Booked Royal Princess - differences to Grand Class?

[paddingtonbear]

The Royal and regal are large and crowded. The buffet is to big to look at everything first and then go back and get what you want and then find a seat. I prefer a small ship. There are as many opinions as there people. I would not sail on the Regal (same as the Royal) again, didn't care for it. YMMV.

 

 

I was amazed at how uncrowded and open the ship was when we had a full ship. I don't like crowds and would happily sail the Royal again. We were on the British isles cruise. The buffet is fantastically laid out and well worth walking around it entirely to see all the selections.

The staff were great.

The navigation is a little difficult. The problem is that only the forward stairs seem to go all the way top to bottom. Other stairs stop on different levels. Even the forward stairs require walking through club 6 (which was often reserved) or the casino. No other way to access the forward stairs on that level.

 

I really wanted to use the stairs and often did if the lifts were crowded but sometimes, as I got used to the layout of the ship I realised the lift was the way to go because it took you all the way top to bottom and you land centrally.

 

 

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Edited May 8, 2016 by paddingtonbear

[chubbypiggy]

On the Grand class ships, the Steam room and the Sauna are free for everyone to use because they are in the public area of the Spa... My friends said on the Royal Princess, those rooms are inside the Sanctuary. Does it mean you need to pay for the Sanctuary before you can use the Steam rooms and the Sauna?

 

Thank you.

[Murphey]

On the Grand class ships, the Steam room and the Sauna are free for everyone to use because they are in the public area of the Spa... My friends said on the Royal Princess, those rooms are inside the Sanctuary. Does it mean you need to pay for the Sanctuary before you can use the Steam rooms and the Sauna?

 

Thank you.

 

Steam/Sauna are in the spa.....no public access :( We really miss this feature!

[Marlenascruising]

I've cruised on the Emerald, Ruby, Crown & Royal. I really enjoyed all of my cruises. I have to say our last cruise was on the Royal & it was my favorite. I usually don't like large ships but the Royal was the least crowded i've ever felt on sea days. (not sure if it had anything to do with capacity). It was also our 1st mini suite so I may be biased. A completely objective opinion for me is the buffet set up was the best on any cruise line or ship i have been on. I particularly liked the single seating at the buffet. I usually hate buffets but I was so impressed with the food selections & quality & never had a bad meal. I also like all of the entertainment options. There were so many events happening all of the time. The band was great, my DH & i enjoy dancing & there were so many dancing opportunities! I also liked that there was a live singer/musician at the pool rather than a D.J. The Royal had the WOW factor for us & i honestly only want to sail on the Royal or Regal from now on.

[Lucky TGO]

Alfredo's and the Horizon Court is the reason why I pick the Royal.

Tony

[chubbypiggy]

Hi,

 

 

As noted above, the Royal/Regal do not have a traditional promenade deck and there is no central staircase. Because I usually try to take the stairs as much as possible, it is better for me to book a stateroom that is forward or aft near the stairs. Also, the balconies are small. The Explorers Lounge is replaced with Princess Live! (a fairly plain auditorium style space). There is no Skywalkers (with the great views), but a traditional lounge, Club 6, on Deck 6. On the Grand Class, I like the fact that there are four different pool areas. The Royal/Regal only have two major pool areas. However, they also have the fountain shows on some evenings. There are advantages and disadvantages to both classes of ships.

 

Chuck

 

There is a Live thread on the Royal (by Murphey); he mentioned the center stairs will be opened up.

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2362485

[Times Prince]

The band was great, my DH & i enjoy dancing & there were so many dancing opportunities! I also liked that there was a live singer/musician at the pool rather than a D.J. The Royal had the WOW factor for us & i honestly only want to sail on the Royal or Regal from now on.

Most of the posts I've seen say the only dancing opportunity is in the Atrium in the early evening.

 

Can you expand on the opportunities you've experienced? We are dancers and would not like to miss out on dancing.

[Marlenascruising]

Most of the posts I've seen say the only dancing opportunity is in the Atrium in the early evening.

 

Can you expand on the opportunities you've experienced? We are dancers and would not like to miss out on dancing.

 

We did most of our dancing in the atrium but i remember it being more than just early evening. The band seemed to be constantly playing somewhere. There is also a nightclub which surprisingly had a lot of older folks :) There was another band that played in the wheelhouse bar & still another at the Vista Lounge. There was also dancing on the pool deck by the singer/guitarist on sea days :) I've never danced so much on a cruise!