Cruises

I was on Carnival years ago. They're fun. For formal night, I just wore a little black dress with heels. It's not a ball gown type of cruise at all. Take a look at CruiseCritic.com's message boards for some great, specific information about the particular cruise you're considering.

If you don't want formal nights, you might consider Norwegian Cruise Lines. We just cruised with them for the second time last month and love them. They're completely casual, with a couple of totally optional formal nights. You can eat dinner whenever you want and at which ever restaurant you want. They had a very busy kids club on our ship.

Not sure if you have already gone on your cruise, if so I'd love to hear about it as we are going on one in Feb. 2011 with our 7 yr old! We are going on Carnival. I was on a carnival cruise last February and it was excellent! My mom, sister, and I went and had a blast! We found most of the staff to be wonderful and most spoke perfect english (some didn't but they were mostly secondary cleaning staff and it wasn't really an issue). I think the other poster was correct in that it depends on what ship you go on. The formal nights we wore slacks and a nice top, sequins aren't necessary either!! :) Really it just means no shorts or ripped jeans. You WILL see everything from VERY dressed up/formal to fairly casual, there are really no 'rules' that we could see.

I am so looking forward to our cruise as with my son being an only child it's a great vacation option where they can make friends and have events specifically geared towards keeping them happy!!

Have fun!!

I have been on 2 Carnival Cruises and really liked both. They are GREAT for young kids and adults alike! I suggest taking the early seating for dinner. It may make things a little more frantic/hectic at the end of a day at port, but you will be exhausted, and the last thing you want to do is have to wait until 8 to eat! Anyways...formal night can be as dressy as you want it to be. My dad owns a tux, and he always wears that (as do plenty of other men), but my hubby and brother only own suits, so that is what they wear. As for me, I wear a little black dress one night and this gorgeous coral dress (fancier than church wear, but I have worn it to weddings) the other night. (We have always done 7 day or longer cruises). I hope this helps and have fun! We LOVE cruising! :)

You really need to contact the cruise line and ask these questions. Some cruises are more relaxed than others. I had a friend who went and they dressed for dinner every night, she took several formals in dress bags. Another friend went on a cruise and they opted for a less formal one where they could wear shorts and nice shirts to dinner. They also have theme trips and you don't want to get on one of those if it is something that would offend you or drive you nuts. I love my brother but I could not go on a square dance cruise. One of my college roommates is a gay man, I could not enjoy going on a cruise where I would be constantly telling my kids the facts of life and about lifestyle choices.

A cruise can be a fun and relaxing vacation. The cost is pretty set, unless you spend tons of money on the islands, it can be a romantic time out for you and your husband too, if the childcare is up to par. There is so much to investigate to find one that fits you perfectly.

As far as comparison goes:

Disney has smaller rooms but more for kids and is more family oriented. They tend to stop at their own island cay and spend a whole day there instead of another island.

Carnival, I have heard really bad reports that their staff is rude and mostly from foreign lands that don't speak English. i don't know if this is true but nearly every complaint I have read says the same thing.

I decided when we go to the Caribbean we are going to go with Royal Caribbean. I want the experience of ice skating on the ocean...LOL. The reviews seem better and the trips are more well rounded. I really want to go to Freeport instead of Nassau and I don't care if I go to the Florida Keys or not.

So, the trip you want needs to include the things you want to do. Call the cruise lines and then look online at different websites to find the best deal.

Hi C........I've been on a Carnival Cruise and a Princess Cruise.........Princess wins hands down.....but the Carnival one was fun too.....

Depends on where you are going............but as for the dress.........you will see everything from cocktail dresses, to very shiny nice pant suits......if you don't want to spend a bunch of money, get black pants/skirt and a couple of shiny, sequenced tops, maybe a nice little shirt under it and rotate it around......that will work.........some will be in ball gowns........other not.........so just something you like having your pic taken in and you feel that looks good.....

Speaking of Pics.........Carnival takes pictures ALL the time.....getting off and on at stops, during the dinners.....so be prepared to buy some.........they do great little critters on your bed.....out of towels, those are pretty cool.........

If you think you might get sea sick, get the patches from your doctor before you go...........I was raised in little boat, NEVER thought I would get sick, but I did..........and it's not cheap on the ship!!!!

Cruises are really great.......you meet great people, it's really cheaper than a hotel, rental car and eating......and they have great shows......try to make the shows and some of the games on board......they are alot of fun....

If you have the chance, go it's definitely fun.......good luck and have a blast.

I've been on two cruises a Carnival and Royal Carribean, of the two we preferred the Royal Carribean but I think it was the boat we went on on the Carnival it was kinda old and dated but the newer ships are very nice. Cocktail dress is good for formal night and I'd also go with an earlier dinner. You dont HAVE TO eat in the dining room though every night though if you don't want there are plenty of other options. Speaking of formal night that was the night we opted out of the dining room as my hubby was the one who did not want to dress up at all. I've never been on a cruise with my son, but I've heard good things about the kids clubs etc. Have fun.