Grandeur of the Sea vs Carnival Pride

[RandomUser123]

In late 2020 or 2021 I am thinking of taking a cruise out of Baltimore on the Royal Carribean Grandeur of the Sea with my wife and 2 kids (my 2 kids will be 3 and 6 at the time). I have done Carnival Pride out of Baltimore before with a cruise their also scheduled this coming October but want to do Royal Carribean next year or 2021 for my first time since my youngest will be 3 then so he can be in their kids club.

 

What are your thoughts on this ship? Sailing out of Baltimore is easier for me because it is a 2 hour drive, I do not want to fly with kids yet. If you have sailed this ship and Carnival Pride how does Grandeur compare? 

[birdylady]

40 minutes ago, RandomUser123 said:

In late 2020 or 2021 I am thinking of taking a cruise out of Baltimore on the Royal Carribean Grandeur of the Sea with my wife and 2 kids (my 2 kids will be 3 and 6 at the time). I have done Carnival Pride out of Baltimore before with a cruise their also scheduled this coming October but want to do Royal Carribean next year or 2021 for my first time since my youngest will be 3 then so he can be in their kids club.

 

What are your thoughts on this ship? Sailing out of Baltimore is easier for me because it is a 2 hour drive, I do not want to fly with kids yet. If you have sailed this ship and Carnival Pride how does Grandeur compare? 

Hi there. I can't compare RCI to any other cruise line. BUT I will say we did Grandeur in April and LOVED her. The BEST crew ever.  The ship was in good condition and the Cruise Director, Activities Manager and their crew made everything fun.  

I say give her a try.  I would sail her again in a heartbeat.

Erika

[Biker19]

1 hour ago, RandomUser123 said:

What are your thoughts on this ship? 

Just realize it is one of the oldest ships in the fleet and in terms of amenities it doesn't really reflect RCI overall. You may want to research Anthem as well - it's within driving distance.

[island lady]

I love the little Vision class ships, and still miss the Legend.  I will finally get the chance to board Grandeur for the first time next year in September.  Looking forward to it...and first time sailing out of Baltimore.  🙂  

[Clarea]

7 minutes ago, island lady said:

I love the little Vision class ships, and still miss the Legend.  I will finally get the chance to board Grandeur for the first time next year in September.  Looking forward to it...and first time sailing out of Baltimore.  🙂  

 

Same here.  We enjoy the Solarium with Park Cafe.

[Bookish Angel]

Having sailed on both ships this past Grandeur in January and Pride in March here are a my impressions:

 

Food: Pride was a clear winner, particularly in the main dining room and in the casual eateries.  Food seemed of higher quality overall and dining room service was more attentive and less hurried.

 

Interior Cabin: Pride cabin was larger, brighter and more recently updated and had more closet space. Grandeur bed was hard and bedding was old. The Pride bed was one of the most comfortable I have ever had with much newer bedding.

[Chipmoose]

We have sailed on both ships and enjoyed both.

Room size, numerous less  costly of balcony cabins are positives for Pride, but service seems a touch better on Grandeur.  Food is different on each but we enjoyed both. For us the Main Dining Room is a tossup, but If you eat at the buffet I think you may enjoy the Grandeur a little more, but I love the burgers and tacos on the Pride.

Most importantly to us, the itineraries seem more varied and go a little further regularly on the Grandeur, and that is the main reason we sail on her more than the Pride

[spookwife]

we have sailed both, in fact Pride was our very first cruise ever.  

 

we vastly prefer Grandeur.  was not a fan of the Prides decor at all, service was.. polite  but not overly  friendly or eager to please.  food was comparable on both lines although  panini guy on Pride was a blast and we ended up having lunch there every day.  our balcony room on Pride was.. okay.   we enjoyed  our GR cabin better.. layout was better, except that bloody step up into the bathroom.  

 

activities wise , GR won hands down.   hairy chest and belly flop competitions poolside are just not my thing.  

[Cru1s1ng2009]

I live within an hour of the port and have sailed both. I prefer grandeur over pride for many reasons. I know food is subjective but I like rci food more. carnival has their desserts beat though.

 

My kids liked the club more on rci and I just feel that it is better overall.  

[Nessa1dc]

Please note you are on a RCCL site....

 

I have never sailed Carnival, however, I have sailed Grandeur 2 times, and will sail her again in August 2019. 

 

Grandeur is a lovely ship.  Smaller than most of RCCL's ships.  She is a little older, but offers great activities and a lot of fun.  I believe your children will enjoy.

[Silverspringcruiser]

What kind of food do you like? If you prefer comfort food go with Pride. Besides the buffet and MDR there's also Guy's Burgers and the BlueIguana Cantina, not to mention the deli and 24 hour pizza. Grandeur just has Park Café, and its offerings are limited. But for more of a gourmet experience you want the Grandeur. You're not going to get lobster bisque or escargot on Pride. And it only has a steakhouse, while Grandeur also has an Italian restaurant as well as a sushi bar. 

[Heather1972]

I have sailed both. Hands down Pride. Grandeur is on the bottom of all my cruises. That said, it was a cheap 10 day cruise! 

[SRF]

3 hours ago, Silverspringcruiser said:

while Grandeur also has an Italian restaurant as well as a sushi bar. 

 

It is not just a sushi bar, is is an Asian restaurant with many more things that sushi.

 

 

[ShakyBeef]

4 hours ago, Silverspringcruiser said:

What kind of food do you like? If you prefer comfort food go with Pride. Besides the buffet and MDR there's also Guy's Burgers and the BlueIguana Cantina, not to mention the deli and 24 hour pizza. Grandeur just has Park Café, and its offerings are limited. But for more of a gourmet experience you want the Grandeur. You're not going to get lobster bisque or escargot on Pride. And it only has a steakhouse, while Grandeur also has an Italian restaurant as well as a sushi bar. 

 

Not true.  Carnival Pride also has Bonsai Sushi, a sit-down, for-fee Japanese restaurant.  Now, granted, it's no Izumi, but DH and I have sailed on both ships and have enjoyed both of these restaurants several times, and I think Bonsai is worth mentioning. 

[birdylady]

On 6/18/2019 at 5:36 PM, Bookish Angel said:

Having sailed on both ships this past Grandeur in January and Pride in March here are a my impressions:

 

Food: Pride was a clear winner, particularly in the main dining room and in the casual eateries.  Food seemed of higher quality overall and dining room service was more attentive and less hurried.

 

Interior Cabin: Pride cabin was larger, brighter and more recently updated and had more closet space. Grandeur bed was hard and bedding was old. The Pride bed was one of the most comfortable I have ever had with much newer bedding.

FYI - I don't know if it was because were were in a JS or just timing, but we had the MOST comfortable bed on a ship, EVER.  It was a thicker mattress on a higher frame than any other ship.  I heard they were working at replacing the beds. I just don't know if it's only in JS and above or just where they started and are moving through the decks.  I hope they do this for all cabins, all ships.

Erika

[island lady]

On 6/18/2019 at 3:06 PM, Host Clarea said:

 

Same here.  We enjoy the Solarium with Park Cafe.

 

Good to know, thanks Bob!  🙂 

[1maggie1]

Definitely prefer the Pride over the Grandeur but am sailing RCL again because the Pride goes to the same places all the time.  I think with kids you may like the Pride better because the crowd on Grandeur is definitely older.  There may not be many other kids in the kids program.

 

[Cru1s1ng2009]

there are tons of kids on board and in the club unless you are booking one of the longer cruises off season. As you will see from my signature, I have sailed her many times. 

[auburneyes]

I am on the Grandeur now and have only sailed Carnival and Princess before.  This ship is so boring. There is nothing to do and the food choices are abysmal unless you are fine with a buffet.  We never eat from the buffet on Carnival so this was a huge letdown.

Edited June 21, 2019 by auburneyes

[Norwich Cruiser]

Sailed on both and enjoyed the cruises.

We prefer the Pride.

Food offerings we thought were so much better and the Park Cafe offerings on Grandeur we didn’t find to be very good at all.

Only our opinion sure everyone will not agree.

[CFIGuy]

I liked the breakfast/lunch selection better on Pride, as well as the stateroom size.  My son also liked the waterslide.  I didn’t care for the location and activities of the kids club (forward - behind the theater up steep steps), how some floors you were forced to go up or down a level to continue, the overly loud music at the main pool, and the evening theater entertainment.  The piano singer was pretty popular though. I also liked how two of the three ports we stopped off were walk off to the beach with complimentary beach chairs.  

 

On Grandeur, we loved the staff.  Did not run into one bad staff member, which says a lot.  Known as the friendly ship, and it holds true.  Like the longer length itineraries and low cost on Grandeur.  Like the evening entertainment more, and my son liked Adventure Ocean on this ship.  I think one of Royal’s major downfalls is their lack of variety for breakfast & lunch.  

 

Dinner is really subjective.  Carnival did tend to be more down home cooking, while some of Royal’s might seem slightly gourmet.  Both were fine.

[lovescats5]

We would sail and RCL ship over any Carnival.  The 2 Carnival ships we were on were so crowded with unruly and rude kids you could not go anywhere and get any quiet.  Although RCL has kids they seem to be more polite.  Although food can be subjective and I enjoy good food I would still sail RCL and eat bad food.  I can always find something to eat.

[island lady]

16 hours ago, auburneyes said:

I am on the Grandeur now and have only sailed Carnival and Princess before.  This ship is so boring. There is nothing to do and the food choices are abysmal unless you are fine with a buffet.  We never eat from the buffet on Carnival so this was a huge letdown.

 

Welcome to RCI and welcome to Cruise Critic. 

 

Looks like you are back to Carnival.  

[SRF]

20 hours ago, CFIGuy said:

I liked the breakfast/lunch selection better on Pride,

 

I think one of Royal’s major downfalls is their lack of variety for breakfast & lunch.  

 

 

Were you eating in the MDR for breakfast and lunch?

 

We mostly eat breakfast and lunch in the WJ, and there are changes with every meal.  Breakfast is a bit more the same day to day, because by the time you put out all the basic breakfast things, there is not much room for other things.  But they still swapped it up.

 

We sail in a suite, so one breakfast will be in Chops and one will be on the balcony.  Occasionally, lunch is the Park Cafe to eat around the pool.

[RandomUser123]

Thank you all for the replies. From reviews I have read it is mixed but for the most part it seems like a pretty good ship, just an older ship that does not have all the amenities of the newer ships. I am a little concerned of the lack of food options after 9PM though. There is a really good deal at the end of March 2020 for an 8 night cruise with the kids sail free promotion I am now looking to consider. My youngest will still be 2 then but the price may be too hard to pass up ($1688 for 2 adults and 2 kids). It is a week before my oldest son who will be in Kindergarten Spring Break and we will already be taking him out of school for a week in October for our cruise on Carnival Pride but how much would he really miss learning if we took him out for another 6 school days?