My Review Of The First Two Crystal Serenity Sailings - Embarking July 31, 2023 & Debarking August 22, 2023

[Keith1010]

Review

 

OVERVIEW

This review covers our time on Crystal Serenity from July 31 thru August 22. This includes the twelve-day inaugural sailing of Crystal Serenity from Marseille, France to Lisbon, Portugal, and the ten-day voyage from Lisbon to Southampton, United Kingdom.

 

SUMMARY

 

We enjoyed twenty-two wonderful days sailing Crystal.  For those who enjoyed Crystal Cruises in the past, the Crystal of today is a very similar same product, with enhancements.

 

Overall, passenger capacity has been reduced by 30%+ from the initial deployment of Serenity with more suites and less double occupancy rooms.  This translates to a far greater ratio of public room space per guest.  

With 82%+ of the crew returning, service and the feeling of family with the crew is as it was, if not better.  The experienced crew members have trained the new to Crystal crew on the ways of Crystal and it shows. 

 

We knew many of the guests on both sailings including most of you.

 

Cuisine throughout the ship is better than ever.  The cuisine at dinner at Waterside is consistently superb and we have not had any food item which didn’t meet this threshold. The presentations are terrific, food flavorful, and it arrives to the table at the proper temperature.  The menu continues to be subdivided and one menu is Crystal Classics, but the other side is now called Contemporary Cuisine rather than Modern.  We find more entrees than in recent memory.  You can also see other menus such as for Gluten-Free, and Vegetarian.  

 

The opening time for dinner is presently 6:15 PM and it is open daily for breakfast and dinner and on most days on these sailings closed for lunch. 

 

On each cruise there was a Supper Club which coincided with one of the two formal son the first cruise and the one formal on the second cruise. TheSupper Club was similar to before other than guest capacity was reduced from 100+ to 78 guests. It offers the same concept as before with music, dance, song and a menu with a smaller list of items that are on the Waterside menu. It is not offered on Symphony as there is not a similar room where it can be held.

 

Umi Uma serving Nobu style cuisine is as good if not better than ever. All wait-staff returned except for one member.

 

Tastes now serves similar food at night as it did right after the late 2018 Serenity dry dock and before it began serving Chinese cuisine when it became Silk. Some of the items are the same as before and others are new. In the past the Tastes dinner menu changed every few months.  There were a few items we didn’t find as good as before but in the scheme of things this is minor.

 

The Trident Grill continues to serve similar food as before as the other venues do for breakfast and lunch.  The same goes for The Bistro.

 

The Vintage Room is the same as before where guests can sign-up for a group Vintage Room lunch or dinner or host a private room dinner. There is a cost for this. 

 

We hosted a private Vintage Room as we’ve done in the past.  It was absolutely a perfect evening. There is no other cruise line we are aware of that has something like a Vintage Room as Crystal does. 

 

The newest Specialty restaurant addition is Osteria D’Ovidio featuring cuisine inspired by various regions of Italy and replaced Prego.  We enjoyed the food served there because it is food we would not make or experience when dining out or at home.  It is presented as one would see at a Michelin Restaurant.  We recognize that several guests miss Prego.  I think change is good and to me it is an enhancement.  I would suggest people keep an open mind and each time they visit try new menu items as we did.

SERVICE

 

Overall service continues to be the best we have ever experienced at sea. The service level is what you would find on a luxury yacht or ship of less than 100 guests.  No other line we have sailed has this level of service and the feeling of family.  Some lines are very robotic in the way they treat you and IMHO don’t see you as an individual but as a number.  I know someone who the day she boarded ran into one of the lido deck stewards who she hadn’t seen in over 4 years, and he asked her if she would like blueberries which she loves.  

 

If you sit out on the back of one of the guest decks that has tables, chairs and lounge chairs I would say every 15 minutes or so one of the Lido Deck Stewards will swing by to see if you need anything including wine, beer, spirits or soft drinks. This is a very nice and sitting out there is like being on a private yacht.

 

Crystal benefits from two ships. Some say that limits itineraries.  It does. The benefit is that you have teams on each ship that have worked together for years.  When you have cruise lines adding lots of ships it is next to impossible to have teamwork the levels Crystal has.  In fact, some had never seen the sister ship until dry-dock. I remember when Serenity was launched it took a few years to create one cohesive team.

 

Having added so many suites the butler team is one of the few departments which has grown, and the new hires overall are terrific. We met many of them.  Some came within as they have in the past but given the number of butlers needed some came directly from outside the company to these roles.

 

I know some guests who never had a butler before and they told me they wouldn’t have the butler do anything before we boarded, only to learn from them that they did utilize the butler. This included having some meals in the room and having them assist with reservations and even to unpack or pack or simply to enjoy the daily canapes and beverages.

 

INTERNET

 

The internet was the best we have experienced with Crystal and at sea. It was not available for a few minutes and there were times where it intermittently goes off-line but comes right back up. From what I’ve learned it will be improved and they will be offering one or two premium services for a fee which are more oriented to those who are working from the ship and/or have large amount of data to download.  

 

I want to note that I also confirmed they have a couple of additional enhancements to the internet.  One will be available on Symphony from the start and will be deployed to Serenity and another one is in the works.

 

TELEPHONES & TELEVISION

 

Normally, I would not comment on this, but both components have been replaced.  There were a couple of issues.

 

If you called another number with a wired phone such as reception your call would disconnect shortly after the conversation began. This issue seemed to be resolved. In some rooms if someone calls you and you have both a living room and bedroom phone both phones were not ringing.  The ship was working to correct this, and our room was corrected a few days before the cruise ended.  Some rooms had phones not working but believe all those have been corrected.  

 

The televisions froze more often than they should and sometimes the volume goes out and to correct this you must change the station or turn off and turn on the TV. In most ports we could not get television reception. I did confirm that the problem was the antennas and that technicians would arrive to adjust the antennas which will correct the problem.

 

ENRICHMENT 

 

Enrichment has been terrific and continues to be a staple of Crystal. These are port intensive cruises but on sea days there have been three lectures like the past and on port days they have offered lectures late in the afternoon. We also had a couple of days when we arrived in the evening so that was like having additional sea days.

 

The rest of the enrichment is as it was with lots of programs offered and much more so than the other luxury lines. Sea days included about 50 different activities.

 

ENTERTAINMENT

 

We did not go to much of the entertainment but what we have seen has been great and the entertainment at the Crystal Cove has been terrific.  We heard of one evening act featuring a comedian on the second cruise was a bomb and those who like to dance prefer a larger band over the duo.  At the same time, we were told by fellow guests that at the end of several shows everyone stood to applaud.  The on- board entertainment team is outstanding and IMHO the best at sea. This applies to both ships.  As was done the last couple of years, most evenings they have rotating performers in the Crystal Cove (pianist, violinist, guitarist).

 

Entertainment start times was an issue for those who want very early shows and I suspect will continue to evolve. On most cruises you will not have enough people to perform a single act multiple times so for the major show a start time of around 9:45 or 10:00 pm is what they went with recognizing on those sailings that the vast majority of people arrived to the dining venue sometime between 7:00 to 7:30 pm.

 

ACCOMODATIONS

 

We were in the CP which is one of four on the ship and the largest of the suites. It is like being in an apartment/condominium.  Changes resulting from the dry dock included all walls painted, detailing of the cabinetry and all other furniture, new carpet, new bedspread, sheets and pillowcases, new telephones and television and a couple of other items.

 

I visited all other room categories including Classic, Seabreeze and the new suites and guest rooms. The new rooms look very nice.  One category needs floor length mirror which they will be adding, and the guest rooms have lost some closet space.  The rooms which were not touched had detailing and other work done. Due to time and I assume the cost the classic rooms mainly have the new bed linens.

 

All suites have butler service.  While one cannot order canapes unless in a Junior Suite or CP late afternoon/early evening the butlers deliver a nice set of canapes to all suites which is enhanced from before and if you have guests to the room, they can place additional ones in the room. They change daily and are very tasty.  

 

One can have a full course dinner from Waterside at all categories as before and breakfast and lunch from Waterside or from the room service menu.  The difference is everyone has the butler service both the suites and the solo and double occupancy rooms.  

 

The change for the suites is you cannot order from the Osteria D’Ovidio or from Umi Uma. The main reason is the specialty restaurants cannot keep up with the demand for this with so many more suites on-board so this is limited to the CP’s and Junior CP’s.  Also, the contract with Nobu doesn’t allow for this as he wants the vast majority of guests to experience Nobu in the dining venue.  

 

Shops

 

The shops are like before with a few changes.  I noticed the watch shop had pre-owned Rolexes.  The high rollers room was converted to a logo shop.  I do believe they need a lot more logo merchandise and of higher quality. Yes, that means higher prices but I think they will sell a lot more of this merchandise.  

 

Hubert Jewelers continues to sell exquisite jewelry and for those who are familiar with their products Hubert and Karen were on the inaugural cruise of Serenity and I am sure will be on Symphony for her inaugural cruise.

 

SPA & SALON

 

They look exquisite and we have been very impressed with the service and what is offered. We each had our hair done twice, three massages for me and two manicures/pedicures for Anne Marie and my first ever manicure/pedicure.  I enjoyed it all.

 

FITNESS CENTER

The Fitness Center looks and has the same equipment as before with a couple of additional items.  It continues to be open 7x24 and the Fitness Director is the same director as we had on World Cruise 2020.  As was the case with the Bahama Cruises, there is one rather than two Fitness Directors, but I believe this will change as overall occupancy ramps up later this year.

 

I made use of the Fitness Center until hurting my ankle and on the last full day took a treatment designed for sports injuries.

 

PADDLE TENNIS/PICKLE BALL COURTS

 

Both courts were resurfaced, and the product is far better resulting in more padding and no slipping.  The courts have the markings for Pickle Ball and Paddle Tennis and paddles and balls are available for the respective games. The paddle tennis racquets are of similar quality to the ones that guests like myself own.  Very few people were playing Pickle Ball partly because some of them know how to play Paddle Tennis.  I believe Pickle Ball works best when the ship is in port given the lightness of the ball and that it is a whiffle ball with holes.

 

OTHER OUTSIDE AREAS

 

The Promenade Deck is now no smoking on both sides.  It was never much crowded.  The swimming pool was resurfaced and the exterior redone as were the spas.  In various locations there are new recliners such as on the back decks and some areas have new towels.

 

 

SHORE EXCURSIONS

 

We only took one and that was a private excursion arranged by Crystal in Bordeaux. It was superb.  I looked over the group ones offered and to me they offered plenty of them at prices I would expect to see. I realize some of you don’t agree but that is my take on the costs as long as I have been cruising.

 

BOTTOM LINE

 

The Crystal of today is what Crystal Cruises was like before, and better. I am very impressed with the Owner and the Senior Executives and Executives who lead the company. I interacted with some of them before and after we cruises and met some for the very first time on the Inaugural Cruise.  I truly believe they have put in place a solid foundation in which to continue to build the Crystal of tomorrow. They didn’t try to make Crystal something it was not. They recognized what made Crystal Cruises unique and an extraordinary luxury cruise line and enhanced it, making it better than before IMHO. I applaud each of them and feel very confident in the future of Crystal.

 

Will they make mistakes?  Of course, they will. Everyone does.  

 

I do want to highlight that they bought assets and not a company and there is a big deal.  They got two ships, a name and customer lists.  They began with no employees. They began without systems. They have had to hire an entire shoreside team, along with officers and crew for both ships including many who returned and some new personnel.  They had an aggressive rollout schedule which they met.  There were a few things that were not ready, but most of the product was ready.  With that said you will continue to see enhancements over the coming months both on the ship and with the systems used for booking and by guests as they get ready for their voyage.  

 

The sales focus has been on Crystal Society guests but I expect to see this expanded in the coming months.  

 

I spoke with hundreds of guests including some of you on each sailing. I asked each one are you having a good time and the answer was overwhelming that they weren’t just having a good time but a great time.  They were thrilled to be back and said similar things to what I said about how the product is Crystal as they remember but better.

 

Having the experienced crew was important and as I said for months with some pushback most of the crew would be returning crew.  Their experience showed as they had issues learning the new systems and figuring out how to work around some system problems.  It wasn’t easy but they seemed to navigate this very well.

 

I do want to mention that there are some new Senior Officers including Captain Vincent.  I had the chance to speak with him multiple times in several completely different settings and I am very impressed with him.  

 

I am so pleased that Crystal is back and the overall experience of returning to Crystal was superb. I look forward to the future cruises we have planned on both Serenity and Symphony and hopefully our health will allow us to sail on the new expedition and ocean vessels too.

 

I do believe that being able to sail on a luxury line is a blessing that most people on this planet will never have.  In our early years of marriage when we started with almost nothing I would never have believed we would have the opportunity to cruise as much as we have and to do so on a cruise line as special to us as Crystal.

 

I realize that nothing is perfect.  I do focus on what is good. I do recognize if there is a problem, but my mind works to figure out what the solution is to the problem and/or who needs to know about it.  I don't use social forums to bring it to someone's attention. 

 

I do believe in what Captain Glenn said which is if you want to have a good time you will. If you don’t you won’t.  And as many of you know I have no patience for complainers.  I am a fan of Crystal. Always have and I hope always will.  I do believe in doing things that I enjoy.  I never felt I worked, as the company I was associated with for most of my career was a passion and not a job.  When I retired, I told myself I would not do things I do not like. If I don’t like another cruise line I put it out of my mind and move on recognizing there are many people who like the line. 

 

In the end, I am happy when people are happy. Some of you like cruise lines that I don't but if that makes you happy that is what counts.  Same goes for any product.

 

It was a pleasure sailing with several of you on each sailing some of whom I sailed with before and others we had not.  There were several lurkers who were on this sailing who read but don’t post and I get that. 

 

Crystal is back as I hoped it would be.  We lived through some interesting months on this board with some people telling us the ships would be scrapped, the product would totally change and the crew would not return. They also told us how silly it was to book the inaugural and the date would be pushed out by months.  

 

Thankfully, they were wrong.  I was hopeful in the early months as many of you know. In fact, many people came up to me on the two sailings to discuss this and their comments touched my heart.  My hope turned to confidence as I had the opportunity to speak with both returning and new to Crystal senior executives and mid-level management over the past 13+ months. And this was reaffirmed on our sailings.   

 

If you have questions, please let me know.

 

In the end, be happy with your choices.  I know I am.

 

 Keith

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Mr Luxury]

Thank you for your review Keith.

Some good things going on but still a work in progress.

The important point that I see here is that Crystal now have owners that are experienced in the luxury cruise sector and that will be the best thing that could have happened and will benefit all in the coming years.

[LouChamp]

Aloha. Once again Keith I want to thank you for your detailed reports and of course food pictures lol!  We are looking forward to planning a cruise and trying to work out the timing between the children ( now adults ) and of course visiting my mom in assisted living. I thought when I was running my own firm it was tough to plan travels and then when I retired years ago it became more difficult!  Running back and forth between NY and Honolulu is fun but nothing beats the sea. As you said so eloquently we are blessed to have these first world concerns. The situation in Maui has also been upsetting. We have made some contributions and I have made available an apartment in Waikiki to those in need as my tenant just moved out. Enough of me as we hope to meet you and the Mrs. onboard as you are most gracious and the pure definition of the Aloha spirit! 

[History&Wine]

Keith, thanks for the extensive review. I note you are up early as  usual on a Saturday morning.  I trust your ankle is healing well.

 

You mentioned Waterside was usually closed for lunch.  Is this because your cruises were port intensive?  Is Waterside open for lunch on sea days and closed on port days? Or has Crystal gone to those theme buffets on sea days? 

Dwight

[Keith1010]

Dwight,

 

Waterside was open for lunch 7 of the 22 days.

 

Two were on embarkation, two on full sea days, three were when ship arrived to port 11:30 AM, 12 Noon and 10:00 at night (like a sea day).

 

Other days closed which were typically port days.

 

I know in the past when in the Med often Waterside was closed because you have lots of people off the ship and many when return prefer Marketplace, Tastes and The Trident Grill. I also believe it gives waitstaff on a rotational basis time to go off the ship.  

Keith

[Keith1010]

1 hour ago, LouChamp said:

Aloha. Once again Keith I want to thank you for your detailed reports and of course food pictures lol!  We are looking forward to planning a cruise and trying to work out the timing between the children ( now adults ) and of course visiting my mom in assisted living. I thought when I was running my own firm it was tough to plan travels and then when I retired years ago it became more difficult!  Running back and forth between NY and Honolulu is fun but nothing beats the sea. As you said so eloquently we are blessed to have these first world concerns. The situation in Maui has also been upsetting. We have made some contributions and I have made available an apartment in Waikiki to those in need as my tenant just moved out. Enough of me as we hope to meet you and the Mrs. onboard as you are most gracious and the pure definition of the Aloha spirit! 

Many thanks for following along and for your kind words throughout.  It is very sad with the situation in Maui and it is kind what you are doing and we are helping too.  

 

Getting back to sea and sailing Crystal is great in so many ways.

 

Best to you.

 

Keith

[USCAdventurer]

keth,

thank you for taking the time and using your memory so well to review the two cruises.  i really enjoyed every day you wrote about your expeiences and the food pictures were fabulous.  i can't wait to see everything fore myself and i'm glad i have a symphony cruise booked for may, 2024 and serenity cruise booked for sept. 2024.

your comments are insightful and realistic and i hope eveyone understands how happy you are with the New Crystal.  i especially liked your comments about the crew because, after all, its the people that make the difference between a great cruise and a just ok cruise.  it seems like crystal mamagement want everyone to experience a great cruise and as time goes buy, i'm sure they will meet this goal.

hope your ankle is healing.

thank you again for all the time you have taken to let sail with you on cruise critic.

[Keith1010]

Thank you so much David for following along.

 

It truly was a wonderful cruise.  

 

A true Crystal family reunion between the crew and sailing with so many Crystal Society Members. It was great to finally meet some of the regulars from this board who we hadn't met before and to once again to sail with those who we knew from  before.

 

The crew is truly amazing.  And in the end it is indeed the people who make the difference.

 

Keith 

[StoryMag]

Great review and optimistic as always. 
No one else seems to have commented on portion sizes in the restaurants. They are bigger than I remembered, and I finally started ordering half portions of everything. (This way, I can have the bread)

😂😂

For me, the music and dancing were serious disappointments. I think this will change, and probably sooner rather than later. But I did not book another cruise on board as I had intended to do because of this issue. 
But literally everything else was perfection.

I look forward to the time they start publishing the entertainment ahead of time.

I just do not see myself cruising on another line. Crystal is simply wonderful. 
I did give you a shout out in Bordeaux, but never actually ran into you on board. Still, it was lovely sailing with the two of you!

 

 

 

[Keith1010]

7 hours ago, StoryMag said:

Great review and optimistic as always. 
No one else seems to have commented on portion sizes in the restaurants. They are bigger than I remembered, and I finally started ordering half portions of everything. (This way, I can have the bread)

😂😂

For me, the music and dancing were serious disappointments. I think this will change, and probably sooner rather than later. But I did not book another cruise on board as I had intended to do because of this issue. 
But literally everything else was perfection.

I look forward to the time they start publishing the entertainment ahead of time.

I just do not see myself cruising on another line. Crystal is simply wonderful. 
I did give you a shout out in Bordeaux, but never actually ran into you on board. Still, it was lovely sailing with the two of you!

 

 

 

I am sorry we didn't get to meet on-board.  I did meet several members of CC and another group too.

 

I do know they plan to publish the entertainment schedule ahead of time and are just working through the mechanics of this.  Of course, they are always subject to change.

 

I heard the portion size was too large for the Portuguese Tarts. But we'll have to see what my fellow Texan and Portuguese expert says.  Just kidding Patty.   😀

 

I would have come off the ship at around the same size if not for my injury.  😀 Over the several days there was no exercise for me and it  was the first time I took elevators on the ship in years other than on embarkation and debarkation days due to hand luggage.

 

I was stubborn and didn't listen to my body the first two days after the injury. On the third day during our Bordeaux tour this led to a role reversal. For the first time since I met Anne Marie while walking at the Chateaux I uttered the following words. "Anne Marie can you please slow down?".  This was a first as it is often the other way around.  

 

Keith

 

[Texas Tillie]

2 hours ago, Keith1010 said:

 

 

I heard the portion size was too large for the Portuguese Tarts. But we'll have to see what my fellow Texan and Portuguese expert says.  Just kidding Patty.   😀

 

 

 

 

I found that Serenity seems to put out one batch of the Portuguese tarts about 10ish and that's it for the day. Symphony usually had new batches through out the day. So, I had exactly ONE over the 10 days on the Serenity. I thought they were a little smaller than I remember. As in the past, I'd say the differences were more due to the pastry chef than the recipe. I did have 2 bite size ones at the breakfast buffet at the Sofitel before boarding the ship. Crystal's much better.

 

Patty

 

[BWIVince]

2 hours ago, Texas Tillie said:

 

I found that Serenity seems to put out one batch of the Portuguese tarts about 10ish and that's it for the day. Symphony usually had new batches through out the day. So, I had exactly ONE over the 10 days on the Serenity. I thought they were a little smaller than I remember. As in the past, I'd say the differences were more due to the pastry chef than the recipe. I did have 2 bite size ones at the breakfast buffet at the Sofitel before boarding the ship. Crystal's much better.

 

Patty

 

I agree that has something to do with the pastry chef or management…. I can remember periods in the past when both ships just did one drop of the custard tarts instead of continuous replenishment.  In the past few years that Symphony was operating though, they were definitely replenished though, like you remember.

 

Vince

[Amber14]

12 hours ago, StoryMag said:

 

For me, the music and dancing were serious disappointments. I think this will change, and probably sooner rather than later. But I did not book another cruise on board as I had intended to do because of this issue. 
But literally everything else was perfection.

I look forward to the time they start publishing the entertainment ahead of time.

I just do not see myself cruising on another line. Crystal is simply wonderful. 
I did give you a shout out in Bordeaux, but never actually ran into you on board. Still, it was lovely sailing with the two of you!

 

 

 

Could you please expand on the music and dancing disappointments? We have our first Crystal cruise booked and are wondering about the type of music and dancing. Specifically would like to know whether there is any old 60's, 70's music to listen to or for dancing. Not really into ball dancing. Thanks!

[StoryMag]

15 minutes ago, Amber14 said:

Could you please expand on the music and dancing disappointments? We have our first Crystal cruise booked and are wondering about the type of music and dancing. Specifically would like to know whether there is any old 60's, 70's music to listen to or for dancing. Not really into ball dancing. Thanks!

I think you will enjoy it Amber. My taste runs to ballroom music and I would have enjoyed the use of the Starlight in the evenings for that purpose. But I think you will find the shows and the Avenue to your liking. For me, the duo in the Palm Court was lovely for listening to during cocktail hour, but not as the only evening dance program. Not to worry! You will have a fabulous time! Improvements are escalating quickly. Such a joy to see this wonderful cruise line return. Also on a side note…did you previously ask about the Sofitel Liberdade? It was fabulous however, take great care getting out of shower as there is an about a 6 inch difference to floor. 

[Amber14]

1 hour ago, StoryMag said:

I think you will enjoy it Amber. My taste runs to ballroom music and I would have enjoyed the use of the Starlight in the evenings for that purpose. But I think you will find the shows and the Avenue to your liking. For me, the duo in the Palm Court was lovely for listening to during cocktail hour, but not as the only evening dance program. Not to worry! You will have a fabulous time! Improvements are escalating quickly. Such a joy to see this wonderful cruise line return. Also on a side note…did you previously ask about the Sofitel Liberdade? It was fabulous however, take great care getting out of shower as there is an about a 6 inch difference to floor. 

Thanks so much for the extra information and for the reassurance. We are really excited. I did not ask about the Sofitel Liberdade but maybe the person who did will read this. 

[TER777]

2 hours ago, StoryMag said:

I think you will enjoy it Amber. My taste runs to ballroom music and I would have enjoyed the use of the Starlight in the evenings for that purpose. But I think you will find the shows and the Avenue to your liking. For me, the duo in the Palm Court was lovely for listening to during cocktail hour, but not as the only evening dance program. Not to worry! You will have a fabulous time! Improvements are escalating quickly. Such a joy to see this wonderful cruise line return. Also on a side note…did you previously ask about the Sofitel Liberdade? It was fabulous however, take great care getting out of shower as there is an about a 6 inch difference to floor. 

Oh no! This doesn’t sound good. Many of us choose to cruise on Crystal in part because of the excellent ballroom dance program. 

[Txcotn]

9 hours ago, Keith1010 said:

 

 

I heard the portion size was too large for the Portuguese Tarts. But we'll have to see what my fellow Texan and Portuguese expert says.  Just kidding Patty.   😀

 

 

 

Keith

 

No such thing as too large Portuguese tart!🤣

[AtA]

1 hour ago, TER777 said:

Oh no! This doesn’t sound good. Many of us choose to cruise on Crystal in part because of the excellent ballroom dance program. 

Those dancing on Serenity seemed quite content. 🙂

[Keith1010]

Dancing.

 

Some of the people who enjoy ballroom dancing prefer a larger band over the pianist and the vocalist and they made their feelings known.

 

For most others they seemed fine with the two performers. And those two performers can easily play music from the 60's, 70's, 80's, etc.  The vocalist who performed at the Gala has a most amazing voice IMHO.

 

Keith

 

 

 

[Amber14]

18 hours ago, Keith1010 said:

Dancing.

 

Some of the people who enjoy ballroom dancing prefer a larger band over the pianist and the vocalist and they made their feelings known.

 

For most others they seemed fine with the two performers. And those two performers can easily play music from the 60's, 70's, 80's, etc.  The vocalist who performed at the Gala has a most amazing voice IMHO.

 

Keith

 

 

 

Thanks for this! It sounds like Crystal is trying to appeal to as many people as they can with the multiple smaller performers. As long as there is variety and not just one kind of music, we will be fine. We do enjoy watching the ballroom dancing occasionally but would not want it to be the only dancing offered each night. 

Edited August 28, 2023 by Amber14

[Keith1010]

1 minute ago, Amber14 said:

Thanks for this! As long as there is variety and not just one kind of music, we will be fine. We do enjoy watching the ballroom dancing occasionally but would not want it to be the only dancing offered each night. 

You are very welcome. The music they performed was not one kind of music just as the previous group didn't play the same music so I think that should work out very well.

 

I also think they will incorporate the DJ as well and even in the Cove one night he didn't play music what some might worry about.  He can easily adapt.

 

In fact, he might be a possibility for ballroom dancing. I realize people prefer a live band but let's see what happens.

 

Keith 

[Ant@sea]

Keith, 

You and Anne Marie have done so much to reassure loyal Crystal past guests that everything is as good or better than it used to be. Having said that, the New Crysal cannot survive on their existing passenger base and must strive to attract new guests.

How do you feel the Crystal stacks up against all the newer tonnage coming into the market from Silversea (in particular the Silver Nova being comparable in size) as well as Regent and Seabourn? (I was going to include Explora Journeys, but based on the reviews I've been reading, they appear to be a floating dumpster fire, including the latest that they've cancelled their 2024/2025 published schedule and are working on new ones)

[Keith1010]

52 minutes ago, Ant@sea said:

Keith, 

You and Anne Marie have done so much to reassure loyal Crystal past guests that everything is as good or better than it used to be. Having said that, the New Crysal cannot survive on their existing passenger base and must strive to attract new guests.

How do you feel the Crystal stacks up against all the newer tonnage coming into the market from Silversea (in particular the Silver Nova being comparable in size) as well as Regent and Seabourn? (I was going to include Explora Journeys, but based on the reviews I've been reading, they appear to be a floating dumpster fire, including the latest that they've cancelled their 2024/2025 published schedule and are working on new ones)

Thank you for your comments.

 

I don't want this review to be a comparison to other cruise lines but rather my thoughts on the first two Crystal cruises under new ownership.  If anything it is a comparison to Crystal before its shutdown.

 

I have always been of the belief that to be successful and to grow Crystal has to attract first time guests and, in particular, attract those in their late 40's, 50's and 60's to sail with them.

 

One way to do this is with new ships and yes this is important given that people who have not sailed with Crystal or in the luxury market arena are more apt to go with cruise lines that have newer ships.  So the first step on that is their desire to commit to one new ocean vessel and one new expedition ship with an option for a second one. Reading between the lines they are not looking for a massive volume of ships nor a massive customer base.  I believe this will allow them to grow the fleet without diluting their number one asset which is the crew.  

 

In the meantime, they need to be successful over the next few years before rollout of new ships and that will require targeting guests who are not Crystal Society members. From what I see the major focus has been on Crystal Society members. I believe you will see more ads on social media and certainly the publicity generated from the current cruise for Symphony and the one on July 25 for Serenity with media and TA's on board is a good step as well.

 

Keith 

[Texas Tillie]

4 hours ago, Ant@sea said:

Keith, 

You and Anne Marie have done so much to reassure loyal Crystal past guests that everything is as good or better than it used to be. Having said that, the New Crysal cannot survive on their existing passenger base and must strive to attract new guests.

How do you feel the Crystal stacks up against all the newer tonnage coming into the market from Silversea (in particular the Silver Nova being comparable in size) as well as Regent and Seabourn? (I was going to include Explora Journeys, but based on the reviews I've been reading, they appear to be a floating dumpster fire, including the latest that they've cancelled their 2024/2025 published schedule and are working on new ones)

 

From what I've been reading about the Nova, there's no way the Symphony and Serenity can compete with the physical ship. However, the service, food, entertainment and enrichment on the Nova doesn't hold a candle to Crystal. I now have one cruise on the "new" Crystal under my belt and will be on the Nova Sept. 29. I'm a Crystal "cheerleader" (hate that, but will concede to those few who insist on using that terminology), but I will try to be fair to Silversea. The "problem" for Crystal is to be able to communicate where Crystal excels Silversea or the other luxury lines.

 

Patty

[BWIVince]

I have to admit, I've been SHOCKED at the proportion of new-to-Crystal passengers I've seen posting here and in other forums, and how much more awareness Crystal has been getting outside their alumni base since the restart -- especially since they're just getting started with marketing and sailing again, and still don't have the full team they'll flesh out over the next couple of years.  Time will tell if they're able to retain these new customers of course, but I never quite expected the level fresh interest they've been getting this early.

 

Vince