General celebrity questions

[Slugsta]

We have done a handful of cruises and are looking at the Med next year. One of the cruises we are considering is a Celebrity. We have previously done Cunard x1, Princess x1 and P+O x 3. I think Princess has probably just edged in as our favourite so far.

 

What are the general prices like once on board? Things like the suggested level of tips, excursions, shuttle buses and drinks on board.

 

Do they do soft drinks packages for adults?

 

Are there any glaring differences between Celebrity and the lines we have used already?

 

Anything else I ought to be aware of before making up my mind?

[2ashevillesailors]

We have done a handful of cruises and are looking at the Med next year. One of the cruises we are considering is a Celebrity. We have previously done Cunard x1, Princess x1 and P+O x 3. I think Princess has probably just edged in as our favourite so far.

 

What are the general prices like once on board? Things like the suggested level of tips, excursions, shuttle buses and drinks on board.

 

Do they do soft drinks packages for adults?

 

Are there any glaring differences between Celebrity and the lines we have used already?

 

Anything else I ought to be aware of before making up my mind?

 

 

Royal Caribbean and Celebrity are definitely superior to them. We have been doing both of them lately, haven't done the others in a couple of years. We do like Princess and haven' t been on it for quite awhile, we do like them, lower pricing

than RC and Celebrity, IMO. Tours , tips, etc similar, pricing slightly higher, but they have so much more to offer on the ship, IMO. Also, very important is where you are going, which ports.

We di a Med. with Princess starting in Venice and loved it. the other 3 were on RC, Celeb. and one on NCL to Egypt, 4 years ago. Did NZ and Australia on Solstice and got bac couple of weeks ago Brilliance on a Baltic cruise which was great. Mary

[bbappel]

I can't comment on Cunard or P&O, but I have been on two Princess cruises. We have sailed considerably more times on Celebrity (as you can see by my signature) and the reasons were often the itinerary and the price. The loyalty program may have been a small factor.

 

Celebrity shore excursions tend to be less costly than Princess in our limited experience, but on Celebrity, you pay when you book. I like that since it reduces the end-of-cruise shock.

 

I don't know if Princess has a drink package - they didn't when we sailed with them in 2007/2009. Princess had better coffee - with the purchase of a coffee card, you could get free drip brewed coffee or a number of specialty drinks. We haven't liked the coffee on Celebrity (we didn't try the coffee at the Tree House on Silhouette).

 

On Celebrity, there are a number of drink packages to choose from: Premium Water ($12/day), Soda *$7/day), and nonalcohol and alcohol classic and premium packages ($14/day, $44/day, $18/day, $54/day). And there is a wine package but I don't have info about that. There are several posts discussing the various drinks packages if you want to do a search. You can purchase it ahead (and are charged when you purchase) or can purchase onboard. You can even try without it for a day and then get it and pay a prorated (but not backdated) prices.

 

Our personal experience has been that we get a Premium drinks package (either nonalcohol or alcohol). With it we get a latte or cappuccino every morning, a freshly-squeezed orange juice, water to take on shore excursions & brush our teeth, take our pills, etc., Pellegrino with dinner, and espresso after dinner. We don't drink soda. Because we get the premium package, which we think is worth it for peace of mind and hydration, when we do the math to determine if we want the alcohol package, we consider if we will drink $32/day alcohol, rather than $54/day, since we think $18/day is the non-alcohol portion. That is 2 glasses of wine and a cocktail, and that isn't an extreme amount to consume. We get premium because we like the choices better and if we want something over the price point, we can pay the difference instead of the whole thing.

 

I'm not sure about tips since I don't have a problem with them so I don't know what the relative costs are. If you choose select dining (choose your own time), you will pay your tips up front, otherwise they are added each day. You have the option of removing the tips, but I personally find that skeevy. To each his own, I know, so please don't flame me. If you leave the tips on there, and want to give more to an individual, they may keep it (if they know you have auto tips), otherwise, we believe it goes into a pool.

I didn't think Celebrity was more expensive and I really like prepaying many of the costs - and Celebrity is set up for that - I'm not so sure about Princess.

 

The biggest factor, as I said, is the itinerary, and we've liked the Celebrity itineraries and their ships. We haven't been on a Millennium class in ages, but I love the Solstice class - they don't seem crowded (except the buffet on embarkation day and some sea days).

 

Whichever you choose - it will be a cruise! Therefore, a wonderful holiday.

[cruisestitch]

Celebrity has no smoking at any inside bar, lounge, restaurant, casino, stateroom, and no smoking on verandahs. There are limited areas outside where cigarette smoking is allowed, and only one are per ship where cigar smoking is allowed.

 

Celebrity has a "no announcements" policy -- you will hear a Captain's update once a day, followed by a short announcement from the Cruise Director summarizing some of the day's activities, but you will not be bombarded with announcements that Bingo is starting etc.

[jomf]

We have sailed on P & O, Princess and Celebrity.

Celebrity is now our cruise line of choice, although we would use either of the others if the itinerary was amazing.

We prefer the food, service and definitely the beds ( had no need to ask for an egg crate topper).

We took the premium drinks package last time and loved it, this time we have been given the classic drinks package, which we will upgrade once onboard to the premium with the obc that Celebrity have given us.

 

To us Celebrity is a step up.

[Slugsta]

Thanks for your input guys.

 

It will be our 30th wedding anniversary in April, so this will be a belated celebration as we would prefer an autumn cruise. It seems a good excuse to step up a notch (but the boat can only be pushed out so far otherwise the bank manager will have something to say!). I do like the idea of paying as much as possible in advance.

 

I'm not keen on the idea of RCCI, although hubby would like to give them a go one day, as I prefer a slightly older demographic than they tend to attract. Although we will be avoiding school holidays...

 

I cannot sit for more than a few minutes without pain, so travelling is a problem for me. We live on the south coast of England so leaving from Southampton is a must.

 

At the moment, having returned from the fjords last month, I am enjoying doing the research. I don't want to book until after a hospital appointment next month.

 

Does anyone remember what the suggested daily rate is for tips please? Does Celebrity charge for shuttle busses?

[dkjretired]

Here's some info on the tips..

 

Q: How are gratuities handled onboard?A: For your convenience, we automatically add gratuities for your restaurant and stateroom services to your onboard SeaPass® account on a daily basis in the following amounts, which may be adjusted at your discretion: • $12 per person per day in staterooms

• $12.50 per person per day in Concierge Class and AquaClass® staterooms

• $15.50 per person per day in suites

 

This gratuity is shared by your stateroom attendant, dining services staff, and housekeeping staff members who help enhance your vacation experience.

 

At your discretion, the gratuity payments may be adjusted onboard at Guest Relations, in which case they will not automatically be added to your onboard SeaPass® account.

 

A 15% gratuity will be automatically added to all beverages, mini bar purchases, spa and salon services. Additional gratuities may be added at your discretion.

 

The above info is taken from an FAQ which has a lot of general info...Here's a link..

 

http://www.celebritycruises.com/footer/faq.do?pagename=footer_pages_faq#2

[The Mommy]

Totally agree with jomf

Would do Princess for a great itinerary and good price

would only go on P&O again to be with friends - absolutely no other reason other than it may be suited to our children and grandchildren.

 

Celebrity better on food, service and ship -especially the S class.

 

Hope you enjoy whichever you choose

[retafcruiser]

.... you will hear a Captain's update once a day, followed by a short announcement from the Cruise Director ...

 

Strange that our Captain made NO announcements on the days we were docked last Spring on Equinox.