NCL Dawn or Celebrity Eclipse?

[CruisinJamma]

Currently have a deposit made on the April 2017 NCL Dawn 12 night cruise. We've only taken one cruise so far and that was on NCL Getaway. If the choice was yours, would you take the 12 night NCL Dawn or a 14 night Celebrity Eclipse cruise? The money is not this issue. We are 49 and 51 right now, if that has any bearing on the answers. How does Celebrity compare to NCL? Better? Worse? Ship comparisons? Any help is greatly appreciated. Thanks in advance :)

[Aquahound]

I have cruised both the Dawn and the Eclipse. There is no comparison whatsoever. Definitely go with Eclipse.

 

I cruised Dawn 1 time....and it will always be just that 1 time. I will never set foot on that ship again. In fact, my cruise on Dawn made me never want to sail NCL again. That was, until I tried their new Escape a couple months ago.

 

Celebrity Solstice Class ships are the most beautiful ships I have ever been on. The service and food is a lot better on Celebrity. The staterooms are nicer, public areas are nicer, and Celebrity does not permit smoking anywhere inside their ships, including the casino. NCL still allows it.

[fishywood]

You have picked the two most polar opposite of the mainstream cruise lines to compare.

 

If you enjoyed the "freestyle" experience of NCL then Celebrity may not be your cup of tea. Most passengers are wannabe-luxury cruisers who think they are getting a premium experience just because Celebrity charges a premium price (compared to the other mainstream lines). But on my one Celebrity cruise the service in Select dining and the overall customer service (from the pursers and excursion desks) was among the worst I have ever seen.

 

But note that the Dawn carries fewer than half the passengers as Getaway and does not have many of the mega-ship features that you may have liked. Though neither will the Eclipse. And it would be very helpful if you told us where the cruises you are considering go, and how comparable the exact itineraries are--unless your sole decision will be based on ship & cruise line.

Edited June 17, 2016 by fishywood

[TMLAalum]

You have picked the two most polar opposite of the mainstream cruise lines to compare.

 

If you enjoyed the "freestyle" experience of NCL then Celebrity may not be your cup of tea. Most passengers are wannabe-luxury cruisers who think they are getting a premium experience just because Celebrity charges a premium price (compared to the other mainstream lines). But on my one Celebrity cruise the service in Select dining and the overall customer service (from the pursers and excursion desks) was among the worst I have ever seen.

 

But note that the Dawn carries fewer than half the passengers as Getaway and does not have many of the mega-ship features that you may have liked. Though neither will the Eclipse. And it would be very helpful if you told us where the cruises you are considering go, and how comparable the exact itineraries are--unless your sole decision will be based on ship & cruise line.

 

Based on fishy's opinion highlighted in red, you'd think Celebrity cruisers are a bunch of snobs. Not that we've found. And pricing is very competitive! Plus Select Dining is comparable to Freestyle, dress code has been changed to NO FORMAL NIGHTS (evening chic which for the guys means nice shirt and no tie required) and there are several specialty restaurants at an upcharge like on NCL to choose from in addition to the MDR. Celeb's drinks packages include gratuities- not always the case with NCLs.

 

Extrapolating from one one-off experience is a broad generalization. We've had mostly excellent customer service on Celebrity, despite occasional issues, such as possibly the worst table in the MDR. (Resolved by maitre 'd the 2nd night).

 

Our first cruise ever was on NCL's Pearl and I thought it was great. But then we sailed Celebrity and noticed a difference immediately in the absence of constant 'pitching' for bingo, etc. and in customer service, e.g. at my 1st breakfast at the Eclipse buffet, a server noticed me searching the stations for fresh strawberries. Although they were not being served at the buffet, she took the time to fetch some from the kitchen and bring them to me personally.

 

I would go for the 14 day itinerary on Celebrity!

Edited June 17, 2016 by TMLAalum

[fishywood]

Extrapolating from one one-off experience is a broad generalization. We've had mostly excellent customer service on Celebrity, despite occasional issues, such as possibly the worst table in the MDR. (Resolved by maitre 'd the 2nd night).

 

Our first cruise ever was on NCL's Pearl and I thought it was great. But then we sailed Celebrity and noticed a difference immediately in the absence of constant 'pitching' for bingo, etc. and in customer service, e.g. at my 1st breakfast at the Eclipse buffet, a server noticed me searching the stations for fresh strawberries. Although they were not being served at the buffet, she took the time to fetch some from the kitchen and bring them to me personally.

 

Well the post above mine was similarly dismissive based on a single cruse--but of NCL, not of the line you chose to cheerlead for.

 

And I can counter your anecdotes with ones of mine: on Celebrity Infinity even the simplest requests were greeted with a big NO. Can I order the chicken but served with the rice that the fish comes with? NO. And every night the MDR was out of something on the menu by 8:30, whether a salad dressing or a dessert. And on nights when the MDR was low on desserts the only option was room service as there are no desserts in the buffet after 11:00--and at that hour I was usually still in the dining room after lining up for Select Dining around 8:30. Bars that were listed in the Celebrity Today as open untii 1 AM were impossible to get served at by 11:30 as the staff was too busy stacking chairs to notice any passengers.

 

And yes I escalated my complaints: got a meeting attended by the HD and the PSD. Both of whom barely spoke English and would respond to my statements by muttering to each other in Portuguese. And concluded the meeting by asking ME to apologize to THEM.

Edited June 17, 2016 by fishywood

[Aquahound]

Well the post above mine was similarly dismissive based on a single cruse--but of NCL....

 

No it wasn't. I've cruised NCL 8 times and my dismissiveness was specifically about a ship the OP is asking about...the Dawn. I've actually cruised the 2 ships the OP is asking about and that's what I was comparing.

 

And as I pointed out in my post, I later went on a new NCL ship and it renewed my faith in NCL. There's a big difference between the older Dawn and the newer Escape, just like there's a big difference between the older Infinity and the newer Eclipse.

[CruisinJamma]

The ports for NCL Dawn are Cozumel, Mexico; Roatan, Bay Islands, Honduras; Cartagena; San Juan; and Tortola.

 

The ports of Celebrity Eclipse are Kralendijk, Bonaire; Willemstad, Curacao; Oranjestad, Aruba (overnight); Bridgetown, Barbados; Basseterre, St. Kitts; and Phillipsburg, St. Maarten.

 

The only one of those ports we've seen is Tortola.

 

I appreciate the feedback thus far. We loved being onboard the ship and stayed onboard for a couple of the ports on our first cruise, but maybe based on the ports AND the ship, which would you prefer?

[Aquahound]

The ports for NCL Dawn are Cozumel, Mexico; Roatan, Bay Islands, Honduras; Cartagena; San Juan; and Tortola.

 

The ports of Celebrity Eclipse are Kralendijk, Bonaire; Willemstad, Curacao; Oranjestad, Aruba (overnight); Bridgetown, Barbados; Basseterre, St. Kitts; and Phillipsburg, St. Maarten.

 

The only one of those ports we've seen is Tortola.

 

I appreciate the feedback thus far. We loved being onboard the ship and stayed onboard for a couple of the ports on our first cruise, but maybe based on the ports AND the ship, which would you prefer?

 

That only confirms my choice. I much prefer the Southern Caribbean and the ABC islands. Bonaire is my favorite island in the entire Caribbean.

[CruisinJamma]

Thanks Aquahound. I was leaning toward the Southern route myself, and I would like to try another cruise line, just for comparison purposes. We really did enjoy NCL Getaway, but we're wanting to try others as well :)