High on the Seas

Our only wait at Blu has been if we wanted a specific waiter. I think the longest wait times even then were 15 to 20 minutes. They will give you a pager and buzz you when your table is ready. We usually try to eat between 7:30 and 8:00.

They have enough bad ideas on their own. Don’t give them any help.

Remember Gordon Gekko from the movie Wall Street. Greed is good. Greed is right. Greed works. He must be advising Celebrity Cruises.

I would agree. The first few years the craft cocktails were quite good and both my wife and I could find a number of drinks we enjoyed. The latest iteration leaves something to be desired in my opinion. There rum old fashioned was my favorite, but they changed the rum several times in the past year and are now charging above the premium package cap for that cocktail. Can’t seem to win lately.

With the premium package we shouldn’t have to “get by” with drinks like this. There will always be an extra charge for some cocktails and wine but it’s turning into more the norm.

Not making sense and making strange decisions seems to be the new normal at Celebrity.

Very sad state of affairs that Celebrity has caused with reductions of covered cocktails and wines under their premium package. I am not much of a wine drinker but enjoy a glass with dinner when cruising. Can’t get too excited with what will be left with no upcharges on the premium package. I am afraid that the selection and overall quality may come up short. I do enjoy a port wine after the meal and have noticed that their 20 year is no longer covered under the premium package, just the 10 year. I guess Celebrity’s definition of being a luxury cruise line seems to mean you better be prepared to pay up if you want a decent drink or glass of wine. Happy New Year everyone!

There have been too many bad decisions lately to think Celebrity has been thinking through all of the ramifications of their changes. Cookiegate Buffet food reductions MDR food quality Room service charges Sky Suite butler changed Vaping in the casino etc.

At least if they are implementing policy to tick off their customer base can’t they at least be consistent and make everyone mad instead of a ship here and there.

To each their own. When I research a trip I determine what is important to me and what I want to see. Going to Rome and the surrounding area would require at least 4-5 days for me. I don’t need a one day trip to tell me that. I get to decide where I go and for how long instead of the other way around. Maybe not for everyone but enjoyable for me.

That is a big reason I don’t cruise the Mediterranean. A few hours in ports in Spain, Italy, Greece etc. doesn’t come close to immersing yourself in the countries culture which is important to me. Happy travels.

Or maybe none at all. After our February cruise we have 2 land vacations scheduled instead of another cruise. Able to get better pricing and visit parts of the world cruising can’t take me too.

Assuming a 1.5 oz pour you would get approx. 17 drinks out of 750 ml bottle. 2 oz pour close to 13. Nice markup for the cruise line.

I would definitely log in to the Celebrity site to “check in” if you have not yet done so. We leave 2/17 and can check in January 3rd so you should be close to getting your reserved window now if it is not already available. I think I remember in the past getting priority boarding for higher classes but the last several we have been on boarded first in, first on ship regardless of class for everything but Suites. You could also contact Celebrity to verify ahead of time.

You may be right, but a policy of drop the package price and then upcharge for drinks to make up a shortfall seems a bit ridiculous. Had they left the package price as is maybe there would be no upcharge and none of these issues.

I emailed yesterday and received a return call today. Pretty standard corporate response. Thanks for your feedback We take all concerns seriously We appreciate your loyalty to Celebrity We are reviewing your suggestions If we feel a change to our pricing is necessary will will do that. I would like to think they are getting enough negative blowback that they will do something but as long as people keep filling their cabins they have little incentive.

I don’t think it’s that hard. Instead of you paying an upcharge they put a price on the drink package to cover a drink or wine at $19, $21, $25 or whatever maximum they want. That covers their increased costs going forward assuming that is their goal. You paid for a premium package. That is reflected on your seapass card. Bar staff only know you have premium package so you don’t get charged extra no matter when you purchased the package. If you start say on January 1 everyone purchasing then knows the new pricing and buys into the cost. Previous customers don’t pay anymore than originally agreed to. No IT required to track when and how much you paid. And these up charges disappear.

Thanks for emailing her. I did the same and I hope everyone who has an issue with this does the same. It is bigger than just suite customers as it impacts all passengers. It is also bigger than just wine prices as the increases are also happening on many cocktails at the bars. For those of us who purchased the premium drink package or had it included as an amenity it is kind of a slap in the face to raise prices like this. They could have picked a date in the future and raised prices on the premium package at that point to cover the added costs. Everyone who had purchased the premium package prior to that date would be granted the upgrade at no cost to them.

20 percent

Hopefully by the time we go in February there will be a few drinks with no up charge that we can enjoy. We scheduled this cruise almost two years ago and it’s hard to believe all the changes in that time that have not been positive for the consumer. This is our last booking on any cruise line for the immediate future. We really loved getting out of the cold Michigan weather in the winter but the current pricing models no longer support the product in my opinion. We are headed to Spain and Portugal for 15 days in March and April and although I will have to pay for a few meals the cost of the trip is $1200 less than this cruise.

They serve 10 specialty cocktails at the WCB. According to the app, the upcoming Ascent sailing shows 4 of them at an up charge over the premium drink package. What’s the point in selling a premium package when 40 percent of your drinks at that bar cost more than what is covered. Since it’s inception, I have spent most of my pre and post dinner time enjoying their craft cocktails but with a B2B (14 days total) coming up I don’t what to be constantly up charged for a drink. By the time we board, it wouldn’t surprise me if many of the martinis at the Martini bar had an up charge.

Can you post the menu?

Anyone have a current menu of the drinks at the World Class Bar to see the pricing?

Wee will be gone for 2 weeks.

Thanks. Looks like my best options will be Park n Go or the Palm Garage.