Is RCCL really worth $1,000 more than Carnival?

[Jumbiecruiser]

 

Did either of these turn me off of cruising? Absolutely not. But, after sailing on RCCL, IMHO I will not be returning to Carnival.

 

My lord those photos. It reminds me of the Glory. The most awful looking ship that I have seen. Hard to spend a week on something like that again.:eek:

[stuffer]

My family went on a western caribbean cruise on the Conquest last summer. My children had a great time. The kids program was great. My children were 12,9, and 6. I have not been on a RC cruise ( we are going on our first in Sept.). I would not hesitate to go, especially if your children haven't gone with you before. They won't have anything to compare it too. The ship was nice, I believe it just got back from from a dry dock. Should be even better. Good Luck!

[Andipanda1]

My lord those photos. It reminds me of the Glory. The most awful looking ship that I have seen. Hard to spend a week on something like that again.:eek:

 

 

Nah, that would have to be the Carnival Legend...where you don't just take a cruise, you URN it. I thought I had stepped into Miss Kitty's saloon, with a generous portion of nudes, gigantic paintings, and a splash of antiquity. It was mindboggling.

 

That said, my husband and I, loyal RCI repeat cruisers, took a Carnival cruise last year with some of his work buddies, and the earth is still turning on its axis. It was not my preference, but it was fine. Aside from the garish ship, I had a good time. Food was OK--food in the Golden Fleece Restaurant was AMAZING. Activities and excursions were OK. We got tired of the constant announcements and waiter dances every evening. However, I would take Carnival again if the price and itinerary were right, and if the ship were not as gaudy and lurid. My husband however did not like it as much, although he had a great time, too. When booking a cruise for this year, he said that he'd rather not try the line again, but if we had to, it had to be a new ship. On the other hand, we had a balcony for about 1/2 the price of RCI (but this was, to be fair, a discounted group cruise). We lucked out and found a good cruise to Bermuda on RCI at a wonderful price.

 

I think it all depends on what kind of trip you want to have. For me, for a romantic getaway with my hubby, I would take Celebrity or RCI. For a fun romp with the entire family, I would take Carnival or RCI. A cruise is whatever you make it. As crazy as our Carnival cruise was, we had a great laugh about it and enjoyed our time.

[CruisinJul]

I love Royal Caribbean, but I just can't afford their rates this year. I sailed with Carnival the last two years and it was okay, but I don't think it is the cruise line for me. I cruising with Princess this year out of New York.

[spleenstomper]

I think it all depends on what kind of trip you want to have. For me, for a romantic getaway with my hubby, I would take Celebrity or RCI. For a fun romp with the entire family, I would take Carnival or RCI. A cruise is whatever you make it. As crazy as our Carnival cruise was, we had a great laugh about it and enjoyed our time.

 

I agree with this sentiment. If it were just my husband and me on a future cruise, I'd probably try out Crystal, since that is the line all of our friends swear by, as my first choice and along with considering CCL, RCCL, NCL and Princess. With kids, it would be the category of CCL, RCCL and NCL.

[DPurcell58]

After being loyal to Royal I could not justify spending $1500 more this summer since I lost my job in March. Therefore, we're trying Carnival this summer, I'm sure we'll survive. I'm going with a positive attitude.

[qwerty12345]

I love Royal Caribbean, but I just can't afford their rates this year. I sailed with Carnival the last two years and it was okay, but I don't think it is the cruise line for me. I cruising with Princess this year out of New York.

 

 

I always wanted to try the Princess out of NY. We've done 8 cruises from there. Let us know how it is. The only thing I know about it is that it listed a few years ago and it was caught on film. The ship has a weird shape but it is very pretty from the outside.

[NYCRUISR]

All being said being just my opinion.........Having been on both cruise lines there are several differences noticeable to me.

I do believe there are more amenities on RCCL. The Voyager and Freedom class ships offer a greater "being on the ship" space. I beleive the organization of moving the crowds was better on RCCL. Carnival did focus on fun....and the heavily youth oriented crowd enjoyed that. Food.... depends on which ship and when. Both were good......both were so-so.

The cost factor is probably most important to the general cruising public. Yes, I'm paying more on RCCL but I'm cruising on Liberty of the Seas next in Cabin 7708, Corner aft. To me....it doesn't get better than that.

[ken_nyc]

It all depends on the individual's money situation, yes $1000 is could be a lot of money for most people. Depending on how much of the amenities you would use on RCI compared to Carnival may also factor in deciding. We have sailed on both lines and had GREAT CRUISES ON BOTH and enjoyed the food and service on both, is one line that much better than the other, I do not think so.

[ivycruise]

It all depends on the individual's money situation, yes $1000 is could be a lot of money for most people. Depending on how much of the amenities you would use on RCI compared to Carnival may also factor in deciding. We have sailed on both lines and had GREAT CRUISES ON BOTH and enjoyed the food and service on both, is one line that much better than the other, I do not think so.

 

Exactly, I can't justify the extra expense for the bells and whistles. RCI without question offers much more on their mega ships, its worth it to some. My daughter and her friends prefer the Carnival "Fun Ships" and their O2 club, they wouldn't use the features on the Voyager/Freedom class ships. The groups we have that go on Carnival with all the kids and adults have a great time. After doing 3 lines I don't buy into the assertations on "hamburger" vs "steak" analogies. I've only been on the newer Carnival ships and it's been great.

 

Long term, in a couple of years when its just myself and my bride, I'll probably go on the ships that have less kids and that will exclude both RCI and Carnival.

[PEPI2]

For kids, Royal Caribbean definately has the better pools and sports facilities. If you spend a lot of time at the pools during the day..and will make use of things like in-line skating, rock climbing, ice skating, parades down the promedade...you are definately getting someting more for the extra money with Royal Caribbean.

 

I think the food in the main dining room is better on Carnival...but I think the buffet has a better selection on Royal Caribbean.

 

Royal Caribbean has a more spread out and brighter feel to the ship..it just always feels less crowded to me than Carnival.

 

Other than Disney, I think Royal Caribbean has the edge for families..though we have had a great time on Carnival.

 

In the end, when you consider the above, it really comes down to how important $1,000 is to you. For some people, it's not "that" much more money.

 

I choose Royal Caribean over Carnival when it's not "that' much more...for $1,000 more..depends upon how many people...

$1,000 is a lot of money you can use for something else.

Depends upon what your situation is.

 

You will have a good time on either though!

[sandytoes03]

We've been pretty loyal to RCCL, and want to continue that loyalty. However, I'm pricing out cruises for President's Day weekend 2010 and the exact same itinerary from Galveston is over $1,000 higher on Voyager of the Seas than on Carnival Conquest.

 

I've heard all different viewpoints on Carnival and my gut feeling is that we won't like it as much as RCCL, but that $1,000 difference is making it pretty hard not to at least try it.

 

We'd be bringing our kids with us for the first time, so the experience wouldn't exactly be the same anyway. However, it's still a lot of money to spend and I don't want to book something that we're ultimately going to hate.

For those who have been on both RCCL and Carnival (preferably Conquest or a similar ship), please give me your opinion on whether the RCCL experience would be worth $1,000 more to you.[/quot

 

We have been debating the same thing. Next summer if we cruise it will be with a little one :D, and although we are loyal RCI fans, I would rather pay less, be able to cruise with Carnival, then pay so much more for RCI, and possibly not be able to go at all.

[sandytoes03]

YES!

 

In all honesty, it depends on how discerning you are...and in how much the budget means to you...

 

Everyone is different...

To some of us, the money may not matter as much as it does to others...

I, for one, spend thousands of dollars on my cruises and am looking to get value for my money, not just the lowest price...I'll spend a little more to get what I want...

 

And...we all have different standards and criteria...

 

IMHO, you get what you pay for...

We have done three Carnival cruises now...

The first two, we took because in the 90s, Carnival had a monopoly on the Mexican Riviera route during the summer--which school vacation schedules dicatated was the only time we could go...

 

But, the last Carnival cruise we took was on the Carnival Liberty to Panama in July 2007...We took it immeditely after a cruise on the Royal Caribbean Liberty of the Seas because it gave us a different itinerary and dovetailed as to the dates with the RCCL cruise...

 

But, in taking the two back-to-back, we were really able to notice the differences--which were pronounced...

 

The Carnival ship seemed like a cattle ranch compared to the RCCL ship...There were approximately an equal number of passengers on the two ships--even though the RCCL ship was about one and one-half times the size. The dining room on the Carnival ship was so overcrowded and tables so close together that it affected the service, notwithstanding that every waiter on Carnival was serving about one and a half times the passengers that the RCCL waiters were serving (We counted)...The Carnival service was POOR...In order to see a show in the showroom on Carnival, one had to get there at least an hour before curtain time just to get a decent seat or seats together...There were lines and waits for everything...Getting an elevator at certain times was like a reflex game...

 

Also, the Royal Caribbean ships just have so many more amenities, the decor is far nicer...and I won't even get too much into the demographics in fear of insulting some people (Yes, most Carnival guest ARE good people--heck, we were among them--but there is a certain element of folks just looking for the cheapest possible experience--which manifests itself in some predictable ways)...

 

But, here's the thing: Most people cruising Carnival really don't get it...They are very satisfied with the experience...The ARE having fun...What's not to like about a cruise? It beats working...They are getting fairly good food, served to them in a more elegant style than they get at Denny's or McDonalds...They are getting a nice sized cabin--though they apparently have no problem with day-glo Orange vinyl decor...There is activity and things to do...They get to visit ports...

 

Face it, You can drive a Geo Metro with crank windows, an 85 horsepower engine, vinyl seats and no AC...it will still get you to work and back and wherever you want to go...and it only cost you $9995...Not everyone has to drive a Lexus or a Mercedes... ...or you can eat at Denny's...You'll get food...they'll serve it to you...and it beats cooking your own and cleaning up afterwards...And, that steak dinner only cost you $11.95!!! You may not really care if it's not Spago...Carnival is much the same...You get what you want...you get it at a cheap price...If it works for you, it's great...

 

For me, I prefer a little nicer car...and eating at a nicer restaurant...

I don't need to drive a Bentley or eat the lobster at the Palm...But, I am willing to spend more than the Geo Metro or Denny's...and I want really good value for my money...I drive an Acura and I eat at restaurants where I get a really good meal and pay a REASONABLE, but not cheap price...

 

And that is why I like Royal Caribbean...and am even willing to pay a little more for it (Though, in all of my cruises, I have never found the price differeential on conmparable itineraries and dates to be that far off--maybe you need a better travel agent)...

 

Royal Caribbean gives me a BETTER PRODUCT...and I am willing to pay a little more for that...I do not get that much vcation time that I care to compromise it looking for a bargain...

 

JMHO...

 

 

Hun??:confused: Are you saying that people who sail on Carnival don't know any better b/c they're only used to eating at McDonald's and Denny's anyway?? I'm not sure I can take your post seriously.

[Bases5]

For a $1000 more you are talking Celebrity. Holland American and RCCL is no Celebrity or Hal,

 

To us we like Carnival and RCCL better than the aforementioned due to the younger atmosphere.

 

But for a $1000 bucks I would get a major upgrade on Carnival or save it for more excursions.

 

I don't drive a geo either but I don't consider it a down grade. Its to each there own and how much value we put on different parts of our lives.

[SliderNc]

As the Mariner was my first mass market line cruise, I was a little skeptical as to what to expect. My g/f and I had a blast on the Mariner. Two months later, my g/f went with some of her college friends on the Glory. Picking her up from the airport when she came back she had a lot to say about both lines.

 

She liked the food in the MDR on Glory better than on the Mariner

She liked the all around level of service on Mariner than she did on Glory.

She found the crew on the Mariner, no matter where she went, was always happy and smiling, saying hello.

She liked the layout and flow of the Mariner better than the Gory.

The cabin on Glory was larger, but it was not as nice as the cabin on the Mariner we had.

The bed on the Mariner was more comfortable.

The buffet and service in the buffet were better on the Mariner.

The public areas on the Mariner were cleaner and nicer than the Glory.

 

We aren't really gamblers and spend minimal time at the slots/tables, however, we found the bar in the Casino and the bartenders in there who we made friends with right away on the first night to be great. She remarked that for the amount of time they spent at some of the bars and the fact that she ordered the same drinks almost every night, no one really knew her by name or what she liked. She also said that same thing about the MDR staff. Our service in the MDR on the Mariner was great. Our servers (Curt and Vladimir) were top notch and we always had everything we wanted or asked for, sometimes before we asked for it. The service on the Glory was just okay.

 

Price wise, they paid about the same price and I think ours was about $100 total for the cabin. We also spent about $1200 on the cruise itself in terms of onboard charges and prepaid excursions.

 

We're not rich by any means, but we both agree that you will get what you pay for and that whatever your choice, you make the most of it.

 

Overall, she said she had a good time on both cruises because, well, she was on a cruise and not in the office. She said that however, she felt the product offered by RCCL was much better than CCL for similar ships/itins. She said that she would probably not sail on CCL again because she felt for the same amount of money on RCL, she had much better service.

 

We talked about pricewise if there was a large price difference between the cruise we were taking and another similar cruise on a different line, we would definitely explore the other cruiseline and give it a try, especially if it got to be around $500+ in difference. But we both agreed having experienced the RCL product and if the price difference wasn't that much more, we'd stick with RCL.

 

In the end, you need to do what's best for your wallet and your family.

[nbsjcruiser]

For those who have been on both RCCL and Carnival (preferably Conquest or a similar ship), please give me your opinion on whether the RCCL experience would be worth $1,000 more to you.

 

Absolutely not. We love RCI especially the Radiance class ships but $1000 is our airfare for crying out loud. We saved around $1000 as well booking the Valor. Additionally, RCIs itineraries are now designed to keep you on the ship as long as possible. I love cruising but I also do it to see something of the world and not stay on the ship 3 days out of seven which now seems to be the norm for RCI.

 

Take your $1000 and book your air or use it as spending money for your trip. RCI is NOT worth that much more.