What will I find different/same between Princess and Royal Caribbean?

[temple1]

Just so I have an idea of what to expect, I'm posting this on both boards.

 

I will be taking my first cruise on Princess next year. I've had 12+ cruises on Royal Caribbean and I'm wondering about how each group of passengers see the other cruise line.

 

As you can see from my signature I have experienced Sovereign, Vision, and Freedom classes of RCL ships. My upcoming Princess cruise will be on Coral Princess. On RCL we have stayed in Outside, balcony and Jr. Suites and on the Princess cruises we are booked into a Mini Suite.

 

I don't expect huge differences between the two but I'm curious as to how fans of each compare the two.

 

Edited to add: I am surprised there are only two of us registered for the roll call on the two upcoming Panama Canal Partial Transits. Is that normal?

Edited August 13, 2014 by temple1

[FLACRUISER99]

More folks to answer your question on the RCI board.:rolleyes:

[WEGL81]

I've been on both (2 Princess with 3rd upcoming in a couple weeks and 3 RCCL). My personal opinions are: Princess seems to have less kid-friendly pool areas (Freedom class RCCL have splash zone pools). I don't have young kids so I can't speak to the kid programs. I've found the food to be of higher quality on Princess, but not by much. Buffet setup on RCCL is superior to Princess. Entertainment on RCCL is much superior to Princess (especially since you've been on Freedom and IOS and probably saw their ice show- Princess has nothing comparable). The Princess ships seem less crowded to me and a slightly older crowd than RCCL, but that just could be my impression from the itineraries I experienced.

[Carolyn R]

It has been a few years since I have been on a Royal Caribbean ship but some of the differences I remember are:

 

1. All Princess ships except the Pacific and Ocean have freshwater pools rather than salt water.

2. Regardless of the dining option you choose your tips are not charged in advance of the cruise, neither are shore excursions.

3. Princess has a much better wine list!

4. Princess allows food at the pool and has a grill and pizzeria poolside.

5. No rock climbing wall, surfing or ice skating on Princess ships.

6. Princess only has sofas in deluxe balcony/minisuite cabins and above.

7. Princess ships have distinctly separate dining rooms rather than a three-tier grand dining room.

[skynight]

Just so I have an idea of what to expect, I'm posting this on both boards.

The Coral Princess is a really nice ship. It is 92,000 tons with about 2,100 passengers and a really nice passenger to public space ratio. It is a little narrow compared to many of the newer ships so it can fit through the current canal. As a 1st time Princess cruiser you will not have any of the perks that you receive from the Crown & Anchor on RCI. Here is some other information: * No rock walls, surfing areas, things like that. *Less announcements. *Lower key all around. * Probably no wild pool games, although there probably will be some pool or around the pool games. *Princess tours can be booked on line. The charges will show up in your on board folio when you board. Cancellations can be made up to the time shown on the tour ticket. * Tipping is done via the Hotel Charge, also referred to as the Autotip. Each evening a charge of $12pp will be posted to each person’s on board folio. The amount covers your room steward, all waiters in the DR’s, specialty restaurants, buffet, grill, International Café, and others behind and in front that serve you during the cruise * a 15% gratuity is added to all beverage purchases alcoholic and non alcoholic. *An all inclusive unlimited (any drink priced under $10 which is mostly everything) beverage package is available for purchase. Google Princess Cellars. *Anytime Dining tips are not pre charged to your credit card. They are part of the autotip. You can, of course, always provide additional cash tips at the end of the cruise. We always do provide them to our room steward and to waiters if we have traditional fixed seat dining. Self laundries are available on each passenger deck. They have free irons if you wish to press something.

 

Dining: *Breakfast & Dinner is served everyday in MDR’s. The MDR is closed for lunch on port days and open on sea days. Other free dining options include *International Café, Deck 6 open 24 hours, *Pub Lunch served a few sea days probably in the Wheelhouse Bar *Horizon Ct. Buffet open continuously from 6am until 11pm serving all meals, Pizza by the slice, soft ice cream on the Lido deck both open from 11am until late in the evening *the Grill on Deck 15 above the pool also open from 11am until into the evening, and 24 hour Room Service. Surcharge dining includes Sabatini’s Italian, and The Bayou Café/Steakhouse on deck 7. There may also be a Crab Shack a few evenings served in a section of the Horizon Ct. Reservations for surcharge dining recommended, reserve once on board, no pre booking.

 

In the evening there will be entertainment in the many venues around the ship, including shows in the Princess Theater and The Universe Lounge (no pre booking, just walk in). Live music, game shows, trivia, karaoke, dancing, theme nights will take place around the ship in the various lounges, Wheelhouse Bar, Crooner’s Bar, Universe Lounge, Explorer’s Lounge and in the Atrium. There will also be a deck party one evening.

 

 

When you board, go directly to your cabin, it will be ready. No lugging around your carry on. Muster is held in the indoor lounges not on the open decks. Your muster station is shown on the back of your cabin door. Arrive 5 to 10 mins early if you want a seat. Carry don't wear your life jacket to the drill. Boarding in Ft. Lauderdale? Arrive around 10:30/11am. Check in normally starts around 11am. You will then have to wait around in a lounge area. Boarding normally starts around noon with priority boarders, then general boarding by when you arrived. You should be on board by 12:30. If you want lunch in the DR on boarding day it is open from noon until 1:30.

 

 

Hope this information is helpful.

[Pam in CA]

On Princess, you can go directly to your cabin after boarding rather than be shuttled up to Lido deck with all your stuff.

 

On Princess, all OBC is combined so if your TA has offered you OBC, you are or were military you can apply for a very nice OBC and/or you're a Carnival Corporation shareholder, you don't have to pick one.

 

Shore excursions are only reserved and you don't have to pre-pay. Your tours will be charged to your onboard folio after boarding and you have 24-48 hours before the tour to cancel.

 

Princess allows TAs to discount fares so you can save 10-20% off the Princess fare when using a TA who books a high volume of Princess cruises.

 

The vibe on Princess is more laid back. It's less physically active although for those who want to be active, there are options.

 

As Carolyn says, instead of the huge dining room, Princess dining rooms are more intimate with more of the feeling that you're in a nice restaurant.

 

No singing waiters, no towel animals.

 

No huge inside area but rather a smaller multi-deck Piazza and more lounges.

[LeeW]

A couple of additions to Carolyn's excellent list:

 

Excursions can be booked in advance, but as she said are not charged until you are onboard on Princess.

 

You can bring as much soda and water onboard as you like on Princess.

 

You can preorder or get liquor bottles in your room.

 

No concierge/suite lounge.

 

The grill (burgers, fries, chicken, dogs), pizza and soft ice cream near the pool are open for most of the day and are free (although shakes and hard ice cream are extra charge).

 

Milk and cookies are delivered by cart around the pool areas at around 4 PM.

 

 

By the way, Coral Princess has an indoor pool (generally adults-only) and the lounge chairs in there are heavily padded. If you want shade and quiet this is a good place to sit.

 

The buffet is in the front of the Lido (pool) deck on Coral. Tends to get hogged near the front during Panama and Glacier Bay transits. They also often serve a dessert buffet one afternoon up there as well.

 

Coral has two balconies on B and C decks forward accessible through the crew areas that are open on these cruises as well.

[sept10dsm]

On Princess, you can go directly to your cabin after boarding rather than be shuttled up to Lido deck with all your stuff.

 

On Princess, all OBC is combined so if your TA has offered you OBC, you are or were military you can apply for a very nice OBC and/or you're a Carnival Corporation shareholder, you don't have to pick one.

 

Shore excursions are only reserved and you don't have to pre-pay. Your tours will be charged to your onboard folio after boarding and you have 24-48 hours before the tour to cancel.

 

Princess allows TAs to discount fares so you can save 10-20% off the Princess fare when using a TA who books a high volume of Princess cruises.

 

The vibe on Princess is more laid back. It's less physically active although for those who want to be active, there are options.

 

As Carolyn says, instead of the huge dining room, Princess dining rooms are more intimate with more of the feeling that you're in a nice restaurant.

 

No singing waiters, no towel animals.

 

No huge inside area but rather a smaller multi-deck Piazza and more lounges.

 

Yes and the OBC combinations for discounts is a great thing. I have sailed RCCL and couldn't combine one of their coupons and a OBC of $50 for booking the cruise we did. I know not a lot of $$ for me but could be with the military and stock OBC plus anything else.

[sept10dsm]

I do agree with what everyone else has pointed out. I do like Princess desserts better and the fact that you do not have to pre pay for gratuities on the anytime dining. I also like that Princess tours booked are charged as taken not when scheduled.

[dplusd]

We sail both lines pretty equally and enjoy them both. Lots of good differences have already been mentioned. Here are a few of my strongest observations.

 

On RCL we always sail in a Cat D balcony, but Princess balcony staterooms are too small so we always book a mini-suite. On many ships a lot of the mini-suites have totally exposed balconies, which we have tried and do not like...so we always research the ship to be sure we get a covered mini-suite balcony (and mark our booking Do Not Upgrade).

 

We like RCL ship layout better. On Princess some decks don't go through from forward to aft. Both lines have equally beautiful design. Also on Princess, some of the stairways dead end and force us to take the elevator...Grrrrr.

 

Princess has self-service laundry, which we like on longer cruises or B2B's.

 

We like RCL MDR layout and table configuration better than Princess but I would rate the food pretty equal. I also feel RCL Anytime Dining is better managed than on Princess. On Princess we absolutely love the International Cafe, which is much better that RCL Royal Promenade. We also love the poolside Trident Grill and pizza...we rarely go to the Horizon Court for lunch!

 

Princess probably has a bit older fellow passengers with fewer kids...but we don't sail during school holidays on any cruiseline! Atmosphere on Princess is a bit more laid-back, which we enjoy.

 

If you like RCL, I am sure you will like Princess too. Each line has their strengths and the differences are subtle. Enjoy!

[Pam in CA]

On Princess some decks don't go through from forward to aft. Both lines have equally beautiful design. Also on Princess, some of the stairways dead end and force us to take the elevator...Grrrrr

The only decks that don't go from forward to aft on the Grand-class ships are decks 5 and 6 and that's because the dining room kitchens are there to serve both the Anytime and Traditional dining rooms. Otherwise, it's very easy to get from one end of the ship to the other. :) The Coral Princess (which isn't a Grand-class ship) doesn't have this issue since both dining rooms are mid-ship. Edited August 13, 2014 by Pam in CA

[PescadoAmarillo]

We had My Time Dining on the Allure last fall. We would show up anytime and immediately be seated with the same waitstaff the whole cruise at a table for 2 (and greet by name on the way in). I don't know how they do it. That one aspect is so much better than Anytime Dining on Princess. Service is less formal, but still good. I compared it to dining with a large family (even at a table for 2)...friendly, competent, enthusiastic but certainly not formal.

 

Entertainment is much better on RC. I like the food poolside on Princess too, and that there is always a buffet open during the day.

 

Washers and dryers on Princess, MUCH better storage in Princess cabins.

 

RC is much more advanced technologically...can do a lot on your cabin TV and can purchase unlimited streaming video for less than $200 a week (if that's important to you).

 

Shorter cruises I'd do either one. Longer cruises I prefer Princess.

[baggal]

I've been on 3 RCI (2X Voyager, 1X Brilliance) and 2 Princess (CB and Ruby). The cruises were all in different regions (Canada, Med., Caribbean and British Isles). We've been in balcony and oceanview so I can't speak to bigger cabins.

 

IMHO, just looking at the ships, the number one difference is that the quality of the food on Princess is far superior to RCI although I loved the buffet set-up on the Brilliance and the outdoor eating area. We use anytime dining and it was a little easier to make reservations with the same waiters on RCI. I order low-sodium meals and I was equally accommodated on both lines with a slight edge to the Ruby and Brilliance.

 

Another plus is the closet dressing area on Princess. On our last 12 day cruise, we didn't even use all the drawer space, and trust me, I don't travel light.

 

Service was excellent on both with a slight edge to the friendly, polite crew on the Ruby. Both lines keep their ships spotless. I felt the evening entertainment was more or less the same.

 

Itinerary and price are always a factor for us. I would gladly sail either one again if it hit all our points.

[OCruisers]

Answered you on RCCL ... but can't help but say again what a wonderful ship Coral is. :)

Look forward to having a great cruise on her. :D

LuLu

[Pam in CA]

We had My Time Dining on the Allure last fall. We would show up anytime and immediately be seated with the same waitstaff the whole cruise at a table for 2 (and greet by name on the way in)...

 

RC is much more advanced technologically...can do a lot on your cabin TV and can purchase unlimited streaming video for less than $200 a week (if that's important to you).

IMHO, every other line with My Time/Your Time/Anytime/Open seating dining is better managed than Princess. :( As long as Princess allows those with fixed seating to go to the Anytime dining rooms, that'll be the case. :(

 

While the OP is going on the CO, I think you'd be impressed with the free streaming video/shows/movies on demand and the Intranet smart phone accessibility on the Royal and Regal. I hope that the other Princess ships are updated when they go into dry dock.

Edited August 14, 2014 by Pam in CA

[AmberTeka]

On Sea Days, I like to have something to do. Princess always has something going on. Trivia. Arts and crafts. Other games. Casino. Movies. Productions. Eating at least three times a day. The Passengers are for the most part, laid back, extremely nice and fun to sail with....as in the Trivia games which are very competitive.............. I think the food on Princess and HAL are both the best at sea, but I like the Anytime Dining on Princess best. On our last cruise, we dined with tables of six every night, and each night, everyone at the table lingered for coffee and a plate of petit fours and just talked until we were shooed off. . It seems that only happens on Princess. We have never been on RCI because when I read their Daily Schedules, I cannot find a lot to do. I don't climb walls. ( wish I could!)_We live in Florida and love the sun, but have to limit how much of it we get....so no laying out by the pool. Some lectures. Entertainment looks great.......but not a lot else.......We did sail on Celebrity once. We enjoyed it. I had a cruse booked on the Infinity for this year, but cancelled it and booked with Princess. I knew we would have a wonderful time on Princess. And we have just had two cruises with family, so this one is for us. We feel lucky indeed to be going so soon. And On New Year's Eve of 2012...My group, all of whom my husband and myself met on the cruise, won the NY Eve's Jeopardize Trivia contest. What a thrill. And in the group...one of the couples, currently living in California, grew up in a small southern town, not an hour's drive from my small southern hometown. Things like that happen only on Princess ,I think. I love Princess, even though we have sailed mostly on Carnival, due to two ports being within easy driving distance. Jacksonville and Port Canaveral. I am tickled ping to be back on Princess, even though I like Carnival. Not as much as Princess, but I enjoy it too. And HAL. You will love Princess. Wait and see.

Edited August 14, 2014 by AmberTeka

[caribill]

o Buffet is open from 5 AM until 11 PM on Princess. On RCCL it closes when not a meal hour.

 

o No ship long promenade full of shops on Princess. The shops are in an atrium on two of the levels.

 

o No dedicated movie theater on Princess.

 

o Muster on Princess is indoors while on RCCL it is outdoors. On Princess you bring your life jacket to muster drill and put it on. On RCCL there is just a demo of how to put it on and most of the people out on deck cannot actually see the demo due to people standing in front of them.

 

o Princess elevators do not have the day of the week on the run on the floor. Princess cabins do have the occupants' names listed on the outside.

 

o On both RCCL and Princess the casino will take your money.

 

o It was mentioned that on Princess you can go to your cabin immediately when boarding. The tradeoff is you must vacate your cabin by 8 AM on disembarkation day.

 

o Free soft-serve machine on RCCL is self-service. On Princess it must be served to you.

 

o Shows in the main theater are 30-35 minutes long on Princess while on RCCL they are close to an hour.

 

o On Princess lunch is served in a dining room on embarkation day until 1:30 PM. On RCCL the dining room is not open for lunch that day.

[cpt_cruisenut]

Hi Carolyn!!!!

[Loonbeam]

Here's my comparison of our 2012 Med Cruise on the Liberty versus Coral's sister ship, the Island.

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1726735