Celebrity Summit v. Sun Princess...a recent comparison

[PescadoAmarillo]

I am not trying to start a debate, or an argument, with this post. I am trying to point out the many and significant differences between a Sun Princess and a Celebrity Summit cruise experience. If you don’t agree with my conclusions, you are, of course, welcome to point that out. But please do not attack me personally, or denigrate my effort at honesty in reporting these differences.

First, we are Elite on both Princess and Celebrity. We have one more Celebrity cruise than Princess, but have more days on Princess than Celebrity. Ergo, we love both cruise lines. We intend to continue to cruise both cruise lines. We are in our late 40s and 50s, and cruise about 4-5 weeks a year as a couple (and I am lucky to cruise with other friends at least once a year).

My husband and I cruised on B2B cruises on the Sun Princess in the Eastern and Southern Caribbean in January 2007 (you may have followed my LIVE FROM posts). Shortly after our return home, he fell on the ice and sustained two broken arms. Two surgeries and many therapy sessions later, another cruise was just what the doctor ordered, and so we booked a last minute Celebrity Summit cruise, eastbound Panama Canal, 14 nights beginning March 31. On both ships, we were in inside cabins (which we frequently book); on both ships we were Elite status in the loyalty programs.

The two cruise experiences could not have been more different.

I will not spend a lot of time comparing the ships. The Sun class ships are not our favorite Princess ships (we prefer the Diamond/Sapphire); the Millenium class ships were not our favorite Celebrity ships (but they are now). I have always thought that Celebrity does not maintain their ships to quite the same level of Princess, and I still think that, but the gap is certainly closing. The Sun Princess was superbly maintained (except for occasional plumbing issues); the Summit showed some signs of flaking paint, the railings were not as well varnished and the white deck chairs could use an overhaul with a Mr. Clean Magic Eraser sponge, but the ship was spotless and beautiful. Our inside cabin on the Summit was 32 square feet larger than on the Sun Princess, but had less storage space than our Sun Princess cabin. Our bed linens on the Sun Princess were new, with duvets instead of blankets; the linens on the Summit were older but due to be updated this fall (I believe).

Instead, I will focus on the three things most important to us (aside from itineraries, which Princess excels in): food, service and entertainment.

The dining room food on the Sun Princess ranged from good to excellent; the dining room food on Celebrity was always excellent. I think that, in general, Princess does fish entrees and cold soups better than Celebrity, and Princess does soufflés, which Celebrity generally does not. Celebrity does beef entrees far better than Princess (more often, more tender, and bigger servings), their breadsticks are superb, their "always available" shrimp cocktails contained shrimp that were twice the size of Princess’s, their desserts, their ice cream are both better than Princess.

In the buffet, the comparison is night and day. The Sun Princess buffet was not even up to Hometown standards; the Celebrity buffet food was fresher, hotter, and far more varied with fresh made Belgian waffles in the morning, made to order pasta and pizzas all day till 1 am, made to order stir fry every evening, a large specialty cheese selection every afternoon, a wonderful made to order sandwich bar and salad bar, and multiple hot and cold beverages to choose from. Hot chocolate is free on Celebrity (except at Cova Café); it is extra charge on Princess. The only Brie I saw on the Sun Princess was a miniscule piece on an hor d’oerve; large slices of it were available every day in the Summit buffet. The cheese plate in the Princess dining room was Kraft with saltine crackers; on the Summit it was varied, with more expensive cheeses and crackers NOT in plastic wrappers.

One of the best Celebrity food offerings is the ice cream, available from noon till 10 pm in the buffet. Multiple flavors (7 or 8) of the best ice cream I’ve even had, plus kiddie toppings. While ice cream is available for dessert in the dining rooms on both ships, it is only available (and only 2 flavors) for an hour in the afternoon on Princess. Celebrity wins here, hands down.

For room service, there is, again, no comparison. Only suites on Princess can get hot breakfasts and full dinners delivered. On Celebrity, hot breakfast items (eggs, omelets, meats) and full dining room dinner menus are available in every stateroom.

Regarding service in the dining room, Celebrity again excels. Celebrity’s waitstaff is far more polished and professional. Many of these people have been with the cruise line for 10+ years and it simply shows. Both cruise lines serve food…Celebrity does it with far more elegance at a more relaxed pace. Sommeliers and bar waiters on Celebrity do what falls to the assistant waiters to do on Princess. Again, the professionalism shows. On the Summit, our assistant maitre de stopped by our table every night without fail. On the Sun Princess, most of the time we didn’t even get a greeting when we went into Anytime dining in the dining room…we were simply asked “Your cabin number?”. Only when I finally said, one night, “Well, good evening to you too” did we start to be occasionally greeted. Upon entering the Summit dining room for breakfast or lunch, we were always greeted with smiles and welcomed by several members of the waitstaff…on the Sun Princess it was rare.

In the buffet, my husband was helped every step of the way with his tray (which, thankfully, Celebrity has). As soon as he was seated (and me, as I was frequently helped too), we were asked for our drink order, and our sodas were delivered. On the Sun Princess, tables were cleared loudly, and just feet away from people dining, food was scrapped into garbage piles and dishes stacked. On the Summit, clearing stations were located a bit away from tables, and table clearing was done more quietly.

There is no comparable to the AquaSpa Café on the Sun Princess, and we loved it. We ate breakfast there twice, lunch there a couple of times, and found we loved it for those couple of hours the buffet was shut down during the day. Healthy food, freshly prepared and elegantly served….it was wonderful.

Speaking of the buffet hours, it used to be that Celebrity offered two dinner seatings and a casual dining option with three alternating menus. That may still be the case on the smaller ships, but on the Summit, if we chose not to go to dinner, we had not only the casual dining sit-down alternative, but a salad bar, pasta bar, stir fry bar and sushi bar and the Aqua Spa Cafe. And, of course, that wonderful ice cream served all day till 10 pm. We used to miss the hours that the Celebrity buffet would close down (when we returned from a day on shore)…we didn’t get that impression this time. There was always food (pasta, hamburgs, etc, and ice cream) available, plus healthy food. However, the Summit dining room was closed on most port days for lunch.

Princess offers formal tea daily; Celebrity offers it only once throughout the cruise (plus a second time for Elite Captain’s Club members), but the service on Celebrity is truly formal, and the scones are wonderful, not hockey pucks. I did miss the cream that is available on Princess (clotted? Whipped? I don’t know, but I like it), but also appreciated the fact that the wait staff did not act like it was a punishment to be serving formal tea.

We purchased soda stickers on both ships ($3.95 per day on Princess, $4.95 per day on Celebrity). Bar service on both was excellent, but on the Sun Princess we never once (out of about 15 tries) got sodas delivered to us in the theater; on the Summit, with the exception of one time, we always did.

Our cabin steward on both ships was wonderful (as they generally are). We lacked for nothing, and all requests were delivered promptly and accurately. We like the assistant cabin stewards on Celebrity, but don’t miss them on Princess.

In general, the crew culture differences between the two ships were profound. We were too frequently not greeted, not looked in the eye by crew members we passed on the Sun Princess. At first we attributed this to the fact that the ship was coming off a noro outbreak and were fatigued, and it did improve, but only slightly as our 20 nights progressed. On the Summit, nearly every crew member, staff member and officer we passed greeted us, smiled, told us to enjoy our day, our evening, our meal, etc. The crew seemed much friendlier, much happier. On Princess, we frequently heard (without asking) how many cruises a crew member had left on their contract. On the Summit, we never once heard about contracts and cruises remaining. On the Sun Princess I witnessed some crew members mocking other passengers…I can’t even imagine such a thing happening on the Summit. On the Sun Princess, I once conducted an entire transaction in a shop without once word being said by the store clerk…not the case at all on the Summit.

Regarding entertainment…we loved the entertainment options on the Summit. One passenger we spoke with remarked that they missed the entertainment choices available on Princess (at least two shows to choose from each evening). We didn’t. We loved, appreciated the fact that we could arrive in the theater five minutes before a show began and get a seat…no need to arrive 30 minutes early. We never had to debate which show to attend and how early to get there…much more relaxing. Still, there were multiple (usually 5) music options available around the ship every evening. We loved them all, and spent much more time in lounges listening to music before and after shows, and less time waiting for a show to begin. And the entertainment appealed more to our tastes…we’re not stuffy, but we like guitarists/singers (as the Summit often had outside on the back deck in the evenings…just like Key West), string quartets, a cappella singers and harpists in addition to the dance duos, ship orchestra and party bands. The Summit still had the usual ventriloquist and magicians (not my favorite entertainment, but someone’s, I’m sure), but the production shows are where the ship really stood out. A 16 member cast (5 singers, 11 dancers) plus an adagio/aerialist couple that left the audience gasping with their exquisite beauty. The production shows were innovative and different, with gorgeous costumes and props. They were a joy to watch, and we never missed them.

Other observations about things that are not important to us but may be to you…drinks on Celebrity are more expensive, wines are way more expensive. I can’t comment on shore excursion price comparisons, or spa price comparisons as they also are not big deals for us. I did appreciate the fact that the atrium on the Summit was never littered with tables of the “sale du jour”…those tables were there, just not in the atrium. And I adored the fact that they didn’t have that final sea day “Blue Light Special” in the dining room….how tacky. We like the stacks of towels available by each pool on the Summit, and the larger beach towels available to take off the ship for a beach day.

Saying all this, you might ask why our next cruises will be back on Princess. We like Princess, a lot. What first brought us to Princess, its itineraries, is what keeps us there. We also love the freshwater pools. The elite benefits on Princess are in a different league from Celebrity and appeal to the value shoppers in us. However, the service on Celebrity is also in a different league, and appeals to our desire for a more premium level cruise experience at a reasonable price. Interestingly, we survived on the Summit without free internet and free laundry (or even washers and dryers)…we simply didn’t use the internet on the ship, and our laundry bill totaled $10 over 14 days by simply washing out our undies every night….no big inconvenience. I think we needed to show ourselves that we could survive without those elite benefits, and we could. I do believe that as Celebrity begins to bring out more ships, their itineraries will expand and may begin to rival Princess…at that time, that will factor into our vacation decisions.

Again, these comparisons are between these two ships and these cruises…things change over time. I hope these current comparisons can help you make your cruise decisions.

[ddonalds]

This is a great comparison document - and I can't imagine anyone will do anything other than to thank you for taking the time to write it. It is your opinion, and no one else can say it is right or wrong, since they didn't experience it. I have only cruised on Princess once, and while I agree with you about good itineraries, we probably won't cruise with them again - and your comments really did sum up our experience on the Panama Canal cruise we took on them about the staff. Having cruised on Crystal before that, we were very surprised at the massive difference, but you do get what you pay for, so we just lived with it. We have never cruised on Celebrity before, and had very low expectations (based on our Princess experience) - but now my expectations are happier!!!! Thank you for taking the time to write this thoughtful comparison.....:) It does sound like both cruise lines have really good aspects, and then some areas for improvement - and it truely does depend on what is important to each and every one of us....

[lisiamc]

Wow - thanks for this! I haven't cruised on Princes for a number of years, and I sometimes wonder whether to try them again. It's great that you included so many details to give a full picture. Your comparison is really helpful, and very well thought out.

 

Lisa

[caliber35]

Thanks for the great comparison review. Having sailed on both lines recently this year, I am in full agreement. One more thing I will add is that on the larger Princess ships, such as the Crown, the crowds can be overwhelming, especially at the buffet. I always feel much more relaxed and 'at home' on Celebrity. The only thing that seems lacking on Celebrity is the absence of Mini-Suites, which are superb on Princess. Hopefully this will be addressed when their new, larger ships come out next year.

[TenerifeSharon]

Many thanks for the great comparison report. We've also been thinking about branching out to try Princess and may do it some time soon. Now we have a better idea of what to expect.

[Lois R]

Hi, just want to compliment you on the review/comparison.

 

Please, if anyone flames you it is definitely their problem, not

yours.

This was a well written, informative and thought out

comparison.

 

I don't know if I will try Princess in the future but I do

appreciate your thoughts about both lines.

 

Thank you for taking the time to write it.

[Spot]

Excellent, well thought out comparison.

 

Thank you for your insight.

[mason525]

Great & insightful review/comparison! I also sail Celebrity & Princess & find good things about each of the lines. Thanks for posting! Meg

[XatSea]

Again, these comparisons are between these two ships and these cruises…things change over time. I hope these current comparisons can help you make your cruise decisions.

 

We have sailed on both ships and agree with your writeup. Both lines have something to offer and both lines are changing their product to appeal to as many people as possible.

[JWJs]

I thank you for the great comparison between the two lines.:) It was just awesome. I've only sailed on Celebrity and Princess so it was especially meaningful to me.

From my personal experience, I've found Celebrity to be pricier. However, you can catch terrific bargains through their weekly Happy Hour sales and by checking the X website. On our Millennium cruise this past December, I booked a guarantee balcony (first time ever) and was 100% completely statisfied with the cabin we got. I favor Celebrity overall and especially in regard to how you are treated as a passenger, for all of the reasons you indicated in your comparison. It's just different from the moment you step on board a Celebrity ship. Plus, and this is a major plus, I love the Acqua Spa Cafe and the Acqua Spa pool.

Princess comes in a strong second due to price (feel like I can always afford a balcony cabin and a 10 day cruise) and their Caribbean itineraries.

Thanks again for your great comparison between the two lines.

[lobby]

Thanks for a good insite as to what I could expect from a Princess cruise,Having not long returned from our hawaii cruise on the Summit, you made me relive all the wonderful things we experienced on board.My friend is presently on the sun princess so we can compare cruises when she returns.

By reading your experiences of both ships I would sail Princess if we find an itinerary we wanted to do.

[The Mommy]

What a very informative review - thank you. We are waiting to go to Hawaii on Summit and have just booked Sun Princess for next year. We have sailed previously on Dawn and enjoyed our cruise but the Zenith last year was incedible hence our Summit booking.

It will be interesting to see of there has been any changes

Once again Thank you

[CrabbyHarper]

Wonderful review Amarillo! I've sailed on Summit and on Grand Princess (Sun princess' sister) and can relate to much of what you said. Let me just add that our Grand cruise was to the Med, and we took a Princess Land tour first. The land tour and all the shore excursions were absolutely excellent! The best I've had on any cruise. Your other comments were right on target.

 

Let me add that the vaunted mini-suites on Grand have a balcony that is completely exposed to the decks above, thus no shade and no privacy.

 

The thing I enjoyed the most on Grand was all the Brit passengers! We had a blast in the bars and trivia games!

 

I might consider another Princess cruise if the itinerary and price is right, but in the meantime have booked two X cruises.

 

Thanks for all the effort and clear thinking that it took you to write your post.

 

:)

[TeaBag]

Thank you so much for taking the time to do such an extensive review. We, too, have only sailed on Princess and Celebrity so it was good to see the comparison. We love the Aqua Spa cafe too, but unfortunately, I think it will not be on the Mercury when we sail next.

[Andy]

Hi Amarillo !

 

Thank you for your outstanding comments. We have sailed several times on Princess, but not in a few years. As Celebrity's Caribbean offerings are more disappointing each year, I am paying much attention as to what is going on at Princess, as they may become an option for us. Emerald Princess has some incredible 10 night Caribbean itineraries later this year, and we may wind up trying Princess again. Not that we particularly want to make the switch, but Celebrity is forcing us to look elsewhere. No matter what happens, Celebrity will always be #1 to us, but they might not get 100% of our business, as they do now.

 

We should know more about Celebrity's 2008/2009 Caribbean itineraries as early as tomorrow, and I am hoping we will be in for some good news. At the very least, a few new itineraries and ports would be a welcome surprise.

 

Again, thank you for your comments. It made me feel comfortable towards the possibility of looking at Princess again.

[Nancyquilts]

Thanks for the great report - we haven't been on either of those two ships yet, but have Summit booked for the Panama Canal in November. We like both lines, but booking depends on the itinerary and the price (and who has an aft cabin!). Thanks to you, I'm really looking forward to our Summit cruise. Nancy

[avalon1025]

We too notice on our Infinity cruise a few weeks ago, the overall maintenance of the ship was not up to par with Princess and HAL. Unvarnished railings, dirty pool area chair, worn carpets. I thought it was due to the Infinity going into dry dock in May (though certainly not an excuse). Sad to hear its on other ships in the Celebrity fleet as well. We just booked the Summit in Feb 08, and were looking forward to a ship in better repair than the Infinity.

[rebeccalouise]

i am surprised to hear about maintenance issues on Celebrity. The only area that I noticed it was in the bathrooms. There was mold here and there but overall my five cruises on Celebrity have been well maintained. I think the ships are in good shape. Some small mosaic tiles were missing by the pool on Constellation. Those are the only things I noticed.

[rebeccalouise]

Hi Amarillo !

 

Thank you for your outstanding comments. We have sailed several times on Princess, but not in a few years. As Celebrity's Caribbean offerings are more disappointing each year, I am paying much attention as to what is going on at Princess, as they may become an option for us. Emerald Princess has some incredible 10 night Caribbean itineraries later this year, and we may wind up trying Princess again. Not that we particularly want to make the switch, but Celebrity is forcing us to look elsewhere. No matter what happens, Celebrity will always be #1 to us, but they might not get 100% of our business, as they do now.

 

We should know more about Celebrity's 2008/2009 Caribbean itineraries as early as tomorrow, and I am hoping we will be in for some good news. At the very least, a few new itineraries and ports would be a welcome surprise.

 

Again, thank you for your comments. It made me feel comfortable towards the possibility of looking at Princess again.

 

I think it would be a good idea for people to write to Celebrity about this issue because I am sure that they don't want to loose business.

[spearmint]

Thank you, Amarillo for interesting information. We are only Celebrity customers, but, as Host Andy said, that may change. All of the positive notes that you mentioned are what keep us going back to Celebrity; the number of formal and informal nights were what took us there in the first place.:) Two things that we have always noted were the cleanliness/condition of the ships and the friendliness and competence of every staff person that we met, whether it be our own wait staff or others at lunch in the dining room, or cleaning staff around the ship,for example.

 

We had never thought of Princess before; we have been thinking of HAL, as a close second to Celebrity. Our reasoning has been mainly influenced in that regard from these boards.

 

Of late, I have been trying to find out from Celebrity via e-mail (for three months) the date that I might change my mind regarding a booking made already on board. Got an answer which asked for my booking number, but nothing further.:confused:

 

Wrote again when posters here indicated that there was a change in the On Board Credit system. I wanted to know if there will be a change in the credit amount when I change our itinerary (from 14-night Hawaii to 11-night Caribbean) due to the new system. I also re-asked about the last date to change our mind. Got an answer last week which said in order to make changes, we should deal with our TA, to whom we gave credit when we made our booking. I wrote back indicating that they should read my original question. Nothing so far. :cool:

They are irritating me, and I am ready after 7 years to make a change and try one of the other lines that people on these board have recommended. I have been hesitant because we really like the formal atmosphere for dining on Celebrity and do not want to be disappointed on some other lines; casual is just not for us.

 

Thanks again for an excellent comparison.

 

Bill

[Texed]

Best review I have read in a long time, thanks.

I like the waffles also. :cool: