Celebrity/HAL/RSSC Suites

[gwesq]

We sailed on the Zenith in a small room, to Bermuda in th summer, when the ship was several hundred OVER capacity. Despite the wonderful food & the great Martini Bar, we vowed to never sail Celebrity again. Since that time we have sailed 2 - 3 times a year in either a full Suite on HAL, or on Radisson ships. We love both.

 

But one should Never say Never! We just got a good price on the Jan 17 sailing SD to SD in a Royal Suite on Mercury. Can anyone tell me how that will compare to the other ships? What will we be getting in a Mercury Suite that we did not get in HAL suite, and vice-versa? Can the food on Celebrity compare to Radisson?

 

Radisson is open seating, and HAL is assigned, as, of course, is Celebrity. We have sometimes had to change tables on HAL & did so with no problem. How is Celebrity for table changing? The only time we were on Celebrity we were very happy with our tablemates - all interesting people with varied backgrounds.

 

THANKS

 

"Even a bad day at sea is better than a good day on land!"

[cruiseyguy]

Celebrity "does" suites very well. Furnishings, ambience and service in the suites compare favorably with any line, including the smaller "luxury" lines. But you have to get out of your suite at some point. I've never been on Hal, but, because they are larger, Celebrity ships are generally more social and active than RSSC ships. The quality, fit and finish of the public areas, as well as the general layout, are comparable between Celebrity and RSSC although Celebrity will have "more" of everything, such as shops, bigger gym, more pools, etc. Food is very subjective, of course: RSSC overall probably has higher quality food but not by much. Buffets, especially breakfast, are very similar. Some meals in Celebrity's main dining room, expecially on formal nights, are much more elaborate, better plated and better prepared than meals in RSSC's Compass Rose. Signatures, RSSC's French restaurant, is excellent and better, in my view, than Celebrity's specialty restaurants. In sum, if you have a good suite price give Celebrity a chance to remove that "small room" experience from your memory.

[AstridSJ]

We have stayed in the RS on the Mercury as well as a Category SS on the Volendam with Hal

I like the RS on the Mercury much better, we used the dining area every day for breakfast and I like the separate bedroom also. The butler service was similar, food was similar

Nice little perk from HAL is that the laundry is included, which is not the case on Celebrity.

We loved both cruises

 

Mercury Nov 15, 2004

Galaxy April 2, 2005

 

HAL: Volendam 2003

NCL: Star Nov 2002

RCCL: Vision, Legend, Viking Serenade, 1995,1996,1998,2001

Celebrity: Century, Mercury, Infinity, 1997,1999,2000,2002

Disney Magic 2001

Renaissance R3 2000