chemmo

When in a RS or PH we are usually escorted on board. You check in at ‘Special Delivery’ where your luggage is taken, you are then taken to the next available agent for check in. By the time check in is complete a member of staff will be waiting to take you on board. How well this system works varies from port to port. Also some agents seem to want to ‘gather’ a few suite guests and take them together. If this is the case it is usually quicker to just board yourself…. Debarkation we simply tell the concierge what time we want to get off and meet them at that time in the Retreat Lounge. Sometimes we will be individually escorted off on other occasions it will be with a group.

In our experience in a RS or PH you get 2 one litre bottles of the spirits you request plus beers, sodas, water etc. There is a bottle of champagne in your suite as you board. In our experience you do not have free miniature bottles or wrapped snacks although your butler will bring you almost any snack you request. Beers, sodas etc are regularly replenished. Some guests have reported they have asked and received bottles of wine too. Whilst this has never been a regular request by us on the odd occasion we have asked (when dining in suite) the response has been mixed. First time a bottle of our preferred wine was brought up no issue. Next cruise we were told the butler would bring it up but by the glass…As there were three of us this obviously simply made the butler’s delivery harder and he popped back up with refills! I write this simply to note different ships have different rules sometimes…

Like you we have been suite cruising many years…We clearly remember when the only PH perks were two bottles of spirits and a ‘free’ specialty dinner. True luxury lines are also not receiving the best of reviews. I have friends recently back from Regent who had a good cruise but were lamenting a lesser quality cheese board, a smaller included wine selection and a few other miscellaneous ‘not quite the standard it was’ things…They also commented that the list of ‘included’ vs ‘extra cost’ activities seemed less balanced… Re the ship within a ship concept I think it is very much alive and kicking as bookings and pricing show, not just for Celebrity but for other lines too. Many of us don’t want a small ship we do want the bigger ship experience but the ‘club’ ambiance of the Retreat areas to return to when we are ready…I am aware what we pay for for a RS or PH is comparable to a ‘more luxury line’ but I don’t want a more luxury line I want the ship within a ship experience and I don’t think I am alone…

I think those of us who are regular followers of CC will focus on the reports of those we know give balanced reviews. I know your reviews will state what the actual situation is on board, the facts (included, not included…) plus then you will give an overview of your ‘whole’ experience…The opinion… We are aware that it isn’t only Celebrity making cuts nor is it just cruise lines. Many UK hotels suddenly are now offering good prices for rooms but are charging extra for breakfast and parking which previously were included in the price…Definitely rattling regulars! Restaurants are reducing the number of items on the menu, early bird offers are becoming increasingly rare….Quite simply it seems the whole hospitality industry post lockdown has rethought its ‘best’ options to reduce cost and maximise income… I do think Celebrity has been misguided in the way it has introduced change…quietly slipped in as if no one would notice…It has come across as both underhanded and petty. I honestly think it would have been better if they had ‘campaigned’ what we see as cuts as part of a bigger package with some clear ‘gains’… I don’t know if it is just me but I do think Celebrity has been misguided and missed some revenue options as it has been too focused on just saving $. For example, having made room service chargeable why not balance that by offer things people may see as worth paying extra for? For example, a brunch menu between 9am and 11am. Then people may at least feel that something better is on offer than there was before even if it does incur a cost… Looking forward to your reviews…

A couple of my friends are presently on Silhouette….I had been saying for years they should give Celebrity a go. Unfortunately they booked a short cruise which last year had reviews as a booze cruise and now poor reviews on the MDR… I do hope that the weather at least is kind to them…

What is really worrying is most of the changes are literally only saving them peanuts! A couple of members of staff here, a bottle of water there, a few pillow chocolates…Whilst my Mum always said “Watch the pennies and the £’s will look after themselves” I cannot believe these petty reductions in service will actually help the overall financial situation of Celebrity and if people start cancelling or cruising less then those pennies saved will be £ and $ lost…

You know it wouldn’t surprise me….

We love the fries from room service and the chicken noodle soup. Pure comfort food… Sincere thanks for toasting our health, I promise to return the favour when we are finally back at sea next September!

Hope you soon feel better…sincere thanks for posting…

It was more the ‘whole picture’ I was referring to. I am aware that most of the time SS fridges were filled up, that is great…no issue with that. I don’t have an issue with any of the perks that Terry has enjoyed. However, if every Sky Suite guests expects their butler to bring drinks from the bar it puts pressure on the service…As I said, even when in a higher suite, I wouldn’t expect this as common practice…Nice when offered but it isn’t a listed perk…Can you imagine if everyone at 4pm rang their butler for their martini to be brought to their room? The point I was simply trying to make was it is hard to know now what SS butler service was before the change…Some SS guests reporting above and beyond service whilst others reported their butler was more or less invisible…Perhaps some of the invisible butlers were so because they were tending to the needs of those expecting more… Just an observation not a judgement…

Terry, the ‘level of service’ you have described you have received in the past in a Sky Suite has by my interpretation, exceeded by a long way the listed Sky Suite butler service. I know I, along with many other regular upper suite guests, have commented more than once that you have frequently had perks that we have not expected or asked for and if offered would be considered a ‘treat’ not a right… We have, even when staying in the PH, not regularly expected drinks or bottles of wine delivered to our suite. If our butler has arranged things like this for us then we have said thank you but not necessarily expected it the next cruise because it isn’t in the list of PH perks…More often than not if we wanted a drink not in our bar set up we would simply go and get it. I care very much about the reduction in butler service to Sky Suites. I do think to remove a ‘perk’ people have paid for is wrong. I sincerely hope that Celebrity will make every effort to ensure all Sky Suite guests receive a great service. However, if some Sky Suite guests are expecting service above that offered to higher suites it definitely won’t work… As I have said in the past, good luck to you for having received such above and beyond service on multiple occasions but I don’t think your past experience particularly reflects the expectation or experience of most suite cruisers…This is in no way a personal ‘go’ at you…I hope you know the nature of my posts too well to think that. I do just think you have been very lucky in your past experiences.

I would assume it will be divided between the ‘team’. It does seem a lot of $$$ for a single guest even with that length of voyage… If you did get fantastic service I am sure you wouldn’t mind…You were content to pay it for a personalised service but will the ‘new’ system work for you? Will the team service level be worth the gratuities? Not even taking into account the % add on for butler service in a suite vs other price of another room… I must confess that one of the reasons for booking a suite with a butler for us over the years has been support with some mobility issues. It has been nice knowing we can avoid queues, knowing we can have things delivered to our room, knowing our room will be stocked with items we want. Not just drinks but sliced lemons, a real fruit plate…Don’t get me wrong, we haven’t used the butler intensively to fetch, bring and carry but we have always known we can ask or ring him. I am sure that we are not the only suite guests who have booked rooms with butlers to help in this way…

Very pleased about that…Much as it is awful when there are issues with your room sometimes you do have to accept that faults occur and that at least the company have tried to do things right by you..

Do you have an outcome?

We had a PH second toilet develop a fault that they couldn’t fix. They gave us a future cruise credit certificate. We didn’t ask for it, it was simply offered. Re your jacuzzi, whilst I know it wouldn’t fix an underlying issue couldn’t you have left the plug in with a couple of inches of water to get rid of the smell? We did have a sewage smell from the jacuzzi in a RS on Solstice. We were told that owing to the plumbing on the jacuzzi systems in rough seas the ‘u bend?’ can empty resulting in smells being able to come into the room…Once we got in the habit of regularly putting a bit of water down the problem went. We have occasionally had similar on other S class ships…always when we have not used the jacuzzi and the sea has been rough.

Most of our super sweet baby tomatoes disappear on the way from the greenhouse to the kitchen…The sugar snap peas never make it!

Can’t Sky Suite guests get speciality coffee delivered to their suites? I would have thought that was one thing they would continue. No reason why a Team member can’t be coordinating coffee deliveries.

Oh….don’t give Celebrity ideas…My E+ may not be worth much but I wouldn’t want to see it go!

Greetings, swjumbo, sincere best wishes for a wonderful cruise! I am so pleased you are enjoying your cruise. Nice to hear that Celebrity are catering for their younger guests, it is their vacation too. We had a fantastic Norwegian cruise in May a few years ago and had fantastic weather, hope you do too. I must confess we have always found the veg portions in Tuscan ridiculously small…The little dishes of mash, the pathetic portions of broccolini! Perhaps it is a British thing but the veggies always look lost next to the big slabs of steak! I tend to ask for a Caesar Salad to go with my steak…Perhaps not traditional but it is my holiday! It is a pity that salad is often vigorously chopped, it does look less appealing than whole or chunkier…I guess it is just easier to pick up on a fork that way… Sorry to hear some guests are less than thrilled with the MDR food. Is their gripe with the food selection or food quality? We are so sorry to have missed Silhouette’s last season in Southampton…We should have cruised on her twice this year but circumstances changed…She really is a beautiful ship, enjoy! On your next visit to Tuscan please raise your glasses and toast “To making it count…” our traditional first night salute! Continue to enjoy, keep the updates coming!

I think it is the little things butlers sometimes do that adds to your cruise pleasure! I remember us once returning to our suite saying we were shattered and going to watch a film. A few minutes later there was a knock on the door and our butler had a big bowl of popcorn for us!

Thrilled for you but it shouldn’t be such hard work…

We have been tempted a few times to go through agencies (price driven) and each time regretted it…If you are lucky then fine but just one small timing change (amongst other possible issues) can make everything go wrong. Following from that the nightmare starts! The airline won’t talk to you because you are booked through an agency…The agency always says they are liaising with the airline…Time passes, you nag both… When we book direct there is only one agency to communicate with. They can’t direct you around the ever decreasing circle of whose responsibility/whose fault it is… Once a second agency is involved it can even be a major issue getting someone to talk to without ending up in a phone loop where none of the suggestions to press match your personal circumstances… This is so different than a few years ago. Then the agent was your representative, it was their role and responsibility to make their promise to you come true. You had a contract with them… As they say progress isn’t all it’s made up to be.

As a very regular poster and reader on this board my biggest concern is the number of frequent cruisers who are expressing concerns about their recent experiences, recent reviews and changes. These are usually happy posters! These are posters who book multiple cruises a year because they hold the cruise line in high regard! These are well travelled posters who are knowledgeable about food and drink! These are posters whose opinions I hold in high regard! Cruise Critic is such a good site because it does allow us to voice both positives and negatives. With my next cruise a bit in the future I will keep reading all reviews. Some I may find ‘petty’…others I may find ‘over the top’. The multitude of responses on CC enable us to ‘read’ what is important to us. Issues that do or do not enhance our experience on board… As you have said in a previous post the site does have a function of offering factual information to new cruisers. Totally agree. Another concern is many of us with lots of Celebrity cruise experience don’t actually feel confident answering some questions at present because things are changing fast and without good communication. If a new cruisers asks about MDR menu choices there presently isn’t a correct ‘answer’! No one yet can advise about the change to Sky Suite butler/team service because past experience is no longer relevant…. After winging about your winging at others winging I will add that I do understand your viewpoint too! Along with the factual side of Cruise Critic there also comes camaraderie, the sharing of great experiences, the sharing of special events. I love following and writing live reviews…Sharing a vicarious cruise when stuck at home on a grey day! I must confess I could do with a bit of lightheartedness on CC at present too! Unfortunately life is as it is…at present there is a focus on changes, C’est la vie!

I guess in the UK we do have an advantage for good AI prices by the end of September. All resorts want to be full until the end of October…The traditional close down time for many Mediterranean resorts although more and more are trying to extend their season. We have opted for Turkey but reasonable deals available in the Algarve, Canary Islands, Spain, Greek Islands… I guess it is like cruises the less faddy you are about location and date and the more flexible you are the better… I think the point I was trying to make though, was I didn’t particularly look at cruise options…With so many hiccups and changes happening I feel more comfortable letting things stabilise….

What a good question! In earlier years we have usually booked two cruises a year…Whilst unique circumstances have made us skip a year I am now almost grateful…Hopefully by the time we cruise things should have settled down. We decide a few days ago we can’t manage the winter without a break. Surprisingly cruising wasn’t even considered as an option. We simply wanted a cheerful crash out with lots of facilities and not too expensive…We have gone for an AI resort…What Celebrity needs to take on board is that many guests may stay loyal to Celebrity when they cruise but they may decide to cruise less often. This choice being made after looking at pricing…