Alternatives to Celebrity

[hubofhockey]

5 hours ago, deliver42 said:

I found Princess pretty comparable to Celebrity at a lower price point.

The reason Princess is at a lower price point is that, at the same prices, more would choose Celebrity.  They all charge as much as the market bears.  To me, Princess took a bad turn about 10 years ago when they ramped down entertainment and took the solid entertainment out of Explorers Lounge.  When that was funded, I loved the Crown and Ruby.  Now, I don’t even consider Princess as an option to Celebrity, but obviously there are many who still love the Princess product.

[hubofhockey]

21 minutes ago, NutsAboutGolf said:

 

He produces good content yet he's too monotone for me to fully pay attention to him.  Jay from TheShipLife is as balanced as you can be.  He's former crew so can share perspectives others can't.  He does reviews and cruise news, he has been accused of being click-baitish but those are his "cruise news" video, not his ship reviews

 

Well, he has that reserved British presence about him.  Jay is good too.  

Edited August 19, 2023 by hubofhockey

[lorimay]

We have done two cruises on Oceania on the two newer ships, Marina and Riviera. One time in a penthouse stateroom and once in a concierge stateroom. The bathroom in the penthouse suite was huge and very luxurious and the stateroom had a walk-in closet. The bathroom in the concierge cabine (the normal size cabin) was more than adequate. Both types of cabin had a bathtub and a separate shower. We have never done a suite on Celebrity, but the cabins beat Celebrity's regular cabins hands down - including on the Edge and Beyond. The food is much better than Celebrity but the entertainment is not. One thing we liked is the lack of class status on Oceania. You get the same service and amenities no matter what type of stateroom you have. 

 

We just booked a cruise on Regent. We got a really good deal on their brand new ship out of Miami for not much more than a cruise on the Beyond or Apex. We went back to Celebrity after Oceania, but the prices on Celebrity have gone up, the quality of the food overall has gone down, the service on Celebrity in the dining rooms has not been great on our last few cruises, and we're tired of being nickled and dimed to death. 

 

One of the reasons we are not happy with Celebrity is that the itineraries that really interest us all seem to be on the older ships. We loved Beyond (event the infinite verandas) and then went on Summit - and while Summit has been upgraded, it just feels old. I will not ever go on Infinity again. We like the S class, but when I am paying that much money for a cruise I want new and fresh. That's a very personal thing but important to me.

[rmalbers]

On 8/16/2023 at 2:43 PM, Poconolady said:

Does anyone have any personal experience with Viking Ocean cruises? I’m about ready to jump ship from Celebrity.

I'm going on a VO cruise in 10 days. I did a Viking Exp ship cruise in the Great Lakes a year ago, it was great.  It was more like being on a large yacht than a cruise ship.  Nice public space everywhere and no crowds anywhere. The only downside is cost and less entertainment.   Maybe I should add, my X cruise this winter was after the changes started and at this point it will probably be a while before I do that again. 

Edited August 19, 2023 by rmalbers

[Ex-Airbalancer]

As long as the wc are clean , flush and have to , I really don’t care about the size 🤣

We had a hotel room in Copenhagen last year and every cruise ship I have been has been larger and talk about a same wc 😱

[bnurick]

Found Generation X review of MSC.

 

 

[boykin]

 We are also in the same situation.  We just celebrated our 60th by cruising the Greek Isles on Reflection.  We always book aqua class for dining in the Blu. While on the cruise we were thinking about booking the Baltics for next year but the prices for Aqua were outrageous.  Thanks everyone for recommendations and opinions.

[hawkesbaynz]

The R-class bathrooms on Oceania are pretty small but did not worry me (15 stone & 6’3”). However there were quite a few elderly overweight people on the cruise who did not look able to getting in the shower cubicle. I believe they used the showers in the gym. Wardrobes were tight too.
 

The officers are totally inconspicuous on Oceania. They deck staff could be transporting cargo or premium class passengers. Rarely a smile. Do it safely though. No Captain Kates on O. 

 

Oceania did reduce our port times in South America. Some said it was to reduce port fees and to be able to sail slower and more economically between ports. Also O does not refund missed ports taxes.

 

I would sail O again though. If the price and itinerary was right. 

 

I listen to Bembridges podcasts whilst walking the dog. A fair amount of repetition but good advice. 

[PROCRUISE]

On 8/16/2023 at 2:18 PM, erniesband said:

We're the same as you. We've found Holland America Line to be a good alternative to X. Cruised to Alaska twice with them and are doing a Med cruise next year. They do have some different itineraries from X. The food was good, on par or in some cases better than X. We do balcony cabins and so far they have been equal. HAL doesn't do production shows but has good music venues like BB King's. They also have better lectures and enrichment programs.

Agree. We very much like the HAL Pinnacle Class of ships. We purchase Orange Club, only on these three vessels, because of the wonderful private dining area on these three vessels plus priority boarding and separate guest services line.

[Loracpin2]

On 8/16/2023 at 3:28 PM, bikerunner said:

After I finish up my 2 maybe one Celebrity cruises early next year I already have booked out Oceana and Azamara as I am done with Celebrity.  I have done NCL, Princess in the past and did not care much for them overall.   I did like startup going on cruises as others pointed out they where empty overall, or around 1/2.  Figure with Azamara Ill be good with a full ship of 700ppl.  I like the option of the itinerary's that are givein with the overnights etc.  

Oceania for us as well!!!!!!

[Islander500]

4 hours ago, rmalbers said:

I'm going on a VO cruise in 10 days. I did a Viking Exp ship cruise in the Great Lakes a year ago, it was great.  It was more like being on a large yacht than a cruise ship.  Nice public space everywhere and no crowds anywhere. The only downside is cost and less entertainment.   Maybe I should add, my X cruise this winter was after the changes started and at this point it will probably be a while before I do that again. 

Looked at the Great Lakes cruise last night. Which one did you do? Love to hear more.  

[lexmiller]

On 8/17/2023 at 9:18 AM, TeeRick said:

We are in the same boat (no pun intended!).  After years of cruising Celebrity in all categories, but recently mostly suites, our last one was a CS on Equinox in January.  No more suites booked on Celebrity.  I never thought I would say this.  But thanks Celebrity for opening my eyes (finally).  We are waiting to see what they do to the product (additional downgrades) before we book a suite with them again.  

So we are booking Silversea and also considering the MSC YC suites after comments here seem to be positive.  Perhaps a suite on a new ship on HAL - we will try Alaska.

Regarding Silversea......since it is a part of the Royal Caribbean brand, I wish we could earn Captain Club points on them, the way we used to earn CC points on Azamara - not just reciprocity, not interested in that, but EARN points on Silversea the way we used to earn points sailing Azamara.  Royal sold Azamara and bought Silversea, trading one luxury holding for another......I am sorry we can't earn, it would help encourage brand loyalty, though I guess that isn't an important factor any more.  

[TeeRick]

46 minutes ago, lexmiller said:

Regarding Silversea......since it is a part of the Royal Caribbean brand, I wish we could earn Captain Club points on them, the way we used to earn CC points on Azamara - not just reciprocity, not interested in that, but EARN points on Silversea the way we used to earn points sailing Azamara.  Royal sold Azamara and bought Silversea, trading one luxury holding for another......I am sorry we can't earn, it would help encourage brand loyalty, though I guess that isn't an important factor any more.  

I think that RCG is keeping Silversea pretty separate for now.  Hopefully that will not change IMO.  

[lexmiller]

8 minutes ago, TeeRick said:

I think that RCG is keeping Silversea pretty separate for now.  Hopefully that will not change IMO.  

Yes, but to earn CC points, the way we did on Azamara - not a stretch of a request here

[tfred]

46 minutes ago, lexmiller said:

Yes, but to earn CC points, the way we did on Azamara - not a stretch of a request here

All that would do is poach X suite customers who may not come back 

[Ken the cruiser]

On 8/19/2023 at 2:03 PM, hubofhockey said:

The reason Princess is at a lower price point is that, at the same prices, more would choose Celebrity.  They all charge as much as the market bears.  To me, Princess took a bad turn about 10 years ago when they ramped down entertainment and took the solid entertainment out of Explorers Lounge.  When that was funded, I loved the Crown and Ruby.  Now, I don’t even consider Princess as an option to Celebrity, but obviously there are many who still love the Princess product.

That’s interesting as we’re only recent converts to Princess. When cruising first started back up in 2021, we pretty much cruised exclusively with Celebrity on our first 9 cruises in SV, AQ, and SS cabins. Now we have 11 Princess cruises booked in mostly aft-facing Vista Suites on 3-5 week itineraries averaging between $250 - $350 pp/day (net) with their Plus Package with only one Galapagos cruise booked with Celebrity. Heck, we even have 5 NCL cruises booked in either Club Balcony or aft-facing Balcony cabins because of their unique itinerary offerings.

 

As far as entertainment goes, they have quality production and guest entertainer shows every night in the main theater, and the CD and the 5-6 assistants host hilarious game shows every night as well as numerous trivias every sea day in the Explorers Lounge (or Princess Live depending on the ship). 
 

But the main reason we’re not booking many cruises anymore with Celebrity is because of their lack of unique itineraries, to include B2Bs, along with their ridiculously over priced refundable deposit fares.

[hubofhockey]

14 minutes ago, Ken the cruiser said:

That’s interesting as we’re only recent converts to Princess. When cruising first started back up in 2021, we pretty much cruised exclusively with Celebrity on our first 9 cruises in SV, AQ, and SS cabins. Now we have 11 Princess cruises booked in mostly aft-facing Vista Suites on 3-5 week itineraries averaging between $250 - $350 pp/day (net) with their Plus Package with only one Galapagos cruise booked with Celebrity. Heck, we even have 5 NCL cruises booked in either Club Balcony or aft-facing Balcony cabins because of their unique itinerary offerings.

 

As far as entertainment goes, they have quality production and guest entertainer shows every night in the main theater, and the CD and the 5-6 assistants host hilarious game shows every night as well as numerous trivias every sea day in the Explorers Lounge (or Princess Live depending on the ship). 
 

But the main reason we’re not booking many cruises anymore with Celebrity is because of their lack of unique itineraries, to include B2Bs, along with their ridiculously over priced refundable deposit fares.

There was a time when Explorers Lounge was used for live bands, music, etc.  It was fun until Princess decided on cutting corners.  In any case, everyone has a sweet spot and you found yours.  

[JackE]

On 8/17/2023 at 6:40 PM, Ex-Airbalancer said:

🤔

the only children I see on our Celebrity cruise are at the Martini Bar 🤣

on the last cruise there was a utuber a guy , captain fun , he was the most childish person on the cruise 

There were 500 children on our cruise that just ended on Saturday on the Edge in the Med. Looking forward to a VV cruise in March! 😝

[Ex-Airbalancer]

46 minutes ago, JackE said:

There were 500 children on our cruise that just ended on Saturday on the Edge in the Med. Looking forward to a VV cruise in March! 😝

That is silly to go this time of the year 🤣

Travel May , early June , late September, October and November, cruises longer than 7 days , very few kids 😁

[lexmiller]

7 hours ago, lexmiller said:

Regarding Silversea......since it is a part of the Royal Caribbean brand, I wish we could earn Captain Club points on them, the way we used to earn CC points on Azamara - not just reciprocity, not interested in that, but EARN points on Silversea the way we used to earn points sailing Azamara.  Royal sold Azamara and bought Silversea, trading one luxury holding for another......I am sorry we can't earn, it would help encourage brand loyalty, though I guess that isn't an important factor any more.  

 

6 hours ago, tfred said:

All that would do is poach X suite customers who may not come back 

But the customers would still remain within the "family", not being poached away at all.  If we could earn Captain's Club points on Silversea, it would keep more people within the Royal Caribbean family - the money stays with the company.  We could earn on Azamara, we should be able to earn on Silversea.  Many are disturbed with the changes with Celebrity and are looking to jump ship to Regent, Oceania, etc - to luxury lines as most of us agree that Celebrity was the top of it's category so the only place to go is up.  If we could earn Captain Club points with Silversea, then the disgruntled Celebrity cruisers would have a reason to stay within the Royal Caribbean family.  Win:Win - corporation is happy, passengers are happy.  

[JackE]

14 hours ago, Ex-Airbalancer said:

That is silly to go this time of the year 🤣

Travel May , early June , late September, October and November, cruises longer than 7 days , very few kids 😁

We are not retired and so vacation times are still limited. But we have learned our lesson.

[hubofhockey]

13 hours ago, lexmiller said:

 

But the customers would still remain within the "family", not being poached away at all.  If we could earn Captain's Club points on Silversea, it would keep more people within the Royal Caribbean family - the money stays with the company.  We could earn on Azamara, we should be able to earn on Silversea.  Many are disturbed with the changes with Celebrity and are looking to jump ship to Regent, Oceania, etc - to luxury lines as most of us agree that Celebrity was the top of it's category so the only place to go is up.  If we could earn Captain Club points with Silversea, then the disgruntled Celebrity cruisers would have a reason to stay within the Royal Caribbean family.  Win:Win - corporation is happy, passengers are happy.  

If loyalty points and tiers were the only things keeping you from doing cruises on more premium lines, then "jump ship" as you call it.  I chose Azamara over Viking for Panama Canal (similar itinerary) only because the price difference was $2,000 over 10 days.  If pricing were more similar, I'd go Viking even with status on Azamara (which you probably get from your X cruises). 

[tfred]

13 hours ago, lexmiller said:

 

But the customers would still remain within the "family", not being poached away at all.  If we could earn Captain's Club points on Silversea, it would keep more people within the Royal Caribbean family - the money stays with the company.  We could earn on Azamara, we should be able to earn on Silversea.  Many are disturbed with the changes with Celebrity and are looking to jump ship to Regent, Oceania, etc - to luxury lines as most of us agree that Celebrity was the top of it's category so the only place to go is up.  If we could earn Captain Club points with Silversea, then the disgruntled Celebrity cruisers would have a reason to stay within the Royal Caribbean family.  Win:Win - corporation is happy, passengers are happy.  

I don't disagree with you of channeling X pax (especially suites) to SSea. I asked the same question to a SSea phone rep.  They would like to offer something s a 'welcome" gift but no go from management. 

 

issues include offering X pax something/anything and having SSea loyalists without that same or similiar offer.  That would include OBC or Venetian Points (their program)

 

Not a direct comparison but the Carnival empire doesnt any reciprocity among its lines

 

I am a high level Marriott lifetime member and Ritz Carlton would barely recognize me for extras.  

[Jeremiah1212]

If you're jumping ship from Celebrity to higher end lines, even Silversea, additional CC points don't make much sense. If you're high in the loyalty ranks or cruising Celebrity suites at a Silversea price point, there isn't much to offer. Azamara was a bit of an anomaly. You don't earn CC points by sailing Royal Caribbean or vice versa. The Silversea loyalty program is very different since the currency is nights cruised not points and you're really only achieving a discount or a free cruise after you achieve certain nights cruised milestones. 

[basenji56]

8 minutes ago, hubofhockey said:

If loyalty points and tiers were the only things keeping you from doing cruises on more premium lines, then "jump ship" as you call it.  I chose Azamara over Viking for Panama Canal (similar itinerary) only because the price difference was $2,000 over 10 days.  If pricing were more similar, I'd go Viking even with status on Azamara (which you probably get from your X cruises). 

And the last time I checked, Viking doesn't really offer any loyalty program of note.