Is Behind the Scenes worth it?

[Presto2]

We have done a Behind the Scenes tour many times on P&O ships and loved it. It has always had a nice meal / snack at some point and the chance to meet the Captain on the Bridge.

You also get lots of little extras when you return to your cabin

Do you meet the Captain on the Bridge, get a meal / snack and get the little extras on Celebrity?

Has anyone done it on Edge and was it worth it?

[C-Dragons]

4 minutes ago, Presto2 said:

We have done a Behind the Scenes tour many times on P&O ships and loved it. It has always had a nice meal / snack at some point and the chance to meet the Captain on the Bridge.

You also get lots of little extras when you return to your cabin

Do you meet the Captain on the Bridge, get a meal / snack and get the little extras on Celebrity?

Has anyone done it on Edge and was it worth it?

Yes, we did it on the Edge TA.

The tour included visiting the laundry service area, one of the cold storage facilities for food provisions, the engine control room, the galley for the Normandy and Tuscan restaurants, a walk down the I 95 corridor, and a tour of the bridge where we met the Capt. and Staff Capt. It took a couple of hours and was very informative. The only “extra” we got was a “Behind the Scenes” lanyard to keep. We were interested in the workings of this new ship, so it was “worth it” to us. YMMV. 😊

It was a popular tour and sold out, so if you want to do it don't wait to book it.

[poffles]

I just did this recently on the Equinox, first time ever on any ship and I always second guessed if it would be worth it.  For me it was because of having never done one so it was interesting to see things one never gets to see.  It is not something I would pay to do again but glad I did finally decide to go for it.

 

We did the typical areas as you would expect, which included entering the Bridge which included meeting the crew, but not the Captain (which was Captain Kate at the time).  I believe it was the Staff Captain that we 'talked' with and she explained some steering mechanisms and we were able to stroll around the area.  We met the infamous Bug Naked LOL.

 

As for a meal/snack, nothing like this was offered on our tour.  We did gets a fancy Lanyard that was boldly labeled Behind the Scenes.  Edge might be a bit different but suspect when you go to the ship innards they are more alike than different.

Edited July 4, 2019 by poffles

[NC State]

2 minutes ago, poffles said:

I just did this recently on the Equinox, first time ever on any ship and I always second guessed if it would be worth it.  For me it was because of having never done one so it was interesting to see things one never gets to see.  It is not something I would pay to do again but glad I did finally decide to go for it.

 

We did the typical areas as you would expect, which included entering the Bridge which included meeting the crew, but not the Captain (which was Captain Kate at the time).  I believe it was the Staff Captain that we 'talked' with and she explained some steering mechanisms and we were able to stroll around the area.  We met the infamous Bug Naked LOL.

 

As for a meal/snack, nothing like this was offered on our tour.  We did gets a fancy Lanyard that was boldly labeled Behind the Scenes.  Edge might be a bit different but suspect when you go to the ship innards they are more alike than different.

We will be on the Equinox for the first time in March. How do you sign up for this tour and how much?

[poffles]

2 minutes ago, NC State said:

We will be on the Equinox for the first time in March. How do you sign up for this tour and how much?

 

I signed up online in my booking under excursions.  It often goes on the 20% or other type discount they have so I would watch for that.  I got it I think when they had the 20% off so made it even better, can't recall exact cost and my cost was in CAD so I won't try to guess US$ .. hopefully someone else can pipe in on that.

Edited July 4, 2019 by poffles

[C-Dragons]

2 minutes ago, poffles said:

I just did this recently on the Equinox, first time ever on any ship and I always second guessed if it would be worth it.  For me it was because of having never done one so it was interesting to see things one never gets to see.  It is not something I would pay to do again but glad I did finally decide to go for it.

 

We did the typical areas as you would expect, which included entering the Bridge which included meeting the crew, but not the Captain (which was Captain Kate at the time).  I believe it was the Staff Captain that we 'talked' with and she explained some steering mechanisms and we were able to stroll around the area.  We met the infamous Bug Naked LOL.

 

As for a meal/snack, nothing like this was offered on our tour.  We did gets a fancy Lanyard that was boldly labeled Behind the Scenes.  Edge might be a bit different but suspect when you go to the ship innards they are more alike than different.

I would kindly disagree with you.

The Edge is the first in her class, and has high tech innovations that none of the other ships in the fleet have. 😊

[poffles]

3 minutes ago, C-Dragons said:

I would kindly disagree with you.

The Edge is the first in her class, and has high tech innovations that none of the other ships in the fleet have. 😊

 

And i would agree with that for sure in some regard but I still believe that many things you see will be similar in nature as a kitchen is still a kitchen generally speaking but ya it could be interesting to compare where they have 'innovated' behind the scenes.

 

I was on the Edge but decided not to do this but maybe on a future sailing if I get back on her again.

Edited July 4, 2019 by poffles

[hcat]

Totally worth it on EDGE...

We had a small group , led by one of the top shore excursions dept reps.  We were supplied with security passes and headphones so we could hear  all that was said.  We had small group sessions  with key staff and officrs at each  stop...as opposed to seeing large herds on the free tours of the kitchens, for example.  

 

In addition to areas noted above and in the tour description, we saw the recycling plant,  engineering, provisions area, crew social areas and many more, The bridge was awesome,...even more so than S Class.

 

This is a long  tour.  There is alot of walking involved and some up and down on  interior staircases....At one point in the laundry I opted to take the elev up...no problem doing so.

 

Learned  so much about operations, technology, etc., and most of all gained a  more complete insight into the diverse people who make things run smoothly for us all!

 

Highly rec this tour. It sells out,  so book early and  wait for discounts.. ( they will adjust) On our next EDGE cruise we booked the smaller group  backstage/ theater tour...can't wait,

Edited July 4, 2019 by hcat

[Presto2]

On a similar excursion on P&O we saw all of the above, had a very nice 'snack' of drinks and sandwiches / cakes and then went to the Bridge where we spent about 45 minutes with the Captain. We then went to his 'Ready Room' where he himself served us canapes and champagne alongside the steward with him while he answered loads of questions. It was incredible. This will take some beating and are not sure that the EDGE experience will beat this one. We had lanyards, lapel pins, a special 'apron' and other souvenirs when we got back to our cabin. It was excellent value. Is Celebrity up to that? If not we will give it a miss.

[C-Dragons]

39 minutes ago, hcat said:

Totally worth it on EDGE...

We had a small group , led by one of the top shore excursions dept reps.  We were supplied with security passes and headphones so we could hear  all that was said.  We had small group sessions  with key staff and officrs at each  stop...as opposed to seeing large herds on the free tours of the kitchens, for example.  

 

In addition to areas noted above and in the tour description, we saw the recycling plant,  engineering, provisions area, crew social areas and many more, The bridge was awesome,...even more so than S Class.

 

This is a long  tour.  There is alot of walking involved and some up and down on  interior staircases....At one point in the laundry I opted to take the elev up...no problem doing so.

 

Learned  so much about operations, technology, etc., and most of all gained a  more complete insight into the diverse people who make things run smoothly for us all!

 

Highly rec this tour. It sells out,  so book early and  wait for discounts.. ( they will adjust) On our next EDGE cruise we booked the smaller group  backstage/ theater tour...can't wait,

Thanks for adding the recycling plant (I forgot about that). The headphones were very nice to have in the areas which were quite noisy.

I didn’t know there was a backstage/theater tour on the Edge, thanks for the tip.

[keesar]

There are differences between ships.  We did it on Silhouette and saw the areas that have been described.  However, at the end, we had a nice luncheon with wine pairing in the Tuscan Grill with two officers.  It was well worth the cost in my opinion.   As for signing up, I had signed up at the Guest Relations Desk early in the cruise..  There is another tour available under Excursions but no meal. 

[hcat]

27 minutes ago, Presto2 said:

On a similar excursion on P&O we saw all of the above, had a very nice 'snack' of drinks and sandwiches / cakes and then went to the Bridge where we spent about 45 minutes with the Captain. We then went to his 'Ready Room' where he himself served us canapes and champagne alongside the steward with him while he answered loads of questions. It was incredible. This will take some beating and are not sure that the EDGE experience will beat this one. We had lanyards, lapel pins, a special 'apron' and other souvenirs when we got back to our cabin. It was excellent value. Is Celebrity up to that? If not we will give it a miss.

Sorry, I don't think you will have  snack time with the Captain. It is not a guarantee you will even meet him/ her.  "Access" was for areas of the ship that are usually off limits to guests rather than access to the Master of the vessel. There are usually  other events or opportunities  for that....

 

This was a tp clearly a tour rather than a social event...but very much worthwhile. 

We also learned about some of the incredible Edge artwork..

[scottygirl]

I signed up for this on my upcoming Hawaii cruise on the Eclipse. Booked at 20% off. I scheduled it for the last sea day. We have 5 consecutive sea days so I figured we will be looking for something to do! I have never done it but I’m very curious!

[Scottygirl1]

57 minutes ago, scottygirl said:

I signed up for this on my upcoming Hawaii cruise on the Eclipse. Booked at 20% off. I scheduled it for the last sea day. We have 5 consecutive sea days so I figured we will be looking for something to do! I have never done it but I’m very curious!

 

I had to reply to you Scottygirl - from one Scottygirl to another!!  

 

[vtcruising]

My DH did the one on the Reflection about 5 years ago and had lunch at the Lawn Club Grill with some officers at the end. He had a wonderful time. They stopped doing the lunch sometime in the last few years.

 

We both did the Edge behind the scenes tour (the very first one on Dec 3) and it was well worth it. The tour guide was from Boston and was so good and gave us a little inside info about what the Edge is like for the crew. We saw all of the things hcat and C-Dragons described - we also liked the headphones and enjoyed often having the head of a dept showing their areas with pride. The ship has so many innovations in each area  - ie., you hear about how the 4 MDR galleys coordinate, learn about how the crew has a stake in optimizing the recycling, see the control room and "situation" room and how they keep everything running smoothly. They have a computerized huge table where each deck can be called up and then each cabin can be assessed for energy use, open window/slider, etc. In each area after they explained things, they patiently answered questions until we were done. The biggest thrill was to enter the beautiful bridge and meet the captain. He was happy to have a selfie taken with me and answered our many questions. People sat in his seat and touched the wheel and enjoyed wandering to all corners of the bridge to take in the amazing view.

 

A huge thrill and worth every penny for us! Can't wait to do it on the Apex next year!! 🙂

 

 

Napkin Folding Designs in Normandie

 

Crew Bar:

 

Captain Costas