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Carnival Festivale vs Princess Cruises Crown Princess
The Carnival Festivale is a fairly new ship, being built in 2027. The Festivale is named after the original ship that sailed with Carnival from 1977 - 1996. It has two unique zones not found on its sister ships. Unlike the first Excel Class ships, Festivale does NOT have a BOLT roller coaster, instead it has a waterpark called "Sunsation Point." The ship will sail from Port Canaveral starting in Spring 2027. It's 21 years newer than the Crown Princess, which was built in 2006 and renovated in 2018.
Comparison Overview
- Ship Size
- Number of Passengers
- Food and Restaurants
- Bars and Drinks
- Pools and Hot Tubs
- Ship Features and Activities
- Cruise Costs
- Onboard Costs
Ship Size
The Festivale is considered a large size ship. Coming in at 1,130 feet long and 137 feet wide, it's roughly the length of 3.1 football fields, as wide as 2.6 tractor-trailers and the same height as a 17-story building. Compared to the Princess Cruises Crown Princess, the Festivale is 61% larger in terms of overall tons.
Number of Passengers
Carnival Festivale holds 75% more passengers than the Crown Princess based on double occupancy (two people per room). When you look at the "Space Ratio," or the total tonnage of a ship compared to the number of passengers, the Festivale has less space per person compared to the Crown Princess.
The Festivale uses a zone layout to break up large crowds across the ship, often making it feel less crowded.
| Carnival Festivale | Princess Cruises Crown Princess | |
|---|---|---|
| Class | Excel | Crown |
| Gross Tonnage | 182,800 | 113,561 |
| Length | 1,130 | 952 |
| Beam/Width | 137 | 159 |
| Passenger Decks | 17 | 19 |
| Passengers (double occupancy) | 5,400 | 3,080 |
| Crew | 1,700 | 1,200 |
| Passenger to Crew Ratio | 2.6 | 2.6 |
| Space Ratio (tons of ship per passenger) | 35 | 37 |
Food and Restaurants
Food is a big part of any cruise, and the ship you choose can make a huge difference in your food experience.
The Festivale has twenty-three different dining options like The Chef's Table, ChiBang, and Bonsai Teppanyaki. Of those options, nineteen are complementary, or included with your cruise fare. The other nine options have an additional fee.
The Crown Princess has ten fewer dining venues. Some of its popular venues are International Cafe, The Salty Dog Gastropub, and World Fresh Marketplace. ten of these restaurants are complementary and the other five have an additional fee.
If you like having a variety of places to eat, the Festivale might be a better choice. It has 77% more dining options than the Crown Princess.
Both ships have a similar number of paid versus included dining options.
| Carnival Festivale | Princess Cruises Crown Princess | |
|---|---|---|
| Total Dining Options | 23 | 13 |
| Complimentary Dining Options: | 19 | 10 |
| Additional Fee Dining Options: | 9 | 5 |
| % of Included Options | 61% | 62% |
| See the options | See the options |
In terms of drinks and cocktails, you have a variety of choices. The Festivale serves the Pepsi family of products. That means Pepsi, Diet Pepsi, Starry, Mug Root Beer, and Mountain Dew, although the selection can vary by ship. The Crown Princess serves Coca Cola branded products. That includes drinks like Coke, Diet Coke, Sprite and Barqs Root Beer, although the selection can vary by ship.
There are also plenty of bars available on these ships. You can check out recent the bar menus for the Festivale and the Crown Princess below.
Pools and Hot Tubs
Nothing beats relaxing by a pool with a nice drink in hand as you feel the fresh sea breeze pass by you. The Carnival Festivale has a total of 6 pools and 7 hot tubs. 2 of the pools are exclusive access, which means there's either an extra charge to access them or you need to book a certain class of cabin to have access to them.
Princess Cruises Crown Princess has fewer pools than the Festivale and fewer hot tubs. There are fewer exclusive pools and hot tubs on the Crown Princess. If you like ships without extra charges or exclusive areas, this might be a better choice since everyone will have access to these areas.
Tired of loud kids and splashing? One of the pools and two of the hot tubs are adults only on Festivale.| Carnival Festivale | Princess Cruises Crown Princess | |
|---|---|---|
| Total Pools | 6 | 4 |
| Pools - General Access | 3 | 2 |
| Pools - Adults Only | 1 | 2 |
| Pools - Exclusive | 2 | |
| Total Hot Tubs | 7 | 6 |
| Hot Tubs - General Access | 5 | 4 |
| Hot Tubs - Adults Only | 2 | 2 |
| Hot Tubs - Exclusive | 0 |
Ship Features and Activities
Both ships have lots of activities to keep you busy throughout your cruise. Below you'll see a list of some of the major features on these ships. You might up paying more while on board the Festivale. Only 65% of the activities below are included in your cruise fare. On the Crown Princess, 82% of the activities are included at no additional cost.
| Carnival Festivale | Princess Cruises Crown Princess | |
|---|---|---|
| Adult Only Relaxation Area | ✓ | ✗ |
| Afternoon Tea | ✗ | ✓ |
| Arcade | ✓ | ✗ |
| Art Auctions | ✗ | ✓ |
| Basketball | ✓ | ✗ |
| Brewery Tour | ✓ | ✗ |
| Casino | ✓ | ✓ |
| Comedy Club | ✓ | ✗ |
| Cooking Class | ✓ | ✗ |
| Dr Seuss Breakfast | ✓ | ✗ |
| Fitness Center | ✓ | ✓ |
| Jogging Track | ✓ | ✓ |
| Mini golf | ✓ | ✗ |
| Outdoor gym | ✓ | ✗ |
| Pool-side Movies | ✓ | ✓ |
| Putting green | ✗ | ✓ |
| Ropes course | ✓ | ✗ |
| Shows - musical review | ✗ | ✓ |
| Spa | ✗ | ✓ |
| Splash park | ✓ | ✗ |
| Sports Court | ✗ | ✓ |
| Thermal Suites | ✓ | ✗ |
| Waterpark | ✓ | ✗ |
| Learn more | Learn more |
Cruise Costs
Carnival is considered a mainstream cruise line. Mainstream cruise lines cater to a variety of guests, hoping to provide something for everyone. These typically cost about $100 - $350 per person per day.
Princess Cruises, on the other hand, is a premium cruise line. Premium cruise lines typically offer upscale food, accommodations, and service. These typically cost about $150 - $400 per person per day.
Cruise pricing is dynamic and varies for each specific sailing based on factors such as departure point, ports of call, and time of year. To get a good idea of how the pricing compares, visit the cruise line's website to price out the separate cruises or consult a travel professional.
Onboard Costs
Another way to gauge the cost of a cruise is to consider how much you'll spend on board. Even though a lot is included in the base cruise fare, you may still spend money on things like spa treatments, specialty dining, drinks, and excursions. In addition, guests can also have to pay for things like gratuities and tips.
Typically guests can expect to spend about 25 - 40% of the cost of the cruise on onboard expenses. In other words, if the cruise fare is $1,000 per person, you might spend between $250 and $400 on extra expenses.
The table below will help you compare onboard prices to see if you might spend more on a specific ship.
| Carnival Festivale | Princess Cruises Crown Princess | |
|---|---|---|
| Base Daily Gratuities* (Per Person Per Day) | $16.00 | $17.00 |
| Tip added to drinks & services | 18% | 18% |
| Soda Price | $3.00 | $2.50 |
| Domestic Beer Price | $8.75 See drink menus | $6.25 See drink menus |
| Drink Package Price | $83 - $88 Learn more | $77 -$100 |
| Internet Plan | $18.70 to $23.80 per device per day | $24.99 per device per day |
| *Daily gratuities for a standard cabin. Suites or specialty rooms may have higher rates. | ||
Princess Cruises offers two packages to bundle onboard expenses. The Princess Plus package includes daily gratuities, the basic beverage package, 2 fitness classes, 2 casual dining meals, and internet for $60 per day per guest. The Princess Premier package upgrades to the premiere beverage package, wifi for up to 4 devices per guest, two specialty dining meals, unlimited casual dining meals, unlimited fitness classes, and a photo package for $80 per guest per day.
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