Is Royal Caribbean REALLY better than Carnival??

[Room Service!]

cruise girl 2002 say the cake is better on the Carnival board , so you should probably go Carnival.

 

What?! So someone can't have an opinion? Is there a reason you quoted this poster and not others?

Childish comment.

[masterbaker]

There are things we like about both. There are also things we like about Celebrity, NCL, Princess..... I guess what I'm trying to say is variety is a good thing. :) Sometimes it's interesting to do something different.

[Georgiagolfer]

cruise girl 2002 say the cake is better on the Carnival board , so you should probably go Carnival.

 

Not sure why you would post this, as he OP asked for opinions, not facts.:confused: Remember that perception is reality to the person that has the thoughts.

[Cruising89143]

Each are different. I myself prefer RCI over Carnival due to ship design, a much more friendly crew and past guest program. Carnival is not even close in my book. Glad that we all have a choice.

[The Viking]

3 times Carnival to give them a 2nd chance which they did not take.

 

I think that you should always give a company or person a 2nd chance, but we have been dissapointed in short Bahamas cruises as well as in 7 days Caribbean cruises.

 

Food is fairly equal, but the restaurant & cabin service on RCCL is far better than Carnival meaning much more professional attitude.

 

RCCL ships blow Carnival's away with their decor and lay out. Yes, I have not been on the very latest Carnival ships, but even the older RCCL ships seems to be nicer.

 

RCCL's pre customer service also seem to be better although we also have had some bad experiences with RCCl.

 

The most important difference is that I do not like Carnival's funnel fins. HA!Ha! I do not know how to insert the grinning face. Sorry.

[PSCruiser]

I wish it were close enough that I could see thae Carnival point of view. I do this with NCL - I can see that some people might like the design of their ships, anytime dining, big selection of food venues, etc., even though I find them to be an inferior product.

However, with Carnival, I only did one (the Pride), and it was so bad that there is no way to compare, and I'll never go again.

Specifics?:

ugly, dark ship

dirty ship

obnoxious passengers (yes, I generalize, but I'll stick to it)

rampant smoking

balcony doors banging all night

several repair problems in room

terrible MDR service

no, I repeat NO, bands - unless you count their 3 PIECE theater band

activities staff were just past teenager

cold pools, so hot tubs full of kids, completely unusuable

loyalty program, basically non-existant - when I try to explain to Carnival loyalists what a D+ gets on RC, they just glaze over, I really don't think they believe it

Future cruise - ever notice on Carnival its a kiosk with no one there?

end-of-cruise guest survey - all important on RC, on Carniavl they don't even bother!

[loman]

What?! So someone can't have an opinion? Is there a reason you quoted this poster and not others?

Childish comment.

 

I dont eat cake . So i guess i will stick with RC .

[Room Service!]

Whatever.

[rutgersgirl27]

I chose "it depends" because there are times when I for sure would choose Carnival. If I was going with a large group, the price point is a huge factor. Also chances are I'm spending more time with my group, so amenities are less important. If I'm going with my spouse, or a small party, I prefer RCI. I just feel like there's more to do, and I prefer the ships.

[Cruising89143]

look at this on the carnival poll almost 2-1 prefer RCI

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/poll.php?do=showresults&pollid=5145

 

I just read he thread on the Carnival board. Funny to say the least by some of the Carnival cheerleaders but Carnival is the only cruise line that I know of where people feel the need to defend why they choose Carnival. You don't see that on any other boards.

[Cruising89143]

I wish it were close enough that I could see thae Carnival point of view. I do this with NCL - I can see that some people might like the design of their ships, anytime dining, big selection of food venues, etc., even though I find them to be an inferior product.

However, with Carnival, I only did one (the Pride), and it was so bad that there is no way to compare, and I'll never go again.

Specifics?:

ugly, dark ship

dirty ship

obnoxious passengers (yes, I generalize, but I'll stick to it)

rampant smoking

balcony doors banging all night

several repair problems in room

terrible MDR service

no, I repeat NO, bands - unless you count their 3 PIECE theater band

activities staff were just past teenager

cold pools, so hot tubs full of kids, completely unusuable

loyalty program, basically non-existant - when I try to explain to Carnival loyalists what a D+ gets on RC, they just glaze over, I really don't think they believe it

Future cruise - ever notice on Carnival its a kiosk with no one there?

end-of-cruise guest survey - all important on RC, on Carniavl they don't even bother!

 

Carnival's main draw is price and it works. If price is your main driver then choose the least expensive option and that's usually Carnival. I agree with MANY of your comments by the way. More reasons why Carnival is no longer on my list of cruise lines.

[bingo3]

I agree it is subjective and also depends on a lot of factors. Not sure either is "better" each offers different things. All have made cutbacks in certain areas, some more cuts than others. I look more at the itinerary, departure port and the cost as the main factors.

 

There are things I like that Carnival does and RCCL doesn't do, and things on some of the RCCL ships that aren't on Carnival. My next cruise is on RCCL, last was on Carnival. I do wish I could bring My one bottle of wine on RCCL (that Carnival allows) as they don't have wines I prefer, but it's not a deal breaker. Neither is the fact that Carnival does still put the chocolates on your pillow and makes the towel animals every night! LOL, That's from another thread! Those things are nice, but won't keep me off of RCCL. Just don't tell Carnival that RCCL doesn't do them or they may stop too!!;)

[BenjiRodney]

We did our first RCI cruise to Alaska, in my opinion Carnival wins hands downs. Room steward was stand offish security was rude, kids ran amuck, only time our name was used was in the main dining room or when making a purchase. Carnivals staff/crew much friendlier and helpful than the RCI staff were.

[richstowe]

I have had nothing but wonderful cruises. Carnival is usually cheaper and I wouldn't pay a significant premium for RCI.

That is not a slam on RCI just that the two line are similar. RCI has clearly spend the $$'s on the wow factor.

CosmoLover - those threads have existed here, but this board has much better Hosts than the CCL board.

As stated above, if have no preference but I greatly prefer the Carnival board here on CC.

Much more activity, wierdness, fun and far less intrusive hosts. In terms of actual info, perhaps this board gets the edge.

[cruisercrazy69]

Here it is 171 vs 11 for RC, on the CCL board its 115-75 for RC I wonder if its because of CCL's BRILLIANT VIFP program LOL

[curtsfan]

REALLY curious if there's any truth to this. What's your opinion?

 

I think that RCCL is a much better cruiseline. That being said, Carnival cost less, and you get a decent cruise for the money. RCCL is a little more upscale.

[KG1924]

We've only done 2 Carnival trips and the first one was OK (it's still a cruise!!) but we really liked the Magic cruise we went on this year. I still prefer the layout of RC's Voyager class and above. I love the promenade and miss that while on Carnival ships. But the Magic was a great crowd (sometimes too crowded) with a great nightlife. Could be because we sailed out of Texas and they're just fun in general :)

 

I do just get a different feeling on RC. Really can't pin point it. We are very much middle class, but I feel like RC offers a more luxurious vacation. Does that make sense!???!?? IMO, better entertainment and more options. Food is food to me, although I'm starting to like all the specialty options on the Oasis class. Also, other then our Oasis and upcoming Allure, the prices for our RC and Carnival cruises have been about the same price, so I can't say that we would save a bunch by sailing Carnival more. Booze still adds up way too quickly on either line :p

[printingchick]

I find it interesting that the results are not all that skewed by posting this question on the Carnival boards. At last check, Carnival cruisers answer this question (Is Royal better than Carnival) as follows:

 

YES, Royal is Better - 126

NO, Carnival Better - 82

NEITHER, Both the Same - 176

IT DEPENDS - 37

[hazeleyez3]

We enjoy both lines.

 

Carnival

We have never encountered a "party crowd" that so many people mention, never had rude or bad service, and have seen many people 50+, as well as young families. Not all the ships have the best layout or decor, but we can overlook that. My husband like the fish and chips station that some of the ships have, and I like the little "deli" where they make you your own sandwich. Their late night buffet has numerous items (not just finger sandwichs and pizza). Unfortunately it is in their "windjammer". They have some better Caribbean itineraries, not to mention a better embarktion port for ones visiting Panama.

 

Royal

Same as Carnival...no real "party crowd", and no bad service. A mixture of ages. Ship-wise, Royal has better layouts, and decor. The newer ships have the promenade which is good for a late night snack and people watching. The bells and whistles (ice rink, rock wall, etc) we don't use. They have a better selection of European itineraries.

[RoofingPrincess]

Did you really expect to find many on the RCI board who wouldn't claim that RCI is definitely better than Carnival? Post the poll on Carnival and you will likely get polar opposite results. Truth has little or nothing to do with it. There is no absolutely correct answer to your question. We have cruised on both lines as well as several others but found that RCI was a much better fit for us. That doesn't mean that we couldn't have a good cruise on Carnival, but it is unlikely that it would be as enjoyable as an RCI cruise FOR US. I'm not a fan of the Joe Farcus school of design and so the decor on Carnival ships, for me, is a turn-off. That's part of my reason for preferring RCI. For others, Carnival or some other line would be a better fit than RCI. It really depends on the individuals involved, their previous cruise experiences, their tastes, expectations etc. There is no one line that is "best" for everyone and wouldn't life be boring if there was. :)

My thoughts exactly! Well said!

[keishashadow]

I think that RCCL is a much better cruiseline. That being said, Carnival cost less, and you get a decent cruise for the money. RCCL is a little more upscale.

 

I hope so, since it's costing me more for upcoming trip;). I always skipped over RCCL offerings since they were more expensive and I needed to stretch my vacation budget. This time I needed to book a 6 night or less cruise sailing on Sunday for 2nd or 3rd week in January and keep fare under $1,600 for 2 pp balcony. Narrowed down choices to:

 

CCL Elation 5 night but faced with cheap inside, but you have to crawl over a box to get to one side of bed, or OB jr suite

 

CCL Dream 5 night with just 2 port days

 

DCL Dream which i already have booked for 12/13

 

The ship reviews and itinerary were tipping point, figured it was time to give RCCL a chance to take my money off my hands:D

[smeck]

Having sailed most of the mass market lines we prefer RCL. While I did enjoy Carnival I felt like a herd of cattle, so overcrowded compared to RCL. That is a deal breaker in my world.

[BenjiRodney]

Never say never, the timing and price for the Rhapsody was there, a few hundred less than we paid this so, so we are going to try it again next August 2013.

[Schasz]

We have been on many cruise ships since we moved to Florida in 2000. We have been on Carnival, Royal Caribbean, and Celebrity. We have enjoyed each and every cruise. Our last cruise was on Celebrity Eclipse.

 

Our next cruise will be on Liberty of the Seas and it will be our 2nd time on her. We just like to cruise and really look at the itinerary and cost. I would agree that generally Royal will cost more than Carnival. We do think the decor on RCI ships is more our taste in what we like, but let's face it a bad day at sea is so much better than a good day at work.

 

Shari & John

[reney313]

I sailed Carnival a very long time ago so probably not in any position to answer the question with a relevant opinion. I know I like RCI and I much prefer the past passenger benefits of C&A vs. the VIFP (or whatever it's called).

 

I like Princess as well..but their past passenger doesn't seem to give as many benefits and same with NCL. Unless itinerary was the reason, I will continue to sail RCI first. Although, my upcoming cruise to Alaska is with Princess for 3 reasons. 1. I don't need the sun deck amenities on an Alaskan itinerary, 2. I go to Glacier Bay and College Fjord (went to Hubbard last year the opposite direction), and 3. The past passenger rate was incredible! I don't recall ever seeing different rates for past passengers with RCI like this before, almost $600 per person cheaper than if you were not a past passenger. If they keep having sales like that I might be cruising to the Caribbean with Princess! I wonder if Carnival does the same?

 

I think at this point if I were to go back to Carnival, I would just as well try a different line altogether (like MSC, Celebrity, or even HAL). For now I am very content though with RCI, Princess, and NCL as my main options.