Just back from Eclipse - any questions?

[Infi]

Just back from Eclipse's first Caribbean sailing this morning. We had a wonderful time and are looking forward to doing another S-class cruise soon. I have to say, Celebrity really got it right with these ships - they're about as perfect as it gets. I plan to write a review soon and post some photos and menus later if anyone is interested. But if anyone has any questions now, I'll try my best to answer them while everything is still fresh in my mind.

[noriboating]

Thanks. I love the Solstice and will soon be on the Eclipse. How was the entertainment? Any suggestions?

[Tiki_Man]

Infi

 

With this being a Holiday sailing and additional ships in Lauderdale this morning, how was the Disembarkation? How was Pier 25?

 

Also, how was the weather?

 

Glad you had a good cruise, can't wait to read the review.

 

Tiki

[Mrs Haggis]

Who is the F&B manager,maitre de in Tuscan and Murano.

[rigldbrg]

Hi Infi,

 

Just the usual "who was the CD and ACD?" We were on Solstice in August and I thought the ACD was awesome and the CD was so-so. Although I must admit he did a great rendition of Mustang Sally.

 

Hi Mark, would you concur about his "Mustang Sally" rendition? BTW, Happy b-day! Nance and I are REALLY going to miss you and Mary on our upcoming cruise. Let's just say the roll call is'nt quite as hopping. I heard about you're B-day and it sounded awesome! You could'nt get Mary to come out and carry your bag though, eh? Regards to Mary.

 

Sorry about the thread hijack OP.

[Lois R]

Infi

 

With this being a Holiday sailing and additional ships in Lauderdale this morning, how was the Disembarkation? How was Pier 25?

 

Also, how was the weather?

 

Glad you had a good cruise, can't wait to read the review.

 

Tiki

 

Hi Tiki, Eclipse sails from Miami, not FLL:)

Port of Miami is Terminal G.

[Lois R]

Just back from Eclipse's first Caribbean sailing this morning. We had a wonderful time and are looking forward to doing another S-class cruise soon. I have to say, Celebrity really got it right with these ships - they're about as perfect as it gets. I plan to write a review soon and post some photos and menus later if anyone is interested. But if anyone has any questions now, I'll try my best to answer them while everything is still fresh in my mind.

 

Hi Cindy, welcome back. I sailed her on Nov 17th for only 3 nights.:eek:

I am wanting to go back in Jan or Feb;)...mine was too short.

Glad you had such a good time:)

[wf083145]

I'm glad to hear that you enjoyed the cruise. We will be on in 1 week (12/3) and can't wait.

 

Do you know if there is cell service on the ship and if our phones will work there?

 

Thanks for the help.

[Fblack]

Who is the Elite Hostess?

[psyfi]

Were you on the Eastern or Western sailing? I would like to know what the main entertainment was each night so that I can make specialty restaurant plans. I would also like to know if there were any "theme' nights that I might need to pack for!

 

So glad you had a great trip!

[k8ster72]

I am going on Eclipse in a week. :D

When are the formal nights?

[psyfi]

Sunday and Thursday on the Eastern, not sure on the Western.

[Barn Goddess]

Welcome back! We are on the Eclipse 12/4 - so excited!

 

My DH would like to know if there are any poker or Texas Hold-em tournaments. I am curious about space for suitcase storage. Under the bed?

 

Thanks! Looking forward to your review and seeing the pictures!

[Lois R]

Sunday and Thursday on the Eastern, not sure on the Western.

 

Same nights on both itineraries.:)

A cruise that is Sat-Sat, formal nights are Sunday and Thursday.

[Infi]

Thanks for the welcome backs, all. I will try to answer all the questions in one shot right now, and maybe add some thoughts later. Hope some of these answers will help you lucky future Eclipse cruisers!

 

Noriboating: Entertainment was very good. Production shows were Eclipse (Cirque style show), a Broadway review style show (I'll have to look up the name) and Edge (upbeat, high energy). We had a comedy juggler, Pete Matthews, who was hysterical and always on, no matter where you saw him on the ship. The other specialty act was Karen Grainger, vocal impressionist...I had my doubts about this one, but she was VERY good. Wonderful voice. They also had a comedian, Dave Burleigh, at late night in Celebrity Central. He was so-so, recycled a lot of his material from night to night.

 

Tiki man: Lois is right - Eclipse sails from Miami. There were probably 4 or 5 ships in port, but I didn't think there were any issues with it being more crowded than usual. Weather was good, warm in all the ports and some scattered showers in San Juan. Sea days were fairly windy, and the water was cool at some of the beaches (in the opinion of two Floridians, so take that as you will!)

 

Mrs Haggis: Don't know the names of the Maitre Ds in TG and Murano, but will look up the F&B manager for you.

 

rigldbrg: CD was John Grantham and the activities manager (is that what you meant by ACD?) was a guy named Joe. Grantham was good I thought - not too cheesy.

 

Lois: I did think of you on Nov 20, disembarking as we boarded! We probably passed each other on the pier. Did you have a nice cruise? I was tempted to book that sailing awhile ago when I saw it, but then I changed my mind to do the Thanksgiving one. Both Crissy and I loved Eclipse, we're dying to go back on another S-class as soon as we can.

 

wf083145: There is cell service onboard, supplied through one of the cellular at sea companies. DD kept her phone on for part of the first night (she wanted text message updates from a big football game) and the cellular at sea service kicked in about an hour after we left. No problems with texts, but I would be wary of using it for calls - I imagine the charges are quite high. You can get cell service through most providers while in San Juan, though, as it's part of the US.

 

Fblack: CC hostess was Anita du Bryn.

 

psyfi: We were on the Eastern. Saturday: variety/introduction show, Sunday: Broadway style production show (have to get the name), Monday: Pete Matthews (comedy juggler), Tuesday: Eclipse production show, Wednesday: Karen Grainger (vocal impressionist), Thursday: Edge production show, Friday: variety show (comedy juggler and vocal impressionist).

As for theme nights, they did have a few "interactive parties" in the evenings in the Grand Foyer. The two biggest ones were Motown and Masque (masquerade theme). No one really dressed up for these other than the staff, though. Interestingly, there was no Caribbean themed deck party on this cruise.

 

k8ster72: Sunday and Thursday on the Eastern sailing...I imagine they will probably be the same for Western as well.

 

Barn Goddess: There are Texas hold'em tables, so I'm willing to bet there were probably tournaments as well. We stored our suitcases under the beds - a little tricky as the beds were twins and not much room to squeeze the suitcase in underneath in such a narrow space. One of the beds also has a basket underneath with lifejackets as well, so that blocks the suitcase a tad. If you kept the beds as a queen I don't think it would be so bad. You could also put them in the closet, or in between the closet/sofa or closet/bed depending on the arrangement.

[srpilo]

Thanks for checking in.

 

 

 

 

Srpilo

[andrek]

Just wanted to know about disembarking. How was your experience? We need to catch a 1045 am flight from MIA and are carrying our luggage off. Do you think we can make it? What time did the ship dock? Were you stuck in customs? Any information will be helpful. I am glad you had a great trip. Thanks,

Andrea

[EXBUS]

just back from eclipse's first caribbean sailing this morning. We had a wonderful time and are looking forward to doing another s-class cruise soon. I have to say, celebrity really got it right with these ships - they're about as perfect as it gets. I plan to write a review soon and post some photos and menus later if anyone is interested. But if anyone has any questions now, i'll try my best to answer them while everything is still fresh in my mind.

we have booked a caribbean on the the eclipse,and if you could tell me as much as possible about the main dinning resturent,how was the food and service ,if you were to eat in another eresturent was there a charge,how was the enterertainment was the shows good

thanks and looking forward to a reply

[psyfi]

Thanks so much Infi--now I can go book Qsine :)

[Jade13]

 

 

psyfi: We were on the Eastern. Saturday: variety/introduction show, Sunday: Broadway style production show (have to get the name), Monday: Pete Matthews (comedy juggler), Tuesday: Eclipse production show, Wednesday: Karen Grainger (vocal impressionist), Thursday: Edge production show, Friday: variety show (comedy juggler and vocal impressionist).

As for theme nights, they did have a few "interactive parties" in the evenings in the Grand Foyer. The two biggest ones were Motown and Masque (masquerade theme). No one really dressed up for these other than the staff, though. Interestingly, there was no Caribbean themed deck party on this cruise.

 

 

 

Wow. We were on the 3 night and they put most of these into the three nights. They skipped the intro, had the Broadway show, Eclipse Show and Pete and Karen on one night, plus the masquerade theme interactive party in the grand foyer. I wish we were on Eclipse for a longer cruise.

[Jade13]

Just wanted to know about disembarking. How was your experience? We need to catch a 1045 am flight from MIA and are carrying our luggage off. Do you think we can make it? What time did the ship dock? Were you stuck in customs? Any information will be helpful. I am glad you had a great trip. Thanks,

Andrea

 

We made a 10:10am flight AND had a full breakfast on disembarkation day. We carried our luggage off.

[Tiki_Man]

Doh!!! I should have known that Eclipse went from Miami (too much Tiki Juice while watching Football yesterday :) ) Thank you Lois for being kind.

 

Sounds like the cruise was still fun even if Lois and Joanne and the other amigo's departed after the 3 day cruise.

 

Infi - Thanks for the report and updates. Sounds like a really good cruise. Also, good to know that Miami can handle Holiday Weekend Days with minimal delays, if any at all.

 

Sidenote - Ira, thanks for the B-Day wishes (good caddies are hard to find and I am getting cheap in my old age so I just carry my own bag).

 

Can't wait to read a full indepth review and any of the subtle changes from one S Class to the other. Now if we could just figure out a way to get on board one of them soon.

 

Thanks

 

Tiki

[Infi]

Thanks everyone - glad to hear the answers helped a few folks out with planning and such. It's a good way to help get over the post cruise letdown. :)

 

Andrek: We didn't do self-disembark, but everyone was off the ship by about 10:30am. We disembarked at about 10:15am and were through with luggage and customs by 10:35am. Lines might have been longer earlier, I don't know for sure. As for when the ship docked, I have no idea. DD woke up at 5am to watch the ship sail in and we were already docked. Self-disembark started at about 5:45am, we saw the line of people waiting for it on deck 5. So, I think it's more than safe to say you'll make it on time. ;) Enjoy your cruise!

 

Exbus: We ate in the MDR for five nights, and did specialty restaurants for the other two. Food quality and service was very good to excellent, with the only clunker being the turkey dinner choice on Thanksgiving, which you will luckily miss. There are extra charges for Tuscan Grille (Italian steakhouse, $30pp), Murano (French, $30pp), and Qsine (tapas-style unique presentation, $30pp). There is also Bistro on 5 (crepes, sandwiches, $5pp) for breakfast, lunch, or dinner. The Oceanview Cafe (buffet breakfast & lunch, afternoon tea, sushi, pizza, ice cream, and evening snacks), Mast Grill (burgers, hot dogs, etc.), Cafe al Bacio (pastries, cookies, snacks), AquaSpa cafe (light breakfast and lunch), and room service are all complimentary. Whew, I think that about covers it!

The shows were all pretty good. Eclipse the show is not to be missed, it's a fantastic Cirque-style show with a lot of wow factor. Edge and the Broadway show were good as well, with Edge being the better of the two IMHO. The guest entertainers, a comedy juggler and vocal impressionist that I mentioned earlier, were also excellent.

 

psyfi: No problem! I'm so glad to hear you're booking Qsine now, availability was tight when we booked onboard. Enjoy your visit, Qsine is a fantastic dining experience, one of the most unique ones I have ever had.

 

Jade13: Wow! They did cram a lot into that 3 dayer, didn't they? We did the select/elite backstage tour and the dancers said they were exhausted from your cruise and the two VIP ones prior to it, as they were performing the production shows for 6 nights back-to-back. I thought the Masque interactive party especially was very good, something different.

 

Tiki: Thanks! The Port of Miami did do a good job with disembarkation for a busy day. I haven't sailed out of Miami in years, and I was pleasantly surprised with their organization and terminal remodels. The customs lines were kind of long, but aren't they always? :o Back to the real world, I guess!

 

 

I'll try to post a review and photos soon for everyone - will start working on it today in between laundry and unpacking.

[Orator]

Ti-Ann e-mailed me saying that she will be the Hostess when I sail on Dec. 4th.

[Gracie115]

I thought the Masque interactive party especially was very good, something different. .

 

 

I was on the 3 day before yours too and thought the interactive party was wonderful, one of the best entertainment features I've seen on a ship in a long time and made such great use of the Centrum...people were dancing on three floors during this....we had great fun!!