How exactly DO you luxe up a mass-market cruise?

On the Regent board we’ve had some great discussions about our expectations for the luxury cruise lines, and what we really get for all those extra dollars. One of the topics that came up was the idea of “luxing up” a premium or mass-market cruise to make it a comparable experience: getting the higher-category cabins with concierge service, dining in the specialty restaurants, and just ponying-up (and factoring in) the cost of the things that normally would be included on an all-inclusive line. The theory goes that by doing so, one can come close to the luxury-cruise experience for less money overall. I rather strongly disagreed that it was in any way possible, because you can’t negate the aspects of the mass-market lines that I dislike: set dining times/table mates, huge crowds and long lines, being herded like cattle, nickel-&-diming, less personal service, lower crew-to-pax ratio, etc. etc.

 

But now I’m suddenly faced with a decision that is making me rethink this. My situation is that I am currently booked on a Silversea cruise to the Middle East in ’09 with my Mom, but Mom is asking me to take a closer look at similar cruise on Celebrity’s new (as yet unfinished) Equinox ship.

 

I’m reluctant to do so, for all the reasons mentioned above. BUT, maybe I need to rethink this. I did some checking, and I could get a decent-sized cabin in the Aqua Class for half the price of the Silversea cruise, and it would take an awful lot of wine-drinking and nickel-&-diming to make up that price difference.

 

There are some distinct benefits to that cruise. Given that I’m traveling with my Mom, lots of togetherness and quiet romanticism is NOT something we are looking for. ..so anything that would give us more opportunities to socialize and be entertained, rather than running out of conversation over dinner-for-two (as happens WAY too much when we do land-based trips) is a benefit. I have had some concerns that I may find myself bored on the Silversea cruise, as the pax demographics may be a bit older than me (although probably right in there for my Mom), and they apparently don’t offer a whole lot in the way of entertainment and nightlife. Not that I’m looking to go crunk-dancing until 3am in the disco – but nor do I want to find myself lonely in the lounge at 10pm either. I figure on the Equinox there will be many more entertainment options, as well as sea-day activities…and with some 2800 :eek: pax onboard, I expect I’d find more folks out at night, as well as more people in my age range. In fact, there’s a VERY active roll-call thread for that cruise already, which I would happily join to make friends before we sail.

 

I figure there are a couple things that would set this cruise apart from other mass-market cruises. First, it’s a 13-day cruise in Oct/Nov, so that right there rules out most families with kids. Second, the itinerary is in the Med/Middle East and is called “Ancient Empires”, which I imagine would appeal to folks with an interest in history/archaeology as opposed to an interest in all-day sun-tanning and hairy-chest contests. (Not that there’s anything wrong with that…just, not my thing!)

 

But then there’s those downsides. I truly dislike being forced to dine at a specific time, and with people chosen FOR me. Yeah I know that if I don’t like them I can move…but who wants to deal with that kind of discomfort? I can’t stand the whole nickel-and-diming thing, especially being charged a 400% mark-up for bottled water. And then there’s simply the math – is it even possible to be on a ship with that many humans and not feel like part of a cattle drive?

 

Worst of all is the whole booze-smuggling thing. I find it truly insufferable that a cruise line would not allow me to bring my own choice of beverage to consume in my room. I am a wine lover and usually bring a couple special bottles with me on vacation; also, since this cruise starts in Rome, we would spend a few days enjoying Tuscany beforehand, and would buy a number of bottles to enjoy for the rest of the trip (including my favorite wine of all time – Brunello di Montalcino – I can’t make a trip to Italy without visiting Montalcino). I understand that Celebrity (being RCI-owned) has one of the more draconian alcohol policies, and would actually rifle through my luggage and confiscate my wine! This one issue is almost enough to make me rule this line out altogether, as the anti-authority-rebel in me does not take well someone telling me that I cannot enjoy my beverage of choice in my own bedroom while on my vacation.

 

So, the question is, does anyone think it’s possible to “luxe up” this cruise to come anywhere close to a luxury cruise experience, without breaking the bank? If so, what exactly should I do? I’m open to any and all ideas and suggestions. And if anyone knows anything about this ship, and things I might do specific to Celebrity in general and Solstice class in particular, that would be great!

 

I realize this is a long post, but I thought I’d just throw my all my thoughts out there, and see what kind of feedback I get. And please, no bashing. We all have our likes and dislikes, and these are mine. This question is not directed to folks who have no problems with the issues that drive many of us to the luxury cruise lines…it’s directed at folks who have similar desires from a cruise, and might have some ideas as to how to make this work for us. Thanks!

We usually take a balcony cabin or mini suite on HAL or Princess and there are about the same quality as none seems to have name entertainers. Please give me your opinions.things we like and dislike. Dining time is not a problem but food, drinks and other passengers can make or break a cruise. I just don't know if spending 3X the price or more for a little more space is worth it. Is the food that much better and do they pour a decent drink (incl. or not)? I am sure that that the shows

I have cruised most of the mass markets out there and all the luxury lines and I really don't think any MM can come close to a luxury experience---not even booking the top suites, and dining in their alternate, extra cost restaurant. There's so much more to a luxury cruise than food. It's a can-do attitude where the word "no" isn't in the dictonary. It's the ability to order off the menu and dine on food that's not mass prepared hours in advance and kept in a warming tray. It's taking ship's tours where they don't load a bus to capacity and the tours are not generic in nature. It's providing more than just best chest hair contests and belly flop competitions (I love Crystal's guest speakers and their Creative Institute At Sea Program and the ability to bring as much wine on board as you desire). When we've cruised the likes of Celebrity in the Penthouse suite, or on RCCI and their Royal Suites, the suite is lovely, huge and has a lot to offer, but there's absolutely nothing that says luxury once you leave the suite. Even when you pay $20K for a cruise in the PH, they don't even offer one can of soda or one bottle of water---and to me, that's a bit of a travesty. Don't misunderstand me, we book the PH because we love the huge space and an incredible veranda, but I've always felt that there should be some extras for paying those prices.

 

I guess what I'm saying is, no matter if you shell out the big bucks for the most expensive suite on a mass market ship, you're still on a mass market and nothing changes the kind of experience you receive.

Darcie, I understand what you are saying. And for the most part I agree. However, I've decided to put this "luxing up" theory to the test...I went ahead and switched from my Silversea booking to this Celebrity cruise.

 

There are a number of reasons why I think it might come reasonably close to working...ON THIS CRUISE, on THIS SHIP. First, we're not on RCI or Carnival - Celebrity, while still a Mass Market product, is considered a "Premium" cruise line, and does not include those horrendous annoyances such as hairy-chest and beer-belly pool contests...nor do they have those constant announcements. Having been on all three lines in the past, Celebrity is definitely the more formal (and more refined) of the three.

 

Second, as I mentioned above, the location, duration and itinerary is going to weed out the party-animals and rum-runner-booze-smugglers, and attract more folks who are interested in history, archeology, different cultures, etc.

 

Third, the specialty restaurants on this ship truly are NOT going to be your typical mass-market cruise dining. Everything I've read about Celebrity's specialty restaurants says that they are dining experiences that at LEAST match the dining on luxury lines. (Which is pretty important to me, because it's my understanding that the food in Celebrity's main dining rooms is just what you describe - banquet food mass-prepared in advance.) Further, in our cabin category, we won't even eat ANY dinners in the main dining room - Aquaclass cabins get our assigned seating in Blu, one of the specialty restaurants. We're expecting we'll eat about half our meals there, and the other half in one of the other three specialty restaurants.

 

This does leave us with breakfasts and lunches that will, I'm sure, be less satisfying than we've experienced on the luxury lines. But this is a port-intensive cruise, so most of our days we'll be eating lunch ashore anyway.

 

As for the excursions, we generally don't do ship excursions on ANY of the lines - even the luxury ones. You can almost always get better deals - and a better experience - doing private tours in small vans. And as it turns out, there's a very active roll-call thread for this cruise, in which we're already planning private tours in virtually every port.

 

We are hoping to avoid some of the other mass-market annoyances by being "Concierge Class". I'm still not entirely sure what that means, but I do know that we'll get priority embarkation/disembarkation, and some butler-type service, as well as complimentary bottled water every day.

 

We also expect that, being a brand spanking new ship, the ship itself will be sparkling and shiny, rather than tired and bedraggled.

 

The one area that I'm quite sure WON'T be able to match up is the service. We know we won't get the type of intimate, boutique-hotel service that we've come to enjoy on the smaller luxury ships. We know we won't be addressed by name everywhere we go...the bartenders won't remember exactly how I like my martinis, etc. The crew-pax ratio won't be nearly as high. And then there's just the simple fact that we'll be on a ship with 2800 folks.

 

But for this cruise, we just decided that the additional cost of the luxury cruises wasn't worth the difference in the two experiences. It's not like I can't afford it - I was originally planning on it - but it's an awful lot of money for what may end up being not THAT great an upgrade in experience. Perhaps if I were in a wealthier income bracket, I could justify the $5000 difference between these cruises. And if it wasn't THIS situation, with this ship and all these opportunities to "luxe it up", then I wouldn't even consider it.

 

In any case, I'm going for it, so I'll be able to report back how well it worked. You'll have to wait a while for my report tho...the cruise isn't until 2009! :D

As a mass-market cruiser who lusts for the days when they offered a premium product, I'd say give it a try. It sounds like this is not the type of cruise where if you hate the ship, you'll be stuck. You've still got the great ports and aquaclass does sound a step above everything else that I've heard of.

And don't be surprised if your favorite bartender remembers exactly how you want your martinis ;)

you get pink or green towels, not very plush, 10 tiny cold hors' d at about 5 pm, a vinyl bag near the end of the cruise and the same cabin as a balcony. The food on X is not any different than HAL or Princess and their new smoking regs making the balcony off limits makes me no longer worry if they are cutting corners. They are just cutting off revenue from me.

Well, to be honest, the new smoking policy is, for me, a selling point. As a non-smoker, I've had cruises in the past marred by the stench of wafting smoke coming from the balcony in front of me, rendering my own balcony impossible to use. So keep in mind that while their new policy may make the balcony "off limits" to you, to me it means that it will be usable all the time! :)

 

As for the food, again I'm not worried too much about it, given that we won't be eating a single dinner in the main dining room, and virtually every review I've ever read about Celebrity's specialty restaurants rates them as among the best dining at sea, including the luxury lines.

 

Don't care much about the hors d'oeuvres, as I usually would be saving myself for dinner anyway.

 

The key benefits to concierge class that I'm hoping will make a difference are the following (taken from their website):

 

• VIP invitations to events

• Early embarkation and debarkation

• Dining and seating preference

• Preference on shore excursions

• Express luggage delivery

 

Having not done this yet, I don't know if these will be of value or not. I'll let you know in 2009!

There are no real events for CC level passengers except a cocktail party that isn't much to talk about. The food in the specialty dining room is just ok. Not at the level of even Carnival supper club. (surprise!) We still had to go to the dining room to change seating for a table for 2 although we booked it 6 months in advance and our luggage was delivered about 5 hours after we boarded, just before changing for dinner. We rarely book excursions from the cruise lines so i can't comment on that. I am sorry that balcony smoking bothers you. I always felt that being outdoors the smoke drifted upwards not into the next balcony. I've been on balconies where I could smell cigars but never cigarettes. I don't even smell the smoke from my partners cigs and I don't smoke.

m steve - sounds like you have not had very good experiences with Celebrity. I am definitely surprised at your assessment of the specialty restaurants - the VAST majority of reviews that I've read indicate they are far superior to the main dining room, and are at least equivalent to the dining on luxury cruise lines. And these are reviews from people who have been on luxury cruise lines and have similar expectations as I do. I have a hard time believing that the Celebrity specialty restaurants are in any way comparable to anything on Carnival. When reading such reviews, it is important to look at them in totality and recognize that there will be some at either end of the extremes. I try to focus on the trends. Naturally I'm hoping that my own experiences will be closer to the trends I have read about. But I guess I'll find out for myself in 2009.

 

There are a bazillion "new smoking policy" threads going on in the Celebrity forum right now, so I don't really want to go there. I will say that whether or not the smoking in a balcony next door is bothersome depends on several factors - if they are ahead of you, and you are underway, the smoke can blow directly onto your balcony, and even into your cabin if you have the door open. That is our experience. It's important to note that second-hand cigarette smoke is not just an annoyance - it is a proven health risk, and one that I don't take well to being inflicted upon me. The fact is that if you can smell it, it's bad for you. So I for one appreciate the new smoking policy. :)

LeeAnn, your posts and your points are very well made. Although I enjoy traveling on Crystal, as I creep closer to retirement time, I'm having to rethink how I spend my money and my time.

 

As such, my cruise bookings are going to be destination based with less emphasis on what the ship can do for me. I prefer to use my money to travel more often than to have a higher end experince less frequently.

 

I am also much less interested in formal nights and dressing up than I used to be. My husband says he will never take a tux along on a cruise again. He means it.

 

In speaking with friends and co-workers I find that this is a common topic of conversation. We are all watching the value of the US dollar and what we can still get for it.

 

Thanks for bringing this all up.

Thanks for your kind words, Penny. The point of this thread was to hopefully get some ideas as to HOW to take a mass-market cruise and, making use of whatever options are available, upgrade the experience so it will at least come reasonably close to a luxury cruise. There are some things we just can't do anything about...but there are some things we CAN do. That's what I'm trying to flush out. I realize that a cruise on a mass market line will never match one on a luxury line entirely - and I wouldn't expect it to, otherwise what are we paying extra for on the luxury lines? But I know there are things that can be done...and that's what I would like to know.

 

So far, I've come up with the following...which only applies to a cruise on one of these new Solstice-class Celebrity ships:

 

1. Book a minimum Concierge Class cabin for the following benefits:

priority embarkation/disembarkation, tendering, & specialty restaurant reservations; expanded room service breakfast menu; express luggage delivery.

2. Book Aquaclass for the following benefits: no dining in the main dining room (main seating in Blu); complimentary bottled water; the private Aquaclass Relaxation Room and comped access to the Persian Gardens & Solarium.

3. Eat as many dinners as possible in the specialty restaurants.

4. Arrange for private shore excursions rather than ship excursions.

5. Eat lunches on shore whenever possible

6. Bring your own wine onboard, and hope that they'll ignore their 2-bottle-per-cabin rule!

7. Make a point of talking to and getting to know your cabin steward, and letting him/her know your desires...hopefully this will result in more personalized service.

 

That's what I've got so far. I'm open to any and all further suggestions! :)

A luxury product is a luxury product. I am in the hospitality business and have traveled on Crystal a few times. Their food is as good as any five star restaurant, and their dining room service is even better. Their alternative restaurants are great.

 

I like to tell this story. We traveled to Alaska on the Crystal Harmony in 2005. My son loves hot chocolate with marshmellows for breakfast. Needless to say, once the breakfast buffet staff knew this, this drink appeared at his place every morning without asking. 17 months later, we sailed to Mexico for 14 days on Crystal Symphony, our second cruise on that line. The Lido buffet staff recognized my son and immediately hot chocolate with marshmellows appeared at his seat. This is service and epitomizes what a luxury line is about. Being greated at the pool by a steward asking if I'd like my usual drink. Having a selection of where to sit anytime at the pool.

 

On a Crystal ship there are 800 guests and 500 staff on a ship that would hole 2 and one half times that number of guests. Therefore even in the least expensive state rooms there are no waits for tenders to port. Speaking of tenders, check out the docking point when there are mulitple ships. The Luxury ship will have coffee and snacks available while waiting for the 2 minutes for the ship. The mass market ship will have a long line.

 

Are they worth the extra dollars. That's in the eye of the beholder. I would have never cruised had it not been for two friends who love to cruise. They came back from a Crystal cruise and were gushing. They said it was the best cruise they ever took. We decided to celebrate our anniversary and my birthday with a cruise and took the cruise to Alaska. I will never sail on anything but a luxury line. I do not need hairy chest or beer chugging contests, announcements and nickle and diming.

I do not need hairy chest or beer chugging contests, announcements and nickle and diming.

 

Martinsfo, I think you have an erroneous impression of the mass market lines. Not all of them have these tacky activities. Those are the domain of Carnival and RCI. Celebrity does not do them; nor do they do the constant annoying announcements. I'm not all that familiar with the other lines, but if you think that all non-luxury cruises do this, then I can understand why you would be avoiding them like the plague. But it's just not so.

 

Up until recently, I too wouldn't dream of going on a non-luxury cruise. But the prices of the luxury cruise lines have skyrocketed of late, to the point where I needed to sit down and do a true item-by-item comparison to see if the value was really there for the difference in price. Certainly there are ships/cruise lines that I wouldn't include in this comparison - Carnival and RCI among them - but some of the higher-end mass market lines were worth a look. And after I did a very detailed analysis, I went ahead and switched my booking from a Silversea cruise to a Celebrity cruise. As I said in an earlier post in this thread - I believe that THIS SPECIFIC CRUISE does in fact lend itself to my "luxing up" theory.

 

But it's important to note that not every mass-market cruise WILL lend itself as such. I most certainly wouldn't attempt it on any cruise on which you will find hairy chest contests - that's just not a type of vacation in which I'm interested. But I am making an effort to be a little more open-minding and not just write off an opportunity outright.

 

The question is, how much is that hot-chocolate-without-asking worth to you? In years past, the upgrade in service that you get on a luxury cruise was DEFINITELY worth the price difference. But at today's prices...is it really worth $6000??? That's the difference in price between these two cruises that I compared, even factoring in the extra expenses of the "nickel & diming", the non-inclusive alcohol, the tips, paying for specialty restaurants most nights, etc. Hey, if you're in an income bracket where it's worth six grand to have the ship's crew know what drink you like, more power to ya! Unfortunately I'm not - and I've decided to spend my six g's on something else, and just deal with the annoyances that I expect I will find on this cruise, in comparison to the last few I've taken.

 

But what I've been doing (via this thread, and my detailed research) is trying to figure out how to minimize those annoyances. If you read my earlier posts, I think I might be on to something. But I'll let you know in 2009. :)

Leejnd,

 

I think you misunderstood what I said. Whether the service and less crowding is worth the money is entirely in the eye of the beholder. To me it's worth it. I look at the mass market cruises and I see the Catskill Mountains of my youth, pretend luxury for the masses. This is not my cup of tea. However, there are many people I know who love this! And I agree with you, luxury is expensive, but you have to remember, what you are really paying for is extra real estate. The space to guest ratio is twice as high which means you have less guests paying for the same amount of square footage and gross tonnage. The same principal applies in airlines, what you pay for in first class is the extra space, the service is added to augment the space.

 

That is why there are many cruise lines for many tastes. I like the luxury of space and service and I am willing to take a small cabin on a luxury ship vs. a larger more luxurious space on a mass market line. This is my choice, but it is not the choice of others.

 

Let us know how your cruise turns out, I am curious to hear your opinion.

Leejnd, I've cruised Celebrity numerous times, mostly in the Penthouse Suite or Royal Suite. They are wonderful suites, but the most disappointing aspect of those cabins is that you get absolutely nothing with them. No free soda, bottled water or fancy coffee. Zilch, nada. While my family enjoys Celebrity, I'm not so enamored with them, but I cruise with them because we make the cruises fun and I know what we're getting.

 

As for the Concierge Class cabins, to be quite honest, they're nothing special. It's common knowledge that X took what used to be your basic verandah cabins and renamed them Concierge Class in order to get higher revenue. Many of the CC cabins are located in less desirable locations on the ship, but X makes them look more desirable by saying they provide "special amenities" for those cabins. To be very honest, those amenities aren't all that. I think you get a better overall deal in Sky Suites with their better location and bigger bathrooms. I've been in a CC cabin when we booked a cruise at the last minute, and I just didn't think it was worth the extra cost.

 

As for the specialty restaurant, I disagree with the person who said it wasn't all that great. We just returned from a 9 day cruise on Constellation to the UK and we dined 7 nights in Ocean Liners. It was sublime. Since we decided to dine there so often, the head waiter prepared special tableside dishes for us every night---only twice did we order off the menu. We dined next to a couple who were cruising on X for the first time, and they also decided to dine in Ocean Liners each night, and they commented on how impressed they were with the food and service. He went so far as to say that they felt the food and service rivaled five star restaurants in NY, London and Paris. And they both said they were veterans of the Queens Grill on the QE2 and QM2, and cruisers on Silversea and they said the food was better than on any of those ships. So that says a lot.

I could not agree more with martinsfo's assessment and experiences that make these experiences "luxury."

 

On the mass market ships, the higher stateroom categories give you a larger room/suite with a few amenities added here and there that, in my opinion, hardly makes for a luxe experience. HAL is the only mass market line that I am aware of that really makes an effort to pamper it's penthouse and deluxe verandah suite passengers but only does so (mostly) in connection with the suite and its location. For a truly deluxe experience, I think you should stick with the upscale lines and forget a larger, more expensive room on Celebrity, RCCI, NCL, etc.

 

The definition of luxury, at least for me, is something that makes me feel special; not just in my room but all over the ship. Pampering service, exceptional cuisine served a la minute, special events and shore excursions, port calls in small, intimate islands in the Caribbean, staff that makes you feel as if you are the most important person they will encounter that day are all what I consider to be a luxe experience.

 

I wouldn't discourage anyone from cruising on a mass market ship if that's what appeals to them but if you truly want an experience where you get more "yeses" than you do "noes" stick with the products you know and trust.

I really wish there was something in between Celebrity and the Crystal/Regent/Silverseas. I'd love to have a little extra pampering, and a little less nickel and diming (and willing to pay for it too), but the jump is basically 3x the price.

 

I think RCCL are doing the wrong thing with Celebrity. if they were to raise fares $30/day/pp, they could offer so much more, and put a gap between themselves and Princess/HA

I don't think that Celebrity can duplicate a pampered experience because their ships are so large. Again, it is the ratio of space per guest that makes all the difference. That 50,000 ton ship (Crystal anyway) is carrying less that half the passengers that a premium or mass market line carries. That ship costs just as much to operate! That is where the majority of the costs are incurred. A 1800 person HAL ship will carry 700 crew members, while a 900 person Crystal ship (same gross tonnage) will carry 550 crew members. The mechanics of the ship cost the same, the crew costs are about the same, food may be more per person, but the same overal for that size of ship. The bottom line is that you cannot duplicate the luxury experience on a mass market line. Oceana tries to have an upscale product on smaller ships. I have never sailed them, but have heard good things about them.

I'm disappointed that this thread has not received the type of responses I was looking for - and that I thought I asked for.

 

If those of you who insist that it is flat-out impossible to luxe up this cruise had actually read my entire post, you would see that I was asking for advice on HOW to improve my cruise experience to come as close as possible to the luxury cruise lines which I've come to love. I am well aware that there are some things that simply cannot be changed - pax to space ratio for one. But the fact is that ARE things that CAN be done...and I was hoping for some actual assistance, rather than just "forget about it, it can't be done, if you don't spend the big bucks you'll get a substandard experience."

 

I went into some detail as to why I've chosen this cruise over similar itineraries on the luxury lines. The reality is that there are some things that are simply more attractive about this cruise than the luxury line itineraries I was considering. There are also some things that are LESS attractive. But taken as a whole, there are enough distinct advantages to make me willing to overlook the downsides.

 

I'm well aware of the math, with regards to things like pax-to-space ratio. What I was HOPING to get were some ideas of things that I could to do overcome some of those mass-market-line annoyances. I ended my post with:

 

This question is not directed to folks who have no problems with the issues that drive many of us to the luxury cruise lines…it’s directed at folks who have similar desires from a cruise, and might have some ideas as to how to make this work for us.

I realize I should have added: this question is also not for folks who think NOTHING can be done...it's for folks who might actually have some constructive suggestions.

 

But thanks for your input anyway.

 

By the way, as it turns out we DO get free bottled water with this cabin, because it's Aquaclass. It's delivered daily.

 

Anyway, after doing lots of research, I am now convinced that, while this cruise may not have all of the little extras that I loved on my luxury cruises, there are enough things I can to do mitigate at least some of the mass-market aspects of this cruise...and that the ones that remain are just not worth $6000 dollars to eradicate.

LeeAnn,

 

I am disappointed for you that no one gave you the constructive advice you were looking for with your original post. You do such a great job of answering other peoples questions and no one gave you the same courtesy.

 

We have cruised over the last six years, once on NCL to Hawaii and then on Radisson, now Regent (8 cruises). My limited experience with mass market affords me little to add in terms of "luxing up" your cruise. I think getting set up to eat at alternative venues could be an option for making the cruise more special. We ended up eating 6 of our 7 nights on the NCL cruise in an alternative dining spot. (at the time, no additional charge) The waiters looked forward to our group each evening and even saved a special table for our group of six (two couples we met- one on the flight to Honolulu and the other the first morning at breakfast). We were fawned over, got special food (can you imagine shrimp cocktail on mass market being allowed OFF MENU?) We had a great attitude about the cruise and although food was not great, we were so excited to see Hawaii for the first time. You have the right attitude and approach to the cruise. Your mother is lucky to have you take her to such wonderful places in the world!

 

Cheers, Pam

 

We are cruising with my elderly parents in December (Regent- Panama Canal) to celebrate a 60th wedding anniversary for them!

LeeAnn,

 

I am disappointed for you that no one gave you the constructive advice you were looking for with your original post. You do such a great job of answering other peoples questions and no one gave you the same courtesy.

 

We have cruised over the last six years, once on NCL to Hawaii and then on Radisson, now Regent (8 cruises). My limited experience with mass market affords me little to add in terms of "luxing up" your cruise. I think getting set up to eat at alternative venues could be an option for making the cruise more special. We ended up eating 6 of our 7 nights on the NCL cruise in an alternative dining spot. (at the time, no additional charge) The waiters looked forward to our group each evening and even saved a special table for our group of six (two couples we met- one on the flight to Honolulu and the other the first morning at breakfast). We were fawned over, got special food (can you imagine shrimp cocktail on mass market being allowed OFF MENU?) We had a great attitude about the cruise and although food was not great, we were so excited to see Hawaii for the first time. You have the right attitude and approach to the cruise. Your mother is lucky to have you take her to such wonderful places in the world!

 

Cheers, Pam

 

We are cruising with my elderly parents in December (Regent- Panama Canal) to celebrate a 60th wedding anniversary for them!

 

Thanks Pam! Yes, this thread did not exactly turn out as I was expecting. Rather than people coming in with constructive thoughts, ideas and suggestions to help me with this cruise, I found a bunch of posts bashing my choice, liberally sprinkled with rather snarky comments that, to me, sounded rather elitist, and left me feeling like I had to defend my choice. To wit:

 

Even when you pay $20K for a cruise in the PH, they don't even offer one can of soda or one bottle of water---and to me, that's a bit of a travesty.

(Not true in my case - we get champagne, flowers, fresh fruit, as well as bottled water and canapes delivered daily.)

 

I guess what I'm saying is, no matter if you shell out the big bucks for the most expensive suite on a mass market ship, you're still on a mass market and nothing changes the kind of experience you receive.

 

There are no real events for CC level passengers except a cocktail party that isn't much to talk about. The food in the specialty dining room is just ok. Not at the level of even Carnival supper club. (surprise!)

(This is completely counter to what the vast majority of reviewers have said about the specialty restaurants on X - even if the food in the dining room stunk, which is not an uncommon complaint, the specialty restaurants almost always get rave reviews.)

 

I will never sail on anything but a luxury line. I do not need hairy chest or beer chugging contests, announcements and nickle and diming.

(Please. I don't think we're going to be seeing hairy chest contests on a Celebrity Ancient Empires cruise.) :rolleyes:

 

I look at the mass market cruises and I see the Catskill Mountains of my youth, pretend luxury for the masses. This is not my cup of tea. However, there are many people I know who love this!

I guess I must be a low-class redneck who loves "pretend luxury for the masses".

 

On the mass market ships, the higher stateroom categories give you a larger room/suite with a few amenities added here and there that, in my opinion, hardly makes for a luxe experience....For a truly deluxe experience, I think you should stick with the upscale lines and forget a larger, more expensive room on Celebrity, RCCI, NCL, etc.

As I said in my first post, I'm not expecting a "truly deluxe experience". I'm asking for ideas on how to improve this one.

 

The bottom line is that you cannot duplicate the luxury experience on a mass market line.

Again...not looking to duplicate. Just looking for help to improve.

 

I respect that these posters cannot see any options beyond the luxury lines, and are unwilling to even consider possibilities...and evidently they feel strongly enough about it that some of them felt it necessary to repeat it repeatedly. (Although I will say that stating it so emphatically in this thread wasn't much of a help to me.) I, however, simply do not see that the differences between these experiences are worth the premium prices that luxury lines are now charging. A few years ago it was, but not at today's prices...at least not for someone in my income bracket. $6000 is a lot of money to me, and I just can't justify dropping that kind of dough on the "extra special pampering".

 

I do thank those of you who gave me some good ideas and food for thought. :) Hopefully I'll come back with some constructive suggestions for other cruisers who want to try to luxe-up a mass-market cruise.

I'm disappointed that this thread has not received the type of responses I was looking for - and that I thought I asked for.

 

If those of you who insist that it is flat-out impossible to luxe up this cruise had actually read my entire post, you would see that I was asking for advice on HOW to improve my cruise experience to come as close as possible to the luxury cruise lines which I've come to love. I am well aware that there are some things that simply cannot be changed - pax to space ratio for one. But the fact is that ARE things that CAN be done...and I was hoping for some actual assistance, rather than just "forget about it, it can't be done, if you don't spend the big bucks you'll get a substandard experience."

 

I went into some detail as to why I've chosen this cruise over similar itineraries on the luxury lines. The reality is that there are some things that are simply more attractive about this cruise than the luxury line itineraries I was considering. There are also some things that are LESS attractive. But taken as a whole, there are enough distinct advantages to make me willing to overlook the downsides.

 

I'm well aware of the math, with regards to things like pax-to-space ratio. What I was HOPING to get were some ideas of things that I could to do overcome some of those mass-market-line annoyances. I ended my post with:

 

I realize I should have added: this question is also not for folks who think NOTHING can be done...it's for folks who might actually have some constructive suggestions.

 

But thanks for your input anyway.

 

By the way, as it turns out we DO get free bottled water with this cabin, because it's Aquaclass. It's delivered daily.

 

Anyway, after doing lots of research, I am now convinced that, while this cruise may not have all of the little extras that I loved on my luxury cruises, there are enough things I can to do mitigate at least some of the mass-market aspects of this cruise...and that the ones that remain are just not worth $6000 dollars to eradicate.

 

I only speak for myself when I say, I stand corrected. Bon voyage.

 

PS: Elitist...guilty as charged and proud of it.

I guess I just cannot understand what you're looking for. I think a people did give you suggestions, but apparently what they did say isn't what you're looking for. And at least in my case, I most certainly did not bash your decision to cruise Celebrity but I was trying to give you a realistic idea that you really cannot make a mass market ship into a luxury line experience---when you're cruising with 2800 of your closest friends, as opposed to under 1000 on the luxury lines, the ship and her crew just cannot offer what the lux lines offer. Like they say, you can't make a silk purse out of a sow's ear. LOL

 

I would like to ask, when on a Celebrity ship, not the new Solstice Class ships but any other Celebrity ship, did you receive free bottled water? Never once on all our many cruises did we get that. That may be a new happening with the AquaClass on the new Solstice Class, but that doesn't happen on any other X ship. IMHO, the canapes you receive don't say "luxury experience". They are 4 tiny tidbits on stale bread and most certainly not the best in food. And, I'm not trying to sound trite, but the apple, banana, orange and grapes you get in a bowl also does not imply luxury. You get those things on Costa and Carnival cruises. And the fresh flowers? Again, IMHO, the flowers you receive don't say "This is a luxury experience". Yes, they're nice, but nothing really special or fancy. You're not going to get a bouquet of roses.

 

Like I did state, you can opt to not dine in the main dining room and go with the extra charge, alternate restaurants. That would give some semblance of not being on a mass market. And, I most certainly did not say that the alternate restaurants were nothing much. I've always said the likes of Normandie, Ocean Liners and United States are sublime restaurants with extraordinary food and incomparable service. But you'll pay at least $30 per person for food that you get every evening without a surcharge on the luxury ships. But I will say again, those alternate restaurants are fantastic.

 

But I'm not sure what more you want? You can only do so much with what you have. You cannot change menus, you can't change public venues, you cannot change the daily activities, and you cannot change the crew nor their attitudes. So, I guess I'm wondering what you wanted us to tell you?

 

My suggestions to make your cruise a more special experience will cost you more money, which rather defeats the idea of saving money and taking a mass market line. But there are things you can do to set yourself apart from the mass market experience, at a cost. As I said earlier, you can avoid the main restaurant and go with the alternate dining venues. But that's only for dinner, and you'll have the same OK food for breakfast and lunch. You can always avoid the ship's tours and book your own with a private car and driver. That way you avoid the basic, and crowded ship's tours and you can tailor your excursions to your own taste. You could spend your days in the spa, getting all kinds of treatments and pampering. You could avoid the larger entertainment venues and stick with the smaller lounges. But beyond those things, I have absolutely no idea what you may be looking for.

 

CruiserPK, I'm not sure if you've ever been on a Celebrity ship, but you most certainly can get shrimp cocktail every night, even when it's not on the menu. You can even get escargot every night. And this is in the main dining room and not in the extra charge restaurant. Now on my two Regent cruises, when we asked for shrimp cocktail, the waiter in Compass Rose told us that if it's not on the menu, they don't serve it.

Darcie,

Please reread my prior post. I made it clear that I have never cruised on any lines but NCL (first cruise) and then Radisson, now Regent (8 times) since 2003. On NCL, they do not offer anything off menu, yet as I stated previously, we were able to have shrimp cocktail in the alternative dining spot with no extra charge or problem. Regent has always allowed me to order shrimp cocktail in Compass Rose and I do probably half of the time I am in there. I also order caesar salad off menu and a filet mignon. I am stunned that you were refused as this is a common thing in Compass Rose. Were you per chance on a three day taster Regent cruise?

 

Lee Ann, I would take the same approach again if were to go on a mass market cruise again- alternative dining. I am sure this will luxe up your cruise nicely. Sorry you have not had better suggestions, but your $6000 will go a long way on food and drink.;)

 

Cheers, Pam

Pam, thanks for your cheery and encouraging replies! :) It's nice to have posts in this thread that are offering me encouragement and helpful comments, rather than discouragement and snarkiness. I guess some people are horrified by the concept of cruising on a mass market line and assume anyone who does is not worthy of their kindness. I'm glad I'm not like that. I personally try not to judge people by how much money they have...or are willing to spend. :p

 

Maybe we'll run into each other on a Regent cruise one of these days - if their prices ever come back down to the level where I can justify them!