Carnival Cruise Ship Classes?

Question

What do the different classes mean are there better ships than the others in their fleet? I am looking to book a cruise soon to the western carribean in January with my wife and two kids 9 and 7 how is the weather there in Jan and how is the feel for kids on board far as other passagers not taking in mind that there are kids on board?

Answer 1

Holiday class = Small ships

Fantasy class = medium

Destiny class = Huge

spirit class= large

Conquest class= Hugest

Future ships= Larger that the other ones

I took a cruise to the bahamas in Late December and the weather was nice and hot. And theres is like this little camp thing that they do with the kids so they wont get lost. They have these little arm bands and stuff ( i Can't remember Exaclty but something like that) They had stuff in place so that your children won't get lost or anything

Answer 2

"Class" in this case means type of ship and, generally, size of ship.

For lots of info on cruising, go to CruiseCritic.com, click on "Boards" and then your area of interest.  At the top of the page there is also a "Cruise Styles" section that discusses cruises based on suitability for kids, couples, etc.  

Check out the "Ports of Call" board for lots of tips on excursions, both through the ship and on your own.  Depending on which ports you're visiting, it's less-expensive and nicer to do your own excursions, if you feel comfortable with that.  Grand Cayman and Cozumel are very easy and safe to do on your own.  In Jamaica, I wouldn't do a trip independently, unless you decide to simply walk over to Island Village/Margaritaville [see website if you're interested], and even then you'll be hounded by locals trying to sell you stuff [legal and not]; but it's only a five-minute walk over there, so it's not too bad.  If you do go on your own you MUST make sure you get back to the ship on time.  This is especially important in GC, as that is a tender port and it takes longer.

To get an idea of what the different Carnival ships are like and what past cruisers think of them, click on "Reviews" at CC.  Be sure and read the "Member Reviews", as well as the ones by the pros.

The weather in the Caribbean doesn't vary all that much year round, although January would probably be the coldest month in most locations.  Another consideration is rain, although while you're on the ship that won't be a problem, unless you wanted to sit around the pool all day.  The WeatherChannel.com has a guide to "average" weather in locations all over the world [see top of the page, where there's a search for location button].

Depending on when in January you are going, there may not be that many kids on board.  New Year's week is one of the busiest and most-expensive weeks to cruise, but after that things slow down as far as families cruising with kids.

Hope you have a great cruise!!

Answer 3

It cost money to design a ship.  So if the design can be used for more than one ship, then the cost of designing the ship can be spread out over several ships.  Since each ship is using the same design, each ship looks more or less like the others that share the same design.  By this I mean the structure of the ship is the same.  The color scheme and the names of the public areas might be different however.

Ships that share the same design are referred to as sisters.  The ships also are said to be of the same class.  The name of the class is the name given to the first ship.  Currently Carnival has five classes of ships:

Holiday class - Holiday, Celebration and Jubilee (the Jubilee is no longer part of the Carnival fleet).

http://inlinethumb58.webshots.com/39545/...

Fantasy class - Fantasy, Fascination, Ecstasy, Elation, Imagination, Inspiration, Paradise and Sensation.

http://inlinethumb64.webshots.com/42559/...

Spirit class - Spirit, Pride, Miracle & Legend.

http://inlinethumb55.webshots.com/41462/...

Destiny class - Destiny, Triumph & Victory.

http://inlinethumb37.webshots.com/39844/...

Conquest class - Conquest, Glory, Valor, Liberty & Freedom.

http://inlinethumb43.webshots.com/11050/...

If you have been on one ship in a class, you will have no trouble finding your way around a different ship of the same class.  However, ships from different classes are different.  As a result some people prefer one class over another, because they like the layout or the amenities available on one class when compared to another class.  

The Holiday class is Carnival's oldest and smallest class.  These two ships are not being upgraded and will soon be leaving Carnival's fleet.  These ships were built between 1985 and 1987.

The Fantasy class is Carnival's next oldest and smallest class.  These ships are being upgraded (redesigned while in dry dock) and are used by Carnival for its three, four and five night cruises.  These ships were built between 1990 and 1998.

The Spirit class is smaller than the Destiny class.  However, the Spirit class is newer than the Destiny class.  The Spirit class ships are Panamax sized, meaning that they are the largest ships that can fit through the Panama Canal (until 2014 when the Panama Canal will have larger locks installed).    These ships were built between 2001 and 2004.

The Destiny was the first ship to exceed 100,000 gross tons (gross tons is a space rating, not a weight rating).  It was built in 1996 and was the largest cruise ship afloat until 1998.  The other two ships were built in 1999 and 2000.

The Conquest class is currently Carnival's largest class at 110,000 gross tons.  These ships were built between 2002 and 2007.  

Later this year the Carnival Splendor will begin sailing.  At 112,000 gross tons it will be the largest ship in Carnival's fleet (until next year when the 130,000 gross ton Carnival Dream begins sailing).

Whether one class is better than another class is dependent on personal taste.  Some people prefer the smaller ships and thus like the Holiday class.  Some people prefer the larger ships and thus prefer the Conquest class.  I like the layout of the Spirit class myself.  

The temperature of the Caribbean does not vary much from season to season.  Thus in the winter it might average in the mid 70s and in the summer it might average in the mid 80s.  

http://caribbean-guide.info/weather/

Of course from June through November is hurricane season in the Caribbean.

Anyone sailing on a Carnival ship is going to expect to see kids.  Carnival is a family oriented cruise line.  There might be only 100 to 150 kids on board during the traditional school year (as opposed to 600 - 800 during school vacation), but no one cruises on Carnival expecting that there will be no children on board.

Answer 4

kids will have their own activity on board  , book asap, for up grades on cabins and  with kids take Early seating for  meals  try for a coke program (2.00) each on board be careful  cost rise quickly