Celebrity V princess

[Shogun]

Hi Folks,

 

 

I see a lot of chat about Celebrity being better than Princess,

 

I have no problem with this as Celebrity is advertised in the UK as a 5 star Cruise Line where Princess is a mass market line.

 

Is this not the case in the US.

 

If you paying 40% more for your cruise I would be unhappy if Celebrity was only 20% better than Princess.

 

So if Celebrity is more expensive why so many complaints about Princess,

 

The only question you ever need to ask is am I geting value for my money,

 

 

Now Princess standards may have gone down hill , but if the price is going the same way, is there a problem,

 

If we want more then we can pay more.

 

 

Thoughts folks.

 

 

yours Shogun

[j!m]

i'm not sure why you think X costs 40% more than princess? admitedly i havent checked all the pricing for all the comparable sailings.

 

we have sailed on both princess and X, most recently princess but we dont keep track of the pricing. if we like the itinerary and timing and the price suits us we book and go.

 

my guess is X is a little more pricey for comparable rooms, say a mini suite vs sky suite and it is a little more upscale experience but princess does a good job too and is good value. at least in our opinion.

 

despite some of the negative posts on the X boards about food, our recent experience (X in aug and princess in dec) causes us to believe the dining room food on X is superior to that on princess. but thats just our opinion.

 

i'm not sure i would agree with UK adverts that X is a 5 star line. its certainly not the 4seasons. but we think they give good value for the price we pay.

 

we have recently tried azamara and will be using them again this june. they too give good value for the price (we think)

 

we dont have unlimited resources (otherwise we would own our own yacht and go where and when we want to) but the price is not that critical to us provided we can travel in the manner we prefer and we feel we are getting value for our money. if we think it costs too much we dont go.

 

we sailed on the tahitian in 05 and again in 07 ( a b2b) and i know we enjoyed all 3 of our cruises and while our experience may be limited i really dont remember thinking things had gone downhill on our 07 cruise. but then it would be hard to believe anyone wouldnt be thrilled with a cruise in french polynesia

[geoherb]

We've sailed on Celebrity three times and on Princess six. I used to give Princess the edge on food in the casual dining. Our cruise last month on Century makes me reconsider (other than an attrocious lunch the first day).

 

But the dining room food has gone down on Celebrity. There's not the wow factor there used to be. Requests that used to be met without hesitation are now met with some resistance. It reminded me of our cruise on Holland America. The same kind of "I'll have to check to see if that is possible" attitude instead of "yes."

 

I would say Princess and Celebrity are equals. I would not pay significantly more to be on a Celebrity ship that's doing the same itinerary.

[TorontoTL]

When I've been looking for a cruise to book, I always check out prices on the different cruise lines. In general, I do find that Celebrity and RCI are more expensive than Princess.

[Druke I]

Only sailed once with Celebrity - and thought it overhyped. That said, we did think the service in the dining rooms more polished and traditional.

 

We think Princess has a much better range of itineraries, and usually a more reasonable price.

[Coral]

While I agree with many of the complaints of Princess - I have cruised Celebrity once and have not gone back. I found it over priced (price of cruise and of everything on the cruise - drink prices are very $$$$). I found the staff more stuffy and less accessible and had less success in getting simple requests taken care of (extra towels, etc...). I also found many things I didn't like - such as the buffet being closed after being in port for most of the day and returning at 3 pm and not finding food anywhere except for room service. Also, alternative dining (in the buffet at night was table/menu service) required reservations when I sailed. I also didn't have much luck in flexibility in dining requests - such as a different salad dressing request instead of the two listed on the menu. Not sure how much has changed but the cons I experienced outweighed the pros.

 

There seems to be some superficial things Celebrity does that seems to win points amongst their customers that doesn't seem to make a difference to me (I don't need an escort to my room, I don't need a sorbet parade at the pool, etc...)

 

I did find their dining room absolutely gorgeous and loved the thallosopy (sp?) pool fabulous.

 

It has been awhile since I have sailed but I have no great desire to go back soon.

[RickT]

I find Celebrity and Princess very similar. Celebrity does a few things better while Princess does a few things better. Food and cabins are comparable. I book the cruise that has the route I like for the price I like. Lately I've been cruising Princess as their itinerary's are a little better and their prices seem to be a lot better. I wouldn't hesitate to cruise either given the route/price being right.

[junglejane]

I basically agree with RickT. We have been on Celebrity twice and Princess four times and would happily book either line. We had a standard 2C balcony cabin on Celebrity and have recently been booking BA Caribe deck Balcony cabins on Princess. The Caribe deck balconies are of course huge. Celebrity does have certain cabins with oversize balconies but those didn't work for us.

 

We feel the two lines are basically similar and each does a few things better.

 

Things we like better on Celebrity:

slightly more polished, formal feel to the dining room service

food was slightly better, including in the buffet

trays and linen napkins in the buffet

overall the ship had a more upscale ambiance

less "in your face" upselling (e.g., no interrupting our dinner to try to sell us wine packages, etc.)

full room service breakfast is another big plus

specialty restaurant on the M-class ships is outstanding

 

Things we like better on Princess:

better cabin layout in standard balcony cabins

freshwater pools on Princess

self service laundries

dining room open for breakfast and lunch on port days

availability of Anytime Dining

greater variety of evening entertainment options

better perks for repeat passengers

better choice of itineraries

 

As for pricing, we have not found Celebrity to be more expensive. When we booked our Princess British Isles 12 day cruise (July 2009) it cost $500 pp more than our 12 day Celebrity Mediterranean cruise (June 2008). Thanks to the price drops, the Princess price is now the same as what we paid on Celebrity last year.

 

--Junglejane

[Poulsbo Cruisers]

We sailed on X one time and really enjoyed our experience. At the time, it became our favorite cruise line. We then sailed on Princess and were equally impressed. We have since sailed only on Princess due to the price and itineraries. We would sail on either, but why pay more for something that is no better (IMO).

[NH Cruisers]

We sailed the CB back in '06. Best dinning room service, bar none, any cruise for us. Claudia and Jeffery were the waitstaff. Food was great.

I only have second hand knowledge of Celebrity. I never hear anything great from my inlaws. I don't really listen to bad reviews only because I never have a bad cruise. All I hear about RCI is bad food and service, even on others reviews of a cruise I was on. I cant believe they were on the same cruise as I. I have in the past maybe had cool eggs for breakfast in the dinning room, but that was the exception not the rule. With that said I am looking so forward to our May 17 cruise on Star Princess.

[taxatty]

Just got back from X cruise #2, have done 6 on Princess. X won slightly for food, and big time for the MANY fewer announcements, no constant pushing of art auctions, etc. Also liked the classier X embarkation procedure with champagne. Overall, we still like Princess a little better, primarily due to better entertainment, MUTS where available, and because X doesn't have anything similar to a Princess mini-suite for a comparable price.

 

Les

[Lynda90]

Does anyone know what the perks are for repeat X cruisers? How do they compare to Princess? Thanks!:p

[PescadoAmarillo]

Does anyone know what the perks are for repeat X cruisers? How do they compare to Princess? Thanks!:p

They don't, not at the Elite levels. I used to say that Celebrity's perks were of the "feel good" sort...invitations to the Captain's Table, special treatment by the Hostess, phone calls from the sr. staff inquiring about your cruise. Not any more.

 

Here's the list from Celebrity's website:

 

Classic Level Benefits* (1-5 Cruise Credits)

One-Category Upgrade

Complimentary Custom Air Request

Presailing Specialty Restaurant Reservations

Priority Embarkation (where available) - Founder Classic Members Only

Exclusive Captain's Club Party

Captain's Club Premium Offers given for use during your sailing

Preferential Debarkation (where available) - Founder Classic Members Only

Reunion Cruises

Online Newsletter

Additional sailing credit on itineraries of 12 nights or more (maximum of three sailing credits per sailing)

Additional sailing credit for booking a Concierge Class stateroom or Suite (maximum of three sailing credits per sailing)

 

Select Member Benefits (6-10 Cruise Credits)

Includes all benefits of Classic membership, plus:

Behind-the-Scenes Tours

Chardonnay Blending Seminar

Priority Status for Shore Excursion Waitlist

Senior Officer's Cocktail party

Opportunity to enroll in Royal Caribbean's Crown & Anchor Society program at the Platinum Level

 

Elite Member Benefits (11+ Cruise Credits)

Includes all benefits of Classic & Select membership, plus:

Private Shipboard Departure Lounge with Continental Breakfast

Priority Tender Service

Priority Waitlist for Dining Room Seating

Complimentary use of the Thalassotherapy Pool *Limitations Apply (Only on Celebrity Galaxy and Celebrity Mercury)

Opportunity to enroll in Royal Caribbean's Crown & Anchor Society program at the Diamond Level

 

Somehow, we always get a nice bouquet (takes up counter space), and an Elite tea, which aren't mentioned. The free air deviation has real value; the upgrades have real value. The Behind the Scenes tours are excellent (Princess's galley tours aren't in the same league). We always get the best tables in the dining room. But, truly, that's about it.

 

It's much easier (faster) to make Elite at Celebrity, which brings Diamond at RC, which does bring some excellent perks, second only to Princess, I think, but a distant second.

 

Princess's Elite benefits appeal to us as value shoppers; Celebrity, IMHO offers a classier cruise experience with overall better service. We cruise them both most frequently, and RC when it fits into our plans.

[CCSSDRC]

Princess food is better than X.

 

Other things vary depending on personal preference. If a cruise on X was 10% below Princess I would go with X as there are a lot of similarity, but I would never pay extra to go on X.