Are people really paying big bucks for speciallty restaurants on Beyond?

[REDSTRIPETYPE]

So before Edge and Apex tons of people used to complain lots about the prices for Murano and Tuscan.

 

Now I see that the prices for specialty on Beyond is 3 times higher plus you  have to book months in advance and nobody is complaining.

 

I don't get it...we booked all 4 just in case for our Nov cruise on Beyond and it cymae to over $600 CAD!

 

Is it really that good?

[Lillibet16]

Yes people are booking them. They were almost all booked up on my recent trip on the Beyond. The only specialty restaurant we ate in was Fine Cut and I did not think it was as good as Luminae. People on our ship did seem to love Eden though. 

[sun bum]

I would think a lot of the suite guest are using their OBC to book them since they get a good amount of OBC.

[cruzzzinma]

We prebooked with OBC. While reservations were really limited before the cruise, there is a lot of availability onboard.

[NutsAboutGolf]

8 minutes ago, sun bum said:

I would think a lot of the suite guest are using their OBC to book them since they get a good amount of OBC.

 

Ironically, the ones in the high-tier suites are the ones with the largest OBC who can dine in specialty restaurants for free

[NutsAboutGolf]

3 minutes ago, cruzzzinma said:

We prebooked with OBC. While reservations were really limited before the cruise, there is a lot of availability onboard.

 

Generally this is only the case if you're a suite guest.  Was on a 15 night Millie repo sailing at only 37% capacity, as a non suite guest, nothing was available any earlier than 830 and most nights were either 9 or 930

[Bo1953]

7 minutes ago, NutsAboutGolf said:

Ironically, the ones in the high-tier suites are the ones with the largest OBC who can dine in specialty restaurants for free

Ironically, we have neither and usually book two or three (2/3) Specialty Restaurants each sailing...

 

bon appetit and bon voyage

[jelayne]

4 minutes ago, NutsAboutGolf said:

 

Ironically, the ones in the high-tier suites are the ones with the largest OBC who can dine in specialty restaurants for free

The there aren't that many suites that included unlimited specialty dining.  Beyond has 178 suites and only 16 include specialty. On the Millie 10 of 50 suites have included specialty dining.  

I would agree with @sun bum that suites guests are using their non-refundable OBC for the specialty restaurants.

[zitsky]

I don't get it.  Why would you want to spend your entire time in the buffet?  Why would you NOT want to try the specialties?  I'm on the Beyond in May.  I have a dinner booked at Fine Cut, Eden, Le Voyage 2X.  That's being in Aqua and eating at Blu.

[cw2go]

I book non suite staterooms @ cruise only rates and always book specialty dining restaurants. I use OBC and Hard Earned Cash. I always get some discount pre-booking online. 

I never do the package because I want to lock down my restaurant choices and times when I book rather than waiting till I get onboard. 

 

We enjoy variety and this gives us a good mix, 

Patty 

[prmssk]

5 minutes ago, zitsky said:

I don't get it.  Why would you want to spend your entire time in the buffet?  Why would you NOT want to try the specialties?  I'm on the Beyond in May.  I have a dinner booked at Fine Cut, Eden, Le Voyage 2X.  That's being in Aqua and eating at Blu.

Because food doesn't play the same role in everyone's vacations and everyone's tastes are different.

 

I'm not a foodie and am very happy with the food I find in the MDR or Luminae when we book suites.  I don't generally pay for specialty dining.

[danceswithphones]

Specialty dining worked well for us on the Beyond. We were in an upper level suite so it was all included. In a Sky Suite next year and just booked 6 nights out of 7. Will eat at Luminae once. Had $600 OBC and used it all plus some. I know when and where I'm dining each evening. Peace of mind...

[zitsky]

6 minutes ago, prmssk said:

Because food doesn't play the same role in everyone's vacations and everyone's tastes are different.

 

I'm not a foodie and am very happy with the food I find in the MDR or Luminae when we book suites.  I don't generally pay for specialty dining.

Aqua is basically the same as a veranda cabin plus Blu plus Spa.  Take those away and I do not know why you pay $2,000 more for the same cabin.

[George C]

We were on beyond 2 months ago in sky suite we had 800 in OBC , booked two specialty restaurants on board both for 8:30 which is the time we wanted. 

[prmssk]

3 minutes ago, zitsky said:

11 minutes ago, prmssk said:

Because food doesn't play the same role in everyone's vacations and everyone's tastes are different.

 

I'm not a foodie and am very happy with the food I find in the MDR or Luminae when we book suites.  I don't generally pay for specialty dining.

Aqua is basically the same as a veranda cabin plus Blu plus Spa.  Take those away and I do not know why you pay $2,000 more for the same cabin.

 

I don't understand what your comment has to do with mine.  Aren't we talking about specialty dining?  I was replying to this question of yours and that fact that you "don't get" why people don't book specialty dining.

19 minutes ago, zitsky said:

Why would you NOT want to try the specialties?

 

[NutsAboutGolf]

5 minutes ago, zitsky said:

Aqua is basically the same as a veranda cabin plus Blu plus Spa.  Take those away and I do not know why you pay $2,000 more for the same cabin.

On the M-Class you get a slightly bigger room.  But yes, for $2k more I would book a reg. Balcony, spa pass and specialty package 

[zitsky]

43 minutes ago, prmssk said:

 

I don't understand what your comment has to do with mine.  Aren't we talking about specialty dining?  I was replying to this question of yours and that fact that you "don't get" why people don't book specialty dining.

 

I was responding to a comment about Aqua without Blu without Spa.  I’m not sure whose comment.  I can’t seem to find it.  And I commented in my opinion I enjoy the specialty restaurants.

[Jobeth66]

1 hour ago, zitsky said:

I don't get it.  Why would you want to spend your entire time in the buffet?  Why would you NOT want to try the specialties?  I'm on the Beyond in May.  I have a dinner booked at Fine Cut, Eden, Le Voyage 2X.  That's being in Aqua and eating at Blu.

 

Maybe because there's nothing on those menus that everyone likes?  Or can eat?  I have food allergies, and my husband will not eat mushrooms, seafood, or anything with a cream sauce.  And neither of us wants to get dressed up and spend hours eating dinner every night of vacation.  That's just not relaxing or enjoyable for us.

 

OVC is great for those of us with dietary restrictions.  I can't do a chef's tasting without messing up the intended experience, so I don't.  I can do the grill-to-order station in the OVC with zero problem, so I do (or did).  Same with the Asian station.  

 

Sometimes simple is best.  Heck, keep the Mast Grille open and let us get burgers and hot dogs for dinner if we want.

 

So, that's why.  Plus, I don't want to go on a cruise and spend $1000 on specialty restaurants for the week when my meals being included is part of my vacation planning.

Edited January 25, 2023 by Jobeth66

[RICCruisers]

59 minutes ago, Jobeth66 said:

OVC is great for those of us with dietary restrictions.  I can't do a chef's tasting without messing up the intended experience, so I don't.  I can do the grill-to-order station in the OVC with zero problem, so I do (or did).  Same with the Asian station.  

I’m sorry to bring disappointing news to you. As of January 1st the dinners in the OVC have been cut back drastically. There are several topics that discuss this change. You may or may not find what you are looking for at dinner.  We were on the Edge Cruise that began on 1/2/23 and went to the OVC after we finished our dinner in the MDR around 7:30 and the place was almost empty and I would estimate only 25% of the food stations were open. 
 

Here is a video that includes a good description of what the OVC is currently offering at dinner. It’s discussed a little way into the video. 
 

Edited January 25, 2023 by RICCruisers
Added video.

[randomcruise]

""Are people really paying big bucks for speciallty restaurants on Beyond?"

Interesting to read all of the perspectives here.  For me, I cannot justify paying for speciality restaurants on any Celebrity cruise ship.  I don't go on that may cruises (just not that into them), but when I spend my hard earned dollars on a cruise fare at Celebrity's price point, I expect a good breakfast, a good lunch and a very good dinner experience every day of the cruise for the price of the cruise fare.  If the Celebrity cannot provide that without requiring me to pony up even more money, they have failed in my view.  

 

I suspect that many of the cruise lines, include Celebrity, are slowly and carefully (at least until this month) habituating their customers to the idea that they should only expect the cruse fare to cover their room and passage and that they should pay extra for all of the things that they would have expected for the price of cruise fare in years past.    Perhaps it's what they need to do in order to survive, but I can easily find other ways to spend my money and my limited vacation time if they keep asking for more while providing less.  

[zitsky]

17 minutes ago, randomcruise said:

""Are people really paying big bucks for speciallty restaurants on Beyond?"

Interesting to read all of the perspectives here.  For me, I cannot justify paying for speciality restaurants on any Celebrity cruise ship.  I don't go on that may cruises (just not that into them), but when I spend my hard earned dollars on a cruise fare at Celebrity's price point, I expect a good breakfast, a good lunch and a very good dinner experience every day of the cruise for the price of the cruise fare.  If the Celebrity cannot provide that without requiring me to pony up even more money, they have failed in my view.  

 

I suspect that many of the cruise lines, include Celebrity, are slowly and carefully (at least until this month) habituating their customers to the idea that they should only expect the cruse fare to cover their room and passage and that they should pay extra for all of the things that they would have expected for the price of cruise fare in years past.    Perhaps it's what they need to do in order to survive, but I can easily find other ways to spend my money and my limited vacation time if they keep asking for more while providing less.  

When you buy a car do you expect to have no expenses?

 

I’m upset that my $2,000 cruise fare doesn’t cover the free beluga caviar and the Dom Perignon champagne.

[mpdog42]

6 hours ago, sun bum said:

I would think a lot of the suite guest are using their OBC to book them since they get a good amount of OBC.

Figures!!

[randomcruise]

17 minutes ago, zitsky said:

When you buy a car do you expect to have no expenses?

 

I’m upset that my $2,000 cruise fare doesn’t cover the free beluga caviar and the Dom Perignon champagne.

LOL, what I said has no comparison to car expenses, nor did I say anything that indicated in anyway that I was expecting beluga caviar or Dom Perignon for a cruise fare at Celebrity's price point.  

 

What I do expect is a good breakfast and lunch and a very good dinner experience. To clarify what I mean by very good dinner experience, I mean the kind of dinner experience I would get at any one of my local restaurants that I go to on regular basis, where I get good quality food with service that is friendly and professional, and not overly slow and inattentive.    BTW, I never have had beluga caviar or Dom Perigon.  

 

FWIW, in addition to what I said in the post you quoted, I don't expect to pay an additional fee to Celebrity for the fuel used on my seven day cruise or for any oil changes their engines and other equipment may require.  

Edited January 26, 2023 by randomcruise

[zitsky]

6 minutes ago, randomcruise said:

LOL, what I said has no comparison to car expenses, nor did I say anything that indicated in anyway that I was expecting beluga caviar or Dom Perignon for a cruise fare at Celebrity's price point.  

 

What I do expect is a good breakfast and lunch and a very good dinner experience. To clarify what I mean by very good dinner experience, I mean the kind of dinner experience I would get at any one of my local restaurants that I go to on regular basis, where I get good quality food with service that is friendly and professional, and not overly slow and inattentive.    BTW, I never have had beluga caviar or Dom Perigon.  

 

FWIW, in addition to what I said in the post you quoted, I don't expect to pay an additional fee to Celebrity for the fuel used on my seven day cruise or for any oil changes their engines and other equipment may require.  

Well then you have a choice.  Go to the MDR for breakfast, lunch and dinner, if available.  If that isn’t suitable then there are many other choices of cruise line.  Pay more and get better food and service.

[Guest 4-2-N-8]

Because of all the stellar reviews on this site about vanishing Celebrity quality, my driver will be pulling through a local McDonald's en route to my trip this Sunday on Beyond out of PE.

 

I'm buying 27 Happy(er) Meals (and will ask for extra toys) then cramming my carry-on full of burgers, fries, and milkshakes (and toys). What with how low the bar has (apparently) been set on Celebrity (according to so many on here), I won't risk filling my checked bag with Micky D's, lest ship staff unload my "premium" food before my bag arrives at my stateroom.

 

If you're on the ship, just look for the person creating a new art exhibit  made out of Happy(er) Meal toys. I'm thinking I'll build it right next to that elephant thingy near the pool!

 

They're gonna love me!

Edited January 26, 2023 by 4-2-N-8