Europe v Caribbean differences

[Woody14]

In my 3 previous cruises in Europe I have found the lines I was on were different compared to their North American offerings.   I am heading to Italy & Greece on the odyssey in May.    I have been on Royal twice to the Caribbean and wondering if it is different in Europe as it is with many other lines.

[Biker19]

Just now, Woody14 said:

I have been on Royal twice to the Caribbean and wondering if it is different in Europe as it is with many other lines.

You'll have to define "different".

[pyrateslife4me84]

Not really. Still play Caribbean music on the pool deck. Same entertainment. Same food. Only the ports change and almost no one on board speaks English.

[Tatka]

I watched menus on European cruises for Anthem and did not see free lobster on Royal  night. The only difference.

 

On NCL passports were collected when we left and reentered EU.

 

 

Edited February 12 by Tatka

[pyrateslife4me84]

15 minutes ago, Tatka said:

I watched menus on European cruises for Anthem and did not see free lobster on Royal  night. The only difference.

 

On NCL passports were collected when we left and reentered EU.

 

 

We had free lobster in Europe. 

[Jasukkie]

35 minutes ago, pyrateslife4me84 said:

Not really. Still play Caribbean music on the pool deck. Same entertainment. Same food. Only the ports change and almost no one on board speaks English.

Almost no one on board speaks English? Aren't there still a lot of Brits/Irish/Americans/Canadians onboard?

[Tatka]

11 minutes ago, pyrateslife4me84 said:

We had free lobster in Europe. 

Maybe on some itins, but I heard this several times recently.. Last year too.

[pyrateslife4me84]

18 minutes ago, Jasukkie said:

Almost no one on board speaks English? Aren't there still a lot of Brits/Irish/Americans/Canadians onboard?

In my experience, not many. This was the Med. It led to many issues because kids were unable to understand English and therefore listened to crew members even less than they do on Caribbean cruises. In a week, we ran into one other American family. Given how European education works, I would imagine the kids actually did have some idea what the crew member was saying and pretended not to. 
 

Lots of issues in the MDR finding crew members who spoke the same language as guests, but this is common at vacation destinations all over Europe. I presume it’s different on the itineraries from Southampton but OP is asking about a Med route. 

Edited February 12 by pyrateslife4me84

[LeeW]

Not our experience, although accent can be heavy for some crew.  And this is true even in US sailings.

 

Only difference I can think of is that in Europe you can stay late on debarkation day for a price.  US requires zeroing ship before next set of passengers get on.

Edited February 12 by LeeW
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[George C]

Almost everyone spoke English on our rccl European cruise, biggest difference is Europe cruises have very few sea day and long port stays, so you tend to spend less time on the ship and more time in port . Our key would be selecting the ports we like to visit , ship isn’t as important as a Caribbean cruise.

[drjohn4]

We sailed on Odyssey a couple of years ago Greece/Italy itinerary and the onboard atmosphere was very much like a US based cruise.  Significant majority of passengers were English speaking, but a higher percentage of non-English speakers than in Caribbean. Primary language on board was English although a lot more passengers from the UK than in Caribbean. Announcements were in English first and important ones then repeated in Italian. My teens enjoyed making friends from all over the world.  (My daughter is trying to learn Norwegian now.)  Entertainment was in English, but I think one of the reasons why the Book in 270 is presented with minimal dialogue is to embrace a multi-cultural audience. Onboard currency is US dollars, but the ATM on board will dispense Euros.

[taglovestocruise]

2 hours ago, George C said:

Almost everyone spoke English on our rccl European cruise, biggest difference is Europe cruises have very few sea day and long port stays, so you tend to spend less time on the ship and more time in port . Our key would be selecting the ports we like to visit , ship isn’t as important as a Caribbean cruise.

Several cruises in the Med and agree that almost everyone speaks English.  Found that people dress much nicer on Med cruises more tux's and Kilts on formal night.  And there are far fewer kids. 

[Billy Baltic]

I’ve only cruised in Europe so can’t compare to US but I’ve never been on an RC cruise where the vast majority weren’t speaking English. Yes, there are large numbers of various nationalities but always have been in the minority overall. 
The other thing which people talk about on CC is how port intensive the Med can be. Long and busy days in port can make for a quieter nightlife as people are more tired. 

[CynBeth6]

We were on a Med cruise in July with Royal for Spain, France, and Italy and most passengers we encountered seemed to be American or Canadian, There were a variety of countries the crew came from and we enjoyed looking on everyone’s name tags and speaking to them about it. No one got dressed up for dinner in the MDR at all. 

[Boaterboater]

I have found my Caribbean cruises are more about relaxation , beaches , and fun.

Vs European  more like field trips trying to see and explore so many historical / famous  places 

love both 

[Norwich Cruiser]

On a Mediterranean cruise the main difference is you’ll probably get longer port days.

English / American will most certainly be the main language spoken by both crew and passengers.

 

All shows entertainment etc will most certainly be spoken in English and maybe followed on by Spanish or Italian.

 

 

[Woody14]

22 hours ago, Biker19 said:

You'll have to define "different".

It has been a few years (last time was 2017) but some differences that stand out to me from the past that were different on the other lines I went on, besides the languages, were as follows:

- (tap) water was not served in the MDR - you basically could only get bottled

- people were generally better dressed at dinner

- very few men wore shorts except on the pool deck

- early seating for dinner was quiet where the late seating was packed

- shows were less full than I was used too

- more people smoking (and not so much caring about the smoking areas

 

 

 

 

[firefly333]

I've read rome and greece have lots of mosquitoes. Pack some insect repellent. More so than islands in the Caribbean. 

[Biker19]

16 minutes ago, Woody14 said:

It has been a few years (last time was 2017) but some differences that stand out to me from the past that were different on the other lines I went on, besides the languages, were as follows:

- (tap) water was not served in the MDR - you basically could only get bottled

- people were generally better dressed at dinner

- very few men wore shorts except on the pool deck

- early seating for dinner was quiet where the late seating was packed

- shows were less full than I was used too

- more people smoking (and not so much caring about the smoking areas

You may have to look for it to observe any of those difference between an RCI Carribean and European sailing. No diff in the water served.

Edited February 13 by Biker19

[Tatka]

17 minutes ago, Woody14 said:

It has been a few years (last time was 2017) but some differences that stand out to me from the past that were different on the other lines I went on, besides the languages, were as follows:

- (tap) water was not served in the MDR - you basically could only get bottled - Not on RCI

- people were generally better dressed at dinner - most cruisers will be Americans, so rules are the same. I have not noticed this even on Princess out of Southampton where 800 people were from UK. My husband brought jacket, but many did not have it

- very few men wore shorts except on the pool deck - do not remember

- early seating for dinner was quiet where the late seating was packed

- shows were less full than I was used too - not necessary, but if port is like Rome... extremely sightseeing filled then could be,

- more people smoking (and not so much caring about the smoking areas - not much difference in my experience

 

 

Edited February 13 by Tatka

[pyrateslife4me84]

17 hours ago, taglovestocruise said:

Several cruises in the Med and agree that almost everyone speaks English.  Found that people dress much nicer on Med cruises more tux's and Kilts on formal night.  And there are far fewer kids. 

I must’ve been on a different cruise than everyone else or maybe it’s a post-pandemic, fewer Americans abroad thing. I found people to be even more casually dressed than in the Caribbean. Lots of tank tops at dinner. 
 

We agonized over buying appropriate clothing for Europe because I had continually read about how nicely people dress there. Imagine my shock at seeing everyone in Nikes, t-shirts/tank tops, and shorts walking around Spain, France, and Italy. I’m talking in ports. Americans got more casual during the pandemic and I gather the same happened in Europe. At least we look nice in our pictures…

Edited February 13 by pyrateslife4me84

[lovesthebeach2]

We’ve cruised many times in Europe on multiple Royal ships and the only difference we’ve seen is with food and drinks.  Meaning, they may have a few different items in WJ. We just did 27 days on Odyssey last October-November with the revised Holy land and the TA.

 

What kind of differences are you interested in?

[FamilyCruiserUK]

Europe, full of history, lots of port visits to big cities and historical sites.

Beautiful beaches. Great multi national people

 

Caribbean, gorgeous islands, great culture and people.

 

However you could visit an island jump on a ship sail away from the island for the night, all the signs on the island changed to a different name and sail back to the island you just left in the morning, how many would notice?. 

 

I love both, but if forced to choose id go the med, Eastern med first then western med

[travelberlin]

We did a transatlantic crossing on a Royal ship and then we continued for about 9 days in the Mediterranean on the same ship. Although the food and entertainment were very similar, my friend said it looked as if we were on a different ship, cruising with a different company. She said, Europeans were more polite at the Windjammer, were better dressed and gave the cruise a more sophisticated athmosphere. This was her observation and for this particular cruises, I have thought, she was right.
 

 

[shofer]

5 hours ago, firefly333 said:

I've read rome and greece have lots of mosquitoes. Pack some insect repellent. More so than islands in the Caribbean. 

We did Med-2015 and Baltic-2017, both in May and there were no mosquitos,