Emdee

lol you need to count yourself lucky they went outside the box, Oceania was even better for us….they served my daughter a frozen tuna melt. The bread and tuna were totally frozen. They put some ersatz cheese on top and melted it. Then they had the temerity to say that is how they serve it when she complained. Never again on Oceania for us. The Indian meal Special order on both Silver Endeavour and Silver Moon were very good and better than Crystal.

We had the same experience on the Moon. Thomas Keller on SB had the best meat on the high seas but now they have discontinued the collaboration. I use the same quality75% Wagyu/25% Angus from Snake River Farms at home. DH didn’t like the sirloin on Crystal but the other cuts were fine. Their roast beef both in Waterside and Marketplace was amazing. I am not a beef eater but I sneaked a piece from his plate.

Great to hear really looking forward to our August cruise on her.

We mainly cruised Regent until 2015 . Then tried Crystal and loved it. Regent is very good with special orders. The staff are wonderful too. I don’t think SSea outshines Regent at all. Since we are itinerary driven we look at Regent and Crystal and book accordingly.If we look for pure relaxation then we prefer Crystal. I didn’t like the beef on Regent though. Even in Prime 7. Everything else was fine and I think that Compass Rose has an exceptional menu of always available items.

We were in the standard Balcony on Crystal. I preferred the previous design but am willing to live with this design if it means I can cruise Crystal more often. My 3 cruises were 12 and 14 days. If I was on a longer cruise I would definitely book a larger suite. Yes the Regent suites are very nice. We were in the F on Explorer and will be in a similar size on Splendour in August. We have been 4 times on SB during Covid and once on the Moon ( not counting Cloud and Endeavour as they are different animals). Would have happily sailed twice on Crystal for the same money if I could have. Ultimately we are all different and what is important to some is not to others. Cost is not the only criteria we put into the mix.

Been three times…love it. For me better than the old Crystal but we are still itinerary driven and cruising around 4 knee replacements lol.

Yes I noticed that too. Besides Regent has wonderful suites. The same regulars beat me up when I criticized their beloved SSea. My only beef about Regent is the beef quality. But otherwise my go to are Regent and Crystal. Crystal food and service consistently amazing and Regent new itineraries are good. In 2015 I moved from Regent to Crystal because of different itineraries and then with Covid and Crystal demise traveled on the three other luxury cruises.

SSea food mediocre at best. Regent has better offerings in Compass Rose and has a yes mentality compared to SSeas No mentality. sSea Hotel Director told me on my first SSea cruise that SSea didn’t need new passengers as they had plenty of regulars! Regent Hotel Director chatted with my DD on the Explorer where she said the food was disappointing and the next day we were introduced to the F&B manager by the Head sommelier ( who she had established a rapport with due to her love of specialty champagnes) and notes were taken on our suggestions. The result was we haven’t booked any Classic SSea cruises but have stayed with their Expeditions where the ports are the thing and have several Regent cruises booked.

All of us have our hot buttons and price points as someone on the Crystal Board says choice is good. We tried Oceania in 2008 and it wasn’t our cup of tea at all. Have not tried them since then. We are still somewhat itinerary driven so Regent whom we have been cruising with since 2003 and Crystal and the SSea Endeavour cover our needs. Seabourn has very good Caribbean itineraries so may sail them in order to break up our winter.

Both Seabourn and SSea staff are inconsistent in service and food in my opinion is nowhere near the new Crystal. In my opinion the new Crystal service and food are amazing….I personally believe better than before. Our butlers on Crystal definitely went above and beyond ….much better than any we had on other lines including SSea. My last Crystal cruise in December was when I was recuperating from knee surgery and the concern I received from the staff makes me tear up. The staff really make you feel part of the Crystal family and that is priceless and worth the higher costs. I would rather go on three cruises on Crystal instead of four on SSea and Seabourn. The only SSea we are likely to go on are the Expeditions and we are currently booked on The Endeavour as the ship ( built by Crystal) is technically amazing.

Have you been on the new Crystal? I tried all of the competition in the last few years but Crystal is way better than the rest. The only one that comes close is Regent which I continue to sail on due to itineraries.

You bring back memories of our not so great Silversea experience. Since then we have avoided the classic cruises and sailed on their expedition cruises.

Crystal has a huge selection of non alcoholic cocktails, some non alcoholic wine and beer. When my DH ran through the non alcoholic wine they picked some up for him at the next port. He would get them to make a spritzer with the non alcoholic sparkling and a little lemon juice.

Yes I wish they would open the Italian and Japanese restaurants for lunch sometimes too. Always a pleasure to dine in Chartreuse and Prime 7 at lunch. To be fair to C the marketplace lunch is definitely the best at sea, Bistro, Tastes and Grill are also open as well.

Under Rao’s training the new butlers are doing an excellent job anticipating your every need.