My observations from Connie- Yes, it is possible to lock yourself on the Balcony

[cruzinlisa]

Well, now that I have your attention… I saw several people from my sailing posting trip reports, so I thought I would just do a quick summary of a few observations. If you have questions, please feel free to ask.

DH and I (30somethings) sailed on Connie on 3/31 for a 5 day cruise to Cozumel and Key West. This was our first time on Celebrity, but we have cruised before.

The ship itself was lovely. I heard others who had been on the S class ships say it was not as nice as the S class ships. Perhaps, but it was prettier than anything else I have been on.

We were in AQ class. Room was nice. Room steward was good. He did everything we asked him to do. We had a balcony- obviously. The first night after dinner (before the show) I was sitting out there and DH came out. I had the door cracked but he closed it all the way. I decided I wanted to go back in and we realized the door was locked. We were locked out. DH was willing to scale the balcony to try to go next door, but I did not think it was a great idea. (For those wondering- Yes, we had enjoyed some drinks at dinner- DH more than I). I of course panicked. I started trying to get someone's attention. Finally one of the cleaning staff in another room must have heard our cries. I told him our room number and he let us in. We did not even have to deal with security. From that point on, I refused to go out on the balcony with DH unless he went out first and the door was cracked. No repeat performances.

Dining- We ate in Blu every day except one for breakfast. That day (Cozumel day) we went to the San Marco dining room, because I wanted eggs benedict. The company was lovely, but the service was a little slow. And they mess up a couple of the orders. But we still made it to meet our tour group with a minute or two to spare. We had lunch in San Marco on our two sea days. Lunch service was also slow. But we were seated with lovely couples. The food was good. For dinner, we ate in Blu all but one night (Cozumel night I think). The menu just did not seem very appealing. So we went to Bistro on Five. I was a little underwhelmed. Service was extremely slow. Food was okay, but not as great as I expected. But it was only $5 per person plus tip. Blu- the food in Blu was good. It usually tasted better than it sounded. Portions were pretty small, but enough to fill me if I ordered app, soup, entrée and dessert. DH ordered more usually.

Ports- Key West was disappointing. It smelled like trash and vomit. Cozumel is gorgeous. I have been there 5 times now and would go 50 more. This time we just went downtown and went shopping. Since DH had left his driver's license in Kansas City and I did not want him carrying around his passport, we did not venture too far.

Drinks- We had drink package. I did not like the frozen blended drinks. Best bartender was Marco in the Martini bar.

Activities- We went to the shows. Most of them were not very exciting (zzzz, especially after wine and dinner). We did stumble on something the last night that was like a comedic karaoke or something. It was pretty funny. I think he called it something like "five minute party." We were passing through and the guy in charge of it tried to get us to stay. We did. Then my husband accidentally challenged someone, not knowing that if you did not cheer loudly that was considered a challenge. I wish we had found it earlier, we probably would have went back.

Disembarkation- the biggest negative on the cruise. We were in group 30, which was one of the last ones. We sat for 30-40 minutes after the approximate debarkation time (I know those are usually wrong). Then they called all groups. So then we sat in a room for a while. Then off to get in line for customs, only to discover 1 (possibly two) agents. This is not Celebrity's fault of course, but still annoying.

[scubamommy!]

Oh no! I would have panicked too! LOL Glad you were "discovered" quickly!

 

I thought the disembarkation was pretty slow too, especially since I got lucky and was in group 7 to go, and then discovered a missing bag when we got to the car and I had to wait for the entire ship to clear to receive my bag! Totally my fault of coarse but still didn't make it easier. I was told that it was extremely slow and not the norm, plus we were in that other doc 29 instead of the usual one so maybe that was why? Who knows. Hopefully it won't be the same for the future cruisers.

[ghstudio]

In the future, always jam some paper into that lock so that it can't close. You are not the first, nor will you be the last to be locked out accidentally.

[gimletgal]

I have also managed to lock myself out on the balcony! :eek: There is a "latch" - upper right hand corner, which had fallen into the down position when I closed the sliding door. Ever since then, I take some tape and secure it for the duration of the cruise. Seems to work. ;)

[cruzinlisa]

I have also managed to lock myself out on the balcony! :eek: There is a "latch" - upper right hand corner, which had fallen into the down position when I closed the sliding door. Ever since then, I take some tape and secure it for the duration of the cruise. Seems to work. ;)

 

Glad to know it was not just us that it happened to. It was terrifying. Its a funny story now, but it did make me hesitant to use the balcony when DH was around. Never thought of tape, but I didn't bring any, because I would not have thought it was possible. Apparently so.

[drarill]

I have also managed to lock myself out on the balcony! :eek: There is a "latch" - upper right hand corner, which had fallen into the down position when I closed the sliding door. Ever since then, I take some tape and secure it for the duration of the cruise. Seems to work. ;)

 

Excellent idea... I'm always afraid of locking myself out on the balcony. :) To the OP, thanks for sharing your cruise with us...

[jayoldschool]

A couple of cruises ago, our balcony door locked us out on Connie. We had to shout at someone a floor down and a few cabins over with our cabin number to call guest relations. They sent our stateroom attendant to rescue us.

[Iamthesea]

cruzinlisa - Sorry about your Celebrity experience...balcony and all. :eek:

 

Yes, the Solstice class ships are a little newer and nicer, but the Connie is a classic. :)

 

Did you have the AQ1 on Deck 11? If so, do you have any photos to share?

 

My daughter had Eggs Benedict in Blu, 2 out of the 5 mornings. All she did was ask. The other mornings, she had made to order omelets. ;)

 

Curious what you did and where you went in Key West? We toured all over the island on bikes and never smelled anything fowl like thrash and vomit. Maybe a lot of alcohol, though. :D

Edited April 9, 2014 by Iamthesea

[miched]

Here is a link on how I got locked out on the M class.

 

The thread turned out to be rather humorous.

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1634993

 

 

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[cynbar]

There was a story about a passenger on one of the Princess ships who got locked out on the balcony --- but he had either his smartphone or laptop with him and posted his predicament on the Cruise Critic message boards! Someone who saw it was able to contact the ship and get him rescued. Note to self: phone in pocket is always a good idea, land or sea.

[Wine-O]

I have also managed to lock myself out on the balcony! :eek: There is a "latch" - upper right hand corner, which had fallen into the down position when I closed the sliding door. Ever since then, I take some tape and secure it for the duration of the cruise. Seems to work. ;)

 

Note to self: Bring duct tape on your next cruise on the M-Class. :D

[Wine-O]

Here is a link on how I got locked out on the M class.

 

The thread turned out to be rather humorous.

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1634993

 

 

.

 

Now, that was a funny thread. I went back and read it again. I'm still trying to figure out how to smuggle my Poat on board. :D:D