CARNIVAL VS DCL: The discussion and comparison thread!

[tidefan]

Thanks for this awesome review. I seriously had no desire to sail Princess ever, but your review is changing my mind. I’m pretty sure this will be answered in your next section, but if not, could you tell us what they had for daily activities? We are huge fans of trivia, bingo, towel folding, food demos, and all the corny stuff that DCL and Carnival have. Thanks again, and I really look forward to your next section.

Yes, to give you a sneak preview, if you like trivia, this ship had more of it than I am used to on other ships. They had at least 2-3 sessions per day, and they were all themed.

This is something I'll go over where I like to say that Princess is "sneaky fun". When you first get on, it seems like, what is there to do because there's no waterslides or ice rinks, etc. (though to note, they ARE adding a Water feature to Caribbean Princess, so I suppose that may change in the future), however, they are really, really, good about having so many activities going on that there is a lot to do, it's just different. For instance, our DD is 15 and she prefers Princess over both CCL and RCCL (still loves DCL, though). She really enjoys their teen program.

However, I can't speak for the younger crowd, though there were definitely a good many kids on our ship, but we didn't have experience with that part since DD is older.

 

[tidefan]

If I'm being honest, the sushi must have tasted better than it looked. The maki seems to be kind of sloppily made, and I can't tell if the rest is nigiri or pressed sushi. But so long as it tastes good, I suppose it's not that big a deal.

It was really good. To be honest, this is about the last third of my plate (no judgement, please!) and I thought, hey, let me take a picture. I should have actually gotten up, gone over to the buffet line where the presentation was much nicer than my plate. They had more types than this, but I pretty much tried to stick to Salmon, Tuna, and a couple of the rolls...

I was just happy to see that they offered it. For those used to the sushi day at Cabanas, there is more selection and more quantity available here. One other thing I should mention, is that there is a bar in the piazza that offers sushi for sale (forgot about that, so that's an extra charge thing as well) where they'd roll it right there for you. We didn't try that (as we don't believe in paying for dining once we've already paid for a cruise), so I can't really say how that was one way or the other.

 

[jtntx34]

The Food

So, one area where this ship really excelled was in it's food service. Unlike many mainline ships today, there are only 2 upcharge restaurants on the Regal Princess, being the Crown Grill (Steakhouse) and Sabatini's (an Italian place) and a for pay Gelato stand that was hardly ever used. We didn't eat at either during our cruise. One of the reasons we like Princess (and DCL, for that matter, and really CCL, though they have more pay places, they still have a bunch of free ones) is that the included food options are diverse and satisfactory. On the pool deck, there is the Trident Grill and Prego Pizza (pretty standard poolside cruise fare). Trident Grill would also have extra things like cheese fries, or wings, or BBQ on some nights in addition to the regular menu. There was also an included soft serve ice cream place by the pool. This stayed busy, unlike the Gelato stand off of the Piazza. Also on the Piazza is the International Cafe, which while being the main espresso coffee bar also is a 24/7 sandwich/soup/bistro/pastry kind of place. The food is all included, our go-to being the ever available ham and cheese croissant. Also of note, they always had 4 different kinds of cookies here (double chocolate being my favorite).

Another nice option is that on the 2nd sea day, Princess offers a pub lunch in the Crown Grill that is complimentary. This stayed busy and was really good.

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A quick aside. My wife is Elite with Princess. Part of this means that by default, they put a minibar setup in our room. As neither of us are big drinkers, one of the nice things you can do is swap it out for other options, one of which is a 15-count Premium Coffee package for 2 people in the stateroom. So, DW and I had basically free specialty coffee drinks all week (Caramel Latte for me and Salted Caramel Latte for DW) and had plenty left to get DD and her friend Caramel Frappucinos a few times...

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Another included option is the dedicated pizzeria, Alfredo's, off of the Piazza. This place was table service individual pizzas, pastas, and calzones. DD and her friend LOVED this place. They literally wanted to eat here every night. Pizzas were fantastic (they were good on deck too, but these are another level)

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The MDR was very good as well, but we only went 3 nights. One night we went to Alfredo's and the other 3, we ate at the buffet, which brings me to: The Buffet.

Now, I am not usually a big fan of buffets. Cabanas is fine, but it's not the number one thing I think about on a DCL cruise. Carnival's buffets are "good" as well, but I don't remember much about it. RCCL's Windjammer (at least on the Serenade) was mediocre at best. On Princess, I had mixed experiences. Our first cruise on the Dawn Princess was great. The rest were in the fine, but don't remember much, and last summer, we sailed Emerald Princess to Alaska and it was downright not good (which surprised us). So, we didn't have big expectations going in. I had read that the buffet on the Royal class ships was better, but we were in for a very pleasant surprise when we got on board. Quite honestly, Regal Princess has the best buffet of any of the 23 cruises I've been on, and, it's not even close!

The buffet is huge. There are literally 3 different buffet areas as well as a 4th area that was dedicated to pastries and desserts. Unlike other ships, that tend to repeat items at different places, not here. You had to scan the whole thing because it was different at each area. Also, there were connections between some of the areas that would contain even more stuff like bread stations, salad bars, and cheese service. The setup itself was nice because as far as we could tell, at least some part of the buffet was open from 5am until 11pm continuously, so there was always food available. Most notably, when you came back on board from an excursion, say at around 3:30, you could pop in and get something to eat. Other lines (looking at you Serenade of the Seas!) we had been on closed the buffet from 2-5pm. On RCCL that was a big problem because that ship (the Serenade) did not have a poolside grill, pizza, or ice cream. They were in the buffet. But, no such problem on Princess. It's open most all of the way through.

But even better than the hours and the selection was the quality of the food. I was bracing for the worst, thinking our Emerald experience might be a downward indicator, but man, was the food good. Also, the staff went out of their way to make us happy. One thing that happened to us. We had been doing a bunch of things around the ship and got up to eat late (after 8) and they were taking down one of the 3 lines. In that line they had a grilled shrimp entree that had been taken up and my wife said, "That sounded good". The line cook heard my wife and grabbed the serving bowl and offered the rest to my wife. As they looked a bit "off the line" for a minute, she politely passed. We found some other things, and sat down to eat our food. A few minutes later, here comes the cook, tapping my wife on the shoulder. Turns out, he is the Chef de Partie in charge of that particular line. He had brought my wife a bowl of steaming hot, freshly cooked shrimp. His name is Joel from the Philippines, and he became our friend for the rest of the cruise. Joel sat down with us and we all just started talking. He said that they all got a lot of joy out of our enjoyment of the buffet and that they take a lot of pride in it. He mentioned that not only are a lot of the MDR items at the buffet, but sometimes, it's better to get it there. For instance, they had Filet Mignon on the buffet one night. He said, sure, you can take the ones out of the serving dish and they are good, "but we'd be more than happy just to cook you one to order". From there, we were sold. There were so many good things on the buffet (Beef Wellington, Carved Turkey's, Ham, Filet, Crab Cakes, Shrimp Cocktail, Fried Shrimp, always 2-3 soups, on and on..). Another thing we liked on the buffet, and this is a Princess thing, is that when you sit to eat, you don't get your drink. There are servers all over the place to come and get your drink order and bring you (and refill) your drinks.

Other buffet highlights included one station would have an international night that had either a mongolian wok station (pick all of your ingredients and they cook it for you), a german night, crepes one night, fajitas, an asian "hot pot" creation, and a "Create your own pasta" station one night. I mention the last one because Princess, on their MDR menus, has static items and rotating items every night. One of the static items is a really good Fettuccine Alfredo. Back in the day, Princess used to serve this in a parmesan bowl. However, for the last few cruises, it's been on a regular plated bowl. However, my wife got a chicken Alfredo at this station in the buffet and when they brought it out, lo and behold, it's in the parmesan bowl. For the record, I got a spaghetti with meatballs that was fantastic.

I should also mention that one day for lunch, they had a whole sushi area that was excellent:

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Here's your shrimp cocktail, DCL fans!

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Now, this is not to say that the MDR paled in comparison. Actually, it was really good as well. One night, I had some dish that the TV Chef Curtis Stone created for the line that I could best describe as a pot roast cooked in red wine with a cheddar biscuit topping. This may be my favorite cruise meal ever. It was so, so good. They also had really interesting ice creams on their dessert menu. Two I remember were Butter Almond (so, so good) and some kind of "Kahlua Mascarpone" ice cream (also good!). Lobster night also did not disappoint. Service here was top notch as well. We had Anytime dining, but on the 3 nights we went to dinner, we didn't have to wait.

The Curtis Stone thing... Not sure what it's called (I think it was Beef Tenderloin Tips and Mushroom Cobbler), but it was SOOOO good...

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Finally, I should mention room service. For some reason, my DD (and her friend) would rather eat room service than just about anything else (though Alfredo's took them away from this quite a bit), and that's been true for a number of years regardless of line we were on. Princess has a rather large room service menu (bigger than DCL's) and I can't tell you how many times I came back to the room to find grilled cheese and cheese fries... Room service is still included on Princess. We would get some things as well and they were all good, but I will say, the cheese plate didn't have anything on DCL's All Hands on Deck...

Bottom line. I'd put the food options and quality on the Regal Princess up against ANY of the cruises I've taken. And the best part was... I didn't have to spend a dime on upcharged food to feel like I was eating really good food...

Upcoming... Entertainment, Kid's Area's, and General Thoughts...

I am LOVING this review. I did my first Princess Cruise last June in Alaska and really loved it. I’m doing my first Disney Cruise in December.

I thought Princess had a relaxed classy vibe. I never felt “nickel and dimed”, and I enjoyed the cruise part and sea days more than I thought I would. There were plenty of things to do, but those beds were so comfortable and perfect for naps after long port days that I missed some activities.

I am pretty sure after you are finished with your review, I’m going to want to book another cruise with Princess. (Oh, where IS that money tree when I need it?!)

 

[tidefan]

I really want to sail Princess. It's still too spendy for my budget but someday my kids will be grown and have jobs and maybe they can afford their own vacation!

We find that Princess is consistently less than the Oasis class of RCCL and comparable to other RCCL ships. Carnival may run less. With Princess, it is worthwhile to price out their different sales, which are actually different (unlike RCCL where every sale seems to get you the same price). For instance, when we booked our Thanksgiving cruise, they were running a 3/4th for $99 sale. The Sip and Sail (free beverage package) is also very popular.

Value-wise, though, I will say it's hard to beat one of those Carnival last-minute fares!

 

[tidefan]

I am LOVING this review. I did my first Princess Cruise last June in Alaska and really loved it. I’m doing my first Disney Cruise in December.

I thought Princess had a relaxed classy vibe. I never felt “nickel and dimed”, and I enjoyed the cruise part and sea days more than I thought I would. There were plenty of things to do, but those beds were so comfortable and perfect for naps after long port days that I missed some activities.

I am pretty sure after you are finished with your review, I’m going to want to book another cruise with Princess. (Oh, where IS that money tree when I need it?!)

Thanks, I am new at this and admit that I am no photojournalist (see my sushi pics!).

Let me say this, if you are used to a Grand class ship and enjoyed it, you will love the Royal class ships. Starting late fall, both 7 night Caribbean ships will be the Regal and the brand new Sky Princess, so you'll have a new Royal-class ship if you do a 7-night caribbean (the Caribbean Princess will still be there on some itineraries as well, and would be the year-round Caribbean ship, but it is a Grand class, though it will be undergoing a refurb, so I believe that it will incorporate some of the newer features. It's actually already started that process as it is Medallion ready and they apparently redid the buffet on that ship).

BTW, and I meant to answer the question earlier about the medallions. They are included with your cruise. You will get them in a box about 3 weeks prior to your cruise (kind of like MagicBands). It's about the size of between a nickel and a quarter, but thicker. The middle part has a Princess SeaWitch logo color coded to one's Captain's Circle status. On the outer metallic band, your name and sailing are engraved. You also have a PIN that you set up for it (much like Magic Bands as well).

Also, one other thing I saw earlier that I want to comment on is one thing that I think Princess could do better (and CCL) is that RCCL and Celebrity share benefits across the lines. I really wish that Carnival, Princess, and HAL would do that as well...

 

[starvenger]

It was really good. To be honest, this is about the last third of my plate (no judgement, please!) and I thought, hey, let me take a picture. I should have actually gotten up, gone over to the buffet line where the presentation was much nicer than my plate. They had more types than this, but I pretty much tried to stick to Salmon, Tuna, and a couple of the rolls...

I was just happy to see that they offered it. For those used to the sushi day at Cabanas, there is more selection and more quantity available here. One other thing I should mention, is that there is a bar in the piazza that offers sushi for sale (forgot about that, so that's an extra charge thing as well) where they'd roll it right there for you. We didn't try that (as we don't believe in paying for dining once we've already paid for a cruise), so I can't really say how that was one way or the other.

No judging here. I'm more a sashimi guy than sushi, and usually eat more than I really should.

I'm sure the overall presentation was nice, but I doubt that individually it looked that much better unless you were stacking another plate on top of your sushi.

Thanks, I am new at this and admit that I am no photojournalist (see my sushi pics!).

I hear you. My recap photos are usually a mish-mash of phone pics + camera (a reliable but not very fancy Powershot G10). But it's always fun to do the post-mortem and go through everything.

BTW, and I meant to answer the question earlier about the medallions. They are included with your cruise. You will get them in a box about 3 weeks prior to your cruise (kind of like MagicBands). It's about the size of between a nickel and a quarter, but thicker. The middle part has a Princess SeaWitch logo color coded to one's Captain's Circle status. On the outer metallic band, your name and sailing are engraved. You also have a PIN that you set up for it (much like Magic Bands as well).

Very cool, thanks!

 

[mcd2745]

Look for "Home Sweet Home"... I have not tried it yet but it was our plan for our next visit to GT (that we finally changed for our upcoming cruise) The reviews are stellar!

When researching excursions for our cruise, that was one that definitely got my interest and is probably leading the pack at the moment.

 

[Numtini]

when we looked at non-DCL options, the Oasis class priced out much higher (30-80% higher) than comparable offerings on either Princess or Carnival (Note: We booked late, so that could have contributed to that. Also, the new NCL ships seemed higher as well).

Here's my guess, you said this was spring break--did you mean school break? Because Princess usually doesn't come up as a recommendation for kids. Anyone have any info on Princess for kids? It looks like they have kids clubs, but they seemed relatively basic.

 

[hdrolfe]

I have Princess on my radar for when kiddo is older or I travel alone I do like that they do pricing in CAD, much like RCL and NCL. I'm not sure why Carnival doesn't when their sister lines do. But I still prefer Carnival at the moment for my family.

 

[belle032]

@tidefan Thank you for your awesome review!

This is why I find this thread so great. I never really considered Princess and now that I can read a trip report and see photos and y’all to someone first hand about their experience, it really does help!

 

[mevelandry]

Is is me or Princess looks like it could be a "Deluxe" version of Carnival? (I say this as a compliment!)

 

[tidefan]

Here's my guess, you said this was spring break--did you mean school break? Because Princess usually doesn't come up as a recommendation for kids. Anyone have any info on Princess for kids? It looks like they have kids clubs, but they seemed relatively basic.

Yes, we were on Spring Break, and I teach at a University. As it follows, our local schools tend to have the same spring break as The University. I am going to get into my take on Princess with kids later, and I definitely have some things for people to consider. A sneak peek is that if you are traveling with kids and want other kids to be on the ship, I would stick to a school break week or a summer/winter breaks. Now, that is for the Caribbean. In Alaska, I don't think it's quite as dependent as Princess' Caribbean offerings and I think that there are some very specific reasons for that.

Not to spoil the review ahead, but IMHO, Princess (in the Caribbean) is good for teens/tweens (and not to say for smaller kids, but I just don't have the experience with that), but in Alaska, I think that there is more to do for all ages (b/c you are not really going to do waterslides, flow riders, ropes courses, and rock walls in Alaska very much...). If it were me, and I had kids 10 and under, I'd do DCL (or Carnival/NCL/RCCL) in the Caribbean. Kids 11 and up, I think, there seemed to be a good number of them all doing activities, not just in the centers (which, BTW, are much larger on the Regal Princess than they were on the Emerald Princess) but all over the ship. For instance, Princess partners with Discovery Channel and for the tweens, it seemed like they do a lot of "Shark Week" and "Mythbusters" type of stuff. I am not exactly sure what they were doing but they all (especially the boys) seemed to really enjoy that kind of stuff. There was also some kind of interactive thing on the video boards for the kids, but, quite honestly, I wasn't really sure what that was. One thing I will say is that there were something like 170 teens (13-17) on our ship and so one thing that I think DD likes is that it seems more "manageable", especially from a getting to know people perspective, if you will rather than having say 500-700 teens on board.

ETA: I was just thinking and a Disney comparison hit me, not that it's perfect, but if Carnival/RCCL/NCL are like going to the Magic Kingdom or Hollywood Studios (or Universal), then Princess is more like going to Epcot or Animal Kingdom...

 

[Numtini]

Thanks! We're booked for next April with DCL, but after that, we feel like we want to look at other options as our daughter gets a bit older. As a bunch of others said, we hadn't really considered Princess, but your review was really helpful! Thank you so much.

 

[mevelandry]

(...)
ETA: I was just thinking and a Disney comparison hit me, not that it's perfect, but if Carnival/RCCL/NCL are like going to the Magic Kingdom or Hollywood Studios (or Universal), then Princess is more like going to Epcot or Animal Kingdom...

So, a little bit more "toned down" and focused on education?

 

[starvenger]

For instance, Princess partners with Discovery Channel and for the tweens, it seemed like they do a lot of "Shark Week" and "Mythbusters" type of stuff. I am not exactly sure what they were doing but they all (especially the boys) seemed to really enjoy that kind of stuff.

I just hope the "Mythbusters" type stuff doesn't involve blowing things up. Because they (or at least the original version) seemed to do a LOT of that.

 

[StarSeven7]

Hi everyone, I have kind of a strange situation and I thought I'd get some opinions! My family (me, DH, DD9, DS6) are booked on a Disney cruise for next January. We're leaving from San Juan, so we're planning on spending a few extra days there. My parents just messaged me and told me that they were kind of thinking of joining us....flying down with us and spending time in San Juan, but a Disney cruise is pretty much out of their budget, so they are looking at a Carnival cruise that's the same dates and similar islands. I don't think there's any overlap between the cruises, so they wouldn't be attempting to meet up with us in port at all. But I'm really not sure that they would like Carnival at all, they just picked it because it was cheap. It looks like they could get an interior room on the Carnival Fascination for around $1200 for the 2 of them, vs. $3000 on DCL. To tell you about my parents - they're in their mid 60's, and I wouldn't say they were "fuddy-duddies," but they're definitely not into partying. They've never cruised before, other than a steamboat river cruise on the Mississippi about 20 years ago where a historian came and lectured in the evenings. They LOVED it. They wouldn't go to the casino, any shows that were "risque" or contained swearing, and probably wouldn't be interested in most of the activities. My dad would really just like sitting on deck with a drink and relaxing. My mom would probably be a bit interested in any Broadway-type shows, but on their own, I can't see them doing much of that. Can you see them enjoying a Carnival cruise at all?? And how is the Carnival Fascination?

 

[mevelandry]

Hi everyone, I have kind of a strange situation and I thought I'd get some opinions! My family (me, DH, DD9, DS6) are booked on a Disney cruise for next January. We're leaving from San Juan, so we're planning on spending a few extra days there. My parents just messaged me and told me that they were kind of thinking of joining us....flying down with us and spending time in San Juan, but a Disney cruise is pretty much out of their budget, so they are looking at a Carnival cruise that's the same dates and similar islands. I don't think there's any overlap between the cruises, so they wouldn't be attempting to meet up with us in port at all. But I'm really not sure that they would like Carnival at all, they just picked it because it was cheap. It looks like they could get an interior room on the Carnival Fascination for around $1200 for the 2 of them, vs. $3000 on DCL. To tell you about my parents - they're in their mid 60's, and I wouldn't say they were "fuddy-duddies," but they're definitely not into partying. They've never cruised before, other than a steamboat river cruise on the Mississippi about 20 years ago where a historian came and lectured in the evenings. They LOVED it. They wouldn't go to the casino, any shows that were "risque" or contained swearing, and probably wouldn't be interested in most of the activities. My dad would really just like sitting on deck with a drink and relaxing. My mom would probably be a bit interested in any Broadway-type shows, but on their own, I can't see them doing much of that. Can you see them enjoying a Carnival cruise at all?? And how is the Carnival Fascination?

The Fantasy Class is not my favorite class to begin with. I'm a little bit hesitant.

How many nights?

In the first post, I made a section with a list of events that I consider not "family friendly" and that one should avoid if they are a little bit on the conservative side. Overall, I find those quite easy to avoid and usually clearly identified.

There are definitely nice areas on the ship where they could relax (like the Serenity Area). There's a nice library where they can borrow books or play board games. PG comedy shows. Mini-Golf.

*****************************************************************************************************************

I'm gonna risk asking the question but know there are no right or wrong answer... Would you and the rest of your family (if you have siblings/cousins, etc) be able to put a little "concentrated effort"* in order to try to find with the extra amount (as a gift) that would permit them to afford the DCL cruise?

-Signed: the lady who keep insisting on bringing her FIL and MIL on vacation with them at least once a year.

p.s.: * By that I mean "working together".

 

[lklgoodman]

I just hope the "Mythbusters" type stuff doesn't involve blowing things up. Because they (or at least the original version) seemed to do a LOT of that.

Yes, that would be interesting to see how they do the Mythbuster stuff, however my dd would LOVE seeing stuff being blown up, lol!

Well I'm extremely sad right now. I decided to check out the Carnival Mardi Gras ship. I found a cruise for March 2021 that looks really fun. And the ship, wow!! It looks AMAZING!! My dd would love that roller coaster. I like that it has some fun things like that, but it doesn't look like a floating amusement park. The March cruise has a really great sale going on that sadly ends today. My dd will be starting jr high next year. We've taken her out of school for our previous cruises, but don't want to take her out now that she won't be in elementary school anymore. She's a great student, so taking her out wouldn't be a problem for her, but I don't know yet how the new school will be about her missing school. Sadly we won't know when her Spring break for 2021 will be until Jan/Feb 2020. What makes me really, really sad is that I could book this cruise today, get an Ocean Suite for A LOT less than I am paying for an ocean view next Jan on the Fantasy. And a Havana Cabana would only be slightly more than the OV!! We don't drink pop and wouldn't need to do the specialty dining because what's included looks really good. Do you think there will still be cabins available when we could book next Jan/Feb? I know they would cost more than they do now, but Disney will probably still be a lot more for their 2021 cruises. I wasn't sure if this ship will probably fill up quickly since it's newer.

 

[hdrolfe]

Hi everyone, I have kind of a strange situation and I thought I'd get some opinions! My family (me, DH, DD9, DS6) are booked on a Disney cruise for next January. We're leaving from San Juan, so we're planning on spending a few extra days there. My parents just messaged me and told me that they were kind of thinking of joining us....flying down with us and spending time in San Juan, but a Disney cruise is pretty much out of their budget, so they are looking at a Carnival cruise that's the same dates and similar islands. I don't think there's any overlap between the cruises, so they wouldn't be attempting to meet up with us in port at all. But I'm really not sure that they would like Carnival at all, they just picked it because it was cheap. It looks like they could get an interior room on the Carnival Fascination for around $1200 for the 2 of them, vs. $3000 on DCL. To tell you about my parents - they're in their mid 60's, and I wouldn't say they were "fuddy-duddies," but they're definitely not into partying. They've never cruised before, other than a steamboat river cruise on the Mississippi about 20 years ago where a historian came and lectured in the evenings. They LOVED it. They wouldn't go to the casino, any shows that were "risque" or contained swearing, and probably wouldn't be interested in most of the activities. My dad would really just like sitting on deck with a drink and relaxing. My mom would probably be a bit interested in any Broadway-type shows, but on their own, I can't see them doing much of that. Can you see them enjoying a Carnival cruise at all?? And how is the Carnival Fascination?

So the thing with the Southern out of San Juan cruises is that they are port intensive. There is often maybe 1 sea day, so liking or not liking the ship can be limited to where they sleep and the food, all to say the ship means less on these cruises than on a longer cruise with more sea days. Personally, I enjoy the food on Carnival, but of course that is subjective. Fascination does have a serenity deck, and Carnival always has "family rated" comedy shows that seem quite popular. They do have other shows as well but I have never heard them called the best at sea or anything

Not sure what time of year they are looking at? RCL Freedom of the Seas cruises from San Juan as well, and Celebrity does as well, not sure of the ship, And NCL who I believe is moving the Epic there (which is a unique ship with an interesting cabin layout), if they are looking at other options. But Carnival would be the cheapest of those.

 

[StarSeven7]

The Fantasy Class is not my favorite class to begin with. I'm a little bit hesitant.

How many nights?

In the first post, I made a section with a list of events that I consider not "family friendly" and that one should avoid if they are a little bit on the conservative side. Overall, I find those quite easy to avoid and usually clearly identified.

There are definitely nice areas on the ship where they could relax (like the Serenity Area). There's a nice library where they can borrow books or play board games. PG comedy shows. Mini-Golf.

*****************************************************************************************************************

I'm gonna risk asking the question but know there are no right or wrong answer... Would you and the rest of your family (if you have siblings/cousins, etc) be able to put a little "concentrated effort"* in order to try to find with the extra amount (as a gift) that would permit them to afford the DCL cruise?

-Signed: the lady who keep insisting on bringing her FIL and MIL on vacation with them at least once a year.

p.s.: * By that I mean "working together".

To respond to your second part - I'm thinking about it, but it's about a $2000 difference. My family is really the only ones who could help out, my siblings are all sort of struggling financially themselves so they probably couldn't contribute more than $100 each. My parents are NOT fussy at all, they often go backpacking with no facilities, so they would not have any issues with a ship not being "fancy." I don't think they mind not being able to go with us, even though that would probably be their first choice if they could afford it (to go with us I mean, not necessarily DCL).