Understanding Celebrity' class system

I am trying to wrap my head around a couple of things concerning Celebrity (I haven't cruised Celebrity since about 2010). Now this is what I am reading on these boards. It seems to me that all cabins inside, ov, balcony eat in the main dining room. Aqua eat in Blu and Suites eat in Luminae. Also from what I can understand it seems to me that the main dining room is like going to the your local diner Blu sounds like a specialty restaurant and Luminae is more a fine dining.

Also Michaels is off limits unless you are in a suite. Wow Michaels was the place to go to listen to the violin trio after dinner.

I booked a sunset veranda. I didn't know I would need to be in a suite to be allowed to eat at the "very nice" restaurant.

Do I understand this correctly?

What other areas on the ship won't I be allowed in because I'm in a lowly sunset veranda?

I wouldn't worry about it, seriously! THe MDR is far from a 'local diner' and personally have had some of the best meals there even compared to dining ashore. You also have the choice of eating at the speciality restaurants which offer different menus and great service. Whilst I would love to one day have a suite and enjoy dining at Luminae, I don't for a minute feel like I'm some bum onboard begging for a meal. Let them enjoy their perks, send you focus on enjoying all the ship has to offer you. There is more than enough,,along with the great Celebrity service on offer to not feel anything less than special.

Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

Also we found some of the best and freshest food in the evening was Aft on Constellation at the sandwich bar area which after 6 pm becomes a fab deli station. Having noticed the Captain and Senior Officers also eating there when it was quiet I was waxing lyrical about the food and the Captain explained that they source food in ports hence Fab moules, raspberries, Eastern Med style salads or whatever was local. You could also choose your steak and it would be cooked for you. MDR was also fine

I wouldn't worry about it, seriously! THe MDR is far from a 'local diner' and personally have had some of the best meals there even compared to dining ashore. You also have the choice of eating at the speciality restaurants which offer different menus and great service. Whilst I would love to one day have a suite and enjoy dining at Luminae, I don't for a minute feel like I'm some bum onboard begging for a meal. Let them enjoy their perks, send you focus on enjoying all the ship has to offer you. There is more than enough,,along with the great Celebrity service on offer to not feel anything less than special.

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

A+++++++++ Thank you for saying this. Debunking, in advance, possibly in advance, a concern about eating venues for each 'class' of passenger on board.

I think we, passengers on Celebrity, focus on the overall quality and presentation of the cruise line and its' full product compared to that of others. X stands head and above in most instances for many CC'ers despite rumblings to the contrary.

OP - You may want to decide which category of 'dining' you want throughout your sailing and purchase a cabin commensurate with that, if in fact this is a penultimate for you and your party.

bon voyage.... and good eating too!

Also we found some of the best and freshest food in the evening was Aft on Constellation at the sandwich bar area which after 6 pm becomes a fab deli station. Having noticed the Captain and Senior Officers also eating there when it was quiet I was waxing lyrical about the food and the Captain explained that they source food in ports hence Fab moules, raspberries, Eastern Med style salads or whatever was local. You could also choose your steak and it would be cooked for you. MDR was also fine

Unfortunately on our last Celebrity on Connie in 2012, the MDR was not fine, our worst maitre'd and dining experience of all our cruises. After 3 nights we had had enough, and found the food and experience far better in the self service area, steaks, stir fries and pasta cooked while you wait, along with a table window!

Unfortunately on our last Celebrity on Connie in 2012, the MDR was not fine, our worst maitre'd and dining experience of all our cruises. After 3 nights we had had enough, and found the food and experience far better in the self service area, steaks, stir fries and pasta cooked while you wait, along with a table window!

Did you mention that to GR so they could try to improve? We had one bad experience in March 2013, and we spoke up. The service was greatly improved.

Was in a suite on Reflec. in june this year. Luminae was not 'fine dining' by any stretch of the imagination.

we dined once in luminae. once in murano ( excellent) once in Tuscan ( very good) once in QSine ( great fun and good food) and 7 nights in MDR . The MDR was probably better than Luminae and more than acceptable.

We like to sit on s large table in the MDR and meet other people and have nearly always had a great time.

It's all a lot of whining by people jealopus they are not allowed access is all.

I sail mostly suites, and chose to eat in MDR my entire transatlantic sailing this spring even though Luminae was open to me as I had met a buch of folks not in suites, and wanted to dine with them. I find the MDR food to be quite nice in most cases. Before Luminae I chose BLU just 2 maybe 3 times even though it was an option.

The only thing I dislike about the MDR is the pace of service is designed to be an entire 2 hour affair. Sometimes I get antsy after an hour or so, but that is how MDR dining is designed, to be an experience, to consume time relative to timing of the evening theatre shows.

Ignore the "vocal minority" and instead have faith the the fact that X continues to receive accolades from the masses in winning awards for their ships and dining experience above others in their class.

Re your 'class system' question.

Most mass market cruise lines have price-stratified choices which also extend to dining in combination with the cabin size, location, features.

This allows X and others to offer customers their value-for-$ preference. Apparently a major impetus for Luminae was high-$ suite customers feeling short-changed on dining - think competitors' Cunard 'Grills', MSC Yacht Club, NCL Haven, etc.

Seems a 'class system' can be thought of from either a glass half-full / half empty viewpoint. Happy Cruising

I am trying to wrap my head around a couple of things concerning Celebrity (I haven't cruised Celebrity since about 2010). Now this is what I am reading on these boards. It seems to me that all cabins inside, ov, balcony eat in the main dining room. Aqua eat in Blu and Suites eat in Luminae. Also from what I can understand it seems to me that the main dining room is like going to the your local diner Blu sounds like a specialty restaurant and Luminae is more a fine dining.

 

Also Michaels is off limits unless you are in a suite. Wow Michaels was the place to go to listen to the violin trio after dinner.

 

I booked a sunset veranda. I didn't know I would need to be in a suite to be allowed to eat at the "very nice" restaurant.

 

Do I understand this correctly?

What other areas on the ship won't I be allowed in because I'm in a lowly sunset veranda?

Don't worry. The food in the MDR I've for the most part found very good and can say that about all the dining venues. Both Blu and Luminae are smaller areas and for some that can also have an impact. Depending upon where you sit in the MDR it can get very busy. If you want you can still eat in the other Specialty restaurants if you pay the fee. I also enjoy eating from the buffet. If the weather is nice then sitting outside at the back of the ship beats any view you'd get in the other restaurants and I find the food really good. I can graze tapas style if i want to.

Phil

For what it's worth - the one cruise I was in Aqua, I found I liked the MDR better. The food in MDR was very very good, and the service I had was excellent. I was not a fan of the food in Blu. I personally don't think you're losing out at all by eating in the MDR - many others will argue with me but that was my experience. I haven't been in a suite yet so can't comment on Luminae.

I am trying to wrap my head around a couple of things concerning Celebrity (I haven't cruised Celebrity since about 2010). Now this is what I am reading on these boards. It seems to me that all cabins inside, ov, balcony eat in the main dining room. Aqua eat in Blu and Suites eat in Luminae. Also from what I can understand it seems to me that the main dining room is like going to the your local diner Blu sounds like a specialty restaurant and Luminae is more a fine dining.

 

Also Michaels is off limits unless you are in a suite. Wow Michaels was the place to go to listen to the violin trio after dinner.

 

I booked a sunset veranda. I didn't know I would need to be in a suite to be allowed to eat at the "very nice" restaurant.

 

Do I understand this correctly?

What other areas on the ship won't I be allowed in because I'm in a lowly sunset veranda?

Oh now! Ya'll have been on enough cruises that you truly know better than this.

Depending on the ship, M class or S class, there are up to 4 other *for a fee* specialty venues anyone can go to. Just like on all the other ships you have sailed.

The trio still plays in the Ensemble Lounge just outside Michaels on the S class ships. We homestead there quite often.

The only totally 'excluded' place will be the restroom with the opposite sex's image on the door. :D

For what it's worth - the one cruise I was in Aqua, I found I liked the MDR better. The food in MDR was very very good, and the service I had was excellent. I was not a fan of the food in Blu. I personally don't think you're losing out at all by eating in the MDR - many others will argue with me but that was my experience. I haven't been in a suite yet so can't comment on Luminae.

Agree. Infinity May '15 MDR was very good. Summit Aug '15 Blu very average. And nibbling:eek: afterwards at Oceanview buffet is icing on cake.

When I first noticed the encroaching class system in cruising, I was very opposed to it. But as it has developed I have come to see the logic -- and the benefit to most cruisers. It is possible to be successful at the high end, and we are seeing several cruise lines deliberately move themselves even further into that stratosphere -- but how many customers are there who are willing to spend that kind of money? [Crystal will have no cabins less than 400sf on their new ships -- no more entry-level to entice people like me]. And I guess it would be possible to succeed at the low end by keeping costs to a minimum in order to offer the lowest prices -- but it's a real rat race to compete in a commodity market and you must maintain a high volume because each cabin earns so little. So the best place for a cruise line is in the middle, and it's better to span as much of the middle as you can. People who want a cheap cruise and a "lively" atmosphere can sail on MSC in their regular cabins; people who want a quiet luxury experience can sail on the same ships in the Yacht Club. So Celebrity is trying the same thing: regular cabin, "good" pre-paid gratuities and MDR/buffet dining gets you a good cruise at the lowest cost [if you don't drink much]; Aqua gets you more dining choices at a higher price [only slightly higher than the Concierge cabins]; Suites get you the widest dining choices and other amenities for a much higher cost -- all on the same ship. Now if they could only figure out a way to offer an alternative to the loud music [as the MSC Yacht Club does]!

" found the food and experience far better in the self service area, steaks, stir fries and pasta cooked while you wait "

Really? Is this true on Equinox as well?

" found the food and experience far better in the self service area, steaks, stir fries and pasta cooked while you wait "

 

Really? Is this true on Equinox as well?

Food is subjective, varies from ship to ship, and meal to meal.

The food in the MDR is very good. Lots of choices and you cannot go wrong. As for Blu, it is NOT specialty dining. May be a smaller dining area but the food is comparable to the MDR but with a more limited menu and choices. Some of these venues tend to make some people feel special so they will pay extra. We have loved the food in the MDR.

I guess I didn't make myself very clear. What I am interested in is whether you can get steaks, etc. cooked to order in the buffet area.

" found the food and experience far better in the self service area, steaks, stir fries and pasta cooked while you wait "

 

Really? Is this true on Equinox as well?

I guess I didn't make myself very clear. What I am interested in is whether you can get steaks, etc. cooked to order in the buffet area.

It was last Nov and we will find out again in 5 days!

I guess I didn't make myself very clear. What I am interested in is whether you can get steaks, etc. cooked to order in the buffet area.

Yes you can. Steak fish chicken burgers and hot dogs all cooked to order.

On our last 2 cruises, we were in a SS because it was necessary. We really liked eating in Select (meeting new people each night we were there) or we ate at the buffet which we liked because we didn't have to dress up. Lots of staff ate at the buffet while I saw nostaff eating in MDR. Upcoming cruises, we will again be in a SS but I'm not sure that we will eat in Luminae because we won't have a group to eat with and, let's face it, I think that they are more fun. I would like to go back to Select where the food and company is the best.

I guess I didn't make myself very clear. What I am interested in is whether you can get steaks, etc. cooked to order in the buffet area.

We just left the Equinox last Sunday after spending a month onboard. And yes, they certainly were preparing steaks, chicken, pork and fish to order in the buffet. The first two legs of that B2B2B were very port intensive, and twice we just had dinner in the buffet before heading to bed early. After a long day on shore it was so nice to just have a glass of wine, hot piece of grilled chicken and a salad.

On our last 2 cruises, we were in a SS because it was necessary. We really liked eating in Select (meeting new people each night we were there) or we ate at the buffet which we liked because we didn't have to dress up. Lots of staff ate at the buffet while I saw nostaff eating in MDR. Upcoming cruises, we will again be in a SS but I'm not sure that we will eat in Luminae because we won't have a group to eat with and, let's face it, I think that they are more fun. I would like to go back to Select where the food and company is the best.

I'm very much like you in this regard. However once Michaels kicks in, spend time there you will meet others and look to arrange a night or 2 with them in luminae. I'm not usually one to think of the food as being worth discussion at any of the outlets, but I admit my last cruise I did enjoy luminae the times I ate there.

When we first started cruising, the lower priced cabins provided the best value for the money.

People who booked inside cabins used to boast that they got to eat the same food and see all the same entertainment as those who booked penthouse suites.

Celebrity (and other cruise lines) realized that they needed to offer more than just larger rooms and a butler to entice more people to book the higher category accommodations and to pay higher prices for them.

First Celebrity created concierge class and then aqua class, adding more bells and whistles as incentives for people to pay more to book cabins that previously had not been selling well.

That worked nicely, so they went even further in providing special perks for those in suites that are not given to passengers who book lower category accommodations.

It really is not what is typically perceived as a "class system" because anyone willing to pay the price can book any category accommodation.

They just started offering more and different perks as inducements to get people to pay more.

I guess I didn't make myself very clear. What I am interested in is whether you can get steaks, etc. cooked to order in the buffet area.

We usually prefer to order the grilled fish there.

?...I didn't know I would need to be in a suite to be allowed to eat at the "very nice" restaurant. ...

Do the numbers. If the only way you are feeling shortchanged by not being in a suite has to do with food, then just figure speciality restaurants $45 x 2 x number of nights. Add that to the cost of your lowly accommodations and I suspect you are way ahead financially compared to the cost of a suite.