Is the Royal Caribbean Group Neglecting the Celebrity Brand?

[WestLakeGirl]

19 hours ago, Georgia_Peaches said:

Only one ship?  I feel like there have been a few more in the past...which I guess is your point.  I wonder what gives?

No change.  For several years this has been the norm.

[C4HCG]

4 hours ago, TheHawk1 said:

Some of the Cabanas at Coco Cay go for $1,600 per day.  Sounds pretty upscale to me, so not sure why this wouldn't appeal to the Celebrity cruiser crowd?  There are several areas on the island currently where you can separate yourself away from the family friendly atmosphere, ie kids on water slides.

Because of the price! $1600 dollars a day, get me 4, worth that to be away from kids 🤔. I do hope you were joking

[WrittenOnYourHeart]

10 minutes ago, C4HCG said:

Because of the price! $1600 dollars a day, get me 4, worth that to be away from kids 🤔. I do hope you were joking

 

About the price? Nope.

 

I'm on the Anthem over Presidents' Week and the cabanas are as follows:

Coco Beach Club Overwater Cabanas - $3899/cabana

Thrill Park Cabana w/admission for 6 - $1399/cabana (only 3 left)

Coco Beach Club Beach Cabana - $2499/cabana

Chill Island Cabana - $1399/cabana (only 6 left)

South Beach Cabana - $1399/cabana (only 6 left)

Oasis Lagoon Cabana - $1399/cabana (only 6 left)

 

Beach beds range from $219/bed to $329/bed depending on location.

 

[Georgia_Peaches]

45 minutes ago, WrittenOnYourHeart said:

 

About the price? Nope.

 

I'm on the Anthem over Presidents' Week and the cabanas are as follows:

Coco Beach Club Overwater Cabanas - $3899/cabana

Thrill Park Cabana w/admission for 6 - $1399/cabana (only 3 left)

Coco Beach Club Beach Cabana - $2499/cabana

Chill Island Cabana - $1399/cabana (only 6 left)

South Beach Cabana - $1399/cabana (only 6 left)

Oasis Lagoon Cabana - $1399/cabana (only 6 left)

 

Beach beds range from $219/bed to $329/bed depending on location.

 

Wow...wow...wow!  I'm shocked people pay this.  I guess if you split the cost among several adults, it's manageable...but wow!  That's a bundle.

[WrittenOnYourHeart]

7 minutes ago, Georgia_Peaches said:

Wow...wow...wow!  I'm shocked people pay this.  I guess if you split the cost among several adults, it's manageable...but wow!  That's a bundle.

 

Yeah. I was shocked. It makes Disney's cabana prices on Castaway Cay look almost reasonable.

 

I had thought I'd get a beach bed, but at those prices I'll just get my butt up early and get a no-charge chair and umbrella somewhere.

Edited May 16, 2023 by WrittenOnYourHeart

[KansasK]

8 hours ago, TheHawk1 said:

Some of the Cabanas at Coco Cay go for $1,600 per day.  Sounds pretty upscale to me, so not sure why this wouldn't appeal to the Celebrity cruiser crowd?  There are several areas on the island currently where you can separate yourself away from the family friendly atmosphere, ie kids on water slides.

I have mostly been on Royal, but for my next cruise, I am trying Celebrity. You can board a trolley when you get off the ship and don't have to walk to the island.  There are several trolley stops that go to different beaches on the island.  Once away from the water park areas, it is set up with beaches with many chairs and places to eat and drink, maybe four different beach stops, or maybe 5.  We have been to two of them and found it relaxing. It was fun to see the $1,600 (or more) cabanas. We rented floatable mats at one stop and floated out on the water there and paddled back.  We are over 70 and thought it was a fun day. 

[phoenix_dream]

As to private islands, they don’t have to be miniature theme parks! Many years ago on cruises (not sure of which line) we stopped on private islands, or in actuality private beaches. It was quiet and peaceful and very relaxing. Would totally fit the Celebrity vibe and would cost much less than the mini theme parks disguised as beach days.

[markeb]

1 hour ago, phoenix_dream said:

As to private islands, they don’t have to be miniature theme parks! Many years ago on cruises (not sure of which line) we stopped on private islands, or in actuality private beaches. It was quiet and peaceful and very relaxing. Would totally fit the Celebrity vibe and would cost much less than the mini theme parks disguised as beach days.

 

It's been awhile since I've been to Labadee (Not directed at you as you didn't say it, but Labadee is NOT an island! It's a peninsula on Haiti. Minor pet peeve...) or Cocoa Cay, but from the sound of things they've been converted into miniature theme parks. With one Celebrity ship in the Caribbean during the summer, I can't imagine a way for it to make financial sense to lease any private island or beach just for Celebrity. And the two RCG leased spaces are now theme parks, and apparently constantly busy.

 

I remember years ago stopping at Half Moon Cay on HAL (actually I think on New Year's Day) and it was exactly what you're describing, and a lot of fun and relaxing. I don't know what it's like today...

[mcatmcat]

please keep neglecting the celebrity brand, don't even touch it.

I am almost diamond plus on royal and I had my first X cruise this year and we loved it.

last month I went to the Harmony and the food and service were terrible, like I have never seen before and I really love Royal. So, let them keep building new beaches and expanding clubs, don't touch X cruise please lol

 

[Fly and Sail]

On 5/15/2023 at 8:14 AM, hcat said:

for Non suite  guests:

staff development and training

upgrades to older ships

better food quality and portions

 

Solstice and Eclipse NEED the Revolution. There is no sugarcoating and beating around the bush.

[neverlaysup]

6 hours ago, Georgia_Peaches said:

Wow...wow...wow!  I'm shocked people pay this.  I guess if you split the cost among several adults, it's manageable...but wow!  That's a bundle.

And I thought buying a cabana on S and E class ships for $200 was stupid!

[Fly and Sail]

45 minutes ago, neverlaysup said:

And I thought buying a cabana on S and E class ships for $200 was stupid!

I think the cabana comes with some extras for the day that are otherwise pricey as well. So it’s not just $200 for the cabana but the included stuff as well.

[the penguins]

2 hours ago, Fly and Sail said:

Solstice and Eclipse NEED the Revolution. There is no sugarcoating and beating around the bush.

Unless you are in a suite the "Revolution'" is more like a "face lift"

The new beds and furnishings and the larger TV  are good. The new seating (especially the Rocking Chairs in Sky Lounge and Spa Pool area) an improvement. Craft Social  is a sports bar that replaces Cellar Masters.

No new electrics in the cabins, no usb points, no power near the beds.

The rest of the money has gone on the new cabins (the old I lounge area) and on the Suites.

 

 

[Fly and Sail]

5 minutes ago, the penguins said:

Unless you are in a suite the "Revolution'" is more like a "face lift"

The new beds and furnishings and the larger TV  are good. The new seating (especially the Rocking Chairs in Sky Lounge and Spa Pool area) an improvement. Craft Social  is a sports bar that replaces Cellar Masters.

No new electrics in the cabins, no usb points, no power near the beds.

The rest of the money has gone on the new cabins (the old I lounge area) and on the Suites.

 

 

Just got off Millennium and onto Solstice a few days later. Difference is like night and day. What really makes my blood boil is that they still use magnet stripe cards.

[the penguins]

4 minutes ago, Fly and Sail said:

Just got off Millennium and onto Solstice a few days later. Difference is like night and day. What really makes my blood boil is that they still use magnet stripe cards.

I thought it was S class that were being "Revolutionised" not M class.

M class were all "Solsticised" many years ago. So long in fact that few will even remember the changes - for example the Al Bacio was tripled in size by taking the space that was a "card/games room"

[Ex-Airbalancer]

3 hours ago, the penguins said:

I thought it was S class that were being "Revolutionised" not M class.

M class were all "Solsticised" many years ago. So long in fact that few will even remember the changes - for example the Al Bacio was tripled in size by taking the space that was a "card/games room"

M-class ships were the first to get Revolutionized 

• Celebrity Millennium — February 9, 2019 — Completed!
• Celebrity Summit — March 23, 2019 — Completed!
• Celebrity Equinox — June 1, 2019 — Completed!
• Celebrity Silhouette — February 14, 2020 — Completed!
  Covid hit complete stop 

[QuestionEverything]

I am new to CC as I am not a social media person.

Having cruised with Celebrity since 1991 on the Zenith and ended my patronage in 2016, I would say that RC decided to abandon the original vision of Celebrity - which was the Oceania of the day.

RC turned Celebrity into a class apartheid cruise line fixated on inward looking, revenue maximization. Hence the reason I cancelled Celebrity.

I have observed for some time now that many previous Celebrity patrons have also cancelled Celebrity and moved to Oceania (myself) and other cruise lines within the premium segment.

 

The cruise business is a complex entity and consumers have much choice. I would be more worried that consumers like me are cancelling all cruising due to inflation and re-prioritization of expenditures.

[TheHawk1]

12 hours ago, mcatmcat said:

please keep neglecting the celebrity brand, don't even touch it.

I am almost diamond plus on royal and I had my first X cruise this year and we loved it.

last month I went to the Harmony and the food and service were terrible, like I have never seen before and I really love Royal. So, let them keep building new beaches and expanding clubs, don't touch X cruise please lol

 

I too have been on Royal cruises for the past ten years until I took my first Celebrity cruise in February.  Yes, the food and service were superior to recent Royal trips, although perhaps staying in the Retreat was not indicative of the general Celebrity cruise experience.

 

But reading comments here about how some people would never set foot on a cruise line's private beach has only reinforced my initial impression of the typical X passenger... they wouldn't recognize a fun time if it jumped up and bit them in the you know what.

[the penguins]

5 hours ago, Ex-Airbalancer said:

M-class ships were the first to get Revolutionized 

• Celebrity Millennium — February 9, 2019 — Completed!
• Celebrity Summit — March 23, 2019 — Completed!
• Celebrity Equinox — June 1, 2019 — Completed!
• Celebrity Silhouette — February 14, 2020 — Completed!
  Covid hit complete stop 

Thanks, you learn something new every day

[Ex-Airbalancer]

2 hours ago, QuestionEverything said:

I am new to CC as I am not a social media person.

Having cruised with Celebrity since 1991 on the Zenith and ended my patronage in 2016, I would say that RC decided to abandon the original vision of Celebrity - which was the Oceania of the day.

RC turned Celebrity into a class apartheid cruise line fixated on inward looking, revenue maximization. Hence the reason I cancelled Celebrity.

I have observed for some time now that many previous Celebrity patrons have also cancelled Celebrity and moved to Oceania (myself) and other cruise lines within the premium segment.

 

The cruise business is a complex entity and consumers have much choice. I would be more worried that consumers like me are cancelling all cruising due to inflation and re-prioritization of expenditures.

You haven’t been on a Celebrity ship seen 2016 , but you come on to CC  tell us the Celebrity is no long up to your standards and another more expensive cruise line is better 🤔

 

 

[Ex-Airbalancer]

1 hour ago, TheHawk1 said:

I too have been on Royal cruises for the past ten years until I took my first Celebrity cruise in February.  Yes, the food and service were superior to recent Royal trips, although perhaps staying in the Retreat was not indicative of the general Celebrity cruise experience.

 

But reading comments here about how some people would never set foot on a cruise line's private beach has only reinforced my initial impression of the typical X passenger... they wouldn't recognize a fun time if it jumped up and bit them in the you know what.

Does this mean you going back to Royal and staying there 😁

[2chiefs]

On 5/15/2023 at 1:05 PM, mahdnc said:

 

I don't want a private island.  Besides all the shady and nice spots will be in the Retreat area

I love the private islands! It gives us the ship to ourselves!!

[RichYak]

10 hours ago, QuestionEverything said:

RC turned Celebrity into a class apartheid cruise line fixated on inward looking, revenue maximization.

Harsh but fair.

[mahdnc]

10 minutes ago, 2chiefs said:

I love the private islands! It gives us the ship to ourselves!!

 

I like how you think.

[stringbean10]

I personally like the private islands, I never really feel like I've actually "visited" where we went on a cruise to the Caribbean. I guess I could mark off Honduras, Mexico, Bahamas, Jamaica, St. Martin, USVIs  Haiti, and the Dominican Republic off my 'been to' list but it seems disingenuous.  It feels like saying you've been to a city when you just drove through or something - a few hours at most. 

 

Cruises are a vacation for me vs. traveling.  Therefore, I enjoy a private island stop - the chairs are free, the beach is maintained, the drinks and food are included.  We usually travel during the fall/winter for the weather and Its great!  I've been on one itinerary with two private island stops and it was awesome!  Get the benefit of the beach without the hassle of arranging transportation - buying a day pass, etc.