RCI / Celebrity differences

[jgnova]

We just returned from a ten–night Eastern Caribbean sailing on Grandeur of the Seas – our first RC sailing since December 1990 and after over 90 nights on Celebrity. There have been some questions here about the differences between the lines and I thought I’d post my thoughts.

Cabin:

We were in a Junior Suite – our Celebrity sailings have been veranda or CC. I think Grandeur had a lot of storage – maybe on par with M class and far more than on S class. Not sure if it’s my tastes, but I’d compare the cabin furnishings on Grandeur to a Marriott Fairfield Inn while I’d compare Celebrity to a Marriott Courtyard. I think that the closed cabinets in Celebrity bathrooms look nicer than the open shelves on Royal. Do not like that the bed is not quite high enough to allow luggage to fit.

Food:

We ate most of our meals in Windjammer, except for three dinners in the MDR plus a breakfast and a lunch. The only courses in the MDR in which presentation seemed important were desserts. This differs from Celebrity, where every plate seems to be a work of art. The food selection in both MDR & Windjammer was good, with a theme (Indian, Chinese, Mexican, etc.) each night – with the choices in both venues pretty similar, something I do not recall on Celebrity. We really liked having the same two hot and one chilled soup in Windjammer as in the MDR. I did miss Celebrity’s stir-fry and pasta to-order stations and having desserts already plated.

I thought the beverages in Windjammer were done better than on Celebrity. They had two beverage stations and someone was there to keep the cold beverages (water, lemonade, juice) ready to grab from a tray – no lines trying to find the one working ice machine or drink dispenser.

On the other hand, we missed the Celebrity free ice cream bar with its changing flavors (in contrast to the Ben & Jerry’s for a fee) and had to settle for the vanilla / chocolate soft-serve dispenser by the pool. Also missed the fresh pizza and grilled burgers on Celebrity.

I didn’t try it, but the MDR had a salad bar for lunch instead of having the salad choices on the menu – felt like a step-down from Celebrity in that, if I want a served meal, I want to be served. They also had a fruit and muesli bar at breakfast.

One thing I definitely missed was the Café al Bacio experience. The Centrum on deck 6 had a combined Ben & Jerry’s / Starbucks with counter service. Not the same as sitting down to read/ talk / play a game / listen to music and having someone come by to take your order and bring you tea / coffee / pastries / afternoon savories.

One oddball trivia thing I noticed is that Celebrity uses imported (Asian?) silverware while Royal used Oneida flatware (USA).

Entertainment:

I didn’t attend any of the shows but could hear the performers in the Centrum from outside our cabin, and I did wander down to the Schooner Bar to hear the pianist once. My overall impression is that Royal Caribbean performers seem to be appealing to people who came of age in the 80s or early 90s, while Celebrity might be trying to appeal to a younger demographic. Just my opinion based on my (limited) knowledge of music styles.

Ship:

Both lines seem about equal in keeping the ship looking good – always polishing and vacuuming. I did notice that, while all ship staff on Celebrity seemed to always be on the lookout for a passing guest and would greet her/him, that was not as common on Royal. Cabin attendants all over would say hello, but others were not as quick to issue a greeting, unlike Celebrity.

I did like the Diamond and up cocktail hour. Our last couple of Celebrity cruises issued coupons for our daily free drinks and did not run a special lounge. Royal put the free drinks on the SeaPass card – but also cordoned off a section of the South Pacific Lounge next to the Diamond lounge for Diamond cocktail times. And ship officers regularly stopped by.

Overall:

Based on our last Celebrity sailing (February 2014) and this Royal sailing, I’d have to call them about even. I like the extra touches on Celebrity that make things feel more luxurious but being able to drive an hour to board makes up for a lot.

NOTE: Posted on both Celebrity & RCI boards.