P&O Cruises vs Royal Caribbean
A detailed side-by-side comparison of P&O Cruises and Royal Caribbean covering ratings, fleet size, food quality, entertainment, value for money, and available sailings from UK ports. Updated for 2026.
The head-to-head
Ratings are based on aggregated passenger reviews, editorial analysis, and expert scoring. The cobalt outline marks the stronger line for each attribute.
Who should choose which?
Every cruise line has its strengths and weaknesses. Here is an honest look at who each line is best suited for, based on passenger feedback and our editorial assessment.
Choose P&O Cruises if you want…
- UK departures (no-fly)
- Families with children
- Traditional British cruising
- Food lovers (Marco Pierre White)
P&O Cruises may not suit you if…
- Ultra-luxury seekers
- Mega-ship thrill rides
- Non-English speakers
Choose Royal Caribbean if you want…
- Families with kids
- Thrill seekers and adventurers
- Mega-ship experience
- Entertainment and activities
Royal Caribbean may not suit you if…
- Quiet/intimate cruise seekers
- Ultra-luxury preference
- Those avoiding large crowds
Ships at a glance
A quick comparison of each line's fleet including passenger capacity, tonnage, and year of launch.
P&O Cruises Fleet (7 ships)
Iona
Built 2020 · 5,200 guests
Arvia
Built 2022 · 5,200 guests
Britannia
Built 2015 · 3,647 guests
Azura
Built 2010 · 3,100 guests
Ventura
Built 2008 · 3,078 guests
Arcadia
Built 2005 · 2,094 guests
Aurora
Built 2000 · 1,874 guests
Royal Caribbean Fleet (28 ships)
Anthem of the Seas
Built 2015 · 4,905 guests
Icon of the Seas
Built 2024 · 7,600 guests
Utopia of the Seas
Built 2024 · 5,668 guests
Available cruises
Current sailings from both cruise lines. Prices shown are per person based on two sharing the lowest-grade cabin available.
P&O Cruises Sailings
7 NIGHTSNorwegian Fjords cruise from Southampton
Ports: Southampton · Haugesund · Olden · Innvikfjorden (Scenic Cruising) · Flam · Aurlandsfjord (Scenic Cruising)
Save 2%14 NIGHTSMediterranean
Hot deal7 NIGHTSMediterranean
Save 2%7 NIGHTSNorwegian Fjords
Save 2%7 NIGHTSWestern Europe
7 NIGHTSNorwegian Fjords
Hot deal14 NIGHTSNorwegian Fjords
Save 4%16 NIGHTSNorwegian Fjords
Save 4%16 NIGHTS16 Night Norwegian Fjords Cruise
Ports: Haugesund · Olden · Innvikfjorden · Cruise Nordfjord · Alesund
Save 3%7 NIGHTSMediterranean Fly-Cruise
Ports: Valletta · Mykonos · Rhodes · Kusadasi · Piraeus · Valletta
Save 2%14 NIGHTSNorthern Europe
Ports: Southampton, Great Britain
Save 3%7 NIGHTSNorwegian Fjords
Hot deal14 NIGHTSMediterranean
Save 3%4 NIGHTSNorthern Europe
7 NIGHTSCentral Mediterranean
Save 19%7 NIGHTS7 Night Norwegian Fjords
Ports: Bergen · Olden · Stavanger
Save 2%7 NIGHTSWestern Europe
Save 3%5 NIGHTSNorthern Europe
Save 2%14 NIGHTSCanary Islands
7 NIGHTSNorwegian Fjords cruise from Southampton
Ports: Southampton · Haugesund · Olden · Innvikfjorden (Scenic Cruising) · Flam · Aurlandsfjord (Scenic Cruising)
Save 4%7 NIGHTSWestern Europe
16 NIGHTSNorthern Europe
Save 3%16 NIGHTSBritish Isles
Ports: Southampton · Plymouth · Cobh · Dunmore East · Liverpool · Belfast
10 NIGHTSGreek Isles from Malta with Stay
10 NIGHTSGreek Isles from Malta with 3-night Stays
Ports: Valletta · Mykonos Town, Mykonos · Piraeus (tours to Athens) · Souda Bay (tours to Chania), Crete · Katakolon (tours to Olympia)
Save 2%14 NIGHTSMediterranean
16 NIGHTSNorthern Europe
Save 3%14 NIGHTSNorwegian Fjords
Save 7%7 NIGHTSSchool Holiday Sailing! Norwegian Fjords
Ports: Southampton · Haugesund · Olden · Flåm · Stavanger · Southampton
14 NIGHTSScandinavia and the Baltics P&O Food Heroes Marco Pierre White, Olly Smith and José Pizarro cruise from Southampton
Ports: Southampton · Kiel · Tallinn · Helsinki · Stockholm · Copenhagen
3 NIGHTSWestern Europe Getaway cruise from Southampton
Ports: Southampton · Zeebrugge (tours to Bruges)
7 NIGHTSNorwegian Fjords
Save 3%30 NIGHTSTransatlantic
Save 2%7 NIGHTSNorwegian Fjords
Save 2%14 NIGHTSMediterranean
7 NIGHTSNorwegian Fjords cruise from Southampton
Ports: Southampton · Haugesund · Olden · Innvikfjorden (Scenic Cruising) · Flam · Aurlandsfjord (Scenic Cruising)
Save 2%14 NIGHTSMediterranean
Save 2%19 NIGHTSMediterranean
Save 2%14 NIGHTSCanary Islands
Save 2%14 NIGHTSCanary Islands
12 NIGHTSNorwegian Fjords cruise from Southampton
Ports: Southampton · Stavanger · Nordfjordeid · Nordfjord · Kristiansund · Andalsnes
Save 2%13 NIGHTSSpain & France
Save 3%14 NIGHTSNorway
Ports: Southampton · Åndalsnes · Bodø · Narvik · Tromsø · Stavanger
Save 3%16 NIGHTSNorthern Europe
Save 10%14 NIGHTSTransatlantic
Save 3%16 NIGHTSCanary Islands
Save 8%15 NIGHTSCaribbean Transatlantic from Southampton
Ports: Southampton · Santa Cruz, Tenerife · Philipsburg, St. Maarten · Roseau, Dominica · Castries, St. Lucia · Bridgetown, Barbados
Save 3%7 NIGHTSNorthern European City Escape
Ports: Southampton · Hamburg · Rotterdam · Zeebrugge
Save 2%14 NIGHTSCanary Islands & Spain
Save 2%19 NIGHTSMediterranean
Royal Caribbean Sailings
Save 1%6 NIGHTSWestern Caribbean Cruise
Save 1%7 NIGHTSEastern Caribbean Perfect Day
Save 1%7 NIGHTSWestern Caribbean Cruise
Save 1%7 NIGHTSGreek Isles Cruise
Save 1%7 NIGHTSAlaska Inside Passage Cruise
5 NIGHTS5-night Hamburg & Rotterdam
Save 1%4 NIGHTSBahamas Perfect Day Cruise
Save 1%4 NIGHTSKey West Bahamas Cruise
Save 1%5 NIGHTSWestern Caribbean Cruise
Save 1%5 NIGHTSBahamas Perfect Day Cruise
Hot deal7 NIGHTS7 Night Italy & France Cruise
Ports: Barcelona · Toulon · Ajaccio · Civitavecchia · Naples · Messina
Save 1%4 NIGHTS4 Night Cruise to Canada / New England
Save 1%4 NIGHTSBusan Cruise
9 NIGHTS9 Night Bermuda & Perfect Day Cruise
Ports: Baltimore · Kings Wharf · Coco Cay · Nassau · Baltimore
Hot deal9 NIGHTSWestern Europe
Hot deal7 NIGHTS7 Night Ensenada, Cabo & Mazatlan
Ports: Los Angeles · Ensenada · Cabo San Lucas · Mazatlán
Hot deal3 NIGHTS3 Night Bahamas & Perfect Day Cruise
Ports: Port Canaveral · Nassau · Coco Cay
Hot deal3 NIGHTS3 Night Bahamas & Perfect Day Cruise
Ports: Fort Lauderdale · Nassau · Coco Cay
Hot deal3 NIGHTS3 Night Bahamas & Perfect Day Cruise
Ports: Miami · Coco Cay · Nassau
Hot deal7 NIGHTS7-night Northbound Alaska & Hubbard Glacier
7 NIGHTS2-night Venice & 7-night Brilliance of The Adriatic & 2-night Rome
8 NIGHTS8 Night Eastern Caribbean & Perfect Day
Ports: Fort Lauderdale · Basseterre · Philipsburg · San Juan (Puerto Rico) · Coco Cay · Fort Lauderdale
7 NIGHTS7 Night Eastern Caribbean & Perfect Day
Ports: Miami · Philipsburg · Charlotte Amalie · Coco Cay · Miami
5 NIGHTS5 Night Bahamas & Perfect Day Cruise
Ports: Miami · Nassau · Coco Cay · Miami
Save 1%5 NIGHTSJeju Busan Cruise
7 NIGHTS2-night Venice & 7-night Greek Treasures
Save 1%4 NIGHTSSeoul Cruise
Hot deal7 NIGHTS7 Night Western Mediterranean Cruise
Ports: Barcelona · Palma de Mallorca · La Spezia · Civitavecchia · Naples · Barcelona
7 NIGHTS7 Night Greek Isles & Italy Cruise
Ports: Civitavecchia · Naples · Messina · Santorini · Kusadasi · Mykonos
Save 1%4 NIGHTSBusan Cruise
Save 3%5 NIGHTSHamburg and Bruges cruise from Southampton
Ports: Southampton · Hamburg · Brussels (Zeebrugge)
9 NIGHTSBarcelona & Med Sunsets
14 NIGHTS14 Night Eastern Mediterranean
Ports: Rome · Santorini · Mykonos · Dubrovnik
5 NIGHTS5 Night Hamburg & Bruges Cruise
Ports: Hamburg · Zeebrugge
9 NIGHTS9-night Spanish Flair & Solar Eclipse
Ports: Bilbao, Spain · Gijon, Spain · Vigo, Spain · La Coruna, Spain · Paris (Le Havre), France
7 NIGHTS7-night Norwegian Fjords
Save 1%9 NIGHTSCanada New England
8 NIGHTSBahamas & Perfect Day with Miami Beach Stay
Ports: Miami · Perfect Day at Cococay · Nassau
7 NIGHTS2-night Seattle & 7-night Alaska Experience
7 NIGHTS2-night Miami & 5-night Freedom of Bahamas & Perfect Day
Save 1%9 NIGHTSCanada New England
7 NIGHTS2-night Venice & 7-night Greek Explorer & Split
9 NIGHTS9-night Spanish Flair
7 NIGHTS3-night Miami & 4-night Bahamas & Perfect Day
7 NIGHTS7-night Spain & France
Save 3%7 NIGHTSWestern Mediterranean cruise from Barcelona
Ports: Barcelona · Palma De Mallorca · Marseille (Provence) · La Spezia (tours to Florence/Pisa) · Rome (Civitavecchia) · Naples
7 NIGHTS2-night Venice & 7-night Greek Treasures
7 NIGHTS5-night Salou & 7-night Legend of the Med
7 NIGHTS2-night Venice & 7-night Greek Icons & Split
7 NIGHTS2-night Miami & 5-night Freedom of Bahamas & Perfect Day
P&O Cruises vs Royal Caribbean: the bottom line
Choosing between P&O Cruises and Royal Caribbean ultimately comes down to what kind of holiday you are looking for. Both are well-established cruise lines with loyal followings, but they cater to different preferences and budgets.
P&O Cruises, founded in 1837 and headquartered in Southampton, UK, operates a fleet of 7 ships. It is categorised as a premium cruise line and scores 4.5/5 overall based on 12,400 reviews. The line is particularly strong for uk departures (no-fly) and families with children, making it a natural choice for cruisers who value those attributes.
Royal Caribbean, established in 1968 from Miami, USA, has a fleet of 28 ships. As a contemporary line rated 4.6/5 from 24,500 reviews, it excels at families with kids and thrill seekers and adventurers. If those are your priorities, Royal Caribbean deserves serious consideration.
On food, P&O Cruises scores 8/10 compared to Royal Caribbean's 7/10. For entertainment, P&O Cruises comes in at 7/10 versus Royal Caribbean's 10/10. Value for money favours P&O Cruises with a score of 8/10.
Our recommendation: browse the available sailings above and compare itineraries, dates, and total cost including what is bundled in the fare. The best cruise line is the one that matches your specific needs, budget, and travel dates. Use the scores as a guide, but remember that individual ship and itinerary matter just as much as the cruise line brand.
P&O Cruises vs Royal Caribbean — FAQ
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