Cdresser

I know on my Edge cruise in December the minimum bids reported for Edge Villas were different and I think that reflected the price each of us paid for our original cabin.

Also, the premium beverage package only covers drinks up to $15. If the drink is more than that you pay the difference plus 20% gratuity.

The food in the rooftop garden was good, but not worth the upcharge IMO. I was in a suite that included specialty dining so we tried them all. Eden, Finecut, and Raw on 5 were outstanding and I would feel they were worth the extra money. 

Yay for you and the skydiving! I have to admit, when you were being sly about your Key West plans I thought you might be going to the clothing optional bar <g>.

Thank you for the pics. It looks like it would be perfect for one person. I like that the bed is not just a single. One woman we talked to on the Edge was irate about not having any drawers in the room but it looks like the shelving would work just fine if it were me.

We did this on the Millenium in July. We were able to pay for just the workshop without getting the glasses (although they offered the glasses at a "discount"). There was just one other couple doing the tasting with us so we got very personal attention and we really enjoyed the experience. It really is amazing how different the wines taste in different glasses.

I can also attest to the amount of public open seating on deck 16. We had an Edge Villa with entrances onto deck 15 and 16. We often used the exit on deck 16 through the retreat because it was the easiest access to the smoking area between deck 14 and 15. I don't recall this area ever being very populated.

I sailed on Edge the second week of December and Infinity the 3rd week and didn't notice any Christmas music. A few christmas but no accompanying sound.

Great blog! I haven't sailed on an "S" class ship yet so this was really helpful (and entertaining).

So sorry for your loss.

We were on Infinity in December and ate at sushi on 5 several times. The service and food was lovely as always.

19 hours ago, George C said:

We are on infinity next week so I assume we will not get one , but sailing again after retrofit.

We were in a royal suite on Infinity in December right after we came off of being in an Edge Villa on the Edge. Infinity did not have the frette robes - monogrammed or otherwise.

I don't know if they come in children sizes, but I am 5'0" and was happily surprised to find that mine fit. Having read posts on this board, I knew ahead of time to leave extra space in my luggage for them. DH and I love ours and it is another great reminder of a spectacular vacation.

We usually tip our butler and room attendant $100 each at the end of the cruise. One cruise our room attendant in aqua class disappeared after the third day and we were shuffled around with substitutes for the remaining days so we did not leave a tip there. We have given $10-20 at the end of the cruise to bartenders and wait staff who gave us personalized service. I am a smoker and if I see one crew member consistently cleaning that area for the cruise then I will make sure to tip them $20 at the end of the cruise. I also tip $20 mid-way through the cruise if there is a crew member consistently taking and filling drink orders from the smokers. On my last cruise, I tipped the Michaels Club concierge $40 because I had called upon his assistance for a number of things during the cruise.

In addition, I recently learned that flight attendants and cruise crew like to get chocolate/candy. I have started giving small bags of candy to flight attendants and their delight is made plain through their expression and the service I receive from them. On the last 2 cruises, we gave our butler and room attendant a large bag of chocolates on the first day. I also gave chocolates to the Retreat concierges and the Michaels Club concierge. All of the people we gifted with chocolates were surprised and happy to get them - and some of them told us they "bragged" about us to their fellow crew members.

During the cruise, I make sure to address the crew by their names and give a smile to anyone I happen to encounter. It costs me nothing to acknowledge and give respect to a fellow human being. I'm having the time of my life when I'm on a cruise, why not share that joy with others?

Finally, I make sure to fill out the post-cruise survey and mention by name the people who stand out during the cruise.

2 hours ago, WrittenOnYourHeart said:

 

 

 

Thanks all!! 
 

I have not decided if I am going to try for any specialty dining. I have had Eden booked a couple of times but cancelled. I may go have a chat and see what a non-fish and gluten-free dinner would be like and if I like it and there is space may book that. I would love to do the dinner on the Magic Carpet, but I know that is popular and limited so not holding out much hope.

Looking forward to your review. I started a semi-live blog for my trip in December and I still need to finish it out. If you can work something out with the chef at Eden I *highly* recommend the experience. If you want some "entertainment" during the meal, ask for a table where you can see the kitchen. If you can't work out an appetizing menu for Eden, I also highly recommend FineCut for a special dinner - I am still dreaming about the mint sauce for the lamb. The only dining experience we did not try on our cruise was dinner on the magic carpet - and after hearing about it we were so glad we did not do it. Everyone we talked to who did the magic carpet dinner was disappointed (some even angry) about it. The comments we heard were: so-so food, crowded, slow service, and uncomfortable due to weather. We also heard that they were so undersold they were offering it for free about an hour before it started (not sure if that is true).

In an RS suite on Infinity right now. We requested and have received a detox smoothie every morning. I wasn't sure we could get this because the spa cafe is farther away than any of the restaurants but our butler didn't bat an eye. We also have our desserts sent to our room after dinner. This was never a problem both times on Infinity, but we received a little pushback from restaurant staff on Edge when we were in a villa and they finally agreed to contact our butler who delivered it happily. Our butler on Edge only had 6 suites to service while our butler on Infinity has 13 to 18. So, as often in life, YMMV.

On her right now. The ship decor could use some TLC but the staff is excellent. The Captain really cares about his passengers and it shows. The food has been very good, but we are in the royal suite so have only done luminae, oceanview, specialty dining, and morning detox smoothies from spa cafe. 

We've had a couple of days of rough weather and the crew and staff have been going the extra mile trying to compensate for it. The cruise director has really been on top of things and rescheduled activities and venues to better suit the conditions.

As for drink suggestions, the Planter in Eden is on the premium package and yummy. If you eat at Eden, Adrian the sommelier is stellar and will make recommendations for by the glass wines that are within the package pricing. The martini bar is also a good place to try out craft cocktails. Cheers!

At least you have Arsim looking out for you, he is fantastic. I hope all gets straightened out for the Chef's Table.

I am a bit behind in this blog (the cruise is over), but I'll keep working my way through the days and pretend I am still there (I like this kind of pretending). 

Day Four

This morning we arrived at Costa Maya. Since DH and I had never been there, we went ashore even though we knew it was pretty much just a shopping port. It was, but I had a little bit of shopping I wanted to do so this worked out fine for me. 

The night before, I had stopped by the Port Shopping Desk on the ship and talked to Danielle. I knew from past experience that getting one of the handy-dandy VIP cards for shopping in jewelry stores really pays off. I had lost one of my tanzanite earrings before the cruise and wanted to get a replacement. Danielle recommended we get to the store early because there were going to be a lot of ships in port and that she'd would be there as well to help if we needed it. Her advice and assistance paid off because we were able to get earrings at a good price. The people at Diamonds International did try to upsell us but we politely stood firm with our original choice and they respected that.

We did not linger in port long after our jewelry store stop because the crowds were getting thick and the vendors very pushy. 

Back on board, we grabbed a light bite to eat at Oceanview. We went to the Retreat bar to get a drink but it was very crowded so we took our drinks with us to the smoking area. I will say, in spite of the crowd, it was worth the trouble because I discovered the retreat bar makes the best Moscow Mule on the ship (IMO).  

We met up with friends we'd made in the smoking area (smoker's are generally very social people) and spent the afternoon enjoying their company. Our server, Oscar, took great care of us the entire cruise and our little group had quite a fun afternoon. 

Dinner that night was in Eden. We got there early and requested a table where we could watch the chefs work in the open kitchen. For us, that is the equivalent of dinner and a show. It was especially fun for us since we met Chef Armando and some of his staff the day before. 

The dinner was nothing short of spectacular. Our service was spot on and the sommelier, Adrian, was the best I have ever had - on a ship or anywhere else. I did not have wine, I stuck with my cocktail, the Planter, from the Eden bar upstairs, but I did take of sip of DH's wine pairing with each course and they were perfect - and within the beverage package parameters. Eden serves a 5 course meal with 2 choices for every course so DH ordered the left side of the menu and I ordered the right and we shared tasted with each other so we could try everything (except one course which had an ingredient I'm allergic to). 

We talked about it during the meal and both DH and I rated the dinner as one of our top five dining experiences - with all five tied for first place. That list for us includes Morimoto, Wolfgang Puck, Bryan Voltaggio, and Joel Robuchon. We made sure to convey that message to our server so he could share the compliments with the kitchen staff.

Earlier in the afternoon we made plans with our new friends to meet up at 10:30 for White Party on the Resort Deck. After a liquid afternoon and a beautiful meal, I had to push myself to last that long. I was not alone. Some of our group showed, some didn't make it, and we only gathered long enough to say we made it, then headed to bed about 10 minutes later. I was *almost* too tired for the hot tub but stayed awake long enough to enjoy it, not fall asleep in it, and fall happily into bed. 

An early night was a good thing because we had a busy day planned for Cozumel starting in the morning.

I think the wines available vary by ship. We just came off the Edge where we had a villa. We requested and received Rosa Regale sparkling wine (it goes perfectly with the chocolate strawberries).

Day Three

This was our first sea day on the Edge. We started the day with breakfast at Luminae since we didn't have anything we had to rush off to that morning. As usual, the service and the company of people around us was good. The food was a little disappointing - it was good, just not what I expected for corned beef hash and huevos rancheros. 

After breakfast we went to get our picture taken with Gail Simmons and Marcus Samuelsson - the special guest Moveable Feast guests. They were both very nice and personable and since we are fans of theirs, it was great to know they are as nice in person as they are on TV.

After that I headed to the purse store because I wanted to get a wristlet/clutch purse if they had something I liked for a reasonable price. I was pleasantly surprised they had some of the Coach purses on sale and I found one that works perfectly for me. It was a little more than I would normally pay for a purse, but I have some OBC to spend so I splurged on myself a little. Thankfully DH didn't mind (in fact, he was the one who found it for me). Shopping trip complete, we headed to Eden for the private cooking class with Gail Simmons we had booked before the cruise.

I had high hopes for the cooking class and it really exceeded my expectations. We started with a glass of champagne, then we put on the white aprons embroidered with the Moveable Feast logo and Celebrity logo which we got to keep as a momento of the experience. They also had tall white paper chef hats for everyone to wear. Gail Simmons walked us through making lamb meatballs which we got a chance to sear off in the Eden kitchen. The Eden staff then cooked the rest of the dish while we were served the appetizer of the 3 course lunch. Each course was perfectly paired with a wine (I am so impressed with Adrian, the sommelier at Eden, and he wowed us again at dinner the next night). While we ate, Gail and Armando - the executive sous chef for Eden - visited with each table and answered all our questions. I am not a great cook, but I admire great food so the experience was well worth it to me.

I planned to write this blog that afternoon but got caught up chatting with new friends and hosting some in our suite. 

Dinner that night was in the Rooftop Garden. I was a little hesitant to book it because it is an outdoor venue, but since the specialty dining is included with our suite I wanted to try every restaurant. I dislike wind and rarely eat outside because of that. The windscreens installed in the Rooftop Garden definitely make a difference. There was a light breeze - enough to keep the temperature pleasant without disrupting the meal. Good food, good service, fantastic seared bronzino. On the whole, however, I would recommend Fine Cut over Rooftop if I were paying out of pocket for the venue.

We finished the night in the Club. We loved the Boogie to Broadway music set and the 1920's speakeasy show. We've been very pleased with the dance opportunities at this venue and as the cruise has progressed, more people have discovered it. I would say it is popular but not too crowded to dance and enjoy the music.

Finally, we ended our evening in what is now our traditional way, bathing in the hot tub under the stars on our balcony. 

Bravo!

3 hours ago, Schmoe38 said:

If it helps, I did a review of Edge Villa 15106, complete with pictures, on the top of this page under the Edge Class Cabin information sticky. It is on Page 5.

 

Randy

Thanks for doing the review, it's very helpful for those people trying to decide if a villa is a good choice for them.

I can confirm the info on the TV, the robes, and the luggage valet are still valid. We thought we would have to ask for the robes because that has happened with upper level suites on other ships but they had them ready for us when we first walked in. We used them for 4 days then they took them to be laundered so we could pack our fresh, clean robes and gave us plain ones to use for the last 3 days.