Princess v RCCL

Hi guys. Would love your opinions on this. We are relatively inexperienced cruisers having done 3 on Princess and 2 on RCCL. We have enjoyed each cruise with Princess. We were underwhelmed by our first Royal Caribbean cruise but decided to give it another chance and we have just come off the Anthem after its transatlantic crossing. Again I felt RC were constantly penny pinching. We had to ask for toiletries in our cabin ,no tissues,rubbish quiz prizes . I could go on and on but the what took the biscuit was that there were takeaway cups in the Windjammer but no lids! This on a cruise where everything shut down for 2 days because of the rough seas! All minor things I know but it adds up to a feeling of being "nickeled and dimed" if that the right expression. I know this is very subjective but I would love to know your opinions. Thank you.

You are rather comparing apples and oranges.

Princess is the "upscale" end of the Carnival company.

RCCL is the low end of their line; Celebrity is their "upscale" subsidiary.

I don't know if that might affect things.

We cruised on the Brilliance of the Seas last December and found everything to be below Princess standards. Dining room food was a huge disappointment, cabin steward hard to find. Etc etc.

You are rather comparing apples and oranges.

 

Princess is the "upscale" end of the Carnival company.

RCCL is the low end of their line; Celebrity is their "upscale" subsidiary.

 

I don't know if that might affect things.

Thank you. That reflect my experience I think.

We cruised on the Brilliance of the Seas last December and found everything to be below Princess standards. Dining room food was a huge disappointment, cabin steward hard to find. Etc etc.

Thank you. I'm not the only one then ☺

I think you've just been unlucky...

Rough seas can happen on any cruise line...it's not a factor of which cruise line you are on...

Rubbish quiz prizes? That describes EVERY cruise line...Care to know how many Princess luggage tag holders I now have?

I find the "nickel and diming" about the same on both lines. Want to avoid it? Go with Celebrity or Oceania...

Every line has things it does better and things it does worse...

Princess' handling of Anytime Dining is horrendous...RCCL does much better...

And RCCL's entertainment on its big ships is unbeatable...as are those incredible amenities--the surfing pools, ice rinks, zip lines, etc.

Royal Caribbean is my wife's favorite line. And I would choose it every time if traveling with kids or teens.

And, BTW, I am a fairly experienced cruiser...42 cruises on eight different lines...

I find the "nickel and diming" about the same on both lines. Want to avoid it? Go with Celebrity or Oceania...And, BTW, I am a fairly experienced cruiser...42 cruises on eight different lines...

Lets be honest. I know that Celebrity is the same as the other lines. Only difference is that Celebrity $1s instead of 'nickle n diming.' They have their sidewalk sales and charge more for the same items.

Tell us about their Specialty Restaurants at $45 - 50/person.

Drinks much more than Princess.

I am fairly experienced cruiser - over 100 on eight different lines.

Lets be honest. I know that Celebrity is the same as the other lines. Only difference is that Celebrity $1s instead of 'nickle n diming.' They have their sidewalk sales and charge more for the same items.

Tell us about their Specialty Restaurants at $45 - 50/person.

Drinks much more than Princess.

I am fairly experienced cruiser - over 100 on eight different lines.

OTOH, Celebrity doesn't have the constant announcements and advertising...

And, as an Elite or higher Captains Club nmember, there are FREE drinks before dinner...as opposed to a lounge where they allow you to purchase a drink of the day at a small discount...

The thread was comparing Princess to RCCL, not to Celebrity...Had it been Celebrity, I'd have a whole lot more to say...like about the far less crowded ships (measured objectively by space-per-passenger ratios), the superior service, showrooms actually sized to accommodate virtually the entire passenger capacity, standard balcony, OV and inside cabins with enough space to have a sitting area with sofa (something RCCL also has) and much more...

OTOH, Celebrity doesn't have the constant announcements and advertising...

And, as an Elite or higher Captains Club nmember, there are FREE drinks before dinner...as opposed to a lounge where they allow you to purchase a drink of the day at a small discount...

 

The thread was comparing Princess to RCCL, not to Celebrity...Had it been Celebrity, I'd have a whole lot more to say...like about the far less crowded ships (measured objectively by space-per-passenger ratios), the superior service, showrooms actually sized to accommodate virtually the entire passenger capacity, standard balcony, OV and inside cabins with enough space to have a sitting area with sofa (something RCCL also has) and much more...

I didn't start the Celebrity comparison. FYI - I am Elite+ on Celebrity.I agree with your statement about Celebrity offering free drinks instead of $5 on Princess. As far as Celebrity having superior service I totally disagree with you. Lets not go there. I know what Celebrity is and Princess, too. Been on both too many times to not know the truth. Sorry, lets not go there.

Go to this Celebrity CC Forum link to see other Celebrity comments:

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2277989

Have been on both Princess and RCCL and in general find RCCL to be pretty equivalent to Princess for the things we are interested in.

We have found food in the MDR to be about the same on both cruise lines.

The International Cafe on Princess is much better than the Cafe Promenade on RCCL.

The buffet food on Princess is better (to us) than on RCCL, but the beffet area is better designed on RCCL although the Regal/Royal buffet area layout are as good as the buffet areas on RCCL.

We have found the staff to be as good on both cruise lines.

We do not care to do wall climbing or ice skating, so those facilities do not draw us to RCCL. However, the ice shows on RCCL have been very good.

In general production shows on RCCL have been better than on Princess, but the shows we had on the Royal Princess which used great technology to good effect matched the best of what we had on RCCL.

Guest entertainers, bands, piano bar, etc. about the same on both ships.

Royal makes you pre-pay gratuties if you have My Time Dining. Princess does not if you have Anytime Dining.

Royal makes you pay for shore excursions at the time reserved before a cruise. Princess lets you pay on the ship (although is experimenting with requiring pre-payment).

Princess Future Cruise Certificates expire after two years and you can get your money refunded if not used. You can get an unlimited number of FCCs, but they can only be used by the person purchasing them. On Royal, the number of their FCC equivalents is limited (I think to three) per cruise, never expire, and never can be refunded. But if you do not want to use yours, you can share them with friends or family. However, if I remember correctly, on Royal you only get OBC if you book a future cruise while on a cruise, not booking after as you can on Princess.

Princess allows you to stack OBC from different sources such as stockholder, from use of FCCs, from special sales promotions, etc. RCI severely limits limits the stacking. For example, if you get a special balcony rate due to loyalty status, you cannot get stockholder OBC.

If you are on B2B, Princess allows you to carry the balance from the first segment over to the second. Royal closes out the account at the end of the first segment and sends the charge to your credit card then.

There are many other things that are different on the two cruise lines, but not necessarily better or worse, just different. As examples:

o Princess has name tags by your cabin door, Royal does not.

o Princess has an Internet manager to help customers with problems. Royal relies on customer service desk personnel to help customers with Internet problems.

o Royal has three story high dining rooms. Princess has one story high dining rooms.

And trivia prizes generally suck on both cruise lines. However if you win a ball point pen, the one from Royal will last much longer than the one from Princess.

Caribill's comprehensive list above is great. We sail both lines and like them both, most often we sail on RC when we are traveling with family members and their children. Such great children's pool areas and entertainment!

I definitely think RC has cornered the market on nickel and diming! Sometimes it is hard to navigate your way around the atrium area with all of the tables with employees selling things!

Did anyone mention the fact that the buffet on RC is only available at designated times, and literally closes down during off times? One of the things I like best about Princess is that the Horizon Court is open all day and into the evening, with something always available. On the last cruise we did on RC, embarkation at Port Canaveral was a total nightmare, and by the time we boarded and put our stuff in the room and went up to the buffet, it was closed!! :mad: On embarkation day with people arriving at different times and their meal schedules all screwed up with traveling, quite frankly I thought this was pretty unimpressive!

Have been on both Princess and RCCL and in general find RCCL to be pretty equivalent to Princess for the things we are interested in.

 

We have found food in the MDR to be about the same on both cruise lines.

 

The International Cafe on Princess is much better than the Cafe Promenade on RCCL.

 

The buffet food on Princess is better (to us) than on RCCL, but the beffet area is better designed on RCCL although the Regal/Royal buffet area layout are as good as the buffet areas on RCCL.

 

We have found the staff to be as good on both cruise lines.

 

We do not care to do wall climbing or ice skating, so those facilities do not draw us to RCCL. However, the ice shows on RCCL have been very good.

 

In general production shows on RCCL have been better than on Princess, but the shows we had on the Royal Princess which used great technology to good effect matched the best of what we had on RCCL.

 

Guest entertainers, bands, piano bar, etc. about the same on both ships.

 

Royal makes you pre-pay gratuties if you have My Time Dining. Princess does not if you have Anytime Dining.

 

Royal makes you pay for shore excursions at the time reserved before a cruise. Princess lets you pay on the ship (although is experimenting with requiring pre-payment).

 

Princess Future Cruise Certificates expire after two years and you can get your money refunded if not used. You can get an unlimited number of FCCs, but they can only be used by the person purchasing them. On Royal, the number of their FCC equivalents is limited (I think to three) per cruise, never expire, and never can be refunded. But if you do not want to use yours, you can share them with friends or family. However, if I remember correctly, on Royal you only get OBC if you book a future cruise while on a cruise, not booking after as you can on Princess.

 

Princess allows you to stack OBC from different sources such as stockholder, from use of FCCs, from special sales promotions, etc. RCI severely limits limits the stacking. For example, if you get a special balcony rate due to loyalty status, you cannot get stockholder OBC.

 

If you are on B2B, Princess allows you to carry the balance from the first segment over to the second. Royal closes out the account at the end of the first segment and sends the charge to your credit card then.

 

There are many other things that are different on the two cruise lines, but not necessarily better or worse, just different. As examples:

o Princess has name tags by your cabin door, Royal does not.

o Princess has an Internet manager to help customers with problems. Royal relies on customer service desk personnel to help customers with Internet problems.

o Royal has three story high dining rooms. Princess has one story high dining rooms.

 

And trivia prizes generally suck on both cruise lines. However if you win a ball point pen, the one from Royal will last much longer than the one from Princess.

Spot on except Royal has now changed the prepay tips. You can prepay or have it done daily on the ship. They started that a few months ago .

Princess give military OBC on every cruise. RCCL does not .

Princess give military OBC on every cruise. RCCL does not .

And while both may offer shareholder benefits (or at least USED to- don't know if Royal still does), princess allows them to be stacked with other benefits and fares. Royal's are extremely restrictive and cannot be combined with other discounts.

Its all about perspective. I have seen raving reviews from cruiser on carnival, saying that they enjoyed carnival much more than princess. I have read poor reviews on higher end cruises like Celebrity or Cunard, that said they are penny pinchers and offer horrible food or entertainment. Other say the same companies are great. Some blame the lines for things totally out of their control, mainly weather. They get mad if an itinerary is changed due to weather. Saw a post about princess saying they should have gotten a refund because their ship arrived 4 hours late do to fog. I read back to back posting about the same cruise where on passenger says the ship is beautiful and the crew fantastic , and the next post saying the ship should be condemned and the crew was horrible. LoL how can this be... same cruise, same days, same ship same crew.

So the bottom line, its about your expectations and what you make of each day rather than nick picking. I find it so hard to believe that some one can spend tons of money on a cruise and can not find some thing that was good and had 7 or 14 days of pure heck.

The more I read the reviews, the more I think, some people can never be pleased, others find a way to enjoy the moment. Never base your plans on some one else's review, good or bad. Make your own judgment's and decisions

I been cruising since 1998, 16 trips on princess. Have they all been love boat perfect, nah, but they been consistently good and I am going back for more next year.

Just my thoughts.

Cheers

Cheers

" ..................... Princess allows you to stack OBC from different sources such as stockholder, from use of FCCs, from special sales promotions, etc. RCI severely limits limits the stacking. For example, if you get a special balcony rate due to loyalty status, you cannot get stockholder OBC."

Our last cruise on RCCL I had to "do handstands" and "jump through hoops" to receive my "Shareholder Credit". Their standard answer is "NO." Then if you persist, they will grudgingly allow this credit after several denials.

Following this last RCCL cruise I sold all of my RCCL shares, (although at a good profit), and will likely not sail with them again. Too much of a hassle to obtain what is advertised as rightfully ours.

" ..................... Princess allows you to stack OBC from different sources such as stockholder, from use of FCCs, from special sales promotions, etc. RCI severely limits limits the stacking. For example, if you get a special balcony rate due to loyalty status, you cannot get stockholder OBC."

 

Our last cruise on RCCL I had to "do handstands" and "jump through hoops" to receive my "Shareholder Credit". Their standard answer is "NO." Then if you persist, they will grudgingly allow this credit after several denials.

Following this last RCCL cruise I sold all of my RCCL shares, (although at a good profit), and will likely not sail with them again. Too much of a hassle to obtain what is advertised as rightfully ours.

I like Royal Caribbean but decided last week to purchase some carnival stock. Looked into Royal, but found its so restrictive.

and trivia prizes generally suck on both cruise lines. However if you win a ball point pen, the one from royal will last much longer than the one from princess.

lol.. True!!

Spot on except Royal has now changed the prepay tips. You can prepay or have it done daily on the ship. They started that a few months ago .

RCCL web site still says:

"For your convenience, prepaid gratuities are automatically added to My Time Dining reservations. Some guests choose to recognize particularly exceptional service with an additional cash gratuity on the last night of their cruise."

Princess: Love pizza and hamburgers on deck, International Café, MUTS done properly (at night).

RCCL: While I prefer the relaxed atmosphere on Princess, when I go on RCCL I try and get in the swing of things and enjoy the pool competitions, line dancing, and watching people wipeout on the flowrider.

We are not as seasoned cruisers as many here, but over the years, have been on 2 Carnival (1st 2 cruises) , 1 Princess, 1 Celebrity and 5 Royal cruises. We have 2 Princess cruises booked for next year. Most of our cruises have been with extended family including grandkids. (Next two-just the two of us) Having cruised on both lines and read a lot here on CC, I'd like to add to the discussion.

First, I love cruising so I will enjoy any day on any ship. But here's my thoughts on RCCL vs Princess.

1. My husband is a vet and Princess gives ALL vets on all cruises OBC. Yea Princess! Never got any military perk on RCCL.

2. While all lines have kids clubs, RCCL has additional activities like rock wall, ice rink, flow rider and water parks. Activities that families can do together. So I'd say RCCL is more kid friendly. That is not to say my granddaughters did not love ALL their cruises on ALL lines. They did. But more to do on Royal.

3. This one is a biggie for us- RCCL has sofas in their balcony cabins. One must book a mini suite on Princess or you will only get a small arm chair and desk chair in a standard balcony. We use our cabin to relax so having a comfy place to sit is important to us. I wonder how many people use the desk. Maybe Princess can take out the desk and put in a love seat. I have never looked at prices for a Princess mini vs a RCCL standard balcony. Possibly they are close enough to make this category a wash for us.

4. RCCL has many connecting cabins. Cabins with door between. Not just next door. I believe only the Diamond and Sapphire on Princess have this option. For some families connecting cabins is really helpful. Standard balcony cabins for 4 are pretty tight with beds coming down from the ceiling and the bottom beds must remain in twin formation. RCCL uses sleeper sofa beds.

5. Princess lets you stack OBC. A big plus for Princes. We have $595 OBC on our Alaska cruise from multiple sources. Offsets the cost of the mini suite with my sofa!

6. Just found out that after our 3rd Princess cruise we will be automatically upgraded to Premium insurance if we buy the standard. That's a nice perk. RCCL Crown and Anchor needs more trips to move up to Platinum.

7. Personally I found food to be equal on both lines , but I'm not picky. Afternoon tea on Princess is nice.

The bottom line - lots of pluses for each line. It all boils down to prioritizing one's most important features.

Have been on both Princess and RCCL and in general find RCCL to be pretty equivalent to Princess for the things we are interested in.

 

We have found food in the MDR to be about the same on both cruise lines.

 

The International Cafe on Princess is much better than the Cafe Promenade on RCCL.

 

The buffet food on Princess is better (to us) than on RCCL, but the beffet area is better designed on RCCL although the Regal/Royal buffet area layout are as good as the buffet areas on RCCL.

 

We have found the staff to be as good on both cruise lines.

 

We do not care to do wall climbing or ice skating, so those facilities do not draw us to RCCL. However, the ice shows on RCCL have been very good.

 

In general production shows on RCCL have been better than on Princess, but the shows we had on the Royal Princess which used great technology to good effect matched the best of what we had on RCCL.

 

Guest entertainers, bands, piano bar, etc. about the same on both ships.

 

Royal makes you pre-pay gratuties if you have My Time Dining. Princess does not if you have Anytime Dining.

 

Royal makes you pay for shore excursions at the time reserved before a cruise. Princess lets you pay on the ship (although is experimenting with requiring pre-payment).

 

Princess Future Cruise Certificates expire after two years and you can get your money refunded if not used. You can get an unlimited number of FCCs, but they can only be used by the person purchasing them. On Royal, the number of their FCC equivalents is limited (I think to three) per cruise, never expire, and never can be refunded. But if you do not want to use yours, you can share them with friends or family. However, if I remember correctly, on Royal you only get OBC if you book a future cruise while on a cruise, not booking after as you can on Princess.

 

Princess allows you to stack OBC from different sources such as stockholder, from use of FCCs, from special sales promotions, etc. RCI severely limits limits the stacking. For example, if you get a special balcony rate due to loyalty status, you cannot get stockholder OBC.

 

If you are on B2B, Princess allows you to carry the balance from the first segment over to the second. Royal closes out the account at the end of the first segment and sends the charge to your credit card then.

 

There are many other things that are different on the two cruise lines, but not necessarily better or worse, just different. As examples:

o Princess has name tags by your cabin door, Royal does not.

o Princess has an Internet manager to help customers with problems. Royal relies on customer service desk personnel to help customers with Internet problems.

o Royal has three story high dining rooms. Princess has one story high dining rooms.

 

And trivia prizes generally suck on both cruise lines. However if you win a ball point pen, the one from Royal will last much longer than the one from Princess.

This is a great comparison of the two lines....having just sailed on my first Princess cruise, after MANY Royal and Celebrity sailings. Princess and Royal are much more alike than not. One area that ROYAL excels and Princess fails, miserably is in the "anytime dining" area, Royal calls it "my time dining" and does a great job with it... no need to bribe the maître d to get a table when and where you want, no long lines waiting for a table because Royal does not let people not assigned to that area to eat there, unlike Princess which had no controls in place at all for this.... Princess food is better than Royal's in the MDR and the bufftet, but the buffet layout is nowhere near as good as Royal's. I think the overall quality of the ship would rank Royal and Princess very closely together and Celebrity above them both in ALL areas except for the variety of entertainment... both of the others do that better than X

The Royal and the Regal have some cabins with connecting interior doors. Not sure if the deck plans still show them. We sailed on the Royal along with DD and family and we were on one of the first sailings of the Royal so booked the connecting cabins well before ship came out. Although the deck plan had a little connecting door on it, since no one had sailed on her we weren't 100% sure they were connecting until we boarded and saw the two cabins. It worked out great, perfect for a family with children.

The Royal and the Regal have some cabins with connecting interior doors. Not sure if the deck plans still show them. We sailed on the Royal along with DD and family and we were on one of the first sailings of the Royal so booked the connecting cabins well before ship came out. Although the deck plan had a little connecting door on it, since no one had sailed on her we weren't 100% sure they were connecting until we boarded and saw the two cabins. It worked out great, perfect for a family with children.

Good to know. That has been a big factor in choosing ships for our family. I read here, too, that Regal/Royal have sofas in some premium balcony cabins which is also something we look for. Wish either were on the West coast occasionally.

This is also subjective , but I think Princess's itineraries are far superior to RCCL's .