Comparing celbrity to HAL

[Ricktan]

HAL is the smoker's line of choice, everywhere reeks of the stuff. They allow smoking on Balconies (the ONLY line that does) and don't think of using or passing thru' the Casino unless you have a mask. Disgraceful in this modern age !

 

This is the kind of rveview that falls into that 80/20 category...:rolleyes:

[InTheWASide]

I'm an ex-smoker and quite sensitive to the smell of smoke, and other than the designated smoking areas I have never had an issue with smoke. To say the entire ship reeks is a huge exaggeration.

 

Agree 1000%

[InTheWASide]

In pricing a comparable W. Carribean on Eurodam and Celebrity Silhouette I found that Celebrity was about $250pp less than HAL. Both included the free drink packge and OBC was about $50 more on X.

 

What category did you compare? Celebrity only includes the beverage package if you book at least an oceanview room (and then it has to be what you pick of the 4 choices you are given)

[InTheWASide]

This information, as it pertains to HAL, is seriously incorrect.

 

Agree. The cruise I took on Solstice to Alaska - the nightclub Quasar was DEAD. Lots of spots still going but the actual nightclub was not among them... That's also the case with HAL. Just because people aren't in one specific room doesn't mean they're all in bed :rolleyes:

[iancal]

Price will depend on when you book. All based on supply and demand.

 

Our three Med cruise we booked about 60 days out. We considered HAL, Princess, and Celebrity.

 

We selected Celebrity for all three based on a lower price. Price varied from 33 percent less than HAL on one to 20 percent less than HAL on another. Princess was always higher than both. It could be completely different today, and different again next month.

 

Recognize that this was a particular point in time. The sailing date were within a few days of each other, the itineraries were very similar. The plus on Celebrity was that on 2 of them we were able to select our balcony cabin and score an extended balcony. HAL and Princess were straight verandah guarntees.

 

Our best pricing from Celebrity came from their one day only Tuesday Specials.

Edited August 12, 2015 by iancal

[holacanada]

Like, from another non-smoker. Simply not an issue. I'd rather have a smoker than an obnoxious drunk anyway. :)

 

I am looking for the «LIKE» button, Beejay :D

 

 

And, BTW, this thread deviated from the OP issue.

You have - mickey89 - to post your request in the Single Smoking Thread on the HAL Board and all the people can see your comment and/or not appreciated…

 

Holacanada

Edited August 13, 2015 by holacanada

[EbayCruiser]

We considered the Reflection vs. Westerdam for our Jan. '16 cruise but decided on the Westerdam.

 

We would have had to pay $500-600 more for a comparable balcony room on Celebrity and looked at lots of youtube videos and reviews before selecting the Westerdam. We choice the Westerdam mainly for the price, size (crowds), private island of Half Moon Cay, HAL's good food and crusing out of FLL vs. MIA.

 

We are non-smokers and have never found smoking to be a problem. You only notice when walking thru the casino or on the aft smoking section.

[POA1]

It's kind of crazy that this thread didn't get collapsed because of the smoking posts. I'm sure it's an oversight.

[DWhit]

Hi I am new to Cruise Critic, I have cruised with Celebrity 4 years ago and am planning a cruise next year East med how does HAL Eurodam compare with C Reflection ?

I have sailed on the Eurodam, and I have sailed on two of the Celebrity S Class ships, which are sister ships to the Reflection.

 

I would say the Eurodam is more traditional decor, while the Celebrity Reflection has a more modern decor though out the ship. The Celebrity S class ships have more of a wow factor, but the Eurodam was a beautiful, very comfortable feeling ship

 

I thought the food was about equal on Eurodam and the S class ships I have sailed with. I thought the bar scene and entertainment was slightly better on Celebrity, but not by any huge margin.

 

I have to say we thoroughly enjoyed our cruises on both HAL and Celebrity. I have a future cruise booked on a Celebrity S class ship, and a future cruise booked on the Koningsdam, so like others have said, it comes down to the itinerary to me.

 

Edit - I am an ex-smoker with a non-smoking wife that has a nose like a bloodhound. We did not notice any difference in smoking smell levels on the Eurodam and Celebrity ships.

Edited August 13, 2015 by DWhit

[serendipity1499]

To the OP..Welcome to Cruise Critic.. Have never been on Celebrity so I can't really give you the differences, but everything I've read about both of them they seem to be equal.. Hope you have a good cruise whichever ship you decide on..

 

QUOTE=mickey89;47410411]HAL is the smoker's line of choice, everywhere reeks of the stuff. They allow smoking on Balconies (the ONLY line that does) and don't think of using or passing thru' the Casino unless you have a mask. Disgraceful in this modern age !

 

This is completely untrue! As a non-smoker the only place I've been bothered by smoke is in the smoking sections of the HAL ships including some parts of the casino but we try to go through those areas quickly.. To say that the entire ship reeks of smoke is pure hyperbole!

 

For the first time we booked a balcony on HAL in November & are hoping that we will not be bothered by smoke,...Agree that is a chance we are taking..

 

I've long encouraged HAL to change its balcony smoking policy, but I agree that mickey89's post is a gross exaggeration.

 

Completely Agree with you & hope that we will be able to enjoy our balcony on our cruise!

[erewhon]

Welcome to Cruise Critic.

Keith in post 2 of your thread offered good advice.

[KIWI74]

Thank you every one very much for all your advice :)

[Moriah]

I have done two 7 day Caribbean cruises on Eurodam, and one 12 day Med. cruise on Reflection. The following are just my opinions, and you might have completely different cruising tastes and expectations.

 

I would take Eurodam hands down. In fact, I have turned down a couple of opportunities to go on cruises with friends recently because they were sailing the Reflection again and I have had enough of it. Here's MY take on it:

 

Reflection is a big ship. There are several EXCELLENT restaurants on Reflection and I went to all of them at least once and enjoyed them all. That said, the restaurants cost 40 dollars per guest for dinner, so for a couple that's $80 plus tip more per night added to the cost of your cruise. Of course you can eat in any of the several MDRs or the buffet at no extra cost, the same as on Eurodam, but if you are on the Reflection, I think you are going to want to try the (as I said, excellent) other dining venues. In addition to the restaurants for dinner, there is a great coffee shop, a crepe and soup (forgot the name) restaurant that has delicious lunches, and a gelato shop. The buffet is just so-so. The Lido restaurant on any HAL ship beats it hands down.

 

Okay enough about food.

 

There are other good things about the Reflection of course - but none of them are "good enough" FOR ME to be the deciding factor. The shops are more upscale and plentiful (I don't usually shop on board anyway). The staterooms are just okay. I sailed with a large group of friends and we were in an array of categories so I saw many of them. The suites are nice but without the Neptune Lounge I didn't think they were worth the premium. I was in a regular balcony cabin. The bathroom was quite a bit better than the bathroom on an equivalent Eurodam cabin, but the rest of the cabin was cramped and didn't have as much storage space.

 

My BIGGEST "gripe" with Reflection was the lack of "outdoors". Okay, call me crazy, but I found it hard to "get outside"! Yes, yes, there are ways to get on deck up on the higher decks, but there is NO wrap-around deck such as you have on deck three of the Eurodam, and which in my mind, makes or breaks a cruise!!! I love Eurodam for the "vibe", the relaxed feeling of being "away from it all". I love the Eurodam's amazing crew! As mentioned, the Lido food (and the Dive-In, not to mention the MDR and Pinnacle Grill and Tamarind!!) offer great food at much lower price than the alternative venues on Reflection. Eurodam is a quieter ship, and seems to attract a less "partying" crowd, but keep in mind I've only been on Reflection once and might be putting Eurodam in the basket with all the other HAL ships I have been on....

 

Bottom line for me - if you like to be on deck outside watching the waves or whales, and you like a quieter, more sedate cruise, I would go with Eurodam.

Whatever you choose - have a great time! I know you will!

[Moriah]

I forgot that I wanted to add my own 2 cents about HAL smoking. I have no idea why someone would call HAL the smokers' line of choice! That makes no sense! On Reflection I actually walked through the smoking area on my way to other places on many occasions and it was kind of disgusting... on Eurodam the only place I detected the smell of smoke was smack in the middle of the casino. That goes for all other HAL ships as well!! I've never, ever been bothered by smoke on any HAL ship, and I am one that really does NOT like the smell of cigarette smoke.

 

Also, while Eurodam is "older" than Reflection, as someone mentioned, it's only by a couple of years! Eurodam is still a relatively new ship! (7 years I believe?) and I'm pretty sure everything is pretty "ship-shape" on her...

Edited August 13, 2015 by Moriah

[Jade13]

deleted

Edited August 13, 2015 by Jade13

[avian777]

There are many differing opinions & preconceptions about Celebrity and HAL but IMHO only one significant factual difference between them - only HAL has a Roman Catholic priest (who celebrates daily Mass) on board every one of its cruises. So if spiritual renewal is an important component of your vacation experience, HAL is the hands-down choice. Whichever you choose, I hope you enjoy the cruise!

Edited August 13, 2015 by avian777
left a few words out of original post

[Aquahound]

There are many differing opinions & preconceptions about Celebrity and HAL but IMHO only one significant factual difference between the....

 

Totally disagree. There are numerous factual differences between the 2 lines, the level of significance depends on the beholder.

[Fouremco]

There are many differing opinions & preconceptions about Celebrity and HAL but IMHO only one significant factual difference between them - only HAL has a Roman Catholic priest (who celebrates daily Mass) on board every one of its cruises. So if spiritual renewal is an important component of your vacation experience, HAL is the hands-down choice. Whichever you choose, I hope you enjoy the cruise!

It might be more accurate for you to state that there is "only one significant theological difference between them..." To those of us who have sailed on both lines, there are many factual differences.

[avian777]

It might be more accurate for you to state that there is "only one significant theological difference between them..." To those of us who have sailed on both lines, there are many factual differences.

 

With all due regard for your status as a regular CC poster, it would not have been "more accurate for [me] to state that there is 'only one significant theological difference between them'" because (as my post clearly indicated) it is my opinion that there is " only one significant factual difference between them". Your opinion is obviously different but no more or less accurate than my opinion!!!

[avian777]

Totally disagree. There are numerous factual differences between the 2 lines, the level of significance depends on the beholder.

 

See my post immediately above.

[Aquahound]

See my post immediately above.

 

You went back and edited your post to include "IMHO." When I responded to you, it was before your edit when all you said was "but only one significant factual difference between them." That statement was wrong. Thanks for going back and making it clear it was your opinion, not actually a factual statement.

[avian777]

You went back and edited your post to include "IMHO." When I responded to you, it was before your edit when all you said was "but only one significant factual difference between them." That statement was wrong. Thanks for going back and making it clear it was your opinion, not actually a factual statement.

 

... sorry. but "IMHO" was in my post from the very start and was not edited in as you suggest ...

[Aquahound]

... sorry. but "IMHO" was in my post from the very start and was not edited in as you suggest ...

 

Your original post was made at 10:42. You edited it at 10:43. My response to you was at 10:47. So it appears you are correct and I was mistaken. I sincerely apologize. :o

[avian777]

Your original post was made at 10:42. You edited it at 10:43. My response to you was at 10:47. So it appears you are correct and I was mistaken. I sincerely apologize. :o

 

Thank you, apology accepted.

[blueboro]

What category did you compare? Celebrity only includes the beverage package if you book at least an oceanview room (and then it has to be what you pick of the 4 choices you are given)

 

Just got quote today (including taxes/fees) from TA we use comparing balconies mid-ship:

 

X Silhouette - 7-day Western was $1,215 with Drink Package, $200 OBC and a one category upgrade

 

Eurodam - 7-day Western $1,362 including drink package, Pinnacle for 2 and $50 OBC