Regular Carnival cruiser who recently tried Celebrity

[sayvan]

Hi folks... we are regular Carnival cruisers who happened to join some friends on a recent Celebrity Cruise through the Panama Canal. We loved it, but of course still remain loyal to Carnival but always open to other options if the itinerary fits. We will be sailing Carnival again in February (we hope as we are still looking).

 

Anyway, I have completed a thorough review of the cruise with pictures and if your at all interested you can find at http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1319973

[Tom-n-Cheryl]

Hi folks... we are regular Carnival cruisers who happened to join some friends on a recent Celebrity Cruise through the Panama Canal. We loved it, but of course still remain loyal to Carnival but always open to other options if the itinerary fits. We will be sailing Carnival again in February (we hope as we are still looking).

 

Anyway, I have completed a thorough review of the cruise with pictures and if your at all interested you can find at http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1319973

 

We have also had some very nice Celebrity cruises. I am glad that we decided to FINALLY test the waters elsewhere!!

 

Tom

[Bo Didly]

Wonderful review ,until this .

 

:D. Thanks for posting , I have pictures as well of this ship.

Somewhere in the depths of a computer ;).

[luvmysox1]

Hi folks... we are regular Carnival cruisers who happened to join some friends on a recent Celebrity Cruise through the Panama Canal. We loved it, but of course still remain loyal to Carnival but always open to other options if the itinerary fits. We will be sailing Carnival again in February (we hope as we are still looking).

 

Anyway, I have completed a thorough review of the cruise with pictures and if your at all interested you can find at http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1319973

 

Very good review. I enjoyed reading it. Love my Carnival though. When I tire of them I'll try another line. NCL was disappointing to me.

[sayvan]

Wonderful review ,until this .

 

:D. Thanks for posting , I have pictures as well of this ship.

Somewhere in the depths of a computer ;).

 

Love it! A great guy who likes to have fun...my good buddy Craig! This was at the Crusie Critic Connections party!

[Tapi]

Thank you for the link to your wonderful review of the Celebrity Infinity! As I continue reading it, I wanted to ask you a few questions (sorry if these are covered in your review. Still reading! :))

 

I know that you mentioned that you didn't want to make direct comparisons with your previous Carnival cruises, but I hope that you can answer these questions:

 

- How was the more strict smoking policy on Celebrity? Dealing with cigarette smoke was one of the biggest drawbacks of our last Carnival cruise.

- How formal is formal on Celebrity? How do their formal nights compare to Carnival?

- Is it true that Celebrity attracts an older clientele?

- You mention that you had an inside stateroom, but did you have a chance to check out Concierge Class staterooms? If so, what was your impression of them?

- How does the room service menu compare to Carnival's?

- Overall, do you think that Celebrity is worth the higher rates they charge?

 

We've been sailing on Carnival exclusively for a few years, but we're branching out to other cruise lines for our next cruises, beginning with a Princess cruise in 2011. Celebrity is definitely on our list as well. Their ships look wonderful, and their itineraries look amazing!

 

Thanks again for your review. Going back to reading now!

[mizLORInj]

I enjoyed my Celebrity cruise this past June too. I like all of the cruiselines I've sailed so far!

[soccersharon]

What a fantastic review. Must say the Infinity seems to be a beautiful ship. Your photos and the detailed accounts of the ports were great!

 

Thanks for sharing with the rest of us :0)

 

Cheers!

[DarthGrady]

Thanks for posting! We are actually taking our first cruise on X in a couple of weeks on the Century. I look forward to reading the review.

[coachj]

I was recently on my first Celebrity cruise. 5 night out of Miami. Very strict on smokers. Casino is completely non-smoking, and enforced. Formal nights on 7 night or more are strictly enforced coat needed for men but 5 nights are less restrictive. Age seemed to be 40's and 50's and few kids. I had a sky suite and it was very nice, a cabin attendent and a butler with Champagne, anice gift and Canapes every night witha bowl of fruit. You can have breakfast lunch and dinner served in your cabin. deeper balconies and a Jacuzzi tub in the bathroom. Did not use room service. Yes they are worth it in my opinion

[Tom-n-Cheryl]

Here is the room service menu from the Constellation (~2 years ago):

 

 

... and here is the breakfast card:

 

 

 

A small sampling of the canapes offered in your butler (in suites) during the afternoon:

 

 

 

Nothing like a FULL breakfast on your balcony: !!!

 

 

 

Suites can get pricey, but you are treated VERY well. For our "end of school year cruise" with our son and 3 of his friends (Solstice 5/2010) their balcony (4 people) was LESS THAN an interior on the Dream for that week... AMAZING (so, don't always assume)!

 

5/29/10 Carnival Dream:

Interior (4 People): $3095 (185 sq. ft.)

8A Balcony (4) ... : $3685 (185 sq. ft. + 35 sq. ft. balcony) ..... $3545 for a Cove

 

5/30/10 Celebrity Solstice:

Interior --- N/A -- Sold Out

Balcony (4 people): $3072 (194 sq. ft. + 54 sq. ft. balcony)

 

 

 

Tom

[Tapi]

Tom:

 

Thanks for the pictures! They are definitely worth more than 1,000 words! The selections on the room service menu look great. Full hot breakfast in a private balcony definitely sounds better than a box of Cheerios, a bagel, and juice delivered on plastic plates!

[Tom-n-Cheryl]

Tom:

 

Thanks for the pictures! They are definitely worth more than 1,000 words! The selections on the room service menu look great. Full hot breakfast in a private balcony definitely sounds better than a box of Cheerios, a bagel, and juice delivered on plastic plates!

 

You're welcome.

 

The room service menu is for all cabins. The breakfast/card is for Concierge Class cabins and higher. Actually in suites they don't provide the "expanded" Concierge Class cabin menu, but they will get you one if desired (they will bring you anything anyway)! I am not sure about breakfast options in standard cabins.

 

Additionally, when you sail on Celebrity in a CC cabin or higher (suite), you will receive an additional cruise "credit". They also add a credit for sailings over 12 days. After just 5 sailings we were able to achieve "Elite" status (10 points) and the associated perks... not the least of which is 90 minutes of internet time EACH!!! :)

 

Tom

[Tapi]

Additionally, when you sail on Celebrity in a CC cabin or higher (suite), you will receive an additional cruise "credit".

 

I've been poking around the Celebrity board asking questions there as well, and it seems like CC staterooms or higher are the way to go. Everybody raves about the added perks, and they're not much more expensive than standard balcony staterooms.

[firefly333]

I too wanted to know the differences between celebrity and say carnival .. the OP said he wasnt going to get into it. I put my new BIL and sister on celebrity hoping it appeals more to him as he thinks he will not like cruising. I know he doesnt like drinking or gambling for religious reasons .. and I saw a bunch of champange at boarding time.

 

Anything that might impress or be liked. Is the food actually better?

[cruzeluver]

- How was the more strict smoking policy on Celebrity? Dealing with cigarette smoke was one of the biggest drawbacks of our last Carnival cruise.

- How formal is formal on Celebrity? How do their formal nights compare to Carnival?

- Is it true that Celebrity attracts an older clientele?

- You mention that you had an inside stateroom, but did you have a chance to check out Concierge Class staterooms? If so, what was your impression of them?

- How does the room service menu compare to Carnival's?

- Overall, do you think that Celebrity is worth the higher rates they charge?

 

I am not the original poster, however, I have three Carnival and two (with a third coming up) Celebrity cruises under my belt.

 

-Formal nights on Celebrity are much more adhered to than on Carnival. One of the draws for a lot of folks over to Celebrity is its more traditional atmosphere.

 

-Generally speaking, the clientele on Celebrity is higher than on Carnival. This becomes even more pronounced when you start talking about cruises longer than 7 days, which most of Celebrity's are.

 

- The concierge staterooms are nice, although for me, I would not pay much more for one over a standard veranda, as I just don't see a lot of value in the perks given to those staying in CC staterooms.

 

-Room service menu is more extensive than Carnival's. You can have full main dining room service in your stateroom should you wish.

 

-Your last question is a tricky one. For me, yes, it is absolutely worth it for me to pay the additional monies for Celebrity over Carnival. Do I think Carnival is bad? No! Carnival is a very good value and a great way to go for a lot of folks. It is just no longer a good "fit" for us. In addition to the items already mentioned, other things I appreciate on Celebrity is the greater passenger/space ratio on board. Their ships never feel crowded to me. They spend more money on food and much more is prepared from scratch. I prefer a calmer,quieter atmosphere, free of pool games and constant announcements (Celebrity makes one announcement per day, from the captain in which he gives weather conditions and distance to the next port of call). All of this is of great value to me, but would be of no value to others.

 

Hope my rambling has helped!:D

[Tom-n-Cheryl]

I too wanted to know the differences between celebrity and say carnival .. the OP said he wasnt going to get into it. I put my new BIL and sister on celebrity hoping it appeals more to him as he thinks he will not like cruising. I know he doesnt like drinking or gambling for religious reasons .. and I saw a bunch of champange at boarding time.

 

Anything that might impress or be liked. Is the food actually better?

 

It's hard to say what he might like or be impressed by. There is certainly no "hairy chest contest", which I suppose he might find objectionable (mainly the antics associated with it).

 

The standard dining room food is not really different. Actually on Carnival I find more of their MDR fare to my tastes. Their specialty restaurant(s) (specifically Murano) is noticeably more upscale (atmosphere and service) than the Steakhouse on Carnival. Carnival has been going downhill as far as service and atmosphere in their Steakhouse - though the food is still VERY good.

 

Anyone that ends up in Murano MUST try the Goat Cheese Souffle. Also, the fish (deboned table side) is amazing.

 

Tom

[sayvan]

Thank you for the link to your wonderful review of the Celebrity Infinity! As I continue reading it, I wanted to ask you a few questions (sorry if these are covered in your review. Still reading! :))

 

I know that you mentioned that you didn't want to make direct comparisons with your previous Carnival cruises, but I hope that you can answer these questions:

 

- How was the more strict smoking policy on Celebrity? Dealing with cigarette smoke was one of the biggest drawbacks of our last Carnival cruise.

- How formal is formal on Celebrity? How do their formal nights compare to Carnival?

- Is it true that Celebrity attracts an older clientele?

- You mention that you had an inside stateroom, but did you have a chance to check out Concierge Class staterooms? If so, what was your impression of them?

- How does the room service menu compare to Carnival's?

- Overall, do you think that Celebrity is worth the higher rates they charge?

 

We've been sailing on Carnival exclusively for a few years, but we're branching out to other cruise lines for our next cruises, beginning with a Princess cruise in 2011. Celebrity is definitely on our list as well. Their ships look wonderful, and their itineraries look amazing!

 

Thanks again for your review. Going back to reading now!

 

I see that many other have voiced their thoughts from their experiences so I thank them for taking care of that for me and I will try and touch on a few of your questions.

 

We are not smokers so I would have to say that celebrity policy on smoking for us was a definite plus. There is no smoking on the balcony or in any of the interior lounges including the casino. You can smoke on the outside decks on the port side of the ship. I didn't find it all that bad when in those areas. We were on the Spirit to Hawaii last April and our neighbors were on their balcony pretty much chain smoking. It really took away from our personal enjoyment of the Balcony. That being said, carnival allows it so they had the right I suppose.

 

We did have an inside room although when on Carnival have always taken a balcony. Did we miss it? Perhaps but on the other hand we were seldom in our room on this trip. Certainly the higher the category the more perks were involved on Celebrity and some folks in the celebrity world take those perks very serious.

 

Dining room dress code? Prior to going I heard much about this and actually worried that Celebrity cruisers may be a bit snobbish. I really found the dining experience to be not that much different from Carnival. Some men were wearing jackets on a regular night and others like myself wore a nice dress shirt with some dockers or nice pair of jeans. I saw some men wearing golf shirts but did not see anyone wearing shorts. The ladies were a mixed bunch as well. We normally dress up slightly anyway for dinner on a cruise simply because we like that.

 

Formal Nights were very comparable with most women in nice dresses. I did not see what I would call evening gowns but rather nice formal dresses or some pant outfits for women. Some men wore tuxes while most I would say wore jacket and tie. There were two men across from us who wore golf shirts every night regardless of the theme and they were allowed in the dining room so I am not sure how much they really enforce the rules.

 

As for the clientèle? There were only 14 kids on this cruise, but then again it was a 14 might Canal cruise. I was told by one of the entertainment staff that the Infinity would have 350 kids on their next cruise. There were many older patrons on the cruise however, I would say that the 40 - 55 range may have been the general age group on this cruise. We have done Holland America in the past and there were clearly older clientèle on that cruise.

 

Do I think Celebrity is worth the higher rates? Interesting question for sure. The service was excellent, even with an inside room. You see the senior staff around a lot more then I had experienced on Carnival or Holland America and they always take the time to say hello. In fact, one of our friends had a glass of champagne in one of the bars that seemed a bit off. When he mentioned this to one of the senior staff, the officer brought him out a full bottle of a premium champagne at no charge. That's good service. I guess all I could say on the price issue would be that you do pay more. What we paid for an inside would get us a very nice balcony on Carnival but in turn I think the service was much better then we had expected or experienced in the past. As an example our room steward was always around and would go out of his way just to say hello.

 

Hope that clarifies some of your questions and of course these are simply my opinions.

 

Someone also commented about the Champagne when you board. We loved this, however non alcoholic beverages were also available if you did not want the champagne. My personal favorite were the cold towels every time you came back on the ship while in port.

[Tapi]

sayvan:

 

Thanks for taking the time to answer my questions! Very helpful! I'm definitely checking out Celebrity, and a big reason for it is because of the mostly positive feedback from people like you who have taken the time to review and comment! :)

[WinnipegCruiser]

One difference for sure is that Celebrity does the through the canal cruises more often than Carnival.

 

I really want to do that cruise.

[Tom-n-Cheryl]

One difference for sure is that Celebrity does the through the canal cruises more often than Carnival.

 

I really want to do that cruise.

 

Yes, unfortunately Carnival only does those when the decide to MOVE ships... Celebrity has them as part of their regular (though seasonal) schedule.

 

Tom

[SMA9497]

I've been on 2 Carnival cruises but am leaving Sunday on my first Celebrity cruise on the Solstice. For me, it was actually a price issue- guess I caught a great sale because I was able to book their Aqua Class cabin (Spa class) for less than it was going to cost me to book a spa class on Dream plus an OBC. We have loved our Carnival cruises but this for me was a winner. I've heard great things about Celebrity and considering the great rate thought we should go ahead and venture out. Even if we absolutely love it, I imagine we will sail Carnival again. They have more cruises leaving from ports that are convenient for us and usually you can't beat the pricing! It will just open up more options for us!

 

Oh and I might add- I really really like the drink package option! Even if we don't "break even" I like that fact that our bar tab has been paid before the cruise even begins and I don't have to worry about it!

[maryann2]

Thank you so much Sayvan for this brilliant review. I read it last night and was engrossed for a couple of hours. Well done.

 

I was on the Carnival Elation Panama Canal cruise in April this year and it was good to see the ports again. The Elation had an older group on board and the ship was pretty dead after 10pm.

 

I am leaning towards Celebrity again now as Carnival has increased their solo supplement prices to 200%. I was on the Century Transatlantic in October, 150% solo supplement and had a concierge class balcony for less than the price of a solo inside on Carnival. I do not book Celebrity months in advance but take advantage of their Tuesday specials XcitingDeals_cel_tues.pdf (application/pdf Object)

 

Last year I was on the Millennium- Australia /New Zealand cruise and just loved it. My best cruise ever. If the price is right would love to do it on the Century.

 

 

I like the loyalty programme on Celebrity too. Giving two credits for cruises over 12 days and extra for concierge class cabins means I am already Elite with them.

 

I love the food on Carnival and Celebrity. Much more choice for room service on Celebrity.

 

Loved the glass of champagne when boarding ,also the cool towels after being ashore.

 

Once again Thank you for the review.

[Tom-n-Cheryl]

I've been on 2 Carnival cruises but am leaving Sunday on my first Celebrity cruise on the Solstice. For me, it was actually a price issue- guess I caught a great sale because I was able to book their Aqua Class cabin (Spa class) for less than it was going to cost me to book a spa class on Dream plus an OBC. We have loved our Carnival cruises but this for me was a winner. I've heard great things about Celebrity and considering the great rate thought we should go ahead and venture out. Even if we absolutely love it, I imagine we will sail Carnival again. They have more cruises leaving from ports that are convenient for us and usually you can't beat the pricing! It will just open up more options for us!

 

Oh and I might add- I really really like the drink package option! Even if we don't "break even" I like that fact that our bar tab has been paid before the cruise even begins and I don't have to worry about it!

 

Do consider trying all the specialty restaurants on the Solstice. Murano, Tuscan Grille, and Silk Harvest. We almost didn't try Silk Harvest because of some so-so reviews, but it turned out to be one of the most memorable meals!! Tuscan Grille has, IMHO, the BEST tables for two - they are across the back of the ship overlooking the water - with the blue downlighting they have over the water, it's a stunning vista!!

 

Tom

[DarthGrady]

sayvan, thanks for the great review and pics! :)

 

Tom, thanks for posting up the menu. Looks good! I'm pretty sure one of those grilled chicken sandwiches has my name on it.