Trying something new!

After a lot of flip-flopping, my husband and I have canceled our 3/27 Allure of the Seas cruise and booked the Regal Princess (2 mini-suites for us and DD and friend). The reviews for both Oasis and Allure have been troubling lately, especially comments about the food. We're never sailed Princess so we thought we'd try something new. We're confident with our decision and will report back with any pertinent comments upon our return.

Good morning. :) I see absolutely nothing wrong with going on different cruise lines. Variety is the spice of life. I have always wondered why some people only stick with one cruise line.....however.......I don't think I would have cancelled the Allure because of whiny complaints that will always be there. Some people just love to complain. I hope you have a wonderful cruise and I would love some feed back, as I have yet to cruise on Princess. :)

After a lot of flip-flopping, my husband and I have canceled our 3/27 Allure of the Seas cruise and booked the Regal Princess (2 mini-suites for us and DD and friend). The reviews for both Oasis and Allure have been troubling lately, especially comments about the food. We're never sailed Princess so we thought we'd try something new. We're confident with our decision and will report back with any pertinent comments upon our return.

Let me clarify that it wasn't only because of the massive amounts of negative reviews. The decision was based upon a host of pros and cons. While the reviews did play a part in our decision, they weren't the only determining factor in our final choice of ship/cruise line.

Let me clarify that it wasn't only because of the massive amounts of negative reviews. The decision was based upon a host of pros and cons. While the reviews did play a part in our decision, they weren't the only determining factor in our final choice of ship/cruise line.

Good morning. :) I see absolutely nothing wrong with going on different cruise lines. Variety is the spice of life. I have always wondered why some people only stick with one cruise line.....however.......I don't think I would have cancelled the Allure because of whiny complaints that will always be there. Some people just love to complain. I hope you have a wonderful cruise and I would love some feed back, as I have yet to cruise on Princess. :)

I suspect that some people stick with one cruise line because vacation time for many people is limited and so are finances. So when they find something that works for them they don't want to risk having a sub par experience by switching things up. Of course, this type of thinking can cause one to miss out of some great experiences but everybody has their own comfort levels.

After a lot of flip-flopping, my husband and I have canceled our 3/27 Allure of the Seas cruise and booked the Regal Princess (2 mini-suites for us and DD and friend). The reviews for both Oasis and Allure have been troubling lately, especially comments about the food. We're never sailed Princess so we thought we'd try something new. We're confident with our decision and will report back with any pertinent comments upon our return.

I hope you like Princess - overall, it is my favorite line. I just returned from a 10 night cruise on Grandeur OTS and the food was the low point for me, but I recall it being better on our Oasis cruise a few years ago which could be in part to all of the options available on the larger ships. You will have a much more traditional cruise experience on Royal Princess than you would have had on Allure.

We sailed on Oasis last year and enjoyed it very much! Here are some things that swayed our 'switch': a more traditional ship with much more water views, a full day on a private island, CONSISTENT excellent food reviews, price (went from 2 balcony cabins to 2 mini-suites---similar to junior suites on AOS, for less money)......those are just a few. Hope that helps.

After a lot of flip-flopping, my husband and I have canceled our 3/27 Allure of the Seas cruise and booked the Regal Princess (2 mini-suites for us and DD and friend). The reviews for both Oasis and Allure have been troubling lately, especially comments about the food. We're never sailed Princess so we thought we'd try something new. We're confident with our decision and will report back with any pertinent comments upon our return.

I assume that you have also read the reviews for the Regal Princess....... ;)

We sailed on Oasis last year and enjoyed it very much! Here are some things that swayed our 'switch': a more traditional ship with much more water views, a full day on a private island, CONSISTENT excellent food reviews, price (went from 2 balcony cabins to 2 mini-suites---similar to junior suites on AOS, for less money)......those are just a few. Hope that helps.

Just my opinion: A mini-suite on Princess is equivalent to a D category balcony on Royal Carib. It's definitely not as spacious as a Jr Suite.

We thoroughly enjoyed both of our Princess cruises, especially the food, and would definitely sail with them again, especially if they would return to homeporting in Brooklyn during the summer (as they did in the past).

We have sailed Princess 3 X's and have enjoyed every cruise. My own personal comparison between Princess & Royal, is Princess JS rooms are much smaller and narrower then Royal as the include the balcony in their overall room size, whereas Royal gives you a room size plus a balcony side. I won't compare food but there seems to be a tie there. Granted we have sailed only 1 time on the larger Princess ships, the Star Princess. In our limited princess sailings, we have found Royal to be friendlier and crew interact more. Overall I believe you will have an enjoyable cruise on Princess.

I suspect that some people stick with one cruise line because vacation time for many people is limited and so are finances. So when they find something that works for them they don't want to risk having a sub par experience by switching things up. Of course, this type of thinking can cause one to miss out of some great experiences but everybody has their own comfort levels.

We have stuck with RCI because we have enjoyed every cruise we've been on and don't feel we've missed out on any great experience as we've had great experiences on all our cruises. When we step foot on a Royal ship we immediately feel at home. As far as complaints, I have friends who've cruised on Princess and don't have a good word to say about that line. I once lived in a condominium complex with a woman who worked for Holland cruise lines and she said she would never sail their ships because of what she knew (she would never tell us the bad things she knew even though we asked). Bottom line is - to each their own. We are loyal to Royal and will probably never leave them although we are looking forward to trying Celebrity sometime in the future (but since their parent company is RCI, it's all in the family).

We sailed on Oasis last year and enjoyed it very much! Here are some things that swayed our 'switch': a more traditional ship with much more water views, a full day on a private island, CONSISTENT excellent food reviews, price (went from 2 balcony cabins to 2 mini-suites---similar to junior suites on AOS, for less money)......those are just a few. Hope that helps.

yOU had previously sailed Oasis and you note the more traditional ship-is it the water views or is maybe not needing a central park/surf rider etc?

Really just curious having not sailed on an Oasis class ship will have it as a plan in the future. I do get the money savings for sure!

We did read A LOT of Regal Princess reviews and found them to be quite favorable. We loved the entertainment on Oasis. We really did miss seeing water. Water views are tough to come by on Oasis and Allure. We full well knew we weren't going to see a lot of water and accepted that, but we did miss it. We also knew that the main 'atrium' was more like a shopping mall, and way less like a traditional atrium on other ships we'd been on and we were ok with that, but did at times feel 'trapped' inside. The 'for charge' restaurants were delicious and we were prepared to pay, but were disappointed with the food in the MDR and buffet. We enjoyed our balcony cabin. We realize the mini suite on Regal isn't like a junior suite on Oasis, but we are happy with what we are getting especially for the price we got. We're not trashing RCI or Oasis/Allure. Consistency/trends in reviews reveal that the food is troubling to a lot of people. We are trying something new, plain and simple.

As for pizza, Princess wins hands down.

After a lot of flip-flopping, my husband and I have canceled our 3/27 Allure of the Seas cruise and booked the Regal Princess (2 mini-suites for us and DD and friend). The reviews for both Oasis and Allure have been troubling lately, especially comments about the food. We're never sailed Princess so we thought we'd try something new. We're confident with our decision and will report back with any pertinent comments upon our return.

I agree with all those "go for it" types. I have sailed Carnival, Princess, NCL, Celebrity, and Royal Caribbean. I have enjoyed every cruiseline for different reasons. But I like Royal the best. Just me. I loved our Princess cruise, but the amenities compared to Allure are very different. You are with your daughter and a friend. What are their ages? Will they miss the zip line, flow rider, rock wall, ice rink that you find on Allure? Will the pizza make up for it? If they just want to "veg by the pool," then no problem. I, for one, will be interested in your report back. We went to Celebrity last year and it just wasn't for me. I found it a bit "boring." No real night life. Ship tended to shut down by midnight. Seemed a bit "older" for my liking, and I'm 64. But that's just me. I will likely do another one as I loved the ship and service. I, too, am interested in another Princess cruise. But the amenities and perks of Diamond Plus make a difference. So as I said, I'll be very interested in your take. Have a great time. Be sure to report back.

Glad you're giving Princess a try! :)

My daughter and her friend are 17 (seniors in high school). They more than likely wouldn't use the ice rink or rock climbing wall. They would've liked Mama Mia, the ice show, and the aqua theater show for sure. The girls were part of the decision. They wanted us to make the change. They said the ship overall suited their needs better as they really do want to just 'chill'. Also, it's been our experience with our teenage son and daughter on previous cruises that the very first night they hook up with all the other teens and we don't see much of them the rest of the week. I don't think the actual ship has much to do with that. I attribute that to 'that's what teenagers do'. As for my husband and I, we really could have gone either way, but this is an early graduation gift for our daughter and we wanted her opinion to count. We love RCI, really we do, but we also like Celebrity and Holland America. We're only 51, but I guess we're ok with sitting around doing 'nothing' sometimes. I'm a teacher and he's an underwriter. We need a break!!!! LOL

After a lot of flip-flopping, my husband and I have canceled our 3/27 Allure of the Seas cruise and booked the Regal Princess (2 mini-suites for us and DD and friend). The reviews for both Oasis and Allure have been troubling lately, especially comments about the food. We're never sailed Princess so we thought we'd try something new. We're confident with our decision and will report back with any pertinent comments upon our return.

I think that it's good to step out and try other lines. Celebrity has become my go to line now. The only time that I would cruise with RCI is to cruise on the Oasis class because there is nothing out there that can compete with them on the level of entertainment. Other than that I now prefer the smaller ships. Especially when the itinerary is the focus. :)

We will choose RCCL unless the itinerary with Celebrity, Princess, HAL, and now NCL is better.

Our one HAL, which we thoroughly enjoyed, took us all the way from Sydney to Seattle for $400 less than the Radiance to Honolulu.

Princess has wonderful itineraries out of Los Angeles, so we save on airfare.

NCL (which I just booked a few days ago) has a spectacular European itinerary for bff and I, for half the price of our Azamara we had booked. Includes eating in specialty restaurants every night, too.

We are not brand loyal and last winter did our first princess on the regal.....loved the ship but tired of the itinerary....went to be with family so it was worth it....I did not notice how big she is and we loved the buffet....best I have been to in any venue.....would return to princess if the price was right and going anywhere but the eastern regulars....

Our family is doing the exact opposite of the OP. We are long time Princess cruisers, and in a couple weeks are going on our first RCCL cruise (9 day Southern Caribbean on Serenade of the Seas). We thoroughly enjoy Princess, but wanted to try something different. A few years ago we tried a Costa cruise and had a great time. A little variety keeps things fresh.

Paul

Serenade and southern route are my favorites....beautiful ship and awesome solarium...think you will not be disappointed....

A little variety keeps things fresh.

Paul

Totally agree with you! It's fun to "sleep around"! :D

We had heard such great things about Princess so a couple of years ago we decided to try them. We were very disappointed. I guess we went in anticipating too much. They were o.k. but we didn't think they were any better than Carnival.

Royal is our favorite and we have been on 4 different lines. Maybe if you don't go in expecting too much, you won't be disappointed but then again different people enjoy different things.

We haven't been on the Oasis ships but would love too. We plan to go on Liberty in April. That will be our largest ship yet. Can't wait.

Anyway, hope you have a great cruise!