Emdee

40 minutes ago, MamaFej said:

This is an interesting perspective. Thank you for that. I definitely leverage points and miles earned on the less expensive rooms and flights for nicer rooms, upgrades, and BC on longer flights for special trips. I've never considered it "travel hacking," but playing the game well, while following the rules. 

 

I'm feeling less guilty over what seems a like really unfair benefit for folks like us. 

 

We've earned E+ status on Celebrity, with most of our points earned since the restart. 160 of those points were extras granted with the 2x points promotions just as European cruising was reopening. 

 

When the sale of Azamara was announced. I jumped on a B2B I'd been hemming and hawing over. Knowing that it would grandfather us into the same level (Elite/Discoverer) helped me get off the fence. Then, the programs took longer to sever than originally planned, and we unexpectedly got points on two early 2023 Celebrity cruises, moving us up not only to E+ on Celebrity, but also D+ on Azamara.I know from reading here on CC that we were far from alone in getting unexpected points. 

 

Now, we will get the 350 night benefit on SS, on only our second expedition cruise with them? That seems to definitely tip in the favor of folks moving up to SS. 

 

I appreciate the folks saying that this is good for the company and for shareholders (including us). I think they are right. It does, however, feel we are getting a better deal than we deserve. I can certainly understand any resentment some X cruisers are feeling about Royal cruisers, and that some long-term SS cruisers are feeling about Royal and X cruisers. Of course, if this program helps keep SS up and running in the face of growing competition, I suppose it benefits them as well. 

 

We tend to do itineraries of 10-17 days, and have never even been to the Caribbean, so I suppose we aren't the "typical" cruisers. I've never been interested in Royal. However, if we ever have grandchildren, that could change, and loyalty benefits might sway us.

 

In the meantime, I am super grateful to have the laundry benefit on our upcoming Arctic expedition on Endeavour.

Laundry is a game changer on an expedition. Though in the case of the Endeavour we noticed that there was hardly anyone in the laundry room and the Crystal built ship had an excellent laundry room. The previous year we were on the Cloud and we gave our clothes for washing  a lot as the laundry room wasn’t great. 
Enjoy your trip on the Endeavour ….such a fabulous ship. 
 

3 hours ago, tfred said:

You know that NCL holdings is looking at  this as well to see if it is successful. With them owning NCL, Oceania and Regent they would be a likely candidate for the same process 

 

less likely would be Carnival corp with everything from Carnival to Cunard. 

When Crystal went under Seabourn gave us equivalent status. Quite a good deal. 
 

29 minutes ago, tinaincc said:

Sounds like a great solution. I’m envious of all of your days at Sea.

I am likely a lot older than you! 
my motto is live life to the fullest. 
Right now spending kid’s inheritance. 

12 minutes ago, TeeRick said:

So the strategy has changed a bit now for some who are cruising for the carrot (next level).  Instead of splitting cruises between lines, if you are D+ and E+ (like us), just focus on one line and make it to P or Z.  Then you are in the top tier for all three lines.  

Our problem is that we are D+ and Elite+ for past cruises but also Gold almost next level on Regent, a number of days on SSea and Seabourn and Crystal.

After moving to luxury lines we try and cruise for itinerary and not to achieve a level. 
So getting 10% off SSea is not likely to sway us unless all the ducks align. 

7 minutes ago, turtlemichael said:

I'd think that if I had the desire and the finances to take 40+kids and grandkids on a cruise I wouldn't be too worried whether a free bag of laundry was part of the deal. I agree with drron29, this will largely be one way traffic.

Me too. But there are people who will like the convenience of staying with their chosen line and rccl has great kids programs. 

19 minutes ago, drron29 said:

Just had a look at the loyalty programs of RCL and Celebrity. Nothing much for an SS "elite". Complimentary laundry only for Zenith.

And the free cruises on Celebrity are 7 day Caribbean cruises.

Nothing really that would entice us to cruise with them. The traffic will be mainly all one way.

Except if you are looking to take kids and grandkids on a family cruise during the holidays.

Once when we were on Paul Gauguin, which was then part of Regent, well heeled grandparents brought their entire clan of 40 plus kids and grandkids. This is quite common in rccl and celebrity to celebrity milestone birthdays etc. 

2 hours ago, travelberlin said:

Interesting. I am curious about one thing: where is it stated that Osteria has a Michelin status? Has it received a star or is mentioned in some Michelin list? 
 

Ivi

I read that the menu was created by a chef who had a Michelin star. 

5 hours ago, Texas Tillie said:

Reminds me of my experience at Osteria in January where a risotto dish was served with shrimp that was 80% still raw. I was told that was the way it was supposed to be. I made a pile of raw shrimp on the side of the plate and ate the risotto. I eat some raw seafood at Umi Uma, but not shrimp!!😏

 

Patty 

I had the same problem and gave up on the risotto. 

3 minutes ago, drron29 said:

Well having fallen short of the magical 500 nights on our last cruise I don't look forward to this change. I can foresee the highest tier passengers on RCL and Celebrity may be much more demanding than long term SS cruisers.

Back pre covid they did keep things on our client profiles including always a bottle of Tiki in the fridge - Rojaan's favourite. It happened again on our 2022 Med cruise but not since then. we also found the same with menus and food quality in the same time period.

So those decisions plus this and the steep increase in prices may well see that the cruises we have booked may be our last on SS.

My experience of Silversea was during and post Covid so I cannot speak for before that time.
I don’t understand how you can foresee that RCL and Celebrity passengers are more demanding. It is some years since we have sailed on them but I have found demanding and obnoxious passengers on all four of the luxury lines which we have sailed on in the last 20 years. 
 

2 hours ago, papaflamingo said:

I'm Diamond Plus on Royal Caribbean. I looked at Silver Seas program and 350 VS Days gets a free 7 night cruise.  So do I get a free cruise on Silver Seas?  

Never mind...just read the fine print...NOPE...DARN!!!! 😎

But you will get free laundry ..yippee. Oh wait you already get it on Regent. I 

think it is a smart move though. When we ‘graduated’ from rccl/celebrity once DD was in University , we moved to Regent and then Crystal but if SSea was already in the rccl stable who knows whether we would have moved to them. 

2 minutes ago, billc23 said:

 

Homogenization of the brands may not be good.

On the other hand it may provide a breath of fresh air which I personally felt SSea needs. I found that simple things like maintaining a list of your likes and dislikes, your drink preferences etc are not maintained from ship to ship on SSea. 
Crystal, Regent and Seabourn are meticulous in updating and maintaining client profiles so I never need to ask for Evian in my cabin. Even on my third SSea cruise I had to get the bedding changed after boarding because it was not hypo allergenic something even luxury hotels maintain in your profile. 

1 hour ago, bethtex said:

It will keep SSea full with new cruisers.  If the average age now is 70, need to attract 50-60 yr olds.

As a shareholder, I think this is a smart business move. 

Absolutely. I am not a shareholder but I do see it as a smart business move. When we outgrew rccl and my DD grew up we moved to Regent and Crystal. This will definitely cross sell between brands. 
 

After a brief foray into Silversea we never cared for the classic product but liked the Expedition product. We still mostly cruise Regent and Crystal but will certainly consider Silversea for the correct itinerary and ship. I don’t think the Free laundry will be the deciding factor. 

Just ask room service to provide you with the insulated jug of hot water similar to what they provide for tea.

4 hours ago, MamaFej said:

My only Silversea cruise was an expedition to Antartica. The food was just okay, but the overall experience was magnificent. We are doing an expedition on the Endeavour next month in the Arctic. I'm hoping for the best. 

 

I take it you are still pleased with the expeditions on SS?

I enjoyed both expeditions particularly the Endeavour which is a magnificent ship. The itineraries were good though the quality of the expedition staff was questionable. I still remember limping down the gangway at the Cloud with the expedition staff looking on but no help offered. Compare that to Regent or Seabourn or Crystal. 
We have booked the Endeavour in the British Isles for 2025. 
 

Enjoy your Arctic expedition. 

If you are worried about luggage the airline you take to the camps will usually store it for you. Your safari TA will arrange it for you. 
 

14 minutes ago, vistaman said:

One evening I was asking for a grilled tomato , as a side dishfor lamb chops. Reaction was if was asking for a 3 double caviar -  ok i got it  but the tomato was maybe in the grill for 30 seconds

- ice cold inside ...for such a simple item ???

lol you need to count yourself lucky they went outside the box,

Oceania was even better for us….they served my daughter a frozen tuna melt. The bread and tuna were totally frozen. They put some ersatz cheese on top and melted it. Then they had the temerity to say that is how they serve it when she complained. Never again on Oceania for us. 
The Indian meal  Special order on both Silver Endeavour and Silver Moon were very good and better than Crystal. 

2 hours ago, vistaman said:

my filet steak on the Dawn in the Grill was not so special , it was a thick piece of meat OK , but I had better meat on other cruise lines.  

We had the same experience on the Moon.

Thomas Keller on SB had the best meat on the high seas but now they have discontinued the collaboration. I use the same quality75% Wagyu/25% Angus  from Snake River Farms at home.
DH didn’t like the sirloin on Crystal but the other cuts were fine. Their roast beef both in Waterside and Marketplace was amazing. I am not a beef eater but I sneaked a piece from his plate. 

3 minutes ago, Covepointcruiser said:

We just returned from a crossing on the Regent and were pleased with the beef.   We were on the Splendor.

Great to hear really looking forward to our August cruise on her.

16 minutes ago, ChucktownSteve said:

A perfunctory look at Crystal didn't appeal to attract me.  I tend to like longer cruises if I'm traveling somewhere distant.  It appeared many if not most of theirs are shorter than 14 days.

 

I looked at the restaurant listings. What I observed on one itinerary I might be interested in, that there are two specialty restaurants which are included. However if you desire a second reservation, there's an additional $50 pp charge. Really?  We were never charged for additional specialty reservations on Regent regardless of the number of times we could obtain a reservation.

 

Perhaps my thoughts are misdirected on Crystal and Silversea. Can someone show me where they outshine Regent for value and quality? I admit I haven't sailed the other two. However my exposure on Regent's cuisine is the best I've experienced in all my cruising.

 

I've enjoyed the variety, quality and even the special requests.  An example was on a Mariner. They had apple pie one evening. One of our table mates mentioned they like peach pie.  So I asked our server if by any chance they had peach.  He went to the kitchen, came back a few minutes late and apologized they hadn't.  But he said come back tomorrow and we will.  Sure enough the four of us showed up in the MDR the next evening and we were served the BEST peach pie I've ever eaten. Freshly made with no filler. Later in the cruise we were surprised by another peach pie unrequested. That impressed me.

We mainly cruised Regent until 2015 . Then tried Crystal and loved it. 
Regent is very good with special orders. The staff are wonderful too.

I don’t think SSea outshines Regent at all. Since we are itinerary driven we look at Regent and Crystal and book accordingly.If we look for pure relaxation then we prefer Crystal. 

 I didn’t like the beef on Regent though. Even in Prime 7. Everything else was fine and I think that Compass Rose has an exceptional menu of always available items. 

1 hour ago, Mahogany said:

May I ask what suite category you were in "three times...love it"? Because I am disappointed in the standard balcony size on Crystal (as opposed to SS, SB, Regent), and the larger suites are very expensive.

We were in the standard Balcony on Crystal. I preferred the previous design but am willing to live with this design if it means I can cruise Crystal more often. My 3 cruises were 12 and 14 days. If I was on a longer cruise I would definitely book a larger suite.
 

Yes the Regent suites are very nice. We were in the F on Explorer and will be in a similar size on Splendour in August. We have been 4 times on SB during Covid and once on the Moon ( not counting Cloud and Endeavour as they are different animals). Would have happily sailed twice on Crystal for the same money if I could have. Ultimately we are all different and what is important to some is not to others. Cost is not the only criteria we put into the mix. 

1 hour ago, vistaman said:

very curious about new Crystal ! 

Been three times…love it. For me better than the old Crystal but we are still itinerary driven and cruising around 4 knee replacements lol. 

10 minutes ago, vistaman said:

yes but some regulars on SS are not accepting it anymore -  the downfal !

my very upmarket Champagne was heavily mistreated  on the Dawn in La Terrazza -  a sommelier was supposed to serve 120 guests  ??? - the head sommelier was knowing her duty , as was the sommelier in Salt and in La Dame  

on Regent I can eat a Dover Sole in Compass Rose  , in Prime 7 and in Chartreuse , on SS only in La Dame  - during my week in the Med there really was no special fish at all ...

I had a far more "luxurious" feeling on Regent as on SS despite the Pommery bubbles ( for how long ?? ) and the caviar  ( portions reduced last year it was a full small jar - now a tea spoon )

 

 

Yes I noticed that too. Besides Regent has wonderful suites. 
The same regulars beat me up when I criticized their beloved SSea.
My only beef about Regent is the beef quality. But otherwise my go to are Regent and Crystal. Crystal food and service consistently amazing and Regent new itineraries are good.

In 2015 I moved from Regent to Crystal because of different itineraries and then with Covid and Crystal demise traveled on the three other luxury cruises. 

SSea food mediocre at best. Regent has better offerings in Compass Rose and has a yes mentality compared to SSeas No mentality.

sSea  Hotel Director told me on my first SSea cruise that SSea didn’t need new passengers as they had plenty of regulars! Regent Hotel Director chatted with my DD on the Explorer where she said the food was disappointing and the next day we were introduced to the F&B manager by the Head sommelier ( who she had established a rapport with due to her love of specialty champagnes) and notes were taken on our suggestions.

The result was we haven’t booked any Classic SSea cruises but have stayed with their Expeditions where the ports are the thing and have several Regent cruises booked.

1 hour ago, ak1004 said:

 

We didn't do SB yet, but I agree that SS service can be inconsistent. And with the recent price increase, I don't find value in SS anymore.

 

However, we enjoy Oceania very much, and can book it around $400. I find food on O excellent and service very good too. To me there was nothing on SS or Crystal that made them more luxurious than O when we look at things that are important to us.

 

Crystal might feel like family if you did dozens of cruises on their ships, know the crew and they know you. On our cruise on C in 2019 we felt like outsiders. Doesn't mean the service wasn't good, on the contrary. But part of the family? Not really, at least this was not our feeling. To some people it's worth the extra cost. To others it's not. Especially if you sail for destinations and not see the ship as a destination.

All of us have our hot buttons and price points as someone on the Crystal Board says choice is good. 
We tried Oceania in 2008 and it wasn’t our cup of tea at all. Have not tried them since then. We are still somewhat itinerary driven so Regent whom we have been cruising with since 2003 and Crystal and the SSea Endeavour cover our needs.  Seabourn has very good Caribbean itineraries so may sail them in order to break up our winter. 

39 minutes ago, ak1004 said:

 

Yes, I'm well aware of it. But for those bigger cabins, the prices are even crazier.

 

I just looked at few sailings for summer 2025.

 

SB has many sailings around $500-550 USD per night. Crystal starts around $600-650 for standard OV room (210 sqft) while AQUAMARINE suites (323 sqft) are around $900. 

 

To me, those prices are crazy. I don't mind being in a 210 sqft room, but the price should reflect it. I would try Crystal even if the price was similar to entry level cabin on SB, but paying 20-25% more for a smaller cabin on a much older ship just doesn't make sense to me.

Both Seabourn and SSea staff are inconsistent in service and food in my opinion is nowhere near the new Crystal. In my opinion the new Crystal service and food are amazing….I personally believe better than before. Our butlers on Crystal definitely went above and beyond ….much better than any we had on other lines including SSea. My last Crystal cruise in December was when I was recuperating from knee surgery and the concern I received from the staff makes me tear up. The staff really make you feel part of the Crystal family and that is priceless and worth the higher costs. I would rather go on three cruises on Crystal instead of four on SSea and Seabourn. The only SSea we are likely to go on are the Expeditions and we are currently booked on The Endeavour as the ship ( built by Crystal) is technically amazing.