Very delayed review of our Retreat (CS) experience on the Apex 2/3-2/10

[CruisinShips]

I'll just do this with some bullet points.

 

• EMBARKATION DAY:  Easy peasy.  First of all, we live about 38 minutes from Port Everglade, so that part is a pleasure and part of why cruising is such a stress free escape for us.  Terminal 25 is beautiful...we arrived at about 11 and as Retreat guests, we were guided to some elevators where we were checked on an ipad and walking up the gangway within minutes.  We walked to our room and entered with the seapass cards.  Our room wasn't quite ready (which was fine) and our butler Ari appeared before we left the room and introduced himself.  We dropped our stuff off and commenced our initial exploration.  Lunch in Luminae...more about Luminae shortly.
• OUR CELEBRITY SUITE: Beautiful, clean, spacious. Very blessed to be able to cruise that way.  It was our second CS (first was on the Eclipse last October) and the luxury of having two rooms when you are a couple with different sleeping patterns was nice.  I am a very early riser and it's nice to be able to slip out of bed and close the door and put on the TV in the other area.  Bathroom was nice...could use a little bit of counter space, but no complaint really.  Our TV in the living area started pixellating badly at one point, and one phone call and apparently they were able to reboot it remotely and it was fine after that.  Location with 11th deck forward of the aft elevators...we liked it so much we booked the exact same suite on the same ship for the same time next year.
• BUTLER/STATEROOM ATTENDANT: Both were ever-present, amiable as can be, always smiling, always anxious to help.  Butler (Ari) brought us coffee at the same time every morning (as requested) and helped us to juggle around a couple of specialty restaurant reservations we decided to cancel and/or change.  I don't think we are overly demanding at all, but he never failed to take care of what we asked.
• LUMINAE: We had breakfast pretty much every morning, and dinner 5 of 7 nights.  The food was always good...not 5 star restaurant good, but very good for a cruise ship and better than any MDR fare I've had in years of cruising.  Selection was fairly limited, but I was always able to find choices I ended up enjoying.  Portion sizes were definitely on the small side, but I assume that's in part because they expect people to order more than one dish.  My wife, who is a more basic eater was happy with the classics options.  It's great to have the same server at every meal...that's what cruising should be IMO...and we never had to wait long for bread, coffee refills, wine refills, etc.  The entire staff was great...great personalities, working hard with smiles on their faces.
• SPECIALTY RESTAURANTS: This cruise we ended up only dining in Eden and Rooftop Garden.  After hearing so many wonderful things about Eden, I was frankly a little disappointed.  Not that it was bad...it just didn't blow my socks off.  My food was a little under-seasoned and portions were small. Nothing worth complaining about, and I will likely try it again in the future.  Service was very good.  Rooftop was a nice surprise.  While the vibe was a little strange...and all the servers seemed to be overworked a little stressed, the comfort food was really enjoyable.  We probably pigged out more there than at any other time on the cruise.  Ribs, brisket, cornbread, corn on the cob, chicken. Yum.
• RETREAT LOUNGE: We loved hanging out there before dinner with our pre-dinner cocktails.  Staff is absolutely delightful (perhaps you're seeing a pattern here).  By day 2 they knew us and our drinks and we began to get to know them as well.  Somehow Celebrity manages to find the best humans to work on their ships lol.  My one little complaint about the Lounge was there was absolutely no variety in the food/snack choices from evening to evening.  Same cheeses, same crackers, same olives and roasted red peppers, same potato chips, same peanuts.  I wish they would have changed it up a little from night to night...but somehow we seemed to keep coming back lol.  
• RETREAT SUNDECK: Again, great staff with great attitudes.  More shade would have been nice, but we spent a lot of time up there and loved the hanging chairs over the pool in particular.  There are three of them and everyone who wanted to spend time in one seemed to be able to.  I will mention one time some guy actually placed his shoes on the chair to hold it when he walked away...that was a little off-putting for sure.  The area got pretty crowded on sea days...you could almost always find a lounger, and a couple of times I did see staff remove towels when a chair was empty for a while. Note to fellow cruisers: it's a nice thing to do to at least crumple up your towels when you are done with your chair so others know you're not coming back!
• ENTERTAINMENT: Good for the most part.  I won't get too specific because I assume it changes, but the comedian was very funny, the acrobatic shows amazing.  We did slip out during a strange Tina Turner revue that was just a little odd.  But the theater is beautiful.  
• OVERALL: Gorgeous ship, wonderful suite, very good food, unbelievable staff.  Very few complaints, and nothing that would keep us away from Celebrity in the future (we have two more Edge class cruises booked).  Prices are definitely getting out of hand, so that may be an issue.  But I work hard all year long and we take two cruise vacations a year.  It's just worth it to us to splurge for them and I we are blessed to be able to do it.

 

Thanks for reading if you did!

[Texed]

Thanks for posting.  We like the hanging chairs also.  😊

[JDPCruisers]

11 minutes ago, CruisinShips said:

I'll just do this with some bullet points.

 

• EMBARKATION DAY:  Easy peasy.  First of all, we live about 38 minutes from Port Everglade, so that part is a pleasure and part of why cruising is such a stress free escape for us.  Terminal 25 is beautiful...we arrived at about 11 and as Retreat guests, we were guided to some elevators where we were checked on an ipad and walking up the gangway within minutes.  We walked to our room and entered with the seapass cards.  Our room wasn't quite ready (which was fine) and our butler Ari appeared before we left the room and introduced himself.  We dropped our stuff off and commenced our initial exploration.  Lunch in Luminae...more about Luminae shortly.
• OUR CELEBRITY SUITE: Beautiful, clean, spacious. Very blessed to be able to cruise that way.  It was our second CS (first was on the Eclipse last October) and the luxury of having two rooms when you are a couple with different sleeping patterns was nice.  I am a very early riser and it's nice to be able to slip out of bed and close the door and put on the TV in the other area.  Bathroom was nice...could use a little bit of counter space, but no complaint really.  Our TV in the living area started pixellating badly at one point, and one phone call and apparently they were able to reboot it remotely and it was fine after that.  Location with 11th deck forward of the aft elevators...we liked it so much we booked the exact same suite on the same ship for the same time next year.
• BUTLER/STATEROOM ATTENDANT: Both were ever-present, amiable as can be, always smiling, always anxious to help.  Butler (Ari) brought us coffee at the same time every morning (as requested) and helped us to juggle around a couple of specialty restaurant reservations we decided to cancel and/or change.  I don't think we are overly demanding at all, but he never failed to take care of what we asked.
• LUMINAE: We had breakfast pretty much every morning, and dinner 5 of 7 nights.  The food was always good...not 5 star restaurant good, but very good for a cruise ship and better than any MDR fare I've had in years of cruising.  Selection was fairly limited, but I was always able to find choices I ended up enjoying.  Portion sizes were definitely on the small side, but I assume that's in part because they expect people to order more than one dish.  My wife, who is a more basic eater was happy with the classics options.  It's great to have the same server at every meal...that's what cruising should be IMO...and we never had to wait long for bread, coffee refills, wine refills, etc.  The entire staff was great...great personalities, working hard with smiles on their faces.
• SPECIALTY RESTAURANTS: This cruise we ended up only dining in Eden and Rooftop Garden.  After hearing so many wonderful things about Eden, I was frankly a little disappointed.  Not that it was bad...it just didn't blow my socks off.  My food was a little under-seasoned and portions were small. Nothing worth complaining about, and I will likely try it again in the future.  Service was very good.  Rooftop was a nice surprise.  While the vibe was a little strange...and all the servers seemed to be overworked a little stressed, the comfort food was really enjoyable.  We probably pigged out more there than at any other time on the cruise.  Ribs, brisket, cornbread, corn on the cob, chicken. Yum.
• RETREAT LOUNGE: We loved hanging out there before dinner with our pre-dinner cocktails.  Staff is absolutely delightful (perhaps you're seeing a pattern here).  By day 2 they knew us and our drinks and we began to get to know them as well.  Somehow Celebrity manages to find the best humans to work on their ships lol.  My one little complaint about the Lounge was there was absolutely no variety in the food/snack choices from evening to evening.  Same cheeses, same crackers, same olives and roasted red peppers, same potato chips, same peanuts.  I wish they would have changed it up a little from night to night...but somehow we seemed to keep coming back lol.  
• RETREAT SUNDECK: Again, great staff with great attitudes.  More shade would have been nice, but we spent a lot of time up there and loved the hanging chairs over the pool in particular.  There are three of them and everyone who wanted to spend time in one seemed to be able to.  I will mention one time some guy actually placed his shoes on the chair to hold it when he walked away...that was a little off-putting for sure.  The area got pretty crowded on sea days...you could almost always find a lounger, and a couple of times I did see staff remove towels when a chair was empty for a while. Note to fellow cruisers: it's a nice thing to do to at least crumple up your towels when you are done with your chair so others know you're not coming back!
• ENTERTAINMENT: Good for the most part.  I won't get too specific because I assume it changes, but the comedian was very funny, the acrobatic shows amazing.  We did slip out during a strange Tina Turner revue that was just a little odd.  But the theater is beautiful.  
• OVERALL: Gorgeous ship, wonderful suite, very good food, unbelievable staff.  Very few complaints, and nothing that would keep us away from Celebrity in the future (we have two more Edge class cruises booked).  Prices are definitely getting out of hand, so that may be an issue.  But I work hard all year long and we take two cruise vacations a year.  It's just worth it to us to splurge for them and I we are blessed to be able to do it.

 

Thanks for reading if you did!

Thanks for the summary. Great to hear! We love Apex and look forward to being back on her May/June 2025. 

[Jim_Iain]

Thanks for the review.

 

[tfred]

good review and mirrors our thoughts as well. 

[Crazy planning mom]

Thanks for your review

We have reservations for Rooftop Grill so glad to see you enjoyed.

[Liao]

7 hours ago, CruisinShips said:

I'll just do this with some bullet points.

 

• EMBARKATION DAY:  Easy peasy.  First of all, we live about 38 minutes from Port Everglade, so that part is a pleasure and part of why cruising is such a stress free escape for us.  Terminal 25 is beautiful...we arrived at about 11 and as Retreat guests, we were guided to some elevators where we were checked on an ipad and walking up the gangway within minutes.  We walked to our room and entered with the seapass cards.  Our room wasn't quite ready (which was fine) and our butler Ari appeared before we left the room and introduced himself.  We dropped our stuff off and commenced our initial exploration.  Lunch in Luminae...more about Luminae shortly.
• OUR CELEBRITY SUITE: Beautiful, clean, spacious. Very blessed to be able to cruise that way.  It was our second CS (first was on the Eclipse last October) and the luxury of having two rooms when you are a couple with different sleeping patterns was nice.  I am a very early riser and it's nice to be able to slip out of bed and close the door and put on the TV in the other area.  Bathroom was nice...could use a little bit of counter space, but no complaint really.  Our TV in the living area started pixellating badly at one point, and one phone call and apparently they were able to reboot it remotely and it was fine after that.  Location with 11th deck forward of the aft elevators...we liked it so much we booked the exact same suite on the same ship for the same time next year.
• BUTLER/STATEROOM ATTENDANT: Both were ever-present, amiable as can be, always smiling, always anxious to help.  Butler (Ari) brought us coffee at the same time every morning (as requested) and helped us to juggle around a couple of specialty restaurant reservations we decided to cancel and/or change.  I don't think we are overly demanding at all, but he never failed to take care of what we asked.
• LUMINAE: We had breakfast pretty much every morning, and dinner 5 of 7 nights.  The food was always good...not 5 star restaurant good, but very good for a cruise ship and better than any MDR fare I've had in years of cruising.  Selection was fairly limited, but I was always able to find choices I ended up enjoying.  Portion sizes were definitely on the small side, but I assume that's in part because they expect people to order more than one dish.  My wife, who is a more basic eater was happy with the classics options.  It's great to have the same server at every meal...that's what cruising should be IMO...and we never had to wait long for bread, coffee refills, wine refills, etc.  The entire staff was great...great personalities, working hard with smiles on their faces.
• SPECIALTY RESTAURANTS: This cruise we ended up only dining in Eden and Rooftop Garden.  After hearing so many wonderful things about Eden, I was frankly a little disappointed.  Not that it was bad...it just didn't blow my socks off.  My food was a little under-seasoned and portions were small. Nothing worth complaining about, and I will likely try it again in the future.  Service was very good.  Rooftop was a nice surprise.  While the vibe was a little strange...and all the servers seemed to be overworked a little stressed, the comfort food was really enjoyable.  We probably pigged out more there than at any other time on the cruise.  Ribs, brisket, cornbread, corn on the cob, chicken. Yum.
• RETREAT LOUNGE: We loved hanging out there before dinner with our pre-dinner cocktails.  Staff is absolutely delightful (perhaps you're seeing a pattern here).  By day 2 they knew us and our drinks and we began to get to know them as well.  Somehow Celebrity manages to find the best humans to work on their ships lol.  My one little complaint about the Lounge was there was absolutely no variety in the food/snack choices from evening to evening.  Same cheeses, same crackers, same olives and roasted red peppers, same potato chips, same peanuts.  I wish they would have changed it up a little from night to night...but somehow we seemed to keep coming back lol.  
• RETREAT SUNDECK: Again, great staff with great attitudes.  More shade would have been nice, but we spent a lot of time up there and loved the hanging chairs over the pool in particular.  There are three of them and everyone who wanted to spend time in one seemed to be able to.  I will mention one time some guy actually placed his shoes on the chair to hold it when he walked away...that was a little off-putting for sure.  The area got pretty crowded on sea days...you could almost always find a lounger, and a couple of times I did see staff remove towels when a chair was empty for a while. Note to fellow cruisers: it's a nice thing to do to at least crumple up your towels when you are done with your chair so others know you're not coming back!
• ENTERTAINMENT: Good for the most part.  I won't get too specific because I assume it changes, but the comedian was very funny, the acrobatic shows amazing.  We did slip out during a strange Tina Turner revue that was just a little odd.  But the theater is beautiful.  
• OVERALL: Gorgeous ship, wonderful suite, very good food, unbelievable staff.  Very few complaints, and nothing that would keep us away from Celebrity in the future (we have two more Edge class cruises booked).  Prices are definitely getting out of hand, so that may be an issue.  But I work hard all year long and we take two cruise vacations a year.  It's just worth it to us to splurge for them and I we are blessed to be able to do it.

 

Thanks for reading if you did!

Thank you for this!  Rooftop is my favorite specialty restaurant on Edge and cannot wait to eat there on Apex.

[BadgerFBfan]

Nice review. We're on Apex in Retreat suite on 3/23/24. After so much negativity/trollng by some, its nice to hear a balanced, fair review. We also find the staff amazing, hard-working, great people. Just be nice to people - its surprising how people are willing to help you if you just treat them nice instead of complaining. 

[hcat]

nice review

how was the ship's speed and ride?

[CruisinShips]

13 minutes ago, hcat said:

nice review

how was the ship's speed and ride?

Thanks.

For the most part it was fast and smooth.  The Caribbean was pretty windy that week (tender at Grand Cayman was cancelled) and we did feel a little bit of motion later in the week...but honestly nothing to worry about unless you're ultra sensitive.  There were times where the seas looked pretty choppy and we commented about not feeling much if any motion.

[txtechmk]

Thanks for the review.  We were on the Apex a couple of years ago and really had a great cruise.

[CruisinRoxy]

CruisinShips

I agree with you all the way! We were also in a Celebrity Suite that exact same week. Throughout the Embarkation process, you felt like the welcoming staff was totally overjoyed that you were there!  It was a totally enjoyable experience, no stress whatsoever.

Enjoyed all the specialty dining.  And that we were able to use onboard credit, so technically did not cost us any extra. 

And we booked the exact same week for next year while on board!  That's how much we loved it.  We did not give Luminae enough of a chance though, as we thought the menu was a bit weird.  We like more simple fare.  But next year we will. 

As for the entertainment, we loved it all, the dancers, acrobats, the comedians, and especially the Apex Orchestra - what a talented group of musicians!

And I'm relieved to hear we were not the only ones who thought that Tina Turner dude was strange.  Did not have the nerve to walk out though, because so many folks were doing just that. 

Can't wait to go back next February.  And yes, the staff was awesome!

Thanks for your review, and reliving the memories!

[hcat]

 We are booked on APEX for next yr..SV    Hope no creaking and smooth sailing.

 

We are now pre warned about a Tina Turner act we may not like...just in case still part of the lineup!

[CruisinShips]

17 hours ago, CruisinRoxy said:

CruisinShips

I agree with you all the way! We were also in a Celebrity Suite that exact same week. Throughout the Embarkation process, you felt like the welcoming staff was totally overjoyed that you were there!  It was a totally enjoyable experience, no stress whatsoever.

Enjoyed all the specialty dining.  And that we were able to use onboard credit, so technically did not cost us any extra. 

And we booked the exact same week for next year while on board!  That's how much we loved it.  We did not give Luminae enough of a chance though, as we thought the menu was a bit weird.  We like more simple fare.  But next year we will. 

As for the entertainment, we loved it all, the dancers, acrobats, the comedians, and especially the Apex Orchestra - what a talented group of musicians!

And I'm relieved to hear we were not the only ones who thought that Tina Turner dude was strange.  Did not have the nerve to walk out though, because so many folks were doing just that. 

Can't wait to go back next February.  And yes, the staff was awesome!

Thanks for your review, and reliving the memories!

We may have been neighbors on the ship.  We were in 11104. So funny you booked the same week (next year) as well.

 

Regarding Luminae...my wife is a simple eater and she was happy for the most part with the Classics menu...shrimp cocktail, Caesar salad, grilled chicken or steak.  I'm a bit more adventurous, so I can find something pretty much anywhere.

 

Glad you had the same great time as us...thanks for the comment.

Edited March 7 by CruisinShips

[katenmax2]

Great review. My sis and I were also staying in the Retreat on the same sailing .  11th floor.

 

We have the same setiments.  The ship was beautiful, staff went overboard to keep us happy, Retreat Lounge concierges and attendants knew our drinks and keep glasses full, Somm in Luminae attentive albeit overworked, cabin kept clean and Al Bacio coffee outstanding. 

 

The only complaint was quality of the food.  Luminae was good but not as good as our previous cruises. Oceanview cafe was overcrowded and food was subpar.  Room service came straight from Oceanview with pre-cooked/pre-frozen than warmed over preparation and artificial ingredients. Inedible.  Was shocked at the quality decline from the Beyond last April.

 

As we were staying in a sky suite this sail, we didn't have the usual anticipated Butler experience.  Was a disappointment and the quality of our "butler team" (read - the rooom attendant) was't up to the Retreat experience. Not a single glass of water, ice nor timely room service was provided.  NOT a change for the better. Will return to at least Celebrity Suites or above in the future then cut down from 2 cruises per year to 1 due to significant price increases.

 

Was sad all our excursions on this sail were canceled as I'm a diver and was looking forward to the experience, especially in Roatan and Grand Cayman.  Understand that weather is a factor early in the season. 

 

We did feel that motion towards the end of the sail.  I am usually a strong sea legs individual and had no issues until disembarkation.  Am still feeling queezy and learned that Mal de

Debarkement syndrom is a true malady.  Hopefully will pass within the next few months. 

 

The Martini bar concocted excellent specialty drinks and the dance floor in the plaza was hopping every night. 

 

We did not attend any shows nor visit specialty restaurants this trip.  

 

Overall impression of Apex is very good to excellent and will not hesitate to book again!

[CruisinShips]

On 3/8/2024 at 12:10 AM, katenmax2 said:

Great review. My sis and I were also staying in the Retreat on the same sailing .  11th floor.

 

We have the same setiments.  The ship was beautiful, staff went overboard to keep us happy, Retreat Lounge concierges and attendants knew our drinks and keep glasses full, Somm in Luminae attentive albeit overworked, cabin kept clean and Al Bacio coffee outstanding. 

 

The only complaint was quality of the food.  Luminae was good but not as good as our previous cruises. Oceanview cafe was overcrowded and food was subpar.  Room service came straight from Oceanview with pre-cooked/pre-frozen than warmed over preparation and artificial ingredients. Inedible.  Was shocked at the quality decline from the Beyond last April.

 

As we were staying in a sky suite this sail, we didn't have the usual anticipated Butler experience.  Was a disappointment and the quality of our "butler team" (read - the rooom attendant) was't up to the Retreat experience. Not a single glass of water, ice nor timely room service was provided.  NOT a change for the better. Will return to at least Celebrity Suites or above in the future then cut down from 2 cruises per year to 1 due to significant price increases.

 

Was sad all our excursions on this sail were canceled as I'm a diver and was looking forward to the experience, especially in Roatan and Grand Cayman.  Understand that weather is a factor early in the season. 

 

We did feel that motion towards the end of the sail.  I am usually a strong sea legs individual and had no issues until disembarkation.  Am still feeling queezy and learned that Mal de

Debarkement syndrom is a true malady.  Hopefully will pass within the next few months. 

 

The Martini bar concocted excellent specialty drinks and the dance floor in the plaza was hopping every night. 

 

We did not attend any shows nor visit specialty restaurants this trip.  

 

Overall impression of Apex is very good to excellent and will not hesitate to book again!

I assume you have read the reports of the butler service being (or coming) back to Sky Suites?  That is happening.

 

 

[TheHawk1]

On 2/19/2024 at 11:35 AM, CruisinShips said:

After hearing so many wonderful things about Eden, I was frankly a little disappointed.  Not that it was bad...it just didn't blow my socks off.

Just got off the March 2-9 Apex sailing and found Eden to be the highlight of the week. If you stick to the seafood options, they were all excellent and service was on point. It’s my second Eden experience and I feel it’s the best specialty restaurant on E class.

 

As for Rooftop Grill, we considered it, but every time we went up to that deck to the Sunset Bar or just walking around, it was a gail force wind event. I can’t imagine trying to eat dinner up there under those conditions.

[CruisinShips]

1 minute ago, TheHawk1 said:

As for Rooftop Grill, we considered it, but every time we went up to that deck to the Sunset Bar or just walking around, it was a gail force wind event. I can’t imagine trying to eat dinner up there under those conditions.

Most of our cruise was pretty windy, but for whatever reason, wind was not a factor when we dined there.  I don't know if we just got lucky, or if the design blocked out the wind where we were sitting (frankly, I don't remember).