Not to pile on, but it’s bad…

[PaperSniper4]

On 2/11/2023 at 7:25 PM, buckeye8810 said:

Since the start of the year, I know there’s been a lot of handwringing about the changes Celebrity has made. We just got back from a 10-night Eastern Caribbean…and I can confirm things are worse than before, in literally every way.

 

Ships are more crowded, and there’s clearly not enough staff to accommodate the increase in passengers. Food is significantly worse…and the wait staff was running around like their hair was on fire. Even in Murano, the food was disappointing. Not to mention several people in our group reported stomach issues on multiple days after dinner.
Unrelated, but it seemed like half the people on the ship were coughing and hacking, which probably means Covid was running rampant.

 

All in all, there’s no reason to pay premium prices for Celebrity anymore, because it’s no longer a premium brand. With the changes they’ve made, it’s not any different than NCL. Not saying I wouldn’t cruise with Celebrity again, but there’s no chance I would pay current prices. We felt ripped off, considering when we booked this cruise we were expecting the level of service from years past.

 

 

We took two Celebrity cruises in 2022; July on the Summit and October on the Infinity. Both were pleasant cruises in our opinion. We have another Celebrity cruise scheduled on the Reflection this coming November. We don't look forward to a crowded ship, but the last one on Infinity was not all that bad, maybe around 90%? We had no complaints although we're have liked the ship to be at 66% as was our NCL Breakaway in March 2023. But now I hear NCL is booking at capacity, so I expect that experience will not be repeated. I know we much prefer Celebrity over NCL.

 

 Doug

[TeeRick]

6 hours ago, NMTraveller said:

 

Getting an overview of the ship from someone sailing in a suite seems rather biased.  If the service is not good you just go back to the Retreat or Luminae or to your room.  The fraction of time that you spent outside of the suite area is minimal compared to the non-suite cruisers.  Otherwise why sail in a suite?

OK NMT just believe what you want. I am not trying to change your views and strong opinions. I was just giving my (unbiased) observations of the non-suite areas of the ship.   I stated up front that I did not use the MDR and acknowledged the issues there and with the OVC at dinner.  Well documented.

 

The fraction of the time I spent in non-suite public areas on my cruise was probably over 90%.  On Equinox we had dinner in Luminae- once a day.  But not even every day as we did several Specialty restaurants.  That is it.  We did not use the Retreat Sun Deck once. Found it too hot and isolated.   We were a couple of brief times in the Retreat Lounge but we instead used the Martini Bar, World Class Bar, Ensemble Lounge. Craft Social, etc.  We like the entertainment and variety in these bars over the Retreat Lounge.  We used the theatre.  We used the casino (and lost).  We used the Spa. We used the shops.  We used the restrooms.  We used the OVC for breakfast and lunch.   Everything that non-Suite passengers also do on a Celebrity cruise.  That was the whole point of my post.  The cruise was excellent in all of those areas and service was very good and not understaffed.  Try it for yourself.  

[dodger1964]

52 minutes ago, TeeRick said:

Martini Bar, World Class Bar, Ensemble Lounge. Craft Social, etc.  We like the entertainment and variety in these bars over the Retreat Lounge.  ... We used the OVC for breakfast and lunch.   Everything that non-Suite passengers also do on a Celebrity cruise.... The cruise was excellent in all of those areas and service was very good and not understaffed.  Try it for yourself.  

We cruise next week. We are elite+ but haven't cruised on X for 4 years.  I hope this is what we find also...reading these boards about understaffing...you obviously don't agree with that...so hope same holds true for us!

[NMTraveller]

1 hour ago, TeeRick said:

The fraction of the time I spent in non-suite public areas on my cruise was probably over 90%.  

So then what is the advantage of a suite if you spend 90% of the time outside?

 

Anyways 90% of your time would leave 10% in the suite areas which is 2.4 hours per day.  You must not sleep much ?  I will assume that it is a lower number.

 

Anyways now you have me questioning the value of a suite.

Edited February 14, 2023 by NMTraveller

[edgee]

3 hours ago, Mark_T said:

... if you have the Stream package... on Surf it remains woefully inadequate for even web browsing, I didn't once manage to even load a page on this site during 12 days on Eclipse with the Starlink system.

Wow. Are you sure you had Starlink? We are having such a different  experience. I streamed entire Superbowl on my phone and on my computer. It came in perfectly. Nice to watch the U.S. broadcast in hi Def with commercials instead of ESPN Caribbean pickup with no U.S. commercials and mediocre picture  quality which was shown on the ship.

[Keys Kathy]

On 2/12/2023 at 4:30 PM, BPCW said:

We just got off of Celebrity Millennium yesterday and I’ll give everyone my rational, but real, opinion. Background - 13th cruise (6 RC, 1 NCL, 6 Celebrity), 40 years old, traveled with a group of 12. 
 

The good
-the food was generally very good. Several “misses” on things (inedible steak, etc) but those things happen. 
-The ship was at capacity but didn’t feel overwhelmingly crowded.  The 2019 refresh is holding up every well. 
-We had a good time and none of the good or bad would drive us away from cruising in the future. 
 

The bad 

-The ship was at capacity and it seemed like there were half of the crew they needed.  Most bars were consistently 10-20 mins to get a drink if there were more than 8-10 people there. The bartenders were severely understaffed and couldn’t run their bars very well.  I witnessed several incidents of passengers getting into arguments because bartenders were serving people who just walked up over people waiting.  Not nearly as many servers walking around either. 

-MDR was agonizingly slow. We did late dinners each night (8:30) and the EARLIEST we got done was 10:45 one night. Most nights were 11-11:15.   Service was also very inconsistent and it was clear our wait team has too many tables. One night we would wait 20 mins for them to acknowledge us and get menus. Another night, we would order in the first 15 mins but the first course wouldn’t come out for another 40 mins. Mostly the time between appetizer and entree and entree and dessert was brutal.  Most nights we had to ask for more water. I tipped the sommelier mid-cruise and asked if we could get quicker service if we are going to be sitting here this long and he did great after that. Overall, we aren’t picky and did mention that we didn’t mind sitting for so long but would be ideal if we could get out by 10:30. Never happened. 
-A couple in the group did OV for one dinner and they said the selection was almost laughable. Like it was difficult to find stuff you wanted to eat…complete opposite of breakfast and lunch which has solid selections.  This tracks with what everyone else is saying. 
-The nickel and diming on everything that people have talked about is real and noticeable.  Room service fees, extra lobster fee, $130 for a ship tour, etc. 

Overall

-It was a good cruise, but no where near amazing. We missed a port (Bahamas) due to weather but that’s certainly no one’s fault. 
-I will echo many, many others who have said that Celebrity has sucked all of the “luxury” out of their cruising experience. When we did an X cruise for the first time, we were blown away after comparing it to RC and NCL. Now, it’s hard to find their differences. 
-If the little things really matter to you like onboard champagne (gone), personal connections with staff (still there but they are so strained it’s not like it used to be),  better service (all but gone), elevated food (good but not amazing) that X is/was known for, then you will likely not like any of these changes. 
 

I was skeptical reading about these changes and how they would impact us prior to departure.  Our experience won’t drive us away from X but we will most definitely shop around for our next one. It’s no longer worth paying a 50-100% premium for X because, to us, there was nothing premium about our experience.  
 

If anyone has questions, happy to answer without the doom and gloom or exaggerations. 

We were also on the Millie. Everyone has talked about the food, one lunch was Chicken Pot Pie, Beef pot pie, and seafood (canned mussel) pot pie. The next night at dinner, they had the same  pot pies and added Sheppards pie to the list. There was so much turkey and chicken I was starting to grow feathers just walking by them. The best thing at dinner was the stir fry and pasta stations.

 

I felt bad for those who got on the ship late in St Thomas and missed their MDR meal. Upstairs was laughable, but when you have waited for a table for an hour and a half, you tend to get hungry and go upstairs. 

 

I don't know if it was just us, but we had to ask for a bar of soap, we never had qtips or cotton balls and there wasn't an ice bucket in sight. We had two towels, period. No extra towel for my hair. 

 

I bought a future cruise, but I am expecting it will not be used. I did it just in case they fix this mess. BTW, instead of having 12 months to pick out your next cruise, you now have 6 months.

 

There were not any speakers or any other educational activities, heck, I would have gone to towel folding!

 

Not the X we have sailed with 60 times.

Edited February 14, 2023 by Keys Kathy

[Hlitner]

2 hours ago, NMTraveller said:

So then what is the advantage of a suite if you spend 90% of the time outside?

 

Anyways 90% of your time would leave 10% in the suite areas which is 2.4 hours per day.  You must not sleep much ?  I will assume that it is a lower number.

 

Anyways now you have me questioning the value of a suite.

This is an issue that we have spoken about for many years (not just in terms of HAL).  DW and I have spent far more than 1200 days on various cruise ships and have always struggled with the real worth of a suite.  Although we can afford a suite, we traditionally opted for a normal balcony cabin.  Why?  I once calculated that we spent no more than 3 waking hours, a day, in our cabin.  And about half that time was simply showering and getting dressed.  The first time we booked a large suite (it was a terrific deal) was on the old Prinsendam and the suite was large, the bathroom was actually 2 rooms, and it all looked good.  But during that cruise (over 50 days) we hardly ever used the large sofa, never dined in our suite (we prefer to share dinner tables with others for socialization).  On HAL, there was nothing special that came with that Signature Suite...no special dining,  no special lounge,,,,no special anything.  The extra money for that suite simply bought us more cabin space that we only partially used 2-3 hour a day.

 

But times have changed on some ships/lines.  On MSC we alwasy book a Deluxe Yacht Club Suite.  That gets us access to a special dedicated secton of the ship which includes its own dining room. pool deck, lido buffet, and beautiful expansive lounge.  There are also other benefits such as butlers, reserved seating at the main shows, unlimited premium drinks, unlimited Internet, electronic elevator priority, Butler escorts off the ship bypassing lines, etc.  Having the suite is not very meaningful to us, but all the associated perks are fantastic and essentially gives us a "luxury ship within a ship."

 

Our attitude about suites has changed on some ships.  For example, when on the Grand or Royal Class ships of Princess we often book the lowest category mini-suite!  Why?  Because the regular balcony cabins do not even have 2 chairs!  The mini suite at least gives us a place to sit :).  

 

That brings us to Celebrity and their Retreat Suites.  We have absolutely no desire to be in an Infinity Balcony cabin (which is not even a real balcony) but still prefer a real balcony.  We also like the perks that come with a Retreat Suite.  But when we do a simple value analysis, it makes absolutely zero sense to book even a basic Sky Suite.  Celebrity has simply priced the Retreat Suites at such a high price point, that they are not only a terrible value, but they are not even competitive with several luxury cruise lines.  For example, we can cruise on some Seabourn Voyages for less than $500 per person day!  With Seabourn that includes everything except shore excursions.  Seabourn is a true luxury line (in every way).  We could also book a suite in MSC's Yacht Club for less than $400 per person day!  That price is also all-inclusive except for tips (covered by the OBC given by our cruise agency).  

 

We are not "piling on" but simply saying that there are many other cruise lines (both mass market and luxury) that offer a far better overall value than is to be found by booking even the lowest priced Retreat Suites.  

 

Hank

[TeeRick]

3 hours ago, NMTraveller said:

So then what is the advantage of a suite if you spend 90% of the time outside?

 

Anyways 90% of your time would leave 10% in the suite areas which is 2.4 hours per day.  You must not sleep much ?  I will assume that it is a lower number.

 

Anyways now you have me questioning the value of a suite.

I refuse to participate any more in this with you.  You clearly are missing my points or just prefer to suite-bash. 

[Mark_T]

1 hour ago, edgee said:

Wow. Are you sure you had Starlink? We are having such a different  experience. I streamed entire Superbowl on my phone and on my computer. It came in perfectly. Nice to watch the U.S. broadcast in hi Def with commercials instead of ESPN Caribbean pickup with no U.S. commercials and mediocre picture  quality which was shown on the ship.

Yes, 100% certain, but you were in a suite so you had the Stream package, and yes on that you can indeed stream.

 

Even with Starlink, Celebrity keep the Surf package bandwidth so low that it is useless for anything more than very simple websites, which does rather make a mockery of calling it 'Surf'...

Edited February 14, 2023 by Mark_T

[HS2BS]

[HS2BS]

Just now, HS2BS said:

 

 

[cwayne]

1 hour ago, TeeRick said:

I refuse to participate any more in this with you.  You clearly are missing my points or just prefer to suite-bash. 

TeeRick, I'm with you.  The value of something is in how happy it makes me and a suite and its amenities would really make me happy.   I don't care if anyone else thinks it's worth it or not. It's my opinion and my money that count.   We haven't booked a suite yet, but it is on our list and I intend to enjoy every minute of it and every benefit that goes with it when we get it.  We've got the b2b and now on to the suite!  I love all the extras! 

Edited February 14, 2023 by cwayne

[Lastdance]

Just now, cwayne said:

TeeRick, I'm with you.  The value of something is in how happy it makes me and a suite and its amenities would really make me happy.  I don't care if anyone else thinks it's worth it or not. It's my opinion and my money that counts.  We haven't booked a suite yet, but it is on our list and I intend to enjoy every minute of it and every benefit that goes with it when we get it.  We've got the b2b and now on to the suite!  I love all the extras! 

I totally agree with constructive criticism, along with using one’s personal finances for what provides pleasure.  I have various reasons for booking certain classes of cabins, but I also want to enjoy my cruise(s) to the fullest, as my DH and I are not getting any younger!  Sometimes having a larger cabin is important, especially for a TA, but might not be cost effective at all.  So what?

[BermudaBound2014]

2 hours ago, Keys Kathy said:

Btw… instead of having 12 months to pick out your next cruise, you now have 6 months.

I purchased a fcc just a few weeks ago with a 1 year expiration. Just goes to show that cruise line policies remain extremely fluid. Sadly, I expect continued changes. 

Edited February 14, 2023 by BermudaBound2014

[mnocket]

17 hours ago, gkbiiii said:

I've been MSC Yacht Club, I wonder how their new Luxury line will be, come 2024? 

I've been watching it as well.  It's certainly priced as a Luxury line.  I'll need to read some reviews before passing judgement.

[kearney]

33 minutes ago, cwayne said:

TeeRick, I'm with you.  The value of something is in how happy it makes me and a suite and its amenities would really make me happy.   I don't care if anyone else thinks it's worth it or not. It's my opinion and my money that count.   We haven't booked a suite yet, but it is on our list and I intend to enjoy every minute of it and every benefit that goes with it when we get it.  We've got the b2b and now on to the suite!  I love all the extras! 

Candidly, I like the fact that there are people who find value and are willing to pay for the suite experience. Those higher fees allow some of us to cruise more often in a cheaper cabin. I don't mind the added benefits you get for that either. The one thing I don't care for..on E class ships... is the lack of forward view.. like the Sky Lounge... Since that space is taken for Retreat but that is it. I am very disappointed in recent changes and really hoped that post major covid..that things were get better...but that doesn't appear to be the case.

 

Out of curiosity I did a mock booking for a cruise... matching (as close as I can) the S class cruise we took last April 25.. Equinox.. similar length cruise..but this year fewer ports. Last year our 1A cabin was $4678 for two with port fees and the AI package. This year the cruise only fare is $4507 and with the AI package the fare is now $6157.. significantly higher (31%) and to hear of small portions, elimination of some favorites and continues short staffed situation. I think we will sit this year out. I can understand short staff when you are running at less than 50% occupancy...but once things opened up.. I hoped that they would have this addressed. I do wonder if all the remote staffing in Govt... might also impact visas or whatever documents crew need. I have hear issues with passports.. I hope Lisa's staff is monitoring CC... cause I have never seen such negative comments....

Edited February 14, 2023 by kearney

[Keys Kathy]

7 minutes ago, kearney said:

Candidly, I like the fact that there are people who find value and are willing to pay for the suite experience. Those higher fees allow some of us to cruise more often in a cheaper cabin. I don't mind the added benefits you get for that either. The one thing I don't care for..on E class ships... is the lack of forward view.. like the Sky Lounge... Since that space is taken for Retreat but that is it. I am very disappointed in recent changes and really hoped that post major covid..that things were get better...but that doesn't appear to be the case.

 

Out of curiosity I did a mock booking for a cruise... matching (as close as I can) the S class cruise we took last April 25.. Equinox.. similar length cruise..but this year fewer ports. Last year our 1A cabin was $4678 for two with port fees and the AI package. This year the cruise only fare is $4507 and with the AI package the fare is now $6157.. significantly higher (31%) and to hear of small portions, elimination of some favorites and continues short staffed situation. I think we will sit this year out. I can understand short staff when you are running at less than 50% occupancy...but once things opened up.. I hoped that they would have this addressed. I do wonder if all the remote staffing in Govt... might also impact visas or whatever documents crew need. I have hear issues with passports.. I hope Lisa's staff is monitoring CC... cause I have never seen such negative comments....

I have emailed Lisa and staff did call me back with they "are monitoring and paying attention to comments and emails."

 

The problem is, by the time they fix this, many of us will have moved on and many others will have read these boards and shied away from booking.

 

I am also looking at Oceania out of Miami. They have the kind of speakers and other onboard experiences we used to get from X. Sure, they are a bit higher, but I would rather take one trip that I really enjoy than two that are just so-so. DH was not happy on the Millie last week. Happy husband, happy wife!

[RichYak]

1 hour ago, Hlitner said:

Celebrity has simply priced the Retreat Suites at such a high price point, that they are not only a terrible value, but they are not even competitive with several luxury cruise lines.

To further illustrate your point. A year ago, I sailed a 7 night Caribbean cruise on Edge from FLL in a Sky Suite which cost me $315 pp/pn net of OBC. I just priced 2 random 7 nighters out of FLL with similar itineraries on Apex and Beyond. One was $700 pp/pn the other $715 pp/pn, both net of OBC for Sky Suites. Terrible value, as you described.

 

 

[Keys Kathy]

25 minutes ago, BermudaBound2014 said:

I purchased a fcc just a few weeks ago with a 1 year expiration. Just goes to show that cruise line policies remain extremely fluid. Sadly, I expect continued changes. 

The one I purchased on our Dec 17, 2022 gave us 12 months. This just started a couple of weeks ago. Yet another bad idea shoreside.

[drowelf]

On 2/12/2023 at 4:00 PM, Luvcrusn said:

? Prior to getting food? And if I do this, who's to keep the clean table reserved while I get my food?

 

We will set a bag or other item we are carrying around with us on the table to mark it as taken while we go get some food. Snagging a drink first and putting that on the table works for us too. 

 

As for the food situation, we just got off a 14 day Infinity cruise (1/28 - 2/11). Food was definitely of a lower quality. The MDR Menu for 14 days never had Prime Rib, Filet, Beef Wellington or Sea Bass. There was Lamb a few times, lots of Tilapia and Chicken and maybe Turkey once. Dinner in the Oceanview was reduced to a cook to order stir fry station, salad bar and maybe 3-4 hot entrees and 2 hot vegetables dishes. Plus of course the standard fruit, cheese, cold cuts, bread and deserts. I'd say that they only used 1/3 of the available serving space at dinner. 

 

We did not starve, but it was not really up to the quality or variety that I expect from a cruise line. Can't comment on the server issues, as we had an outbreak of Noro among the crew about half way into the voyage, so staffing got really tight at times. In the OVC I would often see 3 servers having to cover 5 stations at a time. You know its short staffed when you see the management types behind the line serving out food. 

[govanguy]

3 hours ago, Mark_T said:

Yes, 100% certain, but you were in a suite so you had the Stream package, and yes on that you can indeed stream.

 

Even with Starlink, Celebrity keep the Surf package bandwidth so low that it is useless for anything more than very simple websites, which does rather make a mockery of calling it 'Surf'...

My recent "Starlink" experience onboard Silhouette.

Mr Musk would be disappointed of this abuse of the 'Starlink" label .

I spoke with the I.T. guy. "Yes, they are throttling."

I suspect this is to "encourage" users to upgrade package.

[jaapie]

On the Reflection last week our waiter asked us to please not give the food quality a low score because even though he is not the chef he gets dinged for food complaints. If this is true, it is totally wrong, he should be dinged for poor service but not food quality or options. Because of this I am not completing the post-cruise survey because I don't want to say anything that would harm the waiter because in all honesty I couldn't give the food a 10. So X is not getting feedback from me even though I would like to tell them the truth.

[Keys Kathy]

21 minutes ago, jaapie said:

On the Reflection last week our waiter asked us to please not give the food quality a low score because even though he is not the chef he gets dinged for food complaints. If this is true, it is totally wrong, he should be dinged for poor service but not food quality or options. Because of this I am not completing the post-cruise survey because I don't want to say anything that would harm the waiter because in all honesty I couldn't give the food a 10. So X is not getting feedback from me even though I would like to tell them the truth.

I would complete the survey without using the waiters name, although you could put him under someone who gave you outstanding service.

 

They have no idea when he served you, it could have been breakfast, lunch or dinner! You can't shoot the waiter when all he did was serve you.

 

If people don't say anything, nothing will get done. 

Edited February 14, 2023 by Keys Kathy
added

[jules27556]

10 minutes ago, Keys Kathy said:

I would complete the survey without using the waiters name, although you could put him under someone who gave you outstanding service. If people don't say anything, nothing will get done. 

Agree!  Who knows if the "chef" or others aren't using this tactic to avoid low marks?

"Honesty is the best policy." 

[Luvcrusn]

33 minutes ago, jaapie said:

On the Reflection last week our waiter asked us to please not give the food quality a low score because even though he is not the chef he gets dinged for food complaints. If this is true, it is totally wrong, he should be dinged for poor service but not food quality or options. Because of this I am not completing the post-cruise survey because I don't want to say anything that would harm the waiter because in all honesty I couldn't give the food a 10. So X is not getting feedback from me even though I would like to tell them the truth.

I sent an email to LLP after our most recent Equinox cruise expressing our disappointments in the food and the cutbacks.