Rhadsody on the South Pacific

[Wyuna1]

Cruising on the Rhapsody of the Seas this summer season, This is our first cruise on RCI having been with Princess, Carnival and P&O previously. A fairly broad question but are there any special venues or activities onboard that we should look for and where does RCI sit in comparison to the others mentioned.

[MicCanberra]

Cruising on the Rhapsody of the Seas this summer season, This is our first cruise on RCI having been with Princess, Carnival and P&O previously. A fairly broad question but are there any special venues or activities onboard that we should look for and where does RCI sit in comparison to the others mentioned.

Cannot answer for things to look for as I haven't cruised RCI just yet. However, I have looked at their website and also deck plans and there seems to be lots of infornmation to be gleaned from them. From comments made on these boards, it can be very subjective as to where RCI stand depending on what you want from a cruise. Most people posting here seem to rank RCI above P&O and Carnival and below Princess. :D

[The_Big_M]

You shouldn't find them too dissimilar from the others, Princess and Carnival in particular.

 

While there are slight differences between all of them, I wouldn't classify any as major.

 

The only activity that stands out as significantly different is that Rhapsody has a rock climbing wall.

[cruisin-m]

Cruising on the Rhapsody of the Seas this summer season, This is our first cruise on RCI having been with Princess, Carnival and P&O previously. A fairly broad question but are there any special venues or activities onboard that we should look for and where does RCI sit in comparison to the others mentioned.

 

Rhapsody has a rock climbing wall and one of their unique activities (if it hasn't been lost to cost cutting :p ) is the midnight chocolate buffet.

 

As previously stated it depends who you ask, you will hear something completely different about where they sit in comparison to the others mentioned every time as nothing is ideal for every person and each line has subtle differences.

 

Overall the core offering is basically the same as Carnival, P&O and Princess you will just notice they do some things a little differently :)

 

It's best to go in with an open mind and make up your own mind where they sit in comparison, as each line caters better to a specific audience and can't please everyone. It's like the saying "it's better to please a smaller group a lot than a bigger group a little" so go for it and make up your own mind ;)

 

Personally I love every cruiseline for different reasons, Royal Caribbean I'm sure will not disappoint you though :cool:

[aussielozzie18]

The Rhapsody has the indoor solarium (restricted to ages 16 and over) which is nice quiet spot to relax,have a dip in the pool and have a bite to eat from the Park Cafe. There are aerial performances in the Centrum which are quite spectacular. These peformances are not always advertised in the daily compass but if they are, you need to get there early to get a good viewing spot. We found all the crew on the Rhapsody to be fabulous. We had Captain Rob, we thought he was great and particularly enjoyed his midday announcements and Q & A session towards the end of the cruise.

[Aussie FF]

You shouldn't find them too dissimilar from the others, Princess and Carnival in particular.

 

While there are slight differences between all of them, I wouldn't classify any as major.

 

The only activity that stands out as significantly different is that Rhapsody has a rock climbing wall.

 

Have to agree with The_Big_M, they are all much the same.

RCI is a family cruise line, so more fun activities, for the active (like P&O & Carnival). But their food quality has been deteriorating lately, so Princess is better in that department, but more expensive.

 

The midnight chocolate buffet is gone.

Edited July 4, 2014 by Aussie FF

[rkmw]

Have to agree with The_Big_M, they are all much the same.

RCI is a family cruise line, so more fun activities, for the active (like P&O & Carnival). But their food quality has been deteriorating lately, so Princess is better in that department, but more expensive.

 

The midnight chocolate buffet is gone.

 

princess might be a bit dearer but they include the gratuties in the fare with the aussie ships if booking with a local agent and if RCI included the gratuities in with the fare it wouldnt be much different

[wildweston]

Make sure you go to The Quest ;)

[The_Big_M]

 

The midnight chocolate buffet is gone.

 

Agreed, that went away a fair while ago.

[MicCanberra]

princess might be a bit dearer but they include the gratuties in the fare with the aussie ships if booking with a local agent and if RCI included the gratuities in with the fare it wouldnt be much different

 

Yes, people need to compare the whole package and also what they want on their cruise. E.g. Better food and service vs better entertainment, bigger vs smaller ships and younger vs older crowd, etc.:D