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Alongside the Main Dining Room and the Windjammer buffet restaurant, you’ll have a lot of choice for breakfast, lunch and snacks during the day, while at night you can dine in steakhouses, sushi restaurants, fresh seafood restaurants and more. The benefit of these rooms is that you still have your own space to enjoy with fresh air, and you aren’t paying as much – an oceanview balcony is always more expensive. The downside is that it’s not as private, since you’re facing other staterooms across the ship. Royal Caribbean is slightly better than Carnival when it comes to solo passengers, but only a few ships in the fleet have single cabins to book. Usually, you’ll have to pay the full two-person price for a double room instead.
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And admission to Thrill Waterpark on CocoCay has also been higher or lower (including some prices of more than $150!) depending on the individual cruise. However, that’s changed with the recent renovation of CocoCay by Royal Caribbean. The cruise line spent $250 million to completely transform the place from a sleepy tropical island to a full-blown destination. Today CocoCay features a full waterpark with one of the tallest slides in the world, a massive freshwater pool, restaurants, and tons more. When you cruise, you should really think of having two different costs for the trip.
Carnival Prices
You might realize that Carnival and Royal Caribbean are not your only choices. In terms of larger lines, Norwegian is one of the other options for many passengers. If you want to know more about it, you can read the differences between Carnival and Norwegian or the differences between Royal Caribbean and Norwegian.
Grand Turk
No matter the size, all the ships of both lines qualify as floating resorts, with onboard casinos, pools, live entertainment, elaborate spas, lively dance clubs, lots of bars — and crowds. The cruise ship, which has more than 2,600 state rooms and 20 dining venues, will be sailing alternating itineraries across the Eastern and Western Caribbean. Preparation for St. Vincent and the Grenadines' annual Carnival celebration, known as Vincy Mas, spans two months, but its biggest events begin on the last Friday of June and run for 12 days. These include the Miss SVG Competition, colorful Parade of the Bands, Calypso Monarch, and King and Queen of Carnival competition. Timed for the week leading up to Ash Wednesday, the Ponce Carnival (known to locals as the Carnaval Ponceño) attracts up to 100,000 revelers to the historic city of Ponce, located on Puerto Rico's southern coast. In addition to a masquerade ball and street parades, a highlight of the Ponce carnival is the "vejigantes," papier-mâché-masked folkloric creatures in colorful costumes and multiple horns that represent the Devil and taunt the crowd.
In terms of the size of the fleet and of the ships specifically, there’s very little to choose between Royal Caribbean and Carnival. Royal Caribbean's crowd is a mix of international travelers and those from North America, including couples, families and singles from all walks of life. You'll find night owls on Royal Caribbean, too, though the crowd is a tad more upscale and less rowdy than on Carnival. That's partly because Royal Caribbean ships have a higher percentage of expensive suites on board and attract travelers who can afford to pay for that type of luxury. Since Carnival sails from many U.S. ports, you'll find that a high percentage of cruisers on board hail from nearby states and have driven to the ship — meaning different ships can have different vibes and passenger bases. Carnival also puts together its own live bands and musical acts — whether jazz, rock 'n' roll, show band or classical — that entertain at various bars and public areas throughout its ships.
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And while each company owns several brands, the biggest are the ones they are named after – Royal Caribbean International, and Carnival. When you choose to apply (and are approved) for a new credit card through our site, we may receive compensation from our partners, and this may impact how or where these products appear. While we don’t cover all available credit cards, our editorial team creates and maintains all of the analysis of these cards, and our content is not influenced nor subject to review by any credit card company, bank or partner prior to (or after) publication. Please view our advertising policy and product review methodology for more information. Royal Caribbean and Carnival take different approaches to onboard entertainment as well, though you'll never be bored on either line. Let's go head-to-head, Carnival versus Royal Caribbean, to highlight their similarities and differences and help you choose the line that's right for you.
It features Technicolor parades of calypso dancers in Philipsburg and a Carnival Village just outside of the capital featuring booths serving Caribbean culinary favorites. Anguilla's festival features music, dancing, food, pageants, parades, beach parties, calypso competitions, fireworks, and boat races, with an event held almost every night (some are free and others charge a fee). Cruises to Southern Caribbean islands are the stuff vivid tropical daydreams are made of. These far-flung islands were made for getting out and swimming, snorkeling, hiking… not to mention excellent shopping and beach lounging. For a remote island getaway within reach of home, look no further than one of Carnival’s cruises to the Southern Caribbean.
While both cruise lines take advantage of all the space on their ship, you’ll see below that there are major differences in activities and entertainment between the two cruise lines due partly to the ship size. Both Carnival Cruise Line and Royal Caribbean have two sizes of megaships. Their smaller ships carry 3,000 to 4,000 passengers; their larger ones are huge and carry more than 5,000 guests. Royal Caribbean wins the battle of size, with five of the world's largest ships — including Wonder of the Seas and new Icon of the Seas, the two largest cruise ships afloat. The Caribbean may be small in size, but it packs a major punch when it comes to things to do and see. We’re talking about 80 degree days where the sun shines and you get a cool breeze from the coast.
Destinations & Ports
Newer ships include the world’s tallest slide at sea, bumper cars, ice skating, a surf simulator, escape rooms, and even an observation pod that can take you up and out over the water on some ships. Icon of the Seas debuts a full-fledged water park with six slides. Carnival Celebration, Jubilee, and Mardi Gras, Carnival’s largest ships, have a gross tonnage of 183,000, or about 75% of the size of Royal’s largest ship. When it comes to size, Royal Caribbean ships definitely have an edge.
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Many ships have thrilling waterslides, or at least a splash zone where younger kids can have an amazing time getting interactive with water. There’s always a video arcade, and a casino for the adults, along with games, workshops and more. Carnival also partners with Build-a-Bear on many ships in the fleet. The cruise line does offer cruises from the UK with one ship stationed there each summer. In 2024 that’s Anthem of the Seas, and then in 2025 it’s Independence of the Seas.
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On Fat Monday, islanders enjoy burlesque-like "mock weddings" featuring men dressed as brides and women suited up as bridegrooms. Fat Tuesday is Red Devils Day with parades of costumed red devils of all ages, while Ash Wednesday is The Day of She-Devils as revelers wear black and white to close out Carnival. Haiti's Carnaval, or Kanaval in Creole, is an annual three-day celebration in February during which the streets of its capital, Port-au-Prince, where the National Carnival is held, and beachside Jacmel are filled with festively costumed locals. Jacmel is particularly known for the over-sized papier-mâché masks depicting animals and demons. Voodoo and historic slavery references comingle with heart-pounding street music and traditional dance performances.
Consider that Royal Caribbean’s Wonder of the Seas is nearly 1,200 feet and carries more than 5,700 guests at double occupancy. Now keep in mind that this doesn’t mean your cruise will automatically be less expensive on Carnival or more expensive on Royal Caribbean. What you pay for a cruise depends on a lot of factors, including when you sail, the specific ship you choose, and the route you take. But in general, you can figure that a Carnival cruise will run less than a similar one on Royal Caribbean. If you want to sail the more inexpensive cruise line, however, then you’re better off with Carnival according to our analysis.
That doesn’t diminish their quality though, and while you may not be familiar with the stories, you’ll have a fantastic time. The sheer range of things you can do on a Royal Caribbean cruise is amazing. You’ll never struggle to find something to keep you not just busy, but to genuinely thrill you.
Carnival works in the same way – you have your Main Dining Room, your buffet restaurant, and then a selection of other options for casual and formal dining that you can choose between, including steak, seafood, Asian cuisine and more. Royal Caribbean does have two private island destinations that guests can visit around the Bahamas and Caribbean, including Labadee and Perfect Day at CocoCay. When cruising with Royal Caribbean, you certainly aren’t short of choice for destination and for embarkation port – there are 35 places you can sail from, the most of those being in North America. The biggest embarkation ports for the cruise line are in Florida (Miami, Port Canaveral, and Fort Lauderdale). The smallest ships and the oldest ships are very similar, and it’s only when looking at the biggest ships that Royal Caribbean has an edge – but you certainly couldn’t ever accuse Carnival’s Excel Class of not being “big enough”.
A shining point in these alternative venues is Jamie's Italian, in partnership with British celebrity chef Jamie Oliver. You also can pay for a burger and milkshake at Johnny Rockets on Royal Caribbean's larger ships. The French side gets things started in February with pre-Lenten jump-ups and colorful parades featuring zouk and reggae music on the streets of Marigot and Grand-Case, while the Dutch side holds a bigger extravaganza that lasts more than two weeks in April.
Carnival reserves the right to re-instate the fuel supplement for all guests at up to $9 per person per day if the NYMEX oil price exceeds $70 per barrel. Rates & offers are subject to select dates & categories, cruise only, per person, based on double occupancy, in US Dollars, & include NCCF. All rates & offers are capacity controlled, are subject to availability & confirmation, & may change without notice. Information deemed reliable but not guaranteed -- please confirm details at time of booking.
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