Thinking of changing cruise lines. Any advice?

[savannahgirl1]

We have sailed HAL a couple of times. Once 10 days on the Volendam, loved it. And honeymooned 7 days on the Veendam, loved it. But we feel like we are getting in a rut so we are thinking of trying the Celebrity Solstice. It would be a 7 day Western Caribbean. Have any of you sailed both cruise lines and what would your advice be? We don't mind the slow pace of HAL, we entertain our selves fine. We haven't experienced bad dining on HAL and the crew is wonderful. So would we be happy on Celebrity? Any advice is GREATLY appreciated.

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[Orlandocruiser]

We had cruised many times on HAL (see signature) and after a Panama Canal cruise we realized that we enjoyed the ports but that the ship itself was a bore. (We also don't mind entertaining ourselves - don't participate in trivia, etc). We decided to try Celebrity when they instituted their new smoking policy. Did a 10 day on the Constellation and an 11 day Eastern Med cruise. While the size of the ships kind of put us off at first since we had only sailed on HAL's smaller ships we found that the size wasn't much of an issue and really liked the slightly more active vibe on Celebrity. We also enjoyed the fact that the staff seemed to have better English skills than the staff on HAL. Don't get me wrong the staff on HAL is wonderful but sometimes communication is an issue. (On our recent HAL cruise where our cabin steward whom we never met - did a great job though - would put himself against the wall in the corridor as we passed by muttering so sorry, so sorry" - kind of weirded me out!) Anyway we recently did a 7 day HAL out of Tampa because it was close to home and we liked the itinerary. The entertainment was awful and the one thing we did really enjoy, the string players in the Explorers , had their playing times drastically cut back. DH and I agreed that it would have to be a really good itinerary to get us back on HAL. I think food on HAL and Celebrity is about the same although I like the layout of the buffet area on the Solstice class ships better that on the R & S class on HAL. We did a 7 day Freedom of the Seas last year which we surprisingly enjoyed so I don't think our problem with our HAL cruise was that it was too short. I think that you will find that the things that you like about HAL are even better on Celebrity.

 

Also we found that because we had been sailing on the smaller HAL ships that the balcony cabins were pricier than on the larger Celebrity ships which had more balconies.

[seacruise9]

Hi,

 

I have cruised with Holland America five times (including the Eurodam in 2008 and the Zuiderdam in 2009). Last year, I did the seven-day cruise to the Western Caribbean on the Celebrity Solstice and absolutely loved it! The ship is stunningly beautiful and very well designed. The food and service are comparable to Holland America, but there are many more dining choices. This ship is incredible and I highly recommend it.

 

Chuck

[Shir Hayam]

We have sailed on HAL twice and Celebrity many times, most recently on the Equinox. The service and food are comparable on both - very good to excellent. The standard balcony cabins on the Westerdam and Oosterdam were the most comfy we've had on any ship. The big difference my DH and I felt was in the entertainment, especially the musical groups in public areas. The musical entertainment on HAL was truly terrible. So bad that I said "never again" to a HAL cruise (although I would go again if the itinerary and price were right :rolleyes:). I think you will enjoy the Solstice and appreciate being handed a glass of sparkling wine as you board rather than a glass of water :D.

 

Sheila

[savannahgirl1]

Thanks to all of you for your replies. It really helps. It sounds like we will be giving Celebrity a try. :D

[helen haywood]

Celebrity is my favorite overall....have enjoyed all my cruises, however, on CCL, RCI and HAL. But Solstice class ships are absolutely fabulous!!! Our first cruise on Solstice, the itinerary had to be changed due to a storm, wound up going to ports I wasn't interested in, ended up not even getting off the ship at all and had the best cruise of our lives!!! The buffet is incredible, the ship is stunning, the Hot Glass show is amazing....I'm running out of adjectives; you will love Solstice class!!!!