foodsvcmgr

My experience on Eclipse last month was that the everyday steak option was of acceptable quality and not excessively tough or fatty. Also cooked as ordered MR. I am not a fan of the seasoning they use when cooking it though, too much Adobo for my taste.

It would appear that they do not. Like many places worldwide, they may be turning against cruise traffic. Rather than fight onerous regulations and bad attitudes, I think the cruise lines are correct to withdraw. As a passenger, I’m not eager to sail where I’m not wanted. No interest in disembarking with protesters on the pier as encountered in Key West, Venice, etc.

The email specifically stated that “as a Concierge guest you are invited to arrive anytime after 11am to enjoy the lunch at leisure”.

Kwokpot has summed it up. On Eclipse last month the salmon was quite nice. We had a 12:30 checkin but received an email a few days ahead to come anytime after 11, so we were onboard prior to the lunch opening which was ideal.

Not HAL, but just disembarked Celebrity Eclipse last week. Our itinerary was just two days of scenic cruising, during which we went from Paradise Bay on the first day to Elephant Island the next with no difficulty whatsoever exactly as scheduled. This is an NCL issue, there are lots of stories on cruise news sites about them constantly changing itineraries, dropping ports, etc. lately around the world with little or lame explanations.

I believe what they were implying is that a similarly sized ship if designed by a mass market line with smaller cabins packed with upper berths for families could theoretically hold far more passengers. Whereas Cunard chose a more upscale layout with more suites, limiting the total passengers.

Understood, we sail in standard verandas so have no complaints with the current arrangement. I don’t care if suites have their own restaurant as it doesn’t take anything from me like restricted forward facing decks and lounges do on some newbuilds today.

I understand that HAL is behind the times/competition on suite amenities, “ship within a ship”, etc. But for those in the regular cabins and balconies it seems to still offer a decent somewhat upscale product. Hopefully they will find some direction with entertainment again in the not too distant future. Once they establish a clearer trajectory and market segment would be a more appropriate time for newbuilds. In reality if the average age is under 20 years, how many new ships does any line truly need to add right now?

As my photos showed, I agree fully with zitsky. A few nicks and scratches here or there but certainly nothing tired or worn out. Plus an absolutely outstanding crew in all areas. No need to wait for a drydock unless your main interest is searching for issues rather than having an enjoyable cruise.

Thank you John, hopefully only a few more weeks till the official release. Appreciate all your advance detective work!

Since the initial announcements, any updates official or unofficial regarding the itineraries or expected release date for bookings?

Just off Eclipse, the wine was in the refrig and the canapés arrived daily around 3:00pm unless you turned them down. Although 12:30 was the earliest time we could select, a few days before sailing we received an e-Mail that Concierge could arrive anytime after 11. We boarded shortly after noon and the lunch was served 12:30-2:00.

Currently is Michael Sympouras, but I suspect he may take a break between the South America and Bermuda seasons.

Just disembarked Saturday. Overall ship is maintained in excellent condition. If you care to look very closely there are some worn furnishings, chipped tiles, etc. The MDR menus are varied, quality is ok to quite good. Oceanview has a huge selection, quality varies. The friendliness of the crew is outstanding, no staff shortages evident. Officers out walking everywhere. The library sadly has only maybe 25% of its shelves filled with books and is mostly used as a nap room! I would not hesitate to sail this ship again.

Thanks for your detailed review. We were also on this cruise, our first time back on Celebrity since 2018. We had some concerns reading CC that things had really deteriorated. The ship was overall in very good shape, especially for having missed the refurb. Sure, a few dining room chair arms were rough but nothing of concern. MDR food choices were varied and ranged from decent to very good. Oceanview offered huge variety of varying quality. Tuscan was bad, steaks burned then raw. Entertainment outstanding with the familiar aerialist features. Cruise director Manuel the best I’ve seen in 65+ cruises. Excellent guest speaker program. Overall a great cruise with unusually good weather to experience these areas, such as sunrise at Cape Horn, rarely seen. A great value for fare paid.

Brochure photo of the first ship I cruised on, Italian Line “Leonardo da Vinci”. Each of the three classes had their own pool, lido deck, and pool bar aft. Segregated yes, but everyone still could access desirable outdoor space.

Hopefully this is one of the problems Celebrity is claiming they will make significant improvements on by the next embarkation on 1/20.

Got it, thanks.

Apparently it is because I also received it today for sailing Eclipse next week even though I completed check in via the website weeks ago and have both printed and e-boarding passes for 12:30pm in my hand already.

As Dutchman has experienced, sometimes the table configurations change from sailing to sailing. That’s why I tend to request a general location, i.e “a two top along the railing” as opposed to a specific number.

QV September 2-9, Rome to Barcelona September 4 - Black & White September 6 - Masquerade

Why pay and then dread it? Cancel while you can.

We will be on the next sailing, I hope they use these two weeks to figure out possible improvements. Not looking promising for the Concierge lunch lol…… Thanks for the info and enjoy the rest of your cruise!

Even if that is the tone of meetings in Seattle I am extremely surprised that anyone in an official capacity would say that to a guest inquiry!

Just booked September 28th - 13 days Seattle to Yokohama, glad it’s not going to be a first sailing out of drydock.