Just curious

[Peteymil]

Such a great question. Really made me think!!

 

We too are creatures of habit-last 10 0r more cars, all of the same make.

We will try new restaurants, but love our old standards.

 

We really enjoy Celebrity, more than the other lines we have tried. Now I think it would be very unlikely that we would go back to another line, unless we tried a more upscale cruise (but I don't think it would be worth the money.)

 

The elite perks are very nice, and we have never had a bad cruise on Celebrity. We are always excited for the next cruise.

[sjb317]

We've done 25 cruises, all on Royal. We've always been very pleased with our cruises so I think that is why we have stayed with them.

 

We are trying Celebrity for the first time, only because RC does not do the itinerary we wanted. If RC did a round trip to Hawaii, we would be sailing with them. And I must admit, so far in the planning stages, I am missing Royal.

 

Sherri:)

[emilygrace]

Our first cruise was on Royal Caribbean and we've gone back to them numerous times because the perks are nice and we like the Radiance class ships. We have done one Celebrity cruise on the Infinity (very much like Radiance class in size and layout) and loved it. But we have also tried all the other mainstream cruise lines EXCEPT Carnival. Just can't bring myself to fork over the $$$ for that.

 

Loved HAL, Princess was just OK, not fond of NCL and although I like Cunard's ships they are just a little too formal for us.

 

But ever since that one cruise on X I have wanted to go back to them but until now there just wasn't anything that fit into our budget or interest. Until now, and we're booked on the Solstice for Alaska next year. I am VERY excited about that, even though it's our 3rd time to Alaska.

 

BTW, I am always FLOORED by the folks at the Welcome Back parties that are recognized for sailing 125 or 150 times WITH THE SAME CRUISE LINE!!!!!

[USVI-4-me]

We drive our cars 20 years.

If they don't make it, I find a different make.

 

Valiant

Cadillac

Pontiac= Ventura

Honda - Accord

 

Valiant and Caddie were DH cars (Caddie '78 our son has it today) .

Pontiac and Honda were mine.

 

Happiness comes in no interest payments === all cash.

 

Maris

[Can'tstopcruising]

We drive our cars 20 years.

If they don't make it, I find a different make.

 

Valiant

Cadillac

Pontiac= Ventura

Honda - Accord

 

Valiant and Caddie were DH cars (Caddie '78 our son has it today) .

Pontiac and Honda were mine.

 

Happiness comes in no interest payments === all cash.

 

Maris

 

A car for 20 years? I just had to look at the right hand corner "in the sunshine"!

[bighairtexan]

I like to try new cruise lines, new restaurants, hotels, deodorant brands. Some I like, some I don't but in almost all categories I have 1 or 2 favorites. And Celebrity and Princess are my current favorites, so if all else is more or less equal, that's where I look to book.

[curtdesilets]

The ship, hotel, restaurant MUST be CLEAN.

 

The smell of smoke or loud music make us flee.

 

We prefer large mass-market ships with longer itineraries.

 

I have asthma so hotels that take pets aren't for me due to the disinfectants used.

 

We cruise for itinerary mostly and have tried many lines including Princess, NCL, RCL, Costa, Celebrity, all good. HAL is a never again.

Princess gets our loyalty, Celebrity does not. The next time we cruise on Celebrity I've decided to pretend I'm cruising with a glass that's empty, then will see how much my Celebrity experience can fill that imaginary glass. After 8 Celebrity cruises and now Elite Status, our enthusiasm is a 5-6 on a 1-10 scale. Yet, the itinerary beckons......

 

We are adventurous, don't mind spending money on the "experience". We stay away from smoke, loud music, and hotels that take pets. Other wise we only turn away from smoke, loud music, and a strong smell of garlic. We tried many strange places and altogether every experience is memorable whether negative or positive.

 

If we are in a new town and like the first restaurant we try, we'll go every evening and enjoy meeting the regulars. In Italy, we stayed in a village once and were amazed at how quickly the regulars at the restaurant made us their new friends. Even invited us to a birthday party in the village.

 

Maris

Princess gets our loyalty, Celebrity does not.

 

Princess gets your loyalty? Have you sailed Princess recently? They have nosedived in terms of quality and performance. In fact all main stream cruise lines have taken a turn for the worse recently. But Princess? Come on. Really?

[curtdesilets]

A car for 20 years? I just had to look at the right hand corner "in the sunshine"!

 

My Grandfather had a Dodge Dart for over 20 years. Than decided rather reluctantly to get a Honda Accord in 1983. He passed away recently (and we miss him dearly:( ). The Accord is still running.

[Can'tstopcruising]

My Grandfather had a Dodge Dart for over 20 years. Than decided rather reluctantly to get a Honda Accord in 1983. He passed away recently (and we miss him dearly:( ). The Accord is still running.

 

Sorry about your grandfather. I am sure you have fond memories of him and the Accord is a reminder.

 

Did he live in a warm climate? In our climate, I don't think a car could last that long. Although, if it can, someone here will surely correct me!

[curtdesilets]

Sorry about your grandfather. I am sure you have fond memories of him and the Accord is a reminder.

 

Did he live in a warm climate? In our climate' date=' I don't think a car could last that long. Although, if it can, someone here will surely correct me![/quote']

 

Natrona Heights actually. But he was meticulous about his cars and kept it garaged. Granted, he didn't drive very far in his later years. We took the keys from him, and my Uncle now keeps the car. But The Dodge Dart he drove everywhere. There must have been 300k miles on that car when it expired.

 

Thanks for the sentiments. He was a great guy, and a mentor.

[Bridge Maven]

I am enjoying the discussion about how long to keep a car. My husband and I are just the opposite on this topic. I buy a new car every three or four years, so it is always on warranty, while my husband likes to keep q car at least eight years and drive it into the ground. Whenever I question him about spending a lot of money to repair an old car, he replies that it is more practical financially to do what he does than what I do. He is probably right, while I am just rationalizing the practicality of buying a new car every few years because I like new cars :)

[Orator]

When did this become the Car And Driver thread? Just kidding :)

[Bridge Maven]

When did this become the Car And Driver thread? Just kidding :)

 

Orator - I will make it relevant to the original post on this thread :)

 

I purchased my last three cars from the same person at the same dealership. Should I have received a free upgrade, that other people don't get, for my loyalty (rhetorical question only). Ironically, I got special offers from dealerships for other cars (Lexus and Audi) because they wanted to convert me from BMW to their brand.

[Orator]

Orator - I will make it relevant to the original post on this thread :)

 

I purchased my last three cars from the same person at the same dealership. Should I have received a free upgrade, that other people don't get, for my loyalty (rhetorical question only). Ironically, I got special offers from dealerships for other cars (Lexus and Audi) because they wanted to convert me from BMW to their brand.

 

For me to be loyal to one dealership they'd have to give "points" for each purchase. 1 point for each car under $25000, an extra point for a car over $25000 and a third point for a car over $50000. At ten points I would get all sorts of great coupons. One would be for special reserved seating when I waited for service. Another would be for special non alcohol drinks.

[May B]

Two months ago, Mr. B. and I went on HAL for the first time in over three years, b/c our travel companions wanted a specific itinerary which =X= doesn't do.

 

Here are all the great things about HAL: bathtub (yes, I did use it), fresh-squeezed o.j. at buffet breakfast, complimentary cappucino at dinner, great wine policy. Each couple carried on five bottles, so we got what we wanted for the cost of the bottle at Total Wines and the $18 corkage fee. On =X=, we only can bring two bottles, and the corkage fee is $25.

 

And yet we only are planning more =X= cruises. Why, I wonder to myself.

 

B/c we feel so comfortable on =X=.

 

We love the silence. There's nothing worse than having a cruise director we don't love, except when he also gets to come on the horn two or three times a day, to tell us things we already read about last night when we got back from dinner!

 

We love the menu. It just is "us".

 

We love the music around the ship, including the Celebrity Orchestra accompanying the showtime entertainment.

 

We love the smoking policy on =X=. Even after HAL tightened up theirs, there's still smoking in the casino, making going through Deck Two a difficult experience sometimes.

 

The buffet restaurant on the Zuiderdam, and the way the outdoor seating area near it has a swimming pool smack in the middle, are big detractors for us. We just weren't all that comfortable using the buffet.

 

Oh, dear, one more thing. Mr. B. didn't care for the hamburger grill area on HAL, not the way they handled orders nor the way the burger tasted.

 

So many little differences. Nice to have two great choices, really.

 

And about cars, we've had between us five Mercury Grand Marquises. What shall we do now that they don't make them any more? My current car, a Sebring convertible, is going to be 11 years old on Halloween. I can't decide whether to get another convertible again; maybe I'll get an email offer with a good deal??? A Tuesday special???!!!

 

--May

[kelmac]

As for cars -- our number one requirement is that they are paid for. In addition, I'm not sure I would pay over $15,000 for any car? Car payments suck! :p

 

My wife has a Hyundai and I have a 14 year old Nissan truck, but 90% of the time we drive around in our Smart Car. Could be the best car I've ever owned for several reasons. (whole different discussion :))

 

--no car payments

--paid off mortgage

--no kids

--no debt

--lock and leave condo

--no pets

--translates into.......................wait for it....................tons of cruises!!:D

 

Enjoy!

Kel:)

[Bridge Maven]

Kelmac - I agree with you about not having car payments. My husband and I both feel that the most cost effective way to buy a car is to pay for it in full at the time of purchase. We, also, paid off the mortgage on our house years ago and own our house free and clear. I use charge cards as a convenience, but pay them in full every month because I am too cheap to pay interest.

 

In addition, since the days of paying for college tuition and making a wedding for our daughter are behind us, it makes it much easier for us to spend money on cruises.

 

If Azamara had larger cabins, we would have tried them by now. However, now that Oceania has a new ship with larger cabins, we are planning to try it and see if it is worth the price difference.

[brazilgirl]

I concur... Interesting topic!

 

I suppose I am in the middle of the road as far as brand loyalty. I am willing to try new things , but tend to gravitate towards what I know pleases me.

 

I am eager to try Azamara , Oceania and perhaps Crystal. I am holding off on them for when DH and are at the cruising alone stage of life. I am looking forward to HAL , i think we will enjoy it.

 

My cruises on RCI and Carnival were nice enough ( RCI better of the 2) , but I missed Celebrity.

 

We are car loyalists ( all paid off too - DH hates debt). We have an Audi and a Hyundai ,plus a Mini Cooper for fun. Last 3 cars have been same models , just different colors and newer...

 

Kim

[PNW Traveler]

We've cruised with several lines. Choice of cruiseline varies. The now defunct Cruise West was a great way to see the Alaska inside passage and waters of British Columbia. Its ships were small (think large yacht size) and could navigate small bays and inlets. The scenery was definitely "up close and personal." We did the Norway fjords and coastline with Hurtigruten rather than a more mainstream line like X or RCI. We saw more and appreciated the "casual only" cruise where the destinations and ports were the focus. For those who may be considering this cruiseline, the cabins were very nice and food was not gourmet but quite good. The ship didn't offer a lot of onboard activities but lounges and common areas were comfortable with many windows.

In warmer climes, we have enjoyed the larger cruise ships, mostly X and RCI - great for sun and less port intensive cruising. We do like the familiarity and ease of cruising often with a chosen cruise line, but still look at other options for "bucket list" destinations.

[May B]

Kel, thanks for the great laugh you gave me!

 

I love all the car-loyal folks. Poor Mr. B. doesn't even to pick his color. We've had three of the new design Grand Marquises but he hates car shopping, so I've bought them all. When I came home with the first one, he thought it was so classy, he offered to drive mine and let me keep the new one; but I loved my color combo so I politely (with tears in my eyes -- whatta guy) declined.

 

But when I came home with the second white one for him, even though he'd said, white or blue is fine, he was disappointed. So this time I got him a blue one.

 

I'm still trying to convince him he'd like a Lincoln.

 

Back to cruising, for all of us brand-loyal =X= cruisers, have you noticed that there's a special going on: if you book by May 18th, a 2013 or 2014 sailing, you can have both the early booking (Captain's Club?) shipboard credit AND the shareholder's credit!! Some folks are having trouble getting the shareholder one added, but there's a whole thread of advice on how to convince =X= of its own published policy.

 

Ain't life grand?