Carnival, RCI, vs Princess

[DebJ14]

I am Diamond on Carnival, Emerald on RCCL and have cruised Princess twice. Just got off Princess on Saturday. Sorry, but we prefer the food on RCCL and Carnival to Princess, especially in the steakhouse. Entertainment on Princess was disappointing. We prefer the shows on RCCL and even Carnival to the short shows they did on Princess. Hardly seemed worth our time to have to get there early to get a seat and then have the shows be very short. If you are taking kids I would think twice about Princess. It is very quiet and I didn't find much on the Caribbean Princess that our grandkids would like. They love Camp Carnival and Adventure Ocean. Princess cabins are pretty tight if you are in a standard cabin. We usually stay in a suite. The suite perks on Royal and Princess are different, but both have nice perks. Carnival suites only get you more room and priority embarkation and debarkation, which I already get as a Diamond member.

 

I would stick with Royal. Princess just didn't make us say," Wow, that was a great cruise", like we have so many times when we got off RCCL. We've had some great cruises in the past on Carnival, but the last couple of years we have really noticed the cutbacks. We are booked on Carnival for March, but only because they offered me a free cruise. The cruise after that we have booked is on RCCL. I doubt we will sail Princess again unless the itinerary is one we can't get on another line. We actually prefer HAL to Princess.

Edited December 26, 2013 by DebJ14

[davy jones]

My preference is Princess because I like their more refined decor I find their MDR and buffet food to be a bit better than the others.

 

Royal is second. It has a slight edge over Princess in overall entertainment and provides a very good overall cruise experience. I that they should have move variety in their lunch offerings.

 

Carnival has slipped to third. I'm OK with their recent changes bringing a more casual atmosphere around the ship and dining, but their entertainment has slipped considerably with their 2.0 changes. I would still sail them for a less expensive getaway though.

[Bases5]

Thanks for your opinions. I think we are going to try the Ruby 5 day cruise to get a taste of Princess

[janetz]

Thanks for your opinions. I think we are going to try the Ruby 5 day cruise to get a taste of Princess

 

 

 

You wont be sorry. :)

[mistshar]

Thanks for your opinions. I think we are going to try the Ruby 5 day cruise to get a taste of Princess

 

It is so difficult for someone else to decide on what you might like on a cruise. It is really a personal decision that only you can make. Princess is a great cruiseline but I believe we just were expecting too much. It was still a great cruise. It is hard not to have a good time when you are on a cruise.

 

Have a wonderful time on your Princess cruise and let us know what you think. I'm sure it will be great!

[baycruiser]

We tried Princess, and we have to book with them to sail to Hawaii. I can't stand the layout of Princess ships, and really miss RC's promenade. I actually got a little claustrophobic on Princess because there were traffic flow issues. I didn't really feel like the service was comparable either. The food on Princess was better, but I felt we had more options on RC. The cabins and balcony felt smaller on Princess.

 

I think if I wanted to "step up" then I would try Celebrity. I used to think Celebrity and Princess were equivalent products before we actually tried Princess. If RC had more Hawaii itineraries, then we'd sail more with them out of any West coast port but unfortunately they only have repo cruises for the Alaska ships.

[satxdiver]

I have been on all three cruise lines. The first cruise on Carnival over ten years ago was a complete disaster and I vowed never again. I broke that promise recently and cruised on the Magic. It was a far better experience that time.

 

I have been several times on RCL ships, all voyager class, and I do agree the balcony cabins do seem roomier than Princess. I am older so the climbing wall, ice skating, inline skating, etc are lost on me. I like to see out and feel like I am at sea which is a problem on RCL unless one is on the lido deck or above and the promenade deck. The shows seem better on RCL. However on our most recent cruise I noticed more DJ instead of live music. The sail away party had a DJ as did the afternoon entertainment in the pool area.

 

I have found the food on Princess to be better with a better selection. I did notice that for example on only one breakfast on our last RCL ship, smoked salmon which I do love was offered only one time. Princess offers more seafood choices than RCL did on our last cruise. I like that the Princess has a grill (hamburgers etc) by the pool which is open from 11:00 AM to 11:00 PM as well as a pizzaria. I also like the fact the HC (buffet) was open from 6:30 am to 11:00 pm continually. I like the windows available on the lower decks. Princess has gone to 30 minute shows which is not as nice as RCL. Then of course Princess has MUTS (large jumboscreen over the pool) where they show movies, athletic events, concerts, etc continually during waking hours. :D

[jb008]

The cabins and balcony felt smaller on Princess.

 

Just some advice to Bases5, balcony cabins on Ruby will feel a little smaller than on RCI. Having been on Ruby and now Jewel in the last year or so, the layout of the rooms is such that the closet and dressing area has more space on Ruby, but you lose some of the depth of the room that was living area on Jewel.

 

Also an insider tip, if you can book a balcony on Caribe deck on Ruby Princess, they're much larger balconies - partially covered and partially uncovered. They've got enough space that we've had 2 loungers, a good sized bistro table, and 2 chairs with sufficient room to move around, although I'm not sure what the current furniture setup is now.

 

Enjoy the trip!