Back From the Edge-a post cruise review of July 3-10 w/ pics

[wrk2cruise]

On Celebrity the shows are generally at 7 and 9.

[EMc&DrS]

VIII--The End

 

Well, I've racked my brain....

 

...until it feels like goo..

 

...but I can't think of anything I haven't covered, so I think it's time to wrap it up.

 

The pools are empty..

 

...and there is no one left out on deck...

 

So it must be time to go home.  

 

 

 

 

Ft. Lauderdale always looks better at the front end of a trip....

 

 

 

But we did see a rainbow during the final hour of our 11 hour drive home to ATL.

 

122 day until our next cruise when we get to enjoy the Yacht Club on the first U.S. sailing of the New MSC Seashore (which is still under construction). We certainly hope we enjoy that cruise as much as we did this one!  Thanks for reliving our trip with us...hope you had a good time!

 

 

 

 

[IrishLassie]

Really enjoyed your review & all your pictures.  We can't wait to get back to cruising in 2022!  We also can't wait to see Taz again as we met him a few years ago on a different X ship.  Happy sailing to you all. 

[_Rick_]

I really enjoyed your review!  Thanks for spending the time to do it.  We'll be on the Edge in 11 days!  

[EMc&DrS]

5 minutes ago, _Rick_ said:

I really enjoyed your review!  Thanks for spending the time to do it.  We'll be on the Edge in 11 days!  

Hope you have a great time!!

[Robkat]

Thanks again for this really entertaining review.  

We just checked in for our Sept Edge cruise, and we got a 12:30-1pm check in.  Nothing was mentioned about uploading or showing our vax cards ... were you asked for those much closer in to your cruise?

 

Funny to hear that your  next cruise is on the YC Seashore!  Through the past year cancellations, we went from a YC Seaside, to another Seaside, to a Meraviglia, and then, finally ... ta da!  To a Seashore!  So, hope you're planning on another riveting review of your next cruise, as we'll be glued and eagerly awaiting all the details!!!!

Hoping to hear that the Seashore YC is as lovely as the Seaside one. 

 

Stay well!

[RoamingRetirees]

Just now, Robkat said:

Thanks again for this really entertaining review.  

We just checked in for our Sept Edge cruise, and we got a 12:30-1pm check in.  Nothing was mentioned about uploading or showing our vax cards ... were you asked for those much closer in to your cruise?

 

Funny to hear that your  next cruise is on the YC Seashore!  Through the past year cancellations, we went from a YC Seaside, to another Seaside, to a Meraviglia, and then, finally ... ta da!  To a Seashore!  So, hope you're planning on another riveting review of your next cruise, as we'll be glued and eagerly awaiting all the details!!!!

Hoping to hear that the Seashore YC is as lovely as the Seaside one. 

 

Stay well!

 

We sail on Edge July 31. No one has asked for our vaccine cards. We have had several emails from Celebrity that we must show the original cards when we check in at the port.

[EMc&DrS]

4 minutes ago, Robkat said:

Thanks again for this really entertaining review.  

We just checked in for our Sept Edge cruise, and we got a 12:30-1pm check in.  Nothing was mentioned about uploading or showing our vax cards ... were you asked for those much closer in to your cruise?

 

Funny to hear that your  next cruise is on the YC Seashore!  Through the past year cancellations, we went from a YC Seaside, to another Seaside, to a Meraviglia, and then, finally ... ta da!  To a Seashore!  So, hope you're planning on another riveting review of your next cruise, as we'll be glued and eagerly awaiting all the details!!!!

Hoping to hear that the Seashore YC is as lovely as the Seaside one. 

 

Stay well!

They called us to verify vaccination status about 10 days prior to the cruise. 

 

This will be our 6th YC cruise. We’ve sailed Divina 3x, Meraviglia once, and had the Royal Suite on Seaside. Looking forward to seeing Seashore. Just hoping the current surge in Covid cases doesn’t bring cruising to a halt. 🤞 
 

 

 

 

[pno4te]

 @EMc&DrSThanks for taking us on an enjoyable review of your cruise.  We are looking forward to our first Celebrity cruise in a little over 4 weeks.  You have given us much to look forward to!

[EMc&DrS]

3 hours ago, RoamingRetirees said:

 

We sail on Edge July 31. No one has asked for our vaccine cards. We have had several emails from Celebrity that we must show the original cards when we check in at the port.

Yep. There was no “may we see your vaccine card?”  It was, “Show me your vaccine card” the moment we stepped in the terminal. 

[CruiseMelissa]

I searched this thread but didn't see it covered... was the kid's club open?

[EMc&DrS]

1 minute ago, CruiseMelissa said:

I searched this thread but didn't see it covered... was the kid's club open?

I’m not sure—so sorry. 

[cluso]

BRAVO!  Thank you!

[SevenSeas1492]

Wonderful review!  I have so missed cruising and can’t wait to go soon!  Thank you for taking the time to post this.

[EMc&DrS]

18 minutes ago, SevenSeas1492 said:

Wonderful review!  I have so missed cruising and can’t wait to go soon!  Thank you for taking the time to post this.

Thanks so much. Glad you enjoyed it. 

[wrk2cruise]

I believe I saw some kids in the buffet with crew that looked like kids club staff eating pizza, chicken fingers and fries.

[DingoMom]

THANK YOU! Your review was PERFECT! Loved the organization, photos, and humor. We leave on Friday for the Edge sailing on Saturday…your review has me ‘happy dancing’ — but I guess I should save some of that for Silent Disco. How was debarkation? Specifically, do you know if Luggage Valet is an option? Also, what was the earliest you could have gotten off the ship??

A huge Thank You for your post, and TIA re: debarkation!

[EMc&DrS]

6 hours ago, DingoMom said:

THANK YOU! Your review was PERFECT! Loved the organization, photos, and humor. We leave on Friday for the Edge sailing on Saturday…your review has me ‘happy dancing’ — but I guess I should save some of that for Silent Disco. How was debarkation? Specifically, do you know if Luggage Valet is an option? Also, what was the earliest you could have gotten off the ship??

A huge Thank You for your post, and TIA re: debarkation!

You found something I left out, and I meant to touch on that.  Time to add one more post.

[Cruise a holic]

On 7/17/2021 at 1:12 PM, EMc&DrS said:

I. GETTING THERE: Having lived in GA my whole life, there are few places in FL I haven’t visited.  Driving across Alligator Alley was one of those few adventures that I had not checked off my list, so I was happy to make the drive from Marco Island via US 41 to MIA.  We did see a lot of pretty landscapes, some great birds, but alas, no alligators.  Still, it was worth the time to make the drive.

 

Being an airplane enthusiast, I just had to take the opportunity to visit the 94th Aero Squadron restaurant across from the MIA airport since our route was going right by the area.

 

 

We were virtually alone in the restaurant for lunch, but had a great meal and some great views.

 

 

 

 

 

           

 

We then took the "scenic route" to Fort Lauderdale by driving past the MIA cruise port attempting to follow A1A along the shoreline.

 

 

 

Unfortunately, this was impossible due to the condo collapse. We got within .5 miles of the collapse, but all traffic was diverted back to I-95.  Two hours after passing the MIA port area, we finally arrived at our hotel in FLL (the traffic was intense!)  We checked into the Crown Plaza just outside the entrance to Port Everglades. I would highly recommend this hotel to anyone who is looking for nice accommodations close to the port; you could walk to the entrance of the port grounds from the hotel.

 

 

We stayed at this hotel.  The neighborhood isn't great to walk around nor find good places to dine.  Wouldn't recommend.

[EMc&DrS]

 

(PS)..  IX  DEBARKATION-Another improvement since Covid.  For those who chose to walk-off the ship with their luggage, debarkation started at roughly 7:30 AM.  We had to be out of our stateroom by 8 AM  and were told to wait in Eden.  We were assigned to group 21, and our number was announced around 8:20.  With the reduced capacity, there was absolutely no line getting off the ship. We did stop and talk to Lauren and Captain Kate before going into the room with all of the luggage.  There were plenty of porters standing around waiting to help.  The room looked so empty compared to a full cruise.

 

When we moved to the customs area, we were put in individual lines by family where someone asked us to remove our mask while our face was scanned with a facial recognition machine. Then we were out the door.  Never showed a passport or any documentation to a customs agent, nor did we have to answer any questions.  Our daughter and her husband were sailing with birth certificates rather than passports, so after their faces were scanned, they did have to talk with a customs agent just to show their documentation.  Probably added 5 minutes to their wait time.

 

We said our goodbyes on the sidewalk and we headed to the parking deck while they went to catch a cab. We were in the car and headed to the exit by 9:15.

 

On a side note, the other two arrived at the FLL airport just as the bomb threat evacuation was beginning.  Their cab driver noticed that something didn't look right as he was approaching terminal 1, so he quickly diverted to the baggage claim pick up area (down below) rather than the departure drop-off (up above).  If they had arrived just a few minutes later, they would have ended up in all the traffic that developed.  Some people from our cruise reported sitting in traffic for hours.  Some were taken back to the port while others had to divert to MIA and book new flights.  Our daughter was flying Southwest out of terminal 1, and it seemed to be the only terminal that was not directly impacted by the bomb threat.  They were supposed to fly out at 2:10, but with all of the delays of incoming and outgoing flights, they were still sitting on the ground in a very hot plane at the time they were supposed to be landing in ATL.  

 

By the time they finally got to ATL, got their bags, took the shuttle to their car to make the hour drive home, we were already on the south side of Atlanta when they arrived at their house. Flying home saved them a whopping 45 minutes compared to our 11 hour drive.  

 

 

Waiting to get off the ship in St. Thomas to leave for our excursion took way longer than the wait to exit the ship in Ft. Lauderdale.  We were all ready to dance once we finally got outside!

 

[Cruise a holic]

May try Eden again.  We didn't like the cirque type waiters on our last cruise.  Found then very intrusive.

[EMc&DrS]

6 hours ago, DingoMom said:

THANK YOU! Your review was PERFECT! Loved the organization, photos, and humor. We leave on Friday for the Edge sailing on Saturday…your review has me ‘happy dancing’ — but I guess I should save some of that for Silent Disco. How was debarkation? Specifically, do you know if Luggage Valet is an option? Also, what was the earliest you could have gotten off the ship??

A huge Thank You for your post, and TIA re: 

11 minutes ago, Cruise a holic said:

We stayed at this hotel.  The neighborhood isn't great to walk around nor find good places to dine.  Wouldn't recommend.

Maybe so. We had already eaten, plus we had our car, so getting around wasn’t an issue. The hotel had a full restaurant and bar that was open for dinner and breakfast the next morning, but we did not go there.

Edited July 21, 2021 by EMc&DrS

[Cruise a holic]

On 7/18/2021 at 12:19 PM, KKB said:

Thank you for your honest Rooftop Grill. 

It seems overpriced & pretty much "bar food"--we eat that often at home for less $. 
I also figured that the wind could be an issue on the top deck...14 cruises & I know that...one would think the designers would be privy to it as well.

 

But THANK YOU for ALL of this review---a joy to read!!

We also didn't like the rooftop Grill.  Thought it would be like the Lawn club grill on the Silly and Reflection, but it isn't enclosed and we walked out of the rooftop grill on our last pre pandemic edge cruise.  They need to enclose it and have ac and heat lamps when necessary.

[EMc&DrS]

12 minutes ago, Cruise a holic said:

We stayed at this hotel.  The neighborhood isn't great to walk around nor find good places to dine.  Wouldn't recommend.

Maybe so. We had already eaten, plus we had our car, so getting around wasn’t an issue. The hotel had a full restaurant and bar that was open for dinner and breakfast the next morning, but we did not go there.

[EMc&DrS]

8 minutes ago, Cruise a holic said:

May try Eden again.  We didn't like the cirque type waiters on our last cruise.  Found then very intrusive.

Most of the bad reviews we had read in advance were about the entertainers being intrusive.  That is no longer an issue!