Currently on Constellation 5-19 February 2017

[bertrande]

We walked past Cafe Al Bacio and the desserts looked glorious. I could not resist but take away a chocolate eclair and an iced chocolate.

 

We also stopped by the gelateria and the server said PH and RS guests do not have to pay for their gelato, which was good to know. We were too stuffed for a scoop but promised to be back.

 

The late adult only production show was very enjoyable - it looked like a blend of the West End production of Lord of the Rings (a short-lived musical), the Tempest and Wicked. It had high production values and although one female vocalist constantly faced pitching issues, that was not enough to detract from our overall enjoyment of the show. It was long too- almost a full hour. We were glad to have caught it.

 

Before I sign off, I was reminded today why I enjoy cruising on Celebrity. We enjoy RCL too as we have young children but what sets Celebrity apart are the small details, such as hand towels in the public washrooms.

 

You don't find that on RCL. Some may say Celebrity is now a mass market cruise line but even if it is, I think there are still classy touches that set it apart from the true mass market lines.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

[sammyboots]

Thank you so much for taking the time to write this review, we have very much enjoyed reading it. We are due to do the same itinerary on the 5th March. It will be our first time on Constellation so it's good to hear you enjoyed her. :)

[chivas1]

Thanks for the great review, we will board on sunday, made the wait much more fun...

[easyboy]

I guess your group was right on your Manila tour. You spent time and money to go to the highlight of the tour which is Tagaytay just to eat. Not a nice experience.

[Omokoroa2s]

Thank you for such an interesting post. It is our first cruise of this length. Quick question, are any extra vaccinations necessary. I've travelled to Singapore and Hong Kong on business and never had any.

[bertrande]

Thank you so much for taking the time to write this review, we have very much enjoyed reading it. We are due to do the same itinerary on the 5th March. It will be our first time on Constellation so it's good to hear you enjoyed her. :)

 

 

I think the itinerary is perfect - it is a good mix of long port days and relaxing sea days and you can relax and chill or go for it as much as you want, it's very much up to you. Enjoy your cruise!

 

Thanks for the great review, we will board on sunday, made the wait much more fun...

 

 

Looks like there are many CC members on the cruise right after ours. We were told our cruise has two large German hospitality groups onboard and about 20% of the passengers are German. So not as many people on CC I think.

 

I guess your group was right on your Manila tour. You spent time and money to go to the highlight of the tour which is Tagaytay just to eat. Not a nice experience.

 

 

Yes, we will know better next time. Good thing is, the Philippines is but a short flight away so a return visit is easy. Also, since it's a less frequented port, I guess any addition to the information available online is good.

 

Thank you for such an interesting post. It is our first cruise of this length. Quick question, are any extra vaccinations necessary. I've travelled to Singapore and Hong Kong on business and never had any.

 

 

Not that I am aware. I was not advised to take extra vaccinations (like malaria etc). Perhaps check with your health care provider at home? Sorry I can't be of more help.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

[grprk02]

Bertrande. who has been your butler this cruise and has he looked after you ? Look after 6148 until sunday !

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

[bertrande]

Bertrande. who has been your butler this cruise and has he looked after you ? Look after 6148 until Sunday!

 

 

We will! Nash is our butler and he is great. I think we are average users of the butler service and we are very happy with the service he's rendered thus far.

 

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

[bertrande]

Day 10: Sea day

 

Quiet relaxing day at sea today.

 

The highlight of the day was definitely the bridge tour. Loved the views and the explanation from Miso the first officer. It was a bright clear day which made it all the better.

 

Tuscan Grille was open for lunch and we decided on a whim to dine there. It was way better than our past experiences on the Solstice and the Equinox. I can't speak for the quality of the meats (they were serving a simplified menu for lunch) but the crab cakes, calamari etc which were previously such a disappointment shone. Service was excellent as well. In a clockwise direction from the top left, crab cakes, minestrone soup, calamari, tiramisu, fig gelato and carbonara.

 

Giant fruit plate left by our butler this afternoon:

 

I attended a spinning class this afternoon which was great fun (and hard work). The class was near full so I'm probably not the only one who thinks we have indulged a little too much over the last week and a half! Also spent some time at Future Cruises although didn't leave too satisfied about CEL raising prices overnight. Oh well c'est la vie!

 

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

[bertrande]

Dinner menus for tonight:

 

Blu

 

Luminae

 

MDR

 

The food was of a high quality as usual. I had the kale salad and Vietnamese spring roll as starters together with the strawberry soup from the MDR, and the venison loin for the main. The venison was tender enough and not very gamey at all. It was chewy (as opposed to tough) and full of flavour. For the dessert I went with the cremeux and pistachio ice cream and liked the dish very much.

 

The production show was again very entertaining. I have to say the current cast on the Connie is one of the strongest I have seen across ships.

 

Tomorrow we head to Kota Kinabalu and it's time for some shut eye now.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

[rkaratsu]

Hi Betrande. Again, thanks for such an informative post! One last question: Was there a Chef's Table offered on this cruise, and if so, do you know what day it was?

 

Thanks again! RK

[Nachosdelux]

thank you. we will be in 6148 on Sunday and so excited to finally have PH.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

 

Wife and I will be in 6134 RS on Sunday as well, please stop by and say hello!

 

 

Safe travels,

 

 

Jeff and Kim

[queenslander]

Bertrande - thank you so much for your wonderful review!:)

 

I will be on the March 5th and March 19th cruises and although I have been to most of the ports before,except for the Philippines, I was interested to see your comments and photos.

 

I am looking at excursions for Manila and I think I will book a ship's tour after reading your comments about the traffic!

 

Joyce

[bertrande]

One last question: Was there a Chef's Table offered on this cruise, and if so, do you know what day it was?

 

 

I remember seeing it for sale in the Cruise planner pre-sailing and something in me says it appeared once or twice on the daily activity sheet. If I remember to check later, I will.

 

Bertrande - thank you so much for your wonderful review!:)

 

 

 

I will be on the March 5th and March 19th cruises and although I have been to most of the ports before,except for the Philippines, I was interested to see your comments and photos.

 

 

 

I am looking at excursions for Manila and I think I will book a ship's tour after reading your comments about the traffic!

 

 

You are so fortunate to be doing a B2B! I hope you get to stop at Boracay - it looked like a lovely place. I would book a ship's tour in the port of Manila - as written, we travelled convoy style for security purposes. One thing I didn't add was that they opened a small, closed road for our three buses to go through, which cut short the time needed to get back to the ship.

 

I casually mentioned something about our excursion to the MC concierge and the next thing I knew, I was invited to give feedback to the Shore Excursions desk. I hope I was fair and objective - basically said I think a more accurate description of the excursion would have been helpful. The officer at the desk agreed and attributed the lack of information down to the ship only visiting the ports in Philippines once or twice a season.

 

Enjoy your cruises and have a wonderful time!

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

[sarasotascott]

Bertrand,

 

Could you please tell me the name of the Captain, the Hotel Director and the Cruise Director.

 

Thanks!

[bertrande]

Was there a Chef's Table offered on this cruise, and if so, do you know what day it was?

 

 

Hi RK I have checked my Celebrity Today copies and what I thought was the Chef's Table was in fact a wine pairing seminar.

 

Bertrand,

 

 

 

Could you please tell me the name of the Captain, the Hotel Director and the Cruise Director.

 

 

 

Thanks!

 

 

Here you go.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

[queenslander]

Bertrande - thank you for the information! I hope we will be able to get into Borocay on our cruise!

[di T]

Hi Bertrande, really enjoyed your review. Just wondering who the captains club host is? We sail on her in April. Dianne

[stinsowm]

Hi Bertrande,

 

Look forward to your photos of Kota Kinabalu as I have some friends who live there. I will never forget visiting there for my 40th birthday!! Loving your review of the beautiful Constellation!!

 

Walter

[bertrande]

Just wondering who the captains club host is?

 

Hi Dianne, I'm afraid I have no idea what her name is - I only went to her once to ask a 1-minute question and didn't manage to catch her name. We also failed to attend any of the CC activities as there are too many things to do on the ship (a good thing!).

 

Look forward to your photos of Kota Kinabalu as I have some friends who live there. I will never forget visiting there for my 40th birthday!! Loving your review of the beautiful Constellation!!

 

 

Thank you Walter. Hit another patchy internet streak yesterday so did not feel like writing long posts. Will do so today. We liked Kota Kinabalu even though the stop was very short. Will definitely return one day. Am suffering from post-cruise withdrawal blues already even though we still have one full day to go!

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

[bertrande]

Day 12: Kota Kinabalu

 

I mislabelled Day 9 as Day 8 and the mislabelling continued. Only just realised it but I can no longer edit the previous posts. There is therefore no Day 11 so as to speak; my mind must be subconsciously trying to prolong the cruise!!

 

The ship docked bright and early at 7am at Kota Kinabalu in the morning and obtained clearance very quickly. We weren't too sure whether to herald the return of the weather we know so well at home - it was HOT and humid. However, on a tour, we always prefer the heat to the rain. You can recover from the heat and the attendant tiredness it brings on the bus but one cannot make up for missed opportunities that the rain often leads to.

 

We were doing an excursion to the Mari Mari Cultural Village in the morning and since the tour was only at 10am, our private van would only arrive at 9am. There was thus to get dressed in a leisurely fashion.

 

As an aside, the ship's excursion to the same place cost almost double what we paid booking with MMCV directly. They even provided transport to and from the pier. The ship's excursion included a very quick drive around KK but that meant the passengers missed the lunch at MMCV (which is typically included in the admission price) and hurriedly left after the cultural performance. However, we were lucky to get slots in that tour. Originally, MMCV had closed the 10am tours (the only time slot suitable for us) due to anticipated demand from the cruise ship. They re-opened it to FITs like use due to poorer than expected response so yay.

 

Back to the review. We were greeted by performers in tribal gear who welcomed our arrival with drums and traditional instruments.

 

The terminal was very basic but there were pop-up stalls selling clothes, stuffed toys and other tourist memorabilia.

 

From there it was a bit of a walk to the port entrance to meet with our driver who was already waiting for us. As it was a private vehicle unaffiliated with the ship's tours, it could not enter the restricted parking area. No biggie.

 

We then took the short (30-40 minute) drive to MMCV, passing the famous landmarks of KK such as the Kota Kinabalu City Mosque which was beautiful.

 

Very soon, the first signage relating to MMCV came into view and we knew we were near.

 

When we pulled up, my heart sank as I saw two gigantic coaches which I recognised as having departed from the cruise terminal. Thankfully, MMCV organised everything brilliantly and apart from the crowd in the waiting area, once the tours began, we didn't actually feel the crowds until we gathered in the large main cultural hall at the end of the tour.

 

As we made it in such good time, our driver told me to pay the tour money directly to the ticket counter since there was no queue. As I did so, I spied the menu for lunch today. Local dishes yum.

 

We waited around and went to the washroom as we were advised that there are no facilities available for the next 1.5 hours once the tour begins.

 

Soon enough, our guide Syafiq arrives, decked in traditional costume and barefoot. He would conduct our tour barefoot, which I found both amazing and scary as we saw some fierce looking centipedes crawling around.

 

Our guide spoke excellent English and being part of the indigenous tribes as well, brought an air of authenticity to the experience. There were to be 17 of us in the group (including some we later saw on the ship, so they must have booked independently as well) but the group really felt much smaller than that.

 

Our tour then commenced. First challenge of the day was crossing this bridge that can only accommodate ten people at a time.

The steps were widely spaced in between so we held our breath until DD had successfully crossed. I think she felt a real sense of accomplishment.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

[bertrande]

There are 5 tribes showcased in the village, each with a typical hut/longhouse that the tribesmen used to live in, together with something unique to that tribe.

 

The Murut for example was the last tribe to renounce headhunting.

 

In their house was a trampoline like contraption made out of the wood of a local tree. The chief would typically hang a prize in the middle of the trampoline and the young man who leaped the highest would get it. Here's our guide explaining it.

 

There were many activities to try, and foods to sample. Here we have DD having her forearm henna painted, FIL trying his hand at blowing a dart (used for hunting prey), our guide explaining how a local snack is made (before passing out samples) and also the significance of the crocodile while atop a man-made mound resembling one where headhunters would mount the heads of vanquished enemies.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

[bertrande]

We also saw how two different rice wines were made (via fermentation and distillation processes respectively) and had a taste, as well as how tribesmen fashioned strong protective vests out of tree bark, maintained beehives and extracted honey from stingless bees (it tasted very pure and unprocessed) and even how to make fire from literally very little. It was all very interesting.

 

We then made our way to the large cultural hall where we were treated to a performance of traditional dances with live accompaniment. It was very good and guests were given the opportunity to try the bamboo dance.

 

The MMCV is very effectively run - the locals engaged to carry out the demonstrations also double hatted as performers during the show. Our guide also informed us that like him, they all traced their roots, or belonged, to these very same tribes so it was a little like witnessing living history.

 

After a nice lunch, we made our way back to the beautiful Constellation, totally exhausted but very satisfied. Here she is docked regally at the port.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

[bertrande]

This was one of the quickest and on-time departures of the cruise. Almost right at 3pm, the ship pulled away and we were off to Singapore :(. We still had almost two days at sea but that awful feeling of a vacation about to end was upon us and the last sail away was a little emotional. We then headed to Michael's Club for tea - our first and probably last time. Not because it wasn't good (on the contrary, the beef and melon sandwiches were awesome) but because we tend to have things going on right at about tea time. It was a good experience and our butler was delighted to see us.

 

The kids had a good time soaking in the jacuzzi with DH while I took a snooze. It was then time for an early dinner.

 

Menus follow.

Blu

 

Luminae

 

The MDR menu is failing to upload. Will try again in a separate post. I had the chilled melon soup (refreshing but a tad sweet), the salad (excellent) and the lamb shank (huge and very tasty and tender). I went for the chocolate brownie for dessert which was good but I was too stuffed to finish even half of it.

 

 

MDR menu loaded! Finally!

 

 

We were not planning to attend the evening show but DD was quite keen so DH accompanied her while I had an early night. The band Sonz of Soul was playing and apparently they were very very good. Made DD's night when they came off stage and serenaded to her LOL. She is still in cloud 9 I think.

 

The next day was our last Sea Day and there were many many things to do so I was really looking forward to it!

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

[easyboy]

Your MMCV tour in Kota Kinabalu is the kind of tour I like. You get to see and feel the culture of the place and people with their attire, and their local food. It's like an immersion. One for the bucket list.