Princess vs. Celebrity

[WEGL81]

One of the biggest differences between Princess & Celebrity is the smoking policy in the casino. Celebrity is no smoking at all & Princess has a non-smoking area and will have a non-smoking day but the smell of smoke makes me avoid the casino almost always on Princess. I'd rate Princess International Cafe above X's Cafe Al Bacio simply because you could eat lunch from the international cafe. Other niceties from Princess that aren't on Celebrity- Afternoon tea, milk and cookies, English Pub, Crab shack (if they still do that). But I like the Celebrity ships better than Princess- room size and Aqua class has a lot to do with that. Princess has nothing like Blu. The smoking thing in the casino is the biggest difference to me, though.

[Bimmer09]

They're called Lifeboats and LifeJackets for a good reason. They can save your life.

 

Someone complains about the beeping sound as a scanner takes attendance.

Better that than the sound of a Chaplain at the grave of a drowning victim.

 

Someone finds it a pain to carry the lifejacket to muster.

You need to know how to put in on and practice at least once.

When the ship is listing and the fire is out of control and people are screaming and soiling themselves from fear it may be hard to find someone who is calm enough to show you how to put it on-"Didn't you go to the drill??"

 

I'd endure the beeping for 24 hours and carry a lifejacket for 10 miles if it would help save my life and hopefully someone else's when the ship is going down.

 

Just my 2 cents.

 

Norris

[Cruisin' Chick]

...

 

My experience--Celebrity has better food. They have a few upscale restaurants' date=' but the main dining room is fine. The brunch was included; I understand now that they are charging for it. Soda and drink packages are more than many other lines. We were not impressed with the entertainment on the main stage "The Stars of the Infinity", but the entertainers around the ship and the variety acts were good. The naturalist who did lectures about the port was excellent and quite entertaining.

 

...[/quote']

 

I don't understand the mention about brunch. I haven't been on a Celebrity cruise (I did go on a tour that included a lunch on one of its ships). Are you saying that you can't eat breakfast in the MDRs on Celebrity or are you saying you can have breakfast or brunch in a specialty restaurant for a charge.

 

Personally as we're not foodies, we would rather have to pay extra just to get a decent meal on a cruise. We feel the Princess MDRs are fine for us.

 

And I couldn't find the other post I wanted to quote, but wanted to clarify that the same menu and dress code applies to the MDRs whether you have traditional or anytime dining on Princess. You don't have to wear tuxes and glittery gowns on formal nights -- otherwise, you just have to pass muster with the maitre'd at the door. But if you don't feel like dressing up (say you want to stay in shorts on nights where the MDRs are smart casual), you can eat in the buffet (called the Horizon Court) for lunch. There's also the pizzeria and grill (both by the pool), the International Cafe (not an enclosed eatery but a set of display cases in the grand atrium with lots of yummy food -- note that gelato isn't available at all ICs), the Alfredos (pizza place on some ships) -- in the casual dress (poolside in your swimsuit) categories.

 

I like the Princess muster drills as they're held indoors in the lounges...so you can actually hear the instructions. I don't see why the staff scanning the cards makes it less efficient.

[caribill]

The Celeb crew was much more organized. No scanning of cards and the associated endless beeping of the scanners, and the drill was faster. No need to put on the life jacket either.

 

Putting on the life jacket is an essential part of the drill.

 

I am sure you have seen on Princess how many people, after seeing the crew demonstrate how to put them on, do not put them on properly.

 

Spending a few minutes making sure everyone can put them on at a drill can mean saved lives in the rare event of a true emergency that requires their use.

[caribill]

FYI - - Annouced over night, effective in December, Celebrity has replaced formal nights with what they call "evening chic". That will stir things up today on the Celebrity Board.

 

 

So maybe on "evening chic" nights they will turn away any man dressed in a tux or a dark suit.

[Aus Traveller]

They had several crew members checking passengers off of a printed list instead of scanning cards.

Princess used the printed-list system on a cruise we were on a couple of years ago. It took much longer than scanning the cruise cards. :)

[Iamcruzin]

FYI - - Annouced over night, effective in December, Celebrity has replaced formal nights with what they call "evening chic". That will stir things up today on the Celebrity Board.

 

http://www.cruisecritic.com/v-4/news/news.cfm?ID=6642

 

Honestly it's about time. With Bu, Luminae, the new suite restaurant and the specialty restaurants all being smart casual all of the time what was the point of making the passengers eating in the MDR dress formally. My guess is that next they will discontinue traditional dining.

[moki'smommy]

I don't understand the mention about brunch. I haven't been on a Celebrity cruise (I did go on a tour that included a lunch on one of its ships). Are you saying that you can't eat breakfast in the MDRs on Celebrity or are you saying you can have breakfast or brunch in a specialty restaurant for a charge.

 

Personally as we're not foodies' date=' we would rather have to pay extra just to get a decent meal on a cruise. We feel the Princess MDRs are fine for us.

 

And I couldn't find the other post I wanted to quote, but wanted to clarify that the same menu and dress code applies to the MDRs whether you have traditional or anytime dining on Princess. You don't have to wear tuxes and glittery gowns on formal nights -- otherwise, you just have to pass muster with the maitre'd at the door. But if you don't feel like dressing up (say you want to stay in shorts on nights where the MDRs are smart casual), you can eat in the buffet (called the Horizon Court) for lunch. There's also the pizzeria and grill (both by the pool), the International Cafe (not an enclosed eatery but a set of display cases in the grand atrium with lots of yummy food -- note that gelato isn't available at all ICs), the Alfredos (pizza place on some ships) -- in the casual dress (poolside in your swimsuit) categories.

[/quote']

 

On Celebrity, on one sea day only, there was a big fancy brunch served in the MDR. It was somewhat similar to the Palo brunch on DCL (if that helps at all). There were plenty of other food options for breakfast and lunch on all days, but this was somewhat of a "big deal" special event, and at that time was at no additional charge. I have read since, but no personal experience, that they have added a charge for this meal only. As noted, other breakfast and lunch venues are open at no charge.

 

I'm not surprised at the charge as the event was very popular. We were turned away once (told to go to the second floor because first was "full", which for a mobility problem is the same as told "no food for you" as the food is down the impossible stairs on the first floor). Then our dinner server was dumb enough to mention that he didn't see us at the brunch. I was not pleased. The problem is that for dinner, there are 2 seatings; for this brunch there is one + as soon as they can turn the tables for later arrivals. There is a wide "arrival time" for the event with no reservations available or needed.

[mafig]

On Celebrity' date=' on one sea day only, there was a big fancy brunch served in the MDR. It was somewhat similar to the Palo brunch on DCL (if that helps at all). There were plenty of other food options for breakfast and lunch on all days, but this was somewhat of a "big deal" special event, and at that time was at no additional charge. I have read since, but no personal experience, that they have added a charge for this meal only. As noted, other breakfast and lunch venues are open at no charge.

 

[/quote']

 

They don't do this dining room brunch anymore:(, so there's nothing to charge for. They have an expanded buffet one day (in the buffet) but it's not so special, and there's no charge. Some of the specialty restaurants are open for lunch for a lesser price and a smaller menu than dinner.

[Orlando Vic]

I asked a similar question several weeks ago. http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2271416

 

Although our first Celebrity cruise is 18 months away, I don't like the fact that there are no self-service laundry facilities.

[pcur]

We've cruised for 43 years. RCCL is our first choice line, but we will go with Celebrity, Princess, and HAL, too.

 

Celebrity is more elegant, and we loved our experience on the Equinox in 2014. Food is very good.

 

Princess is our choice for itineraries we cannot get from other cruise lines, and we've sailed a total of 35 nights with another 25 booked early next year. The food is very good, also. The Star and Sapphire don't have as much of an open feeling as RCCL or Celebrity ships. If you have been on an RCCL ship with an inside Promenade, then Princess will seem a little less spacious.

 

If you haven't tried HAL, you might want to think about it. We were impressed with HAL, and had an opportunity to sail a 28 night cruise on the Oosterdam. REALLY nice buffet, with main course counter service instead of self-serve. Their self-serve canape and appetizer bar is a nice touch. Very nice Italian station, and great sushi and Asian food. Main dining room food and service was good, too.

 

So, we cruise RCCL, Princess, Celebrity, and HAL. The first deciding factor is itinerary, then cost, then the ship.

Edited November 10, 2015 by pcur

[patterson3]

Princess and Celebrity are our favorite cruise lines, of the lines we've sailed. There are far more similarities than differences, however some of the things we like better on Princess are: afternoon tea, wrap around promenade (on all ships besides Royal and Regal), and the champagne waterfall. Having said that, Celebrity is our preferred choice because we enjoy the design of their ships better, especially the S class, and in our experience we've felt that Celebrity offers better, and more varied choices in their buffets. We still enjoy both lines and usually make our decision based on itinerary and price.

[GUT2407]

Pretty much the same to me.

 

Some of the Celebrity ships are nicer but they are rabbit warrens too. I think the cabins on Celebrity are nicer than some of the Princess cabins. I didn't care much about the food service on Celebrity.

 

Certainly agree that they are more alike than they are different.

[BarbinMich]

We're Elite on both Celebrity and Princess, although most of our X cruises were in the early 2000s. We switched to Princess almost exclusively because they were the first to offer Anytime dining (among Princess, X, HAL), their prices are lower and we like their entertainment best. In the last year, though, we have cruised on a Solstice-class ship (Eclipse) and an M-class ship (Summit). We eat most of our meals in the buffet on any ship and the food on the Eclipse was excellent, while that on the Summit was a disaster. I liked the size of the M-class better and found the public areas on the Solstice-class claustrophobic with no atrium and generally low ceilings. IMHO, Princess excels in their public areas (love those atriums) and their food when comparing Princess and X.

[Hlitner]

We are Elite on Princess (just got back last week from 10 days on the Regal) and Elite Plus (back on the Eclipse in 3 weeks). We think that lines are more comparable then not although there are certainly differences in specifics. One big difference (already mentioned) is that the Princess Casino smells like a dirty ashtray and is full of smoke (except on the few non-smoking evenings) whereas Celebrity has eliminated all indoor smoking.

 

We thought the food on the Regal (especially in the Horizon Court) was superior to our recent Celebrity cruises (regarding the MDR and Lido buffets). Alternative restaurants are different, but good on both lines. Entertainment is typical cruise stuff on both lines although we appreciate having a Piano Bar player on Princess (something sorely missing on X). And, as always, Princess Pizza is simply the best at sea!

 

Hank

[Oxo]

found the public areas on the Solstice-class claustrophobic with no atrium and generally low ceilings. IMHO, Princess excels in their public areas (love those atriums) and their food when comparing Princess and X.

You are correct. When we cruise on the S-Class, there is so much wasted open space on deck 5, but so little space in the atrium. The Royal and Regal are the best/most functional/used area (Piazza on Deck 5.) The Celebrity shops on deck 6 are upscale, but totally wasted space and get very little business. Another area of wasted space. The one thing we really like on S-Class is the Solarium Pool (Deck 12) which is Adult Only and closed in. Very quiet, food area (healthy food.)

[Oxo]

They don't do this dining room brunch anymore:(, so there's nothing to charge for. They have an expanded buffet one day (in the buffet) but it's not so special, and there's no charge. Some of the specialty restaurants are open for lunch for a lesser price and a smaller menu than dinner.

 

Many people complained about this change. It was a big cutback. Nothing like it was when it was in the MDR on the last Sea Day. Specialty Restaurants are totally over priced. Even when they offer 10,20, 30 % off.

[UpcountryTravelers]

Just received the official announcement email from Celebrity: formal nights are history! ........

 

Another PLUS for Princess. :)

[Orlando Vic]

Another PLUS for Princess. :)

 

Huh? I see it the other way.

[Coral]

Huh? I see it the other way.

 

I agree. I am so over formal nights! It is a pain, especially with the airlines charging for bags.

[mafig]

Many people complained about this change. It was a big cutback. Nothing like it was when it was in the MDR on the last Sea Day. Specialty Restaurants are totally over priced. Even when they offer 10,20, 30 % off.[/quote

 

 

We had it once on Puerto Rico day. We got into PR 3:30, so we were nice and full from all the shrimp and champagne, and could walk around PR and come back for dinner later.

[Jimbo59]

Many good comments above. I would prefer Princess ships (Grand Class) if they had Celebrity quality food.

 

One difference not mentioned is shore excursions. On Princess the descriptions tell you minute by minute where you will be, how long each stop will be,etc. Celebrity shore excursion descriptions are brief with little explanation of what you will see. Consequently, I rarely book Celebrity shore excursions, and always book the Princess excursions, especially in exotic ports.

[perditax]

Can anyone comment on the suite experience on, say, Royal Princess? I have my eye on a short sailing on her in a suite, but having a little trouble determining what kind of amenities go along with it.

 

For context: My significant other was spoiled by the concierge lounge on the Disney Dream, specifically the friendly concierges (not that we needed much from them, but they kept finding things we didn't know we needed, like a plate of cookies), the espresso machine, and the all-day snacks and drinks (as well as a few happy-hours, but booze is definitely NOT a big factor for us).

 

Just wondering how the Princess suite experience compares. I know this is Princess vs X thread, but my question doesn't seem like it needs its own thread, and I'm also interested in X (hence being subbed to this thread). I enjoy the comparison process in general.

 

Thanks in advance.

[mafig]

Perditax,

Have you considered NCL's Haven suites?

 

I know you've been on NCL before (and I read some of your review), but their suite experience is considered the best.

:)

[perditax]

Perditax,

 

Have you considered NCL's Haven suites?

 

 

 

I know you've been on NCL before (and I read some of your review), but their suite experience is considered the best.

 

:)

 

 

I have, and I loved the GA, but I'm not sure I'm going to be able to get the significant other on anything longer than five nights, not yet. :/ I'm also waiting a bit to see if NCL is going to finish the weekly a la carte-ing. :)