mizLORInj

I don't recall any, and just looked through the Daily papers and no mention of lectures. Yes, all in all, very glad we went and enjoyed it a lot.

Hi all. Seasoned cruisers here. Had not ever sailed from west coast and wanted to do something different so we booked this cruise that covered 4 ports we'd never visited (along with one we had). More port-intensive than we usually like, but since we don't know when we'll do the west coast again, decided to get to as many new ports as possible in this one cruise. Did a price re-check just before final payment and price went down $300 so our TA got us the adjustment. Solstice class (like Eclipse) is my favorite class of Celebrity ship. Arrived 2 days early into LAX and stayed in Santa Monica. Had a great time exploring the area and the usual Hollywood tourist sites. We had a rental car and got sticker shock at the gas pump--$6.50/gallon! I'll keep NJ gas prices, thank you. Sunday arrived and we headed to Long Beach. Arrived right at our check-in appointment time, and after our document verification and security, onboard we went. We each brought a bottle of wine and I had a couple little cans of Coke in my carry-on. Maybe 15 minutes from arrival to being in our cabin to drop off carry-on and get room keys. Liked the cabin itself with storage space, bathroom was a good size with plenty of storage and ample shower. First ship I think I've been on that had a fixed shower head; not one that was removable and flexible. And the metal toilet paper helmet--yuck. So unsanitary. Removed the TP roll from it so I didn't have to touch it. Sink works out well for doing hand wash. There is no line in the shower to hang clothes. The vinyl couch with matching vinyl drapes is different. Balcony was smaller than I hoped for in a SV (aft-view) but I knew this after viewing videos on line. Some cruise ship aft-facing balconies are deeper, including the Beyond, but this was a standard depth although we chose one of the wider balconies due to a steward's closet next door. Anyway, an attractively decorated and functional cabin and balcony. Only once did we have soot but that is because of wind direction. Cabin steward did a good job keeping our cabin clean. I heard someone on our deck commenting that she never saw her steward, but we saw ours every day. Mustering is quick and easy. Watch the videos, then go to your muster station and get your card scanned. We always found something we liked to eat so we don't have complaints about the food. Oceanview had a nice variety although the later you go, the more dry and overdone the heated dishes get. I do wish there were sinks to wash your hands there like newer ships have. The ice cream and sorbet in the Oceanview buffet were usually good but the cinnamon got weirdly grainy at one point. Guava sorbet--love it. We also cashed in our perk of free scoop of gelato, and it was just ok and nothing I would pay extra for. We had select dining and usually ended up waiting in some kind of line to be seated. The food was good although the portions are very small. Lobster night I cut my tail into 5 pieces, and there was ONE small broccoli spear and maybe 1/3 cup of rice. On a huge plate which made it all look even smaller. I did hear a lady in the elevator saying she "can't stand the food" in any of the places, but we did not find this to be the case. Even the burgers at Mast Grill were good. The buffet at dinnertime was much better than Beyond's earlier this year. More variety and more stations open, and more guests eating there. Toward the end of the cruise plastic cups and mugs seemed to be unavailable and buffet had paper cups in their place. Also on the 6th day our cabin key no longer opened our door so we had to visit GS to give us new keys. No idea what happened; our keys were not together anywhere and we did nothing different than on any other cruise. We sent a few items to ship's laundry and they were back the next day. We went to a few of the Theater shows like ROCK which was awesome if you like that music, and the Broadway show which was (obviously) mostly singing of popular Broadway tunes. It was nice to see a live band for those shows, which seems to be a rarity on ships these days. The comedian/magician was entertaining. Various entertainment around the ship was good. Activities person was very funny--forgot her name but she is from Chihuahua, Mexico, and talks about it all the time. We won a trivia game. I do think the main plaza area is a weird place for activities. Lots of bars of course, and I noticed the Martini Bar pricing again has gone up. When I was on Reflection in 2022 drinks were $13; Beyond in Feb 2023 they were $15 and $17, and now $17. Got a drink at World Class bar and it was just ok. I remember when that space was the Molecular Bar which was so great; so sorry Celebrity changed those out. Sky Lounge had unique drinks that were good too. Love that bright and sunny room. Mast Bar served a red wine that was warm which I thought was odd. There was an 80s party in the Sky Lounge one evening, and it began with a team game of Naming that Tune which was fun. Bunch of times in port the TV channels were unavailable. If you want to hear the announcements but not open your cabin door, put the tv on channel 1 or 21 and you'll hear the announcements. We kept 21 on when arriving into port so we had a forward view. Pickleball court forward deck 14 by the basketball court. There are also lounge chairs facing forward in this area. We loved this spot for sailaway; we had it to ourselves most days. We attended several of the CC top tier events although now I just realized we totally forgot about the Mixology event. Oops. Went to it on Beyond and the cocktails were just ok, so I'm not too sad. The backstage tour was very good--first time I've seen that offered on Celebrity as Elite level perk, and we enjoyed our guide who was one of the performers, Benji from Denmark, as he was entertaining. We went to Tuscan for the breakfast one day and got seated in the second row of tables as all the window tables were full. Then we sat there. Another table next to us got filled. And all of us just sat there. Finally one lady spoke up and asked if we were going to get service. Yet other members got seated at a vacated window table and the server was there immediately. Not sure where their disconnect was or why we got such slow service. We prefer the variety in the buffet so we did not go back to Tuscan after that. The Sr. Officers event was good as was the Welcome event--both in the Sky Lounge with free drinks and light bites. Priority tendering was great. The wine tasting was just ok. Concierge is located by Team Earth. Celebrity app did not work on Android phone the entire cruise. Kept getting error messages. iPhone had no issues with the Celebrity app. Ports. Santa Barbara was a tender port. It was a beautiful day and we were on land by 9ish. Took a wander along the waterfront. I may have walked past Rob Lowe but realized it too late. He had longish hair and mirrored aviator glasses on so I can't be sure, but he does live there so. . . I'll never know. Walked out on the pier and wandered downtown for a few hours. Found an excellent cocktails place. Long line to get back on the ship but it moved. Liked this stop. San Francisco we've been to a few times and the fog cleared just as we approached the Golden Gate bridge. This time we decided to go to Alcatraz. Bought tickets online and walked over to the pier. It was an interesting tour on a nice sunny day. Other fellow cruisers did this as well. Also got some nice sunset pics of the City. Catalina Island. Tender port but they use lifeboats and local ferry-type boats so it goes quickly. Golf cart rental line was too long so we rented electric bikes instead. Two hours was more than sufficient to see what was around. Got some great ship pics. Stopped for a cocktail, then headed back to the ship. There is a nice beach area there. Note that this was the only port we planned a ship-sponsored excursion due to the 40% off sale Celebrity had, but the day before Catalina we noticed that our OBC had increased and this was due to the refund for the excursion, and then we got the letter that the excursion was cancelled due to maintenance. We rode bikes past the excursion area and they were indeed working on the ropes courses. But Celebrity only told us this the day before? If you want to rent a golf cart, wait till early afternoon when most have been returned and there is no line to get one. Note that the 2 rental companies wanted payment in cash only. $60/hour. I think if we stop there again we'll look into doing wave runners. San Diego. We did the hop on hop off trolley car and they were not sufficiently prepared for 2 ships and many riders for that day. We bought tix online and then had to show them at a window to get the stickers to be able to board the 36 person trolley. The ride was fun and we got a great tour and decided we'd stay onboard for the whole tour, then get off at Coronado later. Well, lunchtime was approaching and our guide told us he was stopping at Old Town and breaking for lunch so we'd all have to get off the trolley and wait for the next one. Which ended up being a 20 minute wait in the hot sun. They needed to be better prepared for the # of passengers they'd have that day--when ships are in port. As we stopped back at where the ships were, there was still a line to get on the trolley. We stayed on and hopped off to wander around the Hotel Del Coronado and then took a trolley back to Balboa Park, but at that point I'd had enough trolley time so we took an Uber back to the ship. It was a great way to see the city; it is just a long ride. And the lunch stop delayed things too much. When ships are in port, they need more trolleys. Ensenada. Fog fog everywhere. It did clear up and got hot and sunny. We stayed on the ship. Got foggy again just around departure time. Weather: I was not sufficiently prepared for how cold it can get on Pacific evenings and wished I had a sweatshirt--even on the southern parts of the itinerary. It was hot for the most part during the day, but the breeze always seemed cold. The seas were mostly calm though, with a gentle roll here or there. Be on the lookout for lots of sea life; we saw sea lions, dolphins, and even whales. While this ship shows its age with rust and a lot of wear and tear, sticky buildup on tables, scratched and gouged floors, furniture needing repair or replacement, it is still my favorite class of Celebrity ship. We got a good deal on this cruise, so this was all ok. If I paid top dollar, I would not have been happy. Sometimes people ask about age of passengers, and I would say this cruise was largely folks over 60. To depart we got into a short line on deck 5 a little after 7, we were off the ship by 7:15 and in an Uber at 7:35. Of course the price to SNA had surged up $30 due to demand, but what can you do. I guess we could've priced a taxi, but the few that were there were taken quickly and people were waiting for more.

Music and dancing in the Sky Lounge. Seems Quasar is a wasted but cool space. There was a fun 80s party with team competition for naming that 80s tune.

Apple martini was on the CC HH menu on Beyond in February. And Cosmo too. Yes to water and soda too.

Hi all. First MSC cruise coming up. I notice we were assigned a 9:30am check-in time. We don't want one that early. Is there a way to request a change to later?

We always walk each deck bow to stern (except cabin decks).

Caribbean 5 nighter

Wait, so the average age on Viking is older? I was going to check them out. On Scarlet Lady/Virgin: I'd say the cruise I was on had people of all ages, though most appeared to be in their 20s and 30s.

I love that Swarovski staircase! Love sparkles. MSC has some great deals out of Brooklyn, and we don't have to fly to it. I'm trying them out for myself this year as well.

They have definitely had cuts as have other cruiselines I've been on since covid, but Celebrity is the only one calling themselves the LUXURY line. . .so I expect more from them. . . and I'm certainly paying for it. It does seem like too much negative change since new CEO took over, but could already have been in process before that. NO prizes for any trivia, etc. is beyond cheap. A logo item is free advertising and costs them pennies. Ok maybe a few dollars. They were giving out prizes in 2022, . .but that stopped in 2023. Food also went a bit down hill with fewer options and nothing outstanding anymore. And this site is to express our opinions, so there's that. . . 🙂

No need for ship excursion in either port IMO. Yes, Halifax has a lot to see within walking distance.

Agree; they need to stop advertising as "luxury" because they aren't anymore.

Will be in envelope in cabin day of embarkation.

in these cabins, you get a robe, slippers, and binoculars to use. Other than that, I don’t think there was anything special about the cabin itself. Terrazza Area on deck five is nice to have during the day. The brunch offered items I did not see on any other menu. I had a piece of filet mignon, and it was fabulous. The brunch also included either of 2 particular cocktails although I can’t remember what they were. Even the desserts were fancy.

There really isn’t space to do this on deck 8 corner cabin. I will try to post a pic.

Yes, your cabin is on the opposite side of the ship. The only time anyone used that door is when the crew was doing a drill one morning. Other than that we heard no noise. I was concerned about that as well, but it worked out fine.

Absolutely agree. And no leg press! We went late afternoon on either Sunday or Monday and it was crowded then too.

I hear you; I wondered if I made a mistake booking this ship but I'm glad I got to experience it for myself. Debarkation was fine. It is a lot of walking. We were at the back of the ship, so we walked to the front to exit, then you walk to the back of the terminal to the escalator or elevator, go down, and forward again to the facial recognition screens, then out. We walked up 48th street to get away from the masses of people debarking and called our Uber from there (11th Ave). If you are going on a weekend, you should be able to get a taxi from the taxi stand across the street from the ship. Weekdays don't even bother to try to get a taxi. As you walk across the street there will be people offering you rides--for more than the ride should be. If I were going to the airport, I would use an Uber or Lyft ride. Hope you have a great trip. We love sailing from NYC. 🙂

Hi everyone. Just back from the Venezia. We've sailed from NYC many times and we know the terminals are not large enough to hold thousands of people, so when check-in selection opened, we selected arrival time of 11:30-12, so hopefully boarding already started and the terminal will not be packed. We arrived around 11:25, no line at priority security line (regular security line had maybe 20 people in it), and walked right up to check-in person. I wondered where everyone was, but as we walked the length of the terminal, hundreds of people were seated. Quick process for us: 20 minutes from arrival at the port to our cabin. Dropped our bags at the cabin. As we walked down the long hallway and cabin doors were open, I was surprised how many cabins were nowhere near ready. Checked in at our muster station, watched the new life jacket demonstration, and that was it. The life jackets are different now. Room keys were not yet outside our cabin, so we could not use the app. since they want your folio number to use the app. We then wandered into an almost empty buffet. It was great at 12:15, but 30 minutes later, when we came back through, it was packed. Guy's burgers also had lines--note there are TWO lines for Guy's. Other various food places open too. We had an aft corner Terrazza premium vista balcony cabin and it was nice. Our cabin steward Wayan was excellent. Cabin was small and an odd shape, but it worked. Smallish bathroom, shelves, bar of soap, and a shampoo/body wash combo dispenser in the shower. Fridge was quite cold. Not many tv channels but a lot of free on-demand movies. We liked the robes and slippers provided, and got our wristband for the Terrazza deck access. For a newer ship, I was surprised there was not some kind of nightlight in the bathroom. The balcony was glorious and large, and we asked for a second lounger chair which we received, so you're welcome to anyone else who stays in this cabin! 🙂 Air conditioning in the cabin worked great. The balcony partitions seem to give you more privacy than the ones on Carnival's older ships. These particular category cabins vary in size and layout; the two deck six cabins and balconies seem to be the largest. Deck seven and eight look to be about the same size as each other(smaller than deck 6); deck nine has a complete overhang (and is under aft pool deck.) Terrazza category guests also receive a brunch at the Steakhouse, and it was very good. It was only offered once during this 4 nighter. This is different than the general guest sea day brunch listed in the Fun Times. Once you back out of the dock, you head down the Hudson River. This never gets old for us. So many cool buildings in NYC and NJ; Freedom Tower, Statue of Liberty, etc. We headed out to sea, still in the channel just off LI and NJ, and got to see a few whales, so that was a treat. If you love morning coffee or cappuccino, etc. there are various bars that have machines for coffee, so check around--it is not only at Java blue. BUT Java Blue has some interesting adult milkshakes (included in drink package). Yes, the ship feels crowded especially in the buffet at peak times. Note that there is more than one buffet line--one is mid-aft, and the other is more aft, and it's not always the same food at both, but both are not always open at the same time. I like that there were sinks in various places on deck 10 for hand-washing. We had heard the Seafood Shack had Asian food for lunch some days, but we did not get to see that. Also there is a lunch place on deck 5 starboard, but we didn't eat there either. Pizza was ok, but many times had a super long line. Midnight buffet starts at 11. The sandwich counter is in the center of the buffet and gets long lines. Terrazza area deck 5 aft was very nice. Got crowded though. Why do people bring their personal music devices--too much competing music. Hot tubs were a weird green color (unlike the clear water in the crew hot tub at the bow!). Attendants do check for wristbands and we saw people asked to leave. The continental breakfast here was a nice spread of cereal, fruit, yogurt, breads, pastries and juices. You can get included-in-cruise-fare and specialty coffee here too. I had read of long wait times with anytime (or whatever it's called) dining, so we opted for early fixed dining. However, sailaway from NYC and Saint John were around the same time so we did not make it to the restaurant for two of the nights. We shared a table with another couple and enjoyed the other two dinners with them. Food was ok. Service was excellent. Various musicians were around the ship and they were quite good. The 2 theater shows, well, I remember when the production shows were great. Comedy shows were packed; we went to one of them, and heard many good things about the other comedians. Family Feud was entertaining. I like all the outdoor spaces along deck 5, especially up near the bow. Lots of little nooks and crannies to relax in. Note that there's a large smoking area on deck 5, starboard midship/forward. Liked Frizzante bar, and Mary and Sebastian were great. I liked that various bars had different cocktail menus. Platinum gift was fanny pack. Popped up to Serenity deck just once and it was completely full. Not one open space. Glad we had a nice balcony to use. Ropes course looked cool; many families enjoying miniature golf. Nice water slides. Pickleball was offered one sea day. Note that you don't get the room service breakfast menu in the cabin anymore. I was told to order through the app, but when I checked morning options, there was nothing that was $0. Saint John, NB. Arrived very early and left the ship around 9 for a walkabout. We've been here on many Carnival NE/Canada cruises before. We hoped to take a walk on this trail that goes around the bay, but it started raining and many went back to the ship. Buffet was packed at lunchtime. But the weather cleared up in the afternoon and we went back out to wander. Stopped by various shops and then Saint John Ale House and had a strawberry rhubarb margarita. Yum. Terrazza cabins received notice of a meetup point for debarkation at 7am, however, the ship was at the dock before 6, and around 6:50 MarQ announced that you could now do express debarkation NOW so we hurried on down to deck 3 forward and were off the ship in probably 10 minutes, and out of the terminal in 6 or 7 more. Walked across the street and got Uber ride to Penn Station. Your ride to Penn station should be around $12 plus tip. The guys who try to get your attention when you cross 12th Avenue will charge you more, so just be aware. I have to say I had lowered my expectations after reading some negative reviews. But I'm glad I went to check out Venezia for myself. We enjoyed checking out all the public decks soon upon boarding so we didn't miss anything. We had a nice time, loved our cabin and balcony; food was just ok but we never went hungry, and entertainment ok, too. Yes, the ship felt crowded some of the time. Still, it was a relaxing and fun 4 nighter for us. My advice is bring a jacket as some evenings (especially in Canada) got chilly, although inside the ship I was never cold. ENJOY! 😀

The only aft deck that has a large overhang is deck 9. We were on deck 8 and it was mostly uncovered. Deck 9 could look down on your balcony though, and we could look down at decks 7 and 6.

Aug 19 boarding started around 11:35am

My experience at Manhattan NYC port is boarding usually starts around 11:30.

OP thanks for your review. Hoping my experience is good too. -------------- Note RE: post-cruise transport: for weekday debarkation, I have found it best to go across 12th Ave and order an Uber to Penn Station (or I guess wherever else you need to go). Last time I debarked on a weekday, there were NO available taxis to be found.

Probably not at this point, but it doesn't hurt to keep checking.