Stealthdog

This is straight from the celebrity website. Looks like testing probably won't be required, but you will be notified on board if needed (and will be provided testing at no cost). This is applicable to Celebrity/Royal/SilverSeas B2B combos. EDIT - this applies to sailings out of US ports that don't go to Bermuda or Canada. Updated US Travel Requirements (celebritycruises.com) Back-to-Back-Sailings Testing for back-to-back sailings is not required for all sailings. Guests will be notified onboard if testing is required and will be provided testing at no cost if needed. This back-to-back testing policy applies to any combination of sailings on any ships within the Royal Caribbean Group which includes Celebrity Cruises, Royal Caribbean International and SilverSea. Guests joining from other cruise lines not in the Royal Carribean Group family must follow all of our testing requirements in order to board our ships.

This was posted on Celebrity's website. I have a b2b on Royal then Celebrity in December. I guess its wait and see on board. Back-to-Back-Sailings Testing for back-to-back sailings is not required for all sailings. Guests will be notified onboard if testing is required and will be provided testing at no cost if needed. This back-to-back testing policy applies to any combination of sailings on any ships within the Royal Caribbean Group which includes Celebrity Cruises, Royal Caribbean International and SilverSea. Guests joining from other cruise lines not in the Royal Carribean Group family must follow all of our testing requirements in order to board our ships.

We did an aquafest cruise several years ago. It was a partial charter on a NCL ship (maybe 250-300 people). Was alot of fun with nightly private events with coco peru and leslie jordan. The mix was probably about 75% men, 25% women. Seemed the age range was solidly mid 30s to 60s. Dont know if that demographic is typical because we only did one. But, we would totally do another aquafest event - dates just havent worked out.

We booked a 7 night balcony on the Beyond this December for alot less than the OPs quote on the Prima. Celebrity straddles the threshold for luxary line. We have 4 cruise next certs and i have been trying so hard to find a sailing to use them on, but we keep going with other lines because their prices are much lower. I keep seeing Azamara and Oceana cruises that seem like great deals and have been itching to try them.

I dont pay attention to number ratings. Everyone has different expectations, experiences, and things they care about. I once saw Starbucks as the #3 rated "restaurant" in tripadvisor in a city I was visiting, which is absolutely absurd and very unhelpful. Written text reviews are much more important to me.

We usually do not tip extra because we normally get the service we expect for the grats we already pay for. There have been a few cruises that service was above and beyond and we tipped extra for that.

Ill be able to do a new comparison this December with a b2b on Odyssey and Beyond. The RCL Freedom and Oasis class ships look much nicer than the Celebrity Solstace class ships imho. Better interior designs, ship layouts, and interior decorations. Just my opinion though.

We like both lines but there are some differences. These are just our opinion: The Royal ships themselves are usually gorgeous and better looking than Celebrity ships. The food on Celebrity (generally) is better than Royal, particularly MDR and below. If you mostly dine in specialty restaurants or stay in a suite that gives you access to an alt MDR, you probably wont see a difference. The entertainment on Royal is significantly better - both quality and quantity. We often skip the shows on Celebrity. Celebrity is a much quieter experience, which is both a pro or con depending on your preferences. A pro is definately the casino - if you like to play the tables or slots, you will have an easier time finding a seat on Celebrity after 10pm. As mentioned throughout this thread, you wont find as many children/minors on Celebrity, which is a definate plus for us. Celebrity has an Aqua Class concept that gives you access to a healthier dining dinner option and access to the spa thermal suites, which is very nice. I dont think there is a significant difference in service. We havent had poor service on any cruse.

We stopped getting the drink packages on all lines. We went through the numbers and were paying so much more on the packages and also were overdrinking to justify the purchase. Between brining wine on board, discounted bottles in specialty dining (some lines), loyalty perks (some lines), and OBC (some sailings we have over $1k) the drink packages on all lines just seem to be a ripoff. Now we book all our cruises without the drink upcharges (we remove "free" at sea drink package on NCL and remove all in on Celebrity).

Awesome review. Very helpful. We are going on a Symphony sailing in September and your experiences will definitely help make us make decisions (especially the dining). Thanks again!