminosa do any longer cruises from Brisbane to -

NZ,

Fiji or more distant South Pacific Islands, or 

North Queensland, in winter. 

There is also one each year to Fiji. I hope the link works.

Cruise Search | Find Cruises for 2023-2025 | Carnival Cruise Line

[aussielozzie18]

1 hour ago, MMDown Under said:

Would love to cruise on Luminosa again.  I cruised on her in 2022.  However, I couldn't find any cruises which excited me.

. 

I’ve booked one of two Luminosa cruises that depart Sydney next year.  Decided I couldn’t miss the opportunity cruise on her again & not have to fly to Brisbane to board.  They are both short cruises though.  

[CupcakeSusie]

Thank you so much for these amazing, helpful responses. Really appreciated and very good in steering us to being ready to book!

[arxcards]

2 hours ago, aussielozzie18 said:

I’ve booked one of two Luminosa cruises that depart Sydney next year.  Decided I couldn’t miss the opportunity cruise on her again & not have to fly to Brisbane to board.  They are both short cruises though.  

From what I can recall, the other shortie is Sydney to Brisbane. The other 3 cruises out of Sydney are music charter cruises (Bravo, Rock the Boat, Flash Back). Not available via Carnival, but via the wholesaler or your T/A of choice.

[CupcakeSusie]

Ooohhhhh I just looked more closely and the cruise j was looking at doesn’t get in to Noumea until 2pm, then leaves at 9pm. That’s not long enough (imo) for Amadee Island which is our favourite Noumea shore excursion 😞 

 

Thoughts and experiences welcome. 

[CupcakeSusie]

I’m really welcome to suggestions - there are a few non negotiable s for us:

 

Must stop at Noumea

Must stop at Isle of Pines

Must be during school holiday 😞 (I’m a teacher)

 

We are looking at December-January 2024-2025.

 

Does anyone know of any cruises which tick the boxes for us? I was so excited, thinking I’d found it. But we really do need longer than 7 hours in Noumea. Thanks for any help you can throw our way. 

[Aus Traveller]

13 minutes ago, CupcakeSusie said:

I’m really welcome to suggestions - there are a few non negotiable s for us:

 

Must stop at Noumea

Must stop at Isle of Pines

Must be during school holiday 😞 (I’m a teacher)

 

We are looking at December-January 2024-2025.

 

Does anyone know of any cruises which tick the boxes for us? I was so excited, thinking I’d found it. But we really do need longer than 7 hours in Noumea. Thanks for any help you can throw our way. 

I don't think any cruise ships are going to Isle of Pines at the moment. The locals have said "No".

 

Cruises out of Brisbane going to Noumea arrive at 2pm. I am not sure what time the Sydney cruises get there.

[MMDown Under]

44 minutes ago, CupcakeSusie said:

Ooohhhhh I just looked more closely and the cruise j was looking at doesn’t get in to Noumea until 2pm, then leaves at 9pm. That’s not long enough (imo) for Amadee Island which is our favourite Noumea shore excursion 😞 

 

Thoughts and experiences welcome. 

Amadee Island met be nice.  I agree the amount of time in port is a deal breaker for me. I am spoilt from a few days stopovers on South Pacific islands en route to the UK or USA.  

[arxcards]

50 minutes ago, CupcakeSusie said:

I’m really welcome to suggestions - there are a few non negotiable s for us:

 

Must stop at Noumea

Must stop at Isle of Pines

Must be during school holiday 😞 (I’m a teacher)

 

We are looking at December-January 2024-2025.

 

Does anyone know of any cruises which tick the boxes for us? I was so excited, thinking I’d found it. But we really do need longer than 7 hours in Noumea. Thanks for any help you can throw our way. 

Out of Brisbane (is the departure port important), most ships that hit Noumea first arrive in the PM. This is pretty much the default bog-standard 7 night P&O/Carnival "Week Fantastique" itinerary that has been around for 15 years+. Some cruises call at Noumea on the way home, and that would be more useful but also less frequent.

 

Isle of Pines is yet to see a large visiting ship since the pandemic shutdown. From 1st January next year, there are a few ships booked to visit, but I don't think the Carnival brands are confident that they will go ahead - they are waiting till the following season to schedule any ships there.

 

12th January 2025 on Luminosa is one of their first itineraries going there - yes, that also has a 2pm arrival in Noumea. This is the only local cruise scheduled to visit Isle of Pines in December '24/January '25.

 

29th December 2024 - this does Noumea on the way home, but it is only 7am till noon. Also no Isle of Pines.

 

Quantum of the Seas has full day stops in Noumea on 4 x cruises during Dec/Jan. You guessed it, no Isle of Pines.

 

There are other options from Sydney, but none are calling at Isle of Pines during those months. Carnival Splendor has full day stops in Noumea on cruises departing on 19th Dec & 30th Dec plus 12th Jan. There will be other ships that may have full a full day in Noumea, including Ovation of the Seas.

 

 

[2022cruisey]

We did a cruise to Noumea in June in a cloud 9 cabin on Splendor.   First Carnival cruise, has only gone on Princess before.   I was very pleased with the spa, the cabin and the food.   The app worked well too.   I missed free room service, a 24 hour cafe and a package that included wifi and drinks at a reasonable price.  Also a teacher so it was crowded with families but we avoided the pool and arcades as much as possible.  It was quite crowded at times.   Pools were impossible to get into.   One in the 18+ area was always full and the lido pool was always full of kids.   You will have access to the thalassotherapy pool which is really like a giant spa.

[Sparky74]

After being loyal to Royal (and X) for the first seven years of cruising, we jumped ship and booked B2B on Carnival Spirit in October 2017. I must admit that this was not without a certain amount of fear and trembling, probably because of the negative things I'd read. (Since then we've also cruised with Princess, P&O, and Holland America.)

We determined not to spend all our time comparing Carnival to RCL but were pleasantly surprised. We found that the two lines had more in common than differences.

We've only done one Carnival cruise post-pandemic. Unfortunately it didn't meet our expectations. Part of that may have been due to to the inevitable cutbacks but it was also a trans-Pacific (Seattle to Sydney) and was run as an American cruise rather than an Australian cruise. We weren't the only Aussies who were a little disappointed but I kept reminding myself (and DW) that we got it for a bargain price. 

We've not cruised on the Carnival Luminosa yet but most of the ships in the fleet have over the top garish interior decorations. Just be ready for the visual onslaught.

Take your PMA (Positive Mental Attitude) with you and you'll be fine.

 

Happy sailing!

[Hogbay]

22 hours ago, CupcakeSusie said:

I haven’t been able to find a Celebrity or Royal cruise that suits the time we have available, but I’ve found a great deal on Carnival in a Cloud9 suite which ticks nearly all of our boxes. We are empty nesters, it will be school holiday time (so the Cloud9 being 18+ only will suit us) … is there anything we should take into account in making a decision? 
 

Thanks for any advice! 

Here is something  to read .

https://cruisepassenger.com.au/ship-guide/ultimate-guide-all-you-need-to-know-about-carnival-luminosa/

[CupcakeSusie]

Again, thank you for the replies! I don’t know that cruises weren’t going to Isle of Pines yet and it changes everything. Really appreciate that info. I think we will have to wait to book because I don’t want to be bumped to another island when it’s one of our non negotiable. The other places are nice but not the favourite. Combined with Noumea being such a short stop I think this might not be the right one for us 😞