Caribbean (Princess) vs. Explorer (Royal Caribbean)

[Sunnycruiser]

Debating between the two of them. Anyone care to comment who perhaps was on both ships? I have cruised on Royal Caribbean and never been disappointed - but was willing to try Princess (plus it is cheaper for the week that we looked at). Any comments please!

[KKB]

We were going to book the Explorer of the Seas last Oct. Then 2 days before I was going to book, all cheap cabins sold out! Unbelievable! (May) We had gotten cheap flights to F.Lauderdale on a Sat., so only choices were Sun. departure from FLL or Miami. Holland or Princess. Word was Holland was very older crowd, so booked Star Princess--and frankly I was a bit disappointed.

BUT it was AMAZING! This was our first cruise and we are hooked! Beautiful ship, nice mix of ages--but mostly 40-50s (we were 37 & 42). Our tablemates were 2 honeymooning couples--one early 20s couple(nice, quiet), one 30ish couple (crazy, fun)--us, and 50something couple. We had a BLAST! ONLY complaint was lack of music for our age--lounges were a bit slow/old; 70s night not quite right; disco a bit young, but we managed there. Heard a nice tip to DJ might have gotten us more variety.

I cannot comment on RCL. My folks loved it and thought we would, too. Have heard many good reports. But we were VERY pleased w/ Princess--excited to try her again....and compare her to our Dec. Disney cruise w/ family.

Happy cruising!

Kristin

[karen2cruz]

I would go with the Explorer ONLY becasue the Caribbean Princess is different from the other Grand Class ships of Princess. They added an extra deck of staterooms. So, it is more crowded. If it were a different Princess ship I would recommend it. We love Princess over Royal Caribbean, barely. We had a great time on the Mariner of the Seas and the Golden Princess, sister ships to the ones you are considering.

 

Enjoy your cruise!

[mlbcruiser]

You won't find towel animals in your stateroom or singing/dancing waiters (Except for maybe ONE night) on a Princess ship, and the entertainment isn't as professional on Princess ships as RCI's. However, the pizza on Princess is much better and so is the pasta! Colors aren't usually too garish (well, compared to Carnival, and yes, I still think the decor on Carnival's newer ships is yuk! Guess I'm not a Farcus fan and never will be!). Decor is nice on both lines. Service good on both. There seems to be more energy on an RCI ship and more to do. But if you just want to lay in the sun, eat well, get cheaper drinks, and experience a very nice cruise, Princess is great. And you are correct, their prices have been lower for a good while now, as well. You may miss the solarium that RCI ships have and some of the unusual activies and venues (Johnny Rockets, rock wall, ice show, and the promenade deck/parade/etc.) that the Explorer has as well. We haven't been on the Carib. Princess yet, but hope to go. A friend's family (they are dyed in the wool RCI cruisers) went on the Carib. P. and didn't like her as well as the RCI ships. But I think the "dive in movie" deal seems really cool! You might as well try Princess or you'll always wonder. We've been overall pleased w/the line. RCI has gotten pricier and although we have sailed w/them 10 times, nearly can't afford to anymore!

[cruzincurt]

We have sailed on both. We took the 6th trip of the new Caribbean Princess and expected it to be like the Golden Princess. It was more crowded and the showers extremely small. We were disappointed and won't be going back to that ship.

 

The Explorer was much nicer IMO. We had balconies on both and would pick the Explorer in a heart beat.

 

Regardless, we have never had a bad cruise.

[K&DCAN]

Myself and my DW took our first cruise on the Explorer of the Seas and our second cruise on the 6th sailing of the Caribbean Princess. (We must have been on the same sailing as cruzincurt). I first have to say that both ships are beautiful and you will not be disappointed with either ship.

 

While my wife found the entertainment and food better on the Explorer, I thought they were comparable and the steak at the Stirling Steakhouse was to die for. We both agree that the Promenade deck on the Explorer is a sight to behold. Just amazing. We also agree that the pool selection on the Caribbean Princess is much better. We stayed in inside cabins on both ships and they are comparable.

 

Whatever your decision is I am sure you will have a great time on either ship. You must remember "to each his own". This is evident in my post and some of the other posts on this site. For example mlbcruiser had no towel animals on Princess while we had more on Princess than the Explorer. I think it depends on the room steward and not the ship.

[mlbcruiser]

K&DCAN, I read w/interest that you had towel animals. Not that it is a big deal (fun for kids, however and a nice touch, esp. for first timers), we were told by others prior to our first Princess cruise that it just isn't Princess' policy to have those and not to expect them. None in our party on either of our Princess ships (different cabin locations, too) had them. Glad to hear you did because it's a nice touch that always results in a smile! :)

[kimanjo]

We sailed Caribbean Princess last summer, first time with Pricness--usually we sail Celebrity or RCL.

 

Princess had a different feel. I found the cabin layout on Caribe Princess better. I liked the individual little toiletries and the eucalyptis lotion/shampoo smelled yummy. I agree with all of what MLBCruiser said earlier--the pasta and pizza were definitely better than RCL. But I found the dining room food on Princess comparable, and I did NOT like having the open seating, very few people liked it that I talked to. Give me a regular time and table, please!

 

The Movies Under the Stars seems like a good idea, but from what I observed it took up a good portion of the deck space and one pool, and after the first night, there weren't many seats taken.

 

My biggest dislike of the Caribbean Princess is that they have added another deck of nothing but cabins (something like 400 more bodies!) and no extra public space, so the ship feels very, very crowded.

 

The shows on Princess were okay, just okay, but I did like the classical music in the lobby and at tea, their afternoon teas in the dining room were nice indeed.

 

In terms of activities, the mini-golf on the Caribe Princess was pretty bad, and there aren't the climbing walls/solarium shops that you have on the Explorer. But, you do have more lounge space and better deck usage. The aft pool is FANTASTIC.

 

All said and done, things are about equal. I did not dislike Princess to not sail them again: I am booked on a European cruise this summer, but this time with the Golden Princess, which has the same ship plan as the Caribbean, minus the extra deck of cabins (and extra 400 bodies!), so I know the ship will be less crowded.