Differences Between Celebrity and Princess?

[MisterMet]

I would also urge you to search reviews by member Bimmer09.  He did a great comparison review about 5 years ago.  Here is a link to his youtube channel

 

https://www.youtube.com/user/MrPortavogie/videos

[TeeRick]

On 8/17/2021 at 11:17 AM, JamieLogical said:

I sailed Celebrity for the first time in July on the Equinox. I am booked on another solo sailing on the Summit in November, and then my husband and I are booked on a 9-day sailing on the Equinox in January. Over the weekend, we spent time mapping out our cruise plans for the next stretch of cruises and ended up booking the Crown Princess to Alaska in September 2022 and a 15-day Panama Canal cruise on the Emerald Princess over the Holidays for 2022/2023. Having only experienced Celebrity once so far, I was able to identify most of the differences between Celebrity and NCL (the line I had exclusively sailed with prior), but I am hoping people who have sailed both Princess and Celebrity can give me some insights into the differences between the two lines.

@JamieLogical

I have never sailed Princess so I cannot directly answer your question but just offer some Cruise Critic advice. [You are free to stop here and ignore me!].   There are quite often threads started with your question.  Tell be about Celebrity versus (insert other cruise line here).  Lots and lots if you search.  It is a general open question and you will get quite a few answers and opinions and outright feelings.  They will skew toward Celebrity on a Celebrity board.  And in this case skew toward Princess if you ask the same question on the Princess board.  People are trying to be helpful but are guessing at what information you might need. Or they feedback what is important to them.  I have found it more helpful to ask specific questions centered around what is important to you to make a decision between two lines.  At least when I read along in these threads it is helpful to me to get to specifics around my important vs. not so important factors.  Cruising on Celebrity or Princess will be a great experience either way.  Enjoy!😀.

[MisterMet]

read the following by Bimmer09

 

https://boards.cruisecritic.co.uk/topic/2232534-comparing-princess-and-celebrity/page/3/

[Ken the cruiser]

4 hours ago, JamieLogical said:

 

 

I priced out a 15-day Panama Canal cruise on Celebrity (Millennium) and it was twice as much as the Princess sailing we are booked on. Alaska pricing is similar between the two lines, but everyone has told me that we need to do Glacier Bay for our first cruise to Alaska.

 

The likelihood of us ever booking a suite is incredibly low. We would rather sail 3-4 times a year in balcony cabins than once a year in a suite. 

That’s cool. Then I highly recommend booking an aft-facing balcony cabin if at all possible. The views alone leaving ports, going through the PC locks as well as cruising in Alaska will be well worth the few extra bucks in my mind. But, you have to book them early, as folks are starting to realize how amazing they are. 😎

 

[JamieLogical]

4 minutes ago, Ken the cruiser said:

That’s cool. Then I highly recommend booking an aft-facing balcony cabin if at all possible. The views alone leaving ports, going through the PC locks as well as cruising in Alaska will be well worth the few extra bucks in my mind. But, you have to book them early, as folks are starting to realize how amazing they are. 😎

 

 

We did get an aft balcony for our Alaska sailing. For the PC sailing it was too rich for our blood.

[Ken the cruiser]

2 minutes ago, JamieLogical said:

 

We did get an aft balcony for our Alaska sailing. For the PC sailing it was too rich for our blood.

You’re going to have a great time on both cruises and if I were only able to get an aft facing cabin on one of those, I would definitely pick the Alaska cruise as the views are pretty much breathtaking the entire cruise!!

[4774Papa]

1 hour ago, JamieLogical said:

 

We did get an aft balcony for our Alaska sailing. For the PC sailing it was too rich for our blood.

We did Alaska with NCL because they went to Glacier Bay and we  had an aft balcony that was great.  It was especially nice, since the temp outside was chilly and on our aft balcony, there was no chilly breeze.

[Ken the cruiser]

Here's one reason why we would choose Princess over Celebrity if the itineraries are about the same.

 

Today we just had our Celebrity Apr 2022 Japan/TP cruise on the Solstice cancelled by X. So we started looking for an alternative that had a high probability of sailing during the same Apr 2022 time frame and found a Vista Suite on an 18 day Panama Canal cruise on the Caribbean Princess for $6,898 pp (or $383 pp/day). We found a similar Celebrity Panama Canal cruise in a regular veranda cabin, but only for 15 days on the Millennium, for $5,616 with the current 20% discount and refundable deposit (or $374 pp/day). 

 

For us the Princess cruise option was a no brainer, especially when we also get our dual military OBC perk of $500 along with an extra $300 OBC from using our $100 FCDs to book the cruise whereas with the Celebrity cruise it required a $900 deposit. 

 

Don't get me wrong, we enjoy cruising with Celebrity. But when we can get a Vista Suite with all the trimmings for roughly the same price as a regular veranda, how can we pass up that deal! 😎

[NMTraveller]

One thing that I enjoy about sailing on Princess are the better wine selections.

[Hlitner]

The two lines are comparable in many ways with each having their pros and cons.  And the pros/cons can also depend on which ship (or class).   So if comparing only these two lines (because we look at many more lines) then I would put a lot of emphasis on the price and itinerary knowing that we enjoy both lines.

 

I agree with the other poster that one problem with these kind of comparisons is that each cruise line's blog has its own cheerleaders many of whom are not even that familiar with the offerings of the other line.  So when we say the two lines are comparable it is coming from one who is Elite on Princess (for many years) and Elite Plus on Celebrity (for many years).   I would add that my big issue with Celebrity is that their pricing makes me question the value of many of their cruises.

 

Hank

[Momma Rene]

A huge difference is in the suite classifications.  If you are in a Sky Suite or above on Celebrity, the difference is tremendous.  I did the suite category on Princess and the only difference was the room.  With Celebrity, it is the special dining room, private bar/lounge area, and in some ships special places on the decks for suite guests.  

[luv4cruises]

Alaska is best on Princess- have most permits to enter Glacier Bay and the most infrastructure in Alaska! Celebrity never cruises Glacier Bay.

I’ve cruised extensively on 6 cruise lines. 
Celebrity has better veranda state rooms, but terrible closets as compared to Princess. I personally like the food better on Princess-( Blu is limiting but can order from MDR),  Solarium not on Princess, ships are better maintained and upgraded on Celebrity, more pools on Princess,  entertainment good on both- bottom line I enjoy both- but Princess is best for Alaska! 

[Hlitner]

52 minutes ago, Momma Rene said:

A huge difference is in the suite classifications.  If you are in a Sky Suite or above on Celebrity, the difference is tremendous.  I did the suite category on Princess and the only difference was the room.  With Celebrity, it is the special dining room, private bar/lounge area, and in some ships special places on the decks for suite guests.  

I said there are pros and cons to each line and X definitely does a lot more for those in the larger suites.  That being said, one needs to carefully compare the price of a suite on Princess with a comparably sized suite on X.  On the other hand, take a look at the Yacht Club on MSC (the cost of normal size YC Suite is under $400 per passenger day) compared to Princess.  That is why I have long suggested that folks expand their cruise universe to nearly all cruise lines and do value comparisons.  This kind of analysis has led us to book more cruises on the luxury lines (i.e. Seabourn, Silverseas, etc) where the included benefits are in a different universe then on X.

 

Hank

[Arzeena]

On 8/17/2021 at 11:17 AM, JamieLogical said:

I sailed Celebrity for the first time in July on the Equinox. I am booked on another solo sailing on the Summit in November, and then my husband and I are booked on a 9-day sailing on the Equinox in January. Over the weekend, we spent time mapping out our cruise plans for the next stretch of cruises and ended up booking the Crown Princess to Alaska in September 2022 and a 15-day Panama Canal cruise on the Emerald Princess over the Holidays for 2022/2023. Having only experienced Celebrity once so far, I was able to identify most of the differences between Celebrity and NCL (the line I had exclusively sailed with prior), but I am hoping people who have sailed both Princess and Celebrity can give me some insights into the differences between the two lines.

We have sailed them both and we have sailed NCL.

To us Celebrity and Princess are both in their own niche. I cannot say one is more upscale than the other. Princess had a mixed passenger base,  lots of sea day activities, and was more lively. I thoroughly enjoyed Princess because of the cultural enrichment they had. Found Celebrity thoroughly lacking in that aspect. Food was good on both, service excellent on both. Ships....like Celebrity ships better....like the Equinox, Summit and Edge compared to Crown and Ruby....others may differ. If you are trying Princess, go for the newer ships like Enchanted or Sky.

I would say go with the itinerary if you cannot choose between cruise lines.

I hope you have not wiped out NCL completely. I understand you are PO'd with the cancellations...anyone would be. But in my opinion NCL has an excellent product too. Now if they would only get back on track and bring back the longer cruises from NY. 😞"sigh!" I saw the Joy in Aruba and it was one beautiful ship sitting at the dock, lonely and longing for passengers.

[4774Papa]

3 hours ago, Ken the cruiser said:

Here's one reason why we would choose Princess over Celebrity if the itineraries are about the same.

 

Today we just had our Celebrity Apr 2022 Japan/TP cruise on the Solstice cancelled by X. So we started looking for an alternative that had a high probability of sailing during the same Apr 2022 time frame and found a Vista Suite on an 18 day Panama Canal cruise on the Caribbean Princess for $6,898 pp (or $383 pp/day). We found a similar Celebrity Panama Canal cruise in a regular veranda cabin, but only for 15 days on the Millennium, for $5,616 with the current 20% discount and refundable deposit (or $374 pp/day). 

 

For us the Princess cruise option was a no brainer, especially when we also get our dual military OBC perk of $500 along with an extra $300 OBC from using our $100 FCDs to book the cruise whereas with the Celebrity cruise it required a $900 deposit. 

 

Don't get me wrong, we enjoy cruising with Celebrity. But when we can get a Vista Suite with all the trimmings for roughly the same price as a regular veranda, how can we pass up that deal! 😎

I have never booked or cruised on Princess, but now finding their cruise prices more reasonable than Celebrity.  Royal C. is still cheaper, but Princess is more competitive than Celebrity.

[Ken the cruiser]

4 minutes ago, 4774Papa said:

I have never booked or cruised on Princess, but now finding their cruise prices more reasonable than Celebrity.  Royal C. is still cheaper, but Princess is more competitive than Celebrity.

The thing for us with Princess is they have unique 3-5 week cruises with plenty of sea days if you like to book longer non-repetitive cruises.

[4cats4me]

 re, solariums:   Just returned from the Majestic Princess Alaskan Cruise,  and there is a very nice solarium in the front area of the ship, plus a beautiful conservatory area with free cabanas.   

 

 

   

Edited September 16, 2021 by 4cats4me

[NMTraveller]

On the Princess ships I have been on they have real balconies and not the open/close window IV.  Also they have a front facing lounge similar to the Sky Lounge on the S Class ships.  Much better than Celebrity E class IMHO.

[JamieLogical]

11 hours ago, Arzeena said:

I hope you have not wiped out NCL completely. I understand you are PO'd with the cancellations...anyone would be. But in my opinion NCL has an excellent product too. Now if they would only get back on track and bring back the longer cruises from NY. 😞"sigh!" I saw the Joy in Aruba and it was one beautiful ship sitting at the dock, lonely and longing for passengers.

 

I am definitely done with NCL. At least until other cruise lines prove to me their customer service is just as bad. I know other people feel they have been mistreated by the other lines, so if I encounter that myself, then I will certainly reevaluate. But, as things stand, Princess has treated me very well, despite my never having even sailed with them, and Celebrity  has also done right by me. Here's what I mean:

 

We were booked on an Alaska sailing in September 2020. That sailing was obviously canceled. We had only put down a $200 deposit, but they offered to double our deposit on a future cruise. We rebooked for the same week in 2021, I believe that one was supposed to be the Emerald Princess? Anyway, whichever ship it was, it was switched to the Majestic Princess. We were in an aft balcony and they gave us the same room for the same price, despite the Majestic being a newer ship with nicer aft balconies. Ultimately, we decided to cancel that sailing, though, so we could do this last NCL sailing with my parents this month. Princess gave us our $400 credit back on our account and we were able to apply it to our Alaska sailing for September 2022. So, despite us only having ever given Princess $200 a couple of years ago now, they have treated us very well in my opinion.

 

Then we have Celebrity. I am booked on a 5-Day sailing on the Summit in November. The price dropped because of the current 20% off sail. Despite being past final payment, they are giving me 100% of the difference ($348) in OBC. By contrast, I am booked on this B2B on the NCL Breakaway coming up. The price has dropped on the October 3 leg of the B2B by $191 per person. I reached out about getting some sort of compensation. I was informed that usually NCL would give 25% of the difference as OBC, but because that works out to under $50/person in our case, we get nothing. Literally $2.25/person short of their $50 minimum! So for a $348 price drop on Celebrity, I am getting $348 in OBC. For a $382 price drop on NCL, I am getting nothing.

[zitsky]

On 8/17/2021 at 11:17 AM, JamieLogical said:

I sailed Celebrity for the first time in July on the Equinox. I am booked on another solo sailing on the Summit in November, and then my husband and I are booked on a 9-day sailing on the Equinox in January. Over the weekend, we spent time mapping out our cruise plans for the next stretch of cruises and ended up booking the Crown Princess to Alaska in September 2022 and a 15-day Panama Canal cruise on the Emerald Princess over the Holidays for 2022/2023. Having only experienced Celebrity once so far, I was able to identify most of the differences between Celebrity and NCL (the line I had exclusively sailed with prior), but I am hoping people who have sailed both Princess and Celebrity can give me some insights into the differences between the two lines.

 

I hope you'll still post here.  I find your comments interesting. 🙂

 

I have cruised 1x each on NCL, Viking Ocean and Celebrity.  Twice on Viking River.  Our preference is Celebrity mostly because of Blu.

[Arzeena]

38 minutes ago, JamieLogical said:

 

I am definitely done with NCL. At least until other cruise lines prove to me their customer service is just as bad. I know other people feel they have been mistreated by the other lines, so if I encounter that myself, then I will certainly reevaluate. But, as things stand, Princess has treated me very well, despite my never having even sailed with them, and Celebrity  has also done right by me. Here's what I mean:

 

We were booked on an Alaska sailing in September 2020. That sailing was obviously canceled. We had only put down a $200 deposit, but they offered to double our deposit on a future cruise. We rebooked for the same week in 2021, I believe that one was supposed to be the Emerald Princess? Anyway, whichever ship it was, it was switched to the Majestic Princess. We were in an aft balcony and they gave us the same room for the same price, despite the Majestic being a newer ship with nicer aft balconies. Ultimately, we decided to cancel that sailing, though, so we could do this last NCL sailing with my parents this month. Princess gave us our $400 credit back on our account and we were able to apply it to our Alaska sailing for September 2022. So, despite us only having ever given Princess $200 a couple of years ago now, they have treated us very well in my opinion.

 

Then we have Celebrity. I am booked on a 5-Day sailing on the Summit in November. The price dropped because of the current 20% off sail. Despite being past final payment, they are giving me 100% of the difference ($348) in OBC. By contrast, I am booked on this B2B on the NCL Breakaway coming up. The price has dropped on the October 3 leg of the B2B by $191 per person. I reached out about getting some sort of compensation. I was informed that usually NCL would give 25% of the difference as OBC, but because that works out to under $50/person in our case, we get nothing. Literally $2.25/person short of their $50 minimum! So for a $348 price drop on Celebrity, I am getting $348 in OBC. For a $382 price drop on NCL, I am getting nothing.

Totally understand your being done.

Princess has also been "kind" to us with a lot of things. We have booked for Feb 2022 with FCC from a similar sailing that was suspended in 2020 and then again in 2021.  My very first Princess cruise was a RT from LA to Hawaii in 2016. Ruby Princess. I want to do that again someday.

 

[zitsky]

I liked NCL because of the itinerary (South America) and because we were given access to Cagney's, the suite restaurant.  I think because I volunteered to host the CC Meet & Greet meetings.  We did eat in the NCL buffet and I wouldn't do it again.

[D C]

To sum up what I've read:

Celebrity is a nice cruise line

Princess is a nice cruise line

They are not the same cruise line, so there are relatively minor differences between them

 

That's good.  We've been loyal to X since we started cruising ~8 years ago, but we think we're ready to see how green the grass is elsewhere. 

 

 

 

[abbydancer2003]

I've sailed a bunch on both, mostly Princess, but now leaning towards Celebrity.  A previous poster mentioned the closets.  Princess ships have an open closet, which is the width of the room.  Two people can leave their suitcases open on the floor of it if they are so inclined.  On my balcony rooms on Celebrity, it's a bit of a challenge to find space for everything - and there's a closed shelf above the bed, which I don't see how to even use.

 

A friend sent me a comparison he did after his first X cruise.  The only thing he thought was better on Princess was the closet and the bathroom.  However he was comparing a Princess minisuite to a Celebrity balcony.

 

We're mostly doing Celebrity now, because their Sky Suites have so many more perks than a Princess mini suite.  It does cost more though.

 

I'll also mention that the coffee bar on Princess (equivalent to Al Baccio) is open 24 hours on most ships, and has sandwiches and salads during the day, as well as desserts.

 

[upwarduk]

 I hope the. Crown Princess has been refurbished, we sailed on her in 2017 and I found many areas were tired.

We recently booked another cruise and looked at Princess, as we are Platinum via P&O. My husband kept looking at prices, but I favoured CelebrityCruises, as I feel ‘at home’ on Celebrity. Might just be that we sailed on the newly refurbished Silhouette last month.

I also didn’t like the way Princess didn’t refund my OBC. We had a problem with an excursion, as we didn’t go into a port and they didn’t refund the money until late the final evening, so there was no chance to spend it. Celebrity would have refunded the money the evening that the excursion was cancelled. I was told the money would be back on my credit card in 4-6 weeks. It wasn’t. When I rang Princess in Southampton, they said that was for US passengers only, if you are a UK passenger, you have to claim the money!😱