Considering cruising with RCI..

[quirkygrl16]

Hey all. I'm considering doing a cruise next year with Royal Caribbean and i'm a bit nervous. I was curious about what you guys thought? Pros and cons?? Are drinks included on the cruise?

[gcvt]

There's nothing to be nervous about unless you're opposed to having a great time! :) Which itinerary are you considering?

[quirkygrl16]

The 4/5 day to Cozumel and Belize next march. I've just come from a Carnival cruise and it was just too party party for me. Looking to see if I can find something different.

[Desertbelle]

It's really unlikely that coming to the Royal Caribbean forums is going to give you impartial opinions. :) Those of us hanging around in here are pretty loyal to RCI for various reasons.

 

We have done cruises on other lines, and we have pretty much decided that Royal Caribbean and Celebrity are our lines of choice and I can't see us returning to any of those we have tried. In fact, I am a Diamond Member in the Ceasars Gaming club and they offered us a free 7 night cruise on NCL and I turned it down....we just didn't feel like the flight to Florida and using vacation time for a cruise on a cruise line we really dislike was worth it. I hope some day they offer me a cruise on RCI or Celebrity. :D

[DonnaK]

The 4/5 day to Cozumel and Belize next march. I've just come from a Carnival cruise and it was just too party party for me. Looking to see if I can find something different.

 

Hey all. I'm considering doing a cruise next year with Royal Caribbean and i'm a bit nervous. I was curious about what you guys thought? Pros and cons?? Are drinks included on the cruise?

 

 

 

 

Which ship are you considering?

 

Beverages such as water, iced tea, no calorie flavored water, coffee, tea, lemonade are included, but alcoholic drinks and soda are not. (same as Carnival)

 

It is our experience that Royal Caribbean puts out a much better product than Carnival. We didn't like Carnival's ship (decor and layout), and we've found that the service is significantly better on RCI. The quality of the food was about the same, in our opinion, and we liked the entertainment on RCI better. Like the above poster said about NCL, if Carnival offered us a free cruise, we would turn it down. (Others may have a different opinion...this is ours)

[silentbob007]

You are going to have some partying on shorter cruises, but it also depends on when the cruise is ... during March, for example, short cruises get pretty inundated with the college crowd.

[jjb415]

It's really unlikely that coming to the Royal Caribbean forums is going to give you impartial opinions. :) Those of us hanging around in here are pretty loyal to RCI for various reasons.

 

You are so right !! :)

 

Recently, I was listening to a talk radio travel program from a station in Sydney, Australia and was surprised to hear callers calling in and speaking about several negative impressions of cruising. Many of the points brought up were about things that I don't even think about any more, but, are none the less very annoying. 2 negatives that were brought up were the classes about detoxification (really sales pitches) and ship-wide announcements advertising bingo and other things that would increase revenue.

 

Have a great trip OP, there is a lot of great informatioin here on Cruise Critic to help you make the most of it.

[sherilyn70]

Just came back from our 1st RCI cruise. Prior to that I had done Carnival twice.

 

I felt the food, customer service, and overall atmosphere was better than on Carnival (not that what we had on Carnival was ever bad). However we were also on the Oasis which is a much different ship than anything they have, so I may not be comparing the experiences equally. I am comparing 7 night cruises as well which can be a different crowd from everything I hear. We're not much of a drinker/partier type but we did partake in some adult beverages every night on the ship and felt extremely comfortable and not out of place when only ordering 1 round of drinks.

[quirkygrl16]

Which ship are you considering?

 

Beverages such as water, iced tea, no calorie flavored water, coffee, tea, lemonade are included, but alcoholic drinks and soda are not. (same as Carnival)

 

It is our experience that Royal Caribbean puts out a much better product than Carnival. We didn't like Carnival's ship (decor and layout), and we've found that the service is significantly better on RCI. The quality of the food was about the same, in our opinion, and we liked the entertainment on RCI better. Like the above poster said about NCL, if Carnival offered us a free cruise, we would turn it down. (Others may have a different opinion...this is ours)

 

thanks for the detailed reply. I have to agree that RCI looks nicer,even just the decks. One was next to us in port and we were in awe.

[Phillies14]

thanks for the detailed reply. I have to agree that RCI looks nicer,even just the decks. One was next to us in port and we were in awe.

and whoever else you may bring along. The ships are fabulous, the crew is fantastic, you'll have a wonderful time, enjoy....K.O. Near Philly....:)

[CarefreeCruising]

You are going to have some partying on shorter cruises, but it also depends on when the cruise is ... during March, for example, short cruises get pretty inundated with the college crowd.

 

Agreed! I am particulary concerned about the cruise the OP is mentioning. We took a 5 night Navigator cruise to Cozumel & Belize and it was definitely a "spring break" cruise. Not just some students that happened to be on spring break but whole fraternities or sororities cruising together. It was definitely noticible.

 

Regarding the "party" atmosphere the OP mentioned, I've been on a carnival cruise in September (schools were in session) with much less of a party atmosphere than that RCI short cruise during March. I have been on other RCI cruises that were nothing like that. Just depends on the time of year. At least that's been my experience....

[cdamion]

Having done short cruises on both Carnival and RCI, I prefer RCI. While there are a lot of similarities between the lines, I personally find the passenger flow to be much better on RCI ships. Also, I was always able to find somewhere quiet to go watch the ocean away from the crowds on RCI ships, but not really on Carnival.

 

The biggest difference to me is in the design and decor of the ships. There may always be a party going on during a short cruise, but you can get away from it on RCI, but not so much on Carnival.

[quirkygrl16]

Agreed! I am particulary concerned about the cruise the OP is mentioning. We took a 5 night Navigator cruise to Cozumel & Belize and it was definitely a "spring break" cruise. Not just some students that happened to be on spring break but whole fraternities or sororities cruising together. It was definitely noticible.

 

Regarding the "party" atmosphere the OP mentioned, I've been on a carnival cruise in September (schools were in session) with much less of a party atmosphere than that RCI short cruise during March. I have been on other RCI cruises that were nothing like that. Just depends on the time of year. At least that's been my experience....

 

This is a very good point. I wanted to avoid a colder time of year because I REALLY want to go snorkeling this time around and the water in Nassau was just too cold for me...

[quirkygrl16]

Having done short cruises on both Carnival and RCI, I prefer RCI. While there are a lot of similarities between the lines, I personally find the passenger flow to be much better on RCI ships. Also, I was always able to find somewhere quiet to go watch the ocean away from the crowds on RCI ships, but not really on Carnival.

 

The biggest difference to me is in the design and decor of the ships. There may always be a party going on during a short cruise, but you can get away from it on RCI, but not so much on Carnival.

 

Very good to know!!

[newbiecruiser09]

If you can delay your trip til later in APril (after Easter time) you will probably have a much less "partying" type experience. Our first cruise was the end of April and while it was a great time and there was always something going on and countless things to do, I never felt like it was "party all the time".