help...Carnival or Royal

[Buster27]

Hey Michelle

 

I do agree that no Carnival ship can match the beauty and WOW factor of RC....I've only sailed the Mariner, the Navigator and the Majesty...but seen lots of pictures of the Freedom and there is no doubt they are fabulous !!!!

 

BUT, with that said, I don't feel the service or the food is any better, in fact not as good as Carnival. AND, while the room service selection is better and more varied on RC, the speed of delivery can not match Carnival.

 

And the nightlife on RC just is not as lively....all of our RC cruises were dead by 11 pm!

 

I don't have any small children so the rock wall, skating etc. are not important to me. But then, maybe someone with young children would be thrilled to have these offered and wouldn't care about the night life !!!

 

One feature I LOVE on RC is the adult solarium/pool area. It is so peaceful there !!!! Carnival REALLY needs to have an area like this. I like the lively Lido deck sometimes, but would really appreciate some peace to read and nap !!! That's one reason we usually book a balcony cabin.

 

So I guess it really depends on what features are important to each family. I don't really care what islands we visit... for me the vacation is the shipboard life. But then, others will choose the ship based on the ports....

 

I didn't even know Carnival visited the Turks/Cairos Islands.....will have to look into that!!!!!!!!!

 

Our next cruise is in Dec. on the Carnival Victory, but we are looking into a March one on the Freedom....can't wait!!!

[crusinmama06]

I didn't even know Carnival visited the Turks/Cairos Islands.....will have to look into that!!!!!!!!!

 

Yep! They have a BEAUTIFUL set up there too. They have a big pool for Carnival guests right at the port. It looks like an oasis....just gorgeous. :)

 

One day I WILL get there. ;) :D

[Casino Player]

Hello, I am in charge of planning a family cruise. We are looking to travel around Dec. 6th 2008 and are a group of about 30 ranging in ages from 12 to 78 and most want to travel on a budget, in other words, they are cheap!!!:p. We know we want to do a 7 night eastern caribbean cruise.

 

The last cruise we did together was on the 38,000 ton Norwegian Majesty. The kids were bored, the food was horrible, etc. etc. I have cruised many times but most of the 30 family members past cruise experience is the one Majesty cruise.

 

They want the closest cruise port to NC but want to be on a large new ship. Based on itinerary I narrowed it down to the following 3 choices but would like some opinions as I still cannot decide. The Fantasy class is the largest class I have sailed on Carnival and the Voyager class on Royal so I am having trouble comparing the two.

 

Out of Port Canaveral - can drive down day of saving money on hotel and parking is cheaper

Glory - Nassua, St. Thomas, St. Maartin (this is the cheapest with the lowest inside starting at aprox. $500pp and I think food is better than Royal)

Mariner - Coco Cay, St. Maartin, St. Thomas (inside starting around $650, is the promenade, etc. worth the extra bucks??? I sure did love it and the ice show, etc. but is it worth $150 morepp???)

 

Out of Ft. Lauderdale - longer drive requiring pre-cruise hotel and more expensive parking

Splendor - San Juan, St. Thomas, La Romana, Nassua (this is my favorite itinerary but it is further and priced the same as the Mariner, but it will be a brand new ship)

 

Also Carnival is offering $100 OBC and 2 cat upgrades:D

Royal is offering $100 OBC and no upgrades:)

 

Thanks for any advice.

Bowbrite, the answer is clear go on the Glory.

[dc-snoopy]

My 2 cents.

 

We had two lovely cruises on RCI on two of their mid-size ships. We sailed on the Rhapsody when it was 4 years old and the Jewel when it was brand-spanking new and only 8 months old. Both cruises were what vacations are supposed to be. We just sailed the Destiny last month and we loved the itinerary but the ship, crew and service left a lot to be desired. To be fair, I have since read several reviews of the exact same cruise I was on here on the CC boards and the reviews were about 50/50 of people that really enjoyed it and people that were somewhat disappointed. I will say that the itinerary was fantastic and we enjoyed ourselves because we had my whole extended family together to share our parents 50th anniversary with them (we three "kids" treated Mom & Dad to the cruise). That and we made the most of our port calls. You can read details on my "review" linked in my sig.

 

However, I have to say that some of the problems that we encountered were things that I've found are endemic on Carnival. The layout of the ships is weaker. There are many bottlenecks and "can't get there from here" floor plans. If you plan to eat a lot at the Lido buffet, be aware that the traffic patterns are bad and at peak times, the wait alone can be close to 45 minutes.

 

My suggestion is that if you are "ship" people that you go on RCI. If you are "itinerary" people, then go on Carnival. Although we had many complaints, we still had a good time.

 

But we'll be returning to RCI based on our experiences. I agree with those who say that you'll enjoy yourself whatever you pick since you are on vacation and it's a cruise after all. Good luck and have fun!