We are not loyal to any one cruise line. We pick cruises based on price, itinerary, and departure port. We chose Carnival for this particular cruise based on three criteria.
Short drive to the cruise port. Wanted to use the kids’ program for a 2-year-old Ability to stack discounts. Easy on Carnival. More of a challenge on other lines.
We cruised with our oldest grandson on his first cruise back in January. This was our “test cruise” to see how it was sailing with a young child. We looked for a short cruise sailing out of a port that we could drive to, so we booked a 3-day itinerary out of Port Canaveral on the Sensation. It was our first time using the kids’ club, and it turned out to be a success! J. enjoyed going to the club, and it gave B. and I some time alone to have dinner and go to the shows.
We decided that we would be willing to try another cruise, now with J. (5) and his younger brother A. (2). Carnival is the only cruise line that allows two-year-olds in their kids’ program, so we knew that’s who we would book the next cruise with. The drive to Port Canaveral is about 9 hours for us, so we began looking at a port closer to home. I was pleased to learn last year that Carnival is returning to Mobile, AL. which is about a 4-hour drive for us. We had cruised out of Mobile about 10 years ago and we loved the short drive and easy embarkation. We decided on a 5-day cruise out of Mobile on the Sensation in December.
We booked the cruise in March, and because we booked so early, I was able to take advantage of several discounts.