RCI vs. DCL

I don’t frequently post on CC, but lurk on here quite a bit. We just got off the Oasis on Sunday, had a great time with our friends...But, I cannot wait to return to DCL. Don’t get me wrong, we enjoyed ourselves with 15 of our neighbors and their kids, the ship was in excellent shape, the shows were fantastic (didn’t see Cats)...

We get tremendous Interline deals, on all lines, as I fly for a commercial carrier, so we take full advantage of the steep discounts on cruises. This was our 43rd Cruise overall, the vast majority have been on RCI (Diamond Members), but haven’t sailed on them since we did the Freedom back in 2007. The past 9 cruises have all been on DCL. So this was a good gauge of the differences.

Noticeably different was the service. It wasn’t horrible, but it definelty baffling at times. For instance, we ate at one of the restaurants onboard, and the silverware was nowhere to be found. It was empty. A neighbor of ours had asked if she was not seeing it, or had missed it, and the woman looked at the empty container where it was suppose to be, and said (pretty rudely) I’ll get to it when I can. Meanwhile, by this time, everyone’s food was getting cold, to the point our neighbor was no longer interested in eating it. It literally took the woman 10 minutes to get the silverware. Another night, my DW’s entree never showed up while eating at the MDR, and after asking three times about it. So, she just had her Caeser Salad, and a appetizer that evening. Every time we have sailed on DCL, it’s been top notch. They really go out of their way to make you feel special.

Other things we noticed that we didn’t care for, but we didn’t think would bother us that much, because of reviews we had read. There are way too many passengers onboard. To get in the buffet, you had to wait in line many times, the promenade felt cramped at times, the smoking On port side made it seem like a bingo hall, and honestly, there isn’t many more activities to do onboard than there were on the Freedom.

It seems like they just made the ship massive, and just added a ton more staterooms. If it rains all day, as it did on the last day of our cruise, there is literally not much you can do other than shop in the promenade or go to the casino. The movies in the room are $11.99, whereas on DCL they are free. There isn’t a movie theater, and the only screens were by the aqua theater outside. The kids clubs, you can’t even compare the two. If you want to get in touch with your party or the party you are traveling with, make sure you bring a walkie, Because they don’t have wave phones or the ability to text via the app like DCL. Fake Haiti was nice, but not Castaway nice.

In all, would we cruise RCI again...yeah, if the price is right. Probably not the Oasis class, as it’s just way too big, and bigger isn’t always better. 😂DCL ships are the perfect size with about 2,500-3,000 less passengers. Has anyone that sailed on both felt similarly?

Thanks for your review, I find it very helpful. I have been tempted to cruise on one of these RCCL mega ships because I think my kids might like some of the activities but the size of the ship makes me nervous and the layout seems like it would get old after a day or two. I also wonder if you really get much chance to do the activities without standing in line for long times with all the people on the ship. I actually did book once for a few weeks before I cancelled and I found all the work you had to do to plan out your shows to be off putting.

We will be on the anthem out of NYC this fall.

We did the magic last year and absolutely loved it.

We were about to book it this year, but found that a balcony this year was $6900.

The equivalent room on the anthem was $2500; this was a no brainer for us.

We will see how the experience compares.

We will be on the anthem out of NYC this fall.

 

We did the magic last year and absolutely loved it.

We were about to book it this year, but found that a balcony this year was $6900.

The equivalent room on the anthem was $2500; this was a no brainer for us.

 

We will see how the experience compares.

This is exactly the problem. We love DCL, but we find that we can get an equivalent room on other lines for about 1/3 the cost of DCL. That makes one seriously re-evaluate choices.

Don't get me wrong. There are definitely things that DCL does best. But when the issue becomes twice as long a cruise plus high end excursions for the cost of the shorter DCL cruise, we can live without the mouse. And DCL continues to fill ships, so they don't miss us!

No doubt. Royal is definitely easier on the wallet, especially when they have kids sail free. The Anthem isn’t quite as big as the Oasis class ships, and holds about 1,500-2,000 less people. Have heard many great things about it. Don’t get me wrong, we had a great time, but I don’t think RCI can keep making the ships bigger, just because of the sheer volume of passengers on the ship.

We waited for the Flowrider about the same as the Aquaduck on the Dream & Fantasy, the zip line we did once. The biggest issues are when it rains and sea days getting a chair at the pool, and waiting for tables at Windjammers. For us, it was great that we got to try the larger ship, but I think we prefer the Midrange size. Many enjoy the mega ships.

With that being said, we’ve been on all the lines, and DCL, Royal, & NCL are probably the three that we enjoyed the most. I’d love to hear your take on the Anthem when you get back. Heard it’s great!