Royal Caribbean vs Princess

firefighter4free · November 8, 2010

Hi all,

I am working on planning my honeymoon in July 2011 and we were looking at either the Explorer of the Seas or the Caribbean Princess out of NY. We are in our late 20's and having a tough time deciding. They are both 9 nights.

Destinations:

-Royal Carribbean goes to Kings Warf, Bermuda; Philipsburg, St. Maarten; Charlotte Amalie, St. Thomas; and San Juan, PR

-Princess goes to Bermuda(west end); San Juan, PR; St Thomas, USVI; and Grand Turk, Turks and Caicos

I have found out that Kings Warf and West end are the same ports.

Thanks in advance for all your help.

murr · November 9, 2010

Both ships are great.

Princess is top of the line in service, food , entertainment.

Both itineraries are good.

Depending on where you live and how you want to get to the Embarkation port is where I would look into. Princess goes out of Brooklyn and Explorer in NJ.

There are many reviews on many sites, start to look for them. Take them with a grain of salt as is said. Don't read to much into a review. Look for what you want out of the cruise.

Personally, I would choose Princess as my first cruise.

zebra · November 9, 2010

Hi firefighter, well we have cruised both cruise lines and as Tim said it's subjective. What I can tell you is that the Caribbean Princess is a gorgeous ship, newer than the Explorer of th Seas. Both cruise lines are great we've been 8 times on RCCL and 10 times on Princess - I personally would give Princess the edge.

You won't be disappointed with either, it just depend what you want out of the cruise. Any specific questions? I would be happy to help.

firefighter4free · November 11, 2010

I appreciate your input and have chosen RC for our honeymoon. Will let you guys know how it was.

DebbieandJerry · November 30, 2010

Can't wait to read about your honeymoon and what you thought of the ports of call!

johncarter · December 2, 2010

Carnival is the "party by the pool" line. It's fun, but there's lots of drinking and loud music. I wouldn't call it classy. :) Princess is more upscale....I think you would enjoy it.Royal Caribbean is mainstream. Probably not as upscale as Princess. Personally i go for Royal Carnival because this ship is far more equipped then the others. How about climbing rock-walls or ice skating on a ship. Only Royal Caribbean has it! Bigger ships=More cool fun. hope this information helps you.

Edited December 2, 2010 by Jason
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rogue · December 2, 2010

We've been on both ships, and loved them both. We do tend to like Princess a bit more overall. At your age,though, Royal Caribbean may give you the better time. It is a bit more party-like than Princess, and from our experience, the age of the passengers were younger. I don't think you can go wrong with either one.

jacketwatch · December 6, 2010

First of all a big :thumbup: for the occasion!! I see you have chose RCI and personally I think thats a good choice for you. You will be very impressed with the class ship you will be one and IMHO the St. Maarten port stop makes the difference. You will love this French-Dutch island. Have fun. Larry :smile:

TheSkipper · December 13, 2010

My vote is for Princess and we have sailed many times on both lines.

Shaunna · December 13, 2010

Hubby loves to use the fitness equipment and attend some of the workout classes and all he heard from people on both our RCI and Carnival cruises was how good Princess was. Funny how he hated formal dining because of having to socialize but get him in a fitness atmosphere and he will be your best friend. LOL Anyway when we can cruise again that is who I want to try.