Fmitchy

On 7/1/2023 at 9:10 AM, edinburgher said:

Choose your beach with care.  Worth reading this warning on a thread from earlier this year:

 

https://boards.cruisecritic.com/topic/2920075-beware-of-this-restaurant-in-mykonos-it’s-a-scam/#comment-64930038

 

We ate at that same restraunt and loved it , we had a 15% coupon and the bill was only $550 Euros .  

We had cabin 11297 SV and we loved it.people are nuts saying they creek, not true. The cabin was one of the nicest we ever had. There were 2 nice sitting chairs with a  small table. Honestly everyone stands on the Balcony when leaving or entering a port. You will love your location. Enjoy

We just got off the January 7 sailing and Loved the ship overall. So much that we booked next January on the Beyond 11 Day Panama / ABC islands. Future cruises does a nice Job. We had a 11th Floor SV Veranda Cabin, the 11th floor was nice. We do agree with the above post about the main dining room menus not switching it up. Yes the TP was not Charmin but worked. The public spaces were Gorgeous and the over all layout of the Ship was functional. Just keep in mind the front of the Ship is the Big Money Hangouts. The Pool area was relaxing and had good daily entertainment. Also different then the Solstice class way more lounge chairs and sitting chairs all over deck 14, and 15. Never had a problem finding a spot that we liked. The Casino had a bad vibe, only one $15 BlackJack table always full. While the $300 and $100 table was always empty. Couple of $25 tables. I found it not welcoming. The Theater was super Hi Tech and well laid out. Only thing was the first 3 nights had the same dancers.  Better shows at the end of the cruise.  Have to say , we know prefer Edge Class ships.  Loved it. 

Just got off the January 7 sailing on the Ascent. Pickle Ball was fun, 1 portable court. All of the Pickle Ball players will end up signing up for short games. The assistant Activities director comes up and puts on  a fun tournament . All you do is put your name on the Sheet and they make sure the pairings are fair. After pick up games till 5pm . There are also first time players from the UK or other parts of the World that have never seen Pickle Ball. They pick it up fast because some are Tennis players.  The pickle Ball players were a nice group.  Fun 

I think honestly till there is a Vaccine for Covid how could cruising be comfortable for the average middle age or older couples?  They are posting all these cruise dates and here

we are coming up on 7/1 /20 and not a single cruise ship is planning to set sail? Moving forward how will they open dinning ,buffets come off? Might be gone fore ever.

How do you go to the theater for shows? How do you play in the casino? What  will ports be like?  And do you where a mask on board for 7, 10 days. Is it really ever going to be the same in the near future? 12 months?  Do you pay the standard fees we use to and find out that the experience has Changed?  I sure Hope not, but could be.   And what about the 50,000 employees and Crews get back , if they even want to come back. 

Question? Do you think more customers are canceling then booking future cruises. 
We had  $500 on Apex for 7 day January 2021. My wife and I just have a funny feeling that the Cruise industry might be changing for ever after the dust clears. January 

21 is not that far out. So Today I called and canceled our trip and the Celebrity rep was kind of rude and non empathic, she just said $100 each cancellation fee , and we a 12 month $300 future cruise credit, when I asked her to just leave it, she said it was to late and she just canceled the reservation and could not bring it back , if she did the perks where gone. We where thinking that if we might want to go away next winter that we could wait and see what’s happening that the cruise lines might need to lure back there customer base with attractive new deals? Is it possible that elderly seniors might give up on the cruise Vacations due to new medical restrictions? It could really be differ t cruising in the near future, We are in are early 60’s and have always enjoyed cruising and the overall experience. We just did the princess Sky in January right before the Virus. 
any thoughts on future pricing? 

On 11/17/2019 at 5:30 PM, Lastdance said:

So good to know about Apex, as that is my SV on her too!  You are always way ahead of me, and I like it that way...

  Hi, Apex  11274 ,  We have booked that same SV 11274 for January 2021 , Would you mind posting some pictures of your Balcony of 11274 and some Cabin pictures . Have been on about 8 cruises in the last 10 years and  always said would like to try a SunSet . They look so cool when in ports . Please post a Review on the Cabin and the Apex when you return. Thanks and Have fun!! 

My wife and I are booked for the Princess Sky   January 18 2020 , It  is about 63 days out and I have done the pre - Check in on the Princess Web site under Checking in with our booking Number, Contact info, Passport info ect. It then says to download the Medallion App  for I-phone or Android,   I proceeded to download the app to my Galaxy 8 plus and it did load. However it will not take my Booking conformation number to pair the  info?  What else should i be doing to pair the cruise to my app on the phone. Or , Are we to far out from the Cruise to have the app up running ?   Please advise someone and Thanks .   

On 11/6/2019 at 9:15 AM, USCcruisecrazy said:

Pretty confident in saying dollar for dollar, compared to every other land based vacation we take, Cruising is still the best bang for your buck!  You won't hear any complaining form me...especially on 7 December when we launch aboard the Sky for the western Caribbean!  :)

   Mitch From Chicago right behind you on the Sky Jan 18 , Robin and I are coming over from Celebrity to just try something new?  We figure how can you go wrong on a Brand New Cruise ship that has to be beautiful, fresh and relaxing . The Vacation is meant for people to  just get away and enjoy the weather, Food, Shows, Meeting people that are relaxing as well. Reading all the negative post are from people who just like to complain about the little stupid things.  Like the food that is included in the curise is basically better then my daily diet ( Brown Bag Lunch , Quick Breakfast, Same Dinner Choices ) and to have access to so much to eat -Anytime , Casinos , Pool Side Drinks/Music/ Shows/ Spa/ and basicly you can always find something to do and its mindless ( No Driving, Buses, Flying, Traffic , Walking the Dogs, Ect )  You Cant beat a Cruise for Overall Vacation Value.  I will see you on the Beach or by the Pools or at the BlackJack table.  

18 hours ago, LoriPhil said:

TypIcally only DH or I sit on the balcony reading, napping or having a glass of wine, so the size works just fine for us.  Battle is who gets the far chair, because the one closest to the door refills the glasses.  But that being said, we are sailing with pals on the Sky Nov 2020 and snagged two mid ships with larger balconies so we can be chummy (but not toooo close). 

  What Cabin did you grab with a larger Balcony ? Going in January  ,have mini Suite but want to try and up grade to a Mini Suite  for the larger deck ? There are some on both sides. 

 your A Bruin Fan , It does not take much to make you Happy . Could Charra sleep in the Normal Bed.  

haha    Go Preds!!   Go Hawks  !!  

17 hours ago, hubofhockey said:

 

Why would someone who has not been on the ship vote?  A better argument against it might be that only those who didn't enjoy it are motivated to vote.  Also, those in suites might enjoy it much more than others.  

 

The voting seems consistent with the comments.  

The Speciality restaurants are good and its a nice change from any dinning room that's  basicly the same after 4 or 5 nights in a row. We where in Aqua last January on 10 day . We did 3 restaurants , Lawn Club is always fun and great food, We like Qsine , has a new theme /Name ,Le- pete.  Murano is well liked , harder to get in and has the French menu . The Speciality restaurants have better servers . On a 10 day cruise my wife and I got tired of getting ready for dinner by the 8th,9th . We blew dinner off a couple of nights.  The Aqua class is nice for the total package if you can get it for around $200 dollars each , The Cabins are 

in good locations , 11,12, .   

We Booked January 19  on our very last day while on the Reflection last January. We had met a lot of people during the cruise who said they had been in future sales and booked for the following year (lots of lots ) . We stuck our heads in for kicks, inquiring about the new Edge, was very expensive for 7 day cruises. We found a affordable and good value for 11 days to  Central America on the Reflection. Only needed a fully refundable $200 deposit , got 2 Perks , Drinks and Tips, and $200 Cabin credit. I have never seen the prices cheaper then what we reserved on board. They take care of there customers and you can get good Cabin locations.  

    The Cruise lines work there employees hard, I understand that most are happy to have jobs and traveling away from family and home for months at a time.  The Cabin Stewrad that has 28 cabins  to clean , Vacuum , bathroom, Change sheets and is maybe in and out of your cabin 4 times a day or more?  Might like the couple  a little more in Cabiin 1075  who went out of there way to introduce themselves and hand some exrta cash (yes a pre-tip ) What does it get you ? #1 peace of mind , and Fresh Ice in the bowl, Beach towels clean , extra pillow candy , Smiles and a real Hello and good by's  when passing  ect.  We have been doing 10 and 11 day cruises the last couple of years, The cabins are small and having the clean feeling makes the days and nights more enjoyable. We understand that it is different for everyone on how to view when and when not to tip. A extra happy cabin steward can only enhance your cruise experience.   Reflection coming up in January     

Cool Cruiser, 

My wife and I agree as well. We always give our room steward a little extra cash on Day 1 . They apperciate taking care of our Us and our cabin . We also will tip employees $1 or  $2 who do go above and beyond during the course of the cruise.  Everyone is different and there is no right or wrong on tipping.  We are on Vacation and have 4 grown kids of our own.  

Poor Guy over ate, One bad dish out of the 70 plus times he was in front of food . My wife and myself where on the same cruise and had no issues with the overall quailty of food. When there is so much and you find your self eating to just eat because you think you paid for it (Yes you have ) It is sad to watch how much food goes to waste . We ate Aqua Blu 5 nights , Lawn Club , Murano, and Qsine on the last Night always , We find it to be lots of the food that we enjoy . One night we where tired of all the sit down dinners and we just went in to the Ocean Cafe and found a mix of stuff around 8:30 (and we enjoyed that as well) The Master Grill during the Day serves a real Grilled Burger and Fries and they do it by the Hundreds, all afternoon the comfort go to Burger and Hot dogs have a non stop line for a reason. Celebrity does a Nice job feeding over 5,000 people every day.

MizDemeanor , I agree with you ! Your on Vacation and you can eat all day long if you please (eating just to Eat) The idea of looking forward to trying a new restaurant and getting a little cleaned up can be enjoyable. Plus the Specialty restaurants have better trained servers that make the difference. Anyways , being on vacation means you get to do what ever you want . Try ordering a Grilled Cheese for Room service , perfect mid day meal.

My wife was nudging me to try Aqua Class from a 8th Floor Veranda , I was watching prices and they looked like they have dipped a little for remaining Cabins or maybe Celebrity has a slowing of booking do to the Hurricanes. We had a cost of $260 each to move to Auqa Class and still keeping 2 Perks. The Cabin location we can live with . Did we make a good move ? We had a 3 Night Specialty restaurant package that I canceled for $218. We still will do lawn Club and Qusine . Hope I did not over Pay?

having dined in Blu many times, I disagree that the food is better. I would suggest a infinite balcony on a deck with cabins above and below towards mid ship. In addition I would use the saved money and dine multiple times in specialty restaurants which are far superior to Blu and the main dining room. Aqua class perks aren’t worth much IMO

I agree with you on booking a infinite Balcony and dinning in the Specialty restaurants saving the Money from paying up to book Aqua Class.

My Wife and I have been on the reflection and the Silhouette and we enjoy Quisine towards the end of the cruise. its Fun and the food is very good. Breaks up the tradtional sit down menue and order one thing and wonder if its going to be good. The Lawn Club is also very Good, A real Steak House and a Good Menu. We also took notice that the servers in the specialty restraunts are of higher skill and well seasoned with Celebrity High standards of excellant Service.

How did you know the Islands for Ports you had mentioned? Did you read that on the Celebrity Web Site some Where?

I thought that Cruise was advertised as 2 nights in Saint Maartin ?

Been on them both , Silhouette a little bigger maybe 20 cabins if that, very similar . We loved them both , booked the 10 Day January Reflection. We did the Reflection first and loved it , then a year later we tried the Silhouette and loved that as well. Its up front of the Ship where its like 15 feet longer . No Big Deal.

Lets say 6pm and 8:30 are Set seatings ? Lets say you show up at 7:30 and want to be seated at Anytime seatings. Do they have a seperate dinning area that people roll in and out set aside in the main dinning room ? A block of open tables or seats ?

Thank you all for your input. We are doing a western carribbean sailing so we will do something fun at the ports. I spoke to my girls and they both want to try Celebrity even though the nightlife isn't that great. They both said that is not what they are looking for. My daughter goes to a Big 10 school so she said she doesn't want it to be crazy. She said she gets that all school year and wants a "break. They also like great dinners and our kind of "foodies". So if the two ships are similar, we will stick with my original choice which is Celebrity Reflection

 

Thanks again!

Traveled on the Silhouette last January and we loved it, you meet new people every day with 2800 passengers. College kids will love Celebrity's up scale service and the lay out of ether Ship. The out door lounge areas are roomy and you can always find a space to chill or Party. We loved the Silhouette so much that we booked the Reflection this January because it was. Little newer ship and just want a similar Ship as the Reflection, plan good excursions for the kids and they will love the ship. Have fun and enjoy.. Make sure you have all the great Perks that Celebrity is offering . Great Vacation Value.