Monday, April 22, 2024

Carnival Cruise Line guide: Everything to know about ships, itineraries and more

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Each of the line's earlier Conquest Class ships has around 50 suites. The oldest Fantasy Class vessels have 28 suites and 26 junior suites. In recent years, Carnival also has deployed two of its vessels to Australia to operate voyages from Sydney and Brisbane. In a departure from Carnival's American-focused business model, the Australia sailings are aimed mostly at the local Australian market, though they are open to American travelers.

You don't have to pay all at once

The typical Carnival cruise along the coast of Australia includes stops at Airlie Beach, Cairns and Willis Island. Some longer Australia voyages add in stops at Port Douglas or Moreton Island. At least a couple of Carnival ships typically sail to Bermuda every year between May and October. Carnival is one of the leaders in cruises to the Mexican Riviera — the string of resort towns running down the west coast of Mexico.

Carnival cruise ship rescues nearly 30 people from adrift vessel

In addition, Carnival has introduced a few new room options on some ships like — Havana rooms, Cloud 9 rooms, and the Family Harbor cabins. Personally, we like to stick with newer ships (those built around 2010 and later). To us, these ships simply offer “more” of everything to passengers.

Take advantage of drive-to cruise ports

As one of the more budget-friendly cruise lines, it’s given the ability for people to travel the Caribbean and have a great time for sometimes less than $70 per day. In fact, among the mass-market cruise lines, it offers the most variety of free dining options. While it also has specialty restaurants, Carnival still keeps many of the most popular restaurants free. Family Harbor cabins are similar to Havana room in that they also offer their own theme (classic nautical, complete with lots of signal flags) and their own exclusive space.

Price of Cruises

The giants of cruising to Alaska are Princess Cruises and Holland America, which are sister lines to Carnival that control a large percentage of the market. Still, Carnival has sent more vessels to Alaska in recent years than in the past, and for 2023, it has three ships sailing to the destination. Carnival is all about relatively short, affordable cruises from U.S. ports. You'll find at least one of its ships sailing out of pretty much every major port city around the country, but it's rare to find them based anywhere else.

Watch sailaway from a secret deck

You might picture a chain hotel “gym” when you sail, but cruise ship gyms are well-stocked and usually located in one of the best places on the ship. Waterslides/WaterparkShips will often have waterslides or even waterparks. No one would confuse these spots with massive land-based parks, but they are plenty for kids on a cruise. One thing to note is that for pools and waterparks your kids need to be potty-trained before they are allowed to use the area. In general, however, Carnival comes in less expensive on many cruises.

Request tables early for open-seating dining

Note that it is important that the name on your reservation be exactly as it is stated on your passport or other official proof of nationality. All this said, we recommend checking Carnival's website before sailing for the very latest on requirements. The top decks of Carnival vessels are covered in family-focused attractions – pools, waterslide areas and bustling fun zones with such draws as ropes courses and miniature golf. When it comes to raucous, though, nothing on Carnival ships quite compares to the frequent karaoke nights on board. Sometimes held in a secondary lounge or a shipboard pub, karaoke on Carnival draws a big crowd. Passengers come prepared with rehearsed songs and sometimes even their own guitars.

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Carnival Cruise Lines

The two venues have flat fees of $49 and $24 per person, respectively. That said, Carnival has seen the success that some of its competitors have had with a bigger range of upscale accommodations, and it's eyeing more suites for future vessels. The new Mardi Gras and Carnival Celebration each have 180 suites — more than twice the number of Carnival's other recent ships.

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Most vessels have standard North American-style, 110-volt outlets in rooms, as well as European-style, 220-volt outlets. Most Carnival ships have self-serve launderettes on cabin decks with washing machines, dryers, irons and ironing boards. The launderettes also have vending machines that dispense small boxes of detergent and water softener at $1.50 per box. On most ships, smoking (including electronic cigarettes) is only allowed in designated outdoor areas and in casinos and nightclubs.

More recently the cruise line has added ships sailing from Australia and Europe, offering more departures. Instead, like most cruise lines in this corner of the market, the overall atmosphere is relaxed, warm, and fun. Hang out poolside on the first day and you’ll see the energetic staff leading line dances to help people let loose a little bit. Most restaurants are casual where you can get a bite to eat without having to worry how to pronounce half the menu. Of course, having wide appeal means you’ll find all sorts of passengers on the ships. You’ll find couples getting married… couples celebrating honeymoons… couple celebrating 50th anniversaries.

carnival cruise reddit

It's a fun-at-sea focus that has gone to new levels over the past two years with the debut of Mardi Gras and Carnival Celebration, each of which has — get this — a roller coaster on the top deck. At 800 feet in length, these aren't the biggest roller coasters ever. For the most part, Carnival ships don't have quite as many features on board as Royal Caribbean or Norwegian vessels, in part because they're not as big.

Carnival ships are all about fun in a very laid-back, unpretentious, nothing-too-fancy sort of way. Half Moon Cay, Carnival's private island in the Bahamas, is a great stop for a beach day. Its shores are full of soft, white sand, but there's not much shade to be found for those of us who burn easily. Carnival puts special emphasis on live music, and you can often find a solo artist or small ensemble performing in the atrium, casino, bar areas or by the pool.

Sailing from Los Angeles usually means shorter trips to the western Mexico ports such as Ensenada. Many spots include bright colors (even neon on some ships) that liven things up. Or select a Havana room on Carnival’s newer ships and you’ll be greeting by a waving senorita painted next to your cabin door. For the most part, Carnival ships sail relatively short voyages of three to eight nights. Some of Carnival's East Coast-based ships also sail to Bermuda, New England and Canada. For Carnival ships based on the West Coast, sailings to Mexico, Hawaii and Alaska are the norm.

Nathan Diller is a consumer travel reporter for USA TODAY based in Nashville. The news comes after Celebrity Cruises’ Celebrity Apex ship rescued seven people in a small vessel adrift between Cuba and Mexico earlier this month. Another Carnival ship, Carnival Jubilee, also rescued two people stuck in a kayak off the coast of Mexico’s Isla Mujeres in January. Carnival ships are all about fun, in a lively, let's-not-take-this-too-seriously sort of way.

That's about 40% smaller than the biggest ships operated by Royal Caribbean. Many fun drinks come in souvenir glasses, especially at Carnival's poolside bars. What you're going to do with a container that's shaped like Carnival's iconic split funnel once you're back home is anyone's guess. They'll even pass the bottles from one restaurant to the next, so you can order something special in the steakhouse and finish it in the main dining room the next night. The app is free, and you do not need a cruise ship internet plan to access it. A couple of evenings will be deemed Cruise Elegant, but you don't need a tux.

A slightly more expensive "value" plan, at $19.55 per day when bought in advance, adds access to email and most websites. Carnival also offers dedicated tween and teen programs on ships for children aged 12 to 17. The younger children in this age range (12-14) are grouped into what's known as Circle C and have their own dedicated lounge on ships.

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