My experience on Royal after Carnival

[gymbrat33]

Thank you for your honest review and comparisons. I am thinking of trying Royal Caribbean when I find a good deal.

[sweetpea-2]

;) like you said you never had a bad cruise and I agree...some are just better than others ...........

[gemz]

It was a very appropriate review. Having just sailed on Carnival for the first time on Pride, I can truly say that the sheer beauty of the RCI and Princess ships are in no comparison to the Pride (dark and heavy looking). We also felt that the common washrooms were much cleaner on the other ships. However, the food on Carnival was a tad better than RCI, Princess and Celebrity. The Voyageur class is so well laid out that you can always sit in the Promenade cafe and people watch & parades going through whereas on Pride, if you want to sit after meal times, you had to go all the way up in the cafeteria and sit there almost alone. The ice show is unbelievable on the Voyageur class. The casino entrance floor on the Voyageur was so interesting - a glass floor with a giant pinball machine underneath! Although we don't participate in all the activities like rock climbing, roller blading, basketball, we always enjoyed sitting next to these activities and just watch others participate. Always something to do on these ships. Our inside cabin on Pride was the smallest of all that we've ever been on. Service was better on the other ships like RCI, Princess and Celebrity who would clear your table of crumbs before serving dessert. The dining room on the other ships were very luxurious looking whereas the Pride was a little more basic in furnishings and design. Overall if given the choice, even for an additional $1,000, we would cruise with RCI Voyageur class and Princess but that's just our preference.

[denb]

What a GREAT, unbiased, review!

We were on a roll with RCI, but have the next couple cruises booked on Carnival because of the itineraries. RCI seems to just keep going to the same places.

 

We're with the OP.... we've loved ALL of our cruises.

[QTMichele]

Our stateroom (9622) was smaller than we had on Carnival. I kept hearing about the large balconies on the “hump” and must say I was disappointed. The balcony and room were smaller. The room (although smaller) was set up nicely and well planned, very similar to Carnival. Royal Caribbean is the winner overall (mainly due to my, new, bigger is better preference).

 

Great to see your review of this cabin! It is the same cabin my husband and I will have when we cruise in February. How was the view? Was there privacy on the balcony?

 

While I liked the casual dining areas on Royal much better, I did not like the food, either in quality or selection. It seems very little planning went into grouping or selection of items. Johnny Rockets was GREAT, enjoyed the food, enjoyed the show.

 

I think I read that RCI recently changed their menu - do you know if this is true? If so, were you on the "new and improved" version?

 

What I DID LIKE about the Mariner (that ALMOST makes up for the $1000 premium) is the lack of smoke. Royal has cut way back on smoking areas and it shows! We were even able to find places in the casino with little smoke. I am sure ship design played a part in this also. How does this fit into entertainment? If you HATE to be around smokers and you are forced to be, you are a lot less likely to be entertained, even if you are doing something you like. A big thank you goes to RCI for being sensitive to their non-smoking guests. In a close contest, sometimes the (seemingly) small things make the difference. Winner in a close one, Royal.

 

GREAT to know!! I am a non-smoker who does not tolerate smoke. Not to stir the flames... my aunt, a 45 year old, non/never-smoker wife and mother of 3 young children, was recently diagnosed with terminal lung cancer. It is probable that being around 2nd hand smoke throughout her childhood caused her cancer. For me, smoking in private is one's own business, but smoking in public becomes my business. For my aunt, it has become her life - and, ultimately, her death.

 

 

Thanks again for the review!!!

 

Michele

[vikielynne]

Great review!!!! Thanks so much for posting it. Carnival used to be my favorite line & then we tried Royal a few years ago & loved it so much that we just kept going back. I have been thinking about going back to CCL as they've got some rates in October that are just about a give away. I agree with pricing, it's really hit or miss, sometimes CCL is really cheap & then other times RCI is the better price, you just have to look around a bit. Thanks again for a really good review:D

[hawaiigirl73]

I am sooooo offended!!! Just kidding:D That was very informative. I have been on a RCI cuise myself, and I have had several people tell me that I was going to be disappointed with Carnival (which I won't!). I was told that I would be less than impressed with Carnival's food, but am glad to see that was not the case with you. I'm also glad to have the heads up on the smoking, as we were bothered by it in certain areas of the Rhapsody. Not to condem anyone who does, it's just if you don't you're more sensitive to it. BTW- I read in a cruise book just today that Carnival has a smoke free ship, but I can't remember the name. I too, plan to continue to explore all the "fun" ships out there, but until then..........

 

22 DAYS UNTIL GLORY!!!!!

[silentbob007]

hawaiigirl73, Carnival used to have a smoke-free ship (the Paradise), but that experiment was abandonned several years ago.

[GoinCruisin]

I completely agree!! I enjoyed my cruise on the SOS, but there were some areas where Carnival had the edge (I compared our short cruise on the SOS to my short cruises on the Sensation... so it was apples to apples)... I agree about the buffet. There were days that I couldn't find anything appealing. Just really weird options. The pizza... blech! And at the time I ate lunch every day, JR's was closed... so I had to wait until late in the day to have lunch. We enjoyed the cruise... there were just some minor things that I enjoyed on Carnival a little more.

[campdaan]

Great review. But I'm still breathing into a paper bag. Thanks.

[stooth]

I would post almost exactly the same review on carnival and RCCL. We have been on 3 Carnival, 2 RCCL, 1 Princess and 1 Holland. The worst was Princess, even though we had the greatest aft balcony EVER!!!

Hated anytime dining!! Holland had great food and service...but... we were the babies on board and my DD(20 yrs old) was bored to tears!

All cruises are great, but we, as a family think that RCCL, fits us the best.

We are not big on bars, so RCCL fits that better. Both have great food with the nod to Carnival. Our last two have been RCCL Mariner, the most beautiful ship we've been on, but we book on the Glory again(3rd time) in September for R and R. For the $$$ you just can't beat Carnival. We will do both again and again, depending on $$$ and ports.:)

[hawaiigirl73]

hawaiigirl73, Carnival used to have a smoke-free ship (the Paradise), but that experiment was abandonned several years ago.

 

I bought that book yesterday, and it's that outdated?! Not good!

[TennisLover]

Thanks to the OP for the honesty. We've only been on Carnival so far-- we've had a great time each time and the price is always right (even though we cruise on school holidays with our kids). After our last cruise, we really felt we needed a change of scenery, so we're on Navigator in February. I'm sure we'll have a great time -- wonder if the increasesd price is worth it (there's a huge group from my town taking a Destiny cruise the same week -- and the price is amazing -- we are just determined to try something else).

 

I do LOVE the piano bar on Carnival and hope there is something comparable on RCCL. In fact, there is a great thread here that even the Carnival piano bar players post on; there is hardly a mention of the piano bar on the RCCL board.

 

My family is always excited about any cruise -- and we have a nice group going (cousins, etc.). I'm sure comparisons will be inevitable, but a cruise is what you make it. We'll have a blast!