X to RCI converts?

[Merrilymeggily]

Are there any here? We are four-time X vets (3 Century, 1 Zenith) who want to sail the Caribbean in summer 2007, but it looks like X isn't offering that option. We're thinking about RCI and I'm wondering about the thoughts of anyone here who has been on a few X cruises and now sails RCC. How do they compare in food and service? We have five 40-somethings, 2 21-year-olds, a 19-year-old, a 17-year old, a 10-year-old and a 5-year-old sailing together. Can say, the Empress of the Seas, provide the diversions the kids will want AND the style, service and great food the adults are looking for? I'd appreciate any feedback! Thank you!

[jmps]

We are doing the same. We could not find an X cruise that matched our needs so we are doing RCI this spring break. I can give you info our March 25th cruise on the LoS. There are some X to RCI comparison threads if you do a search.

[suzanna57]

I just recently went on my first Royal Caribbean cruise after having been on 6 Celebrity cruises. I was very skeptical about changing cruise lines because our group loves good food and the service we'd come to expect from Celebrity. However, I have to say Royal Caribbean was excellent. The food was every bit as good as Celebrity. We had some of the best service ever. Our room attendant and waiter were the best we have ever had. The ship decor are very similar.

 

Bottom line--after being very skeptical, I'm sold on Royal Caribbean--so much so that our group just signed up for back-to-back cruise next New Year's on Radiance of the Seas.

[cruiserone]

We went from RCI to Princess to Celebrity. Have to say that they all offer there own special things. RCI is great for families, Princess is good for all ages but mostly adults and Celebrity we found is mostly adults. I think it is the time of year that you go also. We usually travel February, October and April when most young people are in school. Cannot say anything but good things about every cruise we have taken. Did like the CC class on Celebrity, ALOT. Now RCI offers it also. Liked the Italian head waiters on Princess, VERY MUCH! RCI had a little more BLING, if that is what you like. Whatever you choose HAPPY SAILING!!!!!!!

[sueernieb]

Royal Caribbean ships are MUCH prettier than Celebrity ships in my opinion and the service and food is equal. All things considered we prefer Royal Caribbean.

 

Sue :)

[Bruin Steve]

I'm not exactly a "convert"...

I sailed several times on RCCL before I ever took a Celebrity cruise...and actually, I guess you would call me more of a Royal Caribbean-to-Celebnrity convert...I prefer Celebrity...If all things were always equal, I would ALMOST ALWAYS choose Celebrity over RCCL...I have found the Service on Celebrity to be superior and the food to be vastly superior...the ships (at least the M-Class) are WAY roomier with far less passengers per gross ton...

 

Gosh, I'm sailing on the Monarch in a 119 square foot cabin with 2600 passengers on a 74,000 gross ton ship when I'm accustomed to the M-Class with 172 sf cabins and 2,000 passengers on a 91,000 gross ton ship!!!

 

But, somehow, though I prefer Celebrity, I'll still sail RCCL...Why?

1) Itineraries...In the case of my upcoming Monarch cruise, Celebrity doesn't offer any 3 night getaways out of LA...Only Carnival and RCCL do, so I take RCCL...I'm probably taking another 4-nighter later in the year...

2) My RCCL Visa card. I'm about 30,000 miles from a "Free Cruise" on RCCL...and I'm looking forward to hopping on one of the Voyager Class ships in the Caribbean for that one...

3) Amenities...Especially if you're travelling with kids, teens and young folks, the amenities on some of the RCCL ships (Rock Climbing, Ice Skating, Roller Blading, etc.) are really attuned to the kids...They enjoy it more than the restrained confines of a Celebrity ship...

 

The real bottom line is NOT to expect your RCCL cruise to meet the "standards" of a Celebrity cruise...Every cruise line does different things better or worse...Don't go to dinner and get disappointed because the Tenderloin of Beef isn't as good as the Filet Mignon you had on Celebrity or that your Cabin Steward wasn't quite as attentive as your Butler on X...RCCL does a very good job at what it is that it does...The food is fine, the service is fine...If you set out to enjoy your cruise, you will...If you set out to compare, you'll only find faults...The trick is to overlook any faults and to enjoy it for what it is...

 

There are some things RCCL does better in my book...Sports Amenities, Kids Programs, Entertainment...

 

They do a little worse than Celebrity in the areas of: Food, Service, crowds, announcements and commercialism...

 

There are also a lot of little extras on X you won't find on RCCL...

 

But, overall, it is still a very good product...

Go...and enjoy!!

[xpcdoojk]

I have sailed 5 times with RCI and twice with X. I like them both. I would give the slight edge to X, but for activities on the ship RCI wins hands down.

 

So, if you are an active person you will enjoy RCI. If you are not then you won't notice that much difference, IMHO.

 

jc:cool:

[GMoney]

Bruin Steve - Great post. Really well thought out and expressed.

 

OP - I've been on 34 RCI cruises and 2 X cruises (10 day Summit and 14 day Infinity), and I heartily second Bruin Steve's comments.

 

When on RCI, I do miss 2pm sorbet at the pool and the cool towels when tendering!

[caviargal]

Bruin Steve - Great post. Really well thought out and expressed.

 

OP - I've been on 34 RCI cruises and 2 X cruises (10 day Summit and 14 day Infinity), and I heartily second Bruin Steve's comments.

 

When on RCI, I do miss 2pm sorbet at the pool and the cool towels when tendering!

 

I also mostly agree with Bruin Steve. I prefer X for food, service and ambiance. And, I like the adult atmosphere and more formal environment on X, as well as the smaller and less crowded ships. And X still has sommeliers!

 

I like RCI's Concierge Lounge, fitness center, steam and sauna. But, IME (45 RCI cruises), they are going downhill and I have no plans to cruise with RCI again. Some very negative experiences with kids on board, the lowered dress code standards and the ever increasing commercialism on RCI are not positive changes. They are becoming too much of a family line for me and I am happier these days on X.

[Samme]

I have been on both and would go on both again.

 

To me Celebrity is for adults. I don't feel there is much to do at all for children.

 

To me Royal is a more active cruiseline and more to do for kids.

 

I went with a girlfriend on Celebrity and enjoyed it. I'm taking my son on Mariner in April. I think with the amount of young people going you'd all have more fun on Royal.

 

I enjoyed the extra personal touches on X, found the food excellent on both cruiselines, and for me the service was much more attentive on Royal.

 

I look forward to more comparing after April.

[cmich068]

your kids will NEVER want to go back on celebrity after a RCI cruise

[OPSoccermom]

Agree with Bruinsteve and caviargal..

 

We prefer X, and our kids prefer X too, but we will go RCI when we can't find an X itinerary that works when we are cruising. We did Mariner last spring break, and while the ship was beautiful, we didn't agree that the food and service were the same as X, and we found we prefer the quieter, more relaxing attitude on X. When we go on vacation, we want to relax and don't have the need to be going 24 hours a day.

 

X does offer little things you don't find on RCI. One of the things we missed on RCI was having a golf pro on board who made arrangements for golf in port. RCI offers golfing as a shore excursion to some of the publice courses on a few of the islands, but it's not the same as actually having a pro who knows island golf with you. We also loved the captains club high tea in Ocean Liners - it was wonderful.

 

We're going on Serenade this spring break as we wanted a southern itinerary and have already done the Connie southern itinerary that wa savailable the week we wanted to cruise, and we're looking forward to sailing on a Radiance class ship.

[CruisinDawn]

I'm not exactly a "convert"...

I sailed several times on RCCL before I ever took a Celebrity cruise...and actually, I guess you would call me more of a Royal Caribbean-to-Celebnrity convert...I prefer Celebrity...If all things were always equal, I would ALMOST ALWAYS choose Celebrity over RCCL...I have found the Service on Celebrity to be superior and the food to be vastly superior...the ships (at least the M-Class) are WAY roomier with far less passengers per gross ton...

 

Gosh, I'm sailing on the Monarch in a 119 square foot cabin with 2600 passengers on a 74,000 gross ton ship when I'm accustomed to the M-Class with 172 sf cabins and 2,000 passengers on a 91,000 gross ton ship!!!

 

But, somehow, though I prefer Celebrity, I'll still sail RCCL...Why?

1) Itineraries...In the case of my upcoming Monarch cruise, Celebrity doesn't offer any 3 night getaways out of LA...Only Carnival and RCCL do, so I take RCCL...I'm probably taking another 4-nighter later in the year...

2) My RCCL Visa card. I'm about 30,000 miles from a "Free Cruise" on RCCL...and I'm looking forward to hopping on one of the Voyager Class ships in the Caribbean for that one...

3) Amenities...Especially if you're travelling with kids, teens and young folks, the amenities on some of the RCCL ships (Rock Climbing, Ice Skating, Roller Blading, etc.) are really attuned to the kids...They enjoy it more than the restrained confines of a Celebrity ship...

 

The real bottom line is NOT to expect your RCCL cruise to meet the "standards" of a Celebrity cruise...Every cruise line does different things better or worse...Don't go to dinner and get disappointed because the Tenderloin of Beef isn't as good as the Filet Mignon you had on Celebrity or that your Cabin Steward wasn't quite as attentive as your Butler on X...RCCL does a very good job at what it is that it does...The food is fine, the service is fine...If you set out to enjoy your cruise, you will...If you set out to compare, you'll only find faults...The trick is to overlook any faults and to enjoy it for what it is...

 

There are some things RCCL does better in my book...Sports Amenities, Kids Programs, Entertainment...

 

They do a little worse than Celebrity in the areas of: Food, Service, crowds, announcements and commercialism...

 

There are also a lot of little extras on X you won't find on RCCL...

 

But, overall, it is still a very good product...

Go...and enjoy!!

 

I love how you look at things!! :D I agree you can't go on a cruise and compare it to others, you will find fault. I also prefer going through life with a glass that is half full, especially when it's a fufu drink!

 

BonVoyage

Dawna

[Yosef42]

Not disagreeing with any of the above--I've thoroughly enjoyed both RCI cruises I've been on--but if you've got your heart set on X, you might want to check with your TA and see if there might be more itineraries added. I know that for Alaska cruises (which we're looking at) X has not yet finalized its schedule for 2007.

 

-Y

[Schplinky]

We went the other way and back. We loved RCL and tried Constellation. We had heard that Celebrity was "a step above" and I have to say, that was not our experience. We LOVED the specialty restaurant but in most areas, they were either indistinguishable or RCL was better. We were disappointed with the food on X and thought the table services was surprisingly inferior. If you like the Millenium class ships, the Radiance class will be a good match.

[39august]

Just a comment about the Empress. She is small, older and has fewer activities than the larger ships. I would not take a family with so many diverse ages of children on that ship. The kids will be much happier on either a Voyager or Radiance class ship.

[Merrilymeggily]

That was my mistake, August. I meant "Explorer," not "Empress." Thank you all so much for your insights. I'm pretty sure we're going to -- ahem -- "jump ship" and sail RCI. I'm sure the kids will enjoy it much more.

[Merrilymeggily]

That said, is it possible to find quiet areas (other than your cabin) on a ship such as the Explorer? On Century, even in the middle of summer we were able to carve out some unrushed time in uncrowded areas of the ship. Are the RCI cruises really a constant, constant barrage of activity and noise? I can accept a different food and service experience (not that it would be better or worse, just different) for the same of the kids, but I would be disappointed if it wasn't a relaxing vacation overall.

[Merrilymeggily]

for the *sake of the kids. :rolleyes:

[island pat]

I am new to these boards and am really enjoying all the great words of advice from all of you. We are x fans and next year they are only offering 1 -7 day cruise in Jan from Fort Lauderdale and the ports are not the greatest so we are in the process of switching to RCI Serenade or Jewel of the Seas. My apprehensions are lessened when I read all your reviews. There seems to be alot of us in this position and I wonder why ??

[heartofamerica]

My first cruise was on the Celebrity Horizon. An older, smaller ship, but still very nice. They had a GREAT kids club for our kids (there were 18 of us...6 of them kids) on that cruise. I was on the Serenade last Thanksgiving with my daughter - she had a great time there. She's been on 3 cruises (she's 12)....Celebrity, Holland America, and RCCL. Her ratings - Celebrity had the best food, HAL had the best service, and RCCL was the best time.

[39august]

Yes, you can find quiet places even on Voyager class ships. Some that come to mind are the library, outside in a lounge chair on the promenade deck, and the Royal Crown lounge.

[Fang]

I am in the same situation as many of the above posters.

 

I have been on Royal before, but it was a long time ago. Can anyone remember Sun Viking, Song of Norway. Its been some time since I have been on RCCL.

 

My wife and I tried one Celebrity cruise and loved it. That was 14 Celebrity cruises ago. But, due to scheduling, we are now going on the AOS in July.

 

I agree, we should not compare cruise lines, but it is going to be hard not to do.

 

Our kids love the Celebrity childrens program. It sounds like RCCL has a better one, and with the actitivities that they can do, I am sure they will have a great time. As, my wife and I will also.

[katiel53]

We are older so the kids area is not important to us when we sail without our grands. X has better food, although I feel it is going downhill. The shows on X are not as good as those on RCI.

 

I love the balcony discounts we get on RCI. Those are not available on X. There is no Concierge Club on X. I don't feel that X follows their own rules about dress codes, but that's another subject. On our last cruise on the Constellation, we had dinner with the Food & Beverage Manager and he said on the newbuild, dress codes will be enforced. I really find that hard to believe if they don't do it now, what will make cruisers feel they have to dress for dinner. Don't get me wrong, my husband is happier without getting all dressed up, but X is supposed to be more upscale.

 

I don't think RCI enforces the rules about chair hogs, kids in adult areas and dress codes for meals. If they don't want to make waves with families/couples/singles, then change the "requested policies." Each line has it's plusses, but I think there is more action, more fun and more open minded people on RCI. (Mostly to do with age)