First time cruise help - Med from UK

[V_Flagship]

Hi!

 

I posted in the RCCL forum about one of their cruises but I hope nobody judges me for being open-minded about which cruise line I choose for my first voyage!

 

I am 31 and my partner is 27. We’re really keen to try our first cruise and I’ve done loads of reading about all the different offerings. We want a 14night Med cruise out of Southampton and I’m interested in the Silhouette cruise on 9th Sept out of Southampton. It is a very similar price to the RCCL 2nd September cruise that I’m leaning towards and these early/mid September dates work really well for us.

 

My reservation about Celebrity is that we are a youngish couple and I hear that tends to be more suited to RCCL? Also, the add-ons (drinks packages and specialty dining) seem to be more expensive on Celebrity and we’re trying to keep the cost down for our first experience! Is that correct?

 

Any input on comparisons are really appreciated, as well as any opinions generally on Celebrity/Med cruise for a first timer!

 

Thank you.

[villauk]

Really depends on how active you want your cruise to be. Royal offers much more in the way of entertainment and activities compared to the more subdued X. We have sailed on both lines quite a few times over the years and find they offer different experiences. It’s about what you want out of your cruise holiday. A good TA should point you in the right direction after you have explained your needs/requirements ;). Which Royal ship are you looking at compared to Silhouette?

[V_Flagship]

Really depends on how active you want your cruise to be. Royal offers much more in the way of entertainment and activities compared to the more subdued X. We have sailed on both lines quite a few times over the years and find they offer different experiences. It’s about what you want out of your cruise holiday. A good TA should point you in the right direction after you have explained your needs/requirements ;). Which Royal ship are you looking at compared to Silhouette?

 

Thanks for the reply villauk! The Royal ship is the Navigator. We do have an option out of Southampton on Independence but the dates don’t work so well for us.

 

We’re not interested in loads of cheesy entertainment but we would be people to stay up until midnight/1am to enjoy ourselves in a nice atmosphere with a live singer or something. We like there to be stuff happening without needing to feel overwhelmed with forced entertainment! (If that makes sense).

[hopeless holiday booker]

I would say start with Royal. We had our first cruise on Royal but we did have 2 kids. The experience set us up for many years of great cruising. I think you'll get a livelier crowd on RCCL. We cruise mainly on celebrity now but we look for different things. We do stay up late and there is always a good crowd but in my opinion the ships get quiet earlier! Good luck with choosing.

[V_Flagship]

I would say start with Royal. We had our first cruise on Royal but we did have 2 kids. The experience set us up for many years of great cruising. I think you'll get a livelier crowd on RCCL. We cruise mainly on celebrity now but we look for different things. We do stay up late and there is always a good crowd but in my opinion the ships get quiet earlier! Good luck with choosing.

 

Thank you for your advice! I think I am leaning that way at this point, just so much to take in and getting different opinions is really great so thank you for replying!

[villauk]

Thanks for the reply villauk! The Royal ship is the Navigator. We do have an option out of Southampton on Independence but the dates don’t work so well for us.

 

We’re not interested in loads of cheesy entertainment but we would be people to stay up until midnight/1am to enjoy ourselves in a nice atmosphere with a live singer or something. We like there to be stuff happening without needing to feel overwhelmed with forced entertainment! (If that makes sense).

 

You’ll definitely get more entertainment on Royal. Navigator isn’t as big as Independence, but it still has the ice rink etc. where there are some decent shows.

[DYKWIA]

Currently the prices I'm seeing IMHO indicate that for Med Cruises ex UK Celebrity offers better value c.w RCL.

 

Currently for a Balcony the cost with celebrity starts at about £2200 this will include a classic drinks package (which offers a good selection of well known "pub" brand drinks) - you can also get $300 on board credit and with some Travel Agents half board gratuities or free car parking. If you drop down to an Inside cabin prices drop quite dramatically but you don't tend to get any of the benefits (drinks / credit etc)

 

Comparing that with RCL they are about £200 cheaper but are offering some on board credit. If you enjoy a drink do not under estimate the cost of on board drinks - think 4 star UK Hotel prices and up.

 

Celebrity Silhouette carries less passengers than either Navigator or Independence of the seas so is likely to feel more spacious. I think you will also find that the ship reviews tend to be more positive for Silhouette than Navigator of the Seas. Independence of the Seas seems to get good reviews

 

The Med cruise is outside UK school holidays so you shouldn't find many kids on board.

 

My wife and I have done several cruises on Celebrity from Southampton. You will find yourself part of the younger demographic on board but not ridiculously so - I think our Med cruises were slightly younger (and less brits on board) than our last cruise with Celebrity to the Canary Islands. My wife and I are in our mid 40s early 50s and felt very slightly under the average age on the Med Cruises, and quite a bit under average on the canary islands - but that was not a scientific study!

[V_Flagship]

Just wanted to thank people who replied to my message here and let you know that I had a bit of a change of heart (was originally leaning towards RCI for our first cruise) and I’ve booked on the Silhouette out of Southampton on 9th Sept! So excited! Partly what tipped it for us was the sale this weekend which added another $200 obc onto the existing deals... so we got a balcony room, drinks package, $500 obc and half price gratuities for about £2250 each. I don’t know how this deal compares in the grand scheme of things as I’m new to all this but we are happy with it and can’t wait!!

 

Thank you again for all the advice.

[Happy Cruiser 6143]

Great! Enjoy your first cruise. Re staying up late: you may find you're tired after touring all day and having to get up for an early tour the following day. So that may be a moot point.

[Hydrokitty]

Thanks for the reply villauk! The Royal ship is the Navigator. We do have an option out of Southampton on Independence but the dates don’t work so well for us.

 

We’re not interested in loads of cheesy entertainment but we would be people to stay up until midnight/1am to enjoy ourselves in a nice atmosphere with a live singer or something. We like there to be stuff happening without needing to feel overwhelmed with forced entertainment! (If that makes sense).

 

If you're not interested in cheesy entertainment but want to stay up socializing you might do ok with Celebrity. The shows on X cannot compare to anyone else (not in a good way) but we went on 14 night Caribbean with daughter and son in law who are in there 40's and while they hated the shows they loved the bar crowd and the bars and night club stayed open much later than midnight. On our last cruise we noticed they had quite a few fun things going on in the night club such as the silent disco. That being said, they do prefer RCI because there's always something to do. I've been on both and the food is great on both of them....I've also found there's more storage space in the RCI cabins and for a 14 night cruise that could be important to you. If you haven't been to Southampton before do try to go a day early it's one of the most interesting and nicest ports we've been to in the UK.

[HelenREMfan]

You might like to join the roll call for the Sept 9 cruise. I love the Celebrity product and am sure you will like the ship and all about it. Obviously one cannot predict the other guests..... in my past W Med cruises there has been a good mix of US, Canadian and even Aussie guests so you can probably count on similar for this cruise. I would suggest you familiarise yourselves with the Martini bar as it always seems pretty friendly and lively in the evenings. The shows.... well they aren't always to my taste,..... but you should fins a few of them to suit. It will be our first time on the Silhouette but have been on the sister ship the Eclipse quite a few times.

Am sure you will be as converted as I am after this cruise.

[V_Flagship]

Thanks guys, we’re so excited - and I am going to join the roll call! It’s good to hear there are likely to be a good mix of guests, we really enjoy mixing with different types of people.

[DYKWIA]

Thanks guys, we’re so excited - and I am going to join the roll call! It’s good to hear there are likely to be a good mix of guests, we really enjoy mixing with different types of people.

 

The Med cruise from Southampton is a great itinerary (slightly changed this year) some great sights and a few sea days thrown in to relax!

[sddsddean]

Just wanted to thank people who replied to my message here and let you know that I had a bit of a change of heart (was originally leaning towards RCI for our first cruise) and I’ve booked on the Silhouette out of Southampton on 9th Sept! So excited! Partly what tipped it for us was the sale this weekend which added another $200 obc onto the existing deals... so we got a balcony room, drinks package, $500 obc and half price gratuities for about £2250 each. I don’t know how this deal compares in the grand scheme of things as I’m new to all this but we are happy with it and can’t wait!!

 

Thank you again for all the advice.

 

Is £2250 for both of you?...if so, thats a great price! Don't know where you are, but if you are driving down you can sometimes get free parking thrown in...talk to your TA or Celeb if you booked direct. https://www.abparking.co.uk/ are right beside the ship and you can normally get a 10% discount if you can't get it free. Try typing in the month and this year like APR2018...you might have to try going back through the months...I know OCT2017 worked! If not driving, railway station is a 10 min walk from the ship, National Express coach station a bit further. Even Southampton airport is only a 20 min cab ride away! Have fun!!

 

 

Simon

[villauk]

Just wanted to thank people who replied to my message here and let you know that I had a bit of a change of heart (was originally leaning towards RCI for our first cruise) and I’ve booked on the Silhouette out of Southampton on 9th Sept! So excited! Partly what tipped it for us was the sale this weekend which added another $200 obc onto the existing deals... so we got a balcony room, drinks package, $500 obc and half price gratuities for about £2250 each. I don’t know how this deal compares in the grand scheme of things as I’m new to all this but we are happy with it and can’t wait!!

 

Thank you again for all the advice.

 

Is £2250 for both of you?...if so, thats a great price! Don't know where you are, but if you are driving down you can sometimes get free parking thrown in...talk to your TA or Celeb if you booked direct. https://www.abparking.co.uk/ are right beside the ship and you can normally get a 10% discount if you can't get it free. Try typing in the month and this year like APR2018...you might have to try going back through the months...I know OCT2017 worked! If not driving, railway station is a 10 min walk from the ship, National Express coach station a bit further. Even Southampton airport is only a 20 min cab ride away! Have fun!!

 

 

Simon

 

The OP quoted £2250 each in their post.

[sddsddean]

The OP quoted £2250 each in their post.

I must remember to read properly!! So that works out about £160/day/person which is about right nowadays.

 

Simon

[mickey89]

Celebrity prices have dramatically risen in the UK since mid March. We booked in November and paid £116/pp/pn for 1A cabin with Beverage Package but no obc. Their current pricing can't be sustained and would expect to see significant price drops in the coming months.

[villauk]

Celebrity prices have dramatically risen in the UK since mid March. We booked in November and paid £116/pp/pn for 1A cabin with Beverage Package but no obc. Their current pricing can't be sustained and would expect to see significant price drops in the coming months.

 

I think they’ll need to for Europe next year. Have you seen the price on Edge for a week in the Med at all the usual ports :eek: - Infinity isn’t that much cheaper either :o!

[bigbeergut]

We sailed from Southampton once on a 14 day itinerary to the Med but I wouldn't do it again. It's a cold and possibly rough 2-day sail to the Med and a 2 day return. That's a large part of your total cruise. You may want to consider flying to the Med and spend your entire cruise there. That would open up a lot of other itinerary and ship options with some of Royal newest ships (depending on the time of year).

 

Good Luck and enjoy your cruise

[HelenREMfan]

We sailed from Southampton once on a 14 day itinerary to the Med but I wouldn't do it again. It's a cold and possibly rough 2-day sail to the Med and a 2 day return. That's a large part of your total cruise. You may want to consider flying to the Med and spend your entire cruise there. That would open up a lot of other itinerary and ship options with some of Royal newest ships (depending on the time of year).

 

Good Luck and enjoy your cruise

 

I thoroughly enjoy those first 2 sea days! It eases the stress of the day's travel down to Southampton (we go the day before now and book a hotel for B & B as is less stressful!) The 2 days enable you to explore the ship, chill out, take part in any of the activities which interest you - on one cruise there was a watercolour painting class for the 5 sea days which my daughter and I really enjoyed ! The 2 sea days on the return again allows one to relax after the hectic side of visiting the likes of Rome and Florence for example. It's not like you are captive on a cross channel ferry !!

It also means for we Brits that we don't have to worry about luggage weight and allowance which would feature if we were flying say to Rome to pick up a cruise.

[rubydoobydoo]

Just wanted to thank people who replied to my message here and let you know that I had a bit of a change of heart (was originally leaning towards RCI for our first cruise) and I’ve booked on the Silhouette out of Southampton on 9th Sept! So excited! Partly what tipped it for us was the sale this weekend which added another $200 obc onto the existing deals... so we got a balcony room, drinks package, $500 obc and half price gratuities for about £2250 each. I don’t know how this deal compares in the grand scheme of things as I’m new to all this but we are happy with it and can’t wait!!

 

Thank you again for all the advice.

 

If this is your first ever cruise I’m sure you’ll love it no matter what

 

We started with P and O out of Southampton but we much prefer Celebrity

 

The drinks package is a bonus, well worth having one

 

Enjoy 😊

[DYKWIA]

I thoroughly enjoy those first 2 sea days! It eases the stress of the day's travel down to Southampton (we go the day before now and book a hotel for B & B as is less stressful!) The 2 days enable you to explore the ship, chill out, take part in any of the activities which interest you - on one cruise there was a watercolour painting class for the 5 sea days which my daughter and I really enjoyed ! The 2 sea days on the return again allows one to relax after the hectic side of visiting the likes of Rome and Florence for example. It's not like you are captive on a cross channel ferry !!

It also means for we Brits that we don't have to worry about luggage weight and allowance which would feature if we were flying say to Rome to pick up a cruise.

 

Yes there are some real advantages to a cruises from Southampton - No luggage restrictions, park next to the ship and home withing 2.5 hours of leaving the ship (110 miles).

 

We've done 3 cruises from Southampton to the Med or Canaries each with 2 sea days at start and finish - all September

 

First cruise it was only the last day that was cold and foggy - other days were all really warm / hot

Second cruise first and last day a bot cooler (too cool to be out sunbathing out doors on day 1, last day was cool but plenty of sunshine)

Third cruise - first 2 days cool - Solarium only - last day cool but lots of sunshine.

 

We've never had any issues crossing the bay of Biscay, maybe we are due one :D

[Hydrokitty]

Is £2250 for both of you?...if so, thats a great price! Don't know where you are, but if you are driving down you can sometimes get free parking thrown in...talk to your TA or Celeb if you booked direct. https://www.abparking.co.uk/ are right beside the ship and you can normally get a 10% discount if you can't get it free. Try typing in the month and this year like APR2018...you might have to try going back through the months...I know OCT2017 worked! If not driving, railway station is a 10 min walk from the ship, National Express coach station a bit further. Even Southampton airport is only a 20 min cab ride away! Have fun!!

Simon

 

Hi Simon....I just wanted to thank you for the wonderful information you gave me about Southampton on our recent B2B there.

I didn't have to do laundry after all because I got one free bag on board and that was sufficient....we LOVED the Tudor House museum and it's fantastic cafe and the walk into town was delightful. I can't believe so much of the original wall remains. Thanks again for the help and if you're ever in NY and need some help, let me know.

 

Hydrokitty

[sddsddean]

Hi Simon....I just wanted to thank you for the wonderful information you gave me about Southampton on our recent B2B there.

I didn't have to do laundry after all because I got one free bag on board and that was sufficient....we LOVED the Tudor House museum and it's fantastic cafe and the walk into town was delightful. I can't believe so much of the original wall remains. Thanks again for the help and if you're ever in NY and need some help, let me know.

 

Hydrokitty

 

Much as I would love to accept your thanks, I suspect they are due to my 'comrade in arms', John Bull. Though we do often both make suggestions, he knows more about the area than me...I just add pointers to push him in the right direction!!

 

Simon

[Hydrokitty]

Much as I would love to accept your thanks, I suspect they are due to my 'comrade in arms', John Bull. Though we do often both make suggestions, he knows more about the area than me...I just add pointers to push him in the right direction!!

 

Simon

 

Well thank you anyway! I'll keep an eye out for John Bull so I can thank him as well!