What Should I Expect On My Celebrity Cruise vs Princess?

[CruiseFever]

We just booked our first Celebrity cruise on the Century in January. For those who have sailed both, what stands out as being different on Celebrity vs Princess?

 

Thanks in advance for your patience if I'm asking repetitive questions...I really did try to search first!

 

:)

[Longboysfan]

As with just about every line vs Celebrity ...

 

Food and Service will be a bit better than you have had on Princess.

 

Hit the Sushi bar at 6pm till 10 pm.

 

Hit the singer on the back deck from 6 till 10 also.

 

The entertainment may be about equal.

Princess did have a few more ship board activities during the day.

 

Room may be slightly bigger than the standard princess room.

[DeltaOne]

We just booked our first Celebrity cruise on the Century in January. For those who have sailed both, what stands out as being different on Celebrity vs Princess?

 

As the OP said, the food and service will be just a bit better. Fewer (almost zero) announcements. The buffet has a true start and end...seems less chaotic to me.

 

Celebrity's entertainment is quite good, and it's easier to get a seat. On the Caribbean Princess last January you had to make it to the theater a good 30 to 40 minutes early to get seats. On Celebrity...maybe ten minutes.

 

Champagne on your arrival, chilled towels when returning from a port visit.

 

All-in-all, Celebrity and Princess are quite close. We love Celebrity for their food and service, we love Princess for their Personal Choice dining.

[kelmac]

We just booked our first Celebrity cruise on the Century in January. For those who have sailed both, what stands out as being different on Celebrity vs Princess?

 

Thanks in advance for your patience if I'm asking repetitive questions...I really did try to search first!

 

:)

 

CruiseFever,

 

The Century is a nice ship; the Millennium class ships are even better. These are the things that you will notice about Celebrity compared to Princess:

--more formal atmosphere

--much better dining room cuisine

--better service

--more room per passenger

--a little more mature crowd, fewer children

--similar entertainment

--fewer activities

--unfortunately the Century does not have an alternative restaurant

--no personal choice stuff

--fewer public announcements

 

No such thing as a bad cruise!

Enjoy!

Kel

[Nitemare]

Salt Water pools instead of Fresh Water

No Announcements!

Better Service (slightly)

Not as good/much entertainment

Better food

[Outlanderssc]

Hit the singer on the back deck from 6 till 10 also.

 

Note: I think you meant ENJOY the singer on the back deck, striking the entertainers is not recommended. ;)

[GeminiA]

Slightly better service & significantly better food on Celebrity. The food quality on Princess is so disappointing.

I thought the entertainment is just as good on Celebrity as on Princess, but Princess has more activities.

One thing Princess is definately better is that their photo gallery is much better organized than Celebrity's, & the other lines I've cruised on. They make sure you can easily find the photo's you've taken on the cruise, so they can sell those overpriced pictures to you.;)

[CruiseFever]

Thanks so much for these comments, just what I've been looking for!

[flashdog_1]

I don't know if Princess has thalossotherapy pools, but Celebrity does. Go to celebrity.com and see photos. Unfortunately, on Century, unless one is in a suite, one has to pay for the privilege of using it. On the Millenium class ships, Summit, Infinity, Millenium and Constellation they are free and anyone over 18 may use them.

 

Celebrity's ships do not belch out black smoke, and the line in general has a real concern about environmental issues.

 

You'll not see dirty room service dishes in the hall ways. Celebrity has a procedure that you just dial a number when you have finished eating and the trays will be removed from your room immediately.

 

All staterooms on Century (and all other ships except Zenith) have a minibar fridge. All staterooms have bathrobes for free use during the cruise, and umbrellas and a Celebrity shopping bag.

 

Bathrooms are decent sizes, and the shower is large in comparison to many ships' bathrooms.

 

Ice cream bar with sprinkles etc. are free on Celebrity. Art is interesting. There's a sushi bar, make your own pasta and pizza where you choose the ingredients. Waffle station, omelette station in mornings.

 

Room service during dining room hours does not limit you to the regular room service menu. You may order off the dining room menu. Ask your steward for a menu and he/she will order it for you. Be sure to ask for any and all condiments.

 

Special breakfast menu in concierge class.

 

You haven't told us your stateroom number or category, so if you do, perhaps someone will be able to compare better than i did. Which sailing in January? I'll be on the 2 nigher Jan 12.

[nparmelee]

If you ask the same question on the Princess board, they'll probably prefer Princess. We met a couple on our Celebrity cruise that preferred the food on Princess, we preferred Celebrity. There are advantages to each and most of the differences seem to be pretty subjective. For us it will probably come down to itinerary and price, if the itineraries are similar and prices about the same, we lean to Celebrity.

[CruiseFever]

Thanks!

 

I'm on that same January 2 nighter in CC class cabin 1099.

[CruiseFever]

...You haven't told us your stateroom number or category, so if you do, perhaps someone will be able to compare better than i did. Which sailing in January? I'll be on the 2 nigher Jan 12.

 

We're on that Jan 12th 2 nighter too. Category CC Cabin 1099+

 

Thanks!

[SS Cruise Lady]

I have never sailed Princess, but one of my friends who sailed Celebrity's Summit in the Carribean and The Coral Princess in Alaska felt the food and ships themselves were comparable.

[mii]

If you ask the same question on the Princess board, they'll probably prefer Princess. We met a couple on our Celebrity cruise that preferred the food on Princess, we preferred Celebrity. There are advantages to each and most of the differences seem to be pretty subjective. For us it will probably come down to itinerary and price, if the itineraries are similar and prices about the same, we lean to Celebrity.

 

This is exactly what I would also say. Having cruised Princess many times for the first time we cruised on Celebrity this year and in my opinion the food is the same in the dining room. Now Celebrity has some very good points in that during lunch hours they have a sandwich bar which is wonderful and Princess does not. The showers are big at Celebrity, Princess has Anytime Dining. Each line has their own advantages and I would sail both of them again depending on itiniery and price.

 

marilyn

[usha]

I would say the most glaring difference between Celebrity & Princess is that Celebrity ships feel much more spacious. Princess seemed awfully crowded to me. Also, I would say the service on Celebrity is much, much better than Princess. I thought the food was pretty comparable on both lines, with Celebrity's presentation being better. The showers on Celebrity's ships are enormous compared to the tiny cubicles on Princess.

 

I can't imagine you could possibly be disappointed on Celebrity if you've enjoyed Princess.

[donnaw]

Did Grand Princess in January and Galaxy in October. My Grand review on CC covers many of the differences and here is a summary from the unpublished Galaxy review: I'm sure I missed some which the rest will fill in.

 

Special Celebrity Touches

 

1) Champagne upon boarding.

2) Sorbet parade on sea days.

3) Cold damp towels upon boarding in ports.

4) Midnight bites.

5) Sushi bar nightly.

6) Caesar Salad Station at lunch.

7) Ice Cream, Ice Cream and Ice Cream free and made on the ship.

8) Cova chocolates on the pillow every night.

9) Free specialty pastries at Cova Café (Coffee is charged).

10) Lack of announcements (Noon update only).

11) The ability to stay in the cabin until disembarkation.

 

Celebrity wins

 

1) All the Celebrity special touches as listed above.

2) Coffee tastes better (highly subjective)

3) Beef

4) Cabin storage

5) Water provided in cabin

6) Ability to stay in cabin until disembarkation

7) Lack of the 3% fee to access funds in the casino or pay for Bingo and tournaments

8) Lack of announcements

9) Lower keyed sales tactics – shops sell but lacking constant announcements promoting them

10) Pizza – variety and flavor

11) Caesar Salad station

12) Dining Room breakfast menu

13) Shower size/configuration and water pressure

14) Trays in buffet (Princess has gone to larger plates but no trays)

15) More wait staff in buffet to assist with carrying trays and finding tables

16) Better tasting free drinks at ship sponsored events

17) Stockholder discount program (Princess is not well defined and of limited use since it can not be combined with most other offers)

18) Two shows per night eliminating lines and providing excellent seats

19) Support of Cruise Critic by providing a meeting venue for groups of 25 or more CC members

 

 

 

Princess wins

1) Laundry rooms and ironing facilities

2) 24/7 freshwater pools and hot tubs

3) Buffet variety at both breakfast and lunch

4) Late night Bistro in buffet area

5) Drink prices

6) More variety of liquor that can be ordered by the bottle for stateroom use

7) Empty refrigerators in the stateroom (Celebrity has mini bar set up that you can request your cabin attendant to remove

8) Coke Card price

9) Specialty Drink sticker offering lower price on daily specials

10) Staff friendlier and more outgoing with stopping to chat

11) In a port intensive itinerary on the smaller ships, PC dining can have its advantages

12) Champagne Waterfall on the last formal night

13) MUTS on the ships where it is available

14) Satellite access for games and news

15) Book on Board program offering an open booking program

16) Loyalty perks with higher levels including free internet access in off-peak times for platinum members

17) Mail slots on each cabin door providing one location to check for information

 

 

You'll have a great cruise!

[ecslady]

Donnaw - You really summed it up. I could only think of a few more things to add both food related:

 

1-Great waffle station.

2-Much better Shrimp cocktail and seafood entrees.

[Cruise Junky]

To be completely honest, the food in the dining room on our last Celebrity cruise was the worst of 5 cruises. Creme Brulee that the whole table ordered took one bite of and almost spit out...it was hot all the way through and that was just the first night, worst Lobster we've ever had, couldn't finish it. 12 nights, we ate in the dining room 5 times. Maybe it was a one off and they were having a bad time with the food, but it was not good.

[alolewis]

Did Summit to June Alaska 2004, Coral Princess Panama Canal Nov 2005, both ships were similar.

Staff is friendier on Princess, on Celebrity they are more nhind the scenes, i.e. on Princess our Cabin Attendant introduced himself first day, On Celebrity they are taught to be invisible and I had to go look up my Cabin Attendant.

Both ships were clean but saw more people cleaning on Celebrity. Did CC class on Summit and Mini-suite on Coral, mini-suite bigger and more storage. Room service for breakfast Celebrity wins hand down as very limited menu on Princess (Continental only)

Seems like Princess is always sell, sell, sell with several announcements per day about Bingo, etc, loved the no announcements by Celebrity. Only free beverages except at breakfast are coffee, tea, ice tea and water. Princess is usually less expensive.

Boarding was faster on Princess but may have been the time we got to the pier.

Liked both, only cruises I have done that I would not recommend are one on Carnival but that was in 1984 on one of the older ships (even for then) and Costa as the service was not up to par (1991 timeframe). Can't go wrong with either Celebrity or Princess, I would choose by itinary and price.

[donnaw]

One item that we did not touch on in dining differences really impacts those coming over from PC dining. You can make reservations in the buffet area if you want more casual dining on Celebrity but most don't. Also, the Millie class does have specialty restaraunts.

 

The big difference occurs when you do the traditional. If you order iced tea the first two nights, it will be brought to you immediately after you are seated on the rest of your cruise. Galaxy had excellent creme brulee on the first night and we requested it for every night and got it along with any other desserts that we ordered. There is definitely something to be said for having a wait staff that knows your likes and dislikes. By the third night, they are able to make excellent suggestions and every one of them was worth taking.

 

Summary, we have never been unhappy with either line but our expectations are adjusted based upon which line we book.

[CGTNORMANDIE]

We just returned from 2 Princess cruises and we are still in favor of Celebrity over-all.

 

The Grand Class ships are spectacular and we loved them...STAR and CARIBBEAN PRINCESS. The Mini Suites are the biggest and best bang for the buck...better size and design than Celebrity Concierge Suites...but... Celebrity does everything better...much better service in the cabin and everywhere else. The food selections in the food court were no better on Princess and sometimes a lot worse. Princess lacks the finishing touches...feels more mass produced. We like the food court on Celebrity much more than on Princess. Plus Celebrity has the spa offerings. To be honest...neither Princess nor Celebrity do Italian food that well. Pizza would be great on both if they could just get their sauce and cheese done right...they don't. Some pax rave about the pizza but I think they have been dining at Pizza Hut too long. The pasta dishes on Princess were not that good and I find Celebrity needs lessons in pasta making too.

 

DINING: PRINCESS has Personal Choice...you can get a good waiter and assistant at dinner or you can get a not-so-good team...it took us 2 or 3 nights before we could find a good one on Princess. Then we had to make reservations every night for 8:30 because this seemed to be the time that the service worked out best and even then if all the tables in your section sat down to dine at the same time you would get so-so service. We have never had a problem on CELEBRITY...the food and service in the dining room have always been top notch...from the get-go.

 

The Sterling Steakhouse on PRINCESS was a definite winner...only $15.00 and a great menu with multiple choices. The steak and shrimp were very good for shipboard offerings. CELEBRITY Millennium Class has the classic alternative restaurants and they are excellent but limited on menu selections. Sterling Steakhouse is not anywhere close to the atmosphere of the CELEBRITY alternative restaurants...there is no comparison...CELEBRITY wins on that one.

 

PRINCESS pools might be fresh water but you can't hear yourself think with the loud music...and this proved to be a definite minus on both cruises...although PRINCESS Grand Class offers more locations for lounge chairs than CELEBRITY...but...CELEBRITY has a much better spa system.

PRINCESS wins on the activity level...there is more to do on Grand Class and surprisingly...PRINCESS has the best art auctions at sea...really fascinating and high quality. CELEBRITY has the best lecture series...no contest. PRINCESS has the best Captain's Reception on Grand Class...nicely done in the Atrium and plenty of complimentary drinks. The champagne tower is another nice touch which was inherited from SITMAR.

 

CASINO: Stay out of the PRINCESS casino is you are not playing table games. I got a jackpot on a machine and I saw the printout while I was being paid off...the machines are set at 90%...these are truly horrible odds. With 3,000 pax playing every week they do not have more than 1 major jackpot being hit every 2-3 weeks...that is truly horrible. CELEBRITY does marginally better and has better personel in the casino...and without a 3% charge for credit card cash.

 

These are just a few observations but in these times of high prices it is well worth looking at PRINCESS. My thinking on PRINCESS is that CARNIVAL is making PRINCESS into the upscale version of CARNIVAL and the pax are transitioning to PRINCESS after a few CARNIVAL cruises. I found this to be true after talking to a few pax on our last cruises. This means that PRINCESS is more mass production while CELEBRITY offers more personal sevice. Both have great crews that re trying very hard to satisfy the pax.

 

BOTTOM LINE: I wish CELEBRITY had the Grand Class ships of PRINCESS.

 

ROSS

[PescadoAmarillo]

Chris- Although many people rave about the Millenium Class of Celebrity ship (and they ARE gorgeous), the Century Class of ship is my favorite...I've been on them all and every time I get on one I feel like I am being welcomed back home by family. The Century does not have any indoor pool except for the thallosotherapy pool, but that is the only downside I can mention. As for comparison to Princess...here's what I put together several months ago when I did both cruise lines back to back in rapid succession (a lot of this has already been mentioned above:) ):

 

Celebrity

 

Service

-Champagne and escort to cabin upon welcome

-Almost always an offer to carry your tray in the buffet

-An offer to refill coffee during breakfast and drinks during lunch in the buffet

-Cold towels and drinks when returning to the ship on port days

-Cold towels and sherbet around the pool on sea days

 

 

 

Dining

-Five course dinner menus

-Intermezzo sorbet pre-entrée course on formal nights

-Utensils are all laid out in the place settings

-Escargot and shrimp forks and intermezzo spoons

-Sommeliers, bar stewards, waiters, assistant waiters AND assistant maitre d’s

-Captains table on formal nights

-Dinner beef entrées are generally steaks

-Salmon, grilled chicken, sirloin steak offered in addition to menu items every night

-Made to order omelet bar in buffet

-Made to order Belgian waffle bar with toppings in buffet

-Made to order pasta bar at lunch in buffet

-Casual dinners must be reserved before 5:30pm each day, but feature three rotating sit down menus; however, pasta and pizza bar open till 1 am

-Breakfast room service menu includes scrambled eggs, ham and cheese omelet, bacon, sausage and ham in addition to continental breakfast

-Still have two midnight buffets on most cruises – island night fruit and sherbet buffet and incredible Gala buffet on final formal night

-Three juice offerings plus two more on request in the buffet at breakfast

-Lemonade and two fruit drinks offered in the buffet at lunch

-Free hot chocolate available in the buffet (as well as coffee and tea) 24 hours a day

-Ceramic dishes and bowls in buffet

-Small coffee cups and drink glasses in buffet

-Unlimited soda stickers average $5 a day for the length of the cruise

-Only one size of soda glasses

 

Entertainment

-Full pool bands with singers

-Live music during dinner in the dining room

-No freshwater pools (including children’s pool)

-Hot tubs close by 9 pm each evening; pools even earlier (varies by ship/itinerary)

-One alcoholic drink size, and all alcoholic drinks are more expensive than Princess

 

Amenities/Cabins

-Large showers

-Thicker bath towels than Princess

-Easy to use ship layout pamphlets in cabin upon arrival

-Robes for some cabins are really thick

-Unlimited pool towels in all the pool areas

-Gym towels in the fitness center

-Large towels for use on shore (great for the beach)

-Free tote bag in cabin (disposable, but lasts for one cruise)

-Umbrella in cabin

-Shampoo (with conditioner) and lotion dispensers in shower and bathroom – no little packets to have to tear open

-Plastic bag liners in all cabin trash cans

-No antibacterial wipes in fitness center

No individualized entertainment system in fitness center

-Fewer free classes in fitness center

-Steam room on Century class ships is extra charge for most people

-No TV programming guide in cabin

-“Telemarketing” channels on TV promoting ship products and services 24/7; similar commercials during TV programs

-Ability to check shipboard account balance on TV in cabin

-Ability to book shore excursions on TV in cabin

 

Loyalty Programs

Nice when you get to Select and Elect levels

 

Ambiance

-Waiters in buffet wear long sleeved white shirt, black bow tie, black pants and cummerbund

-Shorts never really appropriate in the evening unless you eat pizza or pasta and then go back to your cabin or up on an outer deck area; ditto jeans.

-Cruise directors appear on TV morning show in a suit and tie

 

Princess

Service

-On line pre cruise support (Cruise Personalizer) with shore excursions charged to shipboard account

-Very limited (almost no) offers of coffee and beverage refills in the buffet

-Assistance with carrying food to table only if it appears you require it

 

Dining

-Personal Choice (Anytime) Dining as well as traditional dining

-24 hour buffet

-Four course dinner menus (but you can make them five course by ordering soup AND salad)

-Salmon, grilled chicken and steaks no longer available every evening in dining room

-Plastic dishes in buffet

-Soufflés offered for dessert most evenings

-Theme restaurants/menus on Sapphire and Diamond Princess

-No sommeliers, bar stewards and assistant maitre d’s (have head waiters, but fewer of them)

-Unlimited soda stickers average $2-$3 per day for the cruise duration (this has since gone up, I hear)

-Sodas in the bars/pool areas are offered in two or three sizes

-Ice tea is the only cold drink available at lunch and dinner for no charge

 

 

Entertainment

-24 hour freshwater pools and hot tubs

-Champagne waterfall on final formal night

-Multiple sizes of alcoholic drinks; lower prices than Celebrity

-Morning show with cruise director humorous, less formal

 

 

Amenities/Cabins

-Self service laundries

-Pool towels allocated to cabins, not unlimited although you can ask for more from your cabin steward

-No larger towels for beach use in ports

-No gym towels in fitness center

-Antibacterial wipes for fitness center equipment

-TV programming guide in cabin

-No ability to check shipboard account balance on TV; must go to Guest Relations desk

-Thinner bath towels than Celebrity

-Shampoo, conditioner and lotion in individual use packets

-Individual entertainment system in fitness center

-Free steam rooms in spa

 

 

Loyalty Programs

-Unlimited free internet when you get to your 6th cruise

-Unlimited free internet when you get to your 6th cruise(!)

-Unlimited free internet when you get to your 6th cruise(!!)

-Free laundry when you get to your 16th cruise

 

Ambiance

Wait staff in buffet wear tropical shirts and shorts

Cruise director appears on morning TV show in casual attire

 

 

If I could take a cruise on the Sapphire/Diamond Princess with a two story dining room as on Celebrity with a Princess exotic itinerary and 24 hour buffet and self serve laundry with everything else as it is on Celebrity, I would be one happy cruiser!

[CruiseFever]

Thanks for all these great replies!

[cynbar]

Hi Chris, I'm a big Princess fan but have had 3 very good Celebrity cruises also. I enjoy the anytime dining and freshwater pools on Princess, so that has been a deciding force for my family on our last few cruises. The two products are actually quite similar, when you come right down to it. I've found that both have good food on a regular basis , with some exceptions that may be due to a variety of factors. The presentation on Celebrity is fancier -- on Princess, you get prime rib with a baked potato and green beans, on Celebrity it comes with a potato nest and vegetable soufle (you'll understand this better after you see it!) Also, the buffet and the grill on Celebrity are more limited in hours, and the station by the pool alternates between burgers and pizza -- this is little problem for regular diners, but can affect your schedule if you're back late from a tour!! Celebrity has trays in the buffet and the waiters will offer to carry your tray, which is a touch missing on Princess.The cabins supply a carafe of water. The 2 story DR on Celebrity is noisy and distracting for me, but I may be in the minority there. I have loved both lines and will sail either again!

[rubrrick]

Wow! Some real honesty for both cruise lines here. My DW and I have cruised both Princess, including the Golden Princess, and only on the Mercury, of Celebrity cruises. So, our thoughts may be different from others. On both lines we had full suites. On Celebrity, the suite comes with many amenities, including a butler. Princess is dead in the water on that one. We felt that every level of service on Princess was rather lackluster, and it will be a long time, if ever, that we cruise with Princess again.

 

On the other hand, my DW's parents are booked on two Princess Cruises for the beginning of next year, both in a mini suites, and they are very happy campers.

 

The only problem with Celebrity.........we are spoiled soooooooooooo much on each and every cruise......that it's hard to get back to "normal" living!!

 

Rick