Long time Princess Cruiser trying Celebrity for the 1st time - Line tips please

[KristyMisty14]

8 minutes ago, Langley Cruisers said:

 

Café al Bacio is a pay coffee venue, just so we are being clear. The coffee drinks range from probably $3 - $7 approximately, and the pastries and cookies are complimentary at any time. If you order a coffee to stay, they serve it with a little biscotti for dunking. ☕ If you just want a regular cup of coffee, I find the free coffee in the Oceanview Café (buffet) to be quite wonderful (Lavazza brewed), plus they have real cream, not the small non-dairy creamers that you see on other lines.

 

If we have the Classic Beverage Package can we use that here or do we have to upgrade to the Premium?  

[sbt518]

6 minutes ago, KristyMisty14 said:

 

If we have the Classic Beverage Package can we use that here or do we have to upgrade to the Premium?  

 

Yes, you can get most things at Cafe al Bacio with the classic beverage package.

I think there are a few of the more complicated alcoholic coffee drinks that are only included with the upgrade to premium but I am not sure which ones, as I don't care for them so never really checked.  But regular cappuccino, latte, mocha etc  you can get with the classic. And iced versions of those.  Plus a variety of hot and iced tea, fancy iced coffees etc.

 

My favorite is the affogato for an after dinner treat but that might be also only available with the premium package as it included gelato.

[macaroni]

When we had classic they only added $1.00 for the specialty coffees...a lot cheaper than upgrading to the premium package.

[cluso]

February 29th cruise???

[Northern Aurora]

KristyMisty:  Not only can you use your CBP at the Cafe al Bacio for lattes, it also covers most of the coffees with alcohol.  The tea at Cafe al Bacio is Tea Forte for those of us who love tea.  

 

And while the pastries and so forth are behind a case (so that a server has to retrieve your choice) there is no additional charge (whether you order a beverage or not).  This venue with open with breakfast items such as muffins, croissants and so forth.  About 11:30 AM they transition to small deserts such as brownies, small tarts, and small rectangles of cake.  In the evening it will transition to elaborately decorated layer cakes, cheesecakes and periodically a pie.  The Cafe al Bacio has the best desserts on the ship during the evening hours.

[Glendakayself]

I second the recommendation to try the treats in Al Bacio. They are included for everyone.

 

I would also recommend the afternoon snacks and treats in the buffet--little sandwiches, pastries, tarts, etc. Some of the sandwiches we have seen have been lacking, but then there are small quiches and other filling snacks to try. Last cruise on Summit, se found a more varied assortment. (They used to call this afternoon tea, but the name has changed.) It is great to come back from a day ashore to the afternoon treats. Check the daily sheet in your room for the time.

[Blackduck59]

Most things in Cafe al Bacio are covered by the Classic drink package. Pastries are complimentary but the ice cream is not. Go to ocean view cafe (the buffet) for ice cream its complimentary there

[KristyMisty14]

Evening entertainment, theme parties?

[abbydancer2003]

3 hours ago, KristyMisty14 said:

Evening entertainment, theme parties?

They have some - their shows are a little more theatrical than Princess's are, but more similar than different.

 

One way to get a sense of a Celebrity ship, watch the cruising episode of Rick Steve's Europe.  It was filmed on two cruises - one on the Reflection and I forget the other.  

 

He's shown dancing at a theme party - the person he "high-fives" is my DH, and he's dancing with me and some friends (which is how I know it was on the Reflection).

 

[Pushka]

I much prefer Celebrity performances. Hands down. 

Edited February 2, 2020 by Pushka

[WrittenOnYourHeart]

On 1/30/2020 at 7:25 PM, cluso said:

February 29th cruise???

If it is for this year, yes. It is a leap year.

[cluso]

2 hours ago, WrittenOnYourHeart said:

If it is for this year, yes. It is a leap year.

Actually, I got my E ships mixed up.  We are leaving February 29th on the Equinox.  Was wondering if the OP was on our sailing.  But I reread the post, and the OP is on the Eclipse. 🙄

[WrittenOnYourHeart]

18 minutes ago, cluso said:

Actually, I got my E ships mixed up.  We are leaving February 29th on the Equinox.  Was wondering if the OP was on our sailing.  But I reread the post, and the OP is on the Eclipse. 🙄

Ah, gotcha. And with Edge there are 3 E ships!

[micmacmissy]

Here are my suggestions of Celebrity must-dos:

• homemade ice cream in Oceanview Cafe
• adults only solarium is fabulous and quiet
• live music in ensemble lounge (shows are only meh but the live music is great!)
• eat in Murano and Tuscan Grille, the service is great
• go early for a seat at the martini bar
• enjoy drinks up on the lawn
• don't miss Mast Grill for great burgers by the pool
• room service tea and cookies on your balcony
• non-smoking casino, yes please!

 

Have a great time!

[KristyMisty14]

On 2/2/2020 at 7:56 AM, micmacmissy said:

Here are my suggestions of Celebrity must-dos:

• homemade ice cream in Oceanview Cafe
• adults only solarium is fabulous and quiet
• live music in ensemble lounge (shows are only meh but the live music is great!)
• eat in Murano and Tuscan Grille, the service is great
• go early for a seat at the martini bar
• enjoy drinks up on the lawn
• don't miss Mast Grill for great burgers by the pool
• room service tea and cookies on your balcony
• non-smoking casino, yes please!

 

Have a great time!

My husband is going to love the non-smoking casino!  

What is the Lawn?

[julia]

On 2/1/2020 at 7:29 PM, KristyMisty14 said:

Evening entertainment, theme parties?

 

Celebrity's theaters are MUCH nicer and you do NOT need to show up an hour ahead of a show!  The entertainment will vary, but we've always been impressed.  The best place for nightly drinks is The Martini Bar... frozen bar top, and talented bartenders.  "The Lawn" is the uppermost deck... covered in real grass.

[bama4cruisin]

1 hour ago, KristyMisty14 said:

 

What is the Lawn?

The Lawn is an area on the top deck of Solstice class ships which has real grass . . . Sometimes there are Bocce Ball games, croquet, etc., sometimes movies are shown.  

 

These were taken on The Eclipse and The Solstice

 

Edited February 3, 2020 by bama4cruisin

[MarkWiltonM]

Another thing that may interest you.  At 4:00 pm every day, Celebrity puts out fresh scones with clotted cream and jam for tea in the OceanView Cafe.  The scones are really fresh and good.  This is not a formal tea; self-serve.  A lot of people don't seem to know about this.  Otherwise, Cafe al Bacio has great sweets for the taking, and their specialty coffees are very good.  

[cruiselvr04]

I’m interested too since we’ll be on our first Celebrity cruise in October.  We’ done almost 40 cruises and thought it was time to change things up.  We won’t be in Blu or the suite dining but want to know more about other places to eat besides the main dining room. 

What has an up charge?  Are they worth it?  Is there a charge for the Mast grill?  We will have the premium package so the café you’re talking about includes coffee?  What about hot chocolate? Included?  Can they add Baileys to that?

 

We’re so used to Royal....I don’t want to miss out on things just be we don’t know...I understand with elite we get to use the Persian garden once on a port afternoon.  What exactly is that?  

 

We are on an 11 night with many of the same ports we’ve been to many times.  I read about the beds on the lawn being rental able for a port day?  Any comments on that?

 

Room service is included?  We rarely use it on Royal anymore because of the charge.

[Blackduck59]

Lumiere is the exclusive restauraunt for Suite guests. Murano, Tuscan Grill, Qsine and Sushi on Five are all "Specialty" restaurants with an extra cost.We didn't go to any of them on our first cruise but will be going to some on our next cruise. All have an extra cost which varies, Sushi on 5 is "Ala Carte" just like a sushi restaurant at home. Tuscan Grill has the best view by far, there is a wall of windows right across the stern of the ship.

The persian garden is a warm room with heated stone loungers.

Your premium beverage package should pretty much cover almost any drinks in any venue on the ship ( except the most expensive Spirits and wines.

Not all Solstice Class ships have the cabanas on the lawn yet, it depends which ship you are on. Also most of the lawn club is non smoking except for a section on the Starboard side close to the stern. Most of the ship is non smoking (which is outstanding for non smokers like my wie and I). One of the open air bars, the Mast Bar I think is a smoking area including cigars.

[abbydancer2003]

6 hours ago, julia said:

 

Celebrity's theaters are MUCH nicer and you do NOT need to show up an hour ahead of a show!  The entertainment will vary, but we've always been impressed.  The best place for nightly drinks is The Martini Bar... frozen bar top, and talented bartenders.  "The Lawn" is the uppermost deck... covered in real grass.

One other note on the theater.  The showtimes, at least on the cruises I've been on, have worked better than on Princess for fixed dining.  The first show is at 7, so easy for anyone with late seating, and the second at 9, good for early diners.  On Princess it's always been 8 and 10, so very difficult for people with late seating.  Which may be why it's so hard to get a seat.  Everyone wants the 8 show, since 10 is too late for many in early seating.  That's my theory, anyway.

[kluv2cruz]

3 hours ago, Blackduck59 said:

Sushi on 5 is "Ala Carte" just like a sushi restaurant at home.

 

Your premium beverage package should pretty much cover almost any drinks in any venue on the ship ( except the most expensive Spirits and wines.

Including warm saki in Sushi on 5! Yummy! And, sushi on 5 is very good. Try it for lunch!

[KristyMisty14]

15 hours ago, abbydancer said:

One other note on the theater.  The showtimes, at least on the cruises I've been on, have worked better than on Princess for fixed dining.  The first show is at 7, so easy for anyone with late seating, and the second at 9, good for early diners.  On Princess it's always been 8 and 10, so very difficult for people with late seating.  Which may be why it's so hard to get a seat.  Everyone wants the 8 show, since 10 is too late for many in early seating.  That's my theory, anyway.

Oh interesting, that does sound better!  Do their show times flow well with other evening activities? 

What are some people favorite activities?

[abbydancer2003]

8 minutes ago, KristyMisty14 said:

Oh interesting, that does sound better!  Do their show times flow well with other evening activities? 

What are some people favorite activities?

In general, on both lines, the show is the main entertainment.  I know theme parties and silent disco usually start around 10 or so, so after the shows.

I may not be the best person to answer this, since we tend to eat dinner late, and then just wander around for a while and go back to the room.

[jb008]

22 hours ago, abbydancer said:

One other note on the theater.  The showtimes, at least on the cruises I've been on, have worked better than on Princess for fixed dining.  The first show is at 7, so easy for anyone with late seating, and the second at 9, good for early diners.  On Princess it's always been 8 and 10, so very difficult for people with late seating.  Which may be why it's so hard to get a seat.  Everyone wants the 8 show, since 10 is too late for many in early seating.  That's my theory, anyway.

 

The 8 & 10p showtimes were also used on HAL too (at least the two sailings we've done so far) and I much prefer the 7 & 9p times that X uses.  Catch the 7p show and then dinner at 8/8:15.  With the 10p shows we'd finish our 8p second seating and have to kill 30-45 mins before the 10p show and several times ended up skipping the show and calling it an earlier night.

 

I really enjoyed the "Silent Disco" at the Martini Bar - they handed out wireless headphones that could be switched between 3 different music channels (with a corresponding led light to show which station you had playing). People end up dancing and singing to different music, or as a really popular song comes on you can watch the bulk of the crowd start changing to the same music station (with corresponding light on the headphones).

 

As a PCL cruiser in the future you may want to check out HAL too.  We've been on HAL the last two cruises and been very happy with the experience.  It did skew more sedate and older crowds than PCL or X, but we were very happy with the onboard experience.  We did sail holiday sailings, so a lot of kids and multigenerational groups.  We sail X later this month so I'm looking forward to being able to do a more recent comparison between X and HAL, but our sense right now is that we'd be happy sailing any of the three lines.

From our 2/17 Silhouette sailing, the biggest difference we noticed was the different "levels" on X made it feel more premium if you were in a higher "tier" (e.g., Suite, Aqua, Concierge) while a couple we hung out with remarked that a basic inside cabin felt like a "coach" experience (e.g., diff lines for embarkation, restaurants, tenders).  PCL and HAL didn't have as noticeable of a difference (although suites got VIP treatment and they've added the Club Orange and Club Class on HAL and PCL, respectively - but it was still less intrusive than how X does it, partly due to volume of "premium" categories on X).  We're booked in an ocean view on X, so this wasn't a deal breaker by any means - just an observation we noticed.

 

Added in Edit: Also word of warning if you don't have a beverage package, drink prices on X were higher than on Princess.  I haven't sailed on X since '17, but from what little research I've done I think that trend is still running true.

Edited February 5, 2020 by jb008