The Cruise Ship and Cruise Line Discussion Thread!

[davisal771]

All fixed. I hope

[LoopLover]

My favourite ship - I have come to conclusion that my favourite ship is the Thomson Spirit. Although it isn't the most majestic and spectacular looking vessel it has a nice interior and spacious all round deck 6!

 

Onboard you can find a two floored show lounge, 3 Bars, 3 restaurants, Cabins, Shops, Cinema, Cyber lounge and small Library.

 

The ship also features deck games like shuffleboard and netted sports areas on the top deck!

 

So here is a picture of her-

Thomson Spirit

 

Stephen --- Cruising around --- Hamilton

[MrMorgan]

Hey everyone. I finished the final part of my cruise video series. This time it's all about the ship, (Monarch of the Seas).

 

 

In other news, I called the "workshop" in the harbor today and they confirmed that the Disney Dream would be arriving for inspections on Monday. The woman I talked to was not very friendly, though, and could (would) not tell me the exact time of the arrival. I will keep checking the webcams all morning though because I want to get over there and get some good pictures before they put it in the drydock.

[ginzo]

^Nice video, Morgan. There's so much utter shit on YT. It's nice to see content being shot by people who don't have the DTs.

[MrMorgan]

^Nice video, Morgan. There's so much utter poo-poo on YT. It's nice to see content being shot by people who don't have the DTs.

 

 

Thanks, man! I really enjoy making these videos and, to tell you the truth, got inspired to start creating "vacation videos" by discovering TPR way back when. I owe it all to Robb and Elissa...

Anyways, I like to do it because it makes the vacation last longer, and I love to help people have a good time on their trips. I've made guide videos to all the Disney parks in FL, (a few years older already), and will soon be posting my latest vids of Universal and IOA, as well as the big indoor waterparks in Wisconsin Dells.

 

Back to the topic of cruises. I realised that I missed showing the main bars onboard the Monarch of the Seas; The Circuit, the Schooner Bar, and the Viking Crown Lounge. Each of them had their individual atmosphere, with The Circuit being more dance clubby, the Schooner being more piano lounge-y, and the Viking Crown being more fancy schmancy.

[Jojo19799]

Thanks for sharing this Morgan. I'm looking forward to your videos about the indoor water parks at Wisconsin Dells. I've spent a night at The Wilderness before, and I loved it. I'm afraid that I might have missed out on a couple of things though. That place is HUGE! However when I went, it was in the middle of January so obviously a lot of the outdoor stuff was closed, but we still had fun.

 

I do have one question though. When booking a cruise, is it best to do it directly with the cruise line, or is it better to do it with a site like Orbitz? Or does it not matter? I've found some pretty decent prices on both.

[MrMorgan]

Thanks for sharing this Morgan. I'm looking forward to your videos about the indoor water parks at Wisconsin Dells. I've spent a night at The Wilderness before, and I loved it. I'm afraid that I might have missed out on a couple of things though. That place is HUGE! However when I went, it was in the middle of January so obviously a lot of the outdoor stuff was closed, but we still had fun.

 

I do have one question though. When booking a cruise, is it best to do it directly with the cruise line, or is it better to do it with a site like Orbitz? Or does it not matter? I've found some pretty decent prices on both.

 

 

Hi Jojo! You know, as far as booking a cruise goes, (or a flight or a vacation package for that matter), I always tend to go the same route: I start by looking at Expedia or Southwest Vacations, (lots of cruise info there), until I narrow down what it is I want to do, and when. Then, I take the best few offers and compare them to the official websites of the places I want to go. I started looking for our cruise on Southwest and ended up clicking on a pop-up for the new "Way More Than A Cruise" site, which has some amazing deals on combo packages of cruise and Universal Orlando. Going to Universal wasn't originally part of the plan, but because it was so economical to add it on, we did it. Anyways, long story short- check the discount site of your choice, and when you have it narrowed down, always compare the offers to the official site.

[davisal771]

My SD card is not agreeing with my computer for some reason so no part 2

[MrMorgan]

OH DAMN! I just got word from the harbor that the Disney Dream is drifting in tonight at 4AM! Aaahahahhhhhhhhh. Why so early! Not sure if it's really worth getting up at 3:30 in the middle of the night just to see it arrive, as it will be in the dry dock in the morning. I really want to see it actually "moving" though. What would you do?

[disneyfan1313]

^ Please post some pictures either way!!! That would be awesome to see. January 26th can't come soon enough!

[MrMorgan]

^ Please post some pictures either way!!! That would be awesome to see. January 26th can't come soon enough!

 

I will be going to the harbor this afternoon to take some video and still shots, and this will be the first place I post them! If you can't wait until then, you can see a small sliver of the ship on this webcam:

 

http://www.deutschland-webcam.de/webcams/details-411.html

 

Lots more coming soon!

[Bush985]

We just got off the Celebrity Solstice yesterday from our 7 Day Voyage to the Eastern Caribbean. WOW! What an amazing boat. Just looking at the Carnival photos a few pages prior and comparing to the Solstice it's amazing the differences in quality.

 

I will try to write somewhat of a review later on, I need to head off to work now.

 

If you haven't tried the Solstice or any of that class I would give it a try, what an amazing boat.

[SharkTums]

^Can't wait to hear about it! Seems you 'lucked out' with that Carnival fire!

[CHILLERLC1]

My parents took pics of the disaster ship that came back to San Diego during their San Diego vacation earlier this month.

[derek_lentz]

Just another way of saying Goodby

 

CIAO

[Brad]

I am needing some help deciding on which cruise to take in late April, early May, 2011.

 

My situation is a bit odd as half of our group will be leaving from the East Coast and the other half from Anchorage, Alaska. Hence, we will be looking for a cruise leaving from either Los Angeles (and surrounding area) or San Diego.

 

The two cruises that have peaked our interest are the following:

 

- 7-night Mexico Cruise from Los Angeles on NCL Star

 

- 7-night Mexico Cruise from Long Beach on Carnival Splendor

 

I have been on 1 cruise prior (5-night Carnival Fantasy out of NOLA), so I am in no way an avid cruiser. My main concern with NCL is the "freedom" you have with dining. We are not wanting to pay extra for our meals (maybe a one-night splurge) while on the ship, so are the included evening dining options just buffets and burgers or are there actual dining rooms that offer a good menu?

 

We are all younger (under 25), but do not necessarily fancy a "booze cruise".

 

Any advice on which to choose? Are transfers easy from LAX to those two ports?

[jray21]

I have never been on NCL or Carnival so I have no first hand experience, but a vast majority of people I have talked to (co-workers, family, trip boards) said that NCL is way better than Carnival, and that Carnival is almost entirely a booze cruise. I have also heard that Carnival is on the lower end of the quality scale. Again, this is just what I've heard so hopefully some actual cruises will respond and either tell me I am correct, or that I'm a complete idiot If it were me, I would pick NCL. My two cents.

[LoopLover]

Aren't Carnival the more outdated company now?

 

Their ships just seem to have successors every year. Don't listen to me though, I have only been on five cruises.

[CoasterPete]

I've never sailed on Carnival but allow me to offer my sisters perspective. Her and her boyfriend took their first cruise on the Carnival Magic. They came home raving about how great it was. They then sailed with us on NCL Dawn last January and have since said they much prefer NCL. Now that they experienced NCL, they felt the Carnival experience wasn't as good. I sailed on Royal Caribbean before NCL and I gotta say, NCL doesn't even come close to the experience and service of RC. So I would put NCL above Carnival but below RC based on these experiences. Again, I have never sailed on Carnival but definitely felt like a downgrade going from RC to NCL, where my sister felt NCL was an upgrade over Carnival.

 

Pete

[LoopLover]

^ I guess it just depends on what you like from a cruise.

 

I prefer taking pictures of other ships docked and visitng the bridge to sunbathing and chilling!

[tntornadox]

Exactly, everyone's tastes are different... some lines are more like shopping malls at sea while others are like Las Vegas at sea while others are just a nice relaxing floating hotel. Thankfully, just like theme parks, there is a cruise line out there for everyone!

[disneyfan1313]

Little late to the party - but are there any other options besides the NCL Star and Carnival? It might be worth investing a little more $$ for a better experience. If you have to stick with those two I would 100% choose the star. While it is not the highest regarded NCL ship, it should be a good time with a better balance of activities for everyone in your group compared to Carnival. NCL has a decent main dining room that is included in your cruise fare. While they promote the heck out of the "freestyle" options you can get away with only having the free food your entire vacation!

[Hilltopper39]

I have a quick 3 day cruise on the Carnival Sensation scheduled for January 6th traveling from Port Canaveral to Nassau and back with about 40 friends as part of a wedding/honeymoon cruise. I know carnival is not the greatest and Nassau is pretty much the worst but with our group it should be about perfect.

 

Im looking to book a real honeymoon cruise later in march or April of this year and have been considering Celebrity, Princess, and Norwegian. We are considering 5 days on the Celebrity Century or 7 days on the Celebrity Eclipse, 7 days on either the Crown Princess or Ruby Princess to easter and western Caribbean, or 7 days on one of the giant newer ships like the Norwegian epic or RCCL Oasis of the Seas. Any suggestions form the TRP cruise world? The princess and Celebrity cruises seem considerably cheaper than the Norwegian and Royal Caribbean even though to me they look a lot nicer.

[10ryansmith]

Hey, my family is doing a cruise next year but they have an issue, me. Im afraid of boats. Silly I know, but I cant even do the ferry from the Magic Kingdom parking lot to the main entrance. I have to use the monorail. There are going on the Western Caribbean Cruise - Disney Magic for a week. They are wanting an answer out of me beause if I go, I would cost almost 2 grand.

 

My question: Eventhough it is a ship, if I were to stay on the inside (no outside stuff), would it be like being in a hotel? I've stayed at the Four Seasons in Fiji and am fine with the looking out into the sea views, my issue is when I see that there is no land under where I am standing. I can handle seeing the ocean out away from me, what I dont like is when I look down the side and there is nothing but water.

 

All in all, Im a huge chicken when it comes to boats. Hate them with a passion but Im willing to take a change on one of these death traps. If, and thats a huge if, there is the slightest chance that I wouldnt think about being out on the water. If not then when the whole family hits Orlando International (including me), they would rent a van and drive to Cape Canaveral while I went to the Amtrak station in Orlando. I would get on the train to Tampa and spend three days at BGT. After that, I would board a train back to Indiana while the family would fly back. Im thinking the latter of the too but the family wants me to go with them.

 

Sorry for the huge post but I have no clue what to do. Thanks in advance.

[tntornadox]

I have a quick 3 day cruise on the Carnival Sensation scheduled for January 6th traveling from Port Canaveral to Nassau and back with about 40 friends as part of a wedding/honeymoon cruise. I know carnival is not the greatest and Nassau is pretty much the worst but with our group it should be about perfect.

 

Im looking to book a real honeymoon cruise later in march or April of this year and have been considering Celebrity, Princess, and Norwegian. We are considering 5 days on the Celebrity Century or 7 days on the Celebrity Eclipse, 7 days on either the Crown Princess or Ruby Princess to easter and western Caribbean, or 7 days on one of the giant newer ships like the Norwegian epic or RCCL Oasis of the Seas. Any suggestions form the TRP cruise world? The princess and Celebrity cruises seem considerably cheaper than the Norwegian and Royal Caribbean even though to me they look a lot nicer.

 

Well, Princess IS the 'love boat'...

 

Ruby Princess is their newest ship and her Eastern itinerary is awesome... with a stop at Princess Cays, their private island.