Luminae - lunch

I am just recently off the Solstice and will write more about that and overall Luminae experience later. The one thing that I was very disappointed in was to find out we would not be having lunch at all in Luminae despite all the previous advertising and marketing saying we would. We even had literature in our cabin welcoming us and to enjoy having breakfast, lunch and dinner in Luminae.

So today i checked their website and now they have a caveat under "Insider Tips" which states

Hours and meals served vary by itinerary.

On sea days, open for brunch (11AM–1PM) and dinner.

On port days, open for breakfast and dinner.

Open for lunch at ship's discretion, depending on early or late port arrivals and departures. See daily program.

Not sure when they added this, but it was definitely not there when I booked. I know because I just checked on wayback machine. We had six port days, all of which were either full days or overnighters.

Not happy :( I cant help but feel we didn't get what we paid for.

It *is* disappointing but in all reality I sincerely doubt in OUR case we would have eaten there three meals as we tend to just do a quick salad or just a half sandwich (not both) in the middle of the day. Or we sleep in a bit and just have a glass of juice or a Diet Coke and wait for lunch.

However, it would have been nice to have the decision to either skip breakfast (or just have a glass of juice) or skip lunch.

Wonder if there'll be any changes or modifications by November when our cruise happens.

At least there's still Blu.

Ridiculous to add the restaurant then advertise its serving 3 meals then not do it. Not sure what Celebrity is trying to do here, upset as many people as they can.

They had to spend a lot of money to create and put in the new restaurant. What is the ultimate goal? When I first read about the whole concept I thought the reason to add Luminae was to get more people wanting a suite, enhance the suite experience and to drive up suite prices.

Now I am puzzled of what Celebrity's intensions/plans are.

He whole roll out really seemed disorganized and not well planned out.

Ant thoughts I was having about getting a suite are gone after reading about passenger experiences.

Disappointing that they aren't delivering what they advertised. On the other hand we never eat lunch or breakfast the MDR and only rarley eat breakfast in Blu. So we wouldnt have gone for lunch anyway.

Just got off the Reflection TA on April 27. The Luminae restaurant is very limited in their meal selections whether it be for brunch or dinner. By the third day at sea we started eating in Blu for breakfast and dinner. The staff in Luminae was excellent and suggested we could order off the MDR menu for more selections to make us happier. Luminae gets A plus for service and a C for selections on their menus. Hopefully this will improve shortly.

Usually companies wait until after they roll something out to cost reduce their offering. Apparently Celebrity started to do cost reductions even before rolling it out.....and I wouldn't be at all surprised if no one bothered to tell marketing.

Folks who booked suites based on expecting what was marketed certainly would seem to have a valid gripe and to be unhappy with what's been delivered vs what's been promised.

I wonder if Celebrity cares.... This will be a hard one to "perfume" with marketing words....we're improving the offering by offering less!

Most folks go ashore on port days. With the few that stay aboard, it certainly wouldn't make any sense to open for lunch for just a handful of stragglers who don't go ashore. You're not happy you didn't get what you paid for? How many lunches did you miss on port days during your cruise because you didn't go ashore -- one or maybe two? :rolleyes:

Most folks go ashore on port days. With the few that stay aboard, it certainly wouldn't make any sense to open for lunch for just a handful of stragglers who don't go ashore. You're not happy you didn't get what you paid for? How many lunches did you miss on port days during your cruise because you didn't go ashore -- one or maybe two? :rolleyes:

On this cruise we had two full days in Honolulu, two full days in Maui. So many people actually were on the ship, not just a handful of stragglers. Two ports were tender ports as well so, again, lots of people stayed onboard.

Of course I'm not happy that Celebrity didn't deliver what they advertised and I paid for. I think that is a fair complaint.

Of course I'm not happy that Celebrity didn't deliver what they advertised and I paid for. I think that is a fair complaint.

If you are really so unhappy, ask Celebrity for a refund or OBC for your next cruise.

I agree that this is disappointing news that Luminae is not open for lunch as advertised. A. Don't like that they promise things they don't deliver. B. Makes the "suite experience" less attractive to me, particularly at the prices they're now charging.

Linda

While I was hoping it was a slow beginning it now seems for months they sold us something they are not going to deliver. It's not that we always want lunch on port days but I would have loved for those days we did.

I am not sure I like feeling I can't trust what they sell or they are incapable of delivering.

Personally...the more I hear suite guests are eating in Blu the more I think the premium on suites is too high.

If you are really so unhappy, ask Celebrity for a refund or OBC for your next cruise.

The problem with this simple sounding suggestion is that a number of folks have already cruised or are cruising and a whole lot more are within the penalty period...not to mention the folks in geographies where you forfeit your deposit if you cancel (UK) at any time...even a year or more before the sailing. Likely that only 10-15% max of those who are booking in suites are on CC...and not many more have checked to see the new pages on the celebrity web site.....most don't have a clue as to the changes.

Celebrity is downplaying...actually they are trying to ignore the fact that they have changed what they announced...and changed what they have been saying for months. I doubt that they will give anyone credit who says...you know, it's not worth it, I'll rebook in aqua....or who has already sailed.

There is apparently no rush by celebrity to send out a note to all the folks who booked suites and let them know the new hours and meals....heck, paint it with whatever words they want...but they should notify their passengers...if they care. I think that's the rub though....do they care about customers or will they just leave it to the ship to handle those that aren't happy.

Clearly, the current meal schedule in Luminae is not what was announced. Celebrity should be open that they've changed it...and offer folks who have booked a suite an alternative other than...we've changed it...tough luck. You know, if folks know in advance, most will say...OK, no problem....but for those that expected three sit down meals in Luminae every day....give them an option other than being slapped in the face with the information when they board the ship.

What's the chance of that actually happening....it's a great opportunity for Lisa to show that she cares about customer satisfaction....

Embarkation lunch in Luminae is what I really enjoyed on Summit and hope that all ships will offer this.

I also find this change disappointing. We would be unlikely to eat all 3 meals there in a given day, but think we should have the option of deciding which meals it is going to be. And there have been a number of port days in our cruising history when we have gotten off the ship but returned for lunch, sometimes with a later return to shore or sometimes not --- so it isn't just those who stay onboard who might be looking for lunch in Luminae. I'm also troubled by reports of suite passengers forsaking Luminae for Blu -----that's a poor endorsement if I ever heard one, Luminae was supposed to be a step up. Prices for suites are up significantly, seems like the value is going down.

Back in the day when the mdr was open for lunch on port days the place would be packed so not buying the argument that no one would be there

I just received my Captain's Club News and in it talks about Luminae and here are a few quotes "different menu for two full weeks....Offering complimentary

breakfast, brunch, lunch, dinner". If this is not true why is Celebrity still promoting a lie. My wife and I love Celebrity and were excited about Suite perks and Luminae. Prices for suites have gone up a lot and I think it stinks that Celebrity is already going back on its word. I am surprised that Official Celebrity has made no comments. I know the suite perks are new and so is Luminae but I hope Celebrity lives up to its word or I would think that Celebrity's brand will be diminished.

o

We switched from Princess to Celebrity because the Ruby canceled Istanbul AFTER final payment, but way before embarkation so it was not weather or mechanical. We booked Celebrity, got to Istanbul and thought we had found our cruise line! We never went back to NCL after 2 cruises with horrible food and service in MDR. Now, with Celebrity pulling back on the promise of lunch in Luninae, where are we to go? Maybe Celebrity but not in a suite. We are booked on Princess in a mini-suite which is much less money than Celebrity in a suite. Also, there is a chance the Mar. 14th Celebrity Constellation will be chartered. This is too bad and does not make Celebrity look good!

I think that's the rub though....do they care about customers or will they just leave it to the ship to handle those that aren't happy.

They'll just leave it to the ship to handle the disgruntled customers. They're hoping most people don't know what perks they're supposed to be getting with their expensive suite.

I agree that Celebrity’s new position of no mid-day meal on port days is extremely disappointing. The pull back from their original advertising clearly undercuts the luxury dining experience Luminae was marketed to provide. While “brunch” encompasses breakfast and lunch (which is fine), no lunch (or brunch) on port days equates to no “noon” meal in Luminae, an advertised and expected element of suite benefits. Just because a ship is in port does not mean that many suite guests would not enjoy a leisurely Luminae lunch (or brunch) or partake in a mid-day Luminae meal after – or before -- spending several hours out and about exploring. The unique, intimate dining experience that Luminae was marketed to offer should be available as advertised: breakfast, brunch, lunch, dinner.

The unique, intimate dining experience that Luminae was marketed to offer should be available as advertised -- "breakfast, brunch, lunch, and dinner."

I agree that this isn't what we thought Celebrity was offering, but I haven't seen anyone quote language promising all those meals [or even three of them] EVERY DAY. In the course of a cruise you will indeed have the opportunity to have breakfast, brunch, lunch and dinner in Luminae -- which is what the above language promises. So there is room for moral outrage, but not the lawsuit that has been threatened.

Hi, Jazzbeau - More likely that in this type of situation folks just usually end up sailing on another cruise line that better meets their expectations!! :)

So many choices these days!! :)

I agree that this isn't what we thought Celebrity was offering, but I haven't seen anyone quote language promising all those meals [or even three of them] EVERY DAY. In the course of a cruise you will indeed have the opportunity to have breakfast, brunch, lunch and dinner in Luminae -- which is what the above language promises. So there is room for moral outrage, but not the lawsuit that has been threatened.

Who threatened a lawsuit? Also, during our entire cruise 11 days, lunch wasn't served at all, so we did not have the opportunity as you stated.

Who threatened a lawsuit? Also, during our entire cruise 11 days, lunch wasn't served at all, so we did not have the opportunity as you stated.

No one mentioned a law suit....although it's possible that the folks in the UK and/or EU might have a complaint of some sort under their consumer protection laws.

I believe Celebrity believed that they were going to serve three meals a day when marketing dreamed up Luminae and when they issued their press release and advertising....but once they got to implementation and staffing and cost, plans got altered and HQ rationalized that no one would care.....and made the change without clearly and proactively telling folks about the change.

Sadly, IMHO, they are apparently still on that course....allowing the information to roll out here with no comment from "Celebrity Cruises"

When they had the live chat with celebrity rep she definitely stated three meals a day and even stated including lunch on embarkation day which should definitely be offered at least.

When they had the live chat with celebrity rep she definitely stated three meals a day and even stated including lunch on embarkation day which should definitely be offered at least.

Not offering lunch on embarkation day is a real fail. Is the "modern luxury" suite experience supposed to start with the free for all in the buffet? While the upper suite folks may get some sort of spread in Michael's club, sky suite guests are left to fend for themselves with everyone else. Wow....what a terrible welcome to Celebrity's suite experience.

let's hope this was part of "start up" pains and mis-communications...and that very quickly, embarkation lunch will be offered to suite guests in Luminae.