Loyal Princess Passengers try Royal Caribbean

[RLK33853]

This was written as a review for the Royal Caribbean boards but thought I would post it here as well for any other Princess passengers who wonder how an RCI experience compares to Princess.

 

Radiance of the Seas – May 20th (Vancouver to Seward) and May 27th (Seward to Vancouver)

 

For background we are in our late 50’s, are very active, and have been on 26 cruises with Princess along with samplings of most of the other main lines. This time around we cruised Royal Caribbean since the offer was just too good to turn down.

 

To be totally fair we usually stay in Mini-Suites or a Suite and this cruise it was in an Inside, so we are not talking apples to apples when it comes to the room. We knew that going in and although an inside is not what we typically book, we have stayed in pretty much all room categories. And although it has been a while, we are familiar with the insides on Princess so we are able to make some comparisons.

 

As you will see we liked some aspects, loved others, and questioned some of RCI’s decisions throughout the cruise. Basically RCI did some things better or much better than Princess but failed miserably in some other areas. Also we love cruising and RCI’s failures were for the most part inconveniences, not deal breakers.

 

Please remember that these are OUR impressions – feel free to clarify or tell us we are factually wrong, but don’t tell us our impressions are wrong. Also remember that this is one cruise with RCI on the Radiance of the Seas (which may or may not compare to the rest of RCI’s fleet) – while our comparison is to Princess where we have been on virtually all their ships, multiple times, over the past 25 years.

 

I will also not be commenting on loyalty programs since we didn’t experience any such perks on this trip and it would be wrong to comment on what we heard instead of what we experienced.

 

I will break down the review into manageable pieces which I will post daily. That way I will be able to clarify or answer questions – again in a manageable way. The review will also be posted on both Royal Caribbean and the Princess threads of Cruise Critic so that both sides can read it should they wish.

 

Embarkation

 

We embarked in Vancouver and since there were three ships in port it was a total gong show. It wouldn’t have mattered which cruise line you were on as US Immigration slowed the process down until it appeared to be going backwards. This isn’t the fault of the cruise line.

 

Upon walking onto the ship several things occurred that kind of made us question our decision. The first is that three times we had to show our passport to RCI personnel on the gangway or the outside deck – we already had our Seapass and had been cleared through US Immigration????? Really – three more times? This held up the lines for absolutely no purpose. In one instance one RCI employee wanted to see our passports and 20 feet away and within eyesight of each other another employee checked them again.

 

Once onboard the ship itself there was no one to direct you towards your room. We had to search for it ourselves which seemed odd – on Princess there is staff everywhere asking to assist you and everyone gets a foldup map when they get their Seapass/Cruise Card.

 

First impressions of the ship – Radiance of the Seas. Lots of windows but they were all so dirty you couldn’t hardly see out of them and they remained that way for the next few days.

 

The Centrum (Atrium on Princess) was less opulent than an atrium on Princess and though smaller in dimensions, it soared eight stories rather than three or four as on Princess. This provided a lot more room along the railings to watch entertainment.

 

Comparable to all ships the upsells were everywhere – drink and dinner packages, etc.

 

Noticeably though, was the vibe of the staff. Everyone and we mean everyone was smiling and trying to make us comfortable in our new surroundings as we went exploring. Not that Princess does not – rather that we have found that the Princess staff in the last two years is so overworked due to cutbacks, that at times they seem to be on autopilot. As the weeks went on we found the entire staff to be absolutely fabulous. Bartenders we met once would know our drinks when we saw them the next time, waiters would know what type of food we preferred, etc.

 

We found out later that this impressive attitude may be tied to the fact that RCI still hands out envelopes to place tips in for the staff – and many of them expect that they will in fact receive tips above the mandatory auto tips.

 

Muster

 

Princess again kicks RCI – muster stations on Princess are inside and comfortable. Our first leg the muster was inside but the second leg our muster station was outside in the cold at 7:15 pm. So there was my wife in her cocktail dress standing outside on the deck for 25 minutes in 52 degree weather (11 C). RCI also stated that due to law, even those who had been to muster the week before had to attend. In the past year Princess has realized that if you had muster last week and you are continuing your voyage, you don’t have to go again. Thus RCI’s claim that it is law doesn’t ring true – if so Princess would be breaking the law and leaving themselves open to civil action which I don’t think it would do. Last part – Princess keeps track of you electronically by portable card readers at muster. RCI did so by checking your name off a paper list. Good luck with that – we wasted more time by attendants calling out cabins to those assembled and trying to find them.

 

The worst part – that standing outside in the wind and cold was only an inconvenience. The sad part was that no one could hear the instructions due to the wind of what to do and what not to do in an emergency. Thus if it was your first cruise you wouldn’t have a clue how to proceed.

 

The Cabin

 

We found that the RCI inside cabin was probably a little bigger than Princess but there was a lack of flat surface area and the closet was considerably more cramped. Now did we have enough room to store our belongings – definitely. Were they crammed into some areas – definitely. Lots of mirrors also gave the impression of having more room.

 

The shower although small seemed bigger than the one in a similar size Princess room.

 

There is also a couch which gives you some extra room.

 

Specific to cabin 3137 – lots of noise from the crew area below – hydraulics’ and beep, beep, beep at all hours.

 

Beds are also comparable.

 

Fridge is little more than a cooler but our room steward was very good at keeping our ice bucket filled.

 

Eating Venues & Food - Tomorrow

 

[/u]

[dforeigner]

Cool, thanks for the comparison/contrast. Will return tomorrow to read the rest.

[Crystabel]

Thank you for your review. We found RCI similar to Princess, however there seemed to be many more children on the RCI ships. The last time we sailed Royal, we were so inundated with sales pitches that it finally got under our skin, and we jumped ship. Although we may occasionally look for a new experience, Princess is still home. Looking forward to reading the rest of your review.

[Happy2cruise]

Thanks for posting....enjoyed the comparison.

[WisCruiser2]

Although it's been 8 years since we sailed on the Radiance (in the Caribbean), it still is my favorite ship!

[diane.in.ny]

Looking forward to reading the rest of your review.

[WISH84]

Following since we've also thought about trying out RCCL

[Jasperdo]

Excellent start. I'm looking forward to the rest. My wife and I like RCCL almost as much as Princess. I feel they both provide a similar product. The main reason we've sailed mostly with Princess recently is because they haven't abandoned the West Coast, which RCCL did. (Except for a small presence in Alaska, of course.)

[Bimmer09]

I love the exterior look and interior design of Radiance and am interested in your comparison.

 

Looking forward to more!

 

Norris

 

One time RCCL employee

[PescadoAmarillo]

Looking forward to the rest of your review. I think the Radiance Class of ships are the prettiest ones afloat and a perfect size.

[tml1230]

GREAT report so far and looking forward to the next chapter….i am really impressed with the way you set the review up for readers. Have a safe cruise.

[RLK33853]

Food and Food Venues

RCI Windjammer versus Princess Horizon Court

 

RCI is the clear winner on setup. Wide open and you could see both sides which allowed you to go to the line where there were the least people. Unfortunately this also meant more confused and wandering people. What we didn’t miss though was that the area remained cool no matter how many people were present. On Princess the area is more compact thus leading to the inevitable frustration as you stand in one line to get to the one area you are interested in, all the while getting hotter and hotter.

 

Breakfast – very comparable to Princess.

 

Windjammer Lunch – this is completely subjective of course but we found the food pretty comparable until you tried to eat healthy – then Princess kicks RCI to the curb. Everything in the Windjammer had sauce and the salad bar was pretty anemic with their offerings. Only on certain days would there be any peppers, mushrooms, etc. We learned that to get these types of things you had to wait until 2 pm when the Park Café opened. The salad bar in the Park Café was what you expect to be in the Windjammer.

 

What is totally missing though is that we like to have plain chicken breast with our lunch – this is available every day on Princess – but only once in two weeks on RCI.

 

The one other comment that many were making about the food in the Windjammer was that it was heavily influenced with Indian cuisine. Lots and lots of Indian dishes.

 

DogHouse versus Trident Grill

 

We can’t comment on the dogs as we don’t eat them but Princess also has chicken breasts and hamburgers, not just dogs by the pool which is so much better in our opinion.

Lattetudes & Park Café versus the International Café

 

Hard to compare as the International Café is 24 hours and has many options. We did prefer the Park Café when it was open though due to their fresh offerings.

 

Dining Room Lunch

 

We ate lunch in the Dining Room twice over the course of the two cruises. Both times the food was excellent. As a heads up, the Dining Room is only open on sea days.

 

Dining Room/Dinner

 

We enjoy Anytime Dining on Princess which is supposedly pretty similar to My Time on RCI. Again Princess kicks RCI in this area. If the dining room is backed up on Princess you get a buzzer and away you go to a bar or to wander. With My Time you wait off to the side with the others that are waiting. Plus many on My Time have reserved a table and they wait until it is free. It does move but Princess is much better in getting people free to wait wherever they want. In our case we had a table reserved for the entire two weeks and only ended up eating at it three times as it was always occupied even though we had it reserved. Rather than wait we just took the option of sitting somewhere else.

 

Dining Room food – again subjective but here are our thoughts. In some ways each cruise line is superior to the other. Princess always has a different fish each night where RCI did not. Lobster and other seafood such as tiger prawns and scallops are far superior on Princess (we did not compare the paid venues). RCI is far superior with their beef though. Chicken is a tie. Vegetables on Princess are steamed while RCI appears to cook theirs in oil.

 

The strangest thing occurred when we attempted to order some of their all the time available menu items – they said they were out. RCI’s failure to anticipate the required supplies seemed to be a reoccurring theme over the two weeks.

 

Desserts – we rarely eat desserts but do so on a cruise. In our opinion RCI has better desserts than Princess.

 

Dining options – on RCI you can upgrade to a lobster or better steak in the regular dining room for an upcharge. Princess does not do this. Both lines have their Speciality Restaurants for a fee.

 

Dining Rooms – Princess has separate dining rooms for traditional and Anytime, where on the Radiance they are in one big two story room with a very nice balcony up top. The main floor is traditional where the upper floor is My Time. Radiance has great big floor to ceiling windows which really make the room, especially in Alaska where it remains daylight during dinner. There is also a water feature wall that is between a double staircase from the upper to lower floor which is pretty nice. RCI also has the food come out and the dishes taken away to a main kitchen area where with Princess there are food stations for the waiters to serve from. RCI’s concept was kind of nice as you don’t have the waiters cleaning dishes, etc beside you. Basically it is somewhat of a tie between the two lines but I would probably give Radiance the edge due to the windows and views.

 

Dining Room staff.

 

RCI waiters are like Princess was 5 to 10 years ago – fabulous. That is not to say that Princess has bad waiters – just tired and overworked. As noted we found that RCI dining staff expected an additional tip at the end of the cruise.

 

Coffee – not specialty but just coffee. Princess has long been criticised for their bad coffee. RCI has much better coffee.

 

Tomorrow – Bar Service, Port Issues, and the Pool Deck

[JimmyVWine]

Desserts – we rarely eat desserts but do so on a cruise. In our opinion RCI has better desserts than Princess.

 

Were you comparing RCI to the traditional Princess desserts or the new(er) Normal Love desserts? I find that the Norman Love desserts are a huge step up from what Princess has traditionally offered. If RCI is now beating Norman Love, that would be quite an endorsement (for me, anyway). Thanks.

[RLK33853]

Were you comparing RCI to the traditional Princess desserts or the new(er) Normal Love desserts? I find that the Norman Love desserts are a huge step up from what Princess has traditionally offered. If RCI is now beating Norman Love, that would be quite an endorsement (for me, anyway). Thanks.

 

Speaking of desserts overall - dining room, International Cafe, Horizon Court.

 

In March the Norman Love desserts we tried were not as good as we thought they would be - some were, some were not.

 

Radiance had a great chocolate brownie - believe it was called the Royal. Also fabulous was a lemon tart just to name a few.

 

Lots of others are very comparable - an example is the Princess Loveboat and RCI's Chocolate Sensation are basically cousins.

[iceleven]

"RCI also has the food come out and the dishes taken away to a main kitchen area where with Princess there are food stations for the waiters to serve from. RCI’s concept was kind of nice as you don’t have the waiters cleaning dishes, etc beside you."

 

I often find it quite a nuisance to have the waiters at stations that are right up and so close to the dining tables. I'm certainly not blaming them as that it the set up that they have been given to work but often there is added clatter and activity that is quite distracting.

[meadowlander]

Coffee – not specialty but just coffee. Princess has long been criticised for their bad coffee. RCI has much better coffee.

 

As a long time Royal cruiser sailing Princess for the first time this summer, I am reading your review with much interest. I know the coffee on Royal is not at all to my liking, so to see you state that Princess is worse than Royal, I am very concerned, as I like to start my day with a cup or two.:eek:

[riclop]

Thanks for the review.

[RLK33853]

Coffee – not specialty but just coffee. Princess has long been criticised for their bad coffee. RCI has much better coffee.

 

As a long time Royal cruiser sailing Princess for the first time this summer, I am reading your review with much interest. I know the coffee on Royal is not at all to my liking, so to see you state that Princess is worse than Royal, I am very concerned, as I like to start my day with a cup or two.:eek:

 

I'm not a coffee drinker but my wife is. She hates the regular free Princess coffee and buys her morning coffee at the International Cafe. She says that the coffee you purchase is very good - so not to worry.

[Tracey/Thom]

Very helpful comparison, thank you.

[RLK33853]

Bar Service

 

On Radiance we experienced very personal service – unfortunately the stock on this ship became a bit of a joke. The beer you just finished was no longer available, as was the glass or bottle of wine you were drinking. When you picked a new one from the menu you found that it was unavailable as well. But wait – they have others that aren’t on the menu…………… It became a bit of a joke to us and to many of those we spoke with, as each bar had different stock and what was available, would change daily. On Princess they do run out of the odd thing but for the most part they keep their supply closet full.

 

Drink Pricing

 

Beer prices are pretty comparable for both lines. RCI was considerable higher for things like Martini’s and the like (probably $2.00 per drink).

 

Beer Selection

 

On paper RCI has a much better beer list than Princess – unfortunately a lot of brands were unavailable.

 

Getting on and off at ports

 

Princess is so far ahead that RCI isn’t even in the race. RCI restricted everyone to one point of entry and exit which meant long lineups – really??? Princess always has at the very least two points of entry and exit.

 

Pool Deck

 

Princess ships have far more seating area around the pools. Although Radiance is similar in size to a like sized Princess ship, we realized that RCI has four staircases where Princess has two. The staircases take away a lot of lounging area. Radiance also has a lot of permanent structures which limit how you can move your chair to follow the sun.

 

Radiance loungers are made of the little plastic strips which I didn’t even think you could buy anymore. Princess loungers are far superior.

 

Solarium

 

Very comparable to Princess solariums – although no upper deck on Radiance which again limits the seating area somewhat.

 

Sport Deck Activities

 

RCI has way better amenities such as their rock climbing wall if you are so inclined and also their mini-putt is far superior.

 

Movies Under the Stars

 

The big screen on the Radiance was a bit of a joke – probably less than half the size of the screens on Princess. Also in bright sunlight you couldn’t see the picture very well – again on Princess the resolution is great no matter how bright the sun is. Same goes for the sound system – Princess is far superior.

 

Tomorrow – Fitness, Entertainment & Tour Desk

[Northender]

Although I have never cruised with RCI, it is always nice to read a comparison. Thanks. Until tomorrow. :)

[RLK33853]

Fitness Area

 

Radiance’s fitness area is in many ways superior to Princess, although I was informed by the personnel that this isn’t necessarily the case on other RCI ships.

 

On the Radiance there is lots of room to work out and the equipment is in good shape. A plus was that after day one the fitness area was pretty much vacant - two days we were the only individuals in the entire area. This may be due to the fact that it is a port intensive cruise and plus many people went hiking when they were on shore.

 

The only issues we had were that all the treadmills faced out to the ocean, but once you were on them you couldn’t see out if you were even moderately tall since the windows have blinds that block your view. Also the elliptical machines all face the aerobics area instead of some facing the ocean. The fitness area staff acknowledged that they have had a lot of complaints regarding both.

 

Another point about the equipment is that none of the aerobic machines have built in fans which Princess does. This makes a huge difference when there are a lot of people working out and the area gets warm.

 

Last point is that none of the aerobic machines – treadmills/ellipticals have any televisions which are pretty much the norm on Princess or in any updated fitness facility. This makes for a pretty boring workout.

Fitness personnel

 

RCI staff in this area dominate. Princess fitness staff only speak to those who pay for their services. The Radiance fitness staff were always moving around encouraging people and just being there to handle questions posed by many of those who have never stepped into a gym before.

 

Entertainment

 

Entertainment is always a crap shoot. The first week we couldn’t believe the entertainment options and how the staff and passengers worked together. Singers were unbelievably good, jugglers juggled, and one of the two comedians was hilarious. Week two it was like we were on a different ship. For the most part the entertainment sucked on week two. Plus the new group of passengers didn’t partake in much thus the theatre was just about empty as were the Centrum or other venues. We felt sorry for the Cruise staff at many of the organized events as they were empty.

 

Cruise and activity staff were far superior on RCI though. They lead the activities and are very involved.

 

Cruise Critic and Veteran get togethers again were events on RCI, where on Princess you get lip service at best. RCI is the clear winner.

 

In Room Television

 

We were looking forward to the interactive television on RCI. In reality though it was a pain – slow to react and limited programming. Princess is better in this area.

 

Tour Desk

 

If there was something that really ticked me off with RCI it was their Tour Desk. On the first leg of the trip we were walking into Hoonah (Icy Point) when we saw a Killer Whale near shore. We started taking pictures with a telephoto lens and saw the whale heading towards a group of kayakers on a tour from the ship. The whale came up right between the kayakers and we got some photos that were spectacular of the people four feet away from the whale. A couple of days later we took a look at the photo on our computer and saw how truly spectacular these photos were. We thought that the people on the kayak tour would like a copy and went to the Tour Desk to tell them we had it and would they contact the passengers on that tour (we provided the time and date) to let them know we had the photo should they want it. The individuals at the desk quickly informed us that they didn’t care and that if we were not interested in booking a tour we were wasting their time.

 

Tomorrow – End of the Cruise, Final Impressions & Disembarkation

[RLK33853]

End of the cruise

 

I’ll start with our portfolio – the front desk was hit and miss depending on the individual. The first week I went to pay off my bill and was told that they would take the $648 in paper money, but not the remaining 82 cents – they only accept bills and no coin – although they would pay me back the 18 cents???? The second week with a different individual they gladly let me pay off the bill with both. This was such a small item, yet was perplexing and makes you wonder what the first guy was thinking.

 

Where Princess clearly dominates though is at the end of your first leg of a back to back cruise. On RCI, passengers lost their unused first leg cruise benefits. On Princess things like your unused On Board Credit and Internet just roll over to the next cruise.

Disembarkation

 

We disembarked in Vancouver and only one piece of our two pieces of luggage showed up in the terminal. An anomaly perhaps………not quite. The Vancouver terminal staff informed me that this happens every cruise with the Radiance – yes it also occurs with other lines but they said that the Radiance luggage system continually fails to keep luggage tags together with their lot numbers and that it could be anywhere. We were told to wait with a group – 10 other people were in the same boat. Our misplaced luggage showed up later, still with its tag number, thus this was very frustrating. Especially since in 26 cruises with Princess this has never occurred.

 

Overall

 

So as you have seen there is good and bad with both lines and both meet our expectations. Would we cruise again with RCI – possibly? It would be dependent upon pricing, itinerary, etc.

 

We still prefer Princess though as although both lines are similar in many ways, our perks as Elite Members of the Captain Circle are too good to not take advantage of (free laundry, complimentary Internet, On Board Credit, carryover of benefits on back to back cruises, etc). Plus although subjective, we prefer the overall food offerings on Princess.

 

All that said if you were travelling with kids I would think there is more to do on RCI.

 

Thank you for taking the time to read our review – as you can see the lines are comparable in many ways but when you figure in status, Princess is a no brainer for us. This would be especially true if we were planning a lot of excursions – say a European cruise as it would be far easier to get off and on at the ports.

 

Ray & Ann

[JimAOk1945]

Thanks for your review and informative comparison. We have cruised on both Princess and RC. The Radiance of the Seas is our favorite of the RC ships that we have tried so far. The southbound Alaska cruise was wonderful!

 

A cruise is a great way to see the world. Happy sailing!

[cruzsnooze]

I sailed Marinier of the Seas RCL twice in the past 18 months and about 4 Princess cruises. Either line works for me since I find them more alike then different. Because Princess has ships here on the West coast I travel with Princess much more often.

All RCL cabins have a sofa and table which I really like. Princess cabins have no nice seating until you get to mini suites.

RCL buffets are nicer and have more choices.

Both lines are good mass market lines.