Travelocity Ratings: Carnival v. Celebrity

[Boo's Mom]

I was noticing over on Travelocity....that Carnival's ships are rating much higher than Celebrity.

 

Century = 3.5 star

 

Funny.

 

Do they market the companies (with higher ratings) that give them the bigger commissions?

[Sky Sweet]

I was noticing over on Travelocity....that Carnival's ships are rating much higher than Celebrity.

 

Century = 3.5 star

 

Funny.

 

Do they market the companies (with higher ratings) that give them the bigger commissions?

 

Boo's mom, I agree with you. Out of curiosity, I recently asked someone at travelocity to explain how they determine their ratings because I disagree with so many of them. That person told me they get their ratings from cruise critic. Apparently, it is not just a coincidence that cruise critic and travelocity have the exact same ratings for each ship. Fortunately, there are other travel websites, as well as cruise guides, with ratings that are more in line with reality.

[Germancruiser]

I would redomend those Travelocity to read the new Berlitz Guide for Cruiseing and Cruiseships. Very interessting and after my expierence really true what they say.

Greetings

Michael

[Boo's Mom]

Cruise Critic is rating the Celebrity Century the same as the Carnival Celebration.

 

This is very misleading, to someone who is researching these ships.

 

I have sailed on both....and they are very, very incomparable.

[nu2sea]

As someone posted on this board just recently, the Conde Nast Travelers Magazine readers just voted the first, second, third and fourth best ships to Celebrity. I think they took six or seven of the top ten. The Century was ranked 12th...

 

You can read the Celebrity press release at:

http://www.celebrity.com/aboutceleb/pressDetails.do;jsessionid=00001VzYX8J3J4RVliEVGzscpB2:1028etni0?pagename=press_room_details&event_date=2006-01-20&event_type=press_release&sequence_code=A

 

Susan

[Keith1010]

I always look for consistency. Each year the Berlitz Ocean Cruising Book rates Celebrity and its ships as the top cruise line with those ships carrying 1,000 passengers or more. The only exception is that it rates the Grill Class on the Queen Mary 2 higher but it rates the other classifications on the Queeny Mary 2 lower. At the same time, Celebrity continues to be rated number 1 (again for its size ships) in magazines such as Conde Nest and Travel and Leisure. And, the reasons it is rated so highly are consistent ranging from its food, to the ships, to the acoomodations, to the service to the entertainment. Speaking for myself, having sailed on many of the mass market ships, I agree with the ratings that Celebrity receives from the Berlitz Ocean Cruising book.

 

Keith

[Sky Sweet]

I would redomend those Travelocity to read the new Berlitz Guide for Cruiseing and Cruiseships. Very interessting and after my expierence really true what they say.

Greetings

Michael

 

This brings up an interesting point. The Berlitz ratings are based on professional travel reviews while Travelocity Ratings, which are merely copied from Cruise Critic, are determined by what people who participate in Cruise Critic think. Which ratings appear to be more accurate?

[SharkieRools]

Cruise Critic is rating the Celebrity Century the same as the Carnival Celebration.

 

This is very misleading' date=' to someone who is researching these ships.

 

I have sailed on both....and they are very, very incomparable.[/quote']

 

That's the problem with CC (and by default Travelocity) ratings. I would venture to say that most people who have written a review and rated one of those ships haven't been on both of them. It's like someone who has only eaten saltines for their entire life and think they are the greatest, little do they know that the Ritz cracker is far superior! :)

 

In my opinion the ratings mean very little because the people giving them in most cases have only been on a small percentage of the ships out there (and you know there's lots of 'em!) It's like if you were to rate a Hyundai 4 stars, but you've never driven anything else so you have nothing to compare to (Nothing against Hyundais by the way!)

 

I find reading the actual reviews far more useful then just looking at the rating.

[Sky Sweet]

That's the problem with CC (and by default Travelocity) ratings. I would venture to say that most people who have written a review and rated one of those ships haven't been on both of them. It's like someone who has only eaten saltines for their entire life and think they are the greatest, little do they know that the Ritz cracker is far superior! :)

 

In my opinion the ratings mean very little because the people giving them in most cases have only been on a small percentage of the ships out there (and you know there's lots of 'em!) It's like if you were to rate a Hyundai 4 stars, but you've never driven anything else so you have nothing to compare to (Nothing against Hyundais by the way!)

 

I find reading the actual reviews far more useful then just looking at the rating.

 

I agree with you that a rating doesn't mean much if it is determined by a passenger who has a very limited basis for comparison. Even on the same ship the experience can vary significantly based on itinerary, time of year, passengers aboard a specific cruise, etc. That is one of the biggest problems with user reviews, as opposed to professional ones.

[Keith1010]

The Conde Nest ratings and those from Travel and Leisure are based on pasenger ratings. And, the Berlitz ones are based on the professional ratings. So, I use both of these and find that they are actually very consistent. I have personally filled our ratings for Conde Nest but not for Cruise Critic.

 

Keith

[Blazerboy]

Hey! I LIKE Saltines!! Who the heck are you, and what do YOU know!:mad: Not everything goes better on a Ritz!

 

(;) )

 

Most of the booking engine websites have personal reviews for hotels, cruises, etc. It's always fascinating to read, but rarely will provide MY point of view- am I pickier or less finicky than the reviewer? On business or vacationing? Do I always go first class or budget? Who knows. But I do see some reviews that remind me of posts here on the CC boards- complaining that the water wasn't 'wet' enough, or the sheets were 399 thread count, not 401, so the reviewer got a rash.:rolleyes: Facts like "it is only one tube stop from Harrods" or "the dining room on the ship has two seatings, and we chose late seating" are valuable, but so much of the rest is subjective, and should only be read for its entertainment value!

 

But the Berlitz book is a must read!

 

Andrew

[negc]

I agree with you that a rating doesn't mean much if it is determined by a passenger who has a very limited basis for comparison. Even on the same ship the experience can vary significantly based on itinerary, time of year, passengers aboard a specific cruise, etc. That is one of the biggest problems with user reviews, as opposed to professional ones.

 

All ratings are subjective whether from cruise passengers of professional reviewers. In checking them it is very important to read any comments from the reviewer which might reveal the basis for the reviewers ratings. Professional reviewers are not necessarily better than those of casual cruisers since the criteria used by the professional reviewers may involve things which are not necessarily of interest to the average cruiser. For example, the professional reviewer might judge the bedding on a cruiseship by the threadcount of its sheets, while the average cruiser might not care about the threadcount but only on how comfortable the bed was. If I made my dining out judgements based on professional reviews, I might never dine out, since their tastes differ radically from theirs. Some of my favorite movies got terrible reviews from the critics. Doesn't make their reviews wrong, just not applicable to me. Ratings in such magazines as Condé Nast reflect the demographic makeup of its readers. Just look at the ads in the magazine and you can probably tell if their readers tastes and interests match yours.

Ratings are only numbers (or stars etc). More important are the comments which are behind those numbers. Read the reviews but take all of them with a grain of salt and cruise on ships that seem to match your taste, then judge for yourself.

[CGTNORMANDIE]

You can not go by any 1 reviewer. Berlitz/Doug Ward used to pick Celebrity to bits while extolling the QE II. Sounds like he has changed his tune.

 

Travelocity???...forget about it...never saw the gnome on any cruise ship...lol...their ratings are plain silly and appear to be commission driven. I think the absolute best way to rate a ship is to inquire right here on Cruise Critic. You get the best up-to-the-minute answers and you can get a diversity of opinion. You also get to know that there is a big difference between Carnival and X.

 

The funny thing about Conde Nast is/was that they were really pushing Holland America a few years back. Then it ocurred to me that Celebrity was not even listed on their survery. I posted a big thread about that and low and behold...the following year Celebrity was listed on their survey for the first time and sure enough...they won a top place for just 1 of their ships. Now the tide has turned in Celebrity's favor.

 

Ross

 

Has anyone seen TATKA???

 

HI BILL G!!!

[MarkandStacie]

I have read that much of the ratings are based on amenities and age of the ship. Of the meager three sailings I have done, the Century was the best....even without a waterpark!

[newmexicoNita]

As someone posted on this board just recently, the Conde Nast Travelers Magazine readers just voted the first, second, third and fourth best ships to Celebrity. I think they took six or seven of the top ten. The Century was ranked 12th...

 

You can read the Celebrity press release at:

http://www.celebrity.com/aboutceleb/pressDetails.do;jsessionid=00001VzYX8J3J4RVliEVGzscpB2:1028etni0?pagename=press_room_details&event_date=2006-01-20&event_type=press_release&sequence_code=A

 

Susan

I don't understand why so many, put so much into these ratings? We all know or most of us do, you can take any poll or survey and make out of it what you want. NMNiita

[DrKoob]

Because most people who would book on Travelocity for a cruise are looking for a bargain. Those who book X would probably not book through Travelocity. We would go through X or through a TA.

 

Also, by my experience (crusing Carnival and X) most of the pax on Carnival would rate it higher because they were drunk most of the time they were onboad so everything was great as far as they were concerned. As for us, X is a 10 and Carnival a -20.

[Sky Sweet]

Because most people who would book on Travelocity for a cruise are looking for a bargain. Those who book X would probably not book through Travelocity. We would go through X or through a TA.

 

Also, by my experience (crusing Carnival and X) most of the pax on Carnival would rate it higher because they were drunk most of the time they were onboad so everything was great as far as they were concerned. As for us, X is a 10 and Carnival a -20.

 

Dr Koop, your rationale for Travelocity's questionable ratings would make a lot of sense if their ratings were determined by people who use their website, but Travelocity gets their ratings from Cruise Critic.

[joeyanddavid]

Blazerboy Thanks for the heads up.. I love information and opinions http://www.berlitzcruising.com

[Keith1010]

As I've said, I think using a combination of input from Berlitz, Conde Nest and Travel and Leisure and people that you personally know is helpful and I look for consistency. For example, if the majority of people who post under a particular cruise line in Cruise Critic say that food is excellent and this matches up with the ratings from Berlitz, Conde Nest, etc. I assume that the food is probably excellent. Same goes for the other aspects of the cruise. Now, since food is a personal choice, it's possible that when I cruise that particular line that I will fall in the minority and not like the food but the odds say that won't be the case.

 

So, bottom line I try to do my research and look for consistency.

 

By the way, much of what Berlitz provides are facts on all of the ships. So, to me it's like an encylopedia on cruising. For each ship it provides a nice summary of each ship such as year built, size, passengers, crew, what amentiies are on the ship (eg., movie theatre y/n, how many pools, etc.) and then it provides a writeup for each major category from accomodations, to food, to entertainment, etc. etc. So, it's a good reference book to have and I have used it since I booked my first Celebrity Cruise in 1993.

 

Again, in the end, it will come down to personal choices as to how one ranks a particular cruise. But, as part of the decision making process to decide about trying a cruise line that I have never sailed before, I will look at a combination of recommendations from Berlitz, to Conde Nest and Travel and Leisure, to Cruise Critic and to those whose reviews I respect who have cruised that particular line already.

 

Keith

[C 2 C]

I recently asked someone at travelocity to explain how they determine their ratings because I disagree with so many of them. That person told me they get their ratings from cruise critic.

 

 

“We have met the enemy, and he is us,” Pogo

 

So we can thank this board for putting Carnival and Celebrity on an equal footing.. so much for being an X-snob...

 

How many Cruise Critic group cruises have taken place on Celebrity?

How many posts have there been on each of CC company's board (Carnival, RCL, Princess vs Celebrity) sites?

Polling seldom reflects reality. Perception and reality shows however that Carnival is a much more popular cruiseline than Celebrity. Having a superior product does not guarantee success at attracting customers. Obviously more people travel on ships that attract a different demographic with different tastes than those that frequent this board.

[newmexicoNita]

Because most people who would book on Travelocity for a cruise are looking for a bargain. Those who book X would probably not book through Travelocity. We would go through X or through a TA.

 

Also, by my experience (crusing Carnival and X) most of the pax on Carnival would rate it higher because they were drunk most of the time they were onboad so everything was great as far as they were concerned. As for us, X is a 10 and Carnival a -20.

I am not a supporter of Carnival by any means and love Celebrtiy, but, in my opinion your evaluation has to be about the most ridiculous I have read.