keaster
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Nov 27, 2008
So we are back from our 7-night Middle East cruise on the Splendour of the Seas! We had an amazing time, such a diverse and beautiful part of the world with very friendly people! This cruise was just my husband and I.
In terms of a comparison to DCL here are our observations:
Check-in - We arrived at the port around 12pm-12:30pm. Very quick and efficient, the cruise terminal in Dubai is very large and we had very minimal wait. We went directly on to the ship to grab some lunch in Windjammers. One thing different for us is that they kept our passports on check-in but we got them back on the second last day of the cruise.
Stateroom - we were in a balcony stateroom, very similar to what we get on Disney. Storage space was great, no connecting door to the next room so it was actually pretty quiet. Only the one bathroom which was very large with good storage, but the shower was a bit of a nightmare (very claustrophobic!) Just a shower stall with a curtain that kept clinging to me and it was hard to keep water from spilling out on to the floor. So definitely prefer the split baths on DCL. Also no separate shampoo/conditioner. There is a pump thing mounted to the wall that only had shampoo. Our stateroom host was pleasant and the room was also kept in good shape.
Public Areas/Ship - Splendour is one of the oldest ships in the fleet, but she looked very good for her age and kept very clean. Some wear and tear was evident (rust under the balcony rail, the pool steps were worn out a bit). The pool deck was a great size, but on the sea day it was still hard to find a chair. The Solarium is a neat idea but I found it chilly in there (they never had the roof open, I don't know why as the weather was great!) They had a Cove Cafe style area with specialty coffees and Ben and Jerry's ice cream, we spent some time there. There was also a mini put golf course and climbing wall.
Entertainment - We took in a few of the shows which were fine, the theatre is very large and comfortable. They also did a Cirque de Soleil style show in the Centrum (lobby) where the performers would do aerial style performances from the ceiling.
Dining - food in the main dining room was great, never a bad meal. Service was also excellent. We did the My Time Dining which is a bit of a misnomer I think...they still recommend you make a reservation as you may not be able to eat in the main dining room until late. We also ate at two of their upcharge restaurants, Chops Grille and Izumi, both meals there were fantastic and reasonably priced (similar to Palo). We would eat breakfast in Windjammers, pretty comparable to Cabanas in terms of food and seating.
Passengers - Very different compared to DCL, very few young families and children! There were over 1800 passengers, majority of them from Britain, Germany, the Netherlands and all throughout Europe. Everyone we spoke to was very pleasant and friendly!
Ports - No comparison as the port choice here was so diverse compared to DCL. We stopped in Khasab, Oman then spent two days in Muscat, Oman. Then it was a sea day, one day in Abu Dhabi then back to Dubai for a day before disembarking. Wished we could've had more time in Abu Dhabi it was amazing! In terms of booking shore excursions, you pay up front when you book them (unlike DCL where you book then pay when you are on the ship.) I actually found the RCL way better because then everything is prepaid.
Debarking - very smooth and efficient, found our luggage in the claim area right away. We did a tour of the city before airport drop off.
Overall our experience on RCL was very good and we would not hesitate to sail them again, but we would prefer to try one of the newer/bigger ships. We are waiting for summer 2017 prices to come out...we would prefer to do DCL, but depending on our canadian dollar we may go with RCL as they book in Canadian dollars.
In terms of a comparison to DCL here are our observations:
Check-in - We arrived at the port around 12pm-12:30pm. Very quick and efficient, the cruise terminal in Dubai is very large and we had very minimal wait. We went directly on to the ship to grab some lunch in Windjammers. One thing different for us is that they kept our passports on check-in but we got them back on the second last day of the cruise.
Stateroom - we were in a balcony stateroom, very similar to what we get on Disney. Storage space was great, no connecting door to the next room so it was actually pretty quiet. Only the one bathroom which was very large with good storage, but the shower was a bit of a nightmare (very claustrophobic!) Just a shower stall with a curtain that kept clinging to me and it was hard to keep water from spilling out on to the floor. So definitely prefer the split baths on DCL. Also no separate shampoo/conditioner. There is a pump thing mounted to the wall that only had shampoo. Our stateroom host was pleasant and the room was also kept in good shape.
Public Areas/Ship - Splendour is one of the oldest ships in the fleet, but she looked very good for her age and kept very clean. Some wear and tear was evident (rust under the balcony rail, the pool steps were worn out a bit). The pool deck was a great size, but on the sea day it was still hard to find a chair. The Solarium is a neat idea but I found it chilly in there (they never had the roof open, I don't know why as the weather was great!) They had a Cove Cafe style area with specialty coffees and Ben and Jerry's ice cream, we spent some time there. There was also a mini put golf course and climbing wall.
Entertainment - We took in a few of the shows which were fine, the theatre is very large and comfortable. They also did a Cirque de Soleil style show in the Centrum (lobby) where the performers would do aerial style performances from the ceiling.
Dining - food in the main dining room was great, never a bad meal. Service was also excellent. We did the My Time Dining which is a bit of a misnomer I think...they still recommend you make a reservation as you may not be able to eat in the main dining room until late. We also ate at two of their upcharge restaurants, Chops Grille and Izumi, both meals there were fantastic and reasonably priced (similar to Palo). We would eat breakfast in Windjammers, pretty comparable to Cabanas in terms of food and seating.
Passengers - Very different compared to DCL, very few young families and children! There were over 1800 passengers, majority of them from Britain, Germany, the Netherlands and all throughout Europe. Everyone we spoke to was very pleasant and friendly!
Ports - No comparison as the port choice here was so diverse compared to DCL. We stopped in Khasab, Oman then spent two days in Muscat, Oman. Then it was a sea day, one day in Abu Dhabi then back to Dubai for a day before disembarking. Wished we could've had more time in Abu Dhabi it was amazing! In terms of booking shore excursions, you pay up front when you book them (unlike DCL where you book then pay when you are on the ship.) I actually found the RCL way better because then everything is prepaid.
Debarking - very smooth and efficient, found our luggage in the claim area right away. We did a tour of the city before airport drop off.
Overall our experience on RCL was very good and we would not hesitate to sail them again, but we would prefer to try one of the newer/bigger ships. We are waiting for summer 2017 prices to come out...we would prefer to do DCL, but depending on our canadian dollar we may go with RCL as they book in Canadian dollars.
Last edited:
