Royal or Carnival

[peacefrogdog]

The problem with Indy if you are used to other lines (even other RCCL ships) is the lack of included food options. Unlike DCL/Carnival/Princess/etc. There are no poolside grill options. So, if you want a hamburger, for instance, you are required to go to the buffet. Your choices are the buffet, the MDR, the pizza place (which is OK), and the small “Cafe Promenade” which has cookies and a few bad “sandwiches” (we did not eat here). That’s it. There is not a Park Cafe or El Loco Fresh or anything like that which you would find on the larger RCCL ships.

Now there is Fish and Ships, but the fish and chips are $7 extra. There is Johnny Rockets, but after tax/gratuity it’s $15 extra per person. There is Playmakers, but all the snacks are à la carte ($5-$15) per snack…

My biggest issue is that I can go on one of the newer Carnival ships, pay less, and have A LOT more included. Or, I can pay a bit more and go on one of the larger RCCL ships and get a lot more.

That said, for 3 or 4 days, you will be fine. We don’t do any of the flowrider/zip line stuff, so all that is lost on us….

Mariner, which is smaller than Indy, has the Boardwalk dog house on the pool deck. no burgers but usually3-4 different style sausages.

I also did not find it much of a chore to go from the pool deck to the buffet just to get a burger and then return to my seat. However I do agree that if there was a poolside eatery I would have used that.

 

[BlueBayou]

The problem with Indy if you are used to other lines (even other RCCL ships) is the lack of included food options. Unlike DCL/Carnival/Princess/etc. There are no poolside grill options. So, if you want a hamburger, for instance, you are required to go to the buffet. Your choices are the buffet, the MDR, the pizza place (which is OK), and the small “Cafe Promenade” which has cookies and a few bad “sandwiches” (we did not eat here). That’s it. There is not a Park Cafe or El Loco Fresh or anything like that which you would find on the larger RCCL ships.

Now there is Fish and Ships, but the fish and chips are $7 extra. There is Johnny Rockets, but after tax/gratuity it’s $15 extra per person. There is Playmakers, but all the snacks are à la carte ($5-$15) per snack…

This just shows how opinions can differ. While I like the DCL poolside dining options, particularly the healthy daisy de-lites, I don’t miss the poolside options on Royal. (Liberty, Adventure, Enchantment and scheduled on Radiance - So all smaller ships) Getting a plate in the windjammer and bringing it to the pool area is not an inconvenience to me. In fact on the two post Covid royal cruises we actually never ate in the Windjammer. We would take our breakfast and lunches out on deck.

And we use the Cafe Promenade to create little Charcuterie plates. The Mortadella in particular is nice. We pair it with the olives and bruschetta.

 

[tidefan]

This just shows how opinions can differ. While I like the DCL poolside dining options, particularly the healthy daisy de-lites, I don’t miss the poolside options on Royal. (Liberty, Adventure, Enchantment and scheduled on Radiance - So all smaller ships) Getting a plate in the windjammer and bringing it to the pool area is not an inconvenience to me. In fact on the two post Covid royal cruises we actually never ate in the Windjammer. We would take our breakfast and lunches out on deck.

And we use the Cafe Promenade to create little Charcuterie plates. The Mortadella in particular is nice. We pair it with the olives and bruschetta.

The Cafe Promenade was the biggest disappointment to us, both on the Independence and the Oasis. I was expecting it to be like the International Cafe on Princess, or maybe Java Blue on the newer CCL ships, but it wasn't even close. Did not care for it at all.

As to eating in the buffet, one thing I prefer with say Princess, HAL or Carnival (or DCL) is the adjacent outdoor seating, usually out the back. With RCCL, there was no adjacent outdoor seating to the Windjammer. We also found the food selection poor, IMHO, in the Windjammer compared to other lines. Way too much emphasis on Indian cuisine for our tastes (and don't get me wrong, I enjoy indian cuisine, just not half of the buffet being indian cuisine...). To be fair, we also find the buffets on the Royal class Princess ships far superior to those on the Grand class Princess ships.

 

[kevtlas]

Our first Royal cruise was cancelled, so still haven't been able to cruise with them. We've sailed with Disney, MSC and Carnival, and of those, Carnival is our favorite, hands down. That said, MSC was not bad and definitely worth the much lower price paid.

 

[peacefrogdog]

The Cafe Promenade was the biggest disappointment to us, both on the Independence and the Oasis. I was expecting it to be like the International Cafe on Princess, or maybe Java Blue on the newer CCL ships, but it wasn't even close. Did not care for it at all.

As to eating in the buffet, one thing I prefer with say Princess, HAL or Carnival (or DCL) is the adjacent outdoor seating, usually out the back. With RCCL, there was no adjacent outdoor seating to the Windjammer. We also found the food selection poor, IMHO, in the Windjammer compared to other lines. Way too much emphasis on Indian cuisine for our tastes (and don't get me wrong, I enjoy indian cuisine, just not half of the buffet being indian cuisine...). To be fair, we also find the buffets on the Royal class Princess ships far superior to those on the Grand class Princess ships.

For those who have not sailed RCCL, Cafe promenade serves small sandwiches, and small servings of sweets (cookies, small squares, cake etc.). While it sells espresso-based drinks, don't expect any food offerings similar to what you would see for example in a nice cafe where you live (e.g. fresh croissants or higher end cupcakes or pastries). For us, CP isn't really a go-to place for food but more an option when you happen to be walking by, need a quick bite but aren't fussy about what it is.

Based on our experiences on Oasis- and Freedom-class ships, I would not describe half of the buffet to be Indian cuisine - even on the "Indian food themed evening" during which where one food station was dedicated to Indian food. On the others days I saw maybe 3-4 Indian food offerings throughout the the entire buffet. I guess every ship may do different things on different sailings.

I believe a small number of RCCL ships offer outdoor seating in the Windjammer, but this seems to be exception.

 

[peacefrogdog]

This just shows how opinions can differ. While I like the DCL poolside dining options, particularly the healthy daisy de-lites, I don’t miss the poolside options on Royal. (Liberty, Adventure, Enchantment and scheduled on Radiance - So all smaller ships) Getting a plate in the windjammer and bringing it to the pool area is not an inconvenience to me. In fact on the two post Covid royal cruises we actually never ate in the Windjammer. We would take our breakfast and lunches out on deck.

And we use the Cafe Promenade to create little Charcuterie plates. The Mortadella in particular is nice. We pair it with the olives and bruschetta.

I can't recall whether it was called healthy daisy delites on our ship but I did really appreciate the DCL offering on the pool deck that not only sold usual grilled fare (burgers, dogs) but also a nice selection of fresh fruit - not only the usual melon and watermelon options but also mango and papaya.

 

[tidefan]

For those who have not sailed RCCL, Cafe promenade serves small sandwiches, and small servings of sweets (cookies, small squares, cake etc.). While it sells espresso-based drinks, don't expect any food offerings similar to what you would see for example in a nice cafe where you live (e.g. fresh croissants or higher end cupcakes or pastries). For us, CP isn't really a go-to place for food but more an option when you happen to be walking by, need a quick bite but aren't fussy about what it is.

Based on our experiences on Oasis- and Freedom-class ships, I would not describe half of the buffet to be Indian cuisine - even on the "Indian food themed evening" during which where one food station was dedicated to Indian food. On the others days I saw maybe 3-4 Indian food offerings throughout the the entire buffet. I guess every ship may do different things on different sailings.

I believe a small number of RCCL ships offer outdoor seating in the Windjammer, but this seems to be exception.

To be clear, It's not that I don't like the idea of the Cafe Promenade, it's just that it's much better executed on lines like Princess.

Cafe Promenade:


International Cafe (and this doesn't show the full coffee bar that is over to the left - Also, Soups and Cookies are available from the chefs from behind the counter):

 

[peacefrogdog]

To be clear, It's not that I don't like the idea of the Cafe Promenade, it's just that it's much better executed on lines like Princess.

Cafe Promenade:
View attachment 724018

International Cafe (and this doesn't show the full coffee bar that is over to the left - Also, Soups and Cookies are available from the chefs from behind the counter):
View attachment 724019

Wow, yes something like that would be great to have available on RCCL's promenade! Closest thing to it would Park Cafe or Cafe 270 but those are only on Oasis and Quantum classes.

It that International Cafe on all classes of Princess ships?

 

[tidefan]

Wow, yes something like that would be great to have available on RCCL's promenade! Closest thing to it would Park Cafe or Cafe 270 but those are only on Oasis and Quantum classes.

It that International Cafe on all classes of Princess ships?

Yes. It’s a bit larger on the Royal Class ships, but they all have them