P&O v's Celebrity

[laslomas]

1 minute ago, Presto2 said:

We didn't have an infinite veranda cabin on Edge. The aft cabins are normal doors / balconies 😉

 

Yes I know there are 'sunset verandas', but as well as being more expensive, they sell out quickly too. Did you choose it as you wanted to be in an aft cabin, or because you wanted a 'real' veranda? 

[Presto2]

2 minutes ago, laslomas said:

 

Yes I know there are 'sunset verandas', but as well as being more expensive, they sell out quickly too. Did you choose it as you wanted to be in an aft cabin, or because you wanted a 'real' veranda? 

We always have an aft cabin if we can but when we booked the ship was still being built so we booked an IV cabin. We booked really early. As time went on, we kept checking with friends we made in the Celebrity Boards as no-one could tell us what was below in the deck below our chosen cabin. Including Celebrity.  To cut a long story short VT cruiser sailed before us and found out it was an outside cafe type area for one of the bars .. with a loud speaker playing music until very late. We also read some things about the IV cabin we didn't like.

We asked for a swap if a sunset veranda cabin became available and with about 6 weeks to go it did and we jumped at the chance. It cost us more but it was the best decision we have ever made.

Any questions about the Edge class ships please ask.

[heatherb1958]

58 minutes ago, laslomas said:

 

 

 

 

 

I realise P&O will be a different experience especially as the passenger demographic is probably 90%+ British, I am not saying that is bad - just different. I will keep reading this thread so to be prepared for my P&O cruise. I just wish P&O offered some kind of status match with Celebrity Captain's Club loyalty scheme, similar to that offered by MSC. I now have to start at the bottom again 😞

 

We didn't start cruising with P&O until October 21. If you cruise a lot like we do you'll soon rise up the ranks 😆.  

We are soon to embark cruise number  7  with them and already have 74 nights at sea .... woo woo 7.5% discount onboard and a welcome glass of champagne . P&O's loyalty programme is nothing like RCI or Celebrity but their cruises are far cheaper so you can do many more ... 

Edited August 14, 2023 by heatherb1958

[Presto2]

30 minutes ago, heatherb1958 said:

 

We didn't start cruising with P&O until October 21. If you cruise a lot like we do you'll soon rise up the ranks 😆.  

We are soon to embark cruise number  7  with them and already have 74 nights at sea .... woo woo 7.5% discount onboard and a welcome glass of champagne . P&O's loyalty programme is nothing like RCI or Celebrity but their cruises are far cheaper so you can do many more ... 

I can go to a Travel Lodge a 100 times for the price of a cruise. Would I want to go a 100 times?

I used to think exactly the same until our last experience that did not feel like why we wanted to cruise.

Giving it another go, but if it disappoints we will go less and enjoy the experience somewhere more special and expensive less than come home grumpy and stressed. (I feel like a real grump at the moment ---- if people know me from our history on CC they will know that I am not a moaner. Honest)

[Chrisclaire]

Thanks again everyone for your replies.

Very much appreciated!

Good to hear different opinions.

Looks like in this instance, you get what you pay for perhaps.

We have only been on the smaller  Celebrity ships M & S class, not the more recent larger E class which Iona would be comparable to.

From many comments,  looks like the price is the main difference. 

 

We are off round Australia on Solstice in 8 weeks and that cruise will be our decider.....do we stick with Celebrity or jump ship 😆 

Their prices for next year are so expensive and as laslomas mentioned the drinks package, speciality dining etc is also.

But I do love the Martini Bar 🤪 

2 x cruises with P&O or similar or 1 x cruise with Celebrity,  I guess I need to make that decision!

 

For info on a previous post, we have only had an aft cabin once sailing round Vietnam/Thailand etc on Constellation.   The balcony was huge  we had a table that seated 6 and 2 sun loungers  however as there was no breeze it was extremely hot and we were unable to sit out.

So beware if it's a warmer climate you are going to and don't like it too hot.

Thanks again everyone!

 

 

[Chrisclaire]

On 8/14/2023 at 6:58 PM, Presto2 said:

I can go to a Travel Lodge a 100 times for the price of a cruise. Would I want to go a 100 times?

I used to think exactly the same until our last experience that did not feel like why we wanted to cruise.

Giving it another go, but if it disappoints we will go less and enjoy the experience somewhere more special and expensive less than come home grumpy and stressed. (I feel like a real grump at the moment ---- if people know me from our history on CC they will know that I am not a moaner. Honest)

Out of interest Presto2 

What disappointed you and made you "grumpy"?

[Megabear2]

16 minutes ago, Chrisclaire said:

Thanks again everyone for your replies.

Very much appreciated!

Good to hear different opinions.

Looks like in this instance, you get what you pay for perhaps.

We have only been on the smaller  Celebrity ships M & S class, not the more recent larger E class which Iona would be comparable to.

From many comments,  looks like the price is the main difference. 

 

We are off round Australia on Solstice in 8 weeks and that cruise will be our decider.....do we stick with Celebrity or jump ship 😆 

Their prices for next year are so expensive and as laslomas mentioned the drinks package, speciality dining etc is also.

But I do love the Martini Bar 🤪 

2 x cruises with P&O or similar or 1 x cruise with Celebrity,  I guess I need to make that decision!

 

For info on a previous post, we have only had an aft cabin once sailing round Vietnam/Thailand etc on Constellation.   The balcony was huge  we had a table that seated 6 and 2 sun loungers  however as there was no breeze it was extremely hot and we were unable to sit out.

So beware if it's a warmer climate you are going to and don't like it too hot.

Thanks again everyone!

 

 

Beware - Iona is absolutely nothing like the E class.  Capacity is far higher on Iona and Arvia, 2,900 on Edge compared to 5,200.

 

If money isn't a worry it really is like chalk and cheese.  

[Presto2]

9 hours ago, Chrisclaire said:

Out of interest Presto2 

What disappointed you and made you "grumpy"?

Hi, it'll take a while - mainly the new arrangements of freedom dining. I'll try to find my previous posts as I've been over it in detail. Will post the links when I've found them.

🙂

[Presto2]

9 hours ago, Chrisclaire said:

Out of interest Presto2 

What disappointed you and made you "grumpy"?

I've had a good look and it makes more sense to read this thread as it pretty much covers what I am moaning  about. You'll need to start from page one - sorry 😉

Review of Britannia as promised - Page 4 - P&O Cruises ( UK ) - Cruise Critic Community

[Chrisclaire]

14 minutes ago, Presto2 said:

I've had a good look and it makes more sense to read this thread as it pretty much covers what I am moaning  about. You'll need to start from page one - sorry 😉

Review of Britannia as promised - Page 4 - P&O Cruises ( UK ) - Cruise Critic Community

What a fantastic/informative review! Thankyou for that.

 

Interestingly,  our first cruise post pandemic was on Celebrity Constellation and we felt exactly as you did re the cabin.

We also felt that the standards had dropped with regards service and food. Happy to make allowances though for that particular cruise.

It will be interesting to see what Solstice is like in October. 

We will then make our decision on who to look at going forward!

At the end of the day, it's all about expectations.  Celebrity market themselves as luxury and charge luxurious prices, therefore the expectations are higher 😀 

[Presto2]

2 minutes ago, Chrisclaire said:

What a fantastic/informative review! Thankyou for that.

 

Interestingly,  our first cruise post pandemic was on Celebrity Constellation and we felt exactly as you did re the cabin.

We also felt that the standards had dropped with regards service and food. Happy to make allowances though for that particular cruise.

It will be interesting to see what Solstice is like in October. 

We will then make our decision on who to look at going forward!

At the end of the day, it's all about expectations.  Celebrity market themselves as luxury and charge luxurious prices, therefore the expectations are higher 😀 

We've done Connie in an aft cabin and we thought the ship was so so despite us being concierge class. Didn't like the ship and would not book that class again at all.

Looking back I'd call an Edge class ship something special re Celebrity .. but the prices seem sky high. Would not pay their prices for Connie or Infinity. 

Loved the Silhouette and that class. 

She was a notch up

 

[RainbowRichard]

We tried Iona for the first time in May of this years after being fairly loyal Celebrity cruisers.  We’re in our early to mid forties if that makes any difference.  We also have yet to try Celebrity again post pandemic - our next Celebrity cruise is this September.

 

Things we liked about Iona:

The number of Speciality restaurants was good and the extra charge is modest so it is less of a considered purchase.

Food was generally good, though I found breakfast disappointing, more akin to a low/mid range chain hotel.

Limelight club a good concept which we enjoyed.

We generally like to find a quiet-ish bar with some low key music such as piano/strings etc and there were a good number of these on Iona and relatively easy to find a seat.  Seems like a bigger ship means there is something to please everyone and it was easy to find a quiet spot if that’s what we wanted.

 

Downsides of Iona

The service didn’t seem quite as polished, we felt that the staff, although pleasant, did not go above and beyond and we also feel like we did not get to know them like we do on Celebrity but that could be due to being a much larger ship.

Dinner in main dining room always felt rushed, and we were in and out in about an hour or so even on formal night.

 

We did get ill with bad colds halfway through this cruise so did not try any other entertainment outside of the limelight and music in the bars.

We did not buy a drinks package either and just paid as we went.

 

In summary, we’d certainly try P&O again especially as Celebrity pricing seems to be going through the roof.  We’ll see how our September Celebrity cruise is and determine whether it is still worth paying a bit more for.

 

[Chrisclaire]

Thanks for that!

Seems like you enjoy pretty much the same as us, so that is most helpful.

Interestingly,  our post pandemic cruise last Sept on Constellation,  our dining experience in the MDR was quite different to previous cruises.

The staff were all very good, but we felt they were spread thin & certainly did not have the same time to spend with guests as previously.

We also noticed a big difference in the Sommelier service.

Poor girl was really struggling. 

One concern of our's going on such a big ship is how busy it would be, but reassuring to hear you can find a quiet spot/bar.

Enjoy your Sept cruise & thanks again!