First timer looking to decide between two specific ships

[MidLothian]

Hello all, first post, and I'd like to say what a great resource this place is. I think I can find answers to almost all of my generic 'first time' questions like what to expect, what to bring, ways to combat sea-sickness, etc.

 

However, I would like information to help me make a final decision: I've narrowed down my choices to two ships: The Carnival Destiny and the Royal Caribbean Adventure of the Seas.

 

They are leaving pretty much the exact same time of year and travelling the exact same route and visiting almost the same ports.

 

I don't really know anything about either ship or the cruise line, so I'm wondering which people would recommend for a honeymoon cruise.

 

I'm not a real hard partyer and don't require tons of formal dinners, but other than that, I'm just looking for information that would help me decide if the $300 cost difference per person between the two ships is worth paying considering what you get.

 

Any advice is appreciated! Thanks.

[Monaco02]

I also am new to the CC (lurked for a long time though!) Since nobody else has answered you, I figured I'd give it a shot! What I did in trying to decide between 3 ships was read all the reviews I could find and also read everything I could on each ships "board" on CC. You eventually get a feel for what each ship is like and then be able to make an informed decision! Hope this helps!

[ozland]

MidLothian:

 

Sorry, I haven't sailed either ship but what you could do is visit the roll calls for the dates you are considering.....for both ships. Perhaps that will help you get a better *feel* for them.

[cruisienewbie]

Unfortunately I have only been on Destiny so of course this will be one-sided. I loved it. It was a nice ship with great service. The rooms were pretty nice and much bigger than a comparable room on NCL (i had a balcony). It's been a little while and I'm usually doing good to remember my name and where I live but if you had some specific questions about the Destiny I would be happy to try and answer them.:p

[ozzie63]

Hello, and welcome to the CC and the adventures of cruising. As you can see from my post I have only sailed on RCCL and most on Grandeur, but what ever ship you take, when you go with an attitude of excitement and going to experience new things you will have a ball. So don't worry sit back relax and let the ship's crew minister to your every need and desire and enjoy your cruise no matter what ship you are on. We, as you know all have different tastes, so you will determine how much fun you have. Have a great cruise and come back and tell us your experience.

Ozzie63:D :D :D

[Happy ks]

I've only cruise Carnival once and, for us, it just wasn't a good fit. I'm not about to trash the line because it didn't get to where it is today because a lot of people hate it. So, I'll only compare what my personal feelings were.

 

I felt the RCI has a more upscale feel to it. The cabins, while smaller, were more well appointed. The public spaces are nicer and, just in our experience, there seemed to be fewer smokers on RCI.

 

AOS is larger and newer, there is a larger space ratio on the ship.

 

Quite frankly, in spite of what I read here on all the line specific boards, the cruise experience (food, entertainment, service) is fairly consistent on almost all ships. We've been on 12 cruises with 7 different lines and while the best service (mainstream lines) was on Celebrity, all have been comparable. Even QM2, which is supposed to be at the top of the heap of mainstream cruise ships, had average food and service.

 

So, for me, I'd go with RCI, even if it cost a few bucks more.

[canadiancruisers11]

Hi there,

 

Who are you travelling with and what do you like to do? That will play a big part in your decision making process...First opinion from me would be the Adventure, it's got more of a "WOW" factor going for it but we've been on both classes of ship, let me know and I can help you out.

 

Craig

[megr1125]

The AOS was our first cruise, on the Aruba route. We had a great time overall and we got hooled on cruising (my mom & I).

 

There is a link to pix in my signature below and I would be happy to answer any questions you may have.

 

You can do as much or as little as you want. The food was fine...some great, some good but all edible, you won't go hungry.

 

Since both leave from San Juan, fly in a day early and leave a day after, just to give you time to relax before and to skip the crowds!