is the Edge class over the Edge?

[jelayne]

44 minutes ago, NutsAboutGolf said:

 

Pretty much agree with you 100%, I just wanted to comment on the shops, I do wonder if the high-end shops are more for projecting a luxurious experience than selling merchandise, 

 Or possibly the high end shops pay more for the space than the T-shirt. Sunglasses & $10 stuff pay for their  space. 

[retird]

We have cruised on HAL, Celebrity, Royal and Azamara, and mostly in a balcony cabin.   Never been on Edge class.   Pricing always seemed a bit high .  I love reading other cruisers opinions on cabins and the amenities offered by the various cruise lines.   The Infinite Verandah has really had its lovers and haters.    Now thanks to a Blue Chip comp IV , we will be trying one on the Edge in February.    Im most happy when I’m anywhere on the ocean and really looking forward to the new experience the Edge will offer.   Time will tell if I miss the traditional ship.  

[volk904]

We have a family cruise book on the Beyond in March. I have sailed on the Edge and it was fun but far from my favorite ship.  My dad really wanted to sail on the Beyond or we would be on the Reflection for much less money.  

[Miaminice]

Fell in love with E-Class on our first cruise on Edge. Love the dining room concept, love the design and love the more sophisticated ambiance. So far we have done 4 on Edge and Apex and it will feel awkward going back to Infinity in June.

[NMTraveller]

The only thing missing from E class to complete the  ambience is rock and roll piped in at 120 db.

 

If you are for loud and shouty ambience, why not loud music?

 

Edited November 22, 2022 by NMTraveller

[Germancruiser]

I agree to those wo mentioned that the Edge Class is not built for " X- Veterans"- LOL. I could not agree more!

I sailed the Apex on her Maiden Voyage and even though  the cruise itself was remarkable, I will not go back to an E- Class ship anytime soon.

When entereing the ship we got such warm and and fond welcome it was  most touching, indeed-

what with the senior officers standing in the entrance and clapping and shouting welcome back - which makes that Maiden Voyagen really unforgetable!

The ship itself- hm- some nice places there for sure- but not my ship- not AT ALL.

To loud, to noisy - Eden a good idea- just the wrong design for my taste. Who designed that very room was either just off their meds or forgot to take them at all. My opinion , of course.

We had an SV- which was the best cabin i ever had - but they  rare - very rare-and hard to get- since most of all other cabins have these newfangled verandahs.

To many lounges indoors- without a view out to the sea. Martini Bar - a once wonderful place- ruined- it has become a loud and noisy- Party venue- nothing else.

So I suppose the designed the Edge Class for a new cruise generation- which of course from the business point of view is absolut the right turn.

[OysterD]

6 hours ago, NMTraveller said:

I think that you must also consider the quality of the bars.

 

For example sky lounge on S class beats anything on E class.  The Martini Bar on S class is smaller and more intimate.  I can get a drink in a timely fashion.  Craft Social vs Cellar Masters... LOL.  The one positive that they added on E class was the World Class Bar.  The Magic Carpet is just too windy.

 

S class has hands down better bars with a more intimate experience.  E class is more loud and shouty.

 

The only E class bar you would find me at would be WCB.  That is not much choice.

 

On S class it could be martini bar, cellar masters, wcb, or sky lounge.  Numbers or quality.  I will take quality.  Yet S class has more usable quality bars.

 

 

After a few cruises on the Reflection, I found the sky lounge to be one of the most underused venues on the ship so I think you might be in a minority. 

 

Last cruise, after absolutely packed events like a silent disco or ABBA party in the grand foyer, it's announced "and we're going to carry on the party up in the sky lounge", we head up there to find it dead, with maybe 10-20 other people there. Other times of the day when I'd walk past it would also be nearly always empty. 

 

Cellar masters probably takes the prize for emptiest bar area, hardly ever saw anyone in it.

 

I think the ensemble lounge is a bit of a hidden gem. Unless you're in AQ and head that way to Blu every night or have a booking in a specialty restaurant, I bet a large proportion of guests don't even realise it's there. We found it a great place to grab a drink before dinner in Blu every night. 

[montythecat]

Ah….my favourite topic!  We were on Apex in October and it was one of my least enjoyable 

cruises, Celebrity or any others, we have chosen. The itinerary would have to be unusual

and/or compelling (such as meeting up with a friend) for us to return. We are Elite Plus,

a status accumulated by booking balcony cabins, sometimes Aqua, but never suites.

 

Edge Class positives :

1. The four MDRs. A very clever concept with the variety of decor making the experience 

delightful. It also means if we liked one dining room in particular we could concentrate 

on that one.

2.  Internal appearance. On the whole it worked, but that would be expected on any

new ship. We thought the same with Nieuw Statendam.

3.  Cabins. Generously proportioned. Good bathroom. Plenty of storage space.

 

Negatives :

1.  Lounges and bars.  Too many internal without views beyond the ship. In particular,

the lack of a high up, forward facing lounge is a criminal omission.I thought we might

miss it and we certainly did. The mixture of music with Martini Bar and Cafe Al Bacio 

as the main sociable area of the ship didn’t suit us. Eden was neither bar nor 

dedicated music venue.

2.   The swimming pool. Too shallow.

3.   Entertainment.  On Millennium (21 February to 3 March 2022) we enjoyed the guest

performers (Irish, Rock and Singer/Songwriter covers). Great variety. On Apex it was 

mainly middle of the road music with no get up and go, and old-fashioned stage

shows with acrobats/aerialists, or whatever the correct terminology is. I grew 

out of that sort of stuff when I was about eight years old. Celebrity seem to be very

proud of their theatre productions. That’s fair enough but a greater range of 

musical offerings would be appreciated.

The cons do not outweigh the pros which leaves us with refurbished M and S class

ships, HAL Pinnacle class ships and NCL refurbed Jewel class ships with the occasional 

dipping of the toes into the Azamara and Viking ponds.

 

[old-cruiser-man]

12 hours ago, TravelingCircusof5 said:

I just noticed today that we could do nearly the same Eastern Car itinerary on the same dates on the Reflection as the one we booked on Beyond— but for a good bit cheaper- or go to a suite for what we are payi g for Aqua on Beyond. Now i feel torn. We are new to CC, and thought newer ship  was probably better , but maybe not? Opinions?

We have been on Reflection, and also Apex (same class as Beyond)- as well as many other ships in different class/cabins. Firstly, if you look at Beyond, its balconies(verandas) do not have the same exposure, open feeling, as with Reflection.  With Aqua or Suites, the private dining, detracts from the 'advantage' of four main dining rooms with Beyond.   Its a trade-off.

[Mark_T]

21 hours ago, maxsales said:

Agreed, what was it you didn't like about the class?

 

For us the, the first failing that is keeping us off the 'E' class is the selection of premium dining options...

 

We greatly enjoy Murano and there is no equivalent on the 'E' class ships, even with the addition of 'Le Voyage' on Beyond. 

 

Similarly Tuscan has a variety of choices that were stripped away with the move to 'Fine Cut'.

 

Our preference these days is to sail in a veranda cabin rather than The Retreat, and make the premium dining options our MDR.

 

On 'E' class ships those options feel like 'one & done' with little reason to return for a 2nd or 3rd meal as we would do on Silhouette or Eclipse for example.

 

Then you have the 'Infinite Veranda' which isn't a veranda...

 

I appreciate that some like them, but we value the ability to get properly outside even when it isn't necessarily blazing sunshine and no wind, and these don't do it for us.

 

The DPV option delivers a 'veranda' that gives almost no space at all so that one isn't appealing either.

 

Along with the veranda issue to have the lack of anywhere to view in the direction the ship is sailing, it really is unbelievable that they have chosen to make this a 'Retreat' only feature of the ship... Even if there were no other issues for us, this one would be enough on its own to rule out the 'E' class...

 

It isn't a problem though, we just avoid the 'E' class ships,  and leave them for those who do enjoy them.

 

[cruzeluver]

Loved our cruise on Apex. It was exciting to see X branch out and do something different. Eden was a fun space and our dinner there was one of the best we have had on any cruise. The Infinite verandah was lovely, very spacious. The ship design was modern and sophisticated. We still love the M  and S class ships as well, but different is a good thing!

[Ex-Airbalancer]

When we did our Apex TA in April , it really didn’t feel like a cruise 
Why ? 🤔
it took a couple day than it came to me 😁

They were not selling gold by the inch by the entrance to Oceanview 🤣

[NMTraveller]

6 hours ago, OysterD said:

After a few cruises on the Reflection, I found the sky lounge to be one of the most underused venues on the ship so I think you might be in a minority. 

 

Last cruise, after absolutely packed events like a silent disco or ABBA party in the grand foyer, it's announced "and we're going to carry on the party up in the sky lounge", we head up there to find it dead, with maybe 10-20 other people there. Other times of the day when I'd walk past it would also be nearly always empty. 

 

Cellar masters probably takes the prize for emptiest bar area, hardly ever saw anyone in it.

 

I think the ensemble lounge is a bit of a hidden gem. Unless you're in AQ and head that way to Blu every night or have a booking in a specialty restaurant, I bet a large proportion of guests don't even realise it's there. We found it a great place to grab a drink before dinner in Blu every night. 

If you are into packed bars you will like the E class.  

 

If you like relaxing quiet bars you will like S Class.  They do not have to be elbow to elbow and loud and shouty to be a gem.

Edited November 22, 2022 by NMTraveller

[Spif Barwunkel]

I don’t believe there is anything that I dislike on any class of Celebrity ship. In fact, between now and the end of May 2023 DW and I are cruising on Equinox, Infinity and Beyond, in that order. Having already experienced all classes we know what to expect and how best to enjoy those expectations. Although there are preferences, from one ship to another as to presentation, contemporary modernization and “old world charm”, if you will, nothing serves to lessen our enthusiasm or dampen our cruising spirit.

 

E-Class vessels are a stark contrast to what veteran X cruisers are used to, size and passenger count notwithstanding. It is very understandable how such a dramatic change would be unacceptable to some. Add to that, a new version of product usually brings with it a higher price. Whether or not you have sailed on E-Class or simply read comments from past cruisers, perhaps the latest genre is not worth the extra money. Trepidations understood.

 

If one is completely convinced that he/she will not enjoy Edge Class ships, for whatever reason, then by all means you should not board that X ship. I will continue to enjoy the challenges to my adaptability and the opportunities to see beyond what at first might seem unusual or different. In doing so, I will not sacrifice paying the price for the accommodations that suit me best.  

 

Celebrity’s Edge Class is not over the edge. Rather, it is the start of a new climb.  

[C-Dragons]

16 hours ago, jelayne said:

A number of folks reference fewer bars on the E class.   We never felt there was a lack of bars, so I decided to compare the bars.  Looked at the Beyond and the Reflection, excluding Retreat Bars.

Reflection                                                 Beyond

Martini Bar                                                Martini Bar

World Class Bar                                       World Class Bar

Sunset Bar                                                 Sunset Bar

Pool Bar                                                     Pool Bar

Cellar Masters                                          Craft Social

Sky Lounge                                                Eden

Ensemble                                                   Magic Carpet

Passport Bar                                             The Club

                                                                    Mast Bar

Fewer bars, yes 1 less.  I guess that is why we didn't feel a lack of bars.

What I find fascinating is that so many people (not referring to you 😊) rate their favorite ships by the number and “quality” of the Bars on board.

This has been very illuminating. 🍷

[Peggy Tuten]

10 hours ago, NMTraveller said:

The only thing missing from E class to complete the  ambience is rock and roll piped in at 120 db.

 

If you are for loud and shouty ambience, why not loud music?

 

I prefer rock, albeit quieter, much better than the boring, repetitive pop music played on the Edge.  Probably more suited to a 20s age group rather than the mostly seniors on a transatlantic crossing.

[kirtihk]

22 hours ago, Presto2 said:

We thought that Silhouette was our favourite Celebrity ship having sailed on Constellation and not liking her at all. Our last cruise was on EDGE in August 2019 and we absolutely loved her - other than Eden. We had a sunset veranda cabin and loved the dining room system and ... well, everything to be honest. Lovely ship 🙂

Funny... We were on the Edge twice (April 2019 15-day Transatlantic crossing and December 2021 7-day Caribbean): the Eden is best part for me along with the SEA Thermal Suite (spent hours in each of them every single day!).

[Denny01]

Isnt it lovely to have so many choices….not only with other Lines, but within the Celebrity Class’s. Each different and appealing (or not!) in very different ways. 

 

Personally, I enjoy different venues and experiences, and for those areas I’m not big on such as the High End shops, I just dont go to. 

 

It’s interesting reading all the negative opinions on E-Class, and remembering all the very similar comments made when S-Class was rolled out. I wont go into all those, except to mention how fun its reading about how E-Class isnt as classic as M-and S-Class when S-Class was accused of being so non-traditional! (I stitched the order I listed S- and M- because I thought That was a big too suggestive!!)

 

I’m afraid my retirement savings doesnt cover me having a cruise ship specifically designed for me, so I’ll enjoy the positives and bypass the areas I’m not big on. And yes, there are ships that do Not have enough positives and way too many ‘I’ll bypass that’.

 

Den 

[nanofrog]

On 11/21/2022 at 9:25 AM, maxsales said:

We just switched our fall 2023 trans Atlantic from the Beyond to the Constellation, we had booked the Beyond before we did this fall's Ta on the Edge.  Having now sailed the Edge class I am not impressed at all, so I am wondering how the majority of veteran Celebrity cruisers feel.

 

My dislike is based on the lack of bars and lounges, the new dining concept and the amount of deck space devoted to high end boutiques.  To us the Edge was very different from all of the other Celebrity   ships we have sailed on.

Totally agree with the above.  Not a fan of the IV window setup, which is nothing more than an ocean view window with a bigger price tag.  We are returning to the M and S classes.  In fact we booked one while on our recent Apex trans Atlantic crossing.

[2Long2NxtCrz]

9 hours ago, OysterD said:

After a few cruises on the Reflection, I found the sky lounge to be one of the most underused venues on the ship so I think you might be in a minority. 

 

Last cruise, after absolutely packed events like a silent disco or ABBA party in the grand foyer, it's announced "and we're going to carry on the party up in the sky lounge", we head up there to find it dead, with maybe 10-20 other people there. Other times of the day when I'd walk past it would also be nearly always empty. 

 

Cellar masters probably takes the prize for emptiest bar area, hardly ever saw anyone in it.

 

I think the ensemble lounge is a bit of a hidden gem. Unless you're in AQ and head that way to Blu every night or have a booking in a specialty restaurant, I bet a large proportion of guests don't even realise it's there. We found it a great place to grab a drink before dinner in Blu every night. 

Just to agree with you. We were on the Eclipse sailing from Hawaii to Vancouver this past May. I couldn't even get service for a glass of wine at Cellar Masters! The Sky Lounge was used, but rarely had things we wanted to do in the evening.

 

The Edge was the reason that I started looking at Celebrity, but, yes, the prices were too high compared to the M and S classes at the time. So, I've been on the Summit, the Equinox, and the Eclipse and loved them all! I finally booked the Beyond which seems to have fixed a lot of the issues from the Edge for March 2024. Because I booked it early, I got a good deal, imho. Bargains aren't always bargains if you have to then buy a drink package, wi-fi, tips, etc. Total cost per person counts.

 

So that was all the X cruises I had booked until a month ago when hubby gets a BCC offer. How? I have no clue. We have not spent much at all in the casino, but I'm not looking a gift horse in the mouth. So we're getting to preview the Beyond before Panama. I hope hubby likes the IV! Because he'll be in one again, for 11 nights! LOL.

[Lastdance]

4 hours ago, C-Dragons said:

What I find fascinating is that so many people (not referring to you 😊) rate their favorite ships by the number and “quality” of the Bars on board.

This has been very illuminating. 🍷

Me too, but I am not a person that enjoys drinking; it puts me to sleep if I have more than 1/2 of a glass.  When I was growing up, we had a small buffet bar in the kitchen, along with a “real bar” downstairs.  I never tried to sneak any alcohol, but I did like my grandmother’s Mogen David’s grape wine in a small shot glass. 

Edited November 22, 2022 by Lastdance

[C-Dragons]

1 minute ago, Lastdance said:

Me too, but I am not a person that enjoys drinking; it puts me to sleep if I have more than 1/2 of a glass.  When I was growing up, we had a small buffet bar in the kitchen, along with a “real bar” downstairs.  I never tried to sneak any alcohol, but I did like my grandmother’s Morgan David grape wine in a small shot glass. 

Red wine contains a large number of antioxidants called polyphenols and is actually good to drink. Enjoy your half glass. 😊 🍷

[Lastdance]

2 minutes ago, C-Dragons said:

Red wine contains a large number of antioxidants called polyphenols and is actually good to drink. Enjoy your half glass. 😊 🍷

Yes, that is my rational, but not enough to help; I use the gym for that, along with smaller portions of food when I am feeling a little

plump!

I hope you really enjoyed your special “home” on our TA…

Edited November 22, 2022 by Lastdance

[C-Dragons]

8 minutes ago, Lastdance said:

Yes, that is my rational, but not enough to help; I use the gym for that, along with smaller portions of food when I am feeling a little

plump!

I hope you really enjoyed your special “home” on our TA…

We did indeed! Apex did not disappoint.

Can't wait til our next cruise on Beyond. I am sure she will become our “new” favorite. 😉

[Lastdance]

1 hour ago, Lastdance said:

Yes, that is my rational, but not enough to help; I use the gym for that, along with smaller portions of food when I am feeling a little

plump!

I hope you really enjoyed your special “home” on our TA…

Why I continue to use my iPhone without my glasses is “Beyond”me!  Rationale…yes, an e for a different definition!  Hopefully, I am also a rational person most of the time.  We will get more exercise with a little longer ship too!

Edited November 22, 2022 by Lastdance