LAKaye

I have been reading, as all of us have, the many threads about the quality of the days gone by. Does anyone at all remember the early days of Celebrity Cruises, back when they were owned by Chandris (where the "X" comes from)?

Not that many years ago, the key in the kitchen for Celebrity was that everything was made from scratch--there were no pre-fab mixes in the galley. Was it the chef Michele Roux or was that concept in place before the idea of a name-brand chef per cruise line?

Every little thing was mixed in the fabulous galley. This meant far less salt. My blood pressure was never a problem for that glorious week....I miss that.

On another change-related subject, I am paying today, in 2009, the same amount, per person per week, for a balcony room on RCI as I did for a comfy, ocean-view room on Deck 5 on the Zenith in 1995 (she had no balcony rooms). Hmm.

Looking back on the years, I would have liked to have had the price go up 5% each year, and maintain the high cruising standards of the mid-90s, than to have had disappointment rule, as it has had lately over my family:

For the first time in 20 years, we have no cruises reserved on RCI. We are tired of cruising with the mainstream lines. The exceptional-factor is gone. Schlepping our food to the Outer Banks is actually easier this year than going to the Freedom, as we did in November of 2007...

I would have liked to have booked a cruise for us all again....but can you believe that they just weren't wowwed enough?

Leslie, wandering and disappointed

These balconies are triangular, but I wouldn't say that they are really any more square footage than those of the adjacent staterooms.

Leslie

Hey All:

 

Has anybody stayed down on deck 3 on the Freedom of the Seas, or her sister ships? I am in 3562, and it looks like I'm right next to they Crypt. Will I be listening to pounding all night long?

 

Or will it be ok. And I'm worrying for nothing. Please let me know.

 

Thanks,

Jack

Hey Jack,

I think that you should go back over to the RCI forum and post a new thread headed something like "Freedom of the Seas Room 3562/Near Crypt anyone?" and ask your question. Your original thread sort of makes it seem as though you are still shopping around for a stateroom, when in fact you need advice about Freedom Deck 3 near The Crypt, which really can get the best exposure on the other board. Too bad that second poster sent you over here to the slow lane. :o

Good luck~~

Leslie

Does anyone have an opinion about #8686? It is a corner aft stateroom, classified as a Junior Suite. On the deck plan, it appears to be wider than it is deep, and the balcony seems to be large when compared to those of other JS staterooms. Does it have a sitting area? I have booked aft staterooms before and haven't had any problems with soot, so I didn't know that it was an issue with this ship. Last month we sailed on Freedom, RCI's biggest ship, so it seemed appropriate to try Empress, their smallest ship. Should be interesting, and it sounds like an wonderful itinerary. I consider any cruise to be a great cruise, so I am sure we will enjoy it. We sail on February 26.

Yes, this stateroom is sideways and its balcony is rather wide. It is not on the corner of the ship, though. The aft corners of the Empress are exterior staircases, for the use of the crew. However, on several sailings on the Empress, I have seen passengers sitting out there enjoying a quiet place on the ship. The wall is wide between this stair area and the balcony of 8686, so I wouldn't worry about people peering around into your private space.

Soot can be a problem on the aft of the Empress, so don't leave your favorite beach towels or swimsuits out there to dry. Also don't step out there wearing a white dress shirt. The soot is only an occasional problem, but it is good to know about it beforehand.

Bon Voyage~~

Leslie

Gads~~the dreaded white screen followed by double post! Sowwy!

Leslie

Lesley~~

Of all of the regular staterooms on the aft of the Empress, the center one on Deck 7 has a wider balcony than the others (7690). None of them have a sitting area that I remember. If you want to stick with the D1 category, try to get this stateroom in order to get the biggest bang for your buck. I still chuckle to think that back when I sailed in these staterooms aft, they were sold as a JS!!

I have a fear that you will be disappointed at the size of any of the staterooms on the Empress because of your cruising history. The Empress is a wonderful ship, but staterooms are very small compared to others in the RCI and Carnival and HAL fleet. Do search high and low for photos and other info on the Empress so you know what you are booking.

We sailed on this ship this past spring out of Philly, and we had a great time---our fourth time on the Empress. I did insist though that we book a JS/balcony on the side of the ship, not the aft. Also, a few weeks ago, we sailed on the Explorer of the Seas (5 nights) to Bermuda; we were in a JS that was a night and day difference from the JS on the Empress---massively huge.

My final two cents: I would go after a Radiance-class vessel for a special occasion, regardless of its itinerary. 25th anniversary is pretty special---congratulations regardless of which cruise line/ship/stateroom you choose.

Bon Voyage~~

Leslie

My five things that would be a pain to buy:

8 feet of thin cotton line (some balcony doors)

earplugs

my favorite hair conditioner

extra plastic hangers

ziploc bags

DBFs:

travel humidor

power strip

extension cord

GPS

his favorite hair gel

Our crazy friends travel with a collapsible window squeegee to clean their balcony window/walls. They bought it in the KMart at Charlotte Amalie and never cruise without it now!

Leslie

She definitely still has that vibration thing going.

At the Captain's Corner talk, people were asking about "that noise and vibration" during the 2nd seating dinner on the first night out of Philadelphia. The captain answered something to the effect that it is an old ship with twin propellers, not azipods. So when the ship is in the shallow Delaware there is something about how they have to change speeds and do certain things to get the ship through particular spots, so there is this vibration due to maneuvering through difficult waters. I think I got that mostly right.

I had heard about that business of the major vibrations during 2nd seating dinner thanks to people here on Cruise Critic. I was the only one at dinner that night who kept on eating and was not freaked out. People at my table calmed down when I said it happens every week and just kept eating.....:)

Leslie

PS When I sailed on her in 1995 out of Miami, and also 2002 out of NYC, I don't remember any vibrations......2001 out of Phily is a blurr. That was the fall of 9-11.

I agree that it's a bit misleading to call it a JS, but the dimensions and layout of the cabin ARE on the website.

Yes indeed, the layouts are on the website, and for the Empress Junior Suite, they show a room that has a bathroom with a bathtub!

The first of five times that I have sailed on the Empress was back in 1995; those first four cruises, we had Category Cs, as they were called, on the aft end of the ship. I foolishly thought that those staterooms, with their showers-only bathrooms, were the exception, because they were on the aft.

Looking at the 2003-2004 brochure one can see that the Category Ds of that year are staterooms that today are sold as SO superior ocean view staterooms. They don't have balconies.

As for the cruise, it was a good one. We hadn't sailed on her since 2002, and we were a bit surprised by some of the changes. There is now a Portofinos where the conference room used to be. The casino has been reduced in size and no longer occupies the space on Deck 5. That is where the photo gallery and Lattetudes and Ben and Jerry's is. The oddest change is that the upper level of the Viking Crown Lounge is now the fitness center, which was moved from the Spa area a deck below.

Keith Williams, of Sovereign Drydock fame, was the cruise director on this sailing, but he is leaving very soon to go to the Vision. "Lucky Leanne" Hastie was his assistant. Captain Frank Martinsen was commanding the vessel.

Our Cruise Compasses are still buried in the bottom of one of our suitcases, but I think I remember that muster drill was at 2:45 or 3PM. It had been scheduled for 2:30, but they pushed it back at least once to allow for getting all of the embarking passengers onto the ship. We embarked on a Saturday.

The Meet and Mingle was on Sunday at 1:30 PM in the Viking Crown Lounge; very many prizes were awarded. I believe we had a turnout of two dozen people. Leanne hosted the affair. Juice and iced tea, canapes were served.

Leslie

Doug~~

Thank you for bringing up the point about the cruise credit. I feel better about it all in light of what you said.

Leslie

No. No tub. Very small closet. The room and its balcony were the very same size as the Cat E we had two months ago on the Radiance. The Cat D we had on the Serenade was larger than this Junior Suite we just had on the Empress.

On the Empress we were in Stateroom 9154; I peeked into other JS on the way out this morning. All are the same small room as we had.

Leslie

We returned today from a very nice 7 night cruise on the Empress of the Seas. However, I just don't understand why Royal Caribbean markets those balcony staterooms as Junior Suites.

Compared to other ships, from the Sovereign class on up the line, a Junior Suite is usually of a certain size and has a large-ish bathroom with a bathtub. Not so on the little Empress. The room and balcony is very typical of either a Cat D or Cat E balcony; the bathroom is the usual tiny size---the shower and its stick-to-you curtain the smallest in the fleet.

Why do they do this? Why do they call this stateroom a Junior Suite. They could call it a Category D, be consistent with the rest of the fleet, and still charge whatever they need to. I am disappointed and shaking my head.

Leslie