Corkgirl, I guess you would have to ask yourself what it was you enjoyed so much about the Voyager and the Liberty. Was it the size of the ship, the ice shows, the hustle and bustle of the Royal Promenade,or partaking in the florider? Or is it just being on a cruise, relaxing and enjoying the sea, some good food, and entertainment. I have been on both the Voyager and the Liberty. They are much larger and offer many amenities, but I don't use most of those amenities. I wouldn't want everyone of my cruises to be on a ship that size. I will be leaving in a week on the Grandeur and I'm sure I'll enjoy my cruise. I recently sailed on a Danube river cruise with only 108 passengers. It doesn't have a casino, no production shows, and shopping was one book shelf with trinkets. I throughly loved that cruise. I loved the quietness, and sitting in the lounge as we sailed down the Danube looking at the beautiful scenery. Nightly entertainment was a one man band, or special local entertainment brought on the ship at our port stop like Hans the Oompah Man. We had locals come on the ship for a beer tasting of the local Bavarian beers, another night local wine tasting. This was included we didn't have to pay extra. I enjoyed no constant announcements to come on down to the art auction or bingo. I enjoyed no long lines, and no crowds.
So, ask yourself if you would miss those things on the larger ship that aren't on the smaller Splendour.
thank you for getting back so quickly i suppose I need to check out the major differences between the two classes of ship,
I loved both voyager and liberty so much I dont want to be disappointed having said that its a special offer so it shouldnt matter enjoy your cruise next week
Look at it this way: Now you can compare the size of the ships. If going on the Splendor was your first cruise, I would say you'd be in awe because the ship would seem huge to you. But, you've already been on the biggest ships. You won't be disappointed because you'll have a great time. I enjoy sailing on the Enchantment, which is a Vision Class ship also. Some people prefer the smaller ships...how will you know until you try it?
A lot of times it depends on the itinerary. Some ships are more appropriate for a given itinerary than others. I just switched cruises from the Mariner to the Grandeur for this summer because I decided I'd prefer going to New England and Canada over Mexico. The itinerary and scenery trumps the ship in this case, and I wouldn't want a ship with lots of distractions on it because they would interfere. In my case the Grandeur is a conveyance and not a destination, which is what the Voyager and Freedom class ships are.
I think I got more enjoyment from our Alaska cruise last year because it was on the Rhapsody and not a larger ship. If I go to Alaska again I will choose an even smaller ship, such as the Royal or Island Princess.
I like relaxing on the ship and hate rushing trying to get to see everything - while i do obviously want a nice itinerary the ship is important too! having said that I dont need a flow rider etc! does splendour have swimming pools, basketball courts etc?
Windjammers all have the same stuff, with the exception of the separate Jade serving lines one finds on the Voyager and Freedom classes. However you still find Asian items offered aboard all RCI ships.
The Vision class of ships is unique because it really isn't a class of identical ships. It is actually made up of four sub-groups, with two of those being made up of two sister ships each, and the other two being the Enchantment and Grandeur separately. The Splendour and and Legend are the same, and the Rhapsody and Vision are the same.
A nicety is that all of these ships have a magrodome enclosed pool (the Solarium) so you can use a pool on cooler days, or if it is raining. And if it is nice out they can retract the roof. On the Voyager and Freedom class, the Solarium cannot be enclosed (bad idea, IMHO).
Im getting a bit excited now! I think I'll book, we hadnt intended going anywhere this year as we have oasis booked for 2010 but this is a brilliant offer!!!!!
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