Crystal Symphony

Lisbon to Civitavecchia (Rome) May 13-21, 2025

May

Pros: All included, ultra-luxury cruise.

Cons: none

Recommended: No

Just back from an unforgettable 10/10 cruise on the stunning Crystal Symphony! Loved relaxing by the beautiful Seahorse Pool and enjoying incredible specialty dining at the Beef Bar and Chef Nobu’s Umi Uma.

Entertainment was fantastic with dancers, piano players, and a great band. Our Cruise Director, Vicki Van Tassel, kept us laughing and wowed us at the White Apparel Night Party.

Huge thanks to our amazing stateroom staff for their friendly, attentive service—including a welcome champagne basket and keeping my mini fridge stocked with ginger ale.

Everything ran smoothly—from vouchers and dining reservations to boarding. No lines, no stress. The computer lab staff were lifesavers with tech help.

Can’t wait to cruise with Crystal again!

Crystal from Lisbon to Rome

May

Pros: Service, Staff, Food, Rooms.

Cons: Could have had better bath amenities.

Recommended: Yes

This was my first cruise and my wife’s second. We were very impressed with Crystal overall. The ship is beautiful and the cabin was very well laid out. The most impressive thing to us was the staff and there level of attention to details and the fact that they all go out of there way to make sure you’re taken care of. A bunch of them get to know your name and what you drink and are making sure your cups never empty. Having a butler in every cabin is great, he’d make sure everything you needed was taken care of. The food on board was also very impressive. Uma Uma was outstanding and we ate there twice. The breakfast and lunch buffet was great with many choices and great quality. The main dining hall was also very good and changes their menu every day with some real good options. The ice cream bar and grill were also great. The pool and sun deck were good (wish the hot tub would have been warmer), and you could find a lounge chair in the sun or a chair in the shade (sea day was a bit crowded but not too bad. Fitness area was great for me ( almost no one was there) spa area to change was small but good with sauna and steam room wish they had an other jacuzzi there). There was plenty of excursions to choose from (Crystal doesn’t include any free ones) and we did them every day (next cruise we may have a couple of days where we just go and explore on our own.

Cruise of a Lifetime on Symphony from Singapore to Mumbai

March

Pros: Beautiful ship, amazing crew, sublime and delicious dining, an exotic, fascinating group of ports, and lovely sea day options

Cons: I would appreciate a more robust digital interface (app) for guests, especially while on the voyage. It would be nice to have an outdoor casual buffet option for dinner

Recommended: No

Luxury at Sea

October

Pros: All +++

Cons: None

Recommended: No

The Crystal Symphony is elegant, with warm colors and sophisticated accents. She has spacious public areas offering complete comfort in a spotlessly clean environment. Staterooms meet this same criteria with large bathrooms, and more than sufficient storage space ( many with walk in closets). It was wonderful to have true Butler Service and a more than comfortable King Bed. The Staff is delightful, warm and welcoming. The overall feel on the Ship was happy, this resonated with all, Passengers and Staff, throughout the 14 days of our Cruise. Every need was met with every request attended to with positiveness. All of the Restaurants offered Fresh flavorful food, with the Dining Room - Waterside, Specialty Dining - Taste of the Kitchen, Umi Uma, Osteria D' Ovidio offering delicious Cuisine. Entertainment was varied throughout the Ship, with easy listening Music in the Atrium, Soft Piano, Acoustic Guitar, Violin, to Ballroom Dance Music every evening in Palm Court or Starlight lounge before and after dinner, not to leave out Piano Playing and Singing in the Avenue Saloon. The Shows in the Galaxy Lounge showcased a multitude of Evening Entertainment by some of the best performers at Sea, Broadway and Elton John Covers, British Comedian, Classical Music Performers, British Talent Winners, every evening was a fun time had by all. Shore Excursions are well conceived for each destination with Professional and Experienced Guides and priced fairly. Crystal Cruises offers an Exceptional Experience at Sea.

Dover to Lisbon on Crystal Symphony 9.26.24

September

Pros: Organization was good, staff delightful

Cons: none

Recommended: No

12 Night Mediterranean Cruise

June

Pros:

Cons:

Recommended: No

NEAR PERFECT CRUISE EXPERIENCE! I LOVE CRYSTAL!

June

Pros: Programming, Entertainment, Amenities like pickleball, golf, computer learning lab, movie theater, Suite Design, personalized Butler Service, food

Cons: Wine program of featured wines needs improvement. Couldn't find a wine we liked. We missed having the casino onboard. Only one show at night meant lots of dead time between 7 pm and 9:45 pm. There was no musical entertainment between that time and without a casino, not much to do.

Recommended: No

The ship is sparkling new, rooms are a mix of those renovated in 2017 and 2022. The 2022 renovations proved superb. We stayed in an Aquamarine Suite and the room design is the best of any ship we've traveled aboard so far for a moderate-range suite. It offers two vanities for two people to get ready, a large bathroom with lots of drawers, space, double sink and large rain shower. The tuxedo-clad Butler service for all is cheerful, indulgent and guests feel spoiled. We loved the canapes and bottle of champagne delivered EVERY DAY unfailingly at happy hour! The programming and amenities are extensive and what I consider best in class. The stocked pickleball court has paddel & pickleball raquets & balls, golf driving range and golf lessons are excellent, the pool & jacuzzi are a nice size and plush cushioned lounge chairs are plentiful all over the deck space on the ship. The computer learning lab offers ipad, iphone and computer classes, movies in the movie theater, dance hosts offer dance lessons, there are art lessons and lectures, so there is always something interesting for active adults to do. Again, I consider the programming best in class. What was lacking was fitness programming. There were limited yoga classes scheduled and all WAY TOO EARLY for the vacationer. Who wants to get up at 6:30 on vacation to take a 7 am yoga class. Ship docked in port daily at 8:00 and for all going ashore, the timing was bad for many reasons. Guests complained there was no yoga instructor, person on board was untrained in yoga. The nightly entertainment was exceptional: the musical song&dance group were extremely talented, shows were clever themes with excellent professional costumes & choreography. CJ Martin (Elton John) was outstanding, The pianists were outstanding including Richard Wilson and the Piano Bar entertainer. The musical duo needs to go, they were embarrassing relative to the rest of entertainment. The sushi restaurant was outstanding. The Italian restaurant was good, and Tastes was a great concept but the menu never changed so we couldn't force ourselves to go again, despite loving the atmosphere. It is a tapas menu, so we tasted everything in the first go-around.

Older Jewel

May

Pros: Staff, restaurants. Overall size

Cons: Just a bit older

Recommended: Yes

Staff on the boat is great, attentive and friendly. Restaurants are all very good, especially the sushi restaurant. Bars are nice also, especially the avenue saloon. Good entertainment and musicians. Cruise director Vicky was the best. It’s a 29 year old ship so missing some amenities such as bathroom and bedside plugs(we had a ph suite). Showers were a little small and no poolside bar.

Crystal Symphony - April 13, 2024 - Roundtrip Athens

April

Pros: The staff goes above and beyond to please the guests and always have a smile!

Cons: While some Suites were open for viewing, unfortunately the two largest categories were not.

Recommended: No

The entertainment was quite varied and very enjoyable with a comedian, pianist, broadway-style performances, and various other performers. The food was quite good, however having a few additional entre options in the main dining room would have been nice. The excursions were good for the most part, however they are a bit pricey. The STAFF IS THE BEST!!

Crystal Symphony September 18 through September 26, 2023

September

Pros: Welcoming atmosphere, attention to detail, officers, genuine effort by all staff to make us feel special, ambience, cabin, main dining room, new "Tastes" dining, quality of food and wine all inclusive, nicely refurnished throughout, Catholic Mass as well as services for other denominations

Cons: Aurora Spa - bad experience

Recommended: Yes

We wish we had known more ahead of time about the "White Dress Party", which will be a part of every Crystal Cruise going forward. Although we perused the document "Before You Sail" twice, we didn't realize the white dress party was such a big deal, including the dining room and main area near the fountain and grand staircase being lavishly decorated in white. We would have brought white attire with us. After realizing we were suppose to dress in white attire that evening for the white dress party, we purchased white attire in a shop onboard. We thoroughly enjoyed listening to the band and dancing near the fountain and grand staircase along with the other guests dressed in white.

Cruise from Rome to Venice

September

Pros: Good itinerary, especially Santorini and stops in Croatia. The ship was lovely. The food was delicious and the service was wonderful.

Cons: The choice of excursions were only ok in some of the Greek Islands. Maybe a few more stops in Croatia?

Recommended: Yes

Unfortunately, one of our group of 6 came down with Covid on day 7 and several of our group came down with it shortly after. We were quarantined in our rooms until departure on Friday. Even those of us who tested negative and lived with someone who tested positive had to stay in the room. It really ruined our trip since we were not able to use the ship’s facilities or go ashore for the remainder of our trip. So most of us missed seeing Croatia and that was one of the main places we wanted to visit on this cruise. So not the best experience unfortunately.