Trip Report from a first time Celebrity passenger

[kelib]

Seems I find many trip reports from loyal Celebrity passengers and people who cruise Aqua/Concierge class.

My report is from Deck 2, inside guarantee , 3 people sharing a room

First about me, I have done about 5 cruises on major lines, all of the ships being smaller and older (Fascination ,NCLStar, Ryndam, Majesty of the Sea) I have no desire to get on a ship with 4,000 to 6,000 people. I also split my vacation time between land and sea.

I had a group from work ask me if I wanted to come along with them to Bermuda. Since I have never been and I live in NJ I figured what the heck ( even though I just came back from Providenciales about 4 weeks before)

I am single and usually travel solo, so having 3 to a room was a little bit nerving to me, but the costs for a solo cabin was out of the budget.

We booked through a travel agent my friend used, have no reason to book with them again. At least we were able to get a room assignment right away and were able to get a room with the fold out chair and not the bunks.(we booked early May)

[cruiseral70]

Seems I find many trip reports from loyal Celebrity passengers and people who cruise Aqua/Concierge class.

 

My report is from Deck 2, inside guarantee , 3 people sharing a room

 

First about me, I have done about 5 cruises on major lines, all of the ships being smaller and older (Fascination ,NCLStar, Ryndam, Majesty of the Sea) I have no desire to get on a ship with 4,000 to 6,000 people. I also split my vacation time between land and sea.

 

I had a group from work ask me if I wanted to come along with them to Bermuda. Since I have never been and I live in NJ I figured what the heck ( even though I just came back from Providenciales about 4 weeks before)

 

I am single and usually travel solo, so having 3 to a room was a little bit nerving to me, but the costs for a solo cabin was out of the budget.

 

We booked through a travel agent my friend used, have no reason to book with them again. At least we were able to get a room assignment right away and were able to get a room with the fold out chair and not the bunks.(we booked early May)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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[kelib]

Arrived around noon on Sunday for Embarkation. I was bringing 2 bottles of wine and water with me so I did not want to be toting that around for too long. One issue with driving alone was that I missed the zones for dropping off luggage since I was so intent on finding the garage. Luckily I had a nice parking lot attendant help me all the way down from 5th level parking to the porters where I checked in my bag and case of water. My friends who were already on the ship were texting me on when I was arriving. Took about 20-25 minutes to get through check-in.... the express pass was much faster than other check-in's that I have dealt with in the past.

Just a note, I was expecting someone to notice the wine that I brought, especially since I checked in after my cabin mates. I don't think anyone even noticed. Got on board, nice touch with the welcome Champagne,Mimosas.

Sitting on deck 11 waiting for rooms to be ready (which was around 1:15) and got a drink from one of the passing waiters. if you do not have a drink package they really put the heat on you to get one. This happened for the first 2 days every time I got a drink. Being off the ship for 3 days I just don't see it worth it to me, plus the one time I had one I found I used it a little TOO much

Next, my cabin

[kelib]

We were located in room 2076, basically on the border between forward and mid-ship.

Room was a decent size and had a lot more storage space than expected, especially for 3. 2 drawers on 2 nightstands, close had 6 drawers, plus double closet. Also some space above TV and shelf below TV. the bathroom had 2 corner shelves and ample under sink cabinet space. I was a little disappointed that there was no shampoo/soap dispenser... I just got through the week with what I brought. I did like that there was a nightlight in the bathroom.

There were 2 outlets of each voltage and a hairdryer. Note on the hairdryer... you have to keep the button pressed down in order for it to work. All I thought if someone had arthritis or just not coordinated it could be a minor issue.

My twin bed was comfortable and according to my cabin mate the pull out was also fine. One note about the pullout chair, once it is out, it is a very tight fit between the vanity and the end of the sofa bed. Also make sure the chair to the vanity gets removed prior to the bed pulling out. I had brought some flameless tea lights and I placed one on the vanity so we could see our way around in the middle of the night.

I hate to say it, but we drew the short straw when it came to Cabin Stewards. The Stewards down the hall were nicer than ours. Had to ask for some simple things multiple times ( like ice, face clothes) and I don't think he ever said my name. Our adjoining cabins had same issue and it will show in our survey that Celebrity sent out afterward)

[ano]

if you do not have a drink package they really put the heat on you to get one. This happened for the first 2 days every time I got a drink.

Their pressure to purchase something is proportional to how much profit they make from it. People usually calculate if its profitable for them to purchase it with say $10 drinks. But just imagine how profitable it is for the cruise line? Its not like 1 oz. of booze from 64 oz. bottle and some mixer costs them $10.

[kelib]

Cosmopolitan Room: We did not have set dining so we got up to the Cosmopolitan around 7:00. We got a beeper and waited in the Rendezvous lounge for about 20 minutes. We hit the jackpot when it came to waiters. We had Jerry and were seated in the back against the windows where we were able to see a wonderful sunset. He made some suggestions one of them being the beef Spring Roll. Excellent, wish it had been on the menu all week.

So let me talk about the Cosmopolitan. First, this was the only time we could get in at 7 and keep our same wait staff. We ended up having to wait most nights till either 8:15 or 8:45, but worth it to stay with the same team. we just did not know about reserving in advance and we were not sure when we really wanted to go. We were allowed to reserve for the same or next day only. They also messed up one of our reservations and had us down for 4:45 instead of 8:45.

Food is really a subjective thing but I will tell you my hits and misses. First night had the prime rib, was decent. Loved the different selections of spread that went along with the butter. Something new to try every night. Shrimp cocktail was meh but the grilled shrimp on the scampi which was I think on first chic night was good. Got extras of them.

I preferred the escargot better my first time around than the second, but both times were still good. Biggest disappointment of the entire week was the lobster tails on Friday night. Very salty for my taste... at first I did not know if it was the actual lobster or the butter, but a friend who did not get the butter had the same reaction.

We really looked forward to our time with our wait staff and since we were the last seating he did not have as many people to serve so we were able to have a great time with him.

[kelib]

Their pressure to purchase something is proportional to how much profit they make from it. People usually calculate if its profitable for them to purchase it with say $10 drinks. But just imagine how profitable it is for the cruise line? Its not like 1 oz. of booze from 64 oz. bottle and some mixer costs them $10.

 

I get the whole profit thing, just have not had the actual waiters, bartenders etc push as hard as they did here. Part of me thinks that they either get rated on signups or something,,,, was also surprised that they kept pushing a few days into the cruise.

was no big deal to me, just found it interesting

[NordicPrince]

I am assuming you were traveling on the Summit. I don't have experience on that ship (we've traveled 4 times on S-Class ships, 3 times on an inside and once on a balcony cabin.) You will defiitely love the S-Class ships which are a step above the Summit. My experience was that shampoo, conditioner and lotion were provided for you, in addition to hand soap. RCl uses the combined soap\shampoo dispenser. In my mind the Summit (ship) is not the destination but only the means to get to your destination, which is glorious Bermuda. The fact that Summit spends 3 days in Bermuda is a definite plus. I hope that part of your cruise is fabulous.

 

Hope you can look for the good points of your cruise and not focus on any "less than perfect' parts. Unfortunately the better and more senior crew are assigned to the higher category of cabins they serve. So maybe you just got a relatively new person. Sounds unfair but that's the way it is.

 

Maybe next time you can move to a higher category for an inside on a higher deck which is what we do. Our budget does not usually allow a balcony cabin and we are perfectly served by an inside. We spend most of our time on deck and out about anyway. So really it's just a place to sleep. When we are in port we always get off and do something. It all depends on how you want to spend your holiday. We never get a drink package, we just don't drink more than 3 drinks a day.

 

I know when we we walk thru the lower decks of the ship to get to the main dining room the Mrs. feels a little crowded.

 

The main thing is getting on the ship and going and maximizing your own experience. We know what we can and cannot afford. I have no hard feelings for people who go for a higher category of cabin than we do. I just feel blessed that we can do something that I never thought we could do regularly when we were younger.

As the Mrs. says she is always excited about every cruise we make.

 

You have to admit that leaving from Cape Liberty is very convenient.

 

Enjoy your cruising days. Maybe you too will get the cruise bug.

Edited August 9, 2017 by NordicPrince

[kelib]

We had a nice sail on Monday but woke up to pouring rain on Tuesday morning till around 1:00PM. A little bit about our group, we have age ranges from 18 to about 75. The younger group either slept that morning or were bored out of their minds (If I heard one more comparison to Carnival I was going to scream) I had my Kindle and enjoyed finding a quiet little nook so those few hours were not an issue for me)

The pool area had just the right amount of entertainment with bands singers, a few low keyed contests and dance parties. Nothing along the lines of hairy leg/back contests. one band was so good I honestly thought it was the DJ playing. Also a note about the pool butlers... they are maybe the most under rated guys on the ship. I guess the one issue was the chair hogging, and since you do not have to check towels in and out, people just left their towels on the chairs when they left, so it was hard to tell if someone was actually using the chair and just went to the pool or were gone for the day.

[kelib]

I am assuming you were traveling on the Summit. I don't have experience on that ship (we've traveled 4 times on S-Class ships, 3 times on an inside and once on a balcony cabin.) You will defiitely love the S-Class ships which are a step above the Summit. My experience was that shampoo, conditioner and lotion were provided for you, in addition to hand soap. RCl uses the combined soap\shampoo dispenser. In my mind the Summit (ship) is not the destination but only the means to get to your destination, which is glorious Bermuda. The fact that Summit spends 3 days in Bermuda is a definite plus. I hope that part of your cruise is fabulous.

 

Hope you can look for the good points of your cruise and not focus on any "less than perfect' parts. Unfortunately the better and more senior crew are assigned to the higher category of cabins they serve. So maybe you just got a relatively new person. Sounds unfair but that's the way it is.

 

Maybe next time you can move to a higher category for an inside on a higher deck which is what we do.

I know when we we walk thru those areas of the ship to get to the main dining room the Mrs. feels a little crowded.

 

You have to admit that leaving from Cape Liberty is very convenient.

 

Enjoy your cruising days.

 

I have many good points, some coming. I think there is a difference though between someone being new, and someone being friendly, this guy barely smiled. All the other stewards greeted us as we walked through the halls. My cabin mates were far more indignant about him that I was, and it will not sway me from taking Celebrity again. In fact I am looking at the trip out of San Juan on the Summit.

I was at the mercy of joining a group for my cabin selection and to be honest traveling at the solo rate eats into the budget. I don't spend a lot of time in my room so it is not a deal breaker for me.

I will say that the room was very quiet and I did not hear a lot of noise from people slamming doors or yelling in the halls that I have experienced on other cruise lines.

As to going on larger ships.... I am an former Windjammer Barefoot Cruiser girl where the biggest ship was 120 people and formal night was a clean t-shirt. It took a lot for me to just get on a cruise ship to begin with.

[In Toronto]

This is an excellent review. You are right - most reviews seem to be written by elite passenger and/or Aqua/suite passengers who have the beverage perk and lots of OBC.

 

So, I am finding your review interesting since we chose a lower fare without perks, although we are booked into a balcony cabin.

 

Thank you for doing this.

Ellen

[I_r_a]

Hey K,

 

Enjoying your very good review.

 

Ira

[Bruinboy]

K, great review. Thanks for taking time to do it.

 

 

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[Lorey2007]

Loving your review waiting for more!

[kathynorth]

Thank you for posting! I'm enjoying your honest look at cruising on the Summit.

[sydsmom2034]

Loving your review

[gold1953]

I have no problem with the crew pushing meals and beverage packages . They are told to and I ignore them. The second they start I stop them. We never make eye contact with those set up with tables for their sales pitches. It works.

We sail inside depending on the price and cruise is always wonderful

Celebrity does not cater to door slamming corridor yelling 'people'

[JaniceB]

Following along, great start!

[kelib]

Celebrity does not cater to door slamming corridor yelling 'people'

 

They may not cater, but it is summer and kids will be kids... just stating that what I heard in the hallway vs what I heard in the room was a bigger difference than some past experiences.

[kelib]

Sorry, for the delays... a little thing called work seems to get in the way.

As stated earlier, there was a mix up on one of our reservations and they could not seat us till really late. We had also found some good reviews from the guest singer that night and so we decided to go up to the Ocean View Cafe Buffet.

Since there is already some threads about the buffet at night I will not go into it too much. My least favorite meal, maybe it was me, just not much appealed to me.

I will say that I totally enjoyed my breakfasts there. Multiple egg/omelet stations so there were not long waits. Great pastry selection.. the waffles seemed to be a huge hit. They also have waiters coming around with extra pastries and coffee refills. There is one character there that sings his heart out as he goes around with the coffee. brings a smile to everyone's face. One funny story was one morning he was standing right behind us and started belting out the Jamaica National Anthem. Who knew that the Jamaica National Anthem had so many verses, everyone would start to applaud and he was on to the next. What made it awkward for me was out of respect I didn't eat or carry on a conversation with my table mates... and the one line just kept running in my head all day :')

Lunch for me was hit or miss, I would find something one day never to be seen again. The pool bar actually makes a decent burger and fries in comparison to some other lines that I have been on.

There is an Ice Cream bar that at times has a long line (I have the patience of a gnat for lines so I bypassed those moments) but they had some good flavors. The caramel ice cream they had near the end of the trip was awesome. Even if you get a cone, get a bowl, since it melts really fast. The soft serve machine was also behind the counter and was not self serve. Also limited flavors on soft serve from day to day.

One thing I enjoyed on a few days when I was on the ship was Tea Time from 3:30 to 4:30. A scone with jam or a mini quiche usually hit the spot to get me through till dinner.

[kelib]

One of the things that I noticed throughout the week was just how clean the ship was maintained. No piles of dishes left around and everyone pitched in. I saw frequently officers stopping to pick up a napkin or a wayward glass. There was no "I'm too good to do that" attitude. Everyone was so incredibly nice (except for the the one, that is why he stood out) and it showed from the top down. We had Captain Alex last week and even though I would have loved to have met Captain Kate... Alex was a hoot.

I also appreciated that there was not a constant barrage of announcements touting art auctions or bingo games. Pretty much kept to the 10:00 AM announcement with Captain Alex and CD Patrick.

One final note about the officers and crew.... Celebrity hires some really nice looking men. I may be old enough to be their mother but I am not dead ( to be about 30 years younger)

[kelib]

BERMUDA:

 

First of all, we were forewarned when we got on board that Thursday and Friday was a National Holiday for Bermuda and that most stores and businesses outside the Dockyard area would be closed and ferries and buses would be on a holiday schedule.

First day was Horseshoe Bay. We were off the ship right away and on the first $7 shuttle there. Pick up the shuttle a little to the right of when you get out of the security gate ( make sure you bring photo ID since you need that along with your ship card to get through on your return)

Horseshoe Bay was one of the most gorgeous beaches I have ever been to. Water was crystal clear and very easy to walk in and out of ( those of you with bad joints or balance issues know what I am talking about) There is a bar and food stand plus restroom facilities and changing rooms. You can rent beach chairs and umbrellas also. The only thing wrong was having to share the beach with the Breakaway ( heard some complaints from people on the beach about that ship feeling very congested)

we had a mild sprinkle around lunchtime, then around 2 it looked like we were going to get clobbered. As I watched everyone start packing up and heading for the shuttle I just told my friends to wait since I thought it was going to miss us. I proved right at we got to enjoy another few sunny hours on a half empty beach.

That is the thing there most islands, it can be raining in one place and another place is sunny. On Thursday the Dockyard area was dreary, but talking to someone else who went to Tobacco Bay across island, she had no rain.

We came back to the ship with cold towels and flavored water water waiting for us outside the ship... our own little lounge.

[nanamobo]

I have many good points, some coming. I think there is a difference though between someone being new, and someone being friendly, this guy barely smiled. All the other stewards greeted us as we walked through the halls. My cabin mates were far more indignant about him that I was, and it will not sway me from taking Celebrity again. In fact I am looking at the trip out of San Juan on the Summit.

I was at the mercy of joining a group for my cabin selection and to be honest traveling at the solo rate eats into the budget. I don't spend a lot of time in my room so it is not a deal breaker for me.

I will say that the room was very quiet and I did not hear a lot of noise from people slamming doors or yelling in the halls that I have experienced on other cruise lines.

As to going on larger ships.... I am an former Windjammer Barefoot Cruiser girl where the biggest ship was 120 people and formal night was a clean t-shirt. It took a lot for me to just get on a cruise ship to begin with.

 

Great Review!!! Not a fan of the bigger ships either. :D

[alexspepa]

Thanks for your review...the iron button thing is a safety precaution to prevent fires.

[grimace95120]

Extremely well written, balanced and cohesive.I appreciate this type of review, one that someone has put thought into vs " everything was amazing ! " I almost fell out of my chair laughing with the formal night clean T shirt comment ! :) That's a formal night I want to go to !!!