Constellation Review February 8 2014

[donnysmom]

Ah, yes, now that makes sense! Thanks to all for the clarification.

[JimHam4]

The $115 was to upgrade from the classic package to the premium package.

The cost to do that is $10 (+15%) per person per day....

$11.50 * 2 * 5 = $115

 

You are looking at the price of the entire package.

 

This.

 

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[bobsfamily]

More !

[dxsch1]

Does anybody know the name of the Latin Trio in the Rendez-vous bar? I want to see if they have anything on iTunes.

[JimHam4]

DAY 1 - Ocean Liners

Ocean Liners is only about half full and they're able to seat us a few minutes early (just before 8pm). The restaurant is set up nicely with plenty of space between tables and a quiet atmosphere. Too many good choices and we can't make up our minds so the waiter offers to bring all three appetizers that we can share ( this is our first mistake of the evening as soon we will have to be rolled out of the restaurant). We end up with the phyllo anjou pear, goat cheese souffle and lobster bisque. While we wait the sommelier approaches and asks if we would like wine. My wife enjoys whites and VERY FEW reds, and I've never met a glass of wine I didn't become friends with, but we have no clue about how to select a wine. I tell the sommelier we are on the premium plan and haven't a clue what to order. He asks what food we ordered and says not to worry he has wines on the plan he is sure we will enjoy; he says he has several new wines that aren't on the menu yet but fall under the limits of the premium plan. I couldn't tell you what he ended up bringing us but it was the first time I've tasted how the wine interacted with the flavors of my food in a complementary way; highly recommend taking advantage of his services since not all the wines appear on the menu.

The waiter brings us each a small crab cake compliments of the chef but since my wife doesn't like seafood I force myself to eat both :rolleyes:. Appetizers follow and all three are wonderful but the bisque is a little disappointing with good flavor but not much in the way of lobster chunks.

We order main courses of crusted venison loin for me and chateaubriand for my wife. The chateaubriand is supposed to be for two and prepared table side but my wife is able to order a single portion. Unfortunately this means no table side flambe ( I guess if I had wanted to explode I could have offered to have two entrees but not sure they would have done that). My venison with lingonberries is good and my wife enjoys her steak bit I have to say my few bites of her meal were almost too soft and although the steak tasted good it was borderline mushy in texture. Next is a plate of artisan cheeses cut and served tableside something i really missed from cruising in the 80s and 90s.

Dessert is a strawberry crepe flambeed tableside and the chocolate souffle with a Spanish coffee. I was already stuffed to gills and my wife who usually eats only half her meal was near tears but we managed to eat the crepe and what I believe was the best chocolate souffle ever produced. Meal over we get up to leave and realize all the food and drink has made it time for bed. We manage to navigate our way back to the room and hit the the hay, hopefully ready for Key West in the morning.

 

All in all, we loved Ocean Liners and even thought about going a second time on this cruise but didn't want to miss any more meals in Blu.

[Viva_la_Vida]

DAY 1 - Ocean Liners

Ocean Liners is only about half full and they're able to seat us a few minutes early (just before 8pm). The restaurant is set up nicely with plenty of space between tables and a quiet atmosphere. Too many good choices and we can't make up our minds so the waiter offers to bring all three appetizers that we can share ( this is our first mistake of the evening as soon we will have to be rolled out of the restaurant). We end up with the phyllo anjou pear, goat cheese souffle and lobster bisque. While we wait the sommelier approaches and asks if we would like wine. My wife enjoys whites and VERY FEW reds, and I've never met a glass of wine I didn't become friends with, but we have no clue about how to select a wine. I tell the sommelier we are on the premium plan and haven't a clue what to order. He asks what food we ordered and says not to worry he has wines on the plan he is sure we will enjoy; he says he has several new wines that aren't on the menu yet but fall under the limits of the premium plan. I couldn't tell you what he ended up bringing us but it was the first time I've tasted how the wine interacted with the flavors of my food in a complementary way; highly recommend taking advantage of his services since not all the wines appear on the menu.

The waiter brings us each a small crab cake compliments of the chef but since my wife doesn't like seafood I force myself to eat both :rolleyes:. Appetizers follow and all three are wonderful but the bisque is a little disappointing with good flavor but not much in the way of lobster chunks.

We order main courses of crusted venison loin for me and chateaubriand for my wife. The chateaubriand is supposed to be for two and prepared table side but my wife is able to order a single portion. Unfortunately this means no table side flambe ( I guess if I had wanted to explode I could have offered to have two entrees but not sure they would have done that). My venison with lingonberries is good and my wife enjoys her steak bit I have to say my few bites of her meal were almost too soft and although the steak tasted good it was borderline mushy in texture. Next is a plate of artisan cheeses cut and served tableside something i really missed from cruising in the 80s and 90s.

Dessert is a strawberry crepe flambeed tableside and the chocolate souffle with a Spanish coffee. I was already stuffed to gills and my wife who usually eats only half her meal was near tears but we managed to eat the crepe and what I believe was the best chocolate souffle ever produced. Meal over we get up to leave and realize all the food and drink has made it time for bed. We manage to navigate our way back to the room and hit the the hay, hopefully ready for Key West in the morning.

 

All in all, we loved Ocean Liners and even thought about going a second time on this cruise but didn't want to miss any more meals in Blu.

 

 

Excellent review and you are cracking me up over here! I know exactly the feeling you describe. Overstuffed and very very happy:D Bring on day 2!

[JohnSnowGOT]

Hey Thanks so much for this great review!!!!!

After being on many many RC cruises ... we are finally sailing Celebrity and the "Connie" in March.......really digging your review!

Keep up the good work

[whataboutport]

Thoroughly enjoying the review. Can't wait for more!

[Paris334]

This is a great review! I'm sure it's taking you a long time to write it all out but I admit I'm really impatient! :) We're going on 3/17 and I'm so excited to hear more of your review!

 

Thanks for taking the time to write such a thorough review!

[JFontaine]

Enjoying your review very much. Looking forward to hearing about your sustainability tour - and possible shoreside applications. Thanks.

[JimHam4]

This is a great review! I'm sure it's taking you a long time to write it all out but I admit I'm really impatient! :) We're going on 3/17 and I'm so excited to hear more of your review!

 

Thanks for taking the time to write such a thorough review!

 

It's actually not too bad to write out but thus cruise was part of a bigger trip that took me out of the office for three blissful weeks :D but I'm paying for it this week at work :banghead: Hope to finish up by Sunday.

 

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[JimHam4]

DAY 2 - KEY WEST

 

Wake up in surprisingly good shape considering the dinner and drinks I had the night before. The ship has just docked in Key West and it is a clear beautiful morning. Never been to the Keys before and have no plans other than to walk down to Southernmost point for the standard tourist photo and see different parts of town. My wife’s not awake yet so I sneak in a shower (love the Hansgrohe panel, but it takes a few minutes to figure out how it works and turn it to scalding); get dressed and out on to the balcony to take a look at the port from my favorite balcony. We are parked next to Mallory Square and everything is fairly quiet this early Sunday morning. I quickly get bored looking at the few by myself and go kick my wife out of the bed; telling her get dressed and come out and see the view out the back; instead she decides to just drag on the luxurious white robe supplied by Celebrity to take a peek. Now, I will say, the balcony of cabin 1138 is pretty private even though the bar is right below us, BUT no balcony is very private when your neighbor picks that moment to peek around the wall to see how your balconies compare! My wife with hair slightly askew and robe even more so was probably quite the sight to see, and our neighbor quickly retreated to her own side of the fence. My wife and I laughed and decided it was probably time to get ready for breakfast at Blu.

 

While waiting for her out on the balcony my other neighbor leans out and asks if our power is working. I flip the porch light to no avail and then test the cabin lights. This is the point where I first become aware we are in the middle of the GREAT CONSTELLATION POWER OUTAGE OF 2014!! Our experience with the power outage wouldn't require all capitals, but by some of the posts I read later on Cruise Critic you would have thought the ship was listing and the lights going out was the straw before she sank to the bottom. For us this definitely wasn't the case, but I will say those who do not have an easy time getting up and down stairs probably had a difficult time as all the elevators were shut down. The only difficulties we had were having to take the stairs and that Blu was forced to serve breakfast without any hot food. Most hallway lighting was still on and we easily walked down the aft stairs to Blu. I saw a few staff members hurrying back and forth trying to get the system working again but no one seemed overly concerned. I heard later there was a computer glitch when we hooked up to shore power that required a reboot to bring the power back on line. In any case power was restored by the time we walked off the boat after breakfast and a short test of the system was done as we left the port to make sure we wouldn't experience any more problems (hardly noticeable except at the back where we could see the wake disappear as the ship shut off power for a bit).

 

Leading up to this trip I heard over and over again that breakfast in Blu was not to be missed. I will say I greatly enjoyed it, but I’m not sure how different it could be from breakfast in the MDR. With the power limitations only cold food was available but that still included fresh juices, pastries, fruit and the muesli that is prepared table-side. I opted for the muesli with a variety of ingredients including granola, honey, raisins. Prepared table-side by Valentina (who ended up waiting on us most meals this trip) the muesli was served cold with milk. I don’t know if this was because of the power problem but I was expecting it to be hot, like an oatmeal. In any case I enjoyed the meal and Valentina turned out to be a wonderful server our entire trip.

 

From Blu we had to go to the mid stairway to get down to deck one to exit the ship. Things on deck one were a little confused but there were only a few people around so it wasn't to bad. There was a table set up selling water for those leaving the ship and cabin numbers were written to track purchases. I've read several posts that people couldn't believe they were SELLING water with the power out, but I’m not quite sure what was expected. The power outage didn't affect our water supply and if you didn't want to pay for a bottle it was still available out of dispensers as far as I know. We grab two large bottles of Evian with our beverage plan and head to the gangway. As we approached security the power cycled back on and we ended up exiting the ship normally. I've seen posts saying the power was out 45 minutes to an hour and would say that is a fair estimate.

 

On the dock there are several companies offering all sorts of different tours. Our plan is to walk the town, but one of the bicycle operators offers us full day beach cruiser rentals for $20 each. We decide to rent the bikes and head out of the dock area toward Southernmost Point; walking or riding it would be an easy, flat, trip down Whitehead street to the point. At the point there are a couple other small groups and we take turns taking pictures for each other; cool to think we are closer to Cuba than the mainland U.S.

 

 

 

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Our friends had recommended the Green Parrot for drinks and online they have three souveneir shirts for the price of two (perfect for a dad of three). Unfortunately the guy selling the shirts knows nothing of the online special and says none of the shirts are on sale. We decide this is a good time to head to Margaritaville since we've been to their other locations and my girls always like Jimmy Buffett gear. Don't get me wrong the Green Parrot looked like a great dive bar, we just weren't in a drinking mood. Margaritaville Key West looks just like every other one and the food is consistently good; we enjoy lunch and a drink before going next door to buy our souvenirs. Back on our bikes we head toward Mallory Square and the Constellation. We're the only ship in port this day and the town is busy, I can't imagine what it is like with the big boats in town.

 

Coming back we are greeted by Celebrity staff loaded with icy towels and water to hand out to guests as they return. We decide to grab a couple cocktails and relax on our balcony til sail away. This is about the time I discover the chairs are fully reclinable and perfect for an afternoon doze (can you tell this trip was about absolutely nothing but decompressing)? Of course I wake up in time for the sail away and an incredible Key West sunset.

My wife jumps in the shower to start getting ready and I make the mistake of turning on the TV to see if the Olympics are on. The ship isn't carrying the games but I do get sucked into some movie they have airing that completely wastes two hours of my cruise. Time for a quick shower and heading out to Blu. Oh yeah, did I mention this is formal night?

 

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[Zigster]

I'm loving your review - can't wait for more!

[JohnSnowGOT]

Thanks keep it coming!:):):)

[Iamthesea]

There is a bike showing in your photo. Is that the "beach cruiser"? It doesn't look like one, and looks to be quite uncomfortable for my rump. :D I prefer a wide seat, fenders and upright handle bars...preferably with a basket. ;) Also, is there a half day rental?

[KKB]

We will be on the same cruise in TWO WEEKS--so loving living vicariously through your review for now!:)

[JimHam4]

There is a bike showing in your photo. Is that the "beach cruiser"? It doesn't look like one, and looks to be quite uncomfortable for my rump. :D I prefer a wide seat, fenders and upright handle bars...preferably with a basket. ;) Also, is there a half day rental?

 

Didn't even see that bike before now. Ours were beach cruiser style with wide seat, no gears, and a basket on the handlebars. They were two toned (blue paint and rusted metal) with pedal brakes. He did have lesser times to rent by but don't remember the rates ( it wasn't much less).

 

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[drarill]

Thanks for taking the time to share your cruise experience with us. Great pictures!! Looking forward to the rest of your review.

[emcee207]

We also enjoyed Valentina. This was our 4th AQ cruise, previous 3 were on "S" class ships. I don't know if I'd do AQ on a "M" class again, even though we loved the cabin on Deck 11.

 

But, in my mind, the ambiance of "Blu" on the S class ships is far nicer than the "M" class. And Breakfasts on the S class Blu with the large windows near sea level is very very nice.

 

Also, I felt the food had slipped a bit, not sure if this is "Blu" fleet wide or is a "M" class thing, utlizing the MDR kitchen. Food for thought, no pun intended.

[Iamthesea]

I think it is the short Caribbean cruises combined with the free beverage package. Passengers drink a lot, who cares about the food. :D :rolleyes:

 

I will be sailing the Connie on an upcoming short 5 night cruise, and then in May on a 12 night to the Baltics. For both, we will eat in Blu. Will be interesting to see if there is a difference with food and service.

 

Didn't even see that bike before now. Ours were beach cruiser style with wide seat, no gears, and a basket on the handlebars. They were two toned (blue paint and rusted metal) with pedal brakes. He did have lesser times to rent by but don't remember the rates ( it wasn't much less).

 

Thank you...makes me feel better. You are probably correct that one could rent a bike for just a tad more for the whole day versus a half day.

[JohnSnowGOT]

More please

[JimHam4]

Sorry for the delay in posting. We had a little family emergency and I didn't have the time this weekend I thought I would. "Welcome home, your cruise is officially over". Apologies again for any typos or funny autocorrects I'm back to typing on my phone for a bit.

 

DAY 2 -- FORMAL NIGHT

 

Of course formal night doesn't really apply to us since we'll be dining in Blu but we want to dress nice anyway (not tuxedo nice but nice). For my wife its a cocktail dress and heels, for me a black suit with white shirt but no tie. We head down to Blu but there’s about a fifteen minute wait and the Maitre'd tells us if we wait in Cellar Masters he will come get us when our table is ready. This is our first visit to Cellar Masters; it feels busy but there is plenty of room for everyone to sit. I don't see anyone at the wine dispensers and I know for me it doesn't make any sense to use them since they aren't a part of the drink package. Throughout the cruise I never saw the dispensers being used and only heard one guest asking about the cards needed to use them. The server (bartender or waiter? I see him doing both) asks us what we'll have and having learned from the night before we ask for his recommendations. After a few questions he comes up with a Chardonnay that my wife and I both enjoy and half way through our glasses a Blu staff member comes to take us to our table. This becomes our routine three of our remaining four nights.

 

We are seated at a table for two next to one of the windows, maybe a foot or two away from us is another table for two (just enough room for the wait staff to fit between the tables). This side of the room is filled with this style of tables while the middle of the room and the other side have a mix of tables for groups of different sizes. I think the largest table I saw held eight. Valentina stops by to leave a basket of bread and see if we would like drinks. Just water for now, but we would like the sommelier after we figure out what we would like to eat. Our waiter this evening is a young man from Jamaica named Miller who can’t stop singing Bob Marley and other tunes while he takes our order. The sommelier comes over and unfortunately I can’t remember his name as I write this (if someone does know his name please let me know I wanted to send in a compliment for him). These three are our staff for most of our visits to Blu all week and their service is wonderful. One night we are served by Jean-Pierre with a different support staff and they are just as good so I would not concern myself with being sat in a specific area of the restaurant. Food is so subjective I won’t bother to review the individual dishes we had over the week except to say a couple of things: Do not get the squab, couldn’t tell you why, never had it myself, but it was the one dish my waiter took the time to explain that I would probably prefer something else when I was undecided one evening. The food in Blu is not necessarily “light” food but it is made up of smaller portions with “lighter” sauces; I was never hungry when I left Blu, but I was not in the near to tears, exploding belly feeling I had from Ocean Liners the night before either. Subjective I know, but I enjoyed every meal in Blu, especially the frog’s legs (first time), short ribs, and sweet pepper soup. My wife who is NOT an adventurous eater was always able to find something to eat but there might have only been one thing each night on the menu for her; she did order off the classic menu once.

 

There is a lot of discussion on Cruise Critic about whether or not Blu is worth an upgrade. For us I would have to give a resounding yes, but if the cost was more than going to a specialty restaurant every night I wouldn’t pay it. What was special for us wasn't necessarily the food; we enjoyed the small, quieter environment with the ability to pick our own dining time. The tables are close together encouraging you to talk to your neighbors but you can just as easily keep to yourselves; we did both and got to enjoy some alone time and meet some very friendly/interesting people.

 

After dinner we went to the casino for a bit. $10 minimum for Blackjack (never saw it lower than that) and a mix of older and newer slot machines. There was a variety of table games and a roulette wheel but I wasn't feeling the bug so I didn't take a seat. We looked through the shops and saw a mix of nice items and cheap ones but nothing we needed to spend our money on. Prices on alcohol seemed okay but the hassle of flying home with it and the fact that it probably wasn't any cheaper than Costco discouraged any purchase.

 

Oh well, in bed fairly early with plans for the gym and our private tour tomorrow morning.

[JimHam4]

We also enjoyed Valentina. This was our 4th AQ cruise, previous 3 were on "S" class ships. I don't know if I'd do AQ on a "M" class again, even though we loved the cabin on Deck 11.

 

But, in my mind, the ambiance of "Blu" on the S class ships is far nicer than the "M" class. And Breakfasts on the S class Blu with the large windows near sea level is very very nice.

 

Also, I felt the food had slipped a bit, not sure if this is "Blu" fleet wide or is a "M" class thing, utlizing the MDR kitchen. Food for thought, no pun intended.

 

 

Never been on an S class so have nothing to compare to in that manner. I can just say we thoroughly enjoyed the food and atmosphere of Blue and have rebooked the same cabin for next year. Was the food in Blu the best I've ever had? No, but then I've eaten at some of the best restaurants around the country (that's what we spend our money on when we travel). All I'm looking for on a cruise of this type is good food, better service and great conversation with my dining companions and the staff, and I got all three this trip in Blu. If you choose to give up AQ on the M ships then your back in San Marco or specialty dining every night and I'm not prepared to do that.

[emcee207]

Never been on an S class so have nothing to compare to in that manner. I can just say we thoroughly enjoyed the food and atmosphere of Blue and have rebooked the same cabin for next year. Was the food in Blu the best I've ever had? No, but then I've eaten at some of the best restaurants around the country (that's what we spend our money on when we travel). All I'm looking for on a cruise of this type is good food, better service and great conversation with my dining companions and the staff, and I got all three this trip in Blu. If you choose to give up AQ on the M ships then your back in San Marco or specialty dining every night and I'm not prepared to do that.

 

I completely understand where you are coming from.

 

Re: "Miller", he drove me nuts with his singing, almost to the point of complaining to the Maitr'd the first time we had him. LOL, my wife talked me out of it. He grew on us over ten days though, had him about 3 other times. I must of ended up liking him because he was one of a few in Blu I gave a little something extra at the end of the cruise(s). We also liked Jean Pierre.

 

I'm not saying we didn't enjoy Blu on the Constellation I am saying I think the whole AQ/Blu experience is better on the S class ships. Except for our great cabin 1131. If only those noisy neigbors on the aft would relax, LOL;)

Edited February 24, 2014 by emcee207

[Cindy]

Cabin 1138, aft facing on deck 11. By far the best cabin I've ever had but I'd like to tell everyone I hated it so it doesn't book up.

 

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Mine on April 5!!! (booked it a year in advance.....)

 

Mine for 12 nights in May/June...can't wait!