InTheDrink

Is X leaving Puerto Rico? I don’t see any departures after December 2024. 

While there still is lots to choose from, I will miss the larger, rotating menus of starters and mains- looks like it is only soups and salads that are changing every night. My husband is going to have a much harder time picking mains, as many of his favorites are gone. 

We have cruised nothing but Celebrity from 2011 until this year, when we took a Princess cruise. I didn't think the food compared as well to X in quality, temperature (food was rarely hot, though always at least warm), or presentation, but it was still good. Loyal Princess cruisers have complained about cutbacks as well, but I did like the selection on their menus- I will probably be back to try out their newer ships. Their speciality restaurants were quite good and about half the price of Celebrity's, so I didn't mind paying extra for a couple of nights. 

We are on the Beyond this December. If the food quality is as good as it was on the Edge last May, I will probably be happy to work around the lack of choices and book more upcoming cruises on X, but if it isn't I will start looking at other lines to explore.

Just now, cw2go said:

I posted a diagram Post #15

 

Example Alfred's is now $15 but is unlimited in the Premium package. 

Can’t help you- I sailed in June, on a ship without Alfredo’s.

On 7/31/2023 at 5:52 PM, cw2go said:

But did it include unlimited Casual dining that is now being charged @$15 per meal and 2 specialty meals per pax? 

 

Making sure I understand my plan.

Patty 

I don’t know what you mean by “casual” dining. It included 2 meals pp at a specialty restaurant, but these cost a lot less a la carte than spending an extra $20/pp to upgrade! 

2 hours ago, gardengalaz said:

Hi, Everyone!

 

I just watched a video about the new packages that Princess is offering and something VERY interesting caught my attention.  On our next Celebrity cruise, our premium drinks packages is costing $109 per person per day (drinks up to $17 each) -- yet Princess' new Premier package includes premium beverages (drinks up to $20 each) and MUCH more (wifi, tips, specialty dining, exercise classes) and their entire package is $80 per person per day!!  So do you think Celebrity will do something similar and give us more for our money (HA!!), or is Princess more likely to see how wildly under-priced their package is and adjust accordingly??

More importantly, you don't need the Premium version on Princess- we were just on our first cruise with them and somehow got "upgraded" to Premium for free, but I only think we ordered 2 or 3 drinks over the $15 limit of their $60 package, which included tips, wifi (1 device pp), 2 exercise classes and 2 of the ridiculous sundaes. 

I didn't mind the menu on the Solstice class ships, but it was a little limited. I don't love the one I see for the Beyond. I was just on my first Princess cruise and much preferred their Good Spirits at Sea bar. In fact, I preferred most of their bar menus to Celebrity. I didn't think the food was as good, but given how much cheaper it was than Celebrity (and I love the medallion app- to have a drink from any bar delivered!), I might be jumping ship!

14 minutes ago, lyndarra said:

How can I ask for what I want if I don't know what I want? I am not a regular drinker of cocktails, I never have them at home, only on cruises, so I am not familiar with what's available.

I am disappointed by the lack of drink menus, not only on X.

I ask waiters for a list and their response is similar to yours, "tell me what you want". I have gotten to know a couple of drink types but I like trying something different - "variety is the spice of life?"

 

Here are links to the drink menus (2023): https://profcruise.com/celebrity-bar-menus-2023/

Just now, joyefullcruiser said:

I will be on the Equinox in a few weeks and will definitely be checking this out!

 

I haven't been on the Equinox for some time, but I remember the hours being very limited. It is around the corner from the pool bar, on the starboard side (I think) near the doors to the Solarium.

I think you might like the Slush Bar on the Equinox and Eclipse- I wish it was on more ships! You could always see if bartenders have the ingredients for these.

On the whole, I have been less impressed with Celebrity's drink menus recently- I think they are trying to be too "hip," with lots of crazy ingredients that do not always result in a well-balanced cocktail, especially at the hands of certain bartenders.

I recently too my first cruise with Princess and LOVED their bar menus and found that their frozen drinks were not overly sweet. I'm going to write down some of my favorites before my next Celebrity cruise and see if a bartender can make them for me onboard.

On 7/20/2023 at 1:54 PM, keesar said:

 

Yes, there are tables for 10.  Although there are no reservations for MDR dining on the Beyond, you should visit the restaurant you want to dine in and explain the size of your party to the host/hostess.  It may be wise to have dinner in the same restaurant to make it easier for all.

 

Although you may have an early set dining, it is really Anytime Dining.   Told us to show up when we wanted to eat but we were not a large party.

You certainly can make reservations on the Beyond- just finished doing it for our upcoming cruise! 

On the Edge, there was at least one table for 10 in each restaurant and with a set time, you will be in the same restaurant. 

Make sure that your reservation numbers are linked so that you will be seated together! 

On 5/23/2023 at 12:24 PM, mamamusings said:

There have been minimal options for trivia and karaoke—one 45-minute session of each most days. (Trivia issue was brought up in meet and greet; it was one of the times they referenced this being a “shorter” cruise.) Of the two  theater shows, one is only 30 minutes long, and the other was on the second night and it’s not clear if it will be offered again. Almost no ability to sit in hot tubs at night while at sea enjoying views of the stars, since most get covered up pretty early. At the martini and liquor tastings there were so many people we couldn’t get close enough to see or hear what was being said, let alone sit down, even arriving almost an hour early. My husband was looking forward to eating at Steamers. No MDR reservations available at all if you didn’t book them weeks ahead. 
 

Overall it’s not a terrible experience, just a disappointing one. We still plan on enjoying our vacation. It’s just not what we had hoped for in terms of service and activity options. 🤷‍♀️

As someone who is about to try Princess for the first time, on the Emerald, I thank you for your comments- they are helpful to me as are the suggestions made by others to mitigate your less than ideal experience. I look forward to hearing if things get better for you as the days go on!

On 4/21/2023 at 10:34 PM, chamima said:

No vegan menu on Celebrity either. 
We always have to rely on getting a good waiter or Head Waiter. 
(Although we’ve had good luck about 90% of the time on Princess and Celebrity. It’s MUCH better than what happens in restaurants on land. ) 

There was a vegan menu posted in the app on our Edge British Isles sailing last May. 

1 hour ago, dns65 said:

Someone posted one recently in this thread

 

 

Thanks! I did a search but didn’t find this thread 🙄

Does anyone have a recent copy of the children’s menu for the MDR?

Thanks!

I’m new to Princess and wondering how far in advance the daily schedules and menus get loaded in the app.

Thanks!

I have done several Caribbean on X, including 3 Christmas/New Years as well as a Med out of Italy and a British Isles. 
 

I have worn the same sparkly black  (short) dresses on all three.
 

My husband has always worn a tux (until the cruise lines discontinued the rentals post-COVID), so he did without on the British Isles and just wore a long-sleeved dress shirt and tie. While there were some men in jackets/tuxes, most were dressed like DH. 
 

In Italy, the Europeans were dressier (tuxes/suits and long dresses) but the Americans tended to be less formal- luggage constraints.

Short answer is, you will see everything and everything, so dress in what you feel most comfortable for formal nights.

1 hour ago, tinaincc said:

Thanks - pre booking is not working because we can link our cabins together but since we used different TAs we can’t make any reservations together - it’s been maddening. We plan on going to the dining reservation place the minute we board to get this worked out.

That’s odd- I have made reservations with friends we have linked with despite having separate TAs. Regardless, if you go to see the Maitre’d on the first day right when you board, you should be ok- we did that with a group of 10 on another X ship.

9 hours ago, Nicole&Pete said:

 

Thanks both,

 

So if I try all 4 for the first 4 nights I should be able to book the other nights whilst onboard based on which restaurant I like the best? 

It’s going to depend on how full your ship is and when you want to eat. If you want prime times (6:30-7:30), it might be tricky so you might want to pre-book as a backup. 

1 hour ago, tinaincc said:

We have a group of seven adults cruising, are there any of the four restaurants that would be easier to accommodate a table of this size?

If I remember correctly, each restaurant had larger tables. How many are in each might vary, due to dining room size.

11 minutes ago, Nicole&Pete said:

Thanks very much that’s really helpful

On the Edge last summer, we booked in at all four to see which one we liked best. 
 

This will be subjective, but we liked the decor in Tuscan the best- it felt like an upscale, contemporary restaurant. Cyprus was a little dark for our liking, and the other two felt like regular MDR (pretty, but nothing special). 
 

I also really liked the pasta dish in Tuscan, though as someone has said, you could get it in any restaurant.
 

We also had the BEST service ever on a cruise in Tuscan and were able to switch our reservations to our preferred time in this server’s section for the rest of the cruise. We did have the luxury of a half-full ship though.

I would suggest booking all four for the first days of the cruise and seeing which one you like best. I really enjoyed having smaller MDR with different “feels,” even when the menu is essentially the same.

2 hours ago, startedwithamouse said:

Either $2 or $2.50 plus 18% gratuity per bottle for a 500ml bottle of still.  You can also pre-purchase 12 for $7.08 prior to sailing. 

Thanks!

15 hours ago, startedwithamouse said:

 

 

$1.50 for fountain sodas, plus 18% gratuity

 

San Pellegrio and Perrier are sparkling waters, and the still will vary, whatever is available locally.

Thank you!

Do you know what they charge for water?

I’m on my first Princess cruise in June. I have seen the drink menus but there are no prices for waters or fountain sodas. Can someone let me know what these cost? Also, what brands of sparking and still water are available?

I had signed out/signed in before I posted, but I did try deleting the app and starting again. That loaded daily activities that I couldn't see before, but still no luck with my dining reservation. 

I am in the correct sailing, so it's not that either. 

Januarysent- If I find a solution, I will make sure to post it for you!