Celebrity v Thomson

[dorlor]

Hi, we have cruised Thomson ships for a few years, Spirit, Majesty and the Dream. We have heard several people commenting on Celebrity saying how good they are. We enjoy freedom dining and fun entertainment and obviously good food and nice cabins (do i ask a lot!) Has anyone out there cruised on both Thomson and Celebrity. If so what are your thoughts. Any info would be gratefully received. :)

[newport dave]

We've done a couple of Celebrity and one Thomson. Enjoyed all the cruises immensely, but I'd say Celebrity are a step up in class in virtually all departments. The only thing we found better on Thomsons was the entertainment and staff friendliness. Also no daily gratuities on Thomsons, $12 a day/pp on Celebrity plus automatic 15 or 18% tip on all drinks.

 

Celebrity have freedom dining, it's called 'Select'. As well as the MDR, they also have a comprehensive buffet open for breakfast, lunch & dinner.

[wales4ever]

No comparison. We went on the majesty in Feb to the Canaries - without a doubt the worse cruise ever. Even with the £10 per day all Inc. drinks package we had. Terrible food, dark dingy ship.

Would rather sail on a lifeboat than a Thomson ship again - had sailed 4 times previously with them.

I would NEVER recommend Thomson cruises to anyone.

 

All of the American companies are head and shoulders above them.

In terms of ships, food, entertainment, the whole package is better - and in many cases cheaper too.

[tercar]

I cruised Thomson many times and then I found celebrity! Yes drinks package more expensive however the menu is extensive, for example corona included on C £2.00 supplement on T. All in all the AI is far superior on C. As are staterooms, food, little touches, safe is free, dressing gowns provided, beautiful bathrooms, even a little bag which is great for sun lotions etc, celebrity is the way to go.

[tercar]

I cruised Thomson many times and then I found celebrity! Yes drinks package more expensive however the menu is extensive, for example corona included on C £2.00 supplement on T. All in all the AI is far superior on C. As are staterooms, food, little touches, safe is free, dressing gowns provided, beautiful bathrooms, even a little bag which is great for sun lotions etc, celebrity is the way to go.

 

 

Also on the S class ships the shows are fabulous

[DYKWIA]

Celebrity ships are much newer and significantly larger Thomsons fleet are mainly from the 80s and 90s. Celebrity are all post 2000, with the larger solstice class ships post 2008. Celebrity ships are all purpose built for them whilst Thomsons purchase from other cruise lines (appantly they will be operating the Tui ships Meinn Schiff 1 and 2 soon, both of which were built and operated by Celebrity in the 90s).

 

One noticeable difference will probably be the passengers. Celebrity markets worldwide whilst Thomson I think markets UK only, so expect fewer Brits on board, significantly fewer on sailings departing other countries. The Eclipse, which sails from Southampton in the summer, tends to get more British on board. If this is an important factor you might want to look at P and O.

 

Currency on board Celebrity is the US Dollar on all cruises, and like Thomson it is cashless on board. As well as flexible dining there is the option to have fixed time dining on Celebrity.

 

There is a wider choice of additional fee restaurants on Celebrity, and some of these will be more expensive than Thomsons. Room Service is free on Celebrity.

 

Drinks prices on Celebrity are expensive. There are various drinks packages that can be purchased, none of which are cheap. Celebrity often offers booking deals with "free" drinks packages. This will almost always be the basic drinks package offering a reasonable, but by no means full, selections of wines, beer and spirits. The base price of these holidays is always significantly inflated so as to offer this freebie, so do your sums before hand. You can upgrade to a premium drinks package on board which offers a much wider selection of drinks, but again not a full list.

 

Dress Code is very similar to Thomson, mainly smart Casual with a couple of Formal Nights thrown in (only the Main Dining Room on Formal nights is dress up, everywhere else it is smart casual, even on Formal Nights).

 

There is a wider class of cabins on Celebrity -standard inside, outside and balcony, concierge, Aqua and suite - with subdivisions based on location and size in each class). Aqua Class and Suite Class get their own restaurants but apart from that no other parts of the Ship are off limits to passengers (the majority) in other cabin classes. Celebrity ships have a lot of balconys, so it isn't necessary to book way in advance to secure one, unless you want to reserve a particular balcony location. There are supposedly no bad balcony rooms on Celebrity ships (badly obstructed views) but obviously some are more desirable than others, and the price generally reflects this.

 

One other thing that might be important, Celebrity Eclipse, when it operates from Southamption, put kettles in all cabins and include service on all drinks purchased ( prices are higher to reflect this) on other ships and on the Eclipse during the winter months, service charges are added to drinks purchases and no kettles in the cabin. A small gesture for us tea loving tip phobic Brutish :-)

Edited June 8, 2015 by DYKWIA

[melsuli]

The difference is similar to that of a Bentley and a Trabant.

[Wiltonian]

 

One noticeable difference will probably be the passengers. Celebrity markets worldwide whilst Thomson I think markets UK only, so expect fewer Brits on board, significantly fewer on sailings departing other countries. The Eclipse, which sails from Southampton in the summer, tends to get more British on board. If this is an important factor you might want to look at P and O.

 

It's a factor for me; I much prefer a mixed ship rather than largely undiluted British! ;-) So no P&O for me, and I much preferred the mix on the Equinox out of Rome to the Eclipse.

 

Stuart

[Velvetwater]

We almost booked with Thomson last year as their two advantages are they have a better range of European ports than many other lines and as they have airlines you are looked after as soon as you get to the airport.However due to them screwing family out of a lot of money we refuse to book but thats another story. My boss sailed with them and called them floatinf rust buckets which out me off.

 

I think the US based lines really seem to be a different class of cruising that are likely to be better in everyway. As we started out with Carnival we are a bit worried about European lines (with the exception of P&O).

 

As I don't have experience of either I just wanted to say that in order to have select/flexible dining you need to pay your grats before you sail which I think is ridiculous. We currently have early dining booked and are still deciding if we want to pay grats immediately to have our dining of choice.

 

BTW, I too prefer a mixed nationality ship! :)

Edited June 8, 2015 by Velvetwater

[DYKWIA]

It's a factor for me; I much prefer a mixed ship rather than largely undiluted British! ;-) So no P&O for me, and I much preferred the mix on the Equinox out of Rome to the Eclipse.

 

Stuart

 

When we were on the Eclipse last summer the percentage of Brits I think was somewhere about 60% so quite high but probably no where near as high as Thomsons or P and O, but way more than certainly MSC or Costa will get.

 

Also, I'm not sure how to put this....Thomson's as a brand still means package holidays to Spain to me and all that goes with that - good and bad, right or wrong. It might be ambitious of Celebrity to boast of Modern Luxury, it certainly isn't a floating Four Seasons hotel, but I do feel there is an upmarket yet relaxed feel to the brand and their product.

[villauk]

it's a factor for me; i much prefer a mixed ship rather than largely undiluted british! ;-) so no p&o for me, and i much preferred the mix on the equinox out of rome to the eclipse.

 

Stuart

 

+1 :)

[Gordoncruickshank]

RCCL owns half of Tui Cruises but that does not mean that the ships are modern.

[Tiggertastic]

We've done 4 Thomson and 14 celebrity. I think the figures speak for themselves. Yes we'd do Thomson again but if it was them up against each other id pick celebrity as you get more for your money

[A Sixth?]

I've done a few Thomson cruises and while enjoyed them, there really is no comparison to celebrity in terms of quality.

 

I mean a beer is a beer but there's three star places and five star places...

[24acorns]

It's a factor for me; I much prefer a mixed ship rather than largely undiluted British! ;-) So no P&O for me, and I much preferred the mix on the Equinox out of Rome to the Eclipse.

 

Stuart

 

Totally agree with this comment. Equinox out of Cittiavechia wonderful.

[dorlor]

It's a factor for me; I much prefer a mixed ship rather than largely undiluted British! ;-) So no P&O for me, and I much preferred the mix on the Equinox out of Rome to the Eclipse.

 

Stuart

Many many thanks to you and all those who have respnded to my query. Really informative and i appreciate the time you have taken for me. Thank you again:)

[Andym]

Have done 3 Thomson cruises, first 2 we thought were fantastic, then we went on Celebrity. We did another Thomson with friends but vowed never to do another. Have been on other lines too, but still wouldn't do a Thomson even if it was free.

 

 

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[Bollinge]

We would never go on Thomson, unless the price was right and the itinerary was something special. The primary reason is the age of their ships and the fact that they are knackered. Old ships are more prone to mechanical and electrical failures, with a/c and toilet problems being the least of your potential worries.

 

When we went on Celebrity Galaxy years ago there was a smell of s**t around the vessel and the stench of diesel fumes at the aft stairwell. That vessel was knackered then. Now she is too old for the German market she is joining Thomson as their new flagship!

 

Note Thomson avoid all visits to US ports as that would make them subject to USPH inspections for cleanliness, in which it's hard for a brand new vessel to get a 100% rating, let alone ones that are 30 years old!

 

Don't take my word for it. From the Berlitz guide to cruising, points ratings out of 2000:

 

Thomson Celebration (1984) 1217

Thomson Dream (1986) 1225

Thomson Majesty (1992) 1258

Thomson Spirit (1983) 1238

 

Celebrity Reflection (2012) 1571

 

And by way of comparison, supposedly the "best" ship in the world:

 

Hapag-Lloyd Europa II (2013) 1860