Celebrity Ship Classes - Entertainment and Crowds

[chrpai]

I just returned today from a 3 day Bahamas on the Summit.  My background is 4 Carnival, 2 Norweigan and now 1 Celebrity.  While I thoroughly enjoyed the cruise I was somewhat suprised at how lightly populated the ship felt.  It reminded of a Carnival Cruise I took during Covid.  It's a good problem to have of course....  embarkation and debarkation  at all ports was insanely easy,  I rarely waited for an elevator,  could walk right into dinner or find a table at the OVC, the theater or the rooftop terrace.   But in some ways it felt kind of lonely.  I never really found a place giving off some energetic vibe.  Maybe it's part our fault cause we'd just go to bed early.  The shows were kinda, well, not enjoyable and not well attended.

 

My question is....  was it just the intinery?  The shortness of the cruise?  The class of ship?   My wife and sister n law would like to take an Alaskan Cruise and I can thoroughly give a thumbs up but I'm kind of wondering should I look for a different class of ship or should I look at Norweigan?   I felt like Norgweigan was similiar but with more focus on restaurants and production quality shows.

 

[lv2cruisgrl]

Try a longer cruise and newer ship. 

[Blueseas109]

We took our first Celebrity cruise on the Summit in July and I agree with your views. We thought the ship was too small and the entertainment boring. No upbeat vibe at all even though the ship was sold out. We still had a great time and thought it was the best service ever on a ship. We are sailing on Reflection next and hoping the larger ship will be better. 

Edited October 26, 2023 by Blueseas109
Spelling error

[Blueseas109]

30 minutes ago, chrpai said:

 My wife and sister n law would like to take an Alaskan Cruise and I can thoroughly give a thumbs up but I'm kind of wondering should I look for a different class of ship or should I look at Norweigan?

We cruised to Alaska on the Ruby Princess and the ship was older but the vibe and shows so much better.  Food not so great IMO. 

[jelayne]

Did you try the Martini bar between 4-8 or the Sky Lounge 10:30 on?

[SusieAV8R]

48 minutes ago, jelayne said:

Did you try the Martini bar between 4-8 or the Sky Lounge 10:30 on?

Jelayne, I agree with you.  There is higher energy as you described.  But that said, DH and I only sail M & S class X ships because we enjoy the low keyed energy. (I can go to work for high energy and certainly don't want a "party" ship.). Perhaps posters want to try E-class or RCL for higher energy?  I believe researching to find a good fit will help folks choose the line and ship class which works for them.

[NutsAboutGolf]

1 hour ago, Blueseas109 said:

We took our first Celebrity cruise on the Summit in July and I agree with your views. We thought the ship was too small and the entertainment boring. No upbeat vibe at all even though the ship was sold out. We still had a great time and thought it was the best service ever on a ship. We are sailing on Reflection next and hoping the larger ship will be better. 

 

You probably want E-Class.  Pretty much all the entertainment is the same between the E-Class ships while all the entertainment is the same on both the M-Class (Summit) and S-Class (Reflection) so you may see the same shows again

 

 

 

 

[chrpai]

1 hour ago, SusieAV8R said:

I believe researching to find a good fit will help folks choose the line and ship class which works for them.

 

This was a last minute booking because the schedule and price worked out for a trip we already had planned for Miami. I certainly enjoyed the trip. There was a lot that I liked and only a few mehs. No real negatives.  And yes... this thread is me doing research before making a bigger committment.  

[prmssk]

A 3 night cruise likely had a later crowd so if you ate earlier and returned to your room earlier, you may have missed some of the energy.  That said, the Summit is one of Celebrity's smallest ships with less to do and a quieter vibe.  Just bumping up to an S class ship I have found brings more energy and I have not yet sailed an E class ship but expect that has even more energy to it.

 

That said, unless you are already sold on Celebrity, I'm not sure it is the best choice for Alaska.  Princess, Holland, and even NCL have better Alaska itineraries.

[montythecat]

Maybe give Holland America a go ?   A different approach to 

entertainment compared to all other cruise lines. On Pinnacle 

class ships you will find a rock band, a blues/soul band and two

pianists, whilst on Vista class you get the rock band and the

pianists. We love the evenings on these ships.

[raspberry ridge]

I  agree with the advice that a longer sailing (7-10)generally has a more lively evening vibe, especially in the Caribbean.I've done two Alaskan sailings however and will "warn" you that they were extremely quiet in the evenings. Various entertainments were offered but most people spend their days outdoors in more strenuous activities and they are tired and early to bed.For me that is a plus as I'd rather stargaze in the less light polluted night skies, read, or watch a movie than hang out in a lounge, but after 10PM it will be a VERY quiet ship and during the day most people will be ashore. For us the "sweet spot" in cruising if we want plenty of company and activities is Royal Caribbean.It might be a good fit for you. I've cruised over 30 times (Carnival,Royal,Celebrity,Norwegian,HAL, & Disney)and each has pluses and minuses not only by line but by itinerary and voyage length IMO.