Symphony of the Seas vs Festivale

The Royal Caribbean Symphony of the Seas was built in 2018. It's 9 years older than the Festivale, which was built in 2027. The Festivale is named after the original ship that sailed with Carnival from 1977 - 1996. It has two unique zones not found on its sister ships. Unlike the first Excel Class ships, Festivale does NOT have a BOLT roller coaster, instead it has a waterpark called "Sunsation Point." The ship will sail from Port Canaveral starting in May 2027.

Comparison Overview

• Ship Size
• Number of Passengers
• Food and Restaurants
• Bars and Drinks
• Pools and Hot Tubs
• Ship Features and Activities
• Cruise Costs
• Onboard Costs

Ship Size

The Symphony of the Seas is considered an extra large size ship. Coming in at 1,188 feet long and 216 feet wide, it's roughly the length of 3.3 football fields, as wide as 4.1 tractor-trailers and the same height as a 16-story building. Compared to the Carnival Festivale, the Symphony of the Seas is 25% larger in terms of overall tons.

Number of Passengers

Royal Caribbean Symphony of the Seas holds about the same number of passengers as the Festivale based on double occupancy (two people per room). When you compare the total tonnage of the ship to the number of passengers, or what we call the "Space Ratio," the Symphony of the Seas has more space per person compared to the Festivale. This means that you might have a bit more space to yourself on the ship, although there still could be some crowded areas like buffets, pools, etc.

The Symphony of the Seas uses a neighborhood layout to break up large crowds across the ship, often making it feel less crowded. The Festivale employs a similar concept but they're called zones.

	Royal Caribbean Symphony of the Seas	Carnival Festivale
Class	Oasis	Excel
Gross Tonnage	228,081	182,800
Length	1,188	1,130
Beam/Width	216	137
Passenger Decks	16	17
Passengers (double occupancy)	5,518	5,400
Crew	2,200	1,700
Passenger to Crew Ratio	2.5	2.6
Space Ratio (tons of ship per passenger)	41	35

Food and Restaurants

Food is a big part of any cruise, and the ship you choose can make a huge difference in your food experience.

The Symphony of the Seas has twenty-one different dining options like Jamie's Italian, Playmakers, and 150 Central Park. Of those options, fourteen are complementary, or included with your cruise fare. The other fourteen options have an additional fee.

The Festivale has two more dining venues. Some of its popular venues are JavaBlue Cafe, Carnival Deli, and Rudi's Seagrill. nineteen of these restaurants are complementary and the other nine have an additional fee.

The Royal Caribbean Symphony of the Seas has about the same number of dining options as the Carnival Festivale.

If you're looking to avoid extra money while on board, the Festivale might be a better choice then the Symphony of the Seas. More of the dining options are included in the base cruise fare, potentially saving you money.

	Royal Caribbean Symphony of the Seas	Carnival Festivale
Total Dining Options	21	23
Complimentary Dining Options:	14	19
Additional Fee Dining Options:	14	9
% of Included Options	33%	61%
	See the options	See the options

Bars and Drinks

The Royal Caribbean Symphony of the Seas has 2 more bars than the Carnival Festivale. The Symphony of the Seas has 20 bars like Bionic Bar, Schooner Bar and Vintages. On Symphony of the Seas, you can grab a drink at 18 different bars such as Center Stage, Festival Grounds Bar & Coffee and Scenic Overlook Bar.

Royal Caribbean Symphony of the Seas	Carnival Festivale
•Bionic Bar • Boleros • Casino Bar • Dazzles • English Pub • Mast Bar • On Air Club • Playmakers • Pool Bar • Rising Tide Bar • Sand Bar • Schooner Bar • Solarium Bar • Suite Lounge • Suite Sun Deck Bar • The Attic • Trellis Bar • Vintages • Wipeout Bar • Wonderland	•Alchemy Bar • Casino Bar • Center Stage • Fahrenheit 555 Bar • Festival Grounds Bar & Coffee • Grand View • Guy's Pig and Anchor Brewhouse • Havana Bar • Java Blue Cafe • Limelight Lounge • Mix Bar • Piano Bar 88 • Punchliner Comedy Club • RedFrog Tiki Bar • Scenic Overlook Bar • Serenity Pool Bar • Sunsation Sips • The Spark Bar

In terms of drinks and cocktails, you have a variety of choices. Both ships serve the Coca-cola family of products. That means Coke, Diet Coke, Sprite and Barqs Root Beer, although the selection can vary by ship. Most Royal Caribbean ships also have Coke Freestyle machines where you can make 100 different flavor combinations.

You can check out recent the bar menus for the Symphony of the Seas and the Festivale below.

Pools and Hot Tubs

Nothing beats relaxing by a pool with a nice drink in hand as you feel the fresh sea breeze pass by you. The Royal Caribbean Symphony of the Seas has a total of 4 pools and 10 hot tubs.

Carnival Festivale has more pools than the Symphony of the Seas and fewer hot tubs. There are more exclusive pools and hot tubs on the Festivale. If you don't mind paying for exclusive access to areas in order to have less crowds, this might be a better choice.

Tired of loud kids and splashing? One of the pools and two of the hot tubs are adults only on Symphony of the Seas.

	Royal Caribbean Symphony of the Seas	Carnival Festivale
Total Pools	4	6
Pools - General Access	3	3
Pools - Adults Only	1	1
Pools - Exclusive	0	2
Total Hot Tubs	10	6
Hot Tubs - General Access	8	3
Hot Tubs - Adults Only	2	3
Hot Tubs - Exclusive	0	0

Ship Features and Activities

Both ships have lots of activities to keep you busy throughout your cruise. Below you'll see a list of some of the major features on these ships. On the Symphony of the Seas, 78% of the activities below are included in the cruise fare. On the Festivale, only 65% of the activities are included, meaning you might spend more money while on board.

	Royal Caribbean Symphony of the Seas	Carnival Festivale
Adult Only Relaxation Area	✓	✓
Aquatheater	✓	✗
Arcade	✓	✓
Basketball	✓	✓
Bionic Bar	✓	✗
Brewery Tour	✗	✓
Carousel	✓	✗
Casino	✓	✓
Climbing Wall	✓	✗
Comedy Club	✓	✓
Cooking Class	✗	✓
Dr Seuss Breakfast	✗	✓
Escape Room	✓	✗
Fitness Center	✓	✓
FlowRider	✓	✗
Ice Skating	✓	✗
Jogging Track	✗	✓
Laser Tag	✓	✗
Mini golf	✓	✓
Outdoor gym	✗	✓
Pool-side Movies	✓	✓
Ropes course	✗	✓
Shows - Broadway play	✓	✗
Shows - musical review	✓	✗
Spa	✓	✗
Splash park	✓	✓
Thermal Suites	✗	✓
Thrill Slide	✓	✗
Water slides	✓	✗
Waterpark	✗	✓
Zip Line	✓	✗
	Learn more	Learn more

Carnival is also known for its energetic theme parties which vary per ship.

Cruise Costs

Royal Caribbean and Carnival are both considered "Mainstream" cruise lines. Mainstream cruise lines cater to a variety of guests, hoping to provide something for everyone. These typically cost about $100 - $350 per person per day.

Cruise pricing is dynamic and varies for each specific sailing based on factors such as departure point, ports of call, and time of year. Typically newer ships cost more, so a cruise on Royal Caribbean Symphony of the Seas will likely be cheaper than on Carnival Festivale.

Onboard Costs

Another way to gauge the cost of a cruise is to consider how much you'll spend on board. Even though a lot is included in the base cruise fare, you may still spend money on things like spa treatments, specialty dining, drinks, and excursions. In addition, guests can also have to pay for things like gratuities and tips.

Typically guests can expect to spend about 25 - 40% of the cost of the cruise on onboard expenses. In other words, if the cruise fare is $1,000 per person, you might spend between $250 and $400 on extra expenses.

The table below will help you compare onboard prices to see if you might spend more on a specific ship.

	Royal Caribbean Symphony of the Seas	Carnival Festivale
Base Daily Gratuities* (Per Person Per Day)	$18.50	$16.00
Tip added to drinks & services	18%	18%
Soda Price	$3.50	$3.00
Domestic Beer Price	$8.25 See drink menus	$8.75 See drink menus
Drink Package Price	$77 - $118 Learn more	$83 - $88 Learn more
Internet Plan	$19 to $30 per device per day	$18.70 to $23.80 per device per day
*Daily gratuities for a standard cabin. Suites or specialty rooms may have higher rates.

Royal Caribbean uses dynamic pricing, which means the pricing for many things will vary per sailing. The daily gratuities and tip are consistent across the fleet, but the pricing for the drink package, internet, and excursions will change. The only way to know your price is to consult the Royal Caribbean cruise planner once you're booked.

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