Travel Weekly grades Celebrity as the best "Premium" Cruise Line - Would you agree?

[need2cruisesoon]

Does the fact that "Travel Weekly" has given X top honors as the best Premium Cruise line (8 consecutive years) dispel the notion that it is not a mass market line?

And what categories is premium different than mass market?

 

http://www.travelweekly.com/ReadersChoice2015/Travel-Weekly-honors-winners-of-2015-Readers-Choice-Awards

[Formerly known as Seabee]

Obviously they don't read this. Forum....if so and given all the whining that goes on here, X would rate extremely low😜

[Bobocasey]

Depends on who was involved and who was doing the comparing.

[TLCOhio]

Does the fact that "Travel Weekly" has given X top honors as the best Premium Cruise line (8 consecutive years) dispel the notion that it is not a mass market line? And what categories is premium different than mass market?

 

Remember that this was a "Readers Choice" ranking of this one magazine. It was not a scientific survey of those travelers with the most experience, resources, etc. It is what it is!! No more. Nor, less!!

 

Their readers were ranking or listing for 74 categories in the airline, car, hospitality, rail, tour, cruise, destination and theme park sectors. That's lots of categories that might reflect more on the larger, most well-known services, places, etc.

 

I was very happy and agree strongly on these ranking for "Best in Destinations" with South Africa being "it" for Africa and Australia being tops for Asia/Pacific. Having enjoyed both locations in the past two and a half years, I agree very strongly with those categories and these two winners.

 

THANKS! Enjoy! Terry in Ohio

 

Enjoyed a 14-day, Jan. 20-Feb. 3, 2014, Sydney to Auckland adventure, on Celebrity's Solstice getting a big sampling for the wonders of "down under” before and after this cruise. Go to:

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1974139

for more info and many pictures of these amazing sights in this great part of the world. Now at 151,911 views for this posting.

[riclop]

Does the fact that "Travel Weekly" has given X top honors as the best Premium Cruise line (8 consecutive years) dispel the notion that it is not a mass market line?

And what categories is premium different than mass market?

 

http://www.travelweekly.com/ReadersChoice2015/Travel-Weekly-honors-winners-of-2015-Readers-Choice-Awards

 

Not at all, once was enough for us . BORING!!!

[QE2_Fan]

Delta won best overall airline. That made me laugh!

 

And we love our Celebrity cruising but to call it premium . Sorry that's marketing speak, not reality.

 

IMHO Oceania or Azamara maybe are closer to Premium cruise lines.

 

 

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[Mynki]

Does the fact that "Travel Weekly" has given X top honors as the best Premium Cruise line (8 consecutive years) dispel the notion that it is not a mass market line?

And what categories is premium different than mass market?

 

 

No. Celebrity is a mass market cruise line anyone believing it is a premium cruise line is either deluded or is yet to sail with a true 6 star line.

 

What's 'premium' about staying in an inside cabin on the Millennium and dining in the Oceanview café?

 

To be honest this award is a bit of a joke in my view.

[leehal]

Obviously they don't read this. Forum....if so and given all the whining that goes on here, X would rate extremely low[emoji12]

 

 

That's the nature of the Internet isn't it!

 

Look up any product and there are many more complaints than praise, shame really makes it harder to judge something. Buying any goods or services is becoming a minefield.

 

 

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[florisdekort]

Delta won best overall airline. That made me laugh!

 

 

Of the US carriers, I totally agree that over the past 2 years Delta has become the best. Great (and now free) inflight entertainment, live TV, wifi, good food, leather seats, a rapidly modernizing fleet, economy plus, unlimited free upgrades, etc. etc. And with >1 million miles on all major US carriers, I'm in a position to compare.

[florisdekort]

Back to topic though. I guess for me it depends what other lines are in the Premium category. I still rate X higher than HAL and Princess, but they are not Azamara, Oceania, etc. - so as long as these lines are in a different category, I'm in agreement.

[kevinyork]

Who defines Premium? What class are Azamara, Oceania? If they are premium he w can X compare against them? I know Regent is luxury but what makes X premium over other mass market lines?

 

 

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[GordonJasmine]

I wouldn't call it "premium", but it is certainly a big step above NCL, Carnival, and the like!

[ECCruise]

10 years ago, absolutely.

 

5 years ago, still above the rest but no longer head and shoulders above.

 

Today, slightly better than other lines in some areas, definitely below in others (and I am talking NCL and Princess). Net effect: Another mainstream line.

[Cruise Junky]

I have no insight into what they are using to define mainstream vs premium. They are our favourite line above Princess, HAL, NCL and RCL which we'd have also sailed.

[roquejo]

Back to topic though. I guess for me it depends what other lines are in the Premium category. I still rate X higher than HAL and Princess, but they are not Azamara, Oceania, etc. - so as long as these lines are in a different category, I'm in agreement.

 

I agree as well if we make the classification clear. Celebrity is a notch higher than mainstream family cruise lines like its sister company RCCL, NCL, Princess etc. Their food quality, especially the buffet, is slightly higher.

 

I don't even eat in the buffet anymore in both NCL and RCCL but Celebrity is still passable.

 

Drink wise Celebrity have more drink types and brands to choose. For example, you can't find ginger bear is almost all RCCL and NCL ships to make Moscow Mule, but they are widely available in Celebrity. You can't also find premium bars in either RCCL and NCL in the mold of Martini Bar or the former Molecular Bar.

 

But Celebrity is not a 6 star, all inclusive line, utilizing smaller ships like Azama, Oceania, Crystal, Silversea etc. Except for Celebrity Xpedition and the 2 other newly acquired ships sailing the Galapagos.

 

With this, there are only 2 popular cruise lines in the premium market segment. Celebrity and HAL.

 

I have sailed HAL and if you compare Celebrity vs HAL. Celebrity is much better. So with not much competitors around in the premium line segment, Celebrity takes the title.

 

Btw, just also found out that Disney consider themselves as a mainstream family line competing directly with RCCL and NCL, not a premium cruise line as I earlier taught. Disney has been winning so many awards lately no wonder it is not affecting celebrity as they are in the different market segment.

Edited August 7, 2016 by roquejo

[WpgCruise]

10 years ago, absolutely.

 

5 years ago, still above the rest but no longer head and shoulders above.

 

Today, slightly better than other lines in some areas, definitely below in others (and I am talking NCL and Princess). Net effect: Another mainstream line.

 

Totally agree.

 

In their rush to be everything to everybody, Celebrity has become just another mass market cruise line. There is nothing wrong with that, it is what it is, but IMO Celebrity is not a a premium line

[lienf]

Does anyone know what cruise lines were listed in this survey under the "Premium" label in order to make a choice?

[Mynki]

I had a look for nominees expecting to find two lists. One for premium and one for luxury. All I could find was this single list here :-

 

http://www.travelweekly.com/ReadersChoice2015

 

I assume that this means Carnival are considered a premium cruise line. So agree with the poster above who described the award as a marketing gimmick.

 

I'd be interested to know which lines are considered luxury though, there are several obvious choices but it would be interesting to see confirmed categories from Travel Weekly.

[Ti2m]

Delta won best overall airline. That made me laugh!

 

 

Exactly!

[LabGuy64]

Personally I don't think that use of smaller ships is a real sign you are on a luxury line.....there are many limitations on smaller ships an, i don't feel that they offer better service. They certainly do not offer better entertainment options. The only thing you can say about them is you can get into destinations with shallower ports. This does not make for a luxury distinction. Smaller ship...smaller cabins, smaller entertainment venues and smaller casinos. Food and personal service depend on the line....not the ship size

 

 

 

I agree as well if we make the classification clear. Celebrity is a notch higher than mainstream family cruise lines like its sister company RCCL, NCL, Princess etc. Their food quality, especially the buffet, is slightly higher.

 

I don't even eat in the buffet anymore in both NCL and RCCL but Celebrity is still passable.

 

Drink wise Celebrity have more drink types and brands to choose. For example, you can't find ginger bear is almost all RCCL and NCL ships to make Moscow Mule, but they are widely available in Celebrity. You can't also find premium bars in either RCCL and NCL in the mold of Martini Bar or the former Molecular Bar.

 

But Celebrity is not a 6 star, all inclusive line, utilizing smaller ships like Azama, Oceania, Crystal, Silversea etc. Except for Celebrity Xpedition and the 2 other newly acquired ships sailing the Galapagos.

 

With this, there are only 2 popular cruise lines in the premium market segment. Celebrity and HAL.

 

I have sailed HAL and if you compare Celebrity vs HAL. Celebrity is much better. So with not much competitors around in the premium line segment, Celebrity takes the title.

 

Btw, just also found out that Disney consider themselves as a mainstream family line competing directly with RCCL and NCL, not a premium cruise line as I earlier taught. Disney has been winning so many awards lately no wonder it is not affecting celebrity as they are in the different market segment.

[DirtyDawg]

I take readers' choice awards with a big grain of salt. Our local newspaper does one each year and the category winners all seem to be the ones that advertise the most with the paper. Wonder if there is any correlation?:confused:

;)

[cruiseerf]

If you put any belief in these lists....which I don't...Far too Many Variables to monitor with simple questionnaires....

 

Celebrity was ranked 4 of Mega ships (solstice class) Behind Cunard, Holland America and Princess followed only by RCL. Travel and Leisure just came out with their rankings based upon voting...ahem. Celebrity did no good here....

 

 

 

http://www.travelandleisure.com/worlds-best/biggest-ocean-cruise-ships#introand

[richsea]

I had a look for nominees expecting to find two lists. One for premium and one for luxury. All I could find was this single list here :-

 

http://www.travelweekly.com/ReadersChoice2015

 

I assume that this means Carnival are considered a premium cruise line. So agree with the poster above who described the award as a marketing gimmick.

 

I'd be interested to know which lines are considered luxury though, there are several obvious choices but it would be interesting to see confirmed categories from Travel Weekly.

 

Interesting take.

 

Not being familiar with Travel Weekly, I followed your link to it, & saw that it seems to be aimed at travel professionals, so who are they marketing to, TAs? There is a link on their site to cruises, & the drop down list of the most popular lines does not even include Celebrity. In perusing the site, i did find it to be interesting, with lots of info on all sorts of travel options, travel news & such. There was an interesting editorial response to backlash received as a result of an article on Trump as he relates to reavel, which I found interesting. All without the myriad of advertising that you would find in Conde Nast, which in my opinion, is the ultimate marketing machine. Try finding an article among the pages of advertisements; its nearly impossible!

 

Thanks for pointing me to a good source of what is going on in the travel business!

[roquejo]

Personally I don't think that use of smaller ships is a real sign you are on a luxury line.....there are many limitations on smaller ships an, i don't feel that they offer better service. They certainly do not offer better entertainment options. The only thing you can say about them is you can get into destinations with shallower ports. This does not make for a luxury distinction. Smaller ship...smaller cabins, smaller entertainment venues and smaller casinos. Food and personal service depend on the line....not the ship size

 

One thing common about these smaller luxury 6 star ships is everything is included, the food, the drinks, the shore excursions, the gratuities etc... you actually pay nothing more other than the cruise fare. And they are very expensive.

 

Perhaps it is the intimate setting, more crew to passenger ratio, that make them expensive.. but true the amenities and entertainment are lacking as they are smaller ships.

 

And yes some of them are expedition ships that gets you close to nature with the use of zodiacs like Celebrity Xpedition in the Galapagos or the Stella Australis in Patagonia.

 

But some are just smaller non expedition cruise ships like the Azamara Quest/Journey, Silver Shadow etc...

Edited August 8, 2016 by roquejo

[ECCruise]

If you put any belief in these lists....which I don't...Far too Many Variables to monitor with simple questionnaires....

 

Celebrity was ranked 4 of Mega ships (solstice class) Behind Cunard, Holland America and Princess followed only by RCL. Travel and Leisure just came out with their rankings based upon voting...ahem. Celebrity did no good here....

 

 

 

http://www.travelandleisure.com/worlds-best/biggest-ocean-cruise-ships#introand

 

I think the important thing here is how much Celebrity has slipped in this poll.

 

2013- 1st

2014- 2nd

2015- 3rd

2016- 4th