Can someone school me on cruises?

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Would we be better off just flying to an all inclusive in the Caribbean instead?

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Absolutely

We went on our first cruise recently on a Norwegian ship and I surprisingly enjoyed it.
The rule is don't go on a four or five night carnival leaving from Nola, Mobil, or Galveston as those are the trashiest.

The people I talked to said the Noregian was a step up from Carnival.

Some of the people saying go to an all inclusive probably think that going to a Sandel's place is being fancy.

Just do your research and pick something that sounds good and is in your budget.

Wife and I took a trip to Vegas once on the cheap. We stayed at the Golden Nugget while our friends booked at the Bellagio and MGM. They had fun. We did not have as much fun. Moral of the story...Spend the extra cash. Fly to Miami or San Juan and take a seven day cruise on a Royal Caribbean ship. When you pay extra, you typically get more.

just took the carnival cruise out of galveston to jamaica, grand cayman, cozumel. it was not nearly as trashy as it is made out to be on here. i was very surprised how many people were actually well dressed on the two formal nights.

the food at the formal dining was more than adequate, in fact i would go so far as to say it was really good. the entertainment on board was pretty good as well.

the drink package is worth it if you can drink 9 or more a day. they cut you off at 15. the wine at dinner with a drink card is not worth it, highlighted by me here: OT Thread

what i dont like is you spend 2 days on the boat to get to jamaica from galveston. then you only get 8 hours in jamaica. it would be nice to have more time in the places you are visiting, but the price is a lot cheaper than air fare/hotels for one of these islands.

overall i had a great experience. i didnt witness too many trashy people to be honest. accomodations seemed clean enough. granted other cruise lines are "better" than carnival, but if your timeframe is limited due to say a birthday or anniversary, carnival may be the only option. this was the case for our trip last month and we had a great time.

Both NCL and RCL are now sailing selected dates out of New Orleans. Definitely a much better option than Carnival. Do the cruise you’ll have a better experience.

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Wife and I are looking into a cruise for our 10 year anniversary in 2019. We aren’t looking to spend a ton of money and probably will want to port out of Nola to avoid paying for a flight.

Is Carnival that bad? Is Norwegian that much better? Would we be better off just flying to an all inclusive in the Caribbean instead?

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Like most travel-related questions, the answer is "it depends."

If you and your wife are looking for a true "unplug, kick back, and relax" type of vacation, you probably want to do the all-inclusive.

But if you and your wife are more adventurous and want to see/visit different places, a nice cruise can be a great experience. I'd stay away from Carnival though. A 7-day Royal Caribbean cruise will filter out most of the trashiness.

Some of my favorite travel memories with my wife have been "ditching the crowd" at the different ports and going off to explore on our own.

You probably see where I'm going with this. You don't really go anywhere at an all-inclusive. Yeah, you can leave the premises, but you're still pretty much limited to the immediate surrounding area. BUT, when it comes to pure relaxation, it's hard to beat a good all-inclusive. Especially the truly all-inclusive ones where you can leave your wallet locked in your safe for the entire stay.

If you do choose a cruise, a highly recommend springing for a room with a balcony. One of the things I don't like about cruises is that - other than your room - it's hard to get away from the crowds and have some peace and quiet.