CELEBRITY REFLECTION - ITALY & GREEK ISLANDS REVIEW - September 1st, 2017

We´re a gay couple (around our 40´s) from Norway and this was our 17th cruise and the third with Celebrity. We booked this cruise in the previous sailing with Celebrity midt 2016. Basically because we wanted to experience the Solstice class again and we love the ports of call in Greece and is a short flight within Europe.

PRE-CRUISE: We decided to stay 5 days in Rome as a mini pre-cruise vacation. We decided to stay at MyApARTsuite apartments in Trastevere area. Out of the touristy areas but close to the Tram #8 that can take you to the center in just minutes. We experience the side of Rome without the big tourist attractions (that we already have seen) and enjoyed a lot of the city hidden gems. We used Rome Shuttle Limousine from the Airport to Rome (5o euros) and from Rome to the Port (110 euros) and it worked perfect

EMBARKATION: It was OK. worked fast and in less than 10 minutes we were checked inn. Once checked inn everybody had to wait since it was raining like a tropical storm with thunder and lightning and it was not safe to walk to the ship, Once the thunder and lightning stopped those who wanted to walk under the rain received an umbrella to do so.

SHIP: Reflection is an amazing ship. Beautiful layout, public areas, lots of space even with a full sailing, it never felt crowded. It was extremely clean and spotless everywhere around the ship. Pooldeck was great and loved the solarium. In general I would say that this ship is now in our top three favorites.

CABIN: we booked a Guarantee Sky Suite and were assigned the cabin 2192 (an Accessible Cabin) in deck 12. We were more than happy with this cabin, it´s bigger than the normal Sky Suites maybe a little bit of less closet space but it worked well for us. The Balcony was just amazing, we loved the extra space in the balcony, the full size table and the extra shadow provided in this deck. The bathroom is also bigger than normal bathrooms and doesn´t have a bathtub but the shower makes for it. Given its location under the Ocean View Cafe sometimes you could hear a little bit of noise, like a rolling something but it wasn´t really a problem, you get use to it and does not disturb at all.

SUITE CLASS PERKS: Once we checked inn, we met Manuela (one of the Michaels Club concierge) who informed us briefly about the situation with the rain and the wait. Michaels Club concierges: Manuela and Adriana, were amazing hostesses and they made us feel like at home since we met them there. The rest of the staff there were also great and just after couple of visits they learnt our preferred drinks. It was great to have a place where you could relax and find assistance (if needed). Our Butler, Sever; introduced himself just shortly after we were in the suite and was of great assistance during the week for the thing we requested (like the morning coffees and room service couple of times). Also our Stateroom Attendant (Andhika) was great and kept our room spotless during the length of the cruise. Luminae will be commented under Dining. We think is worth to pay the extra for the Sky Suite and the perks that come along, would we book it again?, Yes… if the price range / Value is Ok for us. We also had the Premium Drinking Package, that we used a lot for drinks, coffees and Vitamin Waters / Arizona iced teas.

DINING: as part of the Suite perks, we had access to Luminae as our main restaurant for dinner and breakfast everyday and lunch on embarkation and sea days. In general we loved Luminae, the dinner menu changes everyday and for some it could be very limited but we loved it. We noticed that a lot of guest asked for the main dining room menu and order form there. We just asked once for the onion soup from the main dining room (that we love ) and we got it. The staff made its best to make us feel welcome and at home (Katja, Vishal and the rest of the waiters and the Sommelier). Ocean View Cafe: Very good and varied selection for lunch (when we were there), good quality and tastes, also good service from the waiters. We bought a 3 dinners package fot the specialty restaurants and this how it went down: Qsine: Very nice concept and food, the portions are just huge, too much food for our taste; we felt the concept should be explained better so you know how much food to order. The Lawn Grill Club: Grill steakhouse, outdoor, dining al fresco, extremely good food and wine to pair. Amazing. Murano: it was like a dinner symphony, everything was just perfect and coordinated in terms of service and food taste / quality. We also decided to try the «special event» Thaj Mahjal dinner, and Indian dinner with an additional cost of 49$, this was hosted in Qsine; we felt the food was very good, the portions very small and there was a lack of story / presentation behind the dinner; for us it was not worthy of the extra cost. The Indian food in the buffet tasted as good and better than the special event dinner food.

BARS: as said, we had the premium drinking package as part of our suite perks and booking promotion, we had the same package before and we fount it is still worth it. In general we found the service around all bars to be good with no long waiting. Al baccio Cafe, was great all time for our coffee or tea fix with small desserts. Martini Bar was entertain ing as usual but crowded most of the time. Pool Bar was great, Our favourite spot was the World Bar: very interesting drinks and best service on board (thanks Lazar and Aleksandr)

ENTERTAINMENT: for our taste this was a rollercoaster, some shows we loved it (broken strings), others didn´t make so much sense (elysium and Max); having said that we think the singers (all of them) were some of the most talented we´ve ever seen on a cruise. The guest entertainers were also a mixed thing, we loved the classical strings duo; the girls make a great job and love how they talk a little about each piece and some stories related to these. Damian, the Cruise Director, was OK; Giuseppe and Kathe were very funny and friendly and Charlotte, the activity manager, was GREAT…. I just loved her… she would make an amazing Cruise Director. Not to miss: The silent party, just so much fun….

SERVICE: I would say the service all around the ship was great… nothing to complain, even if you can feel that it´s not the same as it was back just few years ago, the reflection staff makes sure you have an amazing holiday.

SHORE EXCURSIONS DESK: we didn´t use this so will not comment on that.

FUTURE CRUISES OFFICE: they did their job and we booked two future cruises with very good deals and promos

SHOPPING: good selection for shopping, foe some it could be discouraging the fact that the itinerary is not DUTY FREE, but if you buy over 199$ (per day) you can get the tax refunded and they assist you with that. It worked perfectly for us and we just delivered the forms we got at the airport and got our taxes back (if you live outside the EU)

POST CRUISE INFO: We used Rome Shuttle Limousine from the port to the Airport and it worked perfect; 110 Euros for 2 persons private transfer.

If you have sone questions, just ask and I will try to answer...

Great review, Thanks!

What did you do in the ports? I'm always interested in the independent port visits.

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Reflection is the only S class ship I haven't tried. It sounds excellent from your interesting review

Takk for fint review! Ca en måned til vi mønstrer på:)

Would you please expound on what you did in each port?

Excellent, well written report, thanks!

Regarding the Ports:

This time we didn't´t plan anything special or excursions given that we already had been in all the ports of call (in a cruise or in a holiday). Here is a little bit of information:

Rome: we stayed five days pre-cruise, in the trastevere area an enjoyed a lot to see this side of rome, without the big tourist attractions crowds and bad food in the restaurants around. Trastevere in the evening is a nice place to enjoy some drinks and good food.

Messina: We went out on our own and just walked around the centre of town and had coffee in a small hidden place.

Rhodes: went out again, walked all the old town, had an amazing pytagyros at NICOS in old town (like 3 euros per person and super tasty), then walked all the way to the more modern city areas, small shopping and then coffee (Greek Frappe) in a local cafeteria... after this... just walked to the beach area and around the promenade and couldn't´t resist a quick swimming... then more walking through the promenade and then to the ship. I recall some years ago we had a friend picking us up at the port and we drove all around the island...

Mykonos: we just walked around town, then we headed close to the bus station where there used to be a very good local restaurant but now there is a grocery store. then we found FANIS Snack Bar (just in the street going down from the bus station) and believe me they have the best slouvakis and pytagyros ever....

Valleta, Santorini, Athens and Naples we didn´t go out off the ship and enjoyed the emptiness of the pool deck :-). However I always recommend Pizzeria di Matteo in Naples (Via de tribunali) it´s the best pizza of the world....

Thank you for your review. We will be doing this itinerary in 2018 and am always looking for new things to do!

Thanks for the quick ports reply.

Thank you for the review. Looking forward to our cruise on the Reflection. Just returned from the Eclipse and agree that "silent disco" is so much fun.

Thanks for your review.

Hi,

I appreciate you taking the time to write this review, I love hearing how others experience their cruise! My partner and I will be sailing on Reflection for its Transatlantic next month for the second time....we love the ship and crew....and this review makes me anxious for our sail date to arrive!

Thanks again and ciao for now...

Brian in San Francisco

Hi there. Have you taken your cruise yet? If so what shoes are on so I can have the heads up. We sail may 18.

Thank you for your review. We will be doing this itinerary in 2018 and am always looking for new things to do!

Thanks a great review. Do u know by any chance what shows are in this ship and if they have any special themes like 70’s or 80’s night. How was the dress code for dinner and how many formal Nights. F

Did u get a random table for dinner or the same people every night. Also how many bottles of duty frrre are we allowed to take (we are on a package anyway but for room service I found it so slow,may be good to bring one) is there a a good selection of gym classes also. Many thanks. quote=Georgeven;54070270]We´re a gay couple (around our 40´s) from Norway and this was our 17th cruise and the third with Celebrity. We booked this cruise in the previous sailing with Celebrity midt 2016. Basically because we wanted to experience the Solstice class again and we love the ports of call in Greece and is a short flight within Europe.

PRE-CRUISE: We decided to stay 5 days in Rome as a mini pre-cruise vacation. We decided to stay at MyApARTsuite apartments in Trastevere area. Out of the touristy areas but close to the Tram #8 that can take you to the center in just minutes. We experience the side of Rome without the big tourist attractions (that we already have seen) and enjoyed a lot of the city hidden gems. We used Rome Shuttle Limousine from the Airport to Rome (5o euros) and from Rome to the Port (110 euros) and it worked perfect

EMBARKATION: It was OK. worked fast and in less than 10 minutes we were checked inn. Once checked inn everybody had to wait since it was raining like a tropical storm with thunder and lightning and it was not safe to walk to the ship, Once the thunder and lightning stopped those who wanted to walk under the rain received an umbrella to do so.

SHIP: Reflection is an amazing ship. Beautiful layout, public areas, lots of space even with a full sailing, it never felt crowded. It was extremely clean and spotless everywhere around the ship. Pooldeck was great and loved the solarium. In general I would say that this ship is now in our top three favorites.

CABIN: we booked a Guarantee Sky Suite and were assigned the cabin 2192 (an Accessible Cabin) in deck 12. We were more than happy with this cabin, it´s bigger than the normal Sky Suites maybe a little bit of less closet space but it worked well for us. The Balcony was just amazing, we loved the extra space in the balcony, the full size table and the extra shadow provided in this deck. The bathroom is also bigger than normal bathrooms and doesn´t have a bathtub but the shower makes for it. Given its location under the Ocean View Cafe sometimes you could hear a little bit of noise, like a rolling something but it wasn´t really a problem, you get use to it and does not disturb at all.

SUITE CLASS PERKS: Once we checked inn, we met Manuela (one of the Michaels Club concierge) who informed us briefly about the situation with the rain and the wait. Michaels Club concierges: Manuela and Adriana, were amazing hostesses and they made us feel like at home since we met them there. The rest of the staff there were also great and just after couple of visits they learnt our preferred drinks. It was great to have a place where you could relax and find assistance (if needed). Our Butler, Sever; introduced himself just shortly after we were in the suite and was of great assistance during the week for the thing we requested (like the morning coffees and room service couple of times). Also our Stateroom Attendant (Andhika) was great and kept our room spotless during the length of the cruise. Luminae will be commented under Dining. We think is worth to pay the extra for the Sky Suite and the perks that come along, would we book it again?, Yes… if the price range / Value is Ok for us. We also had the Premium Drinking Package, that we used a lot for drinks, coffees and Vitamin Waters / Arizona iced teas.

DINING: as part of the Suite perks, we had access to Luminae as our main restaurant for dinner and breakfast everyday and lunch on embarkation and sea days. In general we loved Luminae, the dinner menu changes everyday and for some it could be very limited but we loved it. We noticed that a lot of guest asked for the main dining room menu and order form there. We just asked once for the onion soup from the main dining room (that we love ) and we got it. The staff made its best to make us feel welcome and at home (Katja, Vishal and the rest of the waiters and the Sommelier). Ocean View Cafe: Very good and varied selection for lunch (when we were there), good quality and tastes, also good service from the waiters. We bought a 3 dinners package fot the specialty restaurants and this how it went down: Qsine: Very nice concept and food, the portions are just huge, too much food for our taste; we felt the concept should be explained better so you know how much food to order. The Lawn Grill Club: Grill steakhouse, outdoor, dining al fresco, extremely good food and wine to pair. Amazing. Murano: it was like a dinner symphony, everything was just perfect and coordinated in terms of service and food taste / quality. We also decided to try the «special event» Thaj Mahjal dinner, and Indian dinner with an additional cost of 49$, this was hosted in Qsine; we felt the food was very good, the portions very small and there was a lack of story / presentation behind the dinner; for us it was not worthy of the extra cost. The Indian food in the buffet tasted as good and better than the special event dinner food.

BARS: as said, we had the premium drinking package as part of our suite perks and booking promotion, we had the same package before and we fount it is still worth it. In general we found the service around all bars to be good with no long waiting. Al baccio Cafe, was great all time for our coffee or tea fix with small desserts. Martini Bar was entertain ing as usual but crowded most of the time. Pool Bar was great, Our favourite spot was the World Bar: very interesting drinks and best service on board (thanks Lazar and Aleksandr)

ENTERTAINMENT: for our taste this was a rollercoaster, some shows we loved it (broken strings), others didn´t make so much sense (elysium and Max); having said that we think the singers (all of them) were some of the most talented we´ve ever seen on a cruise. The guest entertainers were also a mixed thing, we loved the classical strings duo; the girls make a great job and love how they talk a little about each piece and some stories related to these. Damian, the Cruise Director, was OK; Giuseppe and Kathe were very funny and friendly and Charlotte, the activity manager, was GREAT…. I just loved her… she would make an amazing Cruise Director. Not to miss: The silent party, just so much fun….

SERVICE: I would say the service all around the ship was great… nothing to complain, even if you can feel that it´s not the same as it was back just few years ago, the reflection staff makes sure you have an amazing holiday.

SHORE EXCURSIONS DESK: we didn´t use this so will not comment on that.

FUTURE CRUISES OFFICE: they did their job and we booked two future cruises with very good deals and promos

SHOPPING: good selection for shopping, foe some it could be discouraging the fact that the itinerary is not DUTY FREE, but if you buy over 199$ (per day) you can get the tax refunded and they assist you with that. It worked perfectly for us and we just delivered the forms we got at the airport and got our taxes back (if you live outside the EU)

POST CRUISE INFO: We used Rome Shuttle Limousine from the port to the Airport and it worked perfect; 110 Euros for 2 persons private transfer.

If you have sone questions, just ask and I will try to answer...

This helps so so much !! Thanks -

#stressedfirsttimecruiser

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Not sure how I didn't see this when you first posted it. I thought your review on Michael's and dining were spot on - the service in both was outstanding.

I think we met you in the sparsely attended Connections party.

Thanks again - it was great reliving this wonderful experience.