Loyal Princess Cruiser's Experience on RCCL

[regnig]

Let me start by stating THERE IS NO SUCH THING AS A BAD CRUISE! That being said let me assure you that there sure are cruises that are worse than others.

 

Background – we are loyal Princess cruisers although I have cruised with two other lines so I have more than just Princess to make comparisons with. On 8/23 for strictly personal family reasons we found ourselves on RCCL Liberty of the Seas and our cruise certainly falls into that worse category. Now if there are any RCCL loyal fans reading this STOP right now for what I have to report is not at all positive. That said, please understand it is my opinion and just that and if you have sailed RCCL and had a great cruise experience I’m delighted for you.

 

Let me start with what I do consider positive –

Our cabin, a Superior Ocean View (that’s a balcony cabin on Princess) was very nice and even included a small sofa.

The bathroom did seem roomier and the rounded shower had doors and a very nice adjustable shower head. Just don't expect shampoo, rinse or lotion as they don't provide that.

The pizza served at Sorrento’s Pizza on the Royal Promenade was good as were some of the small deserts they offered.

Eggs were offered on the Room Service breakfast menu.

Room Service personnel were superb and service was very prompt.

Apple pie served for desert one night was very good.

Finally, I guess some would find it positive that they have free frozen yogurt on the pool deck all day long.

 

Negatives –

Embarkation - When passengers boarded prior to 1pm they were not allowed to go directly to their cabins. They were directed to go to explore the ship or go get something to eat in the Windjammer/Jade café. Close your eyes and picture 3600 hungry people dragging their carry-on luggage behind them. :eek: Not a pretty picture!

Other Passengers – Ok, I know the personality and behavior traits of the passengers are not the cruise lines fault BUT none the less I have decided that the RC in RCCL stands for Rude Cruisers. :mad: I’m really a very tolerant person but the behavior of far too many passenger was just plain rude. While rude people exist everywhere, and yes I’ve encountered them on Princess, the high percentage of them on that ship was unbelievable. They pushed, shoved, stepped on toes and had no idea how to form a queue. Add to that the fact that at least 1/3 of the passengers had to be less than 16 years of age and it got to be a “walk around the ship at your own risk” cruise.

Stateroom Attendant – While ours was a very nice lady apparently they do not perform the same duties as those on Princess. We did not see ours until 630pm on embarkation day at which time she handed me two pillow chocolates and the daily activity paper for the next day, advised me of her AM and PM work hours and then vanished. At no time that day did she fill our ice bucket, turn down our bed or ask if we had any questions. It didn’t make for a particularly good start to the week. She did a reasonable job of cleaning our cabin, but apparently removing room service items, extraneous cups and glasses from the Windjammer and cleaning the balcony do not appear anywhere in her description. BUT, for all you towel animal fans out there she did do one heck of a job in leaving us a variety of creatures each night. The negative – well on two occasions her creatures had to be hung up using a hanger with pants clips and both times she went into our closet removed a pair of pants from one hanger doubling them up on another to get her “hanging” implement. NO, NO, NO! I considered this an evasion of my personal spaces and belongings and it should not have happen. :mad:

Windjammer/Jade Café (RCCL’s 24 hour buffet) – The organization of certain areas made no sense. As example, the ingredients for putting a salad together were spread over several stations. Although even the daily Compass (Patter) had warnings about Noro Virus and requested the use of the provided hand sanitizers there were NONE provided in the buffet area. Yep, I even asked. In fact I saw none anywhere on the ship.

Food (Windjammer Café & Dining Room) - I know the subject is very personal but understand we are not food snobs. It doesn’t take gourmet food to keep us happy, just edible will do us fine. Nothing served was what we considered better than mediocre (see exception above) and several dishes/foods were just plain awful and not suitable for eating. I won’t bore you with a detailed list but it runs the gambit from limp soggy shrimp cocktail to tasteless hockey puck cookies and includes beef in a variety of forms you wouldn’t feed your dog.

Dining room table – We were a family group of 9 that included a 2 year old. RCCL chose to seat us at a table designed for 10 and then added 2 additional people. The couple they added was a marvelous young couple whose company we enjoyed but I truly felt sorry for them. I suspect they had asked for a large table expecting to meet a few other couples their own age but instead ended up seated with our large family.

 

I still have about 1/2 dozen items on my list but I'm sure you are tired of reading my diatribe by now. Anyone who truly enjoys the experience of a Princess cruise had best avoid RCCL or at least this particular ship. Thanks for letting me get this off my chest. Now on to looking forward to the Emerald in March.

[remydiva]

I'm sorry that your first RCCL was disappointing. I do concur with your comments that the food quality is not up to Princess altho it has improved from my first to my second RCCL enough to warrant me booking a TA on RCCL. and yes, RCCL does make some pretty skookum towel animals...I have learned to leave out props such as sunglasses for the stewards to work with. It wouldn't kill them to have extra pant hangers on hand to avoid your invasion of privacy.

 

But, what I do like about RCCL over Princess (sorry if I hurt Princess' feelings) is that they have better perks for their repeat cruisers. Upon my arrival (which went seamless compaired to yours) I found a booklet of rewards for my return...it included a free wine tasting valued $9.95 which Princess never does for free (or does it take Elite membership..certainly not a Platinum such as myself) as well as wonderful champagne and canope captain's reception where we actually ..gasp...got to chat and meet the captain and have our photo taken. I believe there were also 10% coupons off of various shops and activities as well. I think on Princess I get the same old tired coupons for the shops as the next guy who just booked yesterday.

 

Also, I found RCCL to be more lively and fun...not Carnival type fun...but fun. On Princess, everyone seems to go to bed at 10pm...on RCCL the lounges, singers, lounge acts stay up past midnite. The trivia games, the Quest game (ok, so it's racy but good clean fun...and never never speak of it to anyone who has yet to experience it...don't spoil the fun) are all great fun. RCCL's version of American Idol and the Newlywed Game were much livier than Princess..maybe I was just lucky.

 

I like my free internet minutes on Princess and the food is better and other subtle differences but I'd jump on a RCCL ship in a heart beat...and you're right...a bad day at sea beats a day on shore.

 

I hope you give RCCL another chance....and note from my signature that I have a cruise upcoming on both Princess and RCCL so it's all good :)

[Toto2Kansas]

larsen, Sounds a bit like my last RCI cruise. Notice that word 'LAST' as it was my last.

Back to Princess.........................at least that was what we did.

[Luv4dacruise]

Not worth it...

[The Big Booper]

Rather have to go the buffet first before heading to the cabin if the cabin is filthy with the prior guests linens (see DonnaK's review of the CB this week) because the staff hasn't had the time to clean it.

 

And don't even think of taking a Princess ship out of NY in the summer when it will be full of loud pushy NYers, worse than the Florida crowd.:eek:

[Toto2Kansas]

Rather have to go the buffet first before heading to the cabin if the cabin is filthy with the prior guests linens (see DonnaK's review of the CB this week) because the staff hasn't had the time to clean it.

 

And don't even think of taking a Princess ship out of NY in the summer when it will be full of loud pushy NYers, worse than the Florida crowd.:eek:

 

I have to admit, I think Donna's experience is just an isolated incident. After 21 princess cruises, we have never found our cabin anything but spotless and we usually arrive quite early on embarkation day.

[lynn247]

remydiva, I agree with you, although Princess is my favorite cruise line, I did enjoy our Explorer of the Seas cruise. We will continue to cruise with both lines as long as we are able to.

 

I had no problem with RCCL's food. We did enjoy everything we ordered. On this past trip we felt Portofino's was way better than Sabitino's. And as you said, their repeat cruise benefits are the best. We were considered gold during our first cruise with them and received a GREAT coupon book, as well as a RCCL baseball cap.

 

Although both our cabins were spotless, I feel that both the Caribbean Princess and the Explorer of the Seas are in dire need of drydock.

 

I thought the wine tasting was better with RCCL, Johnny Rockets was real good, and free with the coupon. I enjoyed the barbecue on Labadee. I thought RCCL has more bars, and Princess had more shows.

 

What I didn't like about the Explorer was the Royal Promenade. I liked Princess' layout much better. We loved the International Cafe on the Crown, but didn't like the Cafe Promenade on the Explorer, although the 24 hr FREE Seattle's Best Coffee was the BEST. I felt there was more to do during the evenings and more places to walk around on Princess.

 

Oh- and on the Explorer, the buffet was not 24 hours. It closed at 9PM. We met up with another couple that was also disappointed that the buffet was closed and that we couldn't sit by the pool at night with that cup of coffee and a pastry like we did on Princess. On Princess we able to go to the buffet for a late nite snack to bring back to our cabin.

 

Princess' buffet was way better in their selection of foods; chips and salsa, sunflower seeds, and walnuts. Shrimp almost every day, wonderful fruit selection, granola for breakfast. Little things that made a difference. RCCL had Chinese/Japanese food every day at lunch. On RCCL, we were handed hand wipes as we entered the buffet and the dining rooms. When you sat down in the Windjamer buffet, a waiter brought you your iced tea or coffee to your table.

 

On RCCL we had a seat in the dining room every night. On Princess, there were many nights we had to go to the buffet for dinner because we couldn't get a table. If we wanted to make a reservation, we were told it had to be done 2 days in advance.

 

There were many subtle differences between the two cruise lines. Even between the two Princess ships, I liked the Crown better than the Caribbean Princess. As I said before, we will continue to cruise and enjoy both lines.

[Pam in CA]

My last two experiences on RCCL were similar to the OP's. Food was definitely mediocre; service was poor; I had to track down the steward only to be told that she was busy and would get to me the next day; the steward went into my drawers to find things to decorate the towel animal; the teenagers were rampant, taking over whole banks of elevators and using them as their private "offices" so that no one could use the elevators in the bank; and people were just plain rude.

 

I've taken four RCCL cruises over many years and NEVER received anything. Nothing. Nada. No wine tasting, no champagne, no canapes, etc. I'd have to be really hard up before I took another RCCL cruise as they don't offer much IMHO for the money nor, at least in my case, did they reward passenger loyalty in any way.

[calval]

Let me start by stating THERE IS NO SUCH THING AS A BAD CRUISE!

Negatives –

Embarkation - When passengers boarded prior to 1pm they were not allowed to go directly to their cabins. They were directed to go to explore the ship or go get something to eat in the Windjammer/Jade café. Close your eyes and picture 3600 hungry people dragging their carry-on luggage behind them. :eek: Not a pretty picture!

Stateroom Attendant – While ours was a very nice lady apparently they do not perform the same duties as those on Princess. We did not see ours until 630pm on embarkation day at which time she handed me two pillow chocolates and the daily activity paper for the next day, advised me of her AM and PM work hours and then vanished. At no time that day did she fill our ice bucket, turn down our bed or ask if we had any questions. (Our guy on Princess didn't do stuff even if we asked) It didn’t make for a particularly good start to the week. She did a reasonable job of cleaning our cabin, but apparently removing room service items, extraneous cups and glasses from the Windjammer and cleaning the balcony do not appear anywhere in her description.

 

I am always amazed at how different things can be. We were on the Dawn Princess last Christmas and I could have written the quoted part above about Princess. Also the staff was OK but never friendly. We were on RCI in April and had a fantastic time. I have never been on a HUGE RCI ship and really don't care to either. That seems to be part of the problem when people write about so many kids and indifferent passengers that seem to equal not as good of service.

 

We are going to try the Crown in March so hopefully it will be a positive experience. Seems many of you have had a great time. Well, we will have a great time because any cruise is better than being at home doing the wash and going to work:p .

[OuiOnboard]

Thanks for the comparison.

We enjoyed our only RCCL cruise so far...Serenade of the Seas. Princess suits our cruising needs best.

[LENORA516]

Rather have to go the buffet first before heading to the cabin if the cabin is filthy with the prior guests linens (see DonnaK's review of the CB this week) because the staff hasn't had the time to clean it.

 

And don't even think of taking a Princess ship out of NY in the summer when it will be full of loud pushy NYers, worse than the Florida crowd.:eek:

 

 

Loud and pushy does not apply to all NYers ! Being a life long NYer I really resent when people classify me that way. I took a cruise out of NY on the CB this summer and far prefer the passengers we had on our trip (not a single rude incident the entire 9 days) to my 7 days on RCCL out of FL !!

 

Guests from all over the country ( I wouldn't blame the Floridians) would think nothing of holding up an elevator full of people to have their own private conversations and when someone asked them politely to continue their conversation off the elevator so the rest of us to go, the offender threatened physical violence.

 

Meanwhile, when the 9-14 year old set would push all the buttons on the elevators and then run between the floors laughing at the passengers when the doors would open at each floor their parents thought it was cute. If my children ever did that they would have been banned from the elevators for the entire cruise !!

 

Lenore

[rcacace]

A truly unfortunate experience since most RCCL aren't that way. It's been a few years since we've sailed RCCL but it's hard to believe things have gotten that bad in such a short time.

 

The bad cruise in general could possibly be be due to the summer crowd especially with that many kids aboard. We've often experienced that the more kids, the worse the cruise. They tend to aggravate the other passengers & it shows in everyone's attitude.

Now everyone is going to respond with how great their kids behave & for the most part it might be true, but it doesn't take many bad ones to turn the ship into vacation that most people want to avoid.

[Sandytoes]

Larsen - Let me start by stating THERE IS NO SUCH THING AS A BAD CRUISE! That being said let me assure you that there sure are cruises that are worse than others.

I agree.

 

We enjoyed our RC cruise but it didn't compare to Princess.

 

On RC the food wasn't as good plus didn't have the variety \ selection as Princess.

 

RC entertainment was much to be desired.

Princess has several choices to chose from. Where as RC only has one main show nightly.

 

The staff on RC weren't pleasant. Very rarely smiled. Some would turn and walk away. On Princess crew members are eager to help.

Never saw our RC Cabin Steward. He never introduced himself.

On Princess the Cabin Stewards always stop by to ask if you need anything several times throughout the cruise.

 

The passengers on our RC weren't as friendly like those on Princess. Not sure why.

 

The cost of RC is higher then Princess - yet Princess offers more.

The only time you'll see me on another RC cruise is when they offer a really good deal and cruise itinerary that I haven't done yet.

[regnig]

Everyone we were with had sailed RC before so I got to examine the "repeat customer" coupon book and can't say I was impressed at all. The coupons all required you spend money to get to get any savings. I'll admit being Elite on Princess has spoiled me but at least the benifits they give do not require I spend additional money (2 for 1s) to get the benefits they provide. The only exception is the 10% off in the shops but even that is 10% off the entire cruise not just a one time only thing. And while the entertainment in Johnny Rockets was fun even the food in there wasn't great. Plus, the coupon provided only covered the "cover charge" to enter the place. If you wanted anything to drink beyond water or tea you had to pay for it. And, we didn't find their hambergers any better, actually less quality, than those free of charge at Princess's pool grill.

 

No, the Windjammer was not open 24 hours. They shut the entire thing down to switch over from breakfast to lunch or lunch to diner. Yes, they did bring drinks to the table when the place was not jammed but we got the same table service on the Emerald this spring in both the Horizon and the Caribe Cafe.

 

We find the lounge entertainment on Princess to be very enjoyable, but that is also a personal thing and we don't expect to be entertained 24 hours a day. "Fun" is of our own making.

 

Did I mention watching watching the kitchen staff drop a full tray of ribs in the sand at Labadee Haiti, take them into the mens room rinse them off and proceed on the the buffett? :eek: :eek:

 

Too much of what we encountered was at a level so below that on Princess that we find it difficult to believe they were just isolated incidents on this one ship. I'm delighted for those of you who have enjoyed your RCCL cruises but for us - we will stay where we belong, on Princess!

[sunsetbeachgal]

Hi Larsen,

 

Enjoyed your comparison-we sailed on RCI for the first tiime last year as we were also with a family group and required adjoining cabins, which Princess could not accomdate. We did the Mariner, which sailed from Port Canaveral (an easy drive from our area which is in Brushwick County, NC just north of you!!). Overall we were very pleased with our cruise and did not have the problems you did, we also and enjoyed a "new experience" but are back to stay with Princess. We jsut feel it suits our needs better and we enjoy our Platinum status as well.

 

Carole in Ocean Isle Beach, NC

[regnig]

Hi Larsen,

 

Enjoyed your comparison-we sailed on RCI for the first tiime last year as we were also with a family group and required adjoining cabins, which Princess could not accomdate. We did the Mariner, which sailed from Port Canaveral (an easy drive from our area which is in Brushwick County, NC just north of you!!). Overall we were very pleased with our cruise and did not have the problems you did, we also and enjoyed a "new experience" but are back to stay with Princess. We jsut feel it suits our needs better and we enjoy our Platinum status as well.

 

Carole in Ocean Isle Beach, NC

 

Carole I'm glad your experience was better than ours. Maybe they were just saving up the "awful" for us. ;)

 

Are we holding our breath on Hanna? Barb

[DonnaK]

I've taken four RCCL cruises over many years and NEVER received anything. Nothing. Nada. No wine tasting, no champagne, no canapes, etc. I'd have to be really hard up before I took another RCCL cruise as they don't offer much IMHO for the money nor, at least in my case, did they reward passenger loyalty in any way.

 

Did you join Crown and Anchor? Because after ONE cruise, they leave a coupon book in your room with the free wine tasting, free Johnny Rockets, free internet minutes, and assorted other discounts for use throughout the ship. Even the children receive a coupon book geared towards them (arcade, ice cream, etc). Each member of your party also gets a gift (tote bag, messenger back, picture frame, etc)

 

If you didn't receive the coupon book or gift after your first RCI cruise, it's because you didn't register for their passenger rewards program.

[sunsetbeachgal]

HI Barb,

 

Yes, I never want to wish misery on others, but we are hoping Hurricane Hanna fizzles and goes elsewhere. I am glued to the Weather Channel this time of year!

 

I see you are cruising Emerald upcoming-when? We did her last January and enjoyed her so much we are doing the other Carribbean itinerary (St. Lucia, Barbados, etc) in January '09.

 

Carole

[regnig]

Carole we are doing the 10th of March sailing which is the alternate itinerary than the one we took this March. This one includes Bonaire which is about the only island we have never visited. Loved the Emerald so much we booked on-board, even the same Caribe deck cabin.

 

BTB - Sunset Beach is the only beach we go to and we even have the yearly parking pass. We actually live in Long Bay Club in Longs as hubby is a golf junkie! Barb

[SheltieLady]

Hi Barb,

 

We are also booked on the Emerald Princess March 10th sailing never cruised with Princess we are so excited. Last year we went on RCCL Jewel of the Seas for 8 nights dh very first cruise had a wonderful time, sorry your experience was not good with RCCL.

 

Christine

[ssbeagle]

I fully agree with Larsen. Having been on 3 RCL cruises each one seemed to be progressively worse. Sure, there are lots of things to do on board that Princess doesn't have, but most of it we wouldn't use or do anyway (i.e. rock climbing walls). The wine tasting is only free to suite passengers and you have to look close or you will miss it which we did on our last two cruises. The past passenger program isn't nearly as good either. Entertainment is comparable. You get good and bad on both lines. On our Voyager cruise last April the entertainment was very good. On the Radiance cruise it wasn't. We've had good and bad on Princess too. But, all in all, we prefer Princess for the service, the ships, and the itineraries overall. Plus we have an excellent Captain's Circle!

[dforeigner]

Bummer. Guess there are more negatives than positives when it comes to RCL.

[ssbeagle]

Bummer. Guess there are more negatives than positives when it comes to RCL.

 

A lot of RCL regulars will disagree with that and feel the way we Princess regulars feel.

[MacThespian]

Negatives –

Embarkation - When passengers boarded prior to 1pm they were not allowed to go directly to their cabins. They were directed to go to explore the ship or go get something to eat in the Windjammer/Jade café. Close your eyes and picture 3600 hungry people dragging their carry-on luggage behind them. :eek: Not a pretty picture!

Other Passengers – Ok, I know the personality and behavior traits of the passengers are not the cruise lines fault BUT none the less I have decided that the RC in RCCL stands for Rude Cruisers. :mad: I’m really a very tolerant person but the behavior of far too many passenger was just plain rude. While rude people exist everywhere, and yes I’ve encountered them on Princess, the high percentage of them on that ship was unbelievable. They pushed, shoved, stepped on toes and had no idea how to form a queue. Add to that the fact that at least 1/3 of the passengers had to be less than 16 years of age and it got to be a “walk around the ship at your own risk” cruise.

Stateroom Attendant – While ours was a very nice lady apparently they do not perform the same duties as those on Princess. We did not see ours until 630pm on embarkation day at which time she handed me two pillow chocolates and the daily activity paper for the next day, advised me of her AM and PM work hours and then vanished. At no time that day did she fill our ice bucket, turn down our bed or ask if we had any questions. It didn’t make for a particularly good start to the week. She did a reasonable job of cleaning our cabin, but apparently removing room service items, extraneous cups and glasses from the Windjammer and cleaning the balcony do not appear anywhere in her description. BUT, for all you towel animal fans out there she did do one heck of a job in leaving us a variety of creatures each night. The negative – well on two occasions her creatures had to be hung up using a hanger with pants clips and both times she went into our closet removed a pair of pants from one hanger doubling them up on another to get her “hanging” implement. NO, NO, NO! I considered this an evasion of my personal spaces and belongings and it should not have happen. :mad:

Windjammer/Jade Café (RCCL’s 24 hour buffet) – The organization of certain areas made no sense. As example, the ingredients for putting a salad together were spread over several stations. Although even the daily Compass (Patter) had warnings about Noro Virus and requested the use of the provided hand sanitizers there were NONE provided in the buffet area. Yep, I even asked. In fact I saw none anywhere on the ship.

Food (Windjammer Café & Dining Room) - I know the subject is very personal but understand we are not food snobs. It doesn’t take gourmet food to keep us happy, just edible will do us fine. Nothing served was what we considered better than mediocre (see exception above) and several dishes/foods were just plain awful and not suitable for eating. I won’t bore you with a detailed list but it runs the gambit from limp soggy shrimp cocktail to tasteless hockey puck cookies and includes beef in a variety of forms you wouldn’t feed your dog.

Dining room table – We were a family group of 9 that included a 2 year old. RCCL chose to seat us at a table designed for 10 and then added 2 additional people. The couple they added was a marvelous young couple whose company we enjoyed but I truly felt sorry for them. I suspect they had asked for a large table expecting to meet a few other couples their own age but instead ended up seated with our large family.

 

I still have about 1/2 dozen items on my list but I'm sure you are tired of reading my diatribe by now. Anyone who truly enjoys the experience of a Princess cruise had best avoid RCCL or at least this particular ship. Thanks for letting me get this off my chest. Now on to looking forward to the Emerald in March.

 

I'm sorry you had such a bad experience on RCCL. I've sailed them a lot (as well as several other cruise lines), and have not had the problems you mention. I've not yet been on Princess, so I can't compare the two lines (though I will be sailing on Sapphire Princess next summer, and look forward to that).

As to your specifics: I've never been on a cruise where "early" embarkers were told their cabins were ready. If the ship doesn't offload all its passengers until 10 AM or so, you really have to give them time to clean the rooms before the new pax come on. That said, I've often checked out our room before it was "officially" open, and generally found that it was already clean and that we could drop our carry-ons there without a problem.

Other passengers? As you said, it's beyond the control of the cruise line. But on a large ship such as Liberty of the Seas, it's much more likely you'll run into a lot of families than you would on a smaller ship. And we Americans don't form queues as readily as the British do; that's not meant as an excuse, only as a comment on different national mores. Still, rudeness should not be the rule.

We've never had a stateroom attendant on RCCL who behaved the way yours did. Ours always introduced themselves early, and never just handed us chocolates and the next day's activities paper. Wait--once we happened to be around when the attendant came by, and he asked my daughter if she wanted extra chocolates. Of course, she said yes, and he handed them to her right then and there. Our beds were always turned down, and extraneous items (such as room service dishes) were always cleared. While we sometimes had to ask for a refill of the ice bucket if we used a lot on a particular day, there was never any problem getting this done promptly.

And we've never had a stateroom attendant take clothes off one hanger just to use it for a towel animal. I agree, that behavior is inexcusable, and I would have complained about it to the head housekeeper.

Whenever we've sailed on RCCL since Norovirus became an issue, they've always had hand sanitizers available, as well as crew members around to remind you to use them. But I've heard on the RCCL boards that this hasn't been the case all the time.

As far as the food goes: as you said, it's a personal thing. I don't consider myself a food snob, though I have eaten in many fine restaurants around the world. I haven't found cruiseline food, in general, to be gourmet in any sense of the word (except in some of the specialty restaurants, and perhaps on luxury cruise lines--though I've never been on one of these), but it's always been relatively tasty. I don't expect fine food, but I get reasonable food all the time on RCCL, and sometimes very good food; I haven't had the same experience you describe.

It's interesting that people who compare RCCL and Princess on their board tend to come up with the opposite conclusions. . .service is better on RCCL, the food is better on RCCL, and so on. I don't know personally, but I'm looking forward to finding out.

I'm not denying that you had a lot of less than satisfactory experiences on RCCL. I just think it depends more on the individual ship and crew. But thanks for posting the comparison; it gives me some things to look forward to next year.

[newmexicoNita]

this certainly shows why we have so many lines to choose between. though I haven't cruised RCI for awhile and may think they are a little over-rated, I do think the OPs experience was an isolated one.

 

We cruised Princess last January. We did think the food (entrees that is) were the best we had eaten in 20 plus cruises, but were disappointed in the rest of the food, or somewhat anyway. Our service, especially our cabin stewardess was below par. Even then, I wouldn't judge all Princess cruises by this one. Others on our ship had wonderful service.

 

I do think we all have a favorite line and judge all cruises by our favorite. It is hard not to do a comparison even if we try not to.

 

Nita