bandp407

46 minutes ago, cruisestitch said:

Bandp407, yes I am on board, first 7 night cruise.

 

there was an Elite wine tasting event.  No scotch tasting, bourbon tasting, wine blending, etc.  maybe in the future?

 

no cookIng expo

 

there may have been a guest lecture on the sea day.  I’ll have to go back to the daily to check.

 

music in Cafe al Bacio is only piped in.  Christmas meets hip-hop, standards remixed to a heavy beat.  No live music.

 

haven’t heard anything I would describe as classical guitar.  I will try to seek her out.  i also haven’t heard “The Fringe Collective” described as jazz and soul.  There was a loud and fairly weird foursome “The Reckless Charms”. playing one afternoon in Eden.  I left after two numbers.

 

there is a pay-to-enter gameshow/trivia/contest of some sort every night.  Entry fee $20 as I recall.

 

Celebrity Life Acitivites: adult coloring, origami, knitting.  I’m not making this stuff up.

 

I just pulled the plug and cancelled our March sailing. This ship may be for some, but not us.  Enjoy your remaining time on board Cruisestich & all others onboard. Hopefully the seas are calm & you can enjoy the sounds & views of the sea!

Happy Holidays!

Oh boy this truly may not be for us!! Certainly not expecting ballroom but Cruisestich we are with you on this. Presume you are on board and have first hand experience. Hope you enjoy the rest of your cruise!

Thank you!

Thanks for the replies- pretty much what I thought based on the Celebrity today that was posted. Almost at final payment & really thinking if this ship is for us.

Esprit - enjoy your cruise & report back if you can.

Hi Adam, 

Thank you very much for taking along & posting so much information. Has there been much in the way of evening dance music either in the Club or not sure where else it could be? With the Sky Lounge, Grand Foyer & Quasar which we are very familiar with GONE- are there any options for the evenings. It's a big part of our cruising experience. 

Many thanks!

DH & I are booked on the Edge, end of March. We are seasoned cruisers who enjoy a variety of dancing in the evenings. The reviews I have read say nothing  about the evening music . The copies of Celebrity today, that Adam has been so kind to post do not appear to have very much in the way of evening dance music. Can anyone who has been or is onboard share any info.

Many thanks!

Paul, 

Missing the old Cruise Critic Forums app which I used on my I-Pad.  Sorry to sound dumb, but which mobile Cruise Critic app are you now using that is working well? I'm not the most savvy with all this!!

Truly hope to one day be on the same cruise as you & Edward! Enjoy every moment of the next few days!

Paula

Thank you Paul for taking us along & sharing so much valuable info.

Bon Voyage to you & Edward!

Paula

Congrats Paul!!! So well deserved & so wonderfully written . I had goosebumps reading it. Hope to have the opportunity to meet you & Edward on a future Celebrity sailing. In the meantime I can’t wait till November 5 & your next LIVE!

Cheers!

Paula

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thanks so much Beardie! I feel comfortable booking dinner at 8pm and will change if necessary. Most shows don’t typically last more that 45 or 50 minutes.

So glad you you enjoyed your cruise as I am sure we will. The reviews have been so very positive!

DH & I are going to try Celebrity again after a few years away. We sail a Western itinerary in July on the Equinox.with Celebrity Select Dining. Can anyone who has recently sailed on her tell me approximately how long the shows in the theatre are and if they are at 7PM & 9PM ? We are thinking about shooting for a 7PM show and 8PM dining time so we can be free to enjoy the music & dancing (which we love - provided there is a good band) after dinner. It looks as if Celebrity has moved the band to the Sky Lounge most evenings which we think will be great. The Grand Foyer was used almost exclusively on our previous sailings. That area is just to small & the Sky Lounge is beautiful.

Anyone who can share some info on the shows, times & live music(party band) it would be appreciated.

Many thanks!

Captain Kate was a refreshing change. She was more accessible than any captain we have cruised with. Our entire Equinox Staff was excellent with one exception. We had a very disappointing staff member in the future cruise area. In fact he had such a poor attitude, we didn’t book another cruise at that time.

The food in the Blu was good 95% of the time.

The nightly shows were great. The UP TOWN group was fantastic.

St Marteen still has quite a number of stores which have not rebuilt following the storm.

We enjoyed another fun cruise on Equinox

tboy58 ~ glad to hear you and the other posters enjoyed the Equinox! Was the UP TOWN group the party band or did they perform in the theater? We have been away from Celebrity for a while primarily due to their lack of good bands and dance music. We moved to Florida last summer and are considering trying the Equinox the end of June. Any info you or any others who have recently sailed on her can provide would be much appreciated.

Paula

Safe travels Paul & Edward ! Paul, thank you so very much for another amazing journey with you!

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Ditto-we just got off Anthem this morning & really enjoyed the ship. Not sure why all the bad reviews & overall low rating.

The ship is beautiful & dynamic dining actually worked out fine. It's simply my time dining with 5 different options. Ate in the Grande twice ( excellent) , silk ( our least favorite - a not so good tempura), Chic ( very good) and Solarium ( very good) . We had pre booked all restaurants & shows but made a few time changes with no problem at all . They were very accommodating & also did their best with our table request.

Cabins beautiful, with plenty of storage & larger than Oasis & Allure. The Windjamer has an small outside area aft that was great on good weather days. Loved the view of the wake!!

The service was for the most part very good. We agree with others who have posted that some of the crew are not warm & caring like we are used to from other ships. Not sure why but it's not all of them.

Shows great and a fabulous band in Boleros & poolside. The Solarium probably the prettiest of any ship & never a problem finding chairs there or on the upper decks.

We prefer Oasis class but would not hesitate to sail on Anthem again. Most importantly, no effects from Matthew & beautiful weather in Bermuda.

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Sadly, a good many of the comments here regarding the production shows are negative. We all sail and select our cruise line and ship for various reasons. To DH and I dancing before & after dinner to good live music is a huge part of our cruise experience. Oasis/Allure offer both amazing shows & great live music with a variety of venues to choose from. Their Solarium is wonderful with great views. This all brings us back time and time again. While the production shows on our last few "S" class sailings were not great , we placed greater importance on the live dance music. For us it has really gone down hill both in the style of music played by the bands and limited amount of live music. HAL and the BB King Band provided a whole lot of fun for us on our 2 sailings with them and in our opinion service and food was on par with Celebrity ( Blu, Aqua Class).

Since returning from from our Reflection sailing in Dec 2015, we have been on the fence about cancelling our Dec 2016 Silhouette sailing. Given the comments posted on this thread along with our own experiences we are going to cancel our Silhouette sailing for Dec. and go back on the Nieuw Amsterdam. We also had a 9 night Silhouette for Dec 2017 booked which will be cancelled as well. Between RCCL - Oasis, Harmony, Anthem( which we are going to try ) Koningsdam ( will try) & perhaps even MSC, that should give us a good mix.

It's unfortunate for us & many others that Celebrity has gone in this direction. We had hoped they would be our cruise line of choice as we enjoyed the "S" class ships in many ways.

Thanks for taking us along! Have a GREAT cruise!!

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Just confirmed with Captain's Club - The Premium Beverage Package for our Oasis July sailing went up to $59 before the so called 20%. Just the other day it was $49 on my cruise planner. So they are at it again - either the prices are really going up OR they raised it for now to discount 20% and will lower it after the promo? Just got a flyer from someone on board Oasis today & the premium is still showing $49. Hope this helps in everyone's calculations!

You're the best! Thanks Chris.

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Hi Chris - Thanks for taking us along & love your photos!

Can I ask you a favor re the drink packages. We sail Lady O in July & RCCL is showing a 20% discount on the premium package. However the price is only $2.00 less than we saw it for last week & what we paid onboard last July. They claim they raised the onboard premium price from its original $49 plus 18%.

Would love a first hand update.......Many on the boards are questioning RCCL's math too with this so called 20%.

Many thanks & have a wonderful day at sea!

Hi Everyone,

 

I just noticed that the Viking Lounge is no longer on the Oasis. Loved that area to listen to music, have a drink without getting windblown. I also liked it because they would have "my kind of music" which is music from the 60s 70s and even 80s that was danceable.

 

I'm sure there is alot of diversity on these boards of thye best music. But I basically want to know the best place now to have a drink and listen to music (maybe dance) where you understand the words? I realize that sounds so "old fogey" but I really do not like most of today's modern music which is all computerized and enhanced. Madonna is more appealing to me than Lady gaga, Drake, or Rhianna.

Hi Panda 3 - yes, DH & I love to dance & miss the Viking Crown Lounge on the Oasis ships. You still have quite a few options compared to smaller ships & other cruise lines. If the band in Dazzles is good - which is almost always is - they play lots of dance music. Boleros for Latin & Jazz on 4 often has the Oasis Orchestra playing and they are great. These dance options are a big part of why we return to the Oasis class of ships.

We also sail on Celebrity's "S" class and while we enjoy the ships, the live bands lately have been pretty awful. Also the DJ's are playing music that no one can dance to & they don't. Has us re-thinking as dancing is a big part of our total cruise experience.

Enjoy!

I've not seen a larger percentage off claimed.

 

However, you should double check the numbers because many are seeing an 18% price jump before the 20% off, so it's not really 20% off.

Agreed Bob. Just looked at my cruise planner for our Oasis sailing in July and the 20% is listed for all offered packages. The base price for the Premium is $47. Last week it was $49. So obviously they raised the package price and are now making it look like 20% off. It totals out with these numbers to a savings of $16 for the 7 nights. RCCL pricing lately is truly enough to make you crazy & appear to give you HUGE discounts. I also priced our next 2 Harmony sailings ( April 2017 & July 2017) and our cruise faree is still cheaper without all of the current discounts. Truly amazing!

Bon Voyage Chris!!

It was great sailing along with Gambee on Lady O and look forward to sailing along with you. Lady O is one of our favorite ships.

Love sailaway days - enjoy!

Hi Bea - I am so sorry you did not have a good experience on the Millennium. The ships are much older than the "S" class ships & I do not get the feeling the accommodations are nearly as nice as on the "S" class ships. Also for reasons I have mentioned the music onboard Celebrity ships has us looking to move on, so that may have been a put off for you as well.

According to Ken in a reply to my initial post, notes that Aurea Suite guests should have no problem with the 2 top - so, you should be fine. Whichever MSC ship we end up doing, we would do Aurea Class ( Balcony not suite) for the many inclusions & open seating in the dedicated area of the dining room.

Thanks for your input on Seaside & they are my feelings exactly. Enjoy your October sailing!

Best, Paula

The following is from the MSC website in relation to the Aurea Experience

 

Thanks very much Bea ! Yes, I saw the list of inclusions for Aurea class. Our main concern was whether or not you could really get a 2 top in the dining room( some say yes, others maybe & some no) & the wines offered on the included list. Did not ask the question on whether of not you could pay the difference to a wine of your choice?

 

You & I communicated several months ago, when I believe you were considering Celebrity. Did you ever take that cruise? Like you we enjoy dancing and being in the different music venues, especially in the evening. That & the price sort of rule out the Yacht Club for us. The big plus for us with the Yacht Club was the dining room intimacy and I would imagine a better food.

 

We are still on the fence with Divina as it does not offer the option for outdoor dining for breakfast & lunch, combined with our concerns with the main dining room seating. Perhaps we need to wait for the following summer & try Seaside. From what I can see, there appears to be more of a connection to the sea & outdoor dining??

 

Thank you again Bea!

 

Paula

To all who have replied - thank you very much, it's greatly appreciated.

The feedback on the 2 top tables for dinner with Aurea is varied - some yes & some no or maybe. I actually called MSC last night and they said with Aurea Class you definitely can have a table for 2 in the dining room & the open seating?? I believe I saw mention to that in their brochure.

Having sailed primarily on Celebrity( Aqua Class on the "S" class ships),Royal on the Oasis Class, and HAL , there is always a bit of hesitancy to change.

Decisions, decisions - thanks again!

Hi Gambee- Thank you for another amazing review & amazing photos!! My DH & I sail on Lady O for the 3rd time in July & can't wait! By the way we LOVE Solarium Bistro for dinner. The food , service & ambience are excellent. We end up eating there many nights. It's our own BLU. Hope you can try it. Enjoy the rest of your cruise & bless you & your Mom.

Paula