Upgrade ~ Princess vs RCCL

[George C]

I like both lines , but prefer RCCL, but we were looking at cruises around Thanksgiving and Princess was so much cheaper, but to avoid children we booked Sandals instead.

[impatientlywaiting]

I think many D+ members will reach the same conclusion. Princess has a lot of nice ships and at those prices you can buy your own before dinner drinks. No need to worry about the disappearing CL or loss of other benefits.

 

We'll stay loyal to RCI and switch to Celebrity! :D

[Big_G]

We did a stretch of Princess cruises only to return to Royal. We enjoyed them all but we felt there was something missing. The last couple of years we've started to mix in Celebrity for that change of pace that some feel they get with Princess but for us, Celebrity exceeds Princess in all comparable categories. At that right price and itineraray we would definitely sail Princess again but with adapted expectations.

[dz9yvr]

We'll stay loyal to RCI and switch to Celebrity! :D

 

 

I'm not sure I see any need to stay loyal to RCL. The Princess prices are often much lower. Reviews of the food seem to be mixed but on average appears similar to RCL. I don't need any ship based entertainment, so it's the Love Boat for us.

Edited October 20, 2014 by dz9yvr

[AlexanderBeetle]

I like both lines , but prefer RCCL, but we were looking at cruises around Thanksgiving and Princess was so much cheaper, but to avoid children we booked Sandals instead.

 

Can't wait to go back to Sandals... 3 years from today - our 10 year anniversary. Too far away from now though...

[The Big Booper]

When we feel the need to do something different from RCI we usually choose Celebrity, a superior product to both RCI and Princess. And an occasional Disney.

 

Why is Princess forced to practically give their cruises away at times? I saw an ad for 4 nights on the CB (inside) for $159 + taxes. Hell that's cheaper then staying at home here in Florida.

 

The only mass market line with an older demo then Princess is HAL.

[The Big Booper]

Oh, one more thing.

 

You think that TV programming is bad on RC? It's worse on Princess. :rolleyes:

 

And on Princess the TV set is ... just a TV set. No interactive features like all RCI ships have in the Radiance, Voyager, Freedom, Oasis or Quantam classes.

 

Not to mention my particular bugaboo with the 4 Ruby class ships, they carry the same passenger load as the 5 Voyager class ships but are 20% smaller. As far as I know, Princess has not managed to repeal the basic laws of physics, even if they subbed in Sheldon or Leonard for Capt. Stubing.:)

 

And you have to tender to Princess' private island, unlike Labadee.

 

RCI may cost more but you get what you pay for.

[John&LaLa]

And on Princess the TV set is ... just a TV set. No interactive features like all RCI ships have in the Radiance, Voyager, Freedom, Oasis or Quantam classes.

 

Not to mention my particular bugaboo with the 4 Ruby class ships, they carry the same passenger load as the 5 Voyager class ships but are 20% smaller. As far as I know, Princess has not managed to repeal the basic laws of physics, even if they subbed in Sheldon or Leonard for Capt. Stubing.:)

 

And you have to tender to Princess' private island, unlike Labadee.

 

RCI may cost more but you get what you pay for.

 

You have to tender to coco Cay as well

 

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[bigeagle12]

We love Princess and Royal and would do either in a heartbeat.

 

I know food is subjective but we think Princess has a slight edge in MDR, buffet, and International Cafe. Specialty restaurants are a tie.

 

Love the 3 ships we have been on and they do not seem any more crowded than Royal.

 

LOVE the aft pools and LOVE the pizza .. and the poolside grill.

 

And the do Movies Under the Stars the right way, with blankets and popcorn.

 

 

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[The Big Booper]

You have to tender to coco Cay as well

 

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Yes. When we do the 4 day Majesty which includes Coco Cay, we get off at Key West (our main port) and Nassau and treat Coco Cay as a sea day. Other then that all our RCI and =X= cruises go to Labadee.

[counsdr]

I have to agree with most of the comments here!

I took my first Princess Cruise in September for 9 days on the Caribbean Princess. I must say the food in the MDR was better than on RCCL. I am on a low sodium diet plus I have a fish and shell fish allergy. They cooked all my food (BLD) with no added sodium and separately from other foods. My lunch and dinner menus were given to me every evening for the next day so I could choose my meals and those meals were cooked separately so their could be no cross contamination with any fish products! At lunch time the head waiter from my section greeted me, took me to a table and gave my menu selections to the waiter for presentation in the kitchen. Royal has never done that for me!

The entertainment on Princess was not great although the production shows weren't bad.

I did love the Princess private island in Eleuthra as the water is gorgeous!

The coffee is awful on Princess and the room stewards had no personality.

The front desk staff was obnoxiously rude and one hand didn't know what the other was doing.

RCCL hosts a CC Meet and Mingle party, but not Princess. If you want one, you have to arrange it yourself.

For now, i'll stay with Royal, but if there were a great deal on Princess and a friend wanted me to sail along, I would.

Happy cruising to all!

Cheryl

[99florida]

When we feel the need to do something different from RCI we usually choose Celebrity, a superior product to both RCI and Princess. And an occasional Disney.

 

Why is Princess forced to practically give their cruises away at times? I saw an ad for 4 nights on the CB (inside) for $159 + taxes. Hell that's cheaper then staying at home here in Florida.

 

The only mass market line with an older demo then Princess is HAL.

 

I'm not sure but I did an RCCL 4 night cruise for 109 OV so to me it's all about the numbers game. An empty cabin can't purchase a drink nor drop a few $$ in the casino, right?

[99florida]

And on Princess the TV set is ... just a TV set. No interactive features like all RCI ships have in the Radiance, Voyager, Freedom, Oasis or Quantam classes.

 

Not to mention my particular bugaboo with the 4 Ruby class ships, they carry the same passenger load as the 5 Voyager class ships but are 20% smaller. As far as I know, Princess has not managed to repeal the basic laws of physics, even if they subbed in Sheldon or Leonard for Capt. Stubing.:)

 

And you have to tender to Princess' private island, unlike Labadee.

 

RCI may cost more but you get what you pay for.

 

One has to tender at Coco Cay ~ one of their private islands... BTW: I have no problem doing a tender if the island is worth the stop and IMO all cruise line's private islands are worth the stop (at least once). :D:D:D:D

[Merion_Mom]

And to think that we just got off of the same ship 3 weeks ago!

 

You are right about the elevators and also Princess has very narrow corridors.

 

Maybe one difference is that we were in a full suite, and had a great cabin attendant. We left after 15 minutes of the mentalists show. UGH!

 

Loved the pub food served in the Wheelhouse Bar.

 

Frankly Carol, you add a lot of fun to the days, when we have cruised together in the past and I miss you!!:)

 

Rick

 

Join me on the Quantum in February! :)

[Merion_Mom]

I have to agree with most of the comments here!

I took my first Princess Cruise in September for 9 days on the Caribbean Princess. I must say the food in the MDR was better than on RCCL. I am on a low sodium diet plus I have a fish and shell fish allergy. They cooked all my food (BLD) with no added sodium and separately from other foods. My lunch and dinner menus were given to me every evening for the next day so I could choose my meals and those meals were cooked separately so their could be no cross contamination with any fish products! At lunch time the head waiter from my section greeted me, took me to a table and gave my menu selections to the waiter for presentation in the kitchen. Royal has never done that for me!

 

I am blessed; I personally have none of these issues. But I have heard from many many many people on RC who received exactly that treatment on RC.

 

The entertainment on Princess was not great although the production shows weren't bad.

I did love the Princess private island in Eleuthra as the water is gorgeous!

The coffee is awful on Princess and the room stewards had no personality.

The front desk staff was obnoxiously rude and one hand didn't know what the other was doing.

RCCL hosts a CC Meet and Mingle party, but not Princess. If you want one, you have to arrange it yourself.

 

1. I don't drink coffee. (horrifying, I know! ;) ) But my friend in the cabin next door said that the room service coffee was VERY good.

 

2. I agree that the room stewards had apparently had personality-ectomies.

 

3. SO TRUE about the Guest Services staff. It was something that I noticed on all three of my Princess cruises. Some really MEAN people there!

 

3. OMG. *I* ended up being that person, and BOY did I have to work hard! I was not even the original organizer - he ended up having to cancel his cruise, so most of the "legwork" was done already, but the amount of effort and labor that we both had to put into organizing a "meet & greet" was just totally disproportionate to the outcome. Princess provided a space, but not a crumb nor a drop of refreshment.

 

For now, i'll stay with Royal, but if there were a great deal on Princess and a friend wanted me to sail along, I would.

Happy cruising to all!

Cheryl

 

I will cruise Princess again, but only with my gang.

 

:)

[99florida]

Less than 12 hours we'll be at the port in Ft. Lauderdale and will truly let you know if the $159 (+) tax for 4 nights in a deluxe balcony with $200. OBC was worth my time aboard the Island Princess. I'm going to forecast my results and say it was worth every penny. However, I will be honest and let you know. Always hoping for the best no matter what line I sail. I can do the same when sailing on our girls' trip in March aboard the Enchantment. About $420 each for 3 in a larger OV accommodations vs. a deluxe balcony for about $227 each (two to the stateroom). Either way a get-a-way from the real world is awesome! Stay tune... for an honest opinion.....;);)

[counsdr]

If I lived near Ft Lauderdale, I'd grab a deal like that anytime!!! Just being on a ship for 4 days is worth it!

Bon Voyage!!

[The Big Booper]

One has to tender at Coco Cay ~ one of their private islands... BTW: I have no problem doing a tender if the island is worth the stop and IMO all cruise line's private islands are worth the stop (at least once). :D:D:D:D

 

We don't go ashore at Coco Cay any more, nowhere near as nice as Labadee and not worth the bother. Also, I believe that only the Majesty stops there on a regular basis now. When most of the ship is off at Coco Cay we enjoy the quiet day at the pool. I've always liked these days, and it is a perfect time to walk around taking pictures of the empty ship with no pesky people getting in the way of the shots.:D

 

We now live in Boynton Beach so sand and warm water is not a novelty.

 

Princess has only one option and that is Princess Cay; RCI has the wonderful Labadee where even the Oasis class can dock with no problems, hell both of the big girls can dock at the same time.

[The Big Booper]

Less than 12 hours we'll be at the port in Ft. Lauderdale and will truly let you know if the $159 (+) tax for 4 nights in a deluxe balcony with $200. OBC was worth my time aboard the Island Princess. I'm going to forecast my results and say it was worth every penny. However, I will be honest and let you know. Always hoping for the best no matter what line I sail. I can do the same when sailing on our girls' trip in March aboard the Enchantment. About $420 each for 3 in a larger OV accommodations vs. a deluxe balcony for about $227 each (two to the stateroom). Either way a get-a-way from the real world is awesome! Stay tune... for an honest opinion.....;);)

 

That is a good deal and the Panama Canal ships are the best that Princess has IMHO.

 

$40/day per person can't be beat. And a balcony to boot! Plus OBC.

[Merion_Mom]

We don't go ashore at Coco Cay any more, nowhere near as nice as Labadee and not worth the bother. Also, I believe that only the Majesty stops there on a regular basis now. When most of the ship is off at Coco Cay we enjoy the quiet day at the pool. I've always liked these days, and it is a perfect time to walk around taking pictures of the empty ship with no pesky people getting in the way of the shots.:D

 

We now live in Boynton Beach so sand and warm water is not a novelty.

 

Princess has only one option and that is Princess Cay; RCI has the wonderful Labadee where even the Oasis class can dock with no problems, hell both of the big girls can dock at the same time.

 

Lots of ships call at CocoCay. Grandeur, enchantment, freedom. RC also rents it out to Carnival ships occasionally. :D

[cruzfitter]

I am a Diamond Plus member with RCCL so it's obvious that I have been loyal to Royal. We wanted to do a quick get-a-way cruise and was looking at the Enchantment. At one time the price was $179/inside for 3 nights. Not bad but was waiting to see if it would drop a bit more. Unfortunately it did not and as a matter of fact it went up. Well I wasn't willing to pay more for what I saw so I decided to look at other lines. I found a fantastic deal with Princess for the same weekend but with an additional night :) The price was $159/inside for 4 nights. With all taxes and fees it came out to $457 for two along with $100 OBC. What a deal... How could one not take the offer? Yes, I've sailed with Princess many times but not at the loyal level that I have with RCCL. I personally find the food better on Princess but the shows and activities better on RCCL.

 

Long story short, we took the deal a few weeks ago. Last week they upgraded us to an OV room. Yahoo!!! For the price wow! Well it gets better. On Friday, I received an email stating an upgrade. I thought, "I know, we were already informed." However, this was another UPGRADE to a (deluxe) balcony in the best location. UNBELIEVABLE..... We have sailed over 225(+) nights on RCCL and was upgraded once from an inside to an outside about a decade ago. We sailed about 10 cruises on Princess and we get this? YAHOO and lucky me/us......

 

Makes me think as I am getting older, do I need all the hoopla now that our boys are older and no longer need the Yippie Yippie stuff? Slowing down and being catered to is now on my agenda...

 

THANK YOU PRINCESS ;););)

 

If you think this through, you will realize that the lower prices and free upgrades on Princess are a result of low cabin sales. RCCL can't give you an upgrade if there are no better cabins available. And if the ships are selling out at higher prices, there is no incentive for RCCL to lower them.

 

I know somebody is now going to check their sailing and say there are cabins still available to be upgraded to. But, report back after your cruise and tell us if there were any upgrades available at the pier. You can't give away what isn't there.

 

This is not a knock on Princess. But cruise lines don't lower prices just because they can, they lower prices because they need to sail at a certain percentage full to make money.

[American Bear]

One has to tender at Coco Cay ~ one of their private islands... BTW: I have no problem doing a tender if the island is worth the stop and IMO all cruise line's private islands are worth the stop (at least once). :D:D:D:D

 

Coco Cay is OK, but it is the worst of the private islands, water too shallow to swim half the year, and now there are days when the little island has 2 ships!

[Topo Gigio]

If you think this through, you will realize that the lower prices and free upgrades on Princess are a result of low cabin sales. RCCL can't give you an upgrade if there are no better cabins available. And if the ships are selling out at higher prices, there is no incentive for RCCL to lower them.

 

I know somebody is now going to check their sailing and say there are cabins still available to be upgraded to. But, report back after your cruise and tell us if there were any upgrades available at the pier. You can't give away what isn't there.

 

This is not a knock on Princess. But cruise lines don't lower prices just because they can, they lower prices because they need to sail at a certain percentage full to make money.

 

Totally agree with you. What Princess is doing is indeed a sign that she is struggling to fill her ships. Regal Princess thanksgiving week. $399 for an inside and $449 for a balcony. Go figure!

[John&LaLa]

Totally agree with you. What Princess is doing is indeed a sign that she is struggling to fill her ships. Regal Princess thanksgiving week. $399 for an inside and $449 for a balcony. Go figure!

 

Royal has pricing like that on Freedom right now plus solo rates at 150%. $329 for Inside Nov 9.

It's not just Princess

 

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Edited October 23, 2014 by John&LaLa

[The Big Booper]

Lots of ships call at CocoCay. Grandeur, enchantment, freedom. RC also rents it out to Carnival ships occasionally. :D

 

Didn't know that. We were on Majesty a couple of years ago on an impulse cruise since we were in Florida seeing several clients. Booked it 10 days out for a decent price, mainly for Key West and Nostalgia. Aside from that Majesty trip our last 7 private island stops on RCI/=X= have been to Labadee.

 

Still, the salient point is that RCCL spent BIG bucks to upgrade Labadee while CCL plc has not spent much upgrading their only private island for Princess. You gotta spend $$ to make $$.

Edited October 23, 2014 by The Big Booper