NCL, RCI, or Princess?

[Caribbean Allan]

I know this question has been asked many times before. But it seems that most people stick primarily with one cruise line, and maybe have ventured off into another line for 1 or 2 past cruises. And it's possible that when they ventured out, they happened to have a bad cruise experience. (If there really is such a thing.) So I'm hoping that my question will be answered ONLY by cruisers that have sailed 3 or more times each of all three of these cruise lines. Two questions, actually: On average, which of the three lines have the best food in the MDR? On average, which of the lines have the best ON BOARD (at sea) experience, taking into account entertainment such as live music by the pool, shows, fun activities, good cruise director, etc. Since we're only looking at these three cruise lines, please do not consider cost/value or itineraries. I really would like to concentrate of MDR food and the on-board experience! Thank you so much for taking the time to help me decide which line to try next!

[OCruisers]

Caribbean Allen ....

We have cruised more than three times on each -- Princess, RCCL, and NCL.

All are decent cruise lines.

More on Princess than the other two because it's the best fit for us.

We are fine having dinner in the MDR on Princess without booking a Specialty dining room every night like we do on RCCL & NCL. Will say RCCL has very good specialty restaurants.

We are especially fond of the bar/lounge entertainment on Princess in the evenings. We seldom go to the production shows on any cruise line.

Most of the time during the day there was nothing we wanted to do on RCCL & NCL ... but have been happy with the variety of things Princess offers.

Have to admit the passenger base is important to us. We always seem to make lots more friends on Princess. Love that many from the UK cruise on Princess.

Certainly, all things are subjective so this is just our opinion.

Whichever you pick, have a wonderful cruise!

LuLu

[t_car]

Everyone's view of best on board experience ls just that " their view "

Same goes for opinions on food.

Personally I agree with previous poster, the MDR on Princess does serve better quality food than RCCL or NCL.

And. Yes we have been on only one Princess cruise. We had a fabulous time.

[dorisis]

We have cruised on all 3 lines numerous times. Princess is our favorite because they provide the kind of cruise that suits us best, But a lot depends on the ship, They have some smaller ships that we prefer.Good food and friendly crew.

[Keith1010]

It really is impossible to tell you which line will be best for you (by the way the experience can also vary within a line based on ship) not knowing anything about you. If everyone had the same views there would only be one or two cruise lines.

 

My recommendation is to read about each cruise line and then narrow it down to the ships of interest. Read review and posts and that will provide you with some input but the reality is you won't know until you actually sail whether or not the line/ship works for you.

 

Keith

[Krazy Kruizers]

We have sailed quite a few times on NCL, are Elite members on Princess and only did 1 cruise on RCI. We were not impressed by RCI.

JMO -- even though food is subjective -- I would go with Princess.

[Aquahound]

Here are my opinions on the things you asked about:

 

Food and MDR - I think Princess food is a little better than both RCI and NCL....but only by a little. For the most part, I think all major cruise lines' MDR food is the same quality. However, for ambiance and elegance of the MDR, RCI is the clear leader. Princess MDRs always felt cramped and chaotic to me. Whereas, RCI's MDRs are 2-3 stories and feel more comfortable. NCL MDRs aren't bad but due to Freestyle, you stand a good chance of having to wait up to 30 minutes for a table. WRT the buffet, I think Princess has the best offerings. In fact, when we sail Princess, we prefer to eat dinner in the buffet rather than the MDR.

 

Specialty Restaurants - My 2 favorite specialty restaurants are on RCI and NCL. They are Giovanni's Table on RCI and Le Bistro on NCL.

 

Entertainment/Activities - RCI Voyager, Freedom, Oasis and seemingly Quantum Class ships are the clear winners here. RCI holds contracts to put on 90 minute productions of shows like Cats, Hairspray, Saturday Night Fever, Chicago and Mama Mia. Add those to the ice shows, comedy clubs and Aqua Theater shows, Princess and NCL just cannot compete. I'd give the nod to NCL Epic for second place, and to be fair to NCL, I have not yet cruised Breakawy Class. Princess headliner entertainment isn't even close.

 

Live Pool Music - RCI has live reggae/calypso bands. Princess and NCL have live cover bands that play all kinds of music. I think they're all great, so you can decide based on the type of music you want to hear.

 

Good luck on your choice. Just one thing...ships within each cruise line can be very different. If you know what ships you're considering, it'll be a little easier to compare rather than just giving cruise line generalizations.

Edited October 8, 2014 by Aquahound

[marco]

I'd have to piggyback on several other comments that it is very subjective. My first choice of the 3 would be Princess. Overall, I think the "fit and finish" of the ship and appointments and overall decor are a bit nicer on "P", and of the 3, I think the bedding on "P" is the more comfortable.

[Cruzaholic41]

Ah - 3 cruise lines I am very familiar with. I have cruised extensively with Princess and RCI and just enough on NCL to know I don't care for NCL.

 

In my experience, entertainment has been best on Royal Caribbean (by far), and free food has been best on Princess (slightly). I find accomodations more comfortable, roomy and much more modern on RCI, and I like how RCI boards at 11am and you don't have to be out of your room until time to disembark at the end. Princess doesn't typically board until after 12 and you have to be out of your room by 8am the last morning.

 

All in all, I recommend RCI between those 3 cruise lines. But Princess would be a close second.

[Cruisin' Chick]

Ah - 3 cruise lines I am very familiar with. I have cruised extensively with Princess and RCI and just enough on NCL to know I don't care for NCL.

 

In my experience, entertainment has been best on Royal Caribbean (by far), and free food has been best on Princess (slightly). I find accomodations more comfortable, roomy and much more modern on RCI, and I like how RCI boards at 11am and you don't have to be out of your room until time to disembark at the end. Princess doesn't typically board until after 12 and you have to be out of your room by 8am the last morning.

 

All in all, I recommend RCI between those 3 cruise lines. But Princess would be a close second.

 

On Princess, when you do board, you're allowed to go to your cabin and drop off your carry ons.

[Caribbean Allan]

Thank you all for taking the time to write your responses! I now know what I'm going to do: On cruises where I simply want to relax and enjoy the scenery, such as Alaska, (which I haven't but wish to), I will choose princess. When I want more activities, and maybe the reggae music in the Caribbean, I will choose RCI (assuming roughly equal prices), but will try a few specialty restaurants. If I do go to the Caribbean with Princess, I won't bother with the specialty restaurants, at least on the first cruise with them. Again, thank you all!