Celebrity scoring

[killaypirate]

It seems that everything Celebrity are doing at the moment is like a soccer team scoring one own goal after another to give the opposition a 3 goal lead.

[lv2cruisgrl]

Well people have 2 options.  Cruise with them and if there are things you dislike then be sure to fill out the survey after your cruise.  Or jump ship to another line.

[kywildcatfanone]

Seems like the majority of complaints are either food related, which is highly subjective, or just pricing in general (cruise fare, packages, nickel and diming, $1 veggies, etc).  Some of that you can avoid if it bothers you.  I know I do.

 

I like reading opinions and reviews and comments, but I also take some of it with a grain of salt. I think the days of mainstream cruise lines being considered a "luxury" experience are well over and people need to recognize that has happened. 

[bikerunner]

9 minutes ago, kywildcatfanone said:

Seems like the majority of complaints are either food related, which is highly subjective, or just pricing in general (cruise fare, packages, nickel and diming, $1 veggies, etc).  Some of that you can avoid if it bothers you.  I know I do.

 

I like reading opinions and reviews and comments, but I also take some of it with a grain of salt. I think the days of mainstream cruise lines being considered a "luxury" experience are well over and people need to recognize that has happened. 

Correct, its not luxury anymore, I have moved on to Azamara and Oceana at this point after I finish up my next 2 cruises.  

 

[killaypirate]

Personally we're moving back to Azamara

 

[deliver42]

My mother told me about 70 years ago, that the grass is always greener on the other side. I've seen many reviews on Azamara, Oceania, etc, and haven't been wowed by any of them  I think I'll stick with celebrity, mostly knowing what to expect, as opposed to spending thousands and not living up to expectations.

[miched]

1 hour ago, deliver42 said:

My mother told me about 70 years ago, that the grass is always greener on the other side. I've seen many reviews on Azamara, Oceania, etc, and haven't been wowed by any of them  I think I'll stick with celebrity, mostly knowing what to expect, as opposed to spending thousands and not living up to expectations.

Not a X cheerleader but I was told that the grass may look  greener on the other side but you still have to mow the lawn.  😱🤗.   We see deals on other cruise lines but as you wrote we mostly know what to expect with X.    I don’t feel like throwing my money and time for a pig In the poke. 

 

Even writing  that that you can also count me as one of the potential defectors.   I have booked a few short cruises on MSC in the Yacht  Club.  They are now side by side with the X cruises.  We will be in the area and the price was right  to test the waters.    We still have 9 cruises booked with X in suites but depending on our next few cruises we may cancel and forfeit our $200/cruise deposits on the rest of them when final payment is due.  
 

We will form our own opinion first hand.  

 

Happy cruising 🌊🚢🇺🇸🌅

[deliver42]

I've been on MSC 3 times, two in the YC. The YC is fantastic. They service is over the top, the food is very good. The suites are smaller than X for the most part, but comfortable. My only problem with MSC is when you leave the YC, be prepared to be on Carnival. Same atmosphere and more crowded. The specialty restaurants, though pricy, are very good. Enjoy your cruise with MSC.

[Mark_K]

18 hours ago, killaypirate said:

It seems that everything Celebrity are doing at the moment is like a soccer team scoring one own goal after another to give the opposition a 3 goal lead.

It may look like it now, but they haven’t completed the VAR. 

[CruseKrazy]

Oceania for us next time.

[NMTraveller]

It is looking like Oceania for us.

 

When you add in all of the nickel and dimes fees, Oceania is a better fit for us.

 

Add in room service charges,  specialty dining, etc., etc.

[chemmo]

Celebrity changes aside I think we are all just being a bit more ‘canny’ with our cash and making sure our vacations (cruises or otherwise) meet our expectations…

 

We all had an enforced break from cruising owing to the pandemic and it did make us value our leisure time more and our opportunities to cruise…The reverse side of the coin was we expected to return to a world unchanged and it isn’t….

 

I think the wise amongst us will go with the flow…we will do our research, read reviews, reflect on what we want out of a vacation and book accordingly….We will make no wild statements of sticking or moving from Celebrity we will in the next year or two perhaps book a few new adventures but perhaps with our eyes more wide open than in the past…

[Lastdance]

1 hour ago, chemmo said:

Celebrity changes aside I think we are all just being a bit more ‘canny’ with our cash and making sure our vacations (cruises or otherwise) meet our expectations…

 

 

Exactly, as just about everything has gone up just to live.  Personally, just throwing money at something because you can makes no sense to me.  I can’t take it with me, but I can and will be more open to a greater variety of cruise companies and other types of vacations, both of which I have already done and booked. 

[SbbquilterUT]

3 hours ago, CruseKrazy said:

Oceania for us next time.

We are trying as well, I love a smaller ship and different itineraries.  Unfortunately they have removed their Cruise Only option and I do not want to pay for beverages and WiFi (did not want it when Celebrity first brought it out either).  Will see what we think after cruises next summer.

[NBliving]

I’ve been reading all of the concerns with celebrity here and on the social media site that shall remain nameless 😉. We have a cruise on the Equinox in a few weeks with two couples who have never sailed Celebrity. Our last cruise was in January on the Beyond in a sky suite. We had no complaints other than the steak was more of a roast. Anyway, it will be interesting to see what our new to X friends say. FYI that cruise and one we have January ‘24 are pretty much sold out except for a suite or two. 

[Dolebludger]

In looking at Celebrity offerings, the prices look OK in anything below the suite classes. But for those of us who enjoyed the Retreat as a former lower cost option to a lux line, we are very disappointed. Retreat prices are now higher than for comparable itineraries on the REAL lux lines (Silversea, Regent) and Celebrity has been reducing Retreat inclusions so that a cruise there is no longer comparable to a lux cruise — and even priced higher. So, it is back to these lux lines for us, and we even save some money.

[2Long2NxtCrz]

I've only been cruising for ten years (I don't count that Aegean "cruise" way back in '96), but to me the cost of cruising hasn't changed as much as people think. Well, I guess it hasn't in "normal" rooms as I can't compare suite pricing. But I found the pricing for our 12-night med cruise back in 2017 on Brilliance of the Seas: $4600 with $324 OBC. That's it. No other perks. We had a nice slant balcony and no other perks. So drink packages, tips, specialty dining, all extra cost.

 

It was a fabulous cruise and we were happy with the value and love the itinerary. But I really can't complain about my upcoming 11-night Panama Canal on the Beyond which is $5800 in Concierge Class and includes grats, classic bev package, and wi-fi, plus $325 OBC.

 

And our last cruise was to Alaska on HAL where I got hubby a Vista suite (nothing like the Retreat perks, but a gorgeous huge room). And that was only $6100 with all the perks except grats and $400 OBC.

 

Am I glad we tried HAL? Yes. Am I upset with X? No, but we have another HAL cruise booked because the itinerary was better. The ship is going to feel small though, but we're doing it for the ports.

 

I think it depends on what you're cruising for, which, for me, varies on when and where and why. I'd definitely do Royal again, but that's for our large group cruises where we have folks of all ages. The ship ends up being the destination because it's about us getting together rather than the ports. But hubby and I want to try new places. And we both can't wait until we're retired and can see Antarctica. 

 

If you want an elevated, luxurious vacation, then that's going to be spendy and you have to decide what matters most. I'm not sure why folks who want that aren't doing cruises on those luxury yacht lines. The pricing seems in line with other luxury lines and you're on a very small ship with all the perks having so few passengers can provide.

 

Just my thoughts.

[prmssk]

On 10/4/2023 at 12:54 PM, killaypirate said:

It seems that everything Celebrity are doing at the moment is like a soccer team scoring one own goal after another to give the opposition a 3 goal lead.

People keep booking so they can't really be that far behind the opposition.

 

We've never been loyal to one line and have always assessed price, value, and offerings to see how they match with a particular vacation we are booking.  And that is what we continue to do.  As all the cruise lines evolve, our bookings (and even non-cruise vacation plans) can evolve with them.  

 

I also think it helps to understand what is truly important to you vs. what is just the cherry on top when it comes to a vacation.  It helps with setting reasonable expectations, picking the right vacation choices, and then going with the flow when the minor things aren't quite what you want.

[Islander500]

On 10/5/2023 at 2:21 PM, NBliving said:

 We had no complaints other than the steak was more of a roast.

That's exactly what I think my husband was trying to describe when he was complaining about the supposed steak last week on Summit.  I didn't understand then but do now. 🥩😁