Royal vs. Carnival

[sseknichols]

We are going to be cruising with another family next summer. They have never cruised. We have done 4 with Carnival. As I look at the options for next summer, a trip on Allure of the Seas has caught my eye. I guess my question is what differences should I expect - food, shows, amenities, excursions, etc...? Basically anything. Obviously Allure is bigger than the Dream or Breeze which is what I would be looking at on the Carnival side. One thing that seems to pop up a lot is that Allure has many restaurants that cost an extra fee - how prevalent is that?

 

We are travelling with 4 adults and 3 teenage girls (16, 16, 17). Which also brings up another question - Our plan was two balcony rooms for the adults and an interior room for the girls across the hall. Will Royal Caribbean allow that like Carnival would?

 

I posted this on the RCL board too hoping to get a wide range of opinions. Thanks in advance for all the information! 😎

 

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[kctwinmommy]

Here's my review that compares the things we experienced between RCI & Carnival....

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2526532

[riclop]

Allure is much better especially with teens.

[Cuizer2]

We are going to be cruising with another family next summer. They have never cruised. We have done 4 with Carnival. As I look at the options for next summer, a trip on Allure of the Seas has caught my eye. I guess my question is what differences should I expect - food, shows, amenities, excursions, etc...? Basically anything. Obviously Allure is bigger than the Dream or Breeze which is what I would be looking at on the Carnival side. One thing that seems to pop up a lot is that Allure has many restaurants that cost an extra fee - how prevalent is that?

 

We are travelling with 4 adults and 3 teenage girls (16, 16, 17). Which also brings up another question - Our plan was two balcony rooms for the adults and an interior room for the girls across the hall. Will Royal Caribbean allow that like Carnival would?

 

I posted this on the RCL board too hoping to get a wide range of opinions. Thanks in advance for all the information! 😎

 

Sent from my SM-G920V using Forums mobile app

 

Below is my review of the Allure. I have been on 13 Carnival cruises. Because of a change in the terms for photobucket, the pictures will not be visible after August 16.

 

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

[S.S.Oceanlover]

We are going to be cruising with another family next summer. They have never cruised. We have done 4 with Carnival. As I look at the options for next summer, a trip on Allure of the Seas has caught my eye. I guess my question is what differences should I expect - food, shows, amenities, excursions, etc...? Basically anything. Obviously Allure is bigger than the Dream or Breeze which is what I would be looking at on the Carnival side. One thing that seems to pop up a lot is that Allure has many restaurants that cost an extra fee - how prevalent is that?

 

We are travelling with 4 adults and 3 teenage girls (16, 16, 17). Which also brings up another question - Our plan was two balcony rooms for the adults and an interior room for the girls across the hall. Will Royal Caribbean allow that like Carnival would?

 

I posted this on the RCL board too hoping to get a wide range of opinions. Thanks in advance for all the information! 😎

 

Sent from my SM-G920V using Forums mobile app

 

While there are an abundance of pay restaurants on the Allure there are still 3 free dining rooms just like on Carnival.

 

You do not have to use any of the pay restaurants and you won't go hungry.

 

The entertainment is much better on Allure.

 

Bill

[nhraformula00]

The shows on Royal are much better than carnival. There are several options on the Allure for food that have no up charge. Definatly more thing to do for teens on the Allure, flowrider, rock climbing wall, ice skating rink. Allure has 3 pools for swimming and a kiddy pool area, with much more deck space. Doesn't feel crowded in this area. The windjammer buffet is crowded at certain times of the day. There are other places ton neat that are not. Drink prices on Allure are higher than carnival. Food in gereral is about the same. If you don't like something order annother.

[sonicbuffalo]

Below is my review of the Allure. I have been on 13 Carnival cruises. Because of a change in the terms for photobucket, the pictures will not be visible after August 16.

 

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

Photobucket screwed my previous reviews up too. They already plastered my pictures with their mock avatar telling me to sign up for a $400 plan. Yeah right. Chew on this photo crapbucket.

 

By the way...nice review!

[Midwestgal]

Allure is much better especially with teens.

The Allure is simply amazing.

[cherylvv]

We have most recently cruised on Magic and Breeze (June 2016), and Liberty of the Seas (July 2017).

If you enjoyed the included alternate dining (Guys, Blue Iguana, free room service), and molten lava cake on Carnival, you will miss them on Royal. You get nickel and dime a lot if you let them.

We like to order a bottle of liquor for our room from room service on Carnival. Royal has started to offer a few bottles but only from the online giftshop, but the selection is small.

I bought my 11 yr old the non-alcoholic package while it was on sale for $18/day. It was the highlight of his trip. He will be very disappointed if our next cruise is on Carnival.

 

Also, Royal has a large inventory of adjoining interior rooms. We booked 2 interior promenade adjoining rooms on this trip. Our sons are still young (11 and 3) and I am not comfortable having them across the hallway. We loved the space, extra restroom, extra TV and the ease of moving across the room

 

After our cruise, I don't think I have a favorite. They each work for us but for different reasons.

 

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[AdGuyMG]

The Allure Of The Seas and her sisters the Oasis and Harmony are in a class of their own and will always outrank any Carnival ship in terms of entertainment options like Broadway shows + Ice Skating Shows + Aqua Theater shows. They will also always outrank in sheer size.

 

Then again the same can be said of the Allure when comparing it against a Princess, Norwegian, Holland America, Celebrity or MSC cruise.

 

And the same can be said even within Royal's own fleet. A Royal Caribbean cruise on a Vision, Radiance, Navigator or Freedom class ship is not going to outdo the Allure.

 

If booked early enough, the Allure will have the 2 balcony / inside for the kids across the hall options.

 

If you are booking into standard balcony accommodations (not Suites) you will find the buffet and MDR food similar. Not identical. Similar.

 

The shore excursions on Allure are no different that any other cruise lines stops at the same islands.

[BNBR]

Carnival has nothing that can compare with Allure. Go for it! You'll absolutely love your cruise on Allure.

 

Expect a large variety of shows, more venues and things to do, and just an overall amazing experience you can't get on a smaller ship (of any cruise line).

 

As for upcharge restaurants. The Allure is huge, which means they have some restaurant options for an additional fee. But that's just a few. You will find a large variety of complimentary dining. Every "neighborhood" has at least 1 complimentary option and often several. You'll end up realizing that there is complimentary options all over the place and at no point did we feel "nickel and dimed" like dining was all upcharge. Consider you have the 3 main dining rooms which serve breakfast, lunch, dinner. Promenade has Cafe Promenade and Sorrentos, Boardwalk has the Dog House and Johnny Rockets (complimentary breakfast is best kept secret on the ship), and I think they still have the donut shop, the Spa has Vitality Spa Cafe, the Solarium has the Solarium Bistro which is outstanding for breakfast and lunch. The pool/sports area has Wipeout Cafe and frozen yogurt options, and Central Park has the Park Cafe. Plus of course the main Windjammer buffet which is HUGE and offers a ton of variety. All of these are complimentary. In other words, at every turn there is complimentary dining.

[Ziggy7]

I find it very funny all posts are in favor of RCI on the Carnival boards! It is a preference to each one individually. I prefer Carnival because I dont have to pay for all these extras like on RCI.

[BNBR]

I find it very funny all posts are in favor of RCI on the Carnival boards! It is a preference to each one individually. I prefer Carnival because I dont have to pay for all these extras like on RCI.

 

If we were talking a smaller royal ship, I would probably suggest carnival. But of course more will be in support of Allure. It's in its own class.

 

What "extras" are you talking about that carnival gives you but you have to pay for on Royal? I'm not aware of any.

[Glock19]

The Allure is a ship you need to see to believe. I'm Diamond on Carnival. Been cruising Carnival since 1990. I just turned Platinum on Royal Caribbean. The ports on Carnival are better. Royal's big ships can't get into a lot of them. Price Carnival still wins out. Service? Royal Caribbean by a mile. Ships, Food, entertainment, embarkation, and Debarkation, I find Royal Caribbean to be much better. I find the Carnival staff and crew to be overworked and overwhelmed. Carnival has changed A LOT since 1990, and not for the best.

[libertybelle41]

I find it very funny all posts are in favor of RCI on the Carnival boards! It is a preference to each one individually. I prefer Carnival because I dont have to pay for all these extras like on RCI.

 

 

You don't have to pay for the extras on Allure either, but I like that I have a amazing choice

[BNBR]

The Allure is a ship you need to see to believe. I'm Diamond on Carnival. Been cruising Carnival since 1990. I just turned Platinum on Royal Caribbean. The ports on Carnival are better. Royal's big ships can't get into a lot of them. Price Carnival still wins out. Service? Royal Caribbean by a mile. Ships, Food, entertainment, embarkation, and Debarkation, I find Royal Caribbean to be much better. I find the Carnival staff and crew to be overworked and overwhelmed. Carnival has changed A LOT since 1990, and not for the best.

 

I found the service in carnival to be noticeably better. Especially dining room. On allure and Oasis the staff are overworked, almost impossible to get drinks, etc. I'd still take Allure any day but even my wife was pointing out the drastic quality difference in service and how much better it was on Carnival.

[dmdiver]

I think you would like Allure. Just remember you will need to make reservations for the shows. We did not do this on Oasis, which is basically the same ship, and we were not able to get into the shows. I would have no qualms about booking another RC cruise if the price was right. I will say that they do not have their ice cream machines going 24/7 like Carnival. May not matter to some, but it is annoying when they don't start them until noon & they're shut down by 6:30. Those are not their stated hours, I think they just decide not to refill them. Oasis class ships are beautiful, especially enjoyed having an after dinner cocktail in the Central Park area at night. We had good service on both our RC cruises - cabins are smaller in square footage, but they make excellent use of the space, so it really wasn't an issue for us. I though food was good on both lines as well.

[Sailor_Sally]

We were on RCL Freedom of the Seas in April and one night in the Windjammer it was all you can eat Shrimp and Lobster . Plus their desserts in the Windjammer blow Carnival away .On Freedom of the Seas we saw a Jersey Boys show .

[Glock19]

I found the service in carnival to be noticeably better. Especially dining room. On allure and Oasis the staff are overworked, almost impossible to get drinks, etc. I'd still take Allure any day but even my wife was pointing out the drastic quality difference in service and how much better it was on Carnival.

I've only used the dining room a few times on Royal. For me the windjammer has more than enough food to make me happy. Carnival's lido cannot compare. At night the windjammer has staff walking around the tables offering hot deserts. On the last few cruises at night a staff member would go around the tables with a guitar singing. Royal Caribbean has staff guiding people to the hand washing stations at the windjammer entrance. Carnival's casino has cheaper table games in the casino, and larger cabins. I also find Carnival is easier to get the stock OBC than Royal. I live an hour away from the Anthem of the seas. We've been on it twice. In the winter the Anthem sails for 12 nights. That's a big plus for me. We have the Anthem booked again for January 28. We have the Carnival Vista booked for Dec 30. I'm looking forward to sailing on the Vista too. Carnival and Royal are both good cruise lines, but the older I get the more I enjoy Royal Caribbean.

[jimbo5544]

If we were talking a smaller royal ship, I would probably suggest carnival. But of course more will be in support of Allure. It's in its own class.

 

 

 

What "extras" are you talking about that carnival gives you but you have to pay for on Royal? I'm not aware of any.

 

 

 

Let's see.....Johnny Rockets .... popcorn for starters

 

 

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[hunan6]

Sailed on Oasis this summer (basically same ship as Allure) with two teens. We all loved it. Shows, food, and activities were all great. That being said, as soon as I got home, I booked carnival. The reason being is the type of food we prefer. I really enjoy grab and go options. Although the options on Royal are good, such as Park Cafe, it seems that carnival has many more such offerings. The pizza, Asian, burger, and BBQ options on Carnival look and sound fantastic. The pizza on royal (sorrentos) was good (not great), and the burgers were atrocious. In fact, the burgers were the only thing on the ship I did not care for. Also attractive for traveling with teens is carnival's hub app (I think that's what it's called). There is no cheap or easy way to stay in touch on royal without buying internet for everyone. Still, should you choose Allure, you and the kids should love it. It was a great experience. We saved more than fifty percent on what we paid on a comparable Disney cruise, and found royal to be on par with disney.

[Ziggy7]

If we were talking a smaller royal ship, I would probably suggest carnival. But of course more will be in support of Allure. It's in its own class.

 

What "extras" are you talking about that carnival gives you but you have to pay for on Royal? I'm not aware of any.

Room service for one. Although they are free, the shows have to be reserved on Allure, not on Carnival.

[Ziggy7]

As I said, everyone has whats important to them, to me Allure is a big floating city (full of restaurants - free and up charged ones), I cruise to get away from that and feel like I'm actually cruising! I can go for walks in the parks here :) If you truly want them to go on their first cruise, maybe a smaller ship would give them more of a cruising experience :)

[BNBR]

As I said, everyone has whats important to them, to me Allure is a big floating city (full of restaurants - free and up charged ones), I cruise to get away from that and feel like I'm actually cruising! I can go for walks in the parks here :) If you truly want them to go on their first cruise, maybe a smaller ship would give them more of a cruising experience :)

 

If you cruise to get away from upcharge restaurants, then you are going to be very upset when you find out the Steakhouse and Seafood Shack are both upcharges on Glory... at least now you know ahead of time to prepare yourself for the disappointment.

 

Shows don't "have" to be reserved on Allure. You can wait in standby just like you are used to doing on Carnival. If you prefer to stand in long lines for an hour for that "Carnival" experience, you can certainly do that as well on Allure. I prefer to just make a free reservation and show up and get a great seat, but to each their own.

[jimbo5544]

If you cruise to get away from upcharge restaurants, then you are going to be very upset when you find out the Steakhouse and Seafood Shack are both upcharges on Glory... at least now you know ahead of time to prepare yourself for the disappointment.

 

 

 

And there are more on Royal so I guess they would be much more disappointed.

 

 

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