Tell me why a diamond RCI couple should try Celebrity

[SlightDraw]

14 cruises on Royal. Feel like we need to break out. We are diamond on Royal and I understand I will get crossover benefits?

[peteukmcr]

Because IMHO it's better. If it helps, exactly 12 months ago today we were on our first Celebrity sailing on Constellation and we now have 2 more sailings booked with this cruise line and none with RCI.

 

In our opinion what is better?

 

Buffet, layout and food offerings

Dining room service

Guest services, especially the concierge

Atmosphere

Cafe el Bacio

Ambiance

[TxKroozer]

We have crossed over to Celebrity and enjoyed every cruise with them. We enjoy the change in specialty restaurants and other aspects of Celebrity service without forgoing our accrued benefits from Diamond/Diamond Plus in our case.

 

We will be on Liberty in a few days, but back to the Celebrity Reflection for a Meditteranean and Transatlantic cruise shortly thereafter.

 

The welcome aboard champagne or mimosa is a nice touch. The Sunset Bar is a killer and having breakfast outside in the morning on the back of the ship is nice.

[Hlitner]

As an EX RCI cruiser (we were Diamond before they even had Diamond) our question would be a bit different..."why on earth would you even want to cruise on RCI?"

 

As an aside, when RCI had a contest to name their first Mega ship (the Oasis) DW submitted "Blight of the Seas" and never heard a word :). If cruising on an ocean going shopping mall/amusement park is your kind of thing...then stick with RCI. If you want to experience a real cruise ship...then consider Celebrity or any of a dozen+ cruise lines.

 

Hank

[zoncom]

Agree with Hank. My one and only RCL cruise in a hurricane, one port on a 10N cruise, running out of food. Asked for some compensation. None given. Used to listen to Bruce Williams on talk radio. He was doing a Celebrity cruise, early 90s. If it was good enough for Bruce, thought I would try it. Still a Chandris operation; it was perfect for my tastes.Still cruising them. Will be 2 months this year on Reflection.

Edited September 13, 2016 by zoncom

[Orator]

"Try it, you'll like it".

[A Sixth?]

14 cruises on Royal. Feel like we need to break out. We are diamond on Royal and I understand I will get crossover benefits?

 

You will be considered elite on your cruise. Free happy hour or drink coupons this and that but the best benefit that you'll get as "elite" on Celebrity IMHO is 20 or 30 pieces of free laundry each.

 

[sonvoltken6]

We are D+ on RCCI, and as empty nesters, have started cruising Celebrity. We feel like the experience is more laid back, less of a party atmosphere. I think the service is better. The ships aren't geared towards the WOW factor, but instead to create a resort-like atmosphere. We will probably sail RCCI again but for now we only have cruises booked on Celebrity.

[JMG]

Personally I see nothing wrong with cruising RCL or Celebrity. They are part of the same parent company and they both offer great cruises.

 

We are D+ on RCL and Elite on Celebrity. On Celebrity..you are offered a glass of champagne when you board the ship....the rest of the cruise falls in line with that first sip of bubbly! Great service, great food, great crew! We have found that typically, we get a better price on Celebrity and often get many perks included in that price. RCL..we generally had to pay extra for perks.

 

If you want a loud, need to be constantly entertained and reminded of events type of cruise...then RCL should be your choice. If you prefer not to hear announcements every hour on the hour...and you want to enjoy great food...then Celebrity is the one to select.

 

One warning...the shows/entertainment on Celebrity do not compare to the shows on the newer RCL ships. Shows on Celebrity are not bad...but they are not Broadway shows..they are more the typical shows that have been done on cruise ships over the years.

 

Final reason to try Celebrity...you are still being loyal to RCCL! You can always go back to RCL if Celebrity does not fit you needs.

Edited September 14, 2016 by JMG

[sjb317]

We just completed our 2nd cruise on Celebrity last Friday sailing on Solstice. We have 40 cruises with Royal, have been D+ since 2009. There are things we like about each line:

 

Celebrity Pros:

Solstice is one of the most beautiful ships I've been on, especially the Solarium. It makes the ones on Royal look shabby.

 

Mast Grill has excellent hamburgers and fries, nice to be out by pool.

 

Buffet offered more choices, although, IMO, not necessarily better tasting the Royal. But I loved the Indian offerings! I have to say, though, that I never thought I would find worse scrambled eggs than in Royal's buffet but Solstice definitely wins that category.:rolleyes: Truly nasty!

 

Huge bathroom and shower in our Balcony room!

 

No difficulty getting a lounger in Solarium. Never had a problem, no matter what time we went there.

 

No smoking in Casino!!!!!!

 

Café El Bacio, really, really good coffee!

 

 

Royal Pros:

Diamond Balcony discount:)

 

We preferred DL/CL over Captain's Club. Better hours, drinks and snacks. Captain's Club had one waiter passing a tray with one choice, although on the last night, there were 3 waiters (and fewer people to serve). Drink service was very slow. We missed the snack buffet and drink service on Royal.

 

Storage area in cabins seemed more usable, there was lots of space on Solstice but did not like way it was arranged.

 

We seem to prefer the specialty restaurants on Royal. We tried Maurano on our first cruise and were not impressed, this time we tried Tuscan Grill, and again, not impressed. Pricey and mediocre food.

 

More comfortable seating in lounges! Solstice has the most uncomfortable chairs I've ever tried to sit in!

 

Better live music for dancing!

 

 

Otherwise, service, food and entertainment seemed very similar between cruise lines, in our experience.

 

Overall, we had a great cruise on Solstice and hope to cruise on Celebrity again but will still cruise on Royal. We have no intentions of "chasing" Pinnacle :D so I will choose a cruise based on itinerary and price. Our next 2 cruises are on Royal but I would like to book another Solstice cruise soon.

 

Sherri:)

[Iamthesea]

Tell me why a diamond RCI couple should try Celebrity

We did it!

 

After our 10th RCCL cruise (to make Diamond) we took our second cruise on Celebrity. Now we have 13 more Celebrity cruises completed and one coming up in 3 weeks. We will then make Elite Plus.

 

Three years ago this month, we looked back once and took a cruise on the Oasis of the Seas. That did it for us and we have never looked back since.;)

[The BarCarres]

You will love it. So many good things Cafe al Bacio, serenity and great service. I still enjoy Royal but given a choice I would choose Celebrity. We have 8 cruises with Royal and 2 with Celebrity. Two future cruises are one each, Celebrity didn't have the itinerary we wanted for New Zealand.

 

Enjoy!!!

[OCruisers]

Giving Celebrity a try would be an EXCELLENT decision. :D

[montekat]

Because IMHO it's better. If it helps, exactly 12 months ago today we were on our first Celebrity sailing on Constellation and we now have 2 more sailings booked with this cruise line and none with RCI.

 

In our opinion what is better?

 

Buffet, layout and food offerings

Dining room service

Guest services, especially the concierge

Atmosphere

Cafe el Bacio

Ambiance

 

That is almost exactly like us! We did the Constellation in Nov. of last year, then the Summit to Bermuda in May. Enjoyed them so much, we cancelled our cruise on the Anthem of the Seas to do the Infinity this Oct. and the Equinox next Oct. We especially liked the perks, better than the 3 free drinks on RCCL (well there are the free drinks in the Diamond lounge, but the times are limited) and a free picture.

[wallie5446]

14 cruises on Royal. Feel like we need to break out. We are diamond on Royal and I understand I will get crossover benefits?

 

Tim, why not?

We are Diamond, 1st RCCL in 1989 last on the Freedom in 2011, Elite on X, 1st in 1994 and the last 3 with them. Both are excellent vacations yet different. Theam park, RCCL vs country club feel on Celebrity. Your decision, no convincing can alter that.

 

When you do book and sail the elegant and comfortable style of Celebrity you will look at the wifester and both go, DUH! Why did we not do this sooner.

[SlightDraw]

Thanks for the info. Wife will like the laundry deal, we pack light and always have wash done. My finger is on the book button for silhouette out of Miami.

 

Thanks again. By the way that Lawn Club looks great

[chemmo]

We cruised RC a lot when our son was young. We did feel we outgrew them (too loud, lots of activities we didn't want to join in, just busy, busy, busy....). Celebrity also upped their suite offerings and we did have a couple of less than stellar RC experiences...

 

So we tried Celebrity and it does suit us really well. Rest and Relaxation is how we would describe our experience. Our evening entertainment tends to be a quality meal, quiet music, a comfortable lounge and good company and conversation.

 

We are, however, returning to RC in Janury for a 7 day cruise! We are by no means fed up with Celebrity we cruise with them again in April. We just simple fancied a cruise where we have visited the ports previously and therefore intend to enjoy the empty pools on port days. We have also missed some of the entertainment venues not on Celebrity (I do enjoy the ice show and Aqua theatre). I will go on the crazy golf and have at least one turn on the carousel!

 

Will we regularly cruise again with RC? I don't think so...but we probably will do every now and then....After experiencing the calm ambiance of Celebrity I am sure by day seven of my cruise I will have had enough of RC's lively offerings. But variety is the spice of life....I am not getting on Oasis expecting Celebrity, I will enjoy them for what they are - a different type of cruise experience.

Edited September 14, 2016 by chemmo

[griffy116]

After first trying Carnival, we've cruised exclusively with Royal for many years. My Grandson was 3 the first time we cruised on Royal. He enjoyed the activities, including in recent years, the FlowRider and water slides. He's now 22. In the past when we've mentioned other lines, he's been reluctant. When we got ready to book this year, he was finally ready to branch out and try Celebrity. We have a short holiday cruise in December on Royal and then a 7-night cruise with Celebrity in June. He's Diamond on his own status and is excited about having the free laundry, and not to have to carry a suit, ties, shirts and shoes for formal night on Celebrity. He's excited about trying out a new menu and new foods. We were able to get the four perks, so he has the drink package, free WiFi, free gratuities and OBC. He's taking a friend and she has never been on a cruise and will have the same perks so this ended up being a great deal for all of us. We're excited to have the free laundry bag. On Royal, we used to get a $10 discount on the Wash 'n Fold Special, but on our last cruise, they decided to take that away unless you were sailing more than 7 nights. We can usually only go on a 7-night cruise, so we lost that discount. Since he can carry his cabin-mate, as Elite, she can go with him to the lounge and see the sunset from there while enjoying a quiet place to have a drink before dinner. I'm a little concerned because everyone keeps mentioning the "quiet, laid-back atmosphere." I don't want them to get bored without all the bells and whistles, although because of the lines, my Grandson said it wasn't worth the wait to use the water slides or the FlowRider. Do you think two 22 year old passengers will enjoy Celebrity as much as they would enjoy Royal?? :confused:

[2onboardagain]

We choose cruises for their itineraries and as such have sailed a number of different lines. We were on a stretch where we were sailing RCL so much that I knew the dinning room menus by heart. Moving around from cruise line to cruise line makes it tougher to accumulate "status" with any particular line but the variety of experiences and those little unexpected surprises that each cruise line can offer makes for a much more interesting experience. You will enjoy Celebrity!

[sound_guy0918]

I'm a little concerned because everyone keeps mentioning the "quiet, laid-back atmosphere." I don't want them to get bored without all the bells and whistles, although because of the lines, my Grandson said it wasn't worth the wait to use the water slides or the FlowRider. Do you think two 22 year old passengers will enjoy Celebrity as much as they would enjoy Royal?? :confused:

 

I think the distinction I would make about the atmosphere is that the X experience is "quiet and reserved" compared to our experiences on CCL and RCL where the atmosphere can reach "loud, obnoxious, and crazy" levels.

 

Quiet - no constant in-room announcements, no loud muzak in every public area, fewer running and screaming passengers.

Reserved - no belly-flop or hairy chest contests, more upscale touches in all public areas.

 

Yes, this also means that the "nightclub" experience you get on some ships is (generally) harder to find on X.

 

So it really comes down to what kind of entertainment your GS and his lady friend are looking for. Fine dining, fun and creative bars, quality entertainment? You'll find plenty on X. Will it be all blue hairs playing shuffleboard? Absolutely not.

 

Celebrity also offers some incredibly port-intensive cruises. If this is what the kids are looking for, they will almost certainly have a great time on X!

[sound_guy0918]

14 cruises on Royal. Feel like we need to break out. We are diamond on Royal and I understand I will get crossover benefits?

 

If you enjoy the cruise experience but want less noise, nonsmoking casino, smaller crowds, better dining, and "smaller" (<150k) ton ships, you will love X.

 

We have found X to have some of the most cost-effective pricing in the industry, when you include the perks (especially the drink package). We paid almost as much for a 3-night on RCL as we did for the 7-night on the Summit, and we are getting a drink package and $350 OBC with X.

[phoenix_dream]

After first trying Carnival, we've cruised exclusively with Royal for many years. My Grandson was 3 the first time we cruised on Royal. He enjoyed the activities, including in recent years, the FlowRider and water slides. He's now 22. In the past when we've mentioned other lines, he's been reluctant. When we got ready to book this year, he was finally ready to branch out and try Celebrity. We have a short holiday cruise in December on Royal and then a 7-night cruise with Celebrity in June. He's Diamond on his own status and is excited about having the free laundry, and not to have to carry a suit, ties, shirts and shoes for formal night on Celebrity. He's excited about trying out a new menu and new foods. We were able to get the four perks, so he has the drink package, free WiFi, free gratuities and OBC. He's taking a friend and she has never been on a cruise and will have the same perks so this ended up being a great deal for all of us. We're excited to have the free laundry bag. On Royal, we used to get a $10 discount on the Wash 'n Fold Special, but on our last cruise, they decided to take that away unless you were sailing more than 7 nights. We can usually only go on a 7-night cruise, so we lost that discount. Since he can carry his cabin-mate, as Elite, she can go with him to the lounge and see the sunset from there while enjoying a quiet place to have a drink before dinner. I'm a little concerned because everyone keeps mentioning the "quiet, laid-back atmosphere." I don't want them to get bored without all the bells and whistles, although because of the lines, my Grandson said it wasn't worth the wait to use the water slides or the FlowRider. Do you think two 22 year old passengers will enjoy Celebrity as much as they would enjoy Royal?? :confused:

 

My honest answer is that no, two 22 year olds will not enjoy Celebrity as much as they would Royal. Entertainment and music is geared towards an older crowd, as are most activities. That said, unless they are real party animals they are likely to still enjoy the cruise. My son, now 30 but cruising with us since he was 3, loves Celebrity but said he definitely would rather go on Freedom of the Seas again than sail Celebrity. But since we usually sail Celebrity (30+ cruises) he comes with us and enjoys it very much. But he is more the quiet type who is happy to relax in bars, at the pool, in the cabin and so on. I think a lot depends on the type of cruise. A lot of days at sea, go with RCI. A lot of ports? Celebrity could work as in the evening you are usually running out of steam anyway.

[Iamthesea]

My two adult DD's loved Celebrity as college aged students. They still do!

 

They are now in their early 30's. We took a cruise last spring - their 3rd Celebrity cruise to the Caribbean. They were up (as was I ;)) every night until 1:00 or so up in the lounge on the Reflection. There were kids from older teens to my age dancing and having a great time, but the majority were college aged to young adults.

[cocacola86]

How would Celebrity be for younger couples in there mid 30s

 

 

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[cocacola86]

We've been in 4 Carnival cruises and not party animals or drinkers.

 

 

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