Disney vs. RCCL

[tchrmom]

Per person and it includes a fixed meal. If you want more than what it comes with, you have to pay extra.

Johnny Rockets is $4.95 per person...............but for that price you can order as much food as you want. We had plate after plate of onion rings and fries. If you want 3 burgers............you can have them. Want a ham and cheese with a bacon cheese burger..........go for it! The price is still $4.95! However...........we ate soooooo many fries and onion rings, I couldn't eat 2 of anything!!!! Milkshakes are extra.........but my son, who had a soda package card, was able to get soda for "free" in there. DH and I had water with lemon. That is the way it worked on our 6/21/08 and 6/21/09 Liberty and Freedom cruises.

 

[barbmouse]

Our stateroom bill on our Freedom cruise was just a little over $200.00. We did have some OBC that basically covered tips which we prepaid. The out of pocket expenses included:

A few drinks ~ we are not big drinkers so this was compatible with what we spent on Disney. We had one bucket of beer and a few "foo foo" drinks throughout the week. The dks had a few virgin drinks and smoothies as well. They did not have a soda card as water, lemonade and tea are available.

Johnny Rockets DD visited and loved it!!

Ben and Jerry's visited once.

We spent a couple bucks on slot machines just for fun we don't gamble.

T shirts ~ I agree with a pp who said this would be more on Disney. I would be more inclined to purchase Disney merchandise.

Pictures! I purchased formal pics as well as a few candids.

Vests for snorkeling on Coco Cay. I think they were $8 each to rent. We had our own snorkels, etc. I believe these vest were supplied at no cost on Castaway Cay.


Tchmom has made very fair comparisons between RCCl and DCL. I found her reviews to be very similar to our experiences.

 

[tchrmom]

Tchmom has made very fair comparisons between RCCl and DCL. I found her reviews to be very similar to our experiences.

Thanks, barbmouse!
When did you sail The Freedom?

 

[barbmouse]

We were on the Freedom from June 14 -21st.

A great review is on the thread "best family vacation ever" or something along those lines!!

 

[tchrmom]

We were on the Freedom from June 14 -21st.

QUOTE]

Thanks for keeping her for so "neat and tidy" for us!

 

[tchrmom]

We were on the Freedom from June 14 -21st.

QUOTE]


OK.............I have no idea why this is a double post! Sorry.....

 

[triplefigs]

Do you get a pager for the kids' club on RCCL like you do on DCL?

 

[woody73]

I'd like to do the bridge tour when we sail on Voyager of the Seas. Do we need to reserve tickets, like DCL's galley tour? Or will it just be on the schedule and you show up?

The bridge tour is "officially" not available. Our tablemates invited us for a private tour. They had some special status.

Woody

 

[woody73]

. . . Another thing on Rccl I have two rooms and on Disney I had one. On Disney I had a category 12 (bumped to an 11) with 4 people in it.

On RCI we had a veranda cabin for about the price of a Cat 9 ocean view cabin on DCL.

YMMV

Woody

 

[tchrmom]

Do you get a pager for the kids' club on RCCL like you do on DCL?

Sorry, triplefig.............My kids are 14 and 17, so I don't have any experience with the kids' clubs on Freedom. I don't recall seeing anyone with pagers......but I was not looking for that either.

All of our free time was spent by the adult pool.....we never went near the family pool or the H2O zone.

They do tell you before each show to turn off pagers and cell phones......but that really isn't a good indication either. My suggetion would be to go to www.cruisecritic.com Find the All Things Freedom of the Seas thread and ask.

 

[slk]

Sorry, triplefig.............My kids are 14 and 17, so I don't have any experience with the kids' clubs on Freedom. I don't recall seeing anyone with pagers......but I was not looking for that either.

Does the teen area split the teens by age or is there area where they all
can be or do they do some things seperate and some together? Just
wondering if the teen area was similar to Disney since your kids are the
same age my kids will be when we cruise. Thanks

 

[tchrmom]

Does the teen area split the teens by age or is there area where they all
can be or do they do some things seperate and some together? Just
wondering if the teen area was similar to Disney since your kids are the
same age my kids will be when we cruise. Thanks

The tenns are split into 12-14 and 15-17 age groups, with seperate "teen lounges" for each.

 

[NancyIL]

Oops - never mind!

 

[MinnieMom]

Definitely through a TA. Just like Disney cruises, you get perks through a TA like onboard credit. We're cruising with RCI in Nov and got $100 onboard credit, a free spa treatment, and free gratuities from our TA. I joined a few cruise mailing lists to get notified of deals.

Are there any specific TAs you would suggest for RCCL? Thanks!

 

[MinnieMom]

One of the things I loved so much about the Disney cruise (even though it's probably very minor in the grand scheme of things) was that fresh fruit was always available. I got so hooked on having fresh mango and papaya every day I swear I went through withdrawal when I got home! LOL!

Anyway, I don't recall this on my last Carnival cruise - though that was 11 years ago. Is there fresh fruit by the pool or somewhere else on RCCL? I am a bit of a health nut and want to know that I can always eat good, fresh food rather than head for the ice cream or other not-so-healthy treats!

 

[TheWog]

One of the things I loved so much about the Disney cruise (even though it's probably very minor in the grand scheme of things) was that fresh fruit was always available. I got so hooked on having fresh mango and papaya every day I swear I went through withdrawal when I got home! LOL!

Anyway, I don't recall this on my last Carnival cruise - though that was 11 years ago. Is there fresh fruit by the pool or somewhere else on RCCL? I am a bit of a health nut and want to know that I can always eat good, fresh food rather than head for the ice cream or other not-so-healthy treats!

I remember there being fresh fruit in the buffet area - I think we could order it from room service as well. I have not been on the larger, newer ships, but in their promenade area I am sure there are things such as this. Not sure if they are right around the pool or not though. Sorry.

 

[cruisinmama06]

I don't think I got back here to post my review from Independence of the Seas (Feb 09)...so here it is....an incredible ship and experience...
http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=923729

And since then, I did Carnival Triumph, not a good experience

If anyone needs the kids club schedules and menus from Royal Caribbean, Carnival, NCL, Princess, Celebrity and yes even Disney...you can get them here...
http://photobucket.com/cruisekidpages

 

[SoccrMom]

Silly question for all of you RCCL cruisers, but it is a deal breaker for my family. In those cabins that sleep 4, is the 3-4 bed a double pull out bed, or is it similar to DCL with the drop-down bunk? My family doesn't work when it comes to the boys sharing a double bed.

 

[aznaphrodite]

Are there any specific TAs you would suggest for RCCL? Thanks!

PMed you my TA's info.

 

[slk]

Silly question for all of you RCCL cruisers, but it is a deal breaker for my family. In those cabins that sleep 4, is the 3-4 bed a double pull out bed, or is it similar to DCL with the drop-down bunk? My family doesn't work when it comes to the boys sharing a double bed.

I have not personally been on RC yet, but from what I know the inside
cabins (we were originally going with an inside) they have 2 twins that
go to a queen and 2 drop down twins (no sleeper sofa twin like disney). But,
for the sake of a little more room we went with the large ocean view
which has 2 twins that go to a queen and a double/queen sleeper sofa.
So I think DH and myself will take the sleeper sofa and keep the 2 twin
beds seperate for the kids just to keep the peace. My kids don't want
to share the beds either!!!