Long Time Celebrity Cruiser

[tocruiseguy]

2 hours ago, CCWineLover said:

So are you voting with your wallet and words and just doing Celebrity from now on?   And leaving Viking?

We aren't voting or leaving anything, not sure what you mean by that as we were never "with" Viking or Celebrity for that matter.  More than willing to try any cruise line and we also don't just cruise for travel, we like a variety.  Based on our recent Viking cruise, we just wouldn't rush back to Viking, it's just a little too sedate for us.  Again thats how we feel, if you don't feel the same same, perfectly fine. 

[tocruiseguy]

4 hours ago, LindaS272 said:

Many, many postings here about folks who order up a room service breakfast; I believe Mamsen’s is serving waffles until about 10:30-11:00 a.m.; afternoons have tea in the Winter Garden from 4-5 pm; & room service cheese/fruit plate in late afternoon after excursions.

Well aware of the options.  Having a desert like waffle in the morning or fighting room service trays in our room isn't our thing.   We tried those "sandwiches" and frankly most were not great, but not a high tea person....Celebrity's cafe is pretty well open at least partially, all day until late.  Plus having split pea soup for a midnight snack isn't very appealing...

[LindaS272]

5 hours ago, tocruiseguy said:

Well aware of the options.  Having a desert like waffle in the morning or fighting room service trays in our room isn't our thing.   We tried those "sandwiches" and frankly most were not great, but not a high tea person....Celebrity's cafe is pretty well open at least partially, all day until late.  Plus having split pea soup for a midnight snack isn't very appealing...

Oh well. Just sounds like you were not cut out for Viking.

[CCWineLover]

7 hours ago, tocruiseguy said:

We aren't voting or leaving anything, not sure what you mean by that as we were never "with" Viking or Celebrity for that matter.  More than willing to try any cruise line and we also don't just cruise for travel, we like a variety.  Based on our recent Viking cruise, we just wouldn't rush back to Viking, it's just a little too sedate for us.  Again thats how we feel, if you don't feel the same same, perfectly fine. 

tocruiseguy -

Yes, that's what is good about all the different cruise lines offering different things.  Allows everyone to discover and the find the things they like.  If there wasn't variety, it would be tough for all of us!  Just like there are lots of restaurants and we all go to ones that we enjoy, but also keep trying new ones just to see if they fit!  🙂

Enjoy!

[tocruiseguy]

4 hours ago, LindaS272 said:

Oh well. Just sounds like you were not cut out for Viking.

Cut out?  I'm not cut out to spend $1200 a day so I can read a book on a lounger on a sea day and go to bed at 9 pm, not cut out for that?  😀

[LindaS272]

55 minutes ago, tocruiseguy said:

Cut out?  I'm not cut out to spend $1200 a day so I can read a book on a lounger on a sea day and go to bed at 9 pm, not cut out for that?  😀

No need to be snarky. You yourself said you didn’t like it so I responded that you just don’t seem cut out for it. I’ve had a completely different experience on my Viking cruises.

[tocruiseguy]

2 hours ago, LindaS272 said:

No need to be snarky. You yourself said you didn’t like it so I responded that you just don’t seem cut out for it. I’ve had a completely different experience on my Viking cruises.

Snarky is saying someone isn't "cut out" for something.  I really don't get why people take other peoples opinions about a company so personally, but carry on.  

[duquephart]

7 hours ago, tocruiseguy said:

Snarky is saying someone isn't "cut out" for something.  I really don't get why people take other peoples opinions about a company so personally, but carry on.  

 

Beware the Viking cheerleaders. They are legion here.

[BootsyGhost]

As there are always people with nothing positive to say.  It is the way of things.

[island lady]

16 hours ago, CCWineLover said:

tocruiseguy -

Yes, that's what is good about all the different cruise lines offering different things.  Allows everyone to discover and the find the things they like.  If there wasn't variety, it would be tough for all of us!  Just like there are lots of restaurants and we all go to ones that we enjoy, but also keep trying new ones just to see if they fit!  🙂

Enjoy!

 

Same thing as to how boring it would be if there was only one flavor of ice cream in the world!  😉 

[MELSMOM47]

On 5/28/2023 at 3:47 AM, tocruiseguy said:

Most of the cruises we have taken to date have been on Celebrity, recently did a longer Viking Cruise, our first one.  Firstly the entertainment on Celebrity is significantly better and sea days on Viking were devoid of activities, unless you want to learn to play bridge or other rather sedate activities.  The age demographic, at least on the Viking cruise we took, I would guess was 75 plus and Viking really caters to that age group.  Almost all the music played was from the 1970's and older, not sure why Viking doesn't realize there have been 4 decades of music since 1979....

 

The staff on Viking were excellent and the food was generally very good, although repetitive at times and strangely the hours were somewhat limited in the World Cafe.  Viking did a good job of providing "local" cuisine in the World Cafe.  We find the staff on Celebrity equally good (and we are usually in a regular state room). but there seems to more Viking staff around so I am guessing Viking has a better staff to passenger ratio.  If you like to sleep in, forget about breakfast due to the world cafe hours, and there was really nowhere to grab a snack late afternoon when we returned from excursions.   Ship was very nice/clean and our stateroom was good.  Gym was good, as it wasn't busy, not really any gym classes though.  Spa was good, much of it included.  A few of the bar staff were excellent, went above and beyond, although at times in The Restaurant and Manfredi's we found almost too many staff were servicing our table which resulted in confusion. 

 

Viking's included excursions are basically, pile into a bus, drive around for an hour, get out, take a picture, get back in, rinse and repeat.  The included excursions seemed to be catered towards people who don't really want to move a lot (not us).  Some of the paid excursions weren't much better.  Our best days were either self guided stuff or private tours we arranged ourselves. 

 

Bottom line for us, even though the ship and staff were very good, we find Viking too sedate and even though there are some great Viking itineraries the excursions provided and sold do not live up to the potential of some of the ports, at least on the cruise we were on.  Based on the additional daily cost on Viking we don't think it's worth it, but that is subjective and our opinion.  

Just got back from our first Viking cruise. Many niceties but a lot that we miss from Celebrity. My ideal cruise would combine several. We love the size of Windstar, the food and entertainment of Celebrity and the elegance of the Viking ship. 

[OnTheJourney]

On 5/28/2023 at 1:25 PM, tocruiseguy said:

it's just a little too sedate for us

That's actually the part we love the most, being that we hardly do any of the scheduled social activities on either RCL or X. On sea days, I'm good with just spending time reading out on the room balcony along with some deck walks, and whatever else might interest us. One of the things we also like about Viking is how they have the port / destination talks, etc. available on the room tv. Oftentimes we'd get back late from excursions and so would otherwise miss the programs, but then found it most convenient to watch them in the evenings. Probably my favorite thing about Viking compared to X or RCL is how you can book a pre and post-extension, and so it makes it more like a combination land tour / cruise. This especially applies to overseas, since I really don't care to fly that far for less than two weeks, so if the cruise is only 8-9 days or so, can easily make it more worthwhile by extending on both ends. I realize this can be done with any cruise line by just doing independent travel before or after, but that involves more planning. Viking makes it super easy by taking care of the hotel, transfers, included tours, etc. And then there's Mamson's...love eating there! Also Chef's Table we find to be truly outstanding. Also really like that there are no kids on Viking. The ship feels quiet and relaxed. We DO like the shows and entertainment on X and RCL, but very honestly I don't miss it when I'm on a Viking cruise. The wonderful lecturers' presentations more than make up for it.

Edited June 6, 2023 by OnTheJourney

[OnTheJourney]

On 5/28/2023 at 11:05 PM, tocruiseguy said:

so I can read a book on a lounger on a sea day

works for me!  But then, I enjoy doing the same thing on a sea day with X or RCL. It's all what people look for in a cruise. We don't do late night lounges or the various games / activities that are listed in the daily schedules. For us, it's about the itineraries primarily and just being out on the water, enjoying what there is to see, being part of the natural scene. When I'm out on the deck - even just looking at the water - I have little interest in what's going on in and around the ship, although we do enjoy when they show movies if it works out with our schedule. The lines waiting for the free daily jewelry charm gets old after awhile, although we can even get into that while onboard, and then once we get home though, DW realizes she really doesn't want to keep most of that stuff anyway! We were glad to see that X has abandoned sending ship photographers around in the dining room, etc. Have enough cruise pics from over the years. Viking doesn't do any of that either. We don't miss it. That whole formal night dress up thing seems to be fading, except for those who really enjoy it and like getting pictures. We were struck by the informality of the clothes we saw people wearing on "chic" nights. That's fine too...less (fancy) clothes to pack.

Edited June 6, 2023 by OnTheJourney

[MELSMOM47]

3 hours ago, OnTheJourney said:

works for me!  But then, I enjoy doing the same thing on a sea day with X or RCL. It's all what people look for in a cruise. We don't do late night lounges or the various games / activities that are listed in the daily schedules. For us, it's about the itineraries primarily and just being out on the water, enjoying what there is to see, being part of the natural scene. When I'm out on the deck - even just looking at the water - I have little interest in what's going on in and around the ship, although we do enjoy when they show movies if it works out with our schedule. The lines waiting for the free daily jewelry charm gets old after awhile, although we can even get into that while onboard, and then once we get home though, DW realizes she really doesn't want to keep most of that stuff anyway! We were glad to see that X has abandoned sending ship photographers around in the dining room, etc. Have enough cruise pics from over the years. Viking doesn't do any of that either. We don't miss it. That whole formal night dress up thing seems to be fading, except for those who really enjoy it and like getting pictures. We were struck by the informality of the clothes we saw people wearing on "chic" nights. That's fine too...less (fancy) clothes to pack.

That’s why I wish I could combine a few lines. Windstar is small and intimate, I love the food and the small ports but it can be too quiet. Celebrity has the action and there are plenty of places to find solace including the huge aft balcony that I adore. Viking is very elegant and spacious. I found the talks to be at times when we were otherwise occupied especially with our port intensive itinerary.  We will continue to find and enjoy the best of them all. 

[Gracie115]

On 5/24/2023 at 3:55 AM, txcarm said:

Our transatlantic on Celebrity Edge only had 1400 passengers.  

Ours on Apex in April had 2900.... 

[Gracie115]

On 6/6/2023 at 7:11 PM, OnTheJourney said:

That's actually the part we love the most, being that we hardly do any of the scheduled social activities on either RCL or X. On sea days, I'm good with just spending time reading out on the room balcony along with some deck walks, and whatever else might interest us. One of the things we also like about Viking is how they have the port / destination talks, etc. available on the room tv. Oftentimes we'd get back late from excursions and so would otherwise miss the programs, but then found it most convenient to watch them in the evenings. Probably my favorite thing about Viking compared to X or RCL is how you can book a pre and post-extension, and so it makes it more like a combination land tour / cruise. This especially applies to overseas, since I really don't care to fly that far for less than two weeks, so if the cruise is only 8-9 days or so, can easily make it more worthwhile by extending on both ends. I realize this can be done with any cruise line by just doing independent travel before or after, but that involves more planning. Viking makes it super easy by taking care of the hotel, transfers, included tours, etc. And then there's Mamson's...love eating there! Also Chef's Table we find to be truly outstanding. Also really like that there are no kids on Viking. The ship feels quiet and relaxed. We DO like the shows and entertainment on X and RCL, but very honestly I don't miss it when I'm on a Viking cruise. The wonderful lecturers' presentations more than make up for it.

This is also what we hope to find when we take our first Viking trip.  It will be a river boat in Eqypt, that includes a post extension to Jordan.  We have tired of the same old, same old itineraries from Celebrity with an occasional new one thrown in I guess to keep people booking.  Just haven't felt our $$'s were being spent wisely with them anymore.  Don't care about not having a butler, never had him/her do much anyway.  While we've enjoyed the entertainment on X, it's become repetitive and we look forward to the smaller venues offered by Viking.  We plan to do more trips like the Egypt one where you really get to know a country(well as much as is possible over a couple of weeks)