Pride or Conquest

[Rellik01]

Ahoy,

 

Past Carnival Triumph Cruiser here August/2006 and we are now planning a 7 nite cruise on either the Pride from Long Beach, CA or the Conquest from Galveston, TX. 2 boys 7 and 10 yo ,wife and myself. We live in NYC area so we will be flying to either.Also on a tight budget so we will be in a budget inside cabin. What do you think, which ship/departure port/ports of call offer more value and fun.

 

Thanks alot

[bright eyes]

My choice would be the Pride. I really enjoyed the Pride last year and am going on the Spirit in December. Love the layout of the ships.

[KruznKel]

Since you are on a budget.. I would suggest checking airfares to both CA and TX and go from there

[phroggie]

Past Carnival Triumph Cruiser here August/2006 and we are now planning a 7 nite cruise on either the Pride from Long Beach, CA or the Conquest from Galveston, TX. 2 boys 7 and 10 yo ,wife and myself. We live in NYC area so we will be flying to either.Also on a tight budget so we will be in a budget inside cabin. What do you think, which ship/departure port/ports of call offer more value and fun.

 

10 and 7 year old? Which departure port? The one near LA.

 

Is your budget (money and time) flexible enough to have some fun at Disneyland, Universal Studios, Hollywood and all the other iconic places that surround LALALand? (You can easily reach Universal Studios and Hollywood by public transportation from the cruise terminal.)

[wavecruiser]

I follow Phroggie's suggestion that if you have some additional free time, choose LA so you can visit some surrounding theme parks...like Disneyland!!

 

I loved the Pride - beautiful ship, easy to navigate, great food and service. I can't compare the ports of call, since I haven't been in the Conquest's part of the Caribbean. Mexico is fun, maybe not as beautiful as the Caribbean, but you will find a lot of activities to do for your kids. In Puerto Vallarta, there is a Swim with the Dolphins excursion offered through Carnival..my friends did this and really enjoyed it. I did the Los Veranos ziplining tour - your 10 yo might like it but I think your 7 yo is too young.

 

What is your planned sail date? If you are going within the next few months, the prices for an inside are a total bargain.

[Rellik01]

With air fare the entire trip will be very close (within several hundred dollars) whether we go Pride or Conquest. Was just wondering if either ship is that much better than the other. Also how tough will it be to have a family of 4 in an inside "steerage" class cabin. We are leaning towards the Pride since we live on the east coast it seems likely we will visit the western Caribbean sooner than the Mexican riviera.

Thanks again.

[ronrythm]

When are you planning for? For the Pride it will make a lot of difference in the weather on the sea days. From right now through May or even June the sea days can be really cool. The port days are normally warm regardless of the time of year, but in July and August they can be really hot. Also, if you like to go in the ocean, the water temperature is always cooler on the Mexican Riviera than in the Carribean. This is one of the reasons the Carribean has stronger hurricanes, so it can be good and bad for both sides. The water also tends to be a lot clearer in the Carribean. I've been on both ships in the last year and I will be back on the Pride on New Year's Eve, so I like both ships. One thing you might want to do is go to the Carnival site and the ports of call section of this board to check on shore excursions to see which ship offers the ones your family would want to do. I have pictures and Carnival Capers from both ships this past year on my web site http://www.ronrythm.com/ if you think they might help you.

Enjoy

Ron

[Rellik01]

We are planning for presidents week,schools in NYC are out, wife is a teacher and children are school age, departing February 18, 2007. Wow I did not realize the differance in water temperature. Could anyone please share their experince in February on either cruise. It just seems that the Mexican riviera is so much mor exotic to us.

Thanks

[ronrythm]

It just seems that the Mexican riviera is so much mor exotic to us.

I should have posted my picture of Walmart and Sam's club, taken from the Pride docked in PV :eek: but I'm sure someone else has it.

Ron

[OceanDreamin]

The weather here in Los Angeles can be a bit chilly (by LA standards) in February (probably mid to high 60's), but as you head south into Mexico it should be great weather. Low 80's.

 

Check out http://www.wunderground.com/tripplanner/index.asp Put in the city you are going to, for instance, "Puerto Vallarta, Mexico" and the date(s) you will be there, and it will tell you what the weather is likely to be.

 

Have a great trip whichever you decide.:)

[Lisichka]

We are planning for presidents week,schools in NYC are out, wife is a teacher and children are school age, departing February 18, 2007. Wow I did not realize the differance in water temperature. Could anyone please share their experince in February on either cruise. It just seems that the Mexican riviera is so much mor exotic to us.

Thanks

I am doing the Mexican Riviera myself over President's day (with my 4 sons). I have never done a cruise to the Western Caribbean, but have stayed in many of the ports they visit. It is all good, really. I decided on the Spirit, as it has some great deals over President's day weekend (we got 2 cabins on the Veranda deck, one inside for 2, one balcony for 3 for roughly $2800 for the 5 of us, and that is for an 8 day cruise).

 

Either would be great.