TxnAquarian

Yes, the Eden Cafe and Le Grand Bistro were both closed on our sailing.

I just finished up my 10th Celebrity cruise - my first on E Class. This was the 8-day Italy, France and Spain cruise out of Rome. I think we are Celebrity’s target market - early - mid 40s, double income, no kids, travel internationally for pleasure several times a year. Celebrity as a brand works perfectly for us. Just to summarize my thoughts: this was a wonderful trip, as usual. The Edge is an absolutely beautiful ship. I love how modern it is and love the cool vibe. However, would I return to an E Class ship? Probably not, unless it was offering an incredible itinerary. Cons: - Absolutely hated the infinite veranda. It was basically just a room with floor to ceiling windows. Really poorly-done design idea by Celebrity. We only sail Aqua Class, so this totally didn’t work for us. - Didn’t like the Martini Bar location. We really missed the small, intimate ones on the older ships. It took away the appeal having it in the center of this cavernous atrium. - Noise everywhere. Whether we were at the pool or eating dinner at Eden or the steakhouse, there was constant noise and live bands. The noise volume at the steakhouse was especially obtrusive. This is addition to the hammering that went on outside our room from from 8am - 5pm on several days. Aside from that, opening and closing the ”veranda” was noisy and we could everyone else opening and closing theirs. The ship never felt relaxing. - We didn’t like the unisex saunas and steam rooms. Really missed having a more private one in the men’s locker room. - Location of Blu wasn’t ideal. It felt dreary in there; especially as there was not a good view, so the curtains were always drawn. We would’ve much rather looked at the deck and had some outside exposure. Pros: - Staff were the absolute best I’ve ever had! From day one, they couldn’t do enough for us. It felt like a luxury cruise with staff who were incredibly guest-focused. Amazing job! The ship was only half full, but I have no doubt their level of professionalism is the same regardless. - The design of the ship is gorgeous in the public areas. Around every corner was another cool design feature. I also loved the QUIET and chill music piped in around the ship. - Our bathroom was wonderful! It was right up there with ones we’ve had on much more high-end ships. Loved the shower so much and the CO Bigelow products (although I assume these products are on all ships). - Eden dinner was incredible! Aside from the noise volume from the live band, the service was flawless and each course we ate was perfect. I would’ve booked it again if it had been a longer cruise. I know we don’t all look for the same things in a cruise. We had a great time! I’m sure some people are sold on sailing E Class now, but for us, the M and S Class are our ships. This was our first post-pandemic cruise and it was amazing being back! Michael