Difference between RSVP vs. Atlantis Experience

[PTMBAA]

I am trying to decide whether to go to Hawaii with RSVP or Mexico with Atlantis this year. Have never been on Atlantis, but was on RSVP last year and enjoyed it.

 

Can anyone tell me what one could expect on Atlantis? Especially the diff between the two?

 

Much appreciated.

[caliber35]

The crowd on Atlantis will be somewhat younger, especially on the Mexican Cruise. Atlantis parties tend to start later and sometimes run all night. I have been on my way to breakfast and found them still dancing and partying. RSVP Cruises tend to be more diverse and tilt older. Their parties tend to be daytime events. That said, they are both class acts and are run by the same parent company. Also, consider the difference in the cruise lines. Give the choice, I would choose Royal Caribbean (Atlantis) over NCL (RSVP). As for the destinations, I would take Hawaii over Mexico in a heartbeat.

[Darrell6t]

I agree with caliber35, the difference in the companies is less of an issue than the difference between the other elements. The Mexican cruise will be a lot of younger west coast guys intent on partying. The Hawaii cruise will have a better mix, but there will be parites. But the RCCL ships have a nicer product than NCL. I did Hawaii with Atlantis on an NCL ship a few years ago and it was a great trip, but the places we visited were the highlights. Your choice should come down to what kind of vacation you want to take.

[Boytjie]

Give the choice, I would choose Royal Caribbean (Atlantis) over NCL (RSVP). As for the destinations, I would take Hawaii over Mexico in a heartbeat.

 

RSVP mostly books Holland America. For Hawaii charters NCL's Pride of America is the only viable option since it can sail 7 day itineraries amongst the islands, all other cruise ships have to sail roundtrip from the West Coast and that's 14 days at least.

[MiamiSpartan]

I'll disagree with the other posters....I've found not much difference between the two...

The ages on the Mexican and Carribean cruises skew younger on both...

Yes, the Atlantis parties start later and can last all night, but the RSVP parties tend to be way more into the costumes, etc...

I've seen the same people on both....

You will have a great time on either....depends on whether you would rather see Hawaii or Mexico...

[COMBOY]

I've done both RSVP and Atlantis and quiet honestly I don't see a whole lot of difference in general. Both have great entertainment and late night themed night dance parties. Atlantis now owns RSVP but they are run as separate companies. What you are really looking at is the difference between NCL Pride of America on a Hawaii cruise vs RCCL Mariner to Mexico. Different ships/cruise lines & and different ports of call. Hawaii vs Mexico. You will find all types of guys on either cruise; however, I do agree that since the Mariner leaves from LA you will get more younger west coast circuit party crowd since its easier to get to the ship. Both are great cruises and I really don't think you'll be disappointed in either. I did the Mariner last Oct and Atlantis' Hawaii cruise in 2004 on the Norwegian Star and both were fabulous. I guess the difference between the two cruises would be a more party atmosphere cruise to Mexico vs seeing the beauty of the Hawaiian islands on an all gay cruise. I just don't feel the Hawaii cruise will be as crazy (but still fun) as the Mexico cruise would be; however, if you want a high energy dance and party crowd then definitely do the Mexico cruise.

[WeHoMarc]

From the pics and videos on Flickr & Youtube that I've seen. It's like the difference between 2 lesbian cruise companies. One is Rosie and the other, Ellen. I always choose Ellen (Atlantis). I like to dance! Even though I can't. :)

[Typhoon1]

It's the same company with two separate divisions. How can one be any different?

 

A ship full of queens is the same no matter how you want to paint it.

[TX_Atlantis_Cruiser]

They now may be two parts of the same company, but don't forget that they started out as competitors before being merged. As such there can be a marked difference which may be fading more as time goes on. My partner and I started doing RSVP cruises in the late 90's and early 2000's because they seemed a bit more laid back and had really interesting cruises such as New Orleans Mardi Gras, Mayan Sun cruise to see the ruins during Spring Equinox, Panama Canal, etc. We switched to Atlantis in 2005 mostly because of the ship (Celebrity Constellation) and the time of year and haven't gone back to RSVP. Atlantis has a much higher energy and a more party-oriented crowd whereas our RSVP cruises were a slightly more mature crowd who were looking more for the excursions than the parties. Kind of like Jack Russell terriers vs. Beagles--both cute and playful, just one's more hyper

 

Todd

[SantaRosaCruiser]

I've been on 3 RSVP Cruises so far, and just got back from an Atlantis Cruise. I expected many major differences, but found the differences to be much more subtle. Here are a few notes about this Atlantis Trip to Mexico I sent to a good friend and fellow RSVP Cruiser:

 

 

Overall, I really enjoyed the Cruise - nice people, great entertainment, nice weather.

 

 

 

There were a few more or less subtle differences between the RSVP and Atlantis cruises:

 

 

Much more singles-oriented, as I suspected.

 

Much thought given to activities to introduce Singles to each other, especially daily Singles Cocktail hour and Dinner, which were well attended.

 

There were many couples, though, and they had plenty to do as well.

 

Two types of guests, those that focus on the late night parties (they START at 11!) and those that wish they could but are really more day-types (like me, I'm afraid). There were many afternoon T-Dances which were great, and all around the aft pool which made for great people watching.

 

They used the mid-ship pool for many activites which allowed the roof to be closed when bad weather set in. I don't recall RSVP using that space for any dances, etc.

 

Less Holland America stuff - specifically no Afternoon Tea of any kind. Not sure this group missed it though.

 

No where near the level of depraved behavior that I expected (hoped for?). You would not notice any more or less questionable behavior at the RSVP events.

 

Younger average age, but no where near as much lower than you'd expect.

 

Much eye-candy for me (more I would say than RSVP), but they also collect in pods of similar types so they are no more accessible than in any other venue. I felt quite at home within this demographic.

 

Cheyenne Jackson was the headliner. Kimberly Locke was a secondary star. I was expecting a higher level of celebrity than either, given how "top-secret" they make it. To this day, I'm not really sure why Cheyenne Jackson is "headliner" - I guess just being a Gay entertainer fills this requirement.

 

The dance music sucked. I don't have a single memorable dance tune to share with you. It seemed to be the same song played continuously for 7 solid days. I enjoy the RSVP Dance music much, much more. The lasers were great though, and the decorations for the parties were terrific.

 

The costume parties not as intense or elaborate as RSVP (no dressing up like a Serbian Luge star from the 19th Century), and often 'color' oriented (blue night, camoflouge night, white night) so dressing up appropriately was easy. Also, every event was interpreted as an opportunity to run around in underwear, which got a little old and tired.

 

Overall Experience B+ to A

 

Food B+

Entertainment - Main Room - B

Entertainment - Cabaret and small Venues B+

Staff (Atlantis) - A, but barely aware of them

Staff (HAL) - A+ just awesome - they really enjoy having the Gay Charters

Ship - B+ at 8 years old, the Oosterdam is looking a tad tired.

Parties - Evening - A- Just too late a start for me

Parties - Afternoon T-Dances - A Super!

Free Drink Night - F - watered down don't know what they were - not worth the trouble to drink

[Boytjie]

Thanks for your post, interesting. A friend (RSVP regular was also on the cruise but I have not spoken to him about the cruise yet. He said it was nice).

 

Much thought given to activities to introduce Singles to each other, especially daily Singles Cocktail hour and Dinner, which were well attended.

 

Being coupled I don't have any firsthand experience but I thought RSVP tried too - singles cocktail party the first night and grouping singles together for dinner.

 

They used the mid-ship pool for many activities which allowed the roof to be closed when bad weather set in. I don't recall RSVP using that space for any dances, etc.

The Caribbean cruises on HAL use the aft pool and we have not really had bad weather the last few years that necessitated a roof.

 

Less Holland America stuff - specifically no Afternoon Tea of any kind. Not sure this group missed it though.

Not even that? The second HAL RSVP cruise we were on they had a Mariner's lunch but RSV dropped that (claimed almost everyone would be a Mariner - but that seems to hold true for many regular HAL cruises too and they have to schedule 2 lunches to accommodate everyone)

 

 

Much eye-candy for me (more I would say than RSVP), but they also collect in pods of similar types so they are no more accessible than in any other venue. I felt quite at home within this demographic.

I heard that about the Mexican Riviera cruises. I wonder if it is a West Coast thing or an Atlantis thing.

 

Cheyenne Jackson was the headliner. Kimberly Locke was a secondary star. I was expecting a higher level of celebrity than either, given how "top-secret" they make it. To this day, I'm not really sure why Cheyenne Jackson is "headliner" - I guess just being a Gay entertainer fills this requirement.

Wow! Cheyenne was the headliner for RSVP February 2010 and Kimberley Locke was an entertainer on RSVP February 2007. I thought Atlantis was supposed to have much bigger names.

 

The costume parties not as intense or elaborate as RSVP (no dressing up like a Serbian Luge star from the 19th Century), and often 'color' oriented (blue night, camoflouge night, white night) so dressing up appropriately was easy. Also, every event was interpreted as an opportunity to run around in underwear, which got a little old and tired.

I heard that costume parties are bigger on RSVP. Instead of underwear the default works-anywhere outfits for RSVP cruises are either sarongs or leather! (Hmmm, maybe I should do a sarong and leather outfit some day!)

[MDDCFlyer]

I have just came back from this cruise as well.

 

I expected many major differences, but found the differences to be much more subtle.

 

Our impression was that THIS Atlantis cruise had a very RSVP vibe on it. I don't think Rich liked that very much - the look on his face when my partner told him that the cruise reminded him RSVP cruise was priceless.

The vibe was quite different from other Atlantis cruises we were on.

 

Much more singles-oriented, as I suspected.

 

Cannot really comment about that. Atlantis is known for having more single oriented events, and this cruise was no difference. As a couple we do not attend those. (As Malcolm said, it is for the needy not the greedy).

 

Less Holland America stuff - specifically no Afternoon Tea of any kind. Not sure this group missed it though.

 

There was a noticeable lack of staff. The service was quite bad. Did not expect such level of service from HAL. The dining room service was particularly bad, with the waiters staff not understanding simple requests and missing many of the orders. We did not "formally" meet out cabin attendant for the entire cruise. I think they were ill-prepared under considerably understaffed. I am pretty sure it is HAL issue, not Atlantis/RSVP issue.

 

No where near the level of depraved behavior that I expected (hoped for?). You would not notice any more or less questionable behavior at the RSVP events.

 

Cheyenne Jackson was the headliner. Kimberly Locke was a secondary star. I was expecting a higher level of celebrity than either, given how "top-secret" they make it. To this day, I'm not really sure why Cheyenne Jackson is "headliner" - I guess just being a Gay entertainer fills this requirement.

 

I have to agree. Atlantis re-cycles their old names over and over. Even though it was Jackson's second appearance on Atlantis I've seen him before on the Allure. He is a great performer but it is getting kind of old seeing the same show over and over again.

 

The dance music sucked. I don't have a single memorable dance tune to share with you. It seemed to be the same song played continuously for 7 solid days. I enjoy the RSVP Dance music much, much more. The lasers were great though, and the decorations for the parties were terrific.

 

I have to agree on that. Maybe I'm old (I am), but I much rather prefer music with lyrics to the rhythm based music that Atlantis prefers. Not that I am a party goer so it does not matter much, but still the rhythm only get annoying after a while.

 

Atlantis excel in the lounge entertainment and feeling up the schedule. Your literally have to move from place to place quickly in order to see everything you want to see. As opposed to RSVP were there are a lot of dead spot in the evening itinerary that there is no show going on.

 

I was happy to see that Carla came back to Atlantis. Rick and Carla is one of the best duo there is, and her vocal abilities are amazing. We sorely missed them since the last time we've seen them.

 

All in all, it was a very much RSVP experience - even though it was Atlantis.

[SantaRosaCruiser]

"I was happy to see that Carla came back to Atlantis. Rick and Carla is one of the best duo there is, and her vocal abilities are amazing. We sorely missed them since the last time we've seen them." - MDDC Flyer

 

I agree - they were a blast.

 

I did find, curiously, a much higher degree of respect among the Atlantis cruisers for each other. Specifically, I enjoy listening to the String Quartet which is in the Explorers Lounge on the 2nd Deck. On the RSVP cruises, listening was a exercise in aggravation, as many felt the need to talk loudly over the music, and "mug" around the musicians. On the Atlantis trip, guests moderated their voices as they passed, and no one felt the need to stand there and bellow to their friends. A BIG + to the Atlantis guests for their concern for other passengers, a big RAZZ-BERRY to the RSVP crowd (it happens EVERY time -philistines!)

 

Also, another item of note was the obvious male / female distribution. On this October Atlantis trip, much was made of the fact that of the approximately 1900 guests, only 23 were female.

 

One point of disagreement, I had no service issues with HAL staff whatsoever. I found them to be generally engaged, friendly and efficient. I had no issues during Dinner.

 

I met Rich briefly and found him warm and charming and interested in my enjoyment, contrary to what I had been told to expect.

 

-Peter:)