LabGuy64

that information is given on a need to know basis

:cool:

What is next? There were no flowers on our recent Millennium cruise in AQU and the shampoo and conditioner were standard, so I was glad we brought our own.

 

It is not a problem if you have a package but they are not included on transatlantic sailings along with some others. If they take away any more benefits we will wonder why we are paying so much more money for this class cabin.

 

Do Suites get bottled water?

I think a WalMart comparison is perhaps a bit harsh

It's the cheapening of the product that gets me. Celebrity is turning into a Walmart. Everything is about running deals and cutting quality. That's why I'm booking elsewhere.

 

Michael

yes...they are gone

We are sailing on Celebrity in January are formal nights now being replaced with chic nights? and if so what does this mean

Can't see why you would bring up being calm and not creating a scene. Why would anyone raise there voice or be more than mildly annoyed when they could just order something else. Personally, I wouldn't have done more than passing inquiry....you seem much more upset than warrented

There was no mix up in the order. This was the only hot soup offered. My wife's was served first, and she immediately noted the lack of chicken or coconut. Mine came several minutes later, and nothing had changed. There were a few small slices of mushroom floating in an indescribable liquid. I don't know what it was meant to be.

 

Of course, when the "ossobuco" arrived I told the waiter it was not ossobuco. He had no explanation. I wouldn't expect him to have one unless the chef advised him of it. The head waiter arrived almost immediately and I went through the same explanation with her. She left and the maître d'hôtel came on the scene and for the third time in four minutes I explained the situation. Again, no explanation was offered but there was an offer to replace the meal. I would expect that. I will say at this point, I could not have been calmer. At no time was I upset, nor did I even raise my voice. I even said to the maître d'hotel that the dining room staff was put in an awkward and untenable position which wasn't fair to them. Maybe I should have called for the chef, but I didn't think it necessary to create a possible scene.

 

On the subject of the Blu menu, there's more. Duck was served in some form three nights in a row. Yes, for you Celebrity apologists, while waiting to be seated, I certainly mentioned this to the maître d'hôtel who wanly said it wasn't the same dish every night. True, but it was duck. Celebrity must have gotten a fantastic deal on that poor fowl.

 

.The Blu menu was pedestrian at best. Nothing exceptional was offered. My old favorite lamb chops were excellent, as they always seem to be. I had a wonderful Hawaiian salmon one night and in general the food was well prepared, though DW struck out with a super bland vegetarian dish one evening. I didn't even bother with dessert, as they didn't appeal to me, but my wife raved about the lava cake.

 

We'll be back on the Eclipse in ten days for three back to backs, two in Blu and one in Luminae. I am not looking forward to the dining experience . I hope my concern is unfounded. We are not complainers but we do know good food, properly prepared. I am glad I addressed the issue, as my tendency is to pass off a disappointing meal as just one of those things.

no real need to lure you in at 55+ as this is the biggest cruising demographic....never understood the senior discounts....a prize for getting old?...dubious at best

Perhaps a bit controversial but I feel having reached the 50's Celebrity should take this into consideration and offer perks in order to maintain their loyal/senior passengers.

 

I've booked 55+ ticked the box and no reductions ever appear so come on Celebrity what about:

 

free bev package as standard on all cruises including transatlantics

obc of $55 dollars and upwards depending on your age

 

Anything else?

taste is pretty subjective....the only thing that you really can compare is how the food is prepared.....is it dry..or under cooked etc.

We are sailing on the Silhouette this coming Sunday. Have not cruised Celebrity since 2013. Just wondering how the food in the MDR was. It was very good when we cruised in 2013. I have pictures of the lobster that was excellent, and hoping that we won't be disappointed.

 

We sailed the Eclipse and the Reflection and am looking forward to the Silhouette.

 

Thanks

Not sure about the perspective.....your overall cruise exp may tinge that memory of the meals some 20 yeas ago

I am aware of that, just trying to give some perspective.

Gratuities ARE the stewards income....and what is fair has been worked out between Celebrity and the staff

Maybe you aren't understanding my post. I was concerned about gratuities - no the steward's income. I commented about wanting the distribution of the gratuities to be fair. Nothing more.

Lab guy - not sure why you are talking about biting off more than I can chew. but one of the other posters said it better than I did. Gratuities are just that - but since they now have us pay ahead, the concern should be there to make sure it is fair.

To be honest.....I don't care at all about Michael Club from the drink aspect....Only access to the concierge

The problem with ELITES id that everyone and their brother is Elite. I say the same thing on Princess where a huge chunk of the passengers were top tier in the loyalty program....makes it impossible to give exclusive perks when EVERYONE qualifies...I know it is hard for those that have shown loyalty to the line to be excluded but, I suppose they just made it too easy to become elite

The title of the thread says that now Michael's is open to everyone. But, the discussion belies that claim as apparently only suite guests can now use Michael's. Elite members who used to have access to Michael's no longer do. Nor do any other non-suite passengers.

 

Since Michael's was closed to those on Elite level, we have noticed that most of the time the room has more staff than passengers. It was obviously being underutilized. Therefore, opening up the club to other suite passengers seems to make sense. It really doesn't matter to me since I can no longer use Michael's as the so called Elites were banned.

First,

The OP was talking about BLU not the MDR...and he was saying the food was not as described not how it tasted

I have to agree with the OP. I also got off the Constellation on Sunday. Food in the MDR was basically mediocre. The duck was very good, the lobster tail was very good. Other entrees like the steak, salmon, and short ribs were not worth eating. The Oceanview Grill did make excellent Asian stir fry and excellent grilled fish and beef to order.

Probably not fair to compare it to one of the best meals you ever had. And your next exp there may not be as memorable.....have run into this several times. I have also been to restaurants that were quite expensive due to location but, I found the food to be mediocre...

I haven't eaten at Prime but I have eaten next door at Picasso and it was one of our best meals ever. No comparison to anything we've had on a ship. But...we paid over $400 for that dinner with wine. We've had some good meals on ships and some mediocre same with the service. I certainly wouldn't compare anything we've ever had with Picasso.

If there was no chicken or coconut in the soup....what was in it?....Also, did you bother to ask if perhaps you had been accidentally brought someone else's order? Am thinking there is a good chance this was the case

We left the Connie yesterday, having eaten eight times in Blu where we noticed the description on the menu did not always match the food on the table. On the last night, for example, the menu contained "Spicy chicken and Coconut Soup".. It sounded pretty interesting until it was served. It contained no chicken or coconut, a pretty drastic difference, I'd say. I ordered osso buco, one of my favorite dishes. It means "bone with a hole" and I always look forward to scooping out the marrow. But not in Blu. What I was served was the same shredded meat wrapped with prosciutto that is regularly served in the MDR under a different name. There was not a bone in sight, and the dish was not even close to the classic Milanese dish known as ossobuco .

 

If the food being offered is not what is described on the menu, the waiter should be so advised by the chef, so the diner can make an informed decision. For those who think dining in Blu is something special, I can only say "Think again"

How would you feel it the steward was interested in your income? ....if maybe you really could not afford your trip...just wanting to be sure you had not bitten of more than you could chew....so to speak?

I think these are good questions. I would be concerned with the gratuities received only because I'd want to make sure that our stewards are equitably paid.

It's too bad there are people on this forum that feel the need to be fairly sarcastic in their remarks.

Some people love Princess for offering laundry service...for me...forget it...after spending thousands of dollars on the cruise I am not spending hours sitting in a laundry......neither is my wife....although, if one of us HAD to....it would not be ME....lol

LOL!!

 

I have a buddy, and I'm not making this up, met his wife at a "Laundry Bar"

 

She owned it!

Pete...I think you are looking at this the wrong way....First it has nothing to do with you...or any other passenger and NOTHING to do with what cabin class anyone is in. It has to do with Celebrity giving a nice perk (Michael's club) to the upper level suites....with a concierge that they can actually use, since there are not that many with access.....

THEN, abruptly saying OK, now you have to share it with 3 times as many people. Some are saying that it won't be too bad but, you know people are going to pack in there.....especially before dinner to load up on free drinks. Now there are going to be friends that can now use it...and that's good but, you have to see that no one likes to be given something then be told they have to share it with several others. For me it really won't matter too much as I will have a Premium drink pass but, don't know about the reduced access to the concierge. As to things like the face recognition....come on...who does not like that kind of thing.....people remembering what you drink...using your name when you come in....I think EVERYONE likes that kind of service.

I have noted that too. It seems the "entitled" are complaining about things they thought they were entitled to and did not get and then have to put up with us riff-raff.

I have been in a suite, in Aqua, concierge class and our next cruise will be a lowly balcony but, each time we thoroughly enjoyed ourselves. We do not expect us to be better than others and certainly would not complain about not being treated special. Name recognition? Really? I would hope someone remembers my name by my actions as opposed to the status I hold. If I brushed past into a RS occupant, am I supposed to know somehow?

I am of mixed feelings on the MC issue, I would want my friends in Sky Suites to have access....will just have to see how it works out....as for your comments....getting there early does not fix a crowded room.....how long it takes to get drinks...or access to the concierge.

Get there earlier next time. Easy fix.

I don't know.....My exp was very different. I booked through Celebrity and was offered...NOTHING..after hearing about experiences of others here I did some research and the travel agent I chose offered over 2000.00 in OBC

I only used a travel agent once and that was before I knew about discounts and perks being given out. This TA never even called or emailed me to follow up on final payment. If I had not had an alert set up in my calendar I would have missed final payment and my cruise would have been canceled. Now I just book direct. When the price dropped on my current cruise that I have booked I called Celebrity after midnight Eastern time. The rep I spoke with credited my account and sent me an updated invoice. I wouldn't think of calling a TA at that hour. I saved $200 that night.

you actually found a Penthouse suite for 614/night? what was the itinerary?

You are absolutely right - I looked for the absolute lowest price per day I could find on any itinerary on any ship; there would be no way to get those types of prices on a regular basis. I'm guessing most regular prices are at least double what I listed.

I hope not as well.....jeeze...they just lower the dress code and people are trying to rip it down further......perhaps the OP would be more comfortable on one of the smaller lesser lines

I hope not and hopefully not baseball caps and T shirts.

Ontario Cruiser

You mention 3 different lines but, on some of your comments it is hard to tell what line you are talking about

We love Celebrity. We like to go on Princess for a change. We cruised on Regal this year and this is what I noticed:

 

The wine bar on our cruise had excellent service (quick, attentive, knowledgeable), better than any lounges on Celebrity. We spent a lot of time there because of this. The other lounges did not have good service at all.

 

The buffet is the nicest I've ever seen...so many choices!

Dining room (anytime) food and service were hit or miss. We had no problem getting a table after 8:30. Alfredo's was good.

 

You have to go to the shows at least 20 minutes before show time to get seats.

 

There are very few shaded areas near the pools for lounge chairs. The shade is taken up by tables/chairs. The adult pool outside the Sanctuary is very nice but that section always was too chilly/breezy for me.

 

The balconies are very narrow. Just like with Celebrity, you can get a great price on the obstructed balconies.

Come on seasearider......do we really have to be horribly offended by every little comment. That kind of need for apology reminds me of the movie Rainman...where Dustin Hoffman is relating a list of injuries and serious injuries done by the tom cruise character in the form of little hurtful comments. tough it out a bit. there are many MUCH more REALLY HORRIBLE things going on all around you, be offended by those if you must be offended

We are booked in a "Step Child" suite in March. First off, the reference to step child is so offensive in so many ways it is horrible and the OP should apologize for using this term in such a negative way.

None of their perks compare favorably against other lines

princess has the best alaska and japan it's.

 

Princess goes to glacier bay as well as college fjord.

 

The only reason i don't cruise princess is i don't have loyalty perks there compared to rccl, x, or ncl.

I think that no matter what side one falls into on this issue there will be some reduction in the quality of the MC experience for those in the upper level suites. It remains to be seen to what level the experience will be degraded. While having mixed feelings I think that Celebrity should offer something to the upper level suite pax as a compensation. Also I think they should add an assistant concierge for MC to handle the additional passenger requests

Happy to see I amused you. The cruise I am talking about is a trans-atlantic and no one gets a drink package on those sailings. As I tried to explain it is not the free drinks it is the atmosphere in Michaels that we enjoyed. Since this has not been implicated yet there is no way to know for sure how many more people will be in MC, however I don't believe (especially on a trans-atlantic) that the experience will be anything like we just had. I'm glad for you that you like noisy bars, we do not.

I might agree in most cases...however, if your are a suite traveler don't expect much other than a larger cabin......there are really no perks other than the breakfast at sabatini's which is OK but really nothing to write home about. And the 2 hours they give reduced rates on some drinks along with some very inadequate appetizers. If you are traveling balcony or lower the experience will be more similar although I think the Celebrity ships are much nicer

Go for it. ;)

The two lines are more similar than different. We have been on 7 or 8 X cruises including the s class ships. We were on Regal twice in the last 14 months. We enjoyed it. A big complaint is balcony size...small. However with research you can go for rooms with extended ones. (There are no ocean view, only insides and balcony cabins. ) S class verandah rooms are larger. You need to book a deluxe balcony or mini suite on Regal for a sofa.

Lots of restaurant venues. No charge for a couple of those. Plus a huge buffet,grill , pizza bar etc. I'm a seafood eater and Princess offers lots. We found food very good. Entertainment is very good. Happy hours a couple times a day. Drinks less costly than on X.

There are little pluses and minuses for each. You won't be disappointed.