Mardi Gras/Celebration Vs. RCCL Oasis Class

[SoBe2010]

Hello everybody,

 

Sorry if this question has been asked before.

 

We are thinking about a Celebration cruise. I saw the ship size, which is significantly smaller than the oasis class of Royal Caribbean and yet, the passenger capacity is about the same. 

Now my question to those, who have sailed on both classes of ships:

Is the Celebration/Mardi Gras very cramped? How is the passenger flow and general impression of personal space. Always compared to oasis class ships.

 

Appreciate your insights!

[Colorado Beach Bum]

We’ve been on both.  Oasis years 7 yrs ago so not as familiar as MG which we have been on 3 times. From what I remember on Oasis, many of the venues were smaller than those on MG.  They have a ton of them but I thought it strange how small they were for how big the ship was. I especially remember this in the comedy club on Oasis.  We had difficult time ever getting into their club.  MG certainly compares to Oasis much better than the other class of ships on Carnival.  Overall we were happy with flow and personal space on MG, never felt cramped or crazy crowded. 

[kelkel2]

I haven’t been on Oasis, but have friends who have. I think the cabins are bigger. But having just got off the Mardi Gras, I can say I was pleasantly surprised with how well it handled the crowds. I feel like it was much less crowded than our last cruise was on the Breeze. Mardi Gras seemed to disperse crowds, we were 107% capacity and I couldn’t tell. 

[askjojo]

Headed to Celebration this Sunday and recently sailed on the Wonder of the Seas. I will come back and let you know. After seeing Youtube videos and reading comments, the Celebration's rooms seem to be smaller and also certain venues on Celebration are smaller but they have more selections for entertainment, pools, and dining choices which make up for space/crowds. The only complaint I have heard online regarding Celebration's capacity issue are the elevators. There seems to be a long wait and they only hold 9 passengers at a time. Many people choose the stairs where possible.

[ohioNCLcruiser]

I think the Oasis class of ships are some of the best designed ships ever made. The flow of everything, variety of spaces etc just hit the spot. I have never felt crowded on those ships. The Celebration is very nice also but felt crowded at times. I felt bad for anyone with mobility issues that needed to get into an elevator, especially on embark and debark days. What a mess!

 

Having done Allure and three weeks on Celebration I would put the edge into Oasis. I think they are hard to beat and I love the outdoor neighborhoods. 

 

However if you want really non-biased answers I would not post this question on a Carnival page or a Royal page like this is. I would ask the question on a generic, non cruise line branded forum or facebook page that is more just about cruising in general. Some people here believe Carnival can do no wrong and no other cruise line can even come close just like people on the Royal page do the same about their brand. 

 

Either would be great but I would say Oasis is a step up. 

Edited January 29, 2023 by ohioNCLcruiser

[RoperDK]

I've been on different Oasis class ships 5 times and 2 times on MG.  We just disembarked MG this past Saturday. My oh my, it sure seemed crowded.  Much more that our cruise on MG last year.  We were at full capacity.  You were fine if you went to eating places after the opening rush or went to shows very early to find a seat.  Service was hit or miss and food quality was just okay for us.  The ship is beautiful and I love the neighborhood themes.  The casino is huge!  I really want to like MG, but I feel it just isn't for us.  We will be on Wonder of the Seas next month.  We really like Oasis class.  You have to really plan your trip though.  You need to make reservations for shows and dining which makes you plan out your cruise too much for us.  It does get crowded at times, but traffic flow is pretty good unless you happen to want an elevator when dining or a show get out.  I have felt that Royal has better food, but recently there have been cutbacks.  I will know more once we get off of Wonder next month.  I prefer Oasis class, but MG isn't too far behind if food isn't too important to you.      

[SoBe2010]

Thanks everyone so far. I have a feeling... 😉

We are diamond on Royal, however we are in a mood for something new and might give celebration a try. It looks nice despite the "size/pax-ratio"...

 

 

[Palmetto Pilot]

6 hours ago, SoBe2010 said:

Thanks everyone so far. I have a feeling... 😉

We are diamond on Royal, however we are in a mood for something new and might give celebration a try. It looks nice despite the "size/pax-ratio"...

 

 

I'm Diamond on Royal as well and generally my preference is Royal. We like the Sky class experience and all that the Oasis class has to offer. I'm by no means loyal to any particular company and we're headed out on the MG next week. I'm apprehensive about the amount of people and small size of the ship in comparison to the capacity. We'll see...

[katiel53]

We were on Mardi Gras in October and on Symphony of the Seas two weeks ago.  Each ship has its' own benefits.  I liked the cabin size on Symphony whereas, on MG, I felt as though it were a smaller space and felt crowded.

 

I liked how the shops etc were on one level on Symphony and wasn't crazy about how they were on different levels on MG.  It seems, to me, MG is very chopped up as opposed to more open, usable spaces on Symphony.

 

I liked the game shows on MG.  They had enthusiastic audiences.  I thought the entertainment on Symphony was better in that we enjoyed the ice skating show, the Aqua Theatre show and the fact that there was a Broadway show.  Carnival is more do it  yourself/audience participation.  I didn't like having to make reservations for shows on Symphony.  

 

One thing we all liked better was the choices for included food as opposed to Symphony.  When we sail an Oasis class ship, we always choose the UDP because food in the dining room isn't that great.  On MG we went to the steak house, which was wonderful as we had 11 people and we were seated in a small separate room when we went for dinner. The steak house on MG is considerably less expensive than Chops.  We liked the Italian restaurant and there was no charge for it where the Italian restaurant on Symphony had a charge for lunch and dinner.

 

We were disappointed in Rudy's as a few of us had the lobster stuffed with crabmeat and the crabmeat wasn't fresh.  It was kind of awful and none of us ate more than one bite of it.  We all liked Shaq's and some of us weren't crazy about Guy's burgers.  For me, they were too overdone, but I do understand needing to cook them well done. Chi Bang was interesting.  We all loved the beignets at Emeril's.  We didn't get to try some places, but will do so another time.  

 

One of my favorite parts of MG is the casino and all of us who gambled loved how large the non-smoking area was.  Symphony casino is not as chopped us as MG, but it appears smaller overall.

 

We usually sail on RC and MG was a ship we all wanted to try.  I wouldn't hesitate to sail on MG again or Celebration.  They're just different styles of ships, but both were a great vacation.