Celebrity vs Holland?

[kugelette]

So we're trying to decide between two very similar cruises; one is on Celebrity's Reflection, the other is on Holland's Westerdam. We actually went on the same cruise with Holland last Thanksgiving. We're going the week after Thanksgiving this year and haven't sailed Celebrity before.

 

We were really happy with Holland and I'm a bit nervous about not having as good an experience with X. Either line would be a regular verandah cabin and no cruise status to speak of. I'd love some advice!

 

What I really liked about our Holland cruise:

 

- super fast/easy embarkation/disembarkation. We were able to go straight to our stateroom, which was amazing. We were able to stay in our stateroom until we disembarked, also great.

 

- not many kids. I have an 8 year old (will be 9 for next cruise) and he was able to find a friend he really liked doing stuff with, but there was not a heavy kid presence on the ship and the kids that were there were mostly well behaved.

 

- cool on-board activities. They had a steel drum class where you actually got to play the drums, and a series of mixology classes where you did the mixing. I like "classes" that are hands-on as opposed to watching people fold napkins or decorate cakes. There were also no huge lines for any of these.

 

- the ship is designed in such a way that it never felt crowded, despite being a full ship. All of the different spaces feel intimate and quiet and you don't get a sense that there are thousands of people on board. The only time you realized it was a boat full of people was at some of the shows.

 

- ordering MDR food to the room, and breakfast food off the buffet. I think you can do this with X only if you book a suite? I liked being able to write-in breakfast stuff like omelets and pancakes and have it delivered (bagels and lox in the morning is nice, too!).

 

- fresh flowers in the room

 

- free DVD rental. We ended up having a lot of family movie nights, and you can order delivery popcorn/snacks for it.

 

- balconies are private.

 

- Most mixed drinks were under $8.

 

- very comfy beds!

 

 

 

What I wasn't crazy about:

 

- the kid's club did not have a lot of organized activities. Most of the time it was just video games and sports. My son plays enough video games at home! I also didn't feel that the staff was really enjoying the time with the kids; more like they were just going through the motions. Maybe it was just that specific crew, but I was not impressed.

 

- free food options. It seems like whenever I was hungry outside of breakfast or MDR, I had a hard time finding food! The only real option was the buffet and it frequently was closed during random afternoon or late evening stops. I'm not big on restaurants with supplemental costs. The room service choices were limited and not very good. The pool-side burger/hot dog stand frequently had over a half-hour wait.

 

- The boat was VERY rocky during rough seas and we had a few seasick-to-the-point-of-being-roombound people in our party. They were MISERABLE for several days. I'm not sure if another ship would do better, or if larger ships tend to be more stable in rougher seas, but the lack of dramamine on board made a good chunk of the trip unenjoyable for those people.

 

- no movie theatre

 

- "afternoon tea" was basically a really mediocre, pastry-heavy buffet with long lines and seating with random people at long tables.

 

 

What do you think? How does X compare? What does Celebrity do that's unique to the line, or what special perks do they offer that you really enjoy?

[mickey89]

Until HAL accept that smoking kills people we will never consider them, the whole ship smells of smoke, disgusting!!!!!!!

[tangerinebunny]

We've sailed on the Westerdam several times and had good trips. But this past December we tried Reflection's sister ship, Silhouette, and now we have two more Celebrity trips booked.

 

Both lines are good. But on more than one HAL cruise we were bothered by smoke from adjacent balconies. And after a while, we got bored by HAL's food offerings. And for us, it was time for a bit more variety.

 

X offers more food venues and variety; and their newer ships are drop dead gorgeous.

 

Both lines offer quiet places, but HAL is overall much quieter. We were more aware of our fellow passengers on the Silhouette, but there were always quieter places to escape to.

 

I, too, get seasick and the best prevention I can suggest is careful cabin selection (mid ship, not a higher level). Any ship will move around in rough seas, but smaller ships or those traveling fast bounce more). I use a combination of SeaBands and Draminine and so far so good.

 

Sounds like you'll have a good cruise either way.

Edited April 11, 2015 by tangerinebunny

[Champagne Cruiser]

I have cruised HAL twice and enjoyed it. I would cruise it again for a really good price and itinerary (loved Half Moon Cay) but Celebrity is our hands down favorite.

Here are the Celebrity advantages:

Food is much better both MDR and buffet

MDR for some reason is quieter, not as much noise with serving stations. We found HAL silverware drawers being banged really annoying.

Breakfast at the pool grill makes custom eggs and omelet and never crowded

Aqua spa cafe for light breakfast and good lunches (free)

Ships never feel crowded (reviews here on CC speak to this design)

Solarium pool is very relaxing (although no children allowed)

Pools are salt water

Shows have live music and are an hour long

Very visible and friendly officers

Cafe Al Bacio for tea and coffee better than Starbucks (fee) but food there is free

Homemade scooped ice cream free

Pizza and pasta stations open all day and late at night

Wine list is much more extensive

Martini Bar is very entertaining

Sushi in buffet starting at 5:30 (free)

Afternoon tea with scones, cream, pastries, sandwiches at Aqua Spa Cafe (Free)

Younger vibe than HAL but not crazy

More venues for music (Cafe Al Bacio, Sunset Bar, Rendezvous lounge during

predinner and evening)

There are movies but we do not go. My guess is there would be more kids on X but Royal Caribbean would be a better choice for kids.

NO smoking in casino and on balconies

[sp2]

So we're trying to decide between two very similar cruises; one is on Celebrity's Reflection, the other is on Holland's Westerdam. We actually went on the same cruise with Holland last Thanksgiving. We're going the week after Thanksgiving this year and haven't sailed Celebrity before.

 

We were really happy with Holland and I'm a bit nervous about not having as good an experience with X. Either line would be a regular verandah cabin and no cruise status to speak of. I'd love some advice!

 

What I really liked about our Holland cruise:

 

- super fast/easy embarkation/disembarkation. We were able to go straight to our stateroom, which was amazing. We were able to stay in our stateroom until we disembarked, also great.

 

- not many kids. I have an 8 year old (will be 9 for next cruise) and he was able to find a friend he really liked doing stuff with, but there was not a heavy kid presence on the ship and the kids that were there were mostly well behaved.

 

- cool on-board activities. They had a steel drum class where you actually got to play the drums, and a series of mixology classes where you did the mixing. I like "classes" that are hands-on as opposed to watching people fold napkins or decorate cakes. There were also no huge lines for any of these.

 

- the ship is designed in such a way that it never felt crowded, despite being a full ship. All of the different spaces feel intimate and quiet and you don't get a sense that there are thousands of people on board. The only time you realized it was a boat full of people was at some of the shows.

 

- ordering MDR food to the room, and breakfast food off the buffet. I think you can do this with X only if you book a suite? I liked being able to write-in breakfast stuff like omelets and pancakes and have it delivered (bagels and lox in the morning is nice, too!).

 

- fresh flowers in the room

 

- free DVD rental. We ended up having a lot of family movie nights, and you can order delivery popcorn/snacks for it.

 

- balconies are private.

 

- Most mixed drinks were under $8.

 

- very comfy beds!

 

 

 

What I wasn't crazy about:

 

- the kid's club did not have a lot of organized activities. Most of the time it was just video games and sports. My son plays enough video games at home! I also didn't feel that the staff was really enjoying the time with the kids; more like they were just going through the motions. Maybe it was just that specific crew, but I was not impressed.

 

- free food options. It seems like whenever I was hungry outside of breakfast or MDR, I had a hard time finding food! The only real option was the buffet and it frequently was closed during random afternoon or late evening stops. I'm not big on restaurants with supplemental costs. The room service choices were limited and not very good. The pool-side burger/hot dog stand frequently had over a half-hour wait.

 

- The boat was VERY rocky during rough seas and we had a few seasick-to-the-point-of-being-roombound people in our party. They were MISERABLE for several days. I'm not sure if another ship would do better, or if larger ships tend to be more stable in rougher seas, but the lack of dramamine on board made a good chunk of the trip unenjoyable for those people.

 

- no movie theatre

 

- "afternoon tea" was basically a really mediocre, pastry-heavy buffet with long lines and seating with random people at long tables.

 

 

What do you think? How does X compare? What does Celebrity do that's unique to the line, or what special perks do they offer that you really enjoy?

 

I will try to to answer some of your questions. We have cruised on HAL three times and Celebrity S class ships three times. In my opinion you can have a great time on either line but there are differences. We had an alcohol package on X and we were happy we did, because it seemed to us drinks were a bit more expensive on X. Also internet packages were more expensive on X. On HAL we paid $149 for unlimited internet on an 11 day cruise. On our recent X cruise they were charging $199 for 7 days. Also the specialty restaurants were more expensive on X. It was $45 pp for the Lawn Club Grill and $50 for Murano. I think we paid $30 pp for Pinnacle Grill on HAL.

 

Food is subjective but we liked both, although the Dive In grill on HAL has better burgers than Mast Grill on X, in our opinion. Other than that, pretty equal. In our opinion room service food and service was better on HAL.

 

The X S class ships were very stable with little motion on our cruises. Our HAL cruises we seemed to feel more motion, but that can be due to cabin selection, different itineraries and sea conditions.

Crew on both lines were great. We also enjoyed entertainment on both. On our last HAL cruise, it was definitely not dead after 9 pm. We had the BB King Blues club and it was rocking until midnight most nights with a great live band. There is definitely a younger crowd on X but not many kids on our cruises.

Smoking didn't impact us on either and we always have a balcony. Beds on both were comfy. There were no flowers or pillow chocolates on our recent X cruise in March, but some are saying they are back now.

 

Have fun choosing!

[CaroleSS]

As with others, we've sailed both. We've not been bothered by smoke.

 

We really enjoyed HAL....it's not the walking dead everyone makes it out to be. We weren't by the motion, but I will note that many of HALs itineraries take the ships into open water as opposed to some others that hug shorelines. The one thing that I enjoyed on HAL that we don't find on X is that our cabin steward calls us by name........Good Morning Miss Carole! They make it a point to know the names of the passengers in their rooms. It is a nice touch for me. Oh, and HAL has self-serve laundry facilities.....and the availability of an iron is a plus to me!

 

If you post on the HAL boards, they will tell you to pick HAL....here on the X site, they will tell you to pick X.

 

It's like asking which is better, an Acura or a Lexus. You will enjoy your cruise no matter what!!!!

Edited April 11, 2015 by CaroleSS

[Host Jazzbeau]

You mention Reflection, so this advice doesn't quite work. On the first three S-class ships, Celebrity has a Hot Glass Show staffed by Corning Museum art glass makers.

http://www.celebritycruises.com/onboard-celebrity/cruise-hot-glass-show/

Not only was this a big hit with DW and me, but at one show they had the kids program attending -- because they had asked the kids to draw their ideas for an art glass piece and they selected one to try to make [how about that for working without a net?] -- which the lucky kid then got to take home! I don't know what the rest of the kids program was like, but on that basis alone I would certainly consider Eclipse, Equinox or Solstice for a cruise with kids!

[hvsteve1]

We have a little different view as we originally sailed Regent, a luxury line, than decided the cost had become ridiculous. Our TA recommended HAL as we were used to a better class of cruise. We were on the Oosterdam and Maasdam to compare the larger and smaller ships. The cruises were nice, but we found HAL not quite to our liking. The TA then suggested Celebrity in Aqua Class might be closer to what we were used to, and he was right. The cabin seemed nicer than HAL and we had the private BLU restaurant, which is smaller with better food and service than the MDR. The fact we got the 1,2,3 promotion gave us a beverage card, paid gratuities and OBC for other incidentals which made this much closer to the refined cruise and all-inclusive nature of Regent. There were also more specialty restaurants than HAL, which we found a big plus. And Ocieanview Café was miles better than the HAL Lido. We have booked a future cruise in a suite with the same 1,2,3 promotion and the new private restaurant.

 

So far as boarding differences, boarding O'dam in San Diego was the boarding from hell. I've discussed that at length in reviews several years back. Boarding Maasdam in Montreal also involved sitting for quite a while in the terminal. Boarding Silhouette in Lauderdale was a breeze. We walked in, went through security, got our boarding cards with no wait in line and were on the ship in nothing flat. It probably has more to do with the port than the cruise line (expect a mega ship is going to take longer to board than a small luxury cruise).

 

We also found the officers to be around the ship much more than you ever saw them on HAL. I also admit the room attendants on HAL called us by (first) name, which was friendly. We actually seldom saw the attendants on Celebrity, but they did the job just the same.

[Oville]

I have cruised HAL twice and enjoyed it. I would cruise it again for a really good price and itinerary (loved Half Moon Cay) but Celebrity is our hands down favorite.

Here are the Celebrity advantages:

Food is much better both MDR and buffet

MDR for some reason is quieter, not as much noise with serving stations. We found HAL silverware drawers being banged really annoying.

Breakfast at the pool grill makes custom eggs and omelet and never crowded

Aqua spa cafe for light breakfast and good lunches (free)

Ships never feel crowded (reviews here on CC speak to this design)

Solarium pool is very relaxing (although no children allowed)

Pools are salt water

Shows have live music and are an hour long

Very visible and friendly officers

Cafe Al Bacio for tea and coffee better than Starbucks (fee) but food there is free

Homemade scooped ice cream free

Pizza and pasta stations open all day and late at night

Wine list is much more extensive

Martini Bar is very entertaining

Sushi in buffet starting at 5:30 (free)

Afternoon tea with scones, cream, pastries, sandwiches at Aqua Spa Cafe (Free)

Younger vibe than HAL but not crazy

More venues for music (Cafe Al Bacio, Sunset Bar, Rendezvous lounge during

predinner and evening)

There are movies but we do not go. My guess is there would be more kids on X but Royal Caribbean would be a better choice for kids.

NO smoking in casino and on balconies

 

Yikes Jean, we took our first Celebrity cruise in Nov '08 and are close to having 30 under our belt. We've only taken 2 HAL cruises, this year and last year on the NA and I can't reconcile your comments with our experiences. Clearly we are huge Celebrity fans but:

 

Food is subjective and we did think the MDR and buffet on the two lines were on par, but with a slight edge at dinner to HAL. Also disagree with your noise assessment.

 

Specialty dining on HAL is much more reasonably priced and the food is really good and perhaps better.

 

I wasn't aware that Celebrity has made to order breakfast at the pool grill. Is this on all ships?

 

Are you sure all shows have live music on Celebrity? Are you including the theater?

 

Doesn't Cafe al Bacio also charge for tea and coffee?

 

I think HAL has afternoon tea in the MDR at no cost, have never seen tea and scones at the Aqua spa on Celebrity.

 

For sure, on the NA there is a movie theater, not sure when I last saw one one Celebrity.

 

To the OP, we really love Celebrity and have 7 future cruises planned, but some of the info on this quoted post doesn't ring true to our experiences. The smoking policy on Celebrity is great.

Edited April 12, 2015 by Oville

[CathyCruises]

I have cruised HAL twice and enjoyed it. I would cruise it again for a really good price and itinerary (loved Half Moon Cay) but Celebrity is our hands down favorite.

Here are the Celebrity advantages:

Food is much better both MDR and buffet

MDR for some reason is quieter, not as much noise with serving stations. We found HAL silverware drawers being banged really annoying.

Breakfast at the pool grill makes custom eggs and omelet and never crowded. I THINK THEY MEAN THE OCEANVIEW CAFE, NO BREAKFAST AT THE MAST GRILL

Aqua spa cafe for light breakfast and good lunches (free) SOME ITEMS NOW HAVE A CHARGE

Ships never feel crowded (reviews here on CC speak to this design)

Solarium pool is very relaxing (although no children allowed)

Pools are salt water

Shows have live music and are an hour long

Very visible and friendly officers

Cafe Al Bacio for tea and coffee better than Starbucks (fee) but food there is free

Homemade scooped ice cream free

Pizza and pasta stations open all day and late at night

Wine list is much more extensive

Martini Bar is very entertaining

Sushi in buffet starting at 5:30 (free)

Afternoon tea with scones, cream, pastries, sandwiches at Aqua Spa Cafe (Free)AFTERNOON TEA IS SERVED IN THE BUFFET

Younger vibe than HAL but not crazy

More venues for music (Cafe Al Bacio, Sunset Bar, Rendezvous lounge during

predinner and evening)

There are movies but we do not go. My guess is there would be more kids on X but Royal Caribbean would be a better choice for kids.

NO smoking in casino and on balconies

 

some corrections above

[LabGuy64]

It seems that with the exception of the smoking policy you give the edge to HAL......that mean you will be booking primarialy HAL in the future rather than Celebrity as you have in the past?

 

 

Yikes Jean, we took our first Celebrity cruise in Nov '08 and are close to having 30 under our belt. We've only taken 2 HAL cruises, this year and last year on the NA and I can't reconcile your comments with our experiences. Clearly we are huge Celebrity fans but:

 

Food is subjective and we did think the MDR and buffet on the two lines were on par, but with a slight edge at dinner to HAL. Also disagree with your noise assessment.

 

Specialty dining on HAL is much more reasonably priced and the food is really good and perhaps better.

 

I wasn't aware that Celebrity has made to order breakfast at the pool grill. Is this on all ships?

 

Are you sure all shows have live music on Celebrity? Are you including the theater?

 

Doesn't Cafe al Bacio also charge for tea and coffee?

 

I think HAL has afternoon tea in the MDR at no cost, have never seen tea and scones at the Aqua spa on Celebrity.

 

For sure, on the NA there is a movie theater, not sure when I last saw one one Celebrity.

 

To the OP, we really love Celebrity and have 7 future cruises planned, but some of the info on this quoted post doesn't ring true to our experiences. The smoking policy on Celebrity is great.

[Champagne Cruiser]

My comments were based on Summit sine that was our last 2 cruises: 10/14 and 2/15.

 

 

Food is subjective and we did think the MDR and buffet on the two lines were on par, but with a slight edge at dinner to HAL. Also disagree with your noise assessment. Agree, but that was our experience.

 

Specialty dining on HAL is much more reasonably priced and the food is really good and perhaps better.We usually do not go to specialty restaurants

 

I wasn't aware that Celebrity has made to order breakfast at the pool grill. Is this on all ships?It's definitely on the Summit. It's one of the best kept secrets that I picked up here on CC. Don't tell anyone I don't want crowds;););)

 

Are you sure all shows have live music on Celebrity? Are you including the theater? Absolutely at the theater

 

Doesn't Cafe al Bacio also charge for tea and coffee?I believe I stated that.

 

I think HAL has afternoon tea in the MDR at no cost, have never seen tea and scones at the Aqua spa on Celebrity.Definitely at the Aqua Spa Cafe at 4:00 pm on the Summit. It used to be at the Oceanview before that.