Emerald Princess v. Mariner OTS Comparisons

Also posted on the RC board at: http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?p=18536112#post18536112

 

We had the good fortune to spend 20 nights (2-10 night cruises B2B) on the Emerald Princess in January, return home for 3 weeks, and then spend 9 nights (a 2 night pre-inaugural followed by a 7 night cruise) on the Mariner of the Seas. It was interesting to be on two ships with almost the same passenger load (between 3100 and 3200 passengers) in such a short period of time, and I took copious notes for comparison purposes. The comparisons are based on our experience. We tried to be factual at all times (i.e. citing specific examples, as opposed to making broad generalizations), but, of course, it’s impossible to keep personal opinion entirely out of the discussion.

Any discussion of loyalty program benefits (we are Elite on Princess and Diamond on RC) will follow, as to include them really doesn’t allow a true comparison for most cruisers.

I will not be making comparisons of the specific itineraries of these cruises (Southern and Eastern Caribbean v. Mexican Riviera). Rather, I hope that these comparisons might help people choose between a Princess and RC ship for any of these itineraries. And it’s safe to assumer that the other RC Voyager class ships would be pretty similar to the Mariner, and the Crown and Ruby Princess would be pretty similar to the Emerald (with all the Grand class ships not too dissimilar).

I will not be basing any comparisons on the two day pre-inaugural Mariner cruise. This was an invitation only cruise that was unique in that everything on the ship, except for spa treatments, casino gambling and gift shops purchases was free of charge. Instead, the basis of comparison will be the 7 night Mexican Riviera cruise.

Overall Ship Appearance and Condition

Both ships were in excellent condition, and both ships are beautiful. I have to remark on the only thing not in perfect condition on the Emerald Princess – the putt putt golf course. It was in such sad shape it was basically unplayable. The Mariner putt putt golf course was in perfect shape, as was the rest of the ship. The public areas were all in excellent condition. The condition of our cabin on the Emerald was slightly better than on the Mariner, as the Emerald is over three years younger than the Mariner, but basically this was a tie.

Entertainment Venues

The Mariner is about 25,000 tons larger than the Emerald, some of which can be explained by the Royal Promenade area, which adds space, but not necessarily usable space, with the 4 deck high ceiling area.

The Royal Promenade on the Mariner is beautiful, and is very effective for passenger flow. It is a perfect venue for the Captain’s Cocktail party and provides a lot more room than the Piazza on the Emerald Princess. On the Mariner, most passenger traffic is forced onto either Deck 5 (the Promenade), or Deck 4 (the casino and Schooner Bar deck). At times, either of these can get congested, but not as congested as the Piazza and the Photo Gallery areas on the Emerald Princess. The crowding in the Piazza on the Emerald Princess is a safety hazard during performances there, and in the evenings when sales tables are set up (someone is going to get pushed down the curved staircase).

The nod for main theaters (the Savoy on the Mariner v. the Princess Theater on the Emerald) also goes to the Mariner, by a huge margin. With over 1300 seats (the Emerald Princess has between 800 and 900, depending on whose review you believe) and the same number of passengers, there is no shortage of seats for a Mariner performance. We often walked in 5 minutes or less before a show began and had a good choice of seats. The seats are amply sized, with wooden arms with drink holders. There is plenty of legroom, and, particularly on the upper levels of the theater, the seating is so sloped that there are no blocked sightlines from the heads of fellow passengers. In contrast, on the Emerald, not only are there not adequate seats, the seats are very narrow with no armrest room. Drinks must be balanced on a small arm table that pulls out of each chair’s narrow arm, which makes applause hazardous for both you and your seatmate. The lack of leg room on the Emerald makes it almost impossible to exit your seat during the performance (for bathroom breaks, since you have to get there 30-45 minutes early for the performance).

As an offset, the Emerald offers a second show lounge, the Explorer’s Lounge. The Mariner has nothing to compare to it, and so generally offers one (sometimes two, with the ice show) performance, shown twice, each evening. Princess generally offers two performances to choose from, with one of them frequently being a second night’s showing of the production shows in the Princess Theater. (For that second night’s showing, there is generally no shortage of seating, and I recommend you skip the production shows the first night in favor of the Explorer’s Lounge shows).

Entertainment in the Explorers Lounge is generally a comedian or musician, and I enjoy the more intimate setting that it offers over the larger theater. However, even in the Explorer’s Lounge (or perhaps more so), seating is too limited for the number of passengers who wish to see the shows. It is usually necessary to arrive 15 to 30 minutes early for each performance, or risk standing room only at the back of the lounge. In the case of the Explorer’s Lounge, however, seating is much more comfortable, drink service is excellent, and it’s easy to settle back and talk with new friends. The tight Princess Theater seating makes all of the above more difficult.

On Princess, we will sometimes see two different shows in a single evening. It is rarely possible to have this option on the Mariner, although a couple of evenings the ice show was a second option (some evenings it was the only option).

Speaking of ice shows…of course, the Mariner offers one and the Emerald doesn’t. The production value of the ice show is excellent, the sight lines of Studio B (the ice rink) generally very good, and even if you’re not a huge fan of figure skating, you’ll likely love this show. It’s amazing what the skaters can do on the limited ice surface, and these are really good skaters, not Olympic quality, of course, but better than most of the ice shows you’ll see locally. As a figure skate aficionado, I was in heaven at the two performances we attended (both during the two day pre-inaugural, although we would have had no trouble getting tickets at least once during the 7 night cruise). The skating rink is well used for passenger skating (with casual lessons by the professional skaters) each sea day. However, I was less pleased with its use for the Crown and Anchor loyalty parties. But more on that later….

As for other entertainment venues….the Emerald has Club Fusion and the Mariner has the Lotus Lounge. These are fairly similar in intent and usage (games shows, trivias, karaoke), but of the two, I prefer the Mariner’s Lotus Lounge for seating comfort and sight lines. It seemed that whatever we attending in Club Fusion, we were watching the entertainment more on the TV screens than on the stage; in the Lotus Lounge, the sight lines are much better. We are not big fans of the types of entertainment these two venues normally offer and so spent limited time in either place, except for the Concierge Lounge overflow on the Mariner (discussed later).

The Emerald has better and more dancing venues from which to choose. Dancing takes place each evening to live music in the Explorer’s Lounge (before, between and after shows); Club Fusion; and the Wheelhouse Bar. There is a disco each night in Skywalkers (great views down the sides of the ship and out to sea). The Mariner offers live music in Boleros (generally Latin dance) and Ellingtons (in the Crown and Anchor Lounge, great views of the ship’s pool areas and out to sea); and disco music each night in the Dragon’s Lair and some nights around the Solarium pool out on deck. I can’t help, for a minute, stating an opinion rather than fact…while the Emerald offered more live bands to dance to, the live bands on the Mariner (particularly Streamline) had a better sound and music selection.

For other live music, the Emerald offered a piano bar each night in the Martini Bar, and a sailaway band on deck each day at sailaway and a couple of times on sea days. There was a wonderful string quartet that played most evenings in the Piazza, and, along with piano music, throughout the day on sea days. The ship’s orchestra accompanied all production shows (that’s getting just too rare these days), and there was sea day musical entertainment during the Wheelhouse Pub Luncheon. The Mariner offered a sailaway band too (Riddim’ Wave, really wonderful), a string quartet in the Royal Promenade and a Piano Bar in the Schooner Bar.

Dining Areas

The dining rooms on the Mariner are nothing short of gorgeous. Here there is simply no comparison between the Emerald with its low ceilinged, intimate spaces and the Mariner, with its soaring 3 story dining room, huge staircase, chandelier and intimate seating for 2. On the Emerald, most seating for 2 is at tables with long booth seating on one side and a chair on the other, separated from other tables for 2 by a frosted glass divider. Not exactly intimate, and not entirely comfortable for the person who has to navigate the booth seating. On the Mariner, we asked for and were given a table for two, and were extremely lucky in our assignment…table 39 in the bottom (Rhapsody in Blue) dining room, only two tables away from the Captain’s table and in the 3 story open part of the dining room. One might think that it was noisy because of this, but it wasn’t, not a bit, and we really enjoyed both the views and the live music that drifted down from the stairway landing between the second and third levels of the dining room (3 piece…piano, cello and violin). Each night there was live music during dinner on the Mariner. It added a wonderful ambiance.

The buffet areas (Jade and the Windjammer) on the Mariner are much easier to navigate than the Horizon Court and Café Caribe on the Emerald. With large, open areas, and easy flow from one island to another, and even from one part of the island to another part, it is simple to get what you want and not wait in line behind others making different choices. The buffet seating areas on both ships seem about the same capacity-wise (the Mariner might be a slight bit larger), but the Emerald scores points for its outdoor seating behind the buffet. The Mariner offers only inside seating…great views, off the back of the ship, but I really missed the outdoor dining areas of the Radiance class Windjammer buffets. The buffet on the Mariner opens at 6am, and closed from 11:00am-11:30am, 2:30pm to 3:00pm, and 5:00pm to 6:30pmm and closes entirely at 9:00 at night. During the closed hours, your only food options are the Café Promenade on Deck 5, the free self serve ice cream by the pool, or room service. Unfortunately, these are the same times that we would return to the ship after a day in port, starving. The Princess buffet (either the Horizon Court or the Café Caribe) is open 24 hours a day, although it becomes the Bistro after 11pm, with made to order items (I’m told, I didn’t witness this personally).

In addition, the Emerald Princess offered a hamburger grill and a pizza oven in the pool deck areas, along with extra cost ice cream and a waffle bar in the mornings. This pool-side food is really missed on the Mariner, where you have to go into the back of the buffet area (the Windjammer) to get hamburgers or pizza slices. This required getting dressed enough to meet the dress code there (coverups at a minimum). Also, on the Emerald, there were tables and chairs at the sides of the pool areas. So, in addition to a buffet that never closed, there was food available on deck until about 9pm each day. Despite the occasional plates and other detritus around the pool on the Emerald, I missed the easy access to food. However, the Mariner offers free soft serve ice cream and yogurt from noon to 9pm each day right by the pool, and these machines were very popular.

I had been told that the International Café on the Emerald was comparable to the Café Promenade on the Mariner, but I have to disagree. We love the International Café for its coffee specialties (and coffee card) and brewed coffee. But it is the food offerings where the International Café really shines. In the mornings, it’s like a bakery, but around 11:30 the food is switched to good food, sandwiches and quiches, but also healthy chicken salad, shrimp salad, greek salad and spinach salad. We ate lunch almost every port day at the International Café and somehow it seemed much more inviting, open, light and airy than the Café Promenade. Then, each evening, there are desserts and cheeses to choose from at the International Cafe (no extra charge), along with a few extra charge items (fondue, chocolate covered strawberries, candy, caramel and chocolate covered apples, etc.)

Café Promenade offers Seattle’s Best coffee and food of some sort 24 hours a day (the offset, I guess, to Princess’s 24 hour buffet). There were the same bakery items during the morning, and pizza, sandwiches, soups, quiches and desserts the rest of the time. It was harder to find healthy food to eat at the Café Promenade than it was the International Café. Specialty coffees were available at the Café Promenade (more expensive than on Princess, with no coffee card option), and it was also the location for Ben and Jerry’s ice cream (extra cost). The ambiance of Café Promenade was entirely different than the International Café. The Café Promenade offered some seating where one could people watch on the Royal Promenade; the rest of the seating was tucked back into the restaurant and without the large window areas open to the ocean going by, it was not a place where I was compelled to linger. On the Emerald, we spent hours sitting, talking, and people watching at the International Café.

The Emerald has a relatively new offering, the Pub Lunch, at the Wheelhouse Café, on sea days. While it is fun (especially when there is live music), the menu offers only 3 or 4 items and doesn’t change. Still, with excellent service, it is great for at least one lunch each cruise.

Pool Areas

I miss the covered pool areas on both the Mariner and the Emerald. On the Radiance class ships, the covered Solarium offers a beautiful pool area for cool or windy days. On the Mariner, the Solarium, although protected, has more limited covered seating. On the Emerald, the covered pool area has been completely reworked, and is home to Movies under the Stars (MUTS), with its theater-style lounge chair seating.

Comparing pool areas, I think the Emerald comes out ahead, simply for spreading out the passenger load more fully. With the adults-only Lotus pool at the front of the ship, and Terrace pool at the back (my favorite, with great views of the ship’s wake), and then two additional pools (Neptune and Calypso, the latter is the MUTS pool), the Emerald has one more pool than the three on the Mariner (the 2 central pools are for families, and the Solarium adults only pool). Also, while I am more a hot tub person than a pool person, the freshwater pools on Princess are definitely a significant plus.

However, speaking of hot tubs, the Mariner shines in this department, with 5 huge and 2 smaller hot tubs, vs. 7 smaller hot tubs on the Emerald. (5 of the huge ones are adults only, and are covered, protected from the elements). The Emerald hot tubs seat 6-8; the large hot tubs on the Mariner can seat 12 easil,y possibly more. The Mariner hot tubs are also of varying temps, but tend to be hotter than those on the Emerald, and have true bubble action.

I really missed an aft pool and open decks on the Mariner, such as there are on the Emerald. This adults only area provides great views off the back of the ship, and is conveniently located near the buffet.

Princess used to advertise 24 hour pools and hot tubs, and RC didn’t. However, now, there is at least one pool and one hot tub on each ship open 24 hours a day, so that is no longer a differentiator.

I much prefer the Mariner for having stacks of pool towels available at the pool areas (although some of the bins for towels were empty and we were told by our cabin steward that there was a bit of a shortage of pool towels). These same towels were provided in the cabin for days on shore. For size, quality and appearance (a discreet beige, as opposed to blue and white stripes), we preferred the Mariner towels to the Emerald towels, which are not available in the pool areas. It’s nice to be able to get a towel by the pool, use it for a couple of hours and turn it in, as opposed to hauling your towel from your cabin in case you might choose to sit in a deck chair.

It’s impossible to talk about pool areas without pointing out another dramatic difference between the Emerald and the Mariner…the number of deck chairs available. We saw far less chair hogging on the Mariner, and DH, in walking the decks one morning, figured out why. There are a lot more deck chairs on the Mariner than on the Emerald…he stopped counting at 2000. People were more inclined to use chairs and then leave, without saving their chairs. Of course, there is chair hogging everywhere, but there is truly less of it on a ship where there are plenty of chairs to use. Also, we saw diligent removal of items from chairs that were being hogged on the Mariner over the course of just three sea days, and with bins and crew available to collect used pool towels, there simply weren’t as many left on the deck chairs. On the Emerald, we never saw any of the ship’s crew enforcing the no chair hogging rule. However, on deck chairs on the Emerald, at least right around the pool areas, are nicer and of higher quality than the chairs on the Mariner (except for in the Solarium…those are very nicely cushioned).

Fitness Centers

The Mariner fitness center is larger with more cardio equipment and head room for tall folks using the cardio equipment. It also has a slightly larger free-weights area. Stacks of towels are available to use. The Emerald offers a TV for each piece of equipment, no towels (but equipment wipes), and seems a bit more congested. Both are at the front of the ship, and offer great views when coming into port. Also, the Mariner’s fitness center is open from 6am to 10pm; on the Emerald it was about 7am to 8pm (hours not easy to find in the Princess Patter, I might add).

Both ships had a great, free steam room and sauna area in the locker rooms. A slight edge goes to the Mariner for the large windows in the locker room areas that opened up the area to the views outside. The Emerald also has the extra charge thermal suite, with heated tile loungers, rain shower showerhead and aromatherapy, and the extra charge Sanctuary, for adults-only lounging on luxurious deck chairs with extra service.

Cabin layout

We were lucky, during the two day pre-inaugural cruise, to be able to tour all of the different cabin types on the Mariner. We tried to do much the same thing during turnaround day between our two B2B Emerald cruises, so I think we have a pretty good idea of the different cabin offerings on the two ships.

Simply stated, if you’re looking for a wow factor in your suites, the Mariner is the way to go. The Royal Suite has the notorious grand piano in it (baby, with a Disklavier so that it plays itself). I can’t even imagine such indulgence at sea. The bathrooms (some suites have a bath and a half) are larger and more luxuriously appointed on the Mariner than on the Emerald. The Mariner offers more suite options to choose from, whereas the Princess suites, despite their different names, are all pretty much the same (the Owner’s Suite has a dining table). The Mariner Junior Suites are larger and more open than the Emerald mini-suites; however, we didn’t like the Mariner suites without a separate shower stall in the bathrooms. It would be very difficult for some people to get in and out of the tub to take a shower, as the tubs are quite deep. The mini-suites on the Emerald have the same “shower in the tub” issue, but the tubs are smaller. In this case, I think that’s a good thing, as they are more easily climbed into and out of. Personally, I prefer not showering in a tub…period.

All cabins on the Mariner, even our lowly inside one, have at least a loveseat, and the larger balcony cabins have a sofa. In that way, they’re more similar to the Emerald’s mini-suites. The bathrooms in the Category D balcony cabins are significantly larger than in our inside cabin; on Princess, the balcony bathroom and the inside bathroom are exactly the same size.

While the bathroom size is pretty comparable between the two ships (inside, OV or balcony on the Emerald compared to inside, OV and some balcony on the Mariner), the Mariner offers a larger shower with adjustable height removable shower head, and a wonderful shower door (no curtain as on the Emerald to stick to you mid-shower). This is a big plus. On Princess, I take along a suction cup shower organizer to hold my toiletries in the shower, saving the one small shelf for DH. On the Mariner, my suction cup organizer wouldn’t hold, but that was fine. There are two shelves, each fairly large, in the shower to hold toiletries…ample space.

While the inside cabin sizes are comparable, I missed the Emerald’s larger nightstands with two drawers. On the Mariner they are smaller, narrower and have one drawer each. However, this is more than offset by the abundance of drawers and storage in the rest of the Mariner cabin. The Emerald cabin had no drawers, besides the two in the nightstands; on the Mariner, we had 7 drawers around the vanity alone. The Emerald has replaced the drawers next to the vanity (great for makeup) with two shelves behind a single door, which are absolutely useless for makeup. In addition, on the Mariner there is plenty of storage behind mirrors, both in the vanity area and the bathroom. The vanity area on the Mariner has much better lighting (for makeup purposes) than on the Emerald, and the bedside lights on the Mariner are also much better, with individual adjustable spot lights on each side of the bed for late night reading.

On both ships, shelf storage makes up the bulk of the clothes storage area. On the Mariner the shelves are inside the closet, at the side; on the Emerald, they are outside the closet area in the hall by the bathroom. And this brings me to a huge benefit on the Emerald…you enter the cabins (inside, OV and balcony at least) on one side of the cabin, not right in the middle of it, as on the Mariner. On the Emerald, the entry hall to the bed area is unblocked; on the Mariner, off of entry hall is the bathroom door and (horrors!) closet doors. There is a lot of congestion in that area, even with just two people, and we got used to having to knocking on either the hall door or the bathroom door as warning that they were being opened. If the closet doors were opened, you couldn’t get into or out of the bathroom or corridor. I much prefer Princess’s open closet area off of a separate hallway. There is still opportunity for collisions there (we always ask before we come out of the bathroom), but there are no closet doors to impede traffic, and no impediment in getting to the corridor outside.

The TVs on the Emerald with better (larger, flat panel) and more easily viewed than on the Mariner. On the Mariner, although the smaller, larger size can be forgiven (it is, after all, an older ship), the positioning can not. They pull out of a cabinet area on the side of the vanity, but do not swivel enough to allow easy viewing from that same side of the bed. In addition, when they are pulled out, there is no way to get around the TV during the night to get up. Either turn off the TV and slide it back in when you sleep, or get used to crawling off the end of the bed.

The cabins on both ships have a small refrigerator (behind a door, which I could do without); however, on the Mariner the refrigerator is full of extra cost items. On the Emerald, it is empty.

Mattress and sheet quality on the Mariner was better; however, the Mariner’s duvet is so heavy that I finally had to have it removed, and we received a blanket instead. The Princess duvet is lighter and more comfortable. Towel quality is better on the Mariner (thickness and size) than on the Emerald. Bath amenities are scarce on the Mariner…a shampoo dispenser in the shower and bar soap. On the Emerald, I have to guess that there is more (lotion, conditioner, bath gel?), although this is a bit of guess since we are Elite and used to get more and better toiletries. I think everyone gets the same now, with a few additional items for Elites.

As for cabin service quality, it’s a bit hard for me to comment, but I will, to be fair. Cabin stewards are spread too thin on Princess…19 cabins with no assistants. On the Mariner, our steward had 20 cabins, but 2 assistants. However, in spite of that, our steward was ill for part of our cruise, and the 2 assistants never made up our cabin the same way twice. So, luck of the draw, perhaps, but on the basis on our experiences on these two ships, I think cabin service was better on the Emerald.

Of special note are the views from the aft cabins on both ships. The cabins on the back on the Emerald (several of them suites) have unblocked views of the wake and behind the ship. The Mariner, due to the ship’s structure ( I guess) has really horrid view from the aft balcony cabins…framework blocks the view and decking on a lower deck impedes views right down onto the water. If wake views are important to you, the Emerald is definitely a better choice.

Elevators

There are three elevator banks on the Emerald (forward, middle and aft) with 14 passenger use elevators altogether. There are only two elevator banks on the Mariner (forward and middle), also with 14 elevators altogether. It is a bit of a trick to figure out that to get an elevator to the highest decks on the Mariner, you have to use the middle elevators on the port side. But, like the traditional dining room on the Emerald being a bit difficult to reach at first, this is the sort of thing that, once you figure it out is no big deal. Unfortunately, on both ships, some people never figure these things out. Despite the same number of elevators for the same passenger load, I think the elevators on the Mariner seemed more crowded and seemed to take longer on sea days than those on the Emerald. Certainly those middle elevators on the Mariner get quite a workout!

Entertainment Choices

As mentioned earlier, there were fewer evening entertainment choices on the Mariner than on the Emerald; however, you could always get a seat for the shows on the Mariner, and could not on the Emerald without significant waits. We had four production shows in 10 nights on the Emerald Princess, and 2 production shows and the ice skating show in 7 nights on the Mariner.

Daytime entertainment offered much of the same sorts of thing with a few differences. The Emerald’s pool games were more subdued than on those on the Mariner, the Emerald offered way more trivia options, and more frequent bingo. Bingo payouts on the Mariner were in another stratosphere from the Emerald, with the final jackpot bingo estimated to be a $7000 on a 7 night cruise!!! Both ships offered crafting and scrapbooking (my personal preference was on the Mariner, but this depends heavily on whether these are run by the ship’s staff or visiting instructors). The Mariner offered many “family” events…family line dancing, family trivia, family scavenger hunts, even family discos at night from 10pm until 11pm. Two events we attended on the Mariner that I’ve never seen before on a cruise ship were Beginning Steel Drums and Beginning keyboards. The Mariner gets an A for innovation with these two offerings.

The Emerald Princess has the Movies under the Stars (MUTS) option around the Calypso pool. This is a wonderful amenity for those who enjoy watching movies in a drive-in type atmosphere. At night, the movies are of more recent release (with some concert videos too), covers are placed on the deck chairs, blankets are available and popcorn is served. Because of the space dedicated to MUTS, there is no movie theater on the Emerald, although movies are sometimes shown in the evening in either Club Fusion or the Princess Theater. On the Mariner, movies were shown in the Screening Room on Deck 2 about three times each day. Since I am not a big movie fan, either at home or at sea, I really can’t comment on the quality of the movies shown.

Both ships offer evening entertainment in the Piazza (on Princess) and the Royal Promenade (on the Mariner). However, in the interest on honesty, I have to say I prefer the Emerald’s entertainment, at least on the cruises we were on. Because the production team (singers and dancers) perform at the Royal Promenade parades on the Mariner, and the team had just boarded the ship at the beginning of our cruise and was still working the bugs out of their production show performances, we never got to see the famed parades. This was especially disappointing as Mardi Gras took place one night, and would have been a perfect evening to have the parades. It was also disappointing because we had never been on the Explorer class ships before and were really looking forward to the parade. Although a parade was offered on the 2 night pre-inaugural, we skipped it, thinking it would be offered on the 7 night cruise. Oh well. But if I have to compare, I have to give the vote to Princess for their Piazza entertainment in the evenings.

Food and Food Service

This is one topic where it is particularly hard to be objective, so I may slip a bit here. Simply stated, we loved the food on our Emerald cruises…it was the best food we’d ever enjoyed on Princess. In particular, we loved the International Café food options, the ability to have lunch in the dining room on port days, the changing menus for lunch (and somewhat for breakfast, with two breakfast specials each day) in the dining room. We were a bit disappointed in the Café Caribe choices, but I was thrilled with the amount and availability of large shrimp in several venues on the Emerald.

On the Mariner, although the breakfast menu in the dining room never changed, eggs benedict were offered every day (they’re not on Princess). I missed the dining room lunch option on the Mariner. On sea days, we ate lunch in the dining room, and then I missed the changing menus that the Emerald had for dining room lunches. Ice cream offerings at lunch on the Mariner were generally chocolate, vanilla and strawberry. At lunch (and dinner) on the Emerald, DH was able to get different kinds of ice cream every day.

I would have to place dinner food about the same on both ships. Both were very good to excellent. However, the menus on the Mariner (which were new ones, BTW) just seemed a little funky. Maybe it was the layout, maybe it was the choice of items, and I can’t really specify why I preferred the food on the Emerald (which will be highly dissatisfying to RC fans, I’m sure), but I did. I certainly missed the cheese plates that were available for both lunch and dinner on the Emerald, with three different kinds of cheeses each day with walnut bread, candied walnuts and grapes. The crème brulee I had on the Mariner was far superior to any I’ve ever had on Princess (crispy, carmelized sugar that could be lifted off the custard). But I frankly preferred the dining room food a bit more on the Emerald, and DH said he preferred the desserts a bit more on the Mariner. I do know that we were in the hot tub one day on the Mariner with a pastry chef from LA who said he thought the desserts were excellent.

Rolls are passed out by the assistant waiter on the Mariner, and are on the table in a basket on the Emerald. I didn’t give this another thought until a fellow Mariner passenger was commenting on her only Princess cruise, and specifically mentioned this. She thought that RC was much more sanitary in their food distribution (also for butter pats, which are wrapped on RC and not on Princess). I don’t know if one is better than the other….they’re just different ways of doing the same thing.

We also enjoyed one night at Chops ($25pp), and it was a wonderful meal. My only basis for comparison is to the Desert Rose Steakhouse on the Golden Princess last year, and Chops was far superior. I heard mixed reviews on the Crown Grill on the Emerald, but, after our Desert Rose experience on the Golden, we didn’t dine there. We also didn’t dine (this time) at Portofino’s (although we tasted samples during the 2 day pre-inaugural cruise) and Sabatini’s, and so I can’t compare those two (although the chocolate dessert we sampled at Portofinos was to die for).

Count us among those who like the $14.95 filet option in the main dining room on the Mariner. First, we saw no degradation in beef quality compared to the Emerald for the normally available beef. But it allowed DH to enjoy the same 10 oz filet he had had in Chops for just $14.95 in the dining room, with no extra charge for me. It’s a very good thing!

It’s a bit hard to compare dining room service between the two ships, as we always get Anytime Dining on Princess and My Time Dining was not yet available on the Mariner. So we had the same wait staff every evening on the Mariner, and our service was superb. I think it would be fairer to compare table assignments. On the Mariner, our wait staff had 2 tables for four, and our table for 2. That’s 10 people, no more. I know that on Princess, a wait staff might have to handle twice as many people and that inevitably affects service. I also enjoyed having a head waiter assigned to our section of tables. He stopped by, every evening, to chat and to ensure that things were to our satisfaction. At least in Anytime Dining on Princess, the head waiters’ scope of responsibility seems to be in seating people. Period. A bit of a generalization, perhaps, but not too much.

In the buffet, I think the food quality is a tie. Both ships offered adequate buffet. I give a slight nod to the Emerald, again for the availability of shrimp, which is entirely a personal preference. I enjoyed the Jade buffet area on the Mariner for its unusual ethic food offerings. Service in the buffet on both ships is very similar, with the table service that Princess now offers. It was easy to get a drink (club soda for me, but lemonade is free too on both ships) served to the table. Orange juice on the Mariner was available in glasses twice the size as the Emerald, and DH liked that. A couple of other juices are available in the buffet on both ships.

As mentioned earlier, in the International Café vs. Café Promenade comparison, the International Café wins for me. However (and this is big), the coffee quality on the Mariner is far superior to that on the Emerald. Both are syrup based, but the Seattle’s Best blend on the Mariner was good even without cream, something I can’t say for the Emerald. Still, I missed the coffee card that’s available on Princess for the specialty coffees (at less than $2 for each specialty coffee, it’s a bargain).

Again, for quick food (burgers and pizza), the Emerald wins hands down. For made-to-order waffles, which we used to find only on Celebrity, the Emerald also comes out ahead. While the Emerald lacks the free ice cream available all day each day, there is ice cream offered from 3:03pm-4:30pm in the buffet, along with the waffles. On the Mariner, one could get waffles in the afternoon in the buffet (not particularly warm) and take them outside to get ice cream, but it seemed convoluted and time consuming. Still, DH, who is an ice cream aficionado, preferred the availability of the ice cream on the Mariner to what was available in the buffet for an hour each day on the Emerald.

When it comes to Room Service, however, the Emerald pales in comparison. First, only a continental breakfast can be delivered to the room; a full breakfast still can be on the Mariner. In addition, the lunch and dinner menus from the dining room are shown on TV, and during those times, a full lunch and dinner can be delivered to the cabin free of charge. On the Emerald, only a limited (an unchanging) room service menu is available. Princess has begun charging $100 per couple for the ultimate balcony dinner, which, admittedly, is several notches above having dinner delivered on the RC, but still, it is the only true dinner option available for cabin delivery, and it carries a hefty price tag. On the Mariner, you can dine in your cabin every evening and still enjoy the same food as in the dining room. Of course, you are now charged $3.95 for late night deliveries from room service on the Mariner, and you are charged $3.00 for in cabin pizza delivery any time of day on Princess. But when it comes to room service, the Mariner shines.

Drinks and Bar Service

For soda sticker prices, the Emerald wins. It’s $4.25 per day for an adult soda sticker; on the Mariner it’s $6.00 per day. We purchased soda stickers for both of us on both ships, but I don’t think I would do it again on the Mariner, and not just for price. I had great difficulty getting a club soda (all I drink) in the dining room on the Mariner, period. Breakfast and lunch…it wasn’t going to happen. For some reason, their bar gun in the dining room doesn’t have a button for club soda. I finally mentioned it the second dinner to our head waiter, and he made sure I always got it for dinner in the dining room (from a can); he told me to notify a headwaiter at lunchtime too, but it never seemed worth the trouble.

The Mariner offers many drink specials, two for ones, discounts, etc, that Princess no longer offers. For alcoholic drinks, these could represent a real savings over the course of a cruise. However, for bloody Marys in the morning, it was necessary to get your drink at a pool bar and take it into the buffet on the Mariner…the buffet bar didn’t open until 11am. Can’t quite figure that out.

Miscellaneous Comparisons

Self serve laundries: Simply stated, they exist on the Emerald. They don’t exist on the Mariner. To most people, especially on longer cruises, this is huge.

Wine tastings: Our loyalty status warranted a free wine tasting on both ships…the Emerald wins here, though neither is anything to write home about. We still get souvenir glasses on Princess, and the cheese plate was better.

The Mariner Notice Board: We loved the notice board at the end of the Promenade on the Mariner for all those myriad meetings that appear in the Princess Patter. This keeps the Compass neater, and allows people to post a wider variety of special interest gatherings than would be allowed in the Patter.

The Compass v. the Patter: no comparison here, the Compass wins. We loved the pullout section, we loved the fact that bar and dining room times were shown each day (which is a good thing, since they’re always changing). We went two Princess cruises without finding that little green slip of paper in the binder with the dining room and bar opening times. We also loved that the Compass clearly state on page 1 the arrival and departure times for each port (no need to dig through the schedule). We like the listing of music and dancing and opening hours for each activity/place. And all in a handy format.

Cruise Critic Meet and Mingles: Why, oh why, can’t Princess get it together on this? On RC, you sign up ahead of time based on your Booking ID, and RC takes care of the rest. An invitation is delivered to your stateroom on the first day of the cruise…it can be torn apart to form 1.) your name tag, 2.) an admission ticket and 2.) a drawing coupon for lots of free prizes. Although there is a cash bar, there are lots of hors doerves available. And this is for every cruise greater than (I think) 5 days. It’s a great way to do things, much better than on Princess, and it’s one area I wish Princess would change a bit.

TV programming: Dismal on the Mariner. We don’t watch a lot of TV, but we are “early to bed” types who unwind with an hour or so of TV each evening. We saw the same shows four times over 7 nights on the Mariner. Plenty of room for improvement here. Princess also distributed a TV programming guide, which, although not always accurate, is a big help. With more channels to choose from (although not in all the languages offered on the Mariner), the Emerald wins here. The only exception is in children’s programming, which is stronger on the Mariner.

Future booking program: Much better on Princess. You can hold a specific cruise for $100pp deposit. On RC, you can only hold a next cruise booking for $100pp; to book a specific cruise requires the standard deposit.

Muster Drill: Lots of opinions on this, I know. While I prefer Princess’s way of mustering (in public lounges rather than open decks), and I prefer not putting on my life vest to walk to the muster station, on RC I know that all of my fellow passengers have attended the drill, and there is piece of mind in that. Also, on RC, all children wear a muster drill bracelet for the entire cruise, to expedite reuniting them with parents in the event of an emergency. It’s a good thing, I think.

Children’s programs: The Mariner offers more programs with fewer ages in each grouping. It also offers (along with Fisher Price), programs for infants from 6 months to 3 years of age. I had to stop it at one of these just to check it out, and it was darling. Coupled with the number of “family” activities, I think the Mariner is better for kids.

Loyalty programs: I think that Princess and Royal Caribbean have the two best loyalty programs in the industry, but, for our purposes, Princess’s offers more benefits. In additional to self serve laundry rooms on Princess, our Elite status gives us free laundry (dry cleaning was not available on the Emerald, but if it had been, that would have been free too). Although the service doesn’t compare to washing at home, it is very nice to simply place dirties in a bag each morning and get them back each afternoon. Also, there are large amounts of free internet available on Princess beginning at the Platinum level (after 5 cruises or 50 days). For us, that free internet amounted to 280 minutes each on a 10 night cruise. Our Diamond status on RC brought us a coupon for 10 minutes each free of charge. No comparison.

I was shocked to learn that Diamond status on RC doesn’t bring priority tendering. It’s no cost, and so simple, I don’t understand why RC doesn’t provide it. Princess does, at the Elite level.

As stated, wine tastings are free on both ships at the highest levels. And on Princess, we get one minibar setup per cruise in our cabin for being Elite (but no wine is included).

Our RC Diamond coupon book did have a few good deals (free drink coupons, 3- $5 match play coupons in the casino, free Ben and Jerry’s ice cream cone come to mind) for things we don’t get on Princess, but from a pure dollar value, Princess certainly wins here.

However, I must mention the Concierge Lounge on the Mariner for Suite, Diamond and Diamond Plus members. The actual lounge itself (Deck 9) was overcrowded with consistently sticky floors. Even the free cappuccino machine (which is supposed to work all day) was locked at times, or out of supplies. It was too crowded to really enjoy the continental breakfast that was available each morning. However, each evening, from 5-8:30, the Concierge Lounge was open bar; from 5-8pm, the Lotus Lounge was limited to Suite and Diamond/Plus members for an even better open bar. For Princess fans, it was like having Club Fusion open, limited to just a couple hundred people, with an totally open bar and incredible hors doerves. Any cheeses I might have been missing in the dining room were available, in abundance, in the Lotus Lounge. We easily drank about $30 each in wines and drinks each evening in the Lotus Lounge. Would we have drank that much and paid for it on Princess? Heck no. But that was one of the pure pleasures of our Diamond status, and I can’t rightfully mention all the goodies Princess gives us without mentioning the free drinks on RC.

I was disappointed in the Platinum and Diamond Loyalty drinks parties on the Mariner…they were held in Studio B, while a few of us enjoyed the free drinks in the Lotus Lounge. That just didn’t make sense to me. Studio B is not the best venue for that party, and I heard that one lady tripped and fell down the steps there. Again, the loyalty party should have been moved to the Lotus Lounge for a couple of nights of the cruise.

We did pick up another set of Crown and Anchor baseball caps as our Diamond gifts. And we were delivered a great plate of chocolate covered strawberries and petit fours in our cabin on the Mariner on the first formal night (nothing on the second formal night). On the Emerald, we got chocolate covered strawberries each formal night.

But one final word on how long it takes to reach these loyalty club levels: On Princess, to get to Elite requires completing 15 cruises or 150 days at sea. On Royal Caribbean, it requires 12 cruise credits, which can be achieved by booking four 12-nights cruises in a suite. So it takes a bit more money spent on cruises to reach Elite on Princess (DH always says that for $30,000 we get our socks washed for free), but we feel the Princess rewards are superior to the RC rewards in almost every way.

So, which is our personal preference? Well, DH will tell you that for a one week cruise, RC would win every time. We can pack for 7 days, send one $20 bag of laundry out to be cleaned, and live without the laundries or free laundry service. However, on a longer cruise (which are the kind we normally take), the Princess benefits tip the scales for us. And while I can disconnect from the internet for 7 nights, I can’t for much longer than that.

However, for the new cruiser, it comes down simply to personal preference. The overall feel of the two cruise lines is very similar. The Mariner (the Voyager class of ship) is not my favorite RC ship. I love the Radiance with all the glass. I missed seeing the water from the Royal Promenade. I missed the Radiance’s Schooner Bar and Colony Club areas. I missed the outdoor seating areas for the buffet. However, the Emerald IS my favorite Princess ship. We’ve had to re-think our cruises for next January…we have 30 nights reserved on the Ruby, but also just booked 20 nights on the Radiance out of San Diego (where we would get to two new ports). We have a few months before we have to make a decision, but I am leaning toward the Ruby, DH is leaning toward the Radiance. It will be interesting to see what we do.

Again, these were my observations based on these two ships a few weeks apart. Things change, even from one cruise to the next, so your experiences may have differed. Thanks for reading!

Outstanding comparison.....thanks for spending all the time to put it together and for enduring those cruises in order to compile your data.

That's some thesis, PA! Well done. Thanks for making the effort.

Thanks for the review.... it gives us a great look at what to expect as we have sailed the Mariner and will be on the Emerald later this year...great info...:)

Probably the most thorough and well done review I've read on this site or any other. You are to be commended.

On Royal Caribbean, it requires 12 cruise credits, which can be achieved by booking four 12-nights cruises in a suite.

 

Is this a change or a mistake it used to be 10?

Thank you for your honest comparison. The Mariner fo the Seas is my favorite ship. I hope in 70 or so so days I will be feeling the Star Princess is.

Is this a change or a mistake it used to be 10?

You are right, it is 10 credits. I was confusing it with the extra credit for a 12 night or more cruise. So even faster on RC...no wonder there are so many Diamond members on their ships!

BTY it was a great comparison as I have also sailed both ships and love them both!!

Thanks for an excellent comparison. Can't speak for RCCL, but I found the Princess review to be highly accurate per my experience.

 

A couple of questions and items:

 

a) Did you make it to the Adagio Lounge on deck 16 on the Emerald Princess? Does Mariner OTS have an equivalent place?

 

b) Was the juice available at no additional charge at all times on RCCL or just at breakfast as on Princess?

 

c) On Princess in the traditional dining room, the head waiter usually does come around to each table each evening.

 

d) Although the Eggs Benedict are only on the breakfast menu a couple of times on the Emerald, did you ask if it was available anyway? I am sure, at least, if you spoke to the headwaiter the previous day it would be.

 

Again, thanks for a great comparison.

Wonderful comparative review, thanks so much for posting it. Just a couple of little things though. I was on the Emerald in February 2009 and there were lots of clean beach towels in a rack at the Calypso Pool every day.

 

Also, in the gym on the Emerald, there are towels available for you to use.

Nice review!

 

We only sailed on sisters to described ships Ruby/Caribbean vs Explorer. All cruises were during peak time - school vacations. We found pool set up to be better on Princess... more choice of pools and less crowded. Quality of chairs was also better on P.

 

But pools are open longer (all night?) on RCCL, though on Princess they are open longer than on other lines.

Wow, what a fine and professional review. You are some writer, a great job and a nice model to follow.

 

Each ship, on any ship, the passengers are subject to the preparation of the vessel and the capabilities of the staff and food service persons, chefs etc. Like going to any restaurant, anywhere, we are going to get the treatment "for that day" and hope it is good.

 

Both Regent and Princess have been good to us.

Example, while teaching on a ship, for 8 weeks, we found the grill chef on deck, would fix us a salmon fillet any time, if we requested it early in the day so he could get it and thaw it. That was great for us, we love salmon and how nice an event, but again, due to the gent at the grill, so a good tip went to him and his helpers for sure.

 

:D

WOW! I have always felt you did an outstanding and fair review and/or Lives from the Princess ships but you have outdone yourself in this comparison. Thanks for taking the time to do this extensive report! It makes me want to try RCCL again along with all my Princess cruises.:D:D:D

A couple of questions and items:

 

a) Did you make it to the Adagio Lounge on deck 16 on the Emerald Princess? Does Mariner OTS have an equivalent place?

It has Ellingtons, which is up on Deck 14, and is very similar to Adagio. At first glance, one would think it would be similar to Skywalkers, but it isn't. The disco on the Mariner was down on Decks 3/4 in the Dragon's Lair.

 

b) Was the juice available at no additional charge at all times on RCCL or just at breakfast as on Princess?

I can't answer this, as we only tried to get it at breakfast.

 

c) On Princess in the traditional dining room, the head waiter usually does come around to each table each evening.

Good to know. I wish they would do the same in Anytime Dining...there really isn't any reason not to. I can do with a different wait staff each night, but I didn't realize how much I missed the warm/fuzzy of having a head waiter check in each night.

 

d) Although the Eggs Benedict are only on the breakfast menu a couple of times on the Emerald, did you ask if it was available anyway? I am sure, at least, if you spoke to the headwaiter the previous day it would be..

In the interest of fairness, I tried to refrain from using special requests as a basis of comparison. For example, people have stated that they have written in hot breakfast items on the Princess room service breakfast menu, and received them. But for new cruisers, or even seasoned cruisers who are not "in the know", special requests are probably not an option.

 

Duly noted about towels in the Emerald fitness center. I either missed them or they were not there in January. And as for towels around the pool...I admit, we saw them just one day around one pool (Neptune, I believe), but as there are three other pools where we didn't see them, ever, they really weren't available to a degree that we could count on getting one each time we went to a pool, as they were on the Mariner.

 

We loved our Mariner cruise, and I think DH would return, over and over again, even in lieu of going on the Ruby next January. But two things stood out in my mind (amongst all the positives). First, I missed seeing the water. I had a friend who traveled on the Navigator soon after it was launched, and she said she went the whole week and never went outside. I didn't understand that until I experienced it firsthand. And second, it was much easier for me to "be healthy" on the Emerald. The minibar items were not nearly as much temptation as the free drinks on the Mariner; I missed the healthy lunch food at the International Cafe; and that self serve ice cream was a little too tempting for my good. Still, a little more self control on my part and I could be happy on either ship. But I still like the Radiance class ships better than either the Mariner or the Emerald. And I have to admit that the whole cruise experience was less stressful on the Mariner, simply because we didn't have to allow extra time each night, and plan our dinner times in order to allow us to get decent seats for the shows.

Thanks for the excellent and very detailed comparison. I have been on both Princess and Royal Caribbean in the last year, and found your comparisons to be spot on!

Thanks, Jasperdo. For the record, we ended up taking the Ruby Princess B2B in January followed by the Crown Princess, primarily because RC cut back on their Diamond drinks benefits on the smaller ships (which irritated me to no end, and I told them so!). We had a great time again this year on Princess!

Outstanding comparison.....thanks for spending all the time to put it together and for enduring those cruises in order to compile your data.

 

I will be sailing Sapphire Princess in May and then Mariner next year, so this will come in very handy! Thank you so much for all the time you have spent on this and be sure that it will help a lot of people!

Did Mariner just come out of drydock? Wondering about the preinaugural. They're

usually either for new ships or after extensive refitting.

We did Mariner and Emerald fairly close together, and definitely each has her own

good points. I prefer Princess overall, but love the Radiance class ships. RCCL's

cabins are bigger, and miss the shower doors when we sail on Princess.

Great review!

Mimi