Ergates The Ant

Thanks for your review. We got off Apex as you got on! Re the Infinite Veranda windows, they should go down to be flush with the lower window. However, we did have to press the switch a few times to ensure it went all the way down. Same thing happened when closing the window. We noticed it got rather cold one evening, and it was because we hadn’t completely closed the window. The button seemed to cut out before the last few inches, and had to be held down again.

No, if the window is open, the AC goes off. The folding doors seem to be purely decorative, and don’t obscure light either. We didn’t bother using them. As we were cruising in Northern Europe, we mainly closed the window when it got too cold! Only once did it get too hot, when we were facing the sun for a few hours, so we closed the window and let the AC cool the room down. But if you are hoping to sit in the ‘balcony’ section and keep the AC on by closing the folding door screens, that won’t work.

I think there was a roast Turkey at least twice on our cruise ( and it was very good) OH had a Turkey burger from the Mast Grill one afternoon, there was a wait while it was cooked, there were also waits for the beef burgers, as these were also freshly cooked. If the Rooftop Grill is open, you can book and pay for a meal there and I’m pretty sure posh burgers are on the menu - at a price! However, apart from actual burgers, there was always sufficient ‘straightforward’ food in the buffet at night, to ensure that you wouldn’t go hungry. Having looked at the menus for Luminae, that has confirmed I’m not missing anything on the food front by not booking a suite!

We are just back from an 8 nighter on Apex, and ate in the buffet every night. Our preference, like to see what we are going to eat, and choose little portions as tasters, rather than committing to something off the menu which we then find we don’t like. Im not a burger fan, and didn’t notice if they were available. If there were, they would not have been cooked to order but ready made and kept hot. The evening selection was not as extensive as the lunch offerings. However, there was always enough choice to put together a decent meal. Always a roast carvery, and there was usually roast chicken as well. There were makings for fajitas at every meal too, beef, chicken and fish plus the extras. Always grilled chicken breast slices, minute steaks and fish. The rolls were delicious, so if we weren’t very hungry, we would have rolls and butter with roast meats from the carvery. There was a pasta station and a stir fry station, which I never used, but seemed popular. The curry was always excellent. Didn’t try the pizza, not our thing. Big selection of salads, some cheeses ( no Cheddar! And there was blue cheese labelled as !blue cheese!) We are fairly picky eaters, in that we don’t like fish, rare beef, duck or veal. Never have room for starters, OH would prefer chips to mash, and I’d eat rice with everything! At home, we eat free range meats and eggs, and have lots of excellent nearby restaurants serving local produce, so cruise ship food isn’t that big a deal for us. We also loved the layout and seating in the buffet, with its wonderful sea views, instead of having to hang around for the next course on a table for two, six inches from its neighbour, in the bowels of the ship!

Any point contacting Celebrity to ask? It was a huge plus in the IV cabin having independent AC so we could leave the window open. One would hope that these newer ships are designed so that individual preferences for fresh air and sea breezes can be accommodated without inconveniencing other passengers. It does seem that those who routinely cruise in hot, high humidity areas have no idea why those of us used to colder weather areas are mystified as to why anyone wouldn’t want to fully appreciate the joys of actually being at sea. Hopefully someone else who has actually stayed in an Edge class suite, non IV cabin, can contribute some facts? I’m sure that @Georgia_Peaches wouldn’t have been given the advice she was given, if it had caused problems for adjoining cabins.

I’m really enjoying your review, SerraG, but I can’t say I’m sorry I probably wont be dining in Luminae. The menus do not really appeal to me at all, I’d struggle most meals. We’ve only been to Alaska once, and would love to go back, mainly to see the wildlife.

It does seem odd that Celebrity have taken the decision to install so many infinite balconies when relatively few of their ships do cooler weather cruises. I’ve never been to the Caribbean, as we are really not fans of very hot weather. I’m sure I’d hate having to stay shut inside with AC on, because of the heat and humidity, and would probably only be able to use the balcony when the ship was moving enough to create a decent breeze. I do hope my observations have been helpful, anyway.

There were no Norwegian food offerings in the buffet on that cruise. Thought we might at least see some Norwegian cheese, but they didn’t even have any cheddar in the buffet! The lunchtime buffet themes included British, Indian, American, Italian, and I think French. The evening selection was not so extensive, which was a shame.

Oh, that’s a shame. Been looking at videos and couldn’t see an espresso machine. Thanks anyway. Looks like we will manage somehow! Just off Celebrity Apex, and couldn’t actually find a seat in Il Bacio, the coffee shop, more than twice on the cruise, so might be a red herring anyway.

That’s really useful to know, thanks. Preferred breakfast is pastries or muesli but with an espresso. Not a big fan of cooked breakfasts.

Do they have espresso based coffees available at Cafe 270?

Thanks. Last ship we were on had a Lavazzo coffee stand facing onto the Promenade, next to the Cafe. We usually sat ‘outside’ with pastries from the cafe, and coffee from the stand. Not a huge fan of Starbucks, but we’ll give it a go! I’ll certainly be wanting to sample the patisserie offerings, but perhaps not at breakfast!

We do enjoy the offerings in the Cafe Promenade on other RCCL ships, but there was a coffee stall next door where we could get ‘proper’ coffee to eat with our snacks. Can’t see exactly where the Starbucks is on Anthem. Would we be restricted to the fancy cakes with our coffee from the patisserie shop, or can we mix and match at the cafe promenade as we’ve done in the past. Thanks.

The great thing about the infinite balcony cabins is that the AC is independent of any other cabins. When the window is opened, the AC goes off immediately, and comes on again when the window is shut. We are not big fans of air conditioning, and cruising in Europe, are happier to regulate cabin temperatures by opening windows or doors. You will be able to open the window as you please and enjoy the sea air, and the sounds of the waves. I’m not sure if the regular balcony cabins on the rest of the E class ships have the same arrangement?

Just off Apex, confirm that there was a kettle and a selection of tea bags etc in our room. Tea bag brands ranged from ?Bigelow, but also Tetley. More varieties were available in the buffet, plus sachets of painfully sweet hot chocolate powder. Horrid little glass cups though, so we brought a couple of china mugs down from the buffet to use. The buffet also had little metal teapots for tea making, so we also ‘borrowed’ one of those to use in our room. Meant we could make our tea properly with boiling water. I did see people making tea in the buffet by putting the water in the pot first, then choosing and unwrapping the tea bag before dangling it into the water. Not the way I’d like it.

I think if you were reliant on air conditioning for cooling, you might have a problem. In Northern Europe, our first reaction to a warm room is to open the windows! No air con in our homes. We enjoyed the sea breeze when we stuck our heads out, but even with the ship at full speed, it wasn’t unpleasant with the window open. The view from the window also seemed less restricted, looking up and side to side seemed less close in than a balcony did. Excellent for Norway, when I can remember having to bundle up in jackets and lean over the balcony rail to see the sides of the fjord. Instead, we relaxed on the chairs by the window with a fantastic view, and even in the cold mornings, we could open the window enough to hear the waterfalls! We found the chairs perfectly comfortable, but we have never used previous balconies for lounging or sunbathing. The glass was cleaned twice on our 8 night cruise. The salt was only evident on those occasions when the window was facing the sun, but we have experienced this on regular balconies when the glass got dirty. At least we didn’t have to go outside to see out! Two views from the room, at 3am, window closed and cosy and warm! And a view of a fjord from the open window.

We have always booked balcony cabins in the past, but a last minute booking to Norway meant only Infinite Bacony available. We loved it! I’d nearly go so far as to say that it could be a deal breaker for us, we found it so much to our taste. This is why it appealed so much to us, as your personal requirements will be different. We love to hear the sea, and it was lovely to be able to sleep with the window at least partly open without the AC playing up. Loved the privacy of being able to sit right by the edge of the open window, without balcony neighbours being obvious. Hardly knew there was anyone next to us on either side. If I hadn’t seen them going into their rooms, I might have guessed that both were unoccupied. The extra space made a huge difference in the cabin too. It would probably have been too cold to sit out for too long in Northern Europe, but we had the window open for hours at a time. Wonderful to see straight down to the sea, too. We often leave our curtains open at night anyway, and we only closed the blind once to test how it worked! Perfect for cruising the fjords, when we passed mountain ranges in the small hours by the light of the moon. We would book this type of cabin again without hesitation, but appreciate that the climate in the Caribbean would present different challenges. I’ve never visited there, and have no plans to do so, but for cooler climates and scenic cruises, it exceeded my expectations.

Just off Apex. We did walk through to the Martini bar area from guest services. There was a ramp leading up to the middle area of the bar, but then steps to the next level where il Bacio was.

Just off Apex. If you are sailing out of UK, espresso based coffees are $6 for an americano, I think $5 for an espresso, as they have included the 20% ‘gratuity’ in the price. We only drink one caffeinated coffee a day, but didn’t manage that as there wasn’t enough seating near il Baccio. The coffee in the buffet was surprisingly drinkable, and there were fruit juices and fruit flavoured drinks available all day. Ice machines and water too, so no need for us to buy bottled water. A good selection of teas, including herbal ones.

We just pay as you go for drinks. Given how difficult it was to find seats in il Baccio in the mornings, I’d have been really annoyed if I’d splashed out on a package thinking I’d get full use of it. Coffee was usually much better on shore for half the price.

There were a lot of sailing boats in the area. Maybe there was a race on, and it was avoiding them?

Thanks for the input. Looks like it will be the usual luck of the draw which side the ship will be facing. It occurred to me that maybe the magic carpet would restrict which way the ship docked, but sounds as if it will be business as usual. I always enjoy watching the preparations for departure and the ropes being loosened off, and of course, any stragglers arriving at the last minute.

I’ve booked a cabin on Apex on the opposite side, as didn’t want anything obstructing views. However does that mean we won’t see any views of the dock side of the ship? I know the Magic Carpet is used for Tender ports, but we don’t have any on our cruise. Thanks,

I wonder if the App is getting itself mixed up with other cruises, maybe longer with a correspondingly higher package price?

We are sailing in five days time, the activities have only started loading in the last two days, the theatre shows only appeared today. I wonder if there is a filter to hide the kids club activities? They seem to have a very busy schedule, but not relevant to us.