Crown Princess or Celebrity Silhouette or Norwegian Epic for Reunion of 70 year olds

[funji1]

Active 70 year olds want to have a Caribbean cruise reunion. We may have 10-20 couples and we want good food, entertainment,service, and nice ship with good price. We do not like the huge ships but will do if everything else fits the bill.

I have cruised on many cruise lines but cannot decide among the 3 above. Southern Caribbean itinerary seems to be the best as I have been there before.

[funji1]

Active 70 year olds want to have a Caribbean cruise reunion. We may have 10-20 couples and we want good food, entertainment,service, and nice ship with good price. We do not like the huge ships but will do if everything else fits the bill.

I have cruised on many cruise lines but cannot decide among the 3 above. Southern Caribbean itinerary seems to be the best as I have been there before.

[pris993]

Active 70 year olds want to have a Caribbean cruise reunion. We may have 10-20 couples and we want good food, entertainment,service, and nice ship with good price. We do not like the huge ships but will do if everything else fits the bill.

I have cruised on many cruise lines but cannot decide among the 3 above. Southern Caribbean itinerary seems to be the best as I have been there before.

 

I am elite on Princess, elite on Celebrity and have cruised on NCL a few times, but not on the Epic.

 

Given your criteria... I would recommend either Princess or Celebrity...I prefer Princess over Celebrity but others like Celebrity over Princess... I think both are very similar.

 

NCL... refer your desire for good food; I would skip unless price is a key factor... generally NCL is cheaper but so is the quality of the food in my opinion.

[funji1]

I am elite on Princess, elite on Celebrity and have cruised on NCL a few times, but not on the Epic.

 

Given your criteria... I would recommend either Princess or Celebrity...I prefer Princess over Celebrity but others like Celebrity over Princess... I think both are very similar.

 

NCL... refer your desire for good food; I would skip unless price is a key factor... generally NCL is cheaper but so is the quality of the food in my opinion.

 

 

Can you tell me the differences between, and why you prefer Princess over Celebrity. Food, entertainment, service etc.

THANKS in advance for your help.

[Aquahound]

Can you tell me the differences between, and why you prefer Princess over Celebrity. Food, entertainment, service etc.

THANKS in advance for your help.

 

I'll give you a comparison to the opposite. I actually like Celebrity over Princess. I have not been on Crown or Silhouette, but I have been on sister ships of both, so I'm familiar with them.

 

Princess feels a lot more crowded to me, and the ships are designed with a very dated decor. The standard staterooms are designed in a way that makes them feel a lot smaller and they do not have a couch. The dining rooms are one story and are very, very cramped. The overall look of the ship is just...meh.

 

Solstice Class, on the other hand, is stunningly beautiful. The ships are very modern and all staterooms have couches and 32" flat screen televisions that are interactive. The dining room is a beautiful, open 2-story room, and Silhouette has the Sky Lounge, which is at the top, front of the ship. Princess' Skywalkers Lounge is at the back and is nowhere near as beautiful as the Sky Lounge.

 

Food and service is about the same but I would give food a slight nod toward Celebrity. I've also never had to wait for a table on Celebrity when using Anytime dining, but it seems Princess always has waits....at least, in my experience.

 

I haven't been on Epic so I can't compare. Either way, I think both Celebrity and Princess are better lines than NCL.

[funji1]

I loved our cruise on the Celebrity Equinox. We were on her second sailing and having a new ship is tops. There was nothing about her that we did not love. Since our #1 choice (Oceania)is now out of our price range, Celebrity became a favorite.

Princess Emerald was very disappointing to us, both service and food, but that was a long time ago so I hope that Princess has improved. By your comments it sounds like Princess has done just that.

The itinerary for the two lines are so different and will probably be the deciding factor. I am definitely leaning towards Princess as it goes to the Southern Caribbean and the ABC islands which cannot be beat. Celebrity goes to the Eastern.

I am not thrilled with the CC reviews of the Crown Princess though, but I have time for more input.

Thank you again !!

[idahospud]

I am not thrilled with the CC reviews of the Crown Princess though, but I have time for more input.

I've read some of those negative reviews and can't believe a couple of them were written about one of the cruises I was on last month. My experiences were nothing like those reviews. I've been on the Crown four times this year alone and would be back on again today if I could.

[Cruzaholic41]

I've been on all 3 ships and there's no contest here. Pick the Silhouette.

[funji1]

I've been on all 3 ships and there's no contest here. Pick the Silhouette.

 

What makes you choose Silhouette over Princess Crown? I have deleted NCL and RCCL.

[cruzincurt]

We are mid-60's and have been on Epic ,Silhouette and other Princess ships.

 

However, Epic will have more kiddos and I don't like the dark look of the interior decor. But we like the 24/7 option of O'Sheeans. Epic also has the strange cabins where the toilet is in one compartment, the shower in another and the sink is in the cabin.

 

But, more to do on the Epic.

 

Silhouette has more lighter decor and was OK, although I think the RCCL ships are better.

 

Don't like the smaller cabins on Princess ships so we haven't been back to them in years.

 

I recommend the NCL Escape as better than those three.

[Grandma Dazzles]

What makes you choose Silhouette over Princess Crown? I have deleted NCL and RCCL.

 

Any reason why you are not considering RC? Would think a Radiance class ship might work for you.

[SadieN]

Do you want to eat dinner together every night? Easier on ships that have assigned dining.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums mobile app

[Cruzaholic41]

What makes you choose Silhouette over Princess Crown? I have deleted NCL and RCCL.

 

First is the cabins. Walk-in closets are nice, but the way Princess designs all their cabins with a walk-in, it results in a really cramped living space. Like someone else said, there is no separate sitting area (couch) in the cabin unless you upgrade to a more expensive room (mini-suite). Princess balconies are also tiny.

 

Princess also has oddly designed ships. The Crown is confusing to get around, especially when trying to find your way to the aft pool or aft dining room. Ships built by Carnival Corp tend to feel claustrophobic and the Crown is no exception. The buffet has a small, cramped serving station that creates long lines across the buffet dining room.

 

I've sailed all the Celebrity Solstice Class ships and I don't think competitor lines like Princess have anything that can compare to them. Even Princess' brand new Royal Class falls very short.

[SuiteTraveler]

Celebrity has good food and decent service. The Silhouette is lovely. The only negative about Celebrity it the entertainment is not very good. Princess - yes the ships look dated unfortunately. The food is nearly as good as Celebrity. The entertainment is OK.

 

Here's a nice video about the Silhouette:

 

BTW, QSine is AWESOME and it is best experienced with a group of people - the more the better - so you will have the perfect situation for that experience.

[OCruisers]

Crown Princess is one of our very favorite ships!

A mini-suite has LOTS of space! :)