Letting kids in the Solarium for a couple of hours-Opinions?

[RichYak]

4 hours ago, hcat said:

One nice thing about AQ Class..fewer kiddos, less crowded  and  usually quiet hallways!

I'm not aware of any cabin class on Celebrity that has hallways restricted to just that cabin class.

 

3 hours ago, Orator said:

You can expect more threads like this as Celebrity tries to appeal to a changing demographic. Some will based their cruise choices on whether kids are allowed to sail.

The increase in 3,4, and 5 night sailings is what is changing Celebrity's demographic IMO. Also lending to this are more Florida sailings to the Caribbean with CoCo Cay as a port stop as opposed to fewer exotic destinations with longer itineraries. 

 

There are those on this board that don't appreciate the "Carnival 2.0" or "Royal 2.0" comparisons, but I find it undeniable that Celebrity is steering in that direction. As a mass market line with ships to fill, I don't blame them for going this route. 

[manmachine]

50 minutes ago, NMTraveller said:

The reluctancy of Celebrity employees to enforce the rules is changing Celebrity from a Premium Line to Royal 2.0.  Five star hotels do not have this issue with kids consistently running around the halls.  The rules are enforced. Therefore they command a higher price tag.

 

From:

Relaxed Luxury ™ to Luxury LOL ™

I agree 100%

[hcat]

16 minutes ago, manmachine said:

I agree 100%

We had a great cruise a week ago on ASCENT...no issues other than loud music and  overcrowded at the outdoor pool.  X is  getting back to where it used to be with good food, live music, shows and guest speakers etc.

 

   We do not sail Carnivore and left Royal C yrs ago... I see no similarities!

[manmachine]

55 minutes ago, hcat said:

We had a great cruise a week ago on ASCENT...no issues other than loud music and  overcrowded at the outdoor pool.  X is  getting back to where it used to be with good food, live music, shows and guest speakers etc.

 

   We do not sail Carnivore and left Royal C yrs ago... I see no similarities!

Hmmm.  Deep discounts for 3rd and 4th passengers in the same cabin… short cruises to RCCL private island with water slides… formally announcing kids hours in previously adult venues… selling what were Suite and loyal guest perks to anyone who will pay…

 

Nope, you are right.  No similarities at all!

 

Coming soon:  the Celebrity Hairy Chest Contest and Duck Hiding Competition!

[Georgia_Peaches]

The whole debate about Celebrity’s marketing direction, be it compared to Royal 2.0 or Heaven forbid, Carnival 😳, is absolutely fascinating to me. With so many other lines to choose from, why not just move on to something more appealing?  It’s a rhetorical question…

 

I’ve certainly had my gripes with Celebrity but I still enjoy the lion’s share of the product. But then again, both Carnival and Royal have had a place in our cruising history that served to generate fond memories for our family. At the end of the day, that’s all I really care about. 

Edited February 24 by Georgia_Peaches

[zitsky]

Wrong assumptions.

 

1) Why not move on?  Why should I change cruise lines rather than correct someone’s bad behavior?

 

2) I don’t use the Solarium during these hours.  Why would you want to?

 

3) There aren’t any kids there anyway.

 

4) Well I once saw an adult somewhere doing something worse!

 

I was on the Eclipse in December in South America.  So summer.  During family time you couldn’t use the pool at all.  Kids filled it.  And not all well behaved.

 

We tried to use a hot tub.  A family refused to move over to let us in.  There was room.  The father tried to ignore me.

[Liao]

5 pages of people waxing (trying to be polite) on and on and on, about kids being allowed to use the solarium for 2 hours/day.  I sail Celebrity and most of what is posted here, I've never seen on any cruise I've been on.  Does that mean none of it has ever happened, of course not, but I will also say it is no where near the stampeded of unruly children many claim to have to suffer through.  

[Georgia_Peaches]

8 hours ago, zitsky said:

Wrong assumptions.

 

1) Why not move on?  Why should I change cruise lines rather than correct someone’s bad behavior?

 

2) I don’t use the Solarium during these hours.  Why would you want to?

 

3) There aren’t any kids there anyway.

 

4) Well I once saw an adult somewhere doing something worse!

 

I was on the Eclipse in December in South America.  So summer.  During family time you couldn’t use the pool at all.  Kids filled it.  And not all well behaved.

 

We tried to use a hot tub.  A family refused to move over to let us in.  There was room.  The father tried to ignore me.

I get it. All good points. 

[hcat]

11 hours ago, manmachine said:

Hmmm.  Deep discounts for 3rd and 4th passengers in the same cabin… short cruises to RCCL private island with water slides… formally announcing kids hours in previously adult venues… selling what were Suite and loyal guest perks to anyone who will pay…

 

Nope, you are right.  No similarities at all!

 

Coming soon:  the Celebrity Hairy Chest Contest and Duck Hiding Competition!

These are options that one need not select..Try the newer ships with longer itins..non school vacation weeks! 

 

Quoted poster has a long history listed with Carnival..so must have enjoyed it.. Some cruisers have to start somewhere..and maybe no longer want the Hairy Chest..

Edited February 24 by hcat

[hcat]

hours ago, hcat said:

One nice thing about AQ Class..fewer kiddos, less crowded  and  usually quiet hallways!

  Reply by R. Yak:

"I'm not aware of any cabin class on Celebrity that has hallways restricted to just that cabin class."

 

Comment:

This is true  but only 2  guests per cabin are permitted  in AQ Class,  so generally there are fewer  kiddos/ teens in those rooms.  We find the hallways are quiet..  Unless bad luck  strikes and one  gets noisy neighbors!

 

On Royal,  we have experienced/ observed unsupervised groups of kiddos  :   running the hallways, stealing room service request cards, riding elevators all day,  defaciing items in Adult only Solarium,  and dumping choc syrup over an interior  balc onto the  art auction space.  

 

X has a long way to go for that! And hopefully a better clientele.!

[PTC DAWG]

17 hours ago, NMTraveller said:

We were in AQ and had kids running around.  Not quiet hallways by any stretch of the imagination.

I am sort of shocked you sail on Celebrity at this point..

[NMTraveller]

43 minutes ago, hcat said:

hours ago, hcat said:

One nice thing about AQ Class..fewer kiddos, less crowded  and  usually quiet hallways!

  Reply by R. Yak:

"I'm not aware of any cabin class on Celebrity that has hallways restricted to just that cabin class."

 

Comment:

This is true  but only 2  guests per cabin are permitted  in AQ Class,  so generally there are fewer  kiddos/ teens in those rooms.  We find the hallways are quiet..  Unless bad luck  strikes and one  gets noisy neighbors!

 

On Royal,  we have experienced/ observed unsupervised groups of kiddos  :   running the hallways, stealing room service request cards, riding elevators all day,  defaciing items in Adult only Solarium,  and dumping choc syrup over an interior  balc onto the  art auction space.  

 

X has a long way to go for that! And hopefully a better clientele.!

We did not note any kids as neighbors in AQ.  Just kids running the halls at night.  A fail on Celebrity for enforcement.

 

On Royal when kids were running the hallways we did not have any kids as neighbors.

Edited February 24 by NMTraveller

[PTC DAWG]

17 hours ago, 1Virgo said:

 

I think the problem is the old adage “give an inch, they’’ll take a mile”.   It isn t Just 2 small hours,!     As I mentioned in my post, we had children in the solarium pool during the afternoon - not the 5-7 pm time.   2 boys, were unsupervised.    I got hit with a swim noodle and Mom just giggled.    Granted noodles dont hurt but could knock ones glasses off, but that is beside the point. Mom made no effort to control her child or recognize swim toys don’t belong in all venues.  

 

There does seem to be a difference in parenting with some parents totally ignoring rules and, not controlling or supervising their children.    Rules seem to mean nothing.  

What did staff and or supervisor say when you told them about this?  

[PTC DAWG]

14 hours ago, hcat said:

We had a great cruise a week ago on ASCENT...no issues other than loud music and  overcrowded at the outdoor pool.  X is  getting back to where it used to be with good food, live music, shows and guest speakers etc.

 

   We do not sail Carnivore and left Royal C yrs ago... I see no similarities!

The music and DJ around the pools are one of my favorite things about cruising…

[NMTraveller]

21 minutes ago, PTC DAWG said:

I am sort of shocked you sail on Celebrity at this point..

Next year it is in 5 star hotels due to the X fail.  There were many more kids at the 5 star hotels on our last vacation,  but they were well behaved.  No kids running the hallways at the resort.  The lack of Celebrity reinforcing any type of rule is having me reconsider.  Going on AMA Waterways this year.

 

Still considering X for a Japan cruise, but might do Princess.  If Celebrity I will make sure that school is in progress!  No more Celebrity cruises when school is out.

Edited February 24 by NMTraveller

[1Virgo]

13 minutes ago, PTC DAWG said:

What did staff and or supervisor say when you told them about this?  

in my previous post, I mentioned there were no staff around.   

[paulh84]

13 hours ago, manmachine said:

Hmmm.  Deep discounts for 3rd and 4th passengers in the same cabin… short cruises to RCCL private island with water slides… formally announcing kids hours in previously adult venues… selling what were Suite and loyal guest perks to anyone who will pay…

 

Nope, you are right.  No similarities at all!

 

Coming soon:  the Celebrity Hairy Chest Contest and Duck Hiding Competition!

 

Celebrity's approach seems to be anything for a dollar. If they will buy it we will sell it - of course at the direction of Royal Caribbean Group. But if you follow the money this is the crucial piece.

 

From 2017 to 2019 their occupancy was at 108%, almost at 109%. Since COVID 2023 was understandably the highest number seen since 2019 with occupancy at 105.6%, i.e. full double occupancy is 100% and anything over double, so your 3+ people in a cabin push that number above 100%. A 2.5% difference seem nominal, right? No. Currently that equates to 1.17 million cruise days. They have a gross margin yield of around $99 per cruise day x 1.17 million cruise days from that 2.5%.

 

There is absolutely no way they aren't under pressure to close that gap and push that 100%+ occupancy number as high as they can. With Celebrity the only way to do that is full the cabins to the brim. The easiest group to target is the one they currently lack...the kids. 

 

FWIW we did see a lot of ducks on our Ascent cruise. I can be a bit of a curmudgeon before coffee but that truly is one of the dumbest things I have ever seen 🤨

[Salt Lifer]

All cruise lines evolve in order to stay "afloat".  Celebrity apparently feels they need to be more family-friendly in order to fill their ships.  If we don't like the changes, we have the right to sail a new cruise line.  If they don't make changes, they don't fill ships and go bankrupt.  

 

It feels like Celebrity is working to fill a niche for families who want to cruise but don't want the chaoticness of Royal or Carnival.  Perhaps trying to be an upscale Disney?  

 

We can huff and puff about these changes all we want (I am sure some here are still bitter about the loss of midnight buffets!) but ultimately we vote with our wallets.  If enough people stop sailing because of this change Celebrity will reverse their decision.  They have done it before with food quality, cookies, and (if the rumors are true) Butler/suit changes.  But I suspect in this case the customers they gain will outweigh those they lose.  

[zitsky]

34 minutes ago, Salt Lifer said:

All cruise lines evolve in order to stay "afloat".  Celebrity apparently feels they need to be more family-friendly in order to fill their ships.  If we don't like the changes, we have the right to sail a new cruise line.  If they don't make changes, they don't fill ships and go bankrupt.  

 

It feels like Celebrity is working to fill a niche for families who want to cruise but don't want the chaoticness of Royal or Carnival.  Perhaps trying to be an upscale Disney?  

 

We can huff and puff about these changes all we want (I am sure some here are still bitter about the loss of midnight buffets!) but ultimately we vote with our wallets.  If enough people stop sailing because of this change Celebrity will reverse their decision.  They have done it before with food quality, cookies, and (if the rumors are true) Butler/suit changes.  But I suspect in this case the customers they gain will outweigh those they lose.  

Right.  I’m going to cancel my vacation plans because Celebrity won’t enforce their own rules?  Maybe I’ll just write the executive office.

Edited February 24 by zitsky

[NMTraveller]

39 minutes ago, Salt Lifer said:

It feels like Celebrity is working to fill a niche for families who want to cruise but don't want the chaoticness of Royal or Carnival.  Perhaps trying to be an upscale Disney?  

 

Celebrity used to fill a niche for being the foodie line and being a step above Princess and HAL.  I can't imagine Celebrity being the kiddie line is going to provide more profits for them.  Kids are only out of school 4 months out of the year.

 

When I was a parent I had quite a bit less disposable income than I did when they moved out.

 

Celebrity not enforcing their own rules applies to adults also.  Loud Facetiming while at dinner comes to mind.

Edited February 24 by NMTraveller

[PTC DAWG]

19 minutes ago, NMTraveller said:

 

 

Celebrity not enforcing their own rules applies to adults also.  Loud Facetiming while at dinner comes to mind.

I attribute that to the decline of society in general..I see that everywhere..it’s just rude. 

[RichYak]

18 minutes ago, zitsky said:

Right.  I’m going to cancel my vacation plans because Celebrity won’t enforce their own rules?  Maybe I’ll just write the executive office.

The post you quoted has nothing to do with enforcing rules. It's about Celebrity changing their target demographic.

[NMTraveller]

12 minutes ago, RichYak said:

 It's about Celebrity changing their target demographic.

While I totally agree that Celebrity is going for a much younger target.  At this point in time, it does not appear that they have been that successful ...  I suppose time will tell ...

 

 

Edited February 24 by NMTraveller

[doghog]

 W. C. Fields wouldn't let any of this happen. 

[RichYak]

1 hour ago, NMTraveller said:

While I totally agree that Celebrity is going for a much younger target.  At this point in time, it does not appear that they have been that successful ...  I suppose time will tell ...

 

 

I'm not sure how you're measuring success. That said, it's only been a minor course correction so far.