Celebrity Questions

[Tranquility Base]

Good luck:D

 

Thanks Mic

 

I have booked Celebrity, so am looking forward to trying it out.

 

Will now do some more searching on the Celebrity forum.

[icat2000]

Both would be good as I like both cruise lines, so I would pick the itinerary that suits best, followed by price. X may also include some perks such as a drink package and gratuities included which would also sway me.:D

 

That said, IMHO:

• Bigger rooms, better service, food, entertainment and ship, with X.
  
• Better Pizza on Princess.
  

Good luck:D

 

I agree with Mic except I don't necessarily find the food or service better on X. But I've only had one cruise with Celebrity so maybe it was that ship. I reassess after my next Celebrity cruise.

[GUT2407]

I agree with Mic except I don't necessarily find the food or service better on X. But I've only had one cruise with Celebrity so maybe it was that ship. I reassess after my next Celebrity cruise.

 

Now me

 

I agree with Sarah I find the food and service on both to be pretty similar, in fact I find the whole experience on both to be pretty similar.

 

And probably found Celebrity Pizza to be better tab Princess.

 

Each have a few things they did better than the other.

 

If celebrity charged in Aussie $ and didn't have tips added on, they may even be in front. But they both seem to charge pretty much the same for similar cruises (well that's been my experience anyway) but then Celebrity add $100 a week each as tips. Both charge similar prices for on board spends but because X is in US$ I oat near on 50% more.

 

Mrs Gut did like the cafe and Aqua Spa on Celebrity (have never been on. princess ship with an IC so that may even a little).

 

But I wouldn't hesitate o go with either line.

[GUT2407]

Should also have said that as I don't really like using a TA I find the Celebrity Call centre a tad hard to deal with normally a pretty poor international line with someone on the other end whose English is a touch difficult when trying to fun tun things v talking to an Aussie in Aus with Princess.

[GUT2407]

Both would be good as I like both cruise lines, so I would pick the itinerary that suits best, followed by price. X may also include some perks such as a drink package and gratuities included which would also sway me.:D

 

That said, IMHO:

• Bigger rooms, better service, food, entertainment and ship, with X.
  
• Better Pizza on Princess.
  

Good luck:D

 

Really not sure about the better Pizza on P Mic.

[The_Big_M]

I find the lines more similar than different.

 

There are some details that are different but nothing major. I would agree that the Princess pizza is way better (especially where they have a dedicated pizza restaurant).

 

Comparing the ships, Solstice is a more modern design and the furniture is more modern upscale hotel than cruise ship. But again, that's more a detail that won't change the cruise much.

 

It's good to try something new so you can see what you like though, and just to see things done a little differently.

[icat2000]

I find they both similar. Ones is modern chic and the other is refined and laid back elegance. They more similar than different.

Edited February 1, 2016 by icat2000

[sonia2509]

The biggest difference between the two is the age group on Australian cruises. Our first cruise was with Princess to New Zealand the average age would have been at least 75 at the youngest. Lots of wheelchairs, so many Zimmer frames and a few oxygen tanks and the entertainment was aimed at this age group as well. Our next one was with Diamond Princess in Alaska, and the service was not as good as our first, food was okay, and the ship constantly shook, and again it was an older crowd but not as old as the New Zealand cruise. We then did a Hawaii Norwegian Cruise and will not cruise with them again. Our last first cruise was on the Solstice last November again to New Zealand, and this one was perfect for us. The service, food, balcony we found was slightly better than Princess. It was the ambience of the ship that won us over and we booked our next cruise to the Baltic in August this year because we loved the ship so much. The age group would have been the middle 60's with a more elegant crowd. Celebrity for us is slightly ahead than Princess and the Pizzas are much better on Celebrity and I am from an Italian background and I know my pizzas [emoji3]

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

Edited February 1, 2016 by sonia2509

[MicCanberra]

I find they both similar. Ones is modern chic and the other is refined and laid back elegance. They more similar than different.

 

Agreed, more similar than different, both would be great cruises and itinerary is key for me.

Trust me Pizza form a proper pizza oven (Princess International) is better than pizza from a standard oven (X).

[sonia2509]

Agreed, more similar than different, both would be great cruises and itinerary is key for me.

 

Trust me Pizza form a proper pizza oven (Princess International) is better than pizza from a standard oven (X).

 

 

You could have the best pizza oven and if the dough is not good and you have too many toppings on the pizza it is not an authentic pizza. I did enjoy the pizzas on both but I found the celebrity ones did not have as much topping therefore more authentic. The ice cream is another matter the home made ice cream in the buffet on the Solstice was amazing. We could never understand why anyone would pay for the gelato in the Cafe [emoji509]

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Edited February 1, 2016 by sonia2509

[icat2000]

Agreed, more similar than different, both would be great cruises and itinerary is key for me.

Trust me Pizza form a proper pizza oven (Princess International) is better than pizza from a standard oven (X).

 

Pizza definitely better from Princess than X

[The_Big_M]

You could have the best pizza oven and if the dough is not good and you have too many toppings on the pizza it is not an authentic pizza. I did enjoy the pizzas on both but I found the celebrity ones did not have as much topping therefore more authentic.

 

I agree the pizza on Celebrity are mostly single toppings, but single toppings is a standard US custom as well. For example, Pepperoni is a Celebrity staple, and the humourously (and weirdly) named but distinctly US "Jerk pizza" one of their 'of the day' offerings.

 

Moreover, the construction of them is of the standard American style rather than those I had in Italy e.g. Celebrity have thicker crust, US stringy cheese and so on. The product is like those you get in US pizza chains e.g. Pizza Hut, Little Caesars.

[Obilix]

Ah the great Pizza Wars of 2016 ... :)

[MicCanberra]

I agree the pizza on Celebrity are mostly single toppings, but single toppings is a standard US custom as well. For example, Pepperoni is a Celebrity staple, and the humourously (and weirdly) named but distinctly US "Jerk pizza" one of their 'of the day' offerings.

 

Moreover, the construction of them is of the standard American style rather than those I had in Italy e.g. Celebrity have thicker crust, US stringy cheese and so on. The product is like those you get in US pizza chains e.g. Pizza Hut, Little Caesars.

 

Yes the toppings construction affects the pizza and I prefer the Princess build to the X however, the crusts are also different and princess pizzas are cooked through and not left doughy like on X.

[MicCanberra]

Ah the great Pizza Wars of 2016 ... :)

 

LOL, It is a war that will rage as long as we breathe.:p

[icat2000]

Eeek. Got stung by Celebrity and ANZ even though if you pay in AUD Celebrity processes it in US and ANZ charged international transaction fee. Tried contacting both companies about issue and both blamed either other. Typical I suppose.

[MicCanberra]

Eeek. Got stung by Celebrity and ANZ even though if you pay in AUD Celebrity processes it in US and ANZ charged international transaction fee. Tried contacting both companies about issue and both blamed either other. Typical I suppose.

 

Yes, bummer. They will get your money by hook or by crook. :(

We use the 28 degrees card to avoid such issues.

[Kiwi Kruzer]

Eeek. Got stung by Celebrity and ANZ even though if you pay in AUD Celebrity processes it in US and ANZ charged international transaction fee. Tried contacting both companies about issue and both blamed either other. Typical I suppose.

 

Another way they can sting you is that if its for a relatively small amount, they will parcel them all up together and send them to the Head Office in Miami . Cunard did that to us once. They did not charge the CC for nearly 3 weeks. We reckon they were waiting for the exchange rate to move in their favour.

 

 

[Beanb41]

Eeek. Got stung by Celebrity and ANZ even though if you pay in AUD Celebrity processes it in US and ANZ charged international transaction fee. Tried contacting both companies about issue and both blamed either other. Typical I suppose.

 

Icat I wouldn't let this one go without a fight. I pay all my payments to Celebrity as quoted in NZ dollars and when it appears on my credit card it is in NZ dollars although the payee is RCCL Miami. The onus I believe lies with Celebrity. If you contact me via solsticeshoretours@gmail.com I will give you a Sydney contact who may be able to assist

[lyndarra]

If Sarah will forgive me can I jump in with two questions as well? Just don't want to start a new thred for two simple questions. Like her we've only done one Celebrity so far.

 

1. Do Celebrity always provide cans of soft drink or was that only Century?

 

2. Does the basic drinks package (the one with BBB) include soft drink and/or tea and coffee at the Cafe?

 

Can't seem to find either answer on the website

 

We were on Celebrity Millennium and Infinity last year and the soft drink was in cans.

 

Can't answer #2 as we never buy drinks packages.

[OzKiwiJJ]

Icat I wouldn't let this one go without a fight. I pay all my payments to Celebrity as quoted in NZ dollars and when it appears on my credit card it is in NZ dollars although the payee is RCCL Miami. The onus I believe lies with Celebrity. If you contact me via solsticeshoretours@gmail.com I will give you a Sydney contact who may be able to assist

 

Some credit card companies are now charging fees in these situations - they never used to. I recently received an email from one of ours advising us of changes like that. Luckily we'd already acquired a 28 Degrees card and now do all our overseas spending on that. Our original credit card is losing that business from us.

Edited February 8, 2016 by OzKiwiJJ

[The_Big_M]

Icat I wouldn't let this one go without a fight. I pay all my payments to Celebrity as quoted in NZ dollars and when it appears on my credit card it is in NZ dollars although the payee is RCCL Miami. The onus I believe lies with Celebrity. If you contact me via solsticeshoretours@gmail.com I will give you a Sydney contact who may be able to assist

 

RCL have it in their terms that it may be processed offshore, and hence you may incur a fee. That would cover the onus you refer to from their perspective.

 

I wouldn't be surprised if Celebrity do the same, though you should check.

[icat2000]

Icat I wouldn't let this one go without a fight. I pay all my payments to Celebrity as quoted in NZ dollars and when it appears on my credit card it is in NZ dollars although the payee is RCCL Miami. The onus I believe lies with Celebrity. If you contact me via solsticeshoretours@gmail.com I will give you a Sydney contact who may be able to assist

Thanks I will send you an email. However, I did get a response back from them with their terms and conditions and it states in it that your bank might charge a fee.

[cruisine21]

RCL have it in their terms that it may be processed offshore, and hence you may incur a fee. That would cover the onus you refer to from their perspective.

 

I wouldn't be surprised if Celebrity do the same, though you should check.

 

The fee is charged by Visa or Martercard when the transaction is processed overseas. With Westpac there is no fee for Amex.

[MicCanberra]

Unfortunately, the banks win nearly every time.:(