LIVE!!!!! From the ECLIPSE 14night Southern Carib!! - CHICAGOPAUL -

[miched]

Great reading, thanks Paul. We are boarding in March next year, our 2nd celebrity cruise. Just wondering whether to upgrade our classic package to premium though. Decisions, decisions! Also coming to Chicago for Thanksgiving next year to visit my nephew and so excited.

 

 

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There is no need to worry about it. Wait until you are on board and decide if you really need to upgrade. Upgrading on board also gives the person that you upgraded with a percentage ( the 18% gratuity) bof the upgrade. We will always upgrade with the BT that we feel suits us; that is was friendly, knowable. (knows how to make a drink the way we like, not that difficult if you like to imbibe or ask the Beverage Manager who their best BT is and most times we have experienced that it is the same that we liked) and the bar we will probably frequent.

 

The bonus is thwt you will become one of their favorite customers. No need for further details

 

 

Drink up 🍸🍹🍷🥃🍾🍺🍻🥂

[OceansOfTravels]

Thank you for your review! I have never cruised Celebrity, but I have wanted to for a while now, and I hope to try them sometime soon. You had very good photos, commentary, and I enjoyed your writing style. Thank you so much for taking so much time out of your vacation to write the report and make the videos, thank you so much!

 

 

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[cl.klink]

Paul,

 

Thanks for this nice review. I like the reviews that make me feel like I am on the cruise too.

 

I am planning to see Hamilton in Chicago on MLK weekend -- any suggestions of where to stay, or where to go for dinner after the show?

 

I did not see a lot comments on this cruise review about having a butler. I've always been unsure of how to make use of that service, when staying in a suite. I've been in suits but never quite knew how to make the most of that opportunity. What's been your experience?

 

- Joel

[stinsowm]

The only bad thing about a cruise is the ending and coming home to reality. I hope you and Edward are able to ease back into reality and cherish your new memories and look forward to your future cruises. I sure do appreciate your attention to detail on your reviews! Hope we sail together someday!!

 

Walter

[h20cruzer]

PAUL AND EDWARD thanks so much for the review and pictures. Love all the information and your sense of humor. My next 3 cruises are on RCCL and I wont be back to Celebrity until Nov 23, 2018 on the Eclipse TA, Barcelona to Buenos Aires 16 nights. Different than any other TA I have done.

Loved the 52 Martini spread, by the way how many of those did the 2 of you drink?

Norma

[TommyD3]

We ate ins Luminae for lunch a couple of times (it is only open on sea days) and we ate in Luminae for dinner a total of 9 times. The other 5 times we ate in Tuscan 3, Murano 1, and Qsine 1.

Hi Paul,

Can you tell me what you paid for Tuscan?

I think I read they were offering it discounted to $20?

My family is onboard this cruise.

Thanks.

[jagoffee]

Hi Paul,

Can you tell me what you paid for Tuscan?

I think I read they were offering it discounted to $20?

My family is onboard this cruise.

Thanks.

They stayed in a RS which includes unlimited speciality dining..

[Dawgone]

Our experience...throughout the cruise, 1/2 offers are available...while exiting the MDR and other strategic areas. Also, on night one, all specialty restaurants are half off. Someone will correct me if I'm mistaken.

[chicagopaul]

Hi Paul,

Can you tell me what you paid for Tuscan?

I think I read they were offering it discounted to $20?

My family is onboard this cruise.

Thanks.

 

Jagoffe is correct that we didn't pay anything for Tuscan since it was included with our Royal Suite. With the Royal Suite it is true unlimited specialty dining. You can dine as much as you want.

 

I did hear a couple different prices on board. One person told me they were offering it for $20 one night to Tuscan. Another person said they paid $30. There are typically discounts to be had, especially if you're overnight in port or on the first night.

[TommyD3]

Jagoffe is correct that we didn't pay anything for Tuscan since it was included with our Royal Suite. With the Royal Suite it is true unlimited specialty dining. You can dine as much as you want.

 

I did hear a couple different prices on board. One person told me they were offering it for $20 one night to Tuscan. Another person said they paid $30. There are typically discounts to be had, especially if you're overnight in port or on the first night.

Thanks !!!

[chicagopaul]

Before continuing my review and answering a few other questions on here, I just wanted to give you a quick final thought of the rest of our day yesterday and luggage valet service we utilized through Celebrity.

 

As I mentioned earlier we had a late, 4:50pm flight out of MIA. We spent time in the Centurion Lounge. As long as you have an Amex Platinum you have access. We had some tea, coffee, some food, some drinks. It has a great view of one of the runways so it makes for fun plane watching.

 

Our flight was AA1109, MIA to ORD. We were able to snag a fantastic first class purchase price so we did not use any points. We also don't have any status with AA as we normally do not fly them. I've heard varying things about AA first class service. This flight was much better than I expected. We had pre-departure drinks as soon we got to our seats and we could have whatever we wanted. Edward and I both went with vodka on the rocks. We took off on time and then had some wine and warm mixed nuts and moved on to dinner. We had already reserved our meal which was chicken with a mushroom risotto. It was much better than I thought it was going to be. Chicken was moist and tender and the risotto was creamy and flavorful. The salad was small but had some cheese and fruit in it. The bread selection was not bad. I wasn't crazy about the cheese bread I chose but more so because there was an herb in there that I didn't like (not sure exactly what it was). The bread a little dry, but was still fresh. There were two flight attendants working meal service in first class. I was offered refills on my wine multiple times throughout the flight and offered coffee, tea, etc. They came around with warm cookies after dinner. Meal service was completed fully within 60/65 minutes from take off, possibly a bit less. Overall, it was a very well executed domestic first class service for AA. If they could be consistent with this then they'd have a much better domestic first reputation, especially on their 737 configuration which doesn't have the best first class reputation for AA.

 

We arrived in ORD about 35 minutes AHEAD of schedule. The weather was a balmy 31 degrees. Woohoo! Our luggage came out pretty quickly. As we were walking to baggage claim Edward received a text alert that one of the bags arrived ahead of schedule and was in the baggage office. When I opened my AA app I saw the same alert. Another alert chimed off to let us know the other 3 bags just arrived in ORD and were already unloaded. Our bags came out relatively quickly and even though we used luggage valet they still put the orange One World Priority tags on our luggage. Getting the bag that arrived early from baggage claim was quick and easy. Our 3 bottles of liquor that we had packed in our luggage arrived undamaged! Thank goodness. I was worried about that.

 

Overall we were thrilled with luggage valet. It was free with the Royal Suite, but otherwise would cost $25 per person. I would most definitely use it again. It was great to not have to get your luggage and walk it through customs. If you have a later flight and don't want the hassle of your luggage I do recommend it and we will definitely use it again in the future.

Edited December 11, 2017 by chicagopaul

[chicagopaul]

I'll continue a little bit here with my summary review. Lets talk about entertainment. For someone who asked about the butler, etc. I'll talk completely about the royal suite, service we received, butler, etc. It will come soon!

 

Entertainment

This is one area I cannot speak too much about. While we typically go to the shows this cruise we found ourselves skipping all the main shows with the exception of the Broadway Cabaret show which we really enjoyed. This show is the 6 of the production singers singing broadway and west end classics. We sat near the front row and really enjoyed the shows. The singers had great voices and it was a nice variety of songs they were singing.

Besides that I cannot speak to any of the theater shows. There were some shows in the atrium which were fun to watch. There was also a full moon party on the deck which featured some of the dancers in the pool and doing a few things with their bodies that I know I never could They were quite fun to watch and very good looking so I am not going to complain. This was very well attended and people were on the dance floor. I do have some video of this and it will be combined into some YouTube videos I’ll be posting in the next 24 to 48hrs.

One area of entertainment that I want to mention specifically is the DJ. The DJ is named Mace. This was his first full cruise as a DJ by himself. He started the first cruise after the TA. That first cruise he had a “trainer” with him. While he is a DJ by trade, he had never worked on cruise ships. I’ve never much paid attention to the DJs or spoke to them. Usually I’ve noticed they don’t pay much attention to the passengers either. In this case, it was completely the opposite. DJ Mace was fantastic. He was very much involved with the guests. We’d see him every night at the Martini Bar playing music and guests would come up and talk to him. He’d make his way around the bar to I think check sound levels but he’d stop and talk to people on the way. The music he played was a very wide range of everything. Some classic songs but remixed, some R&B but remixed slower….it was the perfect music for the Martini Bar and people of all ages seemed to enjoy. Furthermore, the sound level was perfect. It was never too loud. So if you see him on the cruise (he will be on the Eclipse for another 5 months I believe or possibly a bit longer) be sure to introduce yourself to him. He’s a fantastic guy.

The sports by the pool on the last two sea days were well organized. Lots of people turned up for the officers volleyball and the beanbag / corn hole / baggo tournament against the officers.

We did not attend some of the friendly feud or anything like that but talking to some people they were well attended. Not many participants in actually playing but I’m told a lot were watching.

There were multiple lecturers on the ship. I cannot speak to them or the attendance of their lecturers but I did see them in the daily and they were advertised a bit on the cruise director channel, channel 2.

If you remember from earlier in the blog there was the Mirage Party at the Martini Bar. This was well attended and the music was very good and seemed to be enjoyed by everyone at the bar. The dancers were having fun and seemed to really get into it. Some of the guests were up about and dancing too.

 

Silent disco was held a few nights. The biggest turn out seemed to be when it was in the grand foyer. This was sold as the “battle of the DJs” where DJ Mace, Sue Denning, and the activities director Giuseppe were DJs and controlling the music on the different channels. Sue organized a conga line that went up and down the stairs. It was fun to watch from the martini bar, but it was definitely packed! Very well attended. You’ll see some video of this as well in the YouTube uploads.

[Want2Cruise 701]

Overall we were thrilled with luggage valet. It was free with the Royal Suite, but otherwise would cost $25 per person. I would most definitely use it again. It was great to not have to get your luggage and walk it through customs. If you have a later flight and don't want the hassle of your luggage I do recommend it and we will definitely use it again in the future.

 

We plan on using luggage valet since we have a 9pm flight out of FLL after our Eclipse cruise next week. Do they waive the $25/pp fee for Sky Suites too or is is just for the higher end suites? Glad you enjoyed your cruise and had a safe trip back.

 

Jessica

[Skyrose]

Let me take a quick recap break and post some menus! This is the full Luminae wine list.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Chicago Paul, I've really enjoyed following along on your voyage learning what to expect on our first Celebrity voyage in August aboard Eclipse.

 

Thank you for posting the Luminae wine list; I suspect we'll have most of dinners there. We will have a premium beverage package with our sky suite. It looks like there are no French whites by the glass. Is that correct? Do you know if they would be willing to bring a glass or two on the premium package from a different venue?

 

I hope your re-entry to real life goes well. The first couple of weeks after a cruise can be brutal.

 

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[wrk2cruise]

We plan on using luggage valet since we have a 9pm flight out of FLL after our Eclipse cruise next week. Do they waive the $25/pp fee for Sky Suites too or is is just for the higher end suites? Glad you enjoyed your cruise and had a safe trip back.

 

Jessica

 

I believe it is waived for Celebrity Suite and above.

[Want2Cruise 701]

I believe it is waived for Celebrity Suite and above.

 

Thank you. I had a feeling that was probably the case.

[chicagopaul]

Chicago Paul, I've really enjoyed following along on your voyage learning what to expect on our first Celebrity voyage in August aboard Eclipse.

 

Thank you for posting the Luminae wine list; I suspect we'll have most of dinners there. We will have a premium beverage package with our sky suite. It looks like there are no French whites by the glass. Is that correct? Do you know if they would be willing to bring a glass or two on the premium package from a different venue?

 

I hope your re-entry to real life goes well. The first couple of weeks after a cruise can be brutal.

 

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You should be OK, just make your preference known to the sommelier right away and they should be able to arrange it. Likely they'll already have some bottles stocked there. One night Victor brought us a nice Sancerre with our meal.

[chicagopaul]

Thank you. I had a feeling that was probably the case.

 

Unfortunately Sky Suites are not included. I was told by our butler Alfred that it Royals & Penthouses were included, but Celebrity Suites I imagine could be as well.

[chamima]

We plan on using luggage valet since we have a 9pm flight out of FLL after our Eclipse cruise next week. Do they waive the $25/pp fee for Sky Suites too or is is just for the higher end suites? Glad you enjoyed your cruise and had a safe trip back.

 

Jessica

 

I believe it is waived for Celebrity Suite and above.

 

 

Don't worry about the $50.

It will be the best $50 you spend on the cruise!!!!!

[keithm]

Thanks for the wonderful review and photos. Sorry to see that Celebrity is eliminating the 14 night Caribbean sailings going forward. A B2B is just not the same since they repeat shows and menus.

I'm booked on the 14 day trip Jan. 4 on the Reflection. I know the Eclipse is going to South America, so it's the reason we switched over to the Reflection. Of course that's not to say they can/will cancel it as well. The 14 day cruises are what we chose Celebrity for. They have them on the Caribbean Princess, but that ship is getting "long in the tooth" as they say.

[burrma]

I'm booked on the 14 day trip Jan. 4 on the Reflection. I know the Eclipse is going to South America, so it's the reason we switched over to the Reflection. Of course that's not to say they can/will cancel it as well. The 14 day cruises are what we chose Celebrity for. They have them on the Caribbean Princess, but that ship is getting "long in the tooth" as they say.

 

Hope enough people tell Celebrity that it was because of their 14 day cruises; many of us chose them; year after year and they highly reconsider their decision to cancel them. You are lucky you can do Reflection in 2019 for 14 days; after that cruise; there will be no more 14 day ones. BOOO . Wonder how many will leave Celebrity because of this?

[LadyVol1]

We plan on using luggage valet since we have a 9pm flight out of FLL after our Eclipse cruise next week. Do they waive the $25/pp fee for Sky Suites too or is is just for the higher end suites? Glad you enjoyed your cruise and had a safe trip back.

 

Jessica

 

And if you’re flying out of Fort Lauderdale on Southwest, only one of you would have to pay the $25 for Luggage Valet assuming your cabin has no more than two suitcases to check to the same destination. Southwest allows every passenger two suitcases for free.

[BCJO]

Really enjoyed your review, Paul. Great photos, thoughtful and interesting comments. Thank you.

[chicagopaul]

Just be cautious on the luggage valet as there are time restrictions, especially for southwest. Last time we were porting out of Miami but flying on southwest through FLL and the only times luggage vale was available for Southwest was between 2 and 6pm. I have the flyer somewhere, I'll try to post it.

 

Tomorrow I'll have a bunch of videos posted. The full video of the room tour, some martini bar videos, videos of entertainment in the ensemble lounge, and some of the parties on the ship as well as sail away from the helipad among others.

 

Then in another day I should be able to have all the daily programs in one PDF file for download along with all the menus available for download or at least on a separate linked site for easy future reference.

 

Any questions anyone has let me know!

 

Also to the person who asked about restaurant recommendations in Chicago - shoot me a private message on here with your e-mail address and I'd be happy to point you in the right direction and give you some contacts here!

[Skyrose]

You should be OK, just make your preference known to the sommelier right away and they should be able to arrange it. Likely they'll already have some bottles stocked there. One night Victor brought us a nice Sancerre with our meal.

Oh, that's great to hear! Thanks.

 

 

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