Pros/Cons Princess vs. Celebrity and RCCL

[Umbarger]

I was also debating over the one way Alaska cruise w/Glacier Bay and the round trip Seattle. We would prefer the one way but the one way airfare between ANC/YVR was a deal breaker for us. So expensive. So, we decided on the Golden. This will probably not be our only Alaska cruise. So, we'll see Glacier Bay another time. :D

[MSN-Travelers]

Goofynewfymom

 

Stephanie, Asking others to compare/contrast cruise lines is like asking others to tell you what kind of chili you will like. Individual tastes will taint their individual opinions and ultimately my opinion may not match your taste.

 

We stay with Princess for a couple reasons, the flexible anytime dining being the foremost. We like the fresh water pools, quality of service from the staff and the passenger demographic. (Hairy chest contests poolside and drunks with cut-off jeans, tank tops and backwards baseball caps in the dining room do not impress us).

 

I would think that an Alaskan cruise will likely be a once-in-a-lifetime trip for your family. I would focus on the itinerary over the cruise line. You can expect that your experience aboard a Princess cruise will fall somewhere between those you have already had with RCCL and Celebrity

 

Enjoy!

[coo359a2]

Hi! My family, all active individuals ages 60 (hubby), Mom/Grandma (not allowed to tell age or she's writing me out of the will but 70ish!), son 21, daughter 19, and me, 52. We are planning a cruise to AK to celebrate son's graduation from college and acceptance into law school and haven't cruised in 4 years. (for those of you who have kids in college, you know why!) Our last cruises were on Celebrity, mostly and a few on RCCL. We liked Celebrity for it's excellent food, and RCCL for the ships size and all the different things there were to do. I have heard good things about Princess, and the ships we are looking at are Golden Princess and Star Princess. I would be soooo appreciative of any input you all could give me as to how Princess compares to Celebrity and RCCL. I love the idea of being able to eat at the time you would like, as we are off on shore excursions daily...I believe thats something that can only be found on Princess. Anyway, thank you so much!

 

Stephanie

 

Hi Stephanie

Don't know if you've booked yet. There are two threads on the Golden Dry Dock and changes made. We spent 33 days on her 2 years ago going around South America and enjoyed being on the ship. We are booked on the Golden going to Hawaii in Dec and looking forward to seeing all the changes from the dry dock. I'm partial to Princess - food, itieneraires, fresh water pools, anytime dining and even like the cabins. We had an inside on our Alaska cruise on the Sun Princess. Had plenty of outside time on the decks and way to cold for me to have a balcony to sit on.

[Merc85]

For now thanks I'll take the coast of Maine, Portland, Bar Harbor and the beautiful seaside cities in Canada including Halifax and St. John..

While I really don't have any axe to grind one way or the other, I find it odd that you can say this when you've never been to Alaska and therefore can't really compare the two.

 

To the OP, having been on all three a number of times, we find each ship and each itinerary has it's own unique pros and cons. We've seen bigger differences in what we've really liked more based upon the specific ship/trip rather than upon which of the three major lines you asked about. In any case, we now pick our cruise mainly based upon the best itinerary rather than whether it is Princess, RCCL, or Celebrity.

P.S. If it matters to you, Celebrity does not allow smoking on their balconies now while Princess and RCCL do, so I guess that could make a difference if you either smoke or don't like the potential of other room's smoke when you are on your balcony.

[Cruisin' Chick]

The self-service laundries are a major factor for our family staying with Princess. My hubby wants to take as few pieces of luggage as possible, and he actually helps a great deal when we do our laundry onboard.

 

My only experience with Celebrity is only a short one -- a tour with lunch on the Summit. I'm not a foodie so I wasn't wowed by the meal.

[NH Cruisers]

THERE IS NO WAY IN HELL THAT I WOULD WANT TO GO WHERE THERE ARE ICEBERGS AND I NEED A JACKET!!!

My Grandmother in Maine said the same thing when we told her we were going to Alaska. It is understandable with the last few winters we have had out here. But I am so looking forward to Alaska myself.

 

I was told on an Alaska itinerary Princess is the way to go. Supposedly they are the most experienced at it. You can sail small ship or the largest ships to go there.

 

I love RCCL but I picked Princess for Alaska because I love the biggest ships. Their impeccable service too.

[jmhlaw]

We've cruised all three several times. The biggest difference, by far, is the number of children and young adults. Celebrity is adult cruising and IMHO a little more upscale than the others. RCCL is clearly geared toward family cruising and action, but less upscale. Princess is a happy medium. You can't go wrong with any of them but for the ages in your party I would pick Princess, RCCL, then Celebrity in that order. Having said that, when it's just the two of us we usually opt for Celebrity. Of course, if there is one itinerary or deal that jumps out at you then go for it because they are all nice.

[usmprez]

I'm assuming you want to do an Alaska cruise in 2009, because the Star Princess won't be in Alaska in 2010. I have done one-way Alaska cruises on Princess and Holland America, and will do a roundtrip cruise on the Golden Princess in 2.5 weeks. For a first-time visit to Alaska, there are better itineraries than Princess's out of Seattle. I think Holland America has the best roundtrips out of Vancouver and Seattle, and I would take a look at those.

 

Gosh, I hope you're wrong because my family and I are booked on the Star Princess to Alaska in June 2009 (five weeks time).

[usmprez]

Gosh, I hope you're wrong because my family and I are booked on the Star Princess to Alaska in June 2009 (five weeks time).

 

Sorry Nancy, I just reread the post and saw my error.

[NancyIL]

 

I was told on an Alaska itinerary Princess is the way to go. Supposedly they are the most experienced at it. You can sail small ship or the largest ships to go there.

 

I love RCCL but I picked Princess for Alaska because I love the biggest ships. Their impeccable service too.

 

You're right about itinerary being important in Alaska. However, Princess's roundtrip itineraries in 2009 aren't the best - going to Tracy Arm Fjord rather than to Glacier Bay or Hubbard Glacier. Princess's one-way itineraries are excellent, and I like the option in 2010 of going to Glacier Bay AND Hubbard Glacier on the southbound cruises. The Golden Princess will go to Glacier Bay on alternate weeks in 2010, and the Sea Princess from San Francisco will also go to Glacier Bay.

[dclark]

As it turns out I don't prefer cruising the Caribbean, but either Bermuda or trans-atlantic from Europe.. THERE IS NO WAY IN HELL THAT I WOULD WANT TO GO WHERE THERE ARE ICEBERGS AND I NEED A JACKET!!! .

 

I can totally relate as i have said the same for years. However, when Princess was blowing out inside rooms last Jan for under $900 for two from Seattle, I jumped on it.

[dclark]

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