Not to pile on, but it’s bad…

[buckeye8810]

Since the start of the year, I know there’s been a lot of handwringing about the changes Celebrity has made. We just got back from a 10-night Eastern Caribbean…and I can confirm things are worse than before, in literally every way.

 

Ships are more crowded, and there’s clearly not enough staff to accommodate the increase in passengers. Food is significantly worse…and the wait staff was running around like their hair was on fire. Even in Murano, the food was disappointing. Not to mention several people in our group reported stomach issues on multiple days after dinner.
Unrelated, but it seemed like half the people on the ship were coughing and hacking, which probably means Covid was running rampant.

 

All in all, there’s no reason to pay premium prices for Celebrity anymore, because it’s no longer a premium brand. With the changes they’ve made, it’s not any different than NCL. Not saying I wouldn’t cruise with Celebrity again, but there’s no chance I would pay current prices. We felt ripped off, considering when we booked this cruise we were expecting the level of service from years past.

 

 

[d9704011]

Did you enjoy yourself?

[buckeye8810]

Still enjoyed it, but in all honesty it will probably be my last on Celebrity. Like I said, there’s just not any reason to pay a premium for Celebrity at this point.

[horseymike]

17 minutes ago, buckeye8810 said:

Since the start of the year, I know there’s been a lot of handwringing about the changes Celebrity has made. We just got back from a 10-night Eastern Caribbean…and I can confirm things are worse than before, in literally every way.

 

Ships are more crowded, and there’s clearly not enough staff to accommodate the increase in passengers. Food is significantly worse…and the wait staff was running around like their hair was on fire. Even in Murano, the food was disappointing. Not to mention several people in our group reported stomach issues on multiple days after dinner.
Unrelated, but it seemed like half the people on the ship were coughing and hacking, which probably means Covid was running rampant.

 

All in all, there’s no reason to pay premium prices for Celebrity anymore, because it’s no longer a premium brand. With the changes they’ve made, it’s not any different than NCL. Not saying I wouldn’t cruise with Celebrity again, but there’s no chance I would pay current prices. We felt ripped off, considering when we booked this cruise we were expecting the level of service from years past.

 

 

May I ask what ship you were on ?

[buckeye8810]

23 minutes ago, horseymike said:

May I ask what ship you were on ?

Silhouette. No issue with the ship…we had been on it before. 

[horseymike]

Thanks

[Barwick Cruiser]

Boarding Silhouette on Monday…Hope it’s not as bad as everyone’s saying but we’ll make the best of it and decide whether Celebrity will be our future cruise line of choice afterwards. Unfortunately the cutbacks have taken place after we paid final payment so no choice to cancel. At least the weather looks a lot nicer than at home and I won’t have to cook or clean 😉

[jaywoods678]

1 hour ago, buckeye8810 said:

Since the start of the year, I know there’s been a lot of handwringing about the changes Celebrity has made. We just got back from a 10-night Eastern Caribbean…and I can confirm things are worse than before, in literally every way.

 

Ships are more crowded, and there’s clearly not enough staff to accommodate the increase in passengers. Food is significantly worse…and the wait staff was running around like their hair was on fire. Even in Murano, the food was disappointing. Not to mention several people in our group reported stomach issues on multiple days after dinner.
Unrelated, but it seemed like half the people on the ship were coughing and hacking, which probably means Covid was running rampant.

 

All in all, there’s no reason to pay premium prices for Celebrity anymore, because it’s no longer a premium brand. With the changes they’ve made, it’s not any different than NCL. Not saying I wouldn’t cruise with Celebrity again, but there’s no chance I would pay current prices. We felt ripped off, considering when we booked this cruise we were expecting the level of service from years past.

 

 

I completely agree.

[OysterD]

1 hour ago, buckeye8810 said:

 We just got back from a 10-night Eastern Caribbean…and I can confirm things are worse than before, in literally every way.

 

Ships are more crowded, and there’s clearly not enough staff to accommodate the increase in passengers. Food is significantly worse…and the wait staff was running around like their hair was on fire. 

Can I ask what exactly was worse 'in literally every way'?

 

You mentioned food and not enough staff but that was all. Ships being crowded isn't a bad thing, you can't expect them to sail half full forever more or else they'll go bankrupt. 

 

What was so terrible about the food and what was so terrible about service? And was there anything else or was your statement about everything being worse just hyperbole?

 

I'll ignore the covid comment because that's nothing to do with Celebrity and was just speculation on your behalf. In December half the people I know, including myself, had a cough, but none us had covid. We all just had a variety of colds, flus and chest infections. Such is life. 

[buckeye8810]

12 minutes ago, OysterD said:

Can I ask what exactly was worse 'in literally every way'?

 

You mentioned food and not enough staff but that was all. Ships being crowded isn't a bad thing, you can't expect them to sail half full forever more or else they'll go bankrupt. 

 

What was so terrible about the food and what was so terrible about service? And was there anything else or was your statement about everything being worse just hyperbole?

 

I'll ignore the covid comment because that's nothing to do with Celebrity and was just speculation on your behalf. In December half the people I know, including myself, had a cough, but none us had covid. We all just had a variety of colds, flus and chest infections. Such is life. 

As in I cannot think of one area where the cruise was better than or equal to years past.

The food was plain bad. Not sure another way to describe it. Less selection, and worse quality. Smaller portions. Cheaper offerings as well.

The wait staff was overworked and basically was there to take orders and deliver food. No opportunity to talk or get to know them.

I don’t mind crowds, but when there’s no spots to eat breakfast, or get chairs anywhere by the pool, or running out of pool towels…you know it’s too much. Especially if Celebrity is not going to staff the ship appropriately.

[Georgia_Peaches]

I will be on Solstice in a few weeks. It will be our first post Covid cruise with them with our last being in 2019. I have every intention of enjoying every moment. There’s been so much negativity about celebrity that I’ve reached a saturation point. The best I can do is just see for myself. 

[Georgia_Peaches]

7 minutes ago, buckeye8810 said:

I don’t mind crowds, but when there’s no spots to eat breakfast, or get chairs anywhere by the pool, or running out of pool towels…you know it’s too much. Especially if Celebrity is not going to staff the ship appropriately.

Sounds like they were sailing at capacity?  If so, it does get crowded… especially on sea days. 
 

the food quality, selection, and portions have been discussed quite a bit. Not sure what to think… especially with Murano. We have reservations for three nights on our cruise. Are you implying that Murano was making people feel sick?  

[mayleeman]

4 minutes ago, Georgia_Peaches said:

Sounds like they were sailing at capacity?  If so, it does get crowded… especially on sea days

 

The OP's complaint about crowding has to be read in context of understaffing. An adequately staffed crowded ship doesn't result in as much time waiting for cleaning, food, drinks, etc.

[Georgia_Peaches]

1 minute ago, mayleeman said:

 

The OP's complaint about crowding has to be read in context of understaffing. An adequately staffed crowded ship doesn't result in as much time waiting for cleaning, food, drinks, etc.

Ahh that makes sense. 

[OysterD]

3 minutes ago, mayleeman said:

 

The OP's complaint about crowding has to be read in context of understaffing. An adequately staffed crowded ship doesn't result in as much time waiting for cleaning, food, drinks, etc.

The complaint was about not having a free table to eat breakfast or find a seat by the pool. That's nothing to do with staffing. 

[mayleeman]

Just now, OysterD said:

The complaint was about not having a free table to eat breakfast or find a seat by the pool. That's nothing to do with staffing. 

 

I have waited in many lines for dirty tables to be cleaned or entire eating areas to be opened up because of insufficient staff. Pool chairs can also be cleared when abandoned if there are crew available to do it (or be requested to). Pools and hot tub maintenance also has to be done regularly, so staffing affects that, too.

[jelayne]

For every OMG it is horrible post I find another post on some social media site that I just got off X ship and it was wonderful.  
 
Those of us who sailed just after the restart were treated to the luxury of small passenger loads and full staff.  Now on many ships that passenger load has increased and there are less crew, eventually it will balance out.  I’m not ready to scream “the sky is falling”.

[Luvcrusn]

Our last cruise was on Equinox in late December of 2022. It was the first X cruise where we gave  negative feedback in our post cruise survey about the food, and this was before the inception of the extra charge for a second serving of lobster or the room service $9.95+gratuity. The offerings in the OVC were noticeably cut back and many sections were closed. The carving stations at lunch offered cheaper proteins. The grilled steaks were absent. The afternoon tea (scones, tea sandwiches etc.) was never put out even though we looked for it and asked. The evening offerings for dinner were not nearly what has been offered in the past and much of the buffet area was closed and empty.  We were disappointed.

The ship on this sailing was only a bit more than 1/2 full and the service was excellent in almost all areas, however it was very noticeable that staff weren't being deployed to urge guests to use hand sanitizer when entering the dining rooms, specialty restaurants or theater like in pre-covid days.

[jelayne]

If the crew has to remind guests to wash or sanitize that is a sad commentary on the guests not the cruise line.  We were on the Solstice in December no stations in the OV were closed at breakfast or lunch.
 

[goofysmom99]

I'm taking two Summit cruises beginning next week where I hope to see for myself how things are.  I've pretty well committed to my November TA, but the cruises I've already booked for next year plus a few I was planning to book onboard will be hanging in the balance.  I love X but expect a certain value from them, especially at higher fares.  We shall see.

[WrittenOnYourHeart]

10 hours ago, buckeye8810 said:

half the people on the ship were coughing and hacking, which probably means Covid was running rampant.

 

People cough for all kinds of reasons - it's not exclusive to COVID.

 

Colds. Bronchitis. Other chest/lung issues. Asthma. Allergies. Swallowing their spit wrong. Inhaling something that irritates their throat. Etc.

 

Is COVID still around? Yes. But is every single cough COVID-related? No.

Edited February 12, 2023 by WrittenOnYourHeart

[trivia addict]

10 hours ago, buckeye8810 said:

Since the start of the year, I know there’s been a lot of handwringing about the changes Celebrity has made. We just got back from a 10-night Eastern Caribbean…and I can confirm things are worse than before, in literally every way.

 

Ships are more crowded, and there’s clearly not enough staff to accommodate the increase in passengers. Food is significantly worse…and the wait staff was running around like their hair was on fire. Even in Murano, the food was disappointing. Not to mention several people in our group reported stomach issues on multiple days after dinner.
Unrelated, but it seemed like half the people on the ship were coughing and hacking, which probably means Covid was running rampant.

 

All in all, there’s no reason to pay premium prices for Celebrity anymore, because it’s no longer a premium brand. With the changes they’ve made, it’s not any different than NCL. Not saying I wouldn’t cruise with Celebrity again, but there’s no chance I would pay current prices. We felt ripped off, considering when we booked this cruise we were expecting the level of service from years past.

 

 

Can you tell us how you found the activities on board? 
We took our first post Covid Celebrity cruise last summer and found that there were very few activities scheduled. The ones offered each day only seemed to be the ones that were selling something. Each day the Dailey posted almost the exact thing as the day before.

Truthfully we were bored. We chalked it up to post Covid staffing problems. 
We have another Celebrity cruise scheduled for June, but due to the high cost that we would be paying and the many bad reviews we are reading, we are thinking of switching to NCL.

[Sphynxlady]

We are just off a b2b. On Equinox and it was pure joy. This was my 3rd cruise post Covid and first full ship. Crew was incredible and food was good. I am picky but  I never went hungry. We ate at Murano 6 times and both food and service were exceptional. I don’t know any restaurant on land that would give you an extra lobster free. Prices are my affordable max but so are prices at home. I have cruised Celebrity about 40 times and each one was wonderful. Wonderful is a tad different than perfect  Perfect rarely happens  in the real world. Lord willing I will get to cruise next year on the b2b we booked while on board.

[Cruise a holic]

We enjoy and will continue to enjoy celebrity.  Yes, people still coughing, and covid and other respiratory infections on  board, but wear a mask in elevators and crowded venues.  This isn't a celebrity issue, it is a cruise issue.  We sailed in Dec and January and enjoyed all of the food in the specialty restaurants- found service on the Apex wonderful.  Will be cruising again in March on Celebrity.  We also sailed on Royal past august, and they also were great.  

 

This is a new world, and things are changing period.

[Duanerice1]

Coming back after a 5 year hiatus.  Talked my wife into paying the premium fee for Celebrity because of what I remember.  
 

One of the main selling points was she could have a nice hot room service breakfast every day.  After 6 cruises with just continental breakfast she was sold.  Then come January and they killed that, prime rib and extra lobster (even Carnival allows 2 and then it’s $5 for the 3rd) and all other free room service.   We use it a lot. 
 

sure, not the end of the world but when I bought my cruise that is what I what I bought.  They didn’t refund me anything for taking away benefits. No OBC to offset the cost of my room service….  And yea, they can change anything they want at any time.  Just don’t charge me a premium for a lesser product.  If you do, a refund or free cancel Would have been in order.  They changed this right after I made final payment. 
 

Of course we will have a great time but I could have saved a lot and gotten the same benefits. 

 

 

Edited February 12, 2023 by Duanerice1