kinggartk

November 23, 2018

4 hours ago, BNBR said:

THIS IS WHAT YOU DO ON CARNIVAL!!!! Lol. You wait in line until they open the seating. If you don't want to wait in line on Oasis (just like Carnival), head over 10 - 15 minutes before the show and walk in. In my many Oasis-class sailings I have never once seen no seating available if you show up without reservations other than the comedy club. So your claim is simply invalid. I have shown up to shows plenty of times without reservations and never once could I not find a decent seat. The Amber theater is rarely more than 30 - 50% full when standby opens up, and then it fills in. We make reservations before the trip based on what we think we'll want to do, but almost always end up changing and just walking in to a different scheduled show without a reservation.

I also find your comments funny about making reservations in advance difficult because it's your "VACATION" - I mean, you must absolutely hate having dinner reservations every night you have to deal with. I'm surprised you don't do MTD. Have you ever booked an excursion? Reservation, times, the horror!!!!!

And again, that's not even a great comparison because with shows - you DON'T NEED RESERVATIONS. You can walk in 10 minutes before and virtually always find a seat.

I spent more time waiting in line on this recent Oasis cruise for shows I had reservations for than I have ever spent on Carnival for a show. I had reservations for the Ice Show and had to wait in line to get in. I had reservations for the Aqua Show and had to wait in line to get in. I did NOT walk right in for these shows. I had reservations for both and still had crappy seats. If I had no reservation, I would have either been left out all together or been left standing in the back watching.

I obviously offended you in some way...with my personal opinion.

November 23, 2018

20 hours ago, NavarreCruiser said:

.... So back off a little and relax.

I could say the same to you.

November 23, 2018

On 11/21/2018 at 5:30 PM, BNBR said:

By the way, this is also just simply untrue. The shows are scheduled around early and late dining. There are shows at 5PM sometimes and often the late dining takes a 10:30 show time while early might have an 8:30 show time. With some shows actually being at 2:30 or so on sea days, too. Do you happen to have your "Don't Miss The Show" schedule? Because I think you just didn't pay attention..... The shows are at all sorts of times to accommodate everyone.

Its not untrue at all. The Elvis impresonator show was only available at 10:30 PM. Come Fly with me was only Available at 10:30 PM. I don't remember the other shows times at this point...but I do know we carried our cruise compass around with us all the time and found ourselves twiddling our thumbs everyday from 5:00-8:00 waiting for our MDR time.

November 23, 2018

On 11/21/2018 at 5:24 PM, BNBR said:

I just want to point out that this makes no sense at all. If you don't like making reservations or skipping lines, then go stand in line just like you would do on Carnival. There is a line that forms for standby all the same. Why you don't like the ability to skip the line, I have no idea. But you are certainly entitled to that preference.

Yes...wait in standby line and hope there is a seat available...that works great. I don't like having to make reservations in advance...because I don't know what I'm going to feel like doing on the given day of my VACATION.

November 21, 2018

2 hours ago, NavarreCruiser said:

I guess the phrase "Carnival wins" seems to indicate an experienced fleet-wide analysis which is obviously not the case. The Op has every right to his/her opinion I just objected to the way it was presented.

With all due respect....you didn't object to the way it was presented...you said I wasn't experienced enough to render an opinion. Would it have made you happier if I said "Carnival Wins, IMO"? If so, I will happily go back and add those 3 little letters.

Just to reiterate...this was not intended to be a "Bash RCL" thread. I enjoyed my cruise with RCL and will happily do it again.

I think the main problem here is that you disagree with my opinion....not the way I presented it. And since I'm not an expert like you...it is audacious that I actually come here and express my opinion.

November 21, 2018

15 minutes ago, John&LaLa said:

Who is Whitney Thore?

Apparently some reality TV personality. I'd never heard of her before a couple of days ago.

November 21, 2018

16 minutes ago, NavarreCruiser said:

In my opinion, you don't have enough cruise experience to make a fair judgment on the 2 lines. 6 cruises total just gets your toe in the pool so to speak. You did accurately relate your history but 1 RCCL cruise is not enough to declare one cruise line winning over the other.

This is why I made a point to use the words "Opinion" and "Preference" and "Perception" many times in my write up. These are just the ramblings of a casual cruiser and my personal observations. I don't claim to be an expert as you obviously are.

November 21, 2018

I just returned from Oasis. There is a thread talking about Whitney Thore being onboard....I'm pretty sure I saw her. However, I kept seeing this fella around the cruise that I swear I've seen before.

He looked to be about 70-80ish was thin and had thin whispy gray hair that was kindof dishevelled looking. His hair kindof fluffed out on the sides and very thin on the top. He was always dressed neatly but in rather eccentric looking clothes. He was very friendly and outgoing. He talked to everybody...and frequently talked politics.

I'm wondering if anyone saw him...and if so, do you think he is famous or am I just imagining it. If he is famous...does anyone know who he might be? I'm thinking an actor or comedian, but not one active currently.

November 21, 2018

(Disclaimer: I posted this same thread on the RCL board....posting here to reach a different audience.)

I'll try not to provoke an us vs them war...and I'll try not to be biased.

I just completed my first RCL cruise aboard Oasis. I'll start by saying Oasis is a beautiful and massive ship. It rarely felt crowded. The staff was all very nice.

Carnival has no ship to compare to Oasis. In that category...RCL wins Hands Down.

Staff for both cruislines are excellent... This one is a draw.

Main Dining Room...that's where Carnival shines in my opinion. Carnival seems to have a more varied menu from night to night in the MDR than does RCL. RCL had many items repeated night after night with only a couple of changes from night to night. Carnival on the other hand...has only a couple of items that show up each night while the rest of the menu changes each night. Also...Carnival has Warm Chocolate Melting cake...RCL trys to replicate...but fails. Carnival wins hands down.

All other food venues. Carnival and RCL are pretty equal. Food Quality is fairly equal across both cruiselines. This one is a draw.

I don't like the reservation system for shows on RCL. This is just my preference, others may feel different. Carnival Wins

I like that Carnival has their shows scheduled to work around MDR schedules. If I have late dinning, I can go to the early show. If I have early dinning, I can go to the late show. RCL seemed to only have shows at one time (10:30). We had 8:00 dinning and found ourselves with not much to do from 5:00 PM to 8:00 PM. On carnival...we would have been seeing a show during that time. Carnival Wins.

Carnival seems to have more going on during the day than RCL...maybe that's just my perception. I wanted to do more than sit in a lounger by the pool during the day...but just didn't find much more to do during those times. Carnival Wins.

The Quality of the show are hit or miss from cruise to cruise. The Water show was fantastic...Cats was very good, the Ice Show was good. Come Fly with me was a snoozer and singers were not good. Overall Carnival and RCL are equal when it comes to the Shows...but the Water Show and Ice Show put RCL over the top. RCL Wins (because of the Ice and Water shows)

RCL communication with passengers was a little lacking. We had to figure out on our one what documents to take with us to the various ports. RCL gave us very little information about when and where to meet for excursions. There was information provided on the tickets them selves...but finding the various excursion meeting locations was a crapshoot...especially on Labadee. Carnival Wins.

Finally...Price. This cruise seemed to be much more expensive than any of the cruises I have taken on Carnival. Carnival Wins.

Disclaimer: I have been on 5 Carnival Cruises and one RCL cruise. I would definitely sail RCL again...but this Cruise on RCL helped me confirm I'm partial to Carnival. I tried not to be biased...but...maybe I failed.

November 21, 2018

10 hours ago, sayvan said:

We have sailed Carnival many many times (top tier in their program), Celebrity, Princess, Norwegian and Holland America. Each offer there own unique experience. In the last year and half we have added three (3) Royal Caribbean cruises to our resume. We love Royal. Cant wait to hit the larger ships too! We also love all the other lines we have been on. Its a vacation and I'm not at work! I would agree with many of the comparisons the OP provided and also disagree with some. I think if you go on vacation and plan to do comparisons you are already setting yourself up for some disappointment. As I said earlier, each line has its own unique things to offer. We will be back on Navigator in a few weeks and the only comparison I will be doing is when I compare the different drinks I order!

We didn't go...planning to do comparisons, but it's human nature to compare. And...to be clear...we thoroughly enjoyed our cruise and wouldn't hesitate to sail with RCL again. This was not intended to be a bash RCL segment...it was just observations.

November 20, 2018