With last minute cruise prices reaching their all-time lows, many travelers find themselves trying to decide between two popular cruise lines – Royal Caribbean and Carnival. Before comparing cruise lines, let’s go over a few things to look into before choosing your cruise.
Size of the Ship
You have to compare apples to apples. Larger ships will have more activities and more to do than a smaller ship will. A newer and larger ship may have a rock climbing wall – or even an ice rink, a smaller ship may only have a pool. Both lines will have events scheduled all day for days at sea with options ranging from trivia to dodge ball to a men’s sexy legs competition.
Choosing the Best Destination
One of the best parts of going on a cruise is the array of shore excursions offered when the ship is at port. Figure out what an itinerary of what to do when not at sea and see which port has more to offer. For example, if looking for a day relaxing at the beach, most would probably rather go to Cancun than Nassau because though Nassau has a beach, it’s a bit of a hassle to get there unless you go with a guided tour.
Be very wary of islands owned by the cruise line, like Royal Caribbean’s Coco Cay. Though a beautiful island, the whole thing is a tourist trap and the beach is very, very crowded.
Excursion Availability
If planning a vacation on a tight budget, I wouldn’t recommend going on excursions offered directly through the cruise line because they are much more expensive. At most ports, there will be many local companies offering the same product as the cruise line at a much better rate.
Carnival vs. Royal Caribbean
Either line that chosen will surely spoil guests with free room service and delicious food at dinner with a friendly staff to answer anyquestions. Remember that Carnival usually has a younger crowd than Royal Caribbean does, if looking for a more mature atmosphere, I would recommend Royal Caribbean. If looking for a party, Carnival is definitely the place to be.
Carnival has more included with the cost of the ticket than Royal Caribbean does. Carnival offers guests free ice cream and lemonade at any time of day, but Royal Caribbean will charge guests for these items. For those that end up traveling with Royal Caribbean, make sure to check the prices of things before placing an order, as it may not be included.
For a list of cruises, look at www.royalcaribbean.com or www.carnival.com
Erica Lange - Erica Lange is an accomplished free-lance writer with a degree in Business Administration and Foreign Language International Studies from ...
