summyjaye

Congrat on upgrading to Aqua.

We were in Aqua on the Constellation on our last cruise on deck 9. If the price is right I would do it again.

Look forward to the rest of your review.

The Constellation is one of my favorite ships.

We didn't know what to expect...but I liked it! The price was right so that

also helped!

Who knew there were so many chickens in Key West!? We did a trolly tour.

If you've never been...that was a great way to see the island...especially

when it was raining.

If you have any questions or want to ask my something I didn't post...go ahead!!!!! :)

Here are the daily newsletters...As you can see...there isn't enough time to

do everything!

We never made it to the dance lessons....the art auction...the band-eoke...

the crew vollyball game (I heard this was great)...you get the idea!

There is just too much going on! So I guess that is why

we need to go on another cruise soon.

FINAL THOUGHTS

Our captain was really funny. We watched a presentation about

how the Solstice class ships were built and he was really entertaining.

To be honest...we thought this boat had some of the best cruise

food we've had!

We don't really drink pop or alcohol so the tea/coffee/water/lemonade

and juices were enough for us. We would order 1 drink at night during the

show...but that's about it...so I can't answer the drink package questions.

Would we book this cruise again? YOU BET!

CELEBRITY TODAY (NEWSLETTERS)

FOOD

Since we were booked in the Aqua class we took advantage of Blu. I was

nervous after seeing some posts about people not really happy with it.

To be honest: I actually really liked it. Now there were a few things I ordered that I really didn't like...but I was being adventurous. Overall it

was really good. I have a scallop allergy so some meals I was limited to what I could order.

The tables are close together but it didn't bother us. We actually met nice couples each time we had dinner. You never know who you might meet on a cruise.

Blu also serves breakfast. We never ate at San Marco (the main restaurant) but we did try the buffet a few times and the pool grill where they serve hamburgers and hot dogs.

The pizza on board is actually really great! I never tried the ice cream...

GASP! I know! How did that happen?

We had a few minor hiccups with room service...but it didn't ruin our cruise.

(Woke us up at 7...our breakfast didn't arrive until 9:15)

We tried the canapes. Didn't really know what to expect. It was a nice

surprise.

ENTERTAINMENT

There is just not enough time to do everything! During our cruise there was

a comedian and an impressionist. Both were good. I really liked the show

that was about dancing around the world!

Celebrity has partnered with Top Chef and do a game show on board. It was neat to watch. I couldn't participate since I have a food allergy.

We are trivia buffs so we tried out our knowledge a few times and won lanyards! We also played a fun game about tv theme songs.

They also showed some of the NFL playoff games on a big screen in one of the lounges.

We also tried our luck at BINGO! The top prize ended up being over $1000!

We didn't win...but one guy on our cruise won 2x! LUCKY!

My only complaint - there is no Putt Putt on this boat.

We did try the casino. At night it got really crowded but during the day

it was easy to play what you want. We had luck with one of the slot games!

RELAXATION

We booked this cruise as a way to relax! We spend a lot of time

in the Solarium...especially since we had some bad weather during the

cruise. The Thallasotherapy Pool is WONDERFUL! Let me repeat that...

WONDERFUL! Did you hear me!? Wonderful!

http://i104.photobucket.com/albums/m165/summy08/6_1.jpg

This is the pool!

We also had access to the turkish bath. It was ok...but I think Ken enjoyed

it more than I did.

We took advantage of the spa specials and got a massage during the port

day in Nassau.

HELLO!

My name is Summer and my husband is Ken. We've cruised before but this was our first Celebrity Cruise. The price was right...we've always wanted to go to Key West...so we thought why not! Plus it was a holiday

weekend for us.

This is us!

I'll break this review into a few sections so it's easy to follow!

Plus I'm only allowed 6 images per post! So keep reading!

EMBARKATION

We caught the boat in Ft. Lauderdale. It was really easy to board. We parked right by the terminal.

(Friendly tip: Have your passport/id available when you arrive

at the port. There are security checks before you can enter. This port

also has 3 different entrances)

THE BOAT/ ALL ABOARD

When you first step on board they give you a glass of champagne or mimosa. Classy!

This is the grand foyer where you enter the boat.

OUR ROOM

We initially booked an inside stateroom. About a week before the cruise we got a call about an upgrade. For a little more money we were able to upgrade to Aqua Class.

I guess we didn't ever take a whole room shot. Sorry...but you can look online :)

One thing I thought was funny....there was a scale in the bathroom!

We never got offered the pillow menu, there was no

face spray or qtips or cotton balls. We only got 1 bottle of

water for the whole trip. There was also a wet spot in front of

the balcony that never went away. Not complaining...just some observations.

The shower was really nice though!

We sail on Connie in Jan. This will be our first celebrity cruise. Thanks for the info and I'm glad you had a good time.

Sailing Celebrity for the 1st time. Taking the Constellation out of Ft.Lauderdale on Jan. 14th.

 

Can anyone give me advice on the best time to arrive at the pier .....late or early to avoid the long lines?

 

Does Celebrity provide robes in the cabins?

 

Where is the hairdryer located in the cabins? In the vanity/desk area or in the bathroom ?

 

THANKS SO MUCH

We will also be on this sailing - My husband and I. This is also our first Celebrity cruise. Curious to see how it compares to Disney/Royal and carnival!

I can only assume that Budweiser holds their customers hostage pushing O'Doul's which likely limits actual sales to would be consumers of a decent NA.

Claustheler, Buckler, St Pauli, Kalber & Erdinger all win out over the U.S. Brands in just about every taste test.

Go figure.

Thanks for all the heads up. I'll make sure to share with the F&B mgr for future consideration.

Can you let me know if there was n/a beer on board? That is what my husband drinks. He really likes Buckler. Thank you!

I answered this on page 5 of this thread, so I'll quote that response so I don't forget to leave anything out - - -

 

"I actually found out about closing the curtain from CC. I also found out about the forward facing OV rooms from CC as well. I discovered the rooms on the deckplans and researched through CC. A CC member wrote that she had a phone call from the front desk when she left her curtain open, but I actually received a knock on my door. What's crazy is that my curtain was only open for 5 minutes because I was showing my room to dinner table mates and they opened the curtain to see the helipad."

 

So all in all, the light from the room with the curtain open distracts the captain as it is shining on the helipad area. I think it's like driving at night with the light on inside the car, I've always heard not to keep the light on because it distracts other drivers. So I guess this is the reason, but no one explained why when they knocked on the door. Thank goodness for CC because I knew ahead of time, but forgot when I had friends come and check out my view after dinner.

Thanks for reading!

Alaina

ohhhhhh ok! :) I was wondering what the reason was for having to close the blinds! I thought maybe people could look in? Thank you for your review! :) I'm going in jan!

Why do you have to keep the blinds shut?

We are sailing on the Constellation in Jan. out of Ft. Lauderdale. This is our first time on Celebrity. Can anyone tell me about the nightlife on board?

 

Are there lounges around the ship with good music?

 

Comedy clubs? Disco?

THANKS

I was wondering the same thing. We are also on a Jan sailing.

It's me and my husband. Does anyone know what kind of

Speakers/enrichment activities are onboard? Do they show

Movies?

Thanks for the review. If you aren't a party person then you should avoid short cruises. Shorter cruises attract a younger/party crowd. A 7 day cruise attracts more families.

True! :) I was on the Sensation back in 2008 and 2009 and things have changed a lot. I don't remember it being that crazy. It's hard for my husband to take off long periods of time so that's why a shorter cruise works for us. When the party gets a little crazy we just go back to the room. no problem :)

Fun times Day 1

CONCLUSION

No cruise is ever perfect. You have to take the good with the bad. We aren't really party people and this cruise was more of a party atmosphere. I'm not sure if its the time of year or the Sensation has turned into a quick getaway party boat. If that's your thing then this is the boat for you. If you want something a little more relaxing I would try another boat.

Likes:

*Cruise Director Paul is great

*Hasbro Live - Very entertaining

*The Punchliner Comedy Club - Side note: I tried the Punchliner Cocktale...it was gross - the comedians were great!

*Sea Day Brunch - good options

*Sea Day Tea - A nice touch

*The casino - They give you a free voucher one night to try your luck

*The water park - Not just for little kids - we enjoyed the water slides too

*Bingo - Someone has to win!

*The food was pretty good

*The spa is great and they have deals - warning they will try to sell you stuff. Just say no.

Hasbro Live

On ours they played a basketball version of connect 4 and a simon game.

Tea at Sea

Red Machines

These were great to check your balance and pay off your account without having to stand in line!

Dislikes

*Dining was very slow - We waited over 30 minutes before we got appetizers

*Lines EVERYWHERE! Lunch was always the worse

*One night at dinner a table had their own phone out playing really loud pop music in the dining room. I was surprised the staff let them do this.

*DEBARKATION - This is the worse one I've ever done. We waited over 2 hours in a crowded stairway when we were suppose to be one of the first off the boat!

*ALOT of drunk/wasted people. IT is a cruise....You should expect this...but people were falling down and causing a scene.

Golf

We never got a chance to play because there weren't any balls or clubs. There was maybe 5 sets.

Overall the cruise was a good quick getaway. I'm not sure if I would pick this one again only because I'm not really a party person and I was looking for a more relaxing cruise.

Odds and Ends

IT was crazy how it could be raining in one area of the ocean and sunny in another.

Breakfast room service menu

Regular Room Service Menu

Sea Day Brunch Menu

Casino

With our booking we each got a $25 credit at the casino. They gave this to us as cash!

They had a few of these machines where you could win $2500.

A few people did win! They also had the claw games where you could win $100. Slots/blackjack/roulette/craps/texas hold em were also available. I won $150 on one slot machine.

Dining

We did the Your Time Dining. It was just me and my husband. You could ask to sit alone or with someone else. 2 dinners we sat with others and 1 we sat

alone. It was very quick and easy. We only had one problem on the last night. We had to wait around 30 minutes before we got seated.

We were very lucky to have 2 good comedians on the boat. One was Thea Vidale - Who had her own show on ABC 1993. She was great!

ENTERTAINMENT

Day 2 - Nassau

We stayed on the boat today. We took advantage of the empty boat and enjoyed the water slides/splash park on the back of the boat. It was really hot and it was nice to cool off.

We also played some logo trivia and sports trivia. We won a trophy and a medallion.

There was a Mardi Gras party that night. They had a presentation in the lobby and gave away some champagne. They also threw beads. IF you want beads go down to a lower level.

Day at sea

The boat was packed! We had the sea day brunch (I'll include the menu on here) We tried to watch the towel animal theater. It really is for little kids. At 3:00 they do a tea at sea. It's very nice in the piano lounge. We really enjoyed the Hasbro live. I tried to get on but didn't make it.

The pool

This picture doesn't do the pool justice. There was no room!!!!

The pool around dinner - still crowded

I hope you find this review helpful. I like to add things other people might not think to add or things I was curious about before I went!

Without further ado here is my review - the good the bad and everything in between. IF you have any questions please ask!

**I'm also sorry if this is a duplicate. I wasn't able to delete the first post***

***Please note: This review will be done in sections because I can only upload 6 pics at a time.***

Part 1

Parking

We used Park Canaveral. Very easy! $21 to park for the 3 day cruise. After

parking a shuttle drives you to the port. A 5 minute drive.

Parking at the port was $60. So we saved $40.

WE WOULD USE THEM AGAIN!

Enbarkation

We were at the port around 11:30. We had a priority boarding pass so we

skipped the line and went right in. Very quick and easy. Even the normal

line wasn't very busy around 11:30.

Our room

There was a special Casino offer so I booked a JR Suite with an obstructed view. V23.

The View

At night I was able to see 4 shooting stars.

CONCLUSION

No cruise is ever perfect. You have to take the good with the bad. We aren't really party people and this cruise was more of a party atmosphere. I'm not sure if its the time of year or the Sensation has turned into a quick getaway party boat. If that's your thing then this is the boat for you. If you want something a little more relaxing I would try another boat.

Likes:

*Cruise Director Paul is great

*Hasbro Live - Very entertaining

*The Punchliner Comedy Club - Side note: I tried the Punchliner Cocktale...it was gross - the comedians were great!

*Sea Day Brunch - good options

*Sea Day Tea - A nice touch

*The casino - They give you a free voucher one night to try your luck

*The water park - Not just for little kids - we enjoyed the water slides too

*Bingo - Someone has to win!

*The food was pretty good

*The spa is great and they have deals - warning they will try to sell you stuff. Just say no.

Dislikes

*Dining was very slow - We waited over 30 minutes before we got appetizers

*Lines EVERYWHERE! Lunch was always the worse

*One night at dinner a table had their own phone out playing really loud pop music in the dining room. I was surprised the staff let them do this.

*DEBARKATION - This is the worse one I've ever done. We waited over 2 hours in a crowded stairway when we were suppose to be one of the first off the boat!

*ALOT of drunk/wasted people. IT is a cruise....You should expect this...but people were falling down and causing a scene.

Overall the cruise was a good quick getaway. I'm not sure if I would pick this one again only because I'm not really a party person and I was looking for a more relaxing cruise.

The pool

The pool was a mad house! There was no room to even stick my baby toe in.

The pool was a little less crowded around dinner....a little...

Entertainment Schedule

Spa Deals

WIFI Info

Sea Day Brunch Menu

Hasbro Live

On ours they played a basketball version of connect 4 and a simon says game. IT was a lot of fun. I would def do this again. Paul the cruise director was amazing!

Odds and Ends

IT was crazy how it could be raining in one area of the ocean and sunny in another.

Breakfast room service menu

24 hour room service menu

Red machine

These are a great way to pay your onboard bill or check the total of your charges without having to stand in line!

Tea time

They had a cart of delicious snacks to choose from!

Day at sea

The boat was packed! We had the sea day brunch (I'll include the menu on here) We tried to watch the towel animal theater. It really is for little kids. At 3:00 they do a tea at sea. It's very nice in the piano lounge. We really enjoyed the Hasbro live. I tried to get on but didn't make it.