Princess or Celebrity

[El Crucero]

3 hours ago, kwokpot said:

I did a Vancouver to Hawaii RT on the Star Princess in 2017 and it literally was the worst cruise I have ever taken out of 89 cruises. The ship was old,old,old. I have a Junior Suite and the couch was worn and sagged and the rest of the furniture was old & scratched.

We did LA/Hawaii roundtrip in 2017 on Star Princess in a mini-suite.  We had exactly the same experience.  We gave Princess one more try and exactly the same thing.  Never again on Princess.

 

We wish Celebrity would offer the West Coast/Hawaii roundtrips again.  We would sign up in a heartbeat.

 

Recommend you take Celebrity in Aqua class to Hawaii.  If you take the alternative you will be sorry.

[Host Jazzbeau]

I wonder if the posts above that equate Celebrity and Princess food are taking into account that your Celebrity cabin is Aqua class, so you get the Blu dining room rather than the MDR.

 

But to throw a third idea into the mix:  I will likely never cruise on NCL again, but Hawaii is the one itinerary where they do have an edge on everybody else since they have the only cruise ship that is allowed to cruise around Hawaii without making the long voyage from North America.  You could spend a few days in Oahu both pre- and post-cruise, and then see all the other islands on the cruise.  It also avoids the new issue of multiple country rules post-Covid.

 

We booked an SI aft corner suite on the port side, which included gratuities, Unlimited Dining Package, OBC, and at the time 3rd & 4th passengers free.  The suite was tight for 3 people, but it would have been quite nice for 2 – and we had a great view of the Na Pali Coast on the sail-by.  NCL is way below both Celebrity or Princess in every way, but this itinerary is dynamite and the UDP raised the food almost to the level of the Celebrity MDR.  I know this sounds like damning by faint praise, but I would still take this cruise for an introduction to Hawaii – but only in a suite.

 

[Ken the cruiser]

51 minutes ago, Bruin Steve said:

You know, that issue has always been my biggest gripe about Princess...Princess actually brings on some pretty good comedians, magicians jugglers, etc. (Though "Production Shows"--the singers/dancers things--are better on Celebrity)...But the biggest problem is access--the show rooms are FAR too small.  I actually looked up all the numbers once and, IIRC, Princess ships' showrooms typically seat around 900 people in ships that carry around 3,000...whereas Celebrity will seat 1,100 in 2,000 passenger ships.  It's why Celebrity always has some empty seats with two seatings (some people don't even go to shows) but, on Princess, it's often a struggle to find seats ANYWHERE even a half an hour before show time.

 

And, on many cruises, what they try to do is to stagger shows--do a "main" show in the showroom and put a comedian or magician  in a lounge starting around the time the main show ends--forcing people to choose one or the other...but causing even more crowding in that smaller lounge.  We once made the mistake of trying to catch both shows and were lucky to see the magician from a sharp angle, standing in the corner of the room near a service entrance behind other standing people!

 

OTOH, I wouldn't choose my cruise just on that basis...I just learn to adapt, eat dinner a little earlier...and make sure I get out, sometimes skipping dessert...to go to the show...

We always go 30-45 minutes early, find great seats with a deck of cards in hand and play gin rummy until it's showtime! 😁

[shofer]

We did Hawaii 2x on Celebrity.  First was in 2002 on Summit for 11 days, Honolulu to Vancouver.  Second time was RT LA to Hawaii and back.  Loved both of them.   I have sailed 4X with Princess and their food and entertainment were subpar compared to X.  Their mini suite is a big nothing. 

Agree with previous posters on the seating in the main theater not being sufficient for the guests.  Celebrity's theater will seat 1/2 the passengers.  

[TeaBag]

13 minutes ago, shofer said:

We did Hawaii 2x on Celebrity.  First was in 2002 on Summit for 11 days, Honolulu to Vancouver.  Second time was RT LA to Hawaii and back.  Loved both of them.   I have sailed 4X with Princess and their food and entertainment were subpar compared to X.  Their mini suite is a big nothing. 

Agree with previous posters on the seating in the main theater not being sufficient for the guests.  Celebrity's theater will seat 1/2 the passengers.  

Did you visit Kauai on that trip?  We have a photo of Summit docked in Nawiliwili harbour.  Wish Celebrity still went there.

[shofer]

2 minutes ago, TeaBag said:

Did you visit Kauai on that trip?  We have a photo of Summit docked in Nawiliwili harbour.  Wish Celebrity still went there.

Yes we visited Kauai on both trips.  First one we had an overnight in Maui.  In 2002, we flew to Honolulu a few days early and stayed at the Hilton Hawaiian Village.  I swear, we were still jet lagged when the ship sailed on Monday.  Sailing both ways was heaven.  And, when we arrived in LA, it was "only"  a 4.5 hour flight back to Chicago rather than 9 hours from Hawaii.

 

[Denny01]

I’ll agree Celebrity is the choice, which shouldn’t be a surprise on the Celebrity forum. the theater is too small and you have to get there at least 45min prior to get 2 seats together. The standard Princess SR has negatives to the extent that I book a mini-suite on Princess ships, so I compare the price of a Princess mini-suite to a standard Celebrity veranda SR. Yes, the mini-suite has a much larger balcony and so on, but the Princess standard SR has a Very small shower and no place to have anyone over. 

 

the Princess common areas just seem to be more crowded and less inviting than the Celebrity common areas.

 

I enjoyed the Princess entertainment, but they dont have a live band, so the singers use canned music...... kind of like karaoke. 

 

enough trashing Princess. It’s a nice Line, but I only go on it when joining friends for a very specific itinerary. And haven’t done that since 2011. 

 

Den

[leck57]

38 minutes ago, Denny01 said:

 

I enjoyed the Princess entertainment, but they dont have a live band, so the singers use canned music...... kind of like karaoke. 

 

 

Princess have had a show band in the theatre on every cruise I have been on.

[Denny01]

33 minutes ago, leck57 said:

 

Princess have had a show band in the theatre on every cruise I have been on.

But it wasn’t part of the variety shows with singers.  That’s what I experienced but that was 10yrs ago. 

den

 

[Norwich Cruiser]

Although we have a preference for Celebrity in this instance we’d choose the Princess cruise. 

[4774Papa]

13 hours ago, Ride-The-Waves said:

Apples and oranges when comparing a Solstice class with the older Grand class.  Have sailed both and would not get back on anything Princess before the Royal.  Royal and Solstice are comparable and both are great.  Have a T.A schedule on Sky Princess in March and a Med cruise on Reflection in July 2022.  Enjoy both.

We prefer Celebrity, but also enjoy Royal C.   The S and M class Celebrity ships have great layouts/design, but most of the Royal C medium to smaller ships are fine.   I do miss the aft sunset bar behind the buffet where you can eat outside that is not there on some Royal ships.

 

As far as dining on Royal C, we find the MDR to be close to Celebrity for food and service, but Royal's buffet is a drop compared to Celebrity.  Love the great salad bar on X.  (Not sure with COVID19 how salad bars and buffet dining will work.

 

If we can save numbers in four figures on a cruise, we pick the one to save and that one right now is Royal C.

[El Crucero]

10 hours ago, leck57 said:

 

Princess have had a show band in the theatre on every cruise I have been on.

On the two Princess cruises we've been on in the last 5 years, the stage production shows were all karaoke, no live band, crowded and not very good.

[George C]

21 hours ago, seaworthy1 said:

To those who have cruised on both, which would you do if the cost was about the same. Grand Princess 15 nt r/t LA to Hawaii in a mini-suite or Celebrity Eclipse 11 nt Vancouver to Hawaii in Aqua class.  We have sailed Celebrity quite a bit and pretty much know the ins and outs and have never sailed Princess and know next to nothing.

 

Living in Phoenix, the air fare would be cheaper on the LA r/t.  I know this is one of those "what's your personal preferences" questions, but I'm just looking for experienced opinions. Thanks in advance.

Definitely rather do a 15 night compared to 11, also really like mini suites on Grand   . If you want a non smoking environment then pick celebrity. 

[rmalbers]

22 hours ago, dns65 said:

Thanks for pointing that out, I've revised my post

This is something that could make a difference: "

Eclipse, has just emerged from a major refurbishment. Previously, renovations were scheduled to begin on March 7, 2021, but the continued pause in service allowed the line to move up the project date."

[AstoriaPreppy]

We also prefer Celebrity to Princess,.

Celebrity has a much more... urban sophistication vibe, while Princess feels much more traditional (and older as many people have noted). If you were in Vegas, Celebrity would be Aria: sleek, modern, amazing spaces. Princess would be the Bellagio: still high quality, but definitely a different vibe. 

Re: entertainment. Celebrity's newer ships are 💯. Entertainment on the Edge was astounding, both in and out of the main showroom.

 

Princess... has some of the worst shows I've seen at sea. Imagine if you created a show, picked the worst songs, and then performed them poorly. Is "Three Coins in the Fountain" an iconic song? Only when a man in his 80s who has inexplicably show up 40 minutes late to a Princess show spills his whisky on you trying to get to the one empty seat in the theater at the end of your row. 

 

That said, Princess does a much better job of incorporating destinations into the voyage: they'll bring on food and beverages specific to the itinerary, have performers and cultural reps from port stops come on board, etc. On our Celebrity sailing in Japan, the food and bev and entertainment was exactly what you'd find in the Mediterranean or Caribbean. We had a lecturer on Buddhism, but that was it.

One thing no one has mentioned is that Princess has rolled out "Ocean Medallion" across all their ships, which is INSANE. Essentially it's a little tag you use instead of a cruise card, and it's spectacular. 

For example, you can be sitting by the pool, pull up the app on your phone, and order drinks and a snack. A steward finds you via GPS and drops everything off. It opens your stateroom door when you walk up to it, without having to fumble with the handle or tap anything (great when carrying coffee). You can find other people in your party on a little map of the ship on your phone.

 

You never have to hand someone a card for anything... literally, they know who you are just by walking up. It's game-changing for the cruise industry, and Carnival plans to roll it out to all of their brands eventually. 


 

Edited March 31, 2021 by AstoriaPreppy

[ECCruise]

3 hours ago, rmalbers said:

This is something that could make a difference: "

Eclipse, has just emerged from a major refurbishment. Previously, renovations were scheduled to begin on March 7, 2021, but the continued pause in service allowed the line to move up the project date."

Only if you consider painting the hull and doing some technical, required, maintenance and updates.

You are quoting a website that is not familiar with the drydock, which was completed in about a week instead of the 5 weeks or so needed for "Revolutionization."

[ECCruise]

We've done both of these itineraries (have done 30 total =X= and 15 total Princess).  If the number of days and the cost were the same would do Celebrity for certain.

But they aren't.  4 more days.  Mini suite instead of AQ.  Cheaper air fare. 

And for the comment that Princess mini suites and Celebrity balcony are basically the same, couldn't disagree more.  On the Grand, min-suite is more like 2 separate rooms (almost like Celebrity M class family veranda).  2 TVS, bigger balcony, etc. Bathtub.  Better closet than any =X= ship.

 

[Host Jazzbeau]

3 hours ago, ECCruise said:

We've done both of these itineraries (have done 30 total =X= and 15 total Princess).  If the number of days and the cost were the same would do Celebrity for certain.

But they aren't.  4 more days.  Mini suite instead of AQ.  Cheaper air fare. 

And for the comment that Princess mini suites and Celebrity balcony are basically the same, couldn't disagree more.  On the Grand, min-suite is more like 2 separate rooms (almost like Celebrity M class family veranda).  2 TVS, bigger balcony, etc. Bathtub.  Better closet than any =X= ship.

Yes but that Princess mini-suite still has MDR dining room.  OP is comparing to Celebrity Aqua Class with Blu dining – which is completely different from the MDR, not just one or two extra entrees in a roped off section of the MDR [for the more expensive Princess Club Class Mini-suites]

[deadzone1003]

4 hours ago, AstoriaPreppy said:

We also prefer Celebrity to Princess,.

Celebrity has a much more... urban sophistication vibe, while Princess feels much more traditional (and older as many people have noted). If you were in Vegas, Celebrity would be Aria: sleek, modern, amazing spaces. Princess would be the Bellagio: still high quality, but definitely a different vibe. 

Re: entertainment. Celebrity's newer ships are 💯. Entertainment on the Edge was astounding, both in and out of the main showroom.

 

Princess... has some of the worst shows I've seen at sea. Imagine if you created a show, picked the worst songs, and then performed them poorly. Is "Three Coins in the Fountain" an iconic song? Only when a man in his 80s who has inexplicably show up 40 minutes late to a Princess show spills his whisky on you trying to get to the one empty seat in the theater at the end of your row. 

 

That said, Princess does a much better job of incorporating destinations into the voyage: they'll bring on food and beverages specific to the itinerary, have performers and cultural reps from port stops come on board, etc. On our Celebrity sailing in Japan, the food and bev and entertainment was exactly what you'd find in the Mediterranean or Caribbean. We had a lecturer on Buddhism, but that was it.

One thing no one has mentioned is that Princess has rolled out "Ocean Medallion" across all their ships, which is INSANE. Essentially it's a little tag you use instead of a cruise card, and it's spectacular. 

For example, you can be sitting by the pool, pull up the app on your phone, and order drinks and a snack. A steward finds you via GPS and drops everything off. It opens your stateroom door when you walk up to it, without having to fumble with the handle or tap anything (great when carrying coffee). You can find other people in your party on a little map of the ship on your phone.

 

You never have to hand someone a card for anything... literally, they know who you are just by walking up. It's game-changing for the cruise industry, and Carnival plans to roll it out to all of their brands eventually. 


 

The Medalliion will probably be on all cruise lines.  They will have different names, but all it is is a tracking device.  This enables the cruise line to determine if any sick person has interacted with another passenger long enough that might require quarantine.  

[NMTraveller]

I always go with the best itinerary myself.

[Virgo61]

We're Elite+ on Celebrity and Platinum on Princess. I prefer Celebrity and I really like Aqua class. Usually itinerary would be the first thing I would look at, then price. We have cruised to Hawaii twice, once  on each line. In 2007 we sailed the Summit round trip from San Diego (14 days). The cruise left the end of September and returned in October. The weather was fabulous and the cruise was really outstanding. We loved the sea days spent by the pool. The second time we went in February on the Emerald Princess, round trip from LA on the Emerald Princess (15 days). This cruise was just OK. The main problem was the weather. The Pacific Ocean is cold at that time of year so the sea days were annoying. I would definitely choose the Celebrity cruise if it's in the winter.

[ECCruise]

11 hours ago, Host Jazzbeau said:

Yes but that Princess mini-suite still has MDR dining room.  OP is comparing to Celebrity Aqua Class with Blu dining – which is completely different from the MDR, not just one or two extra entrees in a roped off section of the MDR [for the more expensive Princess Club Class Mini-suites]

I didn't even mention dining, so I have no idea why you have quoted my post with this comment. 

[ECCruise]

16 minutes ago, Virgo61 said:

 I would definitely choose the Celebrity cruise if it's in the winter.

It's not.  Celebrity only sails this itinerary (Hawai'i to Vancouver) once a year in the spring (May).

[AstoriaPreppy]

12 hours ago, deadzone1003 said:

The Medalliion will probably be on all cruise lines.  They will have different names, but all it is is a tracking device.  This enables the cruise line to determine if any sick person has interacted with another passenger long enough that might require quarantine.  

Eh, not so sure about that. 

It *seemed* like Royal Caribbean was toying around with RFID technology when they launched WOWbands, but they sort of puttered out and now largely serve as a replacement keycard option. The same thing happened with Magic Bands at Disney World. Disney spent upwards of +2 billion on the technology and infrastructure, promising magical interactive experiences and seamless integration... instead it's ended up being how you open your room and get into the parks. 

I think Carnival smartly realized that they needed to invest a ton of money into the technology, have a great technology partner on the backend, and then rolled it out to some of their oldest and least tech-savvy cruisers to work out the kinks. The buildout on each ship is extensive, since it's not just installing additional WiFi hotspots.

If Celebrity was planning on doing something similar, they would have installed the tech during the massive refits of Summit and Millennium. Instead, they just installed RFID door locks and updated the POS systems to tap cards. 

[Cruise Raider]

On 3/30/2021 at 11:21 AM, seaworthy1 said:

To those who have cruised on both, which would you do if the cost was about the same. Grand Princess 15 nt r/t LA to Hawaii in a mini-suite or Celebrity Eclipse 11 nt Vancouver to Hawaii in Aqua class.  We have sailed Celebrity quite a bit and pretty much know the ins and outs and have never sailed Princess and know next to nothing.

 

Living in Phoenix, the air fare would be cheaper on the LA r/t.  I know this is one of those "what's your personal preferences" questions, but I'm just looking for experienced opinions. Thanks in advance.

 

We've traveled extensively on both lines.  Although I love the nearby roundtrip itineraries as the air travel portion is so inviting, I could not recommend the Grand over the Eclipse.  The Grand has seen her better days .... she has had a great staff/crew every time we've sailed on her but the lack of general maintenance as well as the basic structure of the ship is a huge deterrent for us. The Eclipse would be more along the lines of one of the Royal Class ships on Princess.  However, one positive about the Grand is that they have Window Suites, which are, IMO, the best cabins on the entire ship.  You will receive full suite benefits for less than the cost of a mini-suite, in most cases.  But, if you have to have a balcony, this may not be the cabin choice for you.  

 

There are some positives about Princess and I would much rather include the sailings out of San Francisco into the mix (the Ruby) if you are choosing a mini-suite on Princess.  The Mini-suites are more comparable to a regular balcony room on Celebrity.  If you choose the Club Class mini's, you will have more of an Aqua Class experience .... not quite, but almost.  

 

Princess does have the most comfortable beds of any cruiseline on which we've sailed.  

They also let you take advantage of stacking obc and discount opportunities, for instance, one can add shareholder benefits, military benefits, casino discounts, future cruise credit obc, loyalty obc, etc.  Their Princess Best pricing is by far a better deal than the all included on Celebrity.  

They only have one level of beverage package but you also have the opportunity to bring your own wine and pay $15 corkage for anything over the 2 bottle free limit.  Their specialty dining is also much less than on Celebrity, although they don't seem to run any special dining packages as they do on Celebrity.  The food is pretty good on both, Celebrity may have a slight bit of an edge there.  

 

Celebrity is a little more white glove, IMO and doesn't attract as many families as Princess does.  However, the Hawaii itinerary won't attract nearly as many families as a shorter itinerary.  I guess a lot of that will depend on whether or not kids are back in school full time.  

 

Princess also does not have a non-smoking casino although the do set aside formal nights for non-smoking.  They also don't have adequate seating for the attendance at the shows.  Their anytime dining is a bit chaotic and their traditional dining is either too early (5:00-5:15 PM) or too late (7:15 - 7:30 PM) for our tastes.  I don't know how Celebrity does it but they do just do it better.  As before, if you choose the Club Class or a full suite, that is never an issue, though.  

 

All in all, if you were looking for a Hawaiian itinerary, I would probably consider the Ruby out of SF.  The flight may be a little longer than the one out of LA but not nearly as long as to Vancouver and then back from the islands.  The Ruby does have another deck of passenger cabins compared to the Grand and she also has no indoor pool area ... this could either be a positive or negative for you.  She is also a bit newer than the Grand and does have a central passenger stairwell, whereas the Grand does not.  This causes bottle necks in the area in front of the photo booth.  If elevator capacity is going to be limited, this will only get worse.  Since you sound well versed in cruises, you probably know that the first couple days out of LA / San Francisco are usually pretty choppy.  The same can be said for the last 2 or 3 days back but usually not quite as bad.  

Whatever you decide, bon voyage and have a great trip!