Live From the Edge 12.16 Sailing!

[blue925]

3 hours ago, Lilikins said:

Did you ever get a chance the check out those martini hot tubs? I’m just curious because celebrity kept mentioning them in the promos but I’ve yet to see a review with someone saying if they like them, if they are crowded, and if the view was as great as they made it out to be.

 

 

I DID!!  I made it a point to on our last day because we had not earlier during the trip.  I'll discuss when I post about our last full day, which will be momentarily.

[Silkroad]

2 minutes ago, blue925 said:

The box drink was...different.  The main liquor was mezcal, which I don't particularly enjoy since I don't like a) smoky or b) tequila-type booze.  That said, the drink seemed to have something pineapple-ish and sangria-y going on in addition to the mezcal, so I drank it without issue.  My husband, however, called it "an ash tray filled with rain water."

OMG you almost made me spit coffee🤣 This drink is one of the ones I was considering, buuuut I just wasn’t sure. Your description gave me pause, but your husband’s assessment finished the job😂 I can’t wait to share this with my DH. I believe I’ll eschew the drink in a box.

 

BTW I’m really enjoying your live review, and I love your photos.

[Lilikins]

8 minutes ago, blue925 said:

The box drink was...different.  The main liquor was mezcal, which I don't particularly enjoy since I don't like a) smoky or b) tequila-type booze.  That said, the drink seemed to have something pineapple-ish and sangria-y going on in addition to the mezcal, so I drank it without issue.  My husband, however, called it "an ash tray filled with rain water."

 

My favorite Eden drink was the Shaman, made with rum. Partly because of the taste and partly because it was covered under the Premium package!  Thanks to Barb from our roll call for introducing me to it!!

EW! That’s so wrong. The pineapple and sangria part sound good but smoke/ash does not.

 

Not to sound creepy and go off cruise topic but if you wouldn’t mind sharing your arm workout, that would be awesome. Your arms are killer!

[jcpc]

blue925 - thanks so much for posting your review.  It has been a very enjoyable read.  I would be interested in your opinion of the Retreat Lounge for cocktails and also what your disembarkation experience was like.  I've read that it's an extremely long walk to the baggage claim area and it's cumbersome dragging your luggage across the street to queue for a taxi. Did you notice if  porters are readily available to assist with luggage.  Thanks again for your review.

 

Edited December 23, 2018 by jcpc

[vtcruising]

Of the Eden drinks we had, the one that I liked best was the Garden (it was huge and it was potent! - it's a wonder I made it back to the cabin):

 

 

 

This was Clouds (I think it was worse than the box one Blue described 😉) and the one below was Fig - also not a stand out. 🙂

 

 

Edited December 23, 2018 by vtcruising

[Lastdance]

1 hour ago, blue925 said:

We ran into several couples/groups who reached out to Eden beforehand and made arrangements for special food due to vegetarian preference or seafood dislikes/concerns/allergies.  To a person, they all were well accommodated and several actually met the chef (a very young-looking guy who is obviously quite talented).  I would definitely recommend letting them know in advance about any of your husband's preferences and I'm sure they'll be happy to help.

 

Thank you so much for your response; that is exactly what we will do...on another topic, we’re you okay with the S1aft not having the window/mirror?  I have the S1aft, and do not think I will miss the mirror/window, especially since I have not had one.  I love the aft!

 

Thanks again!

Edited December 23, 2018 by Lastdance

[C-Dragons]

23 minutes ago, Lastdance said:

 

Thank you so much for your response; that is exactly what we will do...on another topic, we’re you okay with the S1aft not having the window/mirror?  I have the S1aft, and do not think I will miss the mirror/window, especially since I have not had one.  I love the aft!

 

Thanks again!

We had an aft S1 on the Dec. 9 Inaugural. We also were lucky to participate in a cabin crawl and saw all 3 Sky suite configurations. Personally, I liked the aft S1 the best. And if you have the bathroom door open, you have a perfect view of the sea. 😊

[msteries]

Thanks for the great reviews and photos!  Here’s hoping I run into some fun-loving, ready-to-try new things folks like you on my February cruise.  I have one question about the Eden dinner.  Can you order regular bar drinks there.  I can party hearty as long as I stick to my Dewars on the rocks. 😉😉

[blue925]

On 12/23/2018 at 11:10 AM, Lilikins said:

 

Not to sound creepy and go off cruise topic but if you wouldn’t mind sharing your arm workout, that would be awesome. Your arms are killer!

Not creepy at all!  Incredibly flattering.  Essentially, I do HIIT/boot camp workouts five to six times a week, do really heavy lifting with my legs once a week (I would do more, but my trainer is a full-time English teacher and it's hard to make our schedules mesh).  The HIIT (high-intensity interval training) workouts have been incredible for my stamina, leanness and musculature.  We work on arms (especially shoulders and chest) a lot, and I also build bicep and tricep muscle really quickly.  When not on cruise ships, my diet consists primarily of protein shakes, chicken, white beans, egg whites, green vegetables, water and black coffee.  SUPER EXCITING!  Hahaha...but honestly, it's fine, and I do indulge once every two to three weeks.  Thanks again for the kind words -- you made my day!

[blue925]

17 hours ago, msteries said:

Thanks for the great reviews and photos!  Here’s hoping I run into some fun-loving, ready-to-try new things folks like you on my February cruise.  I have one question about the Eden dinner.  Can you order regular bar drinks there.  I can party hearty as long as I stick to my Dewars on the rocks. 😉😉

Yes, absolutely!  Eden has a very, very complete bar and also lots of wine.  After my cigar box drink, I switched to wine then had a vodka-soda at the very end to awaken my palate for Martini Bar. 😉  You will be totally fine, I promise!

[blue925]

On Saturday, our last full day, I woke up and panicked a little because there were so many things I still hadn't seen and experienced!  We also got an extra hour of sleep due to the time zone change, so I was raring to go at 7:30 sharp!  (I am also an incredibly perky morning person, anyway -- my co-workers LOVE traveling with me hahaha)

 

We breakfasted at Luminae then went out to the main pool to check things out since we hadn't really spent time there.  It was clearly going to be a cloudy and somewhat chilly (by Caribbean standards) day, but there were still folks out there by 9 claiming chairs.  We got two of the last ones in the inner circle around the pool and stayed there until about 10 people-watching.  (For those interested, I saw MAYBE a handful of people actually in the pool any time we went by.  They were all in the chairs.  Also, the Solarium was almost constantly packed.)

 

At 10 we went to the Retreat and had a couple of mimosas to wake up the taste buds.  We then reluctantly went downstairs to pack knowing we would not be in the mood later.  We got 90 percent of our packing done and then went to Luminae for lunch.  We both had the burger (which was inevitably done one level more than requested -- I should have asked for rare since my MR was a light but consistent brown with no pink) and starters.  I really consistently like the raw fish starters featured at lunch; if it weren't for those I would have been more interested in trying Raw on Five since I looooooove sushi.  DH had a coconut chicken soup, which was about an 8-level (out of 10) spice -- our server did warn him.  The soup was incredible, but it turns out my husband's stomach does not like coconut, so he stayed in our room most of the afternoon while I explored.

 

I hit up all the spots -- Retreat, martini glass hot tubs (easy to find a space, BUT it was quite cold and windy up there -- someone grabbed my Seapass and cover-up because they had flown away!), Magic Carpet (open for drinks almost constantly although the app does not reflect that), Bacio (ran into a guy who recognized me from the Facebook group for the Edge), etc.  I wish I had made the time to explore the outdoor spaces more when it was warmer, since frankly the wind made them not enjoyable since I was in a bathing suit and light cover-up.

 

Had our last dinner at Luminae and shared the second bottle of wine that we brought on board, then went to Eden, Martini Bar and then to bed.  A bittersweet night -- so sad to leave the ship, but also really excited to get home to our daughters for Christmas.

[blue925]

Photos from the final full day!

 

[BettyPC]

What a great review!!  I enjoyed reading about your adventures and loved the food porn.  We do our first Celebrity cruise in March!

[Lilikins]

3 hours ago, blue925 said:

Not creepy at all!  Incredibly flattering.  Essentially, I do HIIT/boot camp workouts five to six times a week, do really heavy lifting with my legs once a week (I would do more, but my trainer is a full-time English teacher and it's hard to make our schedules mesh).  The HIIT (high-intensity interval training) workouts have been incredible for my stamina, leanness and musculature.  We work on arms (especially shoulders and chest) a lot, and I also build bicep and tricep muscle really quickly.  When not on cruise ships, my diet consists primarily of protein shakes, chicken, white beans, egg whites, green vegetables, water and black coffee.  SUPER EXCITING!  Hahaha...but honestly, it's fine, and I do indulge once every two to three weeks.  Thanks again for the kind words -- you made my day!

Oh my you work hard! I’m glad you got to party hard on vacation and looks like you had lots of fun. Have a happy Christmas! Thank you for a wonderful review.

[ecslady]

On 12/24/2018 at 5:41 PM, blue925 said:

Photos from the final full day!

 

When I looked at this picture, I knew there was something different.  On the Dec 9-16 cruise, there were tables and chairs where the band is set up and playing.  Glad to see Celebrity made a change and put music by the Martini Bar, instead of the same piped in beat day after day.

[blue925]

21 hours ago, ecslady said:

 

When I looked at this picture, I knew there was something different.  On the Dec 9-16 cruise, there were tables and chairs where the band is set up and playing.  Glad to see Celebrity made a change and put music by the Martini Bar, instead of the same piped in beat day after day.

Oh, interesting!  Yes, I can't imagine there not being live music in Martini Bar.  I think we experienced live music (singers, small bands, duos, etc.) every single day from afternoon through the evening.  It was absolutely delightful, even when we were "just" having coffees from Bacio and enjoying the sound from the level above.

[blue925]

My final post will be fairly short, as it will just cover disembarkation day.

 

We woke up at what felt like the crack of dawn (really just 5:30, but it was pitch black so it felt even earlier!) and showered, did last-minute packing and checked all of the 400 million drawers, nooks, crannies, cubbies and closets in our room to make sure we left nothing behind.  We had our final breakfast in Luminae when it opened at 6:30.  I did a final caloric splurge with huevos rancheros.... yum!!  Felix came by and thanked us for what we had left for him the night before and I was very moved by his sincerity -- he is just a fantastic guy and I hope other suite guests request him!

 

We then grabbed our last items from our room (two backpacks, a duffel bag and my husband's two large hats) and went to the Retreat Lounge to wait for our turn to leave.  At 7:36, it was announced that the ship had been cleared and walk-off passengers could leave.  A Retreat staff member started taking down groups of people in the elevator rigged to bypass all other floors.

 

Luggage tags 1-4 were called at 7:57, so we actually managed to jump on a walk-off passenger elevator and were down to the exit within seconds.  Customs was an absolute breeze (again, despite me not bringing my passport and having my DL and birth certificate) and then we walked to get our luggage.  It was a long walk, as others have mentioned, but not horrible, although I can see it being extremely cumbersome for anyone with mobility issues.  Our luggage was easy to find, we walked outside and headed to the left for Rideshare (Lyft, Uber).  Taxis are to the right.

 

There were lots of porters with luggage carts around helping people get where they needed to go, although really, the Rideshare area was literally 10-15 feet from the terminal exit.  By 8:19, we were in our Lyft back to FLL, and we actually got there and through security so early that we had almost two hours at the gate before our 10:30 a.m. flight.  

 

The flight home was uneventful and we landed, Lyfted home and were at Disneyland later that evening to take our daughters to see Santa.  No rest for the weary -- and that means parents of tiny tots!

 

Thank you all for reading along, and please feel free to ask any questions you like.  I plan on writing a review to post on CC during the next few days as I continue processing our thoughts on the ship, room, experience, etc.  Overall, however, I give our weeklong trip and the Edge a solid A!  

[Bo1953]

28 minutes ago, blue925 said:

Oh, interesting!  Yes, I can't imagine there not being live music in Martini Bar.  I think we experienced live music (singers, small bands, duos, etc.) every single day from afternoon through the evening.  It was absolutely delightful, even when we were "just" having coffees from Bacio and enjoying the sound from the level above.

Thank you for this.

 

I think many of us are trying to make a comparison of services, presentations, food, bars, music, etc. between the short Preview Sailings and the full revenue Sailings. Which, at minimum, will cause much confusion and concern, understandably so.

 

While some of these may be the same or similar, we do forget that on the Preview Sailings X tried to include a lot of the experience which was planned for eight (8) days into three (3) which is bound to be overwhelming for some of us to take in.

 

bon voayge

[Lastdance]

Thank you so much for all the great information presented in your review.  You have an easy way of writing that, IMHO, captures the essence of cruising, along with trying a new ship.  Disembarking from a suite sounds very easy, and though a little sad, a great end to an enjoyable experience.  Yes, your pics are worth a 1,000 words....thanks for sharing  information on the gym and jogging track too, as those are very important to my DH and me!

Edited December 27, 2018 by Lastdance

[blue925]

2 hours ago, Bo1953 said:

Thank you for this.

 

I think many of us are trying to make a comparison of services, presentations, food, bars, music, etc. between the short Preview Sailings and the full revenue Sailings. Which, at minimum, will cause much confusion and concern, understandably so.

 

While some of these may be the same or similar, we do forget that on the Preview Sailings X tried to include a lot of the experience which was planned for eight (8) days into three (3) which is bound to be overwhelming for some of us to take in.

 

bon voayge

I completely agree that is isn't fair or appropriate to compare the three-day cruises to the seven-day (or TA) ones...and when/if we go back on the Edge again in a couple of years, we expect a different experience as Celebrity is clearly making adjustments based on all of this feedback.  It will be neat to see the evolution!

[blue925]

49 minutes ago, Lastdance said:

Thank you so much for all the great information presented in your review.  You have an easy way of writing that, IMHO, captures the essence of cruising, along with trying a new ship.  Disembarking from a suite sounds very easy, and though a little sad, a great end to an enjoyable experience.  Yes, your pics are worth a 1,000 words....thanks for sharing  information on the gym and jogging track too, as those are very important to my DH and me!

Thank you for the kind words!  I should admit that I was a professional writer for many years (as a reporter for the L.A. Times) and so I definitely take pride in my writing.  I appreciate the feedback!!

[ecslady]

4 hours ago, Bo1953 said:

Thank you for this.

 

I think many of us are trying to make a comparison of services, presentations, food, bars, music, etc. between the short Preview Sailings and the full revenue Sailings. Which, at minimum, will cause much confusion and concern, understandably so.

 

While some of these may be the same or similar, we do forget that on the Preview Sailings X tried to include a lot of the experience which was planned for eight (8) days into three (3) which is bound to be overwhelming for some of us to take in.

 

bon voayge

 

Let me remind you, that the comments I made about the band being set up with music instead of seating, was about the first 7 day revenue December 9-16 not a preview cruise.

[ecslady]

4 hours ago, blue925 said:

Oh, interesting!  Yes, I can't imagine there not being live music in Martini Bar.  I think we experienced live music (singers, small bands, duos, etc.) every single day from afternoon through the evening.  It was absolutely delightful, even when we were "just" having coffees from Bacio and enjoying the sound from the level above.

 

Sounds like Celebrity did make a big change. Glad you had a much better experience in the Martini Bar  than we did on the Dec. 9-16 cruise. 

[C-Dragons]

2 hours ago, Lastdance said:

Thank you so much for all the great information presented in your review.  You have an easy way of writing that, IMHO, captures the essence of cruising, along with trying a new ship.  Disembarking from a suite sounds very easy, and though a little sad, a great end to an enjoyable experience.  Yes, your pics are worth a 1,000 words....thanks for sharing  information on the gym and jogging track too, as those are very important to my DH and me!

Disembarkation should be easy for anyone, not just those in suites, who uploaded their photos when doing their online check-in prior to the cruise. Upon entering the customs area there is a camera that you briefly stop in front of. A customs agent then gives you an “OK” to proceed and pick up your luggage, then off you go!

We were on the Dec. 9 sailing and remarked how easy it was to check-in on the day of embarkation. A X representative said “If you think this was remarkable, wait until you disembark, you won’t believe how fast it will go!” Well they were right, it was the fastest disembarkation we have ever experienced from any ship. X hit it out of the park with this new technology in the T25 terminal.

[kearney]

Did you notice the drone that was stuck in the chandelier in the martini bar? Day one they had drone races and one got stuck there. We came back and each day it was there and then one day it was gone. We thought it would need a major ladder to reach it...but one of the bar tenders managed to free it after standing on the bar with a long pole. So perhaps it is good the bar is not covered in ice after all 🙂