Hal/RCCL/Celebrity/Carnival ?

[mcjigs]

I posted this on the Celebrity board and didn't get a very good response. Maybe it was to selective being on the Celebrity board so I'll try it here.

I’ve ONLY been on Carnival Cruise line but we are scheduled in December for Celebrity for the first time.

 

We went on our latest Carnival Cruise this past December and I was very disappointed with the food for the first time in 8 years of cruising with Carnival. So we are switching to try Celebrity this December. Why did I pick Celebrity… because I read the book “What time is the midnight buffet?” by chesterh. Hope it will be a good switch!

 

We are next planning a European Cruise in 2007 and I’ve been searching the boards for info and haven’t seen this question asked recently.

 

How would you rank all cruise lines you have used and why?

 

Thanks, ~mary~

 

1997/Carnival Fantasy/Bahamas/4 days

2002/Carnival Pride/Exotic Western Caribbean/7 days

2003/Carnival Sensation/Grand Caymans & Cozumel/ 5 days

2005/Carnival Pride/Mexican Riviera/7 days

Dec 2006/Celebrity Millennium/Eastern Caribbean/7 days

2007/? Ship/Cruise Line/Europe/ ? days

[momofmeg]

I posted this on the Celebrity board and didn't get a very good response. Maybe it was to selective being on the Celebrity board so I'll try it here.

I’ve ONLY been on Carnival Cruise line but we are scheduled in December for Celebrity for the first time.

 

We went on our latest Carnival Cruise this past December and I was very disappointed with the food for the first time in 8 years of cruising with Carnival. So we are switching to try Celebrity this December. Why did I pick Celebrity… because I read the book “What time is the midnight buffet?” by chesterh. Hope it will be a good switch!

 

We are next planning a European Cruise in 2007 and I’ve been searching the boards for info and haven’t seen this question asked recently.

 

How would you rank all cruise lines you have used and why?

 

Thanks, ~mary~

 

1997/Carnival Fantasy/Bahamas/4 days

2002/Carnival Pride/Exotic Western Caribbean/7 days

2003/Carnival Sensation/Grand Caymans & Cozumel/ 5 days

2005/Carnival Pride/Mexican Riviera/7 days

Dec 2006/Celebrity Millennium/Eastern Caribbean/7 days

2007/? Ship/Cruise Line/Europe/ ? days

 

 

I liked Celebrity very well In Feb. and hope to cruise them again but my next cruise in on Princess-I was able to get a balcony on Caribbean Princess the same price per day as an oceanview on Celbrity Century-Century was a 5 day cruise and CP is 7 day.

 

I used to like Carnival and thought Carnival a great value with great food and entertainment but my last 2 cruises were a disapointment-so they are not one of my top choices anymore. I thought Disney was decent-just over priced. RCCL I felt was overpriced and not so decent-I prefer to cruise Carnival and save my money then to go on RCCL.

 

Still though-for the prices of European cruises and the ports I want-I found Jewel of the Seas had the best price of all the lines-so RCCL is probally the line I will cruise when I do my european reposioning cruise. I just plan to eat at Chops several nights.

 

 

HAL had great food, service and shows-but was much too sedate-so I think HAL would be my absolute last c hoice for a cruiseline.

 

so here is my ratings on a scale from 1-10

 

Celebrity and Princess-10

 

Carnival-8

 

Disney-8

 

RCCL-7

 

HAL-7

[caviargal]

We all have priorties for cruises and mine are as follows:

 

- great food and service, and the availability of specialty dining

- comfortable cabins and bedding

- lots of fitness options and activities

- as few families with kids as possible

- passengers who dress for dinner (in general); cannot stand to see tanks and shorts in the dining room at dinner~

 

That means a luxury line like RSSC or Oceania, which are pricey so a rare treat.

 

I would choose Celebrity as my first choice and HAL as my second for mainstream cruise lines.

 

RCI used to be my line of choice but I am sick and tired of the adult areas not being respected and the total decline in dress codes. So, they are off the radar for me unless and until they get their act together. If they ever do, only a Radiance class ship for me.

 

It has been 15 years since Princess and their ships are just too big for my taste.

 

And Carnival is simply not a line I enjoy, period.

[GottaLuvCruising]

I agree that it is all always a matter of personal choice. We have very much enjoyed every cruise we have taken.

 

We've sailed Carnival the most. I love the Spirit class ships. I prefer the older menus (as apparently many of you do); when they upgraded their menus to appeal to a more "gourmet" palate, I had to eat steak almost every night. I like Carnival's larger staterooms, upbeat atmosphere and the availability of guest laundries. (I can't bear to luggage full of dirty clothes home and would rather do a few loads while on board...my personal hang-up.) I really love that Carnival is more casual (it's a vacation!)

 

The service on Celebrity was awesome. Having my stateroom attendant know my name was such a nice touch - it's not really a big deal, but I liked it. Again, I ate steak most of the time because the other stuff sounded too weird for me (not an adventurous eater). But the casual dining was great - I'd just rather fix my own soft freeze cone, thank you! The cruise director and entertainment were great. But it just wasn't as much fun as Carnival.

 

Royal Caribbean's headliners are my favorite part of cruising with them. Their ships are beautiful (sailed one, but have toured many). But I wasn't crazy about the menus and no guest laundries. Casual dining was better than Carnival. But cruise wasn't as much fun as Carnival.

 

I loved Disney Cruise Line (and used to work for them). The ships are beautiful, staterooms are awesome. Shows are excellent for folks who like Disney stuff. Menus were upgraded in 2002 (?) but I liked them before, too. This is a must-do experience! But it's also something you really only need to do once. They've added two new production shows, but the others have been around forever. And since Disney is such a unique experience, once you've done it, you've done it. Move on.

 

We loved Princess - virtually everything about it. The Caribbean Princess has too many passengers for their show lounge and they need to do something about table availability in Horizon Court. But otherwise, it was wonderful. Staterooms were as big as Carnival's. Casual dining was awesome. Entertainment was great, with lots of variety. The ship was beautiful. I had to pay for soft freeze, but it was worth it. We loved Movies Under the Stars. And they have a guest laundry! Overall, I think Princess will have to be my favorite...for now.

 

Sorry about the book...this is what happens when someone asks about cruising.

[luv2cruise450]

We've enjoyed all the cruises that we've been fortunate enough to sail on...but HAL is our first love and then Celebrity 2nd. HAL ships offer an elegant ambiance with great service and ships that are just the right size to me. We have sailed with Carnival and NCL and they offer a little different experience from HAL & Celebrity...but no regrets. I do know that I have no desire whatsoever to sail with 2500+ pax and the new ships that are coming out and vying for the title of 'largest' is definitely NOT for me. Our next cruise will be on a ship that is less than 400 pax! Other than river cruises...the smallest ship we have sailed on so far was on the beautiful Prinsendam and we loved the more intimate ambiance!

Happy sailing....

[mcjigs]

Thanks for the great input and comments. I've never even thought of HAL, not sure why, just haven't. But think I might give them a look. And it's nice to hear everyone's input on why they like a certain Line. Thanks again :D

[fmax]

I can't comment on your specific question as to favourite line as I've only travelled on Royal so far (eastern and western caribbean and mediterranean). However, when considering Europe I think some considerations should be:

 

Length:

I would recommend at least a 10-12 day to see as much as possible and also this allows more for cruises that have at least one overnight in a port or have seadays breaking up the cruise. On a 7 day you could be in port for 5-6 consecutive days and it can be exhausting. For fewer than 10 days, Royal Caribbean is probably the best bet as they have the largest selection of 7-8 day cruises. On Splendour last year we sailed on Saturday evening, Sunday was Marseille, Monday - Villefrance, Tuesday - Livorno, Wednesday - Rome, Thursday - Naples. By Friday everyone was only too glad of the sea day.

Ports:

Decide what places are "must sees" and see if you can find a cruise that accommodates this. For my next cruise, Venice is a must see so I'm only looking at itineraries that include venice.

Also, do you want to fly in and out of the same port or do you want to spend a few days either end of your cruise exploring a different city. The longer cruises tend to breakup the itinerary with sea days which are welcome as otherwise it can be exhausting. Or if you want to see few places but spend longer, try and find some cruises that do overnights in several ports (Celebrity's Millenium 14 day cruise has overnights in Venice, Turkey and Rome).

Cruiseline:

decide how important the ship experience is. I have only sailed royal and although I really spent a lot of time exploring the ship and seeing the shows etc when I did the Caribbean, I found I had little time to do this on Splendour as the Med Cruise is so port intensive and the port days were 8 - 10-12 hours long and you're on the go all the time.

Meals;

In tradiitional dining you may find that the early seating is too rushed if you're trying to get back from port for dinner. However, late seating (8:45-9:00ish) might be too late as by the time dinner is over you may be ready to retire for the night. Unless you're a night hawk and want to watch all the late shows. A line with Freestyle dining might be a consideration if you want more flexibility in mealtimes without impacting your day in port.

 

Although not exactly an answer to your question, I hope this helps.

 

Frances

[Scottish Cruiser]

Can't make comparisons as we have only sailed on HAL. Really enjoyed it. Great food, competent stewards who always remember your name, Really enjoy the string quartets or trios in the Explorers Lounge after dinner.

 

We were on the Rotterdam in the Med last year and enjoyed seeing the different ports. We had spent time at a couple of them previously and good to see them again, as well as new places. Decide where you want to go and what you want to see, then check the itineraries to see which line fits.

 

Enjoy the experience.

[gmpegasus]

You kinda have to make your own decision, based on your own preferences. We love RCI; so many activity choices, very friendly staff everywhere, good food, great entertainment. We tried Holland, because it left from our home port & the price & schedule were right. Found the ship too museum-like for our tastes & general passenger age way too old for us. The activities staff was a blast & we kept each other entertained thru-out the trip. Tried Celebrity, since it was well spoken of by friends & our TA & reviews in general. We had a terrible experience; a near passenger mutiny about an itinerary change announced the 2nd day out, poor food, and unresolved electrical & maint. issues in our cabin. "Everyone" says this was a fluke exception to the norm with Celebrity... I wonder....hmmm? Been on Carnival once (a "group cruise" we wanted to go with & good rates) and will be going on another in May (cheap rates again, & leaving from Los Angeles at the right time). It was "ok", but felt the dining service & food wasn't as good as others lines, ship condition was good, & other crew were very friendly. We sailed on Princess once, but I hear the Tahitian Princess isn't a typical ship for the line. The experience was great, even tho the ship is a little older & the smallest we've been on. Hey, it got us around Tahiti, with great cultural shows & food, what's not to like?? I think Princess is very similar to RCI for service & food levels. We look forward to Alaska on Princess next year.

 

I'm sure we've all had a combination of service levels from the ships crew. We've had a really poor dinner waiter, but his asst was excellant. Sometimes the only time the Maitre' D comes around is the night before tip night, other times they stop by nightly. We noticed on our most recent RCI cruise, every staff who you made eye contact with greeted you & smiled, even the floor sweeper & rail polishers. I've had room stewards who spoke our names every time we passed, & others who never said our name & was rarely seen.

 

"Enjoy the Experience" is right! A bad day on a Cruise is still better than a day at work, right!! and remember, Smiles are contagious!

[photonut4]

Haven't been on Celebrity yet, so can't say anything about that cruise line. I have been on the other 3.

 

HAL - Been on them twice. I like the little touches they do. Like in the public bathrooms they actually have real individual hand towels for everyone to dry their hands on. You can order the dinner menu off of room service in the evening (more on this in a minute though). If you do not want to go to the dining room, they set up the buffet at night very nice. The put nice white table clothes on the tables, and they serve the same food that is offered in the dining room that evening (almost the same menu). It is very nicely done. The night life is almost non-existant though. Also, I have always had the worst room service on this line. The rest of their service was excellent.

 

Carnival - Hate the hand driers in the public bathrooms. Why can't they at least provide paper towels? When I was in the pool with my son, the towel I brought was stolen, and Carnival charge my account $25. I would travel on them again, if the people I was going with wanted them, but they wouldn't be my first choice.

 

RCCL and Princess - Very close. I liked Princess' entertainment better, and their bingo is cheaper. On RCCL I like how they put a top sheet over the blanket. I like the anytime dining on Princess. Service was good on each. Both are very nice lines.

 

I found the food to be about the same on all the ships except Carnival. Carnivals was the worst.

[motherchic]

My favorite is Celebrity.

The service is wonderful. The food is very good but

I must agree with one of the posters, the basic menu is not "meat and potatoes type" I love the menu and the gourmet touches. I also love the formal dining, and for me that is a special vacation. Being a mom of four I love the elegant dining and TLC. ( Check out the spa food, it is very good )also the evening sushi, and the homemade ice creams offered every day.

We also lean towards a cruise line with less children to adults ratio. Thats another reason we travel Celebrity.

Through CC we have made some wonderful lasting friendships.

I hope you enjoy your cruise.

Nadine

[lulu47]

I have cruised on Carnival, RCI, and Grand Princess. So far, the RCI has been the best for food, size of room and service. I was very disappointed with Carnival and wouldn't cruise with them again. I did enjoy the anytime dining option with Grand princess, but the food and service were far better on the Voyage of the Seas RCI. On the Princess line I ordered two deserts because I couldn't decide and the waiter told me no to have the other desert another night. I was so embarrased!

[CCCM]

I haven't cruised much. I enjoy HAL more than RCCL. I could go into a whole list of reasons but basically for me it comes down to better food (I am a foodie) and larger rooms (with a bathtub). I am mid 30s and don't really want a huge nightlife. Staff on both have been excellent. I haven't had any issues with room service.

 

BTW on HAL I have ordered two of an item (brie) and was given them. There was one guy at our table who had 7 lobster tails one night. They never questioned this, were very accomodating. I don't believe that No was in their vocabulary in the dining room.

[mcjigs]

THanks for the great replys. I'm so pleased with everyone comments. What a great board where so many are willing to help you out. Thank you all so very very much!!!:D

 

I'm gonna print all the comments and show to DH, you sure have given me great info and I was really stuck... Still am but I feel a little better. Thanks

[GBRBEB]

I posted this on the Celebrity board and didn't get a very good response. Maybe it was to selective being on the Celebrity board so I'll try it here.

I’ve ONLY been on Carnival Cruise line but we are scheduled in December for Celebrity for the first time.

 

We went on our latest Carnival Cruise this past December and I was very disappointed with the food for the first time in 8 years of cruising with Carnival. So we are switching to try Celebrity this December. Why did I pick Celebrity… because I read the book “What time is the midnight buffet?” by chesterh. Hope it will be a good switch!

 

We are next planning a European Cruise in 2007 and I’ve been searching the boards for info and haven’t seen this question asked recently.

 

How would you rank all cruise lines you have used and why?

 

Thanks, ~mary~

 

1997/Carnival Fantasy/Bahamas/4 days

2002/Carnival Pride/Exotic Western Caribbean/7 days

2003/Carnival Sensation/Grand Caymans & Cozumel/ 5 days

2005/Carnival Pride/Mexican Riviera/7 days

Dec 2006/Celebrity Millennium/Eastern Caribbean/7 days

2007/? Ship/Cruise Line/Europe/ ? days

 

My response is based upon my one Carnival (and Ill admit first off that it was not a good "first impression") experience and several Celebrity cruises. Celebrity is a different experience than Carnival. For lack of a better term I would say that Celebrity is more of a traditional cruise experience. What I mean by traditional is that to me it is the people do get dressed (tuxes and such on format night) for dinner, the service is just a bit better (i.e. on embarkation you will be escorted to your cabin-minor things like that ) the dining experience would be little bit more gourmet again in my opinion. The ships are more are less glitzy so to speak...

 

So you would really have to look at this as two totally different experiences..

 

If you truly enjoyed Carnival you may not enjoy Celebrity. And thats not bad...its just a different experience than what you might be used to...

[momofmeg]

I have cruised on Carnival, RCI, and Grand Princess. So far, the RCI has been the best for food, size of room and service. I was very disappointed with Carnival and wouldn't cruise with them again. I did enjoy the anytime dining option with Grand princess, but the food and service were far better on the Voyage of the Seas RCI. On the Princess line I ordered two deserts because I couldn't decide and the waiter told me no to have the other desert another night. I was so embarrased!

 

well I would have reported that waiter on the comment card thingie-they are not supposed to do that.

 

we had a similiar thing though happen on Mariner of the Seas back in the fall-everyone at the table except for me (I had prime rib) wanted to order two lobster tails-the wiater said he could not do that.

 

He did though later bring a couple of lobster tails which he split among everyone-so they all got like a lobster and a half/third of another lobster tail.

[janetz]

Although I am not a "seasoned" cruiser, I am one of those people that read and plan and read and plan. I know alot. lol :p

We found Celebrity to be refined. The food presentation excellent, service excellent as well. A few "snobs" here and there.

We enjoyed Princess a little more. The food, was better on Celebrity, although we really enjoyed anytime diinning with Princess. We ate when we wanted to. People were more dressed on Princess formal ngiths than Celebrity. The service the same. Princess seemed more upbeat. The shows much better than Celebrity.

So we are sailing Carnival this fall. Should be interesting. Have to say the only time we noticed any folks out of control was on our Century cruise. Crawling on the floor to get to their cabin. No joke! :eek:

[vikielynne]

Everyone has an opion & now I'm asking for them :)

 

I am 33 and fairly well travelled. Having done NCL, CCL & RCCL ( in the large cruise lines ) & then a few others I have a good understanding of what to expect on those cruise lines. I enjoy the broadway style shows on RCCL & CCL as well as late night night life...when in the Caribbean... when I'm in Europe I use the ship as my hotel & for a few meals a day but spend as much time off the ship as possible so I can enjoy the ports... so there the ship & activities are not a big deal.

 

I have a friend ( who I met on my last RC cruise ) who wants to cruise with me & my mother again in October...he lives in Germany & would be bringing a friend as well. They have suggested a cruise on HAL - either the Zuiderdam or the Veendam in the Caribbean. All of the people I have talked to so far have said that HAL caters more to the older crowd & that I would be bored. I'm willing to try another line but really do enjoy the shows & do tend to be in the disco if not till it closes pretty close to it 4-5 night out of the week....I live in a smaller town so I very much enjoy the fact of having several different themed bars ( RC - latin, wine bar & pub ) & disco to pick from on a nightly basis.

 

Any & all thought greatly appreciated!!!

[momofmeg]

Everyone has an opion & now I'm asking for them :)

 

I am 33 and fairly well travelled. Having done NCL, CCL & RCCL ( in the large cruise lines ) & then a few others I have a good understanding of what to expect on those cruise lines. I enjoy the broadway style shows on RCCL & CCL as well as late night night life...when in the Caribbean... when I'm in Europe I use the ship as my hotel & for a few meals a day but spend as much time off the ship as possible so I can enjoy the ports... so there the ship & activities are not a big deal.

 

I have a friend ( who I met on my last RC cruise ) who wants to cruise with me & my mother again in October...he lives in Germany & would be bringing a friend as well. They have suggested a cruise on HAL - either the Zuiderdam or the Veendam in the Caribbean. All of the people I have talked to so far have said that HAL caters more to the older crowd & that I would be bored. I'm willing to try another line but really do enjoy the shows & do tend to be in the disco if not till it closes pretty close to it 4-5 night out of the week....I live in a smaller town so I very much enjoy the fact of having several different themed bars ( RC - latin, wine bar & pub ) & disco to pick from on a nightly basis.

 

Any & all thought greatly appreciated!!!

 

Now I only have done one HAL cruise and because it was Alaska I had like a double wammy of older people on that cruise- (more older people take alaska cruises and more older people cruise HAL)we were told the average age would be 50 but it was more like 65 plus. I was in my mid forties at the time and I felt like a spring chicken in comparison!

 

But they still had great broadway style shows-I never went to the disco but my daughter did and she said it was not many people there-the paino bars I did go to but they were pretty empty, nothing going on after 10 pm.

 

The casino was hopping then, but THAT was the only place after 10 pm-everywhere else it was pretty dead-you would see a couple of lone drinkers in a lounge, no music or entertainment going on etc.

 

The one GOOD thing is hubby and I had the jacuzzi to ourselves every night! I believe we were the only ones that ever used it-we would go there after the show was over and stay around 30 minutes-to an hour and then go to bed.

 

So we were pretty sedate on that cruise- but I understand though from friends there is a little more going on on a caribbean cruise. Still sedate compared to Carnival and RCCL but there was some things going on later at night besides the casino.

 

HAL did had really good quality food-much better then Carnival or RCCL.

[acestacy]

Here's a question for ya'll. I'm currently researching a Caribbean cruise with the emphasis on RCCL ships that have ice-skating rinks onboard (a request of my twelve-year-old daughter). Of the five vessels that have rinks, anyone care to comment on which is the "best-of-the-best"? I believe that there's no such thing as a bad cruise, but would really like to get the most out of probably a one-time venture to those waters. The ships are Adventure, Explorer, Mariner, Navigator, and Voyager.

Thanks in advance.

[Cotton]

I'm surprised by the comments on not being served as many servings of different items on some of the lines. Although I have enjoyed the food on Princess and RCI, I have never ordered but one portion, as nothing impressed me as being fantastic. (Yes, I am a food snob.):D

 

However, on Carnival, I enjoy the food SO much that I sometimes order two appetizers, even two lobster tails as well as prime rib. Desserts - if I can't decide, I have been known to order three just to sample. It's never been a problem on Carnival to have as many servings as you want of any item. (I also LOVE having the complimentary espresso and cappuccino with every meal - b'fast, lunch, and dinner - in the dining room.):)

[flamomo]

I am not a food snob, but enjoy well prepared menu items, and buffets with varied selections. I have been very satisfied with Princess food on my 3 cruises.

Princess is very generous when it comes to lobster tails. I have seen people get 3 or 4 just by asking. In fact, when one is about 1/2 way through the first serving, the waiters are asking if you would like more. I also have seen people get 2 different entrees, and some request 2 different desserts, with no negative comments from the waiters. They smile pleasantly, and bring whatever one orders.

The OP whose waiter told her "no" re: the 2nd dessert certainly was not typical of what I have experienced or observed.

I have only sailed with Princess, have another cruise booked and am holding future cruise credits. I can find no reason to try another cruiseline.

Everyone has their preferred cruising style and cruiseline. Nothing wrong with that.