Carnival vs. NCL

[texas cruise kitty]

I feel like a traitor, but we are considering sailing on Norwegian next time (price and itenerary). Would like to hear from anyone who has sailed both and can compare. We would be on the Norwegian Dream. By the way, we have two school aged children so would like to hear comparisons re: kids stuff too. I have also posted on NCL's board, but not sure it's as active as this one! Thanks in advance!!

[picruiser]

I've sailed on both Carnival and NCL. About the only big difference is the "freestyle" dining on NCL. Eat in any restaurant at any time. Service was good on both. Kids programs ran the same as on all cruise ships. Have fun!!

[LHP]

There is no such thing as a bad cruise...some are just better than others. So, no....you are not a traitor. You are electing to experience something a little different. Not better or worse...just different. Have a great cruise!!

[tommyO]

Well, I heard that the NCL passangers wear bathing suites to dinner. Some even go toppless! :D

[silentbob007]

Don't worry about being a "traitor" ... I don't think brand loyalty should ever keep you from trying new/different things. Maybe you'll find a new line you like. Maybe you'll realize why you like Carnival. Who knows? :)

[p2lockhart]

I agree with the previous responses.

 

I spent 11 days on the Dream's sister ship, the Wind. I really liked the ship. Those two are smaller and easy to navigate. One thing about the wind I noticed is that there is no centrum or lobby. We had a balcony in the aft, under the smaller pool that is surrounded by one of the main dining rooms. It was very easy to get to the small pool and restaurant by using the stairs in the aft. We were 3 cabins from the aft/end, which was a nice deck with lounge chairs where you can have a great 180 degree view and watch the wake.

 

One difference I have noted in the 2 cruiselines is that there seemed to be alot less announcements over the PA on NCL, which I really appreciated.

[redohiotx]

tx cruise kitty I HAVE BEEN ON BOTH NCL AND CARNIVAL. THEY ARE BOTH GOOD LINES. THE CHILDREN'S PROGRAMS ON BOTH ARE GOOD. WE LIKE THE SET DINNERS TIMES, RATHER THAN FREESTYLE DINING THAT THEY HAVE ON NCL.

[p2lockhart]

I am not a fan of freestyle dining either. But we were in an NCL cabin that had concierge service and I simply had the concierge make reservations for our group at a set time every night, even in the regular dining rooms, and there was never a wait.

[Lainy67]

Sailed NCL out of Houston in 2000. On the Norwegian Sea - one of their smaller ships. I don't even know if she is sailing still. Anyway... we sailed last summer on the Holiday. A ship of comparable size. From a pros and cons standpoint, I liked the Holiday better. It was also a much younger crowd. That could have been a function of the time we were sailing the Sea (January) and school being in session then, but there was almost NO kids, which was surprising. The cabins were much bigger on the Carnival Holiday.

 

THe only think I liked better about the Sea was that the gift shop seemed bigger and more navigable. More space to walk around, not so crammed full of crud. The Holiday looked like a five and dime on a sale day. The Sea looked like a nice department store.

[texas cruise kitty]

Lainy, I think the Dream has replaced the Sea (but could definately be wrong!). We sailed on the Celebration our first cruise which is the same size as the Holiday. I think the Dream is bigger. I assume it is because it goes all the way to Belize. So much to think about!!

[davy jones]

The Sea is gone from the NCL fleet.

 

Some like Freestyle, some prefer traditional dinners. I prefer Freestyle, but still go on traditional ships. The caveat is to sail on the newer ships that were built for Freestyle. Those ships have more dinner options and Freestyle works well on them. There may be some waiting for tables on the ships that were not built specifically for Freestyle.

 

One Freestyle thing that all cruise lines should do is debarkation. You can stay in your cabin until your color is called. It's great to stay on your balcony with some room service instead of being crowded into some show lounge.

[zydecocruiser]

You can still make reservations with freestyle. The main thing missing is the after midnight pizza run, but room service is still 24 hours. On the other hand, in room hot pots and/or coffee makers and DVD players.

[suzy671]

We will be taking our first NCL cruise on July 1st on the Dawn, have been on many Carnival and RCCL cruises, will be curious to see freestyle dining.

[diggerhawk]

I have sailed on Carnival, Royal Caribbean and NCL. NCL was my least favorite. I didn't like the freestyle dining. I don't like having to make a reservation for each night or having to wait in line to eat. I also missed having the same waiter each night and getting to know them. The entertainment was good. No 24 hour icecream or pizza. The ship wasn't as clean as carnival ships are. But I have only been on 1 NCL cruise. It was on the Sun a year ago. It was still a great cruise as we picked it for the price and the itinerary. It is fun and interesting to try the other lines but we usually come back to Carnival.

[gsb]

Was skeptical of our one and only NCL--Pride of America-Dec 7, 2005.(15 or 16 CCL's).

Very, very pleasantly surprised. Balcony cabin smaller, entertainment a little weak. Ship very pretty. Liberty dining room very rich and good looking.

 

Freestyle dining--ate in the bistro twice--very good--in fact all the reastaurants were good. Had to make your reservations early on to get what you wanted. Japanese especially good and fun.

 

Only negative was that the crew (all US) was for the most part unhappy and complaining.