CruisinShips

11 hours ago, Jim_Iain said:

I have always received an email at 48 hours  prior to departure with rejections.  I can see how consistent Celebrity it.

That is what recently happened with me.

Just got off our second Celebrity cruise last weekend.  First was on the Eclipse in October '23, this one on the Apex.  Both in the Retreat.  

We are in our early 60s; Diamond on Royal, and have cruised on Virgin, HA, NCL and Carnival (years ago).

While we had previously been in love with the Oasis class Crown Loft suites and the whole suite Lounge/Coastal Kitchen setup, since cruising Celebrity, it's become hands down our favorite way to cruise.  We enjoyed our CS on the Eclipse, but the Apex is a whole new level and we will have a tough time going back to anything else.  I get that those of you who have been cruising X for many years are more impacted by the cutbacks, but frankly we have seen nothing to cause us to feel disappointed in our experiences.  It's mostly due to the staff IMO...they are amazing. The food is very good for mass produced, large ship dining...not necessarily equivalent to a 5 star NYC restaurant by any means, but very good based on expectations.

I had better note here that I acknowledge others have had less than perfect experiences (noisy cabins seem to be thing) and I begrudge no one for being disappointed for those things.  I also acknowledge that the Retreat usually makes a huge difference when making comparisons.  But our two Celebrity experiences have exceeded expectations in every way.

Was on the same cruise with you, in a CS and agree almost completely with your grades.  Wonderful cruise.  The ship is gorgeous.  Loved our CS and our Butler (Ari) couldn't have been better. Room was immaculate.  The crew was absolutely amazing.  Luminae staff was great.  Retreat Lounge was great...great personalities.    

Also agree with you on the Tina Turner revue...we slipped out after about 10-15 minutes.  The comedian was great and the acrobatic show was also very good.

Luminae food was good, but yes, the menus could use some improvement.  Everything was tasty.  Portions were typically on the small side, but I assume that's because they know so many people order more than one app or entrée (many seem to share a third entrée).  But no significant complaints and we ate there every meal except about 3 or 4 times.  Dined in Eden which was very good, and Rooftop Garden Grill which was even better than expected for real comfort food.

I will never for the life of me know how these people working on the ships can be so damn kind and seem so genuinely nice and just happy to accommodate you.  Remembering names and preferences.  Just really wonderful humans.  Makes me want to move to the Philippines lol.

Overall a great cruise and we actually booked the same cruise, same cabin, same ship for the same time next year.

Just off the Apex yesterday and my wife and I were talking about how nice was to see how respectful and appreciative pretty much everyone seemed in Luminae, the Lounge and on the pool deck. We expected to see some entitlement, but saw literally nothing that resembled that. 
 

The staff is so incredible…perpetually smiling while working their butts off. Remembering guest names, and being as helpful as they can be.  
 

How anyone can be rude to them is beyond me. 

@mayleeman fair enough, and I appreciate the way you made your point. Thing is though, I was speaking from an overall place…meaning I don’t spend every waking moment in a retreat area. Crew all over the ship is amazing. Entertainment has been fantastic. Other non Retreat venues  have been good. 
 

Sure there are things that aren’t perfect. Our Tv stopped working, and one phone call and it was fixed. Today we had our day at Grand Cayman canceled because of wind and choppy waters. Stuff happens.  I could name some more imperfect things, but my point was more along the lines of I don’t see much to be that critical of. 
 

Again, I think some don’t care for positivity but to each their own 

So many people are talking about. Everything has been just fantastic.  In all fairness, we are in a CS so my perceptions are based mainly from a Retreat perspective. But the ship is a 10, the staff is incredible…absolutely incredible…the entertainment is of a very high level, the food is very good. Yes selections are a bit limited but still always good options to choose from.
 

Retreat staff could not be a better collection of humans. I swear I don’t know where they find these people with such incredible demeanors. 

Even the internet is great and we have been able to stream YouTube Tv when we feel like it. 
 

We would really have to be trying hard to come up with any complaints and we are 4 days in. 
 

I guess the pricing is the main issue, but for our two cruises a year, we can suck it up and feel grateful we can afford it. 

48 minutes ago, truckswain said:

So unruly children and crying babies are only with families who book non suite accommodations?  And the access is not free they pay a premium for the pass.

 

When I read comments like this I am glad celebrity is sticking it to the suite class.

I believe you're missing the point.  Many people who book suites acknowledge they have "unruly children and crying babies" (or grandchildren they love dearly), but they tend to leave them at home and pay extra to enjoy the type of  a vacation where they can escape that for a week or so.  The new policy introduced here can potentially change that, and thus requires re-evaluation of vacation choices.

The bitterness of wanting to "stick it to" people who are willing to spend more money for the type of vacation they prefer comes across really poorly IMO.

Bringing up this old thread. Going to be on the Apex in the Caribbean, and using ExpressVPN. Does anyone know if it matters what specific US city you spoof to/from?

I don't know about anyone else, but for me, my food tastes MUCH better when the person sitting four tables away is wearing slacks and a polo shirt that I approve of! 

57 minutes ago, Jim_Iain said:

I rarely get an invite for some reason even though signed up.    At 90 days I just go to the MoveUp site and put in Reservation Number and last name and am able to bid.

 

Same

Veering a little off topic, and maybe it's me, but I always get lots of irrelevant replies when I do a search.  For example, I wanted to see if I could find a recent menu for Luminae on the Apex, and regardless of what combination I tried, I couldn't get to what I was looking for. I use some of the common Google tips (using quotation marks, or adding AND between the words), and I still get much irrelevance.

Any tips?

5 minutes ago, tomcruiser1234 said:

So what should expect on the Eclipse now.  We got an RS suite. I know the price was horrible but big celebration. 

We were on the Eclipse in October in a CS.  Had a great cruise...Luminae was very good, and the service we had was excellent.  Butler was great, room cleanliness was great.  WiFi was horrible as was the TV channel selection (if that matters to you).  Entertainment was good (although we really didn't attend many shows, what we did see was very good).  The ship does show some signs of age in common areas, but nothing worth complaining about.  The room lacks modern amenities found in new ships.

The only disappointment was the lack of Retreat amenities as I alluded to above.  That's on me, because I didn't really do enough research beforehand.  The lounge (AKA MIchael's Club) was, IMO a bit drab and boring with no snacks or appetizers during happy hour.  We started going to the Martini Bar before dinner after the second night.  Also, the lack of a Retreat sundeck was a big negative as we do like to be outside often and usually book suites to avoid the chair hog issues and have a more mellow experience.

Keep your expectations in check and you should have a great cruise!

We have only sailed on the Eclipse, and while the service was excellent, and Luminae was very good, the lack of the sundeck and the less than vibrant Michael's Club diminished the benefits of the Retreat for us.

I've had a couple of bids pending for a while, the ship is full (no longer shows up in search results), and the sailing is within one week.  So I assume it's not happening for me...but since I didn't get an email initially inviting me to do the bid (I just went to the MoveUp site myself), I was wondering if they tell you you're not getting moved up.

Anyone?

How's the food been in Coastal Kitchen these days?  We had always enjoyed it, but given the cutback on Celebrity, I am suspecting Royal is feeling it as well?

3 hours ago, twangster said:

Public spaces were updated but not the decor.  The elevator lobby for example has never been updated.  Suites and cabins were not updated.  New venues were added, the pool deck modernized, but many spaces remain the same.  

Thanks.  I was hoping the cabins were updated...

5 minutes ago, FamilyCruiserUK said:

"without the need to have "fix"......"

sorry but that made me laugh...reminded me of the classic film Reefer Madness.

Thing is the CL suite on an 8 day Southern Carib itinerary is at least a couple of thousand $ cheaper than a 7 day Celebrity cruise (on a newer ship) in a Celebrity suite.

Here is a true story from about 8 years ago.  A young couple in their mid/late 20s were on a short RCL cruise to the Bahamas.  They were on a sea day and by the pool.  when they returned to their room, a security person was waiting outside their door.  Apparently, their cabin attendant found a joint somewhere in their cabin, and notified their superior.

The couple was placed on "house arrest" (a guard outside their cabin), and the next day when the shipped docked in Nassau, they were escorted off the ship and for some reason were turned over to the local authorities.  They had to appear before a magistrate who actually asked them how much cash they had on them.  When that amount was apparently insufficient, they were escorted to an ATM where they withdrew and paid $500.

The ship left them in Nassau and they had to contact the American embassy (or consulate) to arrange for their trip home (because they had only traveled with birth certificates and not passports.

I know this to be a true story as one of the couple is related to me.

All that being said, I doubt they'd find a couple of edibles, but the consequences can be severe enough to be a real deterrent.

Hi.  I am Diamond on Royal but haven't sailed on Royal since before the pandemic.  Have been on the Oasis (2x), the Allure and the Symphony (all pre-2020), mainly in Crown Loft suites.

I know the Oasis was refurbished in 2019...just wondering what some of you have experienced lately.  Especially in the suites.  Since the pandemic, we have sailed on Virgin and Celebrity...newer and more modern ships.  Wondering how the Oasis will compare these days.

Any insights would be greatly appreciated!

2 minutes ago, dcbiker97 said:

To each their own, I guess. We love the old Michael's Club vibe on the original S class ships. We find the chairs to be much more comfortable and love the dark wood atmosphere more than the E class ships. 

Absolutely, to each their own.  I suppose it's all about what one looks for in a suite lounge.  Yes the chairs were comfortable, but there were never more than a handful of people there in the pre-dinner evening cocktail hours, and there were no hor dourves.  There was just no real social vibe like we have preferred in other ship suite lounge areas.

Keep in mind the Eclipse, while it's a lovely ship with a great Retreat staff, is severely lacking in Retreat amenities.  No sun deck (let alone a Retreat pool), and Michael's Club (the Retreat Lounge area) is kind of a dingy place IMO with no snacks (peanuts maybe) and no real vibe to it.

Luminae was great...servers were fantastic, and our butler was teriffic as well.

We were on the Eclipse in October and enjoyed it very much. Yes, dated, but we didn't think it was a bad as you described.  I had read the mixed reviews before we booked, and honestly it exceeded what I had been led to expect.

I'm curious which other cruise lines you have heard are "outshining" them.  I am not questioning you words, just curious as from what I am reading, most regulars on pretty much every cruise line are saying similar things about their favorites...

14 hours ago, NMTraveller said:

I think that we understand that this issue is not happening to every stateroom on every cruise.

 

But for those that have the issue it is frustrating ...

Right, but I think it's important that people know both sides...

19 minutes ago, 1980dory said:

Very, very similar on our recent Eclipse!

We were on the Eclipse in October and it was a really great cruise. Left with very, very few complaints.