What is the difference between Celebrity, Royal Carribean, and HAL?

[ren0312]

What is the difference between those 3 in terms of ambiance? I was undecided between Celebrity and HAL but Celebrity had Sat. departures from Vancouver so I chose Celebrity. I am not a fan of the theme park kind of ship with lots of young kids and would preffer a big library over a giant wave pool and water slides if I have a choice. Why is there a big price difference between RCL/Carnival and Celebrity HAL, if you can compare ships to hotels are Celebrity/HAL 4 star and RCL/Carnival 3 star?

Edited June 30, 2014 by ren0312

[MicCanberra]

What is the difference between those 3 in terms of ambiance? I was undecided between Celebrity and HAL but Celebrity had Sat. departures from Vancouver so I chose Celebrity. I am not a fan of the theme park kind of ship with lots of young kids and would preffer a big library over a giant wave pool and water slides if I have a choice. Why is there a big price difference between RCL/Carnival and Celebrity HAL, if you can compare ships to hotels are Celebrity/HAL 4 star and RCL/Carnival 3 star?

 

I think it really depends on the timing (school holidays, spring break), the itinerary and the length of the cruise as these factors influence the age demographics on all three lines. That said I would rate in terms of general age, RCI would be younger than X which would be younger than HAL. :D

[swoonx]

What is the difference between those 3 in terms of ambiance? I was undecided between Celebrity and HAL but Celebrity had Sat. departures from Vancouver so I chose Celebrity. I am not a fan of the theme park kind of ship with lots of young kids and would preffer a big library over a giant wave pool and water slides if I have a choice. Why is there a big price difference between RCL/Carnival and Celebrity HAL, if you can compare ships to hotels are Celebrity/HAL 4 star and RCL/Carnival 3 star?

 

Well, I would rate RCL as 4 star and Celebrity and HAL as 4 star plus.

 

RCL is also a good choice, if you pick an "older" ship with less fun attractions (like Radiance).

 

The crowd on HAL cruises is very old - many people say it's a floating nursing home.

[milamber]

Having cruised on all three lines, rather than just relying on hearsay, we can confirm that there is a difference between them, but the differences are mostly subtle. The time of year you sail, the ship you choose and the itinerary will have as great an influence as the line you choose.

 

In a brief summary, in our experience, Celebrity has the best food in the MDR, followed by RCI, then HAL. HAL has the best buffet, then Celebrity, then RCI. Celebrity has the best entertainment, both the show team and the musicians around the ship, with HAL and RCI a long way behind.

 

RCI are the most lively, with more passengers drinking, with practically no quiet areas. Celebrity still have plenty going on up to and around midnight, but have some quieter areas to sit and read. HAL have lovely libraries and quiet areas, but the ship mostly shuts down around 10.30pm, earlier on some itineraries.

 

Passengers on the whole are older on HAL, but it's absolutely not true that it's a 'floating nursing home'. In our experience the older passengers are well travelled, well educated, and full of life. It's insulting to write people off simply because of their age. We are in our early 50's and have had a great time talking to and learning from, people in their 80's and older. We would rather travel with them than a bunch of drunken 30 somethings.

 

HAL have a greater range of itineraries and longer cruises. They also still have many of the 'extras' that RCI and Celebrity have stopped or charge for. It's an all together more 'old fashioned' experience and the ships, whilst lovely, don't have the size and presence of the newer RCI ships. HAL ships lack facilities like climbing walls and skating rinks, but have lovely public areas and fabulous libraries. HAL has detailed port lectures, not just excursion sales, and interesting guest speakers that the other lines lack. Overall less commercial. It's more of a 'travellers' line than a 'holiday' if that makes sense.

 

Personally, given the choice, we prefer Celebrity, then HAL, then RCI, but we would abolutely sail with them all again.

Edited June 30, 2014 by milamber

[swoonx]

Passengers on the whole are older on HAL, but it's absolutely not true that it's a 'floating nursing home'.

I read this several times and also the 80 year old are saying this.

 

Personally, given the choice, we prefer Celebrity, then HAL, then RCI, but we would abolutely sail with them all again.

Yes, that's the reason for your argumentation.

 

 

RCI are the most lively, with more passengers drinking, with practically no quiet areas. Celebrity still have plenty going on up to and around midnight, but have some quieter areas to sit and read.

 

The time of year you sail, the ship you choose and the itinerary will have as great an influence as the line you choose.

Like you said, it's really depending on different things. I made different experiences. Same for food and service. While we had a nice time with Celebrity, they are not that good as they want to be. And Royal Caribbean is not that bad as you describe it. Many things on our RCL cruises were better than on the Celebrity cruises.

Edited June 30, 2014 by swoonx

[ren0312]

The last cruise I went to was on Star Cruises in early 2000, I remember Superstar Virgo doing 25.5 kts down the Malacca Straits, not much slower than the La Fayette class frigate.

Edited June 30, 2014 by ren0312

[ren0312]

Having cruised on all three lines, rather than just relying on hearsay, we can confirm that there is a difference between them, but the differences are mostly subtle. The time of year you sail, the ship you choose and the itinerary will have as great an influence as the line you choose.

 

In a brief summary, in our experience, Celebrity has the best food in the MDR, followed by RCI, then HAL. HAL has the best buffet, then Celebrity, then RCI. Celebrity has the best entertainment, both the show team and the musicians around the ship, with HAL and RCI a long way behind.

 

RCI are the most lively, with more passengers drinking, with practically no quiet areas. Celebrity still have plenty going on up to and around midnight, but have some quieter areas to sit and read. HAL have lovely libraries and quiet areas, but the ship mostly shuts down around 10.30pm, earlier on some itineraries.

 

Passengers on the whole are older on HAL, but it's absolutely not true that it's a 'floating nursing home'. In our experience the older passengers are well travelled, well educated, and full of life. It's insulting to write people off simply because of their age. We are in our early 50's and have had a great time talking to and learning from, people in their 80's and older. We would rather travel with them than a bunch of drunken 30 somethings.

 

HAL have a greater range of itineraries and longer cruises. They also still have many of the 'extras' that RCI and Celebrity have stopped or charge for. It's an all together more 'old fashioned' experience and the ships, whilst lovely, don't have the size and presence of the newer RCI ships. HAL ships lack facilities like climbing walls and skating rinks, but have lovely public areas and fabulous libraries. HAL has detailed port lectures, not just excursion sales, and interesting guest speakers that the other lines lack. Overall less commercial. It's more of a 'travellers' line than a 'holiday' if that makes sense.

 

Personally, given the choice, we prefer Celebrity, then HAL, then RCI, but we would abolutely sail with them all again.

 

So how is Aug. for Alaskan cruises, I chose the husky excursion option. If the ship departs at 1600 what time do I have to arrive at the dock? I have heard about the library on the QE2 but too bad she's rotting in Dubai.

Edited June 30, 2014 by ren0312

[tangerinebunny]

August is a great month for Alaska. Enjoy!

 

Alaska is often a family destination, with all ages traveling. Doubt if you'd see much difference age-wise among those lines. Longer trips (more than two weeks) bring out the retired travelers.

 

Our favorite excursions are the flight planes. Michele of Island Wings does a great job if you're looking for a private company out of Ketchikan.

[DocJohnB]

Having cruised on all three lines, rather than just relying on hearsay, we can confirm that there is a difference between them, but the differences are mostly subtle. The time of year you sail, the ship you choose and the itinerary will have as great an influence as the line you choose.

Having also sailed on all three lines, I would tend to agree with you on this statement, but would leave off the phrase "mostly subtle" as it applies to RCI in the mix. I would also have to add to influences, depending on your mindset - i.e., what it is you are looking for in a cruise.

 

RCI are the most lively, with more passengers drinking, with practically no quiet areas. Celebrity still have plenty going on up to and around midnight, but have some quieter areas to sit and read. HAL have lovely libraries and quiet areas, but the ship mostly shuts down around 10.30pm, earlier on some itineraries.

As long as one doesn't equate "lively, drinking passengers" to out of control drunks, I would agree. One has to look for quiet places on RCI, but they are available.

 

Passengers on the whole are older on HAL, but it's absolutely not true that it's a 'floating nursing home'. In our experience the older passengers are well travelled, well educated, and full of life. It's insulting to write people off simply because of their age.

Absolutely!!!

 

HAL have a greater range of itineraries and longer cruises. They also still have many of the 'extras' that RCI and Celebrity have stopped or charge for. It's an all together more 'old fashioned' experience and the ships, whilst lovely, don't have the size and presence of the newer RCI ships. HAL ships lack facilities like climbing walls and skating rinks, but have lovely public areas and fabulous libraries. HAL has detailed port lectures, not just excursion sales, and interesting guest speakers that the other lines lack. Overall less commercial. It's more of a 'travellers' line than a 'holiday' if that makes sense.

 

Personally, given the choice, we prefer Celebrity, then HAL, then RCI, but we would abolutely sail with them all again.

In my experience, they are all equally "commercial". Depending on itinerary, Celebrity also has some superb "guest lecturers".

 

Cruising is all about choices, and while take no real exception to this post, my preferences, in order, would be Celebrity, RCI then HAL. I also would sail any of them again. (I just finished a HAL cruise and have a Celebrity and a RCI cruise booked)

[Cindy]

What is the difference between those 3 in terms of ambiance? I was undecided between Celebrity and HAL but Celebrity had Sat. departures from Vancouver so I chose Celebrity. I am not a fan of the theme park kind of ship with lots of young kids and would preffer a big library over a giant wave pool and water slides if I have a choice. Why is there a big price difference between RCL/Carnival and Celebrity HAL, if you can compare ships to hotels are Celebrity/HAL 4 star and RCL/Carnival 3 star?

 

I've cruised on all three lines, albeit many times on RCI, twice on HAL, and only once so far on Celebrity.

 

So much of the ambience on a ship depends on the passengers sailing with you, the time of year, the itinerary, the class of ship, and the length of the cruise. Yes, Royal Caribbean ships, especially the big ones, will have more children, but we've learned how to choose carefully to minimize the crowds, and have been on big ships with VERY few children. Before I retired from my job in education, we also cruised many times at Spring Break, and while the ships were more crowded with many more vacationing families, an advantage was that the bigger ships had more to interest passengers of all ages and therefore dispersed the passenger load well and we still had a great time. I think RCI ships are absolutely beautiful, with a lot of attention to detail without being tacky or overdone. Their biggest weakness, IMO, is their main dining room and buffet food, although I do think the former has improved. In my mind, there's no question that the entertainment on Royal Caribbean is way ahead of any other line we've sailed on.

 

We have two HAL cruises under our belts -- one we loved and one we would put near the bottom of our list. We thought the food in the MDR was excellent, but service in the dining room at dinner was painfully slow, and at breakfast and lunch I could have flown home and cooked it faster myself! On our Noordam cruise to the Southern Caribbean (the one we loved), everything was wonderful except the dining room service. We had an aft corner suite with a fantastic wrap-around balcony, met lots of people, and generally had a great time. Our second HAL was on the Westerdam to Alaska at the end of last season, and there was nothing memorable about the trip in our opinion. That was probably in part due to the fact that we were supposed to be on a long anticipated Celebrity coastal cruise that got cancelled, but even my (at the time) 81 year-old mother thought the ship was plain and the experience was boring. We would meet in a bar before dinner, and find we were the only ones in there!:eek: The décor was (to us) very plain and unimaginative, and most of the staff and crew seemed to be just going through the motions. The entertainment was practically non-existent. After dinner we had two choices -- the casino or bed. The ship was like a ghost town. I don't like crowds, but that was ridiculous!

 

Our first Celebrity cruise was last month to the Baltics. We loved it! I thought the ship (Constellation), although older, was nicely updated and well-maintained. The food (we were in Aqua and ate most breakfasts and dinners in BLU) was excellent, and from the cabin stewards to the captain, the staff and crew on the ship was the friendliest and most personable we've experienced. Both my 82 year-old mom and 19-year old niece were with us on that trip, and they also had a wonderful time. I wouldn't hesitate to take another Celebrity cruise, and I'm already booked for 2016!

 

One more consideration for us is the smoking policy of each line. Celebrity's is the most restrictive:), and they don't allow ANY inside smoking or smoking on the balconies. Royal Caribbean recently banned smoking on the balconies, but they do still allow it in the casino which can be very smoky. Hal still permits smoking on the balconies as well as several places inside, including the casino.

Edited June 30, 2014 by Cindy

[kenevenpar]

For us, our choice comes down to itinerary and $$$.

 

If $$$ and itin are equal, I would choose =X=, then HAL, and then RCI (DW would flip HAL and =X=). Having said that, we have been on more RCI cruises than the other two.

 

MDR =X= or HAL, RCI slightly behind

Buffet - slight nod to =X=, have not seen the new basket approach yet

Specialty - tough one, Murano or Celebrity's top specialty we find the best by far. RCI best overall choices on the newer larger ships,

Cabins - HAL and Celebrity. A bit more choices on Celebrity, Neptune lounge on HAL is great.

HAL and Celebrity are quieter than RCI, but RCI has more to do.

 

Hope this helps, and it is only one opinion.

[Caribbean Chris]

HAL has excellent Internet cafe/libraries, most with sea views, and wonderful full promenade decks. The overall atmosphere is low key and peaceful. You will not see officers playing volleyball in the pool, in my experience. I've always had top service from stateroom attendants on HAL.

 

(Starting with Carnival ships decades ago, cruiselines began designing ships to direct people into profit areas like the casino, so the wonderful ocean liner-style full promenades soon began disappearing. HAL has kept them.)

 

X has innovative entertainment (by cruiseline standards) and a no-smoking policy in most parts of the ship that many cruisers like. I think the X food is better overall than HAL offers, and often the dining room service.

 

"Floating nursing home" is absurd, typically a hear-say comment you might expect to hear from someone who has never sailed with HAL or from a 30-year old first-time cruiser who thinks everyone over 50 is one step from the grave.

 

We've sailed and enjoyed both HAL and X, various lengths from 5 days to 21, many parts of the world. Any shorter, cheaper cruise on either line tends to have younger people, more crowds around the pools, and higher energy level on board.

[Hlitner]

All of the above :). We are often asked this kind of question because we do a lot of cruising and have been on 14 different cruise lines (more then 65 different ships). We agree with the poster who said differences can vary depending on length of cruise, We would also add it can vary between different ships of the same line, and the itinerary can have a major impact. We have never bought into the "Star" rating system because of these differences. In theory, Celebrity was intended to be a slight upscale version of RCI, but that has changed over the years. And HAL is unto itself since it does attract an older crowd on longer cruises. In cruise terms we think of HAL as a bit old fashioned in terms of ship design, décor, and the way they conduct business. As to RCI, there is a tremendous difference between a 7 day cruise on the massive Oasis or Allure, vs a 14 day cruise on one of their Radiance Class ships. And with HAL there is a huge difference between the smaller Prinsendam and the much larger Eurodam.

 

As to HAL being a "floating nursing home" we would almost agree with this statement when it comes to their longer cruises :). We have been on long HAL cruises where we were among the youngest on the ship...and we are Seniors! But the shorter cruises do get some younger folks although we would never recommend HAL for young families or most folks under 35.

 

Hank

[seaman11]

Id rather sail with geriatrics than the hundreds of teens I sailed with last month on RCL. Most were well behaved however they are teens after all. I think I'll move on to X and also try cunard next year.

[homeschoolmama]

Time of year definitely impacts the cruise. Generally speaking rccl has more kids because of the activities offered on board. The one thing about halmis that the bars tend to end their music much earlier than the other 2 lines. Music tends to end beyween 10 and 10:30pm. On the other lines it goes til early morning. Parents like the kids clubs on rccl so alot fravitate for that reason too. Celebrity is somewhere between hall and rccl when it comes to demographics but as has been stated it depends on ship, itinery and time of year. If you can travel when s hool is in session you will rarely run into an overrun of kids.

 

The shows differ quite a bit from line to line, but again that is dependent on the actual ship somewhat. Same goes for food varience. Most pick shipd for itinery offered, cost, activities offered and loyalty perks they may have accumulated. Based on those criteria, whatever line you choose you will probably enjoy it. We have sailed all three lines multiple times, with and without kids and enjoyed each one for different reasons. Pick the best match and then go have the time of your lives!

 

Sent from my SCH-I915 using Forums mobile app

Edited June 30, 2014 by homeschoolmama

[jkgourmet]

Having cruised on all three lines, rather than just relying on hearsay, we can confirm that there is a difference between them, but the differences are mostly subtle. The time of year you sail, the ship you choose and the itinerary will have as great an influence as the line you choose.

 

In a brief summary, in our experience, Celebrity has the best food in the MDR, followed by RCI, then HAL. HAL has the best buffet, then Celebrity, then RCI. Celebrity has the best entertainment, both the show team and the musicians around the ship, with HAL and RCI a long way behind.

 

RCI are the most lively, with more passengers drinking, with practically no quiet areas. Celebrity still have plenty going on up to and around midnight, but have some quieter areas to sit and read. HAL have lovely libraries and quiet areas, but the ship mostly shuts down around 10.30pm, earlier on some itineraries.

 

Passengers on the whole are older on HAL, but it's absolutely not true that it's a 'floating nursing home'. In our experience the older passengers are well travelled, well educated, and full of life. It's insulting to write people off simply because of their age. We are in our early 50's and have had a great time talking to and learning from, people in their 80's and older. We would rather travel with them than a bunch of drunken 30 somethings.

 

HAL have a greater range of itineraries and longer cruises. They also still have many of the 'extras' that RCI and Celebrity have stopped or charge for. It's an all together more 'old fashioned' experience and the ships, whilst lovely, don't have the size and presence of the newer RCI ships. HAL ships lack facilities like climbing walls and skating rinks, but have lovely public areas and fabulous libraries. HAL has detailed port lectures, not just excursion sales, and interesting guest speakers that the other lines lack. Overall less commercial. It's more of a 'travellers' line than a 'holiday' if that makes sense.

 

Personally, given the choice, we prefer Celebrity, then HAL, then RCI, but we would abolutely sail with them all again.

 

100% agree, with the exception being that we would not sail RCI again. The negatives outweigh the posutives, abd HAL and X have a much higher standard. And WAY fewer teens!

Edited June 30, 2014 by jkgourmet

[rebeccalouiseagain]

Of the three lines- Royal Caribbean is going to have more children and more of a "theme park" look- especially around the pool area. They have movie screens out there that blare sports in the winter and music concerts in the summer- too loud and obnoxious. Might not matter too much in Alaska because no one really swims outside but I enjoy the hot tubs but not the din from the movie screen.

 

Holland America would be a good choice if you make your own fun. The passengers tend to be older, although there will be a smattering of families n the summer. This is probably the most boring cruise line but they have great cabins. They are large and well appointed. The Holland fleet of ships are more mid-size and easy to navigate. The covered indoor pools are nice and food is good.

 

Celebrity has the best ambiance. The ships are really sophisticated. There are all kinds of activities going on but no loud announcements. Food and service are good. I especially like the M-class ships.