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Live from Apex - 6/19


Kreative03
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9 minutes ago, ipeeinthepool said:

 

Not sure I understand. Aren't the streaming and surf customers competing for the same resource?  If surf is bad I'm not sure why streaming would be better.

They may prioritize and let the streaming customers get the data first and whatever bandwidth left are split between the surf folks.   

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8 hours ago, Kreative03 said:

Someone was asking about Eden - the space feels the same and absolutely worthless as it does on Edge. The ramp of wasted space and the odd seating with the silly cafe. Dining room and second level still inaccessible from their respective levels but the lift is available. Royal does this concept 10x better on the Quantum class and they should leave it there. 

97388982-57EF-4C66-9C5F-C85C753488B5.jpeg

BCEDB1D5-BA08-4A36-90D2-BB2346456EA7.jpeg

Gosh... we loved the ramp areas on EDGE and the art along the way..enjoyed EDEN  daytime and at a night..The cafe had great fresh food  and soup, coffee and  great breads and cookies.

 

Not Royal fans anymore so can't compare spaces..Diff strokes for diff folks.Good to read other perspectoves!  Enjoy the cruise.

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8 hours ago, Kreative03 said:

@ian441672 

Luminae - night 1 was usual night 1 hiccups plus a first real service for them all in a year. Night 2 was fine tuned. Food is their menu plus the classic MDR. Creme Brûlée is now missing from the classic MDR desert list but the waiter graciously offered to have it at the ready for one of our party tonight, knowing it was a request.

 

 

 

Interesting. So you were able to order from both the Luminae menu and the MDR menu? Just want to clarify that the second menu was not the Luminae “everyday items” menu?

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11 hours ago, Kreative03 said:

Someone was asking about Eden - the space feels the same and absolutely worthless as it does on Edge. The ramp of wasted space and the odd seating with the silly cafe. Dining room and second level still inaccessible from their respective levels but the lift is available. Royal does this concept 10x better on the Quantum class and they should leave it there. 

97388982-57EF-4C66-9C5F-C85C753488B5.jpeg

BCEDB1D5-BA08-4A36-90D2-BB2346456EA7.jpeg

I thought that Royal did the space better also.  

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On 6/19/2021 at 10:31 AM, ocdb8r said:

We're also on and will try to answer any questions Creative doesn't get to. We'll be doing the 4 MDRs, Fine Cut and the BBQ place in the garden.

 

My thoughts thus far:

 

Check-in and boarding seemed much less organized than reports from St. Maarten.  No one explained the process from start to finish (which was part of why many were just sitting in the tent post testing as it wasn't clear when your could go board....signs indicating what you should have available were not correct (e.g. the first line in the tent said "Have your passport and testing QR code ready" when in fact the first thing we were asked for was out boarding pass).  No big deal if you have everything printed out, but we tried to stay "digital" and switching between multiple apps and screen was a bit difficult.  Staff also a bit confused and not everything went smoothly.  We prefilled and registered for everything (and it was quite a bit between Celebrity, Greece and a separate service for the pre-board COVID testing). One out of three cabins we have ended up having to go through a manual check in process (which the staff were all confused about, several arguing with each other about what we should do and where we should go....after having already stood in the multiple "automatic" check in lines).

 

Once on board it's been great.  We've been told there are about 700 guests and 950 staff.... needless to say NOTHING is too busy or crowded.  Staff seem thrilled to see us but are all still getting their sea legs.  Two in our party wanted to upgrade their drinks package and it took a lot of research (but everyone sooooo friendly and just happy to be learning).

 

Masks required everywhere except the pool deck/gym or while eating drinking (which thus far seems to mean if you're sitting with a drink in front of you, you're fine without a mask even if not actively drinking).

 

The ship is gorgeous and shiny new....magic carpet a great little lounge (easily accessible with so few on board).

 

 

Going to be on the Apex in August, do you know if the 700 guests is capacity for the season or will that be increasing as the season goes on?

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12 hours ago, Kreative03 said:

Someone was asking about Eden - the space feels the same and absolutely worthless as it does on Edge. The ramp of wasted space and the odd seating with the silly cafe. Dining room and second level still inaccessible from their respective levels but the lift is available. Royal does this concept 10x better on the Quantum class and they should leave it there. 

97388982-57EF-4C66-9C5F-C85C753488B5.jpeg

BCEDB1D5-BA08-4A36-90D2-BB2346456EA7.jpeg

Ah, it would be a boring world if we were all the same. Eden was my absolutely favorite place on Edge.

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7 minutes ago, nepats1284 said:

Going to be on the Apex in August, do you know if the 700 guests is capacity for the season or will that be increasing as the season goes on?

I suspect the 700 guests is not a limit, but the result of folks hesitant to travel on the first cruise.  I would expect the number of passengers to increase by a lot as the season goes on.

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3 hours ago, cruiserchuck said:

I suspect the 700 guests is not a limit, but the result of folks hesitant to travel on the first cruise.  I would expect the number of passengers to increase by a lot as the season goes on.

This isn’t a true limit but it was indeed confirmed as their current booking rate through the summer season as of now. Unclear what the booking capacity is but I thought it was capped at 60%. This cruise has about 100+ in a group from Park West, and about 115 suites filled in general. Those are the only ‘facts’ I’ve heard so far.

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6 hours ago, WonderMan3 said:

Interesting. So you were able to order from both the Luminae menu and the MDR menu? Just want to clarify that the second menu was not the Luminae “everyday items” menu?

Second menu is MDR classics. There are Daniel Boulad signature items but those haven’t changed and are daily offerings.

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14 hours ago, jtouma3 said:

Hi! I will be sailing on Apex next week and have a question for current passengers on the Greek Passenger Locator Form. Did you fill one out for arrival to Greece by plane (noting the ship as one of the places you will stay), then another for arrival by cruise with the date of disembarkation?

 

I am getting in a day early and am confused by what to do here. Appreciate any support!!

Hi jtouma3, 

We are also currently onboard Apex. You just need to fill out the Greece PLF once for entry into Greece. Complete the form before you leave home and you get a QR code for us upon entry to Greece at midnight the day of arrival. Only 1 form needed per family. If you are staying at a hotel prior to getting on the ship, not both locations on the form. 
You don’t need another once on the ship for arrival back as far as we know. But I’m sure the ship will inform of anything else required. 
You also need to complete the ship required Healthy at Sea documents prior to arrival at port and answer a health questionnaire the day before sailing. 
Hope this helps. 
The ship is gorgeous - you won’t be disappointed!!!

 

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3 hours ago, MMG3 said:

If you are staying at a hotel prior to getting on the ship, not both locations on the form. 

Should read: If you are staying at a hotel prior to getting on the ship, note both locations on the form. 

 

3 hours ago, MMG3 said:

Complete the form before you leave home and you get a QR code for us upon entry to Greece at midnight the day of arrival.

Should read: Complete the form before you leave home and you get a QR code for use upon entry to Greece at midnight the day of arrival.

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@little britain - I think others will have more detail than I will (given my traveling situation) on ports but here’s my take. We haven’t done tours since we didn’t have to — and small kids don’t love history and sights. I’m noting mask compliance in ports as while most Greek dining is outdoors in summer, most shops and walkways are tiny so YMMV on how you want to handle yourself.

 

Santorini - it appeared that they changed the excursions so that they all were a 2 way transfer by bus. if exploring on your own, you can still take the cable car, donkey, or walk to the top. Boat tours are leaving from the small dock but I didn’t check them out. About half of the lower stores were shut. Once up top you could continue to take public transit or walk around as normal. Quite a few tourists but nothing like when there are 6 ships in port. More than I anticipated were around actually. Nearly no one working shops wore masks (or had them over face) but most did in restaurant/bars that I saw. We were told by more than one crew member that they don’t believe the Greek isles vaccination rate so they are not yet allowed off for touring there.

 

Mykonos - free port shuttle to take you to the town center. Can also take waterbus for a few euros (leaves every 20 mins or so). Most stores open, again pretty flush with tourists.  Not crowded but quite full. Same amount of mask wearing.

 

We will be doing a boat tour in Cyprus and exploring again in Rhodes. Hope others chime in with actual shorex experience 

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1 hour ago, MMG3 said:

Should read: If you are staying at a hotel prior to getting on the ship, note both locations on the form. 

 

Should read: Complete the form before you leave home and you get a QR code for use upon entry to Greece at midnight the day of arrival.

I’m sure someone else said just put the hotel details; not the ship info….. but what address did you put for the ship - The port at Piraeus??

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12 hours ago, Kreative03 said:

Second menu is MDR classics. There are Daniel Boulad signature items but those haven’t changed and are daily offerings.

Okay. This just sounds like the everyday items Luminae menu that was added in 2019. The items are similar to items from the MDR menu. It was added after Edge launched and people could no longer order from the MDR menu (as on S and M class ships due to the Luminae kitchen no longer being shared with the MDR kitchen) and there were a number of complaints.

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2 hours ago, little britain said:

I’m sure someone else said just put the hotel details; not the ship info….. but what address did you put for the ship - The port at Piraeus??


when we did a cruise to Greece in October we received information what to enter as an address. It was all the ports of the cruise.

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2 hours ago, WonderMan3 said:

Okay. This just sounds like the everyday items Luminae menu that was added in 2019. The items are similar to items from the MDR menu. It was added after Edge launched and people could no longer order from the MDR menu (as on S and M class ships due to the Luminae kitchen no longer being shared with the MDR kitchen) and there were a number of complaints.

This is from Celebrity website. See top of page 2 of Normandie-Dinner in the pdf. CLASSIC “CAESAR” SALAD Hearts of Romaine, Garlic Croutons, Parmesan Cheese CHILLED SHRIMP COCKTAIL Classic Cocktail Sauce ESCARGOTS À LA BOURGUIGNONNE Shallots, Garlic, Parsley, Pernod Butter FRENCH ONION SOUP Herb Croutons and Melted Gruyère Cheese BROILED SALMON* Plain or with Classic Hollandaise Sauce; Mashed Potatoes, Seasonal Vegetables GRILLED CHICKEN BREAST Garden Thyme Jus; Mashed Potatoes, Seasonal Vegetables GRILLED NEW YORK SIRLOIN STEAK* Beurre Maître d’ Hôtel; Mashed Potatoes, Seasonal Vegetables. Sad that they dont have Creme Brûlée listed. Still one of my favorite deserts. Since we are not cruising I had to make my own Creme Brûlée. Luminae does have some nice deserts. See photos. What is nice about Luminae is that you can give them 24 notice and they will cook your request. IMG_20160907_130619524.thumb.jpg.eaf2dfd891229390a4927ef9099be0c1.jpgIMG_20160909_230244501.thumb.jpg.05b4c85f96503729e68a2a44f5775493.jpgIMG_20180325_195438547.thumb.jpg.c1ec4e146e520c566542c4f5cb151aa2.jpg

https://www.celebritycruisespresscenter.com/press-kit/10/celebrity-edge-menus/

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6 hours ago, 4104ever said:

We are sailing Sept 18th.  Curious as to what terminal # Apex sailed from.  We are thinking of taking the bus from the airport and wondering how far our walk would be to terminal.  Thank you

 

X Transfers are only $39 each way... unless you insist on public transit ?

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8 hours ago, 4104ever said:

We are sailing Sept 18th.  Curious as to what terminal # Apex sailed from.  We are thinking of taking the bus from the airport and wondering how far our walk would be to terminal.  Thank you


Celebrity usually use Cruise Terminal B.

Pretty far to walk, even from the entrance,

 

The public bus X80 connecting the city center/Syntagma Square with the port stops right in front of the terminal. However, I don’t know if the line is currently in service.

 

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