Carnival vs Royal Carribean

[S.S.Oceanlover]

RCL a tad more upscale, better service and attention, food is close and that all depends on the person.

 

Shows better on RCL but Comedy better on Carnival

 

 

One huge advantage on RCL if you are a drinker is only 1 person in the room has to buy the drink package and they discount that 20% pre cruise. And there is no 15 drink limit

 

Those days are numbered. They were doing a test run on the Harmony making everybody over 21 in the cabin to purchase it and think it has been implemented on the Oasis as well now.

 

It will soon be changed to every ship IMHO.

 

Bill

[jimbo5544]

Those days are numbered. They were doing a test run on the Harmony making everybody over 21 in the cabin to purchase it and think it has been implemented on the Oasis as well now.

 

 

 

It will soon be changed to every ship IMHO.

 

 

 

Bill

 

 

 

.....I do believe your humble opinion to be correct, you are becoming quite the prognosticator......

 

 

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[KmomChicago]

I think if you enjoy cruising in general and know how things work, i.e. upselling like drink packages, shore excursions, art auctions, and spa treatments and know exactly what you do and don't like to spend your $$ on, then you will continue to like cruising. The fact that you have been on more than one CCL cruise already helps; likely you will enjoy your RCCL cruise more than your "worst" CCL but less than your "best" CCL experience.

 

Over the years I have been on a few different lines from the most basic entry level Premier Big Red Boat (pioneered the short 3 day cruises to the Bahamas from Port Canaveral on rather old and small ships) as well as Celebrity and Disney, and more recently, Carnival. You mostly get excellent service, but anyone can be a reserved person or having a bad, exhausted day and come off as less helpful. You mostly get comfortable accommodations and plenty of good food and entertainment in attractive surroundings, which may be more or less to your personal taste or standard. You will always have options to spend more $$ over the basic cruise cost or hold strictly to what's included and still enjoy every second. These operations are all very good at what they do.

 

For me, if we can keep the cost close to $100 per person, per day, including port charges but before adding gratuities, I have always felt that's a great vacation at a really, really good value (we are a family of 3 with one tween daughter). I'm willing to stay in inside cabins to accomplish this. I'm willing to sail on whatever mainstream cruise line has an option available on my limited schedule, going to a port we want to visit, for around that price point. Regardless of what the reviews say, I am certain the food will be edible and there will be far too much of it; there will be a daily schedule with more fun and interesting activities than we can attend; and if I get up to the pool first thing in the morning, I will be able to find a lounger.

[nursemommy7578]

we just spent 2 weeks on Navigator (out of Southampton) and although we managed to enjoy ourselves, Royal is not for us. Guest services was a joke. Nobody did anything about the hoards of kids running wild on the ship (parents put them in kids club, but they signed themselves out). Parents were in the bars not paying attention to their young.

Food was fantastic. Entertainment was lacking. We had issues with teens trying to take over the solarium...in all fairness it is 16+ but with the other pools taken over by the younger kids, we had no place else to go.

 

We will NOT be cruising with Royal again.

[jimbo5544]

I think if you enjoy cruising in general and know how things work, i.e. upselling like drink packages, shore excursions, art auctions, and spa treatments and know exactly what you do and don't like to spend your $$ on, then you will continue to like cruising. The fact that you have been on more than one CCL cruise already helps; likely you will enjoy your RCCL cruise more than your "worst" CCL but less than your "best" CCL experience.

 

Over the years I have been on a few different lines from the most basic entry level Premier Big Red Boat (pioneered the short 3 day cruises to the Bahamas from Port Canaveral on rather old and small ships) as well as Celebrity and Disney, and more recently, Carnival. You mostly get excellent service, but anyone can be a reserved person or having a bad, exhausted day and come off as less helpful. You mostly get comfortable accommodations and plenty of good food and entertainment in attractive surroundings, which may be more or less to your personal taste or standard. You will always have options to spend more $$ over the basic cruise cost or hold strictly to what's included and still enjoy every second. These operations are all very good at what they do.

 

For me, if we can keep the cost close to $100 per person, per day, including port charges but before adding gratuities, I have always felt that's a great vacation at a really, really good value (we are a family of 3 with one tween daughter). I'm willing to stay in inside cabins to accomplish this. I'm willing to sail on whatever mainstream cruise line has an option available on my limited schedule, going to a port we want to visit, for around that price point. Regardless of what the reviews say, I am certain the food will be edible and there will be far too much of it; there will be a daily schedule with more fun and interesting activities than we can attend; and if I get up to the pool first thing in the morning, I will be able to find a lounger.

Nice post.

[nhsails]

Nursemommy we've had the same on Carnival, Costa, Princess and NCL. Should I never cruise these lines? In fact we didn't sail Carnival for almost 20 years because of 3 cruises in a row with staff not responding to major issues with passengers. Guess what, on Magic in December.

[oldguysandgalls]

Having sailed on several different cruise lines and their ships we found that each cruise line, ship and itinerary is yet another wonderful cruise adventure and cruise experience. It never gets old....it only gets better.

[kctwinmommy]

I have a comparison post that I just did last month. We've been on 5 Carnival cruises and did our first RCI this summer. While it was a European cruise, so there are some things that will be different no matter what line, there were other things that we could easily compare. I put that post in my signature, so it's easy to find in the future. We cruise to go to specific places, which is why we went on RCI this summer. But if we're doing the Caribbean, we'd probably just do Carnival again as we're good with them too. In other words, we're not picky.

[riclop]

My family has traveled all six cruises with Carnival.However, I wanted to venture out to Royal Caribbean. I have heard mixed review between the two.

If you have sailed with both, please share your thoughts on the differences.

 

Thank you

 

 

 

 

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Oasis class ships are the destination!!!!!!!

[steelshark1]

Declining food quality is something you'll read on every board, including this one, if you look for it. But the fact is, the food quality is exactly the same across all the mass market cruise lines.

 

 

 

Exactly what I'm saying! Never been RCI , but my guess is there's not a dimes worth of difference between CCL and RCI ship food!

 

 

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[Cinders411]

I think it just depends on what things are most important to the cruiser. Food to me, is about the same on both lines. Carnival gets the nod for cabin size. RCI for entertainment. Activities are pretty much even with many of the same things (ie trivia, bingo, dance lessons, crafts).

[2CatsInFlorida]

Better shows on RC. food the same, nicer rooms on CCL.

 

 

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[wbggirl]

Based on how RCI treated the passengers booked on the 8/27 sailing of the Liberty of the Seas out of Galveston, I am choosing not to give them any more of my money. They cancelled at the last possible moment.

 

Carnival did the right thing and allowed their guests to transfer to another ship, or get a 100% future cruise credit. Royal Caribbean wanted their guests to take pictures of the flooding and email letters from the airlines of their cancelled flights. And told them "the port will be open, safe, and accessible on Monday."

People who were expressing their disappointment about this on RCI's Facebook page had their posts deleted. What does that tell you?

[EGM112]

For me, the biggest difference is the beds and bedding. Carnival uses comfortable beds, thick duvets, soft sheets, and fluffy pillows.

 

Royal uses a bed that's closer to a cot than a bed (except in some Junior suites and higher) heavy, flat duvets, paper crisp sheets and thin pillows.

 

If I can't get a decent night's sleep, the cruise can't be considered great.

 

Thanks for that comparison We were considering trying RCL but if beds are not good will stick with carnival as not getting any sleep would ruin my cruise as I would be to tired to do anything

[S.S.Oceanlover]

Based on how RCI treated the passengers booked on the 8/27 sailing of the Liberty of the Seas out of Galveston, I am choosing not to give them any more of my money. They cancelled at the last possible moment.

 

Carnival did the right thing and allowed their guests to transfer to another ship, or get a 100% future cruise credit. Royal Caribbean wanted their guests to take pictures of the flooding and email letters from the airlines of their cancelled flights. And told them "the port will be open, safe, and accessible on Monday."

People who were expressing their disappointment about this on RCI's Facebook page had their posts deleted. What does that tell you?

Pure greed and not worried about pax safety.

 

Bill

 

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[jetexpress]

Thanks for that comparison We were considering trying RCL but if beds are not good will stick with carnival as not getting any sleep would ruin my cruise as I would be to tired to do anything

 

 

 

I wouldn't be that worried about the bed. I agree that Carnival's are better, but we weren't uncomfortable on our RCI sailings.

 

 

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[zhuuliye]

Try Royal, just not during hurricane season.

 

 

 

When is hurricane season?

 

 

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[zhuuliye]

For me Carnival is all about the party atmosphere which I don't seek on a cruise. On Royal you can relax or you have tons of activities and then you can still party at night. I compare C and R as I would Holiday Inn and a W hotel. Both give you a good place to sleep but you feel a more upscale experience with Royal. My suggestion is to give it a try. Unless you are opposed to mega ships (which I love) I suggest one of the Oasis class ships, especially Harmony.

 

 

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Have u been on both harmony and oasis? Which did you prefer?

 

 

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[A&Jfamily]

When is hurricane season?

 

 

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Officially June 1 thru Nov 30. " Most" bad storms are in September and October with August being 3rd...but as seen by Harvey that isn't much comfort if one is headed in your path.

 

 

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[ladavis88@hotmail.com]

I've only been on two cruises, the first was last September, on RCI, and I just got off my second one last week, on Carnival. Both cruises were port intensive, so the ships we were on were some of the oldest for each line. We were on Rhapsody of the Seas with RCI (11 night Mediterranean) and Carnival's Fascination (7 night Caribbean). I think the ships were similar as far as age and condition, neither of which was an issue for us, but made for a good comparison base. Here are a few of my opinions. I liked the buffet set-up on RCI better (circular buffet, get what you want, no need to stand in line. Some may think it's hectic, but we never had a problem). However, we thought the food on Carnival was a lot better. More options, more variety, and better quality. We ate in the MDR on RCI for dinner each night, and it took about 2 hours. Food was ok, but portions were very small. There was no lobster or prime rib, even on formal nights. On Carnival we only ate in the MDR on one night, formal night with lobster, and it took about an hour and a half. Carnival also has food available in more places and longer times than RCI. Our cabins on both ships were on deck 4, with a window. On RCI our room was bigger, and just seemed "homier", but the bathroom was smaller. The casino on RCI was easier to use. We only play the slots and it was a simple "insert your money, play, cash out a paper slip". On Carnival you had to use your room card and once you put money in the machine you had to cash out to the card. It wasn't difficult once we figured out what we were doing, and not really a big deal, but we were confused, as there were really no instructions on what we were doing. RCI had a nightly show, which we enjoyed. Carnival didn't have as many musical shows, but there were more options. RCI had one show in the main theater, while Carnival had something in the main theater, and usually a comedian somewhere else. It gave you options. As a whole Carnival was definitely a more fun ship, but you have to make sure you are comparing similar ships and situations. On our RCI cruise there were almost no children. It was a long cruise, port intensive, and September, so kids were in school. There were no water slides, no mini-golf, no frills, but it was quiet, and perfect for just my husband and I. The Carnival cruise had a lot of kids, and was a much louder atmosphere, but their partnership with Hasbro games made for a very fun experience for us with our 17 year old son. I would travel on either line again, but I would definitely take into consideration who I was traveling with, and what options each ship offered. Sorry this is so long, but I hope it helps a little.

[Kevin7kodak7]

I've only been on two cruises, the first was last September, on RCI, and I just got off my second one last week, on Carnival. Both cruises were port intensive, so the ships we were on were some of the oldest for each line. We were on Rhapsody of the Seas with RCI (11 night Mediterranean) and Carnival's Fascination (7 night Caribbean). I think the ships were similar as far as age and condition, neither of which was an issue for us, but made for a good comparison base. Here are a few of my opinions. I liked the buffet set-up on RCI better (circular buffet, get what you want, no need to stand in line. Some may think it's hectic, but we never had a problem). However, we thought the food on Carnival was a lot better. More options, more variety, and better quality. We ate in the MDR on RCI for dinner each night, and it took about 2 hours. Food was ok, but portions were very small. There was no lobster or prime rib, even on formal nights. On Carnival we only ate in the MDR on one night, formal night with lobster, and it took about an hour and a half. Carnival also has food available in more places and longer times than RCI. Our cabins on both ships were on deck 4, with a window. On RCI our room was bigger, and just seemed "homier", but the bathroom was smaller. The casino on RCI was easier to use. We only play the slots and it was a simple "insert your money, play, cash out a paper slip". On Carnival you had to use your room card and once you put money in the machine you had to cash out to the card. It wasn't difficult once we figured out what we were doing, and not really a big deal, but we were confused, as there were really no instructions on what we were doing. RCI had a nightly show, which we enjoyed. Carnival didn't have as many musical shows, but there were more options. RCI had one show in the main theater, while Carnival had something in the main theater, and usually a comedian somewhere else. It gave you options. As a whole Carnival was definitely a more fun ship, but you have to make sure you are comparing similar ships and situations. On our RCI cruise there were almost no children. It was a long cruise, port intensive, and September, so kids were in school. There were no water slides, no mini-golf, no frills, but it was quiet, and perfect for just my husband and I. The Carnival cruise had a lot of kids, and was a much louder atmosphere, but their partnership with Hasbro games made for a very fun experience for us with our 17 year old son. I would travel on either line again, but I would definitely take into consideration who I was traveling with, and what options each ship offered. Sorry this is so long, but I hope it helps a little.

Very good review of both. Found almost the same experience as you. Was on Splendor and EOS, both about same size and age. Went last on Anthem and it was better by far than the older, smaller ships. But as I was aware of the importance of booking EVERTHING EARLY, was able to enjoy the full experience. CCL is going to have to catch up on building more Mega ships as the game has changed.

 

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