Carnival Magic Vs Princess Ruby

[W5KAP]

My DW and I have just returned from a nice 7 day cruise out of Galveston to the Western Caribbean on the Carnival Magic. Since we primarily cruise on Princess, I thought it might be fun to caompare the two since the ships are roughly the same in size. PLEASE try to refrain from flaming me as I am going to be neutral and as honest as I can be.

 

Some quick notes about us; we are both in our 60's and retired. We have had the pleasure of traveling the world in the military and on our own as well. As of today, we have taken 8 cruises; 4 on Carnival and 4 on Princess. So I think we can realistically do a fair comparison.

 

Embarkation: We left out of Galveston. Embarkation was delayed an hour or so due to the Magic going through the required Coast Guard inspection. We feared a mess but we were thoroughly surprised at how smooth things actually went. While we did spend some time in lines, they were always moving and the personnel wer very courteous. It probably took only a half hour to get into the port and onto the ship.

 

Advantage: Even

 

Ship: We were very surprised by the decor of the Magic. Instead of the "Bordello" colors and neon eveything we had seen on the Conquest and other ships, this one was more dark and brooding. I know it's subjective be we didn't particularly like the color schemes. The ship seems more compartmented than the Ruby as well. Many of the venues are way too small for the shows they wer presenting and thus many folks walked away nable toget seats. One of our biggest disappoinetments was the Northern Lights Dining Room. Whoever designed this part of the ship should be taken out and shot. Whether you are on the upper section or the lower section, you cannot see outside as the lifeboats are hanging there right in fron of you. In fairness, the Southern Lights dining room, aft, has a much better view. But Carnival has chosen to have the "Your Time" dining in the Northern Lights and then only on the lower level. Did I mention how dark this place is!! This ship has a nice water park on the upper decks. It was certainly appreciated by the over 500 kids on the cruise. The theater was nice and well done.

 

Advantage: Ruby by far!!

 

Food: The food was OK. They had a nicely varied menu. It's juts that nothing was particularly great. The Lobster was ubdercooked here but excellent in the Prime Steakhouse. Neither of us liked the Onion soup at all. The buffet is large but we felt it lacked in diverstiy of items compared to Princess. Kudo's to Carnival for the Mongolian Wok. I personally didn't get ot tryit because the lines were always long but a travelling friend loved it and it lkooked and smelled great. Also, good for Carnival for having the Tandoori area. I don't care for Indian Cusine but it's nice for those who do. We did try the Prime Steakhouse and found it OK. I must hoenstly say we both felt the Crown Steakhouse on the Ruby much better.

 

Advantage: Ruby

 

Staff: Great. Very friendly and we wanted for nothing. I would have liked for our steward to be more visible but his style was to remain in the shadows. No problem, he did a great job. Everyone on the staff was friendly and very helpful.

 

Advantage: Even

 

Entertainment: We both say the shows were great! And up until our last Trans-Atlantic I would havce given Carnival the edge. But our entertainment on the Ruby last trip was awesome. Back to this cruise. The first production show was very good. It was a 70's review and very well done. The second was absolutely incredible! The second show as a combination production and illusion show. Wow, that was something to see. Suffice it to say we enoyed it. We also saw two comics in the main theater doing G rated routines. The first guy used to be a wrestler and he was great. The other...not so much! Also saw two "R" rated comics in a rear lounge and they were terrific. Certainly not for kids though.

 

Advantage: Carnival Magic

 

Rooms: We had a very nice aft balcony, 8477. This is an 8N class room. The view was terric as you might imagine. The room wsa understated but nice. We did, however, find two things we didn't like. First the layout is such that if either the bathroom door or any of the closet doors open, you can't get to the door. It is a really bad layout. We much prefer the little hallway off to the side on the Ruby. In that set up, no matter which door (batroom or closet) is open, you can still walk through. Not a game breaker by any means but honestly, we prefer the Ruby set up. The other minor problem was the oversized balcony. Now I know that sounds dumb but let me explain. Because of the shape of the ship, the rear balcony railings tilt inward. Thus they make about three feet of the balcony under the railing useless. The view was great, and other than the lousy railing, the balcony would have been great. We have done an aft balcony on the Ruby (C750) and even though that has the infanoud post, we had more room. The shape of the ship causes this little glitch.

 

Advantage: Ruby

 

Ports: Montego Bay Jamaica, Georgetown Grand Cayman and Cozumel. We have been to these ports before and they were just fine. Carnival handled everything without flaw

 

Overall: We had a very good time. Both my wife and I refuse to let little things to spoil a good cruise. And nothing was really bad on this cruise. We and the friends we went with, had a ball. Afterall, we were cruising and nothing beats that!! But I think, given our demographics, we will be sticking toPrincess and maybe branching out to X before we try Carnival again. 500 plus kids caused some small problems. Can you say tons of little kids in the adult hot tubs!! Honestly the kids were pretty well behaved if I am honest. If you took this cruise, I am sure you had as nuch fun as we did. At least we hope you did.

 

Advantage: Ruby and Princess

 

Disembarkation: Very well done Carnival! They allowed us to get off early with our luggage. Now Princess does this two but we really liked how Carnival set it up. Those doing self-assist got called first by deck number. They craftily called an upper and a lower deck at the same time to try and keep the elevators clear. Each set of decks took about 20 minutes. So they stretched thigs out so by the tiome you got to customs, there wasn't much of a line. Compare that to the last Ruby cruise when they dumped everyone off in the Ft Lauderdale terminal at once with no designated lines Absolute pandemonium.

 

Advantage: Carnival BIG TIME PRINCESS PLEASE TAKE NOTE of how it's done

 

Our best wishes for all your cruises!

 

Cheers, Kenn

[firefly333]

Ive done Caribbean Princess a sister to Ruby and I disagree with almost every point. But thats ok, we all like what we like.

 

I loved the emerald green and decorating of Magic and thought Princess felt dated.

 

I thought the way Princess set up with the hallway to the closet was wasted space and like Carnival's cabins just fine.

 

Only thing Princess would have the edge on is shows and food to me.. the rest points to Carnival. I loved Magic .. a lot. I am surprised you thought the beautiful decorating was "dark".

 

Just goes to show we all like different things.

[W5KAP]

Ive done Caribbean Princess a sister to Ruby and I disagree with almost every point. But thats ok, we all like what we like.

 

I loved the emerald green and decorating of Magic and thought Princess felt dated.

 

I thought the way Princess set up with the hallway to the closet was wasted space and like Carnival's cabins just fine.

 

Only thing Princess would have the edge on is shows and food to me.. the rest points to Carnival. I loved Magic .. a lot. I am surprised you thought the beautiful decorating was "dark".

 

Just goes to show we all like different things.

 

Yep I understand your feelings too. I know folks love Carinval too and I really was trying to be fair but I know its all subjective. We had a fine cruise but at our age I guess we just feel more comfortable on Princess with more folks being around our age. I know that Carnival attracts a younger set of folks and they seemed to be having agreat time as well. I'm just happy to be cruising regardless of which line its on.

 

Hope your future cruises are great ones

 

Cheers, Kenn

[loveJake]

I have been on the sister ships of both. We cruise Carnival more simply because it is the cheaper and sometimes Walmart is just as good. I agree on the layout of the cabins, love the bathrooms and dressing area on Princess. Nothing can beat the 24 hour buffets on Princess. Princess food is a step up from Carnival, for our tastes. If I could I would always sail Princess, in fact if the budget was unlimited I would sail Disney.

[firefly333]

Yep I understand your feelings too. I know folks love Carinval too and I really was trying to be fair but I know its all subjective. We had a fine cruise but at our age I guess we just feel more comfortable on Princess with more folks being around our age. I know that Carnival attracts a younger set of folks and they seemed to be having agreat time as well. I'm just happy to be cruising regardless of which line its on.

 

Hope your future cruises are great ones

 

Cheers, Kenn

 

Im older too but I love green anything and that darker emerald green when I walked onto Magic I felt was just gorgeous. So, its not a matter of age between your tastes and mine more than likely.

 

Im just happy to be cruising too, and maybe because I have more Carnival I feel at home.

 

I did like the snacks late at night on Princess. It was a nice cruise, it just didnt feel like me. I felt immediately at home on RCL as well. Just didnt like Princess somehow.. as I said felt staid .. like it was trying to look elegant and failing. But I did like the food. I also had a problem cabin steward on one of my two Princess cruises and other issues.

 

Im thinking maybe its because I am not a dress up type and maybe thats why it didnt feel like a fit for me? I have not been on Celebrity and afraid I may react the same way. I wear very casual clothes at home and thats what I want .. casual cruises.

[momof4girls]

Overall: We had a very good time. Both my wife and I refuse to let little things to spoil a good cruise. And nothing was really bad on this cruise. We and the friends we went with, had a ball. Afterall, we were cruising and nothing beats that!! But I think, given our demographics, we will be sticking toPrincess and maybe branching out to X before we try Carnival again. 500 plus kids caused some small problems. Can you say tons of little kids in the adult hot tubs!! Honestly the kids were pretty well behaved if I am honest. If you took this cruise, I am sure you had as nuch fun as we did. At least we hope you did.

 

Advantage: Ruby and Princess

 

Disembarkation: Very well done Carnival! They allowed us to get off early with our luggage. Now Princess does this two but we really liked how Carnival set it up. Those doing self-assist got called first by deck number. They craftily called an upper and a lower deck at the same time to try and keep the elevators clear. Each set of decks took about 20 minutes. So they stretched thigs out so by the tiome you got to customs, there wasn't much of a line. Compare that to the last Ruby cruise when they dumped everyone off in the Ft Lauderdale terminal at once with no designated lines Absolute pandemonium.

 

Advantage: Carnival BIG TIME PRINCESS PLEASE TAKE NOTE of how it's done

 

Our best wishes for all your cruises!

 

Cheers, Kenn

 

I was on this same cruise. We had an EXCELLENT time, but I have one question. I didn't realize there were "adult only hot tubs"? I'm not saying that rudely, I am actually genuinely asking (as I've only cruised twice, and only once with kids). I will agree that there were lots of kids in the hot tubs (mine being a couple of them), but if they had been adult-only hot tubs, I know I would have asked them to get out. I did feel we received a LOT of dirty looks from fellow passengers when they were in them, although most of these passengers seemed to be between the ages of 20-35, and almost all of them were couples.

 

My only complaint is that I wish there was a separate pool for just kids. Not so much for my kids sake, but so that the other passengers that aren't traveling with kids can have an area to swim without being splashed, etc. I was torn on what to do when my kids were having fun in the pool. Tell them to "settle down" (they were just being reg kids in a pool...nothing extreme like purposely splashing others,etc.) so that the couples in the pool or on the side wouldn't look so annoyed at us, or just let them "be kids and have fun".

 

We had ATD also, and my other complaint with that particular dining room is that depending on where you are sitting, you won't see much of the "show" the waiters put on (if that's your thing).

[W5KAP]

I was on this same cruise. We had an EXCELLENT time, but I have one question. I didn't realize there were "adult only hot tubs"? I'm not saying that rudely, I am actually genuinely asking (as I've only cruised twice, and only once with kids). I will agree that there were lots of kids in the hot tubs (mine being a couple of them), but if they had been adult-only hot tubs, I know I would have asked them to get out. I did feel we received a LOT of dirty looks from fellow passengers when they were in them, although most of these passengers seemed to be between the ages of 20-35, and almost all of them were couples.

 

My only complaint is that I wish there was a separate pool for just kids. Not so much for my kids sake, but so that the other passengers that aren't traveling with kids can have an area to swim without being splashed, etc. I was torn on what to do when my kids were having fun in the pool. Tell them to "settle down" (they were just being reg kids in a pool...nothing extreme like purposely splashing others,etc.) so that the couples in the pool or on the side wouldn't look so annoyed at us, or just let them "be kids and have fun".

 

We had ATD also, and my other complaint with that particular dining room is that depending on where you are sitting, you won't see much of the "show" the waiters put on (if that's your thing).

 

No there really aren't any special hot tubs for kids. But, and please don't take this wrong, most cruisers will tell you the hot tubs are for adults since the kids have the pools to play in. yes I think they could have used more too but they did provide the water park which was awesome for kids. I think my opinion is because I saw kids in diapers in there which is a no no on any cruise line. Not particularly sanitary especially in the hot water which is a bredding ground for bacteria. Oner other thing I forgot to mention is that Princess' pools are fresh water. I didn't mind the salt water but I prefer fresh. I'm really glad you all understand I wasn't trying to pooh pooh the trip. We had a great time. I suspect we would on a garbage scow!! As long as we are at sea. There are so many lines for this exact reason. They all appeal to different people. One other thing. Smoking ws going on eveyrwhere!! There were times when our balcony neighbor was happily puffing away on cigars. Smoking is a no njo on Princess and we like it that way. Smokers please don't be offended. If they would simply designate a couple of spots, that would work for us.

 

Cheers, Kenn

[momof4girls]

No there really aren't any special hot tubs for kids. But, and please don't take this wrong, most cruisers will tell you the hot tubs are for adults since the kids have the pools to play in. yes I think they could have used more too but they did provide the water park which was awesome for kids. I think my opinion is because I saw kids in diapers in there which is a no no on any cruise line. Not particularly sanitary especially in the hot water which is a bredding ground for bacteria. Oner other thing I forgot to mention is that Princess' pools are fresh water. I didn't mind the salt water but I prefer fresh. I'm really glad you all understand I wasn't trying to pooh pooh the trip. We had a great time. I suspect we would on a garbage scow!! As long as we are at sea. There are so many lines for this exact reason. They all appeal to different people. One other thing. Smoking ws going on eveyrwhere!! There were times when our balcony neighbor was happily puffing away on cigars. Smoking is a no njo on Princess and we like it that way. Smokers please don't be offended. If they would simply designate a couple of spots, that would work for us.

 

Cheers, Kenn

 

Ahhh ok. Did not know that. :o My kids are too old for diapers, but that is not something I saw at the aft hot tubs (at least not all the times I was there). My girls loved the water park, and I'm grateful to Carnival for creating such a fun environment like that. My girls did NOT care for the salt water in the pools, and thus ended up just sitting in the hot tubs. They knew they were not allowed to do any "swimming" in those, so they chose to be in those so they wouldn't get splashed with salt water. To be honest, I felt that the teenagers I saw in hot tubs acted worse than the little ones (and I have two of each)!

 

Ahhh yes...the smoking. We don't smoke so my little kids are very unaware of the smells that come with smoking. We were out back by the Tides Pool, and there were a few people smoking near us. My youngest daughter, being completely innocent, said (much too loudly), "What is that super stinky smell? It smells horrible! Yuck!" :o