Is Celebrity shooting itself in the foot?

[cgolf1]

On 2/2/2019 at 11:58 AM, Airspeed said:

I have had my third Celebrity cruise in December, the last two cruises were in a Penthouse suite on the Millenium-class Summit, prior to that we were in a Royal Suite.

We both (my wife and I) really liked the Summit, and though we felt the Royal Suite was dark, dated, and definitely can use an upgrade, loved the Penthouse suite to death! Wooden Parquet flooring, Yamaha C1 grand piano (I play), gigantic balcony, and so on...

 

From everything I read the Edge looks close to a concept disaster. Yet Celebrity, without testing the market perception of its new concept, has decided to go full blown and "Edgesize" its entire fleet. The Penthouse Suite will be forever ruined on the Summit.

 

This reminds me of the CueCat, that innovative bar code scanner that ended up being on or IT's worst marketing disasters. The difference: It was free. The Edge is not. In fact,she carries a premium.

 

This whole horror show has prompted me to  look at other suites on other cruise lines, such as Holland America's Pinnacle Suite, or the Royal Caribbean Royal Suite. I would have never done so had I now known that the Penthouse was going to be ruined.

 

In my opinion, Celebrity is shooting itself in the foot...

 

I suggest you follow the review of the edge I am doing. From the opinions I got from others on the cruise, it is going to be a love it or hate it ship. That said I think everyone will find something that they like. Guessing that each ship in the series will be different based on feedback received. Celebrity seems to be very interested in getting feedback on the Edge experience. 

 

I along with others are sick and tired of people bashing something they haven’t tried and spreading misinformation. 

Edited February 4, 2019 by cgolf1

[Oville]

18 minutes ago, cgolf1 said:

 

. 

 

I along with others are sick and tired of people bashing something they haven’t tried and spreading misinformation. 

Thanks for your comment.  Like many who have cruised on Edge there are things we like and some not so much.  I look forward to your review.

[waterbug123]

21 hours ago, Stateroom_Sailor said:

Don't forget Quantum, which is actually newer than Oasis class, and mostly a flop.  45% of the reviews are 4 and 5 star, basically pushed off to secondary markets.  They had big plans of pushing Quantum features across the fleet, but ended up cancelling last minute, due to negative reactions.

 

Quantum is mostly a flop?  Tell that to Royal, LOL.  As I recall, it's still doing Asia cruises, which it was intended to do from the start.  Immediately following its intro, they made planned changes geared toward that market because it's lucrative.  You may see it as a secondary market but Royal sees it as a previously underserved market.  

As for Quantum features that were axed, it was mainly the dynamic dining concept that scrapped, and they were able to do that relatively easily.

 

12 hours ago, Stateroom_Sailor said:

 

Smooth transition towards Gen X, and beyond.  Axe the nods to Abba and Village people, and swap them out for music of the 70's that Gen X likes (Aerosmith, David Bowie, Funk, and New Wave).  I would copy the decor of modern hotels that boomers and millennials both like, such as Hyatt and Ritz Carlton.  Use colors and materials that are durable and stain resistant.  Do better research into the practicality of concepts created by people who've never been on a ship before.

 

For Millennials, I would create a points based currency, transferable with American Express or Chase, and at least one major hotel chain and airline.  Give the new ship regionally authentic specialty restaurants, have it overnight in more ports, and partner with a tech media company like TED.

 

 

 

You may not be a fan of Abba and the Village People, but plenty of Gen Xers are, which makes sense since both became popular in the 70s, while the oldest of the Gen Xers were coming of age.  Then you mention trying to use hotel concepts that appeal to both boomers and millenials.  So do you want Celebrity appealing to boomers, Gen Xers or millennials?  All very different markets, and it's difficult to find concepts/aesthetics that are universally appealing to all people.  (Not to mention that my guess is millennials would be more wowed by a chain like W than what they may view as a rather staid brand like Hyatt)

And good luck with regionally authentic restaurants on a cruise ship.   It's just hard to do that successfully when you are mass producing the meals and your kitchen staff isn't actually aware of what makes a particular dish authentic to that area.  It's a great concept, but it's difficult to execute.

[Gordoncruickshank]

On ‎2‎/‎3‎/‎2019 at 12:29 AM, Covepointcruiser said:

The Celebrity Suite on Solstice cLass ships is a waste.   You get no additional benefits over the cheapest suite and you get very limited additional space.   When you upgrade to a Royal Suite you get an additional half bath, a dining table and room to walk around.   You also receive unlimited internet, Specialty Dining and premium beverage packages.

This is very useful on transatlantic voyages when nothing is included for lower suites. 

Michaels Club is also very crowded on these voyages making the premium package more worthwhile.   The Edge has many premium suites above Royal Suite and I am not sure of the perks included with those suites.

You actually get  a space that is twice the size of a regular balcony cabin.

I priced a RS for our 2021 cruises (21 nights) and the difference was about £8,000. We like the RS but really it has far too much room to justify for 2 people. The table is useful for leaving things on unless you eat in the cabin which we don't.

The drinks package costs £2,630 for 21 nights. I have $600 obc usually which covers any speciality restarants that we want to do.

[Stateroom_Sailor]

58 minutes ago, waterbug123 said:

 

Quantum is mostly a flop?  Tell that to Royal, LOL.  As I recall, it's still doing Asia cruises, which it was intended to do from the start.  Immediately following its intro, they made planned changes geared toward that market because it's lucrative.  You may see it as a secondary market but Royal sees it as a previously underserved market.  

As for Quantum features that were axed, it was mainly the dynamic dining concept that scrapped, and they were able to do that relatively easily.

 

 

You may not be a fan of Abba and the Village People, but plenty of Gen Xers are, which makes sense since both became popular in the 70s, while the oldest of the Gen Xers were coming of age.  Then you mention trying to use hotel concepts that appeal to both boomers and millenials.  So do you want Celebrity appealing to boomers, Gen Xers or millennials?  All very different markets, and it's difficult to find concepts/aesthetics that are universally appealing to all people.  (Not to mention that my guess is millennials would be more wowed by a chain like W than what they may view as a rather staid brand like Hyatt)

And good luck with regionally authentic restaurants on a cruise ship.   It's just hard to do that successfully when you are mass producing the meals and your kitchen staff isn't actually aware of what makes a particular dish authentic to that area.  It's a great concept, but it's difficult to execute.

 

Quantum was a flop, based on passenger reaction and reviews.  RCCL spent a ton of money advertising Quantum in North America, only to then shove them off to Asia and Australia, markets that would be more excited to have new ships and features.  You say that was planned all along, if so, they announced it as a surprise to everyone else.  Extensive decor planning went into remodeling Oasis MDRs to convert them to DD with different decor, only to be scrapped.

 

Obviously these are my subjective opinions.  Your ideas, entertaining 38 - 54 year olds with Abba and Village people, I believe is out of touch, our median high school graduating year was 1991.  Do I want X decor to appeal to Boomers, Gen X, and Millennials?  As much as possible, why not?  I follow Millennial travel blogs fairly regularly, and they are very into Hyatt's luxury and rewards program.  Very little hype about hipster hotels at all, that's more of a niche and a stereotype.

 

Traveling Millennials with money are often apprehensive about cruising because (A) being trapped on a crowded ship (B) the limited time in port, and (C) the view that shipboard food is superficial.  More overnights and authentic themed restaurants would help.

 

 

 

[bajathree]

2 hours ago, waterbug123 said:

Quantum is mostly a flop?  Tell that to Royal, LOL.  As I recall, it's still doing Asia cruises, which it was intended to do from the start.  Immediately following its intro, they made planned changes geared toward that market because it's lucrative.  You may see it as a secondary market but Royal sees it as a previously underserved market.  

As for Quantum features that were axed, it was mainly the dynamic dining concept that scrapped, and they were able to do that relatively easily.

 

35 minutes ago, Stateroom_Sailor said:

Quantum was a flop, based on passenger reaction and reviews.  RCCL spent a ton of money advertising Quantum in North America, only to then shove them off to Asia and Australia, markets that would be more excited to have new ships and features.  You say that was planned all along, if so, they announced it as a surprise to everyone else.  Extensive decor planning went into remodeling Oasis MDRs to convert them to DD with different decor, only to be scrapped.

Stateroom sailor is correct. Quantum was a disaster in its introduction and there are still signs on some Oasis class ships where they started to Quantum'ize the ships but stopped due to all the horrible reviews from Quantum. They also spent a fortune ripping apart lounges on the brand new Quantum and converting them to casino space before moving the ship over to the Asia market. I doubt that was part of the original plan for a spanking brand new ship just built. The Quantum'izing program on the Royal side was a disaster.

[Aralim]

55 minutes ago, Stateroom_Sailor said:

Traveling Millennials with money

 

Wait, isn’t that supposed to be an oxymoron? 😁😉

 

Im allowed to kid, I’m a Gen X’er (graduated HS in 1988) while my younger brother is a Millennial (2002 HS grad IIRC). We rib each other all the time about our alleged stereotypes.

 

And count me solidly in the court of Def Lepppard and Aerosmith over ABBA. My wife is a huge ABBA fan, but she’s a couple years older than me and more on that cusp of Gen X, so I give her a pass on that. 😉

[waterbug123]

1 hour ago, Stateroom_Sailor said:

Obviously these are my subjective opinions.  Your ideas, entertaining 38 - 54 year olds with Abba and Village people, I believe is out of touch, our median high school graduating year was 1991.  Do I want X decor to appeal to Boomers, Gen X, and Millennials?  As much as possible, why not?  I follow Millennial travel blogs fairly regularly, and they are very into Hyatt's luxury and rewards program.  Very little hype about hipster hotels at all, that's more of a niche and a stereotype.

 

Traveling Millennials with money are often apprehensive about cruising because (A) being trapped on a crowded ship (B) the limited time in port, and (C) the view that shipboard food is superficial.  More overnights and authentic themed restaurants would help.

 

 

 

 

You're entitle to your opinion.  But at any large party/wedding/club I've been at in recent years, the Gen Xers go nuts when Abba or Village People comes on, just as they do with other bands of the 70s and 80s you mentioned.  And like you, I don't see the issue with trying to appeal to a broad base, it's just often difficult to do so effectively. 

It's funny that you mention "traveling millenials with money" because so many millenials seem to struggle financially.  Then entered the job market at a tough time and are at an age when many are still getting on their feet.  Sure, some have money, and some travel, but I think you're making some pretty broad generalizations.  I know plenty of millenials who love cruising and don't feel at all "trapped" on a cruise ship.   But again, no point continuing to argue.  You have your opinion and I have mine.  🙂

[waterbug123]

1 hour ago, bajathree said:

 

Stateroom sailor is correct. Quantum was a disaster in its introduction and there are still signs on some Oasis class ships where they started to Quantum'ize the ships but stopped due to all the horrible reviews from Quantum. They also spent a fortune ripping apart lounges on the brand new Quantum and converting them to casino space before moving the ship over to the Asia market. I doubt that was part of the original plan for a spanking brand new ship just built. The Quantum'izing program on the Royal side was a disaster.

 

I agree that it makes no sense to plan such an immediate re-do, but it certainly seems that it was planned.... or did they suddenly cancel thousands of peoples' reservations to carry out a sudden renovation?   Maybe they did, but I don't recall that.  As for Quantum-sizing the rest of the fleet, yes they did plan to roll out dynamic dining to other ships and scrapped that in response to the complaints about it.   The "new" restaurant names survive, but little had been done to reconfigure the physical spaces so they just continued to treat them as MDRs, albeit with new names and decor, and carried on with the traditional dining model. 

On Quantum itself, yes, there were a lot of negative reviews but they were mainly about the dynamic dining, and the limited access to the pod thing that seemed to have a lot of mechanical difficulties and was often out of order and could only accommodate a limited number of people.  My point though, was that at the time, everyone was saying that a ship as large as Oasis, and later the Quantum with the aforementioned complaints, were going to be the downfall of Royal and Royal would not survive.  And yet Royal is continuing to build more and more ships and carry on quite nicely.   I suspect it's the same with the various complaints about Edge.... folks are making these doomsday predictions but I don't think it will have much effect on Celebrity's overall success.

[BPCW]

On 2/2/2019 at 5:44 PM, Airspeed said:

At this point you will not go wrong going on the Summit, trust me.

 

With my small sample size on Celebrity (2x on Summit and 1x on Equinox), I'll echo this.  I've been on NCL, Royal, and Princess and, for us, the service on Summit both times was the best we've received on our 12 cruises.  We've been on way "better" ships but have realized that service is what matters most to us - we we booked our third cruise on Summit for our next one. 

[bajathree]

3 hours ago, waterbug123 said:

On Quantum itself, yes, there were a lot of negative reviews but they were mainly about the dynamic dining, and the limited access to the pod thing that seemed to have a lot of mechanical difficulties and was often out of order and could only accommodate a limited number of people.  My point though, was that at the time, everyone was saying that a ship as large as Oasis, and later the Quantum with the aforementioned complaints, were going to be the downfall of Royal and Royal would not survive.  And yet Royal is continuing to build more and more ships and carry on quite nicely.   I suspect it's the same with the various complaints about Edge.... folks are making these doomsday predictions but I don't think it will have much effect on Celebrity's overall success.

Agree...the main complaints about Quantum were about the dynamic dining program not the ship design...but when they started Quantum'izing the Oasis class ships they stopped and adjusted. I don't know if you remember but they started to also tear out the concierge lounge (changes to the loyalty program were happing right about the same time) on deck 11/12 during Quantum'izing...moved it to a section of the main dining room to make space for Wonderland and then reversed and rebuilt the lounge and trashed the Wonderland idea. It then reappeared on the future builds. They do make mistakes and adjustment sometimes quickly when they have too...but it comes at an expense. In the case on Edge...it's more extreme since they came up with a totally more drastic change with the "infinite balcony". A faux balcony that's nothing more than a fancy ocienview cabin with a window that opens...SOMETIMES. I am not so sure how long they can keep spinning that positive before its looked at for what it really is. People really need to be educated when they book an "infinite balcony" to exactly what they are getting...cause it isn't a traditional balcony experience as most people would expect. IMHO I think they are going to have a problem with that concept and pricing will reflect it in the not so distant future.

Edited February 4, 2019 by bajathree

[Stateroom_Sailor]

3 hours ago, waterbug123 said:

 

It's funny that you mention "traveling millenials with money" because so many millenials seem to struggle financially.  Then entered the job market at a tough time and are at an age when many are still getting on their feet.  Sure, some have money, and some travel, but I think you're making some pretty broad generalizations.  I know plenty of millenials who love cruising and don't feel at all "trapped" on a cruise ship.   But again, no point continuing to argue.  You have your opinion and I have mine.  🙂

 

You're making broad generalizations too, but easier for both of us to discuss than smaller sub-sects.  You know millennials who love to cruise, of course, you're on the ships.  I've read articles trying to persuade millennials to cruise, and read the rejecting comments, specifically from those who prefer air and hotel travel.

 

It is true that more millennials are struggling and are making less money on average.  They're also more likely to be frugal, and with delays in marriage, family, and mortgages.  Because of this, they also have more disposable income than prior generations as well.

[Gracie115]

On ‎2‎/‎2‎/‎2019 at 7:29 PM, Covepointcruiser said:

The Celebrity Suite on Solstice cLass ships is a waste.   You get no additional benefits over the cheapest suite and you get very limited additional space.   When you upgrade to a Royal Suite you get an additional half bath, a dining table and room to walk around.   You also receive unlimited internet, Specialty Dining and premium beverage packages.

This is very useful on transatlantic voyages when nothing is included for lower suites.

Michaels Club is also very crowded on these voyages making the premium package more worthwhile.   The Edge has many premium suites above Royal Suite and I am not sure of the perks included with those suites.

 

 

Couldn't possibly disagree more.  We love the CS on the "S" class ships.  Have done 3 TA's in them.  Also did our last TA in a RS when we got a deal. It was nice but nowhere near worth the extra dollars it would normally cost over a CS.  We enjoy Michael's Club on the TA, the only time it was busy was right before dinner, but even then we always found a place to sit and had great service.  With Luminae the specialty restaurant perks for RS and above becomes a non factor since Luminae is far better than most if not all (for us ALL) of the specialties.  The half bath in the RS is very nice, but we are fine with the 2 entrances to the bath in the CS.  

 

And the balconies on the CS, especially those on the hump, are FAR superior to the one for the RS's because the RS has that gigantic jacuzzi tub that rarely gets used from everything I've read and experienced and takes up half the space on the balcony.

 

So we all have different opinions about what works for us.  I'd rather have that 2K per person in my pocket than spend it on a RS...

[villauk]

2 hours ago, bajathree said:

Agree...the main complaints about Quantum were about the dynamic dining program not the ship design...but when they started Quantum'izing the Oasis class ships they stopped and adjusted. I don't know if you remember but they started to also tear out the concierge lounge (changes to the loyalty program were happing right about the same time) on deck 11/12 during Quantum'izing...moved it to a section of the main dining room to make space for Wonderland and then reversed and rebuilt the lounge and trashed the Wonderland idea. It then reappeared on the future builds. They do make mistakes and adjustment sometimes quickly when they have too...but it comes at an expense. In the case on Edge...it's more extreme since they came up with a totally more drastic change with the "infinite balcony". A faux balcony that's nothing more than a fancy ocienview cabin with a window that opens...SOMETIMES. I am not so sure how long they can keep spinning that positive before its looked at for what it really is. People really need to be educated when they book an "infinite balcony" to exactly what they are getting...cause it isn't a traditional balcony experience as most people would expect. IMHO I think they are going to have a problem with that concept and pricing will reflect it in the not so distant future.

 

 

I agree: would I want to spend all the extra they are asking for Edge for a glorified oceanview - no!  That’s the big error in my view that X have made. Would I have perhaps considered the ship if there were proper balconies at a reasonable rate for a new ship....now this would have been more likely. It’s more about the concept of the living space on Edge than what Royal have done with their new builds: public space and gimmicks that you can walk away from if you so wish and spend time on you balcony. Whereas X have decided pax don’t want the conventional balcony anymore, even though the likes of Viking who have a history with the IV concept on their river cruise vessels obviously thought that it wasn’t what pax wanted on their new ocean liners.

 

And for those that keep saying how can you comment if you’ve never tried it, that’s the point, I have no wish to try an oceanview with a drop-down window for the extortionate prices they are asking. I believe I’m not on my own from many of the comments on here either. Many pax want a proper balcony if they pay for a balcony cabin. Look at the reviews from the hosts on CC who have cruised Edge already: their first stop was GS to get upgraded to a suite. Many of the pax with the very positive reviews have also sailed in the suites on Edge or got their sailing free from the casino offers. Tells me everything. 

[bajathree]

25 minutes ago, villauk said:

 

 

I agree: would I want to spend all the extra they are asking for Edge for a glorified oceanview - no!  That’s the big error in my view that X have made. Would I have perhaps considered the ship if there were proper balconies at a reasonable rate for a new ship....now this would have been more likely. It’s more about the concept of the living space on Edge than what Royal have done with their new builds: public space and gimmicks that you can walk away from if you so wish and spend time on you balcony. Whereas X have decided pax don’t want the conventional balcony anymore, even though the likes of Viking who have a history with the IV concept on their river cruise vessels obviously thought that it wasn’t what pax wanted on their new ocean liners.

 

And for those that keep saying how can you comment if you’ve never tried it, that’s the point, I have no wish to try an oceanview with a drop-down window for the extortionate prices they are asking. I believe I’m not on my own from many of the comments on here either. Many pax want a proper balcony if they pay for a balcony cabin. Look at the reviews from the hosts on CC who have cruised Edge already: their first stop was GS to get upgraded to a suite. Many of the pax with the very positive reviews have also sailed in the suites on Edge or got their sailing free from the casino offers. Tells me everything. 

Full disclosure....I did actually sail on Edge in a concierge class infinite balcony (very discounted rate for a charitable cause) so I have experienced the ship and the infinite balcony.

Edited February 4, 2019 by bajathree

[villauk]

4 minutes ago, bajathree said:

Full disclosure....I did actually sail on Edge in a concierge class infinite balcony (very discounted rate for a charitable cause) so I have experienced the ship and the infinite balcony.

 

 

And I believe you weren’t too impressed with your IV?

Edited February 4, 2019 by villauk

[bajathree]

Just now, villauk said:

 

 

And I believe you weren’t too impressed?

I didn't like nor would I want to sail in an infinite balcony again. For me it was a one and done unless possibly I had the opportunity to sail it in a suite. The ship is pretty but I would chose and have chosen to sail S class instead.

[deliver42]

I'd love to sail the Edge, but only in an aft balcony, which is a real balcony, and of course, at the right price. I don't mind paying a premium for a new ship, but what they are asking is highway robbery.

[The_Big_M]

On ‎2‎/‎3‎/‎2019 at 9:08 AM, Airspeed said:

 

Yes, the Summit needs some upgrades and fixing, but don't destroy what is best about her in the process...

 

Unfortunately that's the business. It's the same as what happened when Millennium class were "Solsticised." A well designed ship had its custom designed features removed, or replaced with substitutes that didn't work so well in the same space, and much free, open space removed.

[UnorigionalName]

I like how everyone thinks that they are the only type of people in the world and that every line must cruise to their exact demands.

 

I personally am very interested in the Edge, in the style, the food, the decor.  Also am very interested in the infinite veranda.  I am probably part of the target audience.  I can afford it, it looks interesting, and I plan on trying it in the future.  Why get so salty if it's not for you? Just voice your opinions and move on.  Just vote with your wallets and everyone will see if it was a good move or not.

 

Are you just afraid of becoming irrelevant?  Upset that the one of the new hip fancy ships was made to some other people's taste?  Worried this is going to be a trend and that you are going to be relegated to the cruise lines catering to those of advanced age?  It's bound to happen sooner or later as demographics change.  You think in 20 years the cruise ships will still act the same?  Think of the changes in the industry since 20 years ago.

 

Edited February 5, 2019 by UnorigionalName

[Cruise Junky]

8 minutes ago, UnorigionalName said:

 

 

I personally am very interested in the Edge, in the style, the food, the decor.  Also am very interested in the infinite veranda.  I am probably part of the target audience.  I can afford it, it looks interesting, and I plan on trying it in the future.  Why get so salty if it's not for you? Just voice your opinions and move on.  Just vote with your wallets and everyone will see if it was a good move or not.

 

Are you just afraid of becoming irrelevant?  Upset that the one of the new hip fancy ships was made to some other people's taste?  Worried this is going to be a trend and that you are going to be relegated to the cruise lines catering to those of advanced age?  It's bound to happen sooner or later as demographics change.  You think in 20 years the cruise ships will still act the same?  Think of the changes in the industry since 20 years ago.

 

Ohhhh the posting police rears it’s head. Honey, if you’re their target market and “very” interested it’s been on sale for two years, why aren’t you booked yet? 

 

And if young and hip means overpaying for a crap room, have at it I just booked a villa here instead

https://www.niramaya.com.au/gallery

 

so enjoy your 250sq ft box with a window that opens lol 

[markeb]

Well this has been a fascinating topic! From infinity balconies to ABBA all in the same thread...

 

We've yet to cruise Edge. We are booked on her, but it's a year from now for a variety of reasons. Bluntly, we've gotten tired of the Caribbean, and if we go to Europe (which we did twice last year and hopefully twice this year), we'd just as soon do a land-based vacation and enjoy Europe.

 

I don't know if Celebrity has shot itself in the foot. I do think they're trying to target what they believe is their future customer base. They may or may not have missed that target. My over generalization of the Millennial generation is they don't like being categorized, so there probably isn't one group to target.

 

<rant>BUT, as a teenage male in the '70's (the source of cruise ship arguments with my dear wife of almost 28 years), and a late Boomer, the one sure turnoff for music on a cruise is ANYTHING from the disco era. Especially ABBA and the Village People, and especially today! Forty-one years ago today, a full year before the abomination of YMCA was foist upon the world, Fleetwood Mac released Rumors. Anyone who tries to tell me that ABBA even vaguely compares to Lindsey Buckingham and Stevie Nicks literally breaking up singing at each other on "Go Your Own Way"...  And that's towards the end of a decade that saw Dark Side of the Moon and Born to Run! I'm waiting to go on a Celebrity cruise and be greeted by Smells Like Team Spirit! </rant>

 

(Someone had to bring up ABBA and the Village People!)

 

I'm curious to see how this goes for Celebrity. It could flop big time, but if they bring in a new twenty year cruising crowd that comes back with their children and grandchildren, then they're on to something.

[Host Jazzbeau]

54 minutes ago, markeb said:

Well this has been a fascinating topic! From infinity balconies to ABBA all in the same thread...

 

We've yet to cruise Edge. We are booked on her, but it's a year from now for a variety of reasons. Bluntly, we've gotten tired of the Caribbean, and if we go to Europe (which we did twice last year and hopefully twice this year), we'd just as soon do a land-based vacation and enjoy Europe.

 

I don't know if Celebrity has shot itself in the foot. I do think they're trying to target what they believe is their future customer base. They may or may not have missed that target. My over generalization of the Millennial generation is they don't like being categorized, so there probably isn't one group to target.

 

<rant>BUT, as a teenage male in the '70's (the source of cruise ship arguments with my dear wife of almost 28 years), and a late Boomer, the one sure turnoff for music on a cruise is ANYTHING from the disco era. Especially ABBA and the Village People, and especially today! Forty-one years ago today, a full year before the abomination of YMCA was foist upon the world, Fleetwood Mac released Rumors. Anyone who tries to tell me that ABBA even vaguely compares to Lindsey Buckingham and Stevie Nicks literally breaking up singing at each other on "Go Your Own Way"...  And that's towards the end of a decade that saw Dark Side of the Moon and Born to Run! I'm waiting to go on a Celebrity cruise and be greeted by Smells Like Team Spirit! </rant>

 

(Someone had to bring up ABBA and the Village People!)

 

I'm curious to see how this goes for Celebrity. It could flop big time, but if they bring in a new twenty year cruising crowd that comes back with their children and grandchildren, then they're on to something.

 

I think you miss the point – or actually, you make the point very clearly:  no one can give you Lindsey Buckingham and Stevie Nicks at their prime on a cruise ship today; ABBA OTOH is very easy to 'cover' so that's the '70s music that gets played by the house groups.  The young singers on our last Azamara cruise were very cute when they told the CD that it was really interesting learning these '60s songs that were brand new to them!

[waterbug123]

10 hours ago, markeb said:

Well this has been a fascinating topic! From infinity balconies to ABBA all in the same thread...

 

 

<rant>BUT, as a teenage male in the '70's (the source of cruise ship arguments with my dear wife of almost 28 years), and a late Boomer, the one sure turnoff for music on a cruise is ANYTHING from the disco era.

 

This just in....not everyone from the same era likes the same music.  You may hate disco, and you are certainly not alone, but an awful lot of people get very nostalgic when it plays. 

[Gordoncruickshank]

16 hours ago, Gracie115 said:

 

 

Couldn't possibly disagree more.  We love the CS on the "S" class ships.  Have done 3 TA's in them.  Also did our last TA in a RS when we got a deal. It was nice but nowhere near worth the extra dollars it would normally cost over a CS.  We enjoy Michael's Club on the TA, the only time it was busy was right before dinner, but even then we always found a place to sit and had great service.  With Luminae the specialty restaurant perks for RS and above becomes a non factor since Luminae is far better than most if not all (for us ALL) of the specialties.  The half bath in the RS is very nice, but we are fine with the 2 entrances to the bath in the CS.  

 

And the balconies on the CS, especially those on the hump, are FAR superior to the one for the RS's because the RS has that gigantic jacuzzi tub that rarely gets used from everything I've read and experienced and takes up half the space on the balcony.

 

So we all have different opinions about what works for us.  I'd rather have that 2K per person in my pocket than spend it on a RS... 

How do you think the CS would work if there are 3 adults? Our second oldest is threatening to join us again in 2021.

It worked out ok in October in a RS. She wouldn't get the beverage package but she has Michael's if she wants anything. She is mid to late 30s.