My Thoughts Celebrity VS Princess

[Ozziecruiser]

I would like to share some of my personal observations and opinions with Celebrity and Princess.

 

I just returned from 2 different cruises one on the Celebrity Solstice and the other Royal Princess. Even though Celebrity is currently my favorite cruise line I am starting to lean more towards Princess as I find they are becoming better value for money.

Without a drink package drink prices on Celebrity are extremely high. For example a Greygoose Martini on Celebrity in the Martini bar will cost you $12+ gratuity, on Princess the same cocktail is $6.90 + gratuity that’s almost double the price!

Celebrity Premium package is priced at $65.00 per day per guest plus 18%* gratuity. The wines, cocktails and liquor Celebrity were serving under the Premium package were comparable to what I could get on Princess's drink package which is priced at $49+ per day.

I have also noticed that Celebrities wine selection has very much deteriorated for those people on a Classic package as well as the Premium package compared to what it used to be when they first brought out the packages.

You also use to be able to get freshly squeezed orange juice on Celebrity with a drink package but they do not offer this anymore they have substituted it with fresh orange juice that was bought from a wholesaler. Princess still offer freshly squeezed.

Specialty dining on Princess will cost you $25pp vs Celebrity up to $50pp.

 

Celebrity and their frequent upselling onboard seems to be getting extreme.

 

Don’t get me wrong I love Celebrity, their ships are beautiful and I find the service a little better on Celebrity but I think they are starting to nickel and dime a little too much and Princess is starting to become a more attractive product.

 

Anyone else feel the same way?

[OCruisers]

Thanks for the time for your thoughts.

Both are very nice cruise lines but we tend to prefer Princess. :)

[ChiGal1962]

Thanks for sharing your thoughts. I have only been on one Princess cruise, and overall enjoyed it very much. The particular ship I was on (the Caribbean Princess) was rather run down, though, which didn't help. I do agree that prices are generally lower, although once you have the drink package, it's definitely less noticeable.

 

The one thing that really annoyed me with Princess was having to sign for every drink, despite having the drink package. Seems like a waste of time and paper.

 

Still, although Celebrity continues to be my preferred cruise line for the moment, I'd try Princess again for sure, if the price and itinerary were right.

[Ozziecruiser]

Thanks for sharing your thoughts. I have only been on one Princess cruise, and overall enjoyed it very much. The particular ship I was on (the Caribbean Princess) was rather run down, though, which didn't help. I do agree that prices are generally lower, although once you have the drink package, it's definitely less noticeable.

 

The one thing that really annoyed me with Princess was having to sign for every drink, despite having the drink package. Seems like a waste of time and paper.

 

Still, although Celebrity continues to be my preferred cruise line for the moment, I'd try Princess again for sure, if the price and itinerary were right.

 

On the Royal Princess we did not have to sign for the drinks if we had a drink package. Princess must of recently changed the procedure.

 

Have a great cruise on the Reflection! She is my favorite Celebrity ship.

[Cruise Junky]

I can't say I agree because we usually get the drink package as a perk so I don't really care what the drink prices are. Last cruise I got three dinners for $99 so again, couple of bucks cheaper on Princess, doesn't matter to me. I find the restaurants on Celebrity far superior.

 

We're balcony people and Regal with its smurf balconies leaves me cold. I have 11 cruises on Princess so don't get me wrong, I'm not bashing them but these days I find them just too vanilla and really expensive. Similar 10 day Caribbean cruise in November is $1400 CDN more than Equinox and on X u get all 4 perks on Princess I get a drink package only

[OCruisers]

On the Royal Princess we did not have to sign for the drinks if we had a drink package. Princess must of recently changed the procedure.

......

 

Princess is very inconsistent and random with needing to sign for each drink with the drink package.

Some places on the ship we had to sign but not in other places.

Never in the places we went frequently.

[Hlitner]

Enjoyed reading the OP's post. Our experience is similar except we used to be frequent Princess cruisers (been Elite for many years) but stopped cruising the line about 5 years ago because of their drop in quality. However, about 2 years ago we took a long Ruby Princess cruise and were delighted. So last October we did 10 days on the new Regal Princess (sister ship to the Royal) and were wowed by the improvements in quality, cuisine, and even the entertainment.

 

Celebrity's relatively CEO has been rapidly increasing prices while she also enacts more cut-backs. The result is that our next X cruise (in November) may be our last until we hear of some changes. Princess is certainly high on our list at the moment, but we are now looking at 21 day Caribbean cruises on HAL's newest ship instead of our annual 14 day Eclipse Cruise. We currently cruise over 70 days a year and would love to keep X in the mix....but they are going to have to show us something very special on our next cruise to justify their new pricing schemes.

 

Hank

[Cruise Raider]

We absolutely love Celebrity but cruise a lot on Princess as well. I tend to agree with everything the OP has noted ... Celebrity is more expensive if you don't get the free perks. When we sail on Princess, we usually sail out of San Francisco and think they need to give us a ship other than the Grand for awhile. The crew is fabulous (as of last December) but the ship is tired so not a fair comparison when comparing it to the S-class, or even the M-class, on Celebrity.

But, I do agree that the special restaurants on Celebrity are wonderful but would rather pay half the price and go to the Crown Grill on Princess.

 

PS -- the elite perks on Celebrity are more valuable than the elite perks on Princess. I am sure others will disagree ... but this is what works for us.

[OCruisers]

Celebrity - Princess

Happily, both are nice. No "culture shock" going from one to another. :D

LuLu

[Gracie115]

We enjoyed our one cruise on Princess on the Regal last year but still find Celebrity outshines in almost all categories. Food was much better on X, Princess has a very inferior Select Dining program...we were given beepers on 2 occasions because the line was so long..service in general in the MDR was nowhere near as good as on X.

 

We enjoyed Vines on the Regal very much and found it to be a far superior wine lounge than Cellar Masters on X ships.

 

As has already been mentioned Princess balconies are tiny and on the two new ships (Regal & Royal) there is no way to walk all the way around the ship on the upper floors as there is on all X ships...something we really enjoy.

 

We enjoyed our cruise on Regal and will certainly keep watching Princess itineraries and if we see one we like wouldn't hesitate to cruise with Princess again, but still prefer Celebrity....feel it's a step up... I would frankly equate Princess more to Royals ships BEFORE the OASIS & Anthem class....

[ClaudiaB]

So.....if a person who has only sailed on Celebrity and no other line (13 mostly 2-week cruises on X, mostly in sky suites).......what would be a comparable Princess ship and comparable cabin to the S class?

[Lastdance]

Enjoyed reading the OP's post. Our experience is similar except we used to be frequent Princess cruisers (been Elite for many years) but stopped cruising the line about 5 years ago because of their drop in quality. However, about 2 years ago we took a long Ruby Princess cruise and were delighted. So last October we did 10 days on the new Regal Princess (sister ship to the Royal) and were wowed by the improvements in quality, cuisine, and even the entertainment.

 

Celebrity's relatively CEO has been rapidly increasing prices while she also enacts more cut-backs. The result is that our next X cruise (in November) may be our last until we hear of some changes. Princess is certainly high on our list at the moment, but we are now looking at 21 day Caribbean cruises on HAL's newest ship instead of our annual 14 day Eclipse Cruise. We currently cruise over 70 days a year and would love to keep X in the mix....but they are going to have to show us something very special on our next cruise to justify their new pricing schemes.

 

Hank

 

 

How in earth do you do 70 days a year on a cruise ship, especially with all that food? I guess you are truly a cruise connoisseur...

 

 

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[Von & John]

We enjoy both Celebrity & Princess and even NCL. For us it's truly all about the itinerary & the value. The itinerary is what captures us and then value assists with the decision making process. "Value" is a fluid commodity - to us it doesn't mean the cheapest price but rather the combination of itinerary, price, perks & benefits.... We generally cruise balcony or concierge w/ a smattering of ocean view. Again, "value" rears its' head here as well. Value also changes cruise to cruise, dependent on what else is happening in our lives at the time. The one non-negotiable we factor in is an Ultimate Dining Plan, if we sail on NCL. We enjoy the food on both Celebrity & Princess, but w/ NCL - must have the dining package.

 

Celebrity service and space/person provides the extra little kiss to make the vacation that much more enjoyable :)

[riclop]

We agree with your thoughts.

[Hlitner]

How in earth do you do 70 days a year on a cruise ship, especially with all that food? I guess you are truly a cruise connoisseur...

 

 

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LOL! Actually its quite easy....and one could do over 100 days on a single cruise if so inclined. As of today we have only done two cruises (since March)...but they do total 79 days (55+24). We have a 14 day cruise booked in November and might try to grab another last minute cruise (if we can get a great deal) in late October.

 

But our 70-100 day cruising habit is really small potatoes compared to many other cruises (especially on HAL or Cunard). We have met a few cruisers who routinely cruise over 10 months a year....and one lady who actually lives (or perhaps its now past tense) on a cruise ship.

 

As to food and gaining weight, when we were young (and foolish) we could gain nearly 1 pound a day. But now, we usually gain little to no weight and even lose a little on some cruises. We do our share of eating and drinking, but also do a lot of walking. In fact, on some cruises we manage to totally avoid elevators. In ports, we generally do not take tours...and will often walk over 5 miles (the best way to see most cities is on foot). The cruise lines have also helped by their portion control....and eliminating mid night buffets (had them every night in the good ole days).

 

Hank

Edited August 13, 2016 by Hlitner

[wallie5446]

We have sailed on both lines, 1st Princess in 1992, 1st Celebrity in 1994. Our last Princess was the Ruby in 2012 when it was only a year old. It was a good cruise but no where close to the quality we find with Celebrity. Yes the Crown Grill was only $25 pp compared to $33 pp for Murano or Tuscan ( we get a pkg ) but the quality of the steak and the lobster was extremely lacking, as was the level of service in the CG.

 

So we will pay the higher cost to sail on a Celebrity ship.

EW

[Jetswdo]

We are usually on Princess or celebrity. We prefer on Princess the self service washers and dryers. Their website is very easy to use. On Celebrity, we prefer the adult experience in Solarium with enclosed pool. Princess charges a fortune for their "adult" area, which on the Royal which is similar in size to Solstice ships- and I don't think is any where as nice as Celebrity experience with that. Generally, I prefer Celebrity restaurant choices, but am disappointed that my favorite Bistro is now a sushi restaurant-- I don't eat that. Celebrity I have a found a bit classier overall than Princess. I have to say that I was on the Coral Princess last Dec. and the food was really quite good, though I like having more choices that Celebrity offers. I hate the Celebrity web site-- had an issue with a booked excursion cancelled and we were not notified--that was annoying to say the least.

 

In Feb. I will be on a ship I don't care for on Royal Caribbean, only because it is the only ship that does an itinerary that my dh really wants to do- unfortunately Princess only has that exact cruise over xmas at twice the price-- we try now to avoid school holidays when we can- so RC is getting our business for the first time in 16 years! I will say though that Princess and Celebrity are I think more alike than different. I would love to try HAL, but until they change their smoking policy, it isn't the cruise line for us.

[BosoxI]

I took my first Princess cruise back in 1986 out of Sydney and for years afterwards it was my first choice, having tried four or five other lines including Celebrity. Then I discovered how easy it was to become Elite on Celebrity at the time, so DW and I switched over to take advantage of that. We were pleased to find that Celebrity's food and dining room service had improved markedly since our first cruises with X in the early 1990s.

 

At that point we switched from Princess and I'm not really sure why. Princess' itineraries always suited us better and to this day their food is better than X's. My wife really likes the Solstice class ships but we both have spent many days on the Pacific Princess which provides such a classic experience. We are now about even on the number of cruises we've taken on both-25 or so on each. But I love Cunard and we recently took a cruise on MSC in their Yacht Club and if the price were right, I think we'd quickly jump ship for MSC but only in the YC. It's nice to be so easily pleased.

[OBX-Cruisers]

"Celebrity's relatively CEO has been rapidly increasing prices while she also enacts more cut-backs. The result is that our next X cruise (in November) may be our last until we hear of some changes. Princess is certainly high on our list at the moment, but we are now looking at 21 day Caribbean cruises on HAL's newest ship instead of our annual 14 day Eclipse Cruise. We currently cruise over 70 days a year and would love to keep X in the mix....but they are going to have to show us something very special on our next cruise to justify their new pricing schemes."

 

Hank

 

I have also been frustrated by the rapidly increasing prices on X with the new woman CEO in place. The "perks" are definitely NOT free and they have only added to the daily costs of cruising on X and cruises with a Verandah cabin typically start at $150 pp/day up to above $200 pp/day and if you do not get the "free" gratuities add those on to your daily charges as we will get to do on our TA in October.

 

We really enjoy X and the hot glass shows on 3 of the S class ships but the cruise prices are getting to be out of sight of our daily cost targets compared to other options with similar or better attractions.

 

Celebrity will be evolving further in the near future I predict as the total price to value ratio gets lower and lower. Their new production shows I read on CC will be an additional challenge for our favorite cruise line as we now start looking more seriously at HAL and Princess which both allow you to combine shareholder credit with cruiseline perks.........UNLIKE RCL and any of their cruiselines like X.

Edited August 13, 2016 by OBX-Cruisers

[OBX-Cruisers]

I was recently astounded by the significant improvements in the Celebrity website when I went in to do a precruise check in. GREATLY improved to say the least and many lines in the forms are pre-filled using your Captains club account information. Excursions were similarly easy.

However, I recently received a call from X informing me that I have a Future Cruise credit purchased 3 yrs ago I forgot about. This information is NOT linked in their computer system and too bad but you cannot use it for the current cruise you booked where we did not tell you about this credit.

Seems like a simple fix for a high school computer geek but this must be rocket science for Celebrity and their tech-challenged IT consultants.

 

We are usually on Princess or celebrity. We prefer on Princess the self service washers and dryers. Their website is very easy to use. On Celebrity, we prefer the adult experience in Solarium with enclosed pool. Princess charges a fortune for their "adult" area, which on the Royal which is similar in size to Solstice ships- and I don't think is any where as nice as Celebrity experience with that. Generally, I prefer Celebrity restaurant choices, but am disappointed that my favorite Bistro is now a sushi restaurant-- I don't eat that. Celebrity I have a found a bit classier overall than Princess. I have to say that I was on the Coral Princess last Dec. and the food was really quite good, though I like having more choices that Celebrity offers. I hate the Celebrity web site-- had an issue with a booked excursion cancelled and we were not notified--that was annoying to say the least.

 

In Feb. I will be on a ship I don't care for on Royal Caribbean, only because it is the only ship that does an itinerary that my dh really wants to do- unfortunately Princess only has that exact cruise over xmas at twice the price-- we try now to avoid school holidays when we can- so RC is getting our business for the first time in 16 years! I will say though that Princess and Celebrity are I think more alike than different. I would love to try HAL, but until they change their smoking policy, it isn't the cruise line for us.

Edited August 13, 2016 by OBX-Cruisers

[cynbar]

So.....if a person who has only sailed on Celebrity and no other line (13 mostly 2-week cruises on X, mostly in sky suites).......what would be a comparable Princess ship and comparable cabin to the S class?

 

I think the Princess mini suite is most similar to the sky suite on Celebrity, it has a full couch and a bathroom with tub/shower combo and full vanity. Princess is just starting a new program where they have a reserved section of the MDR for suite passengers, and some of the mini suites get access to this perk (for an additional charge over the other mini suites of course.) We sailed in a Princess suite in May and were disappointed that their suite perks were miles behind Celebrity, but the new suite dining area will likely close some of that gap. As far as ships, the Royal and Regal are the newest Princess ships and probably the closest to the S class. M class is closer to the older Princess ships (Emerald, Crown, Ruby and so on.)

 

We also enjoy both lines and cruise both, we mainly choose based on itinerary at this point. Service on both has been excellent, food in the MDR has been better on Princess but they don't have the options of Blu and now Luminae. No Michael's Club on Princess which we did miss. Princess has self serve laundries and irons (great on a longer cruise), as well as the International Cafe which we prefer over Cafe al Baccio. But both offer an excellent cruise experience.

[hubofhockey]

Interesting thread as we have been regulars on Princess and have always wanted to try Celebrity. Princess seemed to come up with better itineraries and slightly better pricing. I do think Princess started to go downhill after 2010. Omelet stations with pan made omelets seemed to give way to flat omelets on the grill. It was little things like that and some cutting of corners on the Royal Princess that now has us looking elsewhere and we definitely prefer the Ruby Princess to the new Royal/Regal Princess. Our next cruise is a 9-day Adriatic from Venice next July on the Constellation (doing aqua class). To be honest, if the cruise experience itself is similar, we'll be okay.

[BosoxI]

I think the Princess mini suite is most similar to the sky suite on Celebrity, it has a full couch and a bathroom with tub/shower combo and full vanity. Princess is just starting a new program where they have a reserved section of the MDR for suite passengers, and some of the mini suites get access to this perk (for an additional charge over the other mini suites of course.) We sailed in a Princess suite in May and were disappointed that their suite perks were miles behind Celebrity, but the new suite dining area will likely close some of that gap. As far as ships, the Royal and Regal are the newest Princess ships and probably the closest to the S class. M class is closer to the older Princess ships (Emerald, Crown, Ruby and so on.)

 

QUOTE]

 

For me there's no comparison with a Sky Suite and a mini suite. Celebrity wins hands down as far as the physical attributes go. Plus Luminae.

 

Some have been complaining about the cost of an X cruise. Amen. Last year we took three back to backs over Christmas and New Years. This year we'll settle for just one and that will be prior to Christmas. No way we're spending what X is asking for a holiday cruise. We'll hole up in SW Florida and save a bundle while enjoying ourselves just as much.

[DrivesLikeMario]

Princess' mini-suite compared to Celebrity's Sky Suite is comparing apples to oranges. There is no comparison in level of service or perks, which are non-existent with a Princess mini-suite.

 

That said, OP, I agree with your observations and it is very well know to those of us that cruise Princess a lot that their beverage prices are some of the very lowest in the industry.

 

Although we're at the Elite level with both cruise lines, Princess is always our first choice. We love their Elite perks and their less segmented dining program. But, if Princess doesn't have an itinerary we want, we always look to Celebrity next. Both are great cruise lines and both do some things really well. ;)

[easyboy]

Thanks for sharing your thoughts.