choosing a cruise

[almostdoc]

Looking at NCL Dawn Dec. 16 eastern caribbean cruise vs Grand princess Western caribbean vs Celebrity millennium eastern caribbean. Have been on navigator, empress of seas, and sun princess. We enjoyed them all. I am traveling with my husband's family including 3 brothers, sister in law, and his parents. We are in our twenties. Thoughts? Thanks!

[jkrislc]

I haven't sailed Celebrity, but I have sailed Princess and NCL. Personally, I like the Eastern itinerary better than the Western, but that's a personal thing. If you haven't done the Western route, you'll likely find that route just as enjoyable as well.

 

The real decision is what kind of cruise do you want? Do you want a cruise that requires/expects a specific style of dress and fixed dining times, or do you prefer "resort casual" like you would find on a land resort? While Princess does offer "anytime" dining, they do have an assigned attire for the night unless you opt for the buffet. As far as I know, Celebrity does not offer anything but traditional dining.

 

My favorite cruise to date was on Princess. I thought the food and service was superb compared to NCL, RCI, or Carnival. However, we opted to take the Dawn in January specifically for the freestyle option. There were other ships with slightly better itineraries, but my wife really liked the dine when you want, where you want, with whom you want style of NCL.

 

Hope this helps some!

[melika091900]

i agree with the other poster about depending on what you want,,

the assigned dining in my opinion is better. the freestyle experience was ok, but with a lot of people in your group it gets hectic.

and no one compares to the service on celebrity, they were great.

we had the best cruise on celebrity.. great food. great service. etc etc..

 

 

i would choose celebrity.. just my opinion.

 

melissa