Celebrity cruiser jumps ship to HAL-comparisons

[flashdog_1]

The Veendam is a smaller, older ship, probably inbetween the sizes of Century and Zenith. It was easy to negotiate the ship and it was a smooth ride throughout the cruise.

 

The dining room service was superb. The menu choices were more varied than those of Celebrity, offering some "peasant" food which was interesting. And for those who have reported the overcooked, under seasoned food on HAL, they must have been on a different ship. Vegetables were crisp, lobster perfect. Entrees were tasty, not bland!

 

Like Celebrity, the evening lido choices were fewer than in the dining room, but we never used it since we enjoy the formal dining room very much.

 

There were perhaps fewer ice cream choices on HAL. There were no Qtips or cotton balls in the bathrooms, but the bedding, even in an inside or ocean view cabin were superior to Celebrity's, comparable to either a suite or Concierge Class bedding.

 

There was no water pitcher in the room, but a stainless steel ice bucket that was showing some rust on the outside, so I think HAL got ripped off paying for stainless steel! There was no fridge offered except in the highest categories, so we reserved one aheåd of time so we had cold cokes we'd brought on board.

 

No juice, iced tea or lemonade was available 24/7. I'd take my mug to breakfast and fill it with juice so I could have some later in the day. Their oj is freshly squeezed, however! I did see lemonade being distributed at different times, but that's not the same as being thirsty and knowing I can go to the buffet and get juice on Celebrity.

 

I think HAL's buffet lines moved more quickly. Their desserts were located at a separate station with the ice cream, so that may have helped. they did not have bread sticks!

 

There were flat screen tvs and a dvd player even in an ocean view cabin. The movies shown on tv were ones that are currently new releases on Netflix or Blockbuster on line, a welcome change from Celebrity.

 

HAL gives out bags of popcorn outside the movie theater.

 

They now have a Culinary Arts center which is the same location as the movie theater. the CA center is located behind the curtain. We attended one demonstration. it was a little easier to see than in the Rondezvous Lounge on Celebrity. There were cameras focused on the food, which reproduced the subject on the screens on either side of the cooking table.

 

Bar service was poor. We left the cabin at 7:30 for an 8 p.m dinner. Finally, in order to get a drink, we began to sit at the bar where we could not be ignored. Even then, with one bartender, it was still slow, sometimes having to carry our newly prepared drink to the dining room since it had taken.

 

Front desk personnel were wonderful. They seemed to be on 12 hour shifts yet were always personable despite their possible fatigue.

 

The room steward was almost invisible. He left his towel animals and there were always fresh towels etc. but we didn't see him very often. He learned our schedule well so cleaned up when he knew we'd be gone. No complaints. He did not seem to have an assistant like on Celebrity.

 

The HAL room service menu was more limited than that of Celebrity, but I'd been advised to try the triple decker club sandwich, which was good. We only used it once.

 

I really did not notice a huge difference in overall average ages on the ship. But maybe that's because I'm 65 and edging up there! It was a spring break cruise, so there were people of all ages. Only saw children running at the pool once, never dive bombing. There is an adults only aft pool which is a pleasure, but I don't like the sun, so spent time in the central lido pool area, finding other smokers to socialize with.

 

The noon time captain's message with other messages added was a pain, but it wasn't too bad. Lack of announcements is one reason I'd always chosen Celebrity before.

 

On this cruise there was no enrichment series which surprised me since it was an exotic western carib, all Mayan ports, so I'd expected some lectures on the culture. I did hear some commentary on the tv, however, but would have missed that because it was probably included in the shopping info, which I always ignore. I will say that the woman's voice was soothing, whereas every single Celebrity shopping "girl" had had a shrill voice.

 

Perhaps this is because one of our ports, Santo Tomas de Castillo, Guatemala, is relatively new and not many excursions were available. I'd done my own homework and booked the tour I wanted thru a hotel in Livingston, a Garifuna town across Amatique Bay from Santo Tomas. This enabled us to see 3 towns, Santo Tomas, the largest commercial port in guatemala (excellent security) with its 400 year old mission church, the neighboring town of Puerto Barrios where we caught our boat (launcha) to Livingston.

 

By the time we boarded, however, the almost exact same tour I'd pre-planned was offered by the ship with big letters NEW by it. But our tour was with only 6 people and lasted much longer than the ship's tour, so I'm not sad that I missed HAL's tour.

 

Hal's spa special prices were slightly higher than those on Celebrity. I did not book any this trip.

 

In general I found the passengers to be more approachable than on Celebrity. I'm not sure I can explain that statement, except that when I wanted to smoke, (and the areas were clearly marked,with a sign on each table) I'd ask if I could sit down with a couple or an individual, and of course they said I could. I made new friends that way, who then would join me in another smoking area in a bar or outdoor decks. Then my daughter knew where to look for me and could call them by name. I did not encounter a single stuffy passenger.

 

I picked this cruise for the itinerary, not because I was displeased with Celebrity. Hal is absolutely comparable to Celebrity if you can live without Q tips (we bought some in Key West) and a water pitcher and 24 hour lemonade. And it is superior to Celebrity as far as bedding in lower categories goes. I've booked concierge class and suites on Celebrity just to get a pillow top mattress and good pillows. On Hal you do not have to do that.

[the2ofus]

Enjoyable reading. Thank you for your review and comparisons. It is always interesting to see what other experienced cruisers enjoy and miss when they pick a HAL cruise over their 'tried and true' favorite. I'll be sailing on RCCL in a few weeks and am looking forward to experiencing a different type of cruise.

[tmac]

I quite enjoyed the discussion....Myself, I want to venture beyond Celebrity to try something different...I appreciated the detailed report. Thanks again!

[Willsot]

Great to hear your positive report. We sail on the Veendam April 8-15.

[HeatherInFlorida]

Phyllis, I want to thank you so much for this review. Since we love and cruise both Celebrity and HAL I found your comparisons very interesting and you lent a few new perspectives I hadn't even thought about:) .

 

Glad you reminded me about the Q-tips and cotton balls ... I do love that on Celebrity. I think the beds on HAL are a bit better even when compared with Concierge which we cruised on our last Summit cruise. But the pillows were amazing on the Summit!!!:)

 

I prefer the ice cream on HAL even though there are fewer choices. I'd forgotten HAL doesn't have the tea/lemonade, etc., available all day.

 

Thank you again for taking the time with this review. It was very helpful to me and I enjoyed reading it.

[SANDY BEACH]

Thanks for the review. I, too, think Holland and Celebrity are quite comparable. Each has their strong points as you have listed above.

[gizmodog]

O.k. let me get this straight as I am booked on HAL in October on the Oosterdam, and I too am a past Celebrity Cruiser.

 

There is ice in the room correct? But no water pitcher with water?

There are no refrigerators in the room?

What is there to drink besides coffee if there is no lemonade, juice or ice tea?

What time do they stop having those drinks available?

 

I guess I am starting to get a little nervous, I just took for granted that cruise lines just offered those things.

 

I am booked in a VA category, someone out there able to answer my few questions?

Thanks so much

[grannynurse]

There are refrigerators in A veranda cabins. I think it stops at BC but you can always rent one for approx. $2.00/day.

 

I have been on many HAL cruises and never lacked for iced tea. I don't look for lemonade so I can't comment on that. Sometimes we ask the bar server for ice water or other non-alcoholic drinks. We've never been charged for anything except pop or alcohol. The Lido, while it's open, along with the grill always have glasses with ice, tea and juice (not at the grill).

GN

[arzz]

Very interesting review -- have never done Celebrity and often wondered whether we should try -- not fond of the parent company RCCL, however, so we have not leaped forward. Good to know they compare so closely in case there is a Celebrity itinerary out there that I must have.

 

I have never been on the Veendam but I have been on several HAL ships and there has always been iced tea available in the lido at all times as well as water and coffee. I admit, however, that juice too would also be nice.

 

Sorry you had to wait for your before dinner drinks -- my DH and I tend to gather nightly in the Ocean Bar on whatever ship we find ourselves on and have not had that issue -- in fact after the first night we are recognized by the wait staff who always want to know if we want "our usual" -- sorry it did not work that way for you.

 

Again, thanks for the comparisons!

[Atomica]

Thanks very much for the great review! I'm hoping to be able to try Celebrity in the next little while, so I found your comparisons to be very helpful. I'm glad to hear that both lines are very comparable!

[sailorbill]

gizmodog -

 

I'm pretty sure all the Vista class ships have refrigerators in all staterooms. I've stayed in both inside and balcony staterooms on the Westerdam and had a refrigerator in each. It is the older mid-size R and S class ships that do not have refrigerators in the lower category staterooms.

[kryos]

On this cruise there was no enrichment series which surprised me since it was an exotic western carib, all Mayan ports, so I'd expected some lectures on the culture. I did hear some commentary on the tv, however, but would have missed that because it was probably included in the shopping info, which I always ignore. I will say that the woman's voice was soothing, whereas every single Celebrity shopping "girl" had had a shrill voice.

I think HAL only offers their enrichment series of lectures on cruises of ten days or more.

 

By the way, I see you discovered the "smoking" benefit too. I always do the same thing you do ... ask someone at a smoking table on deck if they'd mind if I share their ashtray with them. I've met so many wonderful people that way ... people I then continued to run into and talk with throughout the cruise. See, smoking does have some great benefits, huh? :)

 

Blue skies ... and thanks for the comprehensive comparison review!

 

--rita

[doone]

Enjoyed your review and comparisons between Celebrity and HAL. I haven't sailed Celebrity before, but like you, if the itinerary and price was right, I'd go for it. Thanks for such an honest review.

[michmike]

Welcome to HAL! Our first cruise was on Celebrity's Galaxy and while we had a fine time, our next trip was on HAL due to itinerary and cost and we haven't looked back at Celebrity since (5 cruises now w/ HAL). Just wish HAL would consider 7 day trips out of San Juan as Celebrity does, in order to give us a few more options as to islands to visit. For that reason alone, we have been tempted to go w/ Celebrity again, but only out of San Juan.

 

Am in agreement w/ you that the only major complaint we had on recent Volendam cruise was slow service in the bars.

[caviargal]

Welcome to HAL! Our first cruise was on Celebrity's Galaxy and while we had a fine time, our next trip was on HAL due to itinerary and cost and we haven't looked back at Celebrity since (5 cruises now w/ HAL). Just wish HAL would consider 7 day trips out of San Juan as Celebrity does, in order to give us a few more options as to islands to visit. For that reason alone, we have been tempted to go w/ Celebrity again, but only out of San Juan.

 

Am in agreement w/ you that the only major complaint we had on recent Volendam cruise was slow service in the bars.

 

 

michmike: X is dropping their 7 night R/T Caribbean sailings. I will miss this as well.

[shipcafe]

Interesting review! Looking forward to sailing the same itinerary shortly.

[O2cruise]

Does that mean they no longer have the ice tea dispenser next to the water and coffee?

[flashdog_1]

Interesting review! Looking forward to sailing the same itinerary shortly.

 

I have written a synopsis of some shore excursions in Guatemala, Belize and Costa Maya on the ports of call board Caribbean/other, if you'd like to read them.

[flashdog_1]

O.k. let me get this straight as I am booked on HAL in October on the Oosterdam, and I too am a past Celebrity Cruiser.

 

There is ice in the room correct? But no water pitcher with water?

There are no refrigerators in the room?

What is there to drink besides coffee if there is no lemonade, juice or ice tea?

What time do they stop having those drinks available?

 

I guess I am starting to get a little nervous, I just took for granted that cruise lines just offered those things.

 

I am booked in a VA category, someone out there able to answer my few questions?

Thanks so much

 

Yes, there was a bucket of ice but no water pitcher.

 

On Veendam and apparently the other S and R classes of ships the fridges are only in suites or high categories. We were in ocean view and had to pre-order one. Various websites will tell you which cats. have fridges.

 

On Veendam, the juices were out only at breakfast. We drank water when eating at the lido for lunch. If we were thirsty for something else we filled a mug with ice and poured a sprite from the fridge.

 

I forgot to mention that free capuccino etc. was offered at dinner in the dining room, but you have to pay for it if you go to the coffee bar. I ordered one the first night, and every night thereafter I received one. Nice perk.

[flashdog_1]

I think HAL only offers their enrichment series of lectures on cruises of ten days or more.

 

By the way, I see you discovered the "smoking" benefit too. I always do the same thing you do ... ask someone at a smoking table on deck if they'd mind if I share their ashtray with them. I've met so many wonderful people that way ... people I then continued to run into and talk with throughout the cruise. See, smoking does have some great benefits, huh? :)

 

Blue skies ... and thanks for the comprehensive comparison review!

 

--rita

 

Thanks for the heads up about enrichment series being on longer cruises.

 

One day, during the ship building contest they had removed some of the tables in the usual smoking area by the lido pool. I saw no ashtrays, and when I asked, "anyone smoking here?" i got dull looks. After the contest, the smoking tables with markers were back in place.

 

When a buddy and I would attend our company's "stop smoking clinics" at breaks, we'd all run out and smoke, noting that our group was laughing and having fun, while those who had managed to quit were quiet and not having fun. So maybe smokers do have more fun. ha

[frbob]

I've only taken one cruise on Celebrity. It was awful. The ship was the Horizon. While there are probably some good things to say about that cruise, I can't recall any of them. Compared to HAL, Celebrity finishes in tenth place.

 

That said, cruising with HAL isn't perfect either. If you want the spoiled rotten treatment and you can afford the big bucks, Silversea and Seabourn (maybe Radisson) offer top notch cruising experiences. On balance, however, HAL give you more for your cruise dollar than other companies, IMHO.

[HeatherInFlorida]

I've only taken one cruise on Celebrity. It was awful. The ship was the Horizon. While there are probably some good things to say about that cruise, I can't recall any of them. Compared to HAL, Celebrity finishes in tenth place.

 

That said, cruising with HAL isn't perfect either. If you want the spoiled rotten treatment and you can afford the big bucks, Silversea and Seabourn (maybe Radisson) offer top notch cruising experiences. On balance, however, HAL give you more for your cruise dollar than other companies, IMHO.

 

Looking at your signature, I can see you have sailed on some magnificent cruise lines so you know quality when you see it. But I have to say, I don't think judging Celebrity by the Horizon is giving the line a really fair shake.

 

We were on Horizon in 1997 and there's just no comparison between that cruise and our Summit and Millennium cruises. The line went through massive improvements in recent years (IMO).

[flashdog_1]

Does that mean they no longer have the ice tea dispenser next to the water and coffee?

 

On this particular sailing there was no iced tea dispenser.

[doone]

When we sailed the Volendam last month, at the Lido, there was the ice water and iced tea dispensers there.

[frbob]

Thanks to Heather for her comments. Well taken. If my displeasure with Celebrity was confined to shipboard issues, I would agree that judgement could be moderated. In my case, Celebrity's :( unresponsive management in Miami was a large part of the problem (which began well in advance of my cruise and continued well beyond). The fact that the Horizon :( was anything but pleasant just exacerbated my issues with Celebrity :( (and RCCL by extension). My experience with Celebrity :( was the worst of my considerable cruising life. A very expensive mistake!!! My voice is my only weapon against poor product and management performance as delivered by Celebrity. And I'm not shy about using it. :)