E-Class Retreat--Worth it?

[zackarykeef]

Hey, y'all!

 

I'm looking at booking a Beyond/Ascent cruise for next year, as I can get a pretty good deal right now. Deciding between a sunset verandah vs a suite. Money isn't really the issue, so either is fine.

 

Is the Retreat worth it? Do you have to eat in Luminae every night (other than specialty, of course). It's a 9-day Caribbean, so I feel like that is a lot of nights in the same restaurant, although I assume the menu changes nightly. Not sure how the other 4 main dining rooms work ie if they each have the same food like on other lines vs different in each.

 

I guess I'm just trying to figure out a little more, as I haven't yet sailed Celebrity (first is this summer on Equinox, not a suite).

 

Thanks in advance!

 

Happy cruising 😎

[tfred]

there are a few posts on suites and Luminae in general on here.  Luminae is very good, but the food is a little more upscale.  I wouldn't call it unconventional but if you are "traditional" eater but it isn't meat and potatoes you may have a puss on your face.   Some people like the suite concept (bigger room and separate area) until they see the menu.  If you enjoy food, then there will be no surprises 

 

That said, The Retreat is calm oasis in what can be the usual noise at the main pool.  Suites are all over the ship so you won't be walled off from the action.  

[ScubaDo]

It is all about what you can afford and what you value. For us it is so worth it. Our jobs are extremely stressful, and this helps so much 🙂

[XuGator]

Retreat wasnt worth it for us. Luminae is good but gets redundant and its nice to try all the main dining rooms on E-class as well. They are all neat and have their own character. The food is actually really good in these as well. The retreat pool we found rather boring also. It depends on what you like to do I guess. If you want to relax and read a book then the retreat pool is nice but all the energy and entertainment is at the regular pool.

[MarKay525]

We treated ourselves to a Sky Suite on Edge last month and thought it was worth it. While there were a few quibbles, the S2 stateroom layout worked well for us. We ate very few meals in Luminae - we dined in 3 of the 4 MDRs, Blu, and OVC, which we like for the variety at breakfast. With our suite-level OBC, we ate in specialty restaurants, enjoyed some pampering at the spa and visited the SEA Thermal Suite.

 

The time we spent in the Retreat was quiet and peaceful. (I believe the Retreat on Beyond will be even larger as they are (sadly) converting the covered outdoor seating we had on Edge to inside Retreat space.) It was very nice to have a Future Travel rep meet with us in the Retreat rather than having to wait in the line at Future Cruise Vacations on Deck 4. In fact, it was nice to not have to wait in any type of line as, between our Personal Retreat Host and the Retreat Hostesses, anything we needed was taken care of.

 

We're not sun worshipers/pool people, so didn't spend any time on the Retreat Sundeck but it looked very inviting for those who enjoy such activities.

 

For us, it was worth it to just feel special after so long of not being on a ship.

 

Note on 4 Main Dining Room menus: Each MDR has a "theme" and has menu items related to that theme. All 4 also have dishes common to all. In addition, there are items that change each night. Smaller spaces were nice - felt more like specialty dining.

 

Enjoy your cruise, whichever you select.

 

Kay (and Mark)

Retired couple

 

 

Edited April 30, 2022 by MarKay525

[jelayne]

Lately we have cruised mainly in Suites and have decided that it is worth on longer itineraries with a lot of sea days.  We enjoy the extra space a suite provides on sea days.  
 

The Retreat Lounge isn’t a place we spend time in except to get a question answered or a problem fixed.  
We don’t care for Luminae, only eat breakfast there on debarkation morning and lunch there on embarkation day and maybe 2-3 dinners a week.  

We book a few specialty restaurants and on the E class ships go to 1 of the 4 MDRs.  I enjoy the Retreat Sun Deck but on the past few cruises with the Retreat at 100% occupancy finding a lounger after 10a.m. is a challenge, there are Retreat  “chair hogs” .

We have a couple of port intensive cruises booked and have booked Sunset Verandas as the thing we like most about suites ,space, really isn’t a factor when we will be off the ship so much.

[zackarykeef]

Thanks for all of this! Good to know you can eat in the MDRs. Some lines your dedicated restaurant is the “exclusive” one, which makes it hard if people you are traveling with are in a standard room.

[lv2cruisgrl]

We enjoy the retreat experience.  I would suggest try it and see if you like it.  We did that a year or so ago and now that's all we book.