Celebrity v P&O Azura?

Hi all

We are looking to book a Caribbean cruise next January and are considering the above options. I was wondering if any of you experienced cruisers have travelled with both companies and could share your thoughts?

If we do opt for Celebrity,it would be with a Fort Lauderdale departure,so what are the ships like?

Thanks

Eve

We have used Azura only once 5 years ago and Celebrity many times both before and since then. There is no contest in my opinion as Celebrity wins hands down. The Azura carries far more passengers than a similar sized Celebrity solstice class ship and this causes problems with overcrowding. The buffet was impossible due to stupid layout which made everyone queue to get in and follow one line. We ended up using room service every breakfast and lunch after that. Because there are so many more inside cabins on Azura finding somewhere to sit either inside or out was impossible on a sea day as people camped out from early on. There are also far fewer spaces inside compared to Celebrity. Queues form for theatre seats well before shows start. We found the MDR food very poor although Celebrity have certainly dropped in standard of food too. The only plus point we found on Azura was the excellent speciality restaurant which was also cheaper than Celebrity then although the recent speciality dining packages are now much better value. I would definitely go for a Celebrity cruise and my preference is for solstice class ships rather than the older millennium class.

We have sailed both lines in the Caribbean.

Nothing beats flying to the Caribbean with P&O no hassles at the airport, in Barbados straight off the plane onto a bus to take you to the ship. you check your luggage in and see it again in your cabin. Flying home you stay on the ship until about 90 minutes appox before your plane lands When you fly to the US you have the pain of standing in very long queues at passport control after a long flight and possibly trying to make a connection to fly to Miami or Fort Lauderdale.

We didn't think there was much to choose between food quality on either line just different menus, P&O tend to offer more dishes you would eat at home. The buffets lay out on P&O are badly designed and like all cruiseline buffets finding seats is a problem at peak times. We often went to the MDR for breakfast my husband says they serve the best breakfast at sea, he likes his devilled kidneys.

We have sailed on the Millenium class and Solstice class out of Fort Lauderdale.We prefer the Solstice class like the layout of them and the solarium. Like most ships finding a seat on a sea day is tricky.

For us it often comes down to the itinerary

Thanks both- I have to say I like the look of the Celebrity 10 night itinerary but would find it easier to fly to Barbados from our local airport with P & O. I read here that it can be chilly leaving Fort Lauderdale in January- did you find that to be the case?

Thanks again

Eve

Celebrity is marketed worldwide and therefore will have less Brits on board - it does depend a bit on itinerary (Celebrity out of Southampton often has 70%+ UK on it). On a cruise out of the US it's an almost certainty that British on board will be very much in the minority with a predominance of US cruisers.

If you don't get a drinks package you will find prices on board for drinks are quite a bit more than P & O

No Formal nights on Celebrity.

Welcome drinks when you board and no signing pool towels in and out - when you want a pool towel just help yourself to as many as you like.

Sailed the The Caribbean on Azura, sailed there and flew home from Barbados The flight home was very easy, bags taken from ship and we saw them again at Gatwick, stayed on the ship all day until our flight

Have done many P and O cruises but in my opinion they do not compare to Celebrity

If I could I choose Celebrity everytime for the cruising experience but I can’t comment on what the flight process would be like as we’ve only flown to Barcelona with Celebrity

Thanks both- I have to say I like the look of the Celebrity 10 night itinerary but would find it easier to fly to Barbados from our local airport with P & O. I read here that it can be chilly leaving Fort Lauderdale in January- did you find that to be the case?

Thanks again

Eve

We have cruised from Fort Lauderdale many times in January and the weather is usually warm and sunny. Not even the convenience of the flight to Barbados would entice me back to P & O ! However I agree the immigration at Miami is a complete pain but I believe it is better at Fort Lauderdale airport as its much smaller but there aren't flights every day from the UK. If you choose to take Celebrity you will need to fly in the day before and have an overnight stay before boarding. We like this as it helps us to get over the time difference and we're not tired when we first board. Fort Lauderdale is a lovely place to stay and we usually add a couple of days on to the end of the cruise as well . Nice to get in that last minute shopping !

Another plus for Celebrity in our opinion - Don't expect anything like P & O's Great British sailaway on Celebrity

On Celebrity you might have a band playing by the Pool or at the Lawn Club and that's about it.

We were on a B2B over christmas and NY on Ventura - similar to Azura. We mostly go Celebrity and occasionally Cunard. As far as Pando is concerned.....the word 'bargepole' springs to mind!!;p

Will definitely look into Celebrity based on your feedback

Thanks all

Eve

We have sailed both, deciding which to choose very much will depend on the price difference. Celebrity cruise prices for 2018/19 are ridiculous, they have increased fares by over 30% and not value for money.

Sea days are a nightmare on both, these days chair hoggers rule the roost and neither cruise line manages the situation for fear of upsetting their passengers, so it’s best to choose the itinerary with the least sea days.

Both cruise lines operate fluid pricing, P&O are renowned for slashing prices by 50% in the last few months before sailing. Equally Celebrity often drop their prices so wait until the last minute to book, early booker’s seldomly get the best deals.

Both Celebrity and P&O Main Dining Room food quality is poor. Best advise is choose a lower grade cabin and pay the extra for specialty dining on which ever line you choose.

The advantages of direct flights from the UK to Barbados can’t be over emphasised, stress free, superb. Flights into the US are a nightmare with their paranoia towards visitors, then the expense of an overnight stay in Miami with ridiculous priced hotels and dining costs. So P&O win hands down with the advantage of less sea days.

We love Celebrity but if I was booking a January 2018 cruise P&O would definitely be my choice but wait until October to book. If you can change to sail Nov/Dec then you will make significantly savings and weather probably slightly better. Enjoy your cruise which ever you choose.

..........However I agree the immigration at Miami is a complete pain but I believe it is better at Fort Lauderdale airport as its much smaller but there aren't flights every day from the UK.

Normal UK to Fort Lauderdale involve a change at Detroit, Atlanta or New York. Immigration is always carried out at the first point of entry to the US so processing you at FLL is highly unlikely. Any immigration point into the US is a major hassle which I would avoid almost at any costs.

Normal UK to Fort Lauderdale involve a change at Detroit, Atlanta or New York. Immigration is always carried out at the first point of entry to the US so processing you at FLL is highly unlikely. Any immigration point into the US is a major hassle which I would avoid almost at any costs.

yes, the whole US immigration hassle (including the visa waiver form filling in advance) combined with the rude and offhand manner with which your dealt with by their security staff at the airports does make us think whether a Caribbean cruise out of Barbados might be better fit for us. I think one thing we do like is the mix of different nationalities. My wife fancies a trip to New York for some retail therapy and I might tag a cruise on from there.

Normal UK to Fort Lauderdale involve a change at Detroit, Atlanta or New York. Immigration is always carried out at the first point of entry to the US so processing you at FLL is highly unlikely. Any immigration point into the US is a major hassle which I would avoid almost at any costs.

I think you are mistaken in this. We always use direct flights which will be to either Miami or Fort Lauderdale, the latter being available since last year I think with both BA and Norwegian Air. Indirect flights use the changes you mention but of course add quite a bit of time to an already long flight. I agree immigration is never a good experience but then it only lasts for a couple of hours at most. The cruise afterwards is more important to us as it lasts a good bit longer than that !

Tried one P&O....NEVER again....amongst many disappointments included their definition of a salad...lettuce and cucumber. That’s it. Even Celebrity’s fish and chips was better.

Tried one P&O....NEVER again....amongst many disappointments included their definition of a salad...lettuce and cucumber. That’s it. Even Celebrity’s fish and chips was better.

I think Celebrity's Ocean View Cafe in this many respects is excellent - great selection of salads on a 3-4 day rotation (Loved the Tuna Nicoise) - it's a great place to eat, particularly in the evening when its relatively quiet, the sun is setting and they put a theme night on. I know many moan that they can't find a seat but we have never (touch wood) had any difficulty, even on embarkation day.

We just returned from a 14 night Eclipse Caribbean cruise and our experience of the Oceanview during sea days was in two words Cattle Market. Although the food generally was better than the MDR the difficulty of negotiating the many people criss crossing one another verged on dangerous, finding a seat was another problem. In the end we decided to avoid relying on room service and the Mast Grill for a mid day snack, less hassle.

yes, the whole US immigration hassle (including the visa waiver form filling in advance) combined with the rude and offhand manner with which your dealt with by their security staff at the airports does make us think whether a Caribbean cruise out of Barbados might be better fit for us. I think one thing we do like is the mix of different nationalities. My wife fancies a trip to New York for some retail therapy and I might tag a cruise on from there.

We also like the mix of nationalities.

Celebrity all the way. Our last P&O cruise was about 10 years ago and I vowed never to sail with them again. Why ?. Basically I like the can do attitude on cruise lines not from the UK plus the different nationalities on-board.

On most of our cruises starting from FL we generally find there are more Canadian's on-board plus obviously American's . And a lot from UK.

Food wise its not fair of me to comment since it had been a long while since our last P&O cruise but I do remember the very sad and boring food offerings but I suppose that will hopefully have improved. Celebrity Solstice ships are extremely nice and have much better speciality restaurant's to ring the changes should you wish to pay extra .

Scotslizzy

Thanks all- you've given me plenty of food for thought. It's going to have to be a January cruise next year as we've booked a holiday in Dubai in November.If we put off booking until September,is there likely to be plenty of availability left for both cruise lines?

Cheers

Eve

Thanks all- you've given me plenty of food for thought. It's going to have to be a January cruise next year as we've booked a holiday in Dubai in November.If we put off booking until September,is there likely to be plenty of availability left for both cruise lines?

Cheers

Eve

If you want the best cabin location book sooner than later, if you don't really care - wait, the prices will drop.

Final payment is normally due about 90 days pre-cruise. Celebrity is biased towards Americans/Canadians and they get full deposit refund if they cancel prior to final payment. Historically many cancel and that releases cabins to the market. You can check many websites to see whats available which will be a good guide to whether price drops are likely or not.

Also consider booking via an American Travel agency as it can be quite a bit cheaper for a Celebrity cruise

P&O are marketed basically in the UK, different rules and you will lose your deposit if you cancel. They keep the cruise status secret and avoid publishing a true reflection of available cabins, so it can be hard to judge. All I can say is look at they past record, they will slash prices normally about 8/10 week prior to the cruise.