RCI VS Princess

[Localit]

Looking at the liberty of the seas or the Ruby princess, both deals are fairly close with princess getting the edge - same price for a mini suite vs a balcony.

Main concern I have is we were on the celebrity eclipse last year for our first cruise and although a very nice ship we are early to mid 40s and celebrity was just to subdued at night.

 

The People we are going with want to go for princess, is there a big difference in atmosphere between RCI and princess?

 

Any thoughts cruise gurus?

 

Thanks

Edited November 19, 2013 by Localit

[DonnaK]

A mini suite on Princess is approximately the same size as a D1 on RCI. We were expecting something along the lines of a JS from the designation mini suite. So, don't let that be your determining factor. Also, unless you have a mini suite on the Emerald Deck, the mini suites are not covered by the decks above you, so they are totally exposed to the sun or rain, and are in full view of the people above.

 

We thought Princess is the closest cruiseline to RCI, and provides a similar cruising experience. The ships are blander and lack the WOW factor of RCI ships. Entertainment, food and service are on par with each other.

[Merion_Mom]

Seven years ago, I wrote this comparison of Princess and Royal Caribbean:

 

http://www.boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=384375

[mailmama]

What I love about the Ruby over any RCCL ship is: the movies under the stars that plays twice every evening. A great first run movie. They have blankets and pillows available while watching the movie. Also either popcorn or warm cookies and milk. I don't see a lot of movies at home so I really enjoy relaxing under the stars and watching some great movies. The shows are about the same with both cruise lines, they repeat them and no new ones for frequent cruisers. The other thing I like is the International Cafe. Open 24 hrs. like the Promenade cafe but better selection and tastier! I wish RCCL would offer more movies outside and at set times. Both lines are great and you won't be disappointed either way.

[Merion_Mom]

What I love about the Ruby over any RCCL ship is: the movies under the stars that plays twice every evening. A great first run movie. They have blankets and pillows available while watching the movie. Also either popcorn or warm cookies and milk. I don't see a lot of movies at home so I really enjoy relaxing under the stars and watching some great movies. The shows are about the same with both cruise lines, they repeat them and no new ones for frequent cruisers. The other thing I like is the International Cafe. Open 24 hrs. like the Promenade cafe but better selection and tastier! I wish RCCL would offer more movies outside and at set times. Both lines are great and you won't be disappointed either way.

 

My recollection could be faulty, or things could have changed, but doesn't Princess charge for some of the food items in the International Café?

[teddie]

What I love about the Ruby over any RCCL ship is: the movies under the stars that plays twice every evening. A great first run movie. They have blankets and pillows available while watching the movie. Also either popcorn or warm cookies and milk. I don't see a lot of movies at home so I really enjoy relaxing under the stars and watching some great movies. The shows are about the same with both cruise lines, they repeat them and no new ones for frequent cruisers. The other thing I like is the International Cafe. Open 24 hrs. like the Promenade cafe but better selection and tastier! I wish RCCL would offer more movies outside and at set times. Both lines are great and you won't be disappointed either way.

 

It all sounds cozy, but I can't imagine wanting to sit for an entire movie while onboard. I'd rather listen to the ocean.

 

Teddie

[Cruzin-K]

My recollection could be faulty, or things could have changed, but doesn't Princess charge for some of the food items in the International Café?

 

I think they just charge for the specialty coffees. The food items are free, at least that's my recollection from a couple years ago.

 

I like both lines. Royal is more active and has fun stuff like belly flop contest, the Quest, Love & Marriage game show, etc. Princess has a fun karaoke contest (Princess Pop Star), a more elegant feeling around the ship, and great pizza! :D

[JF - retired RRT]

I think they just charge for the specialty coffees. The food items are free

 

That is correct.

[OCruisers]

My recollection could be faulty, or things could have changed, but doesn't Princess charge for some of the food items in the International Café?

 

Your memory is not totally faulty! There was a time in the late afternoon in IC when there was a small charge for some things like baby lamb chops.

Now there is no charge for any food in IC. Unfortunately, there are no longer lamb chops.

Only extra now is for the Gelato.

 

LuLu

~~~~

[iheartbda]

Your memory is not totally faulty! There was a time in the late afternoon in IC when there was a small charge for some things like baby lamb chops.

Now there is no charge for any food in IC. Unfortunately, there are no longer lamb chops.

Only extra now is for the Gelato.

 

LuLu

~~~~

You eat lamb chops? How cruel. :(:D

 

Sorry Royal, but IMO, the International Cafe knocks the Park Cafe outta' da' water. Post #17 for pictures.

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1917362&highlight=international+cafe

[Cruzin-K]

Only extra now is for the Gelato.

 

LuLu

~~~~

 

Oh that's right. The ships I sailed on didn't have the gelato though :(

[xpcdoojk]

I think they just charge for the specialty coffees. The food items are free, at least that's my recollection from a couple years ago.

 

I like both lines. Royal is more active and has fun stuff like belly flop contest, the Quest, Love & Marriage game show, etc. Princess has a fun karaoke contest (Princess Pop Star), a more elegant feeling around the ship, and great pizza! :D

 

My memory too... they charge for drinks. I bought a coffee card in 2011 visiting Australia and New Zealand. I think they owe me two drinks.... Princess is about 50% as exciting as RCI.... I liked Princess it was a good cruise, but no way near the flash.

 

that is my opinion.

 

jc

[Worn out mailman]

On Ruby instead of a belly flop contest, you'll have a sexy legs contest (which is also pretty entertaining). In March on Caribbean Princess, the pool band was excellent and did some interactive stuff with the ladies around the pool.

 

My overall impression of Princess would never include the word 'stuffy', as some people on this RCCL board say. We've been on three, a western, an eastern, and a southern. Only on the eastern did there seem to be a large senior population. The entertainment did seem more lively as well on the western and southern itineraries, come to think of it.

 

Princess' staterooms run a wee bit smaller but are comfortable enough.

 

I echo the previous poster's good review of Movies Under the Stars, as long as there is a good movie in recent rotation. I remember being disappointed last March because they were showing 'Lincoln' and 'Argo' during the day in the Princess Theater but Movies Under the Stars ran some lame kids movie. Maybe it's hit and miss.

[riclop]

Looking at the liberty of the seas or the Ruby princess, both deals are fairly close with princess getting the edge - same price for a mini suite vs a balcony.

Main concern I have is we were on the celebrity eclipse last year for our first cruise and although a very nice ship we are early to mid 40s and celebrity was just to subdued at night.

 

The People we are going with want to go for princess, is there a big difference in atmosphere between RCI and princess?

 

Any thoughts cruise gurus?

 

Thanks

Rccl is the easy choice if you found Celebrity boring.

[vmom]

I've been on 6 RCCL cruises and 10 Princess cruises. They provide a very similar cruising experience for adults. The biggest difference would be for teens as there are more sports / active type activities that appeal to teens on RCCL ships.

 

The night life is similar on both. You can't go wrong with either.

[bigeagle12]

I've been on 6 RCCL cruises and 10 Princess cruises. They provide a very similar cruising experience for adults. The biggest difference would be for teens as there are more sports / active type activities that appeal to teens on RCCL ships.

 

The night life is similar on both. You can't go wrong with either.

 

I agree.

[maureencruiser]

Sorry Royal, but IMO, the International Cafe knocks the Park Cafe outta' da' water. Post #17 for pictures.

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1917362&highlight=international+cafe

 

Thanks! Now, I gotta go out in my kitchen and see what I can scrounge up! :D

 

I haven't tried Princess yet, thinking about them for my birthday next September to Alaska. Are they still considered the best in AL? :)

[lolabarola]

Rather than look at the cruise lines, which i agree are very similar generally, i think i'd be more influenced by the actual choice of ship. Personally i really really disliked the rci ships that have a centre promenade; oasis etc. the set up seems really tacky and destroys the ambience you find with the beautiful centre atrium and interior lifts. So if i were choosing, this would definitely be the deciding factor for me.

[xpcdoojk]

Thanks! Now, I gotta go out in my kitchen and see what I can scrounge up! :D

 

I haven't tried Princess yet, thinking about them for my birthday next September to Alaska. Are they still considered the best in AL? :)

 

I haven't been, but was alwasy told HAL was the best in Alaska.

 

jc

[bigeagle12]

I haven't been, but was alwasy told HAL was the best in Alaska.

 

jc

 

Princess and HAL both get you into Glacier Bay which is fantastic. We prefer princess over HAL as it has a younger crowd and more nightly activities.

[Localit]

Thanks all.......Ok, so princess isn't a ghost town by 10pm?

 

Here's what we're looking at

Princess ruby- 599.00 mini suite 5 nights Cozumel and Grand Cayman

 

RCI - 599.00 balcony 5 night Cozumel & Belize Liberty of the seas-looks like a price drop overnight

[bigeagle12]

Princess like RCI has plenty of activities late into the night. They have 2 shows in the theater like RCI and then other entertainment spread out through the ship in 2 or 3 of their lounges. And best of all .. fresh made pizza until 1am on the pool deck :-)

[Trekker954]

It all sounds cozy, but I can't imagine wanting to sit for an entire movie while onboard. I'd rather listen to the ocean.

 

Teddie

 

 

We were on Majesty last weekend. We had to skip coco cay, weather wasn't great so we went to the theater to watch White House Down. The theatre was packed and I was surprised most people behaved and weren't talking. I prefer ships with dedicated movie theaters like the Serenade, where we also enjoyed a movie. This screen in the Majesty main theater was a tad too grainy and if you had seats on the side the view wasn't that good.

 

anyway, I really did enjoy it.

[fishin' musician]

I've been on several of each brand... If you're taking kids, RCL, no question. Far more family oriented activities and a much louder "get that party started" kind of vibe. The Princess atmosphere is far more tranquil/relaxed/laid back and adult oriented. All things being equal (which they seldom are), I'll choose Princess, but I will continue to enjoy both products.

[mailmama]

Thought of one more thing I like on the Ruby over Liberty. It's the "real" grill outdoors where you can get the best grilled chicken sandwiches! Also prefer the pizza (also made outdoors) on Ruby. Hard decision either way but it's a win-win also.