Carnival vs. Royal

[dcgrumpy]

We just returned from our first Carnival cruise after 5 RCCL cruises. We were on Magic. For the most part I prefer RCCL. Nothing major, just small things. There were a couple of things I liked better about Carnival. I liked  having multiple dining options with tables around the pool area. Drinks were cheaper and stronger. I liked being able to order cheap 12 packs of water delivered to my room. 

 

Embarkation was a nightmare (not exclusively Carnival's fault) so for the first time ever I boarded a ship in a pissy mood which may have clouded some of my judgement. LOL.  Plus I paid as much for my Magic cruise as I paid for my Allure cruise a few months ago. I would sail a newer Carnival ship for the right price. 

 

I found the crew on both lines to be just as friendly and helpful. 

 

I noticed more areas that needed maintenance, like stained carpets and things like that. I only went to one production show and we ended up leaving before it ended. To be fair, the show was Flick and it didn't have all the elements because the seas were very rough. So it was just the entertainers singing and they weren't very good. It may have been fine during the actual show where there is a lot more going on. 

 

The food was good in the dining room and places like Guy's and Blue Iguana.  I thought the buffet had a much smaller selection than I'm used to on RCCL especially at dinner and most of what I had wasn't very good. I did like that they had late night snacks at the buffet at night. I wish it wasn't the same every night, but it was fine. Pizza was better on Carnival but I think they need bigger pizza ovens because we always had to wait for them to make more pizza. 

 

I was surprised that most bars close at midnight unless you want to go to the smoky casino or nightclub. I know it's trivial but I prefer the way they do trivia on RCCL. 

 

I liked the layout of RCCL ships better but that may be just what I'm used to. Public bathrooms are easier to find on the RCCL ships I've been on. 

[Joebucks]

Johnny Rockets is probably the most bland burger joint out there besides your big fast food chains. To have that cost $10 and Guy's to be free, blows my mind.

 

I think with the big Carnival vs Royal debate, it can go either way depending on your personal preference. I think when you compare ship vs ship by size, Carnival shines more, especially in their smaller boats. Royal's strong points just don't exist on the little guys. The Oasis class offers an experience that Carnival hasn't quite duplicated yet (but is attempting). Even then, Oasis isn't a complete hit with everyone. 

[pacruise804]

8 hours ago, BNBR said:

 

I didn't say the free burgers were better on Royal. They are not. But you can't compare a sit down restaurant and a buffet style counter serve. It's totally different concepts.  Guys is better than the free burgers on Royal from the buffet or MiniBites/Wipeout. Royal does still have lots of free options that carnival doesn't have.  The Dog House for one and also Park Cafe. Love the roast beef sandwiches. 

 

I respectfully disagree.  In the midwest they have Steak n Shake (sit down restaurant) and Culver's (counter service).  They are extremely similar menus and experience once you have your food.  Actually, despite ordering the food at the counter I found service better at Culver's (similar level as Chick fil A which is also counter service).

 

While O'Sheehans offers more than burgers I think they do offer burgers, yet you didn't find a complimentary sit down restaurant comparable to a fee sit down restaurant.  How close do the concepts need to be to compare them?

 

7 hours ago, Jerseygirl1416 said:

Johnny Rockets on Anthem is a counter style restaurant with fast food type seating. No wait service. I didn’t try JR on Anthem but did think guys was really good. I agree with the roast beef sandwiches from Park Cafe. Delicious! As for the Dog House on Oasis, unfortunately the two times we went we were given stale bread so I couldn’t say it was good. Great venue if they practiced quality control. 

 

 

Do you know if they had the cover charge on Anthem since it was counter service, or were items a la carte?

[Jerseygirl1416]

3 minutes ago, pacruise804 said:

 

I respectfully disagree.  In the midwest they have Steak n Shake (sit down restaurant) and Culver's (counter service).  They are extremely similar menus and experience once you have your food.  Actually, despite ordering the food at the counter I found service better at Culver's (similar level as Chick fil A which is also counter service).

 

While O'Sheehans offers more than burgers I think they do offer burgers, yet you didn't find a complimentary sit down restaurant comparable to a fee sit down restaurant.  How close do the concepts need to be to compare them?

 

 

Do you know if they had the cover charge on Anthem since it was counter service, or were items a la carte?

The items were a la carte and were not very expensive. I think like $5 for burger, fries and drink.

[AmBear]

47 minutes ago, pacruise804 said:

 

I respectfully disagree.  In the midwest they have Steak n Shake (sit down restaurant) and Culver's (counter service).  They are extremely similar menus and experience once you have your food.  Actually, despite ordering the food at the counter I found service better at Culver's (similar level as Chick fil A which is also counter service).

 

While O'Sheehans offers more than burgers I think they do offer burgers, yet you didn't find a complimentary sit down restaurant comparable to a fee sit down restaurant.  How close do the concepts need to be to compare them?

 

 

Do you know if they had the cover charge on Anthem since it was counter service, or were items a la carte?

We ate twice at a Johnny Rockets, awful, the Dog House worse, and they charge for it which made it even worse!! We've eaten the free burgers at Guy's more times then I want to admit, far better then JR! Even if you disagree on taste, one is free, the other isn't! RCL's RB sands are good, Carnivals dropped the ball on this one!

Edited March 1, 2019 by AmBear

[pacruise804]

Thanks, Jerseygirl. I know some things vary ship to ship.  The escape room is included on Anthem but I've seen it charged on others.  Maybe we will try JR since we can split orders for a small snack rather than all 4 of us having to pay the sitting fee.

Edited March 1, 2019 by pacruise804
clarity, posted same time as AmBear

[pacruise804]

2 minutes ago, AmBear said:

We ate twice at a Johnny Rockets, awful, the Dog House worse, and hey charge for it which made it even worse!!We've eaten the free burgers at Guy's more times then I want to admit, far better then JR! Even if you disagree on taste, one is free, the other isn't! RCL's RB sands are good, Carnivals dropped the ball on this one!

Isn't the Dog House included?

[AmBear]

17 minutes ago, pacruise804 said:

Isn't the Dog House included?

Dog House free, JR isn't!

[pacruise804]

Thanks for the clarification.  You said the Dog House was worse than JR and they charge for it, I wasn't sure if that applied to both.

[Spicey477]

Of course everyone's tastes are different.  And I'm not ashamed to say that free generally tastes better to me than something that costs.  However, I live near JR and I wouldn't even think to go there, yet my kids daydream about Guy's.  It is all in what you prefer.  I'm not really a burger lover and Guy's fries and toppings bar are amazing so there's that too...

[krehberg]

My RCCL experiences are on the Independence of the Seas and Oasis of the Seas and have been on 13 Carnival cruises from Fantasy class to Vista.  (though I've never been on a Dream class ship)

 

Pluses for RCCL:

1) Overall Ship Experience

2) Royal Promenade

3) Better selection of bars, etc - love the Wine Bar and Champagne bar

4) Entertainment

 

Pluses for Carnival:

1) Specialty restaurants - i.e. The Carnival Steakhouse IMO is far better than anything else RCCL offers

2) Chef's Table - Last year on Vista was sublime and much better than our experience on IOTS

3) Cheers (yea, there is a limit but its pretty much all inclusive where as a drink package on RCCL is merely a down payment)

4) Alchemy Bar - RCCL has a better selection of "themed" bars, but none that I like better than Alchemy

5) Pool Deck food options as I prefer Guy's and Blue Iquana Cantina to any of the buffet options

6) Fun Factor - hard to explain and someone said same above, but RCCL's shops are so grand and big that everybody is just doing different things...and that just changes the vibe a bit.

 

About the same:

1) MDR food

2) Cabins - (I've yet to sail on a suite so the fact Carnival's suite amenities lag behind industry hasn't affected me)

3) Staff

[rukkian]

23 minutes ago, krehberg said:

My RCCL experiences are on the Independence of the Seas and Oasis of the Seas and have been on 13 Carnival cruises from Fantasy class to Vista.  (though I've never been on a Dream class ship)

 

Pluses for RCCL:

1) Overall Ship Experience

2) Royal Promenade

3) Better selection of bars, etc - love the Wine Bar and Champagne bar

4) Entertainment

 

Pluses for Carnival:

1) Specialty restaurants - i.e. The Carnival Steakhouse IMO is far better than anything else RCCL offers

2) Chef's Table - Last year on Vista was sublime and much better than our experience on IOTS

3) Cheers (yea, there is a limit but its pretty much all inclusive where as a drink package on RCCL is merely a down payment)

4) Alchemy Bar - RCCL has a better selection of "themed" bars, but none that I like better than Alchemy

5) Pool Deck food options as I prefer Guy's and Blue Iquana Cantina to any of the buffet options

6) Fun Factor - hard to explain and someone said same above, but RCCL's shops are so grand and big that everybody is just doing different things...and that just changes the vibe a bit.

 

About the same:

1) MDR food

2) Cabins - (I've yet to sail on a suite so the fact Carnival's suite amenities lag behind industry hasn't affected me)

3) Staff

Understand most, but what do you mean by royals drink package being a down payment?

[AmBear]

1 hour ago, pacruise804 said:

Thanks for the clarification.  You said the Dog House was worse than JR and they charge for it, I wasn't sure if that applied to both.

(free)Dog House in our opinion was worse then (pay)JR, and (pay)JR was worse then (free)Guy's!-) All are unhealthy!-))

[AmBear]

59 minutes ago, rukkian said:

Understand most, but what do you mean by royals drink package being a down payment?

might be,,,,,RCL is limited to drinks that do not exceed $12., Carnival is limited to drinks that do not exceed $50! That's what I remember, and what Cruise Critic states !RCL's pkge limits you to the lowest cost liquor, and some have specific tastes!

[BNBR]

19 minutes ago, AmBear said:

might be,,,,,RCL is limited to drinks that do not exceed $12., Carnival is limited to drinks that do not exceed $50! That's what I remember, and what Cruise Critic states !RCL's pkge limits you to the lowest cost liquor, and some have specific tastes!

 

I couldnt find a single liquor behind the bar not covered on Allure, FYI. Asked the bartender and everything was included. Including some fairly high end liquors. 

[BNBR]

2 hours ago, AmBear said:

We ate twice at a Johnny Rockets, awful, the Dog House worse, and they charge for it which made it even worse!! We've eaten the free burgers at Guy's more times then I want to admit, far better then JR! Even if you disagree on taste, one is free, the other isn't! RCL's RB sands are good, Carnivals dropped the ball on this one!

 

Johnny Rockets was so disgusting and awful, we went back! Gotcha. 

[rukkian]

1 hour ago, AmBear said:

might be,,,,,RCL is limited to drinks that do not exceed $12., Carnival is limited to drinks that do not exceed $50! That's what I remember, and what Cruise Critic states !RCL's pkge limits you to the lowest cost liquor, and some have specific tastes!

Never had anything besides high priced wine not included, and the package is considerably cheaper.

[dcgrumpy]

On Allure this past November everything I ordered was included and they even added floaters on occasion. 

[AmBear]

15 hours ago, rukkian said:

Never had anything besides high priced wine not included, and the package is considerably cheaper.

Carnival's drink pkge was less then RCL's the last time we cruised in Nov. '18! Carnival=$52, RCL $55, pp/per day pre cruise price! 

[rukkian]

2 minutes ago, AmBear said:

Carnival's drink pkge was less then RCL's the last time we cruised in Nov. '18! Carnival=$52, RCL $55, pp/per day pre cruise price! 

Unless you buy it on the ship, Royal pretty much always has a sale.  It is either 20, 25, or 30% off.  We paid 38, 45 the last two cruises.  We will not be purchasing on carnival as 55 is high, and they require both to purchase it.  My wife would maybe but that much, but there is no way I would.

Edited March 2, 2019 by rukkian

[dcgrumpy]

34 minutes ago, rukkian said:

Unless you buy it on the ship, Royal pretty much always has a sale.  It is either 20, 25, or 30% off.  We paid 38, 45 the last two cruises.  We will not be purchasing on carnival as 55 is high, and they require both to purchase it.  My wife would maybe but that much, but there is no way I would.

Yes. If you wait you will almost always get the RCCL package on sale. 

 

I chose to get it on Allure this past November because it was on sale for $45. I didn't get it on Magic because it was more money and Carnival's drinks are cheaper. I would have to drink a lot more to come out ahead. It was easy on Allure, a couple of frozen drinks and 2 glasses of wine with dinner and I was already ahead. 

 

Edited March 2, 2019 by dcgrumpy

[AmBear]

36 minutes ago, rukkian said:

Unless you buy it on the ship, Royal pretty much always has a sale.  It is either 20, 25, or 30% off.  We paid 38, 45 the last two cruises.  We will not be purchasing on carnival as 55 is high, and they require both to purchase it.  My wife would maybe but that much, but there is no way I would.

My point originally and afterwards is the 'posted price' is lower at Carnival. I'm sure both lines have sales, and the final price could be lower at either, at any time, including when you buy, pre-cruise, or during the cruise. As far as I know, RCL requires both to purchase as of 2018! There is an exemption you can get pre-cruise on RCL if you have someone in your cabin who can't drink any alcohol because of religious or health reasons! I'm not sure what RCL wants in proof, but they say it must be arranged pre-cruise. One area the Carnival pkge is better for big drinkers is there is no 15 drink cap per day on RCL that Carnival has!

[BTHodgeman]

3 minutes ago, AmBear said:

My point originally and afterwards is the 'posted price' is lower at Carnival. I'm sure both lines have sales, and the final price could be lower at either, at any time, including when you buy, pre-cruise, or during the cruise. As far as I know, RCL requires both to purchase as of 2018! There is an exemption you can get pre-cruise on RCL if you have someone in your cabin who can't drink any alcohol because of religious or health reasons! I'm not sure what RCL wants in proof, but they say it must be arranged pre-cruise. One area the Carnival pkge is better for big drinkers is there is no 15 drink cap per day on RCL that Carnival has!

I have not seen it on sale on Carnival before. Both lines “require” that all adults in a cabin purchase it, but as I mentioned I a previous post, Royal is flexible and allows non-drinkers to buy the refreshment package simply by calling. It also doesn’t have to be for health or religious reasons. Carnival does not make that exception. 

 

 

[AmBear]

28 minutes ago, dcgrumpy said:

Yes. If you wait you will almost always get the RCCL package on sale. 

 

I chose to get it on Allure this past November because it was on sale for $45. I didn't get it on Magic because it was more money and Carnival's drinks are cheaper. I would have to drink a lot more to come out ahead. It was easy on Allure, a couple of frozen drinks and 2 glasses of wine with dinner and I was already ahead. 

 

You'll also notice the RCL prices their drink pkges different prices on different ships! Why,,,don't know!

[tucho]

Cruised Jewel of the seas last year, 3^rd RCCL cruise. Never been on their bigger ships. Cruised CCL over 20 times. Comparing all points, shows, food, things to do, staff.

 For me RCCL = boring CCL = fun