Celebrity, Holland America, and Princess

[hshowalter]

On 1-26-14 we will be on the Silhoutte for our 96th cruise. & on 2-2-14 && 2-9=14 we will be on the Royal princess for our 97th & 98th cruise. We are Diamond Plus with RCCL,Elite+with Celebrity & Elite with Princess & only 3 cruises with HAL. I would rate Celebrity #1 with HAL a close 2nd & princess # 3 with RCCL 4th. Costa dead last with Carnival Next to last & Cunard an over rated cruise Line with poor service & way over priced.

[sharkwl]

#1 Celebrity : No smoking policies, no announcements, Blu, classy ships

#2 RCCL : Wow factor of ships, lively entertainment, great shows

#3 Princess : Older passengers, average food, average entertainment

#4 HAL : +75 avg age passengers, ghost ship by 10pm, OK food

 

We are in our 50's now, & these were our experiences over the years! :D

[KKB]

My parents (late 60s) say:

1--Celebrity (tho they have only cruised them once, their first cruise over 10 years ago

2--RCCL

3--Princess

(tho they say these top 3 are very close)

Distant 4th--NCL--but it wouldn't stop them from sailing them

 

We feel Allure was the best cruise we have ever taken, but much preferred all of our Princess cruises over our Mariner trip. We are mid 40s & only in December did we find the Princess population to be "older"

 

Will let you know our opinion of Celebrity after our March trip!

 

(PS we feel that cruises are far more alike than different...)

[baldercash]

What is their new direction? thnx!

 

On Royal Princess the fleets new flag ship there is a huge list of deficiencies the main one is absence of a centre stair case and poor elevators.

Large ship, tiny balconies reduced size cabins on a ship with 4200 cruisers and really poor people flow. Reduced shows to 30 minutes in a horrible theater 3 times a night no intimate venues or dance floors..... a long list.

 

If you read the CC members reviews it sounds like the new Royal is not a hit with Princess cruisers most are negative and strangely even the positive posters often state they will not cruise Royal again or recommend it.

But they still have good pizza just not in the new Italian restaurant on board.

 

Always surprised by those who rate a cruise line superior to another because of the pizza or the yumyum man... really that is why one cruises?

X has the amazing ice cream bar with 5 or so different flavours daily plus soft serve frozen yogurt and M&M's, Reese's pieces and other candies, I love it and it is free but not the reason I cruise Celebrity.

Edited January 2, 2014 by baldercash

[miched]

I have heard that Celebrity reads these forums and hopefully they don't get a big head and change things

 

We started WhT Carnival and had a great time, the next cruise was with HAL also had a great time but were new to cruising and didn't realize or feel any significant difference.

 

We then sailed on Princess also and a great time and didn't really see any significant difference.

 

We just then picked and choose between Carnival, HAL! and Princess. We obtained their highest level for loyal cruisers. We sailed on a RCCL to give that a try. It was ok but not anything above the others.

 

At one port were were walking back to the Carnival ship on the pier and a young couple asked us what ship we were on. I said Carnival and they were on X and said that they felt it was too stuffy and stiff.

 

I was looking at cruises for a deal as I always do as it is my favorite hobby. I seen a X cruise that looked appealing. I told my wife about it and she wasn't really interest as we were getting the "benefits" for the other cruises.

 

I talked her into it but she wasn't thrilled about it. I booked a AQ on the Soltice. As soon as we walked on the ship we were sold. We got a glass of champaign an and then the WOW factor hit us. The ship was beautiful. We got to our cabin and it was also the best balcony cabin that we ever had. Not the best cabin but the best balcony cabin.

 

That cruise sold us. We have sailed again on Carnival, and Princess but it is very hard to beat X with the promos, Captains Club, Involvement of the Senior officers, ships and their decor, and I can go on and on. We are now very close to being Elite Plus. Since we became Elite we really haven't benefited from that as we always sail in AQ and have the drink pack thru the promos. Hope that X dosn't discontinue the 123 promo as that sis another thing that keeps us loyal.

 

We can get the recip benefits by sailing on RCCL but we love the the X product.

Wish that we didn't sail so many times on those other cruise lines because we could have been Zennith on X.

 

PS To X. We still look for what we feel is the best value and are not set in stone to sail on X. ;)

 

Preferences of cruise lines in order

X

RCCL because of the recip

Princess because of our status

Hal also status

Carnival for our status and cheap great times when we want to really party.

Not interested in any other as we are happy with these cruise lines

 

⛄

 

.

Edited January 2, 2014 by miched

[jocelysue]

Haven't posted all our cruise history.:o

Guess we should update.

Talked about the small things because service can be great on all three lines. It all dépends on one's waiter and steward on each individual cruise.

For example, DH & I prefer meals in the Main Dining Room on HAL but that's simply because we both love cold soup and have found it easier to get our salad served after our main course (entrée for Americans ;)lonly had to mention it once and it was always a go as was the fact that we wanted regular coffee at the beginning of our our meal followed by a cappucino at the end. Mentioned it the first night and was always followed through. Not so on the other lines Requested a cheese platter before dessert plus a small sherbet as a palate cleanser and never had to repeat the request. Picayune things I'll grant but to us increase our pleasure.

 

Another example:DH enjoys the carpet changing every night in the elevators. Why? That's the way he keeps his photos in order. Of course, he could tag them differently, but he finds it fun when he makes his DVD's to start each day with a picture of the carpet.

 

We both love Priness junior suites but nothing lower than that because there's no sofa in the cabin in regular balcony cabins on most Princess ships. So if he feels like stretching out on the bed for a nap and I want to read, knit, watch TV in the cabin, there's no sofa to sit on so that makes it a minus. But with a junior suite we get 2 tv'S.

 

We both enjoy classical music and string trios or quartets. With Celebrity cutting them out, that will take a lot away from our pleasure late at night when we enjoy listening either to them or at the piano bar.

 

Enrichment lectures are also a pleasant pastime for us. Celebrity has had great lectureres,but now it's cutting them out. Since DH & I prefer late dining, afternoon tea on sea days with friends we've met on the cruise has added to our pleasure; HAL & Princess do this. Celebrity offers a different experience which can be substituted but not equalled.

 

Celebrity has a salt water pool on Millenium type ships which is great. However it is not free to all passengers . HAL has a pool, but not a salt water one, available to all passengers which can be covered over and used by all on chilly and windy days. Princess has a great aft pool which is almost a secret.

 

So, as you see, I'm talking about subtle, subjective, personal préférences.Towel animal on Princess every night, on HAL 80 % of the time, on Celebrity, hit or miss.

 

These three lines are great. Mind you, HAL has the reputation of being a senior citizens' line, and, it is true, its music and piano bar, late at night do play the golden oldies. However there is a DJ and jazz in the Neptune lounge where one can dance until at least 2 am.

 

Karaoke on Princess, sometimes on Celebrity, never on HAL (at least not on the cruises we've been on.

 

Please note I haven't talked about RCI & Carnival on which we've cruised with our children and grandchildren, (which they think are absolutely the very best) nor about NCL which we've all agreed is not for any of us because of the quality of the food. Nor have I mentioned Cunard which is in a particular segment of its own.

 

BTW, X, Princess & HAL each offer very good shampoo & grooming products. . I prefer Elemis, but again that is totally subjective.

 

When we're cruising to visit & are interested in shore expéditions our main criterion is the itinerary. When we're cruising for R&R and want many sea days, then the line is our main criterion. Plus cost of course. On a 15 day cruise no one can beat Celebrity on its 1-2-3 offers, especially the drinks.

 

To sum it up, different strokes for different folks.

 

Happy 2014 to everyone.

[Happy Cruiser 6143]

Celebrity has a salt water pool on Millenium type ships which is great. However it is not free to all passengers . HAL has a pool, but not a salt water one, available to all passengers which can be covered over and used by all on chilly and windy days. Princess has a great aft pool which is almost a secret.

 

 

I don't know where you got the idea that the T pool on M class ships is not free to all passengers. It is free. To all passengers over 16. Which is a good thing as far as I am concerned. It is sometimes made available to children during certain hours if the weather is not good.

[baldercash]

If one thinks the T pool is a pay for then this cruiser has never been in the Spa area and is not aware of the Spa buffet or that they have saunas available at no charge as well.

 

You did not answer the question about what X ship you sailed. You deflected but did not respond so we can take it that you have not sailed X?

 

I just finished a 35 day Millie cruise jumped off in Singapore in mid December and they had a string trio every day and during the evening they alternated with a small Jazz combo with a singer so people could dance. They had a guitarist / singer who alternated with a piano player / singer on the 4th level outside the Cafe Boca.

Too many people speak out without really knowing.

Edited January 2, 2014 by baldercash

[20pluscruises]

On Royal Princess the fleets new flag ship there is a huge list of deficiencies the main one is absence of a centre stair case and poor elevators.

Large ship, tiny balconies reduced size cabins on a ship with 4200 cruisers and really poor people flow. Reduced shows to 30 minutes in a horrible theater 3 times a night no intimate venues or dance floors..... a long list.

 

If you read the CC members reviews it sounds like the new Royal is not a hit with Princess cruisers most are negative and strangely even the positive posters often state they will not cruise Royal again or recommend it.

But they still have good pizza just not in the new Italian restaurant on board.

 

Always surprised by those who rate a cruise line superior to another because of the pizza or the yumyum man... really that is why one cruises?

X has the amazing ice cream bar with 5 or so different flavours daily plus soft serve frozen yogurt and M&M's, Reese's pieces and other candies, I love it and it is free but not the reason I cruise Celebrity.

 

Thanks!

 

Holy sheetballs! 4200 guests?!!!

 

Celebrity's show are not much longer that the 30 minutes these days. My guess...get them back into the casino sooner.

Edited January 2, 2014 by 20pluscruises

[Aquahound]

If there are any Past Passengers of these Cruise Lines I would love to hear about the differences between the three lines. As I see of it of the Larger Ship Cruise Lines I feel these are three more that market to the same group of people and are me and my wife's favorite. We have cruised all three. However, have not been on Celebrity and Princess for a while.

 

I've cruised a handfull of Celebrity ships and on HAL's latest and greatest. There's no comparison in my opinion. To me, Celebrity is a lot better. Their ships, especially Solstice Class, are far ahead of HAL's ships.

 

As stated by the others, no, you DO NOT have to pay for the T-pool on M Class. That's in contrast to HAL which DOES charge for the spa pool.

 

The smoking policy is the biggest game changer for me. If you are a non-smoker, Celebrity is the better line.

 

I haven't cruised Princess yet. I do plan on it, but their newest ship design does not appeal to me due to all the negative reviews and what I consider to be design flaws.

[hulamoon]

I assume they confused the pool with the pay t pool on HAL.

[baldercash]

I would list them as follows

1 = x

2 = RC

3 = Princess

 

We have cruised Azamara twice and would do so again in a heart beat but a totally different size of ship.

 

I have no interest in cruising HAL but this is based on what I have read in reviews, threads and speaking with friends who have. We have cruised Oceania it was good but not something we would do again. I get the feeling HAL is just a lower scale version of that Oceania's product.

 

We used to enjoyed NCL in the past but no longer are interested in their offerings.

 

We have enjoyed Cunard & even P&O but would not cruise them on regular basis.

 

We have cruised MSC which offers an interesting product and would cruise them again if venue was right as they always have a very reasonable price point for their product.

Edited January 2, 2014 by baldercash

[shavdog]

We've sailed x 8 times...the others 0 times....my final answer...

[KKB]

On Royal Princess the fleets new flag ship there is a huge list of deficiencies the main one is absence of a centre stair case and poor elevators.

Large ship, tiny balconies reduced size cabins on a ship with 4200 cruisers and really poor people flow. Reduced shows to 30 minutes in a horrible theater 3 times a night no intimate venues or dance floors..... a long list.

 

Interesting...I have not sailed the Royal Princess, but have sailed Princess several times. The Royal is a similar set up to other Princess ships. I have pulled up the deck plans--there are several "intimate" venues (bars?) & dance areas. None of the ships we have been on have had a single center staircase, but several to improve flow.

 

I know people can have differing views depending on their experiences...

[KKB]

Thanks!

 

Holy sheetballs! 4200 guests?!!!

 

Allure has over 6000! guests--we were SO impressed how only once did it feel that way (everyone on 2 floors for muster:eek:). There are SOO many places to be on the ship, they did an amazing job of spreading venues on many floors. It really appealed to us as there were such a wide variety of activities at any given time.

 

I am a bit concerned that Celebrity may fall short on that one for us...but it is a spring break 5 day cruise so hoping the activities reflect this.

[baldercash]

Interesting...I have not sailed the Royal Princess, but have sailed Princess several times. The Royal is a similar set up to other Princess ships. I have pulled up the deck plans--there are several "intimate" venues (bars?) & dance areas. None of the ships we have been on have had a single center staircase, but several to improve flow.

 

I know people can have differing views depending on their experiences...

Not opinion

The maximum number of passengers is 4222, crew 1378

1- No observation deck.

2- No central staircase.

3- Inadequate elevator capacity.

3- No full promenade.

4- No aft pool.

5- Reduced pool area, sq ft pp then Grand class.

6- Not enough pools - *not family friendly to stay with kids.

7- Limited loungers and few loungers in shade around main pool.

8- Private cabanas took the best public space, arguments over sitting in front of cabanas.

9- 7 Hot tubs - 1000 more passengers then Grand class with 7 to 8 tubs.

10- No free sauna & steam bath.

11- Lack of privacy on balconies under Sea Walk.

12 Reduced cabin size - Old Standard 215 sq ft. New Standard 181 sq ft,

New Deluxe 192 sq ft.

13- Reduced balcony size - majority not adequate for families or groups of 3 or 4

14- Uncomfortable balcony chairs - small table cannot move on balcony.

15- Poor sound insulation.You can hear next door cabin's TV through the wall.

16- No Adagio or any other bar with an amazing view. The Seaview bar is outside with a view of the sea but is restricted by weather.

18- Reduced / poor Dancing Facilities.

 

Read the reviews posted on CC member area. Royal is not like other princess ships and the Regal is coming.

Multiple people have posted there is only the marble floor in the new expanded atrium were one can dance and it is not a good venue it is slippery and they are being watched by people on the various decks.

People state that the bars are not intimate and the open concept atrium around which everything is gathered is like a food mall concept so the noise and music bleeds from one venue to the other.

The reviews are coming in now that she is in the Caribbean.

Edited January 2, 2014 by baldercash

[blueboro]

Of all of the Royal Princess problems people mention on reviews, I think the small balcony is a deal killer. I have seen photos and the standard balcony is not deep enough for most people to sit with their knees pointing toward the sea. You must sit sideways. Other than the problems mentioned it looks like a beautiful ship.

[baldercash]

Allure has over 6000! guests--we were SO impressed how only once did it feel that way (everyone on 2 floors for muster:eek:). There are SOO many places to be on the ship, they did an amazing job of spreading venues on many floors. It really appealed to us as there were such a wide variety of activities at any given time.

 

I am a bit concerned that Celebrity may fall short on that one for us...but it is a spring break 5 day cruise so hoping the activities reflect this.

 

Oasis and Allure are designed to accommodate this volume of passengers it has to do with how many square feet per passengers and X has one of the highest ratio's but not all the attractions.

The Royal is a different design more like the new NCL Breakaway.

We are booked on the Oasis B2B trans Atlantic this fall 12 days to Barcelona, 14 days Rotterdam back to Ft Lauderdale. We thought it would be a great opportunity to get to explore her with all those sea days.

[Bently57]

We have been loyal to Princess for years and we are not excited about the Royal at all, which is why we are now booked on Celebrity. Sounds like we may be leaving Princess for good if their new ships are like the Royal. Smaller rooms and smaller balconies are not an incentive.

[mafig]

We have been loyal to Princess for years and we are not excited about the Royal at all, which is why we are now booked on Celebrity. Sounds like we may be leaving Princess for good if their new ships are like the Royal. Smaller rooms and smaller balconies are not an incentive.

 

 

I agree about the small balconies. I had read on the Princess boards that their management feel that people don't spend that much time on their balconies anyway.:confused: I definitely do.

[sjh422]

On Royal Princess the fleets new flag ship there is a huge list of deficiencies the main one is absence of a centre stair case and poor elevators.

Large ship, tiny balconies reduced size cabins on a ship with 4200 cruisers and really poor people flow. Reduced shows to 30 minutes in a horrible theater 3 times a night no intimate venues or dance floors..... a long list.

 

If you read the CC members reviews it sounds like the new Royal is not a hit with Princess cruisers most are negative and strangely even the positive posters often state they will not cruise Royal again or recommend it.

But they still have good pizza just not in the new Italian restaurant on board.

 

Always surprised by those who rate a cruise line superior to another because of the pizza or the yumyum man... really that is why one cruises?

X has the amazing ice cream bar with 5 or so different flavours daily plus soft serve frozen yogurt and M&M's, Reese's pieces and other candies, I love it and it is free but not the reason I cruise Celebrity.

 

We took our first cruise on Princess (royal princess) in November. I can understand that past princess cruisers see differences that they don't like, but for us we felt the royal was the best cruise we have ever taken (past cruises - 10 on Celebrity, 2 on RCI, 2 on HAL and 1 on Carnival.

 

We have cruised on both the M and S class ships of Celebrity. What we found lacking on the S class ship was the very small atrium where dancing and other events take place. On the Royal, we could enjoy a drink, gelato, etc and easily find a seat where we could enjoy the entertainment in the piazza. We also found a greater range of entertainment on the ship, very much like the RCI offerings. In short, we found more pluses than minuses on princess.

[Mom33]

If one thinks the T pool is a pay for then this cruiser has never been in the Spa area and is not aware of the Spa buffet or that they have saunas available at no charge as well.

 

You did not answer the question about what X ship you sailed. You deflected but did not respond so we can take it that you have not sailed X?

 

I just finished a 35 day Millie cruise jumped off in Singapore in mid December and they had a string trio every day and during the evening they alternated with a small Jazz combo with a singer so people could dance. They had a guitarist / singer who alternated with a piano player / singer on the 4th level outside the Cafe Boca.

Too many people speak out without really knowing.

 

 

They certainly do.:D