Croooser

Nicely done review. Thanks for the effort it took to do it.

If you do a search on the Oceania board, there are quite a few threads comparing Celebrity to Oceania. You can get a pretty good idea of how they differ. Don't want to derail this thread by elaborating.

Very well done. You have accomplished what many can not - provided lots of personal experience and reactions without being impressed with yourselves. Nice combination of objective opinions both pro and con as you see warranted. Much appreciate the time and effort taken to share your trip.

Curious how things are going on Emerald - are they fully staffed and operating up to standard? Any indication that they are struggling with any operational issues? Thanks

Blue Cash Preferred - $125 credit for $500 spend on Celebrity. Called TA and made a $500 payment on an existing booking and after a couple of days, the $125 credit is now showing. Also showing $150/$500 on CCL and $250/$1000 on NCL.

Can anyone see this on the website or do you have to call? Also, when I did a dummy booking , there were no options for hotel stays on either end? Am I missing some thing?

JMO - Sorry for the rant This appears to be a third party payment system/software application that Princess uses to process payments for goods and services on the ship. Fair Enough - it's necessary to have something to do that. BUT...In similar fashion to all of the other missteps that Princess has made since resuming sailings, they have been clumsy at implementing this system. One more instance of not communicating to it's guests what/why they are requesting/requiring this authorization and how they are protecting this info from being compromised other than some vague info buried deep in the T&Cs. Reminds one of the decision to require the use of an app that does not work on cell phones more than a few years old. Or the rollout of the Medallion. Or eliminating traditional dining for everyone. Or sailing the Crown when she repeatedly is not capable of sailing the itinerary that was sold or... All of these examples and more show either an inability or an unwillingness to appreciate the guests perspective. Given their track record with the Medallion and other changes, it's reasonable to be concerned. I think that the one thing that indicates that it will not wind up being a widespread problem is that we have not heard of multiple cases of Credit Card info being compromised or unauthorized charges occurring (other than the odd, occasional admin error of crew onboard) from this system, even though it is already in place.

We have been on both lines and have been on both sizes/class of ship on O. In fact, although we are Elite Plus on X, we consider ourselves "Celebrity Refugees". We concur with the comments above: Food is quite a bit better on O. Entertainment and activities are quite a bit better on X. Less crowded and more laid back on O and nearly dead after dinner. Demographic runs older on O, but we seldom saw any kids or teens. As to O life - the comment above, that said to search the O board for detailed explanations on how to handle O life, is spot on. Once you understand the options, it is easy to decide what is best for you. And O is not always more expensive for a standard balcony. Disagree with the opinion that O air is never a good idea. O air is never a good idea for Biz but O features some good deals on PE and coach. Not always, but some times. O does charge deviation fees in some cases. Some TAs offer cash rebate checks when you complete an O sailing. About 10% can be had. Not really any different than refundable OBC that can be had on X. Consortiums sometimes pay gratuities on O. OTOH, we took a 7 day Caribbean on the Apex in January just to get back on a ship after 2+ years of not cruising. And we liked it well enough that we booked the Eastbound TA on Apex next April. If we enjoy that sailing, we will continue to consider X, but only the Edge class for us. HTH/YMMV

OP: We think that if you have a choice of decks, that the primary consideration should be where you spend the most time. Breakfast and lunch in the Oceanview and a lot of pool time - go higher. More of a night owl with restaurant and shows and bars at night - go lower. Since they are in short supply and high demand, we take what we can get, with our preference being higher but not Deck 12. We had 11275 on Apex and thought it was ideal - we skipped the elevators when going up, liked the view from up high and had no noise issues. Once you go Aft, you always go back.

Can you speak up?

+1