Carnival or Royal Caribbean

[cruzfitter]

Cruzfitter. I am trying to line by line quote you but I guess I don't know how. Hence, I will answer based on my memory of what you just posted.

 

You seem angry at my experience and opinion. Too bad.

 

The maitre d. . . The reason why my gf and I wanted to change tables was bc we had booked our cruise separately and were in different cabins. Hence, we were put at a solo table in the dining room. On the first night of the cruise only one other solo showed up, a man. This man was a bit odd and made my gf feel very uncomfortable. Hence she wanted to change tables. The maitre d had a bit of a time trying to find a table that would hold two additional people. We were standing over him as he looked at the tables in the dining room. He would click on a table and then say, "No that won't work." After he did this more than once, one of us asked him why would that table not work? He responded that the table was full of couples and Carnival does not put single women at tables with couples because it may make the women at the table uncomfortable. I couldn't argue with that logic. Or he would come across a table and say, "this table his small children. I don't think you want that either." He was looking for a table with female to female cruisers (i.e., mother-daughter). He finally found a large table with 3 single girls (from Aruba) travelling together and a few single guys. I don't remember what their relationship was.

 

Yes, it is my recollection that in my 15 or so cruises with Carnival, every single cruise when I was solo, I was placed at the solo table. There is usually at least one or two each seating. When I would meet people, and talk to them, if dining came up, I would learn that woman-woman cruisers were paired with other women-woman, or families with small children were put at the same table. They also tried to pair by general age if possible to avoid putting a party loving group of 20-somethings at a table with retirees.

 

It is not rocket science. It just take a little software program to pair people up in the dining room. This is how my gf and I got put at the solo table. Our reservations was separate and Carnival had no way of knowing that we were actually cruising together. We were solo women about the same age, so the program or whatever they use put us at a table together. RCCL just doesn't bother or at least did not bother on any of my cruises with them. On my first cruise with RCCL, I was married travelling with my husband. We were at a table with a very strange eclectic set of fellow cruisers (solos, young, old, couples) and I felt that it would not have taken too much to have put us at a table more compatible. We ended up moving on our own halfway thru the cruise to the table next to us which was half empty and more compatible to the two of us.

 

Now for your indignation over my opinion. Comparing the two, Carnival is more my taste. Nothing is wrong with RCCL if that is your speed. It is just not a better cruise fit for me.

 

 

I have no indignation or anger over your opinions or choice of what suits you better. I glad that the Maître D has always come through for you. But apparently your gf wasn't so lucky. It appears she was placed at a table with table mates that she wasn't comfortable with. It's the luck of the draw, and can happen on any cruise line.

 

I also never said that I preferred RCCL. If you notice, in my signature of my last 5 cruises only 1 was with RCCL. But on that cruise there was trivia/ silly pool games/ a piano bar and a game in which the guests participated. All things that you insinuate RCCL doesn't have. Not to mention the plethora of loungers facing the pool and near one another. For the record, yes, there were also loungers facing the ocean, just in case someone wanted to look at it while they were relaxing on a cruise ship.

[buddylover]

The only thing to me different is in the higher tiers on RCL where you start to get free wine and free drinks ...depending on how far you are in their loyalty program.

 

Other than that I choose by price and what goes where I want.

 

Firefly, you have returned!!! So glad to see your posting again, we missed you!!!

[Torchwood]

We did our first Royal Caribbean in March on the Navigator of the Seas, we have been on Princess, NCL and Carnival.

 

I must say, we were not impressed with RCCL - it was the little things that we missed, such as a robe in our room, a simple pen to write with, little amenity basket and if you don't ask for ice, you don't get any. You cannot take non-alcoholic beverages on board, we like to bring bottled water. The entertainment was fair, other than the ice show. The excursion desk staff were rude and not very helpful.

 

The ship was beautiful and the food was very good, however, we missed not being on Carnival - we are back to Carnival for a 21 day Caribbean and can't wait. If given the choice, RCCL would be my last, it would have to be smoking deal for us to book and try RCCL again.

[AmandaKaye79]

We did our first Royal Caribbean in March on the Navigator of the Seas, we have been on Princess, NCL and Carnival.

 

 

 

I must say, we were not impressed with RCCL - it was the little things that we missed, such as a robe in our room, a simple pen to write with, little amenity basket and if you don't ask for ice, you don't get any. You cannot take non-alcoholic beverages on board, we like to bring bottled water. The entertainment was fair, other than the ice show. The excursion desk staff were rude and not very helpful.

 

 

 

The ship was beautiful and the food was very good, however, we missed not being on Carnival - we are back to Carnival for a 21 day Caribbean and can't wait. If given the choice, RCCL would be my last, it would have to be smoking deal for us to book and try RCCL again.

 

 

We took water and soda on every RC cruise we have been on with no problem.

 

 

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[BenjiRodney]

I have been on Adventure but not Valor. Valor would probably be comparable in size to Rhapsody. It would not have the promenade like Adventure. Carnival does not have this on their ships. Carnival does have the drink packages and anytime dining. IMO Carnivals food is better and has more options than RC. Carnival has more of a fun atmosphere if that's what your looking for.

 

I have been on Rhapsody and Valor, Valor is 110,000 tons compared to Rhapsody at 74000 tons, so you will see Valor is much larger.

 

We prefer Carnival to Royal as we find they offer more options (activities) and food is available longer, so if there is some thing you want to do ,then you should be able to find food afterwards. We did not find this to be the case on Royal Caribbean. Carnival also does not charge for room service between 12 am and 5 am.

[cindivan]

We're 32 and 27, and have been on 4 cruises with Royal Caribbean on 4 different ships; allure, freedom (east and west Caribbean), mariner and rhapsody in Asia and Australia.

 

We haven't cruised with another company.

 

We're looking at a Southern Caribbean cruise next June with RCI on adventure ots from San Juan but the price has gone up from around €1400 to €2000 in the past couple of weeks, so we had a look at other companies and found a similar itinerary with Carnival on their Valor ship priced around €1400.

 

Is there much of a difference between the 2 companies, does carnival have drinks packages, anytime dining, etc, etc....

 

 

Looking for advise from anyone that has experienced both lines or even better, been on both ships, adventure and valor.

 

 

All (well most) educated statements about the differences between the two lines. I didn't calculate but it seems more favorable to carnival. But this a carnival thread. I wonder if the opposite would happen if you asked the same question on a RC thread?

 

It was interesting to me because we are RC people since our teens love it. But my son who is a HS senior, me and another mom are doing carnival in April. Mainly because they think it's more of a party boat than RC. Good or bad? It's what you prefer.

 

Like most posters I think it's a lot of personal opinion. However on either line I definitely prefer the larger and newer ships.

 

 

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[Arizonagirl14]

I've been on both cruise lines and saw very little difference. I enjoyed both cruises and would cruise with either one again. That being said, I like the RCCL radiance of the seas itinerary better than the Carnival cruise schedule for Alaska.

 

Everyone is different and everyone has things they like and do not like about every cruise line or ship. I always do my research and book accordingly.

 

We are cruising on the Valor In December; I looked at similar RCCL with similar schedules but could not justify the almost double fares, considering the cruising so port intensive. Therefore, we chose the Valor, and can not wait!

 

 

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[BenjiRodney]

I've been on both cruise lines and saw very little difference. I enjoyed both cruises and would cruise with either one again. That being said, I like the RCCL radiance of the seas itinerary better than the Carnival cruise schedule for Alaska.

 

Everyone is different and everyone has things they like and do not like about every cruise line or ship. I always do my research and book accordingly.

 

We are cruising on the Valor In December; I looked at similar RCCL with similar schedules but could not justify the almost double fares, considering the cruising so port intensive. Therefore, we chose the Valor, and can not wait!

 

 

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Next May we booked Carnival Legend from Vancouver to Seattle with stops in Tracy Arm, Juneau, Skagway, Glacier Bay and Ketchikan, the balcony room was cheaper than what we paid on Royal in 2012 for an Oceanview, for a smaller older ship.

 

You should like the Valor, we did that route 3 times, twice on the Victory and last year on the Valor.

 

 

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[katiel53]

I'm sure by now that you are aware that Valor is being replaced by Liberty. It has a few more food options than Valor in that it has the 2.0 updates. We sail both lines and if it were not for the difference in price, we would sail Royal Caribbean anytime over Carnival.

 

I think the food on Royal Caribbean is not the "comfort food" or down home food as it is on Carnival. The food in the MDR is more like that of a fine® restaurant than it is on Carnival. The ships on Carnival for the most part are gaudy compared to the subtle decor of Royal.

 

We don't use the rock climbing, ice skating, or other amenities that Royal has, but have found even without them we have a great time. Carnival uses karaoke frequently if not nightly and trivia is every day. The shows aren't that great, but there is almost nightly comedy.

 

I do have to say that we were on Carnival Liberty a couple of weeks ago and they had the best band ever in the casino. They played music that everyone enjoyed as there were many people dancing. The only problem is that they probably won't be on Liberty when you said as their contract is up in December and they didn't plan to be on there again, and also that the casino is so smoky.

 

Not that this is a concern for you now, but the loyalty programs are as different as night and day. Carnival's Platinum which is about the equivalent of Royal's Diamond status is not worth much other than the limited free laundry. I realize this is not a discussion of the programs so I won't say any more.

 

I think it's worth a cruise on Carnival to see for yourself which line you prefer.. We like sailing on both, but honestly we have done more Carnival cruises lately as we book far in advance and we like the Early Saver option that is available on Carnival and there is no equivalent on Royal Caribbean.

[Cuizer2]

We're 32 and 27, and have been on 4 cruises with Royal Caribbean on 4 different ships; allure, freedom (east and west Caribbean), mariner and rhapsody in Asia and Australia.

 

We haven't cruised with another company.

 

We're looking at a Southern Caribbean cruise next June with RCI on adventure ots from San Juan but the price has gone up from around €1400 to €2000 in the past couple of weeks, so we had a look at other companies and found a similar itinerary with Carnival on their Valor ship priced around €1400.

 

Is there much of a difference between the 2 companies, does carnival have drinks packages, anytime dining, etc, etc....

 

 

Looking for advise from anyone that has experienced both lines or even better, been on both ships, adventure and valor.

 

I have been on ten cruises on each line. I've been on the ...

 

Allure - http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1928555

 

Freedom - I wrote a review in 2007, but I did not keep links to my review until 2008

 

Mariner - http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1013982

Sorry, I did not add photos to the review until 2010 and the photo album for this cruise was on a photo hosting site that is no longer available.

 

Enchantment (same class as the Rhapsody) - http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1591335

 

Legend (same class as the Rhapsody) - http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1987695

 

As well as the Monarch, Serenade, Voyager and Navigator (twice).

 

I've also been on the ...

 

Glory (same class as the Valor) - 2006

 

Freedom - http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1432492

 

Splendor - http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1777222

 

Miracle - http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1360813

 

Spirit - http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1315757

 

As well as the Paradise, Inspiration, Pride, Victory and Holiday.

 

Carnival does have drink packages and flexible dining (I prefer the traditional two seating dining).

 

The passenger mix is very similar.

 

The bigger Royal Caribbean ships have a better passenger space ratio than Carnival has.

 

The regular cabins on Carnival are a little bigger.

 

I like the showers on Carnival better than the showers on Royal Caribbean.

 

The suites on Royal Caribbean are bigger than the suites on Carnival.

 

Carnival has water slides that an adult can use.

 

Royal Caribbean has rock climbing walls.

 

The service on Royal Caribbean is a little better than on Carnival.

 

The food on Carnival is a little better than the food on Royal Caribbean.

 

Carnival's prices tend to be less expensive than Royal Caribbean's prices.

 

I like the layout of the Royal Caribbean ships better than the layout of the Carnival ships. However, my favorite ships are the four Carnival Spirit class ships.

[jackson bernard]

For that much savings I would go on carnival and use the money to have a lot of fun on shore.

 

You will be so tired you wont care you are on one of the ugliest cheapest outdated looking ships at sea.

 

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[Rogueperson]

Because I cruise solo and enjoy interacting and meeting new people, I prefer Carnival over RCCL.

 

In my opinion the activities offered on Carnival are designed specifically to encourage the passengers to interact with each other (trivia/silly poolside games/singalong piano bar/audience participation activities in the theater) while RCCL's layout and activities seem designed to allow people to stay within their groups/couples without feeling a need to interact with "strangers" (rock climbing/flowriding/ice skating). Even the layout of the RCCL Lido deck (whatever it is called on their mega ships) is designed so that half of the people are faced away from the masses with little barriers between groupings of loungers while Carnival's lido deck is designed so that everyone sees everyone and friendly conversations are a natural occurrence.

 

 

Both cruises do this, but maybe, the clientele for Carnival is more amenable to these kinds of activities as opposed to Royal Caribbean? I always feel like there is more energy on Carnival, whereas Royal Caribbean is more laid back and relaxing. Is it possible that those that sail on Carnival tend to prefer social interaction more? I'm only guessing, and going by my experiences with both Carnival and Royal Caribbean. If you like the social interaction, I think you get a better mix of people on Carnival. If you want a more refined cruising experience, you go on Royal Caribbean. Neither is better than the other, its what one prioritizes when going on vacation. I think they are more alike than different and the pendulum swings back and forth on depending on the ship you go on, length of cruise, time of the cruise, port of departure, etc etc etc.