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Luxury ship or a suite on a premium cruise line?


kikki21
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SeagoingMom: Hope you also post this question on the Regent board. You will get more responses there.

 

Thanks to you and Commodoredave for all your help. Yes, I believe I will move on to the Regent board after consulting a little more with my in-laws.

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Thanks to you and Commodoredave for all your help. Yes, I believe I will move on to the Regent board after consulting a little more with my in-laws.

 

Best of luck to you and your in-laws. Whatever you choose, I'm sure it will be a wonderful and memorable trip.

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  • 5 weeks later...

Maybe you can help me? I love to cruise and would like to select a cruise that goes to Norway--or the Baltic area perhaps. Going up to the Arctic Circle has its appeals, but I've done that already so it's not necessarily high on my wish list.

We are looking for beautiful scenery, so a smaller ship might be better.

We like to play Trivia games and we like classical music. We like decent entertainment---no magic shows or lousy singers. We like good food but are not overly fussy. Afternoon tea is always a plus.

 

We want at least 10 days but no more than 21.

 

We are considering:

Celebrity Blu (we've done that and like all of the activities; the food is fine for us but the entertainment is crashingly loudly boorish)

Oceania: we've really liked that a lot; the entertainment is pitifully amateurish but the ambience and food is good

 

And we are considering, (new to us)

Crystal

Azamara

Seabourn

7 Seas

Cunard Victoria

 

 

We know that we will be fine with Celebrity or Oceania, but wonder if anyone has anything to say to sell us on a new experience. Celebrity Blu is our low-water mark for food. We don't care that much about exquisite service. We find that meeting new people is easier and less painful over a trivia game.

 

I've read reviews here until my eyes have gone dull; every ship has its champions and also people who have been miserable.

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Thank you. We do not require included alcohol, excursions, or airfare.

Aside from the ports of call, which are a major consideration, we would prioritize:

food including some afternoon tea

Trivia games (diversions)

entertainment

 

So how would Azamara, Crystal, Seabourn, and 7 Seas stack up on the above categories if anyone has a preference? I have found cruises on all four lines that appeal me and fit my itinerary and calendar.

 

Thank you so much! I will read up more about the individual lines.

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Thank you. We do not require included alcohol, excursions, or airfare.

Aside from the ports of call, which are a major consideration, we would prioritize:

food including some afternoon tea

Trivia games (diversions)

entertainment

 

So how would Azamara, Crystal, Seabourn, and 7 Seas stack up on the above categories if anyone has a preference? I have found cruises on all four lines that appeal me and fit my itinerary and calendar.

 

Thank you so much! I will read up more about the individual lines.

 

Have you looked at Oceania? They are considered by many to have the best food at sea, sadly I have yet to experience this for myself. They are a direct competition to Azamara and I think the age demographics would be considerably younger than Crystal, Seabourne and Regent.

 

Lots of luck and have fun with your research!

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Thank you! Yes, we loved Oceania and that made us decide that we wanted to upgrade and cruise less frequently. The only quibble we had (and it was a biggish one) is that the "talent" is so amateurish and we missed having an evening show that we could really enjoy.

 

I would love to repeat Oceania, but there's also the temptation to try something new.

 

Is it really true that you cannot get Pelligrino water on Crystal?

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Frankly, if evening shows are a priority for you none of the luxury lines may fit your bill. Crystal will come the closest to what you get on mainstream lines but many luxury cruise line passengers like to amuse themselves with conversations and leisurely meals. Notice I say many, not all, as some do like to see a show.

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I am sorry--I did not express myself well. I mean that we like a good string quartet playing from about 9 - 11 PM--or a good classical pianist would be fine--music that is conducive to a post-prandial conversation or classical music that is so good, that one simply has to listen. On Oceania the String Quartet disappeared after 6 PM.

 

On Celebrity the quality and the kind of music played by the String Quartets has gone downhill over the past few years. As I said in an earlier post, "decent entertainment".

 

 

Right now we are trying to decide between an Azamara Journey cruise and a Regent Voyager and a Crystal Symphony. They have similar itineraries so it's the little extras that might count for us. There are so many negative reviews, that I was hoping to get the benefit of opinions from those who are following a thread.

Edited by Waswo
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The problem is that each of the three cruise lines you mention are not the same. Each is uniquely different and it is those important differences which would compel me to choose one over the other, not the absence or presence of a string quartet at night. Crystal has assigned seating at dinner which I do not like (their open dining by reservation is a poor substitute for open seating.) Regent includes its mass market shore excursions and you pay dearly for them whether you want to take them or not. Azamara is now pretty much all inclusive but the level of inclusions is not up to that of the true luxury lines. Also the dress code is more informal. So first of all I would let itinerary guide me, then the tone of the cruise line. And last I'd check to see about the entertainment. jmo.

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We have sailed on Voyager twice but not on either Azamara or Celebrity so I can't speak to either of them except for maybe some facts about the ships. We loved sailing on Voyager. I like my own space and time alone so having a spacious cabin regardless of category is very important to us. On Azamara you would have to pay for a higher category to get something similar in size.

 

The atmosphere on Voyager is relaxed and casual. It is great not to have any formal nights though you wouldn't feel out of place if you like to dress up. We found the fellow passengers to be friendly, interesting and down to earth.

 

We take full advantage of all the perks of Regent being all-inclusive. Always take shore excursions and in spite of other people's comments find them very good. Usually have large buses but they are most often only half full giving everyone plenty of room and a small crowd. I have found the tour guides for the most part excellent and haven't found the chance of getting a so so one anymore often than when booking small group tours on mainline ships. We also took advantage of the offered pre and post cruise land tours on both of our cruises and found them to be excellent value.

 

We sometimes enjoy a beer or glass wine for lunch, like to have a pre-dinner drink, a couple of glasses of wine for dinner and maybe a post-dinner drink so enjoy the inclusion of beverages. Champagne is one of my favorite drinks so being able to have it in any venue is a bonus. Having unlimited bottle water in our cabin and as you leave the ship is great. Neither of us drink soda so that perk isn't necessary for us.

 

We found the service to be excellent overall with only the occasional blip.

 

Entertainment is not important to us and only rarely go to the shows but we do enjoy listening to music in the various lounges. To be honest I am not an audiophile so can't really speak to how good they are, all i can say is we enjoyed the music.

 

The guest lecturers on the last cruise were fantastic. I caught them live when the timing worked or on the TV if not. All of them were very knowledgeable and well spoken.

 

The other reason we really like Regent is the reasonable cost of upgrading to business class airfares. We don't have access to enough FF points to be able to enjoy that service without Regent's offer.

 

When I ran the numbers on different options for the cruise itineraries, Regent always came out ahead when i took everything into account.

 

We haven't yet booked another Regent cruise but we did take advantage of their deposit program while on our last cruise so have a couple of years to book another cruise and receive all the cost savings as if we had booked a cruise while on board. If we can't find a cruise with the itinerary we want then we can cancel with a full refund. I don't see that happening but life happens so it is nice to have that option.

 

I hope this helps a little in considering Voyager. If you have any specific questions please let me know. Happy to help if I can.

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Thank you very much, Wripro and 1982 Cruzstart. You've given me much "food for thought".

 

1982Cruzsrart--thank you for your extended review of the Voyager. It certainly sounds quite good.

 

Looking only at the itinerary the Azamara Journey has the most appealing one--and also a better date because we are working around a major 90th birthday party for a relative. I think that should be the decisive point--although the itineraries of other lines are "close enough". That's more important than my "preferences". If I wanted to do Classical Music, I could spend a week or two in New York or London-it remains, finally, an added really nice touch. The same with Trivia--I love it but I do not NEED it.

 

Finally the food---I like lighter food which is not oversalted and found that Oceania's Marina was significantly superior to what we were accustomed to.

 

I really do appreciate you taking the time to be so patient with my questions. I wish we had the time to sample all of the cruise lines, but we need to depend on research and reviews.

 

Thank you again.

Edited by Waswo
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The problem is that each of the three cruise lines you mention are not the same. Each is uniquely different and it is those important differences which would compel me to choose one over the other, not the absence or presence of a string quartet at night. Crystal has assigned seating at dinner which I do not like (their open dining by reservation is a poor substitute for open seating.) Regent includes its mass market shore excursions and you pay dearly for them whether you want to take them or not. Azamara is now pretty much all inclusive but the level of inclusions is not up to that of the true luxury lines. Also the dress code is more informal. So first of all I would let itinerary guide me, then the tone of the cruise line. And last I'd check to see about the entertainment. jmo.

 

Wripro--this is an important message for me so I am quoting it and also thank you again. My superior experience on Oceania led me to feel that it certainly justified the bigger price tag--and more!

 

I have got to get out of the "cookie-cutter" luxury-premium-mid-range mentality and get a feel for each of these cruise lines. What may seem really obvious to you is a valuable revelation to me. Your characterizations also make Azamara sound MORE not less appealing. Perhaps my husband and I are Oceania/Azamara natural fits.

 

Thank you again for your patience.

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Waswo,

 

I'm glad my post was helpful. Azamara is a very good alternative for the luxury lines as they have a terrific product. And if you are willing to sail in a smaller cabin (unless you book a suite the cabins are far smaller than on Seabourn, Regent, Silversea. Not Crystal where they are also small) you can save a lot of money.

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  • 1 month later...

It's been a while since this thread was opened, and I'm hoping that the OP has made a decision, is booked and ready for a wonderful anniversary.

 

(Still gonna add my two cents here!)

 

Lots of research is needed to make the best decision for any individual, and what is the best choice for one won't be for another. Some things to consider:

 

If choosing the Mediterranean, April is still dicey weather-wise. The very end of April and the beginning of May should be lovely - not too hot yet, but the seas smoothing. Of course, a rainy day can happen at anytime, so don't pin TOO much on one particular port of call.

 

About Santorini - if you are really early in the season, you run the risk of not being able to tender due to swells. Our arrival in Santorini was delayed once and the captain ALMOST cancelled the stop. Earlier in the season will like mean fewer ships in the caldera, which means fewer people crowding into the narrow streets of Oia and Fira, shorter wait for the cable car.

 

As has been mentioned, add all the variable costs. Does the cruise line include air, pre-cruise hotel, all beverages, excursions, specialty restaurants, tips, airport transfers? Is business class air available for a reasonable amount? (some find that critical for a trans-atlantic flight) If not, add those up.

 

The first time we sailed with Regent was also our first time visiting any of those ports, so we were quite satisfied with the basic excursions. If we'd been there before, perhaps we wouldn't have been. They are pretty standard overview tours, and the guides we had were all great. And Regent doesn't have their guest wear little tags or buttons to identify them as a part of a tour - a small thing, but nice. Don't know about the other luxury lines.

 

Smaller ships mean both that you can get to smaller ports but also that their are fewer people in the port.

 

Agreed with other posts that the #1 consideration is itinerary. But given the choice, I'd also pick a smaller room (small being relative - the small rooms on luxury lines are often larger than some suites on other lines) on a better line would create an overall better experience, at least to me.

 

Have a wonderful cruise, and Happy Anniversary.

 

 

Sent using the Cruise Critic forums app

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  • 10 months later...
We have never had poor service on Regent or Silversea. However, we also avoid the Navigator as, IMO, it carries to many passengers for the size of the ship. Fortunately, the Navigator does not sail in the Med.

 

That's an interesting comment, as our first cruise on Regent was on the Navigator, two weeks, and I don't recall it crowded at all. That ship converted me to Regent due the size of the concierge cabin and the quality therein. Plus, I was very pleased with the 1.6 passenger to crew ratio and the demeanor and congeniality of just about every crew member we came in contract with. Since then we have spent many more voyaging days with Regent including another on the Navigator for over a month in the Caribbean and South America. Love those block parties and still love the Navigator.

 

For comparison purposes as to how crowded a ship is going to be, I always check out the passenger to space ratio of every ship before we book. For instance, HAL's Prinsendam comes in at a 41.6, best of all HAL's ships. The new Royal Princess is 30.6. My most favorite ship of all, the S.S. Voyager is 56.3, the S.S. Mariner 63.9, The HAL Statendam 34.3, The Allure of the Seas, largest passenger ship afloat, 35.4, The Oceania Marina and Riviera 51.6. Oceania's R-ships like the Regatta 36.7. But hey, the lowly SS Navigator is 53.8, which confirms my experiences on her.

Edited by kennicott
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  • 4 weeks later...
Watch out -- it's habit forming!:D

 

That is true, I am going on my 53rd soon, myself.

Most common for me is a three-nighter or an April break cruise (kids), as I was often losing money for doig. longer cruises too often (hundreds of thousands for myself and millions for the fund), and decided to just do ones that do not require too much (with the exception of my next, only one where I could find the suite I wanted exactly, and the three kids are coming)

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