NETSEG

Not sure anyone has posted about the delay in boarding Infinity last Friday in SF. Seems a mix up on unloading baggage from the previous cruise and the deep cleaning resulted in delay in boarding and sailing. Passengers were told by text, check-in would start at 1, boarding at 3. The line for check-in extended outside the terminal and on to the Embarcadero. Received another text that the inside of the terminal was at capacity so wait outside. We sat on the planters outside the terminal until about 4, got in more lines at security, then check-in and then a separate line for photos. We were told cabins would not be ready until 6. We were on-board for about 10 minutes when we were told to go to the muster station the drills, even though there were several hundred people still in the terminal checking in. When we got there, the room was packed and we had to stand another 30 minutes for the drill. The 4 p.m. sailing time became 7 p.m.

The rooms had mirrors covered with a film from the cleaning and few of the amenities as they had been removed during the cleaning. You can serve yourself at the buffet but staff are everywhere with spray bottles wiping anything passengers tough - railings, slot machines, chairs. The shopping area entrances are blocked with staff holding hand sanitizer so before you walk in.

Captain and Cruise Director have not commented on the delays and no apology. I think they are hoping we will all forget.

Otherwise, food is good, we are enjoying the cruise!

BEAV, I have been lurking on the Roll Call and am registered for the CC get together.

I am on the next cruise. Just got word from Celebrity of delayed boarding Frday for another deep cleaning.

Got off concierge on Summit May 25 - no hand-held shower head, no flowers, the fruit was three apples, no balcony footstools. You had to order canapés each day. We ordered once and got a plate with four sections - one had tomato salsa and three chips, one had about 5 olives, one had pineapple salsa - can't remember what was in the fourth . Not impressed with room service breakfast. The omelettes were better at the buffet or dining room and decaf coffee orders were not delivered. Other than the cabin location and size (which only applies to "M" class ships), nothing in the room or service made it worth the extra cost over a regular veranda. Needless to say, we'll only do Concierge again if the price is right.

Just got off the Summit Sunday. Here's my observation about the buffet.

If you are willing to wait at the egg station or the pasta or pizza station you get good hot food.

The use of the baskets and tins was confusing for people who like to graze . It was hard to figure out where things were if you did not want a basket or tin of something preselected for you. Each day some things were moved around like toast, yogurt, fresh fruit, so you had to circle the buffet to find it. Or, if you just wanted sausage or bacon, you had to cut in front of the omelet line. For the most part, the food was good just hard to figure out. Also, I think the staff was confused as well.

The silliest happening was the one day at lunch when they completely ran out of plates - for a long time. At one point, the boss in the white shirt said plates were on their way and a few minutes later I heard him on the phone saying he could not find plates. Then the silverware ran out. Made for an interesting lunch as people were circling the buffet looking for plates and silverware.

We have specifically booked the 2C cabins on deck 6 just past the aft elevators/stairs. The obstruction is the top of the lifeboat so you can't see down to the water but can see straight out. We have found these cabins a good choice price-wise, convenient to the aft elevator/stairs to get down to entertainment and dining and up to the buffet and pool. Plus, if you are on your balcony in port during a lifeboat drill, you get a really fascinating close-up view of how the lifeboats operate.

We did the Celebrity Middle Earth tour from Akaroa on our January 2013 cruise. Even though the weather did not cooperate (cloudy and gray) it was an enjoyable day. It is a long tour but besides seeing the site of Endoras and playing with swords, we got a chance to see a bit of the interior of New Zealand.

We also did the Celebrity overnight tour from Milford Sound to Dunedin. Our guide also did LOTR tours so he added info whenever we were near a LOTR site, like the River Bruinen near Arrowtown.

After reading the comments on Sabatini's, I guess the experience depends on the entree ordered and the ship. We got off Emerald yesterday and dined once in Sabatini's. Our experience was similar to the original poster. The lobster three ways was a disappointing entree -overdone, poorly presented and served with an unusual barley side that was supposed to be like a risotto. It was sent back. The veal chop was ok, but the accompanying mushroom ragout had a strange burnt flavor. The appetizers and dessert were fine. In all, we thought the room was lovely but the food was better in the dining room. Overall, a disappointment.

6C aft cabins are among my favorites. The obstruction is not a bother compared to the price and convenience - one floor down to coffee and gelato, two floor to martinis, dining room and casino or a brisk walk (or elevator ride) up directly to the buffet. Plus, if they take down the boats, you get a really good look at them and how they work.

Whether you like a 2C cabin depends on your preference. I've stayed in them several times. The deck 6 aft location is really convenient - one or two decks down to bars, restaurants, casino. A quick elevator ride up directly to the entrance of the buffet and pools. The obstruction is the lifeboats on Deck 5. The tops of the lifeboats are level with the floor of the balcony so your view down of the water is obstructed. The view out straight is usually fine except for an occasional piece of the equipment supporting the lifeboats but that only blocks a small part of the view. I think the location and the reduced cost are the big pluses for these cabins and they are worth consideration. A few of them are "on the hump" and have larger balconies. It's also kind of interesting to see how the lifeboats work and how they look inside as you can easily watch when they take them down for use in drills, etc.

I was on the 11/4 sailing of Reflection and find it very interesting to read people's observations on Reflection. I have been on Equinox and Solstice always in a Deck 6 obstructed view veranda cabin. So I think I can make a valid comparison.

I thought the ship was beautifully decorated. Get the iPad from Guest Relations to truly appreciate the art.

We had no problem getting elevators or getting a table in Select Dining. We ate around 7:30. The food was consistently good. Specialty restaurants were not busy at all and offered discounts throughout the cruise. We also ate in the Oceanview. It was busy on excursion days and about 8 in the morning but we always got a table in the same section.

I think the new Sunset Bar is beautiful. I was disappointed in the change in the Sky Lounge. I like the new game room and the Hideaway. Had no problem getting a cocktail before dinner.

It appears the issues on crowding are from those attending Elite events and eating in Blu. We did neither and actually commented about where the 3000 people were hiding on some days.

It seems Celebrity doesn't need to change the ships...they need to restructure their perks.

I will admit I don't understand Celebrity's logic in singling out the Open dining selection for prepaying gratuities at the time of booking.

No matter where you eat, you are getting services - dining room - traditional or open seating, buffet, specialty restaurants. I think that it makes sense to have a daily gratuity fee added to each passenger's bill each day during the cruise. That's the way most cruise lines handle it, I believe. Passengers can opt out at the Passenger service desk during the cruise or give additional amounts to personnel who did additional services.

I also think some people like the idea having the gratuities paid prior to the cruise as one less expense to come after the cruise. It would be nice if the passenger could make the choice.

What i don't understand is why the requirement is set to require pre-payment of gratuities at booking only for open seating. I can see why the Celebrity customer service staff have a hard time explaining it. Why not have passengers select the payment option at the time of booking, regardless of their dining room choice?