Celebrity is not any better than Royal Caribbean

[mrgabriel]

5 hours ago, NutsAboutGolf said:

 

If you want daily housekeeping, book just about any other chain as Hilton made a policy to no longer offer daily housekeeping.  We are still Hilton Diamond from last year but for this year book Hyatt whenever possible which still does daily housekeeping like most chains.  Hilton cheapened the brand by using the pandemic as an opportunity to save money to reduce housekeeping.  We specifically got fed up with many Hilton properties requiring you to call housekeeping for extra towels, you call them, request 8 towels for the next 4 nights, they say they'll be there in 5mins, they arrive 20mins later with 2 towels and say "no tip?"

 

We’re lifetime Diamond, too. We’ve been really happy with Hilton hotels and honestly, so long as we continue to get the breakfast benefit then we are happy to stay with that chain. 

 

My point was that the service industry in the States is in no better condition than in Canada or the UK. Maybe Vegas is booming … plenty of other places are not. 

[Static events]

7 hours ago, cw2go said:

I am not pro or con X, no cheerleader or hater effect from me but I do have concerns and have sailed pre and post shutdown so have first hand experiences. I am in no way being snarky, honestly questioning what's realistic going forward? 

All of the above posts ring true, staffing shortages, supply chain issues, rising inflation. So I ask at what point do you feel Celebrity should be able to deliver what once was? How long does the cruiser accept less and adjust expectations? I've have always LOVED Celebrity and have boasted for years to many friends about the service and food being so much better than NCL, RCCL or Princess. I can't say that now! Sadly... It's lost its luster. Celebrity was the WOW for us and now it was just FINE. No major issues and needs were met but nothing stands out as special anymore. Secondly if the cruiser accepts this as the new temporary normal and keeps giving Celebrity the pass because of all the mentioned issues, why would they ever up their product gong forward? Seems they are making bank off those who are willing to accept less. So no real incentive to improve? Many have lost years of their travel time and are willing to do whatever it takes to Go Go Go.... I am guilty of being one of them but I am also beginning to see that this isn't a temporary problem its blatant cutbacks that will never be uncut! 

 

I have done lands trips post covid and there is no comparison between the quality of dining & accommodations vs that on ship. So I guess my personal acceptance & adjustments going forward is my travel style. I've broadened my view to what I can see and do by land. 

 

Patty 

 

 

 

I 100% agree. 

[shipshape sam]

On 6/2/2023 at 2:52 PM, Static events said:

I have been on loads of cruises with various lines but now trend to cruise only with RCCL or Celebrity. 
 

I recently got off the Silhouette and I can say without question it was THE worst cruise I have been on in every aspect.

 

Food was shocking

Entertainment in the main theatre was beyond awful, every show was extremely poor.  
Service in the bars slow 

Room attendant non existent 

Queues getting back onto the ship 

Cruise Director poor

 

Given the higher price point (which I don’t mind paying) I no longer see why I would cruise on Celebrity and would rather opt to cruise with RCCL. 
 

If not RCCL or Celebrity who else should one try?

 

 

 

Started a business in St Albins in late 80's.  Loved flying over each quarter for 2 years for 10 days or parts thereof till i left company.

 

Kinda shocked about what you felt were poor or even worst.  Never had a cruise like that and hope you never do again.  As to Celebrity vs Royal, we never made a distinction of which was better.  My DW and I have always looked at them from the viewpoint of younger  or family groups for Royal and older  people for Celebrity.  Also, as way of example, the casino seemed always busy even late at night vs Celebrity which in our view had small crowds by 10 pm.

 

We sailed HAL's Rotterdam this past March, which I compare to Celebrity and would and will sail it again as we have booked  another cruise on Rotterdam.  We also have a couple of cruises booked on Royal as we are sailing with our daughter and her  family.  

 

We for sure do not hope to have the same feelings you do.  Wishing your next cruises are great!

[C4HCG]

On 6/2/2023 at 7:52 PM, Static events said:

I have been on loads of cruises with various lines but now trend to cruise only with RCCL or Celebrity. 
 

I recently got off the Silhouette and I can say without question it was THE worst cruise I have been on in every aspect.

 

Food was shocking

Entertainment in the main theatre was beyond awful, every show was extremely poor.  
Service in the bars slow 

Room attendant non existent 

Queues getting back onto the ship 

Cruise Director poor

 

Given the higher price point (which I don’t mind paying) I no longer see why I would cruise on Celebrity and would rather opt to cruise with RCCL. 
 

If not RCCL or Celebrity who else should one try?

 

 

 

Apart from all that, did you enjoy it 🤣

[phoenix_dream]

4 hours ago, NutsAboutGolf said:

 

FYI, Hilton removed the daily housekeeping requirement from all brands other than a few luxury brands.  It's up to hotel management to determine if they want to offer daily cleanings or not.  When this policy was announced in 2021, many properties quickly realized that it was more of a headache to not offer daily housing for two major reasons.  First, many talented housekeeping staff jumped ship to brands that have more consistent work and attempting to find reliable workers willing to work "on-demand" was challenging.  Second was they found in many instances guests were checking out leaving the room practically trashed, often with food waste everywhere.  They could have spent less overtime cleaning if they clean daily instead of once after a week

 

With the towels, we hoped you could just simply be given some at the front desk.  Making a phone call for towels wasn't necessarily a problem, asking for 6 towels (on a 3 night stay) and having them show up with only 2 was a bit annoying and extra annoying when they ask for a tip as we hardly ever have cash, especially singles

Here's a direct quote from their website:  

Housekeeping

• Hilton continues to offer daily housekeeping to our guests, free of charge, across all of our hotels around the world.

 

It goes on to say that the higher level properties provide it without the need to request it.  I can't speak to your experience.  Maybe you were told otherwise but the website says differently.  All I can say is that I have been to many of their properties, at all levels up to Hilton, and except for early on during Covid restart I have never had an issue requesting housekeeping, nor ever had anyone ask me for a tip.  There have been some occasions where we requested extra pillows or whatever and did not get immediate service, and sometimes have to call more than once.  So i do certainly agree that service is not what it used to be.

[NutsAboutGolf]

4 minutes ago, phoenix_dream said:

Here's a direct quote from their website:  

Housekeeping

• Hilton continues to offer daily housekeeping to our guests, free of charge, across all of our hotels around the world.

 

It goes on to say that the higher level properties provide it without the need to request it.  I can't speak to your experience.  Maybe you were told otherwise but the website says differently.  All I can say is that I have been to many of their properties, at all levels up to Hilton, and except for early on during Covid restart I have never had an issue requesting housekeeping, nor ever had anyone ask me for a tip.  There have been some occasions where we requested extra pillows or whatever and did not get immediate service, and sometimes have to call more than once.  So i do certainly agree that service is not what it used to be.

Based on our experience, they can deny your request citing the flexible policy…Perhaps we could have gained some Hilton points had we reached out to them 

 

[phoenix_dream]

Just now, NutsAboutGolf said:

Based on our experience, they can deny your request citing the flexible policy…Perhaps we could have gained some Hilton points had we reached out to them 

 

yes, my point was that they have not eliminated the "on request" option.  In your post I was referencing you said it was up to the individual hotel managers if they wanted to offer daily housekeeping.  In the paragraph you posted you are assuming that means not all properties even will provide it on request.  I interpret it to mean some may still offer daily housekeeping without the need to request.  But enough Hilton debate.  Let's get back to complaining about Celebrity lol

[NutsAboutGolf]

3 minutes ago, phoenix_dream said:

yes, my point was that they have not eliminated the "on request" option.  In your post I was referencing you said it was up to the individual hotel managers if they wanted to offer daily housekeeping.  In the paragraph you posted you are assuming that means not all properties even will provide it on request.  I interpret it to mean some may still offer daily housekeeping without the need to request.  But enough Hilton debate.  Let's get back to complaining about Celebrity lol

Sure…lol…Everything could be solved with X’s food quality if the new CEO and/or the RCG CEO sailed a week on X and had to dine only in the free dining venues

[Sigyn]

This a clear violation of your rights as a consumer. It's an infringement on your constitutional rights. It's outrageous, egregious, preposterous.

[newtocruiseinblue]

On 6/2/2023 at 2:52 PM, Static events said:

I have been on loads of cruises with various lines but now trend to cruise only with RCCL or Celebrity. 
 

I recently got off the Silhouette and I can say without question it was THE worst cruise I have been on in every aspect.

 

Food was shocking

Entertainment in the main theatre was beyond awful, every show was extremely poor.  
Service in the bars slow 

Room attendant non existent 

Queues getting back onto the ship 

Cruise Director poor

 

Given the higher price point (which I don’t mind paying) I no longer see why I would cruise on Celebrity and would rather opt to cruise with RCCL. 
 

If not RCCL or Celebrity who else should one try?

 

 

 

I understand your point that the subpar service you experienced leads you to question whether Celebrity is a step up from Royal but my brain has a hard time wrapping around the idea that Royal - with its huge ships, rock climbing walls, go carts, huge crowds and a completely different demographic - can be "the same" as Celebrity. They are just two completely different cruise lines. Many people like Virgin. We are sticking with Celebrity and Holland America for now but would like to try a river cruise in the future. It's pretty simple to look at the cruise lines out there, figure out what you like and try something different. Happy cruising! 

[Moonkat]

On 6/3/2023 at 10:37 AM, cublet said:

Hello,

 

I'll answer re MSC later, but the simple one-liner for Cunard is that I felt I was on a stage-set for a Miss Marple episode - minus the bodies.

 

Regards,

 

Cublet

Sounds perfect for me, think I'll give Cunard a go!

[RichYak]

14 hours ago, newtocruiseinblue said:

They are just two completely different cruise lines.

Agreed, they are different products and neither should be described as better than the other. One may suit your needs better than the other, but that's subjective.

[NMTraveller]

20 minutes ago, RichYak said:

Agreed, they are different products and neither should be described as better than the other. One may suit your needs better than the other, but that's subjective.

When we booked our first Celebrity cruise on an RCL ship we were basically told that.  I forget the exact wording.  They told us it was a premium line,  an upgrade,  but we were given that impression.

[NMTraveller]

On 6/3/2023 at 9:48 AM, phoenix_dream said:

Yes, you have some excellent shows. Two of my faves are Love, and The Bronx Wanderers. 

The Bronx Wanderers are rather good.  One of the shows us locals get to see for free.

 

Love is also rather good,  Most of the Criqui Solie shows are.

[Obobru]

On 6/3/2023 at 5:19 AM, NMTraveller said:

 

Sorry to hear that you are still having problems in Canada.

 

Back in the USA we are back to normal and have been since the first of this year.

 

I hear we have many workers from down south that we could send you 🙂🙂 

Never read such a delusional post on here. I have visited the US a number of times since the pandemic and you are not "back to normal". Hotels that don't do daily housekeeping anymore, restaurants that use apps to order, restaurants that can't seat me because even though they have loads of empty tables they don't have servers. Staff shortages are everywhere you must live in a bubble. 

[Obobru]

On 6/2/2023 at 7:52 PM, Static events said:

I have been on loads of cruises with various lines but now trend to cruise only with RCCL or Celebrity. 
 

I recently got off the Silhouette and I can say without question it was THE worst cruise I have been on in every aspect.

 

Food was shocking

Entertainment in the main theatre was beyond awful, every show was extremely poor.  
Service in the bars slow 

Room attendant non existent 

Queues getting back onto the ship 

Cruise Director poor

 

We were on the cruise the week before you and can't say we had any issue with food or the bars. The guest artists were great but the in-house shows were awful and the cruise director was so bad I thought he must be a recent hire so looked up his LinkedIn and was shocked he had worked for them for many years and also Disney, he was so unprofessional he reminded me of a bad compère from a British caravan resort a few people mentioned how he seemed like a used car salesman. 

[Bo1953]

21 minutes ago, Obobru said:

Never read such a delusional post on here. I have visited the US a number of times since the pandemic and you are not "back to normal". Hotels that don't do daily housekeeping anymore, restaurants that use apps to order, restaurants that can't seat me because even though they have loads of empty tables they don't have servers. Staff shortages are everywhere you must live in a bubble. 

Actually, it was an attempt at bad political humour....

 

bon voyage

[Ex-Airbalancer]

14 minutes ago, Bo1953 said:

Actually, it was an attempt at bad political humour....

 

bon voyage

Are you sure ? 🤔

[Bo1953]

23 minutes ago, Ex-Airbalancer said:

Are you sure ? 🤔

1001%

 

bon voyage

[ISABELLA]

On 6/2/2023 at 5:51 PM, islabahia said:

There were so many problems with our suite (TV not working for 24 hours, air conditioner leak late at night necessitating a move to another suite (jetted tub did not work, unable to adjust room temperatures (bedroom warm, living area cold).  Butler was sub par to say the least.  Many of these issues were mentioned in our cruise survey.  It was so bad that before we disembarked, we were given several FCC’s as “an apology”.  Have already cancelled an upcoming December 23 cruise and will use the FCC’s next December on what will be our final X cruise.  Next for us is Regent or Oceania.  

We just tried our first Haven  suite cruise on NCL. Very much enjoyed it. We don't like NCL ships or NCL  product in general. But we thought that Haven is good alternative. And it was cheaper than AQ. 

Food and service were excellent. 

[BPCW]

On 6/2/2023 at 9:01 PM, phoenix_dream said:

Why am I adjusting my expectations you ask. The reason is that the world has changed. All companies are struggling with supply issues, difficulties hiring staff, training new staff, etc..  Cruise lines lost millions of dollars from the shutdown. In order to survive they need to make cuts and raise prices.  Only a clueless person expects life to be the same as before because it just isn’t. To expect it to be is just a recipe for disappointment. Doesn’t mean one can’t or shouldn’t address important issues when/if they happen. But it will take time for things to get back to normal.

You are entitled to your opinion but not sure why people defend a billion dollar corporation that is increasing pricing and reducing service/amenities. We should ALL be calling these changes out in hopes they change their mind or stop the price increases. 
 

If people want to stay with X due to brand loyalty, that’s their choice. If people want to shop around (we do) because the additional cost of sailing on Celebrity doesn’t match with the benefits, then go for it.  
 

But we should all hope for improved service and amenities at the best price. 

[Bo1953]

16 minutes ago, BPCW said:

You are entitled to your opinion but not sure why people defend a billion dollar corporation that is increasing pricing and reducing service/amenities. We should ALL be calling these changes out in hopes they change their mind or stop the price increases. 
 

If people want to stay with X due to brand loyalty, that’s their choice. If people want to shop around (we do) because the additional cost of sailing on Celebrity doesn’t match with the benefits, then go for it.  
 

But we should all hope for improved service and amenities at the best price. 

Thank you, thank you and a few of us believe we do get the best/good price/value for our sailings...

 

I do understand and appreciate that you do not believe likewise and are moving to another line for pricing and value....

 

bon voyage

[Gracie115]

6 hours ago, BPCW said:

If people want to stay with X due to brand loyalty, that’s their choice. If people want to shop around (we do) because the additional cost of sailing on Celebrity doesn’t match with the benefits, then go for it.   

 

Yes, agree.  We are shopping around too.  After 30+ Celebrity cruises we have none booked and don't see any we are even considering. 

[NMTraveller]

18 hours ago, Obobru said:

Never read such a delusional post on here. I have visited the US a number of times since the pandemic and you are not "back to normal". Hotels that don't do daily housekeeping anymore, restaurants that use apps to order, restaurants that can't seat me because even though they have loads of empty tables they don't have servers. Staff shortages are everywhere you must live in a bubble. 

Not in a bubble.  Where are you visiting?  Chicago and NYC?  I have not had to order from an app for a very long time.  I get daily room service.  Maybe it is an east coast thing.

 

If I do live in a bubble it is a bubble of back to normal and a good one to live in.

 

I have not seen any of what you mention since the start of this year.  We have great Uber service with slow waits.

Edited June 6, 2023 by NMTraveller

[paulh84]

10 hours ago, BPCW said:

You are entitled to your opinion but not sure why people defend a billion dollar corporation that is increasing pricing and reducing service/amenities. We should ALL be calling these changes out in hopes they change their mind or stop the price increases. 
 

If people want to stay with X due to brand loyalty, that’s their choice. If people want to shop around (we do) because the additional cost of sailing on Celebrity doesn’t match with the benefits, then go for it.  
 

But we should all hope for improved service and amenities at the best price. 

 

I can't think of a single industry that has lowered prices and simultaneously improved their product since ~2019. I don't want to pay more for groceries, or insurance, or travel, or cars, or houses but here we are.

 

For you something may not be 'at the best price' but for others it is. That's the great thing about options. For me? A price premium is worth it to not have 2,000 kids and parents who refer to them as Littles.