Thomson Celebration Canary Island Cruise

well done thomsons you couldn't have ruined our new year festivities any better if you tried ,the drinks package was a rip off your staff couldn't get any more ice into the glass unless they crushed it even when asked no ice it still come with ice,lack off staff no seats,cold food.

New Year's Eve dinner consisted of two bits of beef cut with a razor blade spoon full of mash and two pieces of veg and to top it off it was cold and twenty five minutes between courses,the wine waiter was no where to be seen after the fist glass was served . a complete abysmal expirence.

This cruise should be renamed all inclusive with limitations because the exclusions were wide spread.

In fact I would say Ryan air on water would be an apt name because the next step will be a charge for sun beds,every time you moved they wanted to take your photograph.

The ship it's self was very clean, although we resented being served by the catering staff back at school came to mind . Novo virus was present although kept quite, the life boats were old very old and the safety dill a farce, the only good points was the cabin boys kept the cabins very clean and were always smiling

My family and I went on the Ottoman Treasures Cruise on Thomson Celebration from 16th August to 23rd August.

This Cruise was a catalogue of failures from start to finish that put passenger lives at risk. It made Faulty Towers a 5 star establishment. Our 2 major highlights of the trip were leaving the ship and arriving on UK soil were Thomson had no further part in our travel arrangements and could not put my family at any further risk.

Below are the failures:

1)Engine failure - meant 2 days in Marmaris port.

We also had an unplanned overnight stop in Istanbul,

although not confirmed, passengers believe it was part of the engine failure problems.

2)The best port calls were cancelled at short notice.

3)Loss of air conditioning with outside temperatures of 35C +

4)Flooding toilets

5)Power cuts. This scared us as the ship appeared to drift at sea with no control when they happened.

6)Thomson bus drivers on both the 2 hour airport transfers talked on their mobile phones whilst driving. We also watched the Thomson bus drivers talk on their mobile phones whilst driving on the excursions we did. How can Thomson say that they take passenger safety very seriously when they allow their bus drivers to talk on mobile phones! What a joke !

7) None of the staff\crew are permanent Thomson employees and they all follow very rigid processes. They cannot make decisions outside their processes. In times of need this is not good.

8) Life Jacket safety drill was done in the mid-morning sun in temperatures of 35C. It was very sad/distressing to watch an elderly lady collapse and taken away on a stretcher. This Life Jacket safety drill should be done at a cooler time! Shame on Thomson.

My family feared for our lives on this cruise when the power cuts happened and the bus drivers talked on their mobile phones whilst driving. It was such a relief when we where finally on UK soil in one piece.

Under the covers, these failures highlight a lack of investment in the ship and crews. If Thomson cannot make the investment they should consider giving this ship up as I fear there will be terrible disaster, soon. This is an accident waiting to happen!

Compensation - I have no chance unless I want a lengthy and costly legal bill. Thomson small print terms and conditions are very tight.

In summary, this experience has highlighted to me that Thomson are the Ryanair of the cruise industry - everything appears cheap with lots of basic optional extra charges that makes a very costly holiday in the end. Like my experiences with Ryanair it is very tough battle to get your money back when things go wrong.

I wish future cruise passengers luck on this ship.

The Thomson Celebration has had a refit in certain areas whch is a good impovemnet ie toilets, public areas. Food quality very good for a budget cruise company. Open dining at night, not tied to early or late sittings in main restaurant.

This ship has quite bad vibration like its sister ship the Spirit, even when in port. According to reliable sources this is an incurable problem. Evening entertainment tends to be a repeat of the same shows if you have ever travelled with Thomson before. Cans of beer and cider not included in drinks package (very expensive). Carpets fitted on staircases, very dark coloured, might be a bit dangerous when coming inside from the bright sunshine trying to see stairs.

All inclusive drinks package at £169 (average £24 per day) is good value (really). Wine is £2.95 a glass, cans of coke etc are £1.25 and cocktails £3.40 so you can soon get your money back without excessive drinking. Tours are not too expensive when booked on ship.

Overall we really enjoyed the Thomson Celebration cruise and found the general atmosphere to be quite relaxed. Entertainment was very good. Staff excellent. Would definitely go on this cruise again and look forward to researching other Thomson cruises. Some areas of the Ship were shabby.i.e. Lido Restaurant. Most of the trips were really expensive and not a lot of passengers booked them - preferring to make their own arrangements. The Rum & Sun trip was very good value for money and really enjoyable. However, those passengers who went on the Thomson trips really enjoyed them, perhaps next time we would book some trips. However, the flight to and from the Dominican Republic turned out to be a bad experience. Dont recommend anyone booking extra leg room seats as this caused a lot of hassle with some passengers who insisted on using the space as a walk-way through to the other aise. In one case it turned quite nasty.

We really did enjoy the shows and the drinks prices were good. We did not go in the pools. but lots of people did. We enjoyed our 1st ever cruise on Thomson Celebration .waiters and staff could not do enough for you. We mostly ate in the Meridian resturant and the food was excellence

First cruise ever with Thomson Celebration on Thompson Spirit July 2007. Loved it. 2nd on HAL Volendam June 2008. Dissapointed in this where it matters, ie friendliness of staff and quality of shows. 3rd cruise Christmas/New Year 2008/2009 Thompson Celebration. If you didn't enjoy this cruise it was your fault. There was plenty to do for everyone. If you want friendly,high standard service with more than a smile Thompson have got it .Feedback from other passengers re several other lines agree with these comments. Can't wait for the next one!

We have tried various cruises and always enjoyed them but this is the one I didn't want to end and am immediately looking to book with Canary Island Cruises again. 10.01.09

The Iberian Adventure Thomson Celebration cruise was superb value for money, and the staff were the friendliest staff I have come across on any cruise ship. Every meal we had was super and imaginative. This was out twelfth cruise and the best one yet.

The only complaint was that there was nothing to complain about. Everything was perfect, and we have booked again for September.

Thomsons handling was good in some ways, but sadly lacking in many others. I only found out about the virus on the last day when we were instructed that the ship had to be "specially cleaned by and outside team" and that we must leave the ship before noon.

This was our first cruise and it wasn't what I expected. I'm used to 4 star hotels, and this didn't meet those standards as far as I was concerned concerning food, but the accommodation was very good, although dirty water coming up the bath plughole every time someone else took a shower wasn't nice!

I wouldn't recommend it to a friend, but it wouldn't have been as bad if I hadn't missed 4 days due to illness - which I consider their fault.

The Canary Island Thomson Celebration Cruise is definitely worth the money. I went for my honeymoon, so I wanted something special. I wasn't disappointed. We had champagne and chocolate dipped strawberries on arrival to the cabin, and a lovely card from the staff. All in all, it was a fantastic holiday.