Convince this RCI cheerleader to try Princess

[roe2ship]

double post........

[A Sixth?]

I think the spice of cruising is trying other lines.

 

In the past five years I've sailed seven different ones (Princes is my favorite) and last year cruised the Mariner of the Sea.

 

Nice ship, food nowhere near as good as Princess, and there was a wow factor that took your breath away the first day or two.

 

Here is a post I made earlier comparing the Mariner and the Crown Princess:

 

Sailed the Mariner last August and the Crown for two weeks in January in both 2007 and 2008.

 

The Crown has the better food by a mile IMHO. In fact I thought the food service on the Mariner was just "okay" from the Denny's style paper menus to the lack of shrimp and seafood choices. I also loved the Anytime dining option that Princes has.

 

Our balcony cabin was a bit smaller on the Crown than the Mariner, but the Carib deck balcony two times as big.

 

The layout of the Crown actually seems to make the ship feel less crowded. Remember, the Mariner has a huge empty Mall carved out of the middle of it so after the "wow" factor disappears, the 3200 passengers have to herd through a smallish area.

 

There are no bar set ups as such on either ship, but you can order bottles (third of a litre) for your happy hour in your cabin. Princess generally lets you BYOB your own wine and beer aboard, and in some ports even liquor so long as it's not waved in their faces. RCI have strict NO BYOB rules and they police it.

 

I actually like the skating rink on the Mariner. The best show I've ever seen on a cruise ship. I also liked the adults only pool area on the Mariner, on the Crown they charge for the simalarly set up "sanctuary"

 

All in all I and largely because food service is so important on a cruise, I much prefer the Crown.

[happyscot]

We are emerging Princess fans who wanted to try something different, and fancied the new big RCI boat "conquerer of the entire known universe" or whatever it's called. A bit worried about paying lots of money so other people (not us) can hang upside down off a cliff, hit each other, hurtle underwater through plastic tubes, fall on their ass on ice etc etc, but that was fine. Two things made the difference:

 

1/ Anytime dining. Me and the beloved, astonishingly, like each other, and on holiday don't want to sit through dinner being polite to 8 dentists from Nebraska. Anytime dining, if you're willing to wait like 10 minutes, guarantees you can sit and giggle together and take the mickey out of the dentists all by yourself.

 

2/ I e-mailed RCI at the addy headlined "e-mail us and we guarantee we'll reply within 9 nanoseconds or cut our wrists". They didn't. Still waiting. So very, very poor. Princess replied within hours, even to the e-mail I wrote when very drunk giving them 10 reasons to upgrade me because I was Scottish and very special. They said no, obviously, but were very nice about it.

 

We will try RCI, once they bring in Anytime, but hey, how hard is it to answer an e-mail?

 

Enjoying your election over here, great fun.

[wrp96]

We will try RCI, once they bring in Anytime, but hey, how hard is it to answer an e-mail?

 

Just an FYI, RCCL does have a version of Anytime on some of their ships now.

[happyscot]

Just an FYI, RCCL does have a version of Anytime on some of their ships now.

 

 

Yep, their piloting. Once they accept the inevitable, we'll partake. Thanks.

[SusieS]

We've only booked inside quads, & have not had a problem. I'm just beyond thrilled to be able to cruise, as this set-up makes it possible/affordable for us. When all college bills are paid for in however many years from now, maybe then we'll look into a balcony!!

[riverboatgambler]

Just think of all the luggage you dont have to pack...no rock climbing gear, no surf board, no ice skates, and no boxing gloves.

[TorontoTL]

Just think of all the luggage you dont have to pack...no rock climbing gear, no surf board, no ice skates, and no boxing gloves.

 

LOL.

[JillK]

Hi DonnaK.

 

I'd like to add my voice to the choir of folks encouraging you to give Princess a try.

 

I was a diehard RCI fan after having cruised the Grandeur and Enchantment. Previous cruises had been on NCL and Carnival.

 

My husband and I sailed the Emerald Princess in January and not only was it a fantastic cruise experience, it was our best vacation ever.

 

There are many similarities between RCI and Princess and I would say that there are going to be little things you prefer on both lines. I would definitely say that the experience they offer is on par with one another. You definitely won't be getting a lower quality experience with Princess.

 

Please let us know what you book and be sure to post a review after your cruise!

 

Happy cruising, regardless of your final choice!

 

Jill