Celebrity Connections Party???

[Tenn4ever]

Can someone please explain the details of a connection's party?(We have signed up for ours) What is the purpose? Exactly when does this happen in terms of a timeline after we board the ship? How long do they last? Does the party interfere with other things we may want to be doing when we first board? As a first time cruiser on Celebrity I think I'm going to be so exicited exploring the ship and settling in, do I really want to take time out to go to a connections party? Please help out here. Thanks. :confused:

[tserface]

The purpose is to put faces to screen names from Cruise Critic and meet up with the people you've been talking with on your roll call for sometimes months. Sometimes some of the crew show up and the often provide morning type drinks (coffee and juice) and cookies and other snacks. On rare occasions the ships have provided some fun free stuff (souveniers). But mostly it's a time to hang around and just get to know people you've been chatting with online. It's kind of nice to see the faces because we often run into others on the ship all through the cruise.

 

Tom

 

Can someone please explain the details of a connection's party?(We have signed up for ours) What is the purpose? Exactly when does this happen in terms of a timeline after we board the ship? How long do they last? Does the party interfere with other things we may want to be doing when we first board? As a first time cruiser on Celebrity I think I'm going to be so exicited exploring the ship and settling in, do I really want to take time out to go to a connections party? Please help out here. Thanks. :confused:

[Bobblsc]

Can someone please explain the details of a connection's party?(We have signed up for ours) What is the purpose? Exactly when does this happen in terms of a timeline after we board the ship? How long do they last? Does the party interfere with other things we may want to be doing when we first board? As a first time cruiser on Celebrity I think I'm going to be so exicited exploring the ship and settling in, do I really want to take time out to go to a connections party? Please help out here. Thanks. :confused:

 

These are almost always shortly after the cruise beginning. These kinds of get-togethers for CC people occur on many other cruise lines. Holland America calls these meetings "Meet and Great." Royal Caribbean has a name of Meet and Mingle, I think.

 

Meetings generally last about an hour. Cruise lines have now recognized that these are an opportunity to exercise a "soft" marketing of their product to frequent CC travelers. I mean no criticism here. There are usually ship's officers present, generally the Hotel Manager and the Cruise Director. They provide information about the ship and the cruise.

 

Here you also have the opportunity to meet your fellow CC members, with whom you have communicated on the cruise Roll Call for some time.

 

Generally, the ship will provide wine and hor d'oeuvres.

 

A CCer on the Roll Call will co-ordinate the Connections meeting with a ship officer prior to the cruise. Your time to attend is well worthwhile.

 

Bob :cool:

[Muushka]

Generally, the ship will provide wine and hor d'oeuvres.

 

Not for any I have ever attended! Usually just coffee, tea and pastries. All the ones we have attended have been in the AM.

 

But the official connections party is usually the second day of the cruise, not the day that you board the ship.

There is often an unofficial meet, shortly after boarding, around sail away time.

[TeaBag]

You will usually get an invitation to the gathering with time and details on it. As others have said, usually coffee and pastries are offered. Never have seen anything else.

[patty1955]

All the ones we've attended have been evening affairs with wine and snacks. We missed the last one because it was at 7:30 PM on debarkation night and we had reservations in the specialty restaurants

[Muushka]

All the ones we've attended have been evening affairs with wine and snacks. We missed the last one because it was at 7:30 PM on debarkation night and we had reservations in the specialty restaurants

 

Interesting. We have only done Caribbean with Celebrity. Could it be the itinerary dictates day/time/provisions?

[Sloop-JohnB]

Hi Tenn4Ever,

 

As a NEWBIE to Celebrity maybe I can shed some light on this for you (from that perspective).

 

I find that sometimes folks are confused, because there are actually 2 types of events that although they can “tie together” are separate, they are…

 

1- The Roll Call here on Cruise Critic

 

Roll Calls are a great way to connect with others on your sailing. A lot of Roll Calls are very active, and folks post about their upcoming cruises from just about the minute they book… to the last possible second before they get onboard.

 

Roll Calls are a great way to share the excitement, and also meet new folks, share tips, and even S$AVE money. (Lots of opportunities to share a taxi, or get in on a great deal with a Private Excursion vs a Ship one)

 

Most Roll Calls get together once onboard for a Sail-Away Party from the Port of Embarkation… to celebrate that the cruise has finally started.

 

On my past Roll Call we had over 120 CC members register… needless to say our Sail-Away Party from Fort Lauderdale was a Blast !!

 

As stated there are usually a person or two on the Roll Call who does some of the major organizing… on ours I brought nametags for the Sail Away party. That proved helpful.

 

Roll Calls are a ton of fun, be sure and check your out.

 

:)

 

--- --- ---

 

2- Celebrity Connections "Meet & Mingles" on the Celebrity Website

 

Celebrity Connections “Meet & Mingles” are organized by Celebrity. They provide this service as an opportunity for CC Members to get together and socialize, but as someone else has mentioned it is as much (if not more) really a marketing strategy for them.

 

On my recent Solstice Cruise our Celebrity Meet & Mingle Event was held on Day 2, mid morning in Cellar Masters… and like the others have described it was primarily a “coffee break” whereby Celebrity provided hot bevvys and some nibbles.

 

At our event there were several officers present. And we enjoyed chatting with a few as well as some other guests.

 

Lol, however at our event, the Food & Beverage Manager walked in and announced that he’d be conducting a tour of the Galley if anyone was interested… so a lot of first time cruisers like myself, quickly “abandoned ship” on the Meet & Mingle, and went off for the tour.

 

This is one of the perks of going to a Meet & Mingle, you’ll often hear of things that may not be advertised elsewhere… or get opportunities that others don’t (often hear stories here on the CC CELEBRITY BOARD of folks getting invited up to the Bridge for a Sail-Away from one of the Ports of Call)

 

Celebrity organized the Meet & Mingle, you have to go to their website to register for it. They need 25 Registrants before they’ll confirm back that there is a party going to be held.

 

You will receive an Invite in your cabin when you arrive telling where and when the Meet & Mingle will happen. If you don’t see an Invite, contact Guest Relations.

 

One downside I found to the Meet & Mingle, is because it is a Celebrity Event they really don’t know us in the same way as the Roll Call does here on CC… consequently the nametags that are provided are fairly useless (nice but useless)… “Hi my name is John Doe” means nothing to me, when to me it should say “Hi my name is Captain Hook”

 

:D

 

Unfortunately, unless Celebrity updates their website (and registration process for the Meet & Mingle)… this isn’t going to happen.

 

Which is WHY a Fine Point Red Sharpie, came in handy at the Meet & Mingle that I went to.

 

For info on registering for both your Roll Call and the Celebrity Connections Meet & Mingle for your particular cruise look for the 3rd Box from the top of this screen entitled *Celebrity Cruises*

 

--- --- ---

 

And it has come to my attention (just prior to our cruise) that there is now a 3rd type of get-together.

 

Celebrity is having some sort of "mingler" for folks who are on their Facebook Page as well... again as I understand it you have to register for that one with Celebrity on their website.

 

Hope this is helpful,

 

Cheers!

Edited February 13, 2012 by Sloop-JohnB

[Tenn4ever]

Thanks for the replies especially addressing how long the meeting usually lasts and the time it occurs.

[Lsimon]

We've gone to well over a dozen of these parties over the past 8 years on Celebrity cruises and the Cruise Critic party has always been around 10 or 10:30 AM the first morning of the cruise, day after embarkation. The only exception was one cruise where that was a port day and on that day the party was held just after sail away from the port around 4:30 or 5:30PM. I've read reports of other times on these boards but not experienced them myself.

 

As others have said the primary purpose of the party is to meet those on the roll call.

 

The involvement of the Celebrity staff has varied considerably. At the low point the party has involved only the activities coordinator being present and virtually no involvement of the ship staff. At the high point we've been at some where the Hotel Director or Cruise director ran the meeting with a definite program and where most of the ship's senior staff, including the Captain, mingled for at least a little while. I would say that more often or not the party has been hosted by the Cruise Director or Hotel Director, assisted by at least a couple other staff people, and there is some sort of short greeting by one or more other senior officers.

 

Refreshments generally include coffee and tea. Sometimes there is water and juices (not bottled) and pastries.

 

The meeting has generally run anywhere from 1/2 hour to an hour.

 

Since there is almost always something going on around the ship there will always be other activities that one might miss by attending the meeting but seldom anything specific we've been interested in personally (other than general sea day fun around the ship).

 

If you sign up for the party you should expect to receive an invitation in your cabin on embarkation day. If you do not receive one by the time you return from dinner then call guest relations and inquire about it as sometimes the invitations are not sent out properly or the list is incomplete.

Edited February 13, 2012 by Lsimon

[Tenn4ever]

Thanks Lsimon.

Edited February 13, 2012 by Tenn4ever

[TeaBag]

Are people confusing the Cruise Critic get together with the Captain's welcome aboard party? The latter is in the evening and they serve hors d'oeuvres and wine, juice etc.

[Lsimon]

Are people confusing the Cruise Critic get together with the Captain's welcome aboard party? The latter is in the evening and they serve hors d'oeuvres and wine, juice etc.

 

Could be - especially considering the references to an evening event with wine. There are three events each cruise where complimentary alcoholic beverages are served (in addition to the nightly Elite lounge). These are usually in the evening , although the Captains Club events have been held in the afternoon on some of our cruises. They serve from a short menu of alcoholic beverages including basic wines and cocktails.

 

These are not related to the Cruise Critic roll calls at all.

 

The three include: (1) the Captains welcome toast before the show on the first formal night is open to all passengers. Frankly, I'm not sure if we've ever attended this. (2) The Captains Club party (takes several different forms) open to all Captains Club members and the Captain is almost always there to give a short speak and mingle a bit. And, (3) the Senior Officer's Cocktail Party which I believe is Open to Select And Elite level Captain's Club members which is usually attended by a large number of Senior officers including the Captain.

[patty1955]

I can't speak for others, but the Connections party on our last cruise was on embarkation evening at 7:30 pm. I can't tell you what they served, because we couldn't attend. We attended the Captain's Club event. We spent most of the evening talking with the officer in charge of recycling.

[Happy Cruiser 6143]

I've attended a few of these in my day. They're all different because they are organized by the activities staff, some of which are better than others. Sometimes no name tags at all; sometimes nametags with both our real name and our CC name. At the best ones, all the officers from the captain on down attend. The captain and the CD got so involved with our Woo Hoo II theme that they would say WOO HOO at the end of a couple of their noon messages!

 

The real purpose of these events is to connect with your fellow roll call members, as others have said. The best ones pass the microphone around and allow people to introduce themselves.

 

So my recommendation would be that if you are interested in connecting with your fellow roll call members, you attend. If it's really terrible, you can always leave.

[Sailawaytoday]

Our Celebrity parites have been nice social get togethers. Celebrity could learn this one thing from Norwegian:

 

On our two Norwegian cruises, CC members were given a list of staff phone numbers. Basically everyone except the captain was on the list. The comment that came with them: If there is ANYTHING we can do to make your cruise more enjoyable, don't hesitate to call. You are our most important guests. If there is a problem, we want to deal with it on board where we can fix it, and not read about it on Cruise Critic when you get home. Many of the ships officers were there, and it was a nice get together.

 

On our last Celebrity cruise, it was a small, but nice crowd. The cruise director and one other staff member was there, and it was over quickly.

 

 

 

Hi Tenn4Ever,

 

As a NEWBIE to Celebrity maybe I can shed some light on this for you (from that perspective).

 

I find that sometimes folks are confused, because there are actually 2 types of events that although they can “tie together” are separate, they are…

 

1- The Roll Call here on Cruise Critic

 

Roll Calls are a great way to connect with others on your sailing. A lot of Roll Calls are very active, and folks post about their upcoming cruises from just about the minute they book… to the last possible second before they get onboard.

 

Roll Calls are a great way to share the excitement, and also meet new folks, share tips, and even S$AVE money. (Lots of opportunities to share a taxi, or get in on a great deal with a Private Excursion vs a Ship one)

 

Most Roll Calls get together once onboard for a Sail-Away Party from the Port of Embarkation… to celebrate that the cruise has finally started.

 

On my past Roll Call we had over 120 CC members register… needless to say our Sail-Away Party from Fort Lauderdale was a Blast !!

 

As stated there are usually a person or two on the Roll Call who does some of the major organizing… on ours I brought nametags for the Sail Away party. That proved helpful.

 

Roll Calls are a ton of fun, be sure and check your out.

 

:)

 

--- --- ---

 

2- Celebrity Connections "Meet & Mingles" on the Celebrity Website

 

Celebrity Connections “Meet & Mingles” are organized by Celebrity. They provide this service as an opportunity for CC Members to get together and socialize, but as someone else has mentioned it is as much (if not more) really a marketing strategy for them.

 

On my recent Solstice Cruise our Celebrity Meet & Mingle Event was held on Day 2, mid morning in Cellar Masters… and like the others have described it was primarily a “coffee break” whereby Celebrity provided hot bevvys and some nibbles.

 

At our event there were several officers present. And we enjoyed chatting with a few as well as some other guests.

 

Lol, however at our event, the Food & Beverage Manager walked in and announced that he’d be conducting a tour of the Galley if anyone was interested… so a lot of first time cruisers like myself, quickly “abandoned ship” on the Meet & Mingle, and went off for the tour.

 

This is one of the perks of going to a Meet & Mingle, you’ll often hear of things that may not be advertised elsewhere… or get opportunities that others don’t (often hear stories here on the CC CELEBRITY BOARD of folks getting invited up to the Bridge for a Sail-Away from one of the Ports of Call)

 

Celebrity organized the Meet & Mingle, you have to go to their website to register for it. They need 25 Registrants before they’ll confirm back that there is a party going to be held.

 

You will receive an Invite in your cabin when you arrive telling where and when the Meet & Mingle will happen. If you don’t see an Invite, contact Guest Relations.

 

One downside I found to the Meet & Mingle, is because it is a Celebrity Event they really don’t know us in the same way as the Roll Call does here on CC… consequently the nametags that are provided are fairly useless (nice but useless)… “Hi my name is John Doe” means nothing to me, when to me it should say “Hi my name is Captain Hook”

 

:D

 

Unfortunately, unless Celebrity updates their website (and registration process for the Meet & Mingle)… this isn’t going to happen.

 

Which is WHY a Fine Point Red Sharpie, came in handy at the Meet & Mingle that I went to.

 

For info on registering for both your Roll Call and the Celebrity Connections Meet & Mingle for your particular cruise look for the 3rd Box from the top of this screen entitled *Celebrity Cruises*

 

--- --- ---

 

And it has come to my attention (just prior to our cruise) that there is now a 3rd type of get-together.

 

Celebrity is having some sort of "mingler" for folks who are on their Facebook Page as well... again as I understand it you have to register for that one with Celebrity on their website.

 

Hope this is helpful,

 

Cheers!

[buggins0402]

We've only been on two Celebrity cruises - but both parties were scheduled in the evening. But, both our cruises had a port intensive itinerary for the first few days. No doubt they would have been scheduled in morning if we would have started with a sea day.

 

First one, in Michaels with free drinks served (M class ship). But, it was a small group. Second was a huge group (well over 200) for a Mediterranean cruise. Held in Sky Observation Lounge(S class ship). Drinks for sale. Basically it was a frantic search for people who had put together the various excursions (a person from Celebrity with a mike calling out names of the those people so everyone could find them.)

 

If you look at your itinerary and try to think when the best time to schedule - you'll probably guess right. They do try to schedule a good time for most people - but I have seen a review where they scheduled in the morning during a port time.

[msbptg]

As of today 2/13 we have 69 people attending the connection party on board Solstice 4/12. Its a fun way to mingle and meet staff, and I always enjoy attending them.

[A Sixth?]

Are people confusing the Cruise Critic get together with the Captain's welcome aboard party? The latter is in the evening and they serve hors d'oeuvres and wine, juice etc.

 

Could be - especially considering the references to an evening event with wine. There are three events each cruise where complimentary alcoholic beverages are served (in addition to the nightly Elite lounge). These are usually in the evening , although the Captains Club events have been held in the afternoon on some of our cruises. They serve from a short menu of alcoholic beverages including basic wines and cocktails.

 

These are not related to the Cruise Critic roll calls at all.

 

The three include: (1) the Captains welcome toast before the show on the first formal night is open to all passengers. Frankly, I'm not sure if we've ever attended this. (2) The Captains Club party (takes several different forms) open to all Captains Club members and the Captain is almost always there to give a short speak and mingle a bit. And, (3) the Senior Officer's Cocktail Party which I believe is Open to Select And Elite level Captain's Club members which is usually attended by a large number of Senior officers including the Captain.

 

 

 

 

On the Summit Dec 31 - Jan 7 sailing a few weeks ago our Cruise Critic gettogether was rather poorly attended and the tray of red and white wine in glasses looked lonely.

 

We've also be served cocktails on a least a couple of the gettogethers... Believe me, I am not confusing the Captains Club party, the wine and drinks were all offered at the Cruise Critic one.

 

Been offered bridge tours, galley tours and even better too on these occasions.

Edited February 13, 2012 by A Sixth?

[Wine-O]

 

We've also be served cocktails on a least a couple of the gettogethers... Believe me, I am not confusing the Captains Club party, the wine and drinks were all offered at the Cruise Critic one.

 

 

Never been to a cruise critic party where they served anything other than cookes, coffee, and punch, or the like. If they served wine and drinks, must have been a small group.

 

These connections parties are run willy nilly. You never know when they are going to be held, and sometimes inconvenient times for everyone to get together.

 

We've found the best way to do a meet & mingle is to organize a pre-cruise get together the night before embarkation. It's a great time to get all the Roll Call people together, have name tags, and have cocktails. That way you get to meet each other not knowing when the ship is going to host the CC party.

[A Sixth?]

Never been to a cruise critic party where they served anything other than cookes, coffee, and punch, or the like. If they served wine and drinks, must have been a small group.

 

These connections parties are run willy nilly. You never know when they are going to be held, and sometimes inconvenient times for everyone to get together.

 

We've found the best way to do a meet & mingle is to organize a pre-cruise get together the night before embarkation. It's a great time to get all the Roll Call people together, have name tags, and have cocktails. That way you get to meet each other not knowing when the ship is going to host the CC party.

 

The last time we had cocktails at a CC gettogether was on the Summit in Jan 2011. LOTS of people at that one... maybe 50?

 

There were at least 100 glasses of wine pre poured on the Summit this Dec 31-Jan 7 CCGTG Only ten of forty showed.. but the CD and other crew really were great and we all were invited to "special" ship tours.

 

Thanks again "X"!

 

I have no idea why you have only got cookies and pop... just didn't "luck-out" I guess. (Ironic considering your nom du plume)

 

After 40 plus cruises and likely 25 CCGTG the best ones have been Celebrity and the worst Princess.

Edited February 14, 2012 by A Sixth?

[bob brown]

All of the CC parties I have attended have been on the first sea day at about 1030. The venue will depend on the size of the group.

One thing I will add....in addition to the acitvities mentioned, some active roll calls will also plan a gift exchange at the party, where people will bring an inexpensive trinket representative of their home town, to be thrown into a 'grab bag', for those who wish to participate. Another common activity, also planned ahead, and conducted by a roll call member, will be a 'cabin crawl'. Those participating will get to tour several differenct categories of cabins, that they may be interested in for future bookings. Normally as ships sail full, it is difficult to do this otherwise. It is a lot of fun, and great excercise as you go from cabin to cabin. Other activities may include a 'slot pull' where you all contribute and share any winnings.

These are held after the party. Some times the roll call may plan events for later in the cruise including a group luncheon or dinner.

[Wine-O]

All of the CC parties I have attended have been on the first sea day at about 1030. The venue will depend on the size of the group.

 

That's normally the case when your first cruise day is a sea day. If you are on a cruise where the first 2-3 days are port intensive, you never know when it's going to be held. On one cruise where the first day was a tender port visit, virtually no one showed up. Good thing we had a pre-cruise get together so we could meet many of the Roll Call folks.

 

A Sixth? - Never been to a Cruise Critic Connections Party where they served alcohol for FREE. I guess you were lucky. :)

[redjetz]

That's normally the case when your first cruise day is a sea day. If you are on a cruise where the first 2-3 days are port intensive, you never know when it's going to be held. On one cruise where the first day was a tender port visit, virtually no one showed up. Good thing we had a pre-cruise get together so we could meet many of the Roll Call folks.

 

A Sixth? - Never been to a Cruise Critic Connections Party where they served alcohol for FREE. I guess you were lucky. :)

 

On both of my X cruises to date, the CC gathering featured wine and savory munchies, one at 11:30 in the morning, the other mid- afternoon. It may depend on which staffer organizes it -- Sue Denning put on a really nice gathering when she was on Century a couple years ago, I forget who was in charge last March on the Millenium but equally generous.

[CruisingChick]

Never been to a Cruise Critic Connections Party where they served alcohol for FREE. I guess you were lucky. :)

 

I've been on 13 Celebrity cruises and all our our Connections Parties were in the morning and they only served coffee, tea, and pastries.