We Tried Princess, Here's My Comparison Notes

[Geema]

I'm amazed at how many people are comparing the two cruiselines. I've been on 5 Princess cruises and they were great. They do not offer Caribbean sailings in the summer and for a lot of the cruisers, that's the only time when they can travel because of jobs/school. The two are very similar. There are strengths and weaknesses on both. No connecting cabins on Princess, which for some is very important (including my family) if you have very young children. The JS cabins on RCI are wider than the mini-suites on Princess, but they are very nice. People can go on and on but both are great cruiselines and if you want a "change" you need to try one or the other. As for leaving RCI because of the loyalty program cuts for OBC, on Princess you can't get any money back after final payment like you can on RCI. This last cruise we went on the Independence, some in our party saved $300 pp after final payment. You wouldn't get that on Princess.

[jmraggs]

My partner and I are D+ and are extremely loyal to royal because we love the experience and benefits on RCCL even with these cut backs on discounts/combinations etc. We love the excitement on their ships and the availability of activities along with the food and the friendly service.

 

A friend of mine at work is a loyal Princess cruiser and I am a loyal RCCL cruiser, so it makes many interesting conversations comparing onboard experiences with him. We might try Princess some day, but for now we are staying with Royal. For now Royal still encourages us to stay with them, so no need to change.

[HMSDingy]

This will be our second cruise with RCI. We chose RCI once again for our Med cruise because of the itinerary and of course price. As with our last RCI cruise, we found the pricing much better than Princess. But I'm getting the opposite opinions from many posters here at Cruise Critic. A similar cruise on the Ruby Princess with a gty balcony is more expensive than the assigned hump cabin I got on the Brilliance even with the cruise credit applied to the price with Princess. With our Med cruise we were given a Canadian resident discount and the senior discounts kick in at 55 as compared to 60 with Princess. We found both lines to be comparable but I prefer the food in the mdr on the Princess ships although the Windjammmer layout is much better than Horizon court where lunch time is nothing short of chaos. Princess also makes an excellent espresso whereas I found nothing close onboard the Jewel.

 

We also found that the senior officers were made up of a mixture of English and Italian citizens. On all of our past Princess cruises the Maitre D' and head waiters were for the most part of Italian origin.

 

All in all I would sail on both lines without question.

[Charles4515]

My partner and I are D+ and are extremely loyal to royal because we love the experience and benefits on RCCL even with these cut backs on discounts/combinations etc. We love the excitement on their ships and the availability of activities along with the food and the friendly service.

 

A friend of mine at work is a loyal Princess cruiser and I am a loyal RCCL cruiser, so it makes many interesting conversations comparing onboard experiences with him. We might try Princess some day, but for now we are staying with Royal. For now Royal still encourages us to stay with them, so no need to change.

 

The concept of being extremely loyal to one cruise line and not trying other cruise lines is alien to me. Cruise lines are businesses that provide a return to investors. They are not family. As an informed consumer I have made it my goal to try all the cruise lines. It is more interesting to experience the differences than have conversations with friends or forum discussions with people who only have been on one cruise line. The way to compare is to experience! Over the years there have been changes in both the cruise lines and myself. The cruise line I prefer now is not the same one I preferred a few years ago and the cruise line I prefer in five years may not be the cruise line I prefer now. Right now I prefer Royal Caribbean but I still continue to book Princess, Celebrity and HAL. Currently I have bookings on all those. There are some style differences but in essence they are similar and all can provide a great cruise experience.

[Schplinky]

I hope to one day sail on Princess and be able to compare the two lines for myself directly.

 

It should be pointed out that RCI also has a cookbook, Savor, and they are currently on the second volume, Savor II.

 

I think there are several books out now.

[LuvMyVette]

Emmy:

I have cruised 6 times on Princess and will comment on the Specialty restaurants. I much prefer the presentation, food and service in Portofino to Sabatini which is Princess's italian specialty. We went to Sterling Steak house once on a Princess ship and I actually preferred that to our Chops experience. For us after 3 times dining at Chops on various RCI it has not been the best experience. Will be trying it once again on Mariner.I really like the all around Portofino experience and will be trying the Wine Pairing on Mariner.Thanks to the OP for their thoughts on the two cruise lines. Like many have said I find them more alike than different but the small differences is what keeps cruising fresh for us. By trying other cruise lines you truly learn what you really like about each.

Thank you very much for your feedback regarding the specialty restaurants. DH/I enjoy going to them for a romantic dinner for two. Portofino on Explorer has always been a favorite. We tried Portofino on the Serenade last year and it was terrible. Wasn't the food but the staff wasn't friendly nor did they worked well together. Chops on the Serenade was fantastic. The ambiance, staff, food, service was better than expected. Enjoy your future cruise on the Mariner. We have friends sailing on the Mariner right now and looking forward to their review.

Sea ya!

[Schplinky]

The steakhouse on Sapphire is just a cordoned off area of the buffet. Not so sure we'll be trying that!

[jillyfish]

Your comparasion sounds about right.

 

We had always been happy with Princess. However, we began to feel like teenagers compared to the rest of the passengers on board. We are in our early 40's. Our young son became kinda bored on our last Princess cruise.

 

We enjoyed our last Royal Caribbean cruise because it had a bit more livelier atmosphere.....but not too much. Plus there were a lot of activities, H2O zone, rock climbing and ice skating, to keep our son busy.

 

If Princess has an itinerary that interests us, we will certainly hop on board. However, I think we will stick with Royal for another cruise or two.

[LuvMyVette]

Joe:

I have a similar impression of Princess to the original poster. While I enjoyed my Royal Caribbean cruises a lot, I found more to like about Princess.

I'll volunteer my observations on a few of your questions. You can also see a complete review of my last Princess cruise (Crown, April 2008) in my signature.

 

How was the food compared to RCI?

Very similar menus, but I thought that the quality was a touch better on Princess. The buffet on Princess seemed to be a little more limited than the Windjammer, but seemed to feature more ethnic dishes and interesting themes than RCCL.

 

Was there a good selection on the menu?

Comparable to RCCL.

 

Could you post pictures of your cabin?

If you click on the Crown Princess Photos link in my signature, you'll find photos of our category BC balcony.

Thank you for answering some of my questions. I just read your review and looked at the ship pictures. Your input is greatly appreciated.

Sea ya!

[jmraggs]

The concept of being extremely loyal to one cruise line and not trying other cruise lines is alien to me. Cruise lines are businesses that provide a return to investors. They are not family. As an informed consumer I have made it my goal to try all the cruise lines. It is more interesting to experience the differences than have conversations with friends or forum discussions with people who only have been on one cruise line. The way to compare is to experience! Over the years there have been changes in both the cruise lines and myself. The cruise line I prefer now is not the same one I preferred a few years ago and the cruise line I prefer in five years may not be the cruise line I prefer now. Right now I prefer Royal Caribbean but I still continue to book Princess, Celebrity and HAL. Currently I have bookings on all those. There are some style differences but in essence they are similar and all can provide a great cruise experience.

 

I don't believe I said I thought RCCL was "Family", what I said was we are extremely loyal to royal because we love the experience and benefits on RCCL. Just like many businesses out there, if a business does something special for you constantly, most people become loyal to that business just like an employee/employer relationship.

 

The perks we receive and the enjoyment of the cruise experience on RCCL is what makes us loyal, but as I said, if those perks get dramatically decreased or other things change, then we would for sure try other cruise lines for comparison in addition to sailing on Royal. Right now we have no complaints with Royal, but each person is different, so for someone who doesn't find it interesting to have conversations with friends or forum discussions with people who only have been on one cruise line, then that is your choice, but you will miss out on speaking with a lot of nice people.

 

This is just like my friend at work who is loyal to Princess, he has enjoyed every cruise he has been on, so he says why switch if you are happy.

[cruiseky]

We sailed on our first Princess cruise a couple of years ago, after 5 cruises with Royal Caribbean. We sailed on the Caribbean Princess, and these were our impressions:

 

Things we DIDN'T like:

• Average age of passengers seemed much older
  
• The ship felt closed-in, not enough glass
  
• Public spaces...theater, dining areas seemed cramped
  
• Sports facilities were very small.
  
• Overall flow of the ship was bad...hard to get around
  
• Worst Coffee we have ever had!
  

Things we DID like:

• Anytime Dining
  
• Fresh water pools
  
• Movies under the Stars
  

Things we missed from RCCL(Voyager class and above):

• Royal Promenade
  
• The Main Dining Room(the size and elegance)
  
• Sports facilities
  

We found the food and service to be very similar between the two lines. In fact, we felt like if we could add "Anytime" Dining, Fresh water pools and Movies Under the Stars to a Voyager Class ship, then it would be perfect. We will be sailing on the Freedom of the Seas later this year and I am pleased to know that two of those requests are available, "My Time" Dining and Fresh Water Pools.

[Debathome]

I am an avid Princess fan but I am going on my first Royal Cruise in May. (booked with friends for Alaska)

I am going with an open mind and truly hoping that I will enjoy my experience so that I will have an option of going with either line, depending on where, when and price rates. This will give me more options for cruising. Even before boarding, I have already found things that I prefer over Princess (paying off excursions before boarding, being able to prebook specialty restaurants) but there are some I am not too sure about just yet (saltwater pool, tips having to be figured out and alloted).

 

Happy Cruising All.

[traveling1969]

We've done sevral cruises on each of the "big three": Carnival, Princess, and RCCL. Most of the cruises were on each line's larger ships in balcony staterooms. Here are some of our random thoughts on each. We like RCCL's ships the best. Carnival's staterooms are about the same size as RCCL's, Princess' much smaller. Best TV and movies on Princess and Carnival. We always carry on several bottles of wine and champagne on Carnival and Princess and replenish at the ports. Not possible on RCCL. I love Princess' fresh water pools. Food on all three lines is excellent with few exceptions. Service is very good on all three lines with few exceptions. Prices are all over the place. Carnival has a great military discount. RCCL has their over 55 discount. Princess Future Cruise Program is our favorite. More yuppies on RCCL. More kids (and tatoos) on Carnival. Generally older demographic on Princess. Just our impressions. We love 'em all and hope you do to. Bon Voyage!

[Gracie115]

Thanks so much for this thread, we have been looking for alternatives, not because we dislike RCCL, but we've been to all the Caribbean ports that Royal offers too many times now for it to be enticing anymore. Princess offers some ports that Royal doesn't and we may go this way. Also, we love the Radiance class ships of Royal and it seems that most Princess ships are about that size. The Royal Promenade is too "mall like" for me(I don't like shopping at home, so being in a mall at sea is not appealing) and the difference in service from the Radiance size to the Voyager and up is noticeable-- to me anyway. We still love the Jewel the most and may just wait for the spring 2010 TA to cruise again, but Princess is sounding more and more inviting. Thanks for all the info....

[cotian]

I agree with the thread of this conversations. They offered us benefits if we bought stock, became Platinum or Diamond. Then the took away most everything. They send us coupons to use when you go to use them they say either that or your Platium or Diamond benefits. We are booked on the transatlantic IOS April 12. They would not let us use our Future Cruise Booking.: I am trying to get them to honor that, but so far all I get back from them are polite form letters. If anyone can give me another way to contact them I would appreciate it. We also like Princess and if this is not settled, that is where we will be cruising. I guess they don't care about individuals any more or loyalty. I also don't like the idea of RCL blocking seats with ropes for Suite passengers in the theater and pool side. I guess the rest of us are second class citizens.

cotian dgcozart@msn.com :(

[dwjoe]

In our standard balcony stateroom, the walk-in closet was six feet long, with a shelf above. There was enough storage space that we didn’t even use all of the closet, shelves, and drawers!

 

Hi ChevyCruiser, thanks for the review! Question for you, is this diagram from Princess web site accurate? I ask because on the diagram the closet doesn't appear 6' long.

[BadBoysDriveAudi]

o for someone who doesn't find it interesting to have conversations with friends or forum discussions with people who only have been on one cruise line, then that is your choice, but you will miss out on speaking with a lot of nice people.

 

I think you misinterrupted his point. What I understood him to say was that it is better to experience each cruise line firsthand so you can make comparisons for yourself rather than relying on the opinions of others - who may have different preferences/feelings toward certain circumstances and are likely to be more biased toward their particular line because they don't have a copious amount of experience elsewhere to provide a balanced opinion.

 

Think of it as taking your foreign import vehicle to a mechanic that has only worked on domestic cars his/her entire career. Sure you may listen to their opinion but I'm not so sure you'd trust enough to drop your keys off with them.

[BadBoysDriveAudi]

We sailed on our first Princess cruise a couple of years ago, after 5 cruises with Royal Caribbean. We sailed on the Caribbean Princess, and these were our impressions:

 

 

Things we DIDN'T like:

• Average age of passengers seemed much older
  
• The ship felt closed-in, not enough glass
  
• Public spaces...theater, dining areas seemed cramped
  
• Sports facilities were very small.
  
• Overall flow of the ship was bad...hard to get around
  
• Worst Coffee we have ever had!

So here's a question - although I'm trying to determine my answer from ship diagrams on Princess' site. Are the swimming pools open air or are they contained indoors? DG will NOT like laying out by the pool if it's indoors!

 

And what particular sporting activities are available? I've yet to see a basketball court on any of the diagrams and I know the rock wall is out.

 

Mini golf? Ping pong? Something? ANYTHING?!?

 

And, in your opinion, what is the average age? Everyone says "older" but no one (well, almost no one) specifically states their own age! ;):D Kinda hard to deduce things when you don't know the value of any variables.

[BadBoysDriveAudi]

I love Princess' fresh water pools.

 

Perhaps I need to do some more homework but the RCL ships I've been on (Freedom/Majesty) had fresh water pools. I actually preferred the saltwater on Carnival's Victory - although the pool size left much to be desired.

[DGNY]

So here's a question - although I'm trying to determine my answer from ship diagrams on Princess' site. Are the swimming pools open air or are they contained indoors? DG will NOT like laying out by the pool if it's indoors!

 

And what particular sporting activities are available? I've yet to see a basketball court on any of the diagrams and I know the rock wall is out.

 

Mini golf? Ping pong? Something? ANYTHING?!?

 

can't speak to the fleet...but on the Caribbean Princess, all 4 pools are outdoors. Also, off the top of my head, there was a basketball court & mini golf. And the running track.

[BadBoysDriveAudi]

can't speak to the fleet...but on the Caribbean Princess, all 4 pools are outdoors. Also, off the top of my head, there was a basketball court & mini golf. And the running track.

 

Great - thank you. I can do without the rock wall or FlowRider as long as I'm able to ball it up and DG is able to lay out by the pool on sea days. I prefer to stay outdoors instead of in the gym on vacation. :D

[LuvMyVette]

Debathome:

Enjoy your cruise to Alaska. I was on the Serenade last year (Ultimate AK cruise) and DH/I loved the ship. It's our favorite out of all the RCI ships we sailed on. Enjoy!

Sea ya!

[LuvMyVette]

For those of you that cruised on Princess, have any of you stayed in the mini-suite or suite? If so, could you please let me know if there is a lot of storage, pros/cons in these categories, etc. Can two adults and a child be comfortable in either cabin?

 

Thank you in advance for your input.

Sea ya!

[Wilda]

Have sailed on Princess (Golden and Crown) and RCI (Serenade, Adventure, and Liberty) and Princess has:

• mini-suites (with a full bathtub!) and lots of them. RCI's JS don't compare, they are priced way higher and there aren't that many of them (Princess offers an ENTIRE deck of mini's)
  
• self-serve laundry on every other floor. RCI cites it as a safety hazard:p
  
• MUTS. Enough said
  
• a full two fllors of the MDR dedicated to Anytime dining.
  

Royal has:

• a better layout. The Royal Promenade wins hands down over the 3-tiered puny atrium that Princess offers
  
• more to do. Flow-rider, rock climbing, ice skating, lions, and tigers, and bears, oh my!
  
• a more diverse crowd. Princess is a bit more sedate.
  
• better pools for the kids (Freedom class)
  

They both have:

• good specialty restaurants
  
• adequate food in the MDR
  
• similar decor (although Princess is a bit more muted)
  
• similar layout. I know I am contradicting myself on this one, but other than the promenade, everything (pools, solarium, fitness center, spa) are essentially in the same places
  

If we cruise w/out the grandchildren we will gravitate to Princess. With kids, we will absolutely go RCI. They both have a great product! Happy cruising!

[Charles4515]

We are booked on the transatlantic IOS April 12. They would not let us use our Future Cruise Booking.: I am trying to get them to honor that, but so far all I get back from them are polite form letters. If anyone can give me another way to contact them I would appreciate it. We also like Princess and if this is not settled, that is where we will be cruising. I guess they don't care about individuals any more or loyalty. I also don't like the idea of RCL blocking seats with ropes for Suite passengers in the theater and pool side. I guess the rest of us are second class citizens.

cotian dgcozart@msn.com :(

 

That sailing is so cheap I don't see much cause to complain about them not letting you use your future cruise booking. I looked at it and it started at $399 per person and for a 13 day cruise.