Celebrity Cruises: Is concierge class worth it?

A Celebrity Cruises concierge class balcony room

One of the most frequently asked questions is: Is it worth it to book a concierge class cabin on a Celebrity Cruises ship?

The short answer from people who've booked a concierge cabin is usually: No, it's not worth it. But if you can afford to pay a little more, it's definitely worth it to sail in the next class up, which is Aqua.

On my last cruise, I sailed concierge, and I wanted to share exactly what you'll get in this class.

PLEASE NOTE: The information here is from a 2019 cruise.


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We embarked fairly quickly thanks to receiving priority embarkation for concierge guests. But the general lineup wasn't long and I think we might have boarded quickly anyway in the regular lineup.

This photo above was our cabin on the Celebrity Eclipse, travelling round-trip from Vancouver to Alaska in July 2019. In concierge, you will get a cabin that's in a more desirable part of the ship.

And here's what you'll get in a concierge cabin.


Concierge class amenities on a Celebrity Cruises ship

Pillow choices on Celebrity Cruises concierge class


My husband and I had Select Dining (anytime dining), and it was lovely having a separate concierge lineup at supper time. In the room, the binoculars aren't good so if that's important to you, bring your own.

Once on the ship on embarkation day, we made our way to the main dining room where we had a lunch that was served just to concierge guests. This was a nice benefit, as the buffet is often kind of a zoo on the first day.

This was the menu:


The special menu for Celebrity Cruises concierge class on embarkation day


Celebrity Cruises Moroccan Braised Shortribs for concierge class
I had the delicious Moroccan Braised Short Ribs as my main ...

Celebrity Cruises concierge class warm apple pie
... and the Warm Apple Pie for dessert.

I'd heard that the Daily Delectable Delights that are served to the cabin every day between 2 p.m. and 3 p.m. aren't very good and sadly, I also found that to be the case. Next time, I'll just ask for cheese and crackers as a replacement.

Here are photos of the canapes we got. I think we missed a day because we were in a port.

Celebrity Cruises concierge class canape


Celebrity Cruises concierge class canape

Celebrity Cruises concierge class canapes

Celebrity Cruises concierge class afternoon canape

Celebrity Cruises concierge class canape example

Celebrity Cruises concierge class canape sample


In concierge, you'll also get special invitations such as these ones. We were also able to see the sailaway from Vancouver from the helipad.
Celebrity Cruises concierge class galley tour

Here's a tip, though. You don't need to wait for an invitation to the helipad to get a great view. There is a deck, complete with always empty chaise loungers, that is only accessible through the gym that actually overlooks the helipad. (See? There is a benefit to hitting that gym daily as hubby and I did while on the cruise!) This was our view as we sailed into Ketchikan.

Celebrity Cruises concierge class helipad


In concierge, you'll get a bottle of wine that you can request when it's convenient for you. We just took ours home.
Celebrity Cruises concierge class wine

Finally, I believe you get an upgraded breakfast room service menu in concierge. I think this menu is upgraded but please let me know if I'm wrong.

Celebrity Cruises concierge class room service menu

Celebrity Cruises concierge class menu

Celebrity Cruises concierge class room service menu

Celebrity Cruises concierge class drinks


Moving forward, I probably wouldn't sail concierge class again unless I got a great price. One thing to keep in mind, however, is that if you are trying to get to the next level in Celebrity Cruises' Captain's Club loyalty program, sailing concierge is a great way to do it. You'll accrue points at the rate of 5/night compared with the 2 points/night in an inside or oceanview cabin, and 3 points/night in a regular veranda.

Otherwise, I just don't think it's worth it the extra money for the few perks you get in concierge class.


>> Have a question? Post it in the comments and I'll do my best to find the answer.


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MORE: How to get from Vancouver airport to the cruise ship dock
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MORE: See a list of hotels in Richmond near the airport


Find more travel inspiration on my Instagram, @JuanitaNg.


ALL PHOTOS ©JUANITA NG





29 comments

  1. Thanks Juanita. It's great to get a personal opinion from some one who'experienced it. I think in my circumstances it might be worth trying out for the ease of disembarkation (I agree probly not worth it for embarkation but hey). Also only small markup on price over our usual balcony cabin (<6% of cost).

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    1. If you're curious about concierge class, it's definitely worth checking out once. Thanks for your comment and here's hoping we can cruise again soon!

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  2. Thank you for the great info. Getting ready to book for 08/2021

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    1. I'm glad you found this helpful. I'm so ready to start sailing again!

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  3. Thank you this is an awesome summary!

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    1. Thanks for your comment! I'm happy you found the information useful.

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  4. Thank you for this insight which is exactly what was needed to decide and so thorough!
    We are going to do this class because the increase in price was not significantly more so it seems worth the difference.

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    Replies
    1. I'm glad you found this useful. It's worth checking to see whether there have been any changes to this class as the info here is from a 2019 cruise.

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  5. Thank you for this insight, appreciated the honesty. We will be sailing with Soltice in March 2023 in a deluxe veranda. Nearly went Concierge class, glad we didn't now.

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    1. I'm glad you found this info useful. Enjoy your cruise!

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  6. We've sailed both Concierge and Aqua Class and prefer Concierge. We don't use the spa services, and the Aqua Class specialty restaurant has very limited menu vs the regular and specialty dinning options. You can't go wrong with either choice, it all comes down to personal choice.

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    1. Very true. It depends on the price that you're paying as well. Thanks for your comment and happy cruising.

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  7. Our Celebrity West Coast March 2022 was just cancelled, I have cruised a lot but my first time with Celebrity so was very disappointed. In the email they allowed us to do like a direct swap if we changed it to Sept or October of 2022. I took a look at the website and decided on early October and somehow find another aft facing (wake view) cabin and there was a huge discount on the cruise, my travel agent said I will be getting a refund of just over $1000! I had quickly called the travel agent and had them book it asap I wasn't about to lose it..lol. But imagine my surprise when I got the invoice that stated this cabin is also Concierge class! I decided to do some research on Concierge class and came upon this post and felt compelled to write back, so thank you so much for the info, I am even more excited now! Sometimes the cruise deal fairies are with you:-)

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  8. I'm glad you found this post useful and I'm SO happy for your awesome deal. Yes, sometimes the cruise deal gods do smile favorably upon us, so definitely savor it.

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  9. Thank you so much for this. Our Mediterranean cruise in June has just been 'shuffled' and we have been trying to decide if it's worth it to 'upgrade' to concierge.

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  10. Thank you so much for this post, Juanita. Our Mediterrean cruise in June 2022 has just been 'shuffled' and we have been debating whether to 'upgrade' to Concierge from Veranda. We will stay put. Quick question - is port debarkation fairly quick in Veranda?

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    1. I'm happy you found this info useful. I'd probably stay put also unless I found a super deal on Concierge. I've found port debarkation to usually be fairly quick because the cruise lines are so efficient, but I haven't found that Veranda is any quicker. Have a great cruise!

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  11. Taking my girls on a cruise in May and thought this would be special!

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  12. Hi There, We are booked on concierge for a mediterrean cruise. Do you think the cruise based shore excursions are worth the premium? Thanks in advance!

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    1. There are pros and cons to both ways of doing it and I'm always somewhere in the middle. I mean, I always feel safer taking a cruise excursion because I know they'll wait if we're late. But they cost SO MUCH more, and is it worth it? I've also noticed that non cruise excursions sometimes include stops at gift shops where there is heavy encouragement to buy. I'm not sure I've ever encountered the same kind of pressure on cruise excursions. This irritation aside, I guess in the end it reallly depends on your risk tolerance. I'm a little paranoid about time constraints so I tend to just feel safer taking cruise excursions.

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  13. Great review of your experiences with Celebrity Concierge. Had been trying to find something more substantial about the upgraded staterooms, because so little is
    available at the Celebrity website. Good information on the room, services, food, menu' etc. Very, very helpful, Juanita. It will definitely help me (and probably others) with future Celebrity cruise planning. Thanks for the scoop!

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    1. I'm so glad you found this post helpful. Just a reminder that the info is from my concierge cruise in 2019; however, from what I've read on my various cruise groups, I believe the info is still all the same. Happy sailing!

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  14. We are Brits about to take the Alaskan Cruise as part of a trip to Canada for my 70th. Hubby booked the whole trip in secret and has just revealed that we are Concierge Class so your info was very useful. We have never been on a cruise so don’t know what to expect. Hubby is a yachtsman so he’s a bit anti cruise - I’m hoping he enjoys it!

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    1. Well, happy about-to-be-70, and I'm glad you found your way to my blog. Your husband sounds like a keeper! If you've never cruised before, I think you hit the jackpot by booking with Celebrity as in my opinion, it's the best line to sail with. You're going to love cruising, especially if you enjoy not having to lift a finger. Have the best time!

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  15. About to go concierge

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  16. HI Juanita will they substitute the cheese and crackers for the reg canapes and if their are 2 ppl in a room does each person get a tray?

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    1. Hello! We didn't ask for the switch but I believe they will make that substitution for you. The photos I showed on this post are what they served us for two people.

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  17. I forgot will they give us a kettle for tea?

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