Sunday, April 21, 2024

Cruise Costs: Is Carnival Good Value for Money?

carnival cruise cost

These cabins offer passengers a private balcony where they can relax and enjoy the view. These cruises are a great option for those on a tight budget. They typically offer basic accommodations and amenities but can still be fun.

Hotel Reward Programs

This fee is automatically added to your onboard expense account and can be paid upfront when you initially book your cruise. If you taking a Southern Caribbean cruise you may have to fly to Puerto Rico to cruise out of the Port of San Juan. This has always been a port that offers easy access to many exotic Caribbean cruise itineraries for cruise lines.

Drinking age

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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 line's two newest ships, Mardi Gras and Carnival Celebration, each have 180 suites — more than twice the number found on the vessels Carnival was unveiling a few years ago. Each of the vessels in Carnival's recent Vista-class series, for instance, offer fewer than 75 suites.

Alcohol, Sodas And Their 15% Gratuities Not Included In Fare

Seven of the line's 25 vessels measure less than 100,000 tons, which makes them almost midsize by today's cruise ship standards. Carnival is one of the world's biggest cruise lines by passenger capacity, with 25 ships that together offer nearly 80,000 berths. The self-described "fun ship" line is the king of short, affordable, fun-focused cruises from U.S. ports to the Caribbean, Bahamas, Mexico and other nearby destinations.

Highlights of the 3.5-hour tour include a visit backstage to see what goes into creating Carnival's incredible shows, and a visit to the enormous main galley to watch the chefs in action. The food and variety are fantastic so for foodies, the following restaurants offer great value for money. Families have access to a fully supervised, complimentary kids' club program, run by qualified youth staff and separated into age-appropriate groups. It is divided into three age-appropriate areas including Penguins for two- to five-year-olds, Stingrays for six to eight-year-olds, and Sharks for nine to 11-year-olds. The kids engage in free play and fun activities including arts and crafts, magic shows, face painting, dancing, cooking sessions and scavenger hunts. It depends on the destination, but in The Bahamas, Caribbean, and Mexico, the hottest deals are typically for cruises in January, February, September, and October.

Carnival cruise prices

Other popular venues found on some Carnival ships include RedFrog Pub, which serves up Carnival's tasty housemade beers on tap, as well as plenty of other choices. Carnival is also well known for the Punchliner Comedy Clubs on its ships, which draw quality comedians and can get a little raucous late at night with adult-only performances. The overarching idea for Carnival's ship deployments is that a large percentage of the U.S. population can reach one of the line's ships by car, saving the cost of flights. However, with two exceptions, they're not giants by today's standards. Carnival ships are all about fun in a very laid-back, unpretentious, nothing-too-fancy sort of way.

Hidden Costs On Carnival Cruises For New Cruisers

But we can give you an idea of what a typical trip will cost based on averages and help you know better what you can plan to spend. We have specific estimates (using actual figures from the cruise lines!) below. If you're sure Carnival is your line, look for a travel agent who specializes in trips with the brand. You want someone who understands all the little quirks that are unique to Carnival's cabin categories and, preferably, has done ship inspections to see the cabins firsthand. That said, given the complexity of booking a cruise — there are a lot of decisions to make during the booking process; trust us — we recommend you use a seasoned travel agent who specializes in cruises.

Specialty Dining

Whether you use a travel agent or not, make sure to maximize your credit card points when paying for the cruise by using a credit card that offers extra points for travel purchases. This could be the Chase Sapphire Reserve, which offers 3 Ultimate Rewards points on travel and dining (excluding the annual $300 travel credit). There's also the Chase Sapphire Preferred Card, which brings 2 Ultimate Rewards points on travel and 3 Ultimate Rewards points on dining. Carnival Cruise Line offers Australians an incredibly affordable choice that doesn't scrimp on features. Passengers can enjoy exceptional value for good quality accommodation, plenty of activities, facilities, entertainment and dining choices.

carnival cruise cost

On most ships, smoking (including electronic cigarettes) is only allowed in designated outdoor areas and in casinos and nightclubs. In casinos and nightclubs, only cigarette smoking is allowed. On Carnival ships in Australia, smoking is only allowed in designated outdoor areas. A slightly more expensive "value" plan, at $19.55 per day when bought in advance, adds access to email and most websites.

Oceanview cabins on Carnival ships can sometimes be bigger than inside cabins and even bigger than balcony cabins (when comparing their interior space). On Carnival Panorama, some oceanview cabins measure 185 square feet — the same as inside cabins. But there also are bigger "standard" oceanview cabins that measure 220 square feet and "deluxe" oceanview cabins that measure 230 square feet. Newer cruise ships may do a few short cruises occasionally, but, they normally do seven days or more.

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Once you've got the basics down, uncovering the deals becomes fun and easy. Carnival’s loyalty program is called VIFP which means Very Important Fun Person. Members earn benefits like special offers, a free drink on board, priority boarding, cabin upgrades and more. For example, an off-season cruise to the Bahamas in February might cost $189 while the same cruise in June could be $684 for the same cabin on the same ship. The pre-purchase window for certain products and activities closes between one and three days prior to the sail date.

The entire industry was shut down for almost all of 2020 and slowly made its return in 2021. After 2023, we can say that cruising is back with ships sailing at full capacity. Spending in PortFinally, the last part of your budget to consider is what you spend in port.

Something many first time cruisers don’t realize is that sodas and alcohol are not included in the cruise fare. Sodas are around $2 per drink and they don’t even give you the entire can. There likely will be remote parking lots owned by other companies that will charge roughly half of the cost and shuttle you to the cruise ship. If you’re driving to the port then you had better be prepared to pay parking fees. In general, it is most expensive to park at the port facilities, but they’re also closest to the cruise ship. To help you figure out how much you will spend on your cruise vacation, I have the prices of common extra charges found on Carnival Caribbean cruises listed in this article.

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