Infinity Losing Ground

[Yahtic]

Just back from Infinity Panama canal transit San Diego to Ft. Lauderdale.

 

Disappointed that Acapulco was dropped from the trip, but knew that before final payment. Ports were very disappointing but that is probably more our problem having been to Mexico often. Panama Canal experience was worth the trip.

 

Food was great as always, invited to Captain's Table for first Formal night however we declined the invitation, have done that once before and that was enough, leave it to others to experience.

 

We were on Infinity in February in South America and must say things are going downhill since then, ship showing wear and lots of little errors throughout the cruise, nothing big enough to cause a bad experience; however quality control is slipping and will come back to bite them in a big way if they do not get a grip on the little things. Overheard lots of Celebrity first timers commenting on the little things and comparisons to Princess.

 

The corporate suits are pushing the buttons hard on provisions and they were running out of things prior to the end of the cruise. Had a change of Captains in Aruba three days before the end of cruise??? Crew seemed happy he was gone.

 

All in all a good relaxing time, which is what it is about for us and a bonus winning in the Casino.

 

Ship was not sold out and upgrades were available however very pricey, I took a look at the Sky Suite however the difference was list so declined, the upgrade to Royal was $4400 from a CC which was a discount, they must not have got takers as they gave away two suites at bingo.

 

Celebrate the World was a great show, most of the rest of shows were average.

[Sillyjilly]

I'm glad it isn't only me. We were on Infinity in November and thought the ship is in major need of sprucing up.

 

We had such a wonderful time on the Summit, that we booked the Infinity. The difference between the 2 ships was like night and day. From the crew to the passengers to the shape of the ship. I was afraid to post a review. Didn't want any flames. Yikes! :eek:

[newcruiserdave]

Yahtic, thanks for the review. Glad you had a good cruise.

Floris, I don't think this was whining. If this is 'Cruise Critic' then you have to mention the good and the bad. I'd rather see a balanced review than read a review that sounds like it came from a corporate cheerleader. More people would post a balanced review if they weren't afraid of getting pegged as 'whiners.' Then we could all reap the benefits of their critique.

[RichardK]

Thanks for your honest opinions. However, as you probably know, or have just found out, this can be a tough place to post criticisms --- for just as on the HAL Board, some here believe that Celebrity "craps ice cream" and can do no wrong!!

 

I do agree whole heartedly with your implication --- i.e., that Accountants are becoming the ones charged with running the cruise industry! Too bad........

[lynn21]

I say let the accountants keep control. We took our first cruise on Princess 9 years ago and will be on the Millenium in 4 weeks time. In that time the cost of a cruise has stayed about the same. Yes there have been cut backs but let`s face it the midnight buffets were an enormous waste of money even if they looked good. The cruise lines have increased their profits by charging considerably more for the spa, shore excursions and drinks. This way we the passengers can have a great cruise experience and have the choice as to how we spend our money on board. We just have a great time and we never look for a shabby chair. It never ceases to amaze me how some people find something to moan about, especially the food. I have never got up from a meal hungry - in fact I never sit down to a meal hungry and that can be a problem!

[Jimsgirl]

I have to agree with YAHTIC, I was on Infinity in Nov, and the experience was not " be treated like Royalty". The cooking of the food was prety awful, Eggs Benedict served COLD ,Omelets had uncooked liquid running over plate when cut.Cherries Jubilee from the kitchen proved to be BLUEBERRIES in a "canned" sauce without taste. Calves Liver which should be soft to the touch when cooked correctly was so over cooked it was actually black, and so tough I could have repaired the sole of a lumberjacks boot with it.

Complaining to the Matre D' proved to be useless. Like YAHTIC I was at a table with four first timers, and they were adamant that in future they would stay with other cruise lines.

 

I did fill out the questionaire, and wrote to Head office, got back Computer generated letter 101.

 

I have done many cruises with Celebrity, and have 2006 cruises booked, and I hate to see what has happened to what was a good cruiseline.

 

As for the Captain, yes I did get the impression from snippets of conversation I overheard that the staff were unhappy. I felt that many of them were just barely "doing their job" just short of "withdrawing their labour" . Certainly I never saw the Captain or any other senior officer "making rounds" or talking to passengers .

[flagger]

So who is the new captain then?

[LDVinNC]

I think the first two postings in no way could be considered whining, and having been on the Millenium (just a cruise or two post dry-dock), I agree that Celebrity is slipping.

[emilygrace]

Isn't the Infinity due for dry dock soon? We are booked for a short repo in June, and I had heard that we would be aboard after the dry dock. After reading this, I hope so! This is our first Celebrity experience as we usually sail with RCCL.

[flowy]

Just off Mercury and found the staff to be absolutely wonderful, however, the provisioning of the ship seemed to be lacking. They ran out of milk, butter, lemons, shrimp, and some fruit. Portion size was much smaller -- four scallops for the entree, smaller portions in general. You could order another dish but only after you had eaten the first. Two entrees at the same time are no longer provided. I guess I will be flamed, but thought I would state what I found. Been on over a dozen cruises, been on Celebrity 3 times. Still love Celebrity, however, disappointed that they seem to be slipping.

[c-legs]

:) Good morning to you all

All posters are right in a way....and , yes, this is a good place to express opinions, good or bad ( VS whining for whining's sake ).

The current state of INFINITY would be '' normal'', given she's overdue for a good downtime drydock, scheduled for March 20th.

Yes, cost controls and inventory tightening are with us to stay, not only in the cruise industry, but all over....It however squeezes the margin of errors on the onboard staff very tight....and, yes, they can run out of things...

One poster was right: costs are tightened...but the basic fares are stunningly the same as they've been, generally, for years !!! What other industry can boast of that ??? And, yes, guests chose the '' value added'' stuff they want to utilize....and pay the price currently charged; nothing that much wrong with that.

Overall slipping at Celebrity ??? Might be a pattern....let's all hope the top guns spot that quick enough and adjust.

All in all, still one heck of a fine company to cruise with, right ???

Good reviews so far; I like those objective '' tell it like it is '' reviews, without the soap box condemnation of the line in question.

Merry HOHOHOHO

Cheers

CG

;)

[cujosmom]

We sailed on the Infinity two years ago (14 night Panama Canal) and on the Infinity in November (14 night Hawaii -- same cruise date as Sillyjilly) and I was very impressed with the condition of the ship...kept saying to my husband how the ship still looked new. We had excellent service from room steward to dining staff to activities staff...everyone extremely friendly and helpful...none of the staff we came into contact with complained or insinuated they were unhappy. Our food in the dining room and buffet was always delicious and I don't recall them running out of food. We ordered shrimp cocktails every night as an appetizer even when not on menu and the number of baskets of bread sticks our table consumed every night could have choked a horse (lol).

 

We had one cruise on the Galaxy and one on the Millennium where there were times I felt we were not treated "famously" but this was not the case on our Nov 6-20 Infinity cruise.

[arby70]

My husband and I took the Infinity in August of 2003 from Vancouver, B.C. on a Inside Passage cruise. She looked new then and all the crew was extremely courteous and helpful. All the food was absolutely fantastic. Our ship's captain at that time was Captain Antonis Manaras and from what I understand, he was their most experienced ship's master as he has sailed with them even when they were Chandris. I must assume that he has retired? Who was the captain on your last cruise with the Infinity? I love the Infinity and am glad to here she will be in drydock and get spruced up. I hate to hear about her starting to look "used" eventhough I realize wear and tear is a natural process.

[Jimsgirl]

My cruise was Nov 20th 14 days. I did not see too much signs of wear and tear, my complaint was the dining room staff, the food served was not that stated on the menu viz Blueberries served as Cherries Jubilee, reason"we did not get the Cherries" fine but why did the waiter not tell us?

 

Cold Eggs Benedict, sent the cold ones back, and got THE SAME COLD ITEMS back!. Badly cooked food, for the omelet, Maitre D. said "Next time ask for it to be WELL DONE", for the burnt liver he told waiter to "GET A STEAK KNIFE" he then said to me"A steak knife will be sharper"!!!! My teeth were not sharper and burnt liver is burnt liver no matter which knife you use.

 

At dinner on the last night no one at the table tipped the Maitre D' because he was so useless, and the waiter was so bad, everyone gave less than the stated amount,- by the way on the last night he apologised "if I gave you cause to complain".

 

The Daily sheet, got the times of the show mixed up on several occassions 7pm listed as for Main seating diners, other events listed as taking place in different local than that stated. and on the last night DEC 3RD the instructions said "Pasengers should put their luggage outside on NOVEMBER 19TH.

 

There can be no excuse for any of these things.other than indifferent staff, not paying atention to their jobs.

 

I do have another 25 days booked on this ship, but I hope the staff will have changed by then.

[SDBarb]

We were on the Infinity's six day Mexican Riviera cruise from Dec. 4th to Dec. 10th. Our purpose was to enjoy the ship and introduce our son and dil to the pleasures of cruising. Although we usually book a balcony stateroom, we opted for two inside cabins. We were pleasantly surprised with these rooms. Our stateroom attendant was excellent, quickly filling all our requests. We thought the condition of the ship to be fine. The public rooms were beautiful, especially in their Christmas finery. We thoroughly enjoyed the food and thought our waiter did an excellent job finding us rare meat and even providing us with some special requests. We had been on the Constellation TA in September and thought the food was better on this short cruise. I know these are all subjective evaluations, but I would not hesitate to book another cruise in the Infinity.

[LuAnn]

We were on the Infinity right after 9/11 when she was brand-spanking new and loved the entire look of the ship. That is why, when I saw this sailing, I decided to go again on this ship. Our first trip was 4 years ago..I don't know how often ships like this go into dry dock but, over all, I thought she looked great! Saw a few things (a little rust on the balcony rail, missing buttons on the dining room chairs) but nothing of any consequence. I would have to agree that I did not think the food was quite as good as before, but still good. As far as the staff is concerned, we had a great waiter and wine steward, and cabin steward. There are 800 or so staff members on board, so I'm sure, at one point you may run across someone who is grumpy, tired, unhappy or rude....I think that's true in everyday "shore life" as well. Our cabin "squeaked" the entire time..spoke to the pursers desk numerous times, and they continued to try and fix it...even sending the Chief Engineer to try and help. The "future cruise staff" person had the same problem in her office...she said it was because the ship had been doing this Hawaii run and the waves etc. had really taken a toll on the ship. Hopefully, with her chance for a "rest"..she will be back in complete tip-top-shape...her size, appointments and our memories make her still our favorite! LuAnn

[Moets]

We also just back from the Infinity (Panama Canal 10 December). We heard from the staff that the Infinity goes into the dry dock Marz 2006.

 

We had a great time only the information that the people of the excursiondesk provided to us was poor and often wrong. The excursions where too expensive for what they offered.

 

King Jan

[safein]

I see Celebrity finally wised up and decided to drydock Infinity in March 2006! Not sure if anyone knows it but she seems to run into pod troubles the same time every year: in March!

 

When we were there in April, I didn't notice the wear and tear I'm hearing people talk about. I tend to be fairly nitpicky in looking at how things are and I didn't see anything amiss except the TV in the living room in our CS. Even the repair people were stumped!

 

Anita

[safein]

hiccup!

 

Anita

[lizbeth]

Hi all -

My husband and I just returned from the Infinity ... we were B-2-B cruisers on Dec. 4 and Dec. 10. I finally finished a lengthy review today and posted it on Cruise Critic, but I don't know when it will appear.

 

However, I will say we enjoyed our cruise tremendously. We felt the staff was extremely helpful and friendly. Our food was consistently outstanding, and we saw Mario and Luis (the 2 asst. maitre'd) all the time offering us any assistance.

 

We did not take any Celebrity cruise tours. We have learned that boarding a bus with 48 others is not our idea of fun, so we usually research the ports and then book a private tour with a taxi. In Aruba we shared the cost with another couple we met on these boards.

 

We don't gamble. We don't use the spa services. We don't take children with us on cruises. (Infinity child care staff did a marvelous job of keeping the kids out of sight!) We go on cruises to have a fantastic time and some quality time together. We loved all the Celebrity singer/dancer shows, and even wrote a fan letter to one of the dancers! We hope it made her day!!

 

If you're trying to remember who I was on this cruise ... well, I wore a smile the whole time! You make a lot more friends that way!

 

Eagerly anticipating our next cruise,

Lizbeth

[lysolqn]

We've sailed on Infinity three times, most recently R/T San Diego/Hawaii in late October and didn't notice any obvious signs of wear and tear. Our standards are pretty high, yet we found that the food and service were excellent, the ship was immaculate and the staff and crew couldn't have been more accommodating if they tried.

 

Have we noticed some changes in the X product during the eight years and 23 cruises we've taken on Celebrity ships? Yes, but no more so than the changes we've noticed on other lines. In fact, it's been our experience that despite the changes, the X product has remained the most consistent of all.

[plwilliams]

We've sailed on the Infinity twice, the most recent being a 12 night round trip out of San Fran to Alaska in May. We noticed little, if any, signs of her going downhill since our Panama Canal cruise on her in Nov 2003. The wait staff and everyone we interacted with were very friendly and went out of their way to please us. The food ranged from very good to excellent and much better than we had on the Island Princess in Dec 2004

[CinWin]

We go on cruises to have a fantastic time and some quality time together. We loved all the Celebrity singer/dancer shows, and even wrote a fan letter to one of the dancers! We hope it made her day!!

 

If you're trying to remember who I was on this cruise ... well, I wore a smile the whole time! You make a lot more friends that way!

 

Lizbeth: Really enjoyed reading your above remarks - very refreshing. :) My husband and I feel the same way about our cruising vacations and always have a wonderful time (especially on Celebrity ships).

 

Cindy

[RSS from SF]

Just FYI:

Was cleaning out this week's email inbox and found this link for last year's Conde Nast rankings for large ships. (The table is provided from one of Celebrity's travel partners.)

 

Some threads last year mentioned some of the rankings, but I didn't see the actual table of the Top 30 online.

 

Certainly I'm sure some of you will question some of the rankings (as many CCers questioned them last year!)

 

[Note: I'm interested in your Infinity comments because I'm considering whether or not I should book Infinity for one of the 12-night Alaska RTs out of San Francisco.]

 

Here's the link:

CONDÉ NAST TRAVELER'S 2005 BEST CRUISE SHIPS - LARGE SHIPS (MORE THAN 1500 PASSENGERS)

[cabo de hornos]

Seems odd that there would be that much relative disparity between M-class ships for Design/Cabins and Activities/Facilities categories - they are pretty much cut from the same mold. Perhaps there's a bit of flexibility in activity lists depending on the itinerary, and the facilities score may be affected by maintenance. Or perhaps the personnel performance is a factor, although that should be reflected purely in the Crew/Service category.

 

Cabo