Edge Review 1/27/19

[hockeymom21]

We sailed on the Edge 1/27/19.  We had stateroom 10151.  We are in our mid 50's.  We have sailed 1 HAL, 1 Carnival, 1 MSC, 2 RCCL, 7 Princess and 7 Celebrity- with 2 more future Celebrity booked.  Equinox 6/1/19 &  Reflection 3/13/20.  Our very first room on HAL was an inside room.  Over the years we have "moved up" to balcony.  Have done Mini Suites. Have done Concierge, Love Aqua Class.  This was our very first suite. 

 

Embarkation was a breeze.  Took an Uber to the Port.  Handed off our luggage, waited 10 minutes in Suite area where you could grab a soda, water or snack.  Very quickly checked in and on to the ship.  Off to find our room! We met our Butler Denisa. Chatted for a few minutes and then off to explore.

 

We have only sailed on Silhouette 1x and the rest Reflection.    I would have loved an Edge map.  I did not really use the Celebrity App.  I still like to read Celebrity Edge Today. I like to start at the top of a new-to-me ship and work my way to the bottom.  Just to acclimate myself!  What a beautiful ship!  The artwork, the ambiance.  Very nicely done.  My husband watched the whole ship building process and watched everything he could for the 2 years prior to boarding!  We read all the reviews.  We are very happy non-complaining cruisers.  We love hearing what everyone has to say.  We shake our heads sometimes but it makes for good conversations!

 

With that being said.. I agree with something I read.  You could be on this ship for weeks and still not see or find everything.  There were parts of the ship we never saw or used!  The gym...took our clothes, never put them on!  Never sat in the solarium- which we love on the Reflection!  I never got a smoothie in the Spa Cafe- which I love on the Reflection.  Not sure why?  Just didn't make it there.

 

With the exception of 2 nights we ate dinner in Luminae.  Prior to the change of adding classics, I was a little apprehensive about the menu for my husband.  He is more of a "plain" eater than I am.  He also has a pink shellfish allergy so sometimes menu's have more things he can't eat.  He loves to have French Onion Soup every night.  So he was very happy!  The Luminae staff is wonderful!  Here is what I love!!!  How is it that these wonderful strangers meet you once then remember your name for 7 days!!!!  From the lovely hostess Sokie, to our waiter Novi and his assistant Joahnna- not only remembered our names but the water and wine choices we liked!  Anita was always making sure everybody was happy and cleared many plates and even set tables!  Loved every minute.  I did not think it was loud.  I did not think the tables were any closer together than tables we have sat at in Blu.  There was only one night we had to wait to eat.  We might have gone a little later that night.  Sokie gave us a pager and sent us up to the Retreat to wait.  Took about 45 minutes that night to wait. 

 

The Retreat Lounge was another area we never used.  It was so pretty.   Couches, chairs, blankets etc.  I think we only went in there 2x.  But every time we did there were people in there so that was nice!

 

We had dinner on night in Eden.  It was very good.  Magical, food was delicious. I liked the aged Rib Eye better than one of the nights I had steak in Luminae. I loved the Oysters.  Desserts were amazing.  My husband introduced himself to the Chef.  Chef's first time on a cruise ship! Enjoyed it.  I would have liked to have dinner upstairs in Eden.  We could see some of what was happening, but not a lot.  That was one area of the ship I wish we had spent more time in.  We walked back there a couple times, but never saw a show or had a drink at the bar.  We never had breakfast back there.  I thought it was very pretty.  I liked how you could take a left before the bar and walk up around and look out or down.  I was never sure of what was happening or what the story line was.  Not anything I could say I didn't like.. just didn't go back there?

 

We had dinner one night at Fine Cut Steakhouse.  We shared the Tomahawk for 2 with Truffle Fries!  I think we asked for more after we ate them!   Cooked perfectly!  I had the Arugula Salad. The Parker house rolls were delicious. I think my husband ate 2 baskets!  I am glad we made reservations in advance.  It was a very busy restaurant.  I thought is was a loud restaurant, but it will always be because of where it is located.  Our favorite restaurant is The Tuscan Grille.  The location is perfect and it is amazing to sit at the window and watch the water.  I missed that ambiance in Fine Cut.  I did hear that there are tables outside, but we did not look into that.  To me it seems in the wrong spot.  Especially if it's a busy time at Martini bar?  With the lights?  Didn't seem as romantic as Tuscan Grille?  

 

We had breakfast one morning in Le Grand Bistro.  Enjoyed that.  Other mornings we had breakfast in Luminae.  The fresh squeezed orange juice!!! I miss that!

 

We never had lunch in a restaurant.  A couple days we went to Buffet and sat at one of the new long high top tables looking out at the water.  Those were a nice addition.  A couple days we went to the Mast Grill and grabbed some fries.  

 

I have to say that the Retreat pool/ bar area was my absolute favorite part of the ship!  I ALWAYS get up on sea days to get 2 chairs by the pool.  I always stay in those chairs and drink my coffee and read my book- watching all the other people lay down towels and leave and come back hours later.  The Retreat was perfect!  There was always a lounge chair available.  Vince and Adrian were the best!  My girls up there greeted me every morning with Prosecco- my favorite morning drink!  We met some lovely people there.  It was a treat for us to have the use of that area.  It exceeded my expectations.  I would have loved a snack/lunch menu with a few more options on it.  I did ask for french fries one day.  Not allowed up there apparently.  I was told they could bring me a flat screen TV if I wanted, but no fries.  They could bring whole bags of potato chips though.  The rocking chairs on the pool deck were very very comfortable.  I think the pool swings are a great idea but maybe need to be out a little farther.  Again, a favorite spot of mine for the week.

 

I am sure all of you reading this have your favorite ships and spots on the ship you love.  For my husband and I our favorite ship is The Reflection.  We love the staff.  We also LOVE The Sunset Bar and The Wine bar, Cellar Masters on the Reflection.  On the Edge, we did go to the Sunset Bar a couple times.  It's a totally different  area on the Edge.  Not a right or wrong, just didn't draw me in the like the Sunset bar on the Reflection.  I missed having a wine bar on the Edge.  There wasn't really a quiet place to have a nice glass of wine in like Cellar Masters or The Ensemble Lounge, which we also missed.  WE LOVED THE MAGIC CARPET!  There was never anybody on it!  Taz was so nice to talk to. I'm sorry I forgot the other bartenders name.  What a pretty spot on the ship.  That was our go to spot for a quiet drink.  Loved loved loved it!! We never ate there and it was never too windy for us.

 

We walked thru the Rooftop garden but never sat there.

 

We have a very nice room.  More that enough closet space/bathroom space.  We are apparently- after talking to numerous people at the Retreat Pool- the only ones who did not utilize our butler.  There was never anything we could think of to use her for.  I did not have her unpack for us.  She didn't need to make any reservations for us because I had already taken care of that.  My husband had her bring a few soda's and beers.  One day I asked for a cheese tray.  One morning I asked for coffee! I did not need a lounge chair, because we really were not in our room that often.  She always asked if we needed anything.  So I really can't comment much on Butler service.

 

We went to 2 shows.  Once we sat in the Suite area.  

 

Bottom line was this.  Our tub never leaked.  Our room wasn't loud. We never smelled sewage.  What we listened to all week was  people complaining.  And it was the same people complaining.  So much that at one point,  the bartender at the Retreat pool bar made a  mistake in a drink order and had to ask the complainers not to post a bad review of him.  All these people did was complain.  When you have to get out of the pool because the same group just goes on and on with things they don't like it starts to get annoying. It's hard not to listen and for  me even harder not to respond.  All I heard all week... Luminae was too loud.  Dishes clanging- HELLO!  it's a restaurant!!! Steak they ordered was way too rare.  SEND IT BACK.  Tub leaked, hated infinite balcony.  Smelled sewage. Didn't like theater seats.  ON and ON.  I can understand some things.  Do I wish there was  more music in the Martini bar every night?  Yes.  Why isn't there?  It's alot of empty no music time that seemed odd.  I guess because most people go to shows at 7 or 9.  But what about the people that don't ?  

 

I actually liked the rocking chair in the room.  I sat in it.  We never had room service delivered so I had no need for a table.  It took me all week to figure out that there was a full length mirror in the room that lit up!  I loved the mirror in the bathroom and how you could look out towards the water.  What I didn't like was that the bathroom needed an exhaust fan.  My room did seem a little hot at times.  I did not like that after the 7PM show ended you couldn't get out of the Theater because the 9PM people were piling in to get a seat.  That should be addressed.  We only went to the club once.  Bandaoke.  Fun.  People either loved or hated the magic carpet.  But don't complain that it shouldn't be on the ship.  If you don't like it- don't go on  it.  I'm not sure it's a ship that my 77 year old parents would love.  It is a lot of walking and that's not for everyone.  They had the stairs blocked off by Cafe Al Bacio the week we were on to have them refinished .  So it was a small inconvenience to find another way up or down that floor.  We did see people sneak between the trees set there and go up anyway!  Elevators were fine.  Casino- went a couple times.  Went in a shop once to buy bandaids. They had all that kind of stuff tucked away in a drawer so if you didn't ask you would never find!  Never saw anyone in the Tiffany shop.  Never really had any interaction or saw the cruise director other than hearing his morning announcement and seeing him at the shows.  Never made it to any of the Captain's Club parties!

 

We  got off the ship in Tortola and took the Jost Van Dyke excursion. My husband went diving in St. Maarten.  

 

Getting off the ship total time from leaving to airport sitting at gate 60 minutes.  I understand it was not that way for lots of people but we left the ship at 8:15AM.

 

I think it's a beautiful ship.  Some of the prettiest artwork I have seen on a ship!  The picture of the 2 parrots is just intriguing! Friendly staff, always smiling and attentive.  My room was always clean.  The ship was spotless. I ate the chocolate on my pillow every night.  I ate both boxes of truffles myself! I ate too many cookies from the Cafe. I ate too many french fries from The Mast Grill.  Never got Gelato because the line was always too long. The Chef at Fine Cut told me they expect everyone to gain  5 lbs on a one week vacation.  8 pounds for two weeks!  I met their goal!  I enjoyed my Americano every morning!  I didn't have to walk through snow for a whole week!  I did wear dresses every night.  I was glad to see lots of people dressed up!  Several tuxedo's!  I loved my week of reading and relaxing and drinking Prosecco and can't wait to go back!!!!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Bo1953]

h - Thank you for your review...

 

Getting me revved up for our sailing in Nov 2019...

 

bon voyage

[eyecantwait]

I love your positive attitude! Sometimes you just have to remove yourself from the whining! Well done!

[kwokpot]

51 minutes ago, hockeymom21 said:

Bottom line was this.  Our tub never leaked.  Our room wasn't loud. We never smelled sewage.  What we listened to all week was  people complaining.  And it was the same people complaining.  So much that at one point,  the bartender at the Retreat pool bar made a  mistake in a drink order and had to ask the complainers not to post a bad review of him.  All these people did was complain.  When you have to get out of the pool because the same group just goes on and on with things they don't like it starts to get annoying. It's hard not to listen and for  me even harder not to respond.  All I heard all week... Luminae was too loud.  Dishes clanging- HELLO!  it's a restaurant!!! Steak they ordered was way too rare.  SEND IT BACK.  Tub leaked, hated infinite balcony.  Smelled sewage. Didn't like theater seats.  ON and ON.  I can understand some things.  Do I wish there was  more music in the Martini bar every night?  Yes.  Why isn't there?  It's alot of empty no music time that seemed odd.  I guess because most people go to shows at 7 or 9.  But what about the people that don't ?  

First of all thanks for a great review and I'm glad you enjoyed your cruise on The edge! I can't wait for my second sailing on April 15th!

There is another thread on this Celebrity forum about whether someone would sail Carnival after a Celebrity cruise. As I chimed in on that thread and various other threads on CC I do find that out of the cruiselines that I have sailed (Royal, NCL, Carnival, MSC, Princess,Celebrity) Celebrity takes the prize for the most complainers. I have 17 Celebrity cruises under my belt and that has definitely been my experience. As you mentioned in your review it is so prevalent that at times it becomes annoying and TBH I've said on more than one occasion if you are having such a terrible time why don't you just get off the ship! Contrast that with Carnival passengers (16 cruises on them and at least 2 more this year) who really never complain and are just on the ship to enjoy their vacation.

thanks again for your review!

Edited February 10, 2019 by kwokpot

[dmp223]

Loved your review and positive attitude! Can you share your thoughts on the Jost Van Dyke excursion... did you feel it was enough time to enjoy what you wanted to do? Would love to hear more about this. Thanks in advance 

[cgolf1]

Thanks for the positive review and sorry you had to deal with some complainers onboard. We too really liked the Edge and we were on the same sailing. Everyone we talked too was either positive about the ship or had constructive criticism. I will say I did walk by an infinite veranda room once and a guest was being so loud and rude to the stateroom host, that I debated stopping just in case the guest got too out of line. 

 

For us with the outward facing loungers up top, tall windows in the buffet and solarium, and the Magic Carpet made us feel the more connected to the ocean than we have felt on other ships.

[dpm321]

Thanks for the review, we're taking the Edge TA in April and were starting to get a little concerned.  Was this a 7 day cruise?  We stopped doing them because we have noticed a huge difference in the people on a 7-day versus a 10 day or longer trip.  IMHO, it seems like the majority of the 7 day cruisers have unrealistic expectations and are generally not experienced travelers.  Obviously this leads to a lot of complaints.  And I'd be willing to bet that the service/event they complain about is still far superior to what they experience in day-to-day life.  It seems most of them don't know how an elevator works, let alone what good service looks like!

[portofrome]

Thanks for your review!

[Oville]

11 minutes ago, dpm321 said:

Thanks for the review, we're taking the Edge TA in April and were starting to get a little concerned.  Was this a 7 day cruise?  We stopped doing them because we have noticed a huge difference in the people on a 7-day versus a 10 day or longer trip.  IMHO, it seems like the majority of the 7 day cruisers have unrealistic expectations and are generally not experienced travelers.  Obviously this leads to a lot of complaints.  And I'd be willing to bet that the service/event they complain about is still far superior to what they experience in day-to-day life.  It seems most of them don't know how an elevator works, let alone what good service looks like!

Some of the biggest complaints have come from veteran Celebrity cruisers. 

Edited February 10, 2019 by Oville

[MJSailors]

Perhaps change is difficult for some of those passengers who were complaining on the OP’s cruise.

 

[Hal from Ohio]

You can build some folks a solid gold fence, with diamond studded posts, and they’ll still complain because it’s not high enough to suit them.  😳

[cgolf1]

25 minutes ago, Oville said:

Some of the biggest complaints have come from veteran Celebrity cruisers. 

 

This where I think we were at an advantage. Being new to Celebrity coming from Disney and Royal we found the ship and it’s energy terrific and to be honest it was one of our best cruises to date. 

 

We did hear a lot of people saying don’t judge Celebrity by the Edge, so sometime in the future we will see if the older Celebrity ships work for us. Our next two Celebrity trips will be on the Apex, booked, and likely the Flora, not booked but will do onboard since they seem to give a better deal when booking on board. The Galapagos is a bucket list trip for us:)

 

Otherwise we will stick to Royal, because it seems that we can get to Elite quicker sailing Royal and we like both lines. Once we can sail as Elite we may switch over to Celebrity, time will tell. 

[kwokpot]

1 hour ago, cgolf1 said:

I will say I did walk by an infinite veranda room once and a guest was being so loud and rude to the stateroom host, that I debated stopping just in case the guest got too out of line. 

This reminds me of an incident long time ago on a cruise (TBH I don't remember which ship or cruiseline) I was sitting in a lounge relaxing and having a drink when this male passenger starting yelling AND CURSING at an employee. I immediately stepped in and dressed down the man. I basically said no matter what your complaint is with the employee there is NO REASON to use foul language towards the person. I basically said you're a very low class person to have to speak to someone like that.  

[vtcruising]

Thanks for the great review! Our experience a week earlier was similar in that we loved the Retreat sundeck and Luminae, but surprisingly to us, spent little time in the Retreat Lounge, though a lovely space. We also loved the Magic Carpet on previous cruises, though it was too windy to use much on our Jan cruise. It is a peaceful, lovely space.

 

Though we had some enjoyable times in the GP with music and drinks, Eden became our replacement for music and drinks before the show or dinner as the week went on. Some nights were louder than others in the GP.

 

I like your positive attitude. Some people take delight in finding flaws and then blowing it up and getting others stirred up. I just don't have time for that - there is too much fun to have! They have been so responsive on the Edge and have changed so much since our cruise in November and there seem to be more changes every week. They also are modifying their plans for Apex - it's great that they are listening.

 

Glad you had a wonderful cruise! You were a couple of doors down from us the week before. Loved that location and loved Denisa!!🙂

[hockeymom21]

1 hour ago, dmp223 said:

Loved your review and positive attitude! Can you share your thoughts on the Jost Van Dyke excursion... did you feel it was enough time to enjoy what you wanted to do? Would love to hear more about this. Thanks in advance 

I booked the excursion through the ship because I wasn't sure there would be enough time to take a Ferry over by ourselves and make it back to the ship in time.  It rained a little.  It took 3 trips from the Excursion boat on another boat to get all the passengers to the beach.  So that cut into the time because we were on the 3rd boat.  Basically, it's bars lined up on a sandy beach.  Lunch and a drink were included. I went because I wanted to go to Soggy Bottom Bar (I think that's the name) and have a Painkiller (drink).  It was a nice beach. We took a walk.  The boat ride to Jost Van Dyke was very pretty!

[Sandy1975]

11 minutes ago, hockeymom21 said:

I booked the excursion through the ship because I wasn't sure there would be enough time to take a Ferry over by ourselves and make it back to the ship in time.  It rained a little.  It took 3 trips from the Excursion boat on another boat to get all the passengers to the beach.  So that cut into the time because we were on the 3rd boat.  Basically, it's bars lined up on a sandy beach.  Lunch and a drink were included. I went because I wanted to go to Soggy Bottom Bar (I think that's the name) and have a Painkiller (drink).  It was a nice beach. We took a walk.  The boat ride to Jost Van Dyke was very pretty!

Did you take the morning or afternoon excursion? If morning, what time was it?

[hockeymom21]

1 hour ago, dpm321 said:

Thanks for the review, we're taking the Edge TA in April and were starting to get a little concerned.  Was this a 7 day cruise?  We stopped doing them because we have noticed a huge difference in the people on a 7-day versus a 10 day or longer trip.  IMHO, it seems like the majority of the 7 day cruisers have unrealistic expectations and are generally not experienced travelers.  Obviously this leads to a lot of complaints.  And I'd be willing to bet that the service/event they complain about is still far superior to what they experience in day-to-day life.  It seems most of them don't know how an elevator works, let alone what good service looks like!

dpm321- Yes, this was a 7 day cruise.  I have done a B2B and all my others were 7 days.  I don't think it has to do with "7 day cruisers have unrealistic expectations and are generally not experienced travelers" as you wrote.  I disagree with that.  Most people I know that are my age ( I am 52, husband 56) normally take 7 day cruises.  We are far from retired and travel as often as we can.  Last year we went to Hong Kong and Bali.  We also went to a fabulous resort called Playa Excellence Mujeres.  I think people that complain, just complain.  Like biting their nails.  They probably don't realize they are doing it.   I don't know if complaining means inexperience? 

[hockeymom21]

10 minutes ago, Sandy1975 said:

Did you take the morning or afternoon excursion? If morning, what time was it?

Sandy1975- afternoon!

[cgolf1]

8 minutes ago, hockeymom21 said:

dpm321- Yes, this was a 7 day cruise.  I have done a B2B and all my others were 7 days.  I don't think it has to do with "7 day cruisers have unrealistic expectations and are generally not experienced travelers" as you wrote.  I disagree with that.  Most people I know that are my age ( I am 52, husband 56) normally take 7 day cruises.  We are far from retired and travel as often as we can.  Last year we went to Hong Kong and Bali.  We also went to a fabulous resort called Playa Excellence Mujeres.  I think people that complain, just complain.  Like biting their nails.  They probably don't realize they are doing it.   I don't know if complaining means inexperience? 

 

I agree, I think some people are pickier than others. We saw this a lot on Disney where it seemed like people boarded the ship looking for small things that were wrong. I think we have averaged around 7 nights on our 15 cruises. 

 

It it takes a lot for us to be upset about something. The only thing that got to that level was my wife couldn’t be in Eden because of the smell. Instead focusing  on it we enjoyed the rest of the ship and had a grand time:)

[dmp223]

53 minutes ago, hockeymom21 said:

I booked the excursion through the ship because I wasn't sure there would be enough time to take a Ferry over by ourselves and make it back to the ship in time.  It rained a little.  It took 3 trips from the Excursion boat on another boat to get all the passengers to the beach.  So that cut into the time because we were on the 3rd boat.  Basically, it's bars lined up on a sandy beach.  Lunch and a drink were included. I went because I wanted to go to Soggy Bottom Bar (I think that's the name) and have a Painkiller (drink).  It was a nice beach. We took a walk.  The boat ride to Jost Van Dyke was very pretty!

 

Thank you!  I also booked the excursion through Celebrity after reviewing the ferry times. We have an 8:30 am start time. Soggy Dollar is on the agenda to enjoy a Painkiller! I sincerely appreciate your feedback, very helpful!

 

Thank you again!

[hcat]

2 hours ago, hockeymom21 said:

I booked the excursion through the ship because I wasn't sure there would be enough time to take a Ferry over by ourselves and make it back to the ship in time.  It rained a little.  It took 3 trips from the Excursion boat on another boat to get all the passengers to the beach.  So that cut into the time because we were on the 3rd boat.  Basically, it's bars lined up on a sandy beach.  Lunch and a drink were included. I went because I wanted to go to Soggy Bottom Bar (I think that's the name) and have a Painkiller (drink).  It was a nice beach. We took a walk.  The boat ride to Jost Van Dyke was very pretty!

 

We were booked on this  ship's excursion but they changed the time to the afternoon so we switched to something else.. I like the beach and  swimming  in the morning...too hot usually in the afternoon sun.  Not sure why  our time was changed...???

 

Did you get a chance to swim at tge beach?  If so how was the water?  Was there shade or umbrellas at the beach?  Was Soggy Dollar fully rebuilt?  Maybe next time for us!!  Have wanted to try it..mostly for the boat ride,,,

 

Thanks for your review...Although we enjoyed the 1/27  cruise ..and loved many aspects of the ship, the wind  and lack of shade up top , and noise issues  in public areas and BLU were disappointing., Hoping for improvement when we cruise EDGE again in the fall in a Sunset Veranda,

[hcat]

4 hours ago, dpm321 said:

Thanks for the review, we're taking the Edge TA in April and were starting to get a little concerned.  Was this a 7 day cruise?  We stopped doing them because we have noticed a huge difference in the people on a 7-day versus a 10 day or longer trip.  IMHO, it seems like the majority of the 7 day cruisers have unrealistic expectations and are generally not experienced travelers.  Obviously this leads to a lot of complaints.  And I'd be willing to bet that the service/event they complain about is still far superior to what they experience in day-to-day life.  It seems most of them don't know how an elevator works, let alone what good service looks like!

 

We are experienced cruisers....cruising all lengths of itins.  We are. E + on X, and have a  fairly nice day to day life,..We do not cruise with unrealistic expectations or  any lack of knowledge about cruising,  We followed EDGE from inception through construction....to  its dedication.

 

Edge is a new vessel with new concepts that some will embrace, others not so much, and some will have mixed views about,  it is also attracting cruisers from other lines who have diff experiences and expectations.

 

.It is hoped that positive and constructive critiques from passengers on the first few revenue cruises on EDGE,  will enhance your April cruise!

[Sandy1975]

3 hours ago, hockeymom21 said:

Sandy1975- afternoon!

Hmm, how long before sailaway did you get back on the ship? I have been going back n forth about booking this excursion! We like to do morning excursions but I want to go to Soggy dollar bar and check out Jost Van Dyke

[leadvocal]

Your positive attitude is very refreshing. Having only sailed 5 times and all on RCCL my trip on the Edge will be a completely new experience so I won't understand what all the complaining is about should I experience it.

 

Thanks for the great review!

[hockeymom21]

13 hours ago, Sandy1975 said:

Hmm, how long before sailaway did you get back on the ship? I have been going back n forth about booking this excursion! We like to do morning excursions but I want to go to Soggy dollar bar and check out Jost Van Dyke

Sandy1975, it might have been 4:30-ish?  I remember we went straight up to Retreat Bar and watched sail away.  So, not enough time to shower etc....