Princess Platinum trying to decide on Celebrity

Hello to all! We are Platinum members on Princess. Have sailed once on Carnival many years ago, and once on RCCL. Obviously we keep coming back to Princess. We are wanting to try the Royal and/or Regal Princess one day too though. ;)

But the Celebrity 123Go sale really sparked my interest. My husband and I will be celebrating our 40th wedding anniversary next (2016) fall, and was wanting to go someplace we haven't gone before. We LOVE the Caribbean and we love Alaska too! But the Southern Caribbean itinerary interests me. Haven't been to San Juan, Barbados or St Lucia. All of these I found on the itinerary.

Who has been on Princess and Celebrity and can give me your honest thoughts?

We are looking at the Concierge cabins on deck 8. We are wanting cabins above and below us. On Princess we usually book a mini suite aft because I like the sitting area and the bathtub/shower. However, the cabins on the Summit may be a bit smaller and there is no bathtub. It's not that I take baths, I just like it being larger than a shower in most cabins. So this is one of my concerns.

On Princess we enjoy the Sanctuary very much. Don't think the Summit offers anything like this. The food is good on Princess, although still "cruise line" food. But I have heard the food on Celebrity is good too.

Maybe one thing I should ask is what is comparable to mini suite on Princess to what type cabin on Celebrity? Oh and on Princess they have laundry mats on each deck with ironing boards which is a must and I love and I LOVE the International Cafe, anytime Pizza and Hamburger grill.

So if you can give me some insight, some comparisons that would be awesome. I need to make a decision very soon as the promo will be ending this Sunday, March 1st!!

Thank you so much!! :)

We've done 14 cruises on Princess and about 7 on Celebrity. I can tell you that the Concierge Class cabin on the Summit will be considerably smaller than a Princess mini-suite. I was on the Summit in October and don't think I'll be sailing her again. Everyone has his/her own opinion, but I prefer the S class ships. Also, there are no laundry facilities on Celebrity.

We like Celebrity and have several more booked, but honestly, I'm becoming increasingly underwhelmed with the food. I think X used to have a pretty strong reputation for having above-average food, which I don't believe to be the case any longer.

We haven't been on Princess in a few years but are hoping to be on the Regal next year. I like the overall Celebrity product, but I am missing Princess a bit. I think it's worth it for you to give Celebrity a shot, but I'm not sure I would suggest the Summit to start out with. If a tub/larger cabin and laundry facilities are important to you, you may be in for a letdown.

We are elite on Princess and will be going on our 3rd Celebrity cruise next week. We have only sailed the Silhouette in the Concierge class and found Celebrity very similar to Princess. Our favorite on the Silhouette is the Adult pool which is like a resort area and the Lawn Grill Restaurant.

We have sailed on both Celebrity and Princess. The Celebrity equivalent to the Princess mini suite is the Sky Suite. They have bathtub/showers. The Sky Suite has some suite amenities but lack others.

I have only sailed Princess weekend cruises leaving from Los Angeles, and I was not impressed with my experiences. I believe the celebrity ships are much nicer, less crowded, better clientele, and much better service. If I were to compare my cruise line experiences to steak houses it would be as follows:

Celebrity- Flemings/Ruth's Chris

Princess- Outback/Lonestar

Norwegian and Carnival- Sizzler

If Laundromat are a necessity, stay on Princess. Celebrity doesn't not have any on their ships. You would have to send it out for the ship to do. I have only cruised Celebrity and RCCL so I will not mention the other items of your concern

The Princess mini-suite has no equivalent on Celebrity. All balcony cabins are basically the same size. Concierge class costs more because of location and added amenities. Aqua class costs even more because you get to dine in Blu in addition to the main dining room (but the locations are often problematic, right under the pool deck). Sky Suites are comparable in size to the Princess mini-suites, but the prices are considerably higher because they include lots of added amenities -- now including access to the new Luminae restaurant which promises to restore the old Celebrity reputation for great food (but at a very high cost). If you are happy with Princess food and the laundromats are important to you, stay with Princess mini-suites.

The Princess mini-suite has no equivalent on Celebrity. All balcony cabins are basically the same size. Concierge class costs more because of location and added amenities. Aqua class costs even more because you get to dine in Blu in addition to the main dining room (but the locations are often problematic, right under the pool deck). Sky Suites are comparable in size to the Princess mini-suites, but the prices are considerably higher because they include lots of added amenities -- now including access to the new Luminae restaurant which promises to restore the old Celebrity reputation for great food (but at a very high cost). If you are happy with Princess food and the laundromats are important to you, stay with Princess mini-suites.

Just wanted to point out that the OP is looking at the Summit, so a Concierge cabin would in fact be larger than a regular veranda.

I have sailed many times on both. I would not start with Summit, as a first cruise. As much as I like M class ships, I would go on any S class on Celebrity. There are some good locations for AQ cabins with X large balconies, but they are usually booked very fast. Suites are priced higher most of the time that mini-suites on Princess. Whatever you choose, I think you would like X.

I am Platinum on Princess and just sailed on Celebrity for the 1st time. IMHO, the entertainment & service were better on X than Princess. Have booked another X cruise for 2016. I still will cruise on Princess as well.

Only been on celebrity the once, so far [but expect to be back] with Princess a few times, in my opinion they are more the same than different.

If you want a mini-suite type room you will need to go to Sky Suite I think, but then you get additional service.

We've pretty much decided that from now on we'll stick with a balcony, but we have our own specific reasons for that, the one thing we liked was that Celebrity appear to give you a sofa in balcony, whereas most Princess ships you now need a mini suite for that.

On Celebrity I found the only benefit of Concierge class I could see was the location, from what I was hearing the other benefits weren't worth the $$.

I have only sailed Princess weekend cruises leaving from Los Angeles, and I was not impressed with my experiences. I believe the celebrity ships are much nicer, less crowded, better clientele, and much better service. If I were to compare my cruise line experiences to steak houses it would be as follows:

 

Celebrity- Flemings/Ruth's Chris

Princess- Outback/Lonestar

Norwegian and Carnival- Sizzler

Good rating system! I agree with you.

We are also Platinum on Princess...Elite, soon to be Elite Plus on Celebrity...

My last two cruises were on Princess...next four on Celebrity...

For me, if Celebrity would only home-port a ship in California, I may never go back to Princess...

Of course, everyone is different...we all have different criteria, different standards, different expectations. Self service laundry is very unimportant to me, for example...If I want something laundered orpressed while I'm on vacation, I will send it out...

Of course, as an Elite on Celebrity, we get a free load of laundry and a couple of items pressed free...At Elite Plus, we'll get two loads each...Princess also gives Elites (Not Platinums) free laundry...But Elite on Princess takes 15 cruises while on Celebrity it takes only 10 (under the old system),,,still quicker than Princess...

I also really like a sitting area with a sofa in my cabin...But, with Celebrity, ALL of the cabins have that--even the inside cabins! We just took my sister and brother-in-law with us on a Princess cruise--after they hadn't been on Princess in a long time. When they entered their balcony cabin, they both remarked about how small it was---"Not even a sofa!" It's not that the standard Princess cabin is that much smaller, it's just layed out differently, wasting tha space in hallway area, leaving them with little room for more than a bed and a chair...So, the real point is that, unlike Princess, you don't have to spring for a higher priced suite to get a small sofa and a coffee table...

As to the shower/bath thing, you don't get a bathtub on Celebrity until you get to the "Sky Suite" level...but the showers ARE much better. Rather than the clingy plasttic shower curtain, Celebrity has sliding glass doors...So showering is easier...If you move up to Aqual class, you get a removable spray hose...

But, for me, here is what Celebrity does FAR better than Princess...and what is really important to me:

1) Celebrity's ships have much better space-per-passenger ratios...not only making the cruise far more comfortable and spacious, but also affecting it in a number of ways...The venues are all more amply sized. You don't have to show up a half an hour ahead of a show time to get a seat like on Princess...seats and tables in lounges are easier to find, etc.

2) Princess' "Anytime Dining" is SEVERELY mismanaged on every Princess ship we've been on--long lines and long waits, being given "buzzers" and delayed for a long time...NEver have this problem on Celebrity--we've always been seated within a couple of minutes of arriving at the dining room--even at 7:00-7:30...

I agree with Bruin Steve. If only X would do more on the West Coast. Have done 3 Princess cruises in the last 4 months. Have 2 more booked. Those are all cruises I would have booked with X if they were on the West Coast. Elite Plus benefits are better than Princess Elite. Elite Happy Hour on Princess drinks are limited to the drink of the day for $5. My next cruise is on the Summit in April out of San Juan. Not looking forward to 12 hour travel day.

 

Who has been on Princess and Celebrity and can give me your honest thoughts?

 

on Princess they have laundry mats on each deck with ironing boards which is a must

:)

I have not read the other comments,

If a laundry is trully a must, there is no need to continue your research, Celebrity does not have them.

But if you can find a way to not make it a deal breaker, here we go.

Our 1st Princess cruise was in 1992, our last was the Ruby in 2012, we like the Emerald minis close to the aft that are covered. Dont like the theater style of the other balconys. Our friends loved it, I thought it OK, my wife felt so disapointed, she wont look at Princess right now, go figure. The Ultimate Balcony Dinning is one of the best ideas ever by a cruise line, Crown Grill was a bust, the MDR was good to very good. Shows have become about the same on all of the lines.

Our 1st Celebrity was in 1994, the Reflection in 2013, the Equinox 2014, and again for 2015. Due to our 'sailing' around we just made Elite in Capt Club last cruise! ( 7 diff lines )

You should really look at one of the S-Class ships for your first cruise on Celebrity. With the ships you have sailed, IMHO, an M-Class will not be the best comparison, tho they are wonderful ships.

Celebrity wins out by a hair on overall MDR quality, and by a mile in the Specialitys, tho they do cost more than CG.

The evening bar sceen on Celebrity is alive and hopping in many different places, and you can also find a quiet bar to relax at. The bar tenders put on more of a show than on Princess.

No waterfall flowing with champagne (sp) but after a couple of time, you know.

We found a more classy and upscale level of evening dress on Celebrity. Even when it was Sport Casual, our fellow pax would not roam the active areas in their pool wear in the evening.

We could see the infulences of the 'parent' Co. all around on the Ruby.

Where Celebrity still has maintained most of the feel and vibe we first liked in 1994.

Oh, also, all the balcony cabins on the S-Class, no matter what catagory, are 194 sq ft and felt a lot like the Mini's on Princess.

We are Platnium on Princess and last Nov sailed on the Caribbean Princess followed by a cruise on the Eclipse.

No comparison. The only reason we sailed on Princess was because we were traveling to FL and that cruise was a cut rate price of $299 for 5 days in a Caribe balcony. Doubt that we will sail Princess again.

it is very tough to beat Celebrity with the drink pack promo. If you enjoy spending money for the Santuary you should book a AQ category on a S class ship. You will have access to the Persain Gardens plus the more private dining in Blu for breakfast and dinner.

All ships have an adult pool area called the solarium. It doesn't have reserved seating but it is rather quiet unless you have that loud person in the hot tub. Some S class ships have what they call the Alcoves that can be rented daily for a rather steep price but it is a private reserved area with some perks.

You should forget about the ports and sail on their newest ship the Reflection in AQ. That ship has the Alcoves but I doubt that you would need it as there are many nice quiet places to relax. in AQ you also get all three perks that consists of the drink pack , SBC and paid gratuities.

You will never know unless you try it.

happy cruisng 🌊🚢🇺🇸🌞

I am Platinum on Princess and sailed once on the Summit. There are things that I like and dislike about both lines. At this stage of our life we are limited to 7-10 day Caribbean itineraries.

Caribbean itineraries are better on Celebrity which is what brought me to the line. Love the Southern Caribbean and Princess has pretty much dismissed it since they no longer sail out of San Juan. I also love Bermuda which Princess no longer sails to. My next cruise is to Bermuda in Concierge Class on the Summit. We normally book ocean views but this will be our 25th anniversary cruise so I was going to book a veranda. As it turns out with the all inclusive package CC worked out to be less money than a regular veranda. I did research itineraries on Princess and found that a regular balcony without perks would cost more or the same than what Celebrity was offering. Plus, there is a bonus savings because I can drive to port. Princess has left the New York area except in the fall for Canada New England itineraries. I live in the northeast I don't need to sail up the coast towards a colder climate to watch the leafs change color.

I prefer the rooms on the Summit over Princess. Even an ocean view room has a small sofa and the shower and bathroom is quite a bit larger than on the Princess Grand Class ships. However, you don't have a walk in closet which I think is a waste of space and makes the room feel smaller, especially if you are in an ocean view or interior. We actually found ourselves spending more time in the room than we do on a Princess ship.

Now here is where Princess stands out. Food on Princess is much better in preparation, and variety. I really missed Horizon Court for salads and for breakfast and lunch. The ocean view cafe was terrible. Same choices everyday and if you didn't stand in line and get a fresh made omelet you got cold eggs. I don't mean room temperature I mean refrigerator cold. The buffet is not open all day so if you are looking for something to eat at around 3:00pm when you get back from port you are out of luck until around 5:00pm This was the biggest problem for us. We usually eat dinner at around 8:00 so at 3:00 we are looking for lunch type items or a nice salad bar. Next trip we will order room service.

We always eat in anytime dining on Princess and select dining on Celebrity. Celebrity does a better job of not allowing traditional diners to jump back and forth from traditional to select so wait time is shorter. Food however in the MDR is hit or miss. Service on both lines is great I never had a problem on either line. The specialty restaurants on Princess are reasonably priced at $25pp. However on Celebrity they are over priced and I wouldn't book one unless they were offering a discount, which from what I have read on this board they do quite often. We ate in Qsine only because they offered us 20% off. The food was just OK. It was more about presentation than quality and taste. I would not pay $45pp to eat there. Honestly it would be over priced at $25 pp.

We really enjoy the service and atmosphere on both lines. They are more the same than different. We book based on itinerary and price. Right now Celebrity meets both of these needs.

I am Elite Plus in Celebrity and in Janaury 2015 took Both a two week Southern Caribbean cruise on the Eclipse (S class) followed by a one week on the Regal Princess. I had a mini suite on the Regal which is far more spacious than the Concierge class on Eclipse but has less space than a Sky suite. The disappointing thing on The Regal...the size of their balconies! You could not face your chairs out to the sea unless you didn't mind your knees hitting the railing! Must admit the closet arrangement on Princess is far better than Celebrity.

IMO Princess had a wider variety of entertainment options after dinner, on X.. You either go to the Theatre or the Casino as no other entertainers play in the other venues while there is a show on. Princess theatre is tiny in comparison but at least they repeat the evening shows 3X or else it moves to another room.

We were on Anytime Dining on Princess and as others have pointed out...Princess has no clue how to organize it. We could not get into the anytime dining room until after 8:30pm reservations or not, people would sit and enjoy their dinner for hours. It was always full. We were told if we wanted anytime then get to the dining room by 5:30pm! So we ate upstairs..there certainly there was a wider selection of buffet options and all of it hot. I loved Princess's theme nights.

I did actually use the laundry services on Princess and that was nice to have for sure but on Celebrity I do get laundry services. Even if you are not elite on Celebrity they usually offer on two week cruises a special laundry price..fill up the paper laundry bags with as much as you can for $20.00 (probably $30 now)

I haven't been on the summit but have been on the Constellation.

Princess has introduced an all inclusive drink package but it is more expensive $62.00 per day. They had a better selection of wines and I would compare the Princess's package to the premium 123GO on Celebrity.

Overall I was pleasantly surprised with Princess and perhaps becuase I sail almost exclusively with Celebrity it was a nice change to go from one ship to another and enjoy what the other ship offered. It was like your first cruise where everything is new! The atrium on Princess and the shows they put on there as well as the International cafe are fabulous..beats Celebrity hands down!

If the itinerary is something you are interested in then please give Celebrity a try.

Platinum on Princess and took our first cruise on Celebrity Equinox in January. The drink package was great, so nice to grab anything you wanted including coffee, water, etc. Never been on one of the newest Princess ships but compared to the last Princess cruise on the Emerald:

Thought the Celebrity buffet had a much better selection than Princess with real ground coffee and nice salad bars. A small thing perhaps but the "to

go" cups for coffee were really handy.

Thought the Equinox layout was much easier to navigate than Princess. The best signage I've ever seen for locating places. Like the atrium going all the way to the top of the ship. Overall I thought the ship was just nicer.

Never once waited for a table for 2 in select dining. Never saw anyone with a pager. Much better than the Princess.

Liked the longer shows in the main theater. Close to an hour as opposed to the Princess 35 minute. If you're going to make the effort to go to the show, it ought to be long enough to enjoy.

Balcony cabins had plusses and minuses. Much better closet on Princess with the dressing area, much nicer bathroom and shower on Celebrity. Celebrity balcony had that simulated teak instead of the blue mat which I liked with bare feet. It was a bit larger than the non-Caribe Princess balcony.

The variety of entertainment was much better on Princess with more going on in the Atrium and in the evenings. Food and service were probably a toss up but Princess definitely has the edge in desserts.

We don't gamble but liked being able to walk through the non-smoking Casino on Celebrity.

Missed the Princess promenade deck as well as the laundry if for nothing else than a handy iron.

Hmmmm....I'm running out of steam here...

We LOVE the Caribbean and we love Alaska too! But the Southern Caribbean itinerary interests me. Haven't been to San Juan, Barbados or St Lucia. All of these I found on the itinerary.

I haven't been on Princess to compare, but this itinerary is worth it regardless where Celebrity stacks up afterwords. San Juan is a wonderful place of beauty, history, and culture. We spent our honeymoon there a few years back in conjunction with our first cruise. It's well worth spending 1-2 day there beforehand.

Barbados is beautiful, canopies and spider monkey's galore. St Lucia is well worth the visit, waterfalls, hot springs, and a volcano. I recommend a cruise tour or booking off a website, many of the people in St., Lucia are lovely but there has been a spike in crime.

I just turned Elite on Princess and will be turning Elite on Celebrity after my upcoming b2b. I've only sailed Grand Class on Princess and only on the Summit on Celebrity. DH and I love both lines and the differences of each. We always book a Mini-Suite on Princess and a Celebrity Suite on Celebrity. I've seen all of the staterooms on both lines, and the Concierge Class Stateroom on the Summit is, I think, much prettier than the Balcony Stateroom on Princess. There is no tub, but the shower is quite manageable (as opposed to that on Princess). There is a loveseat, and the cabin is a nice size. There is, however, a smaller closet and less shelf or drawer space. The Sky Suite is the equivalent to the Princess Mini-Suite; however, I'm not crazy about that layout. Thus, DH and I prefer the Celebrity Suite, which is lovely but more expensive. Food is subjective, but we are happy on both lines. Many on board have sailed both and continue to do so, and others have preferences. There is, as others have said, no self-service laundry on Celebrity, and valet service is more expensive on Celebrity. Bulk laundry is not pressed on Celebrity, whereas everything is on Princess. The Solarium on Celebrity would be the equivalent of the Sanctuary. Unlike Princess, there is no charge. The Summit has a promenade, and I enjoy walking there daily. It is a difficult decision to spend lots of money on something new, but then you might really enjoy Celebrity. DH and I have never had a bad cruise, but then we never sailed on the Titanic.

We are Elite+ on Celebrity and have seven fairly recent cruises on Princess. We enjoy both lines and usually select by itinerary and price. We are not heavy drinkers, so recently the added cost of the 'all inclusive' has driven us to Princess. With regard to food, Celebrity is more consistent. We have had higher highs and lower lows on Princess, including inedible prime rib (twice - we should have learned after the first time) and really memorable desserts (delicious!). The older Celebrity ships are comparable with Ruby and Star class and the Royal Princess is close to the S class on Celebrity, although with smaller balconies.

Unless you really need a self serve laundry, I would think you will be happy on Celebrity.

I don't understand the laundry issue. We've been on 12 Celebrity cruises, most 14 days or more and have never missed a laundry room. We pack carefully and wash lingerie in the sink and send husband's underwear and knit shirts out. I wouldn't want to spend time in a laundry room any way.

We've been on Princess twice. Never used the laundry.

Also will not go back until they stop smoking in the casino. The smell of the smoke came out into the atrium and permeated all areas adjacent. Another issue - PrIncess allows young children in the top specialty restaurants. We've had meals spoiled by uncontrolled children running around. Maitr'd refused to do anything. Celebrity restricts entrance to over 12 years old. Ambience much improved..

There is one very important feature that I totally forgot about that makes Celebrity stand out for us, it is their limited restricted smoking policy. Smoking is only allowed in a few outside designated areas.

Didn't like the smoking policy on the Caribbean Princess. Smoking was allowed in the casino and it was a area that had to be walked thru whenever you wanted to get from one end to the other on that deck. Then the sports bar was also the cigar bar and the smoke from there would infiltrate a section of the theater as it was next to it, plus the smoke also drifted onto the stairwell.

If you are a smoker then you make not enjoy Celebrity.

happy cruisng 🌊🚢🇺🇸🌞