Carnival Cruises?

Question

We have chosen a destination wedding, and hope to leave from Gavelston Texas and visit Cozumel, Grand Cayman, and Montego Bay route on our wedding. Originally, we had chosen the Royal Caribbean cruiselines, but they do not sail out in August from Texas, only Carnival does. Unnfortunately, we cannot change the date too much as many of my family are either in school or teach and cannot take a week off unless it's during the summer.

Has anyone had any experience with their cruiseline? Was it good, bad, or ugly? Has anyone had them arrange their wedding at one of the ports? Was it nice? I would love to hear your experiences with the cruiseline. Thanks so much!

Answer 1

My wedding is booked on Carnival Fantasy. It's an onboard wedding..not a destination. Defiantly check out the cruisecritic.com forum. There are TONS of brides there to help you. I haven't heard any bad things about Carnival's onboard weddings.However I have heard MANY bad things when it comes to other cruise lines and destination weddings. Only because the other lines don't have have their own department like Carnival does and destination weddings are handled by "The Wedding Experience". It is an independent company that is hired to take care of the reception & ceremony. Alot of brides that are looking to get married on the port of call look into hiring local companies directly. They say it can be 1/3 less the price than going through the cruise lines and they have better results. It takes work..but they were all pleased they booked through independant planners on the islands.

Personally..I choose the onboard wedding so more guest could attend. Not everyone can afford to sail...so this maybe something you want to think about as well.

Answer 2

http://riveraramos.vacationmedia.net/

Answer 3

You should be fine.  CCL and RCCL both are about equal in quality.  The newer ships from both lines are fine,  the food and service is pretty good and there is enough varied activities to keep everyone happy.  There is also enough varied activities in the ports to keep everyone happy.

Answer 4

people say alot about Carnival , but i have taken 7 cruises with them and loved them all . they are great for young and old alike. see all the shows and do every thing on board . planing to take that same cruise in Feb next year myself ..book a grantee cabin Carnival is good for free upgrades. go see a travel agent, they can really help and you get a group kick back if you have 8 or more cabins..

Answer 5

I just came back from a cruise with Carnival Freedom. It was my first cruise and it exceeded my expectations. Nice stateroom and clean ship. I felt like in a hotel in Vegas *lol*

I can not complain about anything but I heard that Royal C. offers even better food. Unbelieveable, because everything tasted very good.

Answer 6

Carnival actually has a wedding planning service. You can go to the Carnival website type "weddings" in the search box and it will lead you to the wedding center (either on board or destination weddings) I've copied the web address below but typically the links don't work here. As for Carnival I personally love them having cruised 4 times in the last three years. I will be traveling transatlantic next year. The food is excellent and the accommodations are as best as can be expected for a ship. Carnival tends to be a younger crowd which means a louder more interactive cruise. But that doesn't mean your older guests wont enjoy themselves. The stage shows are first rate and there is always the casino. They can arrange port excursions that suit their tastes. So while you're in Cozumel partying at Charlie's, they can visit the Mayan Ruins or shop downtown. I'm sure everyone will have a great time. Be sure to check in for group rates and go to the carnival connections part of the site where you can plan the event. Have a great time and congratulations on your upcoming wedding.

Answer 7

Hi there. I was married on the Carnival Liberty and it was amazing! You have nothing to worry about. I was married in the Port Everglades.  Theres a great website you can read all about wedding cruises...cruisecritic.com.  Theres a whole section dediticated to weddings and cruising.  Good luck!

Answer 8

Carnival gets bashed a lot, but it is a good cruise, especially for first-timers.  I don't know anything about their wedding services, but I know where you can find out.  Go to CruiseCritic.com, click on "Boards", then "Carnival Cruise Lines" and do a search for "weddings".  If you go to "Cruise Styles" there is a "Romantic" thread that would also give you some info.

I'd suggest you go to the Carnival website and look for info about weddings there.

Good luck and congratulations, too!