Royal Caribbean or Carnival Cruise Line?

Cruising is one of Kimberly's favorite methods of travel. It is a vacation that includes warm weather, great food, fun entertainment and reliable accessibility. Over the past 5 months, we have been lucky enough to go on two cruises; one Carnival and one Royal Caribbean. Which worked better for us?

Overall, both ships, the Carnival Celebration and Oasis of the Seas were pretty accessible. And keep in mind, we have only done one Carnival cruise and several Royal Caribbean cruises. For us, Royal Caribbean has a slight edge on Carnival for making the cruise more wheelchair friendly. The crew on both ships were very professional and helpful. However, on multiple Royal Caribbean cruises, a staff member would offer to help Kimberly in the buffet. That was a nice gesture. We like a taller bed, and on the last two RC cruises, they have doubled up the mattresses on Kimberly's bed, making it that much taller. The elevators (and we all know how important the elevators are!) were so much bigger on the RC ships we have been on. I was shocked by the size of the elevators on Celebration, especially since it is a new ship. The disembarking process was by far better on Royal Caribbean. On Celebration, we had to wait in the elevator lobby for about 45 minutes to even get on an elevator. That process could use some improvement. Also, on Royal Caribbean, distilled water is complimentary. I had to pay extra to have some in my room on Carnival.

Where Celebration had all Royal Caribbean ships beat was in its theater. They actually had wheelchair seats available right in front of the stage. On any RC ship, the only wheelchair seating is at the very back of the theater. We loved being up front.

Also, specific to Oasis of the Seas, when we would cross the ship on deck 15 (the pool deck), we had to pass through a very narrow path. It was doable, but seemed like an oversight to the design of the deck plan.

No matter the ship, we have always been happier that we went on the cruise, than wish we hadn't! If you've been thinking about it, go for it! They are so much fun and enjoyable. Let us know if you have any questions about it!