Carnival cruiser back from Royal Caribbean- my thoughts and comparisons.

Hello all! I completed my second Royal Caribbean cruise last week on the Mariner of the Seas. This was one of the unique itineraries from Singapore to Malaysia and Thailand for 7 days. I had a wonderful time! The ship was beautiful, service and food were great, and the itinerary had the most amazing ports. I have sailed Carnival 13 times and my first Royal Caribbean cruise was 3 years ago on the Navigator of the Seas to the Mediterranean. I will be writing a full picture review as I do after all of my cruises and plan to start on it at some point in the next week when I've had a chance to sort through my pictures. So that I'm not comparing Carnival and Royal Caribbean the whole review, I thought I'd write separately about how I think the two lines compare. I think there are some things that Royal definitely does better, and believe it or not, I think there are some things that Carnival does better. Shocker, I know! :eek: People are always asking what are the major differences in the two, so I'm hoping this will help someone out. At the end of each post, I'll point out who I think did what better.

I know there are a few things that were done differently with this being an Asia sailing, and I kept that in mind as I wrote this. I will be posting this on both the Carnival and Royal Caribbean boards and tried to be as objective as possible. Anyone that has read a review of mine knows that when something is great I say how fabulous it is, but if something sucks I don't hold back there either. I'm open to all comments and feedback and know that we might agree to disagree on some points, but I just ask that everyone stays respectful. I know how things can turn south real fast around here. :) Again, this is based on MY experience. With all that being said, here I go.

Itineraries

Carnival: In addition to having your standard Caribbean itineraries, Carnival has seasonal sailings to Alaska, Canada/New England, and special cruises to Hawaii and Bermuda. They have two ships based year round in Australia and have announced plans to send two ships to China in the next 3 years. Occasionally, they will offer European cruises, but usually that's only when a new ship debuts.

Royal Caribbean: In addition to offering the same as above, Royal Caribbean has ships sailing from some pretty awesome places all over the world. Wanna cruise from Brazil? Sure, why not! Dubai, go for it! Singapore, heck yeah!

My winner- Royal Caribbean

The Ship

It's kind of hard to compare Carnival ships and Royal Caribbean ships. They're just so different. The Mariner is a part of the Voyager class ships. Size wise, I could compare her to Carnival's Dream class ships. Class wise, she's more like a ship in the Conquest class, as she's not one of the newest or the biggest. Again, it's a hard comparison, but just for the sake of an argument, I'll compare the Mariner with my last Carnival ship, the Magic.

Carnival Magic: Certain places along the promenade have a bit of an open feeling. There are lots of windows to peek out and doors all around where you can get some fresh air. In addition to the buffet, you have many free options for food, such as the Mongolian Wok, sea side BBQ on sea days, Italian restaurant for lunch, and burrito bar. The Waterworks area by the pool is a huge area to splash around and has two waterslides. Sports Square has lots of games such as miniature golf and pool tables plus the ropes course. The adults only 21 and up Serenity area has plenty of lounge chairs, hammocks, two hot tubs, as well as its own bar.

Mariner of the Seas: Royal's promenade feels kind of enclosed and like a mall. There were some high end stores for shopping like Coach and Michael Kors. There aren't as many free food options. Johnny Rockets has a $7 surcharge. For fun you have the rock climbing wall, ice skating, miniature golf, and an in line skating track. The Solarium is ages 16 and up with two whirlpools and a pool.

My winner- Tie, they're both great ships with plenty to offer.

The Stateroom

I was in an interior cabin overlooking the promenade. It's not a true interior as it has a window, but it's not considered an outside as there is no ocean view. The closest comparison would be to Carnival's interior with a picture window 4J category.

Carnival: Carnival's cabins are so much more spacious! If I remember correctly, 4J's do have a sofa. You have 3 closets and large drawers, ample space for 2-3 people to store everything. Two bathrobes are automatically placed in every closet and there are two beach towels.

Royal Caribbean: Quite a bit smaller. Bathrobes are only given to diamond or pinnacle or one of those statuses I'm not close to yet lol. Everyone on the board here said just ask your cabin steward for one and he'll bring it, but as nice and pleasant as he was, he told me no. You have to go to the towel hut by the pool on deck 11 to get your beach towels; they don't automatically put them there for your convenience. Neither of those are a huge deal to upset me, but it's a little detail I did miss. I like that the promenade staterooms have two couches. The one in the window is the perfect place to sit and people watch and you have the best view of the promenade parades.

My winner- Carnival

Past Guest Perks

Carnival: Pretty much all the good perks are for platinum members and above. Red and gold members (second cruise-75 says sailed) get two free bottles of water placed in your stateroom as well as a free drink coupon that can be used only on the last day of the cruise. Platinum members get priority embarkation and debarkation, free bags of laundry, invites to the past guest party, a plate of cookies and chocolate covered strawberries sent you your room, past guest gift each cruise, and few other small perks.

Royal Caribbean: As a gold member only on my second cruise, there was a line for priority embarkation for gold members. Nice! I bypassed probably close to 100 people in the regular line. I got to attend the past guest party with champagne, rum punch and screwdrivers flowing very freely. Past guests also get coupons loaded onto their sea pass card, including buy one get one free glass of wine, 10% off a wifi package, and quite a few other discounts around the ship.

My winner (based on second cruiser status on both)- Royal Caribbean

Now for the most controversial subject ever- Food! :D

The Buffet

Carnival: The lido buffets have your standard buffet fare. Desserts are very hit or miss, but usually a miss. Each say has a different food theme- Italian, American, Caribbean, etc. You get in line for the buffet and you wait. And wait. And then you wait some more. There are only two long lines and you could be waiting for 20 minutes (or longer during peak times) to get something to eat.

Royal Caribbean: The Windjammer is set up so much better! Instead of having two large food stations, there are multiple smaller stations so you're never waiting in line. The Windjammer is well designed to promote passenger flow. There was a gluten free station, soup stations, salad stations (with cold meats like grilled chicken, great feature), sushi, and make your own sandwich. The variety was very large. I absolutely LOVE that they have turkey sausage at the breakfast buffet as Carnival only has pork sausage there. The lemonade was pretty gross but the desserts were all delicious!

My winner- Royal Caribbean

The Main Dining Room Experience

Carnival: I love coming to the main dining room every night for dinner. When you arrive on your first night, you show a hostess your sail and sign card and she will walk you to your table. Seven of my Carnival cruises were solo, and I have always been seated at a table either with other solos or with several small groups of 2-3 friends roughly around my age. I am a very, very, very, very picky eater. I don't eat beef, pork, fish, or seafood, just chicken and turkey. Carnival always has several options that I can eat every night on the every day menu in addition to at least one or two choices on the nightly features menu. I know a lot of people don't like the waiters singing and dancing, but I love it and look forward to it every night. That and my favorite warm chocolate melting cake!

Royal Caribbean: I arrived to the dining room (late seating) and gave the host my table number. He simple pointed to my left and said back that way. It took a minute but I had to go table to table looking for my number. I was hoping to be at a large table where I could meet new friends and enjoy good conversation, but was disappointed to see it was a 4 top with an older couple already into their salads. It would have been way too awkward to join them, so I went back to the host stand to ask for a different table. The next one they gave me didn't seem to be a good match either. I was honestly ready to give up and go to the Windjammer until I saw a table with two girls my age at a large table with empty seats and asked if I could sit there. Again, I'm a super picky eater, and ended up eating mostly off the every day menu as the choices all contained something I don't eat. Service was good, but tended to be a bit slow. It was at least 30 minutes for us to get our starters one night. We did get serenaded by the waiters one evening, I think the first formal night. I only went 3 nights of the cruise and ate at the Windjammer the rest of the time. I didn't feel like I was missing anything at all in the dining room.

My winner- Carnival

Late Night Dining Options

Carnival: On the longer cruises, they have a late night Mexican buffet one night. There's 24 hour pizza and ice cream. Sometimes you might get lucky and find hot dogs, fries and cookies at the lido buffet late, but don't count on that every night. Room service is free all night and is delivered relatively fast.

Royal Caribbean: The Windjammer is open from 10:30 pm to various times between midnight and 5:30 am with real food options, including a mini salad bar and plenty of hot food options and dessert. At Cafe Promenade, you have 24 hour pizza and a variety of sandwiches and desserts. They do add a $3.95 room service surcharge from 12-5 am. Definitely more and better options.

My winner- Royal Caribbean

Entertainment & Nightlife

Carnival: They have an overall more "fun" vibe. There are lots of activities during the day, both poolside and inside such as trivia and dance classes. Sail away parties are typically big and you have deck parties at night throughout the cruise. The nightlife is pretty good with the Punchliner Comedy Club, piano bar, karaoke, different venues with live music, and the night club. The production shows to me compare to a high school musical, although the last couple I've seen weren't half bad.

Royal Caribbean: They have more a relaxed, chill kind of vibe. The parades down the Promenade with the Dreamworks characters was fun for all ages. The production shows remind me of cheap Vegas and seem to have a little more thought put into the production overall than Carnival. There are ice skating shows, which sadly I missed, but remember them to be enjoyable from the Navigator. A magician performed a show the last night. Quest was listed in the Cruise Compass but wasn't held. Similarly, there's karaoke, lots of live music, and a night club.

My winner- Another tie, maybe with a slight edge to Carnival because I love the deck parties and comedy shows. I didn't expect a comedian on this sailing though and don't know if they're offered on Caribbean cruises.

Wifi

Carnival: I have always taken advantage of the pay as you go option for 75¢ a minute or would buy a block of minutes that I could use any time for a fixed price. This was available on my last cruise in June, but I understand that now Carnival has a new wifi pricing system. The new plans you can purchase for a 24 hour period or for the entire cruise. The social plan is $5 and gives you access to all the major social media sites, and the value plan is $16 a day for everything else. Sadly, it appears the pay by the minute plan is gone.

Royal Caribbean: The wifi onboard was expensive! The cheapest plan was $40 for 24 hours. I usually only need the Internet a few minutes a day, for the most part just to check confirmation emails for tours or to upload a few pictures to social media, and I refuse to pay $40 for that when most ports offer free wifi.

My winner- Carnival

Laundry

Carnival: All ships in Carnival's fleet have several self service laundry rooms. You can wash and dry a load for $3 and there are irons for you to handle your wrinkled clothes. You can have a bag of laundry sent out for $15. Dry cleaning is also available and they worked a miracle getting a red wine stain out of my tan dress.

Royal Caribbean: There are no self service laundry rooms on any ship. A bag of laundry will cost you a whopping $30! To have one dress sent out to be pressed was $6. That would have been an extra $30 just to have 5 of my dresses for dinner ironed. If you're traveling with several family members and doing a long cruise or a back to back and need to refresh your laundry at some point, that's going to add up to be a lot of money.

My winner- Carnival

Meet and Greet

Carnival: If you have a fun roll call and want to get together for a meet up on board, you have to coordinate it yourself. Smaller roll calls will usually say something like hey lets meet at the pool bar at 2 pm on embarkation day. Larger roll calls will have a designated person to contact Carnival and book a room for a couple of hours, usually on the first sea day. Most parties you pay about $20 to said person in advance and they pay Carnival, and the party is open bar with several predetermined drinks available. If you contact John Heald (Carnival's brand ambassador) ahead of time, he'll usually send a bottle or two of champagne and a couple of ships on a stick (little gold trophy) to pass out as door prizes. Basically, nothing is sponsored by the cruise line and you plan it all on your own.

Royal Caribbean: Cruise Critic has teamed up Royal and offer what's called a meet and mingle for roll calls. You need at least 25 people to sign up in advance. An invitation will be placed in your room with the time and date, plus you will receive an email prior to sailing. Coffee and cookies were available. The activities director and a second member from her team were present and said a few words. Everyone got a gift just for showing up, and about 10 prizes ranging from baseball caps to bottles of wine were raffled. This was very well done!

My winner- Royal Caribbean

Some things were pretty equal, such as the gym, spa, arcade, and casino. There were a few popular Asian table games added that I've never seen before.

So those are my thoughts. I had a great trip and visited some of the most beautiful places I have ever seen. What I'm going to say next might run up the blood pressure of some of you Loyal Royals, just a warning. LOL ;)

Royal Caribbean is a great cruise line and they have a lot to offer their guests for an enjoyable and memorable vacation. However after sailing them twice now, I'm sorry but I just can't buy into the hype that they are so much more superior and better than Carnival. I just can't. To me, that would be like saying Wendy's is so much better than Burger King or Macy's is so much better than Dillard's. They all offer similar products but have a different way of doing things. I'm not saying one is better than the other. I know some people have tried Carnival and didn't like them, and that's ok. The same can be said vice versa as all have our preferences. However if you were to offer me a free cruise and I HAD to pick only one, I would choose Carnival. Again I think Royal Caribbean is a great company with a great product and I wouldn't hesitate to sail on them again. I have had my eye on some more of Royal's big international itineraries, but I would like to sail them from Florida one day as well.

Thanks for taking the time to read! The full review will be coming soon in the days ahead. :)

The Stateroom

I was in an interior cabin overlooking the promenade. It's not a true interior as it has a window, but it's not considered an outside as there is no ocean view. The closest comparison would be to Carnival's interior with a picture window 4J category.

 

Carnival: Carnival's cabins are so much more spacious! If I remember correctly, 4J's do have a sofa. You have 3 closets and large drawers, ample space for 2-3 people to store everything. Two bathrobes are automatically placed in every closet and there are two beach towels.

 

Royal Caribbean: Quite a bit smaller. Bathrobes are only given to diamond or pinnacle or one of those statuses I'm not close to yet lol. Everyone on the board here said just ask your cabin steward for one and he'll bring it, but as nice and pleasant as he was, he told me no. You have to go to the towel hut by the pool on deck 11 to get your beach towels; they don't automatically put them there for your convenience. Neither of those are a huge deal to upset me, but it's a little detail I did miss. I like that the promenade staterooms have two couches. The one in the window is the perfect place to sit and people watch and you have the best view of the promenade parades.

 

My winner- Carnival

 

 

This really really really surprises me. Usually the only reason for refusing to bring you a robe is that they have run out, because of all of the Platinum and up and suite passengers on board. And it doesn't happen all that often, from what I hear. And I would expect FEWER of those on your cruise.

Oh well. Sorry that he wouldn't bring you a robe. :o

Thank you for putting this together. I've read several of your Carnival reviews and think they are fabulous. As a soon-to-be-first-timer on Royal Caribbean, I found your comparison very helpful. Especially the food areas. I have a fondness for Carnival pizza and warm chocolate melting cake. I'm glad to hear about the wider variety of free options at night.

Thank you for your unbiased comparison for Carnival and RCCL. I appreciate that you have cruised with Royal 2 times to make the comparison.

I'm seriously considering a cruise on Carnival. Sailing out of CA is mighty inciting. Your review will help me make my decision.

I'm looking forward to your full review.

Thank you so much for this review :) Very good job! Im also glad you mentioned Magic as I will be on Magic in April. I have to say Im looking forward to it and will do my best to be as unbiased are you have been with your review. Im in a deck 11 4J looking straight out the front of the ship :)

Interesting that you brought up that the Windjammer was open late nights. I have not seen this on any Royal cruise Ive been on! Maybe I just didnt go looking or Im wondering if it was because this particular itinerary?

Thank you so much for this review :) Very good job! Im also glad you mentioned Magic as I will be on Magic in April. I have to say Im looking forward to it and will do my best to be as unbiased are you have been with your review. Im in a deck 11 4J looking straight out the front of the ship :)

 

Interesting that you brought up that the Windjammer was open late nights. I have not seen this on any Royal cruise Ive been on! Maybe I just didnt go looking or Im wondering if it was because this particular itinerary?

I was wondering the same thing. I have always seen the windjammer close at 9:30pm or 10pm maybe as you said it was the itenerary??? I would be curious what others say ( I sail almost exclusively caribbean sailings)

This really really really surprises me. Usually the only reason for refusing to bring you a robe is that they have run out, because of all of the Platinum and up and suite passengers on board. And it doesn't happen all that often, from what I hear. And I would expect FEWER of those on your cruise.

 

Oh well. Sorry that he wouldn't bring you a robe. :o

It was no big deal, just kind of a surprise that he said no when I just KNEW he was gonna say sure, I'll be right back. Lol :p I might have gotten a different answer from a different cabin steward, who knows.

Thank you for putting this together. I've read several of your Carnival reviews and think they are fabulous. As a soon-to-be-first-timer on Royal Caribbean, I found your comparison very helpful. Especially the food areas. I have a fondness for Carnival pizza and warm chocolate melting cake. I'm glad to hear about the wider variety of free options at night.

You're so welcome! You'll enjoy your cruise for sure. :)

Thank you for your unbiased comparison for Carnival and RCCL. I appreciate that you have cruised with Royal 2 times to make the comparison.

 

I'm seriously considering a cruise on Carnival. Sailing out of CA is mighty inciting. Your review will help me make my decision.

 

I'm looking forward to your full review.

Thanks for reading! I looked at a similar itinerary on Princess and almost gave them a try, but I figured I might have a little more fun on Royal. Do they not have any ships in California?

Thank you so much for this review :) Very good job! Im also glad you mentioned Magic as I will be on Magic in April. I have to say Im looking forward to it and will do my best to be as unbiased are you have been with your review. Im in a deck 11 4J looking straight out the front of the ship :)

 

Interesting that you brought up that the Windjammer was open late nights. I have not seen this on any Royal cruise Ive been on! Maybe I just didnt go looking or Im wondering if it was because this particular itinerary?

I have a Magic review. Go read it! :D I've been in a 4J once and loved it. It's like you have your own private balcony out front. I discovered the late night Windjammer food maybe around day 3. I thought it was fleet wide? I don't know. :confused:

I was wondering the same thing. I have always seen the windjammer close at 9:30pm or 10pm maybe as you said it was the itenerary??? I would be curious what others say ( I sail almost exclusively caribbean sailings)

The WJ would close at 9 pm and then reopen again. It might have been the itinerary. Do they not charge for room service late at night on Caribbean sailings though?

So those are my thoughts. I had a great trip and visited some of the most beautiful places I have ever seen. What I'm going to say next might run up the blood pressure of some of you Loyal Royals, just a warning. LOL ;)

 

Royal Caribbean is a great cruise line and they have a lot to offer their guests for an enjoyable and memorable vacation. However after sailing them twice now, I'm sorry but I just can't buy into the hype that they are so much more superior and better than Carnival. I just can't. To me, that would be like saying Wendy's is so much better than Burger King or Macy's is so much better than Dillard's. They all offer similar products but have a different way of doing things. I'm not saying one is better than the other. I know some people have tried Carnival and didn't like them, and that's ok. The same can be said vice versa as all have our preferences. However if you were to offer me a free cruise and I HAD to pick only one, I would choose Carnival. Again I think Royal Caribbean is a great company with a great product and I wouldn't hesitate to sail on them again. I have had my eye on some more of Royal's big international itineraries, but I would like to sail them from Florida one day as well.

 

Thanks for taking the time to read! The full review will be coming soon in the days ahead. :)

I agree with you there. I prefer Royal, because I've sailed enough to be Diamond and like the perks. Have also sailed on Carnival 4 (5?) times and the similarities outnumber the differences.

Thanks for such an upbeat, objective and thorough comparison between RCCL and Carnival! It just goes to show how having a great attitude can make a good vacation a spectacular one....looking forward to your review and photos. :)

Hey GAPEARL,

Liked your comparisons

Just one that was off IMO

When you went to the MDR and weren't seated, you mentioned that your table mates were into their salads. That means to me you were late. If you were on time with the crowd the first night you would have been escorted to your table. When you showed up those escorts (waiters) are busy doing their job. Waiting on people

Very fair comparison. It would have frosted my ass if the hostess just pointed to a section of the dining room. That's never happened to me. As far as the hype, I think that comes more from people that have sailed the newest ships. From the Freedom Class on, Royal really zeroed in on innovation and of course, the Oasis Class is somewhat incomparable.

I can't wait to read your review. After my husband's first Carnival Cruise (after 2 on Royal), he said "never again." It was my first cruise and I enjoyed it, so I'll be looking forward to comparing the two myself. I am already missing my robe and bigger cabin though--little things like that for less money can really make a difference when other things are equal.

Hey GAPEARL,

Liked your comparisons

Just one that was off IMO

When you went to the MDR and weren't seated, you mentioned that your table mates were into their salads. That means to me you were late. If you were on time with the crowd the first night you would have been escorted to your table. When you showed up those escorts (waiters) are busy doing their job. Waiting on people

To the OP, I have to agree with this poster.

Anyway, great comparison. Glad you enjoyed the cruise!

Hey GAPEARL,

Liked your comparisons

Just one that was off IMO

When you went to the MDR and weren't seated, you mentioned that your table mates were into their salads. That means to me you were late. If you were on time with the crowd the first night you would have been escorted to your table. When you showed up those escorts (waiters) are busy doing their job. Waiting on people

To the OP, I have to agree with this poster.

 

Anyway, great comparison. Glad you enjoyed the cruise!

I knew someone would bring that up at some point. :)

You have until 8:45 pm to be seated. The main dining room opens at 8 pm and I arrived at 8:15. Yes I was late, however I was well within the allotted time. But also let me say that there was no one in line behind me and 3 people at the host stand, so I'm sorry but that's not an excuse. After returning to speak with them twice, it was 8:30 when I was finally seated. Even if I was 10-15 minutes late on Carnival, I've still been escorted to my table and not left on my own to find where I'm going.

GApearl, thank you for the comparison review! Very well done and enjoyed your perspective. :)

We have been on both cruise lines and loved both but give the edge to Royal Caribbean. I just love their ships better and the flow of getting from bow to aft is easier, unlike most of Carnival's ships you have to remember which decks bypass the dinning room in the middle of the ship. The only Carnival ships that you do not have that problem are the Spirit Class ships where the dinning room is aft.

Great comparison. Also have to agree with the last couple of posters. Assuming you had the standard normal late seating, not My Time Dining, you should have been able to request what size table you wished to be seated at. I always request "large table" when making my original booking and have never had a small table.

Have always found first night to be very busy, kind of organized chaos, with staff escorting people to specific sides/areas of the dining room and then other staff finding the specific table. Always a huge crowd waiting for dining room doors to open, and then everyone walking in.

I knew someone would bring that up at some point. :)

You have until 8:45 pm to be seated. The main dining room opens at 8 pm and I arrived at 8:15. Yes I was late, however I was well within the allotted time. But also let me say that there was no one in line behind me and 3 people at the host stand, so I'm sorry but that's not an excuse. After returning to speak with them twice, it was 8:30 when I was finally seated. Even if I was 10-15 minutes late on Carnival, I've still been escorted to my table and not left on my own to find where I'm going.

Don't know where you ever heard that. You have late sitting that begins at 8. That's when you go. With your cruising experience, you should know how late comers affect the flow

If you don't want to go at correct time, you book MTD

I knew someone would bring that up at some point. :)

 

You have until 8:45 pm to be seated. The main dining room opens at 8 pm and I arrived at 8:15. Yes I was late, however I was well within the allotted time. But also let me say that there was no one in line behind me and 3 people at the host stand, so I'm sorry but that's not an excuse. After returning to speak with them twice, it was 8:30 when I was finally seated. Even if I was 10-15 minutes late on Carnival, I've still been escorted to my table and not left on my own to find where I'm going.

Never heard of this on RC. Late seating is usually 8:30 and you are expected to be there at 8:30. Some itineraries may have 8:00, but again no leeway.

Never heard of this on RC. Late seating is usually 8:30 and you are expected to be there at 8:30. Some itineraries may have 8:00, but again no leeway.

I suspect she was a bit more than 15 minutes late also. Pretty unusual to get appetizers, especially the first night, in 15 minutes from doors opening

 

Royal Caribbean is a great cruise line and they have a lot to offer their guests for an enjoyable and memorable vacation. However after sailing them twice now, I'm sorry but I just can't buy into the hype that they are so much more superior and better than Carnival. I just can't.[...]However if you were to offer me a free cruise and I HAD to pick only one, I would choose Carnival.

I agree with your overall impression that they are more alike than not, but everything you preferred Carnival over is the stuff about Carnival I didn't like.

so if our roles were reversed I'd pick Royal for my free cruise heheheh