Celebrity Versus RCI - Just My Opinion

[Lorabele]

Here's my disclaimer: I've only cruised twice, once on Celebrity and once on RCI. I do not believe I'm an expert, nor do I intend to try to convince anyone that my opinion is the right opinion. What follows is based upon my experience on Celebrity Summit (November of 2003 - 11 nights) and RCI Jewel of the Seas (March of 2005 - 8 nights). Others may feel differently....and that's okay!

 

All right, so here we go.

 

Dress Code: On Celebrity, the dress code is very clear, every day. It's in the daily program, and it CLEARLY states the expectations. In the dining room, I never saw shorts or jeans. Casual attire nights were much more dressy than I expected, but that was fine with me. On RCI, the daily paper would just say the expected dress was "formal" or "casual," but it never defined what that was or stated anything further about no jeans, no shorts, etc. Neither did I ever see it stated that that attire was for everywhere on the ship, as it was on Celebrity. Saw lots of jeans and shorts at dinner, and the dress overall was much more casual than Celebrity.

 

Stateroom Attendant: On Celebrity, on our first day, our attendant came in our room, introduced herself, told us what to expect, and left us a card with her name and phone number on it. On RCI, the attendant knocked on the door and from the doorway told my husband her name and said to call if we need anything. I got a glimpse of her, and after that I saw her only one other time, the 2nd day. That same day, Day 1, she turned our bed down sometime around 4 PM. We were quite surprised by that. When we saw her on Day 2, we asked her about it, and she said she was tired so she did it early. She then told us in great detail about how early she had to get up to turn the rooms around and how tired she was. We asked that she turn our beds down during dinner after that, and she complied. On both ships, the rooms were kept very clean and we appreciated the hard work of the staff. On Celebrity I had to ask nearly every day for an extra towel (I like to use 2), since the attendant couldn't seem to remember that. On RCI, with only 1 reminder, that extra towel was there every day. We LOVED the towel animals on RCI and looked forward every night to the new one.

 

Overall Staff: The staff on Celebrity was very efficient and professional, and they seemed to keep their distance from the passengers. On RCI, the staff didn't seem quite as efficient, but they made up for that in their friendliness. We really enjoyed getting to know the people on board.

 

Stateroom: We had a CC on Summit and an E-2 on Jewel. Cabins very similar in size and layout. Summit we were right under the buffet, but we never heard a thing. Jewel we were two or three floors above Schooner Bar, and the noise was awful. As long as we kept the balcony door open, it drowned it out somewhat, but if that door was closed it was like we were in the bar. The sound was actually coming up through the floor. Luckily it seemed to stop fairly early, just after midnight. Still, with a brand new ship, I would not have expected to hear so clearly something 2 or 3 floors away.

 

On Board Activities: On Summit, we had so much to choose from every single day. It was amazing. Loved Simon, the cruise director. He was everywhere all the time, it seemed. On Jewel, the cruise director was awful. There was only one or two things to choose from at any given time, even on sea days. Very disappointing. Others who cruised RCI previously felt that this was an exception for RCI and said that there were usually many other activities to choose from.

 

Food: To me, the food seemed very comprable on both lines. Some nights were great, some were okay. Just depended on what they were serving. On Celebrity, our waiter was very, very good, but he was not the friendliest man I've ever seen. On RCI, he bent over backwards to please us and be friendly. He seemed to not always get things right, so we had to work with him, but it was clear he was trying to please.

 

Speciality Resturant: Celebrity wins this HANDS DOWN. We ate at the Normandie, and that was one of the best meals of my life, both related to food and presentation. The atmosphere was amazing, with live music, dedicated wait staff, beautiful room, etc. Chops on RCI was like a good steak house - but nothing special. I didn't think the steak there was any better than the steak on the main dining room. I would never waste my money on Chops again, but Normandie I would visit at least twice on every cruise.

 

Buffet: Jewel's setup was much better than Summit's. On Jewel, there were many stations to choose from, so I never felt like I was "in line" or waiting. On Summit, all the food is in one long line, so you are put through it with everyone else. While the food, again, seemed to be about the same on both lines, I liked the Jewel's arrangement much better.

 

Overall, both lines provide exceptional service, and both ships were gorgous. My cruise wasn't "ruined" by any of the bumps we had, and I can't wait to cruise again. We will probably end up on both lines again at some point, as we plan to do a lot of cruising. I would recommend each of them to anyone without hesitation.

[davehau]

Thanks for sharing your impressions!

 

One note on Celebrity: It appears much of Celebrity's operations are based on an European model, and this seems to extend to their service as well. Many of the service staff at first appear to be more formal and less "friendly". However, after some effort on each of my cruises to convince the staff that I wasn't going to snip at them if they cracked a joke or played a bit, they all seemed to relax and be much more personable. I think it's mainly a comfort level thing: they know if they stay more formal, they're less likely to offend someone. The other factor that seems to play into this is the experience level of the staff -- I've had assistant waiters who had just moved up to that position, and they naturally seemed unsure about how to act in some circumstances.

 

If you take the time to let them know you as a person, they reciprocate wonderfully. I've always enjoyed hearing about the staff's homes and families when they have a moment or two to talk.

 

As to special requests, such as your extra towel, I find the best way to assure these are remembered and met is to simply write a quick note with the request and leave it in a conspicuous place. I'd guess the attendant probably puts it somewhere on his/her cart to remind themselves during the cruise.

 

Dave

[mmp13]

Lorabele,

Really enjoyed your clear concise review. Seemed very fair and balanced. We were thinking of trying the jewel and after reading your review I would not hesitate. I would just be very pickiy about room location. thanks for the great tips

[jwattle]

Thank you for your honest, informative and non-judgemental review! VERY helpful...We have cruised RCI's LEgend of the Seas, and are booked on Summit in September...

[Ericknow32]

Great post. I am glad that you enjoyed each cruise. I like to see posts like this one.

[Host Anne]

Lorabele ~ what a terrific review. You did a great job at comparing your cruises. I'd like to encourage you to submit it to the REVIEWS section of Cruise Critic as many others will find it helpful, too.

 

We are sailing on Jewel in July (we've sailed Summit twice and Brilliance once) and can't wait. Every cruise is what you make it. You are well on your way to being addicted like so many of the rest of us.

 

Keep sharing and keep cruising!

[newmexicoNita]

I really enjoyed your objective review of the 2 ships and 2 cruiselines. Thanks

NMNita

[fireguy091]

I would call the above review honest but not great. It was obvious from the start that the person favors X, and thats OK. She just had a very polite way of putting down RCL,lol.

 

I have recently returned from the 11 day Galaxy. I would never do that iteniary again. Way to many sea days..:( My previous cruise was on the brand new Serenade. I think the Serenade put the Galaxy to shame. The food at dinner was about the same. I do think X goes a little more out of their way to please when you have special requests. The Serenade buffet dining area beats Galaxy hands down. It isn't even a race. The concierge club on the Serenade is worth alot more than the butler service on X. The ships are newer on RCL so obviously they are nicer and appear to be bigger or roomier I think the service from bartenders wait staff etc were on an equall par. I thought Chops and Portifino's were great, but with that said I have never been to Normandies. I would not discourage anyone fro m either line, but I would have to give the edge to RCL for these reasons. Newer ships, better buffett dining, which everyone likes...:) As for the night life, again RCL hands down unless you go to bed early.

[cruiseyguy]

Both cruiselines are part of the same corporation, RCL, so either choice is OK with RCL.

[AUNTDEBBA]

I have cruised 3 times RCI and twice with Celebrity with my 3rd Celebrity coming up in Sept I still give Celebrity quite a bit of an edge. What I noticed since the merger is RCI food has really gone down hill. This is not only my opionion but I have heard from many mainly comparing RCI food with Carnival and Princess (RCI losing) as they have never done Celebrity. I happen to agree that on my last RCI cruise (two weeks ago) I was really disappointed unlike the RCI cruise I had two years ago. Had a friend just back from the Brillance that has 7 RCI cruises and said she was really

disappointed with the food.

 

This seems a recent development that hopefully they will work through as I love their ships but since I don't ice skate or rock climb I want above average food for my cruise dollar. People that rock climb and ice skate probably feel that those extras are worth the money they pay.

[fireguy091]

There is so much talk about the food. Thats OK if thats what floats your boat. I think the food on every cruise I have been on was good period. My last X cruise was good, it wasn't great. There were items that were terrible and so I found something I liked. All the cruises have had food that was terrible, ie pizza. But hey its seems like its free at the moment, so pig out and enjoy. I guess I am trying to say that there are many other reasons to pick what line or ship you sail and the food isn't one of them. X is a great cruise line and gives more than excellent service. Rcl is just about par with the service, but has other things that I like better, ie the ships and the night life, and lets not forget the concierge club, not to be confused with CC rooms on /x They are both great and for what you pay I don't think anyone can complain about either one. Carnival is another topic,lol

[mii]

Thanks for the great review. I will be going on my first Celebrity cruise and I will also compare cruise lines after this cruise becaue I have always sailed Princess. It should be interesting.

 

Marilyn

[wcal]

Thanks for the review, we are booked on the Summit this August and the Jewel next February. My only previous Celebrity cruise was on the Century in her ignaural season and enjoyed it very much. Have cruised the Radaince last year and enjoyed it very much also.

[Host Karen]

We sailed Celebrity (Infinity) for the first time in December after having sailed with RCCL three times (Brilliance twice, Adventure once). After our first experience, we have given a slight edge to Celebrity, mainly based on food quality and overall service. Our stateroom attendant was outstanding and as a person who always requests an extra towel from day one, I appreciate not having to repeat it every day. On our last Brilliance cruise, I asked EVERY day for an extra towel, despite having left notes. Seems trivial, but it's frustrating.

 

We thought the food was better in the dining room and the specialty restaurant on Infinity compared to the other ships, and unlike the OP gave the buffet much higher marks than those on Royal Caribbean ships. Despite the fact that one must wait in one line, there are servers to plate the food, which prevents most of the "touching and not taking" by passengers that we've seen on BOS and AOS, and the food was of better quality. The layout of the buffet on BOS and AOS makes it easier to move around, but I don't like my food handled by other passengers before I get it. Just my pet peeve.

 

We found the decor, ship layout and entertainment better on Brilliance than Infinity and thought there was a bit more room in a similar cabin, although the bathroom layout and shower size on Infinity did beat Brilliance.

 

Although we are looking forward to our upcoming Med cruise on Brilliance, we've already booked two more Celebrity cruises. Depending on the itineraries we choose in the future, we'll be looking at Celebrity first.

[fireguy091]

Karen, just curious but what Cat rooms do you stay in. I feel the Cat B suites and above on RCL to have just as good service as X and much bigger rooms.:) And once again you can't beat the concierge club, X needs one

[Host Karen]

fireguy, you're a luckier traveler than we are. We stay in D1s on Brilliance and stayed in a JS on AOS. On Infinity we were in a deck 9 CC cabin, although next March we'll be sailing in a Sky Suite. As we won't be Diamond members until after our Summit cruise, we haven't had an opportunity to use the Concierge Club on RCCL ships, although from what I've heard, they are a terrific benefit.

 

So, I can't speak to the service level in suites (or the bonus of having a butler); I can only compare service in the regular balcony-level cabins. To go into greater detail, I would say that our steward on our last Brilliance cruise was the worst we've ever experienced in terms of service, followed closely by a steward we had on one of our Princess cruises. Both of them were not friendly, not helpful, and not interested in providing anything other the lowest level of cabin service. The rest of our cabin stewards have ranged from good to excellent.

 

Just to clarify, when I write of a higher level of service on Celebrity, I mean not only that of our cabin steward, but of almost every crew member we dealt with, from our waiter to the maitre d' in the USS United States to the social hostess to the hotel manager.

 

As I wrote in my review of Infinity, I wish Royal Caribbean would transfer one of the Radiance class ships to Celebrity and bring the food and service up to X levels. It would be the perfect combination of ship and quality in our opinion.

 

Karen

[newmexicoNita]

I would call the above review honest but not great. It was obvious from the start that the person favors X, and thats OK. She just had a very polite way of putting down RCL,lol.

 

I have recently returned from the 11 day Galaxy. I would never do that iteniary again. Way to many sea days..:( My previous cruise was on the brand new Serenade. I think the Serenade put the Galaxy to shame. The food at dinner was about the same. I do think X goes a little more out of their way to please when you have special requests. The Serenade buffet dining area beats Galaxy hands down. It isn't even a race. The concierge club on the Serenade is worth alot more than the butler service on X. The ships are newer on RCL so obviously they are nicer and appear to be bigger or roomier I think the service from bartenders wait staff etc were on an equall par. I thought Chops and Portifino's were great, but with that said I have never been to Normandies. I would not discourage anyone fro m either line, but I would have to give the edge to RCL for these reasons. Newer ships, better buffett dining, which everyone likes...:) As for the night life, again RCL hands down unless you go to bed early.

 

 

It's always good to have a variety of opinions, that's what makes these boards not only fun, but informative: I do take exception to some of your remarks: you are comparing apples with oranges. Many people don't like the longer cruises with days at sea, but that has little to do with the ship itself. The second issue: Serenade versus Galaxy: one was a brand new ship when you sailed her, the other is not anywhere near brand new: Of course there are differeces as ships age, same as people. You state you give the edge to RCI because of newer ships: You haven't seen or been on ships like the Constellation which is very new, thus you can't really judge. I would agree perhaps with the buffets as I personally love the presentation of the buffets on X but think they are boring. Nightlife, yes, RCI is geared to a little younger set and not as subdued as X so there is more to do. NMNita

[WeBeCruisin']

you are comparing apples with oranges. Many people don't like the longer cruises with days at sea, but that has little to do with the ship itself. You state you give the edge to RCI because of newer ships: You haven't seen or been on ships like the Constellation which is very new, thus you can't really judge.

 

I agree with Nita about the apples to oranges comparisons. Our last three trips have been on Celebrity, and we love the M-class ships. We've been on RCCL four times, but the ships were the Majesty, Splendour, Legend, and Nordic Empress. These are all smaller ships, by today's standards, and I realize that it would be totally unfair to compare them to our experiences on the Summit and the Constellation. In July, we'll be on the Brilliance, which is about the same size as the M-class ships, and only then will we have the right to compare Celebrity to RCCL.

 

Allen

[reggierail]

We thought the food was better in the dining room and the specialty restaurant on Infinity compared to the other ships, and unlike the OP gave the buffet much higher marks than those on Royal Caribbean ships. Despite the fact that one must wait in one line, there are servers to plate the food, which prevents most of the "touching and not taking" by passengers that we've seen on BOS and AOS, and the food was of better quality. The layout of the buffet on BOS and AOS makes it easier to move around, but I don't like my food handled by other passengers before I get it. Just my pet peeve.

 

 

I agree with just about everything you stated especially the part about servers to plate the food. I picked this up immediately on my Mercury cruise. Some of the things people do to and with the food in buffet lines is disgusting. I sure don't want to eat something someone else has touched, especially when they're grazing their plate as they walk through the buffet line.:eek:

 

Reggie:D

[Rickster]

Lorabele, thanks for your opinion. We enjoy both lines, 4 cruises on each line. We will set sail on the Jewel soon and can't wait. We'll be able to compare our aft balcony on the Millie to the aft balcony that we will enjoy on the Jewel! We believe you can't go wrong on either line.

 

Rick.

[vmarq]

Lorabele,

Thanks for your thoughts. We were also on the Jewel in March - 8 day. I agree with you about the lack of activities available. In my opinion, this was very uncharacteristic for Royal Caribbean. This was our 5th RCI cruise. We have also sailed twice on Celebrity and twice on Princess. The Jewel was probably the most beautiful ship we have been on. I do think Royal Caribbean and Celebrity has their pluses and minuses so we cruise on them interchangeably based on price and itinerary. I always believed that the activities was a plus on RCI but that was not the case on the Jewel, however, other pluses made up for it.

[fireguy091]

It's always good to have a variety of opinions, that's what makes these boards not only fun, but informative: I do take exception to some of your remarks: you are comparing apples with oranges. Many people don't like the longer cruises with days at sea, but that has little to do with the ship itself. The second issue: Serenade versus Galaxy: one was a brand new ship when you sailed her, the other is not anywhere near brand new: Of course there are differeces as ships age, same as people. You state you give the edge to RCI because of newer ships: You haven't seen or been on ships like the Constellation which is very new, thus you can't really judge. I would agree perhaps with the buffets as I personally love the presentation of the buffets on X but think they are boring. Nightlife, yes, RCI is geared to a little younger set and not as subdued as X so there is more to do. NMNita

 

I don't take exception to anything you said. I actually agree with it all. But I'm not comparing apples to oranges. I'm comparing one experience with another. Since no two cruise lines have identicle ships we will never be able to compare apples to apples. I liked X and think the overall service is outstanding, there are just things about RCL I prefer. I wouldn't discourage anyone from either. But if I was advising anyone I would try to get into their head, with their imput and decide what it is they expect and desire out of their cruise. Only then woluld I make my recomendation. If you are an expierenced cruiser you know that anyone going on a cruise expecting it to be a certain way better do their homework or they could be in for a surprize.

[tuggers]

I find myself more in tune with what NMNita says. Fireguy just seems to like RCL better and is going to defend that position, no matter what. And that's ok. Everyone has their favorites and should cruise on what they like.

 

I like the cold towels by the pool and when I return from ports and the Parade of Sorbet. There are a lot of little things that make X my choice, just as RCL is yours.

 

I do disagree with the statement, 'better buffet dining, which everyone likes'. I detest buffet dining on ANY ship and try to NEVER eat there! I use the dining room and am generally not disappointed.

[fireguy091]

I am one to admit I made a mistake. I should have said "better buffet dining

which everyone but Tuggers likes...:)

With that said I really did think X had alot of class. I just don't think there are any ships sailing that can beat the Radiance Class ships. They are drop dead gorgeous.

[newmexicoNita]

I am one to admit I made a mistake. I should have said "better buffet dining

which everyone but Tuggers likes...:)

With that said I really did think X had alot of class. I just don't think there are any ships sailing that can beat the Radiance Class ships. They are drop dead gorgeous.

 

It's all in how you interpret comments: My point is you can't compare an older ship with a new one or a large with a small as they offer different amenities and hold different charms if that is a correct way of wording things. Again, just because a ship is drop dead goreous doesn't make a cruise experience better in my mind anyway. The Connie is also drop dead gorgeous and we loved her, that doesn't mean we judged her on her beauty as there is so much more to cruising than the looks of the ship. Ever stayed in a 5 star hotel that was outstanding in looks, but feel down is service? I have. NMNita

 

ps it is good to read the difference in opinions on this and other boards.