Icon of the Seas

[pjacobi]

What's your source? I know they do this for some higher end specialty dining.

I was probably confused with the no-show charge for dining reservation.

No-shows for reservations are always a bad idea, regardless of a charge.


-Paul

 

[peacefrogdog]

I was probably confused with the no-show charge for dining reservation.

No-shows for reservations are always a bad idea, regardless of a charge.


-Paul

Yes - the response to people making multiple bookings and not showing up (preventing others from getting spots). I can see DVC eventually going this route if it gets harder to book ressies even at the 11 month mark

 

[lengmui]

My husband and I have sailed on Utopia of the Seas and Star of the Seas (sister ship to Icon). We’ve sailed DCL a bunch with our kids.

I think Icon would be great for your family, but I’d definitely want two staterooms. Royal staterooms are just not set up for families the way DCL is … no split bath and the sofa converts to one bed for the 3rd and 4th passengers on Icon (it varies by ship). They also only service the rooms once a day and my understanding is that they just leave the sofa made up like a bed for the duration of the cruise if you have more than 2 passengers. The plus side over DCL is that the king bed splits into two twins on Royal, so if you get two rooms, each kid would have their own nice bed.

IMO, the biggest difference between Royal and DCL is the overall vibe and the amount of catering DCL does to families with young children. Royal definitely has a drinking culture (so many bars everywhere and multiple servers running drinks during the shows - I never had any issues with drunk passengers or anything, but it just speaks to its adult focused atmosphere vs. DCL) and the entertainment is geared more towards adult than kids. Royal would not be my first choice as a family cruise with kids … but with older teens or young adults, I think it’s a good choice unless you have absolute Disney fanatics that would be sad it they weren’t on a Disney vacation (I think my college kids would enjoy it and they are Disney fans, but also appreciate other types of vacations).

DCL is so well themed and has a more elegant feel than Royal. Royal ships feel more like a nice Marriott and the dining rooms have a generic wedding venue feel - they are nice, but there is no real theming. That really stuck out to me on our first Royal cruise … by the second, I was used to it and it didn’t phase me … but after 20 years of cruising only with DCL, it was a little jarring not to be surrounded by Disney artwork and Disney touches everywhere. Disney ships are truly elegant and have an overall classier feel than Royal.

Royal main dining was not great on Utopia, but it was really good on Star. I don’t know if that was the difference between a 4 night and a 7 night sailing or what, but the food and service was on par with DCL on Star. We had MyTime dining on Star and I really liked it - we were able to making dining reservation on the app ahead of time and ate at 6:45 or 7:00pm every night - which I much preferred to the early or late options on DCL. Royal has more food choices than DCL - more quick type service places, the buffet is open for dinner and they have specialty restaurants for an additional charge (you definitely don’t need to pay for specialty dining … we paid for one specialty dinner and one lunch on our week long cruise and it was nice, but definitely not a must do). Royal also has the free soft serve … just vanilla and chocolate.

Soda is not included on Royal, but they have a soda package where you can get a refillable mug and use the Freestyle machines. I think it was $10.99/day per person if you wanted the soda package. They also allow you to carryon a 12 pack of soda (I think it’s technically per room, but people do it per person). They have water, tea (iced and hot), coffee, fruit juice (at breakfast), white milk, chocolate milk and a bunch of fruit flavored drinks (fruit punch, lemon lime, strawberry kiwi, etc. … usually 3-4 selections at each machine) that are included. You can also buy individual sodas if you have a hankering for one, but don’t want a package.

Entertainment on the newer ships is actually pretty impressive. It’s different than Disney, so you aren’t getting Disney shows … but they have a water show and ice skating show that are both not to be missed. They also had a Broadway production (Back to the Future on Star) and some shorter stage shows as well as comedians, trivia, game shows, karaoke, etc. I thought it was a nice change of pace from DCL. You make reservations for each show in advance (they also take walk ins, but reservations are recommended).

Coco Cay is more built up than either of Disney’s private islands, with a lot more added fee offerings … but it’s also very easy to just get off the ship and find a chair with an umbrella at no additional charge. Their on island buffet has more offerings than DCL’s islands.

You do have to check out pool towels on Royal. They have stations everywhere and you just give them your room key and tell them how many towels you want … then you have to check them back in or you get charged. I prefer just grabbing towels on DCL … but it definitely keeps used towel clutter down.

Royal embarkation, disembarkation and muster drill were more streamlined and more efficient than DCL. Royal walk in showers are better than DCL tub showers (for adult only parties) and the ocean view balconies on Star and Utopia both had footstools for the chairs.

IDK. If you want a Disney cruise, but are “settling” for Royal because of price, I think there’s a good chance you’ll be disappointed. If you want a family vacation with your young adult children and are interested in trying something other than Disney, I think Icon would be a good choice.

I just got off my first Royal cruise on Star (after 5 DCL cruises), and you probably summed up my thoughts almost exactly! I did the main dining on Royal and I preferred DCL. Honestly I thought doing MDR in the same place every night was pretty boring compared to DCL's rotation. I haven't tried the new Wish/Treasure/Destiny yet but I imagine the dining entertainment kicks that up a notch as well.

My primary thought after going on Royal was I finally understand why everyone says DCL is the ultimate family/kids cruise. They really do cater to kids, I went with my husband and 7yo son and there is a true difference between the target audience between ships. I will still sail Royal again, but I definitely appreciate aspects DCL more after going on RCCL.

 

[pjacobi]

DCL is the ultimate family/kids cruise

Exactly! I am in total agreement.

When your children grow up, it opens up opportunities for different cruise line with different target audiences or other vacation possibilities.


-Paul

 

[NauticalNights]

We were fortunate to do two inaugurals this year. DCL Treasure and RCCL Star. Our family only has had experience with DCL (X7) and a one-off Alaskan princess. DCL Treasure was pretty in many areas and vanilla in others (staterooms). We are not wish class fans. My teens did not like treasure very much.

Star from beginning to end was amazing. So many options. Hot tubs and seating were plentiful, and the entertainment were jaw dropping. Back to the future show to the F1 style water show. We were blown away at every turn. The water park and rock climbing were a big hit. The parade in the atrium was fun and well done. Just book everything as far as that goes before you get on the ship and you will be fine. They did have stand by areas though for some things.

Food is always subjective but what is not is options. RCCL blew Disney out in this category. So many venues and late hours. As far as the soda thing. The coke fanatic bought the soda package, and we brought 2 bottle packs on board with us and some wine for the rest of us. We did not finish them. The tea, flavored water was really good. There are so many of those free style machines everywhere unlike DCL where it is just on the pool deck or in the dining room. So, it didn't feel like you were just paying for soda but also for convenience and options.

As far as service goes... Every ship experience is different from sailing to sailing. We had better dining room service on RCCL Star and better rooms service on DCL. We have sailed enough to know this is a toss-up sailing to sailing. The general overall service in the bars and hallways etc. was better on RCCL. DCL felt like they were working out the kinks and RCCL felt like they brought their A game.

We will definitely sail on DCL classics again but will also definitely be back on Icon too, FWIW I never wanted to sail on the mega mall ships, but I was very wrong on them. We loved it and I was surprised by that. We are aged out of kid's club but cherish those memories, but DCL is catered for them so if that is your age group then yes that's probably the way to go. Although the kids area on RCCL was amazing and huge almost like a ship within a ship. Teens I would take on RCCL Icon. Lessons we learned after RCCL is it really is best to look at ship to ship not necessarily line to line when comparing.

As always though Castaway Cay remains the best!

 

[halfmonkey]

Just to add our experience, we cruised the Icon in Sept 2024. At the time, our two boys were 17 and 15 and our daughter was 12. My kids love DCL and even to this day still talk about wanting to go on a Disney cruise but I honestly think they've outgrown DCL. The kids club on DCL when they were younger were AWESOME! Now, they attend the kids club on the first day to meet other kids and then go off on their own with their group of friends for the rest of the cruise never to set foot in the kids club again.

Make no mistake, the Icon is huge. Having said that, we didn't feel it was overwhelming nor did it feel like it was crowded at any time. Since it was so big with so much to do, I think it did a good job of spreading out the people and keeping people busy with all kinds of different activities in all different locations.

For a quick comparison, we went on the Wish in 2023 and just got back from a cruise of RCL on the Quantum and one of the first things we all said about the Quantum was how "small" it felt compared to the Icon. We sailed the Icon after the Wish so I couldn't even imagine how much smaller the Wish would feel or even their smaller ships like the Wonder or Magic.

Here is a quick comparison of good vs bad. Obviously, YMMV.

1. after dinner shows - DCL by far was better. RCL could be skipped and you wouldn't miss anything although a couple of shows on the Icon were interesting but nothing like DCL shows
2. dining room - DCL wins due to rotation
3. main dining room meal - DCL was better although Icon did have a large variety at their buffet compared to DCL
4. openess - Icon
5. stateroom - DCL because of separate toilet and bath area
6. outside activities - Icon by far with the much larger play area and having multiple play areas
7. bar (to watch sports) - Icon because it was such a large space, they had a bunch of tv's and had all the different footballs games going all at once on different tv's in the bar
8. late night snack - Icon and all of RCL for sorrentos. Something about their pizza is just simply delicious!
9. soda - DCL included
10. themes/intellectual properties - DCL with all of their brands and characters
11. stateroom door decorating - DCL as it seems it's non-existent on RCL
12. duck hunting/hiding - don't remember how popular it was when we went on the Wish but it's definitely a thing on RCL

There are so many more things I could compare but these things jumped to my mind so if you have any other questions, please let me know.

 

[peacefrogdog]

As always though Castaway Cay remains the best!

What did you like more about it vs Coco Cay ?

 

[DCLMP]

We were fortunate to do two inaugurals this year. DCL Treasure and RCCL Star. Our family only has had experience with DCL (X7) and a one-off Alaskan princess. DCL Treasure was pretty in many areas and vanilla in others (staterooms). We are not wish class fans. My teens did not like treasure very much.

Star from beginning to end was amazing. So many options. Hot tubs and seating were plentiful, and the entertainment were jaw dropping. Back to the future show to the F1 style water show. We were blown away at every turn. The water park and rock climbing were a big hit. The parade in the atrium was fun and well done. Just book everything as far as that goes before you get on the ship and you will be fine. They did have stand by areas though for some things.

Food is always subjective but what is not is options. RCCL blew Disney out in this category. So many venues and late hours. As far as the soda thing. The coke fanatic bought the soda package, and we brought 2 bottle packs on board with us and some wine for the rest of us. We did not finish them. The tea, flavored water was really good. There are so many of those free style machines everywhere unlike DCL where it is just on the pool deck or in the dining room. So, it didn't feel like you were just paying for soda but also for convenience and options.

As far as service goes... Every ship experience is different from sailing to sailing. We had better dining room service on RCCL Star and better rooms service on DCL. We have sailed enough to know this is a toss-up sailing to sailing. The general overall service in the bars and hallways etc. was better on RCCL. DCL felt like they were working out the kinks and RCCL felt like they brought their A game.

We will definitely sail on DCL classics again but will also definitely be back on Icon too, FWIW I never wanted to sail on the mega mall ships, but I was very wrong on them. We loved it and I was surprised by that. We are aged out of kid's club but cherish those memories, but DCL is catered for them so if that is your age group then yes that's probably the way to go. Although the kids area on RCCL was amazing and huge almost like a ship within a ship. Teens I would take on RCCL Icon. Lessons we learned after RCCL is it really is best to look at ship to ship not necessarily line to line when comparing.

As always though Castaway Cay remains the best!

Just got off Utopia and getting ready to book Star for next January school break. . My son has been on 34 DCL cruises through all the age groups. The hyperlink meet up for 18-25 year olds was a big hit for him. He is 21 now and met a lot of college students to hang out with the whole cruise. It's nice to take a vacation with a young adult and they are not bored.

 

[NauticalNights]

What did you like more about it vs Coco Cay ?

To be fair I am sure nostalgia plays a part as with most Disney things. lol

I would say the beach in total. The water felt more Bahamian/Tropical, the way you dock and come into the island. Coco looks like a water park. Not that it all is but it leans heavy on the waterpark features. we did the quiet end of the beach (forgot the name but you can't go any further after that area). We then walked to different beaches, then we headed to the free pool area. My kids liked it ok, but it felt like a dated hotel pool. Silly I know but was not a fan of the bathrooms or beach chairs. Felt unpolished, especially after coming from the Stars pool chairs etc. Also, so many paid options there. Maybe those are nice? The whole island was just not somewhere I would be itching to return to. We returned early which is something we never do on Castaway. In fact, if the RCCL ship skipped it I would be ok. Do not feel that way about Castaway.

 

[DCLMP]

To be fair I am sure nostalgia plays a part as with most Disney things. lol

I would say the beach in total. The water felt more Bahamian/Tropical, the way you dock and come into the island. Coco looks like a water park. Not that it all is but it leans heavy on the waterpark features. we did the quiet end of the beach (forgot the name but you can't go any further after that area). We then walked to different beaches, then we headed to the free pool area. My kids liked it ok, but it felt like a dated hotel pool. Silly I know but was not a fan of the bathrooms or beach chairs. Felt unpolished, especially after coming from the Stars pool chairs etc. Also, so many paid options there. Maybe those are nice? The whole island was just not somewhere I would be itching to return to. We returned early which is something we never do on Castaway. In fact, if the RCCL ship skipped it I would be ok. Do not feel that way about Castaway.

I agree Castaway is better. I'm not a beach person so missing either of them would not affect my cruise.

 

[DCLMP]

I've cruise RCL three times Allure, Odyssey and Utopia. DCL 34 times. It's hard for me to say one is better than the other because they are so different. What amazes me about Royal's ships is how they absorb the crowds. 7k people and it never felt crowded. The pool deck was packed on the sea day, but you could still find chairs if you wanted one. There are so many dining venues they are never crowded.

I loved the Solarium and Central park. Central park was probably my favorite place on the ship.

State rooms- It was a toss up. Split beds and a glass walk in shower were great. I did not like the bed being a foot from the bathroom. The beds were not as comfortable as Disney.

MDR- similar food quality. Royal less crowded with all the dining options. Service was good on Royal, but I'm sure if I cruise on Royal 34 times I'll have some servers I don't care for. That's been the case on Disney.

Buffet- Royal 10 times better.

Entertainment. I loved the entertainment and shows on Royal. Disney's broadway shows are amazing, but I've seen them multiple times. I'm looking forward to seeing Back to the Future on the next cruise.

Private Island- Castaway is better in my opinion, but like I said I'm not a beach person.

Soda- don't drink it. Did not buy drink package. Drink prices were about the same as DCL. I was able to bring two bottles of wine onboard. I missed being able to bring beer onboard. I spent more on drinks on Royal.

Kids clubs- I would give the edge to Disney because they are open all the time. That is why we stuck with Disney until are kids were teens. It's great that Royal has the 18-25 year old meet ups. Disney's is only 18-20. Having a meet up makes it a lot easier for young adults to meet people than hanging out at the sports deck or bar hoping to make a friend.

It's hard to compare two cruise lines that are so different. I think people make the mistake of always trying to compare instead of just enjoying the fact that we have variety in cruise ships and cruise lines.

I'm looking forward to trying the NCL Viva this Summer and the Star of the Seas next Spring. I'm sure I'll be back on Disney ship at some point, but I'm enjoying the change. I honestly don't know how some people on here have cruised Disney 50+ times and have no desire to try something new.

 

[peacefrogdog]

To be fair I am sure nostalgia plays a part as with most Disney things. lol

I would say the beach in total. The water felt more Bahamian/Tropical, the way you dock and come into the island. Coco looks like a water park. Not that it all is but it leans heavy on the waterpark features. we did the quiet end of the beach (forgot the name but you can't go any further after that area). We then walked to different beaches, then we headed to the free pool area. My kids liked it ok, but it felt like a dated hotel pool. Silly I know but was not a fan of the bathrooms or beach chairs. Felt unpolished, especially after coming from the Stars pool chairs etc. Also, so many paid options there. Maybe those are nice? The whole island was just not somewhere I would be itching to return to. We returned early which is something we never do on Castaway. In fact, if the RCCL ship skipped it I would be ok. Do not feel that way about Castaway.

When referring to Stars pool chairs, you mean Star of the Seas right? Do they have nicer pool chairs than standard? I've only been on Icon and honestly can't recall if those chairs were different than usual.

I'm probably leaned or biased towards RCL in the similar way you are to DCL. CocoCay definitely looks like a thrill park when you first see it. I've only been to Castaway Cay twice, last in 2013. From what I remember, it had much more of a 'quite time on the beach' vibe. Beaches on CocoCay really pack in the beach chairs and loungers, making the beaches seem more busy and crowded. Breezy Bay at Chill Island is probably the most similar to Castaway Cay. And yes, the for a fee areas on CocoCay (Hideaway Beach, Beach Club) are nicer. Otherwise, CocoCay tends to go for more of an active/party vibe with upbeat music playing, lots of areas for beach volleyball and sports. The more common eating areas (called the snack shacks) offer a rather limited menu (set menu). The more central eating area has more options like a taco bar. But when you're trying to lounge, it is hard to get off your butts to walk that 5-10 mins (sadly )

The pool (Oasis lagoon) is my least favorite area of the Coco Cay. But I'm surprised you felt it felt like a dated hotel pool.
Using these pics as a reference (I know by nature of this site's name is very pro-RCL : is this the pool you went to?
https://www.royalcaribbeanblog.com/2025/01/15/oasis-lagoon-perfect-day-cococay

In the end, if we're debating pros and cons of cruise line's private islands, we're doing ok in life.

 

[peacefrogdog]

I've cruise RCL three times Allure, Odyssey and Utopia. DCL 34 times. It's hard for me to say one is better than the other because they are so different. What amazes me about Royal's ships is how they absorb the crowds. 7k people and it never felt crowded. The pool deck was packed on the sea day, but you could still find chairs if you wanted one. There are so many dining venues they are never crowded.

I loved the Solarium and Central park. Central park was probably my favorite place on the ship.

State rooms- It was a toss up. Split beds and a glass walk in shower were great. I did not like the bed being a foot from the bathroom. The beds were not as comfortable as Disney.

MDR- similar food quality. Royal less crowded with all the dining options. Service was good on Royal, but I'm sure if I cruise on Royal 34 times I'll have some servers I don't care for. That's been the case on Disney.

Buffet- Royal 10 times better.

Entertainment. I loved the entertainment and shows on Royal. Disney's broadway shows are amazing, but I've seen them multiple times. I'm looking forward to seeing Back to the Future on the next cruise.

Private Island- Castaway is better in my opinion, but like I said I'm not a beach person.

Soda- don't drink it. Did not buy drink package. Drink prices were about the same as DCL. I was able to bring two bottles of wine onboard. I missed being able to bring beer onboard. I spent more on drinks on Royal.

Kids clubs- I would give the edge to Disney because they are open all the time. That is why we stuck with Disney until are kids were teens. It's great that Royal has the 18-25 year old meet ups. Disney's is only 18-20. Having a meet up makes it a lot easier for young adults to meet people than hanging out at the sports deck or bar hoping to make a friend.

It's hard to compare two cruise lines that are so different. I think people make the mistake of always trying to compare instead of just enjoying the fact that we have variety in cruise ships and cruise lines.

I'm looking forward to trying the NCL Viva this Summer and the Star of the Seas next Spring. I'm sure I'll be back on Disney ship at some point, but I'm enjoying the change. I honestly don't know how some people on here have cruised Disney 50+ times and have no desire to try something new.

Out of curiosity, did you try RCL after all those DCL cruises? Or after trying RCL, did you go back to DCL cruises?
I ask only because we did when our kids were younger we did both DCL and RCL, and our experiences were similar to what you reported. Now that my kids are older, we have sailed only RCL the past 10 years. But we wonder how we would enjoy DCL now.

The quality of food on RCL's MDR has definitely changed over that time. Have you noticed a similar drop ooff in the quality of DCL's MDR over the past 10 years? Have you tried Celebrity yet?