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Crystal Serenity

Crystal Symphony

Ilulissat

I wish to provide my personal thoughts on a 8 day cruise. As for my background I am in my 70's with 20 cruises in the last 4 years 10 on 6 star lines Silver Sea, Seabourn and Oceana. First the pros for the Symphony  The ship is 25 years  old but in general well cared for but you would expect this from a 6star line charging premium prices.  No wow factor,  The food is very good, nicely presented  and a fine selection.  The crew are friendly and helpful. The small cabin was clean, the bedding was first class.  The TV was fine and the internet free and in general worked well.  Getting on and off the ship was fast and smooth. 

Now the cons.  My biggest complaint, and taken to the excursion director, was our trip to the Santa Barbara  wine country $239 each for a trip to three wine tasting rooms which you can buy at tasting room for $15 each.  No tour at any of these wineries only tasting a few wines and then back to the bus., This was a cruise excursion rip off. Now the most disturbing aspect of the excursion was the driver/ tour guide was driving down the freeway at 65mph in traffic talking to us on a hand held mic on one occasion using his cell phone. He was certainly distracted and one one occasion drifted off the lane and on to the shoulder very scary.  The other 25 guests fortunately could not see what was going on.  My wife insisted on telling the excursion director of this dangerous trip and of course the response  was, she very sorry and will look into it.. This guy the driver was violating the law putting people at risk and she is sorry.  Next the entertainment was ok but fell short of  other six star ships.  The public rooms in general featured worn out dated carpets and furniture and fixtures.  This is ok but not ok on at 6 star prices.  The liquors were top draw but the house wines were $10 to $12 and nothing special,  Bottom line cruise was ok but would not sail again with her.

Summary crystal symphony pacific coast Jan. 2020

We chose Crystal this time as it was the choice of my sister in law who had sailed with them before. Unfortunately she had not sailed with any other cruise line so thought they were fabulous without comparison.

We had a balcony cabin on Deck 8 and it was tiny. This was our first disappointment of the cruise. I am not sure how some of the larger passengers on the ship maneuvered themselves around the bathroom or managed to use the toilet as the bathroom was so small.

The decor on the ship is quite boring and uninviting in many areas and there is a lack of artwork around the ship. However there is plenty of space on the ship and you never feel crowded anywhere.

The boutiques on the ship were outrageously priced and lacked choice. What happened to passing on tax and duty free savings to the passengers?

The pool area should have been a hive of activity but there is no pool bar and this area was underutilised. Seabourn and Oceania do fabulous sail away parties with drinks and entertainment. Not so on Crystal! The weather was perfect and not a drink or band in sight.

The food was not fabulous and became very boring. The dining room needs a bigger menu and the market place at the back of the ship, usually one of our favourite places to eat on other ships was closed at night and replaced with a Brazilian restaurant that lacked variety. The Marketplace needs a wider range and themed offerings to relieve boredom. Yes, there are two speciality restaurants on board,but they are difficult to get into so don't rely on them as alternative choice. The Chinese was alright but not fabulous.

The enrichment program was excellent and we enjoyed the speakers very much.

We are not big on night time entertainment so I really can't comment on that area.

Tours were only average and could have been improved.

The staff were excellent and we could not fault their service and attitude at all.

They were friendly and efficient so we were very happy with this aspect of the cruise.

Would we sail with Crystal again? Probably not unless there was a great deal available as at this stage we do not believe value meets the current price point.

Huge Disappointment

Mykonos

The cruise was recommended by some of our friends who had taken it in the past.  We have sailed with Crystal 3 times before, but this time was truly a disappointment.  The Symphony is old, tired and worn.  The air conditioning could not keep up with the tremendous heat outside and consequently the common areas were warm, the dining room was warm and my cabin had an electric fan to try and cool the air.  It was very uncomfortable.  Everyone was complaining, not just a few guests.  The enrichment classes that Crystal is known for were almost non existent.  The exercise room is far from capable of serving a boat that size in a health conscious world.  The lack of updated outlets and electronic capability is a problem and requires you to have extension cords running through the room (plus the electric fan supplied by Crystal) and this must be against all fire codes especially on a boat.  The Piano Bar entertainment was boring.  The night entertainment was fair and there was actually nothing to do after dinner for folks who did not want to go to bed at 10 pm.  On Deck 8 the laundry room is too small and was so hot that besides the washers overflowing because they did not work properly, it took many trips there to be able to wash your clothes.  This was the first time I stayed on Deck 8 ( I was usually stay on Deck 9) so I am not sure if this is always a problem for those guests.

Besides the outstanding service and very good food, there was nothing about the cruise itself that would bring us back to Crystal to sail again, unless they make some real changes to the ship.  We went with two other couples and this was their first Crystal trip and they would also not travel with Crystal again.  What a shame.  I think the Crystal base and its fabulous reputation is about to change maybe as a result of the new owners.

Asia Cruise disappointment

The reason for our choice was that we had previously cruised on Symphony and had a very enjoyable time. This time  there were several cutbacks that were very obvious  such as no longer any fruit in the cabin, bare minimum of drinks there too and food quality mediocre. Entertainment problems with changes due to missed transport and under the wheather entertainers added to the general level of dissapointment. The provision of a look-ahead planner for activities which we found very useful on previous voyages was not provided.

 On the plus side serving and cabin staff were very attentive and extremely hard working and pleasant. The lectures were excellent and the three speakers we had on our segment were the highlight of our cruise. 

The finale to our overall disappointment however was an accounting problem that the ship customer relations staff were not immediately familiar with. On previous trips our contract with our agent had always included air to ship transfer and this was the reason why we have always had the travel arrangements included with the booking.  After some protracted discussion with the ships customer service however we were finally advised that this facility had been been changed and that air to ship transfer was no longer provided within the booking. Had we known this we would have arranged more convenient travel arrangements ourselves. This alteration had obviously to us been made without our agent's knowledge as the ship's office only advised us at the last minute of the ongoing dispute. We therefore had no say in the matter and the money was deducted without further discussion.

Definitely it has gone downhill as far as what is now been offered to guests.

Second time on Symphony and can't wait to get back.  First class service all the time, never a let up.

Great ports of call in Beijing and all over Japan.  They took the entire ship to Beijing for a three day, two night excursion, all part of the cruise fee, nothing additional.  On top of that, the accommodations and food were first class and the sightseeing just incredible.  We had an amazing tour guide the entire three days, Oscar on Bus #22, and his contributions were essential in making Beijing a memorable stop.

Japan is in full bloom with cherry blossoms so every stop was beautiful. All the stops were exciting.  The ship made the decision to miss a port to avoid possibly being stranded in the strait for a couple of days, courageous and correct decision and one that was well communicated to the entire ship.

We had one problem on an excursion and Crystal immediately refunded our cost to us.

Food was incredible.  Just cruised on Celebrity Solstice around New Zealand two months ago and they are about five levels below Crystal.  Nice having all inclusive cruising as well, even though we don't drink.

Nice to be on a smaller ship, much easier to navigate around the place and to get to know other guests.  Crystal did a good job filling up our "shared" dining table each night and we got to meet very nice people.

The compromise in a smaller ship is the entertainment.  While enthusiastic and well prepared, it is not to the level of quality we enjoyed on the Solstice sailing around New Zealand in February.  We attended most every one of them, and enjoyed them, but it is a compromise in the more intimate ship size. 

We loved the destinations, all were up to our expectations and Crystal really know how to treat a guest.  The staff are a complete cut above other cruise lines, a real distinction, and delightful to be around.

Wonderful time on the Symphony in China and Japan

Having cruised with Crystal before, we knew what was in store for us as we first cruised in 1995. The ship has aged graciously but there are tell tale signs after 22 years of tiring  which is to be expected. The Hull of the ship was the worst I have seen her. In years gone by, you would have had to strain your eyes to find any rust marks but alas the maintenance in this area seemed lacking. Yes there have been cuts in services since she was first launched. Just small things, probably most noticeable in the Dining room. It does not have the class and grace it once had. Sad but probably a sign of the times. Food portions are much smaller and the service is much more rushed. Not unlike a cafeteria in some respects. Having your plate taken away when not finished for example would never have happened in the past.

One thing that remains a standout are the staff. Good work guys and girls. A credit to you all.

The dress code has been allowed to slip. Once apon a time it would be unthinkable to wear a singlet around the ship let alone into the breakfast restaurant. If I wanted to see that I would have gone on a Princess Cruise! The occasional vibration that emanates from the stabilizers during certain sea conditions continue to permeate throughout the ship and has done for many years. Maybe at the upcoming dry dock in September this will be addressed finally.

Having said all of the above she is still a magnificent vessel and my wife and myself had a truly wonderful time on board.

Embarkation was the quickest I have ever experienced. In fact we were the only people there. 10mins and we were in our Cabin. As was the disembarkation. No complaints here. Our Cabin attendant was without peer. The entertainment to be honest was noticeably below par from previous experiences with a few notable exceptions. Activities were good as were a few of the Lecturers. Couldn't really fault the service. Only did one shore excursion. It was on the dune buggies. These were very old and not safe. That bad in fact, we received a 50% refund from Crystal. I am assuming that the person who was responsible for reconnaissance for this trip is no longer in the employ of Cruise Line.

Nothing much wrong with the Food but the sliding decline of authentic deserts is very evident despite their impeccable presentation. Breakfast was always of a high standard.The Trident deck food was excellent and casual as well as the ever effervescent attitude of the Ice cream Bar attendant.  The Palm Court without doubt has its own special aura which has to be experienced. Silk Road stands out above the rest for both its excellent service and Food.

At one stop the Ship allowed family members of some of the crew who obviously had not seen each other for a long period of time to come aboard. Seeing these families walking around the ship, impeccably dressed and with behaviour to match was wonderful to see.

Would my wife and I cruise Crystal again?  Absolutely.

Still up there

chose the tour for Bali and Singapore.  

The good news:  

The food was superb, our sommerlier Mladen and Maitre D' Mario made the general seating dining a delight.  The entertainment was a little old school but fun. The bars and nooks were great. It made us feel that we were frequenting our own little neighbourhood.

We stayed in Ubud in Bali doing our own touring with the Safest Driver in Bali's driver.  We loved our tour, our dinners, our experiences.  We enjoyed Komodo Island.  Brunei was a slice of life.  Malaysia had an interesting mountain tour. Singapore is dazzling and fun.

The bad: 

The ship boarding process was disappointing.  There was no-one at the car park to direct us and welcome us (We've done Oceania in the past and you were passed from one warm greeting to another).  Hence a bit of confusion finding our debarkation point.  It was a dodgy gangplank.

The ship's rooms are small (we had a balcony on the 9th floor just below the penthouse level) and had the whole ambience was 80s nostalgia. We understand at the end of this cruise the entire ship is in for refurbishing.

There were 2 designated sittings.  This created a sense of chaos of the first night - it wasn't dining, it was feeding.  We spoke with Mario and thereafter we ate between the two sittings and it was divine.  Our waitors and sommelier Mladen were relaxed and capable and we loved every meal and enjoyed a wonderful wine experience.

The gym is too small for classes - I worried that weights being used by individuals may be a threat to class members.

The port days needed work: Komodo island could have been tightened up; the snorkeling in the Philippines was dodgy and there were no flippers, the descent off the boat was hampered by lines that could have been unsafe, a lot of unhappy people, but the beach we ultimately ended up at was beautfiul; Rombon is a poor island - thought should be given to working with the community to organize an event that would benefit it and engage the visitors - something with the schools?; Brunei day tour dragged - 1/2 day was sufficient to see the main buildings and then perhaps an experience that deepened the appreciation of the museum.  singapore we did our own thing and had some amazing walking tours and experiences.

Ease at sea

My wife, Rosy and I chose this cruise as it guaranteed warm / hot weather and having traveled from Singapore to Hong Kong last year, experiencing cool weather as we moved north, we decided we were more bothered about the weather than the itinerary.

We booked a package through a UK TA, including club class flights on Emirates and hotels / transfers in Singapore and Bali. Emirates offer club class pax free luxury transfers to and from home to LHR and from Singapore to hotel and on return from cruise terminal to airport. We booked one night at the Marina Mandarin, in Singapore and two nights at the Conrad Bali. Our package included a club flight on KLM from Singapore to Bali and transfers.

After two nights at the very comfortable Conrad Bali, we were excited to be taking our first Crystal cruise. We took a 'blue' cab to the port, a journey of about 30 minutes costing about £6! This included a toll on the new access road and another to enter the port!

On arrival, porters took our luggage for a fee, to the official porters and we entered the terminal building. Check-in soon commenced albeit a tad chaotically and we were soon on board. We were advised that lunch was being served in the dining room, but instead we opted to sit in the sun on deck 11/12.  We were impressed by the pool deck, including decent sized pool and very large hot tub. We enjoyed some cool drinks before heading to the Lido Cafe for lunch. This was going to be a real challenge for me, as I had just been diagnosed with diabetes and had to eat and drink in 'moderation'. I was used to eating and drinking in liberation, on cruises.

Lunch offered a good selection, but this didn't change much during the cruise, so I was a bit limited in what I could eat on a sugar free diet. Never mind, rather unusually I hardly gained any weight, whereas I usually gain at least a pound a day!

The afternoon was spent unpacking, doing the laundry and on orientation. We didn't leave the port until the following morning, so the usual afternoon emergency drill took place just before departure.

We had booked dinner in Prego, which was excellent, but it meant we would miss our late seating dinner on a table for eight, not meeting our table-mates until the 2nd evening. Our table seemed to be the place they used for occasional diners, as it was rare for even 6 of us to be there. Two couldn't have liked us, as after two days they switched tables only to return 6 days later. Anyway the 6 of us regulars got on really well. There was a couple from Miami Beach and another English couple from Somerset, very close to our home in Dorset. Thousands of miles from home and we meet near neighbours.

Our waiter, from Poland, was a real misery, which was a huge disappointment. He kept recommending unsuitable dishes to me, despite several reminders of my medical condition.

We found the evening entertainment a bit mixed, but I was often in bed by 10.30, so wasn't up to much myself. We loved the violinist / pianist duo in the lobby.

The enrichment lectures were well attended and loved by Rosy. We both enjoyed the computer lessons and tips for I-phone / Ipad users.

I completed an online travel survey and was rewarded with unlimited internet, so my needs were sorted. We were able to Skype family around 8pm, when we guessed most people would either be preparing for dinner or eating it.

The dance lessons also seemed extremely popular and singles were well catered for with hosts of both sexes readily available.

There were several tender ports and this operation was managed very poorly, with long lines on the staircases, which could be very dangerous.

Disembarkation was a breeze, which was a relief after standing for 1-2 hours clearing immigration just to go shopping the previous day. Do Singapore want visitors?

Hot, hot, hot

chose this cruise for destinations and inclusive options, we were not disappointed with either, my wife  and I loved the ship staff, dining and itinerary, honestly can not fault the perfect cruise, magic castle at sea was such a treat as were the lectures, especially DR Laurence Blair, even on a sea day their were plenty of sunbeds to choose from and always a good conversation with mostly the nicest passengers we have had the pleasure to sail with, of course there's always going to be the odd exception, always a pleasure at the main restaurant, evening entertainment somewhat mixed, but loved the professional ballroom and Latin dancers  on board, my wife made the most of the excellent ambassador hosts, and since returning home we are both having private dance classes as a result, of course when tender ports are involved there are always going to be issues but nothing to be worried about, all our tours were enjoyable, and cabin comfortable,   we have since booked a cruise on the serenity. only negative is my wife usually has gym classes but deemed as previous passage mentioned area and size of gym not suitable, which is a shame. embarkation and  disembarkation was seamless.

First class crystal

Berlin

After reading so many positive CC reviews on the Crystal experience my wife and I decided to book a world cruise segment Shanghai to Japan nearly a year in advance.Expectations were running extremely high and remained so until a month before sailing until we were told that due to Chinese regulations a day had be shaved off of our stay in Shanghai.I contacted Crystal asking if they would pay for my independently arranged flights to be changed at there expense they agreed then revoked on there agreement, hence we now lost a day in this fantastic city, our first time visit, once on board the CEO asks for initial feedback, I fed this back seen by the Hotel Director who advised it was being looked into, it was offered to have the flight changes refunded, as the flights had not been changed suggested equivalent cruise credits and was told 23rd April 2016 this would not happen, in summary offer/refused, offer/refused, not what I expected from a premium luxury cruise brand.

Not onto the cruise experience, 

Embarkation was a breeze well handled and luggage in cabin prior to us arriving.

Cabin was tiny really tiny for a luxury ship difficult to access wardrobes as they were extremely close to one side of a bed, toiletries were extremely basic for a luxury cruise brand, it was keep clean apart from one evening we returned to the cabin with a service tray ( not ours ) stating "" DO NOT TOUCH "" on it , called housekeeping and they could/would not give reasons as to why!

Ship was beautiful kept really clean ( must have been as a result of the recent low CDC score ) and the public areas were generally good although showing signs of wear especially in the spa where there were stools with holes in etc.

Now onto the food, this was not really up to standard maybe we was just unlucky but in 14 days only had one reasonable meal at the beginning of the voyage .The tastes were bland, unseasoned and often was delivered luke warm, we were told that on world cruises they have to not season food as the average age of clients is much higher and they prefer bland basic food, as compensation I was offered chilli flakes and Tabasco sauce, nice touch.The Buffet and deck grill were probably the best food offerings on our cruise, we also tried Prego, Silk Road and Tastes as alternative dinning all just average.

The best aspect of the cruise were the staff, most appeared happy in there work and engaged with you and served well, some commented on cut backs since new ownership as when I asked for a Peronni or Moretti Italian beer was told used to offer but has been deleted due to it being a couple of cents more per bottle.

Excursions , not very well organised and extremely expensive, for example over $400 USD per person for a 3 hour one stop visit to a tea ceremony, bonsai museum .There seemed to be poor organisation in clearing immigration in ports visited sometimes waiting in line for over an hour.The overland 3 day tour to Bejing was excellent and well organised this was included in the cruise fare.

Whilst on the cruise Edie the CEO gave a lecture of the very ambitious expansion plans that she is heading up with the new owners, exciting as they are I couldn't help feeling that Crystal may be heading down the Renasance route.

On speaking with many loyal Crystal Cruise clients they were really up set as to how the standards are falling so very quickly, they remain loyal as to the offers they get on future cruises make it difficult to divorce Crystal, the main issue was the cost cutting along with the sub standard food offered, they all blamed the new parent company.

Would I book another Crystal Cruise ? No not unless there would be a guarantee of much better food , shore excursion and land base divisions keeping to there word.

I have taken over 55 cruises probably 10 on premium lines and I am really sorry to say my Crystal experience did not come any where remotely close to meeting expectations, I feel duty bound to post ( in my opinion ) my experiences as I would not wish other potential first time Crystal cruise clients to experience what I did.This review is not intended to offend but is actual findings as reported on the post cruise questionnaire and directly to Crystal.

No shine left with Crystal.

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