Carnival vs Royal Caribbean?

I didn't know that Johnny Rockets is free on Carnival!

 

And about the late night room service fee, I don't see it as a way to produce revenue, but as a way to deter waste from people ordering and then not even opening the door. Not that I've EVER done that before! :o

 

 

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Carnival doesn't have Johnny Rockets

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Your numbers are still way off then

 

But I know, you are not biased ;)

Le's just agree that your numbers and my numbers are both way off. Shall we?

Let's also agree that I'm no more biased than you are. :D

Le's just agree that your numbers and my numbers are both way off. Shall we?

 

Let's also agree that I'm no more biased than you are. :D

I would agree, if my numbers were off, or If I was being biased, but since I'm not I can't agree to that...

But thanks for admitting to being biased ;)

I would agree, if my numbers were off, or If I was being biased

Sure, sure

:rolleyes:

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This seems to be an easy question to answer at least for me now, as food and entertainment are the most important to me..After my last Carnival ship, when i went up to the Pool deck and some DJ was there instead of the calypso band, which also puts me into the cruising mode, the choice was clear. the food is also much better on royal, and it a classier enviornment. My first Carnival ship, when i boarded there was even a classical music group playing, and the staff seemed much friendlier. on my last ship, this was not the case. the food on Lido was Ok, as there was a stir fry grill and tacos, but Royal has this as well. There was a comedy club on Carnival, but it was just Ok. The piano bar next door was a bunch of drunks singing dirty songs.. Royal had some nice groups playing in the Centrum area. the guest service staff was also friendlier on Royal. Rooms, quality of shows, etc. To me there is no Comparison, Royal is far superior

This question has been hashed to death for years...Pepsi or Coke?

I would gladly sail on either, I personally feel they are more alike than different. I have more Carnival due to RC not sailing year round out of Galveston for a few years, otherwise it would probably be more equal.

 

I guess if you are more adventurous you might like RC better with it's Flowrider, ziplining, rock wall, ice skating, etc. I usually go to relax so those aren't a huge draw for me, although I did successfully climb the rock wall once on the Rhapsody and it was fun but I was sore for a week after :)

 

The only edge I would give to RC personally is their adults only solarium. Carnival is almost there with Serenity but minus the pool it's a few points below.

Heartily concur. RC - pretty ship, smaller cabins, so so food, better entertainment, fewer woohoo people. Sticking with Carnival until I make Platinum, (4 more cruises), then want to strike out and try something different. However, I still love the 'bang for the buck' I receive with Carnival.

Robes in all rooms on Carnival. Only suites RCI.

Deal breaker right there.

I am a long-time Royal Cruiser, and when I went to take my first Carnival cruise, I was petrified! Carnival so exceeded my expectations. There are a few differences. The entertainment on Royal is far superior (we can all agree on that) with the exception of the comedians of course. Carnival has the best comedians at sea. I do like the MDR much better on Carnival, mainly because they have very creative dishes. I like the design of Royal ships versus Carnival (the dreaded deck that you can't walk from the front to the back of the ship makes me very angry) but with that being said, Carnival ships have a lot of cool "secret" spots that Royal doesn't have. I also like how Royal ships have a promenade deck that goes all the way around. The rooms on Carnival also feel bigger than Royal rooms (just my opinion) Sorry about my rant, but overall the only noticeable difference is the entertainment. Happy Sailing!

Yes I am biased towards Carnival, Royal had two chances to WOW me and they did not.

Cruises 11 and 12 booked on Carnival and so ready to go. The staff IMO is much better on Carnival than what we experienced on Royal.

when I went to take my first Carnival cruise, I was petrified! Carnival so exceeded my expectations.

This. We were so impressed with our first Carnival cruise on Glory. We really weren't expecting much but had wonderful service all around and thought the food was great!!!! That paired with a pre-cruise stay at Disney World and some fabulous excursions made that trip our favorite to date. Then we sailed on Freedom of the Seas. I had wanted to sail on this ship very badly. My expectations were so high that this would be the Best. Vacation. Ever. The ship was beautiful and our balcony was HUGE (13 family members had a sailaway party on that balcony with plenty of room to spare!!!) but we found the service to be lacking (a couple of times just so rude) and it was a real turnoff. Wouldn't stop me from sailing on Royal again but it was a bummer.

so, I am 29, looking to possibly do the allure/oasis of the sea.

I think I just want to do it because of the "holy crap" factor.

I have been on 10 carnival cruises already, and about 5 others.

but looking at my first royal.

How is it for people my age? One thing i love about carnival, is i feel like it is always a party!

The staff IMO is much better on Carnival than what we experienced on Royal.

Service varies person to person, ship to ship, week to week, sailing to sailing and is based on a multitude of different factors. These can range anywhere from lack of training, how the associate feels that day or even the passengers onboard. There are thousands of variables that come into play, but to base the entire shoreside and shipside staff of an entire cruise line off two cruises is ridiculous.

When you wake up every morning and go to work, are you at the fullest (100%) of your abilities, both emotionally and physically or are there some days where you may consider things to be "off?"

It looks like OP will be on Grandeur; discussing upcharge options on Oasis is a bit of a moot point.

 

...$3 for popcorn is ridiculous)....

I dunno, a $3 bag of popcorn would go pretty well with this thread!:rolleyes:

You will enjoy RCI. I enjoy both lines for different reasons. I do think the food is better on Carnival, but that is really as of 2008, and I have heard that may have changed a little bit.

I am glad that I like both, as there are much more ships/itins to choose from vs. being loyal to one line only.

Well I just want to know if caliber of people is any different??????

My last cruise on Carnival felt like a floating Wal-Mart full of rude chair hogs. Yes, it's cheaper but I'd honestly pay extra not to deal with the foolishness. Hence the reason I am strongly considering RC next year. I'm gonna give Carnival one last try for my cruise that is booked in January....

I have never been on RCL. I have been many times on Princess and NCL though. My wife does not really like Princess cause the crowd is so much older. NCL is ok but not great for us overall. On our upcoming Christmas cruise it really came down to price for me. I really wanted to try RCL. There were two ships leaving the itinerary we wanted which was the Southern Carib. out of San Juan. The Carnival Valor and the RCL ship Adventure of the Seas. The RCL ship left on a Saturday and the Carnival ship left on a Sunday. The itineraries were similar but not identical but close enough. The deciding factor for us is that the price on the cruise was over 1000 dollars more for the three of us on RCL. Factor that in with the airfare price being around 600 dollars more traveling on Saturday as opposed to Sunday and it was a 1600 dollar price difference. I wanted to go on RCL but just could not justify that.

Well I just want to know if caliber of people is any different??????

 

My last cruise on Carnival felt like a floating Wal-Mart full of rude chair hogs. Yes, it's cheaper but I'd honestly pay extra not to deal with the foolishness. Hence the reason I am strongly considering RC next year. I'm gonna give Carnival one last try for my cruise that is booked in January....

Believe me when I tell you that you will find the "Walmart" :rolleyes:( the use of this word on these boards is boring as heck) "chair hogs" on other cruiselines other than Carnival. People are people no matter which line they are on.

Well I just want to know if caliber of people is any different??????

 

My last cruise on Carnival felt like a floating Wal-Mart full of rude chair hogs. Yes, it's cheaper but I'd honestly pay extra not to deal with the foolishness. Hence the reason I am strongly considering RC next year. I'm gonna give Carnival one last try for my cruise that is booked in January....

Never been RCL but have been on Princess and NCL and the people seem about the same to me. Especially NCL and Carnival. I started out on Carnival in 94 and after 5 cruises switched to Princess and NCL for many years and am now back to Carnival again. They all seem to have pluses and minuses.

Never been RCL but have been on Princess and NCL and the people seem about the same to me. Especially NCL and Carnival. I started out on Carnival in 94 and after 5 cruises switched to Princess and NCL for many years and am now back to Carnival again. They all seem to have pluses and minuses.

Understood.....I think I may just try them out. I like the way the boats are decorated and I think my son will enjoy the florider and rock climbing walls better

My last cruise on Carnival felt like a floating Wal-Mart full of rude chair hogs.

There are chair hogs at Wal-Mart?? :eek:

Seriously, there are generalizations about the clientele that each cruise line attracts. But I've learned that, more than a cruise line determining the clientele, it's the dynamics of the specific sailing the main factor determining the clientele. Short and cheap itineraries from a homeport aboard an older ship will attract a very different clientele than longer, more expensive and exotic itineraries aboard a newer ship. A short, cheap cruise to Nassau or Cozumel is a short cheap cruise to Nassau or Cozumel whether you are on Carnival or Royal.

Last year, we did Holland America for the first time. I was VERY concerned because I'd read that majority of passengers would be in their 80's, in wheelchairs and scooters. Reality couldn't have been farther from the truth. Fellow cruisers on our 7 night Alaska cruise mimicked what we've seen on 7 night cruises on Royal or Carnival.

Looking at your signature, it seems like you've mainly experienced the older, smaller Carnival ships (except for Legend), which are relegated to the short, cheap itineraries from drive-to ports. While I'm a big advocate of branching out and trying other cruise lines, I would also recommend trying a different class of ship and itinerary within Carnival to see if its the cruise line or the type of itinerary that you normally select what you're dissatisfied with.

I recently cruised on RCI after cruising a bunch on Carnival.

I like both, they were more similar than they were different. They both played pretty much the same games under different names, the staff was friendly, food was comparable. The ships on RCI are a little fancier. They had touch screens to help you get around, the decoration seemed more upscale, but the rooms were a lot smaller.

I am not a brand loyalist, I just follow good prices. And usually it's cheaper on Carnival but for the actual cruise itself, it's like comparing Publix or Albertsons. Pretty much the same thing...

I have been on a couple of 5 days and the last one was a seven day, which is where I experienced most of the problems. Maybe it had been so long since I last cruised that I forgot the kinds of things you run into or perhaps I just got old and tired of the party atmosphere. At this point, I just want a nice laid back cruise without people cursing folks out for moving their towels that have been baking for hours, or having to deal with drunks. I just want a seat under the sun and a drink in my hand and none of that other drama. Perhaps I have grown out of cruising and I need to just fly somewhere. As I stated, it had been awhile since I cruised when I took the legend, so maybe I just experienced a one-off scenario. I'm going to see how it is in January on this 5 day cruise ad certainly keep an open mind. Either way, I will probably give RC a chance at least once. Who knows, that may not be for me either lol