RCCL versus Princess

We have been on 9 RCCL cruises and planning to be on the IOS for New Years Eve. We may jump over to the Ruby Princess when we get back on the 3rd of January. Not being on a Princess cruise before can anyone give me a fair comparison?

We did the Caribbean and Crown Princess about 5 years ago. I thought food was a little better on Princess, great pizza on princess. We did mini-suites one each and like them but only problrm was balcony had no cover and no privacy. My biggest gripe was it was hard to get seats for shows , princess had increased cabins but not size of show rooms and we were not able to see many of the shows. Ingood cruise but I general it was a cruise, but I rather do RCCL, will most likely try them again sometime in future.

Go for it give Princess a try, I think you'll find most of the cruise experience to be very much the same as RCL.

Sailed on Princess for years but found RCI to be more convenient for us and feel both cruise lines to be pretty the same.

Sailed on both...found entertainment better on Royal but Princess has the best pizza on the seas!!!

We did the Caribbean and Crown Princess about 5 years ago. I thought food was a little better on Princess, great pizza on princess. We did mini-suites one each and like them but only problrm was balcony had no cover and no privacy. My biggest gripe was it was hard to get seats for shows , princess had increased cabins but not size of show rooms and we were not able to see many of the shows. Ingood cruise but I general it was a cruise, but I rather do RCCL, will most likely try them again sometime in future.

Since Princess only has a 900 seat theater they run the shows on 2 consecutive days.

Of course if you see the show the first night you'll have to find a different venue to see a different show in the next night.

Get a balcony cabin on the Caribe deck. They are completely covered.

Bill

I have lots of cruises on both RCL & Princess and I love them both!

Princess does have a bit of a different vibe, but it is relaxing and very pleasant. The food is subjective but all in all I think they are close to equal.

Last week on Oasis we ate in all of the specialty restaurants and I felt like my meal at Sabatini's on Princess was the best ever! Tho 150 Central Park & Chops are awesome.

Princess does not make the nightly show as much of the centerpiece of you evening as RCL does.

I don't like their regular balcony rooms. Seem so small. No sitting area like Royal. Didn't care for the entertainment. A little older crowd. Found Royal to be classy and fun. Didn't like the tier balconies to look down at people. No privacy.

I prefer Royal.

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Ruby Princess is beautiful. Both lines are very similar and I would cruise either depending on the pricing.

We have sailed on both and I think they both offer a great experience.

We were on the Star Princess round trip Seattle for the Alaska Inside Passage and Caribbean Princess for the New England/Canada cruise. Both were excellent in every way.

I think you will enjoy sailing on Princess.

Have sailed on (and enjoyed) both Royal Caribbean and Princess. I used to think Princess offered one or two advantages (eg better headroom in staterooms, more comfortable chairs in dining rooms), but on our last cruise the Princess ship made the (IMHO) cardinal sin of missing out a port for a very spurious sounding reason, so in future will think twice before booking another cruise with them.

The two lines are very similar, with little things I like better here and there between each of the two. I enjoy experiencing different lines and appreciating the differences.

We've sailed on both, starting on Princess and now are Damond on RCI. If you're cruising with 3 people, Princess doesn't have a sleeper sofa in their balcony cabins so we always booked a JS. We now end up booking a JS on RCI but are hooked. Since princess tends to be more expensive, we'll stay with RCI but both are great.

We've sailed on both, starting on Princess and now are Damond on RCI. If you're cruising with 3 people, Princess doesn't have a sleeper sofa in their balcony cabins so we always booked a JS. We now end up booking a JS on RCI but are hooked. Since princess tends to be more expensive, we'll stay with RCI but both are great.

Princess is often comparably priced with RCI. It just depends on the cruise p, the day you book, etc. We enjoy both lines. We usually book a minisuite to have a sofa. Emerald Deck minis on the Grand class are fully covered. .

Have sailed on (and enjoyed) both Royal Caribbean and Princess. I used to think Princess offered one or two advantages (eg better headroom in staterooms, more comfortable chairs in dining rooms), but on our last cruise the Princess ship made the (IMHO) cardinal sin of missing out a port for a very spurious sounding reason, so in future will think twice before booking another cruise with them.

we have cruised both lines and there's not much difference really

not sure what you meant missing a port for a very spurious sounding reason but we have missed ports mainly due to the weather

if RCI had a better internet package and free unlimited laundry like princess for elites it would be better

We like Princess as much as RC.

Definitely the best Pizza around....

We have sailed both lines, and will continue to. Princess does have the best pizza and we enjoy the "Movies Under the Stars" You get a blanket, popcorn and warm cookies and milk. The screens are nice an large too. I thin more people watch the movies them the shows. Princess is a calmer crowd but we like that. We love the Radiance class on RCL, because of the size, layout and decor of the ships. I have to say I do like the service more on the Emrald Princess and Ruby princess more that what we have had on the Crown and Caribbean princess. I think it has to do with the length of the cruise, we have had much better services on 9-12 day cruises with Princess than 7 day ones. Overall we do choice by itinerary anf cost. I have to say the Radiance class ships are great for Alaska.

We sailed a lovely itinerary on Emerald Princess some years ago. The ship was beautiful, although a little confusing. Seriously, we were still getting lost 10 days later. That usually doesn't happen to us on Royal. :D Anyway, there were some things we really liked more about Princess some things we like more about Royal. As you can see from my sig, we cruise mostly Royal now.

I say spread the love around and try different lines. Life is short, and is meant to be lived and enjoyed. :)

Enjoyed our Princess cruise to Hawaii last Oct. Love the pizza and the Trident Grill. The buffet was not as good as the WJ I thought however I did think the food in the MDR was a little better than RCL. Got a good price on a mini-suite.

Going on Princess for a 7 day Pacific Coastal this fall for 1129.00 pp for a mini-suite. We are happy. Got a little OBC too. I most likely will never cruise in a Jr Suite on RCL..just overall too expensive. RCL is pricing their Pacific Coastal cruises for fall 2015 off the charts. We got in right when the cruises opened or we would not be sailing on the Jewel Oct 2015.

I am not going to be loyal to anyone for name only. I probably won’t cruise on Carnival or NCL but I have no issue cruising with Princess.

I did have trouble learning what elevators to take where.

Laura

To the comment about repeating shows consecutive nights on Princess, I did not experience that and have not heard about that on the CC boards elsewhere. A year or so ago princess did go to shorter shows that are performed three times a night for the production numbers at least on most Grand Class ships. Has something changed again? Thanks.

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RC parties tend to be much higher energy than Princess, and RC staff are generally friendlier, but otherwise I think you'll like Princess. Ruby is a beautiful ship and there is always lots to do in the evenings. There is usually a show in the big lounge, a show in the smaller lounge (comedy, game shows, etc), AND MUTS. The piano lounge entertainment is too old for my taste (I'm 49). Get to the shows early or you won't get a seat. They have parties on deck and in the centrum area too.

To the comment about repeating shows consecutive nights on Princess, I did not experience that and have not heard about that on the CC boards elsewhere. A year or so ago princess did go to shorter shows that are performed three times a night for the production numbers at least on most Grand Class ships. Has something changed again? Thanks.

 

 

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That was my post about the repeating shows. I'll have to look at my wifes scrapbooks to see if it was 2011 on the Crown or the Caribbean Princess in 2012.

I do remeber we went to the production show one night and then after that to see the comedian show.

The next night they had the same exact production show so we passed and went to see the comedian.

It was the same comedian with the same jokes.

If they have sinced switched to shorter shows that sounds like a better idea. they can then have 3 a night and have different entertainment every night which would be a huge plus.

Bill