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

[Host Star]

We are on the Eclipse at this very moment, as we have been for the past five years at this same time of year. The service has been excellent but I am very disappointed in Luminae. The food offerings have been generally mundane and unimaginative. I have taken to ordering at least some dishes from the main menu which makes me wonder why I am paying for a suite. Also, the poor waiters in Luminae are hustling so much that one of them actually is breaking out into a trot to provide service. He is the nicest man but he seriously overworked. My wife feels very sympathetic for him, as he is performing every possible dining room function short of washing the dishes, and maybe he's doing that, too. Celebrity is lucky to have employees like him and others like him.

we just returned from the dec. 10 cruise and found the food in the dining room to be very good .we usually do specialty dining at least 3 times but we felt no need for it this cruise... we had select dining and they reserved our table for us .. we had excellent service with Samson and Gabriel.. both experienced and attentive.... we found the staff to be constantly among the passengers and the dance troupe to be very talented...if you saw the liars club it was the best one i have seen on any of the cruise ships... sue, guiseppe and the guest comic were an incredible combo... talking to Sue later in the cruise she said she also felt it had been the best one she had participated in...there are so many elite and elite plus the sky lounge was packed every nite...

[eem1016]

Paul thank you very much for your incredible review. We are going on the Feb. 4th sailing and it can't come fast enough! I also have a Med cruise planned this summer on the Reflection - hope you review that also!

Happy Sailing!

[chicagopaul]

Thank you everyone for the continued comments. I’m currently traveling in Vegas but will be slowly working on the downloadable version of the menus and daily’s. I’ve started a separate website just for our cruises so it’s been a work in progress so I apologize for the delay.

 

I do not remember how long Nenad will be on. I’ll go through my notes and see if I can find out. Worst case I’ll try to message him on social media and ask.

 

I briefly mention me being in Vegas because we’re enjoying several free nights (at the Aria) due to the reciprocity MLife has with Celebrity. I know it’s been briefly mentioned before but talking with fellow cruisers most did not know about it at all. However MLife staff here is very aware of it. I’ll post a Delaware thread about that shortly so for all you who love Vegas it could be useful.

 

 

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[swigso]

You are class staying in one of the bes5 hotels in Vegas

[CrusieToy]

Certainly hope this is true.. couldn’t believe when I read... they were charging here. How petty can they get when mant ate here which was less cost than at buffet or dining room. Will be anxious to hear what is the truth!

the Mast Grill was free on our 12.2.17 Cruise.

[chicagopaul]

the Mast Grill was free on our 12.2.17 Cruise.

 

 

 

Correct. Mast Grill is free fleet wide. Their little “test” of charging didn’t go over well.

 

 

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[RodPat]

Sorry for the little bit of a break in the final review. I think I've covered lots of the main items but the one area I did not cover was the suite experience.

 

We have stayed in Sky Suites before but this is the first time we have ever stayed in a Royal Suite. When we first booked this cruise we booked a concierge room and then upgraded to aqua. After final payment we jumped on a Sky Suite and then we saw a nice price drop on the Royal Suite and jumped on that. Talk about a big shift! It came with a big price tag, but the cost per night was the cheapest we've ever seen a Royal Suite advertised on any S class ship.

 

We were specifically in room 1118. Alfred was our butler.

 

The Room

 

Lets be honest; the extra space was fantastic. Having a separate living area from the bed area was great in the morning. We had our butler come in the morning and deliver breakfast on half the days or at least coffee. We would never hear him come in. It was fantastic to open the bedroom door and see breakfast sitting there.

 

I loved the bathroom. Having a stand up shower and not having to step in over the tub like the sky suites was great. The additional drawer storage in the bathroom was nice, but we've always had great storage in the bathrooms even in the Verandah cabins. The double sinks were a nice plus and we enjoyed having that extra space. We don't spend a lot of time in the cabin, but on this cruise we felt like we were spending just a little extra time. Instead of napping on deck for an hour we'd do so in our room or on the balcony. It felt much more like a home versus a cabin.

 

The extra half bath was nice. We could take our time getting ready in the morning or in the shower and not having to worry about one of us "needing to get in" to the bathroom. We didn't use the guest bath much, but it was nice to have it there when we did.

 

The bathtub on the balcony was cool, but not that practical. We used it once. Well, I used it once. Edward didn't use it. It's not really suited for two people as its a rectangle (just like a bathtub) and you really "fall into" the tub. Unlike a hot tub where you feel like you can sit up and have a drink. Aesthetically they look great. In practice, a round shaped hot tub or even a round shaped regular tub would work better. But oh well, this is truly a first world problem isn't it?

 

We did have an extra lounger brought out to the balcony. Personally I thought this crowded the balcony. I wouldn't do it again. I'd be happy with the table, two chairs, lounger, and the tub.

 

Overall we found the room to be in very good shape. Furniture was in great shape, bathrooms were very clean. The grout, caulking around the shower, etc. was in excellent shape. The only negative from a maintenance standpoint was the balcony. The salt was prevalent on the balcony and there was some decent wear on the railing. A little rust on one of the handles by the tub, but besides that no other rust. It's a small item to note, but something worth mentioning.

 

The layout was great, but the layout of the bedroom / closet area was a bit challenging for two people getting ready. If we were getting dressed around the same time we kept finding us bumping into each other. Unlike in the sky suite where it's quite wide near the closet area it is easy to walk around each other. In the bedroom here it was a tight squeeze.

 

Butler Alfred

 

We did not use our butler for much, but he was very good. Alfred was extremely professional and was not an amateur. He handled at least one of the penthouse suites as well. He carried himself extremely well. Very well polished. He gave us the space we knew we wanted but he still made sure to make himself present so we knew he was there. We had him deliver breakfast about 8 times. We had him shine our shoes a few times. Each time our shoes were returned within a few hours. We had laundry completed twice including some pressing and dry cleaning. Both times the turnaround was less than 24hrs. He kept our bar area stocked with Pellegrino and ginger ale per request. We had some beers stocked but we never drank them. On the last night we needed some tape to tape up a bottle of liquor we opened (Remy) and he fetched it right away. He brought a very heavy duty packing tape and it did the job. Sometimes we left the do not disturb on and he suspected that. We found out he knew we frequented the pool bar each morning so he'd call the pool bar to make sure we were there so he could tend to our room. Little things like that, he did well and he did secretly. In my opinion that is all I want and need from a butler. Others are different and I firmly believe that if you were one that wanted a lot more attention he would sense that and you'd definitely get all the attention you need.

 

Did the Royal Suite spoil us?

 

When we first walked in we LOVED all the space. We still LOVE all the space. I was worried going in that after staying in a Royal we'd cut back and cruise only once a year so we could do so in a Royal or Penthouse. But after 14 days in the Royal, while I did love the space, I realized I don't NEED it. I am shocked I'm actually saying that to be honest, but it's the truth. Now don't get me wrong, if money were no object I'd of course book it each time. But we'd be very happy with just a sky suite. While I think all suites get great perks and great treatment, I think the biggest perk is the understanding from the staff that you're in a "royal or penthouse" suite. That to me is the benefit I will truly miss when not in a royal suite.

 

Michael's Club

 

We barely used Michael's Club but it was to know it was there. We had one drink in there. We did get to know Sara the MCC quite well and I have to say she was fantastic. Extremely talkative and she made a point to come out and find us whether we were at the bars or at dinner she'd make a point to stop by and check on us. She took care of our luggage valet and handled some printing we needed with regard to that. She scheduled the bridge tour (I made a point to ask her about this as I was excited about it) and she made sure we had good tables in our specialty dining reservations. We really liked Sara and hope to see her on a future cruise.

 

Luminae

 

I already touched on this before. We had great service and always had an excellent table. They seemed to be OVERLY concerned about the quality of table we received. I'm not sure if that is because we were in a royal or because we knew Nenad from previous cruises, but we always had a nice window table or offered a private table or even a table for 4 so we'd have some privacy.

 

So those are my thoughts on the Royal Suite. We loved it. But at the end of the day I'm just happy to be on the cruise. For the price we paid, we would definitely pay it again. I know some people don't like talking about price, but I don't mind. For the 14nt cruise we paid $12,200 for the Royal Suite after taxes, port fees, etc. This included $450 OBC from Celebrity plus a very generous OBC (which we took in the from of a rebate check) from our TA. For 14nights on the Eclipse I thought it was a wonderful price.

 

Our next cruise we're booked in a regular Verandah and then a Sky Suite after that. At the end of the day put me on a Celebrity ship and a drink in my hand and you'll have me smiling.

 

I'll have a few more videos uploaded shortly as well as all the menus I promised in downloadable format. As always, any questions at all please feel free to continue to ask!

Paul, We were on Eclipse right after you got off. It was also our first Royal Suite. I agree it was really a nice room to stay in. We loved the walk in shower and the half bath did sometimes come in handy. We did not have Alfred as our butler because we were on the opposite side of the ship. We had Peter and he was fabulous. Our friends who we sailed with had the Penthouse suite and had Alfred as their butler and were very pleased. We took your suggestion for Luminae and had the Victor and Viktor show every night. We loved both of them. We drank lots of nice wine which Victor would recommend plus the wine we brought on board with us. Loved Michaels club and Sara was just the best concierge we have ever had. It was nice that we had specialty restaurants free of charge because of the Royal Suite. We ate at Sushi on 5 three times for lunch. I can't give up the suite life but I agree a Royal suite is not necessary for every cruise. Our next is a Sky suite and then a Celebrity suite. Just booked Edge while on board for a Celebrity suite. Thanks for your insight and all the info you gave us before we boarded.

 

Pat

[lmb1988]

Little late to the party here, but just wanted to say a massive thanks for your cruise report Paul!

 

You were kind enough to comment on a post of mine a while ago asking for advise/comments over the experience on board a 14 night Caribbean cruise and booking our first cruise with Celebrity. We went ahead and booked it a few weeks ago, and reading your report, although on a different ship to what we will be on has really made me look forward to it a 100x more than I was! Now just a year to wait [emoji849]

 

Happy New Year to you and Edward and thanks again!

 

 

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[oskarNZ]

I’ve just spent a lazy day reading your report and I want to say thanks heaps for taking the time to put it together.

 

We are booked to do a very similar itinerary on the Reflection and your trip report has been really useful. Being such a long, expensive flight to that side of the world, it’s nice to read reports like yours that help reaffirm the decisions we have made.

[HamiltonMike]

Paul,

I wanted to thank you for your detailed reporting on this voyage. My wife and I are on the Jan 7th sailing in a sky suite. Your helpfulness and descriptions have come in quite useful in our planning. You sir, have inspired me to write about my experience on this ship too.

 

This will be our 2nd sailing on Celebrity, the Summit was our first, so we are really looking forward to this one too. What better way to celebrate 20 years of marriage!!

 

Anyways, thank you again and I wish you and Andrew all the best in 2018!!

 

Best regards

 

Mike

[keithm]

a

Correct. Mast Grill is free fleet wide. Their little “test” of charging didn’t go over well.

 

 

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I love how many pax claim how good the Mast Grill burgers are. Do any of you know they are not made on the ship? They come from Sysco/US foods. We use them on our BBQ's. Overall they are a good product, but are not home made! The new burgers failed more for production cost than for the fee.

Edited January 1, 2018 by keithm
additions

[micheleata]

I loved every word of this report. You are a great writer! Thanks for sharing your experience with us.

[Hlitner]

Thank you very much for the informative post. We have never booked a large suite (we have had smaller faux suites) and always wondered if it would be a good move for us. I think we would have viewed the situation similar to the OP (we would love it...but would not want to spend the big bucks). For us, the extra personal service and better dining is more of a priority since we just do not spend a lot of waking time in our cabin. Ironically this has led us to book a future 21 day MSC cruise in the Yacht Club. MSC offers a suite experience without the suite...for those that book regular balcony cabins within their Yacht Club. Unlike on Celebrity, MSC has created a true "ship within a ship" experience. Where Celebrity offers us Michael's and Luminae, MSC offers an entirely separate part of the ship which includes its own lounge (with unlimited drinks and various food day and night) and a private sun deck with pool. Perhaps Celebrity will do this with some future build. Ironically, what MSC (and NCL) have done is resurrect the old style of cruising when there were classes....each with their own facilities.

 

Hank

[chicagopaul]

I hope everyone had a wonderful holiday season and 2018 is treating all of you well. Many of you have asked for the daily papers along with the menus in downloadable version. Well, my apologizes for the delay. The craziness of the holidays and a trip to Vegas put some of this on the back burner; however I have everything in order now

 

Below you will find links to download the daily papers as well as the bar menus I took photos of on the ship. These are in PDF form but will also pull up in viewable form on tablets / phones. The links are to a personal website of mine that I started to document our travels on Celebrity. There is nothing being sold on it! haha, so hopefully the admins on here do not have a problem with me posting it. But if they do just let me know and I'll gladly remove.

 

Below is the link for the Eclipse 14 Night 2017 Daily Papers. Click or Copy & Paste

https://cruisingoncelebrity.com/downloads

 

Below is a link for the bar menus and wine menus we took photos of on our cruise

https://cruisingoncelebrity.com/menus

[HaveDogWillTravel]

 

Below is the link for the Eclipse 14 Night 2017 Daily Papers. Click or Copy & Paste

https://cruisingoncelebrity.com/downloads

 

Below is a link for the bar menus and wine menus we took photos of on our cruise

https://cruisingoncelebrity.com/menus

 

Thank you for the posting. We were on the Dec 21-Jan 2 holiday cruise after you and our menu in Blu, MDR and Wine cellar were all the same but not the same as the lists you posted. It was pretty frustrating at first that the wines for the premium package on the wine lists out on the first day at the bars didn’t match the actual wine behind the counter. Now I know why I had a random glass of Cloudy Bay! It was left over from your cruise.

I had an upload error trying to post our wine by the glass menus that I took pictures of on Dec 23 that ended up being the entirety of what was available in Blu, MDR and the Cellar. Very limited premium list and only one or two were in the bars or lounges.

If you drank hard alcohol on this cruise you were well taken care of. I only drink dry whites or dry rose ( Love reds but they don’t love me:mad:) I had a less than experience unfortunately.

[lola2013]

I hope everyone had a wonderful holiday season and 2018 is treating all of you well. Many of you have asked for the daily papers along with the menus in downloadable version. Well, my apologizes for the delay. The craziness of the holidays and a trip to Vegas put some of this on the back burner; however I have everything in order now

 

Below you will find links to download the daily papers as well as the bar menus I took photos of on the ship. These are in PDF form but will also pull up in viewable form on tablets / phones. The links are to a personal website of mine that I started to document our travels on Celebrity. There is nothing being sold on it! haha, so hopefully the admins on here do not have a problem with me posting it. But if they do just let me know and I'll gladly remove.

 

Below is the link for the Eclipse 14 Night 2017 Daily Papers. Click or Copy & Paste

https://cruisingoncelebrity.com/downloads

 

Below is a link for the bar menus and wine menus we took photos of on our cruise

https://cruisingoncelebrity.com/menus

 

Paul,

After reading your amazing reviews with your witty banter and great pictures, along with following you on instagram with the great pictures of our shared hometown, I've decided I want to be you when I grow up!

Susan

[chicagopaul]

Paul,

After reading your amazing reviews with your witty banter and great pictures, along with following you on instagram with the great pictures of our shared hometown, I've decided I want to be you when I grow up!

Susan

 

HAHA, Thank you for the kinds words Susan! I hope you're staying warm during this wonderful time of year in Chicago. Just another day in paradise....:rolleyes:

[chicagopaul]

Paul,

I wanted to thank you for your detailed reporting on this voyage. My wife and I are on the Jan 7th sailing in a sky suite. Your helpfulness and descriptions have come in quite useful in our planning. You sir, have inspired me to write about my experience on this ship too.

 

This will be our 2nd sailing on Celebrity, the Summit was our first, so we are really looking forward to this one too. What better way to celebrate 20 years of marriage!!

 

Anyways, thank you again and I wish you and Andrew all the best in 2018!!

 

Best regards

 

Mike

 

Thank you for the kind words Mike! I hope you have a wonderful cruise on the Summit and enjoy the suite life! Congratulations on 20 years!

[ncdachsiemom]

This may seem a silly question, but can you tell me which side, port or starboard, was the pier side on the most on this past cruise? In the past the port side was it, but curious if that is still the same. We like the view of the pier and are booked in a port, but a starboard cabin just came available.

Thanks!

[lola2013]

Paul...my friend and I just booked one of the preview cruises on the Edge...I only wish you were sailing first so I could read your review and know what to expect!

Susan

[chicagopaul]

This may seem a silly question, but can you tell me which side, port or starboard, was the pier side on the most on this past cruise? In the past the port side was it, but curious if that is still the same. We like the view of the pier and are booked in a port, but a starboard cabin just came available.

Thanks!

 

Great question! Sorry for the late reply on this. Did you stay with the port cabin? We were Starboard (cabin 1118) and we did NOT face the port at most of our docks. The only one with a direct view of the port was in Martinique. Granted this can change depending on weather, etc. and how they decide to move into the port, however, if you kept your cabin on the port side you should be in good shape!

 

We too like the view of the port / dock and were a little disappointed we didn't get more of that view from starboard.

[chicagopaul]

Paul...my friend and I just booked one of the preview cruises on the Edge...I only wish you were sailing first so I could read your review and know what to expect!

Susan

 

Haha, thank you! I wish I could help out!

 

Congrats! Which sailing did you book? We're on the Edge in February. We did check pricing when the new sailings were announced. We're on an 11night on the Reflection in November. If I could convince Edward we'd just make it a full month of sailing on Celebrity and check out the Edge! I can get away with it with work, Edward not so much.

[lola2013]

We took the 2nd preview, 11/24...I will already be in Ft. Lauderdale spending Thanksgiving with my family. Since there is no additional airfare involved, it was an easy decision. $699 for a Sunset Verandah is a deal I just couldn't pass up. I hope I can see all that Edge has to offer in a quick three-night trip.

Susan

[ncdachsiemom]

Great question! Sorry for the late reply on this. Did you stay with the port cabin? We were Starboard (cabin 1118) and we did NOT face the port at most of our docks. The only one with a direct view of the port was in Martinique. Granted this can change depending on weather, etc. and how they decide to move into the port, however, if you kept your cabin on the port side you should be in good shape!

 

We too like the view of the port / dock and were a little disappointed we didn't get more of that view from starboard.

 

Thanks for your reply. We did stay with 1247...an angled balcony on the port side. 1120....right next to 1118 that you stayed in, was available, and those first angled balcony cabins are my favorites. Having taken this same cruise several times I wanted to confirm that port was still pier side most of the time. This is a “biker” cruise...and they are very interesting to watch. Usually 20 or so bikers get on and off with beautiful motorcycles and it is fascinating to sit on the balcony and watch them. They meet up with groups from each island and what a wonderful way to see everything! I think that would be so much fun...but at 71 guess I am a little past learning how to ride a Harley...but I can dream! 😁

My new goal is reaching elite plus after this cruise and start booking suites! We are on the Reflection next year and hope to be on the Edge in February. Thanks for the quick reply. It sounds like you really enjoy your cruises...best review ever. Thanks!

Linda

[chamima]

Thanks for your reply. We did stay with 1247...an angled balcony on the port side. 1120....right next to 1118 that you stayed in, was available, and those first angled balcony cabins are my favorites. Having taken this same cruise several times I wanted to confirm that port was still pier side most of the time. This is a “biker” cruise...and they are very interesting to watch. Usually 20 or so bikers get on and off with beautiful motorcycles and it is fascinating to sit on the balcony and watch them. They meet up with groups from each island and what a wonderful way to see everything! I think that would be so much fun...but at 71 guess I am a little past learning how to ride a Harley...but I can dream! 😁

My new goal is reaching elite plus after this cruise and start booking suites! We are on the Reflection next year and hope to be on the Edge in February. Thanks for the quick reply. It sounds like you really enjoy your cruises...best review ever. Thanks!

Linda

 

 

Linda

I think we're on the same cruise as you (Feb. 4 or Feb.18) .

We have sailed with the bikers before and, yes, it IS so much fun watching the local club come to greet the people off our ship.

However, we always book the same cabin (have done this same 14 day cruise for at least 5 years) and it's starboard so maybe we back in to some of the ports.

Either way it's not hard to run up top to watch.