Reviews of Thomson Celebration Cruise Ship, Thomson Celebration, Thomson Cruises

I never fancied going on a...

Overall Rating:

9/10

Itinerary:

Mediteranian Renaisance

Date of Holiday:

Oct 2007

Tour Operator:

Thomson

Submitted By:

Mr R Anderson

Comments:

I never fancied going on a cruise, but my wife finally persuaded me. After the experience on the Celebration, I am now a self confessed convert! What a great time we had!



Even though our flight had been delayed from Edinburgh to Palma, having to put down in Paris with a cracked windscreen in the cockpit (slight technical problem according to the pilot!) and although we arrived in Palma about 2am Thomson's held the ship back for us and the crew were lined up on the quay ready for all 60 of us.



Absolute superb organisation and attention throughout the next week by Captain Leach and his very friendly crew. Cabin staff superb, food excellent and great entertainment. We were sat next to a couple one evening in the Meridian restaurant and the lady told us that it was her 17th cruise. She had been on all of Thomson's ships and she thought that the Celebration was the friendliest and the best, but also that they were all good.



The excursions can be a bit expensive, but then, just do your own thing as we did for a fraction of the cost. I am currently having a surf round for the next cruise, maybe to the Canaries but who knows. Well done Thomson.

We have just returned from our...

Overall Rating:

10/10

Itinerary:

Red Sea Magic

Date of Holiday:

Nov 2007

Tour Operator:

Thomson

Submitted By:

Mrs A Ward

Comments:

We have just returned from our first ever cruise and will be back next year!



From boarding till the day we disembarked we were not disappointed. The cabin and ship was spotless. The crew were wonderful and the entertainment team were fantastic.



You could do as much or as little as you chose. The food was good with plenty of variety.



Some of the excursions are long days but worth it. Cairo museum was a bit of a nightmare however (herded round like cattle). Also beware the souvenir sellers at the pyramids, don’t make eye contact!



On the whole though a fantastic holiday and looking forward to repeating the experience.

I loved everything about the...

Overall Rating:

10/10

Itinerary:

Thomson Celebration Cruise Ship

Date of Holiday:

Nov 2007

Tour Operator:

Thomson

Submitted By:

Miss M.S Fell

Comments:

I loved everything about the cruise! The waiters were the highlight, extremely nice people! They were very cute! They would do anything to make sure you were happy; it was an honour having them with us.



The cruise was absolutely spotless really clean! We were well looked after! Thank you to everyone who treated us like royalty and made our holiday!



The entertainment was amazing we enjoyed all of the shows! The food was brilliant, the chefs are really talented!

This was our first cruise and...

Overall Rating:

10/10

Itinerary:

Red Sea Cruise

Date of Holiday:

Nov 2007

Tour Operator:

Thomson

Submitted By:

marinajune

Comments:

This was our first cruise and one which we hope to repeat next year. When we got to the Celebration we boarded the ship in no time, very efficient of the staff and crew, and our cases arrived at our cabin within 30 minutes.



The cabin was bigger than expected with plenty of wardrobe and drawer space. Cabins are cleaned twice a day and at night sheets are turned down and a chocolate placed on your pillow. Thanks to Tiwan, our steward, who was excellent.



All the staff except the Captain and officers, and the Thomson staff, seem to be from the Philippines and a very friendly and hard working bunch they are. Cleaning seems to go on 24/7 and the ship is spotless.



We booked our trips and the tickets appeared underneath our cabin door as if by magic, along with the daily "Cruise News" letting you know what was going on around the ship each day.



We dined in the Lido restaurant for breakfast and lunch, self service with plenty to choose from, and the Meridian for dinner - waiter service and five courses, again plenty to choose from. We had booked all inclusive and paid the extra to include drinks and tips, although you still have to buy bottled water and wine.



There is a different show on at the Broadway lounge every night, very professional too, and there are quizzes on in Liberty’s bar where you can also dance the night away.



The trips are extremely well organised but buy your bottled water the evening before in the Broadway Lounge as the queues are long in the mornings. The guides are very informative and have a good sense of humour.



Take plenty of water, comfortable shoes, and a hat when going on trips. They are all about £70 a head but include lunches at five star hotels, transport, and entry fees. They take about 12 to 15 hours and are tiring but the welcome you get on returning to the ship is wonderful. Hot flannels, cold drinks, and the steward's band singing you home. They did a medley of 60's songs and it was a great party atmosphere while waiting to board the ship.



The Captain's cocktail party was great and you get your photograph taken with him as you go in. He's a very nice guy and very approachable, as with all the crew.



I would recommend this cruise to anyone and we are looking to go again with Thomsons next year but on a different itinerary.

My Husband my 13 year old son...

Overall Rating:

10/10

Itinerary:

Red Sea Magic

Date of Holiday:

Nov 2007

Tour Operator:

Thomson

Submitted By:

Mrs E Burton

Comments:

My Husband my 13 year old son and myself have just returned from a fantastic holiday on the cruise ship celebration to celebrate my 40th birthday.



Having never been on a cruise before I was worried that it may be a bit snobbish but was pleasantly surprised to find everybody relaxed and very casual and we felt comfortable after the first day.



We had a 4 berth cabin which was very comfortable and cleaned twice a day by a very friendly steward called Ray he was always friendly and on hand to help in anyway.



The excursions on this trip were fantastic and although we had reservations about travelling around Jordan and Egypt we were treated like V.I.Ps Travelling with Thomson we seemed to have priority over all other travel companies that were there.



We did as many excursions as possible and would highly recommend Petra and Luxor as the best, they did take longer to get to but worth it. Each morning as you disembarked you were given a picnic to take with you, although we had been for breakfast at the Lido restaurant anyway which was open 24hrs serving tasty freshly cooked food. The coaches were very comfortable and modern with air conditioning and toilets.



We were so pleased with this holiday that we are already discussing which cruise to do next unless we do this one again!

This was our first Cruise and I...

Overall Rating:

10/10

Itinerary:

Jewels of the Mediterranean

Date of Holiday:

Aug 2007

Tour Operator:

Thomson

Submitted By:

Mr RLJ Cross

Comments:

This was our first Cruise and I have to say it was excellent. The food, hospitality, accommodation, and entertainment was really first class.



I found all the ship’s crew really helpful and the whole experience was really great.



I found all the destinations wonderful, as I had not been to these ports before.



There was two main destinations which were of particular interest.



Firstly Pompeii - to visit these ruins nearly 2000 years to the day nearly that the volcano erupted was really something!



Secondly - Barcelona and the Montserrat Mountains are worth a special mention.

Really first class well done.



All the organised trips were well planned and I would recommend all of them.



If you haven’t been on a cruise before these 7 day trips are well worth trying out.



I would certainly go again.

This was the second trip on...

Overall Rating:

5/10

Itinerary:

Thomson Celebration Cruise Ship

Date of Holiday:

Oct 2007

Tour Operator:

Thomson

Submitted By:

Mr J Smith

Comments:

This was the second trip on the Celebration . Overall quite good , the only point I would raise is the trips being overpriced and did not represent value for money . For instance, the trip to the beach resort at Sharma Sheik , the ship price £44.00 per couple for the bus and entrance to the resort plus the use of a towel. Our own price, going it alone, was £14.00 taking our own towel.



There is no information forthcoming from the ship about the ability to undertake this on your own , for obvious reasons , so I would advise do your own thing , save money. Ask for port info from the destination services , it’s your money - spend it wisely.

From the moment we joined the...

Overall Rating:

5/10

Itinerary:

Piazzas & Pyramids

Date of Holiday:

Oct 2007

Tour Operator:

Thomson

Submitted By:

Mr R Ferguson

Comments:

From the moment we joined the ship which was very easy and took a matter of minutes it was great. The staff made it all so easy.



Our cabin was on the prom deck was spacious and comfortable Benny, our cabin steward was always there for whatever we needed, our beds were turned down each evening and a chocolate placed on our pillows.



The food was excellent we dined in the lido restaurant, which was self service twenty four hours.



We had a good view of every port we went to. The entertainment was first class,

our waitress Catherine kept us supplied with drinks during the shows.



The captain, made every effort to inform us of weather etc.



Many passengers we spoke to had cruised on all the Thompson’s ships and spoke of them and the crew in high regard.



However big disappointment on this cruise was when we sailed through the Suez Canal.



We left Alexandra at noon anchor off the canal at midnight for six hours, entered the canal at six in the morning our convoy sailed up to the first passing place stopped there amongst the flies for 6 hours watching the cargo boats go down to the med, then continued up the canal in at night, as many of the elderly passengers wanted to see special parts of the canal. We’re very disappointed.



If this was mentioned on the brochure that it would be sailing through the canal at night many of the passengers me included would not have booked this cruise.

This was our first cruise and...

Overall Rating:

9/10

Itinerary:

JEWEL OF THE MEDITERRANEAN

Date of Holiday:

Oct 2007

Tour Operator:

Thomson

Submitted By:

Mr L.J Booker

Comments:

This was our first cruise and what a holiday we had.



We could not fault the cruise, the cleanliness of the ship, the decor was marvellous, the staff was fantastic, and as for Captain (Master of the ship) Alan Leech, it was so relaxing having him in charge.



We found the safety drill was very reassuring.



The food was fantastic and served with the utmost courtesy and being able to sit anywhere and at any time in the restaurants was I believe a plus. The shows were amazing with a very talented group of artistes and the other entertainment was on a par.



We found that the choice of excursions were good however we declined from some.



The only thing from stopping us giving 10 / 10 was that smoking was allowed in part of the Liberties lounge and stopped us dancing and participating in the quizzes.



We were also very impressed with the organisation of everything for example the change over at Palma airport to the ship, the organisation involved with regard to the excursions and of course ship back to airport.

From the moment we joined the...

Overall Rating:

10/10

Itinerary:

Jewels of the Med

Date of Holiday:

Sep 2007

Tour Operator:

Portland Direct

Submitted By:

Mrs Marina Gooch

Comments:

From the moment we joined the ship which was very easy and took a matter of minutes it was great. The staff made it all so easy. Tamit, our cabin steward was always there for whatever we needed, our beds were turned down each evening and a chocolate placed on our pillows.



The food was excellent, we dined in the Meriden restaurant, which was waiter service, our waiters Essmer and Ely, plus our wine waiter Leonora were perfect, always there when needed but never intrusive. Our cabin on eagle deck was very spacious and comfortable.



We had a good view of every port we went to. The entertainment was first class especially Brenda Collins!! The captain, Alan Leach, made every effort to inform us of weather etc .



In hindsight, we would do many of the trips/tours on our own steam next time, Thomsons excursions were expensive and very rushed.



All in all 10 out of 10 - must get on a diet now, in preparation for our next holiday.

This was our first cruise, and...

Overall Rating:

10/10

Itinerary:

Meditteranean Renaissance & Jewels

Date of Holiday:

Sep 2007

Tour Operator:

Thomson

Submitted By:

Mr I Hunt

Comments:

This was our first cruise, and certainly will not be our last!



Everything was professionally handled from the start, the service was first class with the crew always happy to serve you, and always smiling.



The food was excellent, varied, whichever restaurant you decided to eat in. There was a self service facility at the back of the ship which was open 24 hours, but we preferred to dine in the Meridian Restaurant, and be waited on. Nothing was ever a bother to the staff, and there was always someone on hand to top up your glass with water and whatever you were drinking. In fact, they were so good; your drinks were sometimes poured before you sat down!



On arrival, you were given a boarding card which also acted as your 'credit card' for anything booked or used on ship. You gave your actual credit card details on arrival, and anything charged was put on this account in Pounds Sterling. You could ask for a bill at any time, and were automatically given one at the end of the first week on a two week cruise. You could make payments off your card at any time.



The tours were well organised, but I would probably do more research on the ports next time to see if we could go alone. Most ports offered a bus service (sometimes free) into the nearest town, but the tour operator obviously did not make this too well known.



The rooms were clean and tidy, with a steward always just around the corner. You never seemed to see them go into your room, but even if you were only away for a short time, it was always made up when you returned.



There was plenty of different entertainment of all types around ship to suit everyone's needs, along with plenty of quiet areas if this is what you preferred. The nightly act by the Thomson Entertainment Team was one of the most professional acts I have ever seen, and it did not stop here, as they were involved in other activities throughout the day.



On the first night, leaving Palma at 11.30 at night was breathtaking, and the entertainment went on outside until well into the next morning.



The motion of the ship at night was quite relaxing but, surprisingly, I did hear some people complain about the movement. Perhaps they forgot they were actually on a ship!



On your last night, you have to put your cases outside your room before you go to sleep, as it is a massive task for the crew to take your bags off in the morning, bearing in mind that most flights leave before lunchtime. All this takes is a little planning on your behalf beforehand.



Anyway, well done to Thomson for the service offered, it was well worth paying the extra to have our best holiday ever in over 25 years of travelling abroad. Perhaps they could now look at getting a similar service into their mainland hotels.

This was not what I expected...

Overall Rating:

3/10

Itinerary:

Mediterranean Renaissance

Date of Holiday:

Jun 2007

Tour Operator:

Thomson

Submitted By:

Mrs A Warren

Comments:

This was not what I expected from a cruise!



Silly me! I was expecting comfortable accommodation, quality food and entertainment, and the chance to visit a variety of interesting places. What I got was a week in a past its best floating holiday camp and insomnia!



The ship is certainly showing her age - evident with the disconcerting vibrations and the continual clanging noises in the fabric of the ship next to our cabin when at sea which meant sleep was virtually impossible unless you stuffed tissue in your ears!



Complaints on board ship took 3 days to get a management response which was a pathetic written apology and passing the buck back to the UK. We were particularly annoyed as we had paid a substantial supplement to upgrade to a higher deck. The staff on board admitted there was a noise problem on the ship which was nothing to do with engines, etc affecting one side of the ship.



I can only assume that those passengers who have rated the ship highly were on the quiet side of the ship, have, less than good hearing or didn't worry about having a decent night’s sleep. We were certainly not the only ones complaining at the time!



Although the excursions were well planned they were disappointing as we could hardly keep awake during the day - one couple we met did not go on any excursions as they were having to sleep during the day when the ship was in port as the noise at night was so disturbing!



Back in the UK we took this up with Thomson who have tried to fob us off without even listening to the evidence we collected. We are now taking the matter to ABTA.



Not to mention the holiday camp entertainment, out of date films in the cinema and toilets in the public area almost constantly being out of order.



The only reason not to give this cruise a 0 was because of the waiting staff and stewards who seemed to understand customer services better than the ship's management and customer services in the UK.



Not only will I not be going on a Thomson Cruise again I will not be using Thomson for any future holidays.

My wife and I did the Red Sea...

Overall Rating:

3/10

Itinerary:

Thomson Celebration Cruise Ship

Date of Holiday:

Apr 2007

Tour Operator:

Thomson

Submitted By:

Mr W Karran

Comments:

My wife and I did the Red Sea Magic on the Thomson Celebration Cruise Ship 30th Nov 2006 returning 7th Dec being frequent cruisers, this was the first time on the Celebration. The whole experience was fantastic, loved every bit of it. Loved it so much, we immediately on return home, book for the Portraits of the Past, for 26th April and let me say at this point, we both love doing the tours as that is the main part of these holidays for us. Cost of this was £1988.00 with added tours £320.25.



The itinerary for this cruise: Board ship at Sharm onto Alexandria, from there onto Bengazi Libya, then onto Naples, finishing at Barcelona Spain. Our tours, Sharm glass bottom boat, Bengazi Greek and Roman Alexandria, Naples, Pompeii, Barcelona, City Highlight bus tour plus 4 hours shopping in Barcelona.



This trip was our worst ever, as all our tours where cut in half, accept for Barcelona, that was cancelled all together. At this point I want to say, the Captain was on a different ship to us, I say this because of the reasons he gave HEAD OFFICE for all the delays bared no resemblance to the truth.



I start with after leaving Sharm el Sheik, on the evening of 27 April, we sailed for the Suez Canal. We did not arrive until nearly midday for excursions that should have started at 0700

(A full day in Cairo, A bus trip at 3½ hours each way, 1 hour for lunch), how could this be done when the ship HAD TO SAIL at 2230 hours? Not a lot of time to see, Pyramids, Sphinx, Museum, and site ETC. We had chosen the 4 hour excursion to Alex, then lunch, and then the afternoon to visit the markets ETC on our own. From the time the ship docked, this was not going to be possible, we lost an hour from our excursion and never got to the markets,



We then set sail for Libya with the promise of a 4½ hour tour to a wonderful newly discovered ancient Roman site in Bengazi, Ancient Ptolemais. Every member of this tour complained to the representative, who was on the tour with us. He was also totally disgusted at what was being offered. The £31 each, was reduced to £25, BUT £25 to go on a 1½ hour coach ride each way, through the dirtiest place on earth, RUBBISH strewn everywhere you looked, was still too much to visit a pile of old stones, this is not a well excavated site prepared for visitors. The Museum is an insult to the word, a very small shed with two rooms of nothing worth looking at, disgusting toilets that did not flush. Then a half hours walk through the roughest country terrain with farm animals wandering about, having to watch you did not step in the DUNG that was all over the place. It was so bad, some of the older members turned back to the coach, therefore seeing NOTHING for their money.



Our next port of call Naples for a full day, this was to be the highlight of the cruise for my wife, she has always want to go see Pompeii. A 3½ hour trip was paid for, but due once again to a late arrival this was reduced to 2 hours. Docked at 10am, got on the coach by 10.30, departed at 11am. Our trip was terminated at 12.45pm, as the coach was required for another trip in the afternoon, an afternoon that we had to spend on-board.



Our last port of call Barcelona was to be a 4 hour site-seeing trip, at a cost of £29 each, 9.30am to 1.30pm with the afternoon free for sightseeing, this time was altered during the journey twice

finally being 8am, until 12 noon, lunch till 12.45 and no afternoon free for site-seeing, as we had to be on the coach to go to the hotel in Salou. So that the ship could be in dry dock at its allotted time.



When we asked about our all-inclusive being available at the hotel, we were told, NO IT WASN’T, but we would be given vouchers for two drinks each. My wife and I got up at 6.30am to get ready and have breakfast and went down to disembark at 7.40am as we were told to be at the coach by 7 50am. There had been NO ANNOUNCEMENTS MADE at this time about our leaving the ship. We were prevented from leaving by the staff and told to wait for the announcement as only those departing going to hotels were being allowed off at this time. At 8.10am we enquired again as to being allowed off and this time we were told you are too late the coaches have left, but yet again there had been NO ANNOUNCEMENTS MADE! We went to the reception desk and were told that as we were late we WOULD NOT get a refund and a lady in front of us had her ticket torn up by staff! My wife would not have any of this and at this time refused to give our tickets in, UNTIL THE COST IN FULL had been taken from our bill. This caused a very heated argument between your staff and my wife but it was eventually sorted and a refund given.



There had been a meeting with senior staff and passengers to discuss the way we had been treated and the passengers were called a MOB. We did not believe this trip actually went ahead, or if in fact any passengers got on the coaches! We stopped on board until 12.05 when we where told to go to the coach to be transferred to the hotel, where we sat until it was time to depart for the airport.



This cruise had taken place for one purpose only, to get the ship into drydock in Spain, this fact was never mentioned in the itinerary at all. Had I known, I would not have been on it.

My daughter and I cruised on...

Overall Rating:

10/10

Itinerary:

Thomson Celebration Cruise Ship

Date of Holiday:

Sep 2007

Tour Operator:

Travelcare

Submitted By:

Mrs C&F McManus

Comments:

My daughter and I cruised on this ship a month ago and found it to be excellent, the crew are so polite and helpful, and nothing is too much bother.



The food was plentiful, the Lido and Meridian restaurant waiters got to know your wishes and needs extremely quickly.



The ship’s Captain was always on the tannoy advising the passengers what was happening at least twice a day and pleasant when met anywhere on the ship obviously a peoples person, he should be more than proud of his crew and the relaxed happy atmosphere on board.



The cabin was larger than we expected and immaculately clean despite this ship being aged for a cruise ship.



Many passengers we spoke to had cruised on all the Thompsons ships and spoke of them and all the crew in high regard.



We will be back next year, only sad point being the Celebration is not down the Mediterranean.

Seventh cruise my wife and I...

Overall Rating:

9/10

Itinerary:

Roman Epic/ Moorish delights

Date of Holiday:

Sep 2007

Tour Operator:

Thomson

Submitted By:

Mr J Stewart

Comments:

Seventh cruise my wife and I have been on and quite simply the friendliest crew ever, right from Captain Leech down to the waiters, the cabin people, chefs and everyone we met.



The entertainment was superb and such a variety to choose from. A fantastic entertainments team and cruise director.



The atmosphere onboard was pitched perfectly to suit the passenger’s needs and the food was also excellent.



One and only minus was that the bars were a bit cold, but that was a tiny drawback to what was a fantastic holiday, and I am right now in the process of looking for a further week as soon as possible.