artvlay

We are upper tier D+ so we have been on quite a lot of RC cruises. We are also stockholders .

We definitely see a decrease in everything on the Royal cruises including food quality & variety, entertainment quality, and quantity of staff onboard.

On our Jewel cruise a few months ago we decided to look at other cruises out of the NYC market. We booked a January cruise on Carnival Venezia and just got back.

The food quality was better in the MDR for both breakfast and dinner. The food in the buffet for breakfast was horrible. For lunch it was about the same as Windjammer except it had a deli in the buffet that was good. The baked goods in the Carnival buffet were light-years over Royal's gelatinous desserts. The Carnival buffet desserts were bakery quality and Royals is school cafeterias.

A huge advantage to Carnival was their free stand along food operations outside the buffet. A pizza stand made excellent personal pizzas, on sea days the seafood restaurant serves good Chinese food for lunch. There is a Mexican operation that also serves Italian sandwiches and finally a Guy Fieri's Burgers that served some of the best burgers I've ever eaten.

The design of the Carnival Venezia was horrible and nowhere nearly as functional as Royal's ships but the food was much better.

So when deciding on cruises I will now consider Carnival whereas I rarely have gone on them.

So with all the very good information here I have a question. Many comments in this thread mention "group rates". How do you find these rates without asking an agent. It seems like searching for a needle in a haystack.

It is amazing that they can loose it from the porter stand at the curb to the ship. That area should be empty of everything but equipment as there is not another ship.

We are Diamond Plus on RC, and Elite on Celebrity. We like both but give the edge to Celebrity. We would go on more Celebrity cruises if they sailed from Bayonne, which is about sixty miles from home.

Royal has really cut their food quality and selection as well as their entertainment/musical performers are obviously downgraded.

Due to this we also are looking elsewhere. We tried Carnival for the first time in about ten years.

We just got off a nine night Carnival Venezia cruise and had the following comparisons to Royal/Celebrity.

Food was better in MDR on Carnival although not as good was the buffet in both quality and selection. Breakfast in MDR on Carnival was better in quality and selection. Carnival buffet breakfast was really subpar.

The free choices for food options on Carnival blew away both Celebrity and RC. They had Guy Fieri's Burgers, which were restaurant quality, a pizza stand that was far superior to Celebrity and RC, a Mexican operation that also served Italian type sandwiches and on sea days you can get Chinese dishes for lunch  from the seafood stand.

They also had a comedy club on Carnival that was a big advantage to Celebrity/RC.

Another enormous advantage that goes to Carnival are their desserts. The baked goods in the buffet were bakery quality everyday! Their chocolate chip cookies were much more appetizing than Celebrity/RC. 

The baked goods on Celebrity RC are a step down from grammar school cafeterias.

We kept saying that we couldn't understand why Celebrity/RC couldn't do a better job. It can't be the money, it isn't that much of a difference in the end. Do Celebrity/RC food operation planners go on competitor ships and taste what is served elsewhere? All they know is to serve the same gelatenous deserts, feh!

Sailing from NYC is more difficult than Bayonne so that is a big advantage for RC/Celebrity.

The Carnival Venezia was a very poorly designed ship. Without a question the advantage goes to Celebrity/RC, it isn't close.

If Celebrity and Royal could do something about their food operations it would be a big improvement.

These are our opinions after 88 cruises.

Anyone know of a shared ride from FCO airport to Civitavechia?

25 minutes ago, Jim_P said:

Yes. I was solo, but there was enough in the jug to make a full refill. Of course you can always just tick the box on the menu for both people and get two jugs delivered.

A very sensible answer 

On 1/27/2024 at 10:39 AM, Jim_P said:

Theres complimentary hot chocolate you can have brought to you in the morning as part of the complimentary room service breakfast, and it is amazing. Best hot chocolate I've ever had and they bring it in a big metal jug. Im on the QM2 next month and Im already daydreaming about sitting on the balcony drinking that chocolate in the morning.. 

Im not sure if theres any in the coffee machines in the buffet. Other than that the only hot chocolate is what you can buy in the cafes. 

Does the metal jug contain enough for two people?

Is the room service hot Chocolate available all day?

Also, has Cunard kept room service free?

On RC they offer wifi packages midway through the cruise. does Carnival?

I'm going on 9 nite cruise and may need to get in contact with office in the middle of the cruise. Seems like a waste to get a wifi package when I won't use it for the first four days. Can I buy wifi half way into the cruise? any other suggestions? Thanks

Thank you for the great info

We are going on Venezia and wanted to know if our Google Fi works on the ships, the private island or on the Bahamas.

Thanks

We are going on  9 Day Venezia in two weeks.

We are planning on making reservations for Steakhouse and wanted to do it on a night that isn't a formal night or a night that doesn't have a good menu.

We cruise often on Royal and know their menus and formal night schedules but haven't been on Carnival for a few years so are looking for advice.

I don't know if we can book onboard and maybe to ask the dining room staff for guidance.

Thanks 

Going on Venezia next month out of NYC.

What is the current policy for bringing water or Snapple onboard?

I'm very familiar with Royal Caribbean and Celebrity, but haven't been on Carnival for a few years.

We will be sailing on Venezia in a few weeks and are thinking about going to Fahrenheit Steakhouse.

My question is are you limited to what you can order?

On Royal or Celebrity you can order two different appetizers, can you do that on Carnival?

Thanks 

His was included in his Oceanview cabin for a total of $1400 for a week Alaska cruise 

I booked a cruise on Grand Princess two days ago and it included the entire package. He got a lower Oceanview cabin 

56 minutes ago, startedwithamouse said:

Yes, easy to do using live chat feature on the Princess website. 

I'm not familiar with this feature. Can you please explain where to find this on the website. Thanks

We have sailed mostly on Royal and Celebrity. When I would select a guarantee cabin on these cruise lines you are allowed to switch the cabin to any available cabin within that category. Can you do that on Princess?

Hello and thanks for the information. Does anyone know Venezia's abbreviation?

We are early dinner.

On Royal or Celebrity there is an email address that you can contact them. I was hoping that it is the same on Carnival.

As soon as someone gets news menus it would be appreciated if you can post.

Thanks 

Hello, what is the email address for the Carnival dining department. I have a group of friends meeting up in January on the Venezia and would like to arrange sitting at nearby tables.

Thanks 

What is the difference between an Ocean View and a Prime Ocean View?

It seems that the only difference that I see is where they are on deck three.

The regular OV seem to have a better placement as they are away from the Centrum and it's noise. Are the Ocean View cabins noisy, and are there specific ones to choose and to avoid?

Thanks 

Yes, I did realize that, I mistakenly called it a balcony. But thanks for pointing that out.