Carnival-no thanks

[ktravis]

I thank everyone for their responses. I only wanted to know why only CC out of Galveston and was asked if I had sailed CC. I have and I do not like it. And will not travel with them again. But that is just me. I did however, see that the Conquest's next year itinerary is out of Florida. What will happen then?

[sunchasers64]

I did however, see that the Conquest's next year itinerary is out of Florida. What will happen then?

 

 

:eek: Anyone know what ship will be there in it's place?

[SheriNtexas]

I did however, see that the Conquest's next year itinerary is out of Florida. What will happen then?

 

 

Conquest is only doing the new itinerary one week each month, starting in Feb 09, I believe, until sometime in 2010. The other weeks will be the same itinerary it does now. It is not moving to Florida, it still will be sailing out of Galveston.

[Cruising89143]

The funniest thing about most anti-Carnival people (not necessarily the OP, but speaking in general) is that a lot of anti-Carnival people are very much supporters of RCI, and both lines are almost inter-changeable to me. I actually have some co-workers who cruise with RCI and constantly knock Carnival and I just think to myself "You're taking a similar cruise, just paying more money...") But if you're gonna be a cruiseline snob, at least take a clearly more extravagent line like Cunard, HAL or Seaborn, etc....But for RCI fans to criticize Carnival is like someone in a double-wide making fun of someone in a single-wide trailer- If you're that cultured and looking for that much more in a cruise than Carnival offers than you wouldn't be "settling for RCI"....

 

Now having said that, I have no problem with either line and would take cruises on either line. It's just the "snobs" that I have a problem with (and again I'm not saying that the OP is one...)

 

Give me a break. Just because I or someone else prefers RCI over Carnival does not make them a snob. It means we prefer a different line for different reasons. If one has cruised both lines and has reason for liking one line over the other then that is their business. Also, you must not read the Carnival boards much as I have seen those same type of comments made about RCI but then maybe some that cruise Carnival have an inferiority complex and can't handle a little criticism. :rolleyes:

[okgirl]

I have sailed only on Carnival, so I don't have the experience of what the clientele on other lines is, however in my 12 cruises with Carnival (10 since 2001), I have seen a change in the demographics.

It may be because after 2 or 3 summer time cruises I started excluding cruising when school is out from my calendar. Not so much because of the party crowd (cause I really haven't seen that much) but I just don't care to be around too many younger children who's parents aren't giving adequate supervision to. Do the college age partiers flock to Galveston during sprink breaks, you bet, they flock to ALL resort vacation spots, but that's the very reason I wouldn't even consider a spring break cruise.

I've never found a reason to stray from Carnival, it's unlikely that I would be willing to give up my Platinum perks to start over again at a different line. Carnival goes everywhere I want to go and a price that I can afford frequently.

But as I said in my OP, isn't the Voyager of the Sea a RCCL ship? They just recently returned to Galveston, so there you go, you have the options you're looking for and even better, with now both the Conquest and the Voyager are sailing alternating itineraries, so there are choices galore.

[GCurry]

Voyager is not full-time. Galveston used to have Rhapsody of the Seas full-time, though.

We used to have Rhapsody and Serenade both full time.

 

I am showing the Conquest cruising out of here through May of next year, we'll see what develops.

[GottaLuvCruising]

I totally disagree with you that Carnival is a 24/7 party hardy cruiseline. I've been on 2 Carnival cruises and never once did I see anyone partying till they drop. Also, the average age on one of my cruises was between 40-70 with many even older than that. Maybe you had that on your "one" cruise with them, but the majority of cruises are not like that, because if they were, my husband and I wouldn't have sailed with them. We are not the party hardy types. We are both in our late 40s and are not into all that drinking.

 

It's unfortunate that some people are very ignorant and refuse to let go of that old Carnival reputation.:rolleyes:

 

 

Exactly! We're 50-somethings and have been sailing with Carnival (and other lines) for 18 years. There's a lot to be said for both the experience and value. Blanket statements don't help anyone.

[Sandi149]

Exactly! We're 50-somethings and have been sailing with Carnival (and other lines) for 18 years. There's a lot to be said for both the experience and value. Blanket statements don't help anyone.

 

I see you are an "equal opportunity cruiser" and have been on several lines. :D That's what I would like to do as well. For our next cruise we are looking into HAL. I hope to try most of the cruise lines in my lifetime. :p I love variety.

[patterson3]

Give me a break. Just because I or someone else prefers RCI over Carnival does not make them a snob. It means we prefer a different line for different reasons. If one has cruised both lines and has reason for liking one line over the other then that is their business. Also, you must not read the Carnival boards much as I have seen those same type of comments made about RCI but then maybe some that cruise Carnival have an inferiority complex and can't handle a little criticism. :rolleyes:

 

wow, i think you misunderstood my point. I never said anyone who prefers RCI to Carnival is a "snob"....I have no problem with anyone who prefers one line to another. And I have nothing bad to say about Royal Caribbean. (Only a few of their customers who feel the need to constantly (and misguidedly) knock Carnival. But I will agree with you regarding Carnival fans who are extremely sensitive- there are an awful lot of those out there (and around here)...

[GottaLuvCruising]

I see you are an "equal opportunity cruiser" and have been on several lines. :D That's what I would like to do as well. For our next cruise we are looking into HAL. I hope to try most of the cruise lines in my lifetime. :p I love variety.

 

Never met a cruise I didn't like! (But NCL is my least favorite.) We haven't tried HAL yet, but maybe we'll join you!

[sassyredhat]

Heck you guys-------I wish HAL sailed from Galveston !!

DH doesn't fly, and we have to Amtrak or drive from California.

 

The other lines pulled out because it wasn't cost effective.

I read that somewhere.

 

Pat

[rlkubi]

Have you been on the Conquest? That is a fantastic ship. As you can see we've sailed on Carnival 8 times and HAL 1 time. I love Carnival! I did not like HAL at all. It just wasn't for me. The whole time we were on the cruise I kept saying -- I miss the Fun Ship! My husband and I are in our early 50's and are not "partiers". We drink but not much at all. We don't see a lot of partiers on the ships at all. Unfortunately, Carnival gets a bad rap for some reason. I had heard very bad things before I'd cruised with them but none of them are true. We were on the Spirit a few weeks ago during spring break but had no problems at all. I think if you take a 3-4 day you have more problems.

 

Good luck with whatever you decide. Have fun!:)

[RetireeWannabee]

I guess it's hard for me to consider passing on a cruise just because of the cruiseline and their target demographics.

 

I s'pose it comes down to why a person cruises. I'm there for the itinerary. I don't care who else is on board - ships are large, I can avoid the obnoxious. We're not party into the wee hours people and if we wanna go dance, I don't really need 10 other "fun" couples in there. I can get along with most anybody so don't need to increase my chances of Type X people at my dinner table.

 

I will say, however, that I avoid holidays and school breaks. Has more to do with disliking crowds and wanting cheaper fares than anything else. Our land trips are also off-season.

 

Each sailing is going to be a whole new bag of mixed nuts. Hardly matters to me as the sea mist will be the same no matter who is sitting beside me or how great (or un-great?) the staff is. I guess I just don't worry about these things. So far for me, any cruise is a great cruise, and all the better if I've saved money by going on this ship vs another.

[cruisemamma99]

Actually I think it depends on the research you do, I always get the reviews on CC and then go on Expedia, Travelocity, ect. Compare the ships, what have you; so to date we have had all great cruises. Our friends don't do that, and when they went on the Carnival Spirit with us couldn't believe how nice that cruise was - they said they enjoyed it more than the Princess one they had done the year before. They went on a HAL one last year, and weren't too thrilled plus it was a family reunion and one of the teenagers had a slight fever so instead of just banning the teen and mother they REFUSED all 10 people aboard, which is way over the top imo. However, our friends got on earlier in the day so lucky for them. But mostly you have to do the research on ships and cruises imo.

[GCurry]

Have you been on the Conquest? That is a fantastic ship. As you can see we've sailed on Carnival 8 times and HAL 1 time. I love Carnival! I did not like HAL at all. It just wasn't for me. The whole time we were on the cruise I kept saying -- I miss the Fun Ship! My husband and I are in our early 50's and are not "partiers". We drink but not much at all. We don't see a lot of partiers on the ships at all. Unfortunately, Carnival gets a bad rap for some reason. I had heard very bad things before I'd cruised with them but none of them are true. We were on the Spirit a few weeks ago during spring break but had no problems at all. I think if you take a 3-4 day you have more problems.

Good luck with whatever you decide. Have fun!:)

How do you compare the Spirit & Conquest? We sailed on the Spirit this past January; 8 days on the Mex Riviera and had a good cruise. The ship was very nicely designed, and the itinerary was a good one. We had the best beach party ever in Zihuan/Ixtapa with other CC cruisers. The specialty restaurant was excellent but at $30 per person the highest we've seen.

 

Our problem with Spirit was the lack of dancing opportunities. There were nice floors all around the ship, but no music until late. We enjoy dancing before dinner with late seating and the only place you could do that was up in the specialty dining room. Their main dance floor & combo was in a club underneath the theater and they weren't allowed to play during show times.

Conquest homeports in Galveston, but we've been twice out of here on the Grand instead.

 

Much like you enjoy Carnival, Princess and HAL are a better cruise for us.

[Sandi149]

How do you compare the Spirit & Conquest? We sailed on the Spirit this past January; 8 days on the Mex Riviera and had a good cruise. The ship was very nicely designed, and the itinerary was a good one. We had the best beach party ever in Zihuan/Ixtapa with other CC cruisers. The specialty restaurant was excellent but at $30 per person the highest we've seen.

 

Our problem with Spirit was the lack of dancing opportunities. There were nice floors all around the ship, but no music until late. We enjoy dancing before dinner with late seating and the only place you could do that was up in the specialty dining room. Their main dance floor & combo was in a club underneath the theater and they weren't allowed to play during show times.

Conquest homeports in Galveston, but we've been twice out of here on the Grand instead.

 

Much like you enjoy Carnival, Princess and HAL are a better cruise for us.

 

Didn't they have any bands in the lounge next to the Sports Bar? I was on the Miracle (sister ship) and there was a wonderful live band playing in there in the evening. Plus they had a classical trio in the atrium lobby. I know you can't dance to classical, but it was really nice to listen to.

[Handsome58]

Why can't people choose one over the other without putting down the one they did not choose. We all have our likes and dis-likes. I think people get upset when people have to make bad comments to bolster their choice. Just say I like Carnival and may you have fun and like what ever Line you want. Or vice-versa.....................I do not get the Line bashing.

[GCurry]

Didn't they have any bands in the lounge next to the Sports Bar? I was on the Miracle (sister ship) and there was a wonderful live band playing in there in the evening. Plus they had a classical trio in the atrium lobby. I know you can't dance to classical, but it was really nice to listen to.

Regrettably they did not, they had 2 piano players circulating around from bar to bar and the ships combo played in the Versailles Lounge when there wasn't a performance above, but they didn't start until 9. I remember one lady forcing them to play a waltz, they did it, but they weren't real happy about it as they were a light rock trio.

The duo in the specialty restaurant started at 7 and played light rock.

They did have a combo from the performance band playing at the Captain's Party, but only for 30 min, and only Foxtrots, which are fine but there's a lot more to ballroom then that.

In many ways it resembled Dancing With The Stars; we would try to adapt a dance to some off the wall music, like doing a Tango to the German Chicken Dance!!

 

Princess and HAL both had combos starting at 5:30 for cocktail hour. Princess would rotate combos through the evening, we'll see how HAL compares these days on our next cruise.

Actually, one of the best dance cruises we had was a 10 day on the old NCL Wind around Hawaii, but that was about the only thing NCL did well.

 

Let me just say that Carnival Spirit didn't do a lot for dancers, but that was our problem not theirs.

[ChBoxers800]

Why can't people choose one over the other without putting down the one they did not choose. We all have our likes and dis-likes. I think people get upset when people have to make bad comments to bolster their choice. Just say I like Carnival and may you have fun and like what ever Line you want. Or vice-versa.....................I do not get the Line bashing.

 

I'm with you. Have cruised Carnival, RCL, HA and most recently NCL. Frankly, I enjoyed them all. Must say that NCL is my favorite right now as I'm getting better offers for future cruises from them due to gambling on recent cruise. And I enjoy freestyle.

 

But, I would go on any of the other lines in a heartbeat if they offered the intinerary and price I was looking for.

 

It is certainly fine to be loyal to your line of choice, but just because you don't care for another line is no reason to trash them or the people who enjoy them.

 

That's what makes the world go round...different strokes for different folks.

[momofmeg]

How do you compare the Spirit & Conquest? We sailed on the Spirit this past January; 8 days on the Mex Riviera and had a good cruise. The ship was very nicely designed, and the itinerary was a good one. We had the best beach party ever in Zihuan/Ixtapa with other CC cruisers. The specialty restaurant was excellent but at $30 per person the highest we've seen.

 

Our problem with Spirit was the lack of dancing opportunities. There were nice floors all around the ship, but no music until late. We enjoy dancing before dinner with late seating and the only place you could do that was up in the specialty dining room. Their main dance floor & combo was in a club underneath the theater and they weren't allowed to play during show times.

Conquest homeports in Galveston, but we've been twice out of here on the Grand instead.

 

Much like you enjoy Carnival, Princess and HAL are a better cruise for us.

 

I haven't been on a conquest class ship but I have been told it holds 1000 more PAX but there are no more lounges, the lido area is the same size-so it gets VERY congested.

 

I disliked the voyager class ships very much for this very reason and I was told the conquest class is much worse by several people who have been on both voyager class and conquest class.

[Scooter-n-GB]

One ship is a lot more than most ports in this country have. What I would give to have an extra $300 a person, not getting spent on airfare to get from Maine to wherever (even NY is $180). :cool:

[Chigirlcruzin]

Give me a break. Just because I or someone else prefers RCI over Carnival does not make them a snob. It means we prefer a different line for different reasons. If one has cruised both lines and has reason for liking one line over the other then that is their business. Also, you must not read the Carnival boards much as I have seen those same type of comments made about RCI but then maybe some that cruise Carnival have an inferiority complex and can't handle a little criticism. :rolleyes:

 

I don't think the poster was referring to people like you. Your posts are always very fair. Yes, you prefer other cruiselines. Absolutely nothing wrong with that. I have a problem when people say things like the people that sail on Carnival as a bunch of classless slobs (and it bugs me even more when they've never set foot on a Carnival ship). And the same thing goes when people refer to RCI people as snobs;)

[Rouge Wave]

Friends don't let friends sail Carnival.

 

I'll keep your helpful advice in mind......

[Sandi149]

I don't think the poster was referring to people like you. Your posts are always very fair. Yes, you prefer other cruiselines. Absolutely nothing wrong with that. I have a problem when people say things like the people that sail on Carnival as a bunch of classless slobs (and it bugs me even more when they've never set foot on a Carnival ship). And the same thing goes when people refer to RCI people as snobs

 

I agree....Cruisingator is always fair. He has taken I think 16 Carnival cruises...not totally sure, but I think that's about right.

 

Although he thinks that I'm a Carnival cheerleader :p (Gordon this post is for you :D) but how can I be when I've only taken 2 Carnival cruises. What I am is a fair person. Yes I did love both my Carnival cruises. Will I sail on other cruiselines? You bet!!!! :D Will I sail on Carnival again.....absolutely!!!! For my next cruise I'm looking into HAL and I want to try RCL, Princess and NCL and eventually the more upscale lines, Seabourn and Regent. I know that I will have a great time on all of the lines that I sail because I absolutely love going on vacation. I may be a newbie to cruising, but I'm certainly not a newbie to land vacations. I've been to several countries in Europe, Mexico, the Caribbean, Canada and a several states here in the US.

 

I have a really big problem with people that call Carnival cruisers a bunch of slobs and lowclass people because my husband and I are hardly that. If a person does not like Carnival because they think the food is bad, the service is bad, the entertainment is bad, etc.....that is fine, they are certainly entitled to their opinon. I just have a problem when they call people that sail Carnival lowclass and make fun of us. Reminds me of kindergarten kids.:rolleyes: Unfortunately a few people on this site fit that bill. :( If a person doesn't like Carnival, that is fine....don't sail on them......just don't make fun of us. Different strokes for different folks.:)

[Fredr]

Hello,

 

Carnival provides a cruise experience for those who are not interested in the traditional aspects of a cruise. By traditional I mean an emphasis on good food, service, romance, and interesting itineraries. Carnival emphasizes fun in the sun, or the vacation aspect of a cruise, instead of an emphasis on travel by sea. And Carnival provides this to a very significant number of persons who choose their product year after year.

 

As someone who truly enjoys the travel aspects of cruising, that is, listening to classical music and excellent dinner conversation, I would not choose to go on a Carnival cruise (my DW and I went on one several years ago with our children). Carnival appeals to one segment of the cruise world very successfully, but it is not for me. I am not a snob nor do I think persons who like Carnival are beneath me or my wife. They want something different and their money is as good as yours or mine.

 

My point...let Carnival be Carnival. Those who want to vacation first, please select a Carnival ship and surely you will have a great time. Wear shorts in the dining room, swimsuits anywhere and at any time, and drink as much as you want to and anywhere on the ship. And your formal nights ended with the high school prom.

 

Others who want a comprehensive travel experience that includes a cruise, should select the other cruise lines.

 

Posts on this board are not going to change anything , but all of us including travel agents should do our research and go on cruises that most fit our needs and wants.

 

Hope that this helps,

 

Fred