Carnival vs Celebrity

[Luckiestmanonearth]

We are Platinum on Carnival but as Diamond seems so far away, we decided to give Celebrity a try.  Sailed on March 8th on the Celebrity Edge.  This was our experience and how I felt it compared to Carnival
 

Embarkation - excellent.  From arrival to Pier to getting on the ship was 15 minutes.  Never had to do any sitting and waiting.  This was one of our worries compared to being Platinum on Carnival but turned out was a non issue

 

Ship - clean, beautiful and spacious (well thought out).  

 

Cleanliness - impeccable . Constant cleaning of all areas. Hand washing stations at entrance to buffet. Purell being squirted everywhere.  Bathrooms were always very clean.  To me it just felt more clean than we ever experienced on Carnival but I can’t compare to Carnival during this Covid crisis

 

Cabin - we had a sunset veranda (back of ship) and couldn’t have been happier . We were able to ask and get a lounger from the cabin steward.  Cabin space was very good, especially the bathroom and shower was a nice size.  Shower was all glass, including the door (no curtain)

 

Food - very good.  Really enjoyed Select Dining and the 4 smaller main restaurants .  The ocean view cafe buffet for breakfast and lunch was phenomenal and very fresh .  Impressed that there were many hand washing stations at all entrances to the buffet and staff there to make sure people washed up.  I thought the food was better than Carnival (quality and service)

 

Specialty restaurants - didn’t do an of these 

 

Pool - the Solarium was very nice on the poor weather days (inside space to layout and go in the hot tub and pool). The outdoor pool was large and easy to get a deck chair and everyone was very respectful of each other.

 

Excursions by Celebrity - awful.  We booked 2 tours and both cancelled with no reason.  One was a tour to St Barths during St Maarten stop and no explanation as to why it was cancelled (a little communication and empathy could have gone a long way)

 

Ports of Call (San Juan instead of Tortola) was an Epic Fail.  I realize weather is not cooperating but decision was to move San Juan to the Tortola day and cancel Tortola (Tortola was why we booked this cruise FYI). And of course it poured all day in San Juan

 

Port of call (St Maarten) - excellent. Interestingly there were 4 ships due to dock that day but we were the only ship allowed in that met the more stringent St Maarten health requirements.

 

Entertainment - Music/Dancing shows just OK.  The comedian and the illusionist were fantastic. Loved the fact the comedian was in the main theatre as opposed to a smaller room like Carnival 

 

Debarkation - very smooth and organized.  We were group 32 in the Theater and from the time we got the call, we were outside the cruise terminal in 10 minutes (didn’t even have to show passports to customs )

 

All in all a great cruise and we would definitely sail on the Edge again.  Definitely a big step up from past Carnival experiences

[rukkian]

53 minutes ago, Luckiestmanonearth said:

We are Platinum on Carnival but as Diamond seems so far away, we decided to give Celebrity a try.  Sailed on March 8th on the Celebrity Edge.  This was our experience and how I felt it compared to Carnival
 

Embarkation - excellent.  From arrival to Pier to getting on the ship was 15 minutes.  Never had to do any sitting and waiting.  This was one of our worries compared to being Platinum on Carnival but turned out was a non issue

 

Ship - clean, beautiful and spacious (well thought out).  

 

Cleanliness - impeccable . Constant cleaning of all areas. Hand washing stations at entrance to buffet. Purell being squirted everywhere.  Bathrooms were always very clean.  To me it just felt more clean than we ever experienced on Carnival but I can’t compare to Carnival during this Covid crisis

 

Cabin - we had a sunset veranda (back of ship) and couldn’t have been happier . We were able to ask and get a lounger from the cabin steward.  Cabin space was very good, especially the bathroom and shower was a nice size.  Shower was all glass, including the door (no curtain)

 

Food - very good.  Really enjoyed Select Dining and the 4 smaller main restaurants .  The ocean view cafe buffet for breakfast and lunch was phenomenal and very fresh .  Impressed that there were many hand washing stations at all entrances to the buffet and staff there to make sure people washed up.  I thought the food was better than Carnival (quality and service)

 

Specialty restaurants - didn’t do an of these 

 

Pool - the Solarium was very nice on the poor weather days (inside space to layout and go in the hot tub and pool). The outdoor pool was large and easy to get a deck chair and everyone was very respectful of each other.

 

Excursions by Celebrity - awful.  We booked 2 tours and both cancelled with no reason.  One was a tour to St Barths during St Maarten stop and no explanation as to why it was cancelled (a little communication and empathy could have gone a long way)

 

Ports of Call (San Juan instead of Tortola) was an Epic Fail.  I realize weather is not cooperating but decision was to move San Juan to the Tortola day and cancel Tortola (Tortola was why we booked this cruise FYI). And of course it poured all day in San Juan

 

Port of call (St Maarten) - excellent. Interestingly there were 4 ships due to dock that day but we were the only ship allowed in that met the more stringent St Maarten health requirements.

 

Entertainment - Music/Dancing shows just OK.  The comedian and the illusionist were fantastic. Loved the fact the comedian was in the main theatre as opposed to a smaller room like Carnival 

 

Debarkation - very smooth and organized.  We were group 32 in the Theater and from the time we got the call, we were outside the cruise terminal in 10 minutes (didn’t even have to show passports to customs )

 

All in all a great cruise and we would definitely sail on the Edge again.  Definitely a big step up from past Carnival experiences

Thanks for the comparison.  I plan to try celebrity at some point, when we don't have the kids in tow, as their ships look incredible.  

[sparks1093]

1 hour ago, Luckiestmanonearth said:

Definitely a big step up from past Carnival experiences

Thanks for your thoughts, from the pricing that I've seen I would expect a big step up from Carnival so it's good to hear that they achieve this.

[sanger727]

We really enjoy Celebrity. It's not always a huge price difference either if you get cheers on Carnival. Our last Celebrity cruise was from Hawaii to Vancouver and we priced our Celebrity, Carnival, and Royal with similar itineraries. Based on a price per night basis, Celebrity with the drink package included was the same price as Carnival if we purchased cheers. I do agree that in general they are a step up all around; but I find that of all the lines they have the most shows that are not to our liking. I enjoy production shows, comedians, acrobatics, magicians, etc. But celebrity (at least on longer cruises) usually adds in a few nights with solo singers or an string/ensemble group with music that I would consider old school. Celebrity is the only cruise line where I have literally walked out of a show.

Edited March 25, 2020 by sanger727

[tallnthensome]

Like the other poster above said .... prices are amazingly comparable if Cheers is included. My booking on the new Apex was a good deal. 4 people, balcony, one week in April 2022, two premium drink packages, prepaid tips for two, WiFi , $300OBC - $4076. Really, there wasn’t another line that could beat that package and most were higher all things apples to apples. I did book this 4 months ago so pricing may have gone up.

Edited March 25, 2020 by tallnthensome

[sparks1093]

Cheers can certainly be a factor if one gets it, but we don't. We also aren't attracted by specialty dining offers or WiFi. We do look at the value of the package offers compared to what we would get on Carnival, and Celebrity has always been substantially higher, but every time I look at booking a cruise I compare the prices of all of the lines just to see who has the best deal.

[HxFx]

Definitely new to cruising but I have one cruise with Celebrity (Summit - pre-refurbishment) and one with Carnival (Elation). Neither are one of the newer models so it may be a good comparison. Celebrity definitely had better food (other than Guy’s Burgers - that place is delicious - don’t know how he makes burgers so much better than others!). Celebrity also had better decor. Carnival entertainment was slightly better. Not so much the main theater (about the same) but they had the comedy club and the smaller bands throughout the ship seemed better on Carnival.

 

The issue I have with celebrity is the variety of activities. Even at almost 50 I still like a lot of outdoor activities (was hoping to celebrate 50th on a cruise next month but will have to delay turning 50 for a little while!) Even with same number of pools, on the Summit, the adults only area was always shaded when I went by. I want sun. The one open pool area was soooo crowded. The Elation pool area was crowded as well but the water works area was not nearly as bad (even with kids running around). It was nice (and cleaner?) to cool off in the splash area and the loungers were far enough away from the kids running around. And yes, I did go on the slide! I still love them. I have heard (and hope) Carnival has better slides on newer ships. 

 

All that being said, I will not likely go on a Carnival ship that is as old as the Elation again (went with local friends that chose). I do look for a ship that has activities such as mini-golf and the ropes course. Still a kid at heart and wish Celebrity would have some of that stuff because the food is definitely a draw. I can’t really compare price because Summit was 7 days out of Puerto Rico and Elation was a 4 day out of Orlando. I got the drink package for both.

[puppycanducruise]

Thanks for posting your comments.

[Luckiestmanonearth]

On 3/25/2020 at 9:06 AM, rukkian said:

Thanks for the comparison.  I plan to try celebrity at some point, when we don't have the kids in tow, as their ships look incredible.  

That is kind of our story.  We achieved Platinum travelling with our kids who ate their fare in food, but now that we’re empty nesters , we decided to try Celebrity 

 

Very glad we did.

Edited March 30, 2020 by Luckiestmanonearth

[Thebosn1]

On 3/25/2020 at 8:11 AM, Luckiestmanonearth said:

We are Platinum on Carnival but as Diamond seems so far away, we decided to give Celebrity a try.  Sailed on March 8th on the Celebrity Edge.  This was our experience and how I felt it compared to Carnival
 

Embarkation - excellent.  From arrival to Pier to getting on the ship was 15 minutes.  Never had to do any sitting and waiting.  This was one of our worries compared to being Platinum on Carnival but turned out was a non issue

 

Ship - clean, beautiful and spacious (well thought out).  

 

Cleanliness - impeccable . Constant cleaning of all areas. Hand washing stations at entrance to buffet. Purell being squirted everywhere.  Bathrooms were always very clean.  To me it just felt more clean than we ever experienced on Carnival but I can’t compare to Carnival during this Covid crisis

 

Cabin - we had a sunset veranda (back of ship) and couldn’t have been happier . We were able to ask and get a lounger from the cabin steward.  Cabin space was very good, especially the bathroom and shower was a nice size.  Shower was all glass, including the door (no curtain)

 

Food - very good.  Really enjoyed Select Dining and the 4 smaller main restaurants .  The ocean view cafe buffet for breakfast and lunch was phenomenal and very fresh .  Impressed that there were many hand washing stations at all entrances to the buffet and staff there to make sure people washed up.  I thought the food was better than Carnival (quality and service)

 

Specialty restaurants - didn’t do an of these 

 

Pool - the Solarium was very nice on the poor weather days (inside space to layout and go in the hot tub and pool). The outdoor pool was large and easy to get a deck chair and everyone was very respectful of each other.

 

Excursions by Celebrity - awful.  We booked 2 tours and both cancelled with no reason.  One was a tour to St Barths during St Maarten stop and no explanation as to why it was cancelled (a little communication and empathy could have gone a long way)

 

Ports of Call (San Juan instead of Tortola) was an Epic Fail.  I realize weather is not cooperating but decision was to move San Juan to the Tortola day and cancel Tortola (Tortola was why we booked this cruise FYI). And of course it poured all day in San Juan

 

Port of call (St Maarten) - excellent. Interestingly there were 4 ships due to dock that day but we were the only ship allowed in that met the more stringent St Maarten health requirements.

 

Entertainment - Music/Dancing shows just OK.  The comedian and the illusionist were fantastic. Loved the fact the comedian was in the main theatre as opposed to a smaller room like Carnival 

 

Debarkation - very smooth and organized.  We were group 32 in the Theater and from the time we got the call, we were outside the cruise terminal in 10 minutes (didn’t even have to show passports to customs )

 

All in all a great cruise and we would definitely sail on the Edge again.  Definitely a big step up from past Carnival experiences

Thank you for that comparison.  I was thinking of trying Celebrity as well.  Did you find less kids on Celebrity?  

[Luckiestmanonearth]

2 hours ago, Thebosn1 said:

Thank you for that comparison.  I was thinking of trying Celebrity as well.  Did you find less kids on Celebrity?  

Much less kids.  I think there may have been less than 20 - 30 kids on our cruise. 

Edited March 30, 2020 by Luckiestmanonearth

[marci4tony]

Carnival.

Will never book Celebrity again.  Service issues. Management issues.

Never again.  Carnival wins in my book.

[bearette]

I have nothing to go on, but my guess is the excursion was cancelled because  St. Barths was due to the case of Coronavirus they had right before you arrived.

Edited April 1, 2020 by bearette

[jimbo5544]

Thanks for doing your review.  

[scpirate]

On 3/25/2020 at 9:20 AM, sparks1093 said:

Thanks for your thoughts, from the pricing that I've seen I would expect a big step up from Carnival so it's good to hear that they achieve this.

You can sail on celebrity's older smaller ships for same price as carnival and it's still a big step up in my book.

[sparks1093]

6 hours ago, scpirate said:

You can sail on celebrity's older smaller ships for same price as carnival and it's still a big step up in my book.

That's good to know but it's not pricing that I've ever come across when booking a cruise. If I could book a Celebrity cruise for about what a Carnival cruise costs I would jump on it. 

[Tapi]

On 3/25/2020 at 8:11 AM, Luckiestmanonearth said:

We are Platinum on Carnival but as Diamond seems so far away, we decided to give Celebrity a try.  

I’m also platinum on Carnival, and I thought that I would miss the perks once I decided to branch out to other cruise lines. I haven’t. In fact, many times I’ve received better treatment as a first timer on other cruise lines than as platinum on Carnival.
 

The one perk that I do miss when I sail on other cruise lines is the free laundry, so I just purchase it. On our last Holland America cruise, an unlimited laundry package was $49, so $7 per day. As Platinum on Carnival, I get 2 free bags of laundry, so that perk is worth $14. Doesn’t make sense to stay loyal to one cruise line over $14. 

[Tapi]

On 3/25/2020 at 9:06 AM, rukkian said:

Thanks for the comparison.  I plan to try celebrity at some point, when we don't have the kids in tow, as their ships look incredible.  

My kids are 8 and 10 years old, and we have sailed mostly family friendly cruise lines because of them (Carnival, Royal, Disney, MSC). But our last cruise (reference on my last post) was on Holland America. I was very concerned that the kids would be bored to tears on an “old folks” ship, but it turns out that they absolutely loved it. In fact my 10 year old son said that it was one of his most fun cruises that he’s ever taken. The best part about it was that the cruise was actually cheaper than Carnival. With a “kids sail free promotion, and a special deal on a balcony stateroom, it was $1.4K cheaper than Carnival. 

[rukkian]

20 minutes ago, Tapi said:

My kids are 8 and 10 years old, and we have sailed mostly family friendly cruise lines because of them (Carnival, Royal, Disney, MSC). But our last cruise (reference on my last post) was on Holland America. I was very concerned that the kids would be bored to tears on an “old folks” ship, but it turns out that they absolutely loved it. In fact my 10 year old son said that it was one of his most fun cruises that he’s ever taken. The best part about it was that the cruise was actually cheaper than Carnival. With a “kids sail free promotion, and a special deal on a balcony stateroom, it was $1.4K cheaper than Carnival. 

My kids are old enough (16, 18) that kids free would not help.  I am not even sure they will be interested in carnival, but willing to give it a shot.  They loved allure of the seas and spent quite a bit of time at the flowrider, rock wall, and zip line.  That was the only cruise they have been on, and by the time we do another, they can fend for themselves!  

 

Thanks for the comparison.

[evandbob]

Thanks to the OP for the review and comparision.  While I've only cruised Celebrity 3X, and Carnival perhaps 40x, Celebrity is my fav mass cruise line.  It can be similar in price as Carnival, but one needs to be diligent in checking fares.

 

Two of my Celebrity cruises were solo out of San Juan on the Summit, and those were infinitely better than Carnival's Fascination.  I loved the Summit's adult only inside solarium, great place to relax a bit after coming back from an excursion.

 

One little thing the OP failed to mention on cabin comparision is that Celebrity, as most other cruise lines, has sliding glass doors to the balcony.  This eliminates all the door slamming I hear on Carnival, which makes for a more peaceful balcony experience.  I'm glad the OP mentioned the glass shower door, which most other mass lines have, as opposed to Carnival's vinyl curtain.

 

The final thing I'd like to add is that Celebrity has a greater range of specialty dining than Carnival which is a big plus for me.

[HxFx]

1 hour ago, Tapi said:

Doesn’t make sense to stay loyal to one cruise line over $14. 

I have to admit, when I've looked at the loyalty benefits it doesn't really entice me to go with one cruise line over another, at least for what I care about. The Casino benies seem to be the best but I am not at all into gambling. I've picked my few cruises by itinerary, dates and home port. It seems to me the cost varies most by age of ship, regardless of cruise line. I would like to try some of the ships with more activities but don't know if the crowds on them would ruin it for me. I don't necessarily want to have to purchase some advantage that requires I be there at certain times either. 

[Luckiestmanonearth]

On 4/2/2020 at 8:35 AM, evandbob said:

Thanks to the OP for the review and comparision.  While I've only cruised Celebrity 3X, and Carnival perhaps 40x, Celebrity is my fav mass cruise line.  It can be similar in price as Carnival, but one needs to be diligent in checking fares.

 

Two of my Celebrity cruises were solo out of San Juan on the Summit, and those were infinitely better than Carnival's Fascination.  I loved the Summit's adult only inside solarium, great place to relax a bit after coming back from an excursion.

 

One little thing the OP failed to mention on cabin comparision is that Celebrity, as most other cruise lines, has sliding glass doors to the balcony.  This eliminates all the door slamming I hear on Carnival, which makes for a more peaceful balcony experience.  I'm glad the OP mentioned the glass shower door, which most other mass lines have, as opposed to Carnival's vinyl curtain.

 

The final thing I'd like to add is that Celebrity has a greater range of specialty dining than Carnival which is a big plus for me.

OP here

 

Funny you say that .  You are correct.  What’s funny is we didn’t know there was a setting on the door handle that basically locks the door from sliding back and forth when your on the balcony and you have rough seas (which we did at the start of the week).  Took us a few days of listening to the door slam open and shut before we figured that out

 

Along the same lines, we also liked that the shower had a solid glass door versus the Curtain door on Carnival

Edited April 3, 2020 by Luckiestmanonearth

[jperry2011]

On 3/25/2020 at 8:11 AM, Luckiestmanonearth said:

We are Platinum on Carnival but as Diamond seems so far away, we decided to give Celebrity a try.  Sailed on March 8th on the Celebrity Edge.  This was our experience and how I felt it compared to Carnival
 

Embarkation - excellent.  From arrival to Pier to getting on the ship was 15 minutes.  Never had to do any sitting and waiting.  This was one of our worries compared to being Platinum on Carnival but turned out was a non issue

 

Ship - clean, beautiful and spacious (well thought out).  

 

Cleanliness - impeccable . Constant cleaning of all areas. Hand washing stations at entrance to buffet. Purell being squirted everywhere.  Bathrooms were always very clean.  To me it just felt more clean than we ever experienced on Carnival but I can’t compare to Carnival during this Covid crisis

 

Cabin - we had a sunset veranda (back of ship) and couldn’t have been happier . We were able to ask and get a lounger from the cabin steward.  Cabin space was very good, especially the bathroom and shower was a nice size.  Shower was all glass, including the door (no curtain)

 

Food - very good.  Really enjoyed Select Dining and the 4 smaller main restaurants .  The ocean view cafe buffet for breakfast and lunch was phenomenal and very fresh .  Impressed that there were many hand washing stations at all entrances to the buffet and staff there to make sure people washed up.  I thought the food was better than Carnival (quality and service)

 

Specialty restaurants - didn’t do an of these 

 

Pool - the Solarium was very nice on the poor weather days (inside space to layout and go in the hot tub and pool). The outdoor pool was large and easy to get a deck chair and everyone was very respectful of each other.

 

Excursions by Celebrity - awful.  We booked 2 tours and both cancelled with no reason.  One was a tour to St Barths during St Maarten stop and no explanation as to why it was cancelled (a little communication and empathy could have gone a long way)

 

Ports of Call (San Juan instead of Tortola) was an Epic Fail.  I realize weather is not cooperating but decision was to move San Juan to the Tortola day and cancel Tortola (Tortola was why we booked this cruise FYI). And of course it poured all day in San Juan

 

Port of call (St Maarten) - excellent. Interestingly there were 4 ships due to dock that day but we were the only ship allowed in that met the more stringent St Maarten health requirements.

 

Entertainment - Music/Dancing shows just OK.  The comedian and the illusionist were fantastic. Loved the fact the comedian was in the main theatre as opposed to a smaller room like Carnival 

 

Debarkation - very smooth and organized.  We were group 32 in the Theater and from the time we got the call, we were outside the cruise terminal in 10 minutes (didn’t even have to show passports to customs )

 

All in all a great cruise and we would definitely sail on the Edge again.  Definitely a big step up from past Carnival experiences

I've been on carnival 4 times now and have 2 booked for this year, we have always been impressed by the service and cleanliness of the ships..

 

What are the major differences you noticed? Ship size? Price? Daily activities and shows?

[crzndeb]

On 4/1/2020 at 11:27 AM, marci4tony said:

Carnival.

Will never book Celebrity again.  Service issues. Management issues.

Never again.  Carnival wins in my book.

I said that about Carnival after my first sailing with them, but I came back 18 years later.

[Luckiestmanonearth]

6 hours ago, jperry2011 said:

I've been on carnival 4 times now and have 2 booked for this year, we have always been impressed by the service and cleanliness of the ships..

 

What are the major differences you noticed? Ship size? Price? Daily activities and shows?

Not so sure if it was Ship size Or that they seemed to have more space in common areas. Never felt crowded on Celebrity Edge.  Hallways were very wide and not filled with endless line of photographers .

 

Of course price was a little higher but you get what you pay for

 

Daily activities are definitely better on Carnival.

 

As for shows, no big difference other than Celebrity has comedians and magicians that perform in the main theater (which I like).  And the comedians were funny and clean, not guys that constantly dropping the F bomb