catugirl

I agree with DragonoftheSeas...the Atlantis Resort in the Bahamas is amazing and worth checking out if you’ve never been.

My first cruise on RCCL was 2010 on Radiance OTS to Alaska.  We were so disappointed!  The food was very mediocre.  The crew in the dining room and the bars were very unfriendly.  The ship looked old and was in need of some TLC.  The entertainment was so-so.  Loved Alaska, but if this had been our first ever cruise,  there would not have been another one.

Tortola...did excursion there, and driver was getting “stoned” while he was driving around those mountain roads.  His voice volume was getting lower and lower and he was driving all over the road.  It was scary.  Plus, we only made one stop to a tiny shopping area.  Ocho Rios...the locals were extremely aggressive as we walked along to the shopping area.  Everything at the port, including drinks, were overpriced.

On our cruise January 5-10 we ate one night at a table for two in the MDR and we were less than two feet from the table next to us, so the closeness of tables is not limited to Blu.  Fortunately we enjoy talking to new people.

You’re going to love being in a suite.  I agree with the others that Michael’s Club and Luminae are wonderful.   Michael’s Club is so relaxing and a good way to meet people.  Love those complimentary cocktails, too!  The menu in Luminae is very creative and unique, and the food is delicious.  DH and I also loved having so much extra space in the cabin.  Have fun!

Recently returned from a cruise on Infinity with a friend from my childhood.  Infinity is as old as Millenium.  We were in a Concierge cabin, and the only good thing I can say about being in Concierge is we had priority embarkation.  Food in the MDR was mediocre at best.  I actually got food poison there one night and had a miserable 24 hours.  DH and I usually cruise in Aqua Class, and it is so worth the money to have a smaller, calmer dining venue (Blu) with wonderful food and to have access to Persian  Gardens.  We also liked having complimentary bottled water and iced tea in our cabin every day, and of course, priority embarkation.  We will only be cruising in Aqua Class or a suite from now on.  We will also not be cruising on an old ship again.  Infinity was not in good shape.

Sailaway at Sunset Bar (aft).  Great view of the land slowly slipping away, with a cocktail in your hand and your whole cruise ahead of you!

Solarium...so relaxing and quiet!  Don't be surprised to see scores of people passed out in their loungers from relaxation!😀

Love, love, love Aqua Class!  IMHO, Blu is far superior to MDR in menu (more creative), ambiance (quieter, less chaotic) and service (prompt, friendly, they remember your name after first day).  We also like the shower much better.  And we enjoy complimentary bottled water and iced tea in our room every day.  I know some don't care for the canapes in the late afternoon in our cabin, but we like those.  We can take or leave the sparkling wine, fresh fruit and fresh flowers.  We have only done Aqua Class on S Class ships and have loved using the Persian Gardens.

We just received a Move Up email for our January 5 cruise on Infinity.  We are in a Concierge cabin and would love to upgrade to Aqua Class, but when I saw that you couldn’t choose your cabin, I checked the location of the Aqua Class cabins onboard.  Most are under the pool or under the buffet.  As much as we would love to dine in Blu, it’s not worth the risk to possibly end up with a noisy cabin in a location we don’t like.

In Nassau, if there’s an option for an excursion to Atlantis, take it!  Atlantis is so amazing, and there are endless things to do there (i.e., dolphin encounter, water park, aquariums, lots of great bars and restaurants, amazing pools, to name just a few).

On 11/12/2018 at 2:11 AM, marcruiserswe said:

Thank you all for your answers and for the roll call tip, only 2nd cruise, so still new to this 🙂

 

Regarding the specialty dining, I didn’t know there were discounts onboard possibly, how would I check this? Is it directly with the restaurant or customer service?

 

Thanks again, it is most welcome advice!

 

Cheers!

If you’re upgrading to AQ, you might want to wait until you try Blu before you book a specialty dining package.  We have found Blu to have a wonderful, creative menu and great ambiance and service.

The inconsistencies are many on this topic.  I tried to get something...anything from my TA after price dropped a few months ago, and it was a no go.  I guess it depends on who you talk to and whether they’re in a generous mood or not!😜

Thanks, guys, for your help.

The excitement of embarkation, with the whole cruise enfolding in front of you.  Sail away at Sunset Bar, watching the land disappear in the distance.  Amazing food three meals a day without having to cook!  Being catered to and pampered 24/7.  The view of the world going by as you float along the beautiful ocean.  Being in a different country almost every day.  I could go on and on...

Your comments were helpful.  You answered some of my questions.  We’ve never cruised on Infinity and will be embarking on January 5.

We have already booked one dinner (second night) in Tuscan Grille for our January 5 cruise on Infinity.  Will we be receiving confirmation of our reservation when we get onboard, or do we need to touch base with the restaurant when we board to confirm , or just show up at the time we booked it?  Thanks for your help.

We have cruised on both classes.  For us, the S Class is more our “cup of tea.”  Both classes are awesome, and we never had a bad cruise on either, but the S Class is newer with brighter colors.  The M Class is generally darker all over the ship.  But both have the great Celebrity service and are all a cut above overall.  You can’t lose, no matter which you choose.  Enjoy!

We have used Park N Go and have also parked in the parking deck at the pier.  We prefer the parking deck.  Might be a little more expensive but is no hassle at all.  The experience pre and post cruise was easy peasy.  Walking to terminal pre-cruise was a matter of minutes.  Post-cruise, we were at our car and on our way also in minutes.

Sunset Bar at sail away...a great way to start a cruise!

We loved both.  We were in AQ in both.  Both experiences were comparable overall.  You can’t go wrong with either ship.

IMHO, it wouldn’t be worth $600 to upgrade.  You already have the Premium Drink Package, so Michael’s Club gains you nothing except a quiet place to have a drink.  DH and I prefer Blu to Luminae.  They both have a nice ambiance and great service, but we like Blu’s menu more.  There’s obviously more room in a suite, but how much time will you actually spend in your cabin?  Whichever you choose, you will have a fantastic time!

Wow, how exciting!  First cruises are SO wonderful!  And Celebrity is great.  It is upscale and the service is superior.  The entertainment, we have found, is very good.  We have enjoyed all our cruises on Celebrity on various ships.  My BFF and I are getting ready to cruise on Infinity in January.  Enjoy your first cruise and savor every moment!

DH and I took the same Canada/New England cruise on Regal Princess three years ago in a mini-suite, and I’m surprised you had a bad experience.  We had amazing food in the MDR (comparable to Blu in X’s Aqua Class), and service was excellent.  It was one of the best cruise experiences we’ve had.  We have only cruised in a regular veranda on Princess once, and the things we didn’t like were the size of the showers and the lack of a couch in the cabin.  Of course, that’s not a problem in a suite or mini- suite.

I second the suggestions for Aqua Class on X.  IMHO, even if you pay more for it, eating in Blu alone is worth it.  The food, service and ambiance are great!  And there are other good amenities to AQ.  We enjoyed complimentary bottled water and iced tea in our room every day.  We enjoyed using the thermal loungers in Persian Garden for no cost.  The fresh fruit, cut flowers and sparkling wine were nice touches.  And the priority embarkation saved us time, as the regular line to embark was very long.  DH and I don’t care for the MDR, so now we always either cruise in AQ or a suite.

I’m sure you will love Celebrity.

Thanks for the help.😊

We loved Luminae (superior ambiance, menu and service).  We noticed that people who didn’t find anything to their liking were given the option of ordering from the MDR menu.  We never made reservations for Luminae and never had to wait.