P&O or celebrity

last year we sailed on the Britannia and the year before on the oceana.We loved both especially Britannia.This year we are thinking of going on celebrity eclipse sailing out of Southampton and they have free classic drinks package offered.very tempting..we are mid 50s couple with our 17 yr old son so any observations to help our decision would be appreciated.

Thanks ..

Here are two recent threads on the same topic that may help:

http://boards.cruisecritic.co.uk/showthread.php?t=2289079

http://boards.cruisecritic.co.uk/showthread.php?t=2250947

You will see our cruise history below. We are Celebrity converts. Eclipse has more passenger space than Britannia, bigger cabins (with much bigger bathrooms), a bigger theatre despite carrying less passengers, a generally more upscale ambience and the drinks package is a great bonus. The decor is more like a smart modern 5 star hotel than a ship. Food is subjective but in our view pretty similar in the MDR but Celebrity's buffet is way ahead in terms of choice. Service is streets ahead in our experience on Celebrity, every staff member will smile and greet you. There will be less to entertain a 17yr old though.

We are back on Eclipse twice this year and know as soon as we board it will be like coming home.

Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

Thanks for your reply. .I'll check out the links you posted and probably still won't know which to decide on lol.the trouble is the more reviews I read the more unsure I become.I am leaning towards celebrity Scandinavia and Russia cruise in July 2017 though. Thanks again.

Thanks for your reply. .I'll check out the links you posted and probably still won't know which to decide on lol.the trouble is the more reviews I read the more unsure I become.I am leaning towards celebrity Scandinavia and Russia cruise in July 2017 though. Thanks again.

Our very first cruise was on Celebrity Constellation to the Baltics, it has been unsurpassed in our opinion. The service and food were exceptional. Cruising through Scandanavia and the Baltic region in general is a magnificent experience. It's on our list to do again.

I agree with all that Kevin says.

If I was giving points out of 10 I'd say 9 for Celebrity and 8 for P&O.

David

Eclipse is a great ship. Despite the size there always seems to be somewhere to get away from it all and the buffet leaves P&O in the shade.

BTW you are paying for the drinks package in the fare, it isn't free.

The Solstice class ships are the best I've sailed on.

Celebrity and Princess are on par but superior to P&O IMHO

Thanks for your reply. .I'll check out the links you posted and probably still won't know which to decide on lol.the trouble is the more reviews I read the more unsure I become.I am leaning towards celebrity Scandinavia and Russia cruise in July 2017 though. Thanks again.

Don't take individual reviews into account, look at the overall score on cruise critic. Britannia has 3.5 out of 5 stars with 52% saying they loved it. Eclipse has 4 out of 5 stars with 86% saying they loved it. That's quite a big difference across hundreds of reviewers.

The Solstice class ships are the best I've sailed on.

 

Celebrity and Princess are on par but superior to P&O IMHO

Quite agree, never been on a P&O ship that matches the Solstice Class ships. The MDR food is pretty ordinary but the buffet and speciality restaurants leave P&O way behind in our opinion and as mentioned if you can get a drinks package included then you are getting good value as well.

I'm going to be the one who goes against the grain here. We were on Eclipse to the Baltic last year and the cabin was great, bathroom lovely and big, and the balcony lovely. That for me was where the good part ends.

Our room steward was just OK (although in fairness we've had a couple of 'just ok' ones on P&O), but our experience in the main dining room was poor, to the point where we went to the buffet for the second week (unheard of on previous cruises). Didn't find the staff particularly friendly or helpful, and have had a much better experience on other cruise lines.

Just my opinion.

If the ship is going where you want to go and you are happy with the price, go for it.

I had a few quibbles when we cruised with Celebrity but those would not stop us going on one of their ships again. We go by destination (as well as price) and we seem to end up mostly on P&O and Princess but we're always open to something new.:)

Thanks for the replies and when I say that we have a free drinks package I know that I'm probably paying for it in the overall fare but the free drinks package offer ends next week and thought if I do go with celebrity then better do it before the drinks package ends. .and it does seem that the drinks cost more with celebrity compared to P&O.

Your son will hate Celebrity, it is geared to the 50+ market with little or nothing for a teenager. Would stronger suggest you look toward Royal Caribbean, better than P&O on every level. If travelling without your son, Celebrity would win hands down.

We have travelled twice with Celebrity (Eclipse and Silhouette) and once on Britannia. We opted for Britannia last time round as we have young children and Celebrity were looking to charge through the roof. We loved all three ships.

The Eclipse and Silhouette are really stylish (more glitzy than Britannia IMO)and have multi million pound art collections. We loved the speciality restaurants (Qsine and Lawn Club Grill) and the poolside furniture is really comfy! Celebrity is more expensive onboard (in the shops) and one thing to bear in mind is the drinking age which I believe in Celebrity is 21 and they may be pretty strict. I know your son is 17 but in case he did want the odd beer it could be harder on Celebrity.

I'm sure you will love Celebrity - we did and it's good to try something different from time to time - enjoy!

Sent from my iPhone using Forums mobile app

I wouldn't hesitate to book it, particularly if you liked Britannia. We have sailed on Britannia and also on Eclipse to the Baltics, a great cruise. There will be much that is similar but also some differences.

Things we liked on P&O over Celebrity- there seemed to be more live music and more of a party atmosphere (sailaways, the live lounge etc.) although that was also probably partly because we were in the Caribbean on Britannia at Christmas, compared to Eclipse to the baltics, a port intensive 'cultural' cruise destination.

Things we liked on Celebrity over P&O - the buffet is much better, wider choice of food, included cold drinks (although with a drinks package that doesn't really matter) ice machines etc. Free ice cream in the buffet. Stacks of towels by the pool - collect and return as many as you like. More visible cleaning of public areas, restroom etc.

Other things to consider: the drinks package is great and keeps additional costs down so you know how much the trip will cost. It covers speciality coffee, fresh juice as well as alcohol. Excursions are more expensive on Celebrity but we always diy so doesn't affect us. Tips on Celebrity are higher. There will be a wider mix of nationalities on Celebrity even though you are sailing from the UK, whereas on P&O it has a very British feel. I didn't see any more on Britannia for 17 year olds than on Eclipse - I'd say they are similar (different if we were talking about the large Royal Caribbean ships of course).

Feel free to ask any questions!

Thanks for the replies and when I say that we have a free drinks package I know that I'm probably paying for it in the overall fare but the free drinks package offer ends next week and thought if I do go with celebrity then better do it before the drinks package ends. .and it does seem that the drinks cost more with celebrity compared to P&O.

Celebrity marketting strategy, is GO BIG, GO BETTER, GO BEST. The free drinks package is a corner stone and will always be on offer for the forseeable future. Teenagers very unlikely to enjoy Celebrity, agree better to look to RCL.

We have travelled Celebrity with our teenage sons and they have enjoyed it. You know your son and what he likes to do. i don't think it's fair to say he won't like it as everyone is different and you will be in port a lot of days.

You can drink on Celebrity aged 18 if your parents sign a waiver and the ship is not in US waters.

Well our son will be 18 when we plan to go and he likes the idea of seeing st petersburg and Berlin as he is keen on architecture but then again when we sailed on britannia he loved the teen club and we hardly saw hI'm on sea day.

There will be opportunities for him to meet and get to know people his own age, if that's something he likes to do. Not every teen needs a rock climbing wall, zip wire, ice skating rink etc to have a good time!

If you sign a waiver he will be able to drink although if he is in a cabin with you I am not sure he will get the 'free' drinks package as a 3rd person in the cabin - you would need to check the rules on that.

last year we sailed on the Britannia and the year before on the oceana.We loved both especially Britannia.This year we are thinking of going on celebrity eclipse sailing out of Southampton and they have free classic drinks package offered.very tempting..we are mid 50s couple with our 17 yr old son so any observations to help our decision would be appreciated.

 

Thanks ..

I've been on Infinity around the Med. Based on my limited experience food, service and entertainment is better on Celebrity. Celebrity seems to cater more for American tastes.

I'm going to be the one who goes against the grain here. We were on Eclipse to the Baltic last year and the cabin was great, bathroom lovely and big, and the balcony lovely. That for me was where the good part ends.

Our room steward was just OK (although in fairness we've had a couple of 'just ok' ones on P&O), but our experience in the main dining room was poor, to the point where we went to the buffet for the second week (unheard of on previous cruises). Didn't find the staff particularly friendly or helpful, and have had a much better experience on other cruise lines.

Just my opinion.

I agree with you. We went on Eclipse 2012 and although the ship was beautiful, probably the most attractive ship we have been on, we too were not impressed with the food in the MDR and also did not find the staff as friendly as other lines we have been on. The price of drinks was ridiculous, so a drinks package would be a must if I was ever to go on Celebrity again.

Don't take individual reviews into account, look at the overall score on cruise critic. Britannia has 3.5 out of 5 stars with 52% saying they loved it. Eclipse has 4 out of 5 stars with 86% saying they loved it. That's quite a big difference across hundreds of reviewers.

Kevin,

I agree that generally looking at ratings is a good guide. However, in the case of Britannia a lot of people rated it lower because of a perceived problem with the lifts.

In my opinion this is not a major problem unless you are disabled or idle, as it can easily be overcome by walking about 50 yards.

(By the way, if you are a York City fan, commiserations)

David

I would also agree with Kevin, as regards hotel staff friendliness we always comment about how they always smile and say hello. I also think the way Celebrity have your table waiter give a little welcome speech each night with his/her highlights from the menu sets the tone for a friendly dialogue.

The downsides with Celebrity as compared to P&O, are the higher cost of drinks and shore excursions, and the more limited number of evening show venues, the theatre shows are on a par with P&O but the only other show lounge, the Sky lounge, is much under used.

I agree with most others that the Solstice class ships are the classiest ones afloat in the mass market sector.

I'm going to be the one who goes against the grain here. We were on Eclipse to the Baltic last year and the cabin was great, bathroom lovely and big, and the balcony lovely. That for me was where the good part ends.

Our room steward was just OK (although in fairness we've had a couple of 'just ok' ones on P&O), but our experience in the main dining room was poor, to the point where we went to the buffet for the second week (unheard of on previous cruises). Didn't find the staff particularly friendly or helpful, and have had a much better experience on other cruise lines.

Just my opinion.

I'm with you HomelessBear. We have only sailed Celebrity once, on the Solstice out of Fort Lauderdale. I did all my research and felt Celebrity was a good fit for us, and we were really looking forward to our cruise. Oh was I disappointed. It was definitely a case of style over substance. We won't sail Celebrity again.

I'm with you HomelessBear. We have only sailed Celebrity once, on the Solstice out of Fort Lauderdale. I did all my research and felt Celebrity was a good fit for us, and we were really looking forward to our cruise. Oh was I disappointed. It was definitely a case of style over substance. We won't sail Celebrity again.

We did a short cruise on Eclipse last year and would agree with you. Whilst it is a beautiful ship with very spacious cabins and fantastic public areas, the basics were not as appealing. The cabin staff gave me the impression they would rather not be there. The food in the MDR and buffet looked amazing but the quality was poor, plastic ham, chewy meat, rotten broccoli.

My daughter was not keen on the kids club either, but perhaps that is because she is so used to the P&O clubs.

Overall, very glitzy but " All fur coat and no knickers " as my late gran would say ;)