Thinking of trying a new cruise line

[04cruises]

Although we have been very loyal RCCL cruisers, we agree with isujim.Rccl attitude has changed towards it's repeat cruisers. Having been on 12 cruises,on 10 different ships,we too have seen a difference. We have two cruises booked for next year and then we are going to try other ships. We were trying to do all their ships but unless they start hearing some of the legitimate complaints of their repeat customers,then we will move on elsewhere. But never again on Carnival.

[1stXcruisers]

My parents, who have only sailed Princess ships, just booked the Best of Europe on the Brilliance. RCL is showing the maiden voyage in 2002 (pretty new I would say). It is only a 10 day cruise, but you could add days before and after in London / Barcelona if you wanted to. They did get a better deal throught he TA than RCL's website though so check around.

 

B&R

[My2Kitties]

I appreciate all the responses, I ordered a Europe cruise book from RCL last night. It would appear that RCL keeps most of their newer ships in the Carribean (yeah it IS in their name... I know). I was hoping to do a 10+ day cruise and it would appear that only older ships do the longer cruises.

 

I guess it is something to consider... age of ship and date of last drydock.

 

Granted, I haven't had issues with ships falling apart before personally.

 

 

I just want to point out that I was on the Radiance in August...goes into drydock next year, I believe...you could see some minimum wear and tear but she was beautiful and I will sail on her and her sister ships again...RCCL seems to always be working on their ships even while sailing...if it needs to be updated, they just do it...

I can't compare yet the different cruise lines, since we fell in love with cruising on RCCL (older ship) and have stuck with her ever since...

Remember to also read reviews...they are different opinions also...

 

Either way...have a wonderful cruise no matter who you sail on!

[Yurita]

I've only sailed on Carnival before and I have NO complaints about it. I LOVE Carnival. However, I would like to try different lines, as right now I'm booked with Royal Caribbean. This will be my first cruise with RC. I've talked to few friends and some of them prefer Carnival, others RC... I'll have to go first and see... anyways, just try any cruise line, you'll never know until you try it, right? I've heard so many people here in RC threats complain about Carnival, and the truth is, I have nothing bad to say about it!!!! I love the big slides and the party atmosphere!!! go ahead and try whatever you are interested in. It will be fun.

[klingoncruiser]

I am going to reiterate what other have said. I have been on several lines multiple times and keep coming back to RCCL. They just seem to have the ships, service, amenities and overall things we like the most. I will also encourage you to try one of the Radiance class of ships in Europe. You will find no more elegant ships afloat than that class.

 

GLTY

[willysgrandma]

Have you tried the Crown Princes on PCL? That ship is very similar to RCCL and offers Movies Under the Stars.

[auburn77]

We are in our 50's and love Carnival. We don't party and are moderate drinkers. Thought we would try RCCI. Some things were better, some worse. The promenade was nice, but there is no comparison with the entertainment and food(especially desserts).Carnival wins hands down in those two categories. The service was great on RCCI, but we have never had any problem with the service on Carnival except for the Holiday(did not like that cruise). All in all, we prefer Carnival (but did not dislike RCCI) and can't wait to get back.

Also, I am tired of Carnival being referred to as the 'Walmart 'of cruiselines. This is an undeserved comment that may have been true 15 years ago, but the newer ships are very comparable to RCCI.

[Desert Cruizers]

My DH & I stay between Princess and RCL, depending on Itnerary and price at time we cruise. We find the staff and service equal, Princess has the self laundry, yet feel over all RCL gives as one said a little more of an elegance touch. We have not sailed Celebrity, but friends have told us, they enjoyed them.

[debjac]

As someone who has sailed Celebrity 12 times and loved every single trip I'm finally trying Royal Caribbean this December for the first time. I'm very excited to see how they compare.

[harleyglide]

We tried the rest and rccl is tops in our opinion,cant wait to go back after a nightmare hawaiin cruise with the other guy.But thats our opinion saying that i might try celebrity same family know what i meen,wifey always wants to go on a alaska cruise:D :)

[rgreenpc]

Wife is very interested in the NCL new suites they have, but I am more concerned about the statements of quality. I guess you will find the same things here, PCL, CCL, HAL, etc. however... I guess you will find the same things here, PCL, CCL, HAL, etc.

 

I like the concept of RCL's last 2 classes of ships (the promandaes, ice skating, surfing, rock climbing, a lot of resturants).

 

I guess the best thing to do is just try both and see how we like them... I guess a bad cruise is still better than a good day at work though.

[Desert Cruizers]

We have been on 3 cruises and enjoyed them all. Two Princess, 1 RCL, now back to RCL to Hawaii next Oct. I tend to agree, rather be on a cruise even if not the best. I would make the most out of what we did enjoy.

[barbaragrace]

We've been on many Carnival cruises and were never disappointed. I like the buffets better on the Carnival too.

I didn't like our first cruise (that GOD we decided to try 'one more') and weren't happy with the freestyle on the NCL.

Can you compare apples to oranges? No, it just depends on what you are in the mood for (and what's on sale at the time).

[cruisingjon]

We are in our 50's and love Carnival. We don't party and are moderate drinkers. Thought we would try RCCI. Some things were better, some worse. The promenade was nice, but there is no comparison with the entertainment and food(especially desserts).Carnival wins hands down in those two categories. The service was great on RCCI, but we have never had any problem with the service on Carnival except for the Holiday(did not like that cruise). All in all, we prefer Carnival (but did not dislike RCCI) and can't wait to get back.

Also, I am tired of Carnival being referred to as the 'Walmart 'of cruiselines. This is an undeserved comment that may have been true 15 years ago, but the newer ships are very comparable to RCCI.

 

With all due respect, if you watch the carnival TV commercials, they refer to themselves as the "Budget" cruiselines. So they really don't help themselves get out of the "Wal*Mart" stereotype.

[Cruising89143]

We are in our 50's and love Carnival. We don't party and are moderate drinkers. Thought we would try RCCI. Some things were better, some worse. The promenade was nice, but there is no comparison with the entertainment and food(especially desserts).Carnival wins hands down in those two categories. The service was great on RCCI, but we have never had any problem with the service on Carnival except for the Holiday(did not like that cruise). All in all, we prefer Carnival (but did not dislike RCCI) and can't wait to get back.

Also, I am tired of Carnival being referred to as the 'Walmart 'of cruiselines. This is an undeserved comment that may have been true 15 years ago, but the newer ships are very comparable to RCCI.

 

 

Carnival currently does not have a ship in their fleet that can compare to the Radiance, Voyager or Freedom class of ships. Carnival packs them on like cattle. Carnival is now trying to go back and upgrade the older Fantasy class ships to try and catch up with RCI. Still not even close with those latest upgrades.

 

As far as the negative comments about Carnival, they dug themselves a hole years ago and I don't think that they will ever be able to shake that image.

 

To the OP, I cruised for 11 years with Carnival for a total of 16 times. They are not a bad cruise line but now you could not get me back on one of their ships after trying RCI's Voyager class ships. Where I notice the difference is consistency in good service, a much more friendly crew and ships that are clean and well maintained. Those areas were lacking for me on my last three or four Carnival cruises. Food is very subjective so I won't comment there. Carnival has better lounge acts but RCI has better shows in the main theater and the ice skating show is very good. Most folks that post on the Carnival board state the reason that they like Carnival is the price but some have never tried another line so they have nothing to compare. I say give them a try and then decide for yourself which one you like best.

[4merlurker]

We were very disappointed with the freestyle dining on NCL's Dawn - granted it was a very crowded sailing...but even if the ship is sailing full they should still be able to handle the load. Service was very slow and we hated having to wait (30+ mins :mad: ) for a table. We like traditional dining. I hope RCCL doesn't switch.

 

JMHO :o

~Connie

[CruseKrazy]

We've been very happy with the overall value of our RCI cruises and will very likely continue - they offer affordability, convenience, comfort, amenities and an acceptable level of service. We are eying ROS for South America in Feb 2009...

 

However as you can see below, before then we are stepping up to Oceania. When we looked at the offerings in the Med., after considerable research we could not find a better overall offering than Oceania's - small ship, country club casual, no kids, very port intensive and apparently the best food in the industry. We'll see...

 

In the meantime RCI remains our "go to" cruise line. Hope everyone enjoys their next cruise no matter the line. :cool:

[rgreenpc]

We were very disappointed with the freestyle dining on NCL's Dawn - granted it was a very crowded sailing...but even if the ship is sailing full they should still be able to handle the load. Service was very slow and we hated having to wait (30+ mins :mad: ) for a table.

 

That is a VERY valid point

[Host Kewlguy]

That is a VERY valid point

 

She most likely had to wait 30 minutes because she was going to dinner at the same time everyone else was going, which is around 7:00. We dined at 6:00 and never once had to wait. Our sailing was full also. It usually takes a couple of cruises to get used to freestyle.

[Bobster]

After our first cruise on Carnival 1n 1990 we decided it was not our kind of cruise. The current advertisements seem to say that they were changing their image so we did a Caribbean 7 day in Sep. While we did enjoy the cruise we were disappointed in the service. The crew seemed to be overworked and dining room service was terribly slow. WE definitely will not cruise CCL again.

 

We have cruised numerous time on Celebrity and RCL and would recommend either. If you're looking for longer cruises and enjoy sea days as we do the Transatlantics are 13-15 days depending on the itinerary. They go East in the spring and West in the Fall. As an airline employee you might want to look up Interline rates which RCL offers. Just returned from a LAX-Hawaii 14 day cruise on Radiance (RCL) which was great.

[benicehavefun]

I love Carnival, but had only been on Spirit class ships until last Sept. Went on Glory (Conquest class) and did NOT like the ship. More rooms, more people, less public space, much smaller public space, lines everywhere, and a ship that was VERY difficult to navigate. Also, service that said "We'll tolerate you, but we don't like you". That one experience has made a faithful Carnival gal look around.

 

The one thing I learned is, the ship really DOES matter. You spend a lot of time (and money) on it, so you should love it. I want a ship that I can go from one end to the other on and not be going to the aft elevator, down to the third floor, then up the aft elevator to the 5th floor, then down the stairs to the 4th to the dining room for dinner. Does RCI have ships like the Carnival Spirit class? Large public spaces, flowing deck plan and easy access front to back with a large open Lido/pool area? And lots of activities day and night? I really hated the 3 tiered Lido on Glory. And nothing going on after 8pm top decks, just nightclub stuff below decks. How's RCI?

[puggdogg1]

We started doing the RCI cruises for that very reason, there was nothing to do on Carnival after 8pm except for night clubs and casinos (and we don't like night clubs, so we spent way too much money in the casino :))

 

RCI has many activities at night, such as Quest, Love and Marriage game, Karaoke Idol, Battle of the Sexes, midnight comedians, Deck parties, etc.... we've had a lot of fun on RCI. The Mariner of the Seas (I believe Voyager class) is a large ship, but has a very large public atrium, where all the shops are, photos, coffee, a couple of bars, excursions desk, pursar, very large, roomy and nice! Decks seem to span the ship, you do not have to follow a "maze" to get from one side of the other. I took an NCL cruise and it took me like 4 days to figure out how to get around the ship!!!!! Anyway, I will be doing my 2nd cruise on the Mariner in a little over a week, so I definitely think she's a great ship.

 

I did not like the tiered deck on the Valor either.... thought it looks nice, it's very difficult to navigate when it's crowded.

 

Differences I've found on Mariner's Voyager Class as compared to Carnival's largest ship (Valor)

- better layout

- classier ship

- MUCH MORE in the way of nighttime activities for those of us who aren't into lounges or discos

- more activities in general

- shorter lines (especially for immigration matters between some of the islands)

- better service and a classier staff

- dining rooms are less gaudy :O

- bigger balconies (b/c of the way they are built)

[cctn]

We started doing the RCI cruises for that very reason, there was nothing to do on Carnival after 8pm except for night clubs and casinos (and we don't like night clubs, so we spent way too much money in the casino :))

 

RCI has many activities at night, such as Quest, Love and Marriage game, Karaoke Idol, Battle of the Sexes, midnight comedians, Deck parties, etc.... we've had a lot of fun on RCI. The Mariner of the Seas (I believe Voyager class) is a large ship, but has a very large public atrium, where all the shops are, photos, coffee, a couple of bars, excursions desk, pursar, very large, roomy and nice! Decks seem to span the ship, you do not have to follow a "maze" to get from one side of the other. I took an NCL cruise and it took me like 4 days to figure out how to get around the ship!!!!! Anyway, I will be doing my 2nd cruise on the Mariner in a little over a week, so I definitely think she's a great ship.

 

I did not like the tiered deck on the Valor either.... thought it looks nice, it's very difficult to navigate when it's crowded.

 

Differences I've found on Mariner's Voyager Class as compared to Carnival's largest ship (Valor)

- better layout

- classier ship

- MUCH MORE in the way of nighttime activities for those of us who aren't into lounges or discos

- more activities in general

- shorter lines (especially for immigration matters between some of the islands)

- better service and a classier staff

- dining rooms are less gaudy :O

- bigger balconies (b/c of the way they are built)

 

WEll said - even tho' my favorite is the Radiance Class, the Voyager class is well laid out too - we will be on the Explorer on Nov 11 for a southern Caribbean cruise and on the Mariner on Feb 22 2009 for the inaugural sailing from southern Cal to MExico - Carol

[piercetc4]

just wanted to add that rci loyalty program much better than carnivals- compare the perks for both and you will see what i am talking about- rci also does a much better job making repeat cruisers feel welcomed back , imho-

[t town cruiser]

We were on Conquest in March and it made an interesting comparison to our previous RCI cruises. Our balcony room was well laid out and easily accommodated our 10 year old granddaughter who was with us. We had an excellent wait team in the dining room and the food was much better than we had expected. Pizzia by the pool was the best we have ever had on a cruise. As others have mentioned, the layout is confusing and the main pool area was very crowded. While we enjoyed the cruise it just wasn't the same as being on RCI. Its hard to explain why but it felt like something was missing. Overall its difficult to beat the experience you get on a Voyager class ship. So in a couple of weeks its back to the Mariner for a little more R&R.:)