Expert: Becky - 7/6/2002

Question
Becky,

Would you choose a 245 sq ft room with a 72 sq ft balcony on the Grandeur for 7 days OR a 204 sq ft cabin with a 42 sq ft balcony on the Radiance for 14 days for about the same price?

7 days Western Caribbean
14 days Transatlantic ($139 more)

First time cruising - don't know what we are doing. please help. Any advice is greatly appreciated!

Barbara

Answer
Hi Barbara :-)
Those are two totally different cruises and itineraries...I wouldn't have the size of the rooms as a deciding factor. Either room would be a nice size and very nice.
We are sailing on the Grandeur of the Seas this Fall and chose it mainly based on it's itinerary, and it's also a ship that I've always wanted to try. It was built in 1996.
The Radiance is a newer ship(came out in 2001)...and it goes for a lot longer. So far we've only ever done Caribbean sailings.  We sailed on the Explorer of the Seas last February... and it was the nicest cruise we've been on so far. It's one of the Voyager class ships...sister to the Voyager and the Adventurer and the Navigator. The Voyager does the Western Caribbean, and the Explorer does the Eastern right now. I would highly reccomend these ships... we were in awe the entire cruise. No matter what though, Royal Caribbean is our favorite cruise line.
I guess you just need to decide between newer ship and longer cruise--- which would be great if we had the time to do a 14 night cruise! :-) As far as price goes... please check around. Especially if you're just going by the price in the brochure. Those prices or calling the cruise line itself are always higher in price. Call various travel agents and price around. You may even be able to get a lower price.
I also would suggest going to www.cruisecritic.com---I love this site. I use it all the time. The message boards are especially helpful and you can talk to people that have already been on both of those specific cruises that you're asking about.
If you have anymore questions, feel free to ask me! :-)
Have a great time planning your cruise!! :-) Becky