Celebrity Reflection: Our Review (19.06.15-29.06.15)

Having just returned from a 10 night cruise on Celebrity Reflection, I wanted to post a review about my experience, as I read so many different reviews before I went. :)

This cruise was first time either my mum or I had cruised with Celebrity, although we have done several other cruises with P&O and Princess.

We were expecting great things, and really hoped we hadn't built celebrity up too much before our travels, and I am so pleased to say we had the most fantastic cruise.

Cabin:

We booked concierge class due to the specific deal we found and really enjoyed it. Our cabin was 9307 and was the first time we had experienced an Aft cabin (the views were incredible!). The walk from aft to mid ship lifts and stairs didn't bother us at all.

Soot wasn't really a problem and they washed the balconies down daily.

I have seen other reviews that weren't too impressed with the canapé selection, however, we found them to be lovely and enjoyed them. (E.g nacho chips with guacamole/feta and olives/smoked salmon wrap bite/sushi roll/cheddar cheese wrapped in prosciutto)

The sparkling wine on arrival was a nice touch, and although we had priority check in, there were no queues at all on arrival to the port in Rome.

Whether it is worth the extra money or not is up to each passenger individually. As we booked just 3 weeks before we travelled, the concierge class cabin was actually cheaper than a regular balcony cabin so it was a very easy choice for us to make!

On balance, we both reckon we would do it again, especially if we could get a similar deal and similar Aft cabin.

On arrival in Rome, we did need to pick our bags up from the luggage carousel and take them to the celebrity meeting point. This wasn't a problem for us but is different from P&O so worth remembering!

Dining:

As we were originally allocated 6.15pm dining and told we would have to change on board if we wanted to move to second sitting at 8.45pm, we booked the 5 meal speciality dining package before we went in case we could not get this changed.

Luckily we were able to change to 8.45pm dining, although if you are changing, make it a priority when you get on board as lots of people have the same idea!

We loved all the speciality restaurants and were really glad we took the package, although the 4 meal one would have been just as good for us.

(You get two meals in Tuscan Grille with the 5 meal package. Otherwise the four meal package is one meal in Tuscan Grille, Qsine, Murano and Lawn Grill Club.)

The dinner we were least looking forward to was Murano, as the French inspired menu was more refined than the other menus, but it turned out to be our favourite! :)

Each restaurant was brilliant in its own right, and the staff were fabulous in each so I'd thoroughly recommend trying at least one.

We felt the buffet had a great selection for both breakfast and lunch, and we also had afternoon tea once which was lovely. Just be sure to check when the buffet closes between each serving, as we missed lunch completely one day when sunbathing.

The Opus dining room was stunning and we thoroughly enjoyed all our meals there, although we both agreed the meals in the speciality restaurants were just a bit nicer.

Drinks Package:

We did feel that the drinks packages are very heavily pushed for the first day or two of the cruise, but at $55 (+18%) it wSnt worth it for us. A lot of deals have drinks packages included though which could be a good option.

Dress Code:

One part of cruising that I love is formal nights but I know it's not for everyone. Before we went, I wasn't sure if we would be overdressed as I had read that celebrity had a more relaxed dress policy, but this was never the case. I actually really liked that it was slightly more relaxed as it meant everyone was comfortable. I still wore my ball gowns and there were tuxedos and kilts on show, but there were also passengers in trousers with polo shirts or t shirts. No one stood out though, as there were plenty of each! :o

Staff:

I genuinely couldn't fault anyone on the ship. It really came across how happy and friendly all the staff were and they couldn't have done more for us. I was really impressed by the attitude of all the staff and how hard working they were, they made the cruise so enjoyable for us! :D

Entertainment:

Neither my mum or I tend to go to shows on board, however we do like to sit in a bar and enjoy the live music. Hi-5 were fantastic and the vocalist is a fantastic performer, far superior to anyone I have seen on a cruise ship before. It was actually quite something to look at the dance floor packed full of people of all ages, dancing away. We also enjoyed the Martini Bar and the bartenders dancing on the bar and doing various tricks with cocktails was very entertaining.

Otherwise, So You Think You Can Dance was hilarious and had hundreds of people cheering the passenger contestants on.

Gym:

The gym is a good size with good equipment, although always quite busy when we usually went around 5 o clock.

Ports:

We absolutely loved both Santorini and Mykonos. :)

One word of warning for Santorini: the town is at the top of a very steep cliff face. You can either get a cable car/walk up or get a donkey ride up. Celebrity do advise against the donkey option though.

We walked up which was great but hard work, it is a steep climb and you need to avoid both donkeys and their excrement too! If you choose to do the cable car option, give yourself lots of time as the queues were quite long, especially to go down and return to the ship. (Someone said the queue was 2hours at one stage.)

It is definitely worth it for the stunning views.

In Naples we took the ferry to Capri which was equally as stunning and definitely one for the shoppers!

Disembarkation:

We found this to be really smooth and were amongst the last people to leave the ship at 9.45, so it wasn't at all difficult to find bags.

Overall, we had a really fantastic holiday. We have never had a bad experience with P&O or Princess, however we did feel that this was a bit of a 'step up' and just a bit more luxurious. The staff were outstanding and really made the holiday.

We will definitely be returning to Celebrity one day, hopefully in the near future!

:)

Thanks so much for your review.

Thank you for your detailed review as a first time cruiser on Celebrity.

The views from an aft cabin cannot be beat. :)

Thanks so much for your review -- we did this same cruise last summer and loved it, super itinerary. Nice to hear it was a big success with a first time Celebrity cruiser.

Enjoyed your review. We are on the same cruise October 2nd with a group of 14 people.

Thanks so much for your review. We are on the Reflection in just two weeks.

If you don't mind me asking, what time where you able to disembark in Santorini? I know they let the ships excursions depart first. Also, what time was the last tender to go back to the ship in the evening?

Thank you for your review. Do you recall the price of the specialty diing pkg for the 4 restaurants? Also, was the molecular bar still on the reflection?

Thanks so much for your review. We are on the Reflection in just two weeks.

 

If you don't mind me asking, what time where you able to disembark in Santorini? I know they let the ships excursions depart first. Also, what time was the last tender to go back to the ship in the evening?

White Cloud,

We were also on this cruise (review to come, just need to get reorganized:eek:). What we learned was that tenders run simultaneously to Fira and the new port, just make sure you get on the right one. Tours will get the priority of tenders, but if you go early enough it shouldn't be a problem. We had priority passes, but didn't need them as we disembarked shortly after 8am.

If anything your delay may come at the cable car station. There was no line for us and we were in Fira proper at 8:45, but others who came after us were waiting 10-15 to board the cable cars. If you are planning a private tour and want to set a meeting time in Fira, 9am is possible if you start early enough, 9:30 if you want to be a bit conservative.

Hope this helps and enjoy the cruise, it's an amazing time!

Pantheral

Always love to read the experience of a seasoned cruiser when telling about their sailing. Thanks for taking the time to share.

I too was on this cruise , concur with your thoughts , we had a fantastic time. Although we didn't bother with the specialty restaurants as we thought Opus was tremendous. We had the drinks package as part of the deal when we booked 18 months ago plus $300 OBC.

First Celebrity cruise and I don't think the last.

Thank you for your review. Do you recall the price of the specialty diing pkg for the 4 restaurants? Also, was the molecular bar still on the reflection?

The 4 night package is $137

The 5 night was $159

Having said that, a few nights on the cruise, they had deals of between 20-50% off specific speciality restaurants (Tuscan Grille and Qsine) so you can get a deal on board too!

They did book up for peak times very quickly though, even if you had the package, so I'd book early once on board.

The molecular bar was still there but I have a feeling it's in the process of changing or has already changed to something different. It was very quiet and there wasn't any liquid nitrogen or particularly 'cool' drinks. They did however make me a mean tequila cocktail. Martini bar always seemed much busier and more fun! (Especially with the bartenders dancing on the bar)

Hopefully you have just as good a time as we did!

I too was on this cruise , concur with your thoughts , we had a fantastic time. Although we didn't bother with the specialty restaurants as we thought Opus was tremendous. We had the drinks package as part of the deal when we booked 18 months ago plus $300 OBC.

 

First Celebrity cruise and I don't think the last.

Can I ask how you felt it compared to Royal Carribean? (I see you're going on a few in the coming year) We've never been with RC but have always enjoyed P&O. :)

Thanks so much for your review. We are on the Reflection in just two weeks.

 

If you don't mind me asking, what time where you able to disembark in Santorini? I know they let the ships excursions depart first. Also, what time was the last tender to go back to the ship in the evening?

I think Pantheral has answered better than I could!

I think last tender was at 5 or 5.30pm and I'm sure the first was around 8am. We didn't get off until around 11am and it took about 15 mins into the port.

Hope you have a fantastic time! :)

White Cloud,

 

We were also on this cruise (review to come, just need to get reorganized:eek:). What we learned was that tenders run simultaneously to Fira and the new port, just make sure you get on the right one. Tours will get the priority of tenders, but if you go early enough it shouldn't be a problem. We had priority passes, but didn't need them as we disembarked shortly after 8am.

 

If anything your delay may come at the cable car station. There was no line for us and we were in Fira proper at 8:45, but others who came after us were waiting 10-15 to board the cable cars. If you are planning a private tour and want to set a meeting time in Fira, 9am is possible if you start early enough, 9:30 if you want to be a bit conservative.

 

Hope this helps and enjoy the cruise, it's an amazing time!

 

Pantheral

Thank so much Pantheral for answering my questions. I feel more confident know that we can make our tour time. I will be in line early for the tenders though!

Our aunt & uncle were on the same cruise, same week :). We were supposed to be on there as well but had to cancel due to being too far along in my pregnancy to sail. Do you have any photos to share? Thanks for the wonderful review!!!