Celebrity VS RCCL

[shipshape sam]

Entertainment is the one area I'd say RCCL is superior.

Everyone says food is subjective and this thread sure proves that. We've been on two RCCL cruises and the food was generally awful, in my opinion of course. I loved the salad bar in the MDR at lunch but the regular MDR food and buffet were way below all the other lines we cruise. We've found the food on Celebrity the best of all the lines we cruise.

We cruise based on price and itinerary and would cruise RCCL again if the price and itinerary were what we were looking for.

 

I have loved the pasta bar in the past in the buffet area. Celebrity would sauté ingredients as you stood there. Also enjoyed omelets made to order. Celebrity also used to sell bottles of wine in buffet area and you could take it back to your cabin. The good old days! I do like sailing now too, but we do miss some things that we really liked.

Edited April 8, 2015 by shipshape sam

[Stateroom_Sailor]

Compare Celebrity and Royal in same way you might think of Ford and Lincoln or Toyota and Lexus.

 

Both have similarities and differences.

 

We sail Royal when we want more active experience onboard and especially at night, travel with our kids/grandkids.

 

Or like comparing the MGM Grand in Las Vegas to Lakeside Countryclub Resort. Both will have numerous similarities, amenities, and optional upgrades to wonder to yourself, "what's the difference?" They're both going to be the "superior" choice depending on your preference, and some of us like both. ;)

[leonardofan]

1) The Berlitz Guide rates X consistently much higher than Royal

2) After 4 Celebrity cruises I tried Royal and was appalled--the cabin was nice but the lack of service outrageous --

every short-order cook in the world can make a hamburger medium, but on Royal you are not allowed to order one:mad:

and the Wal-Mart greeters babble at you at the door of the MDR while their colleagues get the lead out.

It's a floating theme park, and not a very good one.

[Cruising_Tiger]

1) The Berlitz Guide rates X consistently much higher than Royal

2) After 4 Celebrity cruises I tried Royal and was appalled--the cabin was nice but the lack of service outrageous --

every short-order cook in the world can make a hamburger medium, but on Royal you are not allowed to order one:mad:

and the Wal-Mart greeters babble at you at the door of the MDR while their colleagues get the lead out.

It's a floating theme park, and not a very good one.

 

An excellent summary. RCCL quality and service has seen major declines.

[shipshape sam]

Or like comparing the MGM Grand in Las Vegas to Lakeside Countryclub Resort. Both will have numerous similarities, amenities, and optional upgrades to wonder to yourself, "what's the difference?" They're both going to be the "superior" choice depending on your preference, and some of us like both. ;)

 

I will take your word on both MGM and Lakeside as I have never been to either. For sure it depends on our individual preferences and expectations.

 

We too like both Royal and Celebrity and what really amazes me is the vast difference in experiences passengers have on the same cruise as expressed here on CC many times.

[sidekick98]

Our first 20 or so cruises were mainly with Royal ... then we thought we would try Celebrity as a friend said said it was slightly better ..... Done 11 on Celebrity now ..... so when the new Royal ship Anthem came out thought would give it a try. Well for us it was too big the modern use of Hi tech things on board were great .... but the Casino was Agh!!!! ...... smoking allowed in half so when you get 100 or so smokers one side of the room you still get kippered on the other side. Even on what they call royal nights when many are dressed in the tucs you get back to your cabin thinking you had slept in an ash tray. For us personally we did not like the dining system where you have the choice of many restaurants .... they have 4 that are free the rest you pay .... why pay up to $50 a person to eat at night when the other restaurants are fine. This as I said is our personal views ...... but for us Celebrity is BETTER than Royal, they even wanted to charge me $90 to use the Sauna on Anthem for the trip ..... thats the first time I was asked to pay to use a sauna. The Wi-fi was great best we have used but at $30 for 24 hours its a bit steep, you could get it cheaper if you paid for the whole cruise ... but I can wait a couple of days till we dock and get free Wi-Fi on shore. I will do Royal if the right price and itinerary come up, we have tried Anthem so feel we can make a comparison, a nice ship but not for us, on sea days you could not hardly find a seat around the pool, the towel brigade were out at 7:30am towels on most seats and not a person in sight. Apart from the guest relations manager you hardly saw a senior Officer around ... unlike Celebrity where they go out there way to have a chat and see how your cruise is going.

 

Ops!!! I nearly forgot the burger and hot dog by the pools has a sign Johnny Rockets ...... so you have to pay and each item is priced unlike other Johnny rockets where you just pay one fee and all food is free. I'm sorry if this seems all about money but you have paid for the cruise so do expect a few things not chasing your money ... yes I live in Scotland but am from London .... lol.

Edited October 11, 2015 by sidekick98

[pauly]

We prefer Celebrity and notice a big difference. That is just us! We will go on RCCL in a pinch, but prefer Celebrity. Will NOT go on Oasis or Allure again.But, we know what to expect on RCCL.

[jules815]

Are the casinos on X non-smoking?? :)

 

We've primarily cruised with RC and have always enjoyed our cruises with them. Menus are getting a little old, but I can't say we've ever had a bad meal in the MDR. Sailing for the first time with X in March, and really look forward to different menus, specialty restaurants, Luminae, etc. I think it's nice to change things up a bit, but I like that Celebrity is part of the RC family. Being recognized as Elite on our first Celebrity cruise didn't hurt when making the decision to book.

[Lois R]

"Are the casinos on X non-smoking??"

 

 

YES:D

[jules815]

"Are the casinos on X non-smoking??"

 

 

YES:D

This is great to hear! :D Not to turn this into a thread about smoking, but are the other smoking areas similar to RC? One side of the ship, excluding balconies?

[DrivesLikeMario]

I love that analogy of the RCI ships being "floating theme parks". That's very accurate.

 

The biggest difference we've seen in 14+ RCI cruises is the lack of service and the lack of cleanliness at the pool and buffet area. We've seen used band-aids floating in the main pool for DAYS, drinks left on the floor by the pool from the previous night until the next night, food slopped all over the buffet, etc. RCI is great if you have an extended family or kids, but for adults, IMO, Celebrity wins out.

 

IME, Celebrity includes so much with their sales that it makes it cheaper to cruise with them vs. RCI.

[Lois R]

This is great to hear! :D Not to turn this into a thread about smoking, but are the other smoking areas similar to RC? One side of the ship, excluding balconies?

 

Not sure what you mean about excluding balconies...there is NO SMOKING

on balconies......and yes there are few venues outside the ship for

smoking. No smoking anywhere inside the ship.

[jules815]

Not sure what you mean about excluding balconies...there is NO SMOKING

on balconies......and yes there are few venues outside the ship for

smoking. No smoking anywhere inside the ship.

 

I worded that wrong. No smoking on balconies, but do they allow it on one side of the ship. On RC ships that I've been on, deck 4, outside, allows smoking on one side of the ship. Same with up on deck 11, the pool deck. They allow smoking on one side of the outside pool deck.

[perditax]

Zombie thread!

[az_tchr]

A great comparison. There were two things we hated about RCI - smoking in the casino, although it saved me money by not going there and the buffet. X is far superior with many cook to order stations, sushi and sashimi. RCI buffet left me looking for something I would consider eating many days. The plus for RCI was having a diamond lounge and longer happy hour times. It is a delightful place to relax at any hour of the day.

X has a different feeling - a bit more upscale. Modern luxury - nope. Happy to cruise both depending on who has the best itinerary at a good price. And yes, we prefer X all things equal.

[Lois R]

I worded that wrong. No smoking on balconies, but do they allow it on one side of the ship. On RC ships that I've been on, deck 4, outside, allows smoking on one side of the ship. Same with up on deck 11, the pool deck. They allow smoking on one side of the outside pool deck.

 

Yes, they allow it in certain venues only outside. I don't want to give

you incorrect information about the exact places but I have always seen

smokers up at the pool, portside only...also I think on deck 5 portside

only and upstairs all the way aft, portside only. I am sure if this

is wrong, someone will correct me.

[ClaudiaB]

This is great to hear! :D Not to turn this into a thread about smoking, but are the other smoking areas similar to RC? One side of the ship, excluding balconies?

 

No smoking anywhere at all inside on Celebrity. None. Not in the casinos, lounges, not "half of this room" (what a joke!).

No balcony smoking at all.

Just a couple of outdoor smoking areas.

One of the reasons we like them. I can not tolerate smoke. And you hardly see people smoking, at least I rarely do.

[jules815]

No smoking anywhere at all inside on Celebrity. None. Not in the casinos, lounges, not "half of this room" (what a joke!).

No balcony smoking at all.

Just a couple of outdoor smoking areas.

One of the reasons we like them. I can not tolerate smoke. And you hardly see people smoking, at least I rarely do.

 

This is good news.

 

It sounds to me like we'll enjoy Celebrity.