Recent reports on how strict is Celebrity about early arrivals?

[DaKahuna]

5 minutes ago, Treasure Hunter said:

That’s sad. Even Princess does a better job.  For suites and Elite. And so far the suite level on Royal Caribbean and NCL Haven are tops. And Celebrity suites are so expensive! Hopefully it will be better treatment once on board. Also our first time on the Edge, so I’m nervous about that. We loved the Reflection, Equinox and Eclipse 

 

 The suite life on Celebrity is so much better than it is on Royal Caribbean for those that are not in Star Class.  I think you will find suite life on Edge to be a very pleasurable and unique experience.  

 

 The one thing I do prefer about Royal Caribbean Oasis and Quantum class suite life over Celebrity's is that the suite restaurant Coastal Kitchen is open on port days for lunch.  On Celebrity Luminate is not open on port days.  However, if you have a port where you are going to stay aboard and relax, I highly recommend you arrange with your butler for lunch in your suite or visit the Suite Sun Deck and have lunch there.  We really enjoyed lunch on the Suite Sundeck on Edge. 

[Treasure Hunter]

Thank you. This info is very helpful.

[Jim_Iain]

On 12/24/2022 at 3:00 PM, Duanerice1 said:

When can you check in for a time slot. Haven’t been on Celebrity for 4 years. ABC’s in April. Can’t wait. 
 

Other lines we have been on we check in 2 weeks before 

 

You can check the App.   Under check in it will give you the exact date it will open for your cruise. 

[Mrs_Tiki]

2 hours ago, hcat said:

For the "new" terminal in port Ev  and oribably others, the old rules are no longer in effect

 

There was previously a clearly defined  boarding order.  Suites..Zenith..now have their own entry  so they are out of the gen boarding mix...

Used to be them first, then then E +  and AQ Class, then Elite and Concierge...

No longer followed.  Wheel chairs get some preference...Concierge sometimes gets on early for the lunch...

 

Everyone  else lines up  allegedly by time..it is a miserable waiting area with  uncomfortable metal benches..like a bus terminal..Everyone wants to be first...rude chaos!

  GRIN AND BEAR IT.

 

We recently sailed in a suite...much better experience  with go right in  rules.

We thought the waiting area  would be much nicer.. It had  more comfy seats...not nearly enough.  Open Bar but no snacks whatsoever...just a less crowded free for all  .  GRIN AND BEAR IT!

,

hcat, I know that you post often, enjoy readying your posts, and value your contributions, but I have a bit of a different take on this one. Our Retreat boarding experience was awesome in Terminal 25 at Port Everglades but terrible in Terminal 19, so I think that the terminal makes a big difference!

 

In November 2021, we embarked Apex from Terminal 25. The only hiccup was totally my fault. This was back in the days of extremely low passenger counts, so I breezed right in the main terminal door, not seeing the special entrance for Retreat guests. The port employee at the top of the escalator had limited English and no idea that there was a separate suite area. But once we found the “magic door,” all was awesome. The lounge was beautiful, and I have some recollection of beverages and light bites, but we were checked in and whisked aboard so fast that we never partook.

 

Totally different experience on our Edge sailing in March 2022. Another ship had some mechanical issue that required it to dock earlier at Terminal 25, so we were notified via text as we made our way the the port that Edge would be using Terminal 19. Especially when compared to 25, it seems like a drafty, dingy, old warehouse. As we made our way to the Retreat line, the computers went down, and we stood at least 30 minutes before it began to move and we could enter the building.
 

Once inside, suite passengers were crammed into the small waiting area with airport gate-like rows of seats as port employees did their best to get people checked in using some alternate system. (The handheld devices did not work, so they had to take our passports and paperwork to the few agents with laptops.) 

 

The kicker for us was that we were in a Royal Suite, and once checked in, they instructed us to remain in the terminal until someone could come to escort us to our suite. After 15 more minutes, no one came, so I politely asked someone from the ship if we could walk on ourselves. I know that they were trying to provide us with extra attention, but it kind of backfired!

[DaKahuna]

4 hours ago, Mrs_Tiki said:

hcat, I know that you post often, enjoy readying your posts, and value your contributions, but I have a bit of a different take on this one. Our Retreat boarding experience was awesome in Terminal 25 at Port Everglades but terrible in Terminal 19, so I think that the terminal makes a big difference!

 

Did you mean terminal 29?  All the way at the end? 

 

 Terminal 25 is the Terminal that was built for the Edge Class of ships and is amazing. Boarding and debarking there is a pleasure.

 

Terminal 29 is one of the older terminals and I agree with you assessment.  We boarded, did a turn around, and departed out of terminal 29 on Reflection last year.  Upon embarkation we went the suite line for security screening and were taken to a small curtained off area which had metal chairs and a few drinks/snacks set up.  We were not there very long but it was better than where they had us located for the B2B turn around.  Thankfully we did not spend much time in either location.  Our paperwork was checked and we were asked to wait a couple of minutes. I saw a few employee's checking their clipboards which had pictures of the guest sailing in the higher suites.  After about 3 - 5 minutes we were told we could proceed on the ship and off we went.  

 

[Mrs_Tiki]

8 minutes ago, DaKahuna said:

 

Did you mean terminal 29?  All the way at the end? 

 

 Terminal 25 is the Terminal that was built for the Edge Class of ships and is amazing. Boarding and debarking there is a pleasure.

 

Terminal 29 is one of the older terminals and I agree with you assessment.  We boarded, did a turn around, and departed out of terminal 29 on Reflection last year.  Upon embarkation we went the suite line for security screening and were taken to a small curtained off area which had metal chairs and a few drinks/snacks set up.  We were not there very long but it was better than where they had us located for the B2B turn around.  Thankfully we did not spend much time in either location.  Our paperwork was checked and we were asked to wait a couple of minutes. I saw a few employee's checking their clipboards which had pictures of the guest sailing in the higher suites.  After about 3 - 5 minutes we were told we could proceed on the ship and off we went.  

 

Yes, you are right! It must have been 29.

[Longhorn-ED]

On 12/20/2022 at 4:57 PM, 4-2-N-8 said:

Oh, yeah?

 

Well I'm triple double axis elite+ zenith menith. 

 

I'm so high up in priority I board from the pilot boat as the ship returns to port.

 

I'm on the ship before it even arrives!

 

Nanee nanee boo boo.🚣‍♂️

My wife and I are so low on the Celebrity totem pole. We have to swim out to the ship after it sails.

[rvmckim]

SO, I thought it would be nice to give everyone an update of my cruise and what happened since I was the one running late to Celebrity Apex. I did learn that if your boarding is at 1pm and the ship sails at 4pm you might want to be there prior to 2:30pm. My fiancé landed in Miami due to weather conditions after American cancelled her flight and left her stranded in Dallas to spend the night in the airport on standby. She landed at 2:45 and hired a taxi to head to Ft Lauderdale. My flight was with Delta and came through Atlanta and was on time so I was at the ship by 9am. I basically spoke with everyone at the pier and their hard stop was 3:30pm and I stood in the doorway to make sure they honored that. My fiancé pulled in at 3:27 and I think I had every high ranking worker there standing by my side cheering her on. The only issue was American misplaced her luggage and one bag was sitting in Phoenix and another was left in Dallas. That made for a fun first few days having to purchase everything to wear in the Apex gift shop until our first port which was 3 days later on Xmas day in Cartagena. 

 

On a side note I will say that service on Apex was less than I expected. I did meet a long time Celebrity cruiser and his explanation was that Apex is their training ship and service is a bit lacking unless you are in the suites. Our Stateroom attendant was the best ive ever had but the restaurants were more of a miss than hit except for Cosmopolitan. We never had an issue in there and Eden was more than I ever could have expected.

[BOB999]

13 minutes ago, rvmckim said:

SO, I thought it would be nice to give everyone an update of my cruise and what happened since I was the one running late to Celebrity Apex. I did learn that if your boarding is at 1pm and the ship sails at 4pm you might want to be there prior to 2:30pm. My fiancé landed in Miami due to weather conditions after American cancelled her flight and left her stranded in Dallas to spend the night in the airport on standby. She landed at 2:45 and hired a taxi to head to Ft Lauderdale. My flight was with Delta and came through Atlanta and was on time so I was at the ship by 9am. I basically spoke with everyone at the pier and their hard stop was 3:30pm and I stood in the doorway to make sure they honored that. My fiancé pulled in at 3:27 and I think I had every high ranking worker there standing by my side cheering her on. The only issue was American misplaced her luggage and one bag was sitting in Phoenix and another was left in Dallas. That made for a fun first few days having to purchase everything to wear in the Apex gift shop until our first port which was 3 days later on Xmas day in Cartagena. 

 

On a side note I will say that service on Apex was less than I expected. I did meet a long time Celebrity cruiser and his explanation was that Apex is their training ship and service is a bit lacking unless you are in the suites. Our Stateroom attendant was the best ive ever had but the restaurants were more of a miss than hit except for Cosmopolitan. We never had an issue in there and Eden was more than I ever could have expected.

 

Thanks for providing an update, sorry to hear of your challenges.  Did you get reunited with your luggage on the cruise or have to wait until you were done?

 

Glad you were at least able to enjoy parts of your cruise.

Edited January 12, 2023 by BOB999

[rvmckim]

21 minutes ago, BOB999 said:

 

Thanks for providing an update, sorry to hear of your challenges.  Did you get reunited with your luggage on the cruise or have to wait until you were done?

 

Glad you were at least able to enjoy parts of your cruise.

American would not send us the bags and they fly direct to Cartagena which didn't make any sense. Instead they said they would reimburse up to $5000 in purchases to replace everything. So we were able to go shopping for new clothes and just waiting on the check now. In the end the baggage was returned to our house and left on the doorstep a few days till I could get someone to stop by and collect it.

 

[Nashna]

So glad she made it!  You two must have been a wreck all day.  Sorry to hear that you were not happy with the Apex service.  We were on her last January and the service was excellent.  Of course, we dined in Blu and that might have made a difference.  We opted for a Sunset Veranda this time, so no Blu.  I'll report back!  

[rvmckim]

2 hours ago, Nashna said:

So glad she made it!  You two must have been a wreck all day.  Sorry to hear that you were not happy with the Apex service.  We were on her last January and the service was excellent.  Of course, we dined in Blu and that might have made a difference.  We opted for a Sunset Veranda this time, so no Blu.  I'll report back!  

We were on Edge, not Apex so I made that mistake. Edge is the training ship for that class which is why the service will be hit and miss. We made friends with a few cruisers who are avid Celebrity fans (12+ a year) and they explained this to us as they knew all the staff and Edge has high turnover. They only would book suites on Edge so that they could gain access to Blue and Luminae. I will say the worst meal we had was on the Rooftop Grill when I saw so many reviews that the food there was amazing. Ours was tasteless and dry which was a disappointment. The view on the other hand was amazing as we did the early dining at sunset.

[D C]

On 12/26/2022 at 8:57 PM, DaKahuna said:

 

Did you mean terminal 29?  All the way at the end? 

 

 Terminal 25 is the Terminal that was built for the Edge Class of ships and is amazing. Boarding and debarking there is a pleasure.

 

Terminal 29 is one of the older terminals and I agree with you assessment.  We boarded, did a turn around, and departed out of terminal 29 on Reflection last year.  Upon embarkation we went the suite line for security screening and were taken to a small curtained off area which had metal chairs and a few drinks/snacks set up.  We were not there very long but it was better than where they had us located for the B2B turn around.  Thankfully we did not spend much time in either location.  Our paperwork was checked and we were asked to wait a couple of minutes. I saw a few employee's checking their clipboards which had pictures of the guest sailing in the higher suites.  After about 3 - 5 minutes we were told we could proceed on the ship and off we went.  

 

As a non-suite cruiser, I think Terminal 29 is far and away better than 25.  The randomly-arranged disorganized organic seating areas in 25 are pure chaos, and the cavernous building is a huge echo chamber.  Impossible to hear staff.   29 with the airport gate waiting area seating, while dated, is so wonderfully simple and organised.  Have only had to use it once in 3 sailings out of 29 this past year.   We usually walk right on and have had drinks in hand just after 11. 

[Brian&Brandi]

No issues getting on the Beyond on Dec 26, 2022 out of FLL. There was no way I was waiting until an hour before sailing to board the ship as my assigned time stated. There were no lines at all. It was super fast, easy, and pleasant.