Celebrity Eclipse 10 night sailing: Veranda vs Concierge vs Aqua

Downgrade. Just off Reflection in an Aqua cabin... very fair. The specialty restaurants were better, especially Lawn Club Grill. Main dining room was pretty great actually. Ate twice in Oceanview cuz we didn’t want to be disappointed again. Very port intensive itinerary so we didn’t use Persian Gardens at all. Liked the shower.

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This has been an interesting discussion for many reasons. One might ask why anyone would pay for "perks" they are unlikely to use? Whereas it is often nice to have a lot of extra space in a cabin, how important is it really? We are booked in a Royal Suite on the Eclipse for a two-week South America cruise in 2019 and yes it comes with a lot of "perks" and a very IMO hefty price.

There's a current thread from someone who "always" sails in either a Royal or a Penthouse and makes certain everybody knows it, too (spare me, please). We've sailed in much, MUCH smaller spaces and found them enjoyable. We have waited in line as "anytime" or "select" diners and survived that "horrible" experience...and actually spoke with some other wonderful folks while we waited (go ahead and rush to the Chinese wristwatch sale, I'll enjoy the line, thanks).

The point is: what brings you the most value? I think you know the answer and enjoy your cruise knowing you made the right decision for YOU.

I would tell you to consider CC. You typically get a better location, first day lunch in dining room, upgraded toiletries, a special shower head, snacks in the afternoon, priority boarding and a few other perks- you also get additional points that will bring you to Elite status sooner. Not worth it IMO for AQ. Blu not great and the additional perks Aqua v. CC isn't worth the huge additional cost.

You can go to speciality restaurants nightly with the money saved should you desire. Or save for other activities.

I would tell you to consider CC. You typically get a better location, first day lunch in dining room, upgraded toiletries, a special shower head, snacks in the afternoon, priority boarding and a few other perks- you also get additional points that will bring you to Elite status sooner. Not worth it IMO for AQ. Blu not great and the additional perks Aqua v. CC isn't worth the huge additional cost.

 

You can go to speciality restaurants nightly with the money saved should you desire. Or save for other activities.

I always base my decision on the cost differentials between the three. We usually pick concierge class, but wouldn't pay more that $100 per person at the most. There is a transatlantic we've been watching and the current differential cost between standard verandah and concierge class is$1000 per person. That is definitely not worth it to us! Aqua is $2000 more on that itinerary. Again, no thank you! On our upcoming cruise due to price drops we've taken advantage of, Aqua was the same cost as Concierge Class, so for us, a no brainer to take advantage of Blu. Another cruise we had booked the difference between Concierge and Aqua was $29 per person. It varies widely. You need to judge what you value and how much the cost differentials are along with the amenities. Whatever you choose, you'll be aboard great ships with great service and crews and have a wonderful time.

This has been an interesting discussion for many reasons. One might ask why anyone would pay for "perks" they are unlikely to use? Whereas it is often nice to have a lot of extra space in a cabin, how important is it really? We are booked in a Royal Suite on the Eclipse for a two-week South America cruise in 2019 and yes it comes with a lot of "perks" and a very IMO hefty price.

 

There's a current thread from someone who "always" sails in either a Royal or a Penthouse and makes certain everybody knows it, too (spare me, please). We've sailed in much, MUCH smaller spaces and found them enjoyable. We have waited in line as "anytime" or "select" diners and survived that "horrible" experience...and actually spoke with some other wonderful folks while we waited (go ahead and rush to the Chinese wristwatch sale, I'll enjoy the line, thanks).

 

The point is: what brings you the most value? I think you know the answer and enjoy your cruise knowing you made the right decision for YOU.

Many have a lot of money and don’t care about the expense and can afford it as it is what they are use to paying for the finer things.

Other feel that they owe it to themselves even though they can’t affort it because others do it and it is a “ once in the life time”

I am frugal and look for what I consider the the best value for my limited cruising. It is not be the cheapest category but what usually what I consider to be the best value for me.

On a recent cruise we met a couple that was in a sky suite. It was their first time in a suite due to a “upgrade promo”. We were in AQ. The male is a NFL hall of famer and a NFL broadcaster for Westwood One. His wife made a comment that she would now give up dining out to sail in a suite. Her husband said that he wished that he could record that.

Happy cruising 🌊🛳🇺🇸🌅

We have cruised/are cruising in all three. I wouldn't pay more than $30-45 per night premium for AQ, compared to a veranda cabin. My rationale is that difference in cost is about the same as dining in a specialty restaurant. While we enjoy dining in Blu, the MDR is also quite good. In fact, on our last cruise, we didn't opt to dine at any of the specialty restaurants because we were quite happy with the MDR. Downgrade to either a veranda cabin, or if you want the extra points (5 pts/night instead of 3 pts/night) move into a CC cabin.

We always request Select dining as we prefer to have the flexibility to dine whenever we want to. We haven't made reservations and never waited more than 10 minutes for a table, perhaps because we usually dine early. With Select dining, you can ask to be seated in the same section or move to a different section, if you don't care for the waiter/sommelier. We weren't thrilled with the wait staff or sommelier in the sections we were seated in on the first few nights of our last cruise. We asked to be seated in a different section - and were taken care of a waiter who had been our waiter on Reflection a year earlier. He was fabulous, as was his assistant and the sommelier, so we stayed in his section for the remainder of the cruise.

If you plan to cruise on Celebrity in the future, CC will get you to the next level on the Captain's Club ladder that much sooner. The extra points are the main reason I would book CC rather than a regular veranda cabin IF the cost is not more than $20-30/night higher.

The best advice I can share is to keep a close eye on the pricing for your cruise. If the prices drop before final payment is due, you can ask for the fare to be adjusted - or upgrade to a higher level cabin at the lower price. We were able to do just that for an upcoming cruise and are now in a AQ cabin for a lower cost than my original booking for a 2A cabin - and I upgrade our perks too - going from Go Better to Go Best.perks. There were three price drops within a four week period and I was able to capture the new lower fare each time because I check the prices routinely. That all happened in July, a year before our sail date. Since then the prices have steadily climbed. It is in your best interests to check the fares at least weekly - and not expect a TA to do it for you. I have never seen that happen - and would have missed out if I didn't take responsibility for doing this myself.

Enjoy your cruise!