TheHawk1

Do you have any data to back up that claim? From my experience as a gym-goer, they are well used.

The app just requested another update, the second one in a week. Now all the MDR’s appear under Specialty Dining Restaurants, but without menus? And no sign of Luminae listed at all. Do the geniuses at Celebrity IT dept think this is an improvement?

The refundable fare for a Sky Suite booking on this cruise was over $2,000 CAD higher, which is a 10% increase over the regular fare. That’s some expensive peace of mind I’m having trouble justifying, even though I’m really interested in this cruise.

I think the fact that Xcel leaves from Barcelona, which is a much easier departure point than Civitavecchia and makes two extra port stops (Seville and Gibraltar) makes it the more interesting itinerary between the two.

Don’t you love how the app forces you to take the update but then it’s worse than the older version? My upcoming cruise only shows specialty dining options now… no other restaurants or menus available apparently.

While I agree Ascent is over-priced, what's surprising is that an 11 day Med cruise in an Ascent SV is only $2K more than on Eclipse for similar cabin and itinerary. When looked at from that perspective, it's a relative bargain for a ship that's 15 years newer (I'm expecting more snide comments from people who continually defend older S class). What's really galling is the additional $2,000 surcharge on top of the base fare to have a refundable deposit. I don't see any other cruise line charging as much to secure a reservation with a refundable deposit. It's difficult to plan two years out and lock in something now, unless you have the benefit of booking on Future Cruise where the $200 deposit can be considered a throwaway if your plans change.

In both the 2024 and upcoming 2025 seasons, Royal was offering several longer Greek isle cruises on Odyssey (9 - 12 nights). For the just released 2026 season, they appear to only be offering 7 night cruises. That's disappointing that they're cutting back. This is the type of itinerary I would only ever do once, so I don't see the value in going on a short cruise that doesn't cover all the possible ports in that area.

Win Win

Celebrity couldn’t pay me to go on either S or M class.

In 2025, Celebrity has several Greek island cruises slated on Ascent. If this new information is correct, then the only Greece itineraries Celebrity is offering in 2026 are on the rust bucket Eclipse. If that's the case, then it's back to Royal and Odyssey as the only option for a relatively new ship in the RCI family.

Was thinking about booking this itinerary on Odyssey when 2026 dates are released. Your review was very helpful in answering questions about the various port stops. Thanks for all the information.

Curious how far ahead you booked? I called the Renaissance today and they said they only take reservations 2-3 days in advance. That would mean trying to call them from one of the other ports on the itinerary before we arrive in Curaçao.

Have signed up for this excursion in February and it specifically mentions a two hour stop at Sorobon beach. There are also a lot of “sights” mentioned as part of the tour, but I was assuming those are just drive by highlights and not actual stops? I won’t be happy if the majority of the trip is stopping at a bunch of dull attractions and reduced beach time.

Absolutely, when processing a credit card transaction. That was not the case here.

No, the issue is the mandatory requirement of providing credit card information when none is required to complete the transaction. And since the shopping cart function didn’t work that way just a few months ago, the change was made by I.T. Whether or not it was intentional or a mistake is up for debate.

So, Celebrity's programmers are at it again, making changes to their web site that nobody needed or asked for. I went to take advantage of today's Flash Sale to book some specialty dining for an upcoming Beyond cruise. I have more than sufficient OBC to cover the reservation amount, but the Cart Checkout wouldn't let me proceed with the purchase. Why you ask? Because for some reason, Celebrity doesn't have the 3 digit security code for my credit card on file and has just recently made that a mandatory field in the shopping cart checkout. Even though I have already purchased six items previously for this cruise, a combination of dinners and excursions, with only having whatever credit card info that was already on file be sufficient. And all the more irritating because they don't require any of my credit card information to complete a transaction that is completely covered by OBC. I refused to provide the code just out of principle, since it wasn't needed before. It appears I may not be dining at Fine Cut on this cruise after all.

I can't believe Royal is trying to make The Effectors a thing... like anyone would have a clue who or what these characters are? And yes, I've seen the show on Wonder and still have no idea. Oh for the good old days when Royal could afford the licensing agreement with DreamWorks for an actual character parade.

Wizard of Oz may be a production and it may even have some music in it, but it is not a Broadway style show like the others on older Oasis ships.

Thanks again for the tips. I am fortunately in a suite for this particular cruise, so will make sure to get the most out of the viewing perks for Retreat guests.

This is the most helpful explanation I've seen of how this itinerary works. The details on Celebrity's web site are useless. I'm on Beyond on Feb. 24 sailing, which also includes Panama canal. I chose to do a ship excursion to Panama City since I figure it may be the only time I ever get to go there. But knowing that I will still get half of the "canal locks experience" is more than sufficient. Thank you for the information.

I'm baffled by those who actually like Luminae. What some say is good service, I find to be excruciatingly slow, especially between courses. And the food is very hit and miss, with some nights offering nothing appealing on the menu. For E Class ships, where you don't have the option of ordering something from the MDR menu, then I end up making alternate plans for the evening and losing out on the perk I paid for. The ability to eat in Luminae is at the bottom of my list for reasons to be in the Retreat.

Royal stopped being the Broadway at Sea cruise line a long time ago. These days, they’re focusing more on either the weekend party crowd (Utopia) or families with kids (Icon), neither of which are interested in seeing theatre shows.

Apparently the New York Times doesn't think this is such a great idea in today's story https://www.nytimes.com/2024/08/27/travel/icon-of-the-seas-new-ships.html Calling Icon class cruisezillas, that make the Titanic look like a fishing boat LOL.

Yes, by all means, encourage people to break the rules before they've even boarded. Why not just tell them they can also smoke on their balcony, hog a sun deck chair with just a towel for hours and wear flip flops in the dining room. Celebrity provides boarding times for a reason. People should stick to their assigned time.

If that were actually true then Cruise Critic would cease to exist.