Are things 'changing' at X?

[JEDIKNIGHT]

Never been on X, but possibly planning to...and I thank everyone here who has taken time to respond to previous questions I've asked.

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Ok, SOME people will never be happy. Yet others are too easy to please. I am asking this as someone who fully understands that ANY business will have imperfections. However, when one pays for a premium experience, those imperfections should be minimal, and a feeling of 'chintzy' should not creep in.

 

I've read about X for years and figured that when we want a 'big ship' experience, X would be it. Seems to be a very classy, quality operation and the pervasive comparison is to a Hyatt or Marriott caliber experience.

 

But RECENTLY we seem to be seeing reports of slipping. Be it lack of waiter service at buffets, skimping on certain menu items, etc. And while a majority of reviews are positive, the RECENT ones seem to be reporting a change.

 

General question for recent X cruisers....can you notice things slipping on X? Service, food choices and quality, etc?

 

Thank you.

[Host Anne]

My most recent experience with X was on Constellation in March. It was a fantastic cruise...food, service, ship were all terrific (my review is in the reviews section of Cruise Critic). I didn't find much difference between this and other X cruises we've been on. We have only had one bad (and it was bad) experience on X and it was on Zenith for a spring break cruise three years ago. A number of factors contributed and I didn't consider it a standard X experience.

 

Let's face it, when you look at prices you are paying for a cruise experience (and they haven't really changed much in the past five or six years) versus the escalating costs of everything, something's going to give. Quite honestly, if you compare the rising costs to operate a cruise ship versus the value you get (from Celebrity and other lines), I think they still do an outstanding job with the quality of product they provide. Perfect - nope! Bur for us, much better than any other vacation product we've found and we spend a lot of time in hotels and resorts with business clients.

 

If you want a true "premium" cruise, you are going to have to step up to the Oceania, Regent, etc class to really get a much better product. Just my opinion.

[Drew B]

Ok, SOME people will never be happy. Yet others are too easy to please. I am asking this as someone who fully understands that ANY business will have imperfections. However, when one pays for a premium experience, those imperfections should be minimal, and a feeling of 'chintzy' should not creep in.

 

I agree with Host Anne, and it sort of depends on what you mean by paying for a "premium experience". Look at a comparison in costs (per diems for comparable itineraries, ships, and stateroom categories), and I'm guessing that what you have paid for is more in line with cruiselines like RCCL and Princess and not too far from Carnival or NCL. IMO, that is not a "premium" price... On the other hand, the cost for lines that probably do deserve the appellation "premium" such as Oceania and Azamara (and perhaps even Disney) are most likely quite a bit higher than what you'll be paying for Celebrity.

 

I think having expectations is a reasonable thing, but if you're going to base it on price, then please be realistic about what you are actually paying.

[Lsimon]

We've been on two cruises in the last 12 months - Millennium Mediterranean cruise in Sept. '07 and Galaxy Caribbean in March '08. Both were completely wonderful with great food and service. I would say on every cruise I've been on I've found something that is "the best ever" and somthing else that wasn't as good as last time. If I have any complaints at all on recent cruises it would be that the lounge entertainment was just so-so - but on the other hand our last Galaxy Cruise the lounge entertainment was pretty good overall - decent party band and a very interesting "classical music" quartet on the Martini Bar that played a lot more than classical music.

 

As far as other complaints I'd chalk that up to chance, or having too high an expectation. Keep in mind that these are mass market cruises of close to 2,000 people per sailing. You're not going to experience 5 star quality in every aspect of every cruise at that price. Also, with a couple thousand passengers being attended to by a thousand or so staff each cruise someone is going to have the best waiter or room steward and someone will have the worst.

[Verity]

Wow, the last 3 posters responding to the original query have so much common sense. I agree with all three of them. Any bad experience we have had on Celebrity had more to do with something that can't be controlled like the weather. We have reasonable expectations. Considering the number of meals they have to prepare on Celebrity each evening, we have been surprised at the good quality. Our last cruise was a year ago, so we have no experience with the new chef.

[dkjretired]

Things are changing and will always change. They just announced all types of culinary changes on top of chaning the master chef so that departemnt has to change. It is up to the customers to decide whether they are for the good or the bad. Also, dress codes and smoking policy have changed... Five new ships are coming on line in the next five years.I certainly am not going to choose a cruise line on whether the waiters carry my trays at the buffet although it was a nice touch...

[JEDIKNIGHT]

Ok, so it appears that X should not be judged as a 'premium' line, but judged on par with NCL, RCCL, etc?

 

All this time based on travel books and reviews I thought that rule of thumb was that Crystal-Seabourne-etc was like the Ritz or Four Seasons, Celeb-HAL was like Marriott/ Hyatt, and the others were like a Fairfield Inn, Courtyard etc?

 

I guess I thought that while not 'lux', X was indeed a "cut above" other mass likes vis a vis food, service and intimacy? I still gather that based on many posts here.

 

I only ask the question cause qualitatively speaking, it seems the older reviews are much more positive, while a few more chinks in armor are showing up in newer reviews.

 

And yes, cost of doing business has gone up, and "something has gotta give"...I am wondering if staff, service, and food are amonst the things that "gave".

 

Not trying to critique X at all, again I've never been on it. Just trying to determine what kind of product it is, and which category it should be compared against.

[Ma Bell]

Having been on many Celebrity cruises, I can tell you that each has it's own personality. Having said that, I have never had a bad cruise with Celebrity. Some are better than others but I'm sure you'll find your cruise will live up to the realistic expectations that you seem to have. We've been on five during the past year and will be leaving for another in September.

[newmexicoNita]

Never been on X, but possibly planning to...and I thank everyone here who has taken time to respond to previous questions I've asked.

******************************************************

 

Ok, SOME people will never be happy. Yet others are too easy to please. I am asking this as someone who fully understands that ANY business will have imperfections. However, when one pays for a premium experience, those imperfections should be minimal, and a feeling of 'chintzy' should not creep in.

 

I've read about X for years and figured that when we want a 'big ship' experience, X would be it. Seems to be a very classy, quality operation and the pervasive comparison is to a Hyatt or Marriott caliber experience.

 

But RECENTLY we seem to be seeing reports of slipping. Be it lack of waiter service at buffets, skimping on certain menu items, etc. And while a majority of reviews are positive, the RECENT ones seem to be reporting a change.

 

General question for recent X cruisers....can you notice things slipping on X? Service, food choices and quality, etc?

 

Thank you.

All mass marketed lines have slipped in some ways, in the past few years: take into consideration, fuel costs, food costs and overall maintainance cost with little if any increase in cruise rates. Something has to give. Yes, fuel charges haved been added to the price of cruising but probably not enough to cover the total costs. Cruise lines keep coming out with new products with more features just to stay competitive. Now, has Celebrity slipped more than some lines, from reports my clients give me, probably. This does not mean they are not a top line. If the price is what you are happy with, the intinerary is something you like and you are not expeciting Crystal cruise lines for Celebrity prices I think you will be very happy. As for food selection not being as good as years past: with about 4 entrees to choose from each night, good desserts, soup, salad and appitizers how much more do any of us need?

 

We all have our own ideas as to what quality is: I see, for instance you put Marriott and Hyatt in the same catagory but not Hilton, I put Hilton ahead of Marriott, again just opinions. As for ratings on cruise lines, maybe years ago HAL and Celebrity were a step above, now most mass marketed lines are more alike than different. It depends on what you are looking for in a cruise experience. I would never discourage anyone from cruising Celebrity.

 

Nita

[winediva]

I've sailed twice each on RCCL, NCL, and once on Celebrity. I still give Celebrity the nod for being a cut above on service and food. The reason we prefer Celebrity is the pace and activites too. Celebrity has awesome guest lecturers and less of the belly flop contest type stuff. Likewise, I found a better diversity of passengers on Celeb. And overall, less children - which while I like kids just fine, I don't have much patience for other people's kids while I'm on vacation. The pace on Celebrity is more, relaxed as well. It never feels like there's a flurry of activity going on around you, even by the pool.

Just my 2 cents.

[JEDIKNIGHT]

The ship we are thinking about is Constellation.

 

MaBell, out of your multiple X cruises is Connie one of them, and if so, in general, was that one of the better ones you've had?

 

Thank you.

[nothriver]

I've never even cruised but having just done some extensive research before booking an X cruise for our group of 9 for my parents 50th:

 

With fuel hikes and other costs rising, cruise lines, like every other industry will have to raise prices, and/or cut back on services.

 

I'm thinking that between the time we cruise in June of 09, we'll be seeing cuts of some kind on ALL the cruise lines.

 

From my research, Celebrity is in the same class as RCCL, HAL, etc, but it is at the top of the class. :) I'm expecting they have better service and food than their competition. However, as I said, expect cuts for all lines. Whether that be cutting staffing levels, cutting back on programming, cutting food choices - only time will tell.

[cruise orlando]

Jedi

We sailed on Century 3 times Zenith once and Constelltion last January. Although the food quality and presentation has slipped a bit in the last 5 years it was still very good the service as always was outstanding. We enjoyed Constellation so much we booked her again for another cruise this comming January.

John

[Sky Sweet]

The ship we are thinking about is Constellation.

 

MaBell, out of your multiple X cruises is Connie one of them, and if so, in general, was that one of the better ones you've had?

 

Thank you.

 

Hi Jediknight :)

 

We have been on Constellation several times during the past few years, and it is my favorite ship in Celebrity's fleet.

[Karynanne]

I also will have taken 5 Celebrity cruises by the end of this year...and have cruised quite a lot with them in the past.

 

Yes, there has been change...but IMHO, good changes.

 

As human beings, we become conditioned to the "constant" in our lives, and become comfortable. When there is a tweak in that constant, we sometimes question it, instead of enjoying it. I welcome change. It means that there will always be something new and creative on the horizon...and if it doesn't flow ...well then, it may possibly be eliminated.

 

What Celebrity excels at is their service. We have always found the staff and crew to be extremely attentive to their passengers.

 

The overall atmosphere of a Celebrity cruise is one of relaxation and leans more towards a sophisticated experience. No ad-nauseum announcements...as someone previously posted...no belly-flop contests...but great, planned events through out the day.

[candbgirl]

We sailed the Constellation in June and it was fantastic. We also sailed HAL in April. This too was a lovely cruise. But in the long run I much prefer X in all categories. We have also sailed RCCL and Carnival in the past and while we certainly had a great time on these cruises I would not put them in the same class as X or HAL. And X is at the top of that class. Have a great cruise.

[jackdiamond]

We are Diamond with Royal and Elite with Celebrity. We have only cruised three times this year, the last being on the Millennium in April. We have never been displeased with Celebrity; and, we always travel CC on the M Class, except for an earlier cruise on the Century.

Although, I am a non smoker, the only complaint I have with Celebrity is their compliance with the Nanny crowd vis-a-vis their smoking policy effective October 1, 2008. Would not it have been simpler to follow the rules of their sister line Royal.

[flashdog_1]

Jediknight,

When I did my initial research about what cruise line and even what ship I wanted to travel I read everything I could get my hands on. I decided that the M class Celebrity ships were where I wanted my first experience to be. I knew nothing about the ensuing pod problems those shiips were to encounter, but based on what I found out in 2004, these were my criteria.

 

Very good passenger to space ratio so you never felt crowded except when coming out of the theater or dining room to get an elevator, but these quickly disperse.

 

Very good passenger to crew ratio so even though most of the crew on board are behind the scenes, you still know that there's one crew member for every two people. That's going to represent very good service. When you read the statistics on the ships look at the max passengers she can carry and then the # of crew and do the ratio. Some ships have a closer to 3 to 1 rather than a 2 to 1 ratio.

 

There is no black smoke with soot that filters down onto the decks!

 

There are no unnecessary announcement for things like bingo etc. They treat you like adults. You respond as adults. You read the Celebrity Daily for the activities you want to attend, and no one forces you or even encourages you. You do your own thing all day. The only place you have to be is on time for dinner if you are eating in the main dining room at your assigned table. If you are eating in your cabin, or at the casual blvd etc. send word to the dining room that you will be absent so your table mates do not get antsy, or your waiter waiting for you before taking others' orders.

 

There are classical music venues as well as the pool band. This is a big seller for me.

 

There are guest lecturers on board (some lines do not have this). This enhances your experience whether the lecture is on the locale you are traveling to, or just personal stuff like computer learning.

 

There is no "pushing" drinks. You order an alcohol drink if you want one. I understand some lines do push.

 

The cabins are decent sized. Whether you are in an inside, ocean view or balcony, the cabins are the same size. This is not so on most other lines. The lowest categories are the smallest cabins. On X your service will be just as good in the lowest category. The determination of the price is by deck location only, not size or service.

 

Celebrity is one of the few lines that allows all of its passengers to order room service from the dining room menu during meal times. You do not have to be in a suite to do this as you do on most other lines.

 

X provides bathrobes to all cabin categories, although CC and above have fluffier ones, if this is important to you. And except for the old Horizon group, all cabins have mini fridges, stainless steel ice buckets and water pitchers filled 2x daily (some lines do not have the pitcher and some have plastic ice buckets that do not keep the ice very well).

 

X provides basic cosmetic items in the bathrooms, including Q tips and cotton balls, hair dryer, a dispenser of shampoo/conditioner, one of hand lotion, as well as hand and bath soap. In CC and suites you will have individual bottles, not dispensers. Some lines give only samples of various items, with no consistency, and definitely no Q tips.

 

The Thalossotherapy pool is free for all adult passengers, and is indoors. No one under a certain age is allowed. Likewise, the hot tubs surrounding that pool will be adult only. The kids allowed pool and hot tubs are outdoors. There is also free use of the steam rooms/sauna for men and one for women.

 

When these M class ships were built they had the novelty of having a florist of sorts, can't remember the name right now, is it the Conservatory? They had two flower arranging classes there during my first cruise.

 

The M class has an Aqua Spa cafe, an alternative dining venue that is part of your fare. It is supposed to be a healthier dining experience. Only place on the ship you can consistently find papaya at breakfast, and imported yogurt, too. You may eat inside the pool area or carry the food outdoors to the pool area there.

 

The theater is a real theater, with state of the art equipment, and fully cushioned seats, banked, so you always have a good view, with no poles to obstruct your view of the stage, on two levels to ease your walking!

 

There are 3 elevator banks, aft, mid ship and forward with the floor to ceiling glass ones at midship. Those that do not give you a view of the ocean have mirrored walls which are immaculately maintained. Naturally there are stairwells at each of these banks if you choose to walk. I can't remember if it is 6 elevators at each location. But it is more plentiful than those of some ships that have only a forward and aft bank and 2 elevators at each location. What this means is that you have less waiting time and more vacation time.

 

The public bathrooms are beautiful and well serviced. They are not hidden in any way, and are located in convenient places like outside the restaurants and theater.

 

I am totally sold on M class ships, although I've only had occasion to sail them 3x. I hope you enjoy everything that X has to offer on M class ships, specifically Constellation.

[hcat]

Connie was one of our best X experiences.. & we'll be back on her in 2010 for a 14 day cruise.....but things are changing..

 

Prices in my opinion are definitely escalating...to be expected but still a good value--we will be cruising fewer times but on longer trips for better value & to minimize flight costs..

 

The clientele is definitely changing--some not so immersed in what made the X experience special--they don't like the dress up nights, want anytime dining , there are more children etc.. Still a nice group overalll & we meet lovely people from all over....

 

Food also changing--we'll see how that is on our next cruise..

 

To original poster: Curious why you are leaving the smaller ship enivronment??? Would Azamara be of interest to you--the X experience but a smaller ship?

[Ma Bell]

Yes, Constellation has always been a great experience and we'll be back onboard next month. I think Phyllis(Flashdog) has given you an excellent description of the M-Class ships.

[JEDIKNIGHT]

"To original poster: Curious why you are leaving the smaller ship enivronment??? Would Azamara be of interest to you--the X experience but a smaller ship?"

 

1.)In back of mind, always wanted to try a bigger ship experience, possibly enjoy the larger variety of activities and figured X offers the 'big ship' experience, but with service and food a cut above other lines.

 

2.)Planning a cruise for my in-laws. They are from overseas, never been on a cruise before. So while DW and I love eating when we want, on our own, and just kind of vegging out....my in-laws we think would like more activities and more 'fun factor'...but not overboard like I'm told it is on Carnival.

 

Jedi

[jackdiamond]

Flashdog, an excellent assessment. However, your assertion that the cabins are all the same size is not accurate. My recollection is that the OV, insides and smaller balconies are all 170 square feet.

[caudel]

I will put Celebrity and HAL on the same level. My wife and I have cruised both and love them. We also like RCCL but Celebrity and HAL are a step above them

[gillianrose]

Although, I am a non smoker, the only complaint I have with Celebrity is their compliance with the Nanny crowd vis-a-vis their smoking policy effective October 1, 2008. Would not it have been simpler to follow the rules of their sister line Royal.

 

It would be equally "simpler" for RCCL to follow the new stricter smoking rules of Celebrity.

 

You might have made a "simple" objective statement yourself; however, you chose to make a put-down of the vast majority of vacationers who are thrilled with Celebrity's new smoking policy by referring to them as "the Nanny crowd."

 

Each line reached a decision it felt would be in the best interest of the clients who cruise on their line. In my opinion, RCCL fell short, so we will cruise on Celebrity instead. If you prefer RCCL's policy, then I suggest you cruise with them. Having said that, whichever line you choose, kindly leave insults out of the discussion.

[Ma Bell]

It's true that the inside and regular balcony cabins are about 20 square feet smaller than the CC cabins.