Princess cruiser trying Celebrity - Questions

[kywildcatfanone]

Hi all,

 

We are elite on Princess, but think it's time to look around.  Looking at a Celebrity cruise on the Infinity.  I have a few questions.  I have been reading the forum and online, so I know the cruise lines are mostly similar.  Probably looking at an inside cabin, but open to suggestions.

 

1.  The staterooms/showers look a bit bigger on Celebrity, is that true?

2.  Princess offers TV shows/Movies, etc on your stateroom TV, does Celebrity do that?

3.  Princess has new packages for drinks/wifi/gratuities, does Celebrity do that? I also read a post on here that made it sound like both members of your party didn't have to have the package, but wasn't sure if that was true.

4.  I find Princess rooms to be warmer than I like, can't seem to get the temp down to 70 or below, is that similar on Celebrity?  I don't need it freezing cold, but would like to get it around 68 or so.

5.  We spend most of our time by the pool area during the day, does Celebrity have something like burgers/pizza/ice cream available on their pool deck?

 

Any other advice would be most appreciated.  We are probably pretty bland cruises by most standards, pretty content to hang out at the pool area during the day and eat in the buffet at night.  Haven't been to a Princess dining room in 10 cruises.  But have read that the food appears to be better on Celebrity.

 

[mom says]

1. Yes.

2. Yes, but the number of movies is limited.

3. The Princess plus fare is similar to the Always Included fare on Celebrity.  Because it is part of the fare structure (and not an extra and on), all members in the cabin have the same fare.

4. Have never had a problem with the AC in any of our cabins.

5. Mast Grill for food. Ice cream in the buffet. Gelato on deck 5 by Al Bacio

 

The buffet is decent to good,  but I think you do yourself a disservice not to try the food in the MDR.

Edited April 11, 2022 by mom says

[kywildcatfanone]

Sorry to bump my own thread, but been looking at images that I can find online.  Looking to book an inside cabin (we don't spend a lot of time in our room except to sleep and watch TV).  It appears the Infinity still has rather small televisions in the rooms, is that true?  From the pictures they look small, but on the Celebrity website, all of the images of inside cabins look different with large TV's across from the bed, but I don't think those images are specific to the ship are had selected and are just stock images, probably from their newest ships.

Would be interested in comments about the inside cabins on the Infinity.  Read online that it was scheduled for another refurb in 2020 or 2021 and it was cancelled because of covid, so wondering the overall shape of the ship, and particular the inside cabins.

Thanks for any comments!

[pl281]

@kywildcatfanone

I would take a look at as this post has some photos and https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1BsykXmdAxnY0hOSZOys9ixw9qAEsCduOteFDtkGilno/edit#gid=0 where you can read the reviews.

 

I believe for the non-wall mounted tvs they are either 27" or 32" tvs 

 

[kywildcatfanone]

That is helpful info, thank you for that.  If the TV's are about that size, that would be fine.  That spreadsheet is very nice information.  I'm just a bit nervous I guess trying something new.

[Gaynors]

The inside room on the infinity is definitely laid out much differently than princess.  Showers are much bigger IMHO, rectangular rather than round.   Princess inside rooms have the huge closet but not much in the way of seating except the desk chair and beds.  Infinity has a small couch and the desk chair... however the closet is much smaller.  I'd say drawer space is about the same.. maybe a little more on princess.    We tend to sail in inside rooms and have sailed on the infinity twice in an inside and would do it again.   

[CruiseNYC]

We, too, are Elite on Princess but, for many reasons, decided to try a Celebrity Millennium cruise this past December.  It was only our 2nd time on Celebrity, the first having been many years earlier. 

We loved it - pretty much everything about it!

In response to your original question, the only issue where Princess excels is with TV/movie offerings.  On our Celebrity cruise, we had downloaded movies on our iPads and had to use those most days.  

I highly recommend both the buffet and dining rooms on Celebrity but I would agree that the MDR's on Princess are often not wonderful.

We have one Princess cruise booked (from pre-Covid booking that kept getting bumped) and 4 on Celebrity - all booked since our December cruise.   I think that Princess has lost us.

Enjoy your cruise!

 

[kywildcatfanone]

With regards to the TV/Movie options, if there aren't that many to choose from, that would probably be fine, if the wifi could support me streaming my own on my laptop for like Netflix, Prime, Hulu, etc.

 

Is the internet on Celebrity, and the Infinity particularly decent enough for streaming?

[Gaynors]

Definitely not..  the basic internet on Celebrity is terrible.. you would need to download what you want ahead of time.

 

Princess Plus internet is WAY better...   our experience based on sailing Celebrity and Princess ships in the Caribbean in the past 6 months. 

[CruiseNYC]

36 minutes ago, kywildcatfanone said:

With regards to the TV/Movie options, if there aren't that many to choose from, that would probably be fine, if the wifi could support me streaming my own on my laptop for like Netflix, Prime, Hulu, etc.

 

Is the internet on Celebrity, and the Infinity particularly decent enough for streaming?

On the Millennium in December, we had the Wifi Plus and it was very good.  I was perfectly able to do a Teams meeting and we both were able to stream Netflix (didn't try any of the others).  We were in the Caribbean; maybe the signal is better there.  We did hear that the basic Wifi is not that great.

[CruiserN1]

We switched from Princess to X after two Princess cruises and haven't gone back. Most of your questions have been addressed, so I'll just comment on the room temperature. We are also hot sleepers and have found that the AC on X is cold enough for us to be comfortable. Unless that has changed since COVID, I think you should be fine, especially in an inside room where you aren't getting sun warming the air.

[kywildcatfanone]

So it look like "basic wifi" is included in the current package, does anyone know the cost to add the Wifi Plus or Premium Wifi for a 7 day cruise?  If there aren't a lot of TV/movie options, we might need to stream.

[hrhdhd]

2 hours ago, kywildcatfanone said:

So it look like "basic wifi" is included in the current package, does anyone know the cost to add the Wifi Plus or Premium Wifi for a 7 day cruise?  If there aren't a lot of TV/movie options, we might need to stream.

You can see the cost in your Cruise Planner. Along with shore excursions and specialty restaurant reservations, there'll be a spot to upgrade your internet or beverage package.

[rerepunim]

This is very helpful info. I am also a long time princess cruiser, booking a cruise next year on Constellation. Thank you everyone and if anyone else has any other comments on comparisons I would be grateful to see them.

 

[Sox Fan Cruiser]

We have over 30 cruises on Princess and are moving to Celebrity. Customer service on X is unmatched. You will feel so special on Celebrity. Yes, there are some things where Princess beats Celebrity but overall, X is better. 

[as3369]

After numerous Princess & Celebrity sailings, I would say that Celebrity is the hands down leader all-around.  The only reason we would book Princess at this point would be because of a superior itinerary.

[4774Papa]

Never cruised on Princess, but was considering booking a cruise (then COVID19 came along).

 

Princess seemed to be cheaper when comparing similar itineraries (over a year ago).    Part of it was that X went to Always Included, which seriously bumped up its prices.   X now does have 20% sales that help now in some cruises.

Apparently, Princess doesn't force  you take take the beverage package (for moderate drinkers it is a looser).