Please help us decide. We will be traveling with another family, both in early 40's, and 4 teenage boys, age 16-18. Which ship would be the best, RCCL Voyager or Grand Princess? Would love to have your opinions.

HELP....have to book soon. Has anyone been on both Princess and RCCL that they could give me some comparisons???

I have been on both Princess and RCCL (although not on the ships you mentioned) and would choose Princess. I feel their food, service and entertainment is much better than Royal Caribbean. To get more responses from seasoned travelers, post on the bulletin boards of cruise2.com or cruise @ddicts.

Hi, Leta, <BR>I have not been on Grand princess, however, I also had to make decision between Grand Princess and Celebrity( I had been on RCCL before. <BR> <BR>From my research and spoken with past passenger, Grand Princess would rate highter than Voyager in service. However, activities-wise you have consider what do you willing to pay for. Princess's entertainment are among one of the best. Voyager is the largest ship on sea with rock climbing, skating rink, with a 50/60 style Johnny rock fast food joint. (you would have to pay$$$$ to enjoy the extras on Voyager). For the adults, you would simply love Princess, but for the youngsters, you might want to try Voyager. ONE THING IS FOR SURE, they are both equally excellent choice for cruising. No matter what you choose, you would come out a winner. <BR> <BR>Hope this could assist you in some way. <BR> <BR>

Thanks for your help. I may let the $$$ decide.

I don't know if anybody read Dave Barry this weekend. He took a cruise on a ship he named "Voyager" out of Miami...with Rock Climbing walls, etc...very funny piece.

If you have not already booked, and need more information, a great source is the newsgroup rec.travel.cruises <BR>You can either access it through your browser directly, or get to it by going to deja.com and looking up cruises. It literally gets hundreds of responses a day, and there are a lot of knowledgeable people there, including a number of travel agents. <BR>If I could put in a plug for my almost 16 year old daughter, why don't you book on the cruise we are going on - Western Caribbean on Celebrity Century june 24th. She would think she had died and gone to heaven to hook up with a couple of families with 4 boys ages 16 to 18!! <BR>Sheila

Sheila, you are too funny! But I have to admit my boys would feel the same way. What made our last cruise a success was that they hooked up with another group...that included girls. <BR>Actually I have never checked into Celebrity. How much do balconies run? Do they have a lot of activities and what ports? <BR>Thanks for the info on the net site. I'll go there now. No, we haven't booked yet. We are finishing up the basketball season and getting ready to go snow skiing over spring break, so we're waiting until we return. We ski with the other family, so we'll probably talk cruises at night by the fire! Leta

<BR>Leta, <BR> <BR>I am a travel agent and have sailed both the Grand and Voyager. <BR> <BR>Although I think the Grand is the most beautiful ship in the world and everything is extremely classy. Also the children's program is the best of all the lines (co-ordinators are all older with Doctorates and Master Degrees).... (also the gifts are of high quality), I believe with your children they would have more "fun" on the Voyager. More "things' to do. <BR> <BR>One negative, although Princess charges extra only for ice cream, Voyager charges for just about everything....the 24 hr. hamburger joint....the ice skating rink...the rollerblade track...the rock climbing wall...minature golf....alternative restaurant, etc. Just bring money. Other than the extra expense it is a fun cruise. <BR> <BR>Have fun planning, Paul

We just had to make the same choice, RCCL or Princess. Although we have not been on the Grand Princess, a few years ago we sailed on the Dawn Princess during Christimas break, it was filled to capacity, as will most cruise lines be during vacation times that cater to families. <BR> <BR>While we didn't like the service or the food, you have to remember it's a cruise not a 5 star hotel with a gourmet restaurant! We were two families of 5, and all went fairly smooth, with something for everyone to do. This year we decided to book the New Year's cruise on RCCL's new ship the Explorer, again a family of 10, it seemed to have SO MUCH MORE to do than the Grand Princess, and it is newer, newer is always better in our opinion. You do have to pay for all the "extra's" just like Princess, but with many more choices. So we shall see. <BR> <BR>You might get the March issue of Conde Nast Travel and see the pull-out on the new RCCL ship the "Voyager" and read it's article. <BR> <BR>Have fun.

Thanks Heidi. I'll try to find the magazine. Isn't the ship Explorer the sister ship to Voyager? If so, could I e-mail you directly to ask some questions? Thanks a bunch!

Yes, the Explorer is the sister ship. We sail December 30, 2000, so feel free to email me. Heidi

Leta - the two families we knew with teenagers that went on Celebrity really enjoyed it. Their kids program is not supposed to be quite as good as Princess or RCCL, but with teens I don't think that matters that much. Apparently Celebrity used to have a more structured teen program, but found that often the kids didn't want a lot of activities (the teenage son of one family we know has been on both RCCL and Celebrity, and preferred the latter as the kids mostly just hung out - he thought the RCCL activites were a little "lame"!) He said the teen counselor on Celebrity asked the group what they wanted to do for the week, and told them the various options, and they were allowed to plan it. Both families raved about the food (recognized consistently as Celebrity's strong point), and the entertainment (which Celebrity is often reported to not do as well as some other lines) <BR>The balconies are apparently very good value - one family said that they got a better deal than on a balcony room than any of the other lines they checked. Celebrity's rooms are bigger than average, as well. <BR>We like the W. Caribbean route Celebrity does, including Cozumel, Ocho Rios and Gr. Cayman, plus Key West. (I heard it described as the "doer's Caribbean, as opposed to the "shopper's Caribbean" (eastern) <BR>One of the families did this route (the other was on an Alaska cruise), and they said their kids loved all the ports, especially Grand Cayman, and they loved their day in Key West. Voyager does not hit either of these, which is one reason we didn't choose it. (It just has three stops, with the third being Labadee) <BR>Princess is not doing the Caribbean this summer, so we couldn't consider that. <BR>Sheila