Looking at a Celebrity Cruise

[hexdragon]

Hello everyone,

 

I am thinking about going on a Celebrity cruise to the Western Med. in June 2013. I have a few questions.

 

First off, what puts Celebrity above all the other cruise lines? Why Celebrity verses Royal Caribbean, Carnival, Disney, or whatever????

 

What is the "Single supplement" on Celebrity? On NCL I paid the same price being alone in the room as my friends paid for the two of them... IE 200%. On Disney, they at least give me a break at 175%...

 

How is the dining done? NCL and Disney were polar opposites... NCL had more +$ restaurants than "Included"... :mad:

 

Who is the "average Celebrity cruiser"? I have heard that on certain cruise lines you do not want to be near the ship during Spring Break if you get my drift...

[Sloop-JohnB]

Hello everyone,

 

I am thinking about going on a Celebrity cruise to the Western Med. in June 2013. I have a few questions.

 

First off, what puts Celebrity above all the other cruise lines? Why Celebrity verses Royal Caribbean, Carnival, Disney, or whatever????

 

What is the "Single supplement" on Celebrity? On NCL I paid the same price being alone in the room as my friends paid for the two of them... IE 200%. On Disney, they at least give me a break at 175%...

 

How is the dining done? NCL and Disney were polar opposites... NCL had more +$ restaurants than "Included"... :mad:

 

Who is the "average Celebrity cruiser"? I have heard that on certain cruise lines you do not want to be near the ship during Spring Break if you get my drift...

 

Hi HexDragon,

 

Welcome Aboard the CC CELEBRITY BOARD !!

 

I am new to cruising, and new to Celebrity.

 

We chose them over the other lines because we found they seemed to offer what I would describe as "understated Luxury"... this is certainly the message that you'll see in Celebrity's ads (LuXury)

 

We were not disappointed.

 

We sailed on the Solstice (an S-Class Ship circa 2008) and the ship was beautiful and well maintained, with gorgeous facilities, and wonderful staff.

 

Infact I would say that the key element of our trip, was just how genuinely nice Celebrity's Staff are (be they Officers or Crew)... everyone is pleasant, and hard working... they truly try to "anticipate" your needs.

 

We also picked this line because it offered up good itineraries, had new ships, and had interesting onboard activities that we are interested in (Guest Speakers - Computer Courses - Cooking Classes & Demos - Food & Wine Events - and Comedians)

 

The Regular Dining Venues (we were in the MDR) were lovely, and the food was decent... similar to what we eat when we go out to a Restaurant here at home.

 

Our Sailing (7 Nights) also had 2 Formal Evenings... the food and atmosphere in the MDR was excellent.

 

We also enjoyed the Celebrity Brunch that happened once on our cruise in the MDR... great food, artistic presentations, and nice being able to chat with some of the Chefs.

 

The Speciality Restaurants... (on the Solstice there were 4)... offer up something a little different, and are EXCELLENT... more in line with a high-end eating out experience for us at home (4 to 5 Stars).

 

We tried by Bistro on Five and Murano's and were quite pleased. Bistro on Five costs just $ 5 per person, and they serve up Soups, Salads, Paninis and Crepes... they are open 20 Hours a Day, so perfect for Breakfast, Lunch or Dinner... even for a late night snack.

 

Murano's leans more to 5 Star Dining... I would equate it to dining in a Fine Hotel's Restaurant... we enjoyed both a Dinner there as a couple, and I got together with a GF, and we did a "girls afternoon" and attended the Champagne Tea. Both visits were excellent.

 

As for the demographics...

 

We sailed mid-January (a time when all the kiddies are in school) so there weren't many families, teens or university co-eds aboard. It looked to us like most folks were in the 40+ range... with a few couples in their 30s (and some of them had babes in arms along)

 

Generally speaking though, I found the primarly customer to be middle class, well educated and somewhat worldly / sophisticated... (not to mention a lot of fun to meet and be with). So basically IMO, the exact market share that =X= seems to be going after.

 

Hope this is helpful,

 

Cheers!

 

PS... We were so pleased, that we are sticking with Celebrity, and sailing on the Summit (an M-Class Ship) next January. The Summit, having just been "solsticized" last month... we are looking forward to that trip, and discovering more of the Caribbean while we enjoy another very relaxing stress-free holiday with Celebrity.

 

ATTACHED PHOTOS

 

1- Rack of Lamb - MDR

2- Tableside Flambee - Murano's

3- Chicken Caesar Salad - Bistro on 5

4- Mediterranean Crepe - Bistro on 5

[TLCOhio]

Hello everyone, I am thinking about going on a Celebrity cruise to the Western Med. in June 2013. I have a few questions. First off, what puts Celebrity above all the other cruise lines? Why Celebrity verses Royal Caribbean, Carnival, Disney, or whatever???? What is the "Single supplement" on Celebrity? On NCL I paid the same price being alone in the room as my friends paid for the two of them... IE 200%. On Disney, they at least give me a break at 175%... How is the dining done? NCL and Disney were polar opposites... NCL had more +$ restaurants than "Included"... Who is the "average Celebrity cruiser"? I have heard that on certain cruise lines you do not want to be near the ship during Spring Break if you get my drift...

 

As always, Sloop-JohnB has given you an excellent summary. From my below live/blog, you can see lots and lots of details and visuals for what we enjoyed and experienced on the Solstice from Barcelona. Great ports and wonderful ship experience from our first with Celebrity after doing three earlier cruises on smaller ships with more of a luxury style. We weren't disappointed and the pricing point represented a good value. Below are a few key of my photo highlights for what we liked on the ship, its quality and style, etc.

 

That high single pricing is a bummer. On our first two cruises, we had to do singles for my wife and I due to my loud snoring and those issues. Now with a CPAP machine, we don't have to go that way any more. If you are flexible, my suggestion would be to wait until about the 70th day before the cruise. At that point, people will have had to be paid up and Celebrity knows how much more they need to do to "fill up" the ship. At that point our roughly $2300 price paid dropped to $1500. They filled up the ship at the lower price range. In doing this, you might get hit with a little higher air fare, but, overall, it could save you some real money in the single situation. Most all of the rooms are the same on these Solstice-type ships, so getting an ideal location is not quite as critical.

 

What ports are you considering visiting? Tell us more!! Happy to answer any added questions.

 

THANKS! Enjoy! Terry in Ohio

 

Did a June 7-19, 2011, Solstice cruise from Barcelona that had stops in Villefranche, ports near Pisa and Rome, Naples, Kotor, Venice and Dubrovnik. Enjoyed great weather and a wonderful trip. Dozens of wonderful visuals with key highlights, tips, comments, etc., on these postings. We are now at 64,098 views for this live/blog re-cap on our first sailing with Celebrity and much on wonderful Barcelona. Check these postings and added info at:

http://www.boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1426474

 

 

This is a view looking up in the Solstice central lobby with a music group playing there. :

 

 

 

The Solarium was one of our favorite areas on the Solstice. Food and drinks were nearby and it was very relaxed and sophisticated. Quieter, too, as it is an adults-only area. Two hot tubs here. Not crowded, especially in the evenings. Nice art and design are there as a part of this sparkling ship facility.:

 

 

 

On the top, back of the Solstice, here is a wider view of Corning Hot Glass show area, plus the green grass and the unique covering designs for this special area of the ship.:

 

 

 

When the sun was setting as the Solstice sailed from Rome to Naples, here was the visual on the back lawn on the ship’s top, back level. Dramatic and beautiful!!:

 

 

 

Here’s a sample of the pools and the activities around this key hub area of the Solstice.:

 

 

 

For the handy and quick Oceanview Cafe buffet, here is one visual sample showing how large and open are these various serving areas. This area includes getting items from the pizza-pasta bar area, various hot and cold items, free tea and juice machines, etc.:

 

[teajak]

Hi HexDragon,

 

Welcome Aboard the CC CELEBRITY BOARD !!

 

I am new to cruising, and new to Celebrity.

 

We chose them over the other lines because we found they seemed to offer what I would describe as "understated Luxury"... this is certainly the message that you'll see in Celebrity's ads (LuXury)

 

We were not disappointed.

 

We sailed on the Solstice (an S-Class Ship circa 2008) and the ship was beautiful and well maintained, with gorgeous facilities, and wonderful staff.

 

Infact I would say that the key element of our trip, was just how genuinely nice Celebrity's Staff are (be they Officers or Crew)... everyone is pleasant, and hard working... they truly try to "anticipate" your needs.

 

We also picked this line because it offered up good itineraries, had new ships, and had interesting onboard activities that we are interested in (Guest Speakers - Computer Courses - Cooking Classes & Demos - Food & Wine Events - and Comedians)

 

The Regular Dining Venues (we were in the MDR) were lovely, and the food was decent... similar to what we eat when we go out to a Restaurant here at home.

 

Our Sailing (7 Nights) also had 2 Formal Evenings... the food and atmosphere in the MDR was excellent.

 

We also enjoyed the Celebrity Brunch that happened once on our cruise in the MDR... great food, artistic presentations, and nice being able to chat with some of the Chefs.

 

The Speciality Restaurants... (on the Solstice there were 4)... offer up something a little different, and are EXCELLENT... more in line with a high-end eating out experience for us at home (4 to 5 Stars).

 

We tried by Bistro on Five and Murano's and were quite pleased. Bistro on Five costs just $ 5 per person, and they serve up Soups, Salads, Paninis and Crepes... they are open 20 Hours a Day, so perfect for Breakfast, Lunch or Dinner... even for a late night snack.

 

Murano's leans more to 5 Star Dining... I would equate it to dining in a Fine Hotel's Restaurant... we enjoyed both a Dinner there as a couple, and I got together with a GF, and we did a "girls afternoon" and attended the Champagne Tea. Both visits were excellent.

 

As for the demographics...

 

We sailed mid-January (a time when all the kiddies are in school) so there weren't many families, teens or university co-eds aboard. It looked to us like most folks were in the 40+ range... with a few couples in their 30s (and some of them had babes in arms along)

 

Generally speaking though, I found the primarly customer to be middle class, well educated and somewhat worldly / sophisticated... (not to mention a lot of fun to meet and be with). So basically IMO, the exact market share that =X= seems to be going after.

 

Hope this is helpful,

 

Cheers!

 

PS... We were so pleased, that we are sticking with Celebrity, and sailing on the Summit (an M-Class Ship) next January. The Summit, having just been "solsticized" last month... we are looking forward to that trip, and discovering more of the Caribbean while we enjoy another very relaxing stress-free holiday with Celebrity.

 

ATTACHED PHOTOS

 

1- Rack of Lamb - MDR

2- Tableside Flambee - Murano's

3- Chicken Caesar Salad - Bistro on 5

4- Mediterranean Crepe - Bistro on 5

What a great post. We have sailed Celebrity for many years and I couldn't agree more with your excellant summation.:cool:

[buddymum]

Hello everyone,

 

I am thinking about going on a Celebrity cruise to the Western Med. in June 2013. I have a few questions.

 

First off, what puts Celebrity above all the other cruise lines? Why Celebrity verses Royal Caribbean, Carnival, Disney, or whatever????

 

What is the "Single supplement" on Celebrity? On NCL I paid the same price being alone in the room as my friends paid for the two of them... IE 200%. On Disney, they at least give me a break at 175%...

 

How is the dining done? NCL and Disney were polar opposites... NCL had more +$ restaurants than "Included"... :mad:

 

Who is the "average Celebrity cruiser"? I have heard that on certain cruise lines you do not want to be near the ship during Spring Break if you get my drift...

Hi there, we have booked our second cruise with celebrity solstice going to venice out of barcalona on june 16th 2012. we have also cruised alaska with them on infinity which was out of this world. We have only cruised with one other cruise line - princess and my opinion is they are pretty much alike, i think celebrity has the edge on food but we have had 4 great cruises with no compaints at all. I think it depends on where you are going to what the age group is and also time of year - term time or school holidays. We always have select dining which suits us best.

[huskerc]

Well, I can answer as someone who never thought I would enjoy a cruise. Last year we gave NCL a shot. Four night Bahamas on the Sky--the kind that is often referred to as a "Booze Cruise". It was a short cruise and port-intensive (in case we hated the boat) so it seemed like a good way to get our feet wet, so to speak. It was October, so a lot of kids were off on break, and plenty of them were on board. Overall I would say we were right at or even maybe slightly above the average age of the adults on board (we're 40). Not a lot of retirement-aged cruisers on this one.

 

We loved the cruise but wanted to branch out a little bit and see what other lines were like. Celebrity gets very good marks around here and we found a great price on a 5-night Caribbean. It was a real pleasure. We loved everything about this cruise as well, even though the differences from NCL were obvious. The average age of passengers on this cruise had to be pushing 70. We were some of the youngest on board and there were virtually no minors.

 

If we cruise again--haha, just a little joke, we are in the process of booking two more cruises as I write this--which line would we pick? Both. It sort of depends on the type of cruise. Here were the big differences we saw, and based on that, which line we would choose for what type of cruise.

 

 

• Celebrity has traditional dining. This is a BIG difference. Of course X has "select" dining if you just want to come and go as you please. We liked the traditional dining better, but that was because we ended up with a great table of 6. We were always the last group to leave the dining room in the evening. Our experience might have been quite a bit different with less-friendly table mates.
  
• Food quality, I would overall give X the edge, however, I don't think NCL lags that far behind. Unless I missed a lot on the Millennium, NCL had more food available at more times of day. I know, it's not like anyone is going hungry on a cruise ship, but things that I didn't see on X were the bar foods found in NCL's sports bar, and the buffet being open later.
  
• Service. We were tended to very well on the Millennium. We knew our Steward from the first moment we stepped in our cabin. The dinner service was impeccable. I don't even recall if NCL had a sommellier. Coming back from port we were given towels and cups of water. Just for comparison, the Carnival cruisers next to us at George Town were pouring their own out of big coolers.
  
• Cleanliness. I never felt the Sky was dirty, but the Millennium was near spotless. Everywhere you look there was always someone cleaning something. The dirtiest thing I ever saw was a few glasses around the hot tub in the Solarium (and I'm sure they didn't stay there too long).
  
• Entertainment. No contest. The comedian on X was better, the ship's cast was bigger, and more talented as well.
  
• Activities. There was a LOT more to do during the day. It may have been a function of the fact that it was a 5 night cruise with only 2 ports of call, but we had wine tastings, cooking demonstrations, and plenty of other things that we just didn't get on NCL.
  
• Suite service. No contest, again, although we did not have a suite on the Millennium, some friends did. Full butler service, in-room meal service from the MDR, etc.
  

 

 

We learned on the first cruise that day after day of ports can actually make the vacation feel a bit hectic, so we have come to enjoy sea days. The more port-intensive an itinerary is, the less I think it probably matters which one you pick, and so in that case I would generally go with NCL because they are cheaper.

 

 

However for longer cruises, with more at-sea days, and a greater interest in getting to know fellow passengers, I would choose X every time.

 

 

We're trying to find a time to make a transatlantic work. For that I would definitely want to go on X.

 

ETA: I agree about the $ restaurants on the NCL. I don't eat much pasta so we didn't do the Italian, but we did the French restaurant and the Steakhouse. I was unimpressed with the ribeye. The one I had in Celebrity's MDR was quite a bit better. The Bistro was OK. On the Millennium there was only one specialty restaurant and we had such a good time in the MDR that we never went.

[fishywood]

 

What is the "Single supplement" on Celebrity? On NCL I paid the same price being alone in the room as my friends paid for the two of them... IE 200%. On Disney, they at least give me a break at 175%...

 

Fellow solo traveller here, off on my first Celebrity cruise in less than two weeks. Important to know: DO NOT rely on the Celebrity website for pricing for single occupancy. Found a promotional rate of $899 p/p for an inside guarantee, but when changing the quantity the entire stateroom category would disappear. Called customer service, they said that techincally promo is only for two persons in a cabin, not one (or three or four for that matter). Said she would talk to supervisor, had me on and off hold "waiting for approval of the rate" and ended up with offer of $1449 single rate for 14 night South America cruise. Of course I coudn't spit out my credit card number fast enough.

[TLCOhio]

had me on and off hold "waiting for approval of the rate" and ended up with offer of $1449 single rate for 14 night South America cruise. Of course I coudn't spit out my credit card number fast enough.

 

WOW!!! Super great deal. Glad things worked out.

 

THANKS! Enjoy! Terry in Ohio

 

Did a June 7-19, 2011, Solstice cruise from Barcelona that had stops in Villefranche, ports near Pisa and Rome, Naples, Kotor, Venice and Dubrovnik. Enjoyed great weather and a wonderful trip. Dozens of wonderful visuals with key highlights, tips, comments, etc., on these postings. We are now at 64,098 views for this live/blog re-cap on our first sailing with Celebrity and much on wonderful Barcelona. Check these postings and added info at:

http://www.boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1426474

[hexdragon]

Okay, thanks for all the responses. Here is what I am looking at:

 

June 2013 - 12 day Disney Magic sailing from Barcelona with stops at: Nice, Florance, Rome, Naples, Venice, Dubrovnik, and Malta. I have been on The Wonder twice, so I know how everything works and what level of service to expect. The bad thing is the price. For me alone in the smallest cabin is over $4000....

 

I saw a Celebrity cruise with almost the exact same itinerary but it looks like less than 1/2 the price...

 

On Disney, there are three MDR. You are always at the same table #, and they tell you on Monday you are here, Tuesday... Your wait staff follows you from MDR or MDR... Plus there is the Buffet...

 

How many MDR are on the Solstice? How does it work?

[Sloop-JohnB]

Okay, thanks for all the responses. Here is what I am looking at:

 

June 2013 - 12 day Disney Magic sailing from Barcelona with stops at: Nice, Florance, Rome, Naples, Venice, Dubrovnik, and Malta. I have been on The Wonder twice, so I know how everything works and what level of service to expect. The bad thing is the price. For me alone in the smallest cabin is over $4000....

 

I saw a Celebrity cruise with almost the exact same itinerary but it looks like less than 1/2 the price...

 

On Disney, there are three MDR. You are always at the same table #, and they tell you on Monday you are here, Tuesday... Your wait staff follows you from MDR or MDR... Plus there is the Buffet...

 

How many MDR are on the Solstice? How does it work?

 

Hi HexDragon,

 

On the Solstice there are two Dining Rooms... The Grand Epernay is the BIG One, and Blu is the smaller one. Blu is for Aqua Class Guests ONLY (and sometimes if you have a Suite, you can get a table in there for $ 5 extra per meal).

 

Blu does not offer Traditional "set time" dining... Dinner there is always Select Dining (pick your own time)

 

There are also several Specialty Restaurants onboard (4 on the Solstice) ... where you pay an extra Cover Charge to eat there (they run from $ 5 per person at Bistro on Five, up to $ 40 per person for Murano's)

 

For Traditional Seating, the MDR (Grand Epernay) has 2 times... either 6 PM or 8:30-ish (depends on the sailing, time of year etc)

 

Traditional Seating you have the same Table Number, Tablemates and Service Staff every evening (Head Waiter - Asst Waiter - Sommelier)

 

Tables in the MDR for Traditional Seating run from seating for 2 up to 12.

 

There is also Select Dining, where a part of the MDR is put aside for those patrons who want to be flexible night to night in their time choices.

 

Most of those tables are 2-tops.

 

You can either pre-reserve a sitting time for any particular evening, or just show up as you would in a restaurant, and be seated when something becomes available.

 

When you book your cruise, you will be asked to choose either Select or Traditional (the latter with a time) Dining.

 

In Select Dining, you don't have the same Wait Staff each evening, so you MUST PAY your Daily Gratuities in Advance (so you make this choice when you book your cruise, and then pay those Gratuities along with your Cruise Fare by Final Payment Day). With Traditional Dining, your Gratuities are payable when your cruise is over (although again it is the same set amount per day added to your fare).

 

There are more extensive postings on the differences in Service Charges, Gratuities & Tipping on Celebrity here on the CC CELEBRITY BOARD... that goes into more details on how that aspects work... but this should get you started on what the "basic" differences are.

 

Hope this is helpful,

 

Cheers!

[bighairtexan]

There is 1 MAIN dining room on all Celebrity ships and you can either get "traditional dining" with set time and same wait staff, or Select where you go when you want (though you can make a reservation time and request the same wait staff.) I guess if the food is coming out of the same kitchen I wouldn't care if there were 2, 5 or 1 MDR's.

 

Disney is EXPENSIVE compared to Celebrity and obviously more geared toward families. And sometimes Celebrity has their Xciting tuesday deals with a discounted (like 150% color rate)

 

NCL Epic has "Studio" cabins for the single traveller where you pay a single rate. SMALLL cabins, not very many of them, but they do get like a "living room" especially for the studios.

[4774Papa]

The Celebrity MDR food is consistently quite good. The desserts are fantastic, especially Crepe Suzettes.

[Karynanne]

To answer the OP's questions I would ask myself the following:

 

What are the most important aspects you want when you vacation?

 

When we first started cruising we were very clear on what we needed and wanted from our cruising experience.

 

For us, it was a more sophisticated atmosphere, without hourly announcements, or loud pool activities. We enjoy fine dining, and wanted options available to us.

 

After researching numerous cruise lines, Celebrity seemed like a good "fit" for our needs. And we've never been disappointed.

 

Do your homework...weigh the pros and cons, and make your decison accordingly.

[Sloop-JohnB]

Hi HexDragon,

 

Looks like you've gotten some great replies throughout the day...

 

Here is another thought...

 

Read thru THE RULES for any Cruise Ships you might be considering BEFORE you make any booking... things differ greatly from line to line...

 

Lol, probably why the most contencious topics posted on this the CC CELEBRITY BOARD seem to cover any or all of the following...

 

1- Alcohol Policy

2- Formal Nights & Dress Code

3- Gratuities & Tipping Etiquette

 

Do yourself a BIG Favour and order the printed brochures, as they have the full-version of the "small print" in the back of each issue... then you know exactly is expected of you as a passsenger on that line (and you'll learn a lot at the same time... I find the Brochures are the best put-together info distributed by Celebrity... their website leaves A LOT to be desired to say the least !!)

 

Cheers!

[hexdragon]

Thanks for all the replies. I first started looking at Celebrity because the itinerary matched the one I saw for Disney. I have since found a second Celebrity itinerary that I like (Norway Fjords). I am gonna have to sit down and do some serious thinking... :o

 

BTW: Does anyone know when Celebrity will announce their 2013 itineraries?

[TLCOhio]

Thanks for all the replies. I first started looking at Celebrity because the itinerary matched the one I saw for Disney. I have since found a second Celebrity itinerary that I like (Norway Fjords). I am gonna have to sit down and do some serious thinking... BTW: Does anyone know when Celebrity will announce their 2013 itineraries?

 

YES!! The Norway fjords are wonderful, too!! Lots of great options in Europe. As you can see from my full live/blog noted below and a couple pictures samples, we super loved the fjords and going up and along the scenic Norway Coast up to the North Cape of Europe. This is the area of the famed Vikings!! Then, there are the Baltics and St. Petersburg!! Great and super, too!

 

Tell us more. How much are you interested in history, architecture, culture, countrysides, nature, shopping, museums, scenic views, etc., etc.???

 

As I understand from an earlier posting by Host Andy, many of the Europe 2013 options will be announced in late March.

 

THANKS! Enjoy! Terry in Ohio

 

Did a June 7-19, 2011, Solstice cruise from Barcelona that had stops in Villefranche, ports near Pisa and Rome, Naples, Kotor, Venice and Dubrovnik. Enjoyed great weather and a wonderful trip. Dozens of wonderful visuals with key highlights, tips, comments, etc., on these postings. We are now at 64,331 views for this live/blog re-cap on our first sailing with Celebrity and much on wonderful Barcelona. Check these postings and added info at:

http://www.boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1426474

 

For details and visuals, etc., from our July 1-16, 2010, Norway Coast/Fjords/Arctic Circle cruise experience from Copenhagen on the Silver Cloud, check out this posting. This posting is now at 58,930 views.

http://www.boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1227923

 

Appreciate those who have “tuned in” for these two posts. Don’t be shy and feel free to comment and/or ask any questions of interest.

 

 

You go on these Norway Coast cruises for the spectacular fjords. From the journey to Flam, Gudvangen and Sognerfjord, here is one picture giving you a sampling of the skies and views for these beautiful internal coastlines of the fjords.

 

 

 

This is the dramatic overview of Alesund from the Aksla vantage point. This spot allows a nearly 360-degree view of this setting for this island city and the surrounding mountains and islands. It is at a 597’ height overlooking the five islands making up the scenic town.:

 

[Denny01]

Thanks for all the replies. I first started looking at Celebrity because the itinerary matched the one I saw for Disney. I have since found a second Celebrity itinerary that I like (Norway Fjords). I am gonna have to sit down and do some serious thinking... :o

 

BTW: Does anyone know when Celebrity will announce their 2013 itineraries?

Here are the planned release dates:

 

Galagapoes 03/05.

Alaska 03/12

Northern Europe 03/12

Europe 03/19

Asia/Australia/NZ 03/26

South America/Panama Canal/Hawaii 04/02

Caribbean 04/09

Bermuda/Canada-New Eng 04/09

 

I agree with the comments already on Celebrity being low key, and excellent service. One difference between it and Disney also, is Celebrity has a Casino.

 

If you go W Med, you are looking at a port-intensive cruise, so this might be a good chance to try Celebrity instead of Disney - saves you a good deal of money in the differences, and gives you a chance to 'sample' Celebrity. We are also confirmed Celebrity cruisers...have gone other Lines (not Disney) and never had a bad cruise, but I enjoy the overall atmosphere and ship layout on Celebrity more. We find the common areas to be less crowded and so on.

 

Hope you find a cruise matchup. We are trying the Baltic this May and then going on a TA from Barcelona in November.

 

Den

[Tangocherie]

For the benefit of the OP, on Azamara, the single supplement is only 25%. This could make a cruise on one of their two ships lower than on Celebrity. By the way, Azamara is owned by Royal Carribbean International as is Celebrity.

[moet's sister]

Hello everyone,

 

I am thinking about going on a Celebrity cruise to the Western Med. in June 2013. I have a few questions.

 

First off, what puts Celebrity above all the other cruise lines? Why Celebrity verses Royal Caribbean, Carnival, Disney, or whatever????

 

What is the "Single supplement" on Celebrity? On NCL I paid the same price being alone in the room as my friends paid for the two of them... IE 200%. On Disney, they at least give me a break at 175%...

 

How is the dining done? NCL and Disney were polar opposites... NCL had more +$ restaurants than "Included"... :mad:

 

Who is the "average Celebrity cruiser"? I have heard that on certain cruise lines you do not want to be near the ship during Spring Break if you get my drift...

 

Hello there, I haven't been on NCL or Disney, but I have been on Princess and RCCL.

 

Basically, if you are under 55, for goodness sakes do not book a Celebrity cruise. They are designed specifically for people of a certain age and they don't care about people under that age bracket because there is enough demand from their intended target market to ignore those who fall within the minority. The average Celebrity Cruiser in my experience was retired, American and with a 'self entitled' attitude. For example, many felt they had the right to be at the front of the line without the need to queue, etc.

 

Dining- On Celebrity can do pre set dining, my time dining, or buffet. Pre set dining is a bit tricky, on the Constellation, it was at 5:45, or 8:30. From those we spoke to, their time was either too late or too early for their liking. We had my time dining and made the effort to book the time and number of people we wanted for each night. You can also choose not to book and just rock up and you will have to queue. We found that we had to wait the same amount of time as those people who had not booked. From personal experience, buffets are never a good idea, having that said, Celebrity did seem to make an effort to make most of the buffet served by chefs behind the counter rather than self service. RCCL and Princess both have much better systems enacted for dining, especially for the anytime options.

 

I have done the Med on Princess and found it to be an excellent experience in terms of service and itinerary, though I'm not sure about pricing for single travellers. The large RCCL ships are amazing, especially for entertainment, though I have not done RCCL through the Med before. However, in saying that, Med cruises have super full itineraries and we found we were too tired to do much else other than eat and sleep once we were onboard.

 

To be honest, Celebrity prides themselves on being a luxury cruise line, in my experience, this was not the case. I personally will never cruise with Celebrity again, however, I am 19 and travelling with my parents and sister, so I would probably be looking for a difference type of cruising experience as a single traveller. Regardless of which cruise line you end up choosing, cruising around the Med is the best way to see Europe. You can see so much in a short amount of time. I would not recommend getting a suite, or even a balcony. Especially as a single traveller, who is aware of the price discrimination, it is not worth the extra money to get anything other than an inside cabin. The reason I suggest that is because Med cruises have a limited number of sea days and you spend all day either at port, sleeping, eating or enjoying the entertainment. Good luck!

[GeriatricNurse]

Hi HexDragon,

 

On the Solstice there are two Dining Rooms... The Grand Epernay is the BIG One, and Blu is the smaller one. Blu is for Aqua Class Guests ONLY (and sometimes if you have a Suite, you can get a table in there for $ 5 extra per meal).

 

Blu does not offer Traditional "set time" dining... Dinner there is always Select Dining (pick your own time)

 

There are also several Specialty Restaurants onboard (4 on the Solstice) ... where you pay an extra Cover Charge to eat there (they run from $ 5 per person at Bistro on Five, up to $ 40 per person for Murano's)

 

For Traditional Seating, the MDR (Grand Epernay) has 2 times... either 6 PM or 8:30-ish (depends on the sailing, time of year etc)

 

Traditional Seating you have the same Table Number, Tablemates and Service Staff every evening (Head Waiter - Asst Waiter - Sommelier)

 

Tables in the MDR for Traditional Seating run from seating for 2 up to 12.

 

There is also Select Dining, where a part of the MDR is put aside for those patrons who want to be flexible night to night in their time choices.

 

Most of those tables are 2-tops.

 

You can either pre-reserve a sitting time for any particular evening, or just show up as you would in a restaurant, and be seated when something becomes available.

 

When you book your cruise, you will be asked to choose either Select or Traditional (the latter with a time) Dining.

 

In Select Dining, you don't have the same Wait Staff each evening, so you MUST PAY your Daily Gratuities in Advance (so you make this choice when you book your cruise, and then pay those Gratuities along with your Cruise Fare by Final Payment Day). With Traditional Dining, your Gratuities are payable when your cruise is over (although again it is the same set amount per day added to your fare).

 

There are more extensive postings on the differences in Service Charges, Gratuities & Tipping on Celebrity here on the CC CELEBRITY BOARD... that goes into more details on how that aspects work... but this should get you started on what the "basic" differences are.

 

Hope this is helpful,

 

Cheers!

 

When is the final payment due date before a X cruise embarks? :confused:

[Trainer]

No one seems to haved mentioned this: but Celebrity is very restrictive about smoking. Virtually no indoor smoking, not in rooms, casino, dining room (like most ships) and not even on your balcony. Non-smokers love this of course, but if you are a smoker you may find it too liminited. Really the only smoking is on one side outdoors on the pool deck..port side, I think.

[hexdragon]

No one seems to haved mentioned this: but Celebrity is very restrictive about smoking. Virtually no indoor smoking, not in rooms, casino, dining room (like most ships) and not even on your balcony. Non-smokers love this of course, but if you are a smoker you may find it too liminited. Really the only smoking is on one side outdoors on the pool deck..port side, I think.

YEAH!!!!!! (cough, cough) Disney is the same way except for the balcony (I think)