Emerald Princess vs Regal Princess

[easyboy]

I love the Regal and Royal for the buffet and Alfredos. For us many nights we prefer eating in the buffet, and it's nice decor feels more like a restaurant than the other ships. I love seeing the cuts of meat and getting it cooked the way I prefer, putting the amount of gravy I want, making salad the way I like it, etc. The quality and variety of foods is quite good!

In the buffet, I also love being served with meat that is cut in front of me at the carving station. I get the end cut freely and specify my preferred portion.

[Chief02]

Without reading any of the replies, I am going to post my knee jerk reaction after having sailed on both the Emerald and the Royal.

 

I may get a Royal Flush in the Casino, but I would flush the Royal if I could.

 

The Emerald has all of the great lounges, a dedicated and useful aft pool and a fully walk-able Promenade Deck. The Regal, if anything like the Royal, removed the multi-venue Explorers Lounge and replaced it with a TV Studio that resembles, and acts as, a College Lecture Hall. Some cruise. Try a team game there!

 

I agree that the Royal Class made the Horizon Court a destination in and of itself . . . and it is well deserved in that regard. But, the rest of the ship seems like an afterthought. It's like they want to keep you inside and in a LOUD, overly used atrium . . . with announcements and flash mobs. Not to mention, the overly crowded, poorly synchronized and stuffy elevators. I think the Royal finally now has a midship staircase, but it was taken away from the crew.

 

The cabin balconies on the Royal Class are equivocal to a postage stamp. We had a Minisuite on Marina deck suffering from exposure to the Sea (Sky?) walk and it was an affrontery, at best, given how people were dressed when they walked on it.

 

As such, I would take the Emerald in a heartbeat over anything in the Royal Class. It is much more passenger friendly, practical in the layout and fun overall. It offers so much more, both inside and outside, that we have NEVER been at a loss for having fun! But, maybe that is just us.

 

We have 40 cruises on Princess and feel that the Grand Class and other ships prior to the Royal Class offer us the best cruise experience under the Princess umbrella. Well, since PCL butchered the Island, switched out the Diamond and sold the OP, it is getting harder FOR US to find a ship to go on. But, we will avoid the Royal Class at all costs and make it work.

 

Hope this helps. Sorry to seem so opinionated, but, while on the Royal, DH stated, "this would have to be at an incredibly low price to make me sail on this ship again". Wow. He never complains. And neither do I.

 

FIRE AWAY!!! I won't care.

[floridalover5623]

Without reading any of the replies, I am going to post my knee jerk reaction after having sailed on both the Emerald and the Royal.

 

I may get a Royal Flush in the Casino, but I would flush the Royal if I could.

 

The Emerald has all of the great lounges, a dedicated and useful aft pool and a fully walk-able Promenade Deck. The Regal, if anything like the Royal, removed the multi-venue Explorers Lounge and replaced it with a TV Studio that resembles, and acts as, a College Lecture Hall. Some cruise. Try a team game there!

 

I agree that the Royal Class made the Horizon Court a destination in and of itself . . . and it is well deserved in that regard. But, the rest of the ship seems like an afterthought. It's like they want to keep you inside and in a LOUD, overly used atrium . . . with announcements and flash mobs. Not to mention, the overly crowded, poorly synchronized and stuffy elevators. I think the Royal finally now has a midship staircase, but it was taken away from the crew.

 

The cabin balconies on the Royal Class are equivocal to a postage stamp. We had a Minisuite on Marina deck suffering from exposure to the Sea (Sky?) walk and it was an affrontery, at best, given how people were dressed when they walked on it.

 

As such, I would take the Emerald in a heartbeat over anything in the Royal Class. It is much more passenger friendly, practical in the layout and fun overall. It offers so much more, both inside and outside, that we have NEVER been at a loss for having fun! But, maybe that is just us.

 

We have 40 cruises on Princess and feel that the Grand Class and other ships prior to the Royal Class offer us the best cruise experience under the Princess umbrella. Well, since PCL butchered the Island, switched out the Diamond and sold the OP, it is getting harder FOR US to find a ship to go on. But, we will avoid the Royal Class at all costs and make it work.

 

Hope this helps. Sorry to seem so opinionated, but, while on the Royal, DH stated, "this would have to be at an incredibly low price to make me sail on this ship again". Wow. He never complains. And neither do I.

 

FIRE AWAY!!! I won't care.

 

I can agree with most everything you say.

We don't play games as much so it doesn't affect us.

We always choose the cabins with the larger balconies, again so that doesn't bother us either.

We sail mostly in the Caribbean and since the Emerald is gone for then near future from there I guess we don't have to concern ourselves with making a choice.

Unfortunately for people who really like the older ships, their choices will narrow down in a few more years as they continue to build the larger more profitable humongous ships.

Having different ships for us all is a good thing. Something for everyone- at least for now.

[Chief02]

I can agree with most everything you say.

We don't play games as much so it doesn't affect us.

We always choose the cabins with the larger balconies, again so that doesn't bother us either.

We sail mostly in the Caribbean and since the Emerald is gone for then near future from there I guess we don't have to concern ourselves with making a choice.

Unfortunately for people who really like the older ships, their choices will narrow down in a few more years as they continue to build the larger more profitable humongous ships.

Having different ships for us all is a good thing. Something for everyone- at least for now.

 

We don't like the older ships by choice. We only take them by circumstance because the new one's (Royal) are total c**p design-wise. The older one's offer larger balconies and other amenities ship-wise that the new STUPID one's cannot. I understand what you mean that the older, different ship classes will ultimately be phased out. Personally, that is sad. Off to Regent, Oceania or Crystal. Where else is there to run to?

[Saltwater1974]

Cahpek,

Here is our opinion on REGAL vs EMERALD:

1. Regal much larger and more difficult to get around with up and down elevators, stairs and position regarding midship (you know REGAL since you did that one...EMERALD MUCH BETTER Egress

2. EMERALD used to have a Retractable Sun Roof over one of the pools so you had warm pool deck, etc. whereas REGAL pools and jacuzzis were cold

3. EMERALD Food much better - Princess just does better job on smaller ships. I agree that REGAL deserts were not very good...also liked Lido Deck Dinners and King Neptune Buffet on Captains night

4. REGAL Entertainment much better..bigger ship bigger audience better entertainers, etc.

5. EMERALD Cabins better - older but better layout...REGAL had more balcony cabins but also had more restricted balcony cabins..etc.

6. EMERALD Staff better - smaller ships more friendly to cruisers.

7. EMBARK/DISEMBARK - REGAL Better- more organized and port facilities geared more to larger crowds, etc.

8. OVERAL IMPRESSION - We liked EMERALD MUCH BETTER...

Like you, we have done about 20+ Princess Cruises and our favorite by far still is the GRAND PRINCESS

[floridalover5623]

We've done almost an equal number on both the Emerald & Royal - 10 and I swore the last trip on the Emerald to be our last. It was OK years ago when first introduced but has been outdone by the Regal & Royal in loads of ways.

On the Emerald the showers at the Lotus pool were broken, the doors didn't function, carpeting worn & spilled on in many places, food at the buffet was only fair by comparison to ANY other Princess ship, the plumbing in cabins was not functioning properly for a few days. On one trip we had no AC in the cabin at all but they did relocate us after 3 days.

If you really enjoy the older ship design then the Emerald is for you, along with all of it's problems that they never seem to correct from year to year.

 

Compare it to the Royal and it's lagging in so many ways....entertainment, food & layout. I so happy that the Emerald is gone from the Caribbean where we spend most of our time & replaced with the Caribbean, Regal & Royal.

[Todd320]

For us the Royal and Regal is better in every category. We book forward balconies to overcome the small side balconies, besides we like them better even if the regular balconies were bigger because we like to have a visual of where we are going.

[Bonnie1222]

I'd love to hear some recent comparisons/opinions of the 2 ships.  We are looking a Alaska cruises out of Seattle and these are our 2 choices.

[BarbinMich]

15 hours ago, Bonnie1222 said:

I'd love to hear some recent comparisons/opinions of the 2 ships.  We are looking a Alaska cruises out of Seattle and these are our 2 choices.

I would never take the Royal or Regal (which are identical, I believe) to Alaska.  We've been to Alaska at least 4 times over the years and we've been on the Royal twice for a total of 24 days (Caribbean, TA).  While I love the Royal, it's not great for scenic cruising for those of us who don't get balcony cabins.  The older ships have wonderful Promenades that go completely around the ship and are great for Alaska if you want to be outside.  The Royal has a few small spaces outside and they have no protection from the sun and weather; however, aft of the buffet is a large covered outside space but there's limited railing space for viewing in Alaska.  I'm apparently in the minority when it comes to the Royal/Regal buffet.  We often found the "hot" food to be lukewarm at best, especially the meat dishes, so that was greatly disappointing on a long cruise.

Edited January 20, 2020 by BarbinMich

[Bonnie1222]

@BarbinMich  Thank you for telling me this.  I pulled the deck plans for both ships and see what you mean.  We chose the  trip on the Emerald.  You are right it has so many more outdoor areas.  That was something I hadn't thought to look at when comparing the 2 itineraries.

[BarbinMich]

On 1/20/2020 at 11:06 PM, Bonnie1222 said:

@BarbinMich  Thank you for telling me this.  I pulled the deck plans for both ships and see what you mean.  We chose the  trip on the Emerald.  You are right it has so many more outdoor areas.  That was something I hadn't thought to look at when comparing the 2 itineraries.

You're welcome!  Always glad to be of help.

[Coral]

On 1/13/2017 at 9:54 AM, Saltwater1974 said:

 

2. EMERALD used to have a Retractable Sun Roof over one of the pools so you had warm pool deck, etc. whereas REGAL pools and jacuzzis were cold

 

The Emerald has never had a covered pool. The older ships do (Grand, Golden, Star, Diamond, Sapphire, Coral and Island Princess).

[Saltwater1974]

5 hours ago, Coral said:

The Emerald has never had a covered pool. The older ships do (Grand, Golden, Star, Diamond, Sapphire, Coral and Island Princess).

EMERALD used to have a Retractable Sun Roof over one of the pool...they added amd put more new cabins where older ships had covered pool - you can look at a picture of it...

 

[nasa1974]

On 1/3/2017 at 9:40 AM, antsp said:

We missed the Explorers lounge on the Regal, the Princess Live concept to me is a terrible place to be entertained.

Princess Live on the Sky is a big improvement in the Royal Class. I missed Crooner's but Take 5 is a nice replacement.

[nasa1974]

On 1/20/2020 at 11:06 PM, Bonnie1222 said:

@BarbinMich  Thank you for telling me this.  I pulled the deck plans for both ships and see what you mean.  We chose the  trip on the Emerald.  You are right it has so many more outdoor areas.  That was something I hadn't thought to look at when comparing the 2 itineraries.

Just my opinion, but I would take the smaller ship over a Royal Class ship to Alaska.

[mrgoalie]

If the Regal is anything close like its sister ship "Royal", I would do Regal in a heartbeat. Emerald is also a great ship. Been on it twice, but those Royal class ships are spectacular.

[Coral]

7 hours ago, Saltwater1974 said:

EMERALD used to have a Retractable Sun Roof over one of the pool...they added amd put more new cabins where older ships had covered pool - you can look at a picture of it...

 

No it didn't.

 

The Caribbean, Crown, Emerald and Ruby never had a covered pool.

Edited January 24, 2020 by Coral

[BarbinMich]

23 hours ago, nasa1974 said:

Princess Live on the Sky is a big improvement in the Royal Class. I missed Crooner's but Take 5 is a nice replacement.

How is Princess Live better on the Sky?  I dislike that room on the Royal class ships.  Thanks!

Edited January 24, 2020 by BarbinMich

[voljeep]

totally different layout - much more 'user friendly'

[Wishing on a star]

Regal,  by far!

[Casey12]

On 1/23/2020 at 12:56 PM, Saltwater1974 said:

EMERALD used to have a Retractable Sun Roof over one of the pool...they added amd put more new cabins where older ships had covered pool - you can look at a picture of it...

 

The Emerald has never had this. I was in the innaugural cruise. You must be thinking of an older ship.

[nasa1974]

 

On 1/24/2020 at 1:38 PM, BarbinMich said:

How is Princess Live better on the Sky?  I dislike that room on the Royal class ships.  Thanks!

 

On 1/24/2020 at 2:13 PM, voljeep said:

totally different layout - much more 'user friendly'

 

Like voljeep said. The layout is much different. More comfortable and better sight lines. It is still used for most of the different games Princess puts on but I didn't see any cameras in the ceiling like on the other Royal class ships. I guess it's tough to explain but it just had a different feel to it.

[BarbinMich]

On 1/26/2020 at 5:25 PM, nasa1974 said:

Like voljeep said. The layout is much different. More comfortable and better sight lines. It is still used for most of the different games Princess puts on but I didn't see any cameras in the ceiling like on the other Royal class ships. I guess it's tough to explain but it just had a different feel to it.

The Royal version of Princess Live was set up like a classroom with banked seats with those pull-up small desk tops.  Not at all conducive to a trivia team trying to work together.  When trivia was in Explorers Club on the older ships, a team of 6 could easily sit around a table and hear each other in a whispered voice when deciding on an answer.

[Fingerbun]

Have sailed on Regal, and Caribbean. My comments are based on that.

 

Both have strengths and weaknesses. I’m looking at this thread because Emerald and Royal are options in a New Zealand cruise in 2022. I am leaning towards the Emerald but just double checking.

 

Regal - better entertainment (because more people I guess.) Bigger range of food in buffet. Some extra activities (mainly Princess Live). 

 

Royal - wrap around promenade. Being smaller, not so far to walk to get around.

 

Others have commented on the balcony size. We always take a balcony cabin. It’s always big enough for us to sit out there and watch the water go by. That’s all I need. 

 

I like smaller ships (Coral/Island would be my first choice in a heartbeat). If we went Royal, it would mainly be for more entertainment options. I think there are more places to watch scenery on the Grand Class ships, and hopefully less people means faster getting ashore in tender ports. Since the itinerary we are looking at includes scenic cruising and a tender port, Emerald makes more sense for me,.

[susancruzs]

Confused by previous post, Royal does not have a wrap around promenade.  To me, older ships with the total promenade is a major plus for some itineraries, like Alaska.  I love the Royal class ships but the forward viewing areas are limited.  I've been on Regal for 26 days, Emerald for 30 days and don't have a problem with either one.  I enjoyed Emerald for South America because I had an inside cabin and promenade enabled me to have views.

 

Food mentions, crew mentions really don't mean much because it is such a personal take, what I like, you may not.  The size, layout of public areas applies but with cruising having to start up again, some things don't matter.