RCCI vs Celebrity

[lynsteve]

We are soon to be sailing our 2nd time on RCCI ( Radiance ) in Australian waters, but as the Solstice is coming down under, we are thinking of cruising on her in January 2013, Auckland,Sydney,Freo.

Is their a big difference in all elements between the 2 companies/ships, styles, service, etc etc.

 

thanks in advance

stevo;)

[RLM77]

We have found Celebrity cruises to be generally more fancy/ ormal and traditional than RCCL. They are not as family oriented nor are there as many activities such as flow riders or rock walls.

 

We have not been on any of the Solstice class ships however. Some of these ships have lawns, glass blowing exhibitions and spa class staterooms with dedicated spa dining...again a less "fun" more "refined" cruise experience.

[KirkNC]

We prefer Celebrity over RCCL. I agree it is less physically active, a bit more formal but not alot. The Sostice is a fabulous ship. One of the nicest we have ever sailed on.

 

Kirk

[silentbob007]

Just off the Eclipse, a Solstice-class ship ... my thought was ... they will love this class of ship for Australia. However, as noted above, it is a bit more formal. Celebrity will actually turn people away for being dressed improperly for the dining room (shorts, etc) and there is also a dress code for the theater and a few other events.

[igeewhiz]

Celebrity Solstice Class hands down. Radiance in nice too but service is better on the Solstice class.

[Sugar*Magnolia]

RCL if you're sailing with kids, Celebrity if you're not.

 

We <3 Celebrity.

 

cruisedivanj

[The Viking]

First of all Solstice is a beautiful lady who does erything possible to be the a great hostess.

 

When it comes to service Celebrity is way above Royal. Upon entering the cafeteria the first day I noticed staff members, incl. officers assisting elderly guests with filling their plates and excort them to their table.

 

You see officers all over and dnot shy of assisting you. They want to mingle and catch any issues up front per one Hotel Director I once spoke with.

 

Some pepople think that the staff is not quite as personable friendly or laid back as on Royal.

[barb in ga]

We are getting ready to cruise on Royal for the 6th time, and love everything about the ships--we've been on every class except Oasis, and she's up next(just 38 more days!).

 

We also cruised on Solstice last year, in an Aquaclass balcony, and were incredibly impressed with the food, particularly in Blu, the specialty restaurant specifically for Aquaclass passengers. The ship is elegant, service is impeccable, and the food is amazing! That said, the entertainment was not as awesome, and we love the shows on Royal.

 

I agree with the posters who say to use RCI if there are kids, and Solstice if you are looking for an elegant, more quiet, relaxing experience.

Barb

 

We did love that smoking is very limited on Solstice.

[cublet]

Hello,

 

I agree with almost everything said above, but would like to add the following points.

 

You will have a greater sense of space on, say, Independence OTS than Solstice class (Eclipse in my case). The Indy is exactly 50% wider than Eclipse.

 

The coffee shop on Eclipse is millions of times better than on RCL and you get to drink out of real china cups and sit in nice arm chairs.

 

Some food items are the same: The fresh orange juice comes out of the same concentrate tetrapak.

 

The food selection in the casual venue is superior on Eclipse compared to RCL during lunchtimes but in the evenings RCL is much MUCH better. This is because the vast majority of Eclipse passengers would go for the formality of the main dining room so Celebrity see no point in putting much effort into it.

 

Strange that for all the talk of formality and activities vs elegance above, I would say that there is no noticeable difference in the age range of the passengers.

 

Regards,

 

Cublet

(Who, as you see, likes to dress formally)

[Deeliteful]

I love Celebrity. I have only been on one RCI cruise before a T/A on the Legend and I loved that too - certainly a little less formal and didn't think the food was as good as on Celebrity but looking forward to trying this BIG ship (Mariner) even though I know it's not as huge as the newer ships (not sure they are for me but never say never). This cruise has a great itinerary hence my booking.

[drrich2]

Imagine yourself telling a friend about what a great time you had on your cruise. Do you think you'd be more likely to go on about...

 

1.) How exciting and active it was?

 

or

 

2.) How relaxing and elegant it was?

 

If you read quite a few Celebrity vs. RCI threads, I think you'll get that sense. Some really young, active people complain about an older crowd, fewer activities and less nightlife on Celebrity, but some people cite a certain 'classiness' and excellence in service about Celebrity that they enjoy (also Celebrity keeps overhead announcements to a bare minimum to avoid disturbance).

 

There is a lot of similarity/overlap; I don't mean to make it sound like a 5 star restaurant vs. Chucky Cheese's!

 

Richard.

[IrishCC]

Imagine yourself telling a friend about what a great time you had on your cruise. Do you think you'd be more likely to go on about...

 

1.) How exciting and active it was?

 

or

 

2.) How relaxing and elegant it was?

 

If you read quite a few Celebrity vs. RCI threads, I think you'll get that sense. Some really young, active people complain about an older crowd, fewer activities and less nightlife on Celebrity, but some people cite a certain 'classiness' and excellence in service about Celebrity that they enjoy (also Celebrity keeps overhead announcements to a bare minimum to avoid disturbance).

 

There is a lot of similarity/overlap; I don't mean to make it sound like a 5 star restaurant vs. Chucky Cheese's!

 

Richard.

we tried Celebrity last year mainly because of their smoking policy . . . it just was not our thing . . . .a little too formal . . . . completely dead at night . . . just not as fun and quite frankly . . . yes on some nights the food on the MDR was better but we found the specialty restaurants lacking.

 

We came off the ship thinking "We're we just on vacation?"

 

PS I don't think Solstice is anywhere near as pretty as the Radiance class