Edge (and Apex?) issues...

[gatour]

20 hours ago, BudlyDudly said:

Ok, so instead of starting a new thread, I’ll pop in my 2c right here.

My wife and I sailed aboard Celebrity EDGE Dec 16-23. We chose this ship following mention by our cruise planner that there would be fewer kids aboard.  It was also our very first cruise absent friends or spawn. Just us two.

We did not like the ship. Course, we knew up front it would be different from the cruise experiences we’ve had with 5 RC and 3 Princess cruises.  We are indeed casual cruisers.  Not professionals.  

 Royal Caribbean ships pipe the hallway/elevator music into each stateroom where guests have the ability to manage the volume.  The EDGE missed this comfort feature. 

 

=

What Royal Caribbean ships have this feature?  I over the last serveral years, I have sailed on 3 of the 4 Oasis class and a freedom class a couple of times.  Also the Enchantment.  Further back I have sailed on Voyager class ships and the Brillance.  I don't recall ever seeing them piping in hallway music into the cabins.  I have sailed on several cruise lines and I do recall this feature being available, it may have been on Princess.

[killsport]

For those who may have an individual or two who don't add value to their reading, apparently you can ignore / block them from your views. To do this, click the down arrow by your own name, then select Ignored Users

From there it's pretty easy.

I do enjoy those who provide an alternate view, but not those who make "factual" statements and then can't provide the actual source. Or just post comments that just don't provide value. Hope this helps others who find themselves in the same situation.

An early Happy New Year to all!

[DYKWIA]

1 hour ago, Pennstateman said:

Yeah I’d have to concur.  Percentage of passengers with drink packages probably under 30%

 

Very difficult to buy a Celebrity Cruise in the UK from a UK TA or direct for anywhere without a "free" drinks package (apart from transatlantics and inside cabins).  So on some cruises (with a high percentage of UK travellers) that will be much higher.  

[DYKWIA]

13 hours ago, Tall-Cruiser said:

 

We had a tough time trying to find something to buy with our OBC.

I applaud Celebrity for being creative and trying something different, and the ship was beautiful. We had a great time and cruise. Still, I think it would be a great idea to have shops and or things that fit different budgets. I think a good example of this can be found in RCI Oasis class ships. They have some upscale stuff and also regular reasonably priced things.  

 

Is Edge any different to the other Celebrity ships - they seems to have a mix of moderately priced designer shops (Michael Kors, Polo Ralph Lauren) along with higher end stuff (Cartier, Chanel, Bvlgari)

[yorky]

6 minutes ago, Pennstateman said:

This is good to know.

Sincerely, 

J. Stalin 

You could just accept that Edge probably has some good points, and some bad, not everything new is better.

[Cruise Junky]

1 hour ago, Pennstateman said:

“Only eight to 10 percent of passengers purchase unlimited booze packages”

Quote from Bloomberg January 2018z. Look it up

There's a big difference between "PURCHASE" and have it as an included perk. Over 10% of the ship are in suites which comes with it regardless of perk selected.

Edited December 28, 2018 by Cruise Junky

[richsea]

I am reminded of the old saying, “statistics don’t lie, the people that use them do”. Regardless of whether one is pro or con regarding Edge, there are a multitude of comparisons that can be make supporting both points of view. On this thread alone there have been rational arguements on both sides, along with some doozies & attemted humor. I enjoy reading the former for perspective & the latter for the entertainment value. 

 

I recall weeks and weeks of the same type posts regarding Reflection when she first launched, due to her increased passenger capacity over the other S class ships and the perceived loss of public space, although I think Edge sounds like a more drastic departure from present ships, mostly because of the balcony that seems to really be a room with a window that opens.

Bottom line is that we all must make our own decisions when deciding how to spend our holiday dollars, depending upon what is important to us. Personally, I would think long and hard on whether to bear the high cost of a pseudo balcony vs. a standard oceanview room. To each his own.

[Pennstateman]

Just now, richsea said:

I am reminded of the old saying, “statistics don’t lie, the people that use them do”. Regardless of whether one is pro or con regarding Edge, there are a multitude of comparisons that can be make supporting both points of view. On this thread alone there have been rational arguements on both sides, along with some doozies & attemted humor. I enjoy reading the former for perspective & the latter for the entertainment value. 

 

I recall weeks and weeks of the same type posts regarding Reflection when she first launched, due to her increased passenger capacity over the other S class ships and the perceived loss of public space, although I think Edge sounds like a more drastic departure from present ships, mostly because of the balcony that seems to really be a room with a window that opens.

Bottom line is that we all must make our own decisions when deciding how to spend our holiday dollars, depending upon what is important to us. Personally, I would think long and hard on whether to bear the high cost of a pseudo balcony vs. a standard oceanview room. To each his own.

Couldn’t agree more.  Remember the “horror” of the new 70,000 ton ships?

[cruise47]

Pennstateman, have many cruises have you exactly sailed with Celebrity Cruise Line?

 

This will give us a point of reference ?

Edited December 28, 2018 by cruise47

[Pennstateman]

Just now, cruise47 said:

Pennstateman, have many cruises have you exactly sailed with Celebrity Cruise Line?

 

12 or so

[BudlyDudly]

1 hour ago, gatour said:

=

What Royal Caribbean ships have this feature?  I over the last serveral years, I have sailed on 3 of the 4 Oasis class and a freedom class a couple of times.  Also the Enchantment.  Further back I have sailed on Voyager class ships and the Brillance.  I don't recall ever seeing them piping in hallway music into the cabins.  I have sailed on several cruise lines and I do recall this feature being available, it may have been on Princess.

 

Was avail in our staterooms on Liberty OTS, Jewel OTS, and (I think it was) The Rhapsody OTS.

[cruise47]

6 minutes ago, Pennstateman said:

 

12 or so

Very good so you are Elite with many sail nights behind you and cruising information you can share.

 

Edited December 28, 2018 by cruise47

[RDC1]

3 hours ago, Pennstateman said:

“Only eight to 10 percent of passengers purchase unlimited booze packages”

Quote from Bloomberg January 2018z. Look it up

As usual the value of the statistics is in knowing their exact definition.  So the question is do the 8-10% include all of those that receive the drink packages included as part of their bookings or are those only those that pay, in addition to their bookings which would be a relatively small percentage of the cruise population, as most receive it with bookings.  The language would imply the latter since they do not say select the drink packages.

 

Another issue is what is the exact definition of unlimited.  Are they including all drink packages that include alcohol or a more limited subset such as the top end package.

[RDC1]

3 hours ago, Pennstateman said:

 

 RCCL

apples to apples.  Google it...

 

Actually the article does not seem to apply to Celebrity, only the sister company RCI (not all of the cruise lines included in Royal Caribbean Cruises Limited, the parent company).

 

Only eight to 10 percent of passengers purchase unlimited booze packages—Royal Caribbean’s guests are largely family travelers—and those who do are carefully monitored. 

 

That would make more sense since RCI 1. offers fewer included drink packages then Celebrity, 2. Has a far higher percentage of families and correspondingly children than Celebrity, 3. Has far lower fares and more budget minded travelers than Celebrity. Which would be less likely to shell out the money for the relatively expensive packages.

Edited December 28, 2018 by RDC1

[Pennstateman]

1 minute ago, RDC1 said:

Actually the article does not seem to apply to Celebrity, only the sister company RCI (not all of the cruise lines included in Royal Caribbean Cruises Limited, the parent company).

 

Only eight to 10 percent of passengers purchase unlimited booze packages—Royal Caribbean’s guests are largely family travelers—and those who do are carefully monitored. 

 

That would make more sense since RCI 1. offers fewer included drink packages then Celebrity, 2. Has a far higher percentage of families and correspondingly children than Celebrity, 3. Has far lower fares and more budget minded travelers than Celebrity. Which would be less likely to shell out the money for the relatively expensive packages.

They still aren’t hiding bars so that people won’t drink. 

[RDC1]

1 minute ago, Pennstateman said:

They still aren’t hiding bars so that people won’t drink. 

No one really claimed that they were hiding bars.

 

The question is if there are less space and seats (or a lower server to passenger ration) in the available bars for non-suite passengers then in previous Celebrity Ships,  resulting in more difficulty for those passengers trying to get drinks in a social environment.

 

Throwing out misleading statistics, one liners, and non-applicable comments trying to equate new technologies with cruise line offerings, do not really shed any light on that question.

[deeva211]

On ‎12‎/‎27‎/‎2018 at 4:35 AM, Esprit said:

So the misinformation continues to be spouted out about the Edge.

There are actually NINE bars serving alcoholic drinks for non suite guests.

Martini bar

The Club

Casino bar

Eden

Magic Carpet

Resort bar

Sunset bar

Café a Bacio

Ocean View bar

I had the drinks package and it was used just as much as on my Reflection cruise earlier this year.

I would respectfully suggest you go back to your travel agent and ask her to stop misinforming her clients.

 

I was on the 7 day revenue cruise on Dec. 9th.  I don't think you TA gave you misinformation.  She was absolutely correct about the bars on the Edge.

 

Martini Bar-  You're lucky if you get a seat and most tables are for 2 so you can't sit and talk with other cruisers.  LOUD piped in entertainment except for the last night when they had a nice acoustical guitar player and singer.  Oh, in Cozumel, they brought aboard a very good violinist for 1 hour.  I understand that the Dec. 16th cruise actually had live music in the Martini bar before dinner every night.  Hopefully that will continue but why didn't we have that on our cruise????

 

The Club- Freezing cold.  No servers.  You had to go to the bar.  Few places to sit.  People were sitting onthe tomtoms!!!  A poetry class was being held in the same room and when they were through, they began a music mixing class.  No live music to enjoy except at the Elite + party.  

 

Casino Bar-Not a place for pre and post dinner drinks.  No entertainment unless you enjoy the slot machine sounds.

 

Eden-Would be a good place if they had some live entertainment and I'm not counting the Edenists in that!!

 

Magic Carpet-Closed for dinners.

 

Resort bar-After showering and dressing up for dinner, I'm not going to sit on bar stools at the pool.

 

Sunset bar-No servers were there when I was up there.  Again, it's outside and there was no live music.  To get there, you have to walk through the smoking section.  I went around to the port side to find a way out and couldn't so I had to walk back through the smoke to get out!

 

Café Al Bacio-Doesn't serve beer.  Limited wine and alcohol.

 

Ocean View- I'm not going to a cafeteria for pre and post dinner drinks.  Enough said!

 

The is no place like the Ensemble lounge and Rendezvous lounge on the Edge where you can enjoy drinks and live music.  Go back to the M and S class ships for that.  I hope they don't ruin those in the Revolution!!  I agree with the poster that stated that Celebrity has no reason to have more bars.  Most already paid for their alcohol packages so why make it easy for people to get drinks.  They'll make more money if you don't drink.  

Edited December 28, 2018 by deeva211

[StillLooking4Adventure]

6 hours ago, deeva211 said:

I was on the 7 day revenue cruise on Dec. 9th.  I don't think you TA gave you misinformation.  She was absolutely correct about the bars on the Edge.

 

Martini Bar-  You're lucky if you get a seat and most tables are for 2 so you can't sit and talk with other cruisers.  LOUD piped in entertainment except for the last night when they had a nice acoustical guitar player and singer.  Oh, in Cozumel, they brought aboard a very good violinist for 1 hour.  I understand that the Dec. 16th cruise actually had live music in the Martini bar before dinner every night.  Hopefully that will continue but why didn't we have that on our cruise????

 

The Club- Freezing cold.  No servers.  You had to go to the bar.  Few places to sit.  People were sitting onthe tomtoms!!!  A poetry class was being held in the same room and when they were through, they began a music mixing class.  No live music to enjoy except at the Elite + party.  

 

Casino Bar-Not a place for pre and post dinner drinks.  No entertainment unless you enjoy the slot machine sounds.

 

Eden-Would be a good place if they had some live entertainment and I'm not counting the Edenists in that!!

 

Magic Carpet-Closed for dinners.

 

Resort bar-After showering and dressing up for dinner, I'm not going to sit on bar stools at the pool.

 

Sunset bar-No servers were there when I was up there.  Again, it's outside and there was no live music.  To get there, you have to walk through the smoking section.  I went around to the port side to find a way out and couldn't so I had to walk back through the smoke to get out!

 

Café Al Bacio-Doesn't serve beer.  Limited wine and alcohol.

 

Ocean View- I'm not going to a cafeteria for pre and post dinner drinks.  Enough said!

 

The is no place like the Ensemble lounge and Rendezvous lounge on the Edge where you can enjoy drinks and live music.  Go back to the M and S class ships for that.  I hope they don't ruin those in the Revolution!!  I agree with the poster that stated that Celebrity has no reason to have more bars.  Most already paid for their alcohol packages so why make it easy for people to get drinks.  They'll make more money if you don't drink.  

Thanks for the follow up and verification that my TA had correct information. Again, she wasn't saying go or no go, just consider this information. 

 

We were on Reflection for 2 weeks in October. We quickly learned even on that ship we had to arrive at ensemble or the Martini bar early to get a seat. Sometimes we would get drinks at the bar at the Martini Bar and carry them over to either the Wine Cellar on the other side or sit around the Vodka on Ice table. At least there were acceptable options nearby that didn't involve going outside. I can't imagine having even less options and getting to may more for that privilege. 

[icemountain561]

On 12/27/2018 at 4:35 AM, Esprit said:

So the misinformation continues to be spouted out about the Edge.

There are actually NINE bars serving alcoholic drinks for non suite guests.

Martini bar

The Club

Casino bar

Eden

Magic Carpet

Resort bar

Sunset bar

Café a Bacio

Ocean View bar

I had the drinks package and it was used just as much as on my Reflection cruise earlier this year.

I would respectfully suggest you go back to your travel agent and ask her to stop misinforming her clients.

 

Is this LLP? Or celebrity corporate? Just because there are a # of bars doesn't mean they are all created equal or open at the same time. If anyone has tried to get a drink after midnight knows there are only a handful of places open. Plus it's a small ship. Crew bunks are expensive and they only have a certain amount for bar staff. Meaning open bars are probably under staffed. Drink packages proved very profitable for celebrity, but came with a sacrifice of timeliness and service. All of which has been argued ad nauseum on here. There isn't a shortage of getting drinks, but there is a shortage of popular bars. 

 

P. S. For the haters... I've been sailing celebrity since white glove service and French menu descriptions were still a thing in the MDR. I still sail with them. I've just grown accustom to "modem luxury" (cough cough cutbacks). Wish they would go back to actual luxury with their new pricing. 

[hcat]

50 minutes ago, ipeeinthepool said:

 

The comments could come from someone with relatives on-board the Edge.  There have also been reviews from people that appear to have copied their review from a Celebrity advertising review.

How is Corporate / Miami diff from CEO LLP?

 

Would like to know who runs programming stateside?

 

  They are referred to  as an  anonymous entity  whenever folks mention a lack of  activities on board like dancing before dinner, trivia, puzzles, etc...

 

Laser Tag, drone races, poetry class, haiku are not for us on a cruise! Maybe good for teens.

[gatour]

21 hours ago, yorky said:

You could just accept that Edge probably has some good points, and some bad, not everything new is better.

I would say it this way.

 

Not everything new is better for all people and not everything that is new is bad for all people.

 

Over the years there have been new things, some I like and some i don't.  Conversely some of the new things that I like other people don't and vice versa.  

[Doubt It]

18 hours ago, deeva211 said:

I was on the 7 day revenue cruise on Dec. 9th.  I don't think you TA gave you misinformation.  She was absolutely correct about the bars on the Edge.

 

Martini Bar-  You're lucky if you get a seat and most tables are for 2 so you can't sit and talk with other cruisers.  LOUD piped in entertainment except for the last night when they had a nice acoustical guitar player and singer.  Oh, in Cozumel, they brought aboard a very good violinist for 1 hour.  I understand that the Dec. 16th cruise actually had live music in the Martini bar before dinner every night.  Hopefully that will continue but why didn't we have that on our cruise????

 

The Club- Freezing cold.  No servers.  You had to go to the bar.  Few places to sit.  People were sitting onthe tomtoms!!!  A poetry class was being held in the same room and when they were through, they began a music mixing class.  No live music to enjoy except at the Elite + party.  

 

Casino Bar-Not a place for pre and post dinner drinks.  No entertainment unless you enjoy the slot machine sounds.

 

Eden-Would be a good place if they had some live entertainment and I'm not counting the Edenists in that!!

 

Magic Carpet-Closed for dinners.

 

Resort bar-After showering and dressing up for dinner, I'm not going to sit on bar stools at the pool.

 

Sunset bar-No servers were there when I was up there.  Again, it's outside and there was no live music.  To get there, you have to walk through the smoking section.  I went around to the port side to find a way out and couldn't so I had to walk back through the smoke to get out!

 

Café Al Bacio-Doesn't serve beer.  Limited wine and alcohol.

 

Ocean View- I'm not going to a cafeteria for pre and post dinner drinks.  Enough said!

 

The is no place like the Ensemble lounge and Rendezvous lounge on the Edge where you can enjoy drinks and live music.  Go back to the M and S class ships for that.  I hope they don't ruin those in the Revolution!!  I agree with the poster that stated that Celebrity has no reason to have more bars.  Most already paid for their alcohol packages so why make it easy for people to get drinks.  They'll make more money if you don't drink.  

 

Well said. Your analysis is excellent.

 

I am the poster who postulated that Celebrity deliberately reduced the number of comfortable drinking seats on Edge to reduce the demand on alcohol. Versus the S ships, there appears to physically be less venues for drink and conversation.

 

Add in the reduction in servers which occurred precisely at the commencement of the beverage package era and Celebrity is laughing all the way to the bank.

 

I am in the so called Celebrity target market, and not impressed whatsoever with the Edge. Celebrity's deliberate decision to remove the Sky Lounge is the key reason my household will not sail on Edge class. If Celebrity removes the Sky Lounge on the M and S class, Celebrity will not ever get a booking from my family.

[ecslady]

54 minutes ago, hcat said:

How is Corporate / Miami diff from CEO LLP?

 

Would like to know who runs programming stateside?

 

  They are referred to  as an  anonymous entity  whenever folks mention a lack of  activities on board like dancing before dinner, trivia, puzzles, etc...

 

Laser Tag, drone races, poetry class, haiku are not for us on a cruise! Maybe good for teens.

 

28 minutes ago, gatour said:

I would say it this way.

 

Not everything new is better for all people and not everything that is new is bad for all people.

 

Over the years there have been new things, some I like and some i don't.  Conversely some of the new things that I like other people don't and vice versa.  

 

I think it is OK for Celebrity to try some new things, but the Edge was more like a complete overhaul.  They should keep the old, add in some new activities, and then actually monitor which ones are most popular.

 

They could run both types of trivia for a few days at different times, and then later on  in the cruise run  both types of trivia at the same time, and let's see which one has the larger attendance.  

 

I remember when when they recently started the adult coloring.  I went once, but why did I go?  Was it because I really wanted to color, or because there wasn't anything else to do?  The answer - nothing else to do on a sea day. 

 

Celebrity should be asking the people who actually participate in activities, instead of whoever or whatever they are using to make these decisions. 

 

 

[RDC1]

1 hour ago, ecslady said:

 

 

I think it is OK for Celebrity to try some new things, but the Edge was more like a complete overhaul.  They should keep the old, add in some new activities, and then actually monitor which ones are most popular.

 

They could run both types of trivia for a few days at different times, and then later on  in the cruise run  both types of trivia at the same time, and let's see which one has the larger attendance.  

 

I remember when when they recently started the adult coloring.  I went once, but why did I go?  Was it because I really wanted to color, or because there wasn't anything else to do?  The answer - nothing else to do on a sea day. 

 

Celebrity should be asking the people who actually participate in activities, instead of whoever or whatever they are using to make these decisions. 

 

 

not an issue that they have done major changes with their new ships. bigger issue is how drasticly they change the older ships before they see how successful the new ships are.

[hcat]

Adult coloring? Another low cost option for X .

They may make you do it on your own tablet if they can figure it out!