CARNIVAL VS DCL: The discussion and comparison thread!

[we"reofftoneverland]

OK, found another of my favorite pictures. I made them recreate Titanic. Couldn't get them to touch each other with a ten foot pole now.

So cute!!

 

[Club Disney Chandler]

Havana Bar on Elegant Night



Serenity Deck

 

[Club Disney Chandler]

I was just looking through a bunch of our pictures from our Vista cruises and was reminiscing about the 22 amazing nights we’ve spent on her and some of the great people we’ve met. As I was thinking and looking, it made me realize how diverse all the Carnival guests are, we really have met people from all walks of life, from every corner of the earth and at every stage in their life. The average guest just wants to let loose and have some fun for a few days. There really is a reason they call them the FUN ships.

I also think one of the major differences between DCL and CCL is on DCL, the staff does an amazing job of entertaining us the whole time. Whereas on CCL, they provide us with a setting to entertain ourselves and gives a lot more opportunities to let loose. It seems there is always some type of party going on, whether it be an 80’s or other decade party on deck, or a party in the atrium with Mardi Gras beads after one of the nightly shows. We just have so much fun and laugh all the time on CCL. On DCL, we still have fun but it’s a scripted fun, not an impromptu fun.

 

[mevelandry]

I was just looking through a bunch of our pictures from our Vista cruises and was reminiscing about the 22 amazing nights we’ve spent on her and some of the great people we’ve met. As I was thinking and looking, it made me realize how diverse all the Carnival guests are, we really have met people from all walks of life, from every corner of the earth and at every stage in their life. The average guest just wants to let loose and have some fun for a few days. There really is a reason they call them the FUN ships.

I also think one of the major differences between DCL and CCL is on DCL, the staff does an amazing job of entertaining us the whole time. Whereas on CCL, they provide us with a setting to entertain ourselves and gives a lot more opportunities to let loose. It seems there is always some type of party going on, whether it be an 80’s or other decade party on deck, or a party in the atrium with Mardi Gras beads after one of the nightly shows. We just have so much fun and laugh all the time on CCL. On DCL, we still have fun but it’s a scripted fun, not an impromptu fun.

I'll second what you said about diversity. My DH and I joke a lot about the lack of diversity of DCL guests. Feeling much more comfortable with the Carnival crowd. I feel more "at home" too.

I also agree with what you said regarding the entertainment. And I would add that parts of the biggest difference for me is that With the exception of alcohol tasting, all entertainment on DCL is Disney themed while there is more variety on Carnival. This is what appeals to us the most.

 

[mevelandry]

Havana Bar on Elegant Night



Serenity Deck

What a good looking family!

And boy, do I miss that Serenity deck!

 

[we"reofftoneverland]

Havana Bar on Elegant Night

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Serenity Deck

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Awesome!

 

[RedSox68]

I don’t understand how other people can turn you off a Disney cruise. I go because I love Disney and the service I get. I’ve never met a mean person on the actual cruise ship.

Then you have been very fortunate.

 

[skittlesfirehawk]

Then you have been very fortunate.

I Doubt that. It’s families looking to have fun and Parents looking to get drunk.

 

[RedSox68]

I Doubt that. It’s families looking to have fun and Parents looking to get drunk.

In 10 Disney cruises, we have met some not very nice people, both children and adults, and one or two not very nice crew members! It happens on any ship with that many people, but Disney is not above it's passenger problems We've even seen disruptions in the terminal pre-cruise by rowdy "privileged" passengers who are making a scene over simple things. Funny thing is, we've seen far more drunks on Disney than we have on Carnival, NCL, Princess or HAL!

 

[skittlesfirehawk]

My only reservation besides not getting the quality and same level of service Disney provides is every time the cruise industry is in the news it’s almost always something horrible has happened like the whole ship getting noro and it’s carnival

 

[RedSox68]

My only reservation besides not getting the quality and same level of service Disney provides is every time the cruise industry is in the news it’s almost always something horrible has happened like the whole ship getting noro and it’s carnival

Disney Wonder had an outbreak of Norovirus in 2016 -- they just cover it up better If you check out this site, Carnival is listed very little compared to other lines like HAL and Princess. https://www.cdc.gov/nceh/vsp/surv/GIlist.htm

 

[DynamicDisneyDuo]

My only reservation besides not getting the quality and same level of service Disney provides is every time the cruise industry is in the news it’s almost always something horrible has happened like the whole ship getting noro and it’s carnival

This is caused by several things. One, Carnival operates one of the largest (if not the largest) fleets of cruise ships so they are statistically more likely to encounter issues. Two, Carnival generally has a bad reputation so the news is going to go looking for things like that. Third, in the era of social media anyone can complain to a worldwide audience about their issue even if it was in the larger view a minor thing.

 

[skittlesfirehawk]

So my jaw just dropped I can get almost same dates I have on dcl for 1k less in a “grand master suite” on the carnival liberty. So where’s do they get “get you” so to speak?

 

[mevelandry]

Then you have been very fortunate.

Right? We even had a moody server on our first cruise!

 

[Club Disney Chandler]

So my jaw just dropped I can get almost same dates I have on dcl for 1k less in a “grand master suite” on the carnival liberty. So where’s do they get “get you” so to speak?

They really don’t. On our Mediterranean cruise on the Vista, we had a final bill of $160.00, that was for a couple souvenirs, some bingo and a couple non-alcoholic drinks. We also pre-paid gratuity, so that wasn’t added on. Also, with Carnival, you pay for your excursions when you book them online ahead of time, so that isn’t added on at the end. If you do need to cancel them, you get it all back as long as you cancel with proper notice.

The single biggest thing you have to do with a Carnival cruise is pick a good ship and go into it with an open mind. You cannot go in thinking it’s going to be the same experience as DCL. You don’t have to lower your expectations, just know it’s going to be a different experience, but a good one at the same time.

 

[RedSox68]

Right? We even had a moody server on our first cruise!

Yeah -- we had one server who was so obsessed that this was his last cruise before his leave, that he spent most of the dinner hours missing -- many nights we left without dessert and other nights he was too busy running around telling other servers and guests how he was leaving and couldn't wait that our dinner orders were waylayed!

 

[RedSox68]

They really don’t. On our Mediterranean cruise on the Vista, we had a final bill of $160.00, that was for a couple souvenirs, some bingo and a couple non-alcoholic drinks. We also pre-paid gratuity, so that wasn’t added on. Also, with Carnival, you pay for your excursions when you book them online ahead of time, so that isn’t added on at the end. If you do need to cancel them, you get it all back as long as you cancel with proper notice.

The single biggest thing you have to do with a Carnival cruise is pick a good ship and go into it with an open mind. You cannot go in thinking it’s going to be the same experience as DCL. You don’t have to lower your expectations, just know it’s going to be a different experience, but a good one at the same time.

And if you get the Carnival Visa, you can earn some good onboard credit!

 

[mevelandry]

My only reservation besides not getting the quality and same level of service Disney provides is every time the cruise industry is in the news it’s almost always something horrible has happened like the whole ship getting noro and it’s carnival

Don't believe that: it's 100% fake news.

If you want to know the real informations regarding noro outbreaks, you will find it here:

https://www.cdc.gov/nceh/vsp/surv/gilist.htm

EDIT: I just noticed the link has been posted before. But, you can never share the right informations enough these days!

 

[mevelandry]

So my jaw just dropped I can get almost same dates I have on dcl for 1k less in a “grand master suite” on the carnival liberty. So where’s do they get “get you” so to speak?

Some options have fees, like soda pop packages instead of free soda.

 

[mevelandry]

The single biggest thing you have to do with a Carnival cruise is pick a good ship and go into it with an open mind. You cannot go in thinking it’s going to be the same experience as DCL. You don’t have to lower your expectations, just know it’s going to be a different experience, but a good one at the same time.

I second that. They work differently but when you know what to expect and the main differences, you can appreciate the product even though it's different from what you know (from DCL).