Which is better? Carnival or Royal Caribbean?

[Jodi3284]

I have been on 4 Carnival cruises and for our anniversary we went on the Oasis with Royal Caribbean hoping to have our socks wowed off. We were extremely disappointed to say the least, socks still firmly in place. I went into the RC cruise thinking oh no Im not going to like Carnival anymore and its too expensive for me not to. That turned into a needless worry because Ill choose Carnival any day. The food on RC was just nasty and alot of it was downright inedible and I am easy to please in the food department (unfortunately lol). The only good meals we had were in the restaurants that were an additional charge and these still were nothing to wow about. We liked the decor and the room on RC but does that really matter? Carnival gives robes, RC does not. I like the Carnival decor too and the food is so very much better! Shows on both were good.

 

We are going on Carnival again this month and taking our entire family of 14 for the cost of just the two of us on RC. I am Carnival through and through.

[Jodi3284]

I just finished my 2nd RCL cruise on the Oasis last month. Ship beautiful, food very good, and shows fantastic. That being said, my husband and I had a lot more fun on our Carnival cruise on the Valor. The activities on the two RCL ships were few and far between. I am looking at a cruise on the Breeze and on Sea Days can see at 5-8 activities that I would like to do. On the Oasis I had hours of time with nothing interesting to do. Also the piano bar was the worst. I compared with another colleague who just took a Princess cruise out of LA and we both agree, Carnival is more fun.

 

 

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We were so bored on the Oasis we spent a lot of time in the Casino... I will stick with Carnival. I didnt like the food at all on the Oasis, just goes to show you its really all a matter of opinion...

[allison0523]

Better is in the eye of the beholder. There are things I like on both lines.

 

And once you can accept that, you have 40+ ships and itineraries to choose from.

 

They're different, yet the same. And both are the top lines because they know how to put on a good show. Both have specific niches they excel in, and that's what makes them different. Who wants them both doing the same thing?

 

I agree with you. We have been on both and paid almost 40% more for the RCI cruise. We had fun and the balcony was bigger compared to the Fantasy balconies (which I barely consider a balcony). But I don't feel the increased cost was worth it. The food was good but I didn't consider it that much different from CCL's food. We didn't go hungry on either cruise. But we are not picky eaters either. We also don't cruise to go to shows. We will check a few out during the week if we have time but it's not a deal breaker. We felt the people cruising with us were a lot nicer on the CCL's cruises compared to the RCI cruise. I am not sure why other than there were a lot of foreign people on the RCI ship. (no disrespect to foreign people). You really have to decide what's important to you and then see how each ship or cruise line compares. But if you ask 10 people, you could get half liking CCL and half liking RCI. If one itinerary is a lot better for you, I would pick that one. Good luck!

[kimmimom]

in 1990 and don't remember details. Have cruised Carnival 9 times since 2006. A friend just got off RC to Bermuda and said the food in the "free" restaurants was horrible, on the last night he couldn't even eat it. He said there were 3 (I think) pay restaurants and his son ate at one and it was good. But I am booking and paying for food so have no interest in paying to eat in a specialty restaurant.

 

That said, if the price and itinerary was right, I would give RC another try as I would NCL.

[Tutankhamen]

Having cruised on both, my DH and I totally agree with you! We cruise RCI for the itinerary and length of cruise. For the most part we find them to be more alike than different. Unfortunately with Carnival leaving Baltimore :mad: and not offering a variety of itineraries or longer cruises out of NY we will probably be cruising RCI more than Carnival.

 

I feel your pain. Started out cruising Royal. Cruised on 4 of their ships. Nordic Prince being my first, and Freedom being the last. Always turned my nose up at the thought of cruising the drunk line Carnival. After my cruise on the Freedom, I started to get the feeling that perhaps cruising wasn't for me any longer. On a whim, I booked the Dream. Expectation was enjoy the ports, deal with the ship. I walked away with a new understanding of Carnival and understood what "the fun ships" really meant.

 

I am not a big guy or a food lover, but I really enjoy eating enjoyable desserts when I am on vacation. On the Freedom, the desserts seemed to all be made with a gelatin base. Also, I am not much for shows, so we were finding ourselves a bit board in the evening. Carnival came through with better deserts and a comedy club. The cove is just an added bonus.

[gary2835]

i like both as long as they sail out of Galveston Texas.:D

[Tapi]

I do not feel the need to pay for a ship whose free amenities I wouldn't use- Rock Walls, Flow Riders, etc.

 

Here's my opinion:

 

We sailed on the Allure of the Seas and we paid more than twice what we paid on the Carnival Dream the same year (and we had a lesser cabin on the Allure than on the Dream).

 

We didn't use the Flow Rider, Rock Walls, Zip Line or any of the other "gimmicks" on the ship. Yet, we found that the extra money that we spent on Allure was well worth it. Given a chance, I would pick the Allure again over any Carnival ship. Period.

 

Just the ship design and standard ammenities make it a pleasure to pay extra for it. The ship had a blissfully uncrowded feel, beautiful decor, professional entertainment, plenty of space in and around the pools, 24 different places to eat (and contrary to the popular argument by Carnival loyalists, there are MORE free venues on this ship than on any Carnival ship), a Past Guest Program that truly rewards past guests, upgraded room service (yes, we enjoy having a nice hot breakfast in our cabin), and a more international feel (one of the highlights of this cruise was meeting people from so many countries around the world. The Cruise Compass was available in 7-8 different languages). Just walking around this marvel of a ship was amazing.

 

Is there something wrong with Carnival? Not really. We also enjoy sailing on them, but for different reasons. Carnival is our "go to" cruise line when we are on a budget, and we want something convenient from a port of embarkation close to home. When we want a cruise that truly wows us, we look somewhere else...

[happyprecious]

Thanks Brossy, I thought that Radiance was really good. Similar to Rhapsody, so found it easy to make my way around the ship. The service wasn't as attentive as my last one, but perhaps that's just because it was a weekender and not a long cruise.

 

You are also right miataman19 each cruise is different. Been on P&O and RCCL now and enjoyed both for different reasons. Just interested in some comparisons, I always thought that in Australia that Carnival provided more superior ships that RCCL. But I am happy to give something new a try.

[runner15km]

I could pick apart both cruise lines but its all small stuff. I truly enjoyed all of my cruises,try carnival with a open mind and try not to get in the comparison mode. Enjoy your cruise. :)

[Gingee]

Like others have said, some like Carnival and some like Royal. I like both of them. We usually go for where the itineraries are not so much the ship.

[Tapi]

We were so bored on the Oasis we spent a lot of time in the Casino..

 

That's an interesting observation. Contrary to you, we avoided the Casino. Why? Simply because we had no time for it. There was SO much to do that we had to force ourselves to cut some things from our "to do" list. Otherwise we would've ended up in the Emergency Room from exhaustion! :o

 

We started the week trying to do everything we could. And the ship doesn't sleep! By the 3rd night (when we were supposed to dine at 150 Central Park and attend Chicago), my wife and I looked at each other and said "let's take a break", and skipped it all, put our bathing suits on and headed for the Solarium for a quiet evening of pure relaxation in this amazing venue.

 

I've read a handful of valid arguments why some people didn't enjoy the Allure/Oasis. But when I read that someone was bored, I have to question if they were even on the same ship I was!

[dclark]

We were so bored on the Oasis we spent a lot of time in the Casino... I will stick with Carnival. I didnt like the food at all on the Oasis, just goes to show you its really all a matter of opinion...

 

Did you not like the full production of "Hairspray", the water shows, ice skating shows, ship entertainer or huge atrium party? Is it that you missed seeing someone do karoeke to Ricki Martin like on CCL?

Did you not like the t-bone steaks in the buffet? Miss the meatloaf on CCL, did you?

Prefer the thumbsize lobster on CCL to the hand size ones on RCL? Were you offended that RCL offered healthy breakfast items as opposed to the full fat stuff on CCL?

Did all the open chairs at the pool area on sea days disappoint you? Do you enjoy playing chair hog wars?

[cruise.freak]

We have sailed both lines and prefer RC however cost wise we have to keep going back to Carnival. As for us though we don't want to limit our selves to one cruise line and like to try all different lines because all cruises are great!

[loohoo1]

When we first started cruising about 7 years ago, both CCL and RCI were similar in price so we chose by port and destination. We liked RCI better since we travel with our 4 kids and RCI had more onboard activities (roller blading, ice-skating, rock climbing). We also loved their indoor Promenade.

 

However, the prices for RCI have since sky-rocketed and they no longer sail out of CA, so we've been cruising CCL lately and loving every minute of it!

[pppiglet]

Sailed once on each line. We preferred Carnival. (we were in our late 40's at the time).

Better food overall on Carnival, rooms a little bigger, better staff. We sailed the same itinerary on both.

[cjknox]

OP

 

As I always say to people like yourself that ask these questions...

 

It really depends on your personal preferences. Both Carnival and Royal offer a quality product no doubt about it. They are also similar in many respects as well. With that said its all up to you. But either way you're going to have a great cruise.

[cjknox]

Did you not like the full production of "Hairspray", the water shows, ice skating shows, ship entertainer or huge atrium party? Is it that you missed seeing someone do karoeke to Ricki Martin like on CCL?

Did you not like the t-bone steaks in the buffet? Miss the meatloaf on CCL, did you?

Prefer the thumbsize lobster on CCL to the hand size ones on RCL? Were you offended that RCL offered healthy breakfast items as opposed to the full fat stuff on CCL?

Did all the open chairs at the pool area on sea days disappoint you? Do you enjoy playing chair hog wars?

 

 

I see someone has returned from hibernation......:(

[Ehpride]

I would like to try RCI someday, but for now, I'm happy with what Carnival offers. There isn't really anything that they offer that is a huge draw for me. So I would look at Carnival and decide if anything is a draw for you. Waterslides? Comedy club? Serenity deck? There's no right or wrong answer. All of us are different and like different things in a cruise. I personally have no desire to skate on a ship or at home. Some people think that it's fun. Better is completely individual in this case.

[kazbar]

I'm taking it OP that you are from Australia (and that the 'Central Coast' is Central Coast, NSW)

 

Anyway, if you are comparing Carnival Australia to Carnival (US) then they are very different products, just as P&O Australia is very different to P&O (UK)

Also the Royal Caribbean cruises out of Sydney are not the same IMHO as the ones out of foreign ports.

 

The cruises out of Sydney are often dumbed down because Aussies have fewer options. For example, the Spirit out of Sydney doesn't offer included room service, Bon Voyage or 'Cheers'. They are also priced differently.

 

Many of the RCCL food options are switched out for cheaper versions on the cruises out of Aus (sometimes the lobster on formal night is substituted with prawns for example).

 

P&O Aust is just horrid IMHO

 

 

Where are you looking at cruising, from because that will completely change the level of service and inclusions?

[kazbar]

What currency is used on board Carnival ? US dollar ..

 

Not if the OP is talking about Carnival Australia, then it is AUD

[wanderingjew]

I have cruised twice with Royal Caribbean and once with P&O and now looking at Carnival. Can anyone tell me who has been on Carnival and Royal Caribbean some comparisons? Is Carnival better? Drink prices? What currency is used on board Carnival?

Thanks for any other info you can share.

Just off the Glory i would say RCCL is much better entertainment was a joke and the brunch was inferior to Bfast & lunch.

 

I just booked GOTS out of MD for 10 days in feb for only $60 more than a 7 day on the Pride plus im getting double points on RCCL

[jimbo5544]

I see someone has returned from hibernation......:(

 

There is always hope that the miserable 5 will tire and move on someday

[WetToes]

I've cruised on both, and I like both. Each may have things that I like better/less.

Wouldn't turn down a balcony on either.

You won't know if you like Carnival till you take the leap.

[mcwebber]

I have cruised twice with Royal Caribbean and once with P&O and now looking at Carnival. Can anyone tell me who has been on Carnival and Royal Caribbean some comparisons? Is Carnival better? Drink prices? What currency is used on board Carnival?

Thanks for any other info you can share.

 

Unless you're Diamond or Diamond Plus on RCCL, you're not going to notice much difference, except for the type of ship and amenities. You can find the amenities online and see the ship difference. I found the food very similar. On shorter cruises Carnival, I think, has better food. E.g. lobster & escargot. RCI doesn't give you lobster on a 4 night. Drink prices are similar, although on my recent RCI cruise they had a happy hour from 3 - 5 with 1/2 price drinks. Cabins on RCI Enchantment were slightly smaller than a similar Carnival ship.

[near the beach]

Since this is a Carnival forum I would think most people would say Carnival is better than RCCL. I think so.