If you have sailed on celebrity please tell me...

[Pilot70D]

For the last four years we have sailed Crelebrity exclusively. Now we have booked our next cruise on the Mariner.

We are really looking forward to the Regent experience but we are curious. For those who have also sailed Celebrity, how do the two lines compare?

Thanks in advance to everyone. All thoughts and replies will be welcome.

Everyone havea great week out there.

:):):)

[ChatKat in Ca.]

We went on the Millennium when it was new. The ship was a piece of junk in my opinion. The tiles were falling off the shower wall, mildew in the bathroom, the marble vanity finish was wrecked by lemon (still there when we boarded, btw). Sheets on the bed fell off at night not tucked in. The particular cruise we were on had a passenger make up of some very interesting characters that I would have tagged to Carnivore.

 

In all fairness, We had taken our first Regent (then Raddison) cruise just prior to that, but it was in a league of it's own. And I think we had a string of small things gone wrong that made it so I am leary of ever booking on a Celebrity ship again. I have been on Holland America, Royal Caribbean and Oceania and Princess since the Celebrity cruise and felt all were better than the Millennium experience. Food, Entertainment, Passenger Space, Cleanliness. All higher than Celebrity - which charges near premium rates.

[fluckey]

ChatKat, other than the food, service, entertainment, passenger space and cleanliness, how was the Celebrity cruise?

[joandbun]

We have sailed Celebrity (as well as Azamara, Royal Caribbean & Princess) some fantastic cruises & some not quite as good. It has mostly depended on the ship & itinerary. OVerall we really like the X product.

We recently sailed the new Eclipse & loved it. We had a nice suite & the ship & service were exceptional.

OK we had to pay for alcohol & excursions but we know that in advance & allow for it.

We liked Millennium & Constellation but didnt like Century much before its refit & wernt overhwelhmed after it either.

Now as a comparison to Regent?? I dont know yet. We are due to sail on Mariner this year.

 

REally excited about it.:)

jo

[xplrcrzn]

I was on the Millennium when it was less than a year old and it certainly was not a "piece of junk." It was a beautiful ship, a game-changer at the time. Celebrity has a wonderful product but is a "big ship" line whereas Regent is a small ship, all-inclusive line. And Celebrity does not display Park West auction art around the ship like Regent does. They have purchased their own in some cases at considerable cost.

[Travelcat2]

Interesting thread. However, it really is not possible to compare a luxury cruiseline with a mass market one (even the newer ones that are lovely to look at).

 

Regent does not have inside cabins.

Two Regent ships are all balcony

Their largest ships hold 700

Airfare is included

Many excursions are included

No tipping

Top shelf alcohol included

No charge for speciality restaurants

Included night at hotel prior to embarkation

Shuttles included at most ports

 

On the other hand, Regent doesn't have malls, wet t-shirt contests, children (except during school breaks), loud music at the pool, Their entertainment is good, but not the big shows put on by other ships (these ships aren't large enough). Even the dance floors are small.

 

So, if someone is looking for a large cruise line experience on a small luxury ship, you could be very disappointed.

 

Suggest you contact a TA (Travel Agent) with luxury cruise experience (they must have booked Silversea, Regent or Seabourn previously). They can give you a lot of help.

 

Last, in ChatKat's defense (not that she needs it). . . . she does sail on non-luxury ships and enjoys it. If she feels that a ship is a piece of junk, it may be wise to pay attention to her opinion.

 

P.S. A question to the OP (not meant sarcastically in any way. . . . just trying to explain the difficulty some of us feel in making these comparisons. Think about the best restaurant you have been to. Excellent service, incredible, high quality food, great ambiance, etc. Then someone asks you. . . . how would you compare "the best restaurant" to dining at Denny's and ordering the best steak on the menu?

[Bfson]

We have been on Celebrity a number of times. We liked it. We had no complaints-we like X. We upgraded to Regent but always had the feeling we were spending a lot more money. BUT as this article shows, depending on your lifestyle, Regent may well be less expensive than Celebrity. (It is for us because unlike the printed example we spend more on wine and fine dining than the given example)

 

http://www.cruisecritic.com/news/news.cfm?ID=4284

 

I like the larger room, the larger closet, the all inclusive nature (no signing of checks all the time) and the level of service on Regent (but the casino was better on Celebrity).

[Responder]

We went once a few years ago on Celebrity...don't remember which one. Had 6 people in our group and reserved in one of the alternative dining rooms.

 

Unusually long wait to be served our entrees and when they came, all were not cooked as ordered and had to be sent back. Took another forever for them to come back...pretty awful. We complained to the room manager and he set up an appointment with the F & B manager. We met and explained just how bad the service and food was.

He did compensate us by offering us each a glass of rotgut port the next night at dinner in the main Dining Room.

Is this a class act or what....and yes, we were charged for the alternative dining experience.

Not on the same planet as Regent.

[TedC]

Travel Cat, entertainmenrt on our recent Regent Voyager cruise had been upgraded since our previous Regent cruises.

 

 

" Cirque de Voyager" was close to being spectacular and some folks from Vegas said it compared favorably with the real thing.

 

Regent now has Jean Ryon (or Ryan) singers and dancers, an organization that supplies entertainment to various cruise lines.

[chuckw]

We did several Celebrity and Holland America cruises and found them to be a good value, about equal for food and service. Then we got a good deal on a suite on Holland and have never gone back to standard cabins. Discounted suites were available for a while but in the last four or five years I've found Regent to be a much better value. An example is the November, 2011, FLL to the Amazon and back. The Prisendam is doing almost the exact trip as the Navigator and is more expensive when you compare like suites, not even counting tips, beverages, air fare and excursions. If you don't want a suite it may be cheaper on Celebrity or Holland but suite to suite I think you'll find Regent a better value and a much better product.

[bev'sid]

We have been on Celebrity a number of times. We liked it. We had no complaints-we like X....

 

I like the larger room, the larger closet, the all inclusive nature (no signing of checks all the time) and the level of service on Regent (but the casino was better on Celebrity).

 

I was thinking that too, Bfson, I did prefer the casino on Celebrity, even though I usually only visit it once or twice during a cruise, there was a dramatic difference!

 

But I very much prefer the casual ease, if you will, and friendly atmosphere on Regent.

 

I have only sailed on Celebrity twice, and it has been a few years, but I do remember that the ambiance on board was very different from Regent. There were no "wet t-shirt contests" as someone suggested, and the passengers were mostly older than many lines (could be the venues, but almost no children/families), but the on board experience felt a bit pretentious (not refined, but less friendly, and maybe more fussy), IMO, as compared to Regent. I enjoy the welcoming attitude of the Regent staff, as compared to the general demeanor of the X crew.

 

The food is definitely better on Regent, imo. The specialty restaurant on X, where we purchased a package that included wine pairings, was a disaster, unfortunately -- food prepared far too long ahead of time, not to our liking (even after sending it back), and very pricey, actually. On Regent, the food is mostly cooked to order and higher quality, I feel.

 

I know my experience on X is limited, but I got the impression I was supposed to be impressed with them, while on Regent, I get the impression that I am a welcomed guest.

 

Totally subjective on my part, of course, but FWIW, that's my impressions. :]

[Travelcat2]

Travel Cat, entertainmenrt on our recent Regent Voyager cruise had been upgraded since our previous Regent cruises.

 

 

" Cirque de Voyager" was close to being spectacular and some folks from Vegas said it compared favorably with the real thing.

 

Regent now has Jean Ryon (or Ryan) singers and dancers, an organization that supplies entertainment to various cruise lines.

 

You are right about the entertainment on Regent. We got off of the Mariner yesterday and were impressed with the new group (saw them for the first time on the Navigator in Alaska. I have the sense, though, that shows on some of the mainstream cruise lines rival the Las Vegas shows (at least in size and number of performers).

[Onessa]

We cruise for the itineraries -- we have cruised Regent, Celebrity, RCCI, Princess, NCL -- each has its pluses and minuses. Our last cruise was a basic Eastern Med cruise on Celebrity. The amount of time in port was great and the ship was quiet lovely (Solstice). We normally do not do specialty restaraunts or the shows. Solsitice had some very nice musicians in their public areas and good decor and lovely public art. The cabic was very workable. We enjoyed our Celebrity cruise and found it very cost effective.

[Pilot70D]

I would like to thank everyone who took the time to enter a respone to my inquiry.

Everything that I read confirms that we made the right decision to cruise with Regent. We have been cruising for eleven years now but always with mass market (large ship) cruise lines.

One of the most interesting comments here was the 'ship within a ship' comment. We totally agree. We have been in full suites for our last two cruises. The level of service and amenities while in the suite was awesome. However, once outside that environment it was herd mass left, herd mass right, etc. with the possible exception of specialty restaurants.

I do believe that the level and quality of service on board Regent will surpass that of the mass market cruise lines. Please don't get me wrong. On the average the service level was by and large very good on all of our mass market line cruises. The standard deviation from that average though was quite high. In other words there were signifigant ups and downs when it came to service quality.

Fortunately we have a great TA who does have extensive small ship experience. She has been a tremendous help to us in making our decision without exerting pressure either way. So, we are really looking forward to our first cruise on the Mariner.

THANKS. Everyone stay warm and have a great day out there.

:):):)

[ChatKat in Ca.]

Thanks, Jackie for the vote of confidence. We were in a suite on Celebrity in on a Carribbean itinerary. the ship might have been acceptable but for so many amenities being substandard: Tile falling off the shower walls on a new ship, sheets that fall off the bed in the middle of the night so you are sleeping on a mattress (ick!), generic brand soap in a dispenser, we had incredible dining room service but the food was a huge disappointment - pre plated on those rolling banquet carts we could see inside the kitchen.

 

The entertainment was good - I remember the Cruise Director was very entertaining but very partial to his followers and he was at one time an entertainer so there was a lot of singing and dancing. The ship had to tender in a number of our ports because it was too big for the ports.

 

Liquor was very expensive. A half bottle of champagne from the refrigerator was $35 and this was 10 year ago for California Brut. Our honeymooning neighbor over heard me telling my husband that I wasn't going to open the champagne because I was outraged at the price. He leaned over this balcony and called out to us with a cold bottle he was given from his TA telling us they didn't like champagne!

 

We have sailed Princess and found in comparison our accomodations much much better and prefer it over Celebrity. I would be willing though on the right itinerary to try again but would choose Princess or Holland America first if I were Mass-Market Cruising.