Iamcruzin

The cruise I'm on at the end of the month is more expensive now with the current promotions than what I paid at 120 days out. There must be plenty of rooms because they are offering move up offers at 50% off the original bids. All of these cruise line sails have been nothing but smoke and mirrors even before covid. They are more like a cancelation of a markup. It just boils down to what you are willing to pay and maybe you can find a better price for a similar itinerary on another cruise line.

Yes I know that Princess offer 50% off for Platinums and Elite which is what I would buy if I didn't purchase the Plus package. The free minutes on Celebrity wouldn't work for me but others say they have enough for a 20 day cruise. Minutes didn't work for me when that's all they offered and that was before smart phones and social media. The service was so bad that you just burned through them.

I would have thought that with the outrageous price that celebrity is charging it would include the price of a chair and umbrella which at times I have paid for even at the local beaches at home when I was too lazy to bring my own. When we went to Bermuda we paid the resort fee to the resort directly online. I haven't looked to see if Resort World has a prepay option.

I am quoting comments I have read over the years on the Princess and Celebrity boards when they discuss Loyalty perks and how they don't need to buy a WiFi package because the free minuets they get are enough. I always starts with we lock out phones in the safe.

We are also going to Bimini the end of Sept. Transportation to Resort World is free and has nothing to do with the cruise line. We are just going to wing it and see if you can just use the beach and maybe they have a restaurant you can just pay to have lunch. If you go to the port of call page some have done just that. In the past I have booked tours directly from the same vendors that the cruise line uses for half the price which leads me to believe that the cruise lines are just charging double and keeping half for themselves. What really annoyed me about the Bimini excursions is if you read the fine print it states that umbrellas and lounge chairs aren't guaranteed. What the hell are they trying to charge us for?

This is Princess. Their passenger base locks their flip phones in the safe until disembarkation day. They only use their free internet minutes to check on emails and check in for flights in the internet Cafe'

I imagine the same could happen on a B2B on Princess as well. That is why the Sanctuary is booked so fast.

So.... Now on embarkation day do you rush to the top deck to book the sanctuary for a week or run around the ship booking specialty dining the minute you board?

The bags really do matter to some people. I see the same complaints on other boards. I just don't get it. I think the switch from individual soaps and shampoo to dispensers in the shower is more significant.

I don't get it. I have a trunk load of the same type bags that I got at the supermarket that I could bring if I wanted to. Plus do you really want to walk around in port advertising that you are a tourist.

Princess has the worst staterooms at sea. I don't know what they are thinking with a closet that takes up most of the room. My clothing traveled more comfortably than I did. An inside room on Celebrity and Royal Caribbean have a sofa.

Ok, Now I understand. I've eaten bad frozen pizza out of desperation. It resulted in me having to take 2 Tums for acid reflux. I stay away from it totally now.

You just lost all creditability in terms of judging pizza. I have a friend from the Bronx who likes Domino's. He's lived in Florida too long.

First off they only carried 1500 to 2000 passengers unlike the 7000 that some ships carry now. They only had early and late breakfast and dinner seating times in the MDR. No anytime dining or specialty restaurants except for Alfredo's which was empty. Lunch was open seating. They did have late breakfast and lunch cafeteria style like schools have on the pool deck. Very limited choices for both breakfast and lunch. They had a midnight buffet which was more about culinary art than it was about eating. They would allow you in before time to let you take pictures and then it opened for service.

Off topic comments keeps this topic on the first page. It can drop 10 pages by the time someone is offered Power up Points and in that case they will probably start a new thread.

I didn't think so. I still don't understand people paying for pizza in Alfredo's. The only time I paid for Pizza on Princess was in 1991 on embarkation day. Back in those days they didn't have buffets. We were on the Crown Princess and they had Alfredo's on the upper deck where you had to pay for a pizza pie. I think it was $12 for a large pie. I don't remember thinking it was the best pizza at sea but this was also the first time I ate pizza at sea. I'm from NY. If it was bad I would have remembered that.

RCI is pretty bad but it has improved from the cardboard disk topped with acid tomato sauce and a sprinkle of cheese that it once was. Celebrity had the same recipe or they both ordered it from 7 eleven.

The best thing about Princess Pizza is that it is a simple basic slice of pizza with the right ratio of cheese to sauce with a foldable curst. Now they are turning it in to gourmet pizza which is an entire different category. I don't want fruit, macaroni or a salad on my pizza. I just want a simple slice for lunch or late snack. Also I refuse to pay for pizza on a cruise. It's not something I must have.

This is too funny and you have been a member of Cruise Critic since 2006.

I will be on Reflection at the end of the month. Sailing in Concierge class so I should have the reclining lounge chairs. Will report back on the Zip ties, rowdier crowd and tons of kids.🙄

Don't give them any ideas....

As far as standard rooms Celebrity feels more premium. Actually even Royal Caribbean is more comfortable. I don't like the room configuration on Princess. It's been the same since my first sailing in 1991. The rooms and showers are small. No proper chair to sit on. If you order room service you are either eating at the desk sitting in the only chair or eating in bed like a hospital stay. The newer ships have deluxe balconies which means you get a sofa bed in that room. On the older ships you have to book a mini suite in order to get a sitting area. As far as the public areas go they are both the same with Princess having more of a traditional luxury feel and Celebrity being modern luxury as their slogan went. To me they are interchangeable. I don't feel any different on either one. So much has changed over the years that I really don't think they are as premium has they once were. The only thing that sets them apart from Royal Caribbean is an older demographic and lack of an onboard amusement park. I am at the point where I just look for a good price and itinerary and don't worry about the on board experience as much. It only sets you up for disapointment.

I agree 100% and I'm not a share holder for any line. However, they are the ones who started this marketing gimmick and if the benefits aren't compelling or obtainable it doesn't work. While some programs are better than others none have compelled me to put my eggs all in one basket. Itinerary and price drive who I sail with.

Yes but if you want sparkling water you have to upgrade to Premium.

I see complaints about food on all of the lines I have sailed including Celebrity. I always found that the food on Princess was better than Celebrity. However, I haven't sailed with them for a while so I'm sure it has declined as well. Celebrity and Royal have better specialty restaurants and they both have better entertainment. When we were sailing Princess they had the itineraries we wanted until they stopped sailing from the New York area which is when we turned to the other 2 lines. We are booked on Princess for Europe in 2026. Princess has better pricing than Celebrity and Royal Caribbean. Overall the passenger demographic and the atmosphere is the same as Celebrity. Royal Caribbean as you must know is family focussed but they do have the best adult sanctuary on the Quantum class ships which are about the same size ships as the newer Princess and Celebrity ships.