Opinions on Celestyal Crystal?

[Kate Cruising]

Celestyal is a new one for us, we've sailed loads with Royal Caribbean, a few on NCL, a few on Fred Olsen, and we love Cunard, but we're looking for a specific date and the only one that looks remotely okay is a nice suite on a five day Greek cruise on the Celestyal Crystal.

Has anyone been on this one?  What did you think of it?  The service?  Dining?  Entertainment?  Hoping you're all going to say it's brilliant because the dates work perfectly!

 

Many thanks to anyone who can recommend, or otherwise.

[sawston123]

I think you're going to be letdown if you're looking for the same level of onboard amenities, food, and entertainment that you've experienced on RC and NCL cruises. This ship is much smaller than most of the big, luxury ships run by those lines and is a little dated. The service/staff are great and it has some unique itineraries which is why I'm guessing this is the only 5-day Greece-only cruise you found that fits what you're looking for. Most of the cruises that hit the Greek Isles appear to sail out of Italy or Spain with 1-day (or half-day if you're unlucky) stops in Athens, Mykonos, and Santorini.

 

If the cruise goes where you want to go and gives you plenty of time in port and you're going to take advantage of that, then go for it. If you're looking for a relaxing cruise where you spend most of your time on the ship, it's probably not for you. That's my $0.02!

[Harley52]

On 7/9/2019 at 5:49 PM, Kate Cruising said:

Celestyal is a new one for us, we've sailed loads with Royal Caribbean, a few on NCL, a few on Fred Olsen, and we love Cunard, but we're looking for a specific date and the only one that looks remotely okay is a nice suite on a five day Greek cruise on the Celestyal Crystal.

Has anyone been on this one?  What did you think of it?  The service?  Dining?  Entertainment?  Hoping you're all going to say it's brilliant because the dates work perfectly!

 

Many thanks to anyone who can recommend, or otherwise.

Hey I sailed on Celestyal, sailed around Cuba, I found it excellent, small ship, lovely crew and excellent food.

[jaykayham]

Did this cruise this June - 7 days. It was by far one of my best cruises in my life.

 

I did NCL, RC and Cunard in the past as well - but it is impossible to compare these cruise lines with Celestyal. Always very casual, except Captains Dinner, great staff and great food in the a-la-carte restaurants. It is a very old vessel with its own charm. 

 

The Service is OUTSTANDING - I was the only German native on-board. Not only the German hostess did a PRIVATE safety drill with me in the bar, the crew was really reading my wishes from my eyes - like "Oh I see you love todays desert, here is another one only for you my friend". 

[KylieC]

Older ships, very clean and presented well. Friendly staff. Excellent service, excellent dining.  Small ship not crowded, relaxed atmosphere.  Not amazing  entertainment,  but more of a focus on the ports of call with this cruise line and length at ports. Highly recommend. 

[hairpin]

Service and included itineraries are excellent. Recommended if you are looking for a more Greek experience. We enjoyed our trip, but next time around we might choose a more mainstream line with better emissions standards.

[sofietucker]

LOVED IT (and we've done about 30 cruises so far). Actually we found the entertainment very fine, between the "leftover" Cuban dance troupe and the local ones that come on board (Cretan dancers not to be missed). Go for it! Just don't look for the cookie-cutter American cruise line experience. We heard 6 languages in the daily announcements. If you're on a balcony, put your potted olive tree on the table outside for a bit each day; ours started growing afresh!