Celebrity vs Holland America

Previously we've been loyal to Celebrity but the prices on their med cruises are currently very high with all the included "freebies". Spotted a couple of very good Holland America itineraries around the med that seem reasonably priced.

How does Holland America compare with Celebrity

How does Oosterdam compare with one of Celbrity's newer solstice class ships (e.g. Eclipse) - decor seems VERY different

We have done and enjoyed both. There are differences, certainly decor is one, more woody traditional on HAL vs more metal and contemporary on X. We did really enjoy the glass blowing on Solstice but seems I read they no longer do that. Food is about the same for us (subjective). If you make it too elite on X their happy hour is hard to beat. I like crew better on HAL plus HAL tends to offer more interesting itineraries particularly longer ones. X used to be much better for nonsmoking but they are about even there now. Just some random things.

Entertainment on Celebrity is better. This might not be an issue on a port intensive Med. itinerary but the quantity and quality of venues and performers is better on Celebrity than anything you'll find on HAL. Also, I prefer the buffet setup on X.

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Back on HAL, Eurodam, for the first time in nearly five years after several Celebrity and Princess Cruises. Very happy with the cruise line, rooms are larger than Celebrity.

Food was tasty, well prepared and we enjoyed the MDR offerings. Very little self serve in buffet, but the lines move quickly and always found something to eat. Great hamburgers at Dive In.

The covered pool area came in handy during our somewhat wet Caribbean cruise. Not a lot of activities during the day compared to other lines, but that shouldn’t matter on a Med cruise. Minimal announcements, once back on Princess the quiet of the HAL cruise became a reminder of how nice it was not to be hounded by art auction and bingo sale announcements.

Booked another HAL cruise, on Oosterdam, for our 50th after looking at other cruises available.

We have done both. Here is my take.

HAL has a slight edge in the MDR

Service we found outstanding on both lines

X has more modern sleeker ships with more venues, although with two new pinnacle ships, HAL seems to be catching up to X

I think the specialty restaurants on X are price high, although they do that to offer discounting once on the ship

Drink prices are much higher on X. Logic is to push the drink package. Only happy hour on X was for Coors light and other beers. HAL has happy hour which is nice if you only want a drink before dinner

X has an edge on entertainment

I base my cruises on itinerary and cost.

Both web sites are equally bad

We have done and enjoyed both. There are differences, certainly decor is one, more woody traditional on HAL vs more metal and contemporary on X. We did really enjoy the glass blowing on Solstice but seems I read they no longer do that. Food is about the same for us (subjective). If you make it too elite on X their happy hour is hard to beat. I like crew better on HAL plus HAL tends to offer more interesting itineraries particularly longer ones. X used to be much better for nonsmoking but they are about even there now. Just some random things.

We have done both. Here is my take.

HAL has a slight edge in the MDR

Service we found outstanding on both lines

X has more modern sleeker ships with more venues, although with two new pinnacle ships, HAL seems to be catching up to X

I think the specialty restaurants on X are price high, although they do that to offer discounting once on the ship

Drink prices are much higher on X. Logic is to push the drink package. Only happy hour on X was for Coors light and other beers. HAL has happy hour which is nice if you only want a drink before dinner

X has an edge on entertainment

I base my cruises on itinerary and cost.

Both web sites are equally bad

We have done both. I think it depends on your personality and idea of a good vacation. We prefer r&r when not at ports so HAL is a good fit. We also don’t like to feel crowded and cramped which we have found HAL to be better for us. We have now been spoiled by suites and HAL’s prices are better on that front, however, they do not come with as many perks. We haven’t found the need for extra perks because the MDR is really good and if we want a specialty restaurant the prices on HAL are generally better. We really enjoyed our celebrity cruise and would definitely try X again... but the value of the HAL cruise and the restful environment keeps us coming back. We are in our 50’s if that helps.

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We prefer Celebrity ships. If all things were equal, and it came down to these two, Celebrity would win. Ship, dining options, non smoking casino. We never consider HAL's older ships.

Both cruise lines are excellent. It comes down to personal preferences.

Previously we've been loyal to Celebrity but the prices on their med cruises are currently very high with all the included "freebies". Spotted a couple of very good Holland America itineraries around the med that seem reasonably priced.

 

How does Holland America compare with Celebrity

How does Oosterdam compare with one of Celbrity's newer solstice class ships (e.g. Eclipse) - decor seems VERY different

I've been on Oosterdam and a handful of Celebrity cruises. To be honest, Oosterdam doesn't compare at all to Solstice Class ships.

Imagine a Millennium Class ship. Now, add dark gaudy colors and strip away the game shows, pool entertainment and theme parties (like the 60s party and 70s night). There you have the Oosterdam.

I've been on Oosterdam and a handful of Celebrity cruises. To be honest, Oosterdam doesn't compare at all to Solstice Class ships.

 

 

 

Imagine a Millennium Class ship. Now, add dark gaudy colors and strip away the game shows, pool entertainment and theme parties (like the 60s party and 70s night). There you have the Oosterdam.

Agreed. The solstice class ships are sleek and modern where as the HAL ships are more traditional. I haven’t cruised on a HAL ship that was gaudy but will be trying the Oosterdam soon. But the balconies are sprawling in the suites, even the Signature suites which cost the same or less as a balcony on X. I had originally booked an X cruise for Alaska but was able to book a Signature Suite for the same price on HAL. We’ve been hooked ever since.

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I agree with those who said that Celebrity has better entertainment, HAL has better and longer European itineraries. For Europe we always choose HAL over X.

Food is about the same, service is good on both, but an edge to HAL for warmer, friendlier service. Love how we can have room service breakfast on HAL the last morning.

We have done both. Here is my take.

HAL has a slight edge in the MDR

Service we found outstanding on both lines

X has more modern sleeker ships with more venues, although with two new pinnacle ships, HAL seems to be catching up to X

I think the specialty restaurants on X are price high, although they do that to offer discounting once on the ship

Drink prices are much higher on X. Logic is to push the drink package. Only happy hour on X was for Coors light and other beers. HAL has happy hour which is nice if you only want a drink before dinner

X has an edge on entertainment

I base my cruises on itinerary and cost.

Both web sites are equally bad

Great comparison. I agree with your assessment. I like both equally, so choosing by itinerary and cost is the way to go.

TO:

TO:

 

 

Meld all the posts and you will get a pretty accurate opinion.

We have sailed both but usually favour HAL over X when itineraries and pricing meet our requirements. Perks only factor in if they reduce overall pricing i.e, prepaid gratuities & OBC.

We find Signature Suites better than X's comparable staterooms.

 

If you find a HAL cruise with the itinerary and price you like go for it, you won't be disappointed.

 

One caveat, avoid HAL's older & smaller ships if you like the larger ones.

I've been on Oosterdam and a handful of Celebrity cruises. To be honest, Oosterdam doesn't compare at all to Solstice Class ships.

 

Imagine a Millennium Class ship. Now, add dark gaudy colors and strip away the game shows, pool entertainment and theme parties (like the 60s party and 70s night). There you have the Oosterdam.

This is probably our main concern - the styling, it looks very gaudy. We are less worried about entertainment during the day. In the evening an hour in the Casino and a show is about it for us.

This is probably our main concern - the styling, it looks very gaudy.

The ship-within-a-ship concept tries to mitigate this to a small extent, though honestly it's just an extension of the suite concept. Regardless, it generally only varies two or three aspects, and it varies them in one way. It doesn't give the passenger true mix and match. In the end, we as passengers are still well-advised to not go looking for unicorns.

So we're left with choices - three or four at the price-point that we're talking about - and comparing those choices not against an ideal but rather against each other (and comparing them to not cruising at all, as an additional choice).

I chose HAL on the Veendam (one of the oldest ships) for our upcoming cruise. I haven't been on HAL, but the itinerary was exactly what I was looking for, Boston to Montreal in the SUMMER. Even though the reviews haven't been the greatest, itinerary won out for us. With that being said, our next two cruises will be on Celebrity. Europe on the EDGE, and then a Solstice cruise. I think you just have to figure out what you're looking to get out of the trip. The New England/Canada trip was all about itinerary, but Edge in Europe was more about the ship, even though the price was higher than what I would have liked. (Although I did like the itinerary as well) As long as the food and service are decent, I'm pretty happy to be seeing some new ports, not so worried about entertainment.

We find the mass market cruise lines so inconsistent as to food, entertainment, etc. that we tend to focus much more on the ship than we do on the cruise line itself.

When we are shopping our choices usually come down to two or three of Princess, HAL, Celebrity, and RCI. For straight ship design, Celebrity wins hands down with us. But, we have other measures to consider. We do not see a huge amount of difference from a service perspective-they are all great.

Is Solstice vs Vista class an equitable comparison? Wouldn't Solstice vs Pinnacle class be more in line?

We are probably in the minority’s, BUT....we do not like the Soltice class ships! The loud music that is often in the open atrium carries all the way up to the upper floors. Often times you can hear it in your room. We prefer the M class ships, which are now getting pretty old. They have been chopped up and additional staterooms added so they are not the same as they used to be.

Yes, the ships are glitzy and sparkling, but we are looking for a different experience. We don’t like the loud thumping music in all the venues on Celebrity. Some other things have changed since the addition of everyone having beverage packages as booking promos, too.

We think that Solstice class ships are miles ahead of the Vista class vessels. Vista class ships are more comparable to Celebrity's Millennium class ships.

We think RCI Corp (Celebrity, RCI, Azamara, etc ) do a far better job on ship design and innovation that do the Carnival Corp lines (HAL, Princess, Carnival, Costa, etc). But of course, this is based on our person preferences/tastes.

Is Solstice vs Vista class an equitable comparison? Wouldn't Solstice vs Pinnacle class be more in line?

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Is Solstice vs Vista class an equitable comparison? Wouldn't Solstice vs Pinnacle class be more in line?

Not really.... as the OP, I think it would be pretty misleading. We've sailed on Solstice Class ships several times and the cruise we are looking at is on the Oosterdam, a comparison between Solstice Class and Koningsdam (for example) would not be relevant.

The crew on Holland is the best.

We would add a warning about reviews/comparisons. Both HAL and Celebrity have been recently undergoing numerous changes or what I prefer to call "cut backs." Those that haven't cruised these lines within the last year (or certainly within the past 2 years) are basing their assessment on completely out-of-date info. This is even more true for Celebrity which seems to be undergoing a fleet-wide degradation in terms of service, cuisine and other onboard issues that impact cruisers. The Celebrity of today is but a shadow of the Celebrity of 5 years ago. HAL has also undergone some major changes (especially in entertainment). We agree with the poster that talks more in terms of specific ships rather than the cruise lines. And yes, we have cruised both lines within the past year and have extensive cruising experience on both lines.

Hank