Here we go again... LIVE from Beyond, February 19, 2024

[mac_tlc]

I have sorta fallen into a morning routine this cruise. We will have breakfast in the room around 8:30-9. But I’m up at 6…

 

So off to the walking track it is.. today I did about a mile or so, then grab a cup of coffee at Oceanview Cafe and head up to the Sunset Bar area, where I am now, and add to the thread. It’s a tough job but someone has got to do it. Not a bad view….

 

 

 

In doing so I have been completely awestruck at the chair hog situation. At 7:07 this morning, there were NO chairs in the Solarium or on deck 14 by the main pool that did not have a towel on them. None. They were about 15% occupied. On deck 15, more than half were reserved.

 

We will get to the Solarium today but may have to do it standing up. Insane. 
 

mac_tlc

Edited February 22 by mac_tlc

[verizon]

14 hours ago, mac_tlc said:

All is now right with the world…. We have met our head butler. He knocked on the door this afternoon. 
 

mac_tlc

You lucky.I met my Head butler on the last night of my 9 nights sailing at hall way.He greeted with my name,

Really surprise me.

Edited February 22 by verizon

[mac_tlc]

2 minutes ago, verizon said:

You lucky.I met my Head butler on the last night of my 9 nights sailing at hall way.He greeted with my name,

Really surprise me.

Wow.😯 

[mac_tlc]

Last night after dinner we went to the show, it was an entertainer Danny Green Jr. it was very enjoyable and he had some good skits and stories. The Beyond Orchestra is just wonderful, love listening to those guys. 
 

After that it was off to the club for “Yes or No” game show and some Pub trivia. All in all a great night. 
 

Here are the Celebrity Today pages for today, Day 4.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Edited February 22 by mac_tlc

[mac_tlc]

And then I walk past this:

 

 

[RK-NC]

19 minutes ago, mac_tlc said:

We will get to the Solarium today but may have to do it standing up. Insane. 

 

Good luck. This is one of the big reasons we booked retreat. How is chair availability on the retreat deck? 

[Fleuve51]

Do you know who the GM is on your ship now

[travelloverontario]

Honestly...I think I would just move the stuff off the chairs into the corner or something. And if someone came by to ask...I would just say there was no stuff on it when I got here.

I have ZERO patience for chair hogs...ZERO. It is ultinate disrespect 

Sorry for my rant... it is a peeve!!!!

[hcat]

34 minutes ago, mac_tlc said:

And then I walk past this:

 

 

if this is not a rented alcove, I woild have it removed by Security..How arrogant, & selfish

[Norwaylady]

Looks like your having great time onboard🥰⚓️

I feel the need for sun and vitamin sea💙⚓️💙🙈

 

it’s been crazy cold since we left for Edge sailing Suez and the snow has fallen heavily down weekly…. So my back isn’t feeling great😝

Tomorrow morning I will go to Svalbard 78’n for work😎 more snow ⛄️ and cold 🥶 weather💙💙💙 But on the fun side, snowmobiling, dogsledding, ice caves… I think I will survive💙🙃🙌🏻💃🏻

[mac_tlc]

1 hour ago, RK-NC said:

 

Good luck. This is one of the big reasons we booked retreat. How is chair availability on the retreat deck? 

Next sea day, which is not until day 9 I will start the morning in the retreat sun deck. 
 

On day 6, we do not get to Aruba until 4pm so that will be another good day to check.

 

mac_tlc

[mac_tlc]

48 minutes ago, Norwaylady said:

Looks like your having great time onboard🥰⚓️

I feel the need for sun and vitamin sea💙⚓️💙🙈

 

it’s been crazy cold since we left for Edge sailing Suez and the snow has fallen heavily down weekly…. So my back isn’t feeling great😝

Tomorrow morning I will go to Svalbard 78’n for work😎 more snow ⛄️ and cold 🥶 weather💙💙💙 But on the fun side, snowmobiling, dogsledding, ice caves… I think I will survive💙🙃🙌🏻💃🏻

Svalbard is on our bucket list—- but not in February 😂😂😂. We loved your country so much and can’t wait to get back.

 

mac_tlc

[mac_tlc]

50 minutes ago, hcat said:

if this is not a rented alcove, I woild have it removed by Security..How arrogant, & selfish

It is not a rented area. It is one of the wonderful seating areas by the Sunset Bar, which by the time I left my seat at about 7:45, had no seats either.

 

mac_tlc

[JDPCruisers]

1 hour ago, mac_tlc said:

One thing we noticed last night was the difference between the brisket on Ascent and on Beyond. More inconsistency.

 

First picture is from Ascent, second one is form Beyond.

 

 

 

 

That is one reason why we try to give any restaurant another shot if something is a miss . Needless to say the one last night is the runaway winner.

 

mac_tlc

We are looking forward to trying Rooftop for the first time after reading the mostly good reviews on CC. We just sort of haven't gotten around to it on previous E-Class cruises. Will do this time on our B2B. How has the service been?

[JDPCruisers]

17 hours ago, goofysmom99 said:

I'm considering E-class (maybe a suite) for a TA, meaning lots and lots of sea days.  I'm leaning toward Apex with its fewer suites and where Luminae sounds like it's a bit more special.   

Have enjoyed Apex more than once in a suite and can say we haven't been disappointed, the same on Edge TA last spring. Both the ships and Luminae were great. We had no complaints. Will say that on Edge TA they were at ~50% occupancy so that contributed to the ambiance for sure as the staff were even more affable and available than they usually are. 

[Jeremiah1212]

19 hours ago, Tyler414 said:

It looks like other ships are anchored, If you turned around for a medical emergency, and other ships are there, why not stay? 

 

Capt Kate did a great job explaining this on a video she posted. She knew despite explaining it as clear as she could it would still stir some complaints. As she said "this puts us in a little bit of a pickle".

 

https://www.tiktok.com/t/ZPR3VahB8/

[Jim_Iain]

22 hours ago, kirtihk said:

To try Blu?  Are you in an Aqua cabin?  Only Aqua have access to Blu (this is Aqua breakfast and dinner restaurant).

Suites can also dine in Blu or MDR on a space available basis. 

[dreamer321]

17 hours ago, lynaberk said:

Are there any Solo events on the Reflection

I was on Reflection in December 2023 and they had a Solo Meet and Greet in Cellar Masters on embarkation day around 5:00 pm. There were about a dozen people there and one of the staff was there initially but she left within a half hour.  There were no other organized solo activities offered.  They don't make much of an effort for solo sailors and with the recent excessive solo supplements being charged on many cruises, it looks like Celebrity doesn't value solo passengers at all.

[abbydancer2003]

I thought I'd replied to this earlier to subscribe.  We got off when you got on.  

 

We liked Luminae, but they were better on the Apex about bring food from main or Blu.  We did it one night, but we had to special order the night before.  Also several times staff, when I asked about a special dining request, they had to check (usually could do it, though).  On Apex it was always just done.  

 

And it's too bad you couldn't salvage your Eden reservation.  We went, and Rozi's wife was our server.  She was lots of fun - reminded me of the actress/rapper Awkwafina in her role in Crazy Rich Asians.

 

The bar staff in  the retreat (Anne Marie and Emily were great - we miss them).

[mac_tlc]

14 minutes ago, abbydancer2003 said:

I thought I'd replied to this earlier to subscribe.  We got off when you got on.  

 

We liked Luminae, but they were better on the Apex about bring food from main or Blu.  We did it one night, but we had to special order the night before.  Also several times staff, when I asked about a special dining request, they had to check (usually could do it, though).  On Apex it was always just done.  

 

And it's too bad you couldn't salvage your Eden reservation.  We went, and Rozi's wife was our server.  She was lots of fun - reminded me of the actress/rapper Awkwafina in her role in Crazy Rich Asians.

 

The bar staff in  the retreat (Anne Marie and Emily were great - we miss them).

Rozi’s wife …. Too funny. I will have to mention that to him tonight. We like him a lot as our waiter. Always joking but also attentive and responsive. 
 

We too have been pleased with the Retreat bar staff, never had to wait more than a couple minutes to be served and sometimes asked by more than one. 
 

Overall the service everywhere has been great. Prompt and courteous everywhere so far. 
 

Only issue has been the feeling of overcrowding. As I stated earlier on 8 prior E-class cruises we have not had that feeling. 
 

By 3:30 today, you could find a seat or two in the Solarium. I guess we will adjust our schedule accordingly. 
 

mac_tlc

[mac_tlc]

Another spectacular talk by Rusty Faust today:

 

 

 

The crowds are growing for his talks. 10am on every sea day, plus on day 6 when we arrive in Aruba in the afternoon. 
 

Today’s was about the Mayans and how they did their human sacrifices to the Gods, and when/where he and his team found some remains. Fascinating. 
 

He has an exclusive contract with Celebrity and they send him everywhere. 
 

mac_tlc

Edited February 22 by mac_tlc

[mac_tlc]

Good morning Cartagena!!

 

 

 

We have just pulled alongside the pier. Norwegian Gem is here with us today.

 

We have a tour booked with Dora, seemed to come highly recommended on these boards. We meet at 8.

 

They have extended our stay a couple hours today, all aboard is at 5:30 instead of 3:30.

 

mac_tlc

Edited February 23 by mac_tlc

[mauimary]

We were just there on Feb 1st on the Beyond. We also had a wonderful tour with Dora. There were 8 of us in our group which was a perfect size.  You will enjoy the tour. They are a great company to work with.   We have been to Cartegena twice now and toured both times with her company. 

[hcat]

19 hours ago, mac_tlc said:

Another spectacular talk by Rusty Faust today:

 

 

 

The crowds are growing for his talks. 10am on every sea day, plus on day 6 when we arrive in Aruba in the afternoon. 
 

Today’s was about the Mayans and how they did their human sacrifices to the Gods, and when/where he and his team found some remains. Fascinating. 
 

He has an exclusive contract with Celebrity and they send him everywhere. 
 

mac_tlc

Hope we get  to see him.. sounds like a great talk..We have "enjoyed" visiting  Mayan ruins in Belize and Mexico.  Very bloodthirsty  folks..esp in sports..

 

Can't wait to hear about today's Cartagena excursion! You posted an awesome photo!

[Lastdance]

6 hours ago, mac_tlc said:

Good morning Cartagena!!

 

 

 

We have just pulled alongside the pier. Norwegian Gem is here with us today.

 

We have a tour booked with Dora, seemed to come highly recommended on these boards. We meet at 8.

 

They have extended our stay a couple hours today, all aboard is at 5:30 instead of 3:30.

 

mac_tlc

This is such an awesome photo of Cartagena, Colombia!  Kudos for the excellent pic🌎!  Hope your tours goes well and you can share more awesome photos.

Edited February 23 by Lastdance