MikeyA53

35 minutes ago, CruisingIsBest said:

I've done the Chef's table three times... it's been a while, but I think it might have been a much grander affair a few years back. We got the cook books, like 5 apps in the kitchen along with enough wine to get you rolling before you even sit at the table! Then they just starting bringing out one dish after another with the main course being very extravagant. It was amazing each time. Glad you enjoyed Crown and Sabatini's... just been so many times, and have seen the constant drop. As long as you had a good time, that's all that counts!! I've read so many unfavorable reviews lately that I'm eager to see for myself in a few weeks. I'll remain hopeful. Princess still has some of the best Elite benefits, of any line and I love the front facing cabins. In the end, even a not so good cruise is better than Connecticut in winter, right? 

We’ve also done the chef’s table several times on other cruise lines, always nice to try a new one.

19 hours ago, MrFunInTheSun said:

Great review. Glad to see them again. Seems just like yesterday in one of your older Carnival reviews Tracy was just training to be a Mountie.

Think you will really enjoy the Allure of the Seas. Those class ships are by far my favorite.

Thanks again, looking forward to your future trip reports.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Please excuse any typographical errors.

 

Thanks, it already has been 7.5 years now since she finished  her training. Time does fly.

 

4 hours ago, kiminey65 said:

As always, a fantastic review. I've read many of them over the years and am also branching out from Carnival, NCL to MSC Seaside. I am interested in checking out Koningsdam myself as well as RCI Oasis class or Symphony... I think I too prefer the newer Mega ships. I'd also love to spot you two sometime on one of my sailings, which tends to be late winter for us (Northern NY winter escape plans!!!)

 

Thanks and don’t be shy, come and say hello. 

3 hours ago, CruisingIsBest said:

One of the most enjoyable overall reviews I've seen. Loved the comparisons, photos, and your reviews overall... thanks for the effort! Why don't you do your next B2B's out of Miami next time? Regal is a carbon copy of Royal... While other brands change things up with each new ship, even in the same class,  Princess doesn't innovate at all... even the brand new Sky has pretty much nothing new, expect expensive new suites. You mentioned having only the two specialties on Princess (if you don't count Crab Shack which is just a dressed up section of the Horizon Court), and that will again be the same on Royal. I do agree the awful placement of the spa on deck 5 and the gym on top. I'm Elite on Princess and I'll be back on Regal in a few weeks... only for price. Been on Regal and Royal many times, but this will be the last Princess cruise for me until they come out with the new class of ships in a few years... just too boring and stale. Royal class ships do have one of the best buffets on the seas and I'm just hoping they don't blunder that up too. Crown Grill used to be outstanding... but it has gotten so bad it's not worth the $29 unless you have OBC to burn. Terrible cuts of meat and odds are they won't cook it right either. Sabatini's new menu is awful... they try to be too fancy and they just fail vs. sticking to the the good old Italian favorites, and getting them right. Celebrity specialties blow Princess away in every regard. 

So why not try something like NCl to RCCL to Carnival out of Miami?? All newer ships. Can't speak to Carnival and RCCL, but NCL was a blast... the spa and thermal suite were huge and you can see outside unlike being in the dungeon. So many dining options you can't visit them all. Ship was "alive". Going to try Bliss in October. Regal will just be a rinse & repeat, even with the bigger balcony. And Crown? Nah. 13 years old, and everything you saw on Royal is the there too... except smaller Horizon Court, and everything else, just older. At least the spa is up with the gym though!  🙂 Thanks again!! 

 

Thanks. We have been on Norwegian Escape and Getaway and I really enjoyed them. We have also done 13 cruises on Carnival. However I have to disagree with you concerning Crown Grill and Sabatini’s, we enjoyed both of them and looking forward to going again.  In addition we want to do the chef’s table on Regal.. Crown Princess is a 10 day cruise with a really good itinerary. They also have the Salty Dog that sounds interesting.

16 hours ago, Cafedumonde said:

Thanks for the review.   I have been hoping you would post another review!  You and Tracy are a beautiful couple.  We are sailing on Princess Regal this year (1st time on Princess), so it was interesting to get your take on her sister ship Royal Princess.  We have three kids so it was an oh no moment to see you post the average age on the ship as 65-70 !  This will be an interesting cruise for us I guess.  I might have missed it in your review, but did you have the medallion on Princess? Thanks again.

 

Thanks, I believe the average age will fluctuate depending on the time of the year you sail. Royal did not have medallion, apparently they are in the process of installing it now. Have a wonderful cruise.

7 hours ago, dodger1964 said:

Thanks again for doing great review. I find the "comparison" reviews to be very helpful.

 

What were your impressions of the actual costs of each of these cruises?

 

We have found recently that MSC prices make up (in our minds) for any perceived shortcomings they might have.

 

(and don't get me started on the prices for the Celebrity Edge!)

 

 

 

Thanks. I agree with you concerning MSC, overall their price were substantially cheaper and we got a lot of extras with the fare.  We did get a good price for Celebrity Equinox and it included the drink package. Royal Princess was about $400 more but is was an 8 day cruise to the ABC islands. In addition we got free gratuities and $ 250 on board credits. Overall very happy with all three. You are right about Celebrity Edge, we checked their prices for this November and it was about 50 % more than the other cruises we booked.

16 hours ago, cazzi said:

Great review and so easy to follow along

 

Thank you for all your time and effort in this fantastic review

 

Thanks

16 hours ago, Ginnyfyr said:

Love that last photo of the two of you that you posted! This Canuck would like to thank you for a great review and for your and your wife's service keeping our great country safe 🙂 My husband and I will board the Equinox on Saturday, a long awaited cruise, so I enjoyed reading about your experience. Even more excited now to get on board and out of this cold weather (we have another 8 inches of snow coming tomorrow, apparently) on the weekend. 

 

Thanks Ginny, hope you have a wonderful cruise. 

17 hours ago, Reel Love said:

I would also like to echo the many thanks expressed and give kudos for this fantastic review!!  Following avidly as we are loyal Celebrity cruisers but are contemplating other cruise lines in the future so this comparison was very valuable.  (And since my nephew was just hired by the RCMP it was cool to see in your intro that you and your wife are RCMP officers.  Thank you for your service! 🙂)

 

Thanks, Tracy and I love trying different cruise lines, they all have their pros and cons. People should not put any cruise line down unless they tried them.

18 hours ago, Silkroad said:

I’ve very much enjoyed your review and photos. Since we’ve only sailed Celebrity, I especially appreciate reviews, like yours, that compare one or more lines to Celebrity. I need to read your Nieuw Amsterdam review, and I’ll look forward to your next b2b2b review. Thanks very much for spending your time writing such an organized and interesting comparison. Cheers!

 

Glad you enjoyed it. Unfortunately I did a Nieuw Amsterdam review.

19 hours ago, micheleata said:

Such a great review!  Thanks for sharing!

 

Thanks. 😀

56 minutes ago, cachouonacruise said:

I will join my voice to the chorus of thank-you! 

 

Your comparison review of three cruise ships and cruise lines for cruises experienced in a short period of time is a fantastic idea.

 

The way you presented the facts, the structure if your text, then the pictures, followed by your comments is really helpful for people who are struggling about finding which cruise experience would be suitable for them as well as for experience cruisers who could be tempted to jump ship in order to try a new experience.

 

I really appreciated your very detailed and factual review! Well done! Congratulations! 

 

 

 

 

That’s quite a compliment, thanks a lot.

3 hours ago, LIMPIT said:

Thanks for posting a great review, we have cruised with the three lines (Not these ships though) and generally agree with your overall views and assessment.

Celebrity is our favourite line and we are sailing on Equinox in April, so your review was very helpful. 

 

Thanks, glad you liked it.

36 minutes ago, Captain Canuck said:

 great review...think you will love the Allure..lots of stuff on board...can see you doing the zip line and the rock climbing wall....I could barely take pictures my fear of heights is that bad.....Regal is sister ship of Royal so you should like it too.. enjoy.  

 

 

Thank you, we are looking forward to the rock wall, we have done in the past on Norwegian. Yes, you are right there should be lots to do on Allure. 

1 hour ago, Fogfog said:

Thanks so much for the details/review and insight.

Very interesting to get some sense of both Princess and MSC as we have not tried those lines.

The summary was very helpful!

Interesting to consider B2B  7+7 instead of a 12-14 night. Worth considering the strategy and the variety it can bring.

 

Cheers.

fog

 

 

 

 

Thanks Fog, glad you enjoyed it. 

1 hour ago, NemoCrownie said:

Thank you so much.  You and your wife are adorable and I really appreciate the detail regarding the various ships and cruise lines.  We have not been adventurous, having only sailed two lines, so your info and comparisons are very helpful.  I wish you would consider doing port reviews in the future as you have been to so many and some of them are cruise line specific.  Again, thank you for your time and effort doing this wonderful comparison and review.

 

 

Thank you, I have covered many ports multiple times in my past reviews. Considering it took about 6 weeks to prepare this review and posting it on three forums (Princess, MSC and Celebrity) I decided to concentrate on the ships this time.

2 hours ago, trbarton said:

Thanks for your review. 

 

A question....If your able it would be nice to see each area that you talked about & indicate which ship you like the best/preferred  or if it was a tie. 

 

Tom😎

 

Tracy preferred MSC Seaside, liked I said in my review I couldn't decide between  Princess and Celebrity. Overall looking at all 6 cruise lines I have sailed on, I think Norwegian is at the top, then I would put Carnival, Princess and Celebrity second, and in third Holland America and MSC. However I would not hesitate to cruise on all six again. 

 

Funny thing is Tracy's two favorite cruise lines are Holland America and MSC. Goes to show we all have different opinions.

2 hours ago, moresun said:

Thanks so much, I really enjoyed your review and appreciate all the work involved. Fantastic job!

 

 

Thank you

Summary

 

 

Royal Princess　

 

Very good: Free in cabin movies, self serve laundry, allowed to bring wine, bottled water and soda onboard, not crowded, walking/running track, ice cream shop (Gelato)

 

Good: Ship, food, service, cabin, entertainment, gym, buffet variety, activities, staff friendliness, passenger friendliness, specialty coffee and desserts (International Café)

 

Fair: Only 2 specialty restaurants

 

Bad: Spa and gym on different decks

 

Very bad: Balcony

 

 

 

　

MSC Seaside:

Very good: Entertainment, spa, ship, activities, cruise critic party, embarkation

 

Good: Food, gym,

 

Fair: staff friendliness, passenger friendliness, pre-cruise laundry special, crowded at times,

specialty coffee and desserts (Venchi Cioccogelateria-Coffee Bar)

 

Bad: Activity prices (bowling, cinema, etc.), buffet selection, noisy at time, in cabin movies $8

 

Very bad: No walking/running track, specialty restaurant menu and prices

 

 

 

 

 

Celebrity Equinox:

 

Very good: Food, cabin, balcony, passenger friendliness, buffet variety, gym, allowed to bring

wine, bottled water and soda onboard, embarkation, not crowded, specialty coffee and desserts (Café al Bacio)

 

Good: Staff friendliness, service, cruise critic party, ice cream shop (Gelateria)

 

Fair: Ship, walking/running track

 

Bad: Entertainment, activities, in cabin 6 free movies (others $15), activities

 

Very bad: Best laundry special was $49

 

 

 

 

 

After returning home someone asked Tracy which ship she preferred and her answer was MSC Seaside because of the entertainment. I can’t decide between Princess and Celebrity. Princess had lots of things that were either very good or good but being a ‘foodie’ Celebrity’s cuisine was first rate.

 

We are planning another B2B2B for November 2019. We prefer to cruise on a different ship every time we cruise, in other words we do not like to repeat the same ship twice. We looked at Princess, Celebrity, Royal Caribbean (never been on RC) Norwegian, Holland America and Carnival. We prefer cruising out of the cruise capital area of the world (Miami & Fort Lauderdale). It makes it easier to combine cruises together. When booking a ship we look at the ship itself (Prefer newer ships), the prices and the itineraries. We wanted to include another Celebrity ships if possible but because most of their ships do not stick with a 7 day schedule (The length of their cruise keeps changing from week to week) it was not feasible to include them. The ships we looked at from Norwegian and Holland America were too expensive and Carnival was not a good fit.

 

Finally we booked a 7 days cruise on Royal Caribbean Allure of the Sea leaving from Fort Lauderdale on Nov 3, 2019, with stops at St. Kitt, St. Thomas and Coco Cay. Then on Nov 10 we embark on Regal Princess for a 7 day cruise out of Fort Lauderdale to Princess Cay, St. Thomas and St. Maarten. Finally on Nov 17 we take an Uber to Miami and get on MSC Meraviglia for a 7 day cruise to Ocho Rios, Jamaica, Grand Cayman Islands, Cozumel and Ocean Cay.

 

However, approximately 6 weeks after booking MSC Meraviglia we got a notice advising that our 7 day cruise had changed to a 4 day and a 3 day cruise with only Ocean Cay as a port for each cruise. They offered us $100 OBC for the inconvenience but we declined and cancelled. We then booked Crown Princess leaving on Nov 17 for a 10 day cruise out of Fort Lauderdale to Bonaire, Curacao, Grenada, Dominica, St. Thomas and Grand Turk.

 

Overall we are happy with the change, all three cruises are leaving on three consecutive Sundays out of Fort Lauderdale. Fortunately we have an aft cabin on Regal Princess  with a large balcony and on Crown Princess we also got lucky and got a balcony cabin on the Caribe deck which has large balconies compared to the other decks.

 

In closing I would like to post my favorite sunrise and sunset photos taken over the course of our cruises. Cheers! 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

San Juan

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Bye

 

 

 

15 hours ago, yoshi said:

I have never done a B2B let alone a B2B2B, but we have done several 15 day cruises. I am wondering if switching ships mid-way is a good way to feel like you are going even more places? I did like how your doing the 3 different ships took you all over the Caribbean, I kind of like that part. Loved your pictures, you are a beautiful couple. Thanks for the review.

 

 Thank you so much. 

Summary

 

 

Royal Princess　

 

Very good: Free in cabin movies, self serve laundry, allowed to bring wine, bottled water and soda onboard, not crowded, walking/running track, ice cream shop (Gelato)

 

Good: Ship, food, service, cabin, entertainment, gym, buffet variety, activities, staff friendliness, passenger friendliness, specialty coffee and desserts (International Café)

 

Fair: Only 2 specialty restaurants

 

Bad: Spa and gym on different decks

 

Very bad: Balcony

 

 

 

　

MSC Seaside:

Very good: Entertainment, spa, ship, activities, cruise critic party, embarkation

 

Good: Food, gym,

 

Fair: staff friendliness, passenger friendliness, pre-cruise laundry special, crowded at times,

specialty coffee and desserts (Venchi Cioccogelateria-Coffee Bar)

 

Bad: Activity prices (bowling, cinema, etc.), buffet selection, noisy at time, in cabin movies $8

 

Very bad: No walking/running track, specialty restaurant menu and prices

 

 

 

 

 

Celebrity Equinox:

 

Very good: Food, cabin, balcony, passenger friendliness, buffet variety, gym, allowed to bring

wine, bottled water and soda onboard, embarkation, not crowded, specialty coffee and desserts (Café al Bacio)

 

Good: Staff friendliness, service, cruise critic party, ice cream shop (Gelateria)

 

Fair: Ship, walking/running track

 

Bad: Entertainment, activities, in cabin 6 free movies (others $15), activities

 

Very bad: Best laundry special was $49

 

 

 

 

 

After returning home someone asked Tracy which ship she preferred and her answer was MSC Seaside because of the entertainment. I can’t decide between Princess and Celebrity. Princess had lots of things that were either very good or good but being a ‘foodie’ Celebrity’s cuisine was first rate.

 

We are planning another B2B2B for November 2019. We prefer to cruise on a different ship every time we cruise, in other words we do not like to repeat the same ship twice. We looked at Princess, Celebrity, Royal Caribbean (never been on RC) Norwegian, Holland America and Carnival. We prefer cruising out of the cruise capital area of the world (Miami & Fort Lauderdale). It makes it easier to combine cruises together. When booking a ship we look at the ship itself (Prefer newer ships), the prices and the itineraries. We wanted to include another Celebrity ships if possible but because most of their ships do not stick with a 7 day schedule (The length of their cruise keeps changing from week to week) it was not feasible to include them. The ships we looked at from Norwegian and Holland America were too expensive and Carnival was not a good fit.

 

Finally we booked a 7 days cruise on Royal Caribbean Allure of the Sea leaving from Fort Lauderdale on Nov 3, 2019, with stops at St. Kitt, St. Thomas and Coco Cay. Then on Nov 10 we embark on Regal Princess for a 7 day cruise out of Fort Lauderdale to Princess Cay, St. Thomas and St. Maarten. Finally on Nov 17 we take an Uber to Miami and get on MSC Meraviglia for a 7 day cruise to Ocho Rios, Jamaica, Grand Cayman Islands, Cozumel and Ocean Cay.

 

However, approximately 6 weeks after booking MSC Meraviglia we got a notice advising that our 7 day cruise had changed to a 4 day and a 3 day cruise with only Ocean Cay as a port for each cruise. They offered us $100 OBC for the inconvenience but we declined and cancelled. We then booked Crown Princess leaving on Nov 17 for a 10 day cruise out of Fort Lauderdale to Bonaire, Curacao, Grenada, Dominica, St. Thomas and Grand Turk.

 

Overall we are happy with the change, all three cruises are leaving on three consecutive Sundays out of Fort Lauderdale. Fortunately we have an aft cabin on Regal Princess  with a large balcony and on Crown Princess we also got lucky and got a balcony cabin on the Caribe deck which has large balconies compared to the other decks.

 

In closing I would like to post my favorite sunrise and sunset photos taken over the course of our cruises. Cheers! 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

San Juan

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Bye

 

 

 

Summary

 

 

 

Royal Princess　

 

 

 

Very good: Free in cabin movies, self serve laundry, allowed to bring wine, bottled water and soda onboard, not crowded, walking/running track, ice cream shop (Gelato)

 

 

Good: Ship, food, service, cabin, entertainment, gym, buffet variety, activities, staff friendliness, passenger friendliness, specialty coffee and desserts (International Café)

 

 

Fair: Only 2 specialty restaurants

 

Bad: Spa and gym on different decks

 

 

 

Very bad: Balcony

 

 

 

 

　

 

MSC Seaside:

 

 

 

Very good: Entertainment, spa, ship, activities, cruise critic party, embarkation

 

 

Good: Food, gym

 

 

Fair: staff friendliness, passenger friendliness, pre-cruise laundry special, crowded at times, specialty coffee and desserts (Venchi Cioccogelateria-Coffee Bar)

 

 

Bad: Activity prices (bowling, cinema, etc.), buffet selection, noisy at time, in cabin movies $8

 

 

Very bad: No walking/running track, specialty restaurant menu and prices

 

 

 

 

 

 

Celebrity Equinox:

 

 

Very good: Food, cabin, balcony, passenger friendliness, buffet variety, gym, allowed to bring wine, bottled water and soda onboard, embarkation, not crowded, specialty coffee and desserts (Café al Bacio)

 

 

Good: Staff friendliness, service, cruise critic party, ice cream shop (Gelateria)

 

 

Fair: Ship, walking/running track

 

 

Bad: Entertainment, activities, in cabin 6 free movies (others $15), activities

 

 

Very bad: Best laundry special was $49

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

After returning home someone asked Tracy which ship she preferred and her answer was MSC Seaside because of the entertainment. I can’t decide between Princess and Celebrity. Princess had lots of things that were either very good or good but being a ‘foodie’ Celebrity’s cuisine was first rate.

 

 

We are planning another B2B2B for November 2019. We prefer to cruise on a different ship every time we cruise, in other words we do not like to repeat the same ship twice. We looked at Princess, Celebrity, Royal Caribbean (never been on RC) Norwegian, Holland America and Carnival. We prefer cruising out of the cruise capital area of the world (Miami & Fort Lauderdale). It makes it easier to combine cruises together. When booking a ship we look at the ship itself (Prefer newer ships), the prices and the itineraries. We wanted to include another Celebrity ships if possible but because most of their ships do not stick with a 7 day schedule (The length of their cruise keeps changing from week to week) it was not feasible to include them. The ships we looked at from Norwegian and Holland America were too expensive and Carnival was not a good fit.

 

 

Finally we booked a 7 days cruise on Royal Caribbean Allure of the Sea leaving from Fort Lauderdale on Nov 3, 2019, with stops at St. Kitt, St. Thomas and Coco Cay. Then on Nov 10 we embark on Regal Princess for a 7 day cruise out of Fort Lauderdale to Princess Cay, St. Thomas and St. Maarten. Finally on Nov 17 we take an Uber to Miami and get on MSC Meraviglia for a 7 day cruise to Ocho Rios, Jamaica, Grand Cayman Islands, Cozumel and Ocean Cay.

 

 

However, approximately 6 weeks after booking MSC Meraviglia we got a notice advising that our 7 day cruise had changed to a 4 day and a 3 day cruise with only Ocean Cay as a port for each cruise. They offered us $100 OBC for the inconvenience but we declined and cancelled. We then booked Crown Princess leaving on Nov 17 for a 10 day cruise out of Fort Lauderdale to Bonaire, Curacao, Grenada, Dominica, St. Thomas and Grand Turk.

 

 

Overall we are happy with the change, all three cruises are leaving on three consecutive Sundays out of Fort Lauderdale. Fortunately we have an aft cabin on Regal Princess  with a large balcony and on Crown Princess we also got lucky and got a balcony cabin on the Caribe deck which has large balconies compared to the other decks.

 

 

In closing I would like to post my favorite sunrise and sunset photos taken over the course of our cruises. Cheers! 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

In San Juan

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Bye

 

4 hours ago, bvm49 said:

Mike, you've really got me so hooked with your great writing style that I searched your past reviews for more. Although we've never been on any of your previous ships in almost 40 cruises (actually we've never been on any Carnival ships); I read some of your previous reviews. 

 

Even though I'm not a romantic at heart; I would recommend that your new followers read your review titled: "Mike & Tracy’s Excellent Adventure: B2B2B2B on Destiny, Imagination, Valor, Freedom" from Sep 2010. This contains the most moving account of your "improved" wedding proposal and renewal of vows on the cruise. I agree with the many other posters who said it was the best story ever on Cruise Critic Forums. 

Thanks again and keep up the great work

Brian

 

 

Thanks Brian for the glowing endorsement of my previous reviews. 

6 hours ago, Cruisin' Along said:

I enjoyed your review. Thanks for taking the time to write this. 

 

 

Thanks😄

9 hours ago, 4cats4me said:

Still enjoying your comprehensive, excellent review! 

 

Thank you.

11 hours ago, matondo said:

Thank you for taking the time to review your B2B2B...I am a long time fan. We are Celebrity fans and have sailed twice on the Equinox.

 

Not sure if I missed it, but did you post any updates on your children. I think most of us long time followers feel like we watched them grow up starting with your first review of your B2B2B2B.

 

 

Arielle now 24 and Michel 22 are doing just fine, waiting for the day they give us grandkids so we can introduce the new generation to cruising.