DCL vs RC

[kateandy08096]

Hello all. I am planning on what I thought was going to be a cruise on DCL for Sept 2020 Eastern Caribbean. Last night a friend of ours told us aboit Royal Caribbean Granger of the sea out of Baltimore (from NJ). We have only been on 1 cruise ever it was DCL Merrytime in 2017 with our 1 year old granddaughter. We are DVC and Annual Pass Holders and go to disney world just about every 45 to 60 days so we love disney however on DCL it wasnt as magical as expected. They ran out of bed rails and pack n plays even though we had a 1 year old and booked on the first day prices we released. Their solution was to give me 10 pillows to build a moat in case she fell off the couch bed which she did so yeah definitely not magical having to spend ALOT of time at the front desk speaking to managers. I wanted to try again this time just 2 adults.
Anyways wanted to know from anyone who has done non disney cruises after a disney cruise what was your experience? The disney cruise we are looking at is a 7 day verandah room deck 9 and RC is 12 night in a suite for same price. What are the difference between both? Whats NOT included in RC that Disney would have included. I need pros and cons.. please help

 

[Dug720]

Grandeur is one of RCCL’s older and smaller ships. I have only cruised Radiance Class (I think it is similar) but enjoyed them overall.

Cons:
Entertainment is lacking IMHO. (If they do a show called City of Dreams, RUN AWAY!!)
Split beds, so there will be a bump and/or divot best-case - worst case they keep sliding apart and you get eaten every night.
Only tap water, and basic coffee and tea are included. Soda, bottled water, specialty coffees, and any other beverages are at a cost.

The food is ok, but if you have allergies you have to be even more proactive than on Disney. They had a dish with faro labeled as gluten-free which it is NOT, and my server argued that it was wheat but not really.

 

[_auroraborealis_]

On RCCL, if you enjoy soda, you will need to acquire a soda package. RCCL doesn't include specialty dining, but then again, neither does DCL.

There really isn't a lot on RCCL that's upcharge compared to DCL.

 

[kateandy08096]

Grandeur is one of RCCL’s older and smaller ships. I have only cruised Radiance Class (I think it is similar) but enjoyed them overall.

Cons:
Entertainment is lacking IMHO. (If they do a show called City of Dreams, RUN AWAY!!)
Split beds, so there will be a bump and/or divot best-case - worst case they keep sliding apart and you get eaten every night.
Only tap water, and basic coffee and tea are included. Soda, bottled water, specialty coffees, and any other beverages are at a cost.

The food is ok, but if you have allergies you have to be even more proactive than on Disney. They had a dish with faro labeled as gluten-free which it is NOT, and my server argued that it was wheat but not really.

I had to LOL on the bed part. We are going to look at all RC ports and ships today to see if any are worth it. Thanks so much for the help

 

[kateandy08096]

On RCCL, if you enjoy soda, you will need to acquire a soda package. RCCL doesn't include specialty dining, but then again, neither does DCL.

There really isn't a lot on RCCL that's upcharge compared to DCL.

Im not a soda drinker but my hubs is. Thanks for your thoughts

 

[kateandy08096]

Looking at all the RCCL ports and ships today. Is it true on RCCL that if you stay in their "suites" you have concerige access?

 

[Dug720]

I had to LOL on the bed part. We are going to look at all RC ports and ships today to see if any are worth it. Thanks so much for the help

You’re welcome! I lucked out on my second RCCL cruise and my steward knew how to make the bed so they stayed together. My first one the steward could not figure it out and I was eaten every night.

 

[Tasmen]

Looking at all the RCCL ports and ships today. Is it true on RCCL that if you stay in their "suites" you have concerige access?

Depending on the suite, you get varying levels of benefits. Note: RCCL concierge is not the same as DCL concierge.

 

[lady9]

We've had great experiences on both DCL and RCCL. There are pros and cons to both. If I am traveling with kids, DCL all the way! There is no comparison according to my kids who have done both kids' clubs, thankfully RCCL first, but once we cruised DCL, they weren't going back. Now that we are empty nesters I wouldn't hesitate to cruise RCCL again. We have mostly cruised their smaller ships and enjoyed them. It used to be soda in the main dining rooms was included with dinner so I made due with my soda fix then plus a few cans I brought on board with me. It's been awhile so maybe that's changed. We have always been in a junior suite on RCCL which doesn't include concierge access but is very large compared to most cabins. We have had not great service twice, once on RCCL and once on DCL so the service can vary no matter the cruise line and both were in the dinning room. With DCL, the servers just had a very large, demanding group along with their other tables so we were mostly forgotten. With RCCL I think both servers were just inexperienced and needed more training. I would cruise with the itinerary I liked best. I wouldn't let an older ship discourage me either. I also wouldn't let not having children with me discourage me from cruising DCL. There are plenty for adults to do and many adults only activities-we especially enjoyed "Anyone Can Cook." Happy cruising!

 

[Magical2017]

I have not cruised in many years and have no particular line that I am loyal to. For our next trip we booked Royal on the Allure, which is an Oasis Class ship. The reason we did this is because we liked the kids activities offered for our 13 and 10 year old, the itinerary, and the price, as the minimum cabin type I will book is oceanview. We may try a Disney cruise in the future.

I don't drink soda, so am glad it is not included in the price of our cruise. Drinks included with your RCCL fare:

• tap water.
• milk.
• tea.
• coffee (regular and decaf).
• lemonade.
• iced tea.
• flavored waters.
• juices (at breakfast and not fresh squeezed).
• Hot chocolate (via instant packets).

There is a soda package that is about $8 or $9 per day, and a refreshment package that includes everything but alcohol for about $22/day. You can bring aboard a 12 pack of soda or bottled water and a few bottles of wine. Personally I would rather pay for shore excursions than the deluxe package that includes alcohol. The price changes often, with "sales" offered, but it is about $52/day per person. For a seven day cruise, that really adds up, and I would not drink enough each day to make that worth it for us. There is a Starbucks on our ship, and you can load a gift card or money onto your SB account and use your app to pay for the coffee. That is right up my alley.

Like Disney, RCL has two private islands. One of the itineraries on our cruise is to Coco Cay, which was just updated, apparently. The thrill water park is the same amount as a shore excursion and not included, but a lot of other things are (several dining venues, Splashaway Bay and Captain Jill's Galleon, pool access, beach chairs and umbrellas, and access to most beaches). You pay extra for snorkeling gear, kayak rentals,, any shore excursions, a cabana, and there is an upcharge dining area or areas.

I hear RCCL's coffee sucks and that they may try to upsell and push packages once you board. I plan to say no. They also do not announce you like Disney does, if you like that type of thing. You can request a private table for dinner if you don't want to sit with others. There is no rotational dining on RCCL.

I would check out some videos if you are thinking of cruising on RCCL, and also read some trip reports on the RCCL board to see if it would work for your family.

 

[tinkerone]

We have sailed both lines however our RCCL experiences have always been Oasis class and we love it. Biggest difference for us is the dinning. You can pick My Time Dinning where you can go as you please with no set time or set the time that is best for you and go then with a pre booking. Then, if you don't feel you want to go through a 2 hour dinning experience, they have their buffet open and it is really very good. They offer some of the things the dinning room have that evening and then other items as well.
Their paid dinning choices are better IMO than DCL's. There are more venues to pick from. They offer drink packages which I enjoy. I don't drink a lot of alcohol however its nice to have it prepaid and not have to wonder what my bill will be at the end of the cruise.
We have been on 7 RCCL cruises now and have not had the issues that have been mentioned with the beds. Have actually found them very comfortable. The cabins do not have the DCL bathrooms where you have shower in one section and toilet in another but they are rather nice. The shower is a tube style but, at least on the Oasis class, they are large. Tons more outlets on RCCL in the cabins. The entertainment, we found, was as good as DCL keeping in mind they are not Disney shows.
Again, this is all on Oasis class ships so I can't comment on the smaller ships but I do believe that RCCL has as much to offer as DCL and that they are actually equal in most categories. The big difference we find is cost.
What ever you decide, enjoy your vacation!

 

[jenf22]

Looking at all the RCCL ports and ships today. Is it true on RCCL that if you stay in their "suites" you have concerige access?

I think you do get concierge access in all but Junior Suites - those are just bigger rooms.

 

[SDJEL]

We did a cruise on Grandeur out of Baltimore after two Disney cruises so we could drive instead of fly. We did not enjoy that cruise at all. We’ve done 6 more Disney cruises since and I’m only going back to Royal Caribbean this summer in one of the big new ships because we are bored with the Disney Caribbean cruises.

The beds were awful and I left that cruise with horrible neck pain. I’m bringing pillows from home this summer. Frankly, we were bored. We aren’t really drinkers and we don’t gamble so there wasn’t much for us to do. The adult things in the planner were mostly centered around selling us art or jewelry or T-shirt’s.

My youngest daughter preferred their kid room but my boys who were tweens at the time found that room so rowdy and unsupervised that they refused to go. These are two boys who lived in Edge and Vibe.

The bigger newer Royal boats have lots of other things to do, but Grandeur does not. If you enjoy gambling or just want to sit at the pool it might be worth a try. It would be cheaper than Disney.

 

[ljcrochet]

We did an 8 night on Grandeur of the seas a few years ago. We went with my MIL and my girls who were probably 10 . The last cruise my girls and MIL had been on was a DCL. The following year we did anthem of the seas. The 5 of us all prefered Grandeur to Anthem.
My husband and I do a drink package on RCCL. For us it makes sense. A drink or 2 by the pool. A drink with lunch, few glasses of wine with dinner. That doesn't include the specialty coffees.

Our next big family cruise is going to be a DCL there are going to be 14 of us, with 5 under the age of 6.

 

[PrincessTrisha]

depending on what kind of suite you're booking on RCL, it can come with awesome extras.

https://www.royalcaribbean.com/faq/questions/what-are-the-benefits-of-the-suites-program
Anything above a junior suite has access to the suite lounge which includes complementary drinks in the evening, plus welcome Evian water and you can have the MDR meals delivered to your suite.

 

[bumbershoot]

Whats NOT included in RC that Disney would have included.

Soda and Disney characters and no fee for room service. (And continental breakfast room service has no fee; that’s all I ever get, so...)

Now, I haven’t been on a ship smaller than Vision, so I don’t know if Grandeur will be great. But I wouldn’t be afraid of it.

 

[KashasMom]

I highly recommend the Oasis of the Seas out of Bayonne. She's home-porting in Bayonne starting May 2020. RC Oasis class are our favorites!

 

[babyruth]

there are casinos on all the RC ships?

 

[bbel]

Now, I haven’t been on a ship smaller than Vision, so I don’t know if Grandeur will be great. But I wouldn’t be afraid of it.

Grandeur is Vision class so the same size.
Its regularly voted the friendliest in the fleet. I have friends who've worked it and loved it and a lot of crew request to go back contract after contract.

 

[bumbershoot]

there are casinos on all the RC ships?

Yes.

Grandeur is Vision class so the same size.
Its regularly voted the friendliest in the fleet. I have friends who've worked it and loved it and a lot of crew request to go back contract after contract.

Ah, excellent. Since royal changed their website I can’t get the list of classes and ships anymore.