I was shocked....

I was shocked to see the low ratings of various Celebrity ships on travelocity's website, while inferior ships were rated higher.

I noticed that too...these were new ratings. I was pretty surprised to see some of the other ships rated as a 4 to 4+ with some of the X ships rated lower. Somebody is not too happy with the X ships. Actually the passengers were so I guess that actually counts more (to me at least).

Sky

remember "payola":D

Phil

I noticed that too...these were new ratings. I was pretty surprised to see some of the other ships rated as a 4 to 4+ with some of the X ships rated lower. Somebody is not too happy with the X ships. Actually the passengers were so I guess that actually counts more (to me at least).

My husband and I were on the Mercury two months ago, which is one of the ships that was recently downgraded. The cuisine on our recent cruise was as good or better than our previous Celebrity Cruises, and service aboard was excellent. It saddens me to realize that ratings no longer have any meaning.

Sky

 

remember "payola":D

 

 

Phil

LOL...very cute, Phil :)

If anything Celebrity has been acused of doctoring reviews in the past (a surprising number of Celebrity review are from people in CC class and higher)

As for the ratings, well, things on the checklist get you a higher rating these days. The century, for example, has only one pool area. Should it's rating be high if that pool area is nice, or should it be lower since passengers have fewer options? Celebrity's ships seem to have fewer jaw dropping features. The Mille class ships have a nice lobbies, but they're no jaw dropping artium. Is that a plus or a minus? Extra cost resurants: Only the Mille class has them, while RCCL's Radiance class has 2 and both are good. So who gets the higher rating?

Personally, I think Celebrity is "upper middle class" with nice but certainly not feature ladden ships. Ratings really make little sense. There are lots of 4 star hotels in Las Vegas that would send someone looking for a classy experience screaming away in horror. At the same time there are some perfectly classy 3 star hotels who lose a star because the pool isn't big enough for a 4 star. Overall Celebrity ships do lose out when compared feature for feature to other ships, but that's where the subjective comes in.

So am I surprised Celebrity's ships rank about the same as ships about the same size on other lines? Well, no not really. There are alot of ships (rccl's radiance class in particular) that are simply great and innovative designs with onboard experiences that are not that far off from Celebrity's. On the other extreme should Carnival's Spirit Class ships be rated lower than say, the Zenith. Well, to rate the Zenith higher would be arroagance of the highest degree. The Spirit Class vessels outshine the zenith and even the Century class on almost every level. Does that make a Spirit class Ship a "classer" vessel? Not on your life!

So like I said ship ratings don't mean that much, the number of features must be taken into consideration just to fair, and that all elusive "class" factor is just so hard to quantify and fankly Celebrity does not rank with other lines like silversea and seaborne who truly deserve their 4 and 5 star status.

Let the flames begin!

I agree with robsvacation. The thing that really made Celebrity say six years ago was the food quality Guess what? The other ships are closing in and are almost as good but they offer a whole lot more of entertainment than Celebrity does. (Although RCI for whatever reason food quality has decreased over the last two years) But must confess RCI adult scavenger hunt is probably one of the funniest entertainments out there! The one that surprised me the most is Carnival. I went on a Carnival 7 years ago and vowed would never go again because the food was so horrible and I couldn't walke 2 feet without someone pushing a drink at me but I went on a Carnival last year because that is what the family chose and I was pleasantly surprised. Food quality is currently beating RCI and their activities beat Celebrity hands down.

I guess I am one of those people that love good food and ambiance but have a little of the wild side still left and although Celebrity accomadates two of those they are probably the most boring ships I have ever cruised as far as just fun (probably what people would call low class) activities.

I am run of those that run screaming when anyone suggests sailing with CCL as my 2 experiences with them were so negative. Dark lobbies, plastic and neon everywhere, shorts in the dining, bad food, worse service. These 2 cruises were more than 6 years ago so perhaps things have changed. I hope so. I am on the Glory for business reasons in 6 weeks and can only hope it is not as awful as my other Carnival sailings. The reviews are very mixed and it seems like it gets the best ratings from diehard CCL fans.

I have sailed X four times and like many things about the line but it is a bit sedate for me. I travel solo or with friends most of the time and there is not really enough to keep us interested.

Currently, Radiance class on RCI seems to work the best for me.

really-that travel ho of a website is just that.

I personally think these new ratings for Celebrity Ships are reflective of a change in the profile of today's typical cruiser, as well as travel agents who are irate about their new pricing policy. The typical cruiser today seems to prefer new glitzy ships to ones with understated elegance, and are more concerned with price than value.

I guess when rating ships, you have to decide what exactly you want in your cruise line/ship. I don't want the jaw dropping atrium, the glass, neon and non-stop entertainment. Celebrity offers exactly what I want/expect for MY type of cruise---a low key, subdued and relaxing experience with very good food and service. If I wanted the glitz, Vegas type cruise, then I'd go with Carnival or RCCI. Just as I prefer to cruise Crystal when I'm wanting a very formal and exotic-port cruise, I chose Celebrity when I want a more refined, quiet and relaxing cruise experience. X fits us just fine, and I don't want to see them become just another member of the homogenized, behemoth, sensory overload cruise ship.

I guess when rating ships, you have to decide what exactly you want in your cruise line/ship. I don't want the jaw dropping atrium, the glass, neon and non-stop entertainment. Celebrity offers exactly what I want/expect for MY type of cruise---a low key, subdued and relaxing experience with very good food and service. If I wanted the glitz, Vegas type cruise, then I'd go with Carnival or RCCI. Just as I prefer to cruise Crystal when I'm wanting a very formal and exotic-port cruise, I chose Celebrity when I want a more refined, quiet and relaxing cruise experience. X fits us just fine, and I don't want to see them become just another member of the homogenized, behemoth, sensory overload cruise ship.

Hi Kitty..Your post reflects the way I feel. I love Celebrity and hope that they won't respond to these downgraded ratings by trying to change what separates it from the other mass market cruise lines.

For we are the secret realm. The Pryer of Sion has nothing on us. We know the X truth. Travelocity or anyone else for that matter can't fool us.

TRAVELOCITY...in deed!!! Obviously the reviews were supplied by people who frequent Travelocity...let's face it...would you book your X cruise on Travelocity??? LOL!!!

This reminds me of how Holland America was rated as #1 by Conde Nast for many years. It wasn't until 2 years ago that some of us discovered that Conde Nast hadn't even bothered to list Celebrity on it's survey. As someone once said..."LOOK AT THE SOURCE!!!"

ROSS

I personally think these new ratings for Celebrity Ships are reflective of a change in the profile of today's typical cruiser, as well as travel agents who are irate about their new pricing policy. The typical cruiser today seems to prefer new glitzy ships to ones with understated elegance, and are more concerned with price than value.

Agents irate about Celebrity's new pricing policy???HUH......both Celebrity and RCL are selling as well as ever if not better in some cases.... and the commission earned per fare is more money than if an agent were selling the same fare at a discounted price on another line.

Having sailed the Century, we were not at all impressed with the ship's condition, the physical plant left an awful lot to be desired. We felt other cruise line ships are much, much nicer. We're not looking for glitz and don't sail Carnival type lines looking for a party ship. Food and service at dinner were excellent on Celebrity. otherwise we were not impressed.

Galaxy was downgraded from 4.5 to 3.5 stars here on Cruise Critic. People may just be impatient that Celebrity has allowed its ships to get so threadbare.

I just perused in detail the ratings and I agree with Century being rated in the 3 category, if they didn't have the nice dinner food and presentation the marketplace would possibly rate it below a 3.

8 other ships we have sailed ( including HAL and Princess) were rated 4 to 4 plus. Other cruise ships we sailed on were classically beautiful, clean, bright, and well cared for. We found the Century to be shopworn with a decor that left us cold. The pool area on the Century was totally lacking compared to the multiple pool options on other lines, including covered pools. Century has very few balcony cabins while on other lines there are hundreds of balconies. Entertainment on Century was way way below what the other lines offer, one of the 2 production shows was so dated and simplistic it was laughable.

The marketplace has spoken, both my TA friend and the TA I book cruises with have told me people are voting with their feet for lines other than Celebrity.

I am not a travel agent and have no affiliation whatsoever with any cruise line.

The M class ships on Celebrity may be a cut above the Century, we have not sailed the M class but people we met on board the Century said they were much nicer.

TRAVELOCITY...in deed!!! Obviously the reviews were supplied by people who frequent Travelocity...let's face it...would you book your X cruise on Travelocity??? LOL!!!

 

Yes I have and will continue to book with them. They provide great service and pricing. They are also a member of TICO in Ontario, Canada (Travel Industry Council of Ontario) and covered by their Compensation Fund (in the event of bankruptcy of airline, cruise line, etc.) Do you know something that I don't as to why I shouldn't be booking with them?

Agents irate about Celebrity's new pricing policy???HUH......both Celebrity and RCL are selling as well as ever if not better in some cases.... and the commission earned per fare is more money than if an agent were selling the same fare at a discounted price on another line.

ocngypz, I don't quite agree with your comment that both Celebrity and RCL are selling as well as ever...If that was truly the case there would not have been SO many SR and Res rates this spring. Of course Summer will be different, but I know last spring there sure weren't as many restricted fares on both Celebrity and RCL...especially RCL!

Just my opinion...

Sharon

2004 occupancy 105.7 vs 2003 103.2 Net yield up 9.2%

It may be your market... up here in the NE......we are busy writing both lines.

I suspect once the new groups policy goes into effect and inventory is once again under control, things will be different come the penalty period!

Reading that tells me that you do not need to be a Mensa member to figure that one out. One area I would never book thru........

I was shocked to see the low ratings of various Celebrity ships on travelocity's website, while inferior ships were rated higher.

It's like Motor Trends car of the year.

It's an award that is purchased.

So what about Celebrity's ratings falling here at cruise critic?

Unless I can see the results directly, in real time, and can review all the assumptions and criteria, I don't trust any polling done on Cruise Critic either. In fact, I trust it even less than other sources for several reasons.

"Statistics are like expert witnesses. They testify for both sides"

- by Roy Rogers, Tex Ritter, or someone like that.