CELESTYAL EXPERIENCE VS NCL JADE

[etravel]

Looking at the Experience, which has almost the identical cruise Itinerary (Idyllic Aegean) to the Jade...Have always cruised the big box cruises lol, NCL, Royal, Carnival, Disney, etc..Did an Avalon European River Cruise on the Danube which was very nice. So any thoughts? The Celestyal looks more authentic Greek island experience...but a bit different than we've done before...having a hard time on which to book!  Nice that they include a few tours too. Any assistance would sure be appreciated! 

[deniseatnycs]

4 hours ago, etravel said:

Looking at the Experience, which has almost the identical cruise Itinerary (Idyllic Aegean) to the Jade...Have always cruised the big box cruises lol, NCL, Royal, Carnival, Disney, etc..Did an Avalon European River Cruise on the Danube which was very nice. So any thoughts? The Celestyal looks more authentic Greek island experience...but a bit different than we've done before...having a hard time on which to book!  Nice that they include a few tours too. Any assistance would sure be appreciated! 

Hi Etravel

 

We are booked on the Experience next May.  Having done the same cruise with NCL (think it was the Star) which we 100% enjoyed a few years ago we find ourselves in Greece next year following a family wedding.   Our main idea was to go Island hopping, using the different ferries to see more of the area giving us time to stay overnight in some.  After spending a lot of time working out times and schedules  and in some cases flights we came across Celestyal which seems to offer all we are looking for without the hassle of dragging ourselves and luggage around.

The reviews are good for what we are looking for,  a more authentic Greek experience, rather than a big cruise line one that just happens to go to the Greek islands.  As I say we really enjoyed our NCL cruise and would do it on the Jade in a heat beat,  Hopefully, will say the same about Celestyal after May

[etravel]

28 minutes ago, deniseatnycs said:

Hi Etravel

 

We are booked on the Experience next May.  Having done the same cruise with NCL (think it was the Star) which we 100% enjoyed a few years ago we find ourselves in Greece next year following a family wedding.   Our main idea was to go Island hopping, using the different ferries to see more of the area giving us time to stay overnight in some.  After spending a lot of time working out times and schedules  and in some cases flights we came across Celestyal which seems to offer all we are looking for without the hassle of dragging ourselves and luggage around.

The reviews are good for what we are looking for,  a more authentic Greek experience, rather than a big cruise line one that just happens to go to the Greek islands.  As I say we really enjoyed our NCL cruise and would do it on the Jade in a heat beat,  Hopefully, will say the same about Celestyal after May

Thank you! That's awesome to hear your thoughts...I hope you have a wonderful time on your Greek Experience! Yes, still mulling it over on which one to go with, but I agree that it seems like Celestyal is more destination focused! Thanks again...

[travelingman]

Have not sailed NCL in a long time and came across Celestyal in an article written in a magazine by accident.  Th article got us interested in Celestyal and we were to be on a 14 day cruise in Nov. 2021.  Prior to Celestyal cancelling the remaining cruise 2021 season after August we moved our cruise to Nov, 2022.

All of this is to say if the cost is important to you then Celestyal might be of interest to you.

The Experience will not sail under the Celestyal flag until March 2022.  However, there are a number of video reviews of Celestyal cruises on You Tube.

 

Stan