DingoMom

On Beyond now, and here s what it says about the luggage valet when we get to FLL:

Alert! I am currently on the Beyond (boarded yesterday) and I can confirm that all wines over $17 are charged the price difference plus a 20% gratuity. I checked with the Luminae sommelier and had an extensive conversation with the very sweet Retreat Lounge bartender. She said that 2 cruises ago, they were told that they must charge the price difference. She HAS my favorite white (Mer Soleil). I have the PDP, and if I want MER Soleil, I pay $2.40 per glass.

@Cjonthesea - which ship? Thanks in advance!

Please call Celebrity’s Special Needs Group at (954) 628-9708.

You can certainly arrange for a complimentary wheelchair from the port to the ship. I recently used the service following surgery on a broken ankle, and am glad I did. The gangways can be pretty darn steep, and avoiding the possibility of a fall while dealing with mobility issues is important!

A real balcony, BUT…on my cruise last month on Ascent, I asked for a lounger (sunbed) for my balcony (there was enough room) and was politely told ‘NO.’ Apparently you need a Sunset Sky Suite or a Sunset Veranda to get a lounger.

Ok, Lemmee throw this out there. When I purchased the PDP, I paid a 20% gratuity. While I think the upcharges are RIDICULOUS, I also think it is uncalled for to add an ADDITIONAL gratuity for the $2 more per glass wine. It is no extra effort, time, or cost for the server or sommelier or bartender to pour this wine in a glass than to pour me a glass of swill that is on my package. Silly Celebrity. SMH.

Yes! Curacao is a great port! If you don’t have mobility issues, it is a fun place to walk around their little downtown area! (It is quite a bit of a walk, but no ‘level changes’ if you do have mobility issues.)

@Terre, thank you for a wonderful, informative, and objective trip report! We board the Beyond on Sunday, and your report has me more excited than ever!

6 hours ago, Diav said:

Hi all, we are on the Apex now. The wine list in Luminae is very poor, imho, and the wine stewards say we shouldn’t tell them but send an email to HQ. 

 

if you’d like me to check out something in the bars or otherwise, let me know.

 

 

 

Hi, Diav! If you get a chance, can you please take a picture or otherwise post the wine-by-the-glass list (esp PDP) in Luminae with prices? TIA.

11 hours ago, DaKahuna said:

 I still think they are talking around the issue.  If someone orders a glass of Decoy Cabernet  or Conundrum Blend  in Luminae is there going to be an up charge or not?  I still don't see an answer to this in their communications.  There was no upcharge for either on our last cruise but now both appear to be $19 vs $17. 

 

@DaKahuna  and @richczarnecki, last month I was on Ascent. I used to drink Mer Soleil by the glass on the PDP, especially in Luminae. Now it is Not on the Luminae wine menu. I asked about it, and the Sommelier said it was certainly available, but would be a $2.40 upcharge. As I recall, the old ‘good reds’ (Decoy and Conundrum blend) are Not on the Luminae wine menu. Therefore, although Laura is correct that the wines ‘on the menu’ are included, the wines on the menu are quite substandard. So, in my experience on the Ascent, you WILL be charged $2.40 if you want a decent glass of wine.

I am on the Beyond next week, so I will investigate our questions there!

HAPPY NEW YEAR! 🥂🍾🎉

When we went in December, it was literally a zoo…and ‘hyenas’ would be an apt description. There were LONG lines, yet people were butting in and acting like they had no idea that there were lines. Most of the food was pretty good, but the lobsters were NOT. They were tiny Caribbean lobsters, and they had been cooked in such a way that it was IMPOSSIBLE to get the majority of the meat out. It all stuck inside the tail no matter what you tried to remove it. Moreover, the folks that got there early parked at their tables for the entire meal (even after they were finished eating), so seating after 12:20 was terribly hard to find.

17 hours ago, HMR74 said:

Many moons ago, in college, we used to pre drink before going bar hopping. Sved big bucks. Then milked a cheap beer.

 

Long day today in Western North Carolina. I was just catching up on this thread when I read this post by @HMR74. I swear I read the last sentence as: 

Then milked a cheap bear.

Thank you for the deep belly laugh!! 🤣🤣🤣

As far as I know, all the products in the spa have the additional 20% added. (The retail shops do not, of course.) one of my biggest eye-opening experiences was when I got some Botox on a cruise, and the ‘spa doctor’ added an additional 20%. Never heard of a gratuity on a service offered by a MEDICAL provider.

@chengkp75 Thank you. I always learn great things from your posts!

2 hours ago, TourDeCruise said:

 

Was your cruise the December 10th Ascent cruise? And you will be on the January 8th Beyond cruise? We are heading up to Retreat right after boarding and putting luggage in cabin and see if they upcharge for Mer Soleil. If so, the Steel Chardonnay is good and on the Premium package and we have a few more wines that we like too on the Premium package without an upcharge.

Yes, it was and I will! Will try to meet up with you in the Lounge. I will have to go by the Muster Station and try to arrange our Specialty Dining first, though!

I have found that if I use my tablet, and make the ‘page’ really big, I can control the slider quite well! Hope this helps!

We always take additional gratuities when we eat in a Specialty Restaurant for the server and sommelier. If they provide great service (which most of them do), we hand it to them in a handshake at the end of the meal. On rare occasions, we have skipped the additional gratuities just described.
 

When Celeb increased the Speciality Restaurants and added the 20% service charge, I no longer tip on every occasion.

I am confused!

18 minutes ago, Rmoosh said:

So I’m wondering how the conversation went about the upcharge ? Were you offered another option in the premium package ?

They had very few (most restaurants had NO) white wines in the premium package that did NOT have an up charge. White wine in the classic package was easy to find. I wish I had copied the white wine list. As far as I recall, most of the white wines were in the $10 - $12 range, there was one for $13, and the next price point was $19. 
(Note - the reds had more variety and many more price points, some of which were clearly in the premium package without a surcharge.)

On 12/21/2023 at 11:01 PM, TourDeCruise said:

 

We will be on Beyond on January 8th and will see if there are surcharges in Retreat. Mer Soleil is our usual Chardonnay onboard. We were able to get it in the Retreat on the Ascent Maiden Voyage without a surcharge (only had at beginning of cruise in Retreat) 

I was on the second sailing of the Ascent, and Mer Soleil was an up charge in Luminae and I THINK in the Retreat Lounge. Will be on the Beyond with you in January, so we’ll find out together! 

Like OP, I am loving this ship and this cruise. We have eaten at Rooftop Garden Grill and Fine Cuts. Both were Exceptional. The filet at Rooftop was marvelous! We try Eden tonight.

Note - this is a Celebrity issue, not (just) an Ascent issue. I am NOT impressed with the wines included on the ‘premium’ package. Every wine I used to enjoy is now at least $2 per glass over the ‘premium’ limit of $17 per glass. In the olden days, the sommelier kept refilling my glass when the wines I enjoyed were on the package. Now they let it get empty as they are apparently measuring ‘by the glass’ for those that want an upgrade to the included wines.

The staff / crew that we have talked to all got on in October, and their contracts seem to end as early as March and as late as May.

I’m on board now, too. Shine the Light was last night, so Day 4 of 7. 

On Edge, they also had the games on the big screen near the pool.

If you earn Amethyst status on play this calendar year, that status would be good for the REST of this period (currently Dec 31) and for all of the next period, which starts on Jan 1. (I am not sure how long the next period is. It used to be for a year. CoVid changed the length of the period.)

On the ship, you can periodically check with the casino host/hostess to get updates on where you stand.

Have a great cruise!

Happy Birthday, Jim! Hope you have a wonderful day! 🎉🎂🎈🍾🥂