Royal Caribbean more expensive

[myangel]

Why is Royal Caribbean so much more expensive then Carnival? I know that they do not have 24 hour pizza and 24 hour ice cream like Carnival does, or at least that is what I am told. Is it because of the rock climbing wall, skating rink, etc?

[Saymyname]

It's not because of the size of their cabins. ( Tiny)

[tef43]

Years ago, *many* years ago, RCI was considered to be a notch or two superior to Carnival and the price discrepancies could be easily justified. Back in the day, RCI was just a tad below Princess. Not anymore, by a long shot.

 

As Carnival shed it's "Party till you puke" image and made significant strides to upgrade it's product, RCI remained stagnant, and even backslid in a number of areas (food quality for one), to the point now that Carnival and RCI are considered equals by the cruising public. This drives corporate RCI (and their zealot apologist C&Anistas) nuts. RCI opted to segment the market with their absurd additions to the ships, and yes, I am referring to the rock walls and ice rinks.

 

Give me the better food, superior entertainment, and LOWER PRICE of Carnival any day.

[Nessi]

My personal opinion is all the hype RCI Voyager class gets on TV. The Travel Channel features them all the time. They did a whole one hour show on one of the Voyagers, really emphasizing the rock climbing wall and ice skating rink. (And they show this program over and over!) I don't remember exactly which ship it was that the show featured, but after that program initially aired, that ship was over-the-top expensive (even when compared with other Voyager class ships). RCI advertises A LOT! People are often sheep, and do/buy what they perceive as "cool". Why are there so many Hummers in the bedroom community in which I live? Do all the yuppie stay-at-home moms really need a Hummer to drive to their play date? (No offense to stay-at-home moms - this is just an observation of the community in which I live). Notice how much RCI advertises compared with Princess and NCL. The only other cruise line that runs lots of TV commercials is Carnival. NCL, HAL and Princess don't do the TV ads. Just my perspective on the topic. :cool:

[myangel]

Thanks much for all your opinions! I happen to LOVE Carnival. I have been on Princess and Carnival, and I think Carnival is more kid friendly (more to do, game rooms etc). We have been on three Carnival cruises in the past 14 months tho and my husband is getting sick of it. He agreed to go again if we can try a different line.......... but I love Carnival!!!

[dsclark]

I totally agree. RCL has spend steadily cutting corners, whereas CCL has been improving.

My first RCL was on Soveriegn, back when she a couple of months old. Not only were soft drinks free in the dining room, when you arrived at your table, your drinkw as waiting there! Crab/shrimp cocktails were intermixed with caviar, most food was incredible, Jerry Van Dyke was the entertainer, great service...

But hey, that was 1989. The RCL of today is not the same as the RCl of yester year. The same can also be said about CCL.

[Ericknow32]

It is all a matter of supply and demand. If the ships didn't keep filling up then they would lower their prices in order to fill them up.

 

The rock-climbing wall is innovative as well as the ice skating rink. People know what they like and it seems to be the rock climbing walls and ice skating rinks.

 

These innovations bring on new passengers. This creates more demand for the product. Since there is limited space (I will let you come to the conclusion).

[kodiac]

Thanks much for all your opinions! I happen to LOVE Carnival. I have been on Princess and Carnival, and I think Carnival is more kid friendly (more to do, game rooms etc). We have been on three Carnival cruises in the past 14 months tho and my husband is getting sick of it. He agreed to go again if we can try a different line.......... but I love Carnival!!!

 

We LOVE Carnival too; however, if your husband wants to try another line.. do it! It is good to try new things, plus you can show your husband that Carnival really is the best cruise line out there.

 

I perfer Carnival but love Princess too... and of course RCI we are trying them again in December.

[jewopaho]

Much of the price differential can be attributed to RCI's silly new pricing policy. Essentially, the line sets the fare, and only a handful of agencies are permitted to discount it. The process is a covert, convoluted permutation of some formula based on volume. In short, you can get a deal (although not as good as before) but you have to really hunt for it.

 

While Carnival has instituted a policy whereby agencies can't advertise a lower price, a customer-initiated inquiry will yield some real deals (as in my case for the 5/8 Miracle sailing - they've risen substantially since I booked, but that's just the usual supply and demand thing).

 

I sailed the Adventure of the Seas, and found it to be a wonderful experience. It was my third RCI cruise (the first in three years), and I didn't notice any significant drop-off in food quality or service. But I believe that RCI's attempt to placate the storefront TA's will eventually come back to bite them. For now, though, as long as a ship sails at capacity, it's all that matters.

[gquest]

How do the demographics compare between these two cruise lines? I have been on Carnival once before, during spring break, and noticed that a majority of the passengers were younger (21-30). I myself fall in this category and was wondering if the age demographic on Royal Caribbean was comparable during spring break. Also, how is the atmosphere on these ships during spring break? Is it as fun as Carnival? Thanks. :cool:

[Forchunut1]

I'm leaving in less than two weeks on an RCCL cruise and am anxious to see how it compares to Carnival. And, as far as it being more expensive, this cruise cost less than what I could get on Carnival and it includes airfare. So, it's not always true that RCCL is more expensive than Carnival.

 

As far as food not being as good, etc. this may certainly be true and I'll sure be taking notes to see how they stack up against each other. But, I would imagine, as with all things, there will be both good and bad. :)

[rcicruiser]

It is because of the mega ships and everything they have to do. The ships sell out very quickly.

[newmexicoNita]

I have to agree it's the reputation RCI has, but since they accuired Celebrity I don't think RCI itself is any better than any mass marketed line and would agree it has, probably gone down hill in the past 5-7 years. Carnival has gone up the scale some. As for kids and cruise lines; both lines will be packed with the under 20s age group during all of March and the first week of April:Spring break brings out families. both lines will have their share of 20 somethings as well, with Carnival having more. One thing to remember though, as for pricing, alot has to do with the ship. A 10 year old ship on any line will be priced less than the newer ones on other lines. I don't always find Carnival lower. Itinerary plays a role as well: Alaska is more expensive (as a rule) the sounther Caribbean less. Just some thoughts. Everyone should try more than one line, it's worth it just to see what others are talking about. We had an opportunity to try Celebrity a few years ago. The price was better than any other line that week and ship was wonderful and almost new. Guess what, we didn't find Celebrity any better or just slightly than the lower rated lines. This was just our opinion. NMnita

[judyf]

I agree with some of the other posters. price is not always cheaper on CCL. Depends on a lot of things. I got a good deal on my RCCL cruise and didn't have to fly to Florida.

[kodiac]

How do the demographics compare between these two cruise lines? I have been on Carnival once before, during spring break, and noticed that a majority of the passengers were younger (21-30). I myself fall in this category and was wondering if the age demographic on Royal Caribbean was comparable during spring break. Also, how is the atmosphere on these ships during spring break? Is it as fun as Carnival? Thanks. :cool:

 

During spring break there will be a younger crowd overall. However, I still think there are more young kids on CCL than both Princess and RCI.

[ToddWelch]

We just returned from the Victory last week (01/09 sailing) and had a great time. My parents got off and went straight down the pier and got on the Explorer of the Seas. I picked them up at the airport the other day curious to get the comparison. We have only been on Carnival up to this point, but my parents have sailed on almost of the lines including Princess, Holland, Celebrity,...etc.

 

Their opinion was that Carnival was like a 3 star and RCCL was like a 5 star. They found it hard to compare them equally. They loved the Victory and all that was offered on the ship. They just liked RCCL that much more I guess. They enjoyed the skating show and said the food was better and a lot more choices that on Carnival. They said the entertainment was good on both, just seemd more of it on the RCCL ship. They had a suite of the Victory and a Promenade Cabin on Explorer. Obviously the RCCL cabin in this case was smaller, but they said it was enough for the two of them. We had taken our four children with us on the Victory and the main reason for choosing this one over the RCCL was the fact that the kid's camp on Carnival started at 2 years old instead of 3 years old on the RCCL. This was a big deal to us because we have 2 year old triplets....can we say "a little time for mommy and daddy". They did think though that the RCCL kids area and program seemed bigger and better other than the age limitations.

 

I personally have not been on RCCL but this was a summary of what my parents seemed to think having just did one week back to back on each one.

 

Todd

[FnyFACEnAL]

We paid less for our cruise on the RCCL Mariner last December than we are for the Glory in December of 2005. Same ports with about a $50 difference for an inside cabin with both ships departing from Port Canaveral. We will be on a higher deck on the Carnival ship and that might be the reason. We love both RCCL and Carnival especially the newer ships.

[ccletzgo]

We just returned from the Victory last week (01/09 sailing) and had a great time. My parents got off and went straight down the pier and got on the Explorer of the Seas. I picked them up at the airport the other day curious to get the comparison. We have only been on Carnival up to this point, but my parents have sailed on almost of the lines including Princess, Holland, Celebrity,...etc.

 

Their opinion was that Carnival was like a 3 star and RCCL was like a 5 star. They found it hard to compare them equally. They loved the Victory and all that was offered on the ship. They just liked RCCL that much more I guess. They enjoyed the skating show and said the food was better and a lot more choices that on Carnival. They said the entertainment was good on both, just seemd more of it on the RCCL ship. They had a suite of the Victory and a Promenade Cabin on Explorer. Obviously the RCCL cabin in this case was smaller, but they said it was enough for the two of them. We had taken our four children with us on the Victory and the main reason for choosing this one over the RCCL was the fact that the kid's camp on Carnival started at 2 years old instead of 3 years old on the RCCL. This was a big deal to us because we have 2 year old triplets....can we say "a little time for mommy and daddy". They did think though that the RCCL kids area and program seemed bigger and better other than the age limitations.

 

 

 

 

 

I personally have not been on RCCL but this was a summary of what my parents seemed to think having just did one week back to back on each one.

 

Todd

 

 

Back To Back and one of each! Now that is a great way to do a real honost

comparison.:) How fun!

[Boston6]

We were RCCL fans but we went on the Glory when a Lido Deck Balcony cabin cost us less that the lowest category outside cabin on RCCL.

 

We were not disappointed and have sailed the Glory for the 2nd time in one year, again saving substantial $$ over RCCL.

[dsclark]

"We just returned from the Victory last week (01/09 sailing) and had a great time. My parents got off and went straight down the pier and got on the Explorer of the Seas."

 

I have been on the Explorer and was on the Victory. When someone says one line is better than the other, it is important to think why.

 

The Vic had the worst food of any CCL ship I have been on. Even then, it was still better than the food on the Explorer. Why? Examples- they serve a real lobster tail, not that shrimp like critter passed off by RCCL as "lobster", they offer a real deli, not premade finger snadwiches, they have both ice milk and frozen yogurt, not some "frozen dessert" stuff, hamburgers are made fresh to order, not in advance to sit in a steam table, they'll serve you NY steak if asked, RCCL will serve you "ranch steak".

Now, as an example, some might prefer ranch steak to NY. Hey, maybe they like to chew on leather. However, the fact remains that NY is a better cut of beef.

[JYeagersGrl]

We were going to book our honeymoon w/ RCCL because people (especially on wedding websites) really bash Carnival and say RCCL is better. Well I called RCCL and spoke with them looking for a ship leaving NYC in June. They told me that it was going here on this date and that I could look at more information online. Well from the time they told me this to the time that it actually showed up online was 4 months! Then I called about other things and just was appalled by their customer service. I called Carnival and they were all very nice and helpful and had the information up months before RCCL on their ships 2005 iteneraries. Then I compared prices and saw that I could practically get a suite on a 8 day cruise with Carnival for the price of an inside cabin for 5 days on RCCL. I booked really early and through another website so I got an awesome deal but the price difference and sizes and customer service REALLY influenced me. I know I'm going to have a wonderful time and so what if I don't have an ice rink or rock wall on my boat it's really not gonna kill me. I've heard the rock wall can be pretty inaccessable anyways cause so many people want to do it so why wait in line for something and pay so much more money.

 

 

~Lisa

[cruisinqt]

We've been on both RCI and Carnival and like them both a lot. We were on the Rhapsody and the Conquest last year. Both cruise lines have their good points and bad points. They both have excellent food and service. They also have really good kids programs. And the entertainment is very good on both of them.

 

But for me the main difference is the atmosphere. When I want to stay up late and have lots of late night fun, I go on Carnival. They have the party parade that goes all over the ship. And when you go into the bar to listen to music, people don't just sit there, they join in with the guy playing at the piano. Overall, the atmosphere on Carnival is more of a "have fun, let's party" type of atmosphere. Though the whole "Carnival is full of drunks puking everywhere" is a bunch of lies. I've never seen it, though they do know how to have fun.:)

 

Now, when I want to have a fun cruise but I am also looking for a little bit of rest and relaxation, I go on RCI. Now I'm not saying RCI doesn't have any fun or partying going on, some of the lounges have a lot going on late at night.;) It's just that nothing can compare to the "fun party atmosphere" of Carnival. But RCI has it's own appeal with it's adults only solarium with a huge pool and snack bar. There just seems to be more quiet areas to relax on RCI. That's my take on it anyway.

 

As for the price difference, until RCI changed their price policy recently, there was very little difference in price for me in my area. RCI and Carnival had very similar prices for cruises with the same itinerary from the same port. But now that has all changed.:( With their recent price changes, they are just too expensive for us to even consider. With Carnival's prices, we can afford 2 cruises a year instead of one. Hopefully, the new pricing policy RCI has instituted will backfire on them and maybe they'll change it. I doubt it though. I guess we can always hope.:rolleyes:

[lucyjohnz]

We've found very comparable prices between the Carnival Fantasy class and the RCI Rhapsody class (maybe it's called the Splendour, Grandeur or something other class). However, I've found ALL the prices on the RCI Voyager class to be fairly outrageous - we've never cruised one of those ships because of this price difference.

 

I personally don't like the Carnival Fantasy class ships as well as the RCI Rhapsody class ships. The Fantasy class ships are mostly older with (to me) rather hidious/garish decor. However, their prices are good as are their itineraries as are their ports and I've cruised these ships and they're fine. You certainly have a lot more to choose from with Carnival and that's why we've cruise RCI 2 times, Celebrity 2 times but are about to go on our 4th Carnival cruise.

 

I might also add we did a 5-day on the Victory and I was unimpressed with the food and service - it was one of my least favorite cruises (out of 8). I also cruised the Jubilee and while it's tired and worn, the food was great as was the dining room service.

 

Finally, we LOVED the food on our RCI Monarch and Rhapsody cruises so I think the food is better on RCI than Carnival and better than Celebrity for that matter. However, service on Celebrity was the best of all the lines.

[lnm]

We are going on our 1st Carnival cruise in March. I've been apprehensive because we've been on 2 cruises on RCCL...on the Navigator then the Mariner. The prices on these 2 cruises were quite a bit less than Carnival (June sailings). After we had a great time on RCCL, I'm hoping Carnival will be just as good. Hubby wanted to try something new. And this time RCCL was more expensive than Carnival....thru cruisequick.

I'll let you know what I think between the two when we return

[pelletib]

MHO Both have good and bad points. All boils down to your personal expectations. Also itinerary and week you sail has a LOT to do with it. I'm not anti kid by any stretch of the imagination, but when kids running amok seems to outnumber the kids behaving....stay away from Thanksgiving week, holidays in general and any time schools are not in session..