Constellation Review from a 3 Time S-classer

[JAMESFALLETTA]

I submitted this review of Constellation April 7th (14 day Caribbean) to CC but thought I'd post here and try to be available for questions. In summary, we had a great time and got a good deal, but we prefer S-class.

 

 

 

 

Good for the price paid, but don't expect Solstice Class

 

Experienced cruiser in early 30s traveling with my wife, mother-in-law, and parents. Got a pretty good deal on this 14 day itinerary compared to later 2012 14 night sailings on Eclipse.

Cabin

 

Went with inside cabins as balconies were 2x the cost and smaller than S-class, so we didn't see value in paying up. The cabin was small compared to industry standards, and it showed it's age despite being recently "updated." No room to enjoy room service, bathroom showed rust, and room was dusty. You could hear any noises coming from the hallway and above (ocean liners?) quite easily. Deck 2 aft location was terrific to avoid elevators on port days.

 

One cabin in our party was laid out sideways instead and this had much more space than the other 2 insides.

 

On the second-to-last day of the cruise, we had a pipe burst in the ceiling of our cabin, and water dripped heavily inside. We were in the room at the time and our steward had maintainance on the scene quickly. It put us out for 2 hours. We were told it was fixed, then it started again, and finally we asked to move our room. They found an empty oceanview cabin for us. That cabin was much larger with better air conditioning. We asked an officer to comp us dinner that evening in Tuscan Grill and that was not a problem. Luckily we were leaving the next day so we just packed our suitcases a day early and switched cabins.

 

Public Rooms

 

The work very hard to maintain the condition of the ship, but time does take it's toll. Chairs in the main dining room need to be replaced. Scratches and no arm rests compared to S-Class. The Casino smelled like the Imperial Palace in Las Vegas--gross, old, and musty. It still has coin operated slot machines. The fitness center was small and felt cramped. Throughout the ship the floors had bumps and divits, and we noticed toilet smells on lower decks the final 4 days. Probably a problem with the vacuum system. We noticed glasses, plates, and garbage placed on tables, floors, and furniture throughout the ship. I understand cruisers are to blame but when it's in plain sight, it shouldn't be visibly left for long periods of time, as we would see things on the way to dinner and still there on the way back etc.

 

Food-MDR

 

Menu had fewer daily appetizer and salad offerings than previous Celebrity sailings. We asked the Maitre'D about the Caprese Salad (our favorite) and she quickly offered to have it prepared special for us every night. Our waiter had trouble with English and building rapport with us (late seating). His assistant did most of the talking. Service was quick and accurate. Some nights, especially toward the end of the cruise, we had trouble finding entrees with acceptable quality. Costs are being cut left and right and it's obvious. We never went hungry but there is a noticable drop off. We also enjoyed 2 brunches (1 was Easter) in the MDR.

 

Buffet

 

The buffet never seemed to change for breakfasts. They ran out of English muffins half-way through the cruise. Some offerings were of low quality like the carved meats. Ice cream hand scooped is a Celebrity advantage over most other mainstream lines. They have a made-to-order steak/chicken/pork chop/salmon station for dinner in the aft section. Service was friendly but slow. Every order took 10 minutes, which I understand for "made-to-order." But with 10 people in line, just throw some steaks on the grill and worry about temperatures later just so you can get things started in anticipation of orders.

 

A side note--not a day went by without me seeing at least 1 cruiser use their hands to directly grab some food out of a serving tray. Sometimes just a roll or bread, but please people don't use your hands!! Many of the food bins had spoons facing the workers so most buffet food was served to you.

 

Specialty Dining

 

I'm a picky eater and was worried about Ocean Liners having never tried Murano. They had a 50% off cover night so we decided to check it out for $20pp. It was THE BEST dinner I've ever had on a cruise. Over 3 hours in length, we went wild and had 4 appetizer/salads each, plus an amuse brush, intermezzo, entree, dessert, and cheese plate. 9 courses of bliss. Simply fantastic!!

 

Tuscan Grill was OK--just like on the S-Class ships. Service was fine here also. Not worth $30 if paying full price.

 

We love the aqua spa cafe for lunches, but closing at 2:30pm we cut it very close coming back from ashore some days. They were very eager to close precisley at 2:30 to the point where they'd cut off the drink station power at 2:29 (a clock was directly above) and they couldn't wait to close their doors. Not very friendly.

 

We enjoyed the desserts at Cafe al Bacio--these were usually better than those offered in the MDR.

 

Service

 

We love the little things that Celebrity still has intact, such as cold towels and water when returning from ashore. Announcements have started in the morning and afternoon--they would have been brief however we had many international guests aboard so they were repeated in several languages.

 

Our room steward was fake-helpful. He would listen to your requests, but not fulfill them. Very simple--we like ice filled twice per day and want some wine glasses too. These were hard to come by consistently. Our Steward or his assistant literally spent 5 minutes each day cleaning our cabins. We could tell because we had adjoining rooms and sometimes he'd think we went to breakfast but instead we just went next-door. The cabins were small so he really just made the bed and put out new towels. We've had much better service in concierge class.

 

Officers were very outgoing and friendly. We simply asked at Guest Relations about bridge tours, and got invites to both a bridge tour and a separate engine room tour. On Silhouette, Guest Relations wanted to charge me like $79 per person (not worth it though interesting). On the final port day they also had a sail away from the Heli-Pad which was very nice.

 

Entertainment

 

Comedian was good. Magician was old-school but enjoyable. Perry Grant was not our style. His selections were from way, waaaay back (think 1930s or earlier). He has a very loyal following, I'll give him that, and he is talented but just too over-the-top for me. We didn't see any of the production shows. We make our own fun drinking and playing games. These longer cruises attract a more subdued clientel.

 

Ports

 

I've been to the Caribbean so many times that they all seem similar and I have trouble remembering what we did each day. We do our own excursions to the beaches. Highlights include watching planes land at Maho Beach in St. Maarten, beautiful water and beaches in Grenada and Barbados, and my first visits to Aruba and Curacao. I liked how most islands had cabs for about $4 per person and beach chairs/umbrellas at similar low costs to what I've found in more developed islands like St Thomas and Puerto Rico.

 

Value

 

We paid about $1,000 per person total for 14 days, with free gratuities through Celebrity Passages. A month prior to sailing it dropped to $799 plus port charges for senior rates, but we were past final payment.

 

M-Class vs. S-Class

 

My 3 prior Celebrity experiences were on Solstice, Equinox, and Silhouette. Those expecting S-Class style and new-ship condition will be disappointed with Constellation. There's a reason Celebrity is sending her to do short cruises from Miami later this year--her days in the prime lineup are over. There's no such thing as a bad cruise and Celebrity remains our line of choice.

[maxsales]

I submitted this review of Constellation April 7th (14 day Caribbean) to CC but thought I'd post here and try to be available for questions. In summary, we had a great time and got a good deal, but we prefer S-class.

 

 

 

 

Good for the price paid, but don't expect Solstice Class

 

Experienced cruiser in early 30s traveling with my wife, mother-in-law, and parents. Got a pretty good deal on this 14 day itinerary compared to later 2012 14 night sailings on Eclipse.

Cabin

 

Went with inside cabins as balconies were 2x the cost and smaller than S-class, so we didn't see value in paying up. The cabin was small compared to industry standards, and it showed it's age despite being recently "updated." No room to enjoy room service, bathroom showed rust, and room was dusty. You could hear any noises coming from the hallway and above (ocean liners?) quite easily. Deck 2 aft location was terrific to avoid elevators on port days.

 

One cabin in our party was laid out sideways instead and this had much more space than the other 2 insides.

 

On the second-to-last day of the cruise, we had a pipe burst in the ceiling of our cabin, and water dripped heavily inside. We were in the room at the time and our steward had maintainance on the scene quickly. It put us out for 2 hours. We were told it was fixed, then it started again, and finally we asked to move our room. They found an empty oceanview cabin for us. That cabin was much larger with better air conditioning. We asked an officer to comp us dinner that evening in Tuscan Grill and that was not a problem. Luckily we were leaving the next day so we just packed our suitcases a day early and switched cabins.

 

Public Rooms

 

The work very hard to maintain the condition of the ship, but time does take it's toll. Chairs in the main dining room need to be replaced. Scratches and no arm rests compared to S-Class. The Casino smelled like the Imperial Palace in Las Vegas--gross, old, and musty. It still has coin operated slot machines. The fitness center was small and felt cramped. Throughout the ship the floors had bumps and divits, and we noticed toilet smells on lower decks the final 4 days. Probably a problem with the vacuum system. We noticed glasses, plates, and garbage placed on tables, floors, and furniture throughout the ship. I understand cruisers are to blame but when it's in plain sight, it shouldn't be visibly left for long periods of time, as we would see things on the way to dinner and still there on the way back etc.

 

Food-MDR

 

Menu had fewer daily appetizer and salad offerings than previous Celebrity sailings. We asked the Maitre'D about the Caprese Salad (our favorite) and she quickly offered to have it prepared special for us every night. Our waiter had trouble with English and building rapport with us (late seating). His assistant did most of the talking. Service was quick and accurate. Some nights, especially toward the end of the cruise, we had trouble finding entrees with acceptable quality. Costs are being cut left and right and it's obvious. We never went hungry but there is a noticable drop off. We also enjoyed 2 brunches (1 was Easter) in the MDR.

 

Buffet

 

The buffet never seemed to change for breakfasts. They ran out of English muffins half-way through the cruise. Some offerings were of low quality like the carved meats. Ice cream hand scooped is a Celebrity advantage over most other mainstream lines. They have a made-to-order steak/chicken/pork chop/salmon station for dinner in the aft section. Service was friendly but slow. Every order took 10 minutes, which I understand for "made-to-order." But with 10 people in line, just throw some steaks on the grill and worry about temperatures later just so you can get things started in anticipation of orders.

 

A side note--not a day went by without me seeing at least 1 cruiser use their hands to directly grab some food out of a serving tray. Sometimes just a roll or bread, but please people don't use your hands!! Many of the food bins had spoons facing the workers so most buffet food was served to you.

 

Specialty Dining

 

I'm a picky eater and was worried about Ocean Liners having never tried Murano. They had a 50% off cover night so we decided to check it out for $20pp. It was THE BEST dinner I've ever had on a cruise. Over 3 hours in length, we went wild and had 4 appetizer/salads each, plus an amuse brush, intermezzo, entree, dessert, and cheese plate. 9 courses of bliss. Simply fantastic!!

 

Tuscan Grill was OK--just like on the S-Class ships. Service was fine here also. Not worth $30 if paying full price.

 

We love the aqua spa cafe for lunches, but closing at 2:30pm we cut it very close coming back from ashore some days. They were very eager to close precisley at 2:30 to the point where they'd cut off the drink station power at 2:29 (a clock was directly above) and they couldn't wait to close their doors. Not very friendly.

 

We enjoyed the desserts at Cafe al Bacio--these were usually better than those offered in the MDR.

 

Service

 

We love the little things that Celebrity still has intact, such as cold towels and water when returning from ashore. Announcements have started in the morning and afternoon--they would have been brief however we had many international guests aboard so they were repeated in several languages.

 

Our room steward was fake-helpful. He would listen to your requests, but not fulfill them. Very simple--we like ice filled twice per day and want some wine glasses too. These were hard to come by consistently. Our Steward or his assistant literally spent 5 minutes each day cleaning our cabins. We could tell because we had adjoining rooms and sometimes he'd think we went to breakfast but instead we just went next-door. The cabins were small so he really just made the bed and put out new towels. We've had much better service in concierge class.

 

Officers were very outgoing and friendly. We simply asked at Guest Relations about bridge tours, and got invites to both a bridge tour and a separate engine room tour. On Silhouette, Guest Relations wanted to charge me like $79 per person (not worth it though interesting). On the final port day they also had a sail away from the Heli-Pad which was very nice.

 

Entertainment

 

Comedian was good. Magician was old-school but enjoyable. Perry Grant was not our style. His selections were from way, waaaay back (think 1930s or earlier). He has a very loyal following, I'll give him that, and he is talented but just too over-the-top for me. We didn't see any of the production shows. We make our own fun drinking and playing games. These longer cruises attract a more subdued clientel.

 

Ports

 

I've been to the Caribbean so many times that they all seem similar and I have trouble remembering what we did each day. We do our own excursions to the beaches. Highlights include watching planes land at Maho Beach in St. Maarten, beautiful water and beaches in Grenada and Barbados, and my first visits to Aruba and Curacao. I liked how most islands had cabs for about $4 per person and beach chairs/umbrellas at similar low costs to what I've found in more developed islands like St Thomas and Puerto Rico.

 

Value

 

We paid about $1,000 per person total for 14 days, with free gratuities through Celebrity Passages. A month prior to sailing it dropped to $799 plus port charges for senior rates, but we were past final payment.

 

M-Class vs. S-Class

 

My 3 prior Celebrity experiences were on Solstice, Equinox, and Silhouette. Those expecting S-Class style and new-ship condition will be disappointed with Constellation. There's a reason Celebrity is sending her to do short cruises from Miami later this year--her days in the prime lineup are over. There's no such thing as a bad cruise and Celebrity remains our line of choice.

 

I have sailed the Connie twice in the past year, once on this same itinerary and once in Europe. Based on my exprience I would recommend her. I did not find her to be in bad condition at all. There are things we like better on the M class ships and their are things we like better on the S class ships. However, I truly believe an enjoyable cruise can be had on both.

 

If you have not sailed on the Connie I wouldn't be discouraged by this report. Give her a try you may find her charm to be to your liking. :)

[adchesney]

Just wondering what room numbers you had - we are going on the Wine Cruise in November (Framce, Spain Portugal) 12 nights and have "inside" room (NUMBER 2005)

 

Thank you for the review - much apprecaited

 

ANDREW

[Tinkerbellcgy]

I was on the same sailing as the OP. It's hard to believe that we were on the same cruise! This sailing was one of my best cruises and I have nothing but good to say about the ship, my cabin, the officers, crew and staff, the activities, the food and the entertainment.

 

I guess it's like everything in life....if you go into an experience expecting it to be negative, then karma makes sure that your negative expectations are met and/or exceeded. In the future, the OP might be best to stick with the "S" class ships or better yet, put out the money for a 6 star experience and hope it meets any pre-conceived expectations.

[ohiorob63]

Thank you for your review. I was also on the same cruise and IMHO agree 100%. This was our 3rd Connie cruise in 4 years.

[maxsales]

Thank you for your review. I was also on the same cruise and IMHO agree 100%. This was our 3rd Connie cruise in 4 years.

 

Okay, I admit to being confused, you say you agree 100% with the Op's negative review, yet you state this is your third Connie cruise in four years. Where the other two bad also or just this last one? Did you sail S class ships in between? :)

[maxsales]

One more thing to consider. In the original post it was stated that prices dropped for seniors to 799. Thing about that. This was a 14 night cruise so it works out to just above fifty dollars a day! Fifty a day for unlimited meals, entertainment, transportation and moving scenery.

 

I think if you look at it in that light it shws what a bargain cruising really is. We had one dinner, one, at Le Cellier restaurant in the Canadian pavilion at Epcot. Four soups four fillets two extra sides, four iced teas no desert. The bill without tip was $246.00 that's over fifty dollars per person by itself.

[ohiorob63]

Okay, I admit to being confused, you say you agree 100% with the Op's negative review, yet you state this is your third Connie cruise in four years. Where the other two bad also or just this last one? Did you sail S class ships in between? :)

 

We sailed on Connie in 2008, 10, and 11. Millenium was in 2009. Our best cruise by far was the first one. Every year they seem to slip a little bit. This year, was not a bad cruise in anyway, but I probably wont be sailing the M class ships anymore. We were in a suite and if you compared it to any hotel chains, it would be a 3 star hotel at best.

[SoBe2010]

I was on the same sailing as the OP. It's hard to believe that we were on the same cruise! This sailing was one of my best cruises and I have nothing but good to say about the ship, my cabin, the officers, crew and staff, the activities, the food and the entertainment.

 

I guess it's like everything in life....if you go into an experience expecting it to be negative, then karma makes sure that your negative expectations are met and/or exceeded. In the future, the OP might be best to stick with the "S" class ships or better yet, put out the money for a 6 star experience and hope it meets any pre-conceived expectations.

 

What´s the problem? You CAN be on the same cruise and have different views.

I like Celebrity too, but I am not blind when it comes to cost cuttings.

There´s nothing wrong about it, since it´s up to me if I still value the product. But I am happy to hear different point of views and especially objective ones like this one.

[dfgf]

I think the review was excellent. Ironically I just read it earlier today before I saw this posting.

 

Constellation will be my first Celebrity cruise. We're doing the little 2-night cruise in January. (My first 2-night cruise as well. I bet we don't even unpack!)

 

I can understand why the OP said it didn't compare to the S-class. RC's Monarch doesn't compare to the Oasis either - but I still manage to have a fun cruise every time.

[NewSalt]

OP, thanks for taking the time to write a balanced, thoughtful review.

 

I wonder why every reviewe who points out anything that they disliked on X is automatically criticized as being a negative person who is determined to find fault.

 

We all have our own list of priorities; a rusty, unpleasant bathroom might be something minor that another cruiser would overlook. For me it would be a major sore point; everytime I walked into it I would be annoyed and upset. Would it ruin my cruise? No, but it is certainly something I'd take into consideration when planning a cruise, and I think it's something that should be mentioned in any review.

 

And poor food is not a bargain at any price.