Peoples reasons to stick with Celebrity even with the cutbacks - I have at least one

[bigbenboys]

We also tried smaller ship, Azamara once. We book it for where it went. The smaller ship was boring. I dont like the dresscode on other smaller ships.

Mostly book suites. I canceled our South American cruise for April. We are keeping our Summit cruise for May. After our May cruise I will decide if we should cancel our Sept or Dec cruises.

[hcat]

we are snowbirds, not cruising  much these days.and are no longer the target demographic....but they still gladly take our money!

 

In Nov,  we enjoyed our first suite experience on BEYOND..used up accumulated fcc.  Cruise and ship were outstanding  other than Luminae dining which was not our style. 

 

We just booked AQ class (our go to) on Ascent for 2024. Very  nice 7 night  itin..

 

We are used to the Celeb systems

(quirks and all) , enjoy BLU, Elite lite breakfast,   Cafe Baccio  thermal suites , Solarium & the spa.. No smoking is a plus, and we like meeting fellow cruisers..still a nice group lively enough but not wild!.

 

 

 The live music is usually excellent as are many of the newer shows. We enjoy the X excursions and some of the repeat ports. The included alcohol plan , laundry  internet perks work ok for our needs. We usually do 2 specialty dinners per cruise..( EDEN & Fine Cut  for ASCENT.)

 

We will evaluate  value, cutbacks and management attitudes that directly affect us as we go along.    No other cruise line has caught our eye..abandoned  Royal awhile ago and still feel X is a step up from there.

 

 

Edited January 23, 2023 by hcat

[TeeRick]

I have really not decided yet.  Evaluating our current cruise and will report back.  But in general I was worried about boarding and what I would find based upon the comments here on CC concerning dramatic cutbacks.  Other than the dinner buffet - which we rarely use- I have not noticed much difference so I am very pleased so far.

[CHEZMARYLOU]

We were disappointed in our Reflection New Year's cruise but I think we had unrealistic expectations based on 2 NY cruises in 2012 & 2013.  We have 3 more booked, one on Equinox in September. That will determine if we will take the 2 after that, although we want to try Beyond and like the itinerary. We book in the Retreat.  If they start cutting back there we will probably be done with Celebrity.

[phoenix_dream]

I don't like some of the cutbacks but we love cruising, prefer the larger ship experience over the much smaller luxury lines, and see that all the mid-level lines are making similar cuts. So Celebrity it is. Always great service from the crew. Great lounge entertainment.  Acceptable and sometimes very good theater performances.  And for the record I LOVE Topper and was very disappointed it was not available on our last cruise on Equinox as they boarded a new production show cast.

Edited January 24, 2023 by phoenix_dream

[NMTraveller]

With the MDR menu cuts X has sunk to the bottom of my list ...

 

There is one positive about the Celebrity ships right now.  They are not sailing full while others like Princess are.

Edited January 24, 2023 by NMTraveller

[DaisyFire]

8 hours ago, prmssk said:

@cgolf1 I am allergic to dairy and Celebrity is among the best in not only making sure I have safe things to eat but also making sure there is flavor in those dishes. I had a similar experience with Royal recently with their brand new menus but my experience on Princess was pretty bad. Even with pre-ordering in the MDR, food was bland because they would just leave off all the sauces and seasonings and the dairy free dessert I had each night was almost identical the previous nights except a different color. Their buffet had so little variety and were not labeled so I rarely found anything I could eat there. Carnival was the same. My experience in NCL was a bit better but still not up to how Celebrity handles food allergies. 
 

So even with the cuts, my food experience as someone with a dietary restriction is still much better on Celebrity than other lines. 

 

Hello prmssk!  I would really love to hear more about how you arrange for your diet accommodations on Celebrity.  I have recently (within the last 6 months) discovered that I am lactose intolerant.  So may dishes have dairy in the sauces and accompaniments - if not also an ingredient hidden in the main dish - that I am a bit apprehensive about my next cruise in a couple of weeks. Hoping you have some hints or recommendations that you can share with me.

 

Thanks!

 

[mandream]

8 hours ago, prmssk said:

@cgolf1 I am allergic to dairy and Celebrity is among the best in not only making sure I have safe things to eat but also making sure there is flavor in those dishes. I had a similar experience with Royal recently with their brand new menus but my experience on Princess was pretty bad. Even with pre-ordering in the MDR, food was bland because they would just leave off all the sauces and seasonings and the dairy free dessert I had each night was almost identical the previous nights except a different color. Their buffet had so little variety and were not labeled so I rarely found anything I could eat there. Carnival was the same. My experience in NCL was a bit better but still not up to how Celebrity handles food allergies. 
 

So even with the cuts, my food experience as someone with a dietary restriction is still much better on Celebrity than other lines. 

 

Glad you've had this experience.

 

My wife is vegan (I'm not) and food is, with very few exceptions, almost always a low point for her.  She won't starve - but getting variety that she enjoys in the MDR is always hit or miss.  In 20+ Celebrity cruises we've learned to adapt.  We obviously don't cruise for the food.

 

Even in 2008 when we started cruising with Celebrity I'd consider the MDR as good banquet food (what else could it be serving thousands of plates for each meal).  While the portion sizes have decreased, I don't feel the quality has really changed that much over the years.  Sure certain items have disappeared from the menu (Celebrity salad dressing - I'm talking to you) - but this certainly doesn't impact my cruising experience.

 

Mike

[hcat]

Another point of view...posted on thread started by SRQ BEACH GIRL !

Makes some good points.altho new to X

 

 

"DH and I boarded the Reflection today for our first Celebrity cruise. If first impressions are anything to go by, we're going to have a very happy week. We boarded shortly after 11am and have already had lunch and explored the entire ship (even played ping pong). "

 

"So far we have not seen a single kid. Not one. And no herds of family reunions with matching t-shirts. No yelling at Uncle Bob across the room. No teenagers jumping lines at the buffet (actually, no lines for anyone to jump). No massive 20-something year old groups already clogging up the hot tubs. No "bump and grind" music blasting at ear-splitting levels on the Lido deck.

 

I'm in heaven. Might have just found us a new cruise line if our first impressions hold true for the week."

[prmssk]

58 minutes ago, DaisyFire said:

 

Hello prmssk!  I would really love to hear more about how you arrange for your diet accommodations on Celebrity.  I have recently (within the last 6 months) discovered that I am lactose intolerant.  So may dishes have dairy in the sauces and accompaniments - if not also an ingredient hidden in the main dish - that I am a bit apprehensive about my next cruise in a couple of weeks. Hoping you have some hints or recommendations that you can share with me.

 

Thanks!

 

I usually try to let them know ahead of time.  There is a special needs e-mail address on their website.  And then I talk to the head waiter when on board in the MDR.  They usually give me the next day's menu(s) the night before so I can pre-order.  In other restaurants and the buffet, I try to find someone in charge to ask any questions.  The average crew doesn't always have the best information.

 

@mandream I do think Celebrity still has work to do when it comes to vegan options.  I was really excited to see vegan options clearly labeled on Royal's new menus and NCL offered me a whole vegan menu in addition to making modifications to items on the main menu.  I eat chicken and seafood so can usually find starters and entrees on the main menu they can modify but cruise lines with vegan menus give me better options for dessert.

[mandream]

2 minutes ago, prmssk said:

I usually try to let them know ahead of time.  There is a special needs e-mail address on their website.  And then I talk to the head waiter when on board in the MDR.  They usually give me the next day's menu(s) the night before so I can pre-order.  In other restaurants and the buffet, I try to find someone in charge to ask any questions.  The average crew doesn't always have the best information.

 

@mandream I do think Celebrity still has work to do when it comes to vegan options.  I was really excited to see vegan options clearly labeled on Royal's new menus and NCL offered me a whole vegan menu in addition to making modifications to items on the main menu.  I eat chicken and seafood so can usually find starters and entrees on the main menu they can modify but cruise lines with vegan menus give me better options for dessert.

Yes, we (she) does all that too, sometimes.  This past cruise, she didn't want to go through all that and asked the maitre d to have the chef surprise her each night. Was about equally successful, and she appreciated not having to plan her own menus each night. 

 

A few times we had maitre d's really go out of their way to make each night special. One was incredibly creative (I think he really wanted to be a chef) and one made and printed a vegan menu for her each night. Most of the time, they are just going through the motions trying to be accomodating. This is one area where Royal definitely has the edge. 

 

But we have great restaurants in Chicago, so like I said we don't cruise for the food. It would just be a bit less stressful for us if they could improve this area. 

 

Mike 

[Georgia_Peaches]

Our reason to stick (at this point) is the desirable itinerary. We knew what we wanted in a Med itinerary and celebrity has delivered. With such a port intensive schedule, we view the vessel as a means to travel. That’s it. 

[islabahia]

We had 3 X cruises booked this year.  Our March cruise is a definite but the other 2 are up in the air.  We are looking at Oceania it is looking like more of a fit for us.  X has raised their Retreat prices through the roof…

[Torfamm]

There are many, many reasons why I like Celebrity but the thing that sets them apart is their smoking policy. I wish all cruise lines would step into the 21st century and eliminate indoor smoking.

[cgolf1]

I forgot about the smoking thing. While we do like many aspects about Royal, one thing we hated was the trivia was always in the bar next to the casino and we skipped it a few times because the smoke scent really bothered my wife. Also walking through the casino was a no go.

[TeeRick]

13 hours ago, NMTraveller said:

With the MDR menu cuts X has sunk to the bottom of my list ...

 

There is one positive about the Celebrity ships right now.  They are not sailing full while others like Princess are.

There are 2500 on board Equinox right now and the Captain said last night we had over 1200 crew on board.  So about 2:1 passengers to crew.  Pretty good really.  The service has been overall very good.

[67Miner]

20 hours ago, Hlitner said:

We gave up on Celebrity (been Elite Plus for years) soon after LLP took over and started her "death by a thousand cut-back."  Since that time we have been cruising on MSC (Yacht Club) (think Retreat suites at a fraction of the cost), Seabourn (much less expensive than Retreat suites), and recently booked the new Explora Journeys (less expensive than Retreat Suites), Princess (better itinerary in Asia than X) and Princess (our go to line for value).

 

Just last week we debated booking X or Princess, but decided on Princess because it still offers a far better value than X.   We would love to book another cruise on X, but would prefer one of the lower cost Retreat suites.  But we can book some small ship luxury lines for less money and they are a much better value (we are not going to get included caviar on X).

 

Many cruisers get into the "loyalty" thing and tend to stick with one or two lines.  We simply look for the best itineraries and/or the best value.  X is simply not competitive with their current price structure and considering all the comments about the latest cut-backs.  I should add that we have never, ever, been on a line where we had to pay a fee for room service.  

 

Hank

You are spot on, Hank.  Celebrity "loyalists" (and I was one at one time) will always defend their favorite cruise line and dismiss unpopular changes as necessary adjustments caused by the pandemic.  And all cruise lines are making these cost-saving adjustments, they argue.  But let's be clear. Celebrity began making significant changes several years before the pandemic and accelerated those changes following post-pandemic restart.  I, too, discovered that there are many other cruising options than Celebrity.  You are absolutely correct when you point out that a Seabourn (a true luxury cruise line) suite represents a far better value than a Celebrity suite.  After some 70 Celebrity cruises and attaining the highest loyalty level, I am no longer a "loyalist" and have discovered a whole new world of cruising experiences that far exceed my Celebrity experiences.  

 

[Cruise Raider]

9 minutes ago, 67Miner said:

You are spot on, Hank.  Celebrity "loyalists" (and I was one at one time) will always defend their favorite cruise line and dismiss unpopular changes as necessary adjustments caused by the pandemic.  And all cruise lines are making these cost-saving adjustments, they argue.  But let's be clear. Celebrity began making significant changes several years before the pandemic and accelerated those changes following post-pandemic restart.  I, too, discovered that there are many other cruising options than Celebrity.  You are absolutely correct when you point out that a Seabourn (a true luxury cruise line) suite represents a far better value than a Celebrity suite.  After some 70 Celebrity cruises and attaining the highest loyalty level, I am no longer a "loyalist" and have discovered a whole new world of cruising experiences that far exceed my Celebrity experiences.  

 

We’ve cruised on many different lines throughout our years of cruising.  We’ve even tried land based all inclusive trips .. variety is the spice of life!  
Plus, we are bargain travelers with some occasional splurges … I can only remember one cruise that was a total bust.  Shortly after that cruise, I discovered cruise critic.  Since that time, most of my posts have been positive because all the other cruises have been awesome experiences.  

[Funky Fusion FoodsJ]

I've been on quite a few cruises and have cruised Royal, Norwegian, Princess, Costa, Celebrity and Viking.  

 

I can honestly say I've never been on a "bad" cruise with any of the lines.  Sure I've had some negative experiences, but nothing that outweighed the great time in other aspects.

 

Too many times on CC those that post tend to dwell on the negatives rather than positives of a particular cruise or cruise line.

 

I've made the choice to keep my focus on enjoying life and enjoying cruising.  If I ever go on a cruise that I can't find positives to outweigh the negatives, I should probably stop cruising.

[smtcan]

We have cruised several lines and the only one I wouldn’t choose again is NCL.  Celebrity and Princess are our usual choices, depending on itinerary and price.   We will probably never be suite cruisers and are not high maintenance.  The smoking policy is a plus for us and now cruise only is an option we are happy.  Having to pay for a drinks package when our usual alcohol consumption is a glass of wine with dinner was a deal breaker for us.

We have two Celebrity cruises coming up and after those we will decide what our choices will be in the future.

[Happy Cruiser 6143]

I still cruise mostly with Celebrity because of the wonderful staff and the smoke-free indoors.  Just off the Constellation and, while there were food cuts, I didn't starve.  Mostly good beef dishes are gone.  The one offputting thing is their current suite prices--that may send me back to Yacht Club on MSC.  I did not have a suite on my recent cruise and the lack of a butler or suite concierge to solve my mobility issues was very apparent.  So my debarcation was a bit hard until I ran into a wonderful guy on shore who, when we could not find a porter, pushed me to my car in the remote parking lot (together with my luggage).  I will be forever grateful for that kindness!

[lola2013]

3 hours ago, Funky Fusion FoodsJ said:

I've been on quite a few cruises and have cruised Royal, Norwegian, Princess, Costa, Celebrity and Viking.  

 

I can honestly say I've never been on a "bad" cruise with any of the lines.  Sure I've had some negative experiences, but nothing that outweighed the great time in other aspects.

 

Too many times on CC those that post tend to dwell on the negatives rather than positives of a particular cruise or cruise line.

 

I've made the choice to keep my focus on enjoying life and enjoying cruising.  If I ever go on a cruise that I can't find positives to outweigh the negatives, I should probably stop cruising.

Amen 😉

[mizLORInj]

I had great expectations when I booked Beyond recently because I had a wonderful cruise on Reflection in Feb 2022 (though not my first Celebrity cruise).

 

I'm trying to keep an open and positive mindset after reading about others' negative experiences and the cutbacks.   Since Celebrity markets themselves as "luxury," there are things that should not be cut back if they want to keep calling themselves luxury, and more upscale than the main cruiselines.   

 

I realize all have had cutbacks; NCL just increased its DSC to $20pp/day while at the same time cutting service to once/day.  I'm sure others have had cutbacks too.  However, they don't market themselves as LUXURY lines. 

 

At any rate, soon I'll be on a Beyond balcony watching the sea go by, and I'm sure I won't go hungry or thirsty!    

 

Fortunately, there are other ships and cruise lines if I am disappointed in the Beyond.   I will add my two cents upon my return!

 

[George C]

I know we will do at least one celebrity cruise a year because we love the entertainment on music charter rock and romance which is only on celebrity we are doing our fifth in March. But we cruise twice a year and always in suites , I was disappointed on food in Luminae on beyond a couple of months ago , we had sailed Edge the year before and it was great . Our next cruise is rccl harmony which leaves from Texas savings us big money on airfare. Pretty sure we will cruise on either rccl , celebrity or MSc yacht club from now on.