Seriously now-how many of you are REALLY looking at other cruise lines because of the CEO's changes going on?

[RichYak]

5 hours ago, lifeisrealygood said:

we are not gourmet eaters, and the food is just fine...Celebrity is just not that bad. 

Just an observation: I find this to be a common refrain on this board from those who continue to feel that Celebrity is not that bad.

[prim8keeper]

We started cruising X in 2011 in our late 20’s, sailing a few times a year. For the most part we have always been happy with what X delivered, even if it was inconsistent at times. The value was at least still there and we were huge fans of the all inclusive model as it made vacation planning that much easier. However, as everyone else has pointed out, rising prices and reduced service is not what I am looking for in a vacation. Especially when you look at what they want for suites now.

 

The constant barrage of changes lead us to book with Windstar for 2025 in addition to looking at other lines. Earlier this year on Beyond was the first time we ever hesitated to book another cruise on board. Our upcoming Edge cruise to New Zealand will likely now be our last. We have even considered canceling that, but having booked it back in 2021 there is no way we could book something else at a similar rate. I would love to be pleasantly surprised, but we are now going in with drastically different expectations than we normally would. We have one final X cruise out there, but we are willing to take the $200 hit on it and just cut our losses.

[Meekos7]

I am widening my search for future cruises.Food is important to me and my husband and the little touches that had made Celebrity special is also too. I understand paying more to cruise Celebrity but paying more and at the same time downgrading the menus and other amenities is unacceptable at least to me. I may not be able to cruise 4 times a year as I do now but 2 or 3 times at a more upscale cruise line will probably be my new norm.

[Keys Kathy]

We have a Feb 3rd, 2025 on the Beyond with friends and April 6, 2025 on Ascent with friends. Other than our friends, we wouldn't be there.

 

We were on the Millie in Feb and experienced the S**t show in the Buffet in the evening. We ended up there because we had to wait well over an hour to get a Select Table WITH a reservation. By the time they paged us, we had finished eating from the much-reduced buffet. I would get a stir fry, Hubby would get pasta and our friends would get sandwiches. NOT premium food by any means.

 

I just booked another Yacht Club this morning for Feb '24. 

 

It is a shame, I would have liked to experience an X Suite on Ascent, where I understand they finally got the ship in a ship right. The Apex had Lumenia on deck 12 on the side. The dining room was very noisy, not like on the other class ships. 

 

Who knows! Maybe we'll hit the Lottery!

 

The worst thing is, Celebrity just doesn't seem to care. They keep jacking up prices and reducing what they deliver.

Edited September 7, 2023 by Keys Kathy
added

[cruisemom42]

2 hours ago, Cruise till you drop said:

For the class we book, there is no way lines like Azamara are the same as Celebrity

 

Not necessarily true. Azamara has some great sales from time to time. I am also a "schlub" who is doubly cursed by the solo supplement. I have a BTB cruise on Azamara in the Med planned in October for less than I paid for a BTB (same # of days) on Celebrity Constellation last year.  When the prices first came out I booked only the first one, but a substantial price drop/sale a few months later decreased the price by so much that I was able to book the following cruise (which was also reduced) and STILL get $800 OBC! 

 

I could've used some of that to upgrade my cabin category instead, but I don't give a $%&# about what kind of cabin I'm in, truthfully. I cruise for other reasons. 

 

Speaking of other reasons, I just completed my first Oceania cruise (wrote a review on that board including a few comparisons with HAL and Celebrity), and the food was great. I like that O doesn't have a "class system" like X has introduced. There is no kow-towing to anyone sailing in a suite, no private DR, etc.  Oceania also has good sales from time to time but you have to work at it. Even if it's somewhat more, the experience bears out the extra cost, IMO. However, their rates are still generally higher than Azamara.

 

 

 

[Traveling Fools]

15 hours ago, BOB999 said:

While the plurality of my cruises have been on Celebrity, I don't view myself as particularly loyal to one cruise line over another.

 

I book cruises based on a combination of timing, itinerary, length, cruise line offering and price.  Sometimes that is Celebrity,  sometimes another cruise line.

 

 

While we have a tendency to favor X and NCL, we share this same philosophy.

 

 

[Ex-Airbalancer]

1 hour ago, zitsky said:

For what type of cabin?

Balcony 

[keysey222]

I'm keeping my remaining Celebrity 2023 and 2024 bookings because I like the itineraries. I cruise based on itinerary, not the ship. If I'm not satisfied, I won't continue with Celebrity after these. Celebrity cruises are getting quite expensive for what we're getting and I'm not seeing the value right now. I booked all my 2025 cruises with HAL. Normally, I'd wait to see what Celebrity had to offer for 2025, but I didn't see the need. HAL had some very enticing itineraries checking off parts of the world that I'm wanting to visit. I'll miss the Retreat deck, but honestly the aft decks on HAL ships are pretty darn empty most of the time so it won't be too much of a miss. Time will tell if we return in 2026. HAL has its own issues, but they are cheaper than Celebrity and sailing to places I want to explore. I'll take it.

Edited September 7, 2023 by keysey222
added text

[deliver42]

Keys Kathy, you hit the nail right on the head with your last sentence. Celebrity  just doesn't seem to care. Just raise the prices and give less for the money. What a shame for a great cruise line.

[marieps]

We'll be on the Silhouette TA in 6 weeks.  We expected a butler in our Sunset SS but will not be getting one.  Our next ocean cruises are on Ponant, Oceania and Regent.  We would consider =X= again, but probably only for the ABC islands.   

[Cruise Junky]

2 hours ago, Cruise till you drop said:

I think I’m now understanding where we’re going off the rails.  I think most that say lines like Azaramara are the same including price are ones that are booking the more expensive accommodations.  If you’re getting equal value on all these premium lines, the power be with you.
 

I’m speaking for the poor shlubs that book regular balconies and IV’s.  I did a Azamara Onward mock booking on a similar itinerary we booked on Celebrity and it came out to almost double on what we paid on Celebrity.

 

For the class we book, there is no way lines like Azamara are the same as Celebrity

I only have balconies booked on Solstice and Azamara. My Solstice cruise is 17 days and my Azamara is 18 days. Paying $1,000 more total for Azamara.  If I’d have picked a refundable deposit on Celebrity, the cost would have been more than Azamara by about $800. 

[cachouonacruise]

10 hours ago, RichYak said:

 

Cruises have almost doubled in price and service and quality has diminished. What exactly perplexes you?

In aswer to your Question, life has definitely changed significantly since 2020, Covid, high inflation period, war, etc.

 

As a result, for my next cruise, my flights in addition to be twice the price I had budgeted, were cancelled twice by the airline, months ahead of time... and was left to find other alternatives. 

 

Hotel and excursions are 1,5 to 2 times more expensive than what I used to pay.

 

At the grocery store, I am hit by a double whammy: prices have gone up and  quantities of each item has been reduced!!!

 

Restaurants at home: price have gone up significantly, while service ....has been less and less stellar... 

 

In that context, I am perplexed about two elements regarding Celebrity:

 

Is Celebrity performing better, the same or more poorly than other organizations mentioned above???

 

Is the resulting product offered by Celebrity still an enjoyable vacation experience or is it sooo bad, that I have to change my future vacation plans?

 

Our upcoming cruise on Edge in February 2024, will be the determining factor, I guess! 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Cruise till you drop]

1 hour ago, RichYak said:

This thread is chock full of people leaving Celebrity for all sorts of lines, not just premium ones like Azamara. Princess, HAL, VV, etc., have been mentioned numerous times.

Sooooo…..

 

 

 

By the way, most of the switches have seemed to come with a twist, either people are Retreat/Suite guests, or are solo travelers, or are taking a lesser room.  But straight up comparisons, Azamara is way more expensive than Celebrity for a normal room with a similar itinerary.  
 

But if people want to travel on an inside cabin on another line to pay less and change cruise lines, who am I to dispute.

 

I’ll stay with my cabin on Celebrity thank you 

Edited September 7, 2023 by Cruise till you drop

[Stumptowngal]

7 hours ago, lifeisrealygood said:

Here's my two cents.  My wife and I are in our mid-seventies, and have been cruising for maybe 25 years.  Over the years, we have sailed Regent, Disney, Princess, Royal, Holland America, Tauck & Celebrity.  .  We have not sailed Carnival or Norwegian, or any of the luxury lines except Regent. 

We have been on maybe 60 or so cruises, but 45 have been on Celebrity, which quickly became our go-to cruise line.  Remember the Celebrity Century, that was our first Celebrity cruise back in the 1990's. 

     We have grown to love Celebrity, as we are not theme park cruisers.  We do not need water slides, bumper cars, laser tag, etc.  But, we do love Disney.  As our family grew, starting in 1972, we took our summer vacations to Walt Disney World every year for 24 years.  We started back in the E-ticket days (remember), and grew with Disney as they added park after park over the years.  

     So, we have cruised the world with Celebrity, and have exhausted our bucket list of places to visit on a cruise ship. So now, although we still do the sightseeing in Europe or the catamarans in the Caribbean, shore excursions are no longer our main reason for cruising.  We just love the ship itself and its activities.  We love the nightly entertainment in the Theatre, and all of the music around the ship.  As we grew up in the rock & roll era of the fifties and sixties, we still love to dance, and still enjoy dancing, whether it be in the Grand Foyer, Sky Lounge, Eden, the Club, wherever.  In the Caribbean, we're not using our minds much, and love just laying around the pool with a cocktail in hand.

So, we still like Celebrity, and will continue cruising with them.  I realize that is a different opinion than is being shared here.  We are not happy with a lot of what is going on, but "it is what it is".  All lines are making changes to help with their bottom line, and I get that.  And, no, I am not a fan of the new President of Celebrity.  We really liked the 14 day cruises of the past, but over the years those have been reduced to 12 nights, and now 10 nights seems to be the norm for a longer cruise.  We have noticed that the quality of food has gone way down for dinner, and that is a little problem, but we are not gourmet eaters, and the food is just fine. We still think the buffet has excellent breakfast and lunch choices and the quality is still okay.  Cruising has gotten a lot more expensive, but we'll still travel, and maybe the kids get a little less later.  We are not Suite people, which is what Celebrity is pushing these days, so all the comments about losing a butler is no issue for us.  We always stay mid-ship, prime concierge class cabin.  The canapes received every day are horrible, have been bad for a lot of years.  So we realize they have gone from bad to inedible, but we never got them anyway.  We go to Cafe El Bacio or the Oceanview Cafe for our afternoon treats.  Also the bottle of sparkling wine they give you for concierge class is terrible. Has always been terrible.  We just tell the cabin attendant to keep it.  We like the concierge class larger cotton towels and robes.   We like the free internet and laundry (Elite Plus perks).  We know our way around the ships, so we do not need anyone to be at our beckon call to help us.  We make our dinner reservations and shore excursions ourselves pre-cruise, and enjoy the Premium drink package.  And, yes, as wine drinkers, even the premium package has some pretty weak varieties.             

     So., Celebrity has clean and well appointed ships, have just the proper amount of guests, have a lot to do every day and evening, just no amusement park stuff.  We like that there are no announcements made over the loud speaker, except for the Captain each day at 9:45 A.M.  Music around the ship is plentiful, whether it be the house band, party band, orchestra, guitar player, string quartet, much variety.  Lots of bars to frequent, some louder than others, but also some quiet places like the Ensemble Lounge.  The ships are not crowded, no lines anywhere, service remains exceptional.  Food is okay, casino is non-smoking, table games in the casino are always available, Although there seems to be a lot of cutbacks, they really do not effect our cruising style much.  But, for many posters on here, these changes are considered bad enough for them to abandon Celebrity.  Just be careful what you wish for. Celebrity still meets our needs, at least for the stuff we like to do on a cruise.

      So, Celebrity, we are here to stay, at least for now.  We treat Celebrity Cruises like a four or five star hotel, with nice accommodations, daily food, daily entertainment, and great service.  While on Regent, for example, a much smaller ship, we were hounded constantly for "what can we help you with", and everyone had to tell you their life stories. The food was excellent, but there was not the same level of entertainment and activities that Celebrity provides.  We just like the bigger Celebrity ships where we still get the good service and atmosphere, but can be left alone to do our own thing.  So, the luxury cruise lines are not our cup of tea.  Just our opinion.  The luxury lines are just too small for us.  

Wow!!! That's a lot of words.  But, I wanted to dispel so much negativity on this forum.  Celebrity is just not that bad. 

Our story reads so similar to yours. We are in our early 70s but have not cruised quite as often as you. We also experienced our first Celebrity cruise on the Celebrity Century in the late 1990s.  What a different world of cruising it was back then. The Celebrity ship size, atmosphere and service has always suited us.  Our last cruise was just before everything shut down in 2020.  Now we are looking forward to cruising on the Ascent next February. Since we love a true balcony, we splurged and booked a sky suite for the first time back before the pricing became so insanely high. That’s why we’ve also booked a sunset veranda on the Ascent for 2025. If the MDR cuisine doesn’t suit us, we can easily afford some evenings at specialty restaurants for the price difference. And like you, we find the wine selection somewhat limiting and will bring on board a couple of our favorites. We can be quite happy sipping our wine on our balcony, watching the sunset and listening to the ocean waves. 

[Saturngrl]

We are Elite with Celebrity and loved the perks that came with that level, plus Concierge, on our February 2023 Reflection cruise.  I miss the welcome glass of bubbly when boarding the ship and was frustrated with the cumbersome, slow process for seating guests in the MDR.  Many shared my frustration with that process, often waiting over an hour to be seated for dinner (9:30 p.m.).  

 

Celebrity still has cloth towels in the public restrooms.  They still have a more mature, better-behaved passenger contingent.  Little cuts to some offerings in the MDR and buffet, but not so much to keep us from sailing again.  We booked our upcoming Reflection cruise on board, so the pricing was much better than currently listed. 

 

I wonder if the new President and her senior leadership have actually sailed on Celebrity since taking the helm.  Gemba (where the work is done) walks are crucial to Lean leadership.  Lean is focused on eliminating waste, not eliminating staff.   The savings will result accordingly. 

[doghog]

45 minutes ago, deliver42 said:

Keys Kathy, you hit the nail right on the head with your last sentence. Celebrity  just doesn't seem to care. Just raise the prices and give less for the money. What a shame for a great cruise line.

And I've read the same comment(s) on the RC and Princess CC boards. 

[Cruise till you drop]

4 minutes ago, Saturngrl said:

We are Elite with Celebrity and loved the perks that came with that level, plus Concierge, on our February 2023 Reflection cruise.  I miss the welcome glass of bubbly when boarding the ship and was frustrated with the cumbersome, slow process for seating guests in the MDR.  Many shared my frustration with that process, often waiting over an hour to be seated for dinner (9:30 p.m.).  

 

Celebrity still has cloth towels in the public restrooms.  They still have a more mature, better-behaved passenger contingent.  Little cuts to some offerings in the MDR and buffet, but not so much to keep us from sailing again.  We booked our upcoming Reflection cruise on board, so the pricing was much better than currently listed. 

 

I wonder if the new President and her senior leadership have actually sailed on Celebrity since taking the helm.  Gemba (where the work is done) walks are crucial to Lean leadership.  Lean is focused on eliminating waste, not eliminating staff.   The savings will result accordingly. 

Excellent take as well as impressive use of the word Gemba.  
 

Seeing is believing and understanding when it comes to running a company no matter what level you are.

 

Great job

Edited September 7, 2023 by Cruise till you drop

[RichYak]

8 minutes ago, Cruise till you drop said:

But straight up comparisons, Azamara is way more expensive than Celebrity for a normal room with a similar itinerary.  

Who in this thread made that comparison and found otherwise? I don't even understand the point you're trying to make or refute. "Shlubs" as you referred to them, aren't leaving for Azamara et al, they're leaving for the other mainstream lines.

 

The clear takeaway from this thread is that everyone is looking for better value and experience.

[Cruise till you drop]

Just now, RichYak said:

Who in this thread made that comparison and found otherwise? I don't even understand the point you're trying to make or refute. "Shlubs" as you referred to them, aren't leaving for Azamara et al, they're leaving for the other mainstream lines.

 

The clear takeaway from this thread is that everyone is looking for better value and experience.

Which brings me back to my much earlier comment that the “grass always looks greener” in most of these cases

[Gracie115]

3 minutes ago, Cruise till you drop said:

Which brings me back to my much earlier comment that the “grass always looks greener” in most of these cases

 

And in this case, at least for us....it is indeed greener....... as in there is more "Green" in my pocket by NOT booking with Celebrity.  

 

We have cruised Princess 5 times, including once post pandemic.......  had a great time and spent far less money..... much greener.

Edited September 7, 2023 by Gracie115

[RichYak]

12 hours ago, Cruise till you drop said:

...my point 

 

These lines (Azamara, Oceania, Regent) aren’t the same and people aren’t moving on because they’re dissatisfied with Celebrity, they’re moving on to move up to a different class.

This is your point that I'm disagreeing with.

 

People are moving on because they ARE dissatisfied with Celebrity, and not just to Azamara, Oceania, Regent, but mainstreams as well. If you can't see that after 6 pages of this thread and countless other threads on the subject, it's no longer worth discussing with you.

[Cruise Junky]

24 minutes ago, Cruise till you drop said:

Sooooo…..

 

 

 

By the way, most of the switches have seemed to come with a twist, either people are Retreat/Suite guests, or are solo travelers, or are taking a lesser room.  But straight up comparisons, Azamara is way more expensive than Celebrity for a normal room with a similar itinerary.  
 

But if people want to travel on an inside cabin on another line to pay less and change cruise lines, who am I to dispute.

 

I’ll stay with my cabin on Celebrity thank you 

Did you totally ignore my post above as it didn’t fit your narrative?  

[Stumptowngal]

Just now, Cruise till you drop said:

Which brings me back to my much earlier comment that the “grass always looks greener” in most of these cases

As a side note, I was perusing the Oceania forum the other night to get a feel for it.  While many people love the product, I was surprised at the not infrequent comments by regular Oceania cruisers lamenting changes and feeling the need to search elsewhere for future cruising. It seems no cruise line is impervious to needing to improve their bottom line. In response, cruisers either learn to adapt to the changes or spend more to get what’s important to them or spend less by trying other cruise lines that they believe will offer them what they are accustomed to at a lesser price. At least there are numerous choices . . . but the cruising world certainly is evolving. 

[Cruise till you drop]

Me thinks you’re all missing my point but ultimately, it’s totally your decision.

 

But I’m getting mixed signals from the thread on what is really the problem.  Sometimes it’s  dissatisfaction with Celebrity on reduced perks (which they’re all doing), sometimes it’s about increasing prices (which they’re all doing), sometimes it’s just about booking a cheaper fare with another line (which many people do), sometimes it’s to switch to a more smaller and luxurious ship (which some do).

 

I guess I’m chalking up this thread to alternatives to Celebrity and complaints about the cut backs which are all older threads that have been done to the max.

 

 

Edited September 7, 2023 by Cruise till you drop

[wineoclock]

I’ve just looked at my upcoming sailing on Beyond. SS are selling well, but there is a suite guarantee (which is what we have booked) so not sure if move up or actual sales. A few Aqua SS left.

 

A lot of people don’t frequent these boards as pp said so will only find out about reduced butler service on board.