Royal vs Celebrity?

[NOSaints1]

My wife and I are in our mid 30s, I want to sail Royal and she says Celebrity is too fancy for our ages. What is the food like between the two, entertainment among the two and the activities to do on Celebrity, we've only sailed Carnival so we know nothing.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

[Tahina cruising]

I am getting ready to sail on Royal Caribbean in less than 2 weeks so I can't comment on that yet. But, my last cruise was on Celebrity and it was amazing! I was 39 at the time and my friend was 32. I did not think it was too old for our age group at all. I loved the glass of champagne when we got on board, the service was excellent and the food was all very good. I don't remember not liking anything we ate. They had entertainment that the one time we peeked in on looked like fun but we spent a lot of time at the craft beer bar. (We had the beverage package.) I hope this helps at least for how Celebrity is. I would definitely sail with them again.

[bighairtexan]

Celebrity is my line of choice, followed closely by RCI. However food is the one thing that I feel Celebrity is head and shoulders above RCI. In the MDR, the buffet (except the oldest ships), room service, specialty restaurants, I'd put Celebrity ahead.

 

There are fewer children on Celebrity and though the demographic is older, they're trying very hard to entice the 30/40 somethings.

 

Now compared to Carnival (and I've had many great Carnival cruises, so it has its very successful place in the cruise line business), Celebrity is like the W or Intercontinental hotel compared to Rodeway in IMHO. RCI is like a Sheraton or Marriott. A nice Sheraton or Marriott.

 

PS added: I think the entertainment on RCI is much livelier and generally better than on Celebrity w/ more live music choices in the evening.

Edited November 26, 2014 by bighairtexan

[OCruisers]

Since you have only cruised on Carnival, you might find RCCL to be an easy fit for you. ;)

[JimAOk1945]

We have cruised on RC four times with another booked for next year. We have enjoyed each of those cruises.

 

You might like to take a look at the slide shows my wife made for her website with some of the pictures she took on our previous RC cruises. It might help you decide whether you want to give it a try.

 

I think you both would enjoy it, but you won't know unless you experience it for yourselves.

 

Happy cruising.

[heavenlysea]

My husband and I have done both lines in the last 4 years, Celebrity Solstice, and RCCL Freedom. As previous posts have said, Celebrity has much better food and service. Our inside cabin was larger on Celebrity and actually felt very roomy. We liked being greeted with cool water at the ports when we re-boarded the ship. We also liked having less announcements interrupting our day. We did not have the experience of an open interior for walking about the day and found sometimes you had to go up or down a deck to get to places. Some of the entertainment was held in small informal areas and you had to stand to listen. We didn't like the feel of a "class system" (concierge) class with their separate dining room. The grass court area on top is unique but not really a draw for us. The entertainment was OK for the big shows and there were a few lectures from known scholars. We didn't see many children on our June sailing.

Our experience on RCCL has been more nickel and diming and more push for activities that cost $. At the time of our cruise there was a check in/out system of towels that was a royal pain (no pun intended!). It's my understanding that no longer applies. There were more entertainment choices on the Freedom as expected with a larger ship but I get the feeling that's part of RCCL's product. The ship atmosphere is more active than Celebrity.

Overall, I liked Celebrity for the food and nice touches and Royal for the larger choice in activities and open promenade and bigger entertainment options. I hope this helps you with your decision.

[SensFan11]

Background: We did our first Celebrity cruise last week, after five previous cruises on Royal Caribbean. And we'd previously taken three cruises on Carnival. And we're in our early 40s.

 

While we liked our first two Carnival cruises, our third was not very good at all. We'd been starting to tire of all the announcements and the manufactured "fun", which is why we tried Royal Caribbean...and we haven't looked back!

 

For me and what I like, Royal Caribbean has a better mix of activities...particularly if you're on an Oasis-class ship! It was a great fit when we were in our 30s, and continues to be for us...especially when sailing with our young kids!

 

We really enjoyed Celebrity too...it definately feels more upscale and adult...but the differences are more subtle than I originally thought. It's true Celebrity has fewer on board announcement...and while some don't feel they're nickle and diming you, a big part of there experience are the numerous specialty restaurants that come at a significant premium (although well worth it, IMHO).

 

I know many say the food is better on Celebrity...in my limited experience, I do not agree. For the Main Dining Room, in fact, I'd give the nod to Carnival. But the variety of specialty restaurants on both Royal Caribbean and Celebrity make them a better choice...and Celebrity is a slight tick ahead of RCCL. Carnival does a great job with their steakhouses as well, but only offers one per ship.

 

My advice: if you're a foodie, try Celebrity first. If you're at all interested in activities such as rock climbing, great broadway entertainment and surf simulators, try RCCL first.

 

Noel

[chloe kitty]

Celebrity is great. It is a step above RCI and many steps above Carnival.

The food on Celebrity is excellent in both the MDR and most of the specialty restaurants. We did not care for Blu, but that only applies to Aqua class.

Another great point, is the lack of a lot of children. The indoor pool area is great. We loved the entertainment on Celebrity, but having just returned from the Oasis, we found their entertainment was wonderful, and plenty to choose from. The no smoking policy, indoors, is a big plus.

We would opt for Celebrity if the routings were the same or similar.

[Oville]

We mainly sail Celebrity, the food is sooooo much better than Royal. We also love Oasis class on RCCL because of the variety of dining options and entertainment. Beyond the Oasis class ships, the food on RCCL is mediocre and entertainment just okay. We have 4 Oasis cruises book and many more Celebrity.

 

Just for reference, we are D+ on Royal but the crummy food, crowds, and the over board Dreamwork's events and characters are a simply turn us off. Oasis class however is less crowded, has great entertainment and wonderful dining options for every meal.

 

Good luck in deciding, if you want to have breakfast(w/charge)/parade with Shrek and Fiona maybe a smaller RCCL ship will work for you.

 

Good luck!

Edited November 26, 2014 by Oville

[hamrag]

My wife and I are in our mid 30s, I want to sail Royal and she says Celebrity is too fancy for our ages. What is the food like between the two, entertainment among the two and the activities to do on Celebrity, we've only sailed Carnival so we know nothing.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

 

We have cruised on 12 different lines, including the 3 mentioned in your post. Our opinion:

Food - both better than Carnival, with Celebrity a half notch better than Royal.

Entertainment - both better than Carnival, not much difference between each.

Activities - The newer Royal ships have amazing on-board activities/facilities, Celebrity are more refined with lectures on subjects that general interest the over 50's.

 

My opinion is that, particularly given your age profile, Royal would be more suitable than Celebrity for you right now.

[NOSaints1]

I think my DW point is she feels that there are different area for different staterooms, you have to dress up, that unlike Carnival you can't wear your comfy clothes.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

[hamrag]

I think my DW point is she feels that there are different area for different staterooms, you have to dress up, that unlike Carnival you can't wear your comfy clothes.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

 

Royal and Celebrity are identical in that regard i.e. 2 formal nights per week.

[jules815]

Celebrity is my line of choice, followed closely by RCI. However food is the one thing that I feel Celebrity is head and shoulders above RCI. In the MDR, the buffet (except the oldest ships), room service, specialty restaurants, I'd put Celebrity ahead.

 

There are fewer children on Celebrity and though the demographic is older, they're trying very hard to entice the 30/40 somethings.

 

Now compared to Carnival (and I've had many great Carnival cruises, so it has its very successful place in the cruise line business), Celebrity is like the W or Intercontinental hotel compared to Rodeway in IMHO. RCI is like a Sheraton or Marriott. A nice Sheraton or Marriott.

 

PS added: I think the entertainment on RCI is much livelier and generally better than on Celebrity w/ more live music choices in the evening.

 

My husband and I have a B2B booked on FOS for September, 2015. I'm considering whether or not we should cancel this and give Celebrity a try. I've been very happy with our RC cruises, but think Celebrity might be a better fit for us.

 

Do you have a favorite class/ship when you sail on Celebrity? I'll be Diamond at the end of my cruise in March. Does that mean anything on Celebrity?

[bouhunter]

My husband and I have a B2B booked on FOS for September, 2015. I'm considering whether or not we should cancel this and give Celebrity a try. I've been very happy with our RC cruises, but think Celebrity might be a better fit for us.

 

Do you have a favorite class/ship when you sail on Celebrity? I'll be Diamond at the end of my cruise in March. Does that mean anything on Celebrity?

 

After our first 9 cruises being on RCCL we're going on Celebrity Reflection this winter. We obviously like RCCL, but are really looking forward to something new and a bit different. As Diamond on RCCL you are "Elite" on Celebrity. It's an easy process, just call Celebrity, give them your C&A RCCL #'s, and they enroll you at Elite level and give you membership numbers. After making our Celebrity reservation everything online shows us a Elite Captains Club members:)

Edited November 26, 2014 by bouhunter

[sjb317]

For years, we've had countless people tell us to try Celebrity as it was a step up from Royal. The food was so much better, the service, the entertainment, etc.

 

We finally tried Celebrity on Century to Hawaii, and yes, I realize this is their oldest ship but it is similar to the class of ships we like to cruise on with Royal so I think a good comparison.

 

We were both disappointed in the food, while there were certainly more choices in the MDR and some things we really enjoyed, overall, we both though RC has the tastier food. We both prefer the WJ to the buffet on Century. Neither one of us cared for Murano, the specialty restaurant we had heard so much about. We both thought service and entertainment was pretty equal, in fact, we had seen some of the shows on previous Royal cruises.

 

We did enjoy our cruise and would like to cruise on Celebrity again, but our opinion is the cruise lines are very similar and pretty much on the same playing field. I pick cruises based on itinerary and price, so far, Royal has been my choice.

 

Sherri :)

[wendyatpml]

We definitely like Celebrity better because it is not kid friendly, HOWEVER, a friend told us that you must go on Allure or Oasis just to see this ship. This is not the type of cruise we usually take. We just got off Allure on Nov. 15 and boy were they right. It's definitely something to see. Very different from any other Royal ship. Entertainment was great, lots to do and see. Try it. It's fabulous.

[NH Cruisers]

My wife and I are in our mid 30s, I want to sail Royal and she says Celebrity is too fancy for our ages. What is the food like between the two, entertainment among the two and the activities to do on Celebrity, we've only sailed Carnival so we know nothing.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

You cant go wrong sailing either line, but your age group? Go with Royal Caribbean. So much to see, too do. You wont be able to do 1/2 of the things available to do.

 

I sailed on Celebrity Solstice a few years back. Big ship, lots of WOW factor. The average age was 50 at least. Never saw so many scooter, wheelchairs, walkers and canes in my life. I am not kidding when I say 8 to 10 wheelchairs and scooters stored outside the MDR nightly. That said, it did not dimish our good time. We opted to sail in the Aqua-Class and ate nightly at Blu. I highlty recommend that. We traveled with my In-Laws who incidently travel by walker and wheelchair. Can't go wrong, you are treated right.

 

I just feel Royal Caribbean for your age group may be a good fit.

 

We always liked the food on Royal. Celebrities food in the MDR was a little more bland. In Blu (on Celebrity) the food was incredible.

 

I know what I would pick... "Anthem of the Seas" next year! Or any Voyager or Freedom Class ship. You will be floored by those marvels of engineering.

Edited November 26, 2014 by NH Cruisers

[GaryT-UK]

I'm in my early 40s and sailed on Celebrity twice (the Baltics and Iceland/Norway) and am just back from the RC Freedom of the Seas (W.Caribbean).

I'd say I picked great ships for the locations I went to, and would highly recommend both lines - but maybe consider what you want from your itinerary too.

I really enjoyed the Celebrity lectures on sea days, about the ports we were going to (I like learning about new things) and that suited the sightseeing/nature spotting cruises I was on.

However on Freedom in the Caribbean I was ready to party and I think RC did that perfectly. It definately had a wider/younger age mix.

I'd agree with most of the people on here saying the food is better on Celebrity, though RC was okay.

I like the shows so couldn't fault either line. I tend to like the "singers in bars" type entertainment later - which Celebrity had more of. RC seemed to have more game show style entertainment.

Although Celebrity did have an older crowd, a lot went to bed after the shows, so the age group in the bars was a lot younger later on.

Overall I'd say Celebrity is a bit more sophisticated than RC, but not in a snobby way. RC was lots of fun, but you can still have the formal nights when you want something nicer.

In the end so long as you go with the attitude that you're on holiday to enjoy yourself and get into the spirit of the ship you are on I don't think you'd go too far wrong with either of them.

[KellyElisabeth]

I have sailed on both Royal Caribbean (Navigator of the Seas) and Celebrity (Reflection). Both are great lines and I would recommend them each for different reasons. Celebrity is the line to use if you want top notch service and amenities. I really feel that they go the extra mile and that you get what you pay for. The food on both lines is comparable, but I do feel that the food on Celebrity is a bit better. Celebrity is also really trying to reach out to the younger demographics, so I found that there were actually plenty of younger couples on board (in addition to the expected retirees). Going with the later seating time on any ship will often help you avoid children and the older crowd that likes to go to bed early.

 

I did find, however, that the onboard entertainment was better on Royal Caribbean, so I'd consider your itinerary and how many sea days you would be looking at. Celebrity has more "enriching" activities, such as art classes and lectures, while Royal Caribbean tends to have more music and trivia options. In particular, I found the lack of a piano bar on Celebrity to be a bit of a let down.

 

All in all, both are great lines and you will have a great time on either, it will just either be a more fun or a more refined experience depending on what you are looking for.

[JasonV1]

I'm (meaning family of 42/40/15) doing my first Celebrity cruise next summer simply because it was the nicest ship doing the full northbound/southbound Alaska routes during the season I wanted to go (my options were NCL or Celebrity).

 

I will admit that I will miss some of the outdoor activities that are unique to the newer Royal ships, but I am very interested in seeing the differences in the Celebrity line as they have some very interesting itineraries I am interested in trying in the future (I love the Caribbean, but I've been cruising it for 19 years).

 

Food is subjective, so I'm not sure I'll notice the difference there. I did book a Concierge class cabin, so I'm anxious to see how that goes.

 

While I'm not yet ready to replace Royal with Celebrity for my Caribbean cruising (I need my Royal water features and other outside attractions), when it comes time to sail Europe/Southeast Asia/South America I will definitely choose them over others if the routes are better.

[Hotel CA]

Have just completed first Celebrity cruise after multiple Royal cruises. Here is our assessment-- what you hear about food is correct-- Celebrity has better food and interesting choices (Qsine is unreal) but the entertainment and bars are way more lively on Royal. The crowd on Royal is also generally younger and seems more late night oriented (although in truth we have only sailed one time on the Celebrity Summit so we can only speak for the cruise we were on).

 

In short-- food better on Celebrity-- action livelier on Royal-- Both fun options-- more kids and young adults on Royal and in our case an older clientele on Celebrity-- Loved both and would recommend either as good choices for Carnival upgrade

[ehfl]

If you enjoyed Carnival, then you'll enjoy either RCL or Celebrity. RCL is good for entertainment and activities (rock climbing, ice skating, surfing, etc.). Celebrity is a little less active (no rock climbing or surfing, etc.). Shows on Celebrity are fine, but not the spectacles you'll find on RCL.

 

The crowd on Celebrity will be a little older and not quite as many families. Food is good on both, but many (myself included) found it a little better on Celebrity.

 

I would say try one line for your next cruise, and the other for the one after that so you can compare them yourself.

[LetsGetWet!]

My wife and I are in our mid 30s, I want to sail Royal and she says Celebrity is too fancy for our ages. What is the food like between the two, entertainment among the two and the activities to do on Celebrity, we've only sailed Carnival so we know nothing.

 

Celebrity is my line of choice, followed closely by RCI. However food is the one thing that I feel Celebrity is head and shoulders above RCI. In the MDR, the buffet (except the oldest ships), room service, specialty restaurants, I'd put Celebrity ahead.

 

There are fewer children on Celebrity and though the demographic is older, they're trying very hard to entice the 30/40 somethings.

 

Now compared to Carnival (and I've had many great Carnival cruises, so it has its very successful place in the cruise line business), Celebrity is like the W or Intercontinental hotel compared to Rodeway in IMHO. RCI is like a Sheraton or Marriott. A nice Sheraton or Marriott.

 

PS added: I think the entertainment on RCI is much livelier and generally better than on Celebrity w/ more live music choices in the evening.

BHT, I think you pretty much nailed it. Celebrity has better food, fewer children and a generally somewhat older demographic.

 

RCI is much livelier in the evenings with more entertainment and music choices (and the pools are open late into the night if the weather is appropriate for a late night swim - I think Celebrity's are all closed by around 9PM.) The later in the evening, the more "dead" the Celebrity ship will seem in comparison to RCI.

[ProfessorEFFE]

Personally I think Carnival and RCCL are pretty close. I have NEVER had a bad cruise and that includes my 14 months @ sea in the USNavy.

 

The kids programs on both RCCL and Carnival are top notch (We sailed with our granddaughter she loved Carnival)

 

Dining: Evenings: Celebrity hands down in the MDR, followed by Carnival.

Specialty restaurants: All on all the lines I sailed were worth the extra money. However the better ones were on Celebrity so a 9.75 compared to a 9.2.

Windjammer/Buffet: hands down Royal Caribbean.

 

Younger crowds on Carnival, followed by RCCL.

 

Beds are horrid on RCCL, I got one that felt like it was filled with concrete. Our next sailing w RCCL is in 8 days. IF we get another bed like the last cruise it will be our last cruise on RCCL. Of course we're old farts and can't tolerate that as well as we could have 30 years ago.

 

Lastly, 2 things will affect your choice. Your attitude, and your experience. The crews on those 3 lines were very very good, I think you'll enjoy any cruise you take on those 3 lines.

 

 

HTH

Edited November 28, 2014 by ProfessorEFFE

[Hotel CA]

ProfessorEFFE--on the day of Embarkation find your cabin steward/dess and ask him/her to have an egg carton topper added to bed--that will at least provide some relief from concrete mattresses. The quality of the topper may vary but they always seem to work for us and every cruise line has had them (RCL, Celebrity, Carnival, Costa and Seabourn---which basically are just 2 different lines--RCCL and Carnival) that we have been on.

 

Hope that helps