Does anyone know why it is that the prices on Royal Caribbean for the Christmas cruise are double of what they are on Princess? I usually sail on Royal Caribbean , but a suite on Royal is $10,000 for three people where a suite on Princess is $5,000 for three. I know the pricing goes up a little for the holiday cruises, but double!?? Should I sail on Princess to save the money or is Princess so much less than Royal Caribbean that it wouldn't be worth saving the money???

We've sailed on NCL, RCL, Carnival, Costa, HAL, and Princess. So far Princess is my favorite. I ran into the same thing with Christmas cruises, the week before and week after the prices are great, Christmas goes up almost double for most cruise lines. We booked with Costa for Christmas because it was less than Princess. I've not been disappointed in any of my 4 cruises with Princess. We're going on the Sun in October. The ships have always been spotless, service has been wonderful and the food has been great. I don't think you would be disappointed in Princess at all. Enjoy your cruise!!

PENNY333--you said you've been on Princess before. Can you tell me how their activities (SPECIFICALLY THE SPORTS DECK (basketball, mini-golf, etc.) compares to Royal Carribean? THANKS!

We've only been on the Sea, Dawn and Sun. They have a gym, ping-pong, pool, and I believe golf. I've used their gym they had recumbant bikes, weights, treadmills, etc. Hot tubs were great, especially with a rum punch in hand. We're into snorkeling and swimming, so really have not paid much attention to any other activities. I can look in one of my old Princess Patters (their newspaper) and see if they mention any other sports. Which ship were looking into sailing on?

Moved Reply:

Prices are most often dependent on how full the ship is and how close they are to sailing. RCCL must be booked a lot fuller than Princess at this point. I have sailed numerous times on both lines and enjoy them pretty much the same. I think Princess is a smidge tamer and more formal that RCCL but you get what you make out of a cruise. And over the holidays they are both going to have similar extras and added holiday bonuses. For half the price I wouldn't think twice - take the Princess!! You'll have a great time and money in your pocket to spend on board; or for Christmas present for your kids.

Moved Reply:

I would suspect that whatever ship you are looking at with RCI is in high demand and has more space already sold than the Princess ship. Since RCI has more activities for kids, their ships are probably alot more in demand for the families traveling during the Christmas break. Princess is a very good cruise line.

To save $5,000 it's a no-brainer! I'd even go on Carnival if I could save that much.

I obviously agree that 5 grand is alot of money, but to go on a ship that doesn't have the things that you want to do seems senseless. If there is no sports deck with basketball and such like they have on Royal Caribbean, then Princess will not work for us. My son(s) spent all their time on the boat on the sports deck with all the people that they met. So does Princess have the sports deck with basketball court , mini golf, etc???

PENNY3333---to answer your question, we were looking at the Caribbean Princess and the Star Princess....thanks for your help in advance!

Both ships are very similar. The Star is two years older than the Caribbean, the Star is 7,000 tons smaller. Both ships have Basketball, jogging track, paddle tennis, volleyball, shuffleboard, ping pong,and a putting green. The Caribbean has a Mini-golf, where the Star doesn't. Both ships also have Dedicated Teen Center, dedicated child's center, Outdoor children's play area, a Teen program, and Children's pool.

Hi Queen--I'm glad to see Cruise Fanatic answered your questions. We've sailed twice when the Caribbean Princess was in port with us, she sure is a beauty!! So far I've been booking for itineraries because I'd love to hit every island in the Caribbean. Most of the ports I want to go to, the larger Princess ships aren't going to. I really do try to stay with Princess when possible because they've done such a great job so far. I hope Costa is as much fun as it used to be, guess I'll find out at Christmas. Maybe our ships will pass!! Whatever you decide, may it be the best Christmas cruise ever!!

I have found over the last few years that RCL AND Celebrity have been double THE PRICE on any cruise I price!It does not matter what time of year.I geuss there must be a lot of people that don't check prices.They're both stillin bussiness. Tom