4 questions from a Noob Newbie to Cruising - please and thanks!!

[wakar13]

a) Celebrity Summit 5 island South Carib (1 sea day) vs. Celebrity Solstice Western Carib (2 sea days)?

 

b) C1 concierge class worth extra bucks over C2/C3?

 

c) We are a honeymoon couple - does Celebrity do anything "special" by way of recognition?

 

d) As a honeymoon couple is it better to do a 12/11 cruise (7 nights) vs a Dec 18 cruise (7 nights) - both Celebrity and the reason is that we would prefer a cruise with fewer kids if possible at all.

 

In addition to having never cruised before, I have a honeymoon on my hands so feeling a bit overwhelmed with the choices. Appreciate your help.

[kitty9]

I've been on both ships, so here goes. Solstice is a much newer ship and offers amenities that Summit does not. The earlier date would have a lot fewer kids as the later date can be during some school's holiday vacation time. You can purchase a honeymoon package-----it's on Celebrity's website. They will also have a cake for you at dinner one night, if you inform your waiter.

 

The only difference between the C's is location. The C1's are considered in a slightly better location on the ship than the others. No other differences.

[cb at sea]

Don't expect any cruiseline to "recognize" your occassion without your buying some sort of "package". Almost everyone aboard will be having a birthday, anniversary, honeymoon, graduation, retirement, birth/death/raise....you name it!

 

The kids will be a non-issue...you aren't the ones taking care of them, so if you see one, ignore it!

[beachchick]

Congratulations.

 

a) We would probably choose Solstice for the 2 sea days and the amenities of the ship. We're not huge sea day fans, but 5 islands in 7 days on a honeymoon would be kind of "rushed" for us. We'd want a couple of days to simply relax.

 

c) As mentioned, a majority of passengers will be celebrating a special occasion. Cruising has become a hugely popular honeymoon trip. It's not unusual to have more than 100 honeymooning couples; one early May cruise we were on, there were more than 200 couples honeymooning and another 200 couples celebrating milestone anniversaries (including us and my sister and brother-in-law). Because of this, large mainstream cruise lines really don't (and IMO shouldn't be expected to) do much in the way of recognition. Some lines have a "honeymooners gathering" with cake and non-alcohol beverages (possibly even a bit of bubbly). Other lines have a "honeymooners and anniversary" get-together, ditto on the basic refreshments. It sounds like Celebrity will bring you a small cake at dinner one night if you tell them you're on your honeymoon. Other than that, it's unlikely that the cruise line will do anything for you.

 

Do tell your cabin steward and waitstaff that your on your honeymoon because they will no doubt go out of their way to make you feel special. There are honeymoon/anniversary/romance packages that you can purchase or put one your gift "wish list." Hey, I wonder if you can "register" with Celebrity for things like a honeymoon package or spa treatment or onboard credit? That would be awesome, IMO.

 

d) Celebrity generally has fewer children than Royal Caribbean, Norwegian, or Carnival, regardless of time of year. However, there will almost certainly be far fewer children on the 12/11 cruise because the 12/18 cruise ends on Christmas day and many schools will be out for the holidays by the 18th.

 

While we've never had any problems with children on cruises, we choose to cruise when school is usually in session. We would not cruise over Christmas-New Year because there is a world of difference between having 150 or 1000 children onboard. During school breaks, holidays, and summer vacation, it's not unheard of to have half the passengers be younger than 18. While that's not a bad thing and cruises are a great family vacation, it is not a non issue to us. We don't necessarily want to have to "ignore it" when there are likely to be 400 children on the pool deck being, well, children (as they should be). The onboard atmosphere, the public decks, and even the shows can be quite different depending on the passenger complement. That's why we cruise when we do and besides, that leaves more cabins for families to book during the peak family times.;)

 

It's perfectly acceptable to choose a cruise based on whether there are likely to be fewer or more children onboard. After all, no one says it's wrong when parents book at times when there will be more children onboard. In your case, the 12/11 cruise will be the better choice for fewer children.

 

Have a wonderful time and when you get overstressed with wedding planning and preparation, picture the two of you on your balcony toasting each other with bubbly or dancing after dinner or lounging by the pool or exploring at one of the ports or any number of other wonderful cruise activities.:)

 

beachchick

[geoherb]

While the 12/11 cruise will have fewer children, you could end up on a ship full of grumpy old Floridians. We don't mind the children as long as the ship has some adults-only areas.

[138east]

I'm not sure you are asking the right questions. I am assuming you are a young couple. If so, I would be asking about the demographics you can expect on a pre-Christmas Celebrity cruise from Florida. Will you find other young couples and a level of night life that suits your tastes? If you're not cruising Christmas, February vacation, Spring break/Easter or over the summer, I wouldn't worry about the number of children on a cruise - the cruise lines have programs and special areas of the ship for them. I'd worry more about the age of the adults you will find on the cruise.

 

My mom and I used to cruise Celebrity and loved it, but we did do a Dec cruise one year where the passenger demographics were definitely older. We switched to RCL and never looked back. We were in our 50's and 80's when we did this!

 

Take a close look at the ships - as someone pointed out, Summit is an older ship and Solstice is much newer. Have you looked at RCL Liberty and Oasis? Have you thought about port days vs. sea days? For a first cruise it's nice to visit a variety of ports. Just pace yourself - no need to be off the ship for the entire day to enjoy the port.

 

Don't get too hung up on extras like Concierge class - the cruise lines are into selling you as many extras as they can. Do look at the "free" amenities - rock climbing, basketball, mini golf, ice and in line skating, flowrider, etc. Check out the deck plans carefully - I like a middle deck cabin near the aft or mid elevators/stairs. This gives you quick access to all decks without walking endlessly long corridors. Check out the roll calls for the ships and dates you are considering to see what folks are saying.

 

Whatever you choose, fly in the day before and plan to arrive at the ship about 11 am. to get the most out of your first cruise day. If all this seems overwhelming, find a "bricks and mortar" travel agent to assist you.

[firefly333]

a) Celebrity Summit 5 island South Carib (1 sea day) vs. Celebrity Solstice Western Carib (2 sea days)?

 

b) C1 concierge class worth extra bucks over C2/C3?

 

 

Maybe I need more coffee, but a C1 is a regular balcony right

 

CC balcony category is the one that has the extras.