So, We Tried RCI…

[SNJCruisers]

6 hours ago, jimbo5544 said:

Let us know how it goes

No problem Jimbo.

[SNJCruisers]

1 hour ago, canyoncam said:

Reasons I prefer Royals drink package:

1) It is unlimited.
2) It includes fresh squeezed juice-can’t beat that in my morning mimosas.

3) I get 40% off a bottle of wine when I want to treat my table mates. 
4) I’m a sucker for the Coke freestyle machines. 
 

If you don’t care about any of those then yes, pricing does beat out on Carnival 

Fifteen alcoholic drinks over the course of the day are indeed enough for me.  If I want fresh squeezed OJ I can pay extra for it at the  Havana Bar on Carnival and still come out ahead of RCI price wise.  Regarding soda, you can keep the fountain stuff from the Freestyle machine.  I'll enjoy canned Pepsi Zero or bottled Pure Leaf Iced Tea with Cheers and milkshakes with alcohol as well from the Shake Spot or Java Blue.

[sparks1093]

3 hours ago, SNJCruisers said:

Then for the most part you're relegated to Carnival and MSC.  The others will have sales occasionally on the older ships in their respective lines, but cheap fares on their newer ships are few and far between.

For us that isn't a bad thing. We enjoy Carnival and if we are "stuck" cruising with them, well, they are stuck with us as well. If the day comes and Carnival no longer meets our needs then we might stop cruising, since our budget only goes so far.

[jerseyjjs]

On 4/1/2022 at 12:48 AM, SNJCruisers said:

How?  Cheers is a set price no matter which ship or time of year you sail.  RCI's Dynamic Pricing policy fluctuates depending upon the ship you're on and the time of year you sail.  If you sail on one of their newer or larger ships, it's impossible to meet the price of Cheers, even if you stumble across a deep discount on Black Friday.

 

 

One advantage of RCL's drink package over Carnival's is that you can use it on their private islands.  Can't do that at Half Moon Cay.....which is a total cash grab on Carnival's part.

[jetsfan58]

Competition is what keeps some companies honest and adds variety to life. No problem here and welcome back to the Carnival Cruise Nuts society.  

[Indytraveler83]

5 hours ago, SNJCruisers said:

Then for the most part you're relegated to Carnival and MSC.  The others will have sales occasionally on the older ships in their respective lines, but cheap fares on their newer ships are few and far between.

 

That is likely accurate.  I was just agreeing with another poster who spoke about some people paying a premium to sail Carnival, when in their experience RCL was cheaper (I believe solo fares were part of the issue for them).

 

I'll take 2-3 cruises on whatever ship I can get, vs 1 on a "premium" ship.

[SNJCruisers]

2 hours ago, jerseyjjs said:

 

 

One advantage of RCL's drink package over Carnival's is that you can use it on their private islands.  Can't do that at Half Moon Cay.....which is a total cash grab on Carnival's part.

True, but not every sailing goes to a private island, even though RCI has many that go to Coco Cay, which is the biggest cash grab in the world of cruising.

[SNJCruisers]

1 hour ago, Indytraveler83 said:

 

That is likely accurate.  I was just agreeing with another poster who spoke about some people paying a premium to sail Carnival, when in their experience RCL was cheaper (I believe solo fares were part of the issue for them).

 

I'll take 2-3 cruises on whatever ship I can get, vs 1 on a "premium" ship.

The person who were referring to was Firefly, who cruises solo and 90+% of the time it's from Galveston so her theory about Carnival being higher was skewed by her small window of comparison.  I mentioned in my response to her about comparing the Mardi Gras with the Wonder OTS since they are the newest and both will sail out of PC next year.  In Feb/Mar, MG is about 200 pp cheaper and in April is about 400-550 pp cheaper.  2-3 vs 1 cruise really comes into effect with Disney

 

To make a true comparison you need to incorporate all of your spending.  Airfare, pre cruise hotel, transfers and tips will be the same whether you choose a premium or value line.  On board spending could be the same as well or may slightly fluctuate.  People can't spin doctor it to just the initial cost. But of course a good portion of the clientele from Carnival drive, which turns airfare, pre-cruise hotel and transfers into parking, gas and tolls.

Edited April 2, 2022 by SNJCruisers

[jerseyjjs]

28 minutes ago, SNJCruisers said:

True, but not every sailing goes to a private island, even though RCI has many that go to Coco Cay, which is the biggest cash grab in the world of cruising.

 

 

    Yes it is.....unless you just grab a lounger in the shade and take your pre-purchased beer into the water with you.   🙂

[firefly333]

2 hours ago, jerseyjjs said:

 

 

One advantage of RCL's drink package over Carnival's is that you can use it on their private islands.  Can't do that at Half Moon Cay.....which is a total cash grab on Carnival's part.

Besides also being unlimited, rcl drink pkg is also good the first day you board out of Galveston. Carnivals starts day 2, that morning, I think 6 or 7 am. It is nice it's good at their private islands. I get the vouchers which I can also use at coco cay when I'm there next march. Carnival just decided they dont want the bother of texas law and skips the whole first day on their cheers. Rcl has limited brands until we hit international waters. Texas requires they serve brands bought in texas or some such while in texas.

 

He also mentions the freestyle machines, says he would rather get cans. I'm on liberty OTS who doesnt have freestyle machines. Still get the cups with the soda pkg but they arent on all ships. I can ask for a can and get it too. 

 

So there are differences. I look past the differences to price and which gives me the most for my money. True as he points out I'm solo and rcl treats solos better. At 340 pts I get a discount and I get a extra loyalty pt for being solo. Plus right now double pts, so 28 this week. So I'm pushing to hit 340 for that big discount.

 

On the other hand .. we got no port fees back when we missed a port. I wrote to corporate who talked in circles and said they have no policy, that it's up to each ship to decide if they want to refund port fees. Also I overpaid, I paid for grand Cayman and jamaica and got Belize and costa maybe, almost $20 less. Corporate said we dont charge you extra if port fees rise, we rarely give price drops if they drop either. I can post the their email, but that's the gist of it. I like that carnival gives port fees back. It's not a big amount but they owe me this week. We missed costa maya. 3 sea days in a row. today is our 3rd sea day, lol. I wrote back they should have a consistent policy like carnival.

 

I think it's not worth dwelling on little things, but fun here on cc to compare, but in the end it's about overall value. At 340 pts I get 25% discount off all cabins. I will hit 340 this sept. (Says 50% off 2nd fare, but my ta says just figure 25% off overall). 25% off any cabin I want. 

 

I probably see the differences more clearly since I'm doing a lot of rcl now after 3 carnival at restart. 

 

I'm not saying one over the other as I book both lines obviously. ... but missing a port this week brings up a clear policy difference .. in addition to their drink policy. We are also having a week of odd foods, some good some bad, as we are short of some foods. .. but lots of bacon. 

[SNJCruisers]

24 minutes ago, jerseyjjs said:

 

 

    Yes it is.....unless you just grab a lounger in the shade and take your pre-purchased beer into the water with you.   🙂

You can do the exact same thing on Grand Turk, Amber Cove or HMC with Cheers.  You bring unopened bottles or cans from the ship in a six pack cooler that's in the bottom of your beach bag. You need to learn how to plug loopholes at times.

[jerseyjjs]

52 minutes ago, SNJCruisers said:

You can do the exact same thing on Grand Turk, Amber Cove or HMC with Cheers.  You bring unopened bottles or cans from the ship in a six pack cooler that's in the bottom of your beach bag. You need to learn how to plug loopholes at times.

 

 

    I've done better than that with rum runners and a giant bubba mug full of the orange/mango/guava/sugar breakfast juice.  But sometimes, it's nice to just to carry nothing more than a towel onto the island.

Edited April 2, 2022 by jerseyjjs

[gsb]

34 minutes ago, ChC said:

A secret on RCL regarding in-room TV.

 

If you think there were very few TV channels on RCL, try to go to Menu and look for Films. There you will find about 120-130 movies and about 30-90 movies are free, depending on the grade of cabin you are in.

 

I prefer RCL. Carnival can be very repetitious (food, itinerary, activities) and predictable. RCL speciality dining is really another level. And the coffee is better on RCL, not to mention Diamond lounge.

 

For reference, I am Platinum on Carnival and Diamond Plus on RCL. So there is no fan-dom talk here, just pure personal experiences.

Yes, RCL is a step above

[bar1068]

11 hours ago, canyoncam said:

Reasons I prefer Royals drink package:

1) It is unlimited.
2) It includes fresh squeezed juice-can’t beat that in my morning mimosas.

3) I get 40% off a bottle of wine when I want to treat my table mates. 
4) I’m a sucker for the Coke freestyle machines. 
 

If you don’t care about any of those then yes, pricing does beat out on Carnival 

We prefer the drink package on Royal for pretty much the same reasons. Unlimited being the least concerning, One thing I can add is I was able to buy doubles whiskey's and bourbons(my preferred drink) on Royal and fit under the cost per drink allowed. One thing that annoys the hell out of me on Carnival is to work up to a bar advertising "make it a double for $3 more" only to be told that can't be done with Cheers. Some can spin it however they like to have it make sense to them, makes none to me. Hell, I'd be ok if they had it count for 2 drinks against the 15....Now, I could be off a bit on the RCI allowing doubles, been a few years now since we cruised with Royal...who knows...maybe I found the right bartenders(s) that got me doubles...I just know I had little to no issues ordering doubles. I'll also add how annoying it is Carnival does not allow the use of the drink package on HMC. Again, spin it how you like to justify it for Carnival, I won't. I've been on several Carnival cruises with Cheers that stopped at HMC to further the annoyance.

 

And I'll also add, what I'm sure will be doubted is we have paid less for the drink package on Royal than Carnival, the relative few times we've been on RCI with the drink package. We've only been on Oasis and Quantum class ships on RCI, not sure if that fits the older less newer ship criteria, and always cruised in late spring (May), but we have done better cost wise a few times on Royal. Like many who stalk cruise fares looking for reduced rates on their booked cruises, I've stalked the almost daily changes to the dynamic pricing for the drink package. Actually best deals we've gotten are the packages that combined their wifi and drink package. Admittedly a smaller sampling size due to fewer cruises with Royal, we have done somewhat "better" price wise. 

[SNJCruisers]

53 minutes ago, bar1068 said:

We prefer the drink package on Royal for pretty much the same reasons. Unlimited being the least concerning, One thing I can add is I was able to buy doubles whiskey's and bourbons(my preferred drink) on Royal and fit under the cost per drink allowed. One thing that annoys the hell out of me on Carnival is to work up to a bar advertising "make it a double for $3 more" only to be told that can't be done with Cheers. Some can spin it however they like to have it make sense to them, makes none to me. Hell, I'd be ok if they had it count for 2 drinks against the 15....Now, I could be off a bit on the RCI allowing doubles, been a few years now since we cruised with Royal...who knows...maybe I found the right bartenders(s) that got me doubles...I just know I had little to no issues ordering doubles. I'll also add how annoying it is Carnival does not allow the use of the drink package on HMC. Again, spin it how you like to justify it for Carnival, I won't. I've been on several Carnival cruises with Cheers that stopped at HMC to further the annoyance.

 

And I'll also add, what I'm sure will be doubted is we have paid less for the drink package on Royal than Carnival, the relative few times we've been on RCI with the drink package. We've only been on Oasis and Quantum class ships on RCI, not sure if that fits the older less newer ship criteria, and always cruised in late spring (May), but we have done better cost wise a few times on Royal. Like many who stalk cruise fares looking for reduced rates on their booked cruises, I've stalked the almost daily changes to the dynamic pricing for the drink package. Actually best deals we've gotten are the packages that combined their wifi and drink package. Admittedly a smaller sampling size due to fewer cruises with Royal, we have done somewhat "better" price wise. 

It's been a few years since you have cruised with Royal and it's obvious you also have no future cruises booked with them as well.  If you did have a future cruise over the next year you would be educated about the current state of Dynamic pricing and their drink package.  Because of the millions that were bled during the shutdown, RCI needs to recoup and they are doing so by putting cruisers over the coals regarding the drink package.  Currently have three booked within the next year plus one in 2023 and two in 2024.  Am relegated to the refreshment package at 20 a day with tips for my 12 days on the Oasis in June.  It'll be my first cruises without an alcoholic drink package in 10 years.  I will not pay 74 a day after taxes.  

[bmc alabama]

3 hours ago, ChC said:

A secret on RCL regarding in-room TV.

 

If you think there were very few TV channels on RCL, try to go to Menu and look for Films. There you will find about 120-130 movies and about 30-90 movies are free, depending on the grade of cabin you are in.

 

I prefer RCL. Carnival can be very repetitious (food, itinerary, activities) and predictable. RCL speciality dining is really another level. And the coffee is better on RCL, not to mention Diamond lounge.

 

For reference, I am Platinum on Carnival and Diamond Plus on RCL. So there is no fan-dom talk here, just pure personal experiences.

When we were on Oasis in January in an Ocean View Balcony, ALL in stateroom movies were $11.99.  That is terrible and one of the worst things to me about RCCL.  Carnival has some free movies and on Virgin, Princess, and DCL, they are all included on the stateroom TV...

[ray98]

I have been on each of the 3 mainstream lines multiple times and have had a great trip on each.  These comparisons generally get influenced by brand cheerleader more than anything else.  I don't know how the cruise lines get such rabid brand loyalty but they do.

 

 

At the end of the day the cruise lines are remarkably similar in their business model.  They all do some things a little better and worse than their competitors.  The other problem with direct comparisons is one variable no one factors in, the lines simply are not standardized across the brand no matter how much they try.  For example, I was recently on the MG and the Spirit a month apart and if you were blindfolded you would think it was two different lines because the experience was so different yet they are both Carnival.  

[GUT2407]

We have sailed on most of the mainstream lines that sail Australia and find them more alike than different, we often say you will find as much difference between two ships from one line as from different lines.

[Indytraveler83]

13 hours ago, SNJCruisers said:

 

To make a true comparison you need to incorporate all of your spending.  Airfare, pre cruise hotel, transfers and tips will be the same whether you choose a premium or value line.  

 

Well this is partially true. We live 10 hours from the nearest cruise port (Baltimore) and have made the drive to New Orleans before.

 

For us, where we cruise to is highly dependant on either a marathon drive or finding the cheapest airfare.  Those drives are getting less and less attractive as the years wear on.

 

Orlando and Miami are frequently far more expensive than driving to New Orleans or flying to Tampa.  Carnival's strategy of placing ships in as many places as possible gives us more options to reduce costs (RCI isn't far behind).  The premium brands limited port options frequently mean increased costs in our situation as well.

[SNJCruisers]

2 hours ago, ray98 said:

I don't know how the cruise lines get such rabid brand loyalty but they do.

Carnival draws the budget cruiser who likes to drive to the cruise instead of fly.  They like to have fun and they enjoy comedy.  NCL draws the cruiser who likes to do things on their own time and wear what they want such as shorts in the specialty restaurant, that's why it's Freestyle Cruising.   Royal draws the cruiser that likes perks such as 4 drinks when Diamond, 5 at Diamond Plus and 6 at Pinnacle.

I know these are just skimming the surface, but it's a good starting point as to why certain people are so boisterous about a certain line.

[CorbinCatFan]

We just got back from a Royal Caribbean cruise and are set to go on a Carnival cruise this month.  From my point of view, each has it's on unique offerings.  I do like somethings that Royal does and somethings that Carnival does.

 

On Royal, I do like their MyTime dining where you can reserve your dining in advance.  We were served by the same waitstaff during the cruise.  By mid cruise, the staff knew what wines we normally would order.  A difference between the lines, there were white table clothes on the tables and these were scrapped before the desert course.

 

On Carnival, I like the Anytime dining app so that whenever we are ready for dinner, we just request a table and the app let's us know when the table is ready.  We never had the same waitstaff.

 

At breakfast on Royal, you could order your omelet and they would give you a number to take to your table.  When it was done, they would deliver it to you.  On Carnival, you would have to stand in line, order you omelet and wait until it was cooked.  I prefer the Royal method but always found that Carnival made better omlets.

 

The drink packages, Carnival has a high dollar value limit ($20) but limits the number of drinks.  Royal has a lower dollar value ($13) but no limit on the number of drinks.  I know that if you order a drink over the dollar value on Royal, you will be charged the difference.  I don't know if Carnival has the same policy.  A plus for Carnival is the Alchemy Bar for crafted cocktails.  I didn't find the same on Royal.

 

A strong point for Carnival is the availability of include and upcharge food venues.  There are dead times I found on Royal that food was limited, typically between 4:00 and 6:00 PM. 

 

I do like both cruise lines and will cruise on them in the future.  

[Moonarino]

On 3/29/2022 at 8:29 AM, Indytraveler83 said:

I've wanted to jump to RCL and try an Oasis class ship, but it's reviews like this that keep me coming back to Carnival.  It's hard when you can only cruise once (sometimes twice) a year to try something you aren't certain will be worth it.  

This from a long-time Carnival cruiser with 3 cruises on Oasis class and 1 on Independence OTS:

 

I would say Oasis class is worth trying, just don't expect "better" in any category necessarily, just different. Oasis ships are a whole 'nother experience. The two best shows we've ever seen were on RC Oasis in 2011 and Carnival Triumph in 2008. Carnival MDR (IMHO) is almost always better, but all of the larger RC ships give you many more food venues to choose from. Also the Aqua Theater on Oasis class can be (but not necessarily "will be") a great experience.

 

Expect to just find "different" and you probably won't be disappointed.

[cruisingguy007]

15 hours ago, SNJCruisers said:

Carnival draws the budget cruiser who likes to drive to the cruise instead of fly.  They like to have fun and they enjoy comedy.  NCL draws the cruiser who likes to do things on their own time and wear what they want such as shorts in the specialty restaurant, that's why it's Freestyle Cruising.   Royal draws the cruiser that likes perks such as 4 drinks when Diamond, 5 at Diamond Plus and 6 at Pinnacle.

I know these are just skimming the surface, but it's a good starting point as to why certain people are so boisterous about a certain line.

 

It's always amusing watching folks argue and get all hoity-toity over their preferred mass market brand or try and define/lump everyone into neat little boxes. Mass market is mass market, most are more similar than different, even many of the so called "luxury" lines, but obviously the marketing is effective. Everyone wants to feel superior, refined and more sophisticated than the unwashed masses beneath them. It's quite entertaining to be sure.   

Edited April 3, 2022 by cruisingguy007

[SNJCruisers]

3 minutes ago, cruisingguy007 said:

 

It's always amusing watching folks argue and get all hoity-toity over their preferred mass market brand or try and define/lump everyone into neat little boxes. Mass market is mass market, most are more similar than different, even many of the so called "luxury" lines, but obviously the marketing is effective. Everyone wants to feel superior, refined and more sophisticated than the unwashed masses beneath them. It's quite entertaining to be sure.   

Who was arguing?  All I did was mention generalizations about the typical Carnival, NCL and Royal cruiser.  All of the generalizations are 100% fact.  I've cruised on NCL and Royal four times each and Carnival over 20 times, so my thoughts come from first hand experience, not from reading stuff on CC and regurgitating things second hand.

Regarding neat little boxes, we know what box you reside in.  You're a family cruiser who puts his kids first and you hate the Havana area because you think that takes away square footage on board for your kids.  I don't get upset about all of the square footage that is for the kids, so I can't wrap my head around the fact that you're so upset about adult only areas.  Every main stream cruise line has them, some are free and some are up charged, but they are here to stay.

[Rudyard]

16 hours ago, SNJCruisers said:

NCL draws the cruiser who likes to do things on their own time and wear what they want such as shorts in the specialty restaurant, that's why it's Freestyle Cruising.

 

Considering how Carnival is pretty much OK with wearing what you want now (although they pretend otherwise), I'm wondering if we'll see them go to more of a Freestyle type of dining eventually. The only thing keeping them from that now is set time dining. I do recall from the one NCL cruise I took that they did have some sort of elegant night, but the main dress code stipulation was that you had to wear long trousers to one of the MDRs, but the other was still ok with shorts on that night. I seem to recall one specialty restaurant that also required something more along the lines of business casual but I can't recall if that was every night or just one night on the cruise.