Completely useless, stupid fun thread... What do you think different lines do that is your favorite?

[tidefan]

So, as I write this, I am on Virgin Voyages Scarlet Lady for the second time and I have been fortunate to be able to cruise a good bit since the restart, including 3 DCL cruises (one of which was the Wish MV!). At any rate, I have found myself comparing things and I thought it may be fun to put out there what I think each line/ship does best... and not. Being a DCL thread, there will be a lot of DCL on my list, but there is room for the other lines (Virgin's food is what got me thinking about this) and what they do great. Also, I figure we all prioritize different things, so I expect that everyone's list could be different, which is great. What do you think are your favorite things among the lines? (OK, I am not thinking Seabourn or Cunard, etc here, but just the mainline ones). And this is just one person's opinion (which IS NOT definitive on the many ships that I have sailed, which is not exhaustive )...

Am I way off the target on these???

NOTE: I have not sailed NCL, MSC, HAL, or Celebrity... also, I have never sailed in a Suite or Concierge, so if someone wants to share that, I think it would be interesting!

Favorite Regular Staterooms I've had: DCL, especially the Magic/Wonder. These are the largest staterooms in the fleet and have those great drawer spaces. I specify Magic/Wonder because the rooms are larger than the Dream, Fantasy, or Wish.

Least Favorite Regular Staterooms I've had: RCCL, Independence of the Seas. We were on Deck 2 and the ceiling was so low in the hallway I'd hit my head on the signs. Also, since it was connecting, it did not have a couch.

Favorite Bathrooms: DCL, hard to beat the split bath setup. Shout out to some Carnival ships whose OV cabins have this setup as well. That said, the best shower is on Virgin Voyages Scarlet Lady, because it is a rain shower head that is mounted on the ceiling. That is important when you are 6'3"...

Least Favorite Bathrooms: they're all about the same that I've done. While I don't care for shower curtains, I didn't care for the "tubes" on Serenade OTS or Independence OTS...

Favorite Included Dining (Dinner): Virgin Voyages, every restaurant is included, there is no MDR, it's all specialty...

Least Favorite Included Dining (Dinner): RCCL Independence OTS. MDR was "meh". Not a lot of other options.

Favorite Dining (Quick Service): Carnival Mardi Gras. We loved all the "comfort food" options on this ship. Guy's burgers lives up to the reputation, but Shaq's Big Chicken is the real jewel.

Least Favorite Dining (Quick Service): Either Serenade OTS or Independence OTS. Not a lot of options.

Favorite Buffet: Regal Princess. Big improvement over the Grand class ships

Least Favorite Buffet: Independence OTS. I mean I like Indian food, but not for every dish in the buffet...

Favorite Pizza: Alfredo's/Gigi's on Princess Royal Class ships (Regal Princess)

Least Favorite Pizza: Serenade OTS (it was in the Buffet)... Honorable Mention: Disney Magic/Wonder/Dream/Fantasy. Meh. I will say it is better on the Wish.

Favorite Ice Cream: Virgin Voyages, I mean, it's included Gelato...

Least Favorite Ice Cream: Oasis OTS. They only had one soft serve place open and it closed at 5:30pm.

Favorite Specialty Restaurant: We don't usually ever eat at specialty restaurants. I've only eaten at Palo and the Crown Grill on Princess. Both are excellent.

Favorite Casino: Hmm. I'll go with Carnival Mardi Gras with Oasis of the Seas a close second. Mardi Gras had a dedicated smoke free area.

Favorite Headliner Show: Either Aqua80 on Oasis OTS or Duel Reality on Virgin Voyages and maybe Tangled on the Magic. All are excellent. I was also going to mention Villains Tonight, but it's not showing anymore (don't make fun of me, I loved it and miss the Evil-o-meter...)

Least Favorite Headliner Show: Cats, and it's not even close...

Favorite Public Bathrooms: The ones outside Palo on the Dream/Fantasy ships

Least Favorite Public Bathrooms: The weird shaped ones in the adult areas on the Dream/Fantasy ships

Favorite Cruise Director: Jamie Dee (Carnival Sunshine). Absolutely amazing. Honorable mention: Chris "The Flying Scotsman" Williams (Carnival Mardi Gras) and Ashley on DCL. (I would also put Brent in here if he were still with DCL and not at California Adventure).

Least Favorite Cruise Director: Whoever that husband and wife team was on Serenade OTS.

Favorite Game Show: Yes/No on Princess

Least Favorite Game Show: Quest on whatever line...

Favorite Private Island Area: Virgin Beach Club at Bimini

Least Favorite Private Island Area: I would go with Amber Cove (does that qualify?)

Favorite Port: Mykonos, follow by Geirangerfjord and Santorini

Least Favorite Port: Nassau, Costa Maya, or Puerto Plata. Flip a coin...

Favorite Elevators: Virgin Voyages Scarlet Lady (I mean, how do you make elevators cool?)

Least Favorite Elevators: Disney Wish (looks like a nursery and the buttons are horrid)

Favorite Cruise Tech: Princess Medallion (when it works)

Least Favorite Cruise Tech: Princess Medallion (when it doesn't work)

Favorite Overall Ship: Disney Magic or Disney Fantasy (Wonder, Dream, Scarlet Lady and Regal Princess as Honorable Mentions...and maybe, dare I say, Carnival Mardi Gras?)

Favorite Overall Ship (no longer with us): Dawn Princess

Least Favorite Overall Ship: Independence OTS

 

[tinkerone]

You never mentioned Adult Area. For us, it is RCL Symphony of the seas. It's a great area that is so relaxing, I could spend my entire week there.
Of course, having said that, we have not cruised Virgin and I believe that line is adult only?

 

[auntlynne]

Based on the posited question:

MSC
- Pizza (Thin crust, Neapolitan style); they are an Italian cruise line.
- Price!
- Solo supplement is very low (or nothing).
- And an actual discount for loyalty status. And they will match loyalty status with other lines - my DCL Platinum earned me their top tier, before stepping foot on my first cruise. (Must cruise at least once every 3 years to maintain status.

Royal Caribbean (Oasis Class)
Aqua Theater

Princess
- Permitted to sail in Glacier Bay (AK)
- Northbound and Southbound AK cruises
- Afternoon tea
- Indoor pool
- Loyalty program level is earned on days or cruises sailed - whichever benefits the cruiser. Double points for sailing solo.

NCL (Encore to AK)
- Ship is purpose-built for AK. The Observation Lounge is over 1/3 of Deck 15, allowing viewing of the scenery from an indoor area.
- Food is available in venues all but a few hours of the day.
- Buffet switches over from breakfast to lunch without closing.
- Excellent Specialty Dining (often included as part of their Free at Sea sales).
- Solo cabins available
- Permitted to sail in Glacier Bay
- Routinely goes to Icy Strait Point. Amazing Zip Line.
- No set time for dining - and multiple MDRs
- Deck 8 outside Promenade (but not covered)

Carnival
- Departure point from Mobile
- Price
- Soups in MDR
- Afternoon tea

All but Disney
- Shower only w/o needing to step over higher tub edge. (I understand and appreciate the tub for kids on DCL - but it is a hindrance for some of us).
- Beds split into twins, allowing two adults traveling together to have own bed (DCL beds are great, though).
….

Not your question, but here are the things I like about DCL over the others:

- Castaway Cay and its simplicity + beautiful water at Serenity Bay
- Broadway-style production shows
- ”Adult” comedians are not vulgar
- Coke included
- Well-maintained ships
- Movie theater (especially Dream class)
- Decor and theming - there is a quality that Disney puts forward in parks and ships.
- Linens and mattresses
- H2O toiletries
- Onboard launderettes
- Characters -especially when roaming (happens more in long cruises)
- Not a floating party

 

[dcassetta]

My favorite non-cruise tie-in - HAL's use of BBC Earth. Television programs, excursions, trivia and onboard activities, and live music concerts with images from nature are all part of this program. DCL should develop similar offerings through the DisneyNature platform and using National Geographic.

 

[auntlynne]

You never mentioned Adult Area. For us, it is RCL Symphony of the seas. It's a great area that is so relaxing, I could spend my entire week there.
Of course, having said that, we have not cruised Virgin and I believe that line is adult only?

It is.

 

[Lorana]

My favorite non-cruise tie-in - HAL's use of BBC Earth. Television programs, excursions, trivia and onboard activities, and live music concerts with images from nature are all part of this program. DCL should develop similar offerings through the DisneyNature platform and using National Geographic.

Oh, that is an excellent idea. I hope DCL does that!

 

[auntlynne]

Oh, that is an excellent idea. I hope DCL does that!

On our April cruise, the theater movies were mainly Nature movies (we were in the Bahamas, not AK).

 

[Lorana]

We’ve only cruised DCL, NCL, RCCL, and Costa.

RCCL was all pre-kids, however, with the last ship being the Oasis (which we didn’t like; too big!) though we really liked the Freedom/Liberty. I really enjoyed the promenade, and I did like Oasis’s “park.” I’m a nature person, so being able to walk among trees while sailing the seas was nice. We keep meaning to Dale RCCL again with the kids, but now the oldest is off to college… and we’re tempted to try Celebrity or Princess instead since they’re older.

Costa we only sailed once, on the Atlantica, when the kids were super little (3 and 5), and they absolutely loved the kids club. They never wanted to spend time with us. I remember their adult restaurant food was amazing.

NCL we’ve sailed many times, including the Bliss, Breakaway, Gem, Getaway, and Dream. We like the variety of restaurants but HATE all the extra surcharges and fees. We find we enjoy NCL more when we haven’t just taken a DCL cruise within “easy memory” because the nickle and diming and huge difference in service levels is telling and noticeable, but NCL let us cruise when the budgets just wouldn’t cover a DCL cruise. There was an almost $6k difference between NCL Bliss in Alaska vs DCL Wonder when we sailed. Now that free dining and drinks only cover guests 1 & 2 instead of all 4, there’s less value as we have to pay the extra, which brings NCL more in line with DCL pricing. Still we are booked on NCL in the Mediterranean for next year.

We love the zip lines, but the car racing track was a horrid experience (teens ramming into us like it was bumper cars and NCL staff there doing nothing to stop it, even when my youngest got hurt and was crying). It was impossible to get into laser tag, and they shut down reservations early even if there was space in the later runs, we discovered.

 

[holula]

NCL: I love their free at sea promos. It’s so nice to have zero bill at the end of the cruise. I LOVE Howl at the Moon (sadly only on four of their ships) - it’s my go to every evening pretty much. I love their slides, especially the bowl slide on the Epic.

Royal: I love the solarium and the variety of activities. However sometimes it can feel a bit like a mall. Good pool area though.

Princess: Their food was so good, definitely a step up from the other lines.

Disney: It’s my happy place. I don’t get joy from stepping onto the other ships the way I do Disney. I’ll quite happily do another line in Europe since it’s so port intensive and at peak times like Christmas/New Year the other lines are like, half the cost of DCL.

 

[auntlynne]

Oh, that is an excellent idea. I hope DCL d

NCL: I love their free at sea promos. It’s so nice to have zero bill at the end of the cruise. I LOVE Howl at the Moon (sadly only on four of their ships) - it’s my go to every evening pretty much. I love their slides, especially the bowl slide on the Epic.

Royal: I love the solarium and the variety of activities. However sometimes it can feel a bit like a mall. Good pool area though.

Princess: Their food was so good, definitely a step up from the other lines.

Disney: It’s my happy place. I don’t get joy from stepping onto the other ships the way I do Disney. I’ll quite happily do another line in Europe since it’s so port intensive and at peak times like Christmas/New Year the other lines are like, half the cost of DCL.

The DCL aspect is spot on. I was going to say it’s familiar - but it’s more than that. It is something / place to which I look forward to returning.

There are three things that are my happy places (besides home) - and they are where I return to - DCL cruise, Alaska (principally cruising) and Hawaii. Hilton Head Island is sneaking up onto that list.

I don’t feel nickel and dimed on NCL, as the gratuities on the free items are paid with the fare pre-cruise.

And Royal feels exactly like a shopping mall to me. That was my first impression - no lovely atrium. Just shops and lingering smoke from the casino. And Freestyle Coke machines. I did enjoy Central Park. And an efficient check-in in Fort Lauderdale based on Deck.

 

[tidefan]

My favorite non-cruise tie-in - HAL's use of BBC Earth. Television programs, excursions, trivia and onboard activities, and live music concerts with images from nature are all part of this program. DCL should develop similar offerings through the DisneyNature platform and using National Geographic.

I bet that is a great program. Princess does something similar with Discovery channel. I know that on our sailing, kids were “blowing stuff up” (ok, probably not actually blowing stuff up, not but you know what I mean…) in some kind of Mythbusters activity. They also did a cooking class with the kids in the galley. Also, lots of shark stuff…

 

[tvguy]

DCL: No casino.

NCL, RCCL, HAL and CELEBRITY: Nightly shows for Late Seating are AFTER dinner, not before. Really didn't like having the shows before on DCL. We select late seating so we don't have to rush to get ready for dinner or a show on port days, and to have something to do in the evening.

NCL (On the Norway only, in the 1980s). Celebrity singers and comedians putting on shows and hanging out with the guests the rest of the week. Folks you know from late night TV talk shows. We saw the Fifth Dimension, Shields and Yarnell, Norm Crosby, Jack Jones on our cruises.

NCL, RCCL, HAL and CELEBRITY: Nightly midnight buffet.

NCL AMERICA (Pride of America). A 24 hour, sit down restaurant.

PAQUET: Best food I have every had, including land restaurants. But they promoted themselves as a gourmet cruise, and they lived up to it. Dinner was at 6 pm, just one seating, it was 12 courses, and the dining experience took 3.5 hours every night. Talk about being pampered.