Best ship for a first timer on RCI?

[phill369]

I also wanted to add, I took my boyfriend on the Splendour for his first cruise, and I kind of regret it. It's a beautiful ship, but I think he needed something a little bigger with a little more to do.

[mikepmcm]

My husband and I are planning a Western Caribbean cruise on RCI this spring. This will be our first cruise ever and we are trying to decide which ship is the best for our first trip. What are your opinions? We are adventerous people who enjoy lots to do and see as well as lot of variety. DH really wants to take the Grandeur of the Seas ship because he found the trip at an awesome price, but I am reluctant because it's an old, small ship with several poor reviews. What do you think of this ship specifically and what are your opinions on the best ship for a first-timer?

 

Thank you for your advice!!

 

Grandeur of the Seas 5day Western Caribbean:

Mon Mar 16 Tampa, FL

5:00pm Tue Mar 17 At Sea

 

Wed Mar 18 Costa Maya, Mexico 8:00am 6:00pm Thu Mar 19 Cozumel, Mexico 7:00am 5:00pm Fri Mar 20 At Sea

 

Sat Mar 21 Tampa, FL 7:00am

 

 

For really not much more look at the newer Independence of the seas, six days and one extra port:

Sun Mar 15 Fort Lauderdale, FL

5:00pm Mon Mar 16 At Sea

 

Tue Mar 17 Belize City, Belize 7:00am 5:00pm Wed Mar 18 Costa Maya, Mexico 10:30am 7:00pm Thu Mar 19 Cozumel, Mexico 7:00am 5:00pm Fri Mar 20 At Sea

 

Sat Mar 21 Fort Lauderdale, FL 7:00am

 

Or the Seven Day Liberty of the Seas:

Sat Mar 21 Miami, FL

4:30pm Sun Mar 22 At Sea

 

Mon Mar 23 Labadee, Haiti 8:00am 4:00pm Tue Mar 24 Montego Bay, Jamaica 10:30am 6:00pm Wed Mar 25 Grand Cayman, Cayman Islands 8:00am 4:00pm Thu Mar 26 Cozumel, Mexico 10:00am 7:00pm Fri Mar 27 At Sea

 

Sat Mar 28 Miami, FL 7:00am

[CruiseLover15]

If you are active, I would pick one of the Freedom class ships - Freedom, Liberty, or Independence. I like having more options of things to do. I even did the flow rider on our last cruise and I am old.

[BroncosFan2010]

I would suggest the Voyager class ships (Adventure and Explorer, Mariner, Nagivator). These ships have TONS of ammenities w/o the huge crowds of the Freedom or Oasis class ships. It would be a good way to get a feel for RCCL, and then you can decide if you might want more action (go for larger ship), less people (smaller ship), or if the ship does nto matter and you pick based on the itinerary.

I did the Adventure on my first cruise. I figured out I did not need all the amenities and have chosen smaller ships since. You won't know how much of the ship you will use until you try one that has lots of things to choose from. The Adventure/Voyager class is a good middle of the road ship to start with.

[Darkwolfe]

My first cruise was on Voyager. My DW and I are in roughly the same age group as the OP, late 30s in my case, bit younger for my DW. That was a great cruise.

 

But having said that, Enchantment would be a good starter too. We were on her last year and the only real problem with that cruise was that it ended! (NUTS!!)

 

I'd say go with anything from Vision class on up. It's when you feel like a really lazy cruise that the smaller ships get interesting. My .02! :D

[Pumbaamd]

We were on a 13 day Grandeur cruise in 2006. Loved every minute of it. We have another Grandeur cruise booked for this fall. We have been on, and have booked ahead, several ships larger than Grandeur. So we are familiar with many of the RCCL ships.

Save your self some $$$ and book Grandeur. It is your first cruise and she will blow you away with what she has to offer, especially the Solarium pool. After Grandeur, you WILL want to take another cruise. At that time, take a step up, if you like to a Radiance class ship or higher. No need to be in a hurry, these ships will all be around for a while.

This Friday, we are going on Monarch of the Seas for a three day weekend cruise. Nothing fantastic, but a weekend outta DC, which is now getting wicked crazy. We have been on many cruises (sea our signature below), but still enjoy spending a weekend on one of the fleet's two smallest ships. The other of the two is her sister Majesty, been on her and had a wonderful cruise. The smaller ships seem to have a smaller, tighter knit, happier crew and do display this attitude to the guests.

Last year, we sailed on Empress of the Seas, for the 3rd time. She was THE smallest RCCL ship, and had a great time. She has since been sent to another line.

These smaller ships are a lotta fun. With cruising on RCCL, size does not matter.

Sailing smaller can save you larger bucks, and still have a terrific cruise experience. With those savings, you can afford your next cruise!

Have a great time on Grandeur!

Gotta get back to packing for Monarch.

Rick and Deirdra

[hayward]

My husband and I are planning a Western Caribbean cruise on RCI this spring. This will be our first cruise ever and we are trying to decide which ship is the best for our first trip. What are your opinions? We are adventerous people who enjoy lots to do and see as well as lot of variety. DH really wants to take the Grandeur of the Seas ship because he found the trip at an awesome price, but I am reluctant because it's an old, small ship with several poor reviews. What do you think of this ship specifically and what are your opinions on the best ship for a first-timer?

 

Thank you for your advice!!

 

I agree that any cruise is a great cruise. But there are advantages to larger ships and disadvantages. We did a smaller ship called the Grandeur of the Seas, just loved the intimacy of the ship. You always felt like you were on a private yacht. People were just great and I have never been on a cleaner ship. The Sovereigh was a terrible ship and really needed to be put to rest. In its glory it was stupendeous, but at the end, it was really sad to see the shape the cruise line let this once magnificant ship deteriorate.

 

We are going next month on the Monarch of the Seas, because I enjoyed the Grandeur for its size. I hope that I will not be disappointed in the ship.

 

The Mariner was a nice ship but a little too busy for me, the Jewel I felt was not as tight quartered. I think it was the main centrum area that made it feel confined.

 

We have booked for Celebrity Solstice this fall in a back to back in Europe and back to the states, so that will be interesting.

 

I hope this helps

[newcruiser30]

Thank you all for your wonderful advice :) We ended up booking on Freedom for the 7 day Western Carib. out of Miami on 3/15. I wanted the Wow factor, we found out a great deal, and moving the date up saved us some money. Now there is so much to do(plan) and so little time to get it planned!! I am feeling stressed about trying to pick the best excusions. :eek:

[yogimax]

Thank you all for your wonderful advice :) We ended up booking on Freedom for the 7 day Western Carib. out of Miami on 3/15. I wanted the Wow factor, we found out a great deal, and moving the date up saved us some money. Now there is so much to do(plan) and so little time to get it planned!! I am feeling stressed about trying to pick the best excusions. :eek:

 

Great choice! Voyager or Freedom Class was the way to go!

[negc]

Grandeur of the Seas is a beautiful ship. As a first-time cruiser, I have no doubts you will enjoy it.

 

However, if you really want the WOW factor, a voyager or freedom class ship will do it for you.... I specifically recommend Navigator or Mariner.... the older Voyager's don't have as many amenities and Freedom class may seem overwhelming.

For someone who has never cruised on a Royal Caribbean ship before, I believe that the Grandeur will provide more than enough WOW factor. I can still remember the sensation we had when we first boarded Sovereign of the Seas, and later when we boarded our first Vision class ship. The same thing happened when we boarded Radiance, Voyager and Freedom class ships though perhaps on a larger scale and I can only imagine our reaction when we eventually experience Oasis.

Vision class ships while they may lack some of the features that were introduced on the later classes, still provide a wonderful cruise experience and are probably a great way to experience the true RCI experience without the distractions of some of the features added to their newer ships.;) If the price is right and the itinerary is one that the OP likes, it seems like a good choice for a first time RCI cruise.