Sun princess or Rhapsody of the seas?

[Miss416]

Hi everyone, it seems a bit silly to be posting this question in this section but I think I am in the right place!

 

My partner and I are looking at a cruise from Sydney to NZ in December and both ships are available. There is hardly any difference in price, the only difference is one is 13 nights and the other is 14, oh and they both go in opposite directions.

 

Never having been on a cruise before I am a little confused as to which ship to pick. Anyone have any advice about either ship? Pros, cons absolutely any reply would be appreciated!

[Ned49]

Hi, We have been on both and would recommend Rhapsody hands down. Nothing wrong with Princess just not as good. The New Zealand cruise is fantastic we loved it. Hope this helps

[cazz0069]

I have not been on Rhapsody but i loved the Sun Princess...I am particularly keen on Princess too, i have found the service and everything associated with them to be exceptional. I think you will find it will almost be 50/50 in relation to opinion on here....Good Luck...

 

PS. At the end of the day, your on a cruise, and that cant be bad :)

[rkmw]

Hi everyone, it seems a bit silly to be posting this question in this section but I think I am in the right place!

 

My partner and I are looking at a cruise from Sydney to NZ in December and both ships are available. There is hardly any difference in price, the only difference is one is 13 nights and the other is 14, oh and they both go in opposite directions.

 

Never having been on a cruise before I am a little confused as to which ship to pick. Anyone have any advice about either ship? Pros, cons absolutely any reply would be appreciated!

 

we have been on both but there's not much difference in either ship but if you like a drink with princess you are allowed to bring on wine and champange and the odd six pack at every port and store them in your fridge but with the rhapsody you cant bring on any grog...they are so strict

 

which ever one you choose you will have a good time

 

rkmw

[Kiwi Kruzer]

They are both excellent ships.

Rhapsody has $US on board,

Sun has $Au.

Not much difference for you these days, except the hassle of changing it.

 

We tend to stick with Princess now as we get the Elite perks which are hard to overlook.

[The Fox]

Hi everyone, it seems a bit silly to be posting this question in this section but I think I am in the right place!

 

My partner and I are looking at a cruise from Sydney to NZ in December and both ships are available. There is hardly any difference in price, the only difference is one is 13 nights and the other is 14, oh and they both go in opposite directions.

 

Never having been on a cruise before I am a little confused as to which ship to pick. Anyone have any advice about either ship? Pros, cons absolutely any reply would be appreciated!

 

Hi,

 

I have been on both ships and both are excellent in everyway......but I have a slight preference for Rhapsody.

 

Regards

 

Col;)

[CassCruise]

I agree with the above - like David (next time will be our first!!!) the elite

perks are great (part. the free laundry and as with Platinum the free internet) !!!

 

Apart from this one thing to consider and for us would be a big deal breaker if everything else was equal is the fact that Princess has fresh water pools as opposed to salt water in RCL pools (daughter who has a huge prob with salt water and found Rhapsody to be extremely salty!!!) also on Sun Princess there are more spas....

 

Either way I really don't think you will be disappointed and you will really enjoy the ships and experience!!!

 

Jane

[dougo in oz]

I haven't been on any RCL ships, but isn't there a thread on the forum somewhere about pre-paying gratuities and dining options etc?

 

I'm not sure if the info on that thread still prevails, but if it does, the simpler option for me would be Princess and particularly as settle your account in Aussie dollars (in the Pacific region only, not cruising out of the US or Europe etc). As such, when paying your account in Aussie dollars, you're not hit with the cruise line's own interpretation of what the exchange rate will be which is IMO often more favourable to them rather than us.

[CassCruise]

I haven't been on any RCL ships, but isn't there a thread on the forum somewhere about pre-paying gratuities and dining options etc?

 

I'm not sure if the info on that thread still prevails, but if it does, the simpler option for me would be Princess and particularly as settle your account in Aussie dollars (in the Pacific region only, not cruising out of the US or Europe etc). As such, when paying your account in Aussie dollars, you're not hit with the cruise line's own interpretation of what the exchange rate will be which is IMO often more favourable to them rather than us.

We had mainly taken US$'s and just paid the balance on credit card - we ticked the box to have the account settled in US$'s and the exchange rate that came through on the cc was 0.908 - so a pretty good rate - we had also prepaid somethings and again the exchange rate used was very fair.....

[lizzy77]

We have been on the Dawn (same as the Sun) and the Rhapsody and to us there is no comparison. Rhapsody wins hands down;)

There are also ways and means of getting the wine on-board too!!!

[Miss416]

Thanks so much for all the replies! It's always nice to get an opinion from people more knowledgeable than myself. Although it seems there is a slight preference for Rhapsody, my partner prefers the look of the Sun Princess so it looks as though we will be choosing her. Here's hoping we get an upgrade as since we are getting married in November all we can afford is an interior cabin, either way it's a cruise so we can't really lose! Thanks again everyone, this forum has become invaluable.

[windsor26]

Thanks so much for all the replies! It's always nice to get an opinion from people more knowledgeable than myself. Although it seems there is a slight preference for Rhapsody, my partner prefers the look of the Sun Princess so it looks as though we will be choosing her. Here's hoping we get an upgrade as since we are getting married in November all we can afford is an interior cabin, either way it's a cruise so we can't really lose! Thanks again everyone, this forum has become invaluable.

 

 

Been on both and the ships themselves Rhapsody wins hands down BUT Princess normal (Dawn) etc are excellent and better maintained. Plus loyalty perks are much better on Princess ALSO If the itinerary of the Rhapsody does what it has in the past STAYING OVERNIGHT in Sydney is great to be able to visit the sights at night is a marvellous opportunity. Princess does not do this on their itinerary normally.:D