Celebrity Infinity Review from regular Regent Cruisers

[greygypsy]

This will be posted in the Reviews but thought I would put here first.  Overall, we felt our experience in a Royal Suite on the Infinity was very comparable to cruising with Regent.  Here is the review:

 

We haven't been on Celebrity for many years but since we were cruising with our grand-daughter (turned 6 on the cruise) wanted a cruise with an available roomy suite, good service and activities for a 6 year old.  This cruise was priced right for a Royal Suite - probably because it hadn't had it's well overdue makeover yet - and also it was relatively early in the Mediterranean season.  We weren't sure if or how Sarah would like the kids' club but it was nice to know it was available.  Also, included in our cruise price was the premium drink package, wi-fi for 4 devices, access to all restaurants, butler service.  Pretty much everything and more we have been getting while cruising Regent and Silversea.  Sure, the ship was larger, but by today's standards this is a mid-size ship and it's probably the largest sized ship we will cruise on.  Also, the itinerary, while similar to other cruises we have been on, had some different stops for us, including Sete and Corsica, France and Messina in Sicily.  
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Overall, we were very pleased with our cruise.  We were met at embarkation by Michaels Club Concierge Joao, who helped make our cruise special throughout the cruise.  We lunched in Luminae, the suites only restaurant for lunch, and they made a great impression on our grand-daughter by finding her favorite drink, doing a special spaghetti and meatball, and throughout the cruise helped her feel very special.  Our butler, Chip (not his real name, but that's what he wanted us to call him) from Romania, was always available and brought us hot and fresh breakfasts every morning, made sure our suite was up to speed with all our requests, and helped make Sarah's birthday special with door and room decorations and a beautiful cake.  The cabin interior was beautiful and were pretty much all the interior areas of the ship.  Our balcony needed upkeep, and the exterior spa tub was too rusty to even consider using.  On the other hand, the inside jacuzzi tub was so much fun it was hard to get our grand-daughter out of the bath.  
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The food was fine.  I especially enjoyed many of the seafood entrees and my wife was thrilled that they offered a true and properly cooked veal chop one evening.  If there wasn't anything of interest on the Luminae menu, we could always order off the main dining room menu as well.  Offerings at the buffet (which we mostly used at lunch when we were on the ship) was varied but we often gravitated to the grill, pizza station and Asian area.  Overall, we felt the food was comparable to our most recent Regent experiences, and that was very flattering to Celebrity.  
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My wife had a small medical incident on the ship and she was seen promptly by the ship's doctor who was able to do a test to determine it was not more serious (although they recommended we see someone off the ship, it wasn't necessary) and the bill, we thought, was reasonable for seeing a ship's doctor (and we will get reimbursement from insurance).  The shops on the ship had good merchandise and was priced well, but they had to charge VAT since all the stops were in the EU.  Still, we were able to get a good price on a nice watch, and with the VAT refund, felt we got a very fair deal.  
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Sarah loved the kid's club and towards the end of the cruise would rather spend the day there than get off the ship with us!! Kudos to the staff and well done!! 
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This was a pretty international cruise with I'd say less than 50% Americans or Canadians, less than we would expect.  For the most part, I'd say everyone was polite, with very few chair hogs on our sea days (well, at least not early risers).  Our grand-daughter loved the pool area and thoroughly enjoyed herself.  Because she was 6 we couldn't use the indoor pool area but it looked clean and well maintained.  
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Susan said her spa experience was very good.  We disembarked in Rome (Civi) and Joao even escorted us off the ship! Our grand-daughter says if she can't live in Tucson she wants to live on the ship!! 
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I'm sure the Infinity will be even better after it's upcoming dry-dock, but for now, we would highly recommend it if you want a more affordable cruise with an excellent cruise line.

[George C]

Thanks, we did infinity earlier in both sky and celebrity suites and looking forward to first royal suite on her in February. We saw some wear and tear but had great cruise. What suite # did you have? We loved service in both luminae and Micheals.

[jelayne]

Thanks for the review, glad you enjoyed your cruise.

[greygypsy]

We were in 6134

[George C]

20 minutes ago, greygypsy said:

We were in 6134

Thanks we are just a few cabins away in 6140. 

[mahdnc]

Nice review.  Thanks for writing it.  I am glad you enjoyed  your  cruise.

[chemmo]

Thanks for your review, good to read your contrast with Regent, a line we may consider in the future...

[rollie]

Thank you for your Infinity review.  We will be in a sky suite, B2B in Feb.  Good to know that she is still a great ship just before her renew.

 

Rollie

[portofrome]

Thanks for your review!

[Lady Arwen]

Thank you for your review of Infinity.  We sailed on her in May and loved it.  The staff and crew were just amazing, as you would expect from Celebrity.  Can't wait to see her "revolutionized"!

[TeeRick]

greygypsy, I think in a Royal Suite you get complimentary specialty dining in addition to Luminae.  Did you try this at all?

[Mirage]

Thank you for your review.

We will be on Infinity in two weeks for a b2b and look forward to it. 

 

Mirage

[greygypsy]

They did include all specialty dining but we only tried Sushi on 5 and Tuscan Grille.  Sushi on 5 was good but the Italian not so much.  I checked on cruises on Infinity after the updates and the specialty restaurants are not included.

[EDLOS]

14 hours ago, rollie said:

Thank you for your Infinity review.  We will be in a sky suite, B2B in Feb.  Good to know that she is still a great ship just before her renew.

 

Rollie

When is the  Infinity off line for refurbishment ?

[rollie]

7 hours ago, EDLOS said:

When is the  Infinity off line for refurbishment ?

I thing she is scheduled for refurbishment in November of 2020.  I'm not sure why she is one of the last ship to be done.

 

Rollie

[EDLOS]

4 hours ago, rollie said:

I thing she is scheduled for refurbishment in November of 2020.  I'm not sure why she is one of the last ship to be done.

 

Rollie

I gathered by one post that it was any time now ?????? not in 2020 !!

[Happy Cruiser 6143]

19 hours ago, greygypsy said:

They did include all specialty dining but we only tried Sushi on 5 and Tuscan Grille.  Sushi on 5 was good but the Italian not so much.  I checked on cruises on Infinity after the updates and the specialty restaurants are not included.

 

Thanks for posting an interesting comparison.  Glad you enjoyed your cruise.

 

I am puzzled by your comment that unlimited dining in specialty restaurants will no longer be included in royal suites after the update.  That is a benefit which attaches specifically to the cabin and I see no reason why it should go away because of an update.  Perhaps the person you talked to didn't understand the difference between the perks which are on offer from time to time and the specific benefits which attach to royal suites and the penthouse.  It's a common misunderstanding.

 

By the way, I share your opinion of Tuscan.  

[greygypsy]

We were looking at a late 2020 cruise on Summit (sister ship already refurbished) and in Royal Suite specialty restaurants were not included. Only included in Penthouse. 

[Ayton lady]

21 minutes ago, greygypsy said:

We were looking at a late 2020 cruise on Summit (sister ship already refurbished) and in Royal Suite specialty restaurants were not included. Only included in Penthouse. 

We were recently in a Royal on the already refurbished Millenium and speciality restaurants were still included, therefore it is not connected with refurbishment. Hope they are not changing this as we have another Royal booked for 2020.

 

[Happy Cruiser 6143]

1 hour ago, greygypsy said:

We were looking at a late 2020 cruise on Summit (sister ship already refurbished) and in Royal Suite specialty restaurants were not included. Only included in Penthouse. 

 

Well, I don't know where you were looking, but unlimited specialty restaurant dining is listed under royal suites on Celebrity's website and that's been my and others' experience.

 

 

Services

 

Premium "All-In" Benefits

• Complimentary Premium Beverage Package
• Unlimited complimentary specialty dining
• Unlimited internet access
• Complimentary mini bar of beer soda, and water (replenished once daily)
• Two complimentary bottles of alcohol with mixers

Edited July 11, 2019 by Happy Cruiser 6143