Comparing celbrity to HAL

[RJ2002]

We recently tried Celebrity again after a long absence, primarily due to a great itinerary: Venice to Rome, with stops in Slovenia, Croatia, Montenegro, Sicily and Malta. We were in Aqua Class, which I have to say was a very pleasant experience, primarily due to the perk of eating in the Aqua-dedicated restaurant Blu for both breakfast and dinner.

 

From a real-estate perspective, Aqua Class veranda cabins don't compare to Signature or Neptune suite sizes, but the superior service and quality in Blu was really a plus.

 

As mentioned by others, the Celebrity ships have a beautiful, modern feel, which was a nice change to the decor of HAL, which can be all over the place.

 

Demographics can vary of course, but on this particular cruise, the clientele skewed a bit younger than what we usually experience on HAL or Princess.

 

To the OP: I would give HAL a try, but you might find yourself returning to Celebrity. ;)

 

(BTW - our next cruise is back on HAL!)

[oliver1821]

Both are wonderful. Pros on HAL - wrap around promenade decks to walk on, dive in grill and the wonderful staff. Pros on Celebrity - Blu and aqua class their 123 packages much better than HAL. I would go with the ports you most want to do and enjoy your cruise!

[igraf]

You are exaggerating. It is not even close to being that bad, and I am a nonsmoker who prefers to avoid cigarette smoke.

 

igraf

 

 

 

HAL is the smoker's line of choice, everywhere reeks of the stuff. They allow smoking on Balconies (the ONLY line that does) and don't think of using or passing thru' the Casino unless you have a mask. Disgraceful in this modern age !

[Hlitner]

At the risk of creating another smoking thread (we already have one of those for HAL) I will try to give a balanced comparison between the two line (we are 4 Star Mariners on HAL and Elite Plus on X). Unless you book a balcony cabin (or suite) the balcony smoking is not an issue. But if you do book a HAL balcony you run the risk that some of those around you will be smoking cigarettes and/or cigars on their balconies. When we book HAL balconies we know it is like rolling the dice when it comes to smoke. On some cruises we have never had a problem and on others we could hardly ever use our balcony because of nearby smokers.

 

As to inside the ships, Celebrity does not allow any smoking anywhere. But HAL still allows smoking in their casinos. On some HAL ships we thought the casinos smelled like a dirty ashtray, on on others they managed to cover-up the stink with lots of carpet cleaning chemicals and other cleaning agents.

 

On deck both lines allow smoking in limited areas which can usually be avoided by those who do not want to smell smoke.

 

As to food comparisons this is tough because both lines have made major cut-backs in cuisine and it is still happening. So things are always changing. We do think that the alternative restaurants on X are far superior to the offerings on HAL. The MDR used to favor Celebrity, but lately we think its close to a tie. And finally, as to the buffets we think there are some pros and cons to both lines, but overall we prefer X buffets. Ironically, we always thought that the HAL sandwich bar (at lunch in the Lido) was a great pro for HAL and far superior to the sandwich offerings on X. But in recent weeks there have been some posts saying that HAL is in the process of discontinuing the custom made sandwiches...and if that is true it is a real minus for HAL.

 

Hank

Edited August 15, 2015 by Hlitner

[Jade13]

We recently tried Celebrity again after a long absence, primarily due to a great itinerary: Venice to Rome, with stops in Slovenia, Croatia, Montenegro, Sicily and Malta. We were in Aqua Class, which I have to say was a very pleasant experience, primarily due to the perk of eating in the Aqua-dedicated restaurant Blu for both breakfast and dinner.

 

From a real-estate perspective, Aqua Class veranda cabins don't compare to Signature or Neptune suite sizes, but the superior service and quality in Blu was really a plus.

 

As mentioned by others, the Celebrity ships have a beautiful, modern feel, which was a nice change to the decor of HAL, which can be all over the place.

 

Demographics can vary of course, but on this particular cruise, the clientele skewed a bit younger than what we usually experience on HAL or Princess.

 

To the OP: I would give HAL a try, but you might find yourself returning to Celebrity. ;)

 

(BTW - our next cruise is back on HAL!)

 

We only travel on Celebrity in AQU for the private dining venue. I don't understand the comparison to a Neptune Suite on HAL, because AQU is below Suite. If you book a Suite on Celebrity, Sky Suites and up get to dine in Luminae for breakfast, lunch and dinner, the Suite only restaurant that gets rave reviews.

 

The MDR was very good on HAL in May. We would say a tie with Celebrity in BLU (AQU class). From our recent experience, the Celebrity buffet is much better than HAL and better staffed.

 

To avoid balcony smoke pick a balcony farthest forward, so any smoke while moving is behind you.

Edited August 15, 2015 by Jade13

[Jade13]

Both are wonderful. Pros on HAL - wrap around promenade decks to walk on, dive in grill and the wonderful staff. Pros on Celebrity - Blu and aqua class their 123 packages much better than HAL. I would go with the ports you most want to do and enjoy your cruise!

 

Why is the 123 Go Drinks Package (Btw, Celebrity no longer offers that promo - well a similar one with a different name), better than the Explore4 Drinks package on HAL? We have both on future cruises.

Edited August 15, 2015 by Jade13

[Fouremco]

I will try to give a balanced comparison between the two line (we are 4 Star Mariners on HAL and Elite Plus on X).

And so you have! :)

 

DW and I have only cruised HAL and X over the years and find them equally enjoyable. We now rely primarily on itinerary to help decide which line to choose for a given cruise.

 

In spite of cutbacks and grumbles on both the Celebrity and HAL CC boards, both provide value for the money and offer an enjoyable getaway.

[Hlitner]

Why is the 123 Go Drinks Package (Btw, Celebrity no longer offers that promo - well a similar one with a different name), better than the Explore4 Drinks package on HAL? We have both on future cruises.

 

We think that the Celebrity drink package includes more products and there are no daily restrictions like on HAL (not that many folks run up against the HAL max). But our funny tale of the HAL package is that last year we booked a 38 day Oosterdam cruise with the drink package. After several price drops we were able to rebook our $23,000 cabin (with drink package) for less then $12,000! When we did the rebooking our cruise agent called me and said (he was laughing at the time) that we would lose the drink package if we rebooked. We thought about that for about 1/2 second and decided we could not drink $11,000 worth of booze in 38 days :).

 

Hank

[oliver1821]

I stand correction, Celebrity no longer offers 123. I've not had the Explorer drink package as the wine list on HAL is not to my liking. Always bring my own wine on board HAL and pay corkage, yes I'm a wino.....

[oliver1821]

I have done two 7 day Caribbean cruises on Eurodam, and one 12 day Med. cruise on Reflection. The following are just my opinions, and you might have completely different cruising tastes and expectations.

 

I would take Eurodam hands down. In fact, I have turned down a couple of opportunities to go on cruises with friends recently because they were sailing the Reflection again and I have had enough of it. Here's MY take on it:

 

Reflection is a big ship. There are several EXCELLENT restaurants on Reflection and I went to all of them at least once and enjoyed them all. That said, the restaurants cost 40 dollars per guest for dinner, so for a couple that's $80 plus tip more per night added to the cost of your cruise. Of course you can eat in any of the several MDRs or the buffet at no extra cost, the same as on Eurodam, but if you are on the Reflection, I think you are going to want to try the (as I said, excellent) other dining venues. In addition to the restaurants for dinner, there is a great coffee shop, a crepe and soup (forgot the name) restaurant that has delicious lunches, and a gelato shop. The buffet is just so-so. The Lido restaurant on any HAL ship beats it hands down.

 

Okay enough about food.

 

There are other good things about the Reflection of course - but none of them are "good enough" FOR ME to be the deciding factor. The shops are more upscale and plentiful (I don't usually shop on board anyway). The staterooms are just okay. I sailed with a large group of friends and we were in an array of categories so I saw many of them. The suites are nice but without the Neptune Lounge I didn't think they were worth the premium. I was in a regular balcony cabin. The bathroom was quite a bit better than the bathroom on an equivalent Eurodam cabin, but the rest of the cabin was cramped and didn't have as much storage space.

 

My BIGGEST "gripe" with Reflection was the lack of "outdoors". Okay, call me crazy, but I found it hard to "get outside"! Yes, yes, there are ways to get on deck up on the higher decks, but there is NO wrap-around deck such as you have on deck three of the Eurodam, and which in my mind, makes or breaks a cruise!!! I love Eurodam for the "vibe", the relaxed feeling of being "away from it all". I love the Eurodam's amazing crew! As mentioned, the Lido food (and the Dive-In, not to mention the MDR and Pinnacle Grill and Tamarind!!) offer great food at much lower price than the alternative venues on Reflection. Eurodam is a quieter ship, and seems to attract a less "partying" crowd, but keep in mind I've only been on Reflection once and might be putting Eurodam in the basket with all the other HAL ships I have been on....

 

Bottom line for me - if you like to be on deck outside watching the waves or whales, and you like a quieter, more sedate cruise, I would go with Eurodam.

Whatever you choose - have a great time! I know you will!

I so agree with you!

[mcrcruiser]

We are Elite + loyalty level with Celebrity & 3 Star Mariner with Holland . Candidly ,the best advice is to select the cruise by dating ,then itinerary ,then price points . Both lines are comparable for different ambiance ,food quality & service;)

 

We would even consider the newest RCCL ships because of the unique public area amenities :)

 

Which ever cruise line you decide on have a fabulous cruise experience:D