New to Royal Caribbean

[jonyboy]

We have cruised on HAl and Celebrity and are now looking at a cruise on Royal Caribbean.  Any information as far as how Royal is same, better or worse to consider would be appreciated

[Tlbecker1]

It has been a while since I have been on HAI, but I have been on Celebrity and Royal in the past year.  My first thought would be that Royal is more family oriented and kid friendly along with many more activities. Royal has a younger clientele for sure.  On our last 2 Celebrity cruises we have only seen 5+ kids, on Royal there will be many more.

[jonyboy]

2 minutes ago, Tlbecker1 said:

It has been a while since I have been on HAI, but I have been on Celebrity and Royal in the past year.  My first thought would be that Royal is more family oriented and kid friendly along with many more activities. Royal has a younger clientele for sure.  On our last 2 Celebrity cruises we have only seen 5+ kids, on Royal there will be many more.

Thanks, I hadn't thought about that.  On HAL and Celebrity we didn't see many children at all.  We're in our seventies so not used to a lot of kids around.  

[shipgeeks]

OP, Where are you considering sailing from, on which ship, and what time of year?

We regularly sail on RC out of Baltimore.  During the school year there are very few children; in fact, primarily people in your (and our) age group.

When we sailed on X previously, we thought the sophistication of some of the shows was way better than the shows we've seen repeatedly many times on RC; however, the ones we liked the best (Elysium and that group) were not popular among many other passengers.

X had many flavors of ice cream in the Oceanview every day; RC has only vanilla and chocolate.

[jonyboy]

4 minutes ago, shipgeeks said:

OP, Where are you considering sailing from, on which ship, and what time of year?

We regularly sail on RC out of Baltimore.  During the school year there are very few children; in fact, primarily people in your (and our) age group.

When we sailed on X previously, we thought the sophistication of some of the shows was way better than the shows we've seen repeatedly many times on RC; however, the ones we liked the best (Elysium and that group) were not popular among many other passengers.

X had many flavors of ice cream in the Oceanview every day; RC has only vanilla and chocolate.

The cruise we're looking at is the Jewel of the Seas out of San Juan on February 10, 2024.  We already have a VRBO on the island ending the 10th

[barb in ga]

So much depends on which ship and itinerary you are considering. We've cruised most often with Royal, but also a few other lines, 2x on Celebrity and once on HAL. We didn't enjoy the food or entertainment on HAL, but we do like Celebrity. Royal's bigger ships(Voyager class and above) have much better entertainment choices than the smaller ships; Oasis class is by far our favorite, with Aquashow, Ice skating show, adult comedy, and production stage shows.

 

I would rate Celebrity's food a little higher than Royal, but Royal has more options. If you are Elite on Celebrity you will receive Diamond benefits on Royal, including 4 drink vouchers per person per day.

We sail for the ship amenities and the dining opportunities, so make ship comparisons before you book.

Enjoy whichever cruise you book.

Barb

[jonyboy]

3 minutes ago, barb in ga said:

So much depends on which ship and itinerary you are considering. We've cruised most often with Royal, but also a few other lines, 2x on Celebrity and once on HAL. We didn't enjoy the food or entertainment on HAL, but we do like Celebrity. Royal's bigger ships(Voyager class and above) have much better entertainment choices than the smaller ships; Oasis class is by far our favorite, with Aquashow, Ice skating show, adult comedy, and production stage shows.

 

I would rate Celebrity's food a little higher than Royal, but Royal has more options. If you are Elite on Celebrity you will receive Diamond benefits on Royal, including 4 drink vouchers per person per day.

We sail for the ship amenities and the dining opportunities, so make ship comparisons before you book.

Enjoy whichever cruise you book.

Barb

Thanks.  We like the food on Celebrity also, however for this cruise since we'll be in Puerto Rico anyway we wanted to cruise out of San Juan.  Another benefit of sailing out of San Juan is less days at sea.  Is the Jewel of the Sea considered Voyager class?

[barb in ga]

Jewel is one of the Radiance Class ships, smaller than Voyager, but a favorite of many cruisers not looking for all the water park and entertainment extras. I sailed on a sister ship, Serenade, and it was a great cruise on a beautiful ship. There's not as many food and entertainment options, but it would be a good cruise.

Barb

[jonyboy]

1 minute ago, barb in ga said:

Jewel is one of the Radiance Class ships, smaller than Voyager, but a favorite of many cruisers not looking for all the water park and entertainment extras. I sailed on a sister ship, Serenade, and it was a great cruise on a beautiful ship. There's not as many food and entertainment options, but it would be a good cruise.

Barb

Thanks.  We are for sure not looking for the water park etc.  I really like the dining options on Celebrity but I'm sure there will be enough options.